Company Analysis: Sunrise Senior Living Essay

Sunrise Senior Living Inc. is one of the top firms in the rapidly growing long-term care industry. They provided a number of services for senior citizens including assisted living, meals, transportation, housekeeping, and licensed and highly skilled nurses for certain residents who require 24 hour care. The company was started in 1981 in Fairfax, Virginia by married couple Paul and Terry Klaassen who had a vision of creating alternative senior living options that emphasize quality of life. They have started what is now the most recognized company in the industry boasting innovative products and services for senior citizens. Ultimately after thoroughly researching the company’s credentials, I decided that Sunrise Senior Living would be a favorable investment given that it is part of quickly expanding industry, it is the top firm in the industry, and expert analysts believe that it is a smart investment. Introduction and Statement of Purpose The purpose of this report is to provide a thorough analysis of Sunrise Senior Living in order to make a decision as to whether this company is worth investing in. This report will include an analysis of the company’s history and public relations, the company’s financial performance and trends, economic variables that affect the company, and an overview of the industry and competing firms. In order to conduct this analysis, all of the components previously mentioned have been researched in depth. All analysis and suggestions made will be supported with valid evidence from a variety of different sources. Financial analysis will include a glance at the company’s balance sheets and income statements of the past few years along ith their performance in the stock market of the past few years. The basic structure of this report consists of an executive summary, a brief introduction to the report with basic information of the Sunrise Senior Living Inc. , a more sufficient overview of the company outlining the research conducted in order to draw conclusions regarding the objective of the report, a comprehensive analysis of the company under the criteria previously mentioned, my personal recommendations as to whether an individual should invest in this company, and finally, an appendix with all necessary tables, graphs, etc. hat are necessary to support my recommendations and more clearly illustrate some of the company analysis. Sunrise Senior Living Inc. is a company based in Fairfax County, Virginia that provides a number of senior living services in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Sunrise Senior Living offers independent living services which include housing, meals, transportation, housekeeping, and licensed and highly skilled nurses for certain residents who require 24 hour care. Also, these assisted living communities boast nostalgic neighborhoods that provide uniquely designed accommodations, services, and care to support residents who are cognitively impaired or face issues with memory loss, including Alzheimer’s disease. Finally, it provides a medication management program, which includes the storage and distribution of medications as directed by the resident’s physician. As of December 31, 2009, Sunrise Senior Living operated 384 communities, including 335 communities in the United States, 15 communities in Canada, 27 communities in the United Kingdom, and 7 communities in Germany. The company was founded in 1981 by Paul and Terry Klaassen who had a vision of creating alternative senior living options that emphasize quality of life. (Yahoo Finance) Sunrise Senior Living Inc. is in the healthcare sector of the long term care facilities industry. The senior care industry is continually growing because of the increased life-span of the population. With the Baby Boomers entering the age of retirement, the senior citizen population is currently supplying a huge market for companies who provide these service-oriented products (Business Week). In fact, according to an article by Senior Care  Marketer, â€Å"The senior care industry is booming and it’s just getting started as the baby boom generation cares for their aging parents and require care themselves as they transition into their own senior years. People sixty-five years and older represent the fastest-growing age group in the United States, and it is projected that the 75+ population will increase 70% by 2025. By 2030, 70 million Americans will be over the age of 65 – that’s one out of every five Americans! †(Senior Care Marketer). With that said, there a number of competing firms that are seeking to reap the benefits of this growing industry. Sunrise Senior Living is currently the leading competitor in the senior care industry. However, there are number of other firms that are close behind including Brookdale Senior Living, Emeritus, Gentiva, Odyssey Healthcare, and ResCare. Overview Company History and Background As previously mentioned, Sunrise Senior Living Inc. was founded by Paul and Terry Klaassen more than 25 years ago. The idea for this now successful business originated in Holland where Paul Klaassen would visit his grandparents as a child. Paul’s grandparents lived in assisted living homes called verzorgingstehuizen. These assisted living homes are very similar to those offered by Sunrise today. The verzorgingstehuizen allowed its residents to be independent while simultaneously providing support or care for those who needed it. To start this company, a youthful and energetic Paul and Terry Klaassen sold their home and moved into a run-down nursing home in Northern Virginia. Paul and Terry went on to renovate this nursing home and open up their first location of Sunrise Senior Living. Paul and Terry cared for the residents themselves in their first years of business, but word quickly spread regarding their new successful business. As demand for their services increased, they opened up two more locations in the mid 1980’s. Taking on a similar strategy as they did with the old nursing home, they opened up new locations by renovating older buildings and converting them into warm environments that were fit for caring for senior citizens. By 1987, Paul and Terry opened their first Victorian-style mansion which is now a nationally recognized icon for their company. (Sunrise Senior Living) As with any successful business or corporation, it all starts with a vision and mission statement which provides direction and purpose. When founding Sunrise Senior Living, Paul and Terry Klaassen wanted to â€Å"champion quality of life for seniors in a home-like, resident-centered environment, unlike existing, more institutional options. † Their operating philosophy originates from a deep seated certainty in the method in which they accomplish the most premium quality of care of every individual. These convictions that have served as the foundation for Sunrise Senior Living’s mission statement are now also the foundation for Sunrise’s Principles of Service and Core Values. These set of principles and values currently direct Sunrise’s team members and employees at all of their locations worldwide. Sunrise Senior Living’s Principles of Service include preserving dignity, nurturing the spirit, celebrating individuality, enabling freedom of choice, encouraging independence, and involving family and friends. Their core values include passion, joy in service, stewardship, respect, and trust. Each member of the Sunrise Senior Living team is encouraged to follow these principles and core values to ensure that each resident or client receives the most premium caliber service. Sunrise Senior Living) At first glance, one may question the importance of information such as mission and vision statements. However, by evaluating and analyzing a company’s mission and vision statements, it becomes possible to take a deeper look into the company’s culture and goals which can often be an indicator of their success and or failure in various fiel ds. Also, as an investor, it is important to possess a thorough understanding of the company’s purpose and values. Although the primary concern for most investors is the return they will receive on their investment, another factor that investors consider is the company’s reputation which is linked to their morals and code of ethics. For example, an investor may choose not to invest in a certain company even though it would provide large returns on his or her investment because he or she may not agree with the company’s mission and vision statements. Products and Services As previously mentioned Sunrise offers a number of different services and amenities for senior citizens. These services include assisted living, Alzheimer’s and memory care, independent living, skilled nursing, and short term stays. Not to mention that Sunrise also offers different financial options for those residents who have trouble with payments. Under each main service offered are a number of more specific programs as well. For example, one program in particular that Sunrise is known for is their reminiscence neighborhoods, which is part of their Alzheimer’s and memory care treatment. These specially designed neighborhoods were created in order to allow senior citizens to re-live their glory days. To do this, members at Sunrise Senior Living begin by gaining an understanding of the senior’s life stories without overlooking minute details. The reminiscence program encompasses a number of different activities that allows them to retain the spirit of their youth. It includes encouraging residents to participate in common daily practices such as gardening, sewing, office work, and household chores. Additionally, the reminiscence program offers â€Å"Snoezelen† environments which are essentially forms of stimulation for the senses and are used to maintain calmness and serenity among all of the seniors. These â€Å"Snoezelen† environments integrate music, aroma therapy, peaceful sounds, and visual displays for an experience that is incredibly soothing. (Sunrise Senior Living) Although Sunrise Senior Living offers a number of innovative and unique services, their customer and employee reviews are mixed to a certain degree. In order to best find out the opinions of customers and employees regarding Sunrise, I decided that it would be best to examine random personal accounts of both customers and employees. I have examined a number of different websites and blogs in which individuals share their experiences with Sunrise Senior Living. Customer and Employee Reviews Measured up is a website that offers a wide variety of customer reviews and complaints of a number of businesses worldwide. There was recently an instance that occurred on June 19, 2010 in which a Sunrise neglected to aid one of their resident’s who fell and broke her leg and eventually needed a hip replacement surgery. The review off the company was written by the daughter of the woman who fell. She, unfortunately for Sunrise Senior Living, had only the worst things to say about the company. After the incident, Sunrise, according to the daughter of the woman, did not offer fair compensation for the injury of her mother. She also stated that the members at Sunrise did not give any form of apology whatsoever and â€Å"treated the entire affair with as cold a heart as they could muster. † She even went on to say that the â€Å"Sunrise Difference† was cruelty, malice, and disdain. She also strongly advised any individual with elderly loved ones to stay away from Sunrise Senior Living because she thought they were cold and malicious. (Measured Up) As aforementioned, this incident occurred on June 19, 2010. It is especially relevant because of how recent this whole affair took place. As with any company or organization in general, it takes only one mishap to permanently tarnish a reputation. The incident with the woman falling is obviously going to be detrimental to Sunrise Senior Living’s reputation. This is important because it is a tribute of customer satisfaction, even though it was only one incident. This decrease in customer satisfaction, if great enough, will be reflected in the financial performance of the company because clients will no longer demand Sunrise’s services as much. Employee reviews of the company are arguably equally as important as customer reviews given that ultimately, it is the employees who are running these companies. According to Glassdoor, a blog that provides insight and internal reviews of jobs and companies, Sunrise Senior Living received an average employee rating of 2. 6 out of 40 reviews, meaning that employees feel that working at Sunrise is â€Å"Ok. † Also, Mark S. Ordan, CEO and Director of Sunrise since March of 2008, received a 44% approval rate by employees. Although these statistics are from a relatively small sample, considering that Sunrise consists of close to 5000 employees, it is still a testament to the entire company’s satisfaction in their workplace. (Glass Door Reviews) Recent News Recently, Sunrise Senior Living has done some restructuring with regards to their upper level management as well as the relationships they hold with some of their joint ventures. Namely, they have appointed Marc Richards as Chief Financial Officer, Greg Neeb as Chief Investment and Administrative Officer, and David Haddock as the General Counsel. In terms of their joint ventures, Sunrise Senior Living is currently working with Ventas, HCP, and CNL Lifestyle Properties. In order to understand the restructuring of these relationships it is necessary to possess a basic understanding of the function of each of these companies. (Sunrise Senior Living – Investor Relations) Ventas is one of the country’s primary healthcare real estate investment trusts. Their increasing portfolio contains 602 healthcare-related facilities that contain roughly 50,000 licensed beds and senior housing units which are located advantageously in 44 states in the US and two provinces in Canada. Ventas) HCP, a real estate investment trust, was established in 1985 and is a publicly traded company of the S&P 500. Their portfolio contains 673 properties in 42 states and Mexico, and mezzanine loans and other debt instruments. All of which are spread across the healthcare industry including senior housing, life science, post-acute/skilled nursing a nd hospital. (HCP) CNL Lifestyle Properties, also a real estate investment trust, is a company that invests in properties projected to produce income that focus primarily in lifestyle related industries. CNL Lifestyle Properties purchases properties and leases them on a long-term basis with the potential of long-term revenue. CNL Lifestyle Properties owns 10 ski resorts, two former Six-Flags owned and branded parks, two former non branded Six-Flags Parks, and three former Six-Flags owned water parks just to name a few. (CNL Lifestyle Properties) Sunrise Senior Living has restructured with Ventas through sale of joint venture interests which brought forth funds improving their balance sheet as well as reaching a new agreement that allows Sunrise to continue to manage senior living facilities owned by Ventas. With HCP, Sunrise has ended management contracts with 27 communities which has allowed them to reduce their debt. Finally, Sunrise has gained 40% ownership interest, from 10% in the previous year of a wholly owned subsidiary of CNL Lifestyle Properties, offering the opportunity to purchase their new partner’s interest in the venture. All of these adjustments are consistent with their strategy of pursuing sole ownership of the assets they manage.

Fish Anatomy

FISHERIES BIOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT External Fish Anatomy The following illustration of a largemouth bass shows some of the common external features that are used to describe the differences among fish species. Fish are animals that are cold-blooded, have fins and a backbone. Most fish have scales and breathe with gills. There are about 22,000 species of fish that began evolving around 480 million years ago. The largemouth billustrated abovethe typical torplike (fusiform) shape associated with many fishes used by the fish to maintain its position, move, steer and stop.They are either single fins alonthe centerline of the fish, such as the dorsal (back) fins, caudal (tail) fin and anal fin, or paired fins, which include the pectoral (chest) and pelvic (hip) fins. Fishes such as catfish have another fleshy lobe behind the dorsal fin, called an adipose (fat) fin that is not illustrated here. The dorsal and anal fins primarily help fish to not roll over onto their sides. The caudal fin is t he main fin for propulsion to move the fish forward. The paired fins assist with steering, stoppingand hovering.Scales in most bony fishes (most freshwater fishes other than gar that have ganoid scales, and catfish which have no scales) are either ctenoid or cycloid. Ctenoid scales have jagged edges and cycloid have smooth rounded edges. Ctenii are tiny, comblike projections on the exposed (posterior) edge of ctenoid scales. Bass and most other fish with spines have ctenoid scales composed of connective tissue covered with calcium. Most fishes also have a very important mucus layer covering the body that helps prevent infection.Anglers should be careful not to rub this â€Å"slime† off when handling a fish that is to be released. Maryland Envirothon 1 In many freshwater fishes the fins are supported by spines that are rigid and may be quite sharp thus playing a defensive role. Catfish have notably hard sharp fins that anglers should be wary of. The soft dorsal and caudal fins are composed of rays, as are portions of other fins. Rays are less rigid and frequently branched. The gills are the breathing apparatus of fish and are highly vascularized giving them their bright red cover.An operculum (gill cover) that is a flexible bony plate protects the sensitive gills. Water is â€Å"inhaled† through the mouth, passes over the gills and â€Å"exhaled† from beneath the operculum. Fish see through their eyes and can detect color. The eyes are rounder in fish than mammals because of the refractive index of water and focus is achieved by mthe lens in and out, not distorting it as in mammals. water and can be quite sensitive. Eels and catfish have particularly well developed senses of smell. larger it is the bigger the prey it can consume.Fish hava sense of taste and may sample items to taste them before swallowing if they are not obvious prey items. Some are primmostly other fish). The imported grass carp is one of the few large fishes that are prim arily herbivorous (eating plants). Fish may or may not have teeth depending on the species. Fishchain pickerel and gar have obvious canine-shaped teeth. Other fish have less obvious teeth, such as the cardiform teeth in catfish which feel like a roughened area at the front of the mouthor vomerine teeth that are tiny patches of teeth, for example, in the roof of a striped bass' mouth.Grass carp and other minnows have pharyngeal teeth modified from their gill arches for grinding that are located in the throat. that are open to the water through a series of pores (creating a line along the side of the fish). The lateral line primarily senses water currents and pressure, and movement in the water. immediately in front of the anal fin. are used to describe the differences between fish that are described in more detail below. Maryland Envirothon 2 front of thhollow and house and protect the delicate spinal cord. SPINAL CORD: Cbrain, as well as in BRAIN: Thbehaviors processed here.LATERAL LINEOsense organs; detectunderwater vibrations and is capable of determinthe direction of their source. (See Issue 8 of The City Fisher for minformation. ) SWIM (or AIRBLA hollow, gas-fillbalance organ a fish to conserve energyby maintaining neutral buoyancy (suspending) in water. Fish caught fromvery deep water sometimes need to have air releasreleased and return to deep water, dusurface. Species of fish that do not possess a swim bladder sink to the bottom if they stop swimming. GILLS: Aif the fishKIDNEY: ed from their swim bladder before they can be idney is alsbody, allowing certain fish species to exist in freshwater or saltwater, and in some cases (such assnook or tarpon) both. Maryland Envirothon 3 STOMACH AND INTESTINES: Break down (digest) fo Fish such as tilapia that are herbivomatter is usually tough and fibrous and more difficult to break down into usable components. A great deal about fish feeding habits can be determined by examining stomach contents. PYLORIC CAECA: Th is organ with fingerlike projections is located near the junction of the stomach and theindigestion, may functio VENT: The site of waste elimination from the fish’s body.LIVER: This important organ has a number of functions. It abrimportantas playing a role in nitrogen (waste) excretion. HEART: Circulates blood throughout the body. Oxygen avakidneys an GONADS (REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS): In adult female bass, the bright oranbufertilizing the eggs, are much smaller and wh(or roe) of certain fish are considered a delicacy, as in the case of caviar from sturgeon. MUSCLES: Provide movement and locomotion. This is the part of the fish that is usually eaten, and Measuring a Fish of the fish with the mouth closed and the tail fin aying along a tape measure, then pinch the tail fin closed and determine the total length, do NOT pull a flexible tape measure along the curve of the fish. Conversely, most marine (saltwater regulations) refer to the â€Å"fork length†, and scientists ofte nuse â€Å"standard length† which is to the end of the fleshy part of t Maryland Envirothon 4 aby minor damage to the tanor does it give too much creditto a fish for the relatively light weight tail when calculatingfish's condition. â€Å"Girth† is best measured with a fabric ruler, such as tailors use.It can also be determined by drawing a string around the fish at its widest point marking wherethe string overlaps and then mthe overlapping points on a conventional ruler. Knowing thegirth is important when tryingcertify a fish for a record, and provides useful information Using total length and girth you can get a rough estimate of a fish's weight using various formulas. Length-Weight Formulas to Estimate Fish Weights biologists use. The equation is: Log (weight in grams)= -4. 83 + 1. 923 x Log (total length in millimeters) + 1. 57 x Log (girthmillimeters). A 22†³ long bass w A quick, though very rough, estimate of torpedo shaped fish like young bass can be obtain ed by using: Total Length (in inches)-squared, times girth (in inches) divided by 1200. A 22†³ long Another common option used for estimating bass weights is: Girth (in inches)-squared, times length (in inches) divided by 800. A 22†³ long bass with a girth of 15 How Fish Swim alternately on each side first toward one side and then toward the other, results in a series of waves traveling down the fish's body.The rear part of each wave thrusts against the water and propels the fish forward. Maryland Envirothon 5 This type of movement is quite clearly seen in the freshwater eel. Because movement of the head back and forth exerts drag, which consumes additional energy and slows travel, a great many fishes have modified this snakelike motion by keeping the waves very small along most of thelength of the body, in some cases showing no obvious movement at all, and then increasing them sharply in the tail region.It is the end of the traveling waves that moves the tail forcefully b ackand forth, providing the main propulsion for forward motion. A simpler form of tail propulsion seen in such inflexible-bodied fishes as the trunkfish, which simply alternates contractions of all the muscle blocks on one side of the body with those on the other side, causing the tail to move from side to side like a sculling paddle. Some of the predatory bony fishes are the fastest swimmers; they can cruise at speeds that are between three and six times their body lele0. 8 km/hr (0. mph), swim very slowly; others, such as the salmon, which may reach a sustainespeed of 13 km/hr (8 mph), move much faster; and it has been estimated that tuna may reach speeds of 80 km/hr (50 mph), and swordfish, 97 km/hr (60 mph). Introduction to Aging Fish: What Are Otoliths? directly behind the brain of bony fishes. There are three types of o 1. Sagitta—the largest of the 3 pairs of otoliths; involved in the detection of sound and process of hear 3. Lapillus—involved in the detection o f gravitational force and sound (Popper and Lu 2000) re are many different shapes and sizes of otoliths differenOtoliths are important to scientific age and growth studies. This figure shows the growth rings of a sagittal otolith section viewed under reflective light. The darker area or â€Å"translucent zone† represents a period of fast growth. The whiter area or â€Å"opaquezone† represents a period of slower growth. The age of the fish is estimated by counting the annuli, or opaque bands, of the thin sections, as one would count rings on a tree to determine its age. Maryland Envirothon 6 Before age data can be used, the method of estimating age by counting annuli must be validated for each species to which it is applied.There are several ways to validate age, or prove that â€Å"one annulus is equal to one year. † Most obvious might be to simply rear fish from spawn, sacrifice the fish after a few years, and compare the number of rings to the known age of tho se fish. This process can be time consuming and expensive. It also creates the possibility of abnormal growth patterns caused by laboratory settings (Campana, 2001). Although this method may not be practical for validating annular ring formation, a similar method is effective in validating daily ring formation (Campana and Neilson, 1985).To avoid the effects of long-term laboratory exposure, tag and release of wild fish can be useful in validating annulus deposition. This figure shows the fluorescent tag of a common snook otolith. A captured common snook was injected with oxytetracycline (OTC), a chemical that is incorporated into calcium-rich structures including otoliths. The fish was then tagged and released. Seven years later, the fish was recaptured, sacrificed, and processed for aging. The OTC, which binds to the calcium in the otolith, appears as a glowing band when the otolith is viewed using fluorescence microscopy.The number of annuli between capture and recapture is also seven. Information like this is key to linking a single annulus to one year of growth, but such information relies heavily on time and chance. The age data gathered from otolith examinations allow scientists to model growth rates, maximum age, age at maturity, and the trend of future generations. Literature Referenced Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. http://www. floridamarine. org/features/view_article. asp? id=21978 and http://myfwc. com/Fishing/Fishes/anatomy. html. Fish and Wildlife Research Fish Anatomy FISHERIES BIOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT External Fish Anatomy The following illustration of a largemouth bass shows some of the common external features that are used to describe the differences among fish species. Fish are animals that are cold-blooded, have fins and a backbone. Most fish have scales and breathe with gills. There are about 22,000 species of fish that began evolving around 480 million years ago. The largemouth billustrated abovethe typical torplike (fusiform) shape associated with many fishes used by the fish to maintain its position, move, steer and stop.They are either single fins alonthe centerline of the fish, such as the dorsal (back) fins, caudal (tail) fin and anal fin, or paired fins, which include the pectoral (chest) and pelvic (hip) fins. Fishes such as catfish have another fleshy lobe behind the dorsal fin, called an adipose (fat) fin that is not illustrated here. The dorsal and anal fins primarily help fish to not roll over onto their sides. The caudal fin is t he main fin for propulsion to move the fish forward. The paired fins assist with steering, stoppingand hovering.Scales in most bony fishes (most freshwater fishes other than gar that have ganoid scales, and catfish which have no scales) are either ctenoid or cycloid. Ctenoid scales have jagged edges and cycloid have smooth rounded edges. Ctenii are tiny, comblike projections on the exposed (posterior) edge of ctenoid scales. Bass and most other fish with spines have ctenoid scales composed of connective tissue covered with calcium. Most fishes also have a very important mucus layer covering the body that helps prevent infection.Anglers should be careful not to rub this â€Å"slime† off when handling a fish that is to be released. Maryland Envirothon 1 In many freshwater fishes the fins are supported by spines that are rigid and may be quite sharp thus playing a defensive role. Catfish have notably hard sharp fins that anglers should be wary of. The soft dorsal and caudal fins are composed of rays, as are portions of other fins. Rays are less rigid and frequently branched. The gills are the breathing apparatus of fish and are highly vascularized giving them their bright red cover.An operculum (gill cover) that is a flexible bony plate protects the sensitive gills. Water is â€Å"inhaled† through the mouth, passes over the gills and â€Å"exhaled† from beneath the operculum. Fish see through their eyes and can detect color. The eyes are rounder in fish than mammals because of the refractive index of water and focus is achieved by mthe lens in and out, not distorting it as in mammals. water and can be quite sensitive. Eels and catfish have particularly well developed senses of smell. larger it is the bigger the prey it can consume.Fish hava sense of taste and may sample items to taste them before swallowing if they are not obvious prey items. Some are primmostly other fish). The imported grass carp is one of the few large fishes that are prim arily herbivorous (eating plants). Fish may or may not have teeth depending on the species. Fishchain pickerel and gar have obvious canine-shaped teeth. Other fish have less obvious teeth, such as the cardiform teeth in catfish which feel like a roughened area at the front of the mouthor vomerine teeth that are tiny patches of teeth, for example, in the roof of a striped bass' mouth.Grass carp and other minnows have pharyngeal teeth modified from their gill arches for grinding that are located in the throat. that are open to the water through a series of pores (creating a line along the side of the fish). The lateral line primarily senses water currents and pressure, and movement in the water. immediately in front of the anal fin. are used to describe the differences between fish that are described in more detail below. Maryland Envirothon 2 front of thhollow and house and protect the delicate spinal cord. SPINAL CORD: Cbrain, as well as in BRAIN: Thbehaviors processed here.LATERAL LINEOsense organs; detectunderwater vibrations and is capable of determinthe direction of their source. (See Issue 8 of The City Fisher for minformation. ) SWIM (or AIRBLA hollow, gas-fillbalance organ a fish to conserve energyby maintaining neutral buoyancy (suspending) in water. Fish caught fromvery deep water sometimes need to have air releasreleased and return to deep water, dusurface. Species of fish that do not possess a swim bladder sink to the bottom if they stop swimming. GILLS: Aif the fishKIDNEY: ed from their swim bladder before they can be idney is alsbody, allowing certain fish species to exist in freshwater or saltwater, and in some cases (such assnook or tarpon) both. Maryland Envirothon 3 STOMACH AND INTESTINES: Break down (digest) fo Fish such as tilapia that are herbivomatter is usually tough and fibrous and more difficult to break down into usable components. A great deal about fish feeding habits can be determined by examining stomach contents. PYLORIC CAECA: Th is organ with fingerlike projections is located near the junction of the stomach and theindigestion, may functio VENT: The site of waste elimination from the fish’s body.LIVER: This important organ has a number of functions. It abrimportantas playing a role in nitrogen (waste) excretion. HEART: Circulates blood throughout the body. Oxygen avakidneys an GONADS (REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS): In adult female bass, the bright oranbufertilizing the eggs, are much smaller and wh(or roe) of certain fish are considered a delicacy, as in the case of caviar from sturgeon. MUSCLES: Provide movement and locomotion. This is the part of the fish that is usually eaten, and Measuring a Fish of the fish with the mouth closed and the tail fin aying along a tape measure, then pinch the tail fin closed and determine the total length, do NOT pull a flexible tape measure along the curve of the fish. Conversely, most marine (saltwater regulations) refer to the â€Å"fork length†, and scientists ofte nuse â€Å"standard length† which is to the end of the fleshy part of t Maryland Envirothon 4 aby minor damage to the tanor does it give too much creditto a fish for the relatively light weight tail when calculatingfish's condition. â€Å"Girth† is best measured with a fabric ruler, such as tailors use.It can also be determined by drawing a string around the fish at its widest point marking wherethe string overlaps and then mthe overlapping points on a conventional ruler. Knowing thegirth is important when tryingcertify a fish for a record, and provides useful information Using total length and girth you can get a rough estimate of a fish's weight using various formulas. Length-Weight Formulas to Estimate Fish Weights biologists use. The equation is: Log (weight in grams)= -4. 83 + 1. 923 x Log (total length in millimeters) + 1. 57 x Log (girthmillimeters). A 22†³ long bass w A quick, though very rough, estimate of torpedo shaped fish like young bass can be obtain ed by using: Total Length (in inches)-squared, times girth (in inches) divided by 1200. A 22†³ long Another common option used for estimating bass weights is: Girth (in inches)-squared, times length (in inches) divided by 800. A 22†³ long bass with a girth of 15 How Fish Swim alternately on each side first toward one side and then toward the other, results in a series of waves traveling down the fish's body.The rear part of each wave thrusts against the water and propels the fish forward. Maryland Envirothon 5 This type of movement is quite clearly seen in the freshwater eel. Because movement of the head back and forth exerts drag, which consumes additional energy and slows travel, a great many fishes have modified this snakelike motion by keeping the waves very small along most of thelength of the body, in some cases showing no obvious movement at all, and then increasing them sharply in the tail region.It is the end of the traveling waves that moves the tail forcefully b ackand forth, providing the main propulsion for forward motion. A simpler form of tail propulsion seen in such inflexible-bodied fishes as the trunkfish, which simply alternates contractions of all the muscle blocks on one side of the body with those on the other side, causing the tail to move from side to side like a sculling paddle. Some of the predatory bony fishes are the fastest swimmers; they can cruise at speeds that are between three and six times their body lele0. 8 km/hr (0. mph), swim very slowly; others, such as the salmon, which may reach a sustainespeed of 13 km/hr (8 mph), move much faster; and it has been estimated that tuna may reach speeds of 80 km/hr (50 mph), and swordfish, 97 km/hr (60 mph). Introduction to Aging Fish: What Are Otoliths? directly behind the brain of bony fishes. There are three types of o 1. Sagitta—the largest of the 3 pairs of otoliths; involved in the detection of sound and process of hear 3. Lapillus—involved in the detection o f gravitational force and sound (Popper and Lu 2000) re are many different shapes and sizes of otoliths differenOtoliths are important to scientific age and growth studies. This figure shows the growth rings of a sagittal otolith section viewed under reflective light. The darker area or â€Å"translucent zone† represents a period of fast growth. The whiter area or â€Å"opaquezone† represents a period of slower growth. The age of the fish is estimated by counting the annuli, or opaque bands, of the thin sections, as one would count rings on a tree to determine its age. Maryland Envirothon 6 Before age data can be used, the method of estimating age by counting annuli must be validated for each species to which it is applied.There are several ways to validate age, or prove that â€Å"one annulus is equal to one year. † Most obvious might be to simply rear fish from spawn, sacrifice the fish after a few years, and compare the number of rings to the known age of tho se fish. This process can be time consuming and expensive. It also creates the possibility of abnormal growth patterns caused by laboratory settings (Campana, 2001). Although this method may not be practical for validating annular ring formation, a similar method is effective in validating daily ring formation (Campana and Neilson, 1985).To avoid the effects of long-term laboratory exposure, tag and release of wild fish can be useful in validating annulus deposition. This figure shows the fluorescent tag of a common snook otolith. A captured common snook was injected with oxytetracycline (OTC), a chemical that is incorporated into calcium-rich structures including otoliths. The fish was then tagged and released. Seven years later, the fish was recaptured, sacrificed, and processed for aging. The OTC, which binds to the calcium in the otolith, appears as a glowing band when the otolith is viewed using fluorescence microscopy.The number of annuli between capture and recapture is also seven. Information like this is key to linking a single annulus to one year of growth, but such information relies heavily on time and chance. The age data gathered from otolith examinations allow scientists to model growth rates, maximum age, age at maturity, and the trend of future generations. Literature Referenced Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. http://www. floridamarine. org/features/view_article. asp? id=21978 and http://myfwc. com/Fishing/Fishes/anatomy. html. Fish and Wildlife Research

HR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

HR - Essay Example Today, as compared to earlier period, line managers are being held more responsible and accountable for numerous functions in HRD. Contemporary human resource literature shows how today’s line managers are assuming important role specifically in encouraging employee learning and development (Siugzdiniene, 2008). Although this assumption remains theoretical and less data exists on implementation procedure, the truth of the matter is that line managers’ role in HRD functions is increasingly becoming real and undisputed fact. Two unique features of the modern HRD approach exists that is: the devolution of HRD practices to line managers and the integration of HRD with the overall business strategy sometimes referred to as Strategic Human Resource Development-SHRD (Siugzdiniene 2008). The major role of SHRD has evolved to constitute the creation of strong linkages with the organizations strategic goals and establishment of learning environment coupled with structural design, which in turn is facilitated to promote learning with sole aim of improving organization’s performance (Siugzdiniene 2008). Further, SHRD involves integrating HRD functions with objectives of the business. The essence of devolving HRD functions and practices to line managers has evolved as one of the enabling element of SHRD system and the general conviction is that line managers possess the ability to drive HRD policies and practices (Siugzdiniene 2008). Starting in the early days of1990s, it became clear that the traditional role of human resource could not dictate the events of the future and therefore need arose to re-align human resource functions to the new emerging elements in the organization. Such new emerging elements included culture, behavior, motivation, and performance (Gratton 1999). Therefore, there was a gradual shift from human resource concentration on capital

HIS Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HIS - Assignment Example 4. What group was targeted for employment in American factories? American factories targeted poor recent immigrants to work. Irish, German, and French immigrants worked in American factories in the first half of the 19th century. 5. How did banks stimulate the economy? Banks stimualated the economy by lending money to entrepeneurs who wanted to capitalize on the ever-growing American movement West. They also helped finance speculators buying real estate and investing in industrialization. 6. Why did voter turnout continue to rise in the 1830s?Voter turnout continued to rise in the 1830s because more and more people were given the opportunity to vote. Voting was becoming more democratized, with less restrictions on people to vote (ie. Land owning, Christian, etc.). As America settled westward, more people were involved politically. 7. What had happened to the Republican Party by the election of 1832?By 1832, the Republican party of Jefferson had crumbled, replaced by the Democrats and the common man party of Andrew Jackson and the federalist Whig Party. It would reappear in the 1850s with Abraham Lincoln and an anti-slavery focus, and continue to be the Republican party of modern times. 8. What most defined Jacksons presidency?ANdrew Jackson’s presidency was most defined by the first election of a â€Å"self-made man.† He was not highly educated or an Eastern elite, but a westerner, a sel-made man, and a man of battle, who represented the common man and the West in his ascendancy to the presidency. Some would say his ignoring the US Supreme Court in Worcester v Georgia and moving the American Indians westward on the Trail of Tears to be an infamous legacy as well. to save them? Why?Of course, there were other ways to â€Å"save† the American Indians of the East, but would have come at a cost to American expansion and

Project costing (Project Management) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Project costing (Project Management) - Essay Example This gives the essence of a project which should be a temporary thing outlaid within the limits of time. In respect of this case study, it’s imperative that the project appraisal is facilitated so that the resources can be put into proper use. In a project like a construction of say a health facility, there tends to be three major players for the success of such endeavors. These factors are mainly; time, quality and budget. In project management circle, a lot of regard is given to the attainment of the specified quality and this need to be within the stipulated project life so that there is no much deviation of the cost. It is therefore important that before a project like the one in the case study take off, appraisal and evaluation is effectively carried out. It is common that time and cost tend to show an inverse relation and therefore it is always advisable that to cut time, there must be a compromise in the overall project cost (Smith, 1995). Any project management team mu st therefore be very considerate and extra careful when designing and implementing so that resources which tend to be costly are economized. In regard to the construction project referred to in this case study, cost stands out o be one of the thorny issues since it forms the better part of the implementation process. This is in the form of building materials, manpower and other costs like sunk and legal costs. It a bit easier to manage cost issues ones the network analysis has been drawn and simple breakdown of the work is put down. Project cost management will tend to be challenging since there is always the issue of uncertainties caused by natural disasters like floods, fire, earthquake and others which can alter the plan significantly. For this project proposal to succeed, cost control is paramount. Beginning with the building materials, the client may decide to give tender wholesome to a given contractor so that even the cost

Nursing Essay on Gerontology Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nursing on Gerontology - Essay Example Thus, the three main nursing diagnoses of the patient are 1) ineffective airway clearance related to pneumonia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), 2) impaired gas exchange related to acute and chronic lung disease, and 3) displaying symptoms of depression due to respiratory illness. It is highly possible that her respiratory condition is caused by her history of smoking. Cigarette contains noxious chemicals that irritate the respiratory lining. These protective mechanisms include the increased production of mucus layers the epithelium to prevent the chemicals from reaching the cells, causing further damage. In addition, the respiratory cells to divide in a faster rate to try to compensate for the chemical-induced tissue injury. As a result, the normally one-cell thick respiratory epithelium that is able to facilitate gas exchange between the atmosphere and blood is now converted to a thick epithelium with multiple cell layers, which decreases the amount of air passing t hrough. This clinically presents as ineffective airway clearance, causing impaired gas exchange, thus explaining the shortness of breath experienced by the patient, and the need for supplement oxygen to meet the demands of the body (Reilly, Silverman & Shapiro, 2012, pp. 2153-2154). Addressing the first two nursing diagnoses should be prioritized because these two are the ones causing the depression. In fact, it is estimated that almost one-third of individuals suffering from a chronic medical condition present with signs of depression. When a person acquires a chronic illness, he or she must adjust both to the disease and to its treatment. Consequently, the health condition can affect a person’s independence, quality of life and perception. These changes cause significant stress that can push a person to abnormal levels of sadness, causing depression. Although a lesser priority, this nursing diagnosis should also be addressed since the loss of interest, sleep disturbance and repeated thoughts of death or suicide can adversely affect management of the concomitant respiratory disease (Cleveland Clinic, 2009). III. Open-Mindedness Again, the patient has depression resulting from the inconvenience brought by ineffective airway clearance and impaired gas exchange due to chronic airway obstruction, not elsewhere classified. Based on this statement, the measurable outcome should include 1) increased forced expiratory volume in a second (FEV1) to demonstrate improvement in airway clearance 2) increased oxygen saturation of hemoglobin to objectively measure improvement in gas exchange, and 3) better functional status (SF-36 Health Survey) score compared to before treatment. IV. Inquisitiveness Nurses have a vital role in the achievement of these outcomes. To improve FEV1 and oxygen saturation, nurses should first be familiar with the management plan of the patient. A) They ensure that the patient’s medications, bronchodilators for airway obstruction and supplemental oxygen to improve gas exchange, are being taken as per the doctors’ orders, so that homecare can become an option (Hernandez et al., 2008). B) Any questions about these medications, both by the patient and her family, should be addressed to promote compliance and adherence. By doing so, this can involve the family into the patient management (Jonsdottir, 2008). C) Also, the patient should be guided during the measurement of FEV1 using spirometer and oxygen satura

The function of lunges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The function of lunges - Essay Example The bronchi further subdivide into bronchioles that divide even further into air sacs known as alveoli. Once inside the alveoli, air penetrates through a remarkably thin and wet membrane into the blood capillaries. Hemoglobin is the blood component that carries carbon dioxide from the heart. It releases it for exhalation in a backward process through the bronchioles, bronchi trachea and out through the nostrils. Oxygen present in the fresh air binds itself on the surface of hemoglobin and is transported to the heart for pumping to the other parts of the body. With oxygen supplied and carbon dioxide released, the gaseous exchange process is complete, which is the main function of the lungs (Hlastala and Albert 39). The lungs provide protection for the heart. The lungs are huge compared to all the other organs located in the chest cavity. They are made up of soft tissue and from their location on each side of the chest; they offer protection to the heart and other organs such as the arteries. Their soft tissue cushions the heart and acts as a shock absorber (Chiras 76). Lungs are fairly large with the human lungs ranging between ten and twelve inches. They can hold up to four hundred and fifty milliliters of blood. That is about nine percent of the all the blood circulating in the body. The lungs act as a reservoir from where blood is drawn to compensate for the blood lost through hemorrhage (Chiras 76). The lungs prevent the body from air-borne infection. Sometimes dust, bacteria or any other harmful particles are inhaled together with air. The mucus layer at the surface of the respiratory surface traps any of these foreign particles. The foreign materials are moved upwards through the beating of cilia, or the lungs initiate a cough that causes the expulsion of the materials outside the body (Chiras 77). Apart from being significant for metabolism, gaseous exchange has a second significance. It is necessary for

An Ethical Dilemma Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

An Ethical Dilemma - Term Paper Example The organization’s hiring process has however been difficult, in the past, because it is not famous in its South Dakota locality. After the first round of interviews, a female candidate who is a local resident and prefers working in the area is identified with acceptable qualifications even though she is not a fresh graduate. She unconditionally accepts a $ 105000 remuneration package. Another set of interviews identifies a male candidate with all the organization’s requirements but he has another competitive offer. It is however certain that he will accept a $ 135000 dollar package. The case identifies a number of ethical issues through different ethical principles and theories. One of the issues in the case is the consequences of the decision to offer the higher package to the later employee. This follows the utilitarian theory that advocates the maximum good to all stakeholders in a decision. Justice is another ethical issue that is applicable to the case. It defines fairness in dealing with issues to eliminate discrimination. Integrity issue among decision makers is also evident in the case to define the level of honesty in the decisions (Carroll and Buchholtz, 2008). Besides honesty, decisions are supposed to be truthful as provided for by the â€Å"principle of personal virtue† (Williams, 2010, p. 130). It is also ethical for an entity to make decisions to safeguard its long-term interest. This is supported by both utilitarianism and the â€Å"principle of long-term self-interest† (Williams, 2010, p. 130). I would recruit the later employee at the higher cost of $ 135000 dollar package. A number of the involved ethical issues in the case would support the decision. I would have for example safeguarded the organization’s long-term interest in securing potentials of fresh recruits.

ASTR 123 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

ASTR 123 - Assignment Example This theory however, fails to account for the possibility of the huge unconceivable numbers of comets that could have collided or passed near earth for this to have happened. It is believed that during the formation of the earth e.g. the big bang process and later developments, the materials that formed it contained large amounts of water that condensed and later collected, resulting in its large surface water volumes. Though this could be a possibility, the earth’s surface was less massive during the development stages leading to its gravity being too weak to hold the waters from escaping its surface at that stage. This fails to explain the almost immediate existence of water after the earth’s formation. The Snowball earth theory explains that at least once, massive glaciations occurred on earth that left almost the whole of it--if not its entire surface -- completely frozen. The theory has convincingly tried to explain the existence of similar sedimentary deposits found especially at the tropical paleolatitudes. Despite the many suppositions of the theory, it however, cannot feasibly be dependent on as it contradict known facts and theories such as the origin of glacial models and the slushball earth hypothesis. The surface of Europa is believed to be covered in thick ice crust, which prompts scientists to conclude that there is a possibility of a large salty water body rich in chemicals beneath the ice. These combined, form basic necessities required by extreme microbial life forms to thrive. Heat from tidal flexing regulates the energy changes and provides the necessary energy for microbe survival. Sulphur and sulphuric acid deposits in Europa has little resemblance with some extreme conditions on earth where microbes like pioneering bacteria evolved and mastered basic survival skills without directly getting their energy from the

Criminological Theory - The Virginia Tech Massacre Essay

Criminological Theory - The Virginia Tech Massacre - Essay Example Popular Medias like television, film, video games and comic books have played a great role in increasing the violence among the young generation. Modern films are filled with scenes of violence; murders, rapes etc. Video games and other entertainment software include various aspects that encourage children and minors to engage in various types of violence. When children see their comic hero killing several people, they feel murder as a simple activity and dare to carry it out in schools and families. They resort to various forms of violence. Youngsters simply shot down their school and college mates for no reason. Violence is a hobby of the modern world. Pressure and stress can take adolescents to violence as they are not mentally strong to deal with the struggles in life. Public schooling is notorious for the pressure it puts on students. Students are forced to wear the ‘right’ clothes, do the ‘particular’ assignment, and are pressured to be interested in v arious things which they are not naturally interested in. Individualism is ignored in this type of environment. Children are pressured to conform to certain rigid standards and rule. This rigidity is strong enough to disturb the psychological stability of children. They are increasingly affected by stress and anxiety that are caused by the pressures and work loads in their schools. This increased stress and anxiety creates undesirable behavior in children that lead to incidents like school shooting. Adolescents are highly vulnerable to anxiety and depression. In today's high-pressure corporate world, anxiety is a common feeling. People naturally become anxious. The emotional price of staying on top is always very high. Anxiety is unavoidable in such circumstances. As the person reaches the highest level of anxiety, a failure or an unexpected event can make him easily depressed. Anxiety disturbs the normal thoughts of an individual. The present world is the world of competitions. Edu cation and career filed have become highly competitive. ‘Survival of the fittest’ is the theme of the modern academic field. Even little kids are out to achieve something in life. This generation is characterized by its excessive, exaggerated and disproportionate anxiety. A silly disappointment would finally push children into violence, depression, suicide and various other actions. Pressure and stress play a major role in incidents like school shooting. Adolescents are involved in majority of the school violence cases. Problems faced by the adolescents makes them resort of violence. They drink most, smoke most and have sex at very early age. They hate schools, neglect their health, and are least satisfied in their life. They don’t have any fellowship with their parents and hate their classmates. They lack good company and guidance. Adolescents are highly vulnerable to drug abuse and various other problems. Almost one third of the juveniles aged 12-to 20 use alco hol in US. According to the estimates nearly 11 million children or juveniles are alcohol consumers. According to the study conducted by the federal Substances Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, nearly children and juveniles consume 20% of the alcoholic drinks in United States. More than 7000 children in United States start drinking alcohol everyday. All these culminate in events

Strategic management Essay Example for Free

Strategic management Essay Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis In most strategic management courses, cases are used extensively as a teaching tool. 1 A key reason is that cases provide active learners with opportunities to use the strategic management process to identify and solve organisational problems. Thus, by analysing situations that are described in cases and presenting the results, active learners (that is, students) become skilled at effectively using the tools, techniques and concepts that combine to form the strategic management process. The cases that follow are concerned with actual companies. Presented within the cases are problems and situations that managers and those with whom they work must analyse and resolve. As you will see, a strategic management case can focus on an entire industry, a single organisation or a business unit of a large, diversified firm. The strategic management issues facing not-for-profit organisations also can be examined using the case analysis method. Basically, the case analysis method calls for a careful diagnosis of an organization’s current conditions (as manifested by its external and internal environments) so that appropriate strategic actions can be recommended in light of the firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Strategic actions are taken to develop and then use a firm’s core competencies to select and implement different strategies, including business-level, corporatelevel, acquisition and restructuring, international and cooperative strategies. Thus, appropriate strategic actions help the firm to survive in the long run as it creates and uses competitive advantages as the foundation for achieving strategic competitiveness and earning above-average returns. The case method that we are recommending to you has a rich heritage as a pedagogical approach to the study and understanding of managerial effectiveness. 2 As an active learner, your preparation is critical to successful use of the case analysis method. Without careful study and analysis, active learners lack the insights required to participate fully in the discussion of a firm’s situation and the strategic actions that are appropriate. Instructors adopt different approaches in their application of the case analysis method. Some require active learners/students to use a specific analytical procedure to examine an organisation; others provide less structure, expecting students to learn by developing their own unique analytical method. Still other instructors believe that a moderately structured framework should be used to analyse a firm’s situation and make appropriate recommendations. Your lecturer or tutor will determine the specific approach you take. The approach we are presenting to you is a moderately structured framework. We divide our discussion of a moderately structured case analysis method framework into four sections. First, we describe the importance of understanding the skills active learners can acquire through effective use of the case analysis method. In the second section, we provide you with a process-oriented framework. This framework can be of value in your efforts to analyse cases and then present the results of your work. Using this framework in a classroom setting yields valuable experiences that can, in turn, help you to successfully complete assignments that you will receive from your employer. The third section is where we describe briefly what you can expect to occur during in-class case discussions. As this description shows, the relationship and interactions between instructors and active learners/students during case discussions are different than they are during lectures. In the final section, we Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis present a moderately structured framework that we believe can help you to prepare effective oral and written presentations. Written and oral communication skills also are valued highly in many organisational settings; hence, their development today can serve you well in the future. Skills gained through use of the case analysis method. The case analysis method is based on a philosophy that combines knowledge acquisition with significant involvement from students as active learners. In the words of Alfred North Whitehead, this philosophy ‘rejects the doctrine that students had first learned passively, and then, having learned should apply knowledge’. 3 In contrast to this philosophy, the case analysis method is based on principles that were elaborated upon by John Dewey: Only by wrestling with the conditions of this problem at hand, seeking and finding his own way out, does [the student] think If he cannot devise his own solution (not, of course, in isolation, but in correspondence with the teacher and other pupils) and find his own way out he will not learn, not even if he can recite some correct answer with a hundred percent accuracy. 4 The case analysis method brings reality into the classroom. When developed and presented effectively, with rich and interesting detail, cases keep conceptual discussions grounded in reality. Experience shows that simple fictional accounts of situations and collections of actual organisational data and articles from public sources are not as effective for learning as fully developed cases. A comprehensive case presents you with a partial clinical study of a real-life situation that faced managers as well as other stakeholders, including employees. A case presented in narrative form provides motivation for involvement with and analysis of a specific situation. By framing alternative strategic actions and by confronting the complexity and ambiguity of the practical world, case analysis provides extraordinary power for your involvement with a personal learning experience. Some of the potential consequences of using the case method are summarised in Exhibit 1. As Exhibit 1 suggests, the case analysis method can assist active learners in the development of their analytical and judgement skills. Case analysis also helps you learn how to ask the right questions. By this we mean questions that focus on the core strategic issues that are included in a case. Active learners/students with managerial aspirations can improve their ability to identify underlying problems rather than focusing on superficial symptoms as they develop skills at asking probing yet appropriate questions. The collection of cases your instructor chooses to assign can expose you to a wide variety of organisations and decision situations. This approach vicariously broadens your experience base and provides insights into many types of managerial situations, tasks and responsibilities. Such indirect experience can help you to make a more informed career decision about the industry and managerial situation you believe will prove to be challenging and satisfying. Finally, experience in analysing cases definitely enhances your problemsolving skills, and research indicates that the case method for this class is better than the lecture method. 5 Furthermore, when your instructor requires oral and written presentations, your communication skills will be honed through use of the case method. Of course, these added skills depend on your preparation as C-4 Exhibit 1 | Consequences of student involvement with the case method 1 Case analysis requires students to practise important managerial skills—diagnosing, making decisions, observing, listening and persuading—while preparing for a case discussion. 2 Cases require students to relate analysis and action, to develop realistic and concrete actions despite the complexity and partial knowledge characterising the situation being studied. 3 Students must confront the intractability of reality—complete with absence of needed information, an imbalance between needs and available resources, and conflicts among competing objectives. 4 Students develop a general managerial point of view—where responsibility is sensitive to action in a diverse environmental context. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 134. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis well as your instructor’s facilitation of learning. However, the primary responsibility for learning is yours. The quality of case discussion is generally acknowledged to require, at a minimum, a thorough mastery of case facts and some independent analysis of them. The case method therefore first requires that you read and think carefully about each case. Additional comments about the preparation you should complete to successfully discuss a case appear in the next section. Student preparation for case discussion If you are inexperienced with the case method, you may need to alter your study habits. A lecture-oriented course may not require you to do intensive preparation for each class period. In such a course, you have the latitude to work through assigned readings and review lecture notes according to your own schedule. However, an assigned case requires significant and conscientious preparation before class. Without it, you will be unable to contribute meaningfully to in-class discussion. Therefore, careful reading and thinking about case facts, as well as reasoned analyses and the development of alternative solutions to case problems, are essential. Recommended alternatives should flow logically from core problems identified through study of the case. Exhibit 2 shows a set of steps that can help you to familiarise yourself with a case, identify problems and propose strategic actions that increase the probability that a firm will achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns. C-5 Exhibit 2 | An effective case analysis process Step 1: Gaining familiarity a. In general – determine who, what, how, where and when (the critical facts of the case). b. In detail – identify the places, persons, activities and contexts of the situation. c. Step 2: Recognising symptoms Recognise the degree of certainty/uncertainty of acquired information. a. List all indicators (including stated ‘problems’) that something is not as expected or as desired. b. Ensure that symptoms are not assumed to be the problem (symptoms should lead to identification of the problem). Step 3: Identifying goals a. Identify critical statements by major parties (e. g. people, groups, the work unit, etc. ). b. List all goals of the major parties that exist or can be reasonably inferred. Step 4: Conducting the analysis a. Decide which ideas, models and theories seem useful. b. Apply these conceptual tools to the situation. c. Step 5: Making the diagnosis As new information is revealed, cycle back to sub-steps (a) and (b). a. Identify predicaments (goal inconsistencies). b. Identify c. Step 6: Doing the action planning c. problems (discrepancies between goals and performance). Prioritise predicaments/problems regarding timing, importance, etc. a. Specify and prioritise the criteria used to choose action alternatives. b. Discover or invent feasible action alternatives. Examine the probable consequences of action alternatives. d. Select a course of action. e. Design an implementation plan/schedule. f. Create a plan for assessing the action to be implemented. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 144. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Gaining familiarity Identifying goals The third step of effective case analysis calls for you to identify the goals of the major organisations, business units and/or individuals in a case. As appropriate, you should also identify each firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Typically, these direction-setting statements (goals, strategic intents and strategic missions) are derived from comments made by central characters in the organisation, business unit or top management team as described in the case and/or from public documents (for example, an annual report). Completing this step successfully can sometimes be difficult. Nonetheless, the outcomes you attain from this step are essential to an effective case analysis because identifying goals, intent and mission helps you to clarify the major problems featured in a case and to evaluate alternative solutions to those problems. Directionsetting statements are not always stated publicly or prepared in written format. When this occurs, you must infer goals from other available factual data and information. C-6 The first step of an effective case analysis process calls for you to become familiar with the facts featured in the case and the focal firm’s situation. Initially, you should become familiar with the focal firm’s general situation (for example, who, what, how, where and when). Thorough familiarisation demands appreciation of the nuances, as well as the major issues, in the case. Gaining familiarity with a situation requires you to study several situational levels, including interactions between and among individuals within groups, business units, the corporate office, the local community and the society at large. Recognising relationships within and among levels facilitates a more thorough understanding of the specific case situation. It is also important that you evaluate information on a continuum of certainty. Information that is verifiable by several sources and judged along similar dimensions can be classified as a fact. Information representing someone’s perceptual judgement of a particular situation is referred to as an inference. Information gleaned from a situation that is not verifiable is classified as speculation. Finally, information that is independent of verifiable sources and arises through individual or group discussion is an assumption. Obviously, case analysts and organisational decision makers prefer having access to facts over inferences, speculations and assumptions. Personal feelings, judgements and opinions evolve when you  are analysing a case. It is important to be aware of your own feelings about the case and to evaluate the accuracy of perceived ‘facts’ to ensure that the objectivity of your work is maximised. Conducting the analysis The fourth step of effective case analysis is concerned with acquiring a systematic understanding of a situation. Occasionally cases are analysed in a less-thanthorough manner. Such analyses may be a product of a busy schedule or of the difficulty and complexity of the issues described in a particular case. Sometimes you will face pressures on your limited amounts of time and may believe that you can understand the situation described in a case without systematic analysis of all the facts. However, experience shows that familiarity with a case’s facts is a necessary, but insufficient, step in the development of effective solutions – solutions that can enhance a firm’s strategic competitiveness. In fact, a lessthan-thorough analysis typically results in an emphasis on symptoms, rather than on problems and their causes. To analyse a case effectively, you should be sceptical of quick or easy approaches and answers. A systematic analysis helps you to understand a situation and determine what can work and probably what will not work. Key linkages and underlying causal networks based on the history of the firm become apparent. In this way, you can separate causal networks from symptoms. Also, because the quality of a case analysis depends on applying appropriate tools, it is important that you use the ideas, models and theories that seem to be useful for evaluating and solving individual and unique situations. As you consider facts and symptoms, a useful Recognising symptoms. Recognition of symptoms is the second step of an effective case analysis process. A symptom is an indication that something is not as you or someone else thinks it should be. You may be tempted to correct the symptoms instead of searching for true problems. True problems are the conditions or situations requiring solution before the performance of an organisation, business unit or individual can improve. Identifying and listing symptoms early in the case analysis process tends to reduce the temptation to label symptoms as problems. The focus of your analysis should be on the actual  causes of a problem, rather than on its symptoms. Thus, it is important to remember that symptoms are indicators of problems; subsequent work facilitates discovery of critical causes of problems that your case recommendations must address. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis theory may become apparent. Of course, having familiarity with conceptual models may be important in the effective analysis of a situation. Successful students and successful organisational strategists add to their intellectual tool kits on a continual basis. What to expect from in-class case discussions Classroom discussions of cases differ significantly from lectures. The case method calls for instructors to guide the discussion, encourage student participation and solicit alternative views. When alternative views are not forthcoming, instructors typically adopt one view so that students can be challenged to respond to it thoughtfully. Often students’ work is evaluated in terms of both the quantity and the quality of their contributions to in-class case discussions. Students benefit by having their views judged against those of their peers and by responding to challenges by other class members and/or the instructor. During case discussions, instructors listen, question and probe to extend the analysis of case issues. In the course of these actions, peers or the instructor may challenge an individual’s views and the validity of alternative perspectives that have been expressed. These challenges are offered in a constructive manner; their intent is to help students develop their analytical and communication skills. Instructors should encourage students to be innovative and original in the development and presentation of their ideas. Over the course of an individual discussion, students can develop a more complex view of the case, benefiting from the diverse inputs of their peers and instructor. Among other benefits, experience with multiple-case discussions should help students to increase their knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making processes. Student peers as well as the instructor value comments that contribute to the discussion. To offer relevant contributions, you are  encouraged to use independent thought and, through discussions with your peers outside of class, to refine your thinking. We also encourage you to avoid using ‘I think’, ‘I believe’ and ‘I feel’ to discuss your inputs to a case analysis process. Instead, consider using a less emotion-laden phrase, such as ‘My analysis shows’. This highlights the logical nature of the approach you have taken to complete the six steps of an effective case analysis process. When preparing for an in-class case discussion, you should plan to use the case data to explain your assessment of the situation. Assume that your peers and instructor know the case facts. In addition, it is good practice to prepare notes before class discussions and use them as you explain your view. Effective notes signal to classmates and the instructor that you are prepared to engage in a thorough discussion of a case. Moreover, C-7 Making the diagnosis The fifth step of effective case analysis – diagnosis – is the process of identifying and clarifying the roots of the problems by comparing goals with facts. In this step, it is useful to search for predicaments. Predicaments are situations in which goals do not fit with known facts. When you evaluate the actual performance of an organisation, business unit or individual, you may identify over- or underachievement (relative to established goals). Of course, single-problem situations are rare. Accordingly, you should recognise that the case situations you study probably will be complex in nature. Effective diagnosis requires you to determine the problems affecting longer-term performance and those requiring immediate handling. Understanding these issues will aid your efforts to prioritise problems and predicaments, given available resources and existing constraints. Doing the action planning The final step of an effective case analysis process is called action planning. Action planning is the process of identifying appropriate alternative actions. In the action planning step, you select the criteria you will use to evaluate the identified alternatives. You may derive these criteria from the analyses; typically, they are related to key strategic situations facing the focal organisation. Furthermore, it is important that you prioritise these criteria to ensure a rational and effective evaluation of alternative courses of action. Typically, managers ‘satisfice’ when selecting courses of action; that is, they find acceptable courses of action that meet most of the chosen evaluation criteria. A rule of thumb that has proved valuable to strategic decision makers is to select an alternative that leaves other plausible alternatives available if the one selected fails. Once you have selected the best alternative, you must specify an implementation plan. Developing an implementation plan serves as a reality check on the feasibility of your alternatives. Thus, it is important that you give thoughtful consideration to all issues associated with the implementation of the selected alternatives. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Exhibit 3 | Types of thinking in case preparation: Analysis and synthesis C-8 125 000 Sources: Income figures are approximate and based on A. Chatterjee, 1998, ‘Marketing to the superrich’, Business Today (Living Media India Ltd), 22 April; W. Berryman and J. McManus, 1998, ‘India: Turning the elephant economy’, Independent Business Weekly, 24 June. offered spicier sauces, such as McMasala and McImli (made from tamarind). Other elements of the menu, such as chicken nuggets, fillet fish sandwiches, fries, sodas and milkshakes, were in common with the rest of the McDonald’s system. In 1998, McDonald’s India set up a menu development team to collect consumer feedback. Subsequently, the team came up with its menu vision, and new products since then have been based on this vision. The adaptation of the strategy went well beyond the menu, encompassing many aspects of the restaurant management system. Two different menu boards were displayed in  each restaurant – green for vegetarian products and purple for non-vegetarian products. Behind the counter, restaurant kitchens had separate, dedicated preparation areas for the meat and non-meat products. The kitchen crew (in charge of cooking) had different uniforms to distinguish their roles and did not work at the vegetarian and non-vegetarian stations on the same day, thus ensuring clear segregation. The wrapping of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food took place separately. These extra steps were taken to assure Indian customers of the wholesomeness of both products and their preparation. To convince Indian customers that the company would not serve beef and would respect the culinary habits of its clientele, McDonald’s printed brochures explaining all these steps and took customers on kitchen tours. McDonald’s positioned itself as a family restaurant. The average price of a ‘Combo’ meal, which included burger, fries and Coke, varied from Rs 76 for a vegetarian meal to Rs 88 for a Maharaja Mac meal. This could be compared with KFC meal prices at Rs 59 (Crispy Burger, regular fries and large Pepsi) and Rs 79 (KFC Chicken, Colonel Burger and regular Pepsi). McDonald’s Happy Meal, which included a complimentary toy, was priced at Rs 46. The prices in India were lower than in Sri Lanka or Pakistan, and even the price of the Maharaja Mac was 50 per cent less than an equivalent product in the United States. To fight its premium image among the public, the company undertook selective price cutting and ran some periodic promotions. In February 1999, the company was offering ‘economeals’ for as low as Rs 29. The company reduced the price of vegetable nuggets from Rs 29 to Rs 19 and that of its soft-serve ice-cream cone from Rs 16 to Rs 7. Apparently, this still afforded McDonald’s a healthy margin (40 per cent for cones). As Vikram Bakshi, explained, ‘I will never become unaffordable, as I will not then be able to build up volumes. ’ The lower price could be attributed to two factors: the pricing strategies of MNC rivals as well as mid-range local restaurants, and the development of a local (low-cost) supply chain. McDonald’s pricing strategies, as well as special promotions, were influenced by rivals. In February 1999, several competitors were running special promotions, with KFC offering a meal inclusive of chicken, rice and gravy for Rs 39. For Rs 350, Pizza Hut was offering a whole family meal, including two medium pizzas, bread and Pepsi. Wimpy’s was offering Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India mega meals at Rs 35. A typical vegetarian ‘set meal’, or ‘thali’ (which included Indian breads, rice, vegetables and yogurt) at a mid-range restaurant cost around Rs 50, which was considerably lower than a McDonald’s meal. Some analysts believed that that by introducing loss leaders (for example, cones), McDonald’s wanted to highlight good value for all its products. Whether customers attracted by special promotions pay repeat visits to McDonald’s remains to be seen. In October 2000, the company introduced two new Indianised products to its menu – the Chicken McGrill and the Veg Pizza McPuff. At that point in time, 75 per cent of the menu in India was unique – that is, different from the rest of the McDonald’s system. The Chicken McGrill had a grilled chicken patty topped with onions and mint sauce, to give it an Indian flavour. The Veg Pizza was a takeoff on the popular Indian samosa (potato-based curry puff) with differences in shape (rectangular) and stuffing (capsicum, onions and Mozarella cheese with tomato sauce). In keeping with the low pricing strategy in India, these items were priced at Rs 25 and Rs 16, respectively. With its value pricing and localised menu, McDonald’s had attracted some loyal customers. One such customer said, ‘A normal kebab, with all the trimmings, at a regular restaurant would cost more than Rs 25 and if the new McGrill is giving us a similar satisfaction with its mint chutney (sauce), then we’d rather eat in a lively McDonald’s outlet than sitting in a cramped car on the road. ’ Some elements of the promotional strategy remained the same as in other parts of the world. One instance of this included the emphasis on attracting children. A Happy Meal film was consistently shown on the Cartoon Network and the Zee (a local channel) Disney Hour. McDonald’s also teamed up with Delhi Traffic Police and the Delhi Fire Service to highlight safety issues, again trying to create goodwill among schoolchildren. In October 1999, in conjunction with The Walt Disney Company and UNESCO, McDonald’s launched a search for Millennium Dreamers. The program would bring together 2 000 young people from around the globe who had made a positive and significant impact on their communities. Based on the number of its outlets, India was allocated two representatives. By June 2000, the company had started rolling out its first national campaign, as it was expanding beyond Mumbai and New Delhi. The campaign, budgeted at Rs 100 million, was expected to highlight (in phased order) the brand (the experience that there is something special about McDonald’s), food quality and variety. The company also ran special promotions during festivals, and ‘vegetarian’ days, and was even developing garlicfree sauces to bring in ‘hard-core’ vegetarian traffic. In terms of the selection of cities, McDonald’s followed the same strategy in India as in the rest of the world. Its initial focus on Mumbai and Delhi was driven by the following factors: they were the two largest cities in India; their citizens enjoyed relatively high income levels compared to the rest of the country; and they were exposed to foreign food and culture. After establishing a presence in the leading cities, McDonald’s then moved to smaller satellite towns near the metropolitan cities (for example, from Delhi to Gurgaon and Noida, both suburbs of Delhi, and from Mumbai to Pune). McDonald’s often found that there were positive spillover effects, in terms of its reputation, from the metropolitan cities to the satellite towns. In Jaipur, the company was hoping to attract foreign tourists. C-125 Developing the supply chain McDonald’s search for Indian suppliers started as early as 1991. Its initial challenge was to develop local suppliers who could deliver quality raw materials, regularly and on schedule. In the five-and-a-half years until start-up, McDonald’s spent as much as Rs 500 million (US$12. 8 million) to set up a supply network, distribution centres and logistics support. By mid-2000, some estimates placed the total investment in the supply chain at almost Rs 3 billion. Local suppliers, Exhibit 6 | McDonald’s supply chain in India Phillaur (sauces) Dehradun (lettuce) Nainital (lettuce) Taloja (veg. nuggets) Thane Pune (lettuce) Oo’ty (lettuce) Baramati (cheese) Hyderabad (mutton patties) Venkatapur (pickles) Cochin Supplier locations Distribution centres Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India distributors and joint venture partners and employees had to match the restaurant chain’s quality and hygiene standards before they became part of its system. McDonald’s experience in identifying and cultivating the supplier of lettuce provided an excellent illustration of the difficulties involved. In 1991, hardly any iceberg lettuce was grown in India, except for a small quantity grown around Delhi during the winter months. McDonald’s identified a lettuce supplier (Mangesh Kumar from Ootacamund in Tamilnadu, a southern state) and helped him in a broad range of activities, from seed selection to advice on farming practices. In the case of several other suppliers, such as Cremica Industries which supplied the sesame seed buns, McDonald’s helped them to gain access to foreign technology. In another instance, it encouraged Dynamix, the supplier of cheese, to establish a program for milk procurement by investing in bulk milk collection and chilling centres. This, in turn, led to higher milk yields and overall collections, as well as to an improvement in milk quality. McDonald’s ended up with a geographically diverse sourcing network, with buns coming from northern India, chicken and cheese from western India, and lettuce and pickles from southern India. There were as many as 40 suppliers in the company’s supply chain. (See Exhibit 6 for McDonald’s supply chain. ) A dedicated distribution system was established to match the suppliers’ production and delivery schedules with the restaurant’s needs. The first two centralised distribution centres were set up near Mumbai and at Cochin (in the southernmost part of India) in joint ventures with two local retailers, both of whom had to learn from international distributors of McDonald’s products how the restaurant chain handled distribution worldwide and, especially, how to enhance the quality of storage operations. The company estimated that each distribution centre could service about 25 outlets. McDonald’s strove to keep the storage volumes of products high in order to exploit all possible economies of scale. The distribution centres were also expected to maintain inventory records and to interact with suppliers and the logistics firm to ensure that their freezers were well stocked. Said Amit Jatia, ‘The most important part of our operations was the development of a cold chain [the process of procurement, warehousing, transportation and retailing of food products under controlled temperatures]. There is practically no need for a knife in any restaurant. All the chopping and food processing is done in the plants. Only the actual cooking takes place in the restaurants. ’ Even with the suppliers and distribution system in place, McDonald’s needed a distribution link to move raw materials to its restaurants. Logistics management was contracted out to AFL Logistics – itself a 50:50 joint venture between Air Freight (a Mumbai-based firm) and FX Coughlin of the United States, McDonald’s international logistics provider. AFL logistics was responsible for the temperature-controlled movement of all products (by rail, road or air, as appropriate) from individ.

Identity concepts Essay Example for Free

Identity concepts Essay Identity is the conceptual understanding that human beings hold for their existence. It is the totality of knowledge and understanding of an individual for his self. Identity is composed by physical, social and psychological attributes which differ from one individual to another. The tenet for the development of one’s identity is attributable to the development of the roles that an individual plays within a group. It follows that the roles that they play in a group contributes to the self-categorization of an individual that helps in the formation of someone’s identity. For the purpose of this paper, Abraham Maslow and Carl Roger’s theories regarding personality and identity development will be tackled to assess their contribution in the understanding of identity concept. First, Abraham Maslow’s Theory of Human Motivation is one of the most influential theories in this field. His proposed theories were more simple and more appealing which acted against reductionism and his personality research theory is more holistic than others works. Theory of Motivation is characterized by the hierarchy of needs. This theory presupposes that the needs of an individual rest on the basis of satisfaction of other needs. Meaning, as one satisfies the most basic of his needs, there arises another set of needs, higher than the previous ones and entail another set of challenges that the individual must go through. This process, as it progresses addresses higher needs, until the individual reaches satisfaction for his highest needs and fulfills self-actualization, which in Maslow’s theory serves as the highest form of identity and personality development for an individual. Self-actualization entails the fulfillment of a person’s highest desires and attainment of his full potentials. Hence, the importance of Maslow’s theory is that it established human being’s five basic needs: physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualization. This theory has set a goal for individuals to pursue first the most pre-potent of his needs in order to progress into the achievement of other higher needs. This theory therefore guides an individual that the achievement of one basic needs progresses to a higher need, thus increasing his consciousness and allowing himself to attain higher needs that shall be translated to the individual’s pursuit for higher competency and identity enhancement. On the other hand, Carl Roger’s theory is set on a clinical one, basing his assumptions on his experiences in dealing with his clients. Like Maslow’s, his theory his set on what he calls â€Å"the actualizing tendency†. According to Roger, this is a â€Å"force of life† that is built within an individual to create a motivating force that shall push individuals to extensively seek ways to develop his full potentials. Furthermore, he states the assumptions that since humans are social creatures, it is innate for human to create a society and build a culture in the process of actualizing their potentials. His theory also gives value to positive self-regard – which he defined as humans craving for love, affection and nurturance. This positive self-regard plays an integral part of an individual’s growth in such a way that, as an individual grows up and in the process wherein he seeks for actualization of his potentials, receiving positive self-regard from the society around him gives him self-esteem and a positive self-image that renders him the inspiration to perform better and strive harder to succeed. In accordance, without this positive self-regard, individuals would tend to feel helpless and would make them less enthusiastic into achieving his goals. Roger’s theories on personality development have contributed a lot in the concept of identity. Like Maslow’s theory, he constituted steps for the development of a healthy person, which he termed as a â€Å"fully functioning† person. These steps which included openness to experience, existential living, organismic trusting, experiential freedom and creativity served as guidelines for a well-rounded and healthy development of identity for an individual. These steps, like Maslow’s theory shall constitute for the pursuits of an individual towards self-actualization. For the comparison between the two theorists and their contribution to the development of the concept of identity, the two theories speak of the utter importance for an individual to fulfill his basic needs first before attempting to levitate higher. Both of their theories were geared towards the achievement for self-actualization. They both define self-actualization as the desire to fulfill life’s greatest aspirations and discover the fullest potentials of a person. As such, Maslow and Roger can be considered as two of the most influential theorists in this field. Both of them has succeeded in imparting their thoughts and their ideas have until now are still encompassing and widely used by contemporary theorists and psychologists. Their theories have served as starting points for further developments and have served critical to the growth of new theories regarding identity concepts. Bibliography Boeree, George, Personality Theories: Carl Rogers, Retrieved 7 November 2007 http://webspace. ship. edu/cgboer/rogers. html Burke, Peter and Stets, Jan, Identity Theory and Social Identity Theory, Washington State University, Retrieved 7 November 2007 http://wat2146. ucr. edu/Papers/00a. pdf Green, Christopher, A Theory of Human Motivation by Abraham Maslow, Retrieved 7 November 2007 http://psychclassics. yorku. ca/Maslow/motivation. htm.

Gottfried Thomasius View Of Kenotic Christology Religion Essay

Gottfried Thomasius View Of Kenotic Christology Religion Essay Introduction The incarnation of Jesus Christ has been a subject of attention from the earliest decades of the formation of the Christian Church. It has not been without its subsequent controversies. Several early councils were convened to address the various issues regarding the Godhead and in particular, the person and nature of Christ. Of these, the fourth great council of Chalcedon established the parameters of the person and nature of Christ in the orthodox view.  [1]  In an attempt to articulate the person and nature of Christ, the German theologian Gottfried Thomasius published a work between 1853 and 1861 entitled: Christi Person und Werk (Christs Person and Work).  [2]  In this essay, Thomasius called attention to the Greek word kenosis found in Philippians 2:7 in demonstrating his theory of the emptying of Christ during the incarnation. Thomasius view of kenosis contributed considerably to the interest in the incarnation principles of Christology. His work became the basis for fu rther studies into what is more commonly called Kenotic theology. This paper will attempt to show that Thomasius view of kenosis is not completely consistent with the formula of Chalcedon and did not adequately comply with the orthodox principles of the incarnation. Development of Systematic Theology As the early church began to grow so did varying opinions as men began to think about the doctrines of scripture in a systematic way. Was Jesus God? First-century Christians saw that the answer was not simple. Nature is not simple, so why then should we expect the Creator of nature be simple?  [3]   Within the first four hundred years of Christianity there arose six major heresies and they all involved an aspect of the person of Christ.  [4]  Then, as now, there are doctrines, which men wrestle with and that still divide themselves over. Even today there are those who would say that some things are too complex to fully understand such as Robertson McQuilkin who said, As we approach the Bible intent on discovering all the truth God intends for us to understand, we should examine our expectations and attitudes, as there are limitations on what is possible.  [5]   Not withstanding, it is the obligation of every Christian to search out the truths of Gods word and to faithfully study it in order to build a competent system of beliefs. With regard to the person and nature of Christ, the words of Millard Erickson ring all the more true when he said, All departures from the orthodox doctrine of the person of Christ are simply variations of one of these [six] heresies. While we may have difficulty specifying exactly the content of this doctrine, full fidelity to teaching of Scripture will carefully avoid each of these distortions.  [6]   The Council of Chalcedon The early councils of the Christian church were ecumenical gatherings of church leaders and scholars who were brought together in order to address the issues that divided the church and sought to set forth declarations that defined the proper understanding of these controversial theological issues that had an impact on the church. Each of the great councils formulated certain dogma about these issues of controversy, which then became the orthodox view of the Christian church. Concerning the first great council of Nicea, Norman Geisler states, The Nicene Creed (A.D. 325) states the uniform belief of all orthodox Christianity that Christ was fully God and fully Man. All heresies regarding Christ deny one or the other of these.  [7]  One of the utmost important issues to the Church was, and rightfully should have been, a proper understanding of the person and nature of Christ. In regard to the council of Chalcedon, which was convened in 451, J. H. Hall wrote: The work of Chalcedon can be understood only in the light of a series of Christological declarations beginning with the Council of Nicea (325). The Nicene Creed declared that Christ is of the same divine substance with the Father, against Arius, who taught that Christ had a beginning and was only of similar substance. The Council of Constantinople (381) both ratified and refined the Nicene Creed, in opposition to continuing Arianism, and declared against Apollinarianism, which stated that Christs human soul had been replaced by the divine Logos. Moreover, Constantinople declared that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.  [8]   As questions continued to grow about the nature of Christ in the incarnation, so did controversy. The preceding councils established the churches opinion with regard to the deity of Christ that He is indeed of the same substance as the father. Later questions arose with respect to the human side and divine side of the nature of Christ. The Nestorian view held to a separation of the two natures of Christ as opposed to the Eutychian view, which theorized that Christ had only one nature.  [9]  The Nestorian view was rejected at the council of Ephesus but Eutychianism was later embraced. Seeing the continued discord, Pope Leo I instigated Emperor Marcion to call a new council and it was decided that it would be held in the city of Chalcedon. The Council of Chalcedon achieved three important things. J.H. Hall states, First, it reaffirmed the Nicene tradition; second, it accepted as orthodox the letters of Cyril and Leo; and third, it provided a definition of the faith.  [10]  Hall continues, There existed two overarching concerns- maintenance of the unity of Christs person and establishment of the two natures of Christ.  [11]   The Catechetical Lectures of S. Cyril of Jerusalem attribute a section of Epiphanius, Ancoratus, 118, c. AD 374, as being that which contained the Nicene creed which was read and approved at Chalcedon.  [12]  What Chalcedon effectively achieved was setting forth certain parameters about the nature of Christ. That which is formulated to the understanding of these two natures must therefore fall within these parameters in order to remain orthodox. In setting these parameters of orthodoxy, certain attributes must be maintained. One of the most important issues involves immutability. The Definition of Chalcedon sustained the continued immutability of Christ. The council declaration was as follows: Therefore, following the holy Fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the sa me son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the Fathers has handed down to us.  [13]   The Chalcedonian Creed provided the church with a statement that Christ indeed possessed two distinct natures, both a human side and divine side and that he existed in one person in an unchangeable way.  [14]   Gottfried Thomasiuss view of kenosis In the first part of the 19th century, when Ferdinand Baur became professor of theology at Germanys Tubingen University, he [following in the footsteps of G.W.F. Hegel] began in earnest to attack the historical credibility of the New Testament and in particular the Gospel of John.  [15]  But after a series of textual and archeological finds, Adolf von Harnack, who himself once sympathized with Baur, rejected his assumptions stating in 1897 that, The assumptions of Baurs school, one can almost say, are now wholly abandoned.  [16]  This confrontation sparked by the rise of modern criticism produced many such debates and it serves to illustrate the theological climate within which Gottfried Thomasius and other German theologians wrote. Gottfried Thomasius was a Lutheran theologian who in the mid-eighteen hundreds, attempted to develop an acceptable Christology that could withstand the criticism of his day.  [17]  In an attempt to do so, he published his Christi Person und Werk. David Law states, The first edition of Christi Person und Werk appeared between 1853 and 1861. Because of the criticism leveled at the early volumes of the first edition, Thomasius began revisions for the second edition before all three volumes of the first edition had appeared. The second edition was published between 1856 and 1863. A third and abridged edition, edited after Thomasiuss death by F.J. Winter, was published between 1886 and 1888, but it is the second edition that is regarded as the mature and authoritative statement of Thomasisus kenotic Christology.  [18]   Subsequent publications showed Thomasiuss efforts to expound on his notion of kenosis. David Law states, In Beitrag Thomasius argued that the tensions within Lutheran Christology could be resolved only by reformulating the doctrine of the person of Christ in terms of a self-limitation of the Logos.  [19]  In essence this self-limitation is the idea behind Thomasiuss view of kenosis. Law gives a more defined description of this idea stating, It was above all Thomasiuss contribution to kenotic Christology that established him as a major theologian. The noun kenosis and the adjective kenotic are derived from the use of the term ekenosen in Phil. 2:7, where we read of Christ Jesus who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself [heauton ekenosen], taking the form of a servant, being born in human likeness. On the basis of the use of the term ekenosen in this text, kenosis has come to be used as shorthand for a series of issues arising from the claim that Christ is both truly divine and truly human. How can divinity and humanity coexist in the one, united person of Christ without undermining the integrity of either nature? Kenotic christologies are those christologies which attempt to address this problem by arguing that Christ emptied himself of some aspect of his divine nature in order to become a human being.  [20]   The notion of Christ emptying himself of some aspect of the divine nature in an act of self-limitation has serious significance and questions the immutability of God the Son. This comes into direct contradiction with the statement of Chalcedon in several key areas. First, Chalcedon established that the incarnation of Christ did not change, effect or diminish any attributes of deity Christ had before the incarnation. He is without changeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  [21]  . Secondly, Chalcedon affirmed the distinction of natures, being no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature, being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistenceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.  [22]  The orthodox view is that the incarnation of Christ did not constitute a loss of any aspect of his divine nature, through the act of kenosis or any other such theory. Kenotic Theology Although Thomasiuss influence and that of kenotic Christology in general gave way in Germany in the 1880s to Ritschlianism, kenotic Christology enjoyed a second flowering in Britainà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.  [23]  In the years following, interest would subside but then unexpectedly grow again as theologians once again reexamine the kenotic theory. In recent years there has been a renewed interest in kenotic Christology (see, for example, Evans, 2006). Any current attempt to formulate a coherent and viable kenotic Christology will need to return to Thomasiuss work, above all to his Christi Person und Werk.  [24]  . In Christian Theology Millard Erickson gives his definition of kenoticism stating, The second Person of the Trinity laid aside his distinctly divine attributes (omnipotence, omnipresence, etc.), and took on human qualities instead.  [25]  In this view, Jesus is not God and man simultaneously, but successively. Kenoticism implies that Jesus is both God and man, just not at the same time.  [26]   Others have thought to develop the position of kenoticism in not such an abrogated way. Instead they incorporate the idea into a more mild form of kenotic theology. In a review of Michael J. Gormans Inhabiting the Cruciform God: Kenosis, Justification, and Theosis in Pauls Narrative Soteriology, Timothy G. Gombis of Cedarville University states, In chapter 1, Gorman develops Pauls master story that demonstrates the kenotic character of Jesus Christ and reveals the very identity of God as kenotic. He focuses on Phil 2:5-11 and argues, based on a thorough exegetical treatment of the passage, that the pattern although [x] not [y] but [z] reveals the narrative trajectory of the kenosis of Jesus. By this, Gorman means although [status] not [selfishness] but [selflessness] (p.16). Jesus Christ had status as God himself but did not exploit this, using it for his own comfort of personal gain. Rather, he pursued several progressively degrading positions on a movement of downward mobility, going eventually to the publicly shameful death on a cross (pp. 16-17). For Gorman, this passage is not properly understood to mean that Christ did this despite the fact that he was in the form of God. Rather, Christ pursued this path because he was in the form of God. In other words, and this is a crucial point for Gorman, Christs being in the form of God is most clearly seen in his self-emptying and self-expenditure (p. 25). In this sense, the very character of God is kenotic (self-emptying) and cruciform (cross-shaped).  [27]   In this passage, the reviewer (Gombis) notes that the author (Gorman) thinks the kenotic passages are not clearly understood. Noting this misrepresentation, he suggests a proper view of kenotic theology. Whether or not Gorman is true in his assumptions remains speculative however it does illustrate the contemporary effort to redefine the implications inherent in kenotic theology. Classical Theology The more classical view of the person and nature of Christ are theologies based more on the Chalcedonian formula and are replete in the theological community. Some theologians have attempted to address the problem of formulating an acceptable understanding of the human and divine nature of Christ always keeping a wary eye upon the parameters of the orthodox or Chalcedonian understanding of the incarnation. From the abstract of Robin Le Poidevins Identity and the composite Christ: an Incarnational delemma, the author states, One way of understanding the reduplicative formula Christ is, qua God, omniscient, but qua man, limited in knowledge is to take the occurrences of the qua locution as picking out different parts of Christ: a divine part and a human part. But this view of Christ as a composite being runs into paradox when combined with the orthodox understanding, adopting a philosophically and theologically contentious perdurantist account of persistence through time, or rejecting altogether the idea of the composite Christ.  [28]   Here the author points out a formula of Christology of the human and divine natures but at the same time, recognizes that it conflicts paradoxically with the Chalcedonian parameters of the incarnation. In this respect, many theologians still show deference to and recognize the importance of the Chalcedonian councils definitive statement. The Chalcedonian parameters have been a staple in guiding theological thought for centuries. George P. Pardington, who was a well-esteemed professor of theology among the Christian Alliance, makes this clear. In his theology primer Outline Studies in Christian Doctrine, He deals with passages in Philippians 2:6,7 and other verses that show the nature of the preexistence of Christ and the incarnations, stating, These and other phrases express ineffable relationships within the Godhead, which we cannot comprehend. On Phil. 2:6 Thayers Greek Lexicon says: Form (Greek, morphe) is that by which a person or thing strikes the vision, the external appearance. There is nothing in this passage, which teaches that the Eternal Word (John 1:1) emptied Himself of either His divine nature of His attributes, but only of the outward visible manifestation of the Godhead. He emptied, stripped Himself, of the insignia of Majesty (Lightfoot). When occasion demanded, He exercised His divine attributes (Moorehead).  [29]   Pardingtons view of the kenotic passages in no way contradicts the Chalcedonian parameters since Christ did not give up any of his divine nature or attributes. Contemporary Debate Roger Olsen has noted that the differing opinions among evangelicals. He states, Kenotic Christology-emphasizing the need to take with utmost seriousness Jesus true humanity, including limited consciousness- has made significant inroads among evangelicals, while other evangelical theologians have resisted and criticized it.  [30]  Olsen continues to describe what he characterizes as a very heated debate among more progressive and conservative Evangelicals stating, As recently as the mid-1990s heresy charges were thrown by conservative evangelicals at more moderate and progressive ones who dared to use the kenotic motif in writing about the incarnation.  [31]   Theologians who reaffirm the Chalcedon formula would be Bernard Ramm and Carl Henry.  [32]  Examples of some who are more outspoken against kenoticism would be Thomas V, Morris, Donald Bloesch, Millard Erickson and Stanley Grenz.  [33]  While Grenz is somewhat critical of kenotic theology, he nevertheless does not espouse the traditional Chalcedon formula either.  [34]  Olsen states, Two evangelical theologians who have attempted to push the frontiers of Christology are Clark Pinnock and Stanley Grenz. Both affirm that Jesus Christ is truly God and truly human, but they are dissatisfied with the classical expression of that belief in Chalcedonian Christology (hypostatic union). They are not so much interested in rejecting it as in supplementing it with new and more helpful thought forms. People today, they argue, are not as tuned as ancient people were to the substance ontologies of Greek metaphysics, and the times call for a new expression of the doctrine of Jesus Christs humanity and divinity.  [35]   While the purpose of this paper is not to critique the various forms of Christology espoused by many theologians among the ranks of evangelicals (and they are many), it is however concerned with the classical Chalcedonian formula of the incarnation, and whether or not kenotic theology adheres to it and why this is important. While there are those who strongly support the Chalcedonian formula, there are others who feel that it is flawed. Roger Olsen notes that both Clark Pinnock and Stanley Grenz are dissatisfied with the classical expression of that belief in Chalcedonian Christology (hypostatic union).  [36]  He once again points to the work of Stanley Grenz to illustrate this stating, Grenz argues in Theology for the Community of God (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2000) that classical Incarnational Christology falls short biblically and logically and revises it using the eschatological ontology (the future as the locus of being) of German theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg. According to Grenz, Jesus Christ is the Logos, who is not to be thought of as preexisting and then descending into human history but as revealing God and therefore belonging to the eternity of God by virtue of his resurrection.  [37]  [Emphasis is Olsens]. Olsen continues with his critique of Grenz showing how it is at variance with classical Christology. This is where the debate becomes relevant to this research with respect to the Chalcedonian formula. Olsen states, The main difference between this Christology and classical Christology [Chalcedonian] lies in its denial of a logos asarkos discarnate or preincarnate Logos or Son of God. For Grenz, Jesus Christ is the Logos, the second person of the Trinity. Whatever tensions or problems may exist in Pinnocks and Grenzs Christology, they are not so much revisions of the hypostatic union as restatements of the basic Christological vision in new terms.  [38]   The abandoning of the basic tenants of the Chalcedonian formula present some extreme difficulties, particularly in light of the doctrine of the Preexistence of Christ which was affirmed at Chalcedon. One of the issues in regard to the nature of Christ concerns his Consciousness. When did Christ come to the realization of who he was? Theologians like Myer Pearlman were more content to leave this question open stating, Just exactly when and how this self-consciousness came must remain a mystery to us. When we think of God coming to us in the form of a man we must reverently exclaim, Great is the mystery of godliness!  [39]  Erickson would say, There were within his person dimensions of experience, knowledge and love not found in human beings. We must recognize that in dealing with Christ, he was more than just a man. He had and maintained all the qualities of a divine nature and a sinless human nature as well.  [40]   Another important issue that must be addressed is that the hypostatic union is permanent and everlasting. What Christ became in the incarnation is what he shall remain eternally (Heb 2:17, 7:24).  [41]  This is a problem for the kenotic view of Christ since that in the kenotic view, according to Erickson.  [42]  Jesus is both God and man, just not at the same time. This would imply a doing away with what Jesus became in the incarnation after his ascension and glorification. Conclusion The question that this research is concerned with may be answered by saying that Gottfried Thomasiuss original view of kenosis is not completely consistent with the formula of Chalcedon and did not adequately comply with the orthodox principles of the incarnation. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Bettenson, Henry. Documents of the Christian Church ed. Henry Bettenson and Chris Maunder Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999. Byfield, Ted. ed., The Christians: Their First Two Thousand Years Edmonton: Christian Millennial History Project, 2002. Erickson, Millard J., Christian Theology Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998. Geisler, Norman L. When Skeptics Ask: a handbook on Christian Evidences Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing, 2008. 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