History of H&M Essay Example for Free

History of HM Essay H M, (Hennes Mauritz AB) is a Swedish multinational retail-clothing company, known for its trendy fashion clothing for men, women, teenagers and children. It started out as a single womenswear store in 1947, and subsequently transformed to a global company offering fashion for the whole family, and their home. The business concept is to give the customer unbeatable value by offering fashion and quality at the best price. HM ensures the best price by having few middlemen, having a broad, in-depth knowledge of design, fashion, textiles, buying the right products from the right markets, and being cost-conscious at every stage. HM is driven by seven core values, namely; Keep it simple, Straight forward and open-minded, Constant improvement, Entrepreneurial spirit, Cost conscious, Team work, Belief in people. HM’s quality testing is extensive, coupled with hard work to make sure goods are produced with least possible environmental impact and under good working conditions. Production is outsourced to independent suppliers as HM does not own any factories. Apart from this, HM does not own any of its stores, as they rent store space from international and local landlords. HM is present in 43 countries and has employed about 94,000 people as of 2011. It has 2,325 stores at end of 2011 and 2,629 stores at end of August 2012. It is ranked the second largest global clothing retailer behind Zara and No. 1 user of organic cotton worldwide. Current Logistics process of HM HM does not own any factory, they have outsourced to external suppliers that managed two departments: Procurement and Production. The Procurement function focuses on customers, fashion and composition of the range. The clothing designs are created in Sweden by around 100 internal designers, 50 pattern designers and an estimated 100 buyers. HM’s method of production is customer-driven. The company puts emphasis into research and forecasting of emerging trends, both through traditional research methods and innovative ones such as street trends. This activity is conducted by central staff and national offices which are responsible for detecting new trends. The production function involves 21 production offices. HM purchases garments from about 750 suppliers, in which 60% of production takes place in Asia and the rest mainly in Europe. The production offices have a mediating function between the internal buying department and external suppliers. They ensure that the buyers’ orders are sent to the right supplier, the goods produced are of the correct price and quality and that the suppliers adhere to the company’s code of conduct. Additionally, production offices also deal with the checking and testing of sample garments, which contributes to reducing lead times. The decision of determining which supplier is the right one is not only a matter of cost-efficiency but is dependent on other factors such as transport times, import quotas and quality control aspects. To reduce risk, buying is carried out on an ongoing basis throughout the year. Continuous IT developments over the years have helped to support HM logistics. While the inventory management is primarily handled within the HM organisation, transport is outsourced to third parties. In terms of distribution, HM adopts sea transportation where their finished products are shipped to a distribution centre in Germany, which will serve as a transit terminal. The transit terminal will be en-routed to receive the goods from all the suppliers across the world. Upon arrival at the designated location, goods are inspected and allocated either in a store or in the centralised warehouse. The role of the warehouse is to hold and replenish inventory levels in stores according to selling trends.

Charles Fraziers Use of Music in Cold Mountain Essay -- Charles Frazi

Charles Frazier's Use of Music in Cold Mountain The American Civil War was a bitter, grief-filled conflict with oddly musical overtones. A Southern soldier, Alexander Hunter, recalled that â€Å"There was music in plenty,† (Lawrence 169) just as Charles Frazier’s character Stobrod in Cold Mountain remarks that â€Å"there was so much music back then† (407). While both the Union and the Confederacy placed great import on music, Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier focuses primarily on the Southern perspective of the war, in all of its aspects. Spiritual music gave soldiers hope, gave them something cheerful to listen to after their days of slogging through the grime of human remains, as Inman discovers during his journey. Songs of homecoming and perseverance also strengthened the women, children, and parents left behind, waiting with fearful hopes for the return of their loved ones. Ada’s continual reference to â€Å"Wayfaring Stranger† illustrates this point beautifully. Finally, the musical natures of both armies created a bond that otherwise would not have been possible, forming brief alliances among enemies. The impact of music during this period of American history was so great that General Robert E. Lee was heard to say â€Å"I don’t believe we can have an army without music† (Wiley qtd. in Waller and Edgington 147). Charles Frazier’s Cold Mountain exemplifies this statement, interweaving music throughout the struggles of Ada and Inman, using it as a tool to express emotion and to give a common thread to the broken culture that was the American South. The dissonant harmonies of Civil War-era music both complemented and contrasted itself, creating new forms from old ones and forging bonds where there had been nothing. Hope was a rare p... ...ow Music Shaped the Confederacy, 1861- 1865. Mechanicsburg: Stackpole, 2000. netLibrary, U of Denver Penrose Library. 15 April 2004 . â€Å"Aura Lea.† Music of the War Between the States. 24 April 2004 Frazier, Charles. Cold Mountain. New York: Vintage, 1998. Hill, Lois. â€Å"Lorena.† Poems and Songs of the American Civil War. 23 April 2004 . P. Wilson, Keith. Campfires of Freedom: The Camp Life of Black Soldiers During the Civil War. Kent: Kent State U P, 2002. S.A., R. â€Å"God Save the South!† Ballads of the North and South in the Civil War. Comp. Walbrook D. Swank Colonel, USAF RET. Shippensburg: Burd Street P, 1996. 66. W. Sears, Stephen. To The Gates of Richmond. New York: Ticknor and Fields, 1992. Waller, Lynn, and William P. Edgington. â€Å"Using Songs to Help Teach the Civil War.† Social Studies 92.4 (2001): 147- 150.

Math Skills for Today’s Workforce

Sometimes people would think that what we learn is school is actually useless when we work in the real world. Yes it is true. You will not really apply everything what you learn, but there are skills that we acquire during the process of learning, and that is what’s more significant. A skill that is very indispensable is basic math. It will get you a long way. Perfecting your ability to calculate in your head and properly analyzing word problems will not hurt. Basic math is actually occurring in different situations, some in implicit ways, everyday. From street vendors, to hairdressers, to clerks, to managers and leaders, they all use it. By being skilled in that area, you will absolutely make your work more efficient.There are issues in education on the required math units for students, setting a higher standard for them to be more competent when they get to step into the real world. However, with higher requirements, it was discovered that employers do not actually need educ ation in math higher than what is taught in 9th or 10th grade (Cavanagh 21). Yet, it is still believed that having more advanced skills will help you succeed in college, as well as get a higher-paying job.The contradiction is that, if students work right after high school, what they should be taught must be more of the applied math and not much dwell on the technical and complex side of math. This will not only help them improve their skills needed for today’s workforce, it may increase student’s participation and interest on the subject.In that same article, it was revealed that out of the 51 varied professionals interviewed by Rosenbaum in the mid-1990s, on the subject of skills that are relevant in the workplace; basic math like arithmetic, fractions, algebra are them most common (Cavanagh 21). Another shocking survey took by Michael Handel revealed that out of the 2300 white and blue-collar workers, 94 percent applied math in their jobs. 22 percent of the workers s aid that they only used math skills like adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing. 19 percent only used Algebra 1 skills and only 9 percent used Algebra 2 (Cavanagh 22).Handel also proved the statement a while ago that people taking the most mathematics are earning way better – and that is Algebra 2 and above (Cavanagh 23). It was shown in their research that only less than 5 percent makes use of Algebra 2 and other higher math like trigonometriy, calculus and geometry.Math teachers have been greatly criticized on the theoretical approach and many students are actually looking for ways to apply the concepts being taught.   Not everyone will be taking Chemistry or Engineering so why tackle more on the very complex math? Employers are actually disappointed on the workforce today, which lacks the basic workforce skills like basic math, which involves more problem solving-related skills.In another study, which involved technical professionals, it has been discovered that m ath is very essential in areas that involve electronics (Stasz 210). They use geometry, algebra, trigonometry and even statistics. For health workers and vocational nurses, basic math is only needed in implementing their tasks.Waipahu High School and Kihei Charter School promotes education on the field of science, math, engineering and technology, which are needed to â€Å"fuel our new knowledge economy†. (Hatada 1) He said that math and science are very critical subjects and students must be able to master these subjects. It was said that most businesses are in need of â€Å"creative problem solvers†, which requires higher and stronger math and science knowledge.In their study, only half of the 17 year old students have strong enough math skills that will bring them to jobs in production. America’s 15 year olds rank poorly, with 24 out of the 29 developed nations in terms of math and problem solving skills (Hatada 1). That is why a lot of schools now are trying to reinvent their curriculum, especially for high school, whose big chunk already goes to the workforce after they graduate.There are programs for adults which refreshes you with basic education. An example is in Iowa, wherein local employers have been reported to provide education and training of their employees, which are more focused on the skills that are needed on a particular job description (Lundberg 1).The topics that will e discussed include the usual addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of whole numbers, addition and subtraction of decimals, addition and subtraction of shop fractions, addition and subtraction of shop decimals, basic calculation using scale drawings, ranking decimals and fractions, conversion between centimeters and millimeters, conversion between inches and metric measurements and last is tape measure reading.In Canada, the employability skills that are needed to enter, remain and also progress in your career are divided into three: fundamen tal skills, personal management skills and teamwork skills (The Conference Board Canada 2). Fundamental skills involve knowledge in math. When you communicate, you have to impart your knowledge through clear explanation of your ideas. When you manage information, you must be able to apply skills in mathematics as well, especially in statistics. When you use numbers, you measure something and methods in mathematics are really important. When you solve problems, math is undeniably an important tool in your analysis.It is also very evident in most skill tests in pre-employment examinations include math topics that are applied in business. An example question would be:If two employees working together product 12 products, four employees product 36 and eight employees produce 96, how many products would sixteen employees be expected to product?192  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  208  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  220  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  240If you were to organize the products for efficiency in picking and shipping, how would you position them relative to those employees responsible for picking the products?Product Z closest to the picker, then X and then Y.Such questions were taken from G Neil Skills Profiler Website. Evidently, there is a use of logic and common sense in these questions. This is to evaluate the applicant’s ability to strategize in different situations as well as assess how the applicant is able to apply such math skills than on the theoretical perspective of the math problem. Which means that the math used in workplace are more applied than the theoretical one that is mostly taught in school.The National Institute for Literacy took a survey regarding skills tested in the workplace. 11 percent of the firms have tested all their applicants of their math skills during 2001, which is higher by a few percentage points from the past several years, while 38 percent tested only some applicants (American Management Association 1).In 2001, math skills rank third in the survey, â€Å"Voices from Main Street: Assessing the State of Small Business Workforce Skills† with 62 percent (American Express 12). Verbal communication and interpersonal skills ranked higher. Other skills include written communication, basic business skills, financial accounting, mechanical ability, computer skills, internet knowledge and science.There was also a study by the National Center on the Educational Quality workforce (2). As said earlier, there have been efforts from employers to provide workplace education programs. In the manufacturing sector, 10 percent increase in the education of the workers is related to the 8.6 percent increase of productivity. An increase of 10 percent of working hours increases 5.6 percent of productivity, while 10 percent increase in the capital stock produces an increase of 3.4 percent in productivity. Evidently, the highest among the three would be increasing the average education of the workers, which emphasizes the importance of workforce training.In the non-manufacturing sector, a 10 percent increase in education yields a higher increase in productivity, with 11 percent. A 10 percent increase of working hours increases 6.3 percent productivity, while a 10 percent increase in capital stock yields an additional 3.9 percent productivity. This implies that training provides higher benefits in the non-manufacturing sector, although it is not really that far from the performance in the manufacturing sector.Training means an additional year of schooling for workers. With workplace education programs, there is at least one benefit gained by the organization itself, and at least one skill gained by the employees.   Thus, these programs mutually benefit the organization and employees and such programs would really be worth of the organization time, effort and money (Bloom 9).With these findings from various studies, I do believe that strong math skills pose a lot of benefits in the workforce today, by giving you an edge over other employees. You will be more efficient and be more likely receive higher compensation.   Math skills do not mean mastering the various mathematical theorems and definitions. There is a difference between being good in math and being good in applied math. Math is really useless if you cannot apply it to your job, since courses in school in the first place have the purpose of being applied when you get out of the campus. I believe that the current workforce must be reinforced with their basic education that is already geared towards their line of work.References:American Express, Small Business Services, Voices from Main Street: Assessing the State of Small Business Workforce Skills (PDF file), American Express, New York, NY, 2000.American Management Association, 2001 AMA Survey on Workplace Testing: Basic Skills, Job Skills, Psychological Measurement – Summary of Key Findings (PDF file), American Management Association, New York, NY, 2001.Bloom, Michael R. and Brenda Lafleur, Turning Skills into Profit: Economic Benefits ofWorkplace Education Programs, The Conference Board, New York, NY, 1999.Cavanagh, Sean. What kind of math matters? 12 June 2007. 5 February 2008. .Conference Board Canada. Employability Skills 2000+. 5 February 2008. .G. Neil Website. Skills Profiler. 5 February 2008. < http://www.gneil.com/info/skillsprofiler>.Hatada, Tori. Students need stronger math, science skills. 5 February 2008. .Lundberg, Marty. Workplace Math. December 1999. 5 February 2008. .Stasz, Cathy. Do employers need the skills they want? Evidence from technical work. Journal of Education and Work, 10(3), 205-223. 1997.

Culture and Identity - 3427 Words

BROWNE CH 1–4 (M1203).qxp:John Q7 26/3/08 10:47 Page 29 CHAPTER 2 Culture and Identity BROWNE CH 1–4 (M1203).qxp:John Q7 26/3/08 10:47 Page 30 Contents Key issues The meaning and importance of culture Dominant culture Subculture Folk culture High culture Mass, popular or low culture The changing distinction between high culture and mass culture Global culture The concept of identity Different types of identity The socialization process Primary socialization Secondary socialization Socialization and the social construction of self and identity Theoretical approaches to the role of socialization in the formation of culture and identity Structural approaches Social action approaches A third way: structuration Social class and†¦show more content†¦For example, it might be argued that the main features of British culture include it being white, patriarchal and unequal, with those who are white and male having things they regard as worthwhile rated as more important than those who are female or from a minority ethnic group. Similarly, those who are rich and powerful (who are mainly also white and male) are in a position to have t heir views of what is valuable and worthwhile in a culture regarded as more important, and given higher status, than those of others. Subculture When societies are very small, such as small villages in traditional societies, then all people may share a common culture or way of life. However, as societies become larger and more complicated, a number of smaller groups may emerge within the larger society, with some diï ¬â‚¬erences in their beliefs and way of life. Each group having these diï ¬â‚¬erences is referred to as a subculture. Folk culture Folk culture is the culture created by local communities and is rooted in the experiences, customs and beliefs of the everyday life of ordinary people. It is ‘authentic’ rather than manufactured, as it is actively created by ordinary people themselves. Examples include traditional folk music, folk songs, storytelling and folk dances which are passed on from one generation to the next by socialization and often by direct experience. Folk culture isShow MoreRelatedCulture : Culture, Identity, And Cultural Identity1228 Words   |  5 Pagestheir response is the result of culture. Every single person has a deep, complex culture whether it is visible to them or not. The word â€Å"culture† is so broad and overused. What is culture? To put it simply, culture is the behaviors and beliefs of a particular social, ethnic, or age group. Our culture shapes the way we see and interact with the world on a huge scale. Our culture affects our personality and our actions. Educat ion develops and molds ones culture. Culture forces reason behind having toRead MoreThe Characteristics Of Identity : Identity, Identity And Cultures944 Words   |  4 PagesIdentity is an internalized force existing deep in the folds and crevices of the mind and manifested externally through a myriad of appearances, actions, behaviors, and ideologies. The components that define an individual are numerous, interwoven, and developed within a complex yet porous and pliable framework. Language, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, experiences, culture, personality, religion, and even the perceptions of others are just a few characteristics that help to shape andRead MoreCulture : Cultural Identity, Culture, And Culture774 Words   |  4 Pagesby way of their culture identity and their social situation. To elaborate, one must first clarify what culture identity is. Cultural identity manifests itself in a myriad of ways which range from an ethnic identity to a nationality to a religious affiliation to even a community of individuals that share a common interest. People derive a lot of experiences from their culture. This comes by way of interacting with others within your culture, festivities that constitute the culture, and, most especiallyRead MoreCulture, Traditions, Culture And Identity1839 Words   |  8 PagesCulture, traditions and Identity Are people losing their traditions, culture and therefore identities? Introduction Why I chose this topic: I chose â€Å"traditions, culture and identity† because I think that this topic is important for everyone, because it is part of a person and I think this is an interesting topic. Aim: The aim of this topic is to show how people value traditions and to tell people about the traditions of my country and to answer the main question that is â€Å"Are countries losing theirRead MoreMy Culture, Identity, And Cultural Identity852 Words   |  4 Pagesthe word â€Å"cultural identity†, I think of myself, and what makes up who I am as a person. My cultural identity influences everything about me, from the moment I wake up, to the minute I rest my head on my pillow at night. My culture influences the way I eat, speak, worship, and interact with people. However, I am not only affected by my own culture, but others’ culture as well. I am fortunate to have an extremely rich heritage, and I couldn’t be prouder of my cultural identity. The first, and arguablyRead MoreMy Culture And Identity : The Influence Of Identity1215 Words   |  5 Pagesterms with shaping my identity. Growing up my parents would always tell me to â€Å"stop acting Americanized† but this is the only way I know of whether if my culture is what is influencing me or if its my peers. â€Å"Culture, is a social practice, it is not something that individuals possess; Rather, it is a social process in which individuals participate, in the context of changing historical conditions. As a â€Å"historical reservoir†, culture is an important factor in shaping Identity† (Anonymous, 2003). Read More Culture and Identity Essay1142 Words   |  5 PagesCulture and Identity Culture and identity could have many different definitions. Culture to me is what made you the person that you are today. The background and history of a person that is the reason of who they are and what they stand for. Identity to me is the certain characteristics that belong to a person that makes them different from everyone else on this planet. The world with no culture or a lack of identity would be a rather boring place. Identity and culture are what makes this worldRead MoreCulture And Cultural Identity703 Words   |  3 Pages Culture is a big influence on people’s perspective on how they view others and the world. When a person grows inside a culture, it shapes who they are. In â€Å"What is Cultural Identity† it explains why culture is influential. While in the short story â€Å"Where Worlds Collide† there is newcomers from another country that come to America and there’s all these new rules that they don’t understand. They are not from America, To us the rules are normal, to them they are strange and new. Another example ofRead MoreDefining Culture and Identities1017 Words   |  5 Pagesto explore the aspects that create identity and how different aspects exclude people compared to the similarities which build groups and societies. People’s multiple identities are given by their similarities and differences, and their connections with others.’ [1] When considering identity it is import to look at the elements that contribute to the idea of identity. Identity elements range from situational reasons, which can just be temporary to identities based on personal characteristics suchRead More Identity and Culture Essay1467 Words   |  6 Pagesan identity and a culture. An ‘identity’ is the image that one project out into the rest of the world, and ‘culture’ is the image which one has of themselves. Countries are no exception; every country over their course of history has created an identity and culture for themselves. It has been said that the worst act one could perform on another would be to strip them of their identity, and deny them of their culture. This is why, in order for a country to become a great nation, their culture and