Read and Understand Measurements in House Plans

Read and Understand Measurements in House Plans Its easy to purchase house plans from a website or house plan catalog, but they hardly ever come with directions for reading floor plans. What are you buying? Will the completed house measure up to your expectations? The following hints come from an architect who designs luxury house plans and custom homes. He wants you to know about measuring. - ed. Key Facts About Measuring area: measured in square feet (or square meters), the rectangular length times the width; the area of a triangle is one-half the base times the heightvolume: the length times the width times the heightarea of a composite: for an irregularly shaped room, divide the room into regular shapes (rectangles and triangles) and sum the areasgross area: measured from the exterior wall foundation, so the area includes wall thicknessnet area: measured from interior walls; area of the living spacearchitect scale: a three-sided measuring device with six measuring edges (described as prism-shaped), similar to a ruler, but used to interpret the true size of a line drawn to scale on a floor plan or blueprint Size Up Your House Plan When you compare house plans, one of the more important characteristics you’ll consider is the area of the floor plan - the size of the plan - measured in square feet or square meters. Heres a little secret. Square feet and square meters are not measured the same on every house plan. Any two house plans that appear to be of equal area may not really be. Does this make much difference when you’re choosing a plan? You bet it does! On a 3,000 square foot plan, a difference of only 10 percent might unexpectedly cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Question the Measurements Builders, architects, real estate professionals, bankers, auditors, and appraisers often report room sizes differently to better suit their particular needs. House plan services also vary in their area-calculation protocols. In order to compare floor plan areas accurately, you’ve got to be sure that the areas are counted the same. Generally, builders and real estate professionals want to show that a house is as big as possible. Their goal is to quote a lower cost per square foot or square meter so that the house will appear more valuable. In contrast, appraisers, assessors, and county auditors usually measure the perimeter of the house - a typically very rough way to calculate area - and call it a day. Architects break the size down into components: first floor, second floor, porches, finished lower level, etc. To arrive at an apples-to-apples comparison of house areas you’ve got to know what’s included in the totals. Does the area include only heated and cooled spaces? Does it include everything under roof? Even garages? What about closets? Or do the measurements include only living space? Ask How Rooms Are Measured But even when you’ve discovered exactly what spaces are included in the area calculation youll need to know how volume is counted, and whether the total reflects the net or the gross square footage (or square meters). Gross area is the total of everything within the outer edge of the perimeter of the house. Net area is that same total - less the thicknesses of walls. In other words, net square footage is the part of the floor that you can walk on. Gross includes the parts you can’t walk on. The difference between net and gross can be as much as 10 percent - depending on the type of floor plan design. A traditional plan (with more distinct rooms and therefore more walls) might have 10 percent net-to-gross ratio, while a contemporary plan may have only six or seven percent. Likewise, larger homes tend to have more walls - because larger homes generally have more rooms, rather than simply larger rooms. Youll probably never see the volume of a house plan listed on a house plan website, but the number representing the area of a floor plan often depends on how the volume is counted. Typically, the upper area of two-story rooms (foyers, family rooms) isnt counted as part of the floor plan. Likewise, stairs are only counted once. But not always. Check how volume is counted to be sure you know how big the plan really is. Plan services that design their own plans will have a consistent policy on area (and volume), but services that sell plans on consignment probably dont. How does the designer or plan service calculate the size of the plan? Sometimes that information is found on the services website or book, and sometimes you have to call to find out. But you should most definitely find out. Knowing how area and volume are measured can make a very big difference in the cost of the house you ultimately build. Conclusions Leave the Building to Builders. Damian Gillie/Construction Photography/Avalon/Getty Images The guest writer, Richard Taylor of RTA Studio, is an Ohio-based residential architect who creates luxury house plans and designs custom homes and interiors. Taylor spent eight years designing and renovating homes in German Village, an historic district in Columbus, Ohio. He has also designed custom homes in North Carolina, Virginia, and Arizona. He holds a B.Arch. (1983) from Miami University and is an active blog writer on social media. Taylor says: I believe that above all, a home should create a quality living experience as unique as the people that live in it, shaped by the owners heart, and by his image of home - thats the essence of custom design. Construction designs can get complicated, so let your building crew decipher the symbols the way they are trained to do. A couple of things for the homeowner to keep an eye on include the orientation of the building on the lot (where is south and the sun? where are the doors and windows?), the HVAC symbols (where is the ductwork?), and for future reference its good to know where your load-bearing walls will be located. And how big will your new house measure out to be? According to the U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Construction, the average new single-family American house was 2,392 square feet in 2010 and in 1973 it was 1,660 square feet. A small home is considered 1,000 to 1,500 square feet. And tiny homes? Could you live in less than 500 square feet? Thats the plan!

The Integrity of Oscar essays

The Integrity of Oscar essays Academy Awards: The Integrity of Oscar The envelope please, along with and the Oscar goes to... are phrases that have become staples of American society due to the intent interest in the annual award show in which members of the film industry are recognized for excellent work. According to their own web site, the Academy Awards, or Oscars, have been given out since 1927, when a non-profit organization the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) was formed. The 5,607 voting members of the Academy select their peers to be recognized for achievement in filmmaking. The Academy is made up of professionals from every aspect of film production, from actors and directors to sound technicians. This is the voting process according to the Academy web site. Academy members are separated by profession, and are allowed to chose from a large list of eligible films to select who they feel should be nominated for awards in their respective field. Actors and actors alone decide who is nominated for acting awards. After the nominees have been selected, a second ballot is mailed out to all voters. This ballot has the nominees for every category on it, not just the area in which the voter is trained. After selecting one choice in each category, the voters then mail their ballot back to the academy. The voting is done in an informal manor, and ballots are usually mailed to and from the home of the voter. However, the tallying process is much more tedious. Each year the accounting firm Pricewaterhouse Cooper secures and counts the votes. They insure every count is correct, and that the results remain a secret up until the envelope is opened on national television. There has never been any question that voting procedure is fool proof, and that the vote count is accurate. But there has been much dispute over whether or not the voters are knowledgeable of the films they are voting on, or the areas i ...

The film the Red Violine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The film the Red Violine - Essay Example The involvement of many cultures and use of many languages could be said to be the strengths for the movie because it stirs up interest in audiences around the globe. I could say that the movie has been ingeniously produced to the full satisfaction of every movie. What could have been the drawback for the movie are some shots which took so much of the time like the many changing faces in the monastery who played the violin when the very message that was portrayed there was the length of time it stayed with the monks. The character I most identify with is the violin maker as he was a perfectionist, demanding the best that he wants and working hard on things rather than easily giving up. In addition, he is passionate with his works, giving his best even his heart and soul to create the master piece he desires to have for his unborn child. Also, he is a determined man, knowing what he wants in life for his wife and unborn son. He is extraordinarily zealous for his loved ones, and defini tely a true lover to his wife which is most admirable to me.

Krean kimchi culture research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Krean kimchi culture - Research Paper Example This is why kimchi is a special dish for them. In America and in other parts of the world, the dish has gained quite a following. By conducting research on my Korean friends, I discovered that kimchi as a culture is getting popular no matter in Korea or America. This is not only because of its tastes, healthy ingredients, nutritional value and its history, but also because it represents the spirit of the Korean people and culture. The world now is full of health products. Their manufacturers say the products will help clean people’s bodies, prevent diseases or sicknesses or help people live longer. Some of these products are supposedly organic while some come in the form of capsules or tablets that are made from chemicals. I find this fact ironic because I do not think chemicals can be good for the body. As for eating organic food, I have yet to appreciate the taste because sometimes it can be very unfamiliar to the taste buds. Hanging out with several friends from Korea, I found out that Koreans do not care for organic food or food supplements because they have their own â€Å"health dish†. This is what they call kimchi. I was further intrigued by kimchi when I discovered that it was being enjoyed around the world by non-Koreans, too. Health enthusiasts around the world have found out that the ingredients in the dish bring a lot of nutrition to one’s body. To find out more about this Kor ean delicacy, I conducted some research and personally interviewed some of my Korean friends. This paper is a collection of my friends’ experiences about kimchi. A non-American living in the United States cannot avoid eating fast food. The country is known for its McDonald’s, Burger Kings and iHops. These chains make eating convenient for the busy people in the country, foreigner or not. Koreans are no exception. However, since the K There are various kinds of Kimchi according to what main

Social Factor Essay Example for Free

Social Factor Essay War Child is a network of independent organization, working across the world to help children affected by war. Theyre a social organization to advance the cause of peace through investing hope in the lives of children caught up in the horror of war, which is mainly their number one aim. Employees of War child has a big influence in the organization, because their all there for the same reason to help the organization reach their aims. What is also a social factor of War child is that anyone can volunteer and take part of the important events to save those kids. Employees can move to different countries where they can set up camps to build programs for war affected kids, the only thing that can go wrong is if an employee doesnt want to go or even work together as a group, this can both cause conflict and also can become public to donators and cause a downfall in the organization. But of course they would only send qualified employees to do to go into post conflict areas for their safety and health. War Child believes that interplay between physiological and social factors is consisting of healthy emotional, cognitive, social and spiritual development, which includes social integration. As a social factor they implement either or together with their partners, progress to protect and empower children and young people. War Child is a right-based organization committed to the fulfillments of children rights! Comparing the organizations As you can see that both companies are not that far from each other, they all can perform well so long the economy is going good and positive. The only difference really with the both organization is that for MS aims for profit and War child for a good cause by helping war affected children. But both of this company can get into to problems with the economy for example if theres an economic crisis, people will not spend as much money, .sales will go down and even have to fire people from their jobs and with War child is the economy is still being greedy by wanting more diamonds and causing war in places such as Angola and Sierra Leone. One the social part there are not too far from each other nearly the same, they all needs to work together to achieve their organizational aim. So long there is the right communications and respect amongst each other, then conflicts can be avoided. Because of the globalization, the economy changes and the society, there will always be changes if there can. For example government regulations and the standard of living the people has paid a price for. The external factors do have a lot of influences on these companies. If the economical crises arise can cause the company to close some stores or even come to debts and could case war not only from war affected kids but the whole society in general.

Narrativity, Modernity, and Tragedy: How Pragmatism Educates Humanity :: Argumentative Persuasive Philosophy Essays

Narrativity, Modernity, and Tragedy: How Pragmatism Educates Humanity ABSTRACT: I argue that the modernist notion of a human self (or subject) cannot easily be post-modernistically rejected because the need to view an individual life as a unified 'narrative' with a beginning and an end (death) is a condition for asking humanly important questions about its meaningfulness (or meaninglessness). Such questions are central to philosophical anthropology. However, not only modern ways of making sense of life, such as linear narration in literature, but also premodern ones such as tragedy, ought to be taken seriously in reflecting on these questions. The tradition of pragmatism has tolerated this plurality of the frameworks in terms of which we can interpret or 'structure' the world and our lives as parts of it. It is argued that pragmatism is potentially able to accommodate both the plurality of such interpretive frameworks-premodern, modern, postmodern — and the need to evaluate those frameworks normatively. We cannot allow any premodern source of hu man meaningfulness whatsoever (say, astrology) to be taken seriously. Avoiding relativism is, then, a most important challenge for the pragmatist. 1. The idea that "grand metanarratives" are dead is usually regarded as the key to the cultural phenomenon known as postmodernism. We have been taught to think that the Enlightenment notions of reason, rationality, knowledge, truth, objectivity, and self have become too old-fashioned to be taken seriously any longer. There is no privileged "God's-Eye-View" available for telling big, important stories about these notions. The cultural hegemony of science and systematic philosophy, in particular, is over. Nevertheless, as even some postmodern thinkers themselves keep on insisting, we still have to be committed to the grand narrative of our individual life. (1) We cannot really dispense with the modernist notion of self, and the one who says we can forgets who she or he is. From the point of view of our own life, no postmodern death of the subject can take place. On the contrary, my death transcends my life; it is not an experienceable event of my life — as Wittgenstein also famously pointed out at Tractatus 6.4311. Most (perhaps all) of us feel that one's own death is hardly even conceivable from within one's life. On the other hand, somewhat paradoxically, death must be postulated as the imaginary end point, the final event, of the story of my life. If there were no death (i.e., the annihilation of my self) to be expected, I could not even realize that I am leading a specific, spatio-temporally restricted human life.

Little Albert

Assignment One – Mini Lit Review. The Little Albert Study. Not everyone believes that biology is our destiny. Many scientists whole-heartedly believe it is our experiences in life that count. They believe that it is our up-bringing, education, and our environment that form our behaviour, beliefs and characteristics. Chief among scientists in this field of thought is psychologist John Watson. Watson developed a theory that we are not restricted to our genetic make-up, but instead we arrive into the world as a blank slate and all our information is learned.There is continuous dispute over this theory with the nature nurture debate strongly in play (McLeod, 2007). On the nature side of the debate, it is believed that individual’s differences are determined by their unique genetic make-up. They argue that all other characteristics that develop later in life are caused by maturation (McLeod, 2007). The other side is nurture which John Watson strongly supports. This side says that we come into the world as a blank slate and through experiences our slate is gradually filled (McLeod, 2007).To support the theory that environment is more powerful than genetics, Watson designed an experiment on an infant commonly known as the Little Albert experiment. This experiment focused on Ivan Pavlov’s process of classical conditioning. Watson believed and wanted to prove that all human psychology can be explained by this process (McLeod, 2008). The other studies that I will be comparing the Little Albert experiment to will be â€Å"Elevated fear conditioning to socially relevant unconditioned stimuli in Social Anxiety Disorder† (Lissek, Levson, Biggs, et all, 2008) and the study of Pavlov’s dogs (Pavlov, 1928).These studies will enable me to make a justified evaluation of the Little Albert study by making comparisons to these two other studies. The Little Albert experiment was conducted by John Watson and Rosalie Rayner in 1920. They chose nine mo nth old Baby Albert for the study because Albert had been reared almost from birth in Harriet Lane home for Invalid Children where his mother was a wet nurse. Albert was deemed extremely stable and well developed which determined his suitability for the experiment (McLeod, 2007).The focus of their study was to continue on from Pavlov’s experiment involving the classical conditioning of dogs, and determine whether this empirical evidence was also evident in humans (Watson, 1924). More specifically, they were focusing on conditioned emotional responses. In determining these aspects they conducted a series of different tests involving a variation of stimulus. Before the experiment commenced, they gave Albert a sequence of baseline tests to determine his initial fear responses to stimuli.They presented him with burning paper, a monkey, a dog, cotton wool, a fur coat (seal), various masks and a white rat. During the baseline, Albert showed no initial fear to these items. Throughou t the study these items (fluffy white objects) served as the independent variables. The dependant variable was whether or not Albert cried or showed distress. During the study Albert was positioned on a mattress on a table. Albert was presented with a white rat and just as he reached out to touch it, a metal bar was struck with a hammer behind him.Albert jumped and fell forward, burring his head into the mattress, but did not cry. After these two stimuli were paired on several occasions, Albert was presented with only the white rat. As the rat appeared in front of him he became distressed and turned away, puckered his lips, began to cry and crawled away (Watson, 1924). From this, it became obvious that Albert’s fear had been conditioned. Albert had associated the white rat with a loud noise producing fear, thus having conditioned fear of the white rat. The experiment showed that Little Albert generalized his response from furry animals to anything furry.Albert showed the same reactions as the initial experiment when Watson presented him with a furry dog, seal-skin coat and even a Santa-Claus mask (Watson, 1924). The way in which Albert’s responses were measured was through the amount of distress to the stimuli he presented. The Little Albert study is a highly popular study especially across the field of Psychology. Although the study has provided valuable knowledge and understanding of learned behaviours and the development of phobias, it’s procedures considering ethics are questionable.The fact that Albert was only nine months old deems this study unethical. Albert’s mother was obviously desperate for money to support her son, so the bribe of money probably out-weighted the possible harm caused to her son. Albert’s mother probably wasn’t entirely aware of the potential risks involved. Albert’s fear was supposed to be extinguished at the end of the experiment, but he moved away. Other ethical codes that have bee n violated in this study are that of the distress that it caused.Little Albert was never desensitized from the conditioning undergone meaning that because he had a conditioned fear of white furry objects, he would forever be terrified of white furry objects (Watson, 1924). In today’s code of ethics, the welfare of the participant/s is the most important factor and under no circumstances should this protection be hindered, unless the participant has given consent to be put under this distress. It is also now deemed unethical to purposely cause distress to a participant in laboratory circumstances (Weiten, 2008).These unethical procedures could have been corrected quite simply. In the study of fear conditioning in people with social anxiety disorder, they conducted what called an extinction process where the participants were desensitized from any fear conditioning that took part throughout the experiment (Lissek, Levson, Biggs, et al, 2008). This experiment is clearly ethical as it was only conducted in 2008 and would have had to have been passed by the ethics board in order to be conducted. The Little Albert study is a valid study; however it was not measured effectively.The way in which Little Albert’s fear was measured was just whether or not he cried or showed distress. The way in which they measured this could have been improved in order to get more valid and reliable results. In this case, the studies operational definition was not valid. The Little Albert study could have used apparatus in order to get more valid results. For example, they could have measured Albert’s fear by assessing his skin conductivity. This would have measured Albert’s distress through measuring the arousals in his skin i. e. weat. They also could have used the blink-startle response measurement as used in â€Å"Elevated fear conditioning to socially relevant unconditioned stimuli in Social Anxiety Disorder† (Lissek, Levson, Biggs, et al, 2008). T his method measures how much the participant blinks when presented with a stimuli. If the participant is startled (scared) by something, they will blink a lot more than if they are not startled. The reliability of the Little Albert study is not strong. If the same study was conducted today, the same results would not be found.Little Albert’s responses to the stimuli that he was presented with could have been a result of his general fear of animals, not that he conditioned a fear of white fluffy objects. Most people would agree with me when I say that if you were a nine month old baby and an animal was jumping up at your face, you would be scared and would become distressed. Being a nine month old baby, Albert also could have just been tired, bored, and hungry or just missed his Mother. None of these factors were accounted for during the trials.If the same study was conducted today, it would become extremely obvious that times have changed and so too should the design of the s tudy. The reliability of the experiment is hindered by the fact that the method of measurement is simply observation and there is no concrete evidence being analysed. For example if they were to measure brain activity or use the blink-startle reaction measurement, these results would be a lot more concrete and therefore the study would be classed a lot more reliable.In comparison, the 1928 study of Pavlov’s dogs (Pavlov, 1928) is a lot more reliable even though it is only a few years newer than the Little Albert study. If Pavlov’s experiment was replicated today, very similar if not the same results would be found. The fact that Pavlov used concrete methods of measuring his data deemed his study a lot more reliable. If he was to measure the amount that the dogs salivate by just observing them, it would not be as valid.To conclude, through the evaluation of the Little Albert study and comparison to â€Å"â€Å"Elevated fear conditioning to socially relevant unconditio ned stimuli in Social Anxiety Disorder† (Lissek, Levson, Biggs, et al, 2008) and Pavlov’s dogs (Pavlov, 1928) it has come to my attention that the Little Albert study does not comply to today’s code of ethics, the reliability is not strong and could be improved on however it is a valid study, but the operational definition could be improved.I feel that the contributions to knowledge of conditioned fear are valuable to society and has proved useful in various situations and other studies. Future studies on this topic would prove extremely valuable to society and our understanding on fear conditioning. References McLeod, S. A. (2007). Simply Psychology; Nature Nurture in Psychology. Retrieved 3 April 2012, from http://www. simplypsychology. org/naturevsnurture. html McLeod, S. A. (2007). Simply Psychology; Pavlov. Retrieved 3 April 2012, from http://www. implypsychology. org/pavlov. html McLeod, S. A. (2008). Simply Psychology; Classical Conditioning. Retrieved 3 A pril 2012, from http://www. simplypsychology. org/classical-conditioning. html Pavlov, I. P. (1928). Lectures On Conditioned Reflexes. (Translated by W. H. Gantt) London: Allen and Unwin. Watson, J. B. & Rayner, R. (1920). Conditioned emotional reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 3, 1, pp. 1–14. Weiten, W. (2011). Psychology: Themes and Variations. Belmont, Calif: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

How Will Ethical Issues Affect Leadership in a Business

Contemporary and Pervasive Issues â€Å"How will ethical issues affect leadership in a business? † Word Count: 5671 In this essay I am going to discuss how ethical issues can affect leadership in a business. In order to answer this question the essay will start by giving a brief introduction into the two topics; leadership and business ethics. I will then aim to successfully link them by considering the argument of whether leaders should concern themselves with ethical issues or whether making as much money as possible should be their main consideration. Leadership has many different meanings and there have been numerous different classification systems used to define the dimensions of leadership. Infact as Stogdill (1974) pointed out, â€Å"there are almost as many different definitions of leadership as there are people who have tried to define it. † One popular definition used for this subject is that â€Å"leadership may be considered as the process (act) of influencing the activities of an organized group in its efforts toward goal setting and goal achievement†(Stogdill, 1974). This definition suggests that it is not a characteristic but is an event that takes place between a leader and his or her followers and that there are three aspects to leadership. Firstly, it involves influence in that leaders induce their followers to behave in a certain way. The second aspect is that leadership occurs in a group context and finally that leadership includes attention to goals, which a leader must direct their followers to achieve. Over the years there have been many studies and theories formed on leadership. The first, which dominated until the late 1940’s, was the Trait Approach, which focused on leaders and not followers. It assumed that leaders had certain traits, such as intelligence and integrity and that they are born and not made. However, this approach failed to take situations into account and recent research has proven that traits alone cannot account for effectiveness. Following this was the style approach, which focuses on what leaders do and how they act towards subordinates rather than characteristics. This era defines leadership styles as either Autocratic, democratic or laissez faire. However, this approach fails to find which of these leadership styles is most effective in every situation. Following this was the situational and contingency theories, which assume that different situations demand different types of leadership. However it assumes that people can learn to become effective leaders and does not adequately explain the link between styles and situation. The Situational theory ‘relates four leadership styles; Directing, Coaching, Supporting and delegating to followers readiness for them† (Gill, 2006:48). However, the model assumes both flexibility of style and the ability to diagnose the situation and the style that is needed. In 1980’s the New Leadership approach was introduced, which compromises visionary, charismatic and transformational leadership theories. â€Å"Transformational leadership occurs when leaders raise peoples motivation to act and create a sense of higher purpose† (Gill, 2006:36). Similarly and published around the same time was the theory of Charismatic leadership, who act in unique ways that have specific charismatic effects on their followers. This stage provides a broader view of leadership that augments other models and places a strong emphasis on leaders needs, values and morals. However, â€Å"due to the wide range that it covers it lacks conceptual clarity and it is difficult to define the parameters of transformational leadership† (Northouse, 2004:185). Finally, in the late 1990’s Post-charismatic and Post-transformational theories emerged, which focuses on leadership as a community and both leaders and followers working together. Leadership is a process that is similar to management in many ways and many of the functions of management are included in the definition of leadership. This was argued by Yukl (1989), who said â€Å"when managers are involved in influencing a group to meet its goals, they are involved in leadership. When leaders are involved in planning, organizing, staffing and controlling, they re involved in management. Both processes involve influencing a group of individuals toward a goal attainment. † Both management and leadership involve influence, working with people, meeting goals and many other similar functions. However, there is a distinct difference between leadership and management and the main functions of the two are quite dissimilar. It was argued by Kotter (1990) that the â€Å"function of management is to provide order and consistency to organizations, whereas the primary function of leadership is to produce change and movement. † Whilst managers plan and budget, a leader creates a vision and sets strategies, instead of controlling and problem solving a leader motivates and inspires his followers. In addition to this, Bennis and Nanus (1985) made the distinction very clear, â€Å"managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who do the right things. † Although it argued that the two are very different it is for this reason that both are needed for an organization to be a success. Without management outcomes can be meaningless or misdirected and without leadership the outcome can be stifling and bureaucratic. This was the opinion of Warner Burke (1986:68), who said that â€Å"For clarity of goals and direction, managers need leaders. For indispensable help in reaching goals, leaders need managers. † A further question that is often raised on the topic of leadership is whether leaders are born or made? Whilst some would argue that â€Å"It is not a matter of whether leaders are born or made. † They are born and made† (Conger 2004), it is a topic that has caused great debate. Many would argue that leadership is innate (inborn) and that the character, style and competence needed to be a leader is infact genetic and it cannot be developed. However, others have argued that leadership is not down to genetics alone but that it can infact be developed over a period of time through environment and experiences. This is the opinion argued by Winston (Winston 2003), who says that â€Å"we are not merely the product of our genes: environment has a huge impact but in a mysterious way. † A further aspect to this question is whether leadership can be taught. There are many opinions on this matter but the â€Å"tendency is towards agreeing that, while little if anything can be taught, it can be learnt through development, growth and practise† (Gill, 2006:272). A business operates according to the vision and values of its leader. A leader has many roles within an organization, which can be key to its long-term success. The first of these is to provide an overall direction by â€Å"defining and communicating a meaningful and attractive vision of the future and a mission through which the organization will pursue it† (Gill, 2006:96). This direction which may stem a long way into the future will need to consider competitors, changes in tastes and current standing in the market. In relation to this it is a leader's responsibility to create a strong and positive organizational culture with its followers having shared vision and values, which can result in an effective organization. A further role of a leader is to â€Å"develop, get commitment to and ensure the successful implementation of strategies† (Gill, 2006:176). This is one of the most important roles for a leader and involves them planning where they want to be in the future and how they are going to get there, for example by acquisitions or moving into new geographical markets. Another role of a leader in business is to empower employees to be able to do what needs to be done. In order to do this a leader must give them the knowledge, skills, authority and freedom to manage themselves and be accountable for their behavior. If a leader successfully empowers his employs it can lead to both job satisfaction and enhanced organizational performance in many ways. Similarly it is an important role of a leader to influence, motivate and inspire employees to reach the companies goals. One of the key factors that will determines whether it is achieved or falters will be the ability of the leader in these three areas. Finally if an organization is to continue to prosper, people development must be high on a leader's agenda, by identifying the most talented people coming through and making sure that they are developed for major roles in the future. Ensuring that there is a continued stream of talent developed is a key factor in sustainable progress and achievement. An effective leader has the ability to successfully carry out all of these roles. The second topic that this essay involves is business ethics, which has been described by some as ‘a passing fashion which will come and go and can therefore be safely ignored or dismissed† (Vallance, 1995: 4) However, business scandals of the late 1980’s such as Guiness and Blue Arrow and the results of these have made businesses aware of the importance of their reputation and the need to think seriously about ethical issues. There have been numerous definitions of ethics, which involves systemizing, defending and recommending concepts of right and wrong behaviour and includes principles and values of what is fair or unfair and proper or improper. It has been argued that â€Å"there is only one ethics, one set of rules of morality, one code that of individual behaviour in which the same rules apply to everyone alike† (Drucker 2007). A popular definitions is that â€Å"Ethics deals with values, with good and bad with right and wrong, we cannot avoid involvement in ethics, for what we do-and what we don’t do- is always a possible subject of ethical evaluation† (Singer, 1993: v). There are various theories and approaches to ethics and ethical decision-making but the two major view points that appear are consequentailism and non-consequentialism. Consequentialism is where â€Å"ethical decisions are based primarily on calculating the good in terms of consequences† (Preston, 2007: 36). The most widely accepted form of this is Utilitarianism, which was introduced by Jeremy Bentham in the late 19th century. This theory emphasises happiness or utility as a desirable goal for human choice or action and argues that moral rules should seek to secure â€Å"the greatest good for the greatest number of people† (Preston, 2007: 36). However, there have been some objections to this theory and the question as to how happiness and utility can be measured. It also works against the interests of â€Å"minorities and groups that do not measure up to the criteria of usefulness and can justify the violation of human rights† (Preston, 2007: 36). An example of this is the exclusion of a disabled child from a school as they are disruptive. This would be justified on utilitarian grounds as to leave such a disruptive child in the class would not be beneficial to the majority of students. The second of these points that occurs in ethical theory is non-consequential. This â€Å"enjoins us to do the right thing, simply because it is the right thing, intrinsically† (Preston, 2007: 40). The most influential figure promoting this view was Immanuel Kant. He argued that as â€Å"individuals we intuitively know what is right or wrong, through the categorical imperatives, which are: Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or that of another, always as an end and never as a means only †¢ Act only on the maxim through which you can at the same time will that it be a universal law. †¢ Act only so that the will through its maxims could regard itself at the same time as universally law giving – refer ence† (Preston 2007:41) This Kantian theory has been very influential, especially concerning the debate of rights and justice due to the importance that it places on every individual and because it is not open to persuasion by pragmatic considerations. However, there have been some criticisms to Kants approach as he places too much reliance on human rationality. Furthermore, it does not provide an answer to the problem of how to decide between two conflicting duties and how to obey different bur equally absolute rules. For example, ‘do not break promises’ and ‘do not kill’ are absolute rules, however it is possible for a situation to occur where these rules conflict and that by not breaking a promise, someone is killed. The focus of this essay is on Business ethics in particular. Though the theories that have been mentioned are relevant, they are â€Å"concerned primarily with personal ethics and do not address directly the kind of ethical problems that arise within a business context† (Vallance, 1995:4). Within an organisation, ethics is seen as everyone’s business and can be complex and have more than one meaning. Firstly, it is the application of general ethical rules to business behaviour and secondly, it can be the rules of business by which business activities are judged. Business Ethics can be defined as â€Å"coming to know what is right or wrong in the workplace and doing what is right – this is in regards to effects of products/services and in relationship with stakeholders’’ (McNamara, 2006:7) and can cover a wide range of aspects from quality and treatment of employees to pricing. When it comes to business having an ethical responsibility, many would argue that this is not the case. Indeed Milton Friedman (Friedman, 1970) said â€Å"only people can have responsibilities. A corporation is an artificial person and in this sense may have artificial responsibilities, but â€Å"business† as a whole cannot be said to have responsibilities, even in this vague sense†. With this in mind, it would also be argued that it is of little importance for leaders to consider ethical issues when making decisions. Infact, leaders who have ethical consciences have been described as â€Å"unwitting puppets of the intellectual forces that have been undermining the basis of a free society these past decades† (Friedman, 1970). This argument is that a business and therefore its leaders have one purpose, and that is to make as much profit as possible, with everything else being secondary. Freidman said, â€Å"He (the executive) is an employee of the owners of the business. He has direct responsibility to his employers. That responsibility is to conduct the business in accordance with their desires, which generally will be to make as much money as possible while conforming to the basic rules of society, both those embodied in law and those embodied in ethical custom† (Friedman, 1970). He believed that this was the case for all businesses with the only exceptions being schools and hospitals where a leader's objective would be the rendering of services. One of the beliefs of this argument is that â€Å"ethical responsibility as preached and practised by many marks an acceptance and endorsement of views and demands mostly presented by anti business groups that are hostile to the market economy and are far from representing the general view of the average consumer† (Andersen, 2004: 22). In addition to this fact a further problem is that in order for a leader to have an ethical conscience it usually comes at some cost to the business and therefore is not in the interest of the owners of the organization. An example of this is that a leader would refrain from increasing the price of the product in order to contribute to the social objective of preventing inflation, even though a price increase would benefit both the corporation and its owners. A similar example is that ay leaders use great amounts of money and resources to reduce pollution beyond the amount that is required by law in order to meet its responsibility to the environment and gain a reputation as being an environmentally friendly company. This was a measure taken by Satellite broadcaster BSkyB who have been carbon neutral since May 2006 through a combination of using renewable energy and offsetting its remaining emissions, but at a cost to the company. In each of these examples and in the case of other et hical activities a great amount of money is either spent or compromised. Many would argue that by doing this a leader is spending other people’s money for a general social interest, which could be viewed as extremely unethical. For example, carrying out an ethical activity that would have a high cost, such as reducing emission would reduce profits and therefore stockholder would see a reduce in their returns on investments. In addition to this if a leaders ethical actions raise the price to customers, he is spending the customers' money and if the cost of the leader's actions have to result in lowering the wages of some employees, he is spending their money. In these cases it would be fair to say that not only would it be having a detrimental effect on the company profits but would also have a negative and unethical effect on both internal and external stakeholders, who may desert the company for a competitor that less scrupulous in exercising their social responsibilities. In addition to this it means that a leader in effect becomes a public employee even though he remains in reality an employee of a private company. There is a further problem with leaders deciding that a company is to become more ethically aware as it involves great change in the way a company practices, its values and its organizational culture. Many of these actions that need to be taken to implement an ethical practice can incur increased costs that may not be recouped through increased sales and have no guarantee of returns. Furthermore, some decisions and choices made with an ethical conscience can result in short term negative impacts such as a decrease in sales, revenue and profit, increased cost for employee welfare and a decrease in stock prices. Moreover, â€Å"the vast majority of companies are still failing to get their message across† (The Guardian, 2004). With these costs in mind, especially in the current economic climate, the importance of a leader implementing an ethical culture to a business could be questioned. In addition to this leading a business ethically may involve â€Å"compromising short term wins for the sake of a more long term view† (Andersen, 2004: 22). This is not beneficial for a leader who is responsible for immediate results, particularly if the short-term wins that are compromised due to ethical issues risk financial loss or even immediate failure. This may mean that a leader may have to accept higher prices on goods, parts and manufacturing in order to remain ethical. An example of this is that Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket was using an Indian sweatshop to produce its clothes, which was paying its workers just 16p an hour. This supplier was changed in order for the company to appear more ethical and inturn cost Tesco money. This can be particularly hard in a market where there is a large amount of competition at both a national and international level. In order to compete a company needs to be able to offer the lowest price possible to its consumers but in order to keep its ethical stance a company can not compromise on its quality of suppliers and raw materials and therefore sees increased costs. Another consideration is that â€Å"when the corporation grows beyond the direct influence of its leader, we must reckon with the ethical consequence of size and geographical deployment. The control and employment of all policies, but especially that established for corporate ethics, becomes difficult† (Andrews, 1989: 7). This demonstrates that as long as an organisation remains small enough to be directly influenced by the chief executives leadership, certain results, such as ethical approach can be traced to his determination that they occur. However, as the â€Å"organisation grows and becomes decentralised with worldwide operations the power and influence that the Chief Executive has is reinterpreted and diffused† (Andrews, 1989: 260). As a result leaders of have to be appointed in each location and these persons may not share the determination and beliefs of their chief executive on ethical matters. As a result it is hard to standardise a whole company's ethical approach. In relation to this cultural differences and different business practices around the world can present challenges for businesses that are trying to be ethical. Having considered the above argument there are some flaws to Friedman’s approach. He suggests that a leader should concentrate on profit alone as long as it is within the law. However, the law does not define what is morally right and what is legal may be unethical. Many people would argue that this is an important point as ‘good business ethics promotes good business. This was the findings of some well-known authorities such as Baumhart, Brener and Molander, who believed that only those businesses that conduct activities on ethical grounds can develop on a long-term basis. This is also the stakeholder view that businesses will not make money if they do not take heed of their stakeholders; CSR is looking after your stake holders and is good business practice. This is the reason why it is important that leaders are not merely concerned with profit but also with promoting an ethical practise. Firstly, â€Å"leaders who follow the principles of ethics in the conduct of business, motivates others also to follow the same principles† (Paliwal, 2006: 10). This can improve both employees and the organizations motivation and morale, which was discussed earlier as one of the main roles of a leader. This is because conducting business in an ethical manner can produce a feeling of ‘doing things right’ and this can â€Å"become an almost tangible positive ambience within the organisation and can create a culture with a sense of community and belonging for employees,† (Andersen, 2004: 7). The result of this is increased loyalty and productivity, which can result in an improved in competitive advantage. An example of a company that treats its employees well and is benefited in return is John Lewis. All 69,000 employees of the company have a share in it and despite seeing pre tax profits fall by 26% this year they still paid their employees bonuses worth 13% of their salaries. In addition to this if a leader and a company demonstrates that it is unwilling to compromise its ethical values then they are regarded as trustworthy by both customers and their employees and this can promote productivity, innovation, employee development and increase employee attraction, which are again some of the main roles of a leader. This is vital to leaders as a study by Covey discovered that â€Å"the average corporation loses half its employees within four years, and the cost of recruiting, training and getting new ones up to speed can be detrimental to an organisation. (Andersen, 2004: 9). Also it is the â€Å"leaders of a company that are responsible for its conduct and it is their actions that determine the company's ethical standards† (Andrews, 1989: 72). If a leader's strategy is to define and communicate ethical position then it can act as a competitive advantage as it is an effective way of ensuring customer loyalty and also the company’s ability to at tract new customers. Customers are now more discerning and better educated than ever and want a product that not only serves its purpose but also is produced by an environmentally responsible company. If a consumer understands and sees tangible evidence that they are contributing to something beyond the profits a company and its owner, it is a strong motivator for both their custom and their loyalty. An example of a leader who understood the importance of an ethical company and an ethical product was Dame Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop. The company was one of the first to prohibit the use of ingredients tested on animals, promote fair trade and also channelled a share of the cost of the product back to the original producer of the raw material. By doing this she created a unique selling point as an ethical company and therefore a company that consumers are proud to buy from. Furthermore, if an organisation is known to be ethical it gives the impression to the customer that they too will be fairly treated as â€Å"when ethical conduct is displayed it puts some kind of trust and confidence in relationship† (Paliwal, 2006: 9). An example of this is that prices reflect the real value of what is being bought. As previously mention, being ethical can also help to attract new customer, who will hopefully become loyal in time. This is because customers are exposed to so many marketing campaigns that they are wary of which they should trust. However, if a leader has successfully managed to position an organisation with having ethical values and integrity then customers uncertainty is reduced, they are more trusting of the company and less afraid of purchasing its products, which meets leaders objectives. This was proved in a survey conducted in New York in 1995, which indicated, â€Å"when quality, service and price are equal, 90% claimed that the best reputation for social responsibility would determine their decision to buy. † (Andersen, 2004: 12). Therefore an ethical company should see an increase in sales, which is always part of a leader's strategy. A further factor for leaders to consider is that studies have shown a â€Å"positive link between being ethical and improved financial performance (Maignan, 1987)†, which is ultimately the main aim of an organisation. Ethics in business can be related to quality of management, quality of products, innovativeness and good responsibility towards the community, all of which lead to admiration, good will and a good reputation for the company. An example of leaders who saw the importance of a good ethical reputation are Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of Ben & Jerry's, who set up the sustainable Caring Dairy initiative to helps farmers and also took measures to reduce energy use. According to Ferrell, Maignan and Loe â€Å"companies that are perceived positively in the market place perform better than others. † (Andersen, 2004: 13). Although this statement and other studies could be questioned as to what extent admiration is due to ethics, it can be said that an ethical approach to business is what contributes to a positive perception and reputation and can therefore be linked with financial improvements. A further example of this is that IAG (Insurance Australia Group Ltd), who work with neighborhoods to improve their facilities and reduce crime. This not only gives them a good reputation as a company that cares about the environment but also benefits them in a second way as it reduces insurance claims and therefore reduces their payouts and equally benefits both the community and the company. Finally, leaders need to consider being a company with ethical values because investor’s and shareholders are now using a company’s ethical stance as criteria to evaluate investments and stocks. An example of this is the â€Å"specifically designed sub index of the London Stock Exchange, the FTSE4Good (FTSE – Financial Times Stock Exchange). † (Andersen, 2004: 19). To be included in this index, constituents must be screened according to the criteria of the FTSE4Good, which covers environmental sustainability, social issues and stakeholder relations and human rights. Therefore having a favourable ethical profile can attract investors and not having one can deter them. In addition to this, for the government ethical standards of a business are now a key factor in the procurement of grants and influence. Having looked at these benefits, a leader also needs to consider the strength of being ethical by looking at the dangers and probable penalties of unethical business behaviour. As a society we have access to a wide variety of information on organisations. As a result, there are constantly court cases against companies for unethical behaviour, for example in 2007 cruise company Carnival was being sued over several cases of mistreatment of workers and the covering up of environmental damage. Settling these claims can cost billions of pounds, can lead to bankruptcy and the damage to reputation can be irreparable. A further example of this is that if a customer is treated unfairly then this bad reputation will be passed on by word of mouth. In relation to this a further factor that leaders need to consider when creating a business strategy is that unethical behaviour in manufacturing can lead to bad reputation. An example of this is the recent case with Primark, who were discovered to be using suppliers in Southern India who were using child labour. Although they claimed that they were unaware of this situation it still created a great deal of bad publicity for the company. Negative publicity can equate to decreased competitive advantage, increased costs as companies have to increase public relations and advertising. It can also have effects on sales, profits, morale and the day to day running of the business. In addition to this a bad reputation cannot be easily changed and it consumers suspicion of a company’s intentions and future actions. In relation to this â€Å"journalists writing about companies tend to fall victim of the so called Halo effect† (Andersen, 2004: 19), which means that a company that has a bad reputation tend to be seen negatively whatever they do. As the media have the power to make or break companies it is essential that leaders ensure that they are ethical and that there reputations remain intact. In this sense ethical behavior can be seen as a form of insurance against regulatory acts. An example of a company that have taken this on board is Mark’s and Spencer, who have recently launched a new Per Una lingerie range that is â€Å"carbon neutral† and is produced in an eco-factory as they become more successful in listening to what their customers want. A final problem to leaders of having an unethical approach is that there are always pressure groups and special interest group such as Greenpeace waiting to launch global campaigns against companies that act unethically, which can affect both the organisation and its chances of survival. An example of this is that in 2003 the Barclay twins, who were the two new leaders of Littlewoods mail order and clothing store, withdrew the companies membership of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), which was put in place to stop companies from using child or forced labor. This not only resulted in the sacking employees but was also provoked large volumes of criticism for charities, unions and government ministers all of which impacted on the company's reputation. This increased government interest can also lead to regulations that create rigid trade and less freedom. Having looked at the two topics: leadership and business ethics in some detail, it is clear to see that there is an important link between the two. A business operates according to the visions and values of its leader and whilst some may see business ethics as a fad leaders need to be aware that there is a high demand for ethical behaviour in our society today. It is fair to say that the objective of most companies, as Friedman said is to earn as much money as possible. Therefore, as a leader, that person is an employee of the owners of the business and so has a primary responsibility to them to conduct the business in line with their wishes. In addition to this there is a strong argument as to why a leader should not consider ethical issues as a vital part of their job. Many people share the skepticisms of Milton Friedman and Adam Smith's about the benefits that can be expected from â€Å"those who affected to trade for the public good. † This is a fact that has been discussed in the essay and the implementing a practicing ethical business can cost a company, for example, spending money on reducing pollution costs and choosing more expensive but ethical suppliers. In Friedman’s book Capitalism and Freedom, he sums up this argument by saying that â€Å"there is one and only one ethical responsibility of business–to use it resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud† (Friedman, 1970). However, the other side of this argument is that in order for organization to survive in a competitive and changing environment, leaders must develop strong ethical standards and successfully implement them throughout the company. By trading in an ethical manner a leader will see a wide variety of benefits and effects on business practices, such as increasing sales, retaining employees, reducing litigation and in some cases increasing a company's profit. In addition to this, another â€Å"testament to its viability is that despite being describes as a passing phase, business ethics which emerged in the 1970’s has constantly gained more and more awareness and support, making it one of the longest surviving management fads† (Andersen, 2004: 24). Having considered this fact and all of the benefits, it is a hard for a leader to argue against the merits of an ethical approach to business. Overall, I believe that in order to remain competitive and to insure the survival of a business an organization must respect and regard their social and ethical responsibility as well as maintaining profitability as a central goal. It is fair to say that good ethics is good business since nowadays it can be directly linked to the company's success. Moreover, good ethics is good business because business partners, suppliers and customers expect and presevere business relationships that are upright and responsible. This is a factor that is going to become increasingly more important as consumers become more aware of ethical issues and the need for them to be considered, e. g. the increase in consumer awareness of carbon footprint. Therefore an ethical reputation will be important to the success of a company and it is a leader's job to ensure that ethics is part of a companies strategy and is successfully implemented. References †¢ K. R. Andrews, 1989, Ethics in Practice: Managing the Moral Corporation, Harvard Business School Publishing Division, pg 7, 71, 72, 260 †¢ R Gill, 2006, Theory and practice of Leadership, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg. 36, 48, 96, 176, 272 †¢ Stogdill, R. M (1974), Handbook of Leadership: A Survey of Theory and Research. New York Free Press: quoted in P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Practice, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 2 †¢ P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Practice, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 185 †¢ P. F. Drucker, 2007, The Practise of Management, Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd; 2Rev Ed edition: quoted in M. Paliwal, 2006, Business Ethics; New Age International Ltd, pg 4 †¢ Kotter J. P (1990) A force for change: How leadership differs from management. New York: Free Press: quoted in P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Practice, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 8 †¢ Bennis, W. G & Nanus, B (1985) Leaders: The strategies for taking charge. New York: Harper & Row: quoted in P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Practice, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 8 †¢ Burke, W. W (1986) Leadership as empowering others. San Francisco, CA:Jossey –Bass, pg 68: quoted in R Gill, 2006, Theory and practice of Leadership, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 27 †¢ Conger, J. A (2004) Developing leadership capability: What’s inside the black box. Academy of management executive, 18 (3), pg 136 †¢ Winston, R 2003, Human Instinct Paper presented at the sixth Annual Leadership conference, Ross – on – Wye, 23rd-24th September: quoted in R Gill, 2006, Theory and practice of Leadership, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg. 73 †¢ P. Singer, 1993, A Companion to Ethics, Blackwell, p, v. N. Preston, 2007, Understanding Ethics, Federation Press; 3rd Revised edition, pg 36, 40, 41, 42 †¢ E. Vallance, 1995, Business Ethics at Work, Cambridge university Press, pg 4 †¢ Milton Freidman (1970) ‘The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits’ quoted in T. Beauchamp and N. Bowie, 2004, Ethical Theory and Business, 7th ed . , London, Pearson, p. 51. †¢ M. Paliwal, 2006, Business Ethics; New Age International Ltd, pg 7, 9, 10 †¢ McNamara, 2006: quoted in M. Paliwal, 2006, Business Ethics; New Age International Ltd, pg 7 †¢ T. Donaldson, Ethics in Business: A New Look: quoted in M Paliwal, 2006, Business Ethics; New Age International Ltd, pg 9 †¢ Yukl, G. A (1989), Leadership in organisations, (2nd ed), Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall: quoted in P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Practice, SAGE Publications Ltd, pg 10 †¢ B. Andersen, ASQ Mission, Bringing Business Ethics to Life: Achieving Corporate Social Responsibility, Pg 7, 9, 12, 13, 19, 22,24 †¢ Maignin, 1987: quoted in B. Andersen, ASQ Mission, Bringing Business Ethics to Life: Achieving Corporate Social Responsibility, Pg 13 †¢ www. FTSE4Good. com http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2004/nov/02/ethicalbusiness. money, â€Å"Companies ethical reports branded ineffective†, Tuesday 2nd November 2004, Oliver Balch †¢ http://www. cityam. com/index. php? news=16306, â€Å"Tesco in sweatshop scandal. † 26/6/08 †¢ http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2008/jun/24/primark. retail, â€Å"Is this the end for Primark†, The Guardian, Tuesday 24th June 2008, Leo Hickman †¢ http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2003/feb/01/ethicalshopping. globalisationâ€Å"Littlewood’s drops ethical trading code†, The Guardian, Saturday 1st February 2003, Simon Bowers and Julia Finch http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2007/sep/02/5, â€Å"Named and shames, cities ethical dunces†, The Observer, Sunday 2nd September 2007, Heather Stewart and Zoe Wood †¢ http://www. guardian. co. uk/lifeandstyle/2008/jul/25/ethicalfashion, â€Å"Can fashion play fair? †, The Guardian, Friday 25th July 2008, Leo Hickman Bibliography †¢ K. R. Andrews, 1989, Ethics in Practice: Managing the Moral Corporation, Harvard Business School Publishing Division †¢ Simon Blackburn, 2001, Ethics: a very short introduction, Oxford press Inc New York †¢ R Gill, 2006, Theory and practice of Leadership, SAGE Publications Ltd P. G Northouse, 2004, Leadership Theory and Prac tice, SAGE Publications Ltd, †¢ Conger, J. A (2004) Developing leadership capability: What’s inside the black box. Academy of management executive, 18 (3) †¢ E. Vallance, 1995, Business Ethics at Work, Cambridge university Press †¢ M Paliwal, 2006, Business Ethics; New Age International Ltd †¢ P. Singer, 1993, A Companion to Ethics, Blackwell †¢ B. Andersen, 2004, Bringing Business Ethics to Life: Achieving Corporate Social Responsibility, ASQ Mission †¢ J. Gallos, 2008, Business Leadership, Jossey –Bass, A Wiley Imprint K Grint, 2005, Leadership: Limits and Possibilities, Palgrave Macmillan †¢ R. N Kanungo, M Mendonca, 1996, Ethical Dimensions of Leadership, SAGE Publications Ltd †¢ B. Harvey, 1994, Business Ethics: A European Approach, Prentice Hall International UK Ltd †¢ P. Griseri, 1998, Managing Values: Ethical Change in Organisations, Macmillan Business †¢ J. N. Behrman, 1988, Essays on Ethics in Business and the Professions, Prentice Hall †¢ V. E. Henderson, 1992, What’s Ethical in Business? , McGraw – Hill Inc †¢ P. Wright, Managerial Leadership, Routledge †¢ N. Preston, 2007, Understanding Ethics, Federation Press; 3rd Revised edition.

Pronouncing Spanish Vowels

Pronouncing Spanish Vowels English speakers generally find the pronunciation of Spanish vowels fairly easy. Close approximations of all their sounds exist in English, and, with the exception of the E and the sometimes silent U, each of the vowels has basically one sound. The main thing to keep in mind is that in Spanish the vowels sounds are generally more distinct than they are in English. In English, any vowel can be represented by whats known as the schwa, an unstressed vowel sound such as the a in about, the ai in mountain, and the u in pablum. But in Spanish, such an indistinct sound isnt used. Although, as in most languages, the sounds of the vowels can vary slightly with the letters before and after them, in general the sound remains the same regardless of the word its in. Pronouncing the 5 Vowels First, the more or less invariable sounds: A is pronounced similarly to the a in father or the o in loft. Examples: madre, ambos, mapa. There are some speakers who sometimes pronounce the a something halfway between the a in father and the a in mat, but in most areas the first sound given is standard. See also the lesson on pronouncing the . I is pronounced similarly to the ee in feet and the e in me, although usually a little briefer. Examples: finca, timbre, mi. This letter is covered in more detail in the lesson on pronouncing the i. O is pronounced like the oa in boat or the o in bone, although usually a little briefer. Example: telà ©fono, amo, foco. See the lesson on pronouncing the o for more information. Now, the two vowels whose sound can change: E is generally pronounced like the e in met when it is at the beginning or within a word. It is pronounced similarly to the Canadian eh, kind of a shortened version of the à © in the English cafà ©, when it is at the end of the word. Sometimes it can be somewhere between those two sounds. Its not quite the sound of the English letter A, which if pronounced slowly often has an ee sound at the end, but closer to the e of met. Keep in mind that even when its at the end of the word, in a sentence it may sound more like the e of met. For example, in a phrase such as de vez en cuando, each e has approximately the same sound. Examples: cafà ©, compadre, embarcar, enero. See also the lesson on pronouncing the e. U is generally pronounced like the oo in boot or the u in tune. Do not pronounced it like the u in uniform. Examples: universo, reunià ³n, unidos. In the combinations gui and gue, as well as after q, the u is silent. Examples: guà ­a, guerra, quizs. If the u should be pronounce d between a g and i or e, an umlaut (also called a dieresis) is placed over it. Examples: vergà ¼enza, lingà ¼ista. This letter is covered in more detail in the lesson on pronouncing the u. Diphthongs and Triphthongs As in English, two or three vowels in Spanish can blend together to form a sound. The sound is basically the sound of the two or three vowels rapidly pronounced. For example, the u when followed by an a, e, i or o ends up sounding something like the w in water. Examples: cuaderno, cuerpo, cuota. The ai combination sounds something like the sound of eye. Examples: hay, airear. The i when followed by an a, e or u sounds kind of like the y in yellow.: hierba, bien, siete. And other combinations are possible as well: miau, Uruguay, caudillo. Pronouncing Y Generally, the y is pronounced the same as it would be if it were an i, as part of a diphthong. Examples: rey, soy, yacer. Some words that are derived from English and have a y at the end often retain the English pronunciation. For example, in popular songs you may hear words such as sexy and phrases such as oh baby. This letter is covered in more detail in the lesson on pronouncing the y.

Jenny Lind - Swedish Opera Singer Promoted By P.T. Barnum

Jenny Lind - Swedish Opera Singer Promoted By P.T. Barnum Jenny Lind was a European opera star who came to America in 1850 for a tour promoted by the great showman Phineas T. Barnum. When her ship arrived in New York Harbor, the city went crazy. A massive crowd of more than 30,000 New Yorkers greeted her. And what makes that especially astounding is that no one in America had ever heard her voice. Barnum, who relished being known as The Prince of Humbug, had managed to create incredible excitement based purely on Linds reputation as The Swedish Nightinagle. The American tour lasted for about 18 months, with Jenny Lind appearing in more than 90 concerts in American cities. Wherever she went, her public image of a virtuous songbird who dressed modestly and donated money to local charities gained favorable mentions in the newspapers. After about a year, Lind split from Barnums management. But the atmosphere created by Barnum in promoting a singer no one in America had even heard became legendary, and in some ways created a template for show business promotion that endures to the modern era. Early Life of Jenny Lind Jenny Lind was born October 6, 1820 to an impoverished and unmarried mother in Stockholm, Sweden. Her parents were both musicians, and young Jenny began singing at a very early age. As a child she began formal music lessons, and by the age of 21 she was singing in Paris. She returned to Stockholm and performed in a number of operas. Throughout the 1840s her fame grew in Europe. In 1847 she performed in London for Queen Victoria, and her ability to make crowds swoon became legendary. Phineas T. Barnum Heard About, But Had Not Heard, Jenny Lind The American showman Phineas T. Barnum, who operated an extremely popular museum in New York City and was known for exhibiting the diminutive superstar General Tom Thumb, heard about Jenny Lind and sent a representative to make an offer to bring her to America. Jenny Lind drove a hard bargain with Barnum, demanding that he deposit the equivalent of nearly $200,000 in a London bank as an advance payment before she would sail to America. Barnum had to borrow the money, but he arranged for her to come to New York and embark on a concert tour of the United States. Barnum, of course, was taking a considerable risk. In the days before recorded sound, people in America, including Barnum himself, had not even heard Jenny Lind sing. But Barnum knew her reputation for thrilling crowds, and set to work making Americans excited. Lind had acquired a new nickname, â€Å"The Swedish Nightingale,† and Barnum made sure that Americans heard about her. Rather than promote her as a serious musical talent, Barnum made it sound like Jenny Lind was some mystical being blessed with a heavenly voice. 1850 Arrival in New York City Jenny Lind sailed from Liverpool, England, in August 1850 aboard the steamship Atlantic. As the steamer entered New York harbor, signal flags let crowds know that Jenny Lind was arriving. Barnum approached in a small boat, boarded the steamship, and met his star for the first time. As the Atlantic approached its dock at the foot of Canal Street massive crowds began to gather. According to a book published in 1851, Jenny Lind in America, â€Å"some thirty or forty thousand people must have must have been collected together on the adjacent piers and shipping, as well as on all the roofs and in all the windows fronting the water.† The New York police had to push back the enormous crowds so Barnum and Jenny Lind could take a carriage to her hotel, the Irving House on Broadway. As night fell a parade of New York fire companies, carrying torches, escorted a group of local musicians who played serenades to Jenny Lind. Journalists estimated the crowd that night at  more than 20,000 revelers. Barnum had succeeded in drawing enormous crowds to Jenny Lind before she had even sung a single note in America. First Concert in America During her first week in New York, Jenny Lind made excursions to various concert halls with Barnum, to see which might be good enough to hold her concerts. Crowds followed their progress about the city, and anticipation for her concerts kept growing. Barnum finally announced that Jenny Lind would sing at Castle Garden. And as demand for tickets was so great, he announced that the first tickets would be sold by auction. The auction was held, and the first ticket to a Jenny Lind concert in America was sold for $225, an expensive concert ticket by today’s standards and a simply staggering amount in 1850. Most of the tickets to her first concert sold for about six dollars, but the publicity surrounding someone paying more than $200 for a ticket served its purpose. People across America read about it, and it seemed the whole country was curious to hear her. Lind’s first New York City concert was held at Castle Garden on September 11, 1850, before a crowd of about 1,500. She sang selections from operas, and finished with a new song written for her as a salute to the United States. When she had finished, the crowd roared and demanded that Barnum take the stage. The great showman came out and gave a brief speech in which he stated that Jenny Lind was going to donate a portion of the proceeds from her concerts to American charities. The crowd went wild. American Concert Tour Everywhere she went there was a Jenny Lind mania. Crowds greeted her and every concert sold out nearly immediately. She sang in Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Richmond, Virginia, and Charleston, South Carolina. Barnum even arranged for her to sail to Havana, Cuba, where she sang several concerts before sailing to New Orleans. After performing concerts in New Orleans, she sailed up the Mississippi on a riverboat. She performed in a church in the town of Natchez to a wildly appreciative rustic audience. Her tour continued to St. Louis, Nashville, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and other cities. Crowds flocked to hear her, and those who couldn’t hear get tickets marveled at her generosity, as newspapers ran reports of the charitable contributions she was making along the way. At some point Jenny Lind and Barnum parted ways. She continued performing in America, but without Barnum’s talents at promotion she was not as big a draw. With the magic seemingly gone, she returned to Europe in 1852. Jenny Lind’s Later Life Jenny Lind married a musician and conductor she had met on her American tour, and they settled in Germany. By the late 1850s they moved to England, where she was still quite popular.  She became  ill in the 1880s, and died in 1887, at the age of 67. Her obituary in the Times of London estimated that her American tour had earned her $3 million, with Barnum making several times more.

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