Soft curls of smoke lifted from the ash covered ground as...

Soft curls of smoke lifted from the ash covered ground as Stg. Jones roughly grabbed the strap to his pack, readjusting it to be more comfortable. Trees were visible in the distance, but the smoke made it difficult to see if he was walking in the correct direction or not. Every once in a while, Stg. Jones would cough, as if to drive away the smoke and ash that dared to enter his lungs and choke him. His movements were sluggish as he walked the barren wasteland, as if the backpack he carried was as heavy as the world. He gripped the straps tightly as he suddenly jerked his head, his knuckles gleamed with white. â€Å"My entire fault†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He muttered to himself, and then went into a fit of coughs, â€Å"All†¦my fault†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The curls of smoke seemed to†¦show more content†¦Images flashed before his eyes of those final moments in that battle. Gasping and groaning, Stg. Jones shook his head numerous times again, trying to steer those thoughts away and regain some control over his horror-struck body. It took a few minutes, but his muscles finally listened to him and his mind was cleared, somewhat. What remained was a heavy heart as Jones continued on his trek. Soon, the light smoke that surrounded him seemed to thicken, the smell of gunpowder and decay lay potent in the air, forcing him to step back for a moment. Through the grim hazy of grey and white, Stg. Jones saw the faintest silhouettes of odd lumps on the ground. Most of the lumps were spread out, but there were a few piled onto one another. Gulping loudly, Stg. Jones took in a deep breath and ventured on. He focused in on one of the odd lumps, and as he walked closer he saw that the lumps took a distinctive form. As he walked closer and closer, a sick feeling swelled up in the pit of his stomach. Then, a few feet away from the lump, the smoke seemed to clear for a moment, and Stg. Jones felt his stomach drop. There, lying in front of him was one of his fellow soldiers. ‘So†¦. I’ve returned to the battleground†¦. Where I abandoned my squad†¦.’ Stg. Jones thought to himself, his face crestfallen. As if his body was on autopilot, Stg. Jones continued to walk on, looking at every corpse that he passed with unbelieving and glistening eyes. Some were dressed in the

Bram Stokers Dracula A Variation of a Classic Work in...

A woman changes everything; finally there is vindication for the knight who gave up life to avenge the death of his one true love, as he chose to become the undead. Director, Francis Ford Coppola, in his work, â€Å"Bram Stoker’s Dracula†, reaches beyond the words to prove Dracula was more than a monster in creating the movie. Coppola focuses on Dracula as a man, as well as a knight, who is both deeply in love with his church and his bride. The historical elements in the writings of Bram Stoker come to life more so in Coppola’s work with the movie, than in the book. My goal of this paper is to prove how the differences between the book and the movie are predominantly in the beginning and in the end of the film and depict Dracula as the man he†¦show more content†¦For those who found themselves at his mercy were shown none. There were no immunity to his madness. Vlad III (Vlad Dracul), was born to a Transylvanian noblewoman and her husband, Vlad II. Vlad III was the middle child and had an older and a younger brother. At the time of his birth his father Vlad II was living in exile in Transylvania. Vlad II, was admitted to the Order for his bravery and was a ruler of Wallachia. The word for dragon in Romanian is drac and ul is the definitive article. Vlad III’s father thus came to be known as Vlad Dracul, or Vlad the dragon. In Romanian the ending ulea means the son of. Under this interpretation, Vlad III thus became Vlad Dracula, or the son of the dragon. (The word drac also means devil in Romanian. The sobriquet thus took on a double meaning for enemies of Vlad Tepes and his father.) Porter, Ray. â€Å"The Historical Dracula.† April 30, 1992 Eskimo North, Inc. 18 Dec. 2007. Web. 10 Apr. 2014. Vlad III was born into a family of defenders, he lived, fought and believed he was born to defend the Order of the Dracul, as his father and brother did. Vlad II, was appointed by King Sigismund in 1431 and served as military governor for Transylvanian region of Wallachia. Seeking greater hierarchy, he began to gather support and in 1436, killed the Danesti prince Alexandru I and became Vlad II. Between the powers of the Ottoman Turks and the Hungarian Kingdom, in their reign were powerful and Vlad II was forced to payShow MoreRelatedComparing Bram Stoker’s Dracula and the 1972 Film Blacula Essay1917 Words   |  8 PagesBram Stoker’s Dracula is not only a classic story of men and monsters, but a dramatic reactionary work to the perceived threats to Victorian society in nineteenth century England. In modern times there have been many film adaptations of the novel, each developing a unique analysis or criticism of the literary text within the framework of the society a nd time period in which it was created. The 1972 film Blacula is one of the most culturally specific variations on the story of Dracula, and highlights

Jeanne Lewis at Steples Free Essays

Harvard Business School 9-400-065 Rev. July 24, 2000 Jeanne Lewis at Staples, Inc. (A) (Abridged) op YO INC Six months from now, on February 1, 1998, Jeanne Lewis (HBS ’92) would become the senior vice president of marketing at Staples, Inc. We will write a custom essay sample on Jeanne Lewis at Steples or any similar topic only for you Order Now (Staples), a nationwide office supplies superstore. After 10 months working side by side with Todd Krasnow, the current executive vice president of marketing, Lewis was becoming familiar with the department. Her initial assessment led her to wonder if the department’s operating style was suited to evolving competitive realities. As KrasnoWs heir apparent, Lewis anted to be involved in shaping the department’s priorities for the upcoming year. The strategic planning process traditionally began around this time in August, and Lewis wondered if the time to start taking action had arrived. Thus far, 1997 had been a trying year for the company: the Federal Trade Commission had challenged Staples’ proposed merger with Office Depot, and the two companies had recently abandoned 10 months of merger efforts. At that time, Chairman and CEO Tom Stemberg reaffirmed his commitment that Staples would grow from a $5 billion company to a $10 billion company by the turn of the century. Staples not only had to grow bigger, it also had to grow better, as analysts had become accustomed to the company’s 14 consecutive quarters of earnings-per-share growth in excess of 30%. The theme of the upcoming year was twofold: strong growth and more effective execution. c Lewis believed that Stembergs pronouncement to look for the â€Å"silver lining† in the failed merger and to take to heart the lessons of the merger could serve as a call to action for the marketing department. Marketing, which served as both an architect and driver of the brand, would play a critical role in Staples’ continued success. Lewis knew that Staples could survive only if it was prepared to get rid of outmoded ideas and replace them with new ones†a philosophy shared by Krasnow. But Lewis also knew that it could be trigntening to give up the ideas that nad made the company successful. Furthermore, the marketing staff was understandably apprehensive about KrasnoWs planned departure, and many were already mourning his loss. Lewis explained: No While the merger distractions were going on, things that maybe should have been dealt with, weren’t. Now, I wanted to make it clear that a new person was coming on oard in this area, and fgure out how we could get back to business. We needed to refocus on building our business, because it was as competitive as ever, and we had lost a couple of beats in a few marketing areas while busy with the merger. We were at a turning point in the marketing department, as opposed to being long past it. Because of the confluence of external events as well as our own internal complexity, if we didn’t change, then I was concerned it would start to show eventually in sales. Research Associate Jennifer M. Suesse prepared this case under the supervision of Professor Linda A. Hill as the basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. It is an abridged version of an earlier case, â€Å"Jeanne Lewis at Staples, Inc. (A),† HBS No. 499-041, prepared by Research Associate Kristin C. Doughty under the supervision of Professor Linda A. Hill. Some names have been disguised. Copyright 2000 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://www. hbsp. harvard. edu. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means†electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise†without the permission of Harvard Business School. This document is authorized for use only by Harutyun Gevorgyan at HE OTHER until November 2014. Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Permissions@hbsp. harvard. edu or 617. 783. 7860. 400-065 Lewis knew the marketing department’s role in ensuring success was twofold: maintaining the delicate balance between meeting short-term financial objectives ith appropriate promot ional tactics and building customer loyalty and retention witn an ettective marketing strategy; and investigating ways to leverage Staples’ brand and broaden its franchise. She also had specific questions about some of the department’s structures, systems, and staffing. She was eager to get started, but recognized the risks of doing too much, too fast: My style is that I want things to happen quickly. When I see things†either a new problem someone has never had to fgure out before, or where theyVe Just had a different sense of timing†I Jump in and say, â€Å"here’s the way to do it,† and that makes hange happen quickly. But that could limit my ability to work across and with the organization. I could end up spending too much time managing down and not enough time making broader, more expansive impact by managing across the organization as well. Staples’ Background (1985-1991)1 In 1985, Tom Stemberg (HBS ’73), known for his marketing sa’. n. y and innovations in the staid supermarket industry (as vice president of sales at Star Market, and president of First National Supermarket), pioneered the concept of the office supplies superstore. A â€Å"Toys ‘R’ Us† of office supplies, â€Å"Staples, the Office Superstore† would provide completeness, convenience, informed assistance as well as attractive prices†¦ overing everything from coffee to computer software† for the small-business customer. 2 Initial customer research indicated that most small businesses did not track their total expenditures for office products closely, nor were they aware that they were paying on average 40% more for them than large corporations. T o communicate the savings and increased convenience of its new way of procuring office supplies, Staples’ management was prepared to invest heavily in marketing. Staples’ message would emphasize discounts and convenience, leaving customers free from the hassles† of dealing with long lines, order forms, and multiple suppliers. For the pivotal role of director of marketing, Stemberg hired Todd Krasnow, a 28-year- old HBS graduate who had worked in marketing at Star Market with Stembergs new VP of operations. In the early days, Stembergs team of five (himself, Krasnow, CFO, VP of operations, VP of merchandising) each had their own primary spheres of responsibility, but they all worked very closely together, doing whatever it took to get the Job done. They began the mornings with a 7:00 0’clock meeting, reconvened for a orking lunch, and generally worked through the evening until 10:00 0’clock. How to cite Jeanne Lewis at Steples, Papers

Gender Discrimination in the Workplace

Question: Discuss about theGender Discrimination in the Workplace. Answer: Introduction Equal gender roles in the workplace refer to the equality between male and female employees regarding promotions, access to jobs and other opportunities in organizations (Yuwen, 2009, p. 48). Most often women are discriminated and are denied certain opportunities since they are seen as not competent enough. Education and creating social awareness in an organization is necessary to help achieve equal gender roles. Objectives of the Action Plan The action plan for educating people and creating social awareness is based on some objectives. First, it is to ensure that employees are given equal employment opportunities regardless of their gender. Competency and ability to perform their duties should be the main consideration. Another objective would be to avoid discrimination. Discrimination occurs when some people in an organization are treated favourably than others. Awareness makes them alert, and they can defend themselves when such circumstances occur. Educating employees so as to know who is responsible for dealing with gender-based issues is another objective. They can know who can resolve their issues whenever they are faced with discrimination issues. For instance people and culture, the department gives guidance and provide training to ensure awareness of anti-discrimination practices. Making people aware that not all forms of discrimination are against the law is another objective. Such occurs when measures are take n to benefit a particular group, for instance, reserving a parking space for disabled people (Christin, 2010, p. 57). Proposed Actions Various actions need to be taken for the above objectives to be achieved. Training all employees regardless of their gender helps achieve the objective on equal employment opportunities. On the objective to avoid certain discrimination tasks should not be given to certain gender only. For instance most receptionists are ladies, and in this case, it is difficult for a man to secure such job. To achieve the objective of employees knowing who is responsible for resolving issues of gender that may encounter them, the management should create awareness to the employees. This can be done through publicizing using internal memos and other publicity methods. Holding seminars for employees to make them understand that not all discrimination is against the law can help to achieve this objective, and hence they can know when their rights are being violated (Barbara, 2008, p. 148). Anticipated Outcomes Certain outcomes are anticipated when these proposed actions are taken. When equal employment opportunities are given to employees, it results in job satisfaction. Avoidance of discrimination helps to create a harmonious working environment Robert, 2013, p. 55). Employees awareness of who is responsible for their gender issues makes them report any issue to management immediately. Awareness of non-discriminatory circumstances makes them respect those who are underprivileged. Timeline and Resources Required To achieve the proposed action points, timeline and resource availability is necessary. Each objective will be executed within a week. Resources such as trainers are required to facilitate action plan. They need to be paid, and hence any organization should be ready pay them. Again, time and funds are required to facilitate the traveling to various organizations as well as holding conferences and seminars to create awareness and obtain the peoples views on gender discrimination. Key Risks There are risks associated with the action plans. Training people takes valuable working time which is crucial to the organization. Change management may also be expensive to the organization since requires valuable time and finances to implement change. Evaluation Method To evaluate the progress of each action plan, the various method is to be used. One can visit the organization and find out from the employees whether they can identify any improvement regarding the action plans put in place. The management can also help in the evaluation of the employee's overall organization progress. Evaluation will be conducted at the end of every week. References Barbara, .B.M., 2008. Gender and Sexuality in the Work Place. New York: Pantheon. Christin, .L.W., 2010. Gender-Based Discrimination. Baltimore: John Hopkins. Robert. D., 2013. Discrimination at work. .Chicago: UP Press. Yuwen, .L.J., 2009. Taking Employment Discrimination seriously. Utrecht: Brill