A Brief Note On Bc Hydro s Diversity And Inclusiveness...

BC Hydro is the main electricity distributor in BC which operates thirty hydroelectric facilities and three natural gas-fueled thermal power plants. BC Hydro being a provincial head corporation, it submits its report to the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum resources. Moreover, it is mandatory for BC Hydro to provide consistent power, at cheaper cost, for generations. Information about Diversity Building diversity throughout the company refers to the hiring of people those with different perspectives, experiences and ways of thinking. Diversity at BC Hydro is all about appreciating, identifying, and respecting the differences that make each person unique. They give rise to novelty by empowering the innovative ideas of different personalities. BC Hydro is committed to develop diverse workforce that symbolizes the communities that BC Hydro serves within BC. Diversity Initiatives The foremost step of BC Hydro was all about developing a strategy to advance the workplace diversity and inclusiveness based on leading research. Some fundamental elements of BC Hydro’s diversity and inclusiveness strategy that are viewed to be essential for success include: †¢ Clearly defined diversity goals including accountabilities, reporting, dimension and schedule. †¢ A sustaining business case for diversity which helps in accomplishment of goals. †¢ Effective recruitment strategies. †¢ Consciousness, commitment, and competence building activities targeted at leaders who understand the

Review of Bitter Fruit by Stephen Schlesinger and...

Bitter Fruit by Stephen Schlesinger and Stephen Kinzer Book Review and Critical Analysis The year is 1954. Government agencies resurrect secret plans previously discarded until a more forceful administration comes to power. Behind the scenes, the CIA and State Department are fervently working in over time trying to engineer a government overthrow against a populist nationalist in their own backyard who has the dare audacity to threaten both US economic and geopolitical interest. Accusations of communism and Soviet penetration permeate the discourse and heat up the rhetoric; swift action must be taken to stabilize the hemisphere. Intervention by any means necessary. Exiled opposition leaders are paid off, trained, equipped,†¦show more content†¦The authors do an excellent job providing extensive detailed accounts of the events and are so meticulous in this endeavor, that at times it can become excessive to the point of irrelevancy if the reader’s desire is to acquire a basic synopsis of the story. If the reader is seeking a dry and monotonous academic account, they will certainly not find it here as the history is brilliantly retold in a page-turning and dramatic fashion. Complete with an exhausted list of characters, who at many times, can be difficult to keep up with but are nonetheless instrumental to understanding the intricacy and complexity of the story. Filled with anecdotes and side notes enriched by just about every relevant character and figure of the story whose roles and significance can often be confusing if not followed carefully, the story plays out as a dramatic and theatrical performance that jumps between geography and time. The authors do a remarkable job in providing character profiles, though at times, may teeter tediously as they dive into personal histories and anecdotes that have the potential for both swaying the reader’s attention and content’s intention. However, one must undoubtedly appreciate the journal istic style employed by the authors to weave a story of deep convolution, one that thoroughly investigates every aspect and

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night Free Essays

C. S. Lewis once said, â€Å"no one ever told me that grief felt so like fear. We will write a custom essay sample on Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night or any similar topic only for you Order Now † In Dylan Thomas’s villanelle, â€Å"Do not go gentle into that good night,† written within the Emerging Modernist Period, illustrates a man grieving his old and dying father to rage at death for people should look over their lives and have confidence of having accomplished the defining moments by taking risks and having no fear before death is upon them. Within the first tercet, a young man reacts to the closeness of death with a fighting approach as to rebuke the acceptance of the end. Throughout the poem, the repetition and rhyming of the last words helps to allow the reader to understand the making of a form of writing know as a villanelle. One of the two key phrases within this villanelle, â€Å"do not go gentle into that good night,†(1) occurs several times to emphasize the plea against death the speaker has toward men in old age and the personification â€Å"of Gloucester’s son Edgar† (Cyr) from William Shakespeare’s play King Lear. The diction of â€Å"gentle†(1) is an adjective in place of an adverb making the â€Å"less grammatically correct†(Hochman) â€Å"gentle†(1) an epithet for his father and involving the relationship shared between the two men through their personal background. The second key phrase, â€Å"rage, rage against the dying of the light,†(3) gives insight towards Thomas’s following poem, the â€Å"Elegy,† when the detail of the relationship between a young man, Dylan Thomas, and his father. Furthermore, the metaphor of â€Å"the dying of the light†(3) conveys the history of one of Thomas’s favorite poets, W. B. Yeats and his military background within the phrase â€Å"†Black out†Ã¢â‚¬ (Cyr) helps to clarify that death draws near. Within these two lines, the author uses words such as â€Å"gentle† and â€Å"rage,† â€Å"dying† and â€Å"good,† and â€Å"night† and â€Å"light† as a contradictory term within the diction. Likewise, the alliteration and the consonance of the â€Å"g† in â€Å"go gentle†¦ good†(1) and â€Å"rage, rage against†(3) help to signify as the â€Å"chorus†(Overview: â€Å"Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night†) within the remainder of the villanelle. Within the next four tercets, the achievements of four different kinds of men in old age neglected to lessen the gloom within their surroundings. â€Å"Wise,†(4) â€Å"good,†(7) â€Å"wild,†(10) and â€Å"grave men†(13) are metaphors for men who have â€Å"failed to enlighten the dark world in which they live. †(Hochman) Thomas uses the metaphors of â€Å"at their end,†(4) â€Å"last wave by,†(7) â€Å"too late,†(11) and â€Å"near death†(13) to stand as the appearance towards death. The imagery within the villanelle, â€Å"words had forked no lightning,†(5) â€Å"danced in a green bay,†(8) and â€Å"caught and sang the sun in flight†¦ they grieved it on its way†(10-11) is that of dark descent towards a â€Å"more dangerous world†¦ of human wildness†(Hochman) which is followed by the diction of â€Å"be gay†(14) as a â€Å"state of lightness†(Hochman) to â€Å"contrast the light and dark imagery. (Overview: â€Å"Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night†) Within line fourteen, the consonance of â€Å"bl† in â€Å"blind†¦ blaze,†(14) the alliteration of the â€Å"i† sound inside â€Å"blind eyes†¦ like,†(14) and the assonance of the â€Å"z† sound in â€Å"eyes†¦ blaz e like meteors†(14) helps to explain the syntax of the tercet. In addition, Thomas’s purpose of â€Å"grave men,†(13) serious men, who can see but have no vision now understand the capability of possessing a serious and happy life style functions as a paradox for the men â€Å"are blind†(Overview: â€Å"Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night†) and cannot see yet have a better understanding than a man with sight and this comprehension of sudden enlightenment continues into the final lines of this intimate villanelle. The last quatrain contains a personal request to a young man’s father to show true emotions during the hardship before death comes within the night. Thomas begins the last stanza addressing the audience, his father, which reveals to the reader an â€Å"obliquely drawn persona†(Cyr) of the personal relationship between a sickly father and his caring son. Following, the author uses â€Å"on the sad height†(16) as a metaphor towards death as well as a paradox to enlighten the aspect of life achievements. Thomas’s use of the â€Å"religious overtones†(Welford) in â€Å"on the sad height, curse, bless†(16-17) relates to the imagery in the book of Deuteronomy in the Bible for a â€Å"sad height†(16) is â€Å"sad†(Westphal) sense Moses cannot enter the Promised Land he dies on the summit of Mount Nebo and Joshua, his â€Å"’son,’†(Westphal) grieves at the loss of a â€Å"solid rock in his life. †(Welford) The imagery, â€Å"curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears†(17) stands as a specific plea to the audience to give the speaker the blessing of fearful and uncontrollable tears that he had not done prior and to â€Å"curse†(17) those â€Å"who will be left behind. (Hochman) The devises of the â€Å"s† sound as assonance occurring on line 17, â€Å"curse, bless†¦ fierce tears† allows the rhythm of the poem to continue the elaborate patterns throughout the poem. The final quatrain portrays t he theme of the villanelle that the grieving of man at the sight of his dying father allows the fear of loss or suffering to change any perceptions towards death. How to cite Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, Papers

Business Rationale for Diversity Management †Myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Business Rationale for Diversity Management. Answer: Introduction Diversity management is a moldable business philosophy and is an applied practice based on the human capital requirements of the organization. Although generic in nature, these practices are available for customization and decentralized modification based on people, processes and technologies. Any organizational landscape demands varied and versatile diversity management processes that could be tailored as per seasonal, structural, economic, task-based or project-based requirements. The task at hand for CERA is to reinforce the rationale behind this business philosophy by conveying the short-term and long-term benefits of diversity management. The subtopics focus on specifics of this HR model by analyzing its applications as a gender based model, the need for it in the 21st century, beneficiaries of this model and the benefits etc. CERA also requires collaboration between recruitment selection, human resource planning, and business strategy. The next step for CERA is to understand how to apply diversity management policies. There is also a business case of brand promotion and in this case CERA as a company will position itself as a viable employment destination. This is because a promotion of the company as an appealing employment destination can enable a company to harness the best of diversified talents. Diversity Management in HRM Diversity management relates to an HR management philosophy that embraces the fact that people have diverse skill-sets. It can also relate to the acknowledgement, understanding, acceptance and valuing of divergence in the workplace with regard to ethnicity, gender, abilities, race, class, educational backgrounds, experience backgrounds, physiological traits and psychological traits etc. Companies that include diversity management as a tool in their business strategy develop well-rounded and competitive capabilities as per Green, Lopez, Wysocki, Kepner, Farnsworth, and Clark (n.d.). Gender diversity in leadership roles as a function of organizational performance (Heskett, 2015) Gender diversity in leadership roles has yielded positive outcomes. A McKinsey study has vindicated this fact. Women have the art of multi-tasking, greater analytical abilities, and propensity to adhere to company goals, visions, missions and values. Female leaders cultivate a diverse personnel framework in an organization. Women have a high social sensitivity index too. Women are high on emotional intelligence that could lead to an understanding and emancipating organization. Francoeur, Labelle, and Sinclair-Desgagn (n.d.) contend that participation of women in top management has a significant impact on financial performance. In fact, it enhances organizational performance on several fronts. This is true of companies operating in complex business ecosystems. If these businesses have a high proportion of women leaders, they generate enough value as a holistic quantum which is not restricted to financial results. There is also no difference between male and female leaders when it comes to managing leadership positions (Virick, M., Greer, R. C., n.d.). The nomination of women successors by incumbent managers were based purely on performance more than gender in the long run. There is also an indication that the nomination of women for leadership roles is driven by a need for an inclusive and diverse workplace. Thus, gender diversity in leadership roles is a necessity for organizations to agglomerate varying emotional, practical, tactical and analytical leadership qualities. Construing Diversity Management Diversity management does not have a single definition as it is construed differently in different organizations, cultures and countries as per Kramar, R., (2012). In the 1960s and 1970s the word diversity was restricted to the natural systems and environment. Only in the 1980s did it become a business context. Diversity management then transitioned into a HR framework. Diversity is used to refer to personal characteristics of a prospective employee such as age, family, race and gender etc. On a broader scale, it relates to sexual orientation, physical and mental acumen as well. On a functional group-level it relates to a different set of functional group characteristics. Therefore, diversity management processes differ by dimensions defined in an organization. The outcomes of diversity management are organizational competitive advantage. On a broader scale the outcomes relate to stakeholder value and corporate social responsibility. (Cox, JHJ., 1994) Diversity management models are evolutionary based on changing market and demographic facets. The current status is to integrate this into change management policies. The effort is to leverage diversity in decision-making and overall organizational culture development. Business rationale for implementing diversity management in CERA CERA seeks to be an innovative organization. Therefore, an innovative organization needs a confluence of ideas, sensibilities and sensitivities; which is a function of diversity management. (Diversity at Work. (n.d.).) A diverse workforce enables bridging of gaps in skill-shortage scenarios which is different from personnel shortages. It is proven that better client service can be achieved by letting a diverse portfolio of skills engage on a common ground with client-facing tasks. As per the employer survey of 2010 by HR Council, more than three quarters of the respondents identified creativity and innovation as the by-product of diversity. Well-managed diverse teams are more efficient and creative than homogenous groups. (Watson, E.W., Kumar, Kamalesh., Michaelsen, K.L., n.d.) When performance and process-adherence of homogenous and heterogeneous groups were studied in parallel, the former group showed immediate adherence and competence. But by the end of the study period, the heterogeneous group started showing remarkable improvement and also superseded the homogenous group. It indicates that initially a heterogeneous group takes time to assimilate and function as a cohesive unit. Beneficiaries of diversity management policies The beneficiaries of diversity management are the organization itself as a whole. The organization constitutes a variety of stakeholders including employees, employers, shareholders, vendors, suppliers, third party logistics providers and indirect employees etc. Diversity management also helps in internal and external organizational perception management. It changes how people perceive others in an organization (Greenberg, J., (2004)). It leads to vanquishing of prejudices and pre-conceived notions. In the long run it leads to a harmonious environment within the organization that could percolate outside into the society as well. When different people with different skill-sets collaborate, the perception that their contributions constitute the final outcome is established. It creates a non-hegemonic environment, driven my meritocracy, respect of each others inherent talents, recognition of personal abilities and an increased impetus to excel at ones role. Ultimately, the foremost beneficiary is the customer. They receive better service, products, service range, increased responsiveness and an overall satisfactory customer experience. Diversity management is the new age approach to increase adaptability to changing technological and business paradigms. Recruitment strategies for diversity management CERA can undertake a recruitment strategy that focuses on making the organization appealing. The organization should attract candidates from varied labor markets (Marquis, P.J., Lim, N., Scott, M. L., Harrell, C.M., Kavanagh, J. (n.d.)). A company that is already vested with a diversely skilled workforce is a potential employment destination for innovative and creative people looking for a diversely bestowed company. CERA can revamp their recruitment effort and make it a diverse recruitment team. The recruitment team of CERA can utilize varied connections to source talent that range from professional organizations, college campuses and employee referrals to job boards, community workshops and competitions etc. While recruitment is only half the story, equal effort goes in retaining a diversely skilled and multi-cultural workforce. The retention philosophy starts with a learning and skills-need identification drive based on individual attitudes, aspirations and aptitudes. Financial support is an active ingredient in this long-term business strategy. CERA should be responsive to the training and learning needs of their employees; however related or non-related it could be to their incumbent roles. To top it off; an assessment of learning outcomes is undertaken by evaluation. It could be achieved by enabling a climate of innovation or through open channels of communication of ideas and strategies. Recruitment strategies for CERA Although traditional recruitment sources are still valid as feasible sources of potential hires, communication and interaction with a diversely skilled candidate pool through diverse channels is the key to build a diverse workforce. (Pollock, S., 2015) Job titles and descriptions should be craftily worded to inspire interest. Research has shown that usage of certain words turns away women who could be able fits for the advertised roles. For example, the world determined looks masculine to a woman than the world dedicated. On the other hand, these words had no impact on the decisions by men, indicating that women act based on the vocabulary in job descriptions. Some emerging recruiting methods are blind interviewing and anonymous interviews. The former recruitment strategy helps create a diverse workforce by negating the inherent biased recruitment and selection component. The initial phase may start off by posting projects for potential hires to complete. A potential hire completes the project and if it fits their skills, they proceed. On the other hand, anonymous interviewing is not disclosing the company details until the final stage face-to-face discussion. Equality vs. Diversity in the workplace Equality is the quality of an employer to offer a level playing field to all employees in the organization. Diversity is closely related to equality in that it offers people from different cultures and possessing varying skill-sets, an opportunity to contribute to an organization. But often equality and diversity do not co-exist. (Petty, L., 2016) Equality and diversity, although closely synonymous but not fully so, are two words that have the same relevance. In the UK, there were 31 million people who were employed in 2015. In the US, there were 121 million people. A study by SHRM revealed that 41 percent of respondents who took part in the survey felt that they were being discriminated. In a 2011 census, in the UK, low-paying jobs were filled by people from Asia and Africa. But in stark contrast, upwards of 25 billion pounds worth of business in 2010 came from ethnic minority businesses. This means that if organizations can leverage the potential of all races of people, differently skilled, with different opinions, ideas, skills and techniques, they harness the collective wisdom of diverging yet converging worlds. The unfair practices in the UK brought forth the Equality Act of 2010. This law sought to curtail unlawful labor discrimination. The Act was a harbinger of better opportunities and equality. All workplaces were made to comply with the act. The Act sought to preserve the sanctity of a set of protected characteristics of a person. These protected characteristics were not qualified as job-match assessment parameters when assessing a potential hire. Therefore, organizations were asked to lower their guard on personal characteristics of a potential hire such as age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy, race, religion, faith, belief systems, sexual orientation and sex to name a few. CERA should comply with this ACT and also lower its guard against personal characteristics of potentials. CERA should gauge the short and long term benefits of implementing diversity management. As a basic litmus test, they can assess the changes in their immediate internal and external environments. The possible external environments of CERA are namely customers, suppliers and stakeholders. The internal environment change indicators are highly driven employees, organizational adaptability, problem solving, innovation, creativity, cost reduction and effective knowledge transfer (Awang, F., Shafie, Z., Pearl, Ryan., (n.d.)). CERAs diversity management approach Traditional approaches to diversity management are based on non-discrimination and fairness. It is based on the premise that different racial groups co-exist and collaborate. But of late, the process of assimilation into the workforce is based on integrating different skill-sets to co-exist and also co-create. Therefore CERA should consider enacting the following three tier approach. Drivers of diversity management in CERA Diversity management in CERA should be based on a set of principles. Dignity and respect In this process, people are a necessary resource for organizational success. Everyone regardless of their job description is an enabler of organizational change. People as individuals People are seen as assets to the company and not as traditional costs to the company. Performance incentives are given based on value added to the company directly or indirectly. Relationship building Rather than wait for personnel or employees in the organization to step-up and build a relationship with CERA, the organization takes the initiative. The focus should be an eager employer and not always of an eager employee. Shift in thinking the shift in thinking applies to CERAs observance of the changing demographics in the workforce. Strategic organizational goal The organizational goal has to be positioned as the employee goal. Employees should be made part of this broader vision. Personal focus Create interdisciplinary integration and sharing of frontiers. It creates a more cohesive, silo-less organization focused on combining rather than separating to be unique. Relationship-focus Any decision taken by the organization should be taken keeping in mind the short and long term personal and professional aspirations of the diverse workforce. Conclusion For CERA to make headway into the paradigm of diversity management, it has to de-learn and re-learn. Traditional sources of recruitment can be kept as it is; but recruitment methodologies can change to include blind and anonymous interviewing. Diverse participation from the community can be elicited by establishing associations with institutions, colleges, professional bodies and workshops where talent can be spotted, attracted and nurtured. Skill based assessment is part of diversity management principles, where individual performance is gauged on the value they added to the organization. A common platform can be created, such as a knowledge management system to foster cross-departmental collaboration through the use of open communication channels. The top-down effect to reinforce ideals of equality and fairness can be enabled by prioritizing employee goals and aspirations as a subset of management goals and aspirations. By including objectives that fulfill the potential of an employees ability that can also be a potential enabler of organizational change, the employee feels empowered. CERA can attract people of diverging but relevant skill-sets and those with different abilities by positioning the company as an attractive playground to innovate. The climate of innovation is backed by financial incentives and the promise of gaining work related autonomy. While traditional cookie-cutter approaches to assess candidates and designate them still exist, a slow transition is made towards diversity. Project and task based selections that give potentials an opportunity to assess their fit for the company is a great way to foster a partnership or mutually disagree on a potential alliance at the outset. The first steps or milestones or key performance indicators for a diversified workforce are to forge creative ideas into marketable or commercialize-able products/services. This is followed by the ability to be flexible by being able to change teams, work in groups, work individually or work in pairs etc. The next pertinent indicator is the ability to gather, retain, transfer and share knowledge. References UF|IFAS Extension.(n.d.). Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits, Challenges, and the Required Managerial Tools. Retrieved from https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/HR/HR02200.pdf Working Knowledge The Thinking That Leads: Why Does Gender Diversity Improve Financial Performance?. (2015, Nov 4). Retrieved 5 January 2017, from Harvard | Business | School website, https://goo.gl/4uSKDt Francoeur, Claude., Labelle, Ral., Sinclair-Desgagn, Bernard., (2008). Gender Diversity in Corporate Governance and Top Management. Volume 81, Issue 1, 8395. doi: 10.1007/s10551-007-9482-5 Virick, M., Greer, R.C., (n.d.) Gender Diversity in Leadership Succession: Preparing for the Future. Human Resource Management. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/PSEQoI Kramar, R., (2012). Diversity Management in Australia: a mosaic of concepts, practice and rhetoric. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources. Volume 50, issue 2, 245-261. doi: 10.1111/j.1744-7941.2011.00010.x Cox, JHJ. (1994) Cultural diversity in organizations: Theory, research and practice. Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco, CA. Diversity at Work. (n.d.). Retrieved January 5, 2017, from hrcouncil.ca website, https://hrcouncil.ca/hr-toolkit/diversity-workforce-matters.cfm Watson, E.W., Kumar, K., Michaelsen, K.L., Cultural Diversity's Impact On Interaction Process and Performance: Comparing Homogeneous and Diverse Task Groups. Academy of Management Journal. Vol 36, no 3 590-602. doi: 10.2307/256593 Greenberg, J., (2004). Retrieved January 5, 2017, from The Multicultural Advantage website, https://www.multiculturaladvantage.com/recruit/diversity/diversity-in-the-workplace-benefits-challenges-solutions.asp Marquis, P.J., et al. (n.d). Managing Diversity in Corporate America. RAND Labor and Population. 6-8. Retrieved from https://www.muhlenberg.edu/library/reshelp/apa_example.pdf Pollock, S., (2015, November 16). Build a Diverse Workforce with These 5 Best Practices in Mind. [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://blog.clearcompany.com/build-a-diverse-workforce-with-these-5-best-practices-in-mind. Petty, L., (2016, January 14). How Equality Diversity Improves Your Workplace: Examining the Benefits. Retrieved on January 5, 2017, from thehub website, https://www.highspeedtraining.co.uk/hub/equality-diversity-benefits-workplace/ Awang, F., Shafie, Z., Pearl, Ryan., (n.d.). The multicultural organizations: Perceptions of diversity challenges and initiatives. Journal of International Business and Cultural Studies. Retrieved from https://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/131453.pdf Harvey, C. Allard, M.J., (2002). Understanding and managing diversity: readings, cases and experience. New Jersey, Prentice Hall https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:229440/FULLTEXT01.pdf Mareike Danullis, Simone Dehling, Suzana Pralica Kristianstad University. (2004, January 7). Diversity Management A New Paradigm. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:229440/FULLTEXT01.pdf