First-Time Buyers Essay Example for Free

First-Time Buyers Essay Housing is a common asset that most people regard as their biggest financial asset and the largest make-up of their wealth; the purchase of a house is usually one of the largest investments an individual will make, and therefore lower house prices may encourage more people to consider purchasing housing, serving as a more affordable investment. On the obvious side a fall in house prices will only encourage further demand for housing. A demand supply analysis will show that the falling prices should theoretically allow individuals who are considering buying a house but holding back due to fluctuations in prices finally take the jump onto the property ladder – falling prices provides an incentive for individuals to make this large investment, particularly as in the long term the value of housing may also increase depending on the state of the economy. While falling prices may indicate a slump in an economy, it provides an excellent chance for people who previously may have not been able to afford a purchase to do so. It is also important to take into account that housing is also a necessity in any part of the personal life cycle, and therefore any fall in prices will create an opportunity and incentive. It also does not necessarily mean that first-time buyers must look to make a large investment immediately; extract two suggests that lower prices may allow considerers to think of renting property as an early ‘alternative’, helping save up for a single cash deposit which would then in turn allow first-timers to climb onto the property ladder. However, as stated in extract two falling house prices does not necessarily indicate a good environment for contemplating investors to finally make the choice of investing; there are numerous other costs to consider such as the availability of mortgages, described as ‘dropping to its lowest level for more than a decade’. The lack of mortgages may in fact serve as a deterrent to first-time buyers, preventing them from climbing onto the property ladder as there are numerous other costs to consider. Extract two also states that lenders have refused to drop their interest rates in line with the governmental cuts, and once again this will only provide a disincentive to first-time buyers no matter how low the price of housing falls. Rising unemployment and cuts in the subsidies budget towards building affordable homes will also serve to undermine confidence in the housing market. While the governmental cut in subsidies towards funding new affordable homes may not have a direct impact on a first-time buyers decision, it is important to note that this policy will contribute to the level of confidence in the housing market, an example being lenders no longer willing to cut their interest rates following suit of the government doing so; the government is offering little support in the housing market and many are therefore not willing to take the risks. The people that will lose out from this ultimately are the first-time buyers who will be deterred from making such a large investment particularly if lenders and the government provide little confidence in this market. Therefore, while the fall in housing prices may incentivise first-time buyers to some degree overall it is likely to only have a limited effect, as many buyers will still be put off by the inability to receive mortgages as well as the other numerous financial costs involved.

The Effect of Celebrity Endorsement on Consumer Buying Behavior Essay Example for Free

The Effect of Celebrity Endorsement on Consumer Buying Behavior Essay The crescendo of celebrities endorsing brands has been steadily increasing over the past 20 years or so. Marketers overtly acknowledge the power of celebrity in influencing buyers purchase decision. They have firm believe that likeability or a favorable attitude towards a brand is created by the use of a celebrity. The crore of rupees spent per year on celebrity endorsement contracts show that celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, Sharukh khan and Sachin Tendulkar play an important role for the advertising industry. It is an established fact that celebrity endorsement can bestow unique features or special attributes upon a product that it may have lacked otherwise. In India from late 1970s and early 80s the new trend in advertising started. Brands started being endorsed by celebrities. Hindi film and TV stars as well as sportspersons were roped in to endorse prominent brands. Advertisements featuring stars like Late Jalal Agha (Pan Parag), Tabassum (Prestige cookers), Sunil Gavaskar for Dinesh Suiting, Ravi Shastri and Vivian Richards (Vimal), Persis Khambhata and Kapil Dev (Palmolive Shaving cream) became common . Though marketers should remember that celebrities are mere living beings like us and if they can highlight the benefits or advantages of a brand they can also have some uncanny negative impact. Theory and practice suggests that the use of stars and their unleashing power in advertising generate a lot of publicity and attention from the public but the underline questions are, do these stars really help a brand by increasing its sales? On the other hand, can they really have an Impact on the persons consumption pattern, thereby changing his brand preference? How an advertisement featuring a celebrity can influence consumers buying decision and can create an association between a brand and a common man. To answer these questions, the article will examine the relationship between celebrity endorsements and brands, and the impact of celebrity endorsement on consumers buying behaviour as well as how consumer makes brand preferences. We will apply a wide range of accepted principles of how consumers brand attitudes and preferences can be influenced, how buyers behavior can be influenced, how buyers behavior can be molded. We will use the principles of credibility of source and attractiveness, the match-up hypothesis, the consumer decision-making model and the communication model to understand this phenomenon. Brand- A layman  perspective Brand is the proprietary visual, emotional, rational and cultural image that you can associate with a company or the product. Few examples will bring home the meaning i.e. Amul utterly butterly delicious; Coke – thanda matlab coca-cola; Pepsi – Yeh dil mange more; Kurkure- Masti bole to kurkure and Daewoo ka India. These examples convey one message that when people watch advertisement a connect is being created and result is that people go for experience of buying. People feel by using the brand they will portray certain traits or characteristics that otherwise they do not have. This generates a certain level of emotional affiliation and a sense of fulfillment. It is this emotional relationship with brands that make them so powerful. Advertisements enforces what exactly the brand stands for and what to expect by its consumption and above all what factors, features and attributes makes it better from competition. Advertisements along with other marketing efforts generate expectations and feelings in a customer and force them to think when they see or hear the brand name. This Thinking process and emotional bonding gets more mature and relevant when a celebrity endorses the brand. The subjective intangible feelings of a customer become objective and tangible in the form of celebrity and the level of expectations will rise. The customer will start to perceive himself in the reference frame of the celebrity after the brand or the advertised product has been purchased or consumed by him. Celebrity and a Brand Star power in India can be gauged by the successful endorsements done by Sharukh Khan (Pepsi, Hyundai Santro, Sunfeast, and Navratan etc.), Amitabh Bachchan, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Hrithik Roshan and the others. The inevitable question is, if and how the lively interest of the public in the rich and famous can be efficiently and effectively used by companies to promote their brands and consequently to increase their sales revenues. This fact can be brought out by using certain examples i.e. Mr. Amitabh Bachchan promoting Cadbury chocolates after the fiasco of infestation when the image of Cadbury India went very low in the eyes of people. Soon the company found a perfect fit and a reliable celebrity to transmit the correct message and help regenerating the lost trust. The fit between the product and celebrity  is evident as Mr. Bachchan and Cadbury chocolates both have tested troubled times and still they stand tall and the love and trust they both share with the people al l across India. This is a live example of how a celebrity brought certain attributes to a product like chocolate. Actor Sharukh khan has also endorsed diversified products. His endorsement basket is ranging from Hyundai Santro to Sunfeast biscuits on one hand and from Compaq computers to Videocon electronics on the other. According to Advertising research companies both the actors are doing well and the ad spent on both by the companies is increasing at a phenomenal rate, so does their basket of endorsements. These actors bring reliability and trust in the brand and above all, they help in increasing the sales revenues. Celebrity endorsements are powerful, has become evident from the above two examples but, why is it so? This power is offered by the following elements, which also creates a Top of the Mind Position. * Instant Awareness, knowledge about the brand and easy recall. * Values and image of the brand is defined, highlighted and refreshed by the celebrity. * The celebrity adds new edge and dimension to the brand. * Credibility, trust, association, aspiration and connectivity to brand. * Belief in efficiency and new appearance that will result in at least trial usage. Understanding Consumer Behaviour Consumer behaviour is the study of how people buy, what they buy, when they buy and why they buy. It blends elements from psychology, sociology, sociopsychology, anthropology and economics. It attempts to understand the buyer decision-making process, both individually and in groups. It studies characteristics of individual consumers such as demographics, psychographics, and behavioral variables in an attempt to understand peoples wants. It also tries to assess influences on the consumer from groups such as family, friends, reference groups, and society in general. The study and knowledge of consumer behavior helps firms and organizations to improve their marketing strategies and product offerings. Following are the important issues that have significant influence on consumers psyche  and their ability to take decisions: †¢ The psychology of how consumers think, feel, reason, and select between different alternatives (e.g., brands, products); †¢ The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment (e.g., culture, family, signs, media); †¢ The behavior of consumers while shopping or making other marketing decisions; †¢ Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing abilities influence decisions and marketing outcome; †¢ How consumer motivation and decision strategies differ between products that differ in their level of importance or interest that they entail for the consumer; and †¢ How marketers can adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and marketing strategies to more effectively reach the consumer. †¢ Their Age, Religion, Culture, Income, informal group and Referent Group. Understanding these issues helps us adapt our strategies by taking the consumer into consideration. Traditional Factors affecting consumer decision making There are several factors that affect consumers decision to purchase a brand and a product. These factors though at time are not very much visible but they make an impact and affects sales of a product or brand up to a great extent. The table below shows some of these factors. Impact of a Brand on consumer purchase decision Research studies have proven that known products and names are sold more than unknown ones. Therefore, a known brand or an optimally exposed brand will find more recognition and buyers in the market in comparison to completely unknown or unexposed brand. Recognition of brand and its significance along with the traditional factors plays a very significant role in consumer decision-making process. More or less every consumer has a brand preference and given the affordability and societal norms, each buyer would like to buy and consume one of the highly acceptable, recognizable, and reputed brands. The above given model explains the important role that a brand plays in three different stages of consumers purchase decision making. A consumer start collecting data or information about his favourite brand than he keeps his favourite as one of the alternatives and he evaluate his selected brand against all available options and on finding it suitable or best among all options based upon a qualitative and quantitative evaluation he will ultimately purchase the selected or favourite brand. The diagram above explains how various traditional factors along with brand preference interact during purchase decision process and finally results into a consumers final product choice or ultimate purchase. Celebrity and a brand Surveys suggest that compared to any other types of endorsers, famous people achieve a higher degree of attention and recall. They increase awareness of a companys advertising as well as help in retention of message in the psyche of the audience. They can also help the company in reducing their expenditure on Media and other forms of publicity. An example will bring more clarity, When S Kumars, a known textile brand entered into readymade garments business they used Hrithik Roshan, then the hottest advertising icon for their launch advertising for TAMARIND, now one of the premium readymade brands. They reckoned that they have spent 40-50 percent less on media due to sheer impact of using hottest star like Hrithik. The Ad recall was as high as 70 percent and the campaign can be termed as a great success. Celebrities also create positive feelings towards brands, connect user to brand and are perceived by consumers as more entertaining. Using a celebrity in advertising or for any, other type of communication for brand building is likely to positively affect consumers brand preference, brand attitude, brand association and purchase intentions. To ensure positive results, however, it is critical for advertisers to have a clear understanding of consumers reactions and reinforcement of celebrity endorsement. The impact of celebrity endorsement on any brand as well as on consumers purchase decision is very critical. Source Credibility Central goal of advertising is the convincing of consumers and persuasion to purchase, the ultimate objective, though not openly spoken, is to some how attract consumers to the market offering of the company, generating positive attitude, reinforce positive association and ultimately to generate sales,  may be a trial purchase. At later stages, the sponsor may work towards creating a brand loyalty but generating initial sales or increasing the existing sales is the primary objective. In this respect, the credibility of an endorser along with advertisement plays an important role in convincing the target audience of the attractiveness of the companys brand and generates sales. Pursuing a celebrity endorsement strategy enables advertisers to project a credible image in terms of expertise, persuasiveness, trustworthiness, and objectiveness. To create effective messages, celebrity advertisers also have to consider the attractiveness of the spokesperson. Source attractiveness refers to the endorsers Physical appearance, Personality, Likeability and Similarity to the receiver, thus to the perceived social value of the source. This behavior mainly goes back to halo effect, whereby persons who perform well on one dimension example: physical attractiveness or top professional performance, social status are assumed to excel on other levels as well i.e. happiness and coolness. This is evident from the use of Fardeen Khan, modern, dynamic, outgoing and smart personality for Provogue; he translates the modernism of the brand well. Titan uses Aamir Khan in his different avatars for communicating to the public that their watches are as reliable and passionate as Aamir is for films. Both Fardeen and Aamir carry the message well and enhance the credibility of the brand they endorse. Establishing a Perfect Match Research proves that a spokesperson especially for a service product or organization (ICICI- First Amitabh Bachchan, now Shahrukh Khan) interacts with the type of brand being advertised. These stars communicate the value of the product and transform an ordinary service into a miracle solution for all problems of an ordinary customer. According to Friedman and Friedman (1979), a famous relative to a normal spokesperson is more effective for products high in psychological or social risk, involving such elements as good taste, self-image, and opinion of others. Several research studies have examined the congruency between celebrity endorsers and brands to explain the effectiveness of using famous persons to promote brands. In India, a brand called Reid Taylor presented its perfect example when they first launched their advertising campaign featuring James Bond fame of the time Mr. Pierce Brosnan along with the tagline BOND WITH THE BEST but the James  Bond idea did not worked and the company was not happy with the results. After the debacle of the first campaign, company introduced a family ad where children are celebrating there parents silver wedding anniversary and they are out with their father to purchase a suit for him. Even this commercial did not work and it was taken off the air. As a last resort, company introduced Mr. Amitabh Bachchan as Reid Taylor man, a man propagating the brand for special occasion and for very special people in life. The commercial from the initial days got good response and did extremely well as people were able to connect with Mr. Bachchan and the values he was propagating. For the masses, there was a perfect match of an ideal Indian family man, a star and a good quality but bit highly priced brand reserved especially for special occasions and for very special people. Second example that can be quoted is of Vishwanathan Anand, who endorsed NIIT. NIIT adopted a very smart strategy by roping in Vishwanathan Anand an international chess wizard for their advertising campaign. As chess is considered to be a game full of strategies and a game for smart people and when one of the greats of the game is asking people to join NIIT it was suppose to have a positive influence on the people and actually it had. There was complete congruency and compatibility between the celebrity endorser, the product and the message. Contrary to only favorable outcomes, there are several examples where the product, even the entire campaign collapsed due to heavy weight celebrity as the agency or the ad failed to establish the relationship between the endorser and the product. Keeping the focus only on success, where the product and the celebrity were a perfect match, following are few examples: Celebrity Endorser Company / Product Amitabh Bachchan * Dabur * Cadbury * Reid and Taylor * Parker Shahrukh Khan * Santro * Videocon * Sunfeast * Pepsi Juhi Chawala * Kurkure Ustad Zakir Hussain * Taj mahal tea Aamir Khan * Titan * Coke * Toyota Innova Aishwarya Rai * Nakshatra * Lux Rani Mukherjee * Fanta * Nestle Munch Kajol and Ajay Devgan * Whirlpool * Tata Indicom The campaigns are not only basking with the glory of success stories, but there is considerable number of failures as well. Assuming that a person just have to be famous to represent a successful brand, however, would be incorrect and may turn out to be a very dangerous preposition resulting into a big calamity for the entire advertising campaign or the brand. Very well accepted and attractive super stars like Abhishek Bachchan and Amitabh Bachchan failed in turning their endorsements into success i.e. Maruti Versa similarly Virendra Sehwag also failed to deliver Reliance Telecommunication with the master stroke of his cricketing genius. Among the possible reasons identified by several authors, including overexposure and identification, the match-up hypothesis specifically suggests that the effectiveness depends on the existence of a fit between the celebrity spokesperson and endorsed brand. Empirical work on the congruency of brand with the celebrity often has concentrated on the physical attractiveness of the endorser. Results show that an attractive spokespersons are more effective in terms of attitude change when prompting brands that enhance ones attractiveness i.e. cosmetics; health drinks or fashion wear. Primary data states, for celebrity spokespersons to be truly effective, they should be knowledgeable, experienced, mature, and a bench mark in their respective field and qualified to talk about the product. Transferring the Meaning After watching an advertisement the consumers try to find the meaning of the advertisement and associate the same with the endorser and eventually transfer to the brand. To understand this phenomenon Mc Cracken (1989)  suggested a comprehensive model known as Meaning Transfer Model. This three-stage model suggests how the meaning associated with the famous person moves from the endorser to the product or the brand. Thus, meanings attributed to the celebrity become associated with the brand in the consumers mind. Finally, in the consumption process, the customer acquires the brands meaning. The third stage of the model explicitly shows the importance of the consumers role in the process of endorsing brands with famous persons. In contrast to anonymous endorsers, celebrities add value to the image transfer process by offering meanings of extra depth and power, what is complemented by their life style and personalities. Therefore, to transfer the correct meaning to the consumer the company should select a celebrity that will produce the most favorable response for consumers and for the purpose the celebrity should have, the appropriate set of characteristics and the public should be able to visualize and comprehend the same. The company should consider the consumers needs while developing their communication strategy and selecting an appropriate celebrity to transmit the same, i.e. Kurkure used actress Juhi Chawala with the punch line Masti Bole To Kurkure and the actress on screen and off-screen personifies the masti and helps the brand in communicating the same easily. Compatibility of the celebritys persona with the overall brand image is very important, as a celebrity imparts credibility and inspirational value to a brand and his or her image should perfectly match the brands image. A good brand campaign idea and an intrinsic link between the celebrity and the message are must for a successful campaign. Certain elements that generate a perfect match or compatibility between the celebrity and brand image are: * Celebritys fit with the brand image along with celebrity-target audience match. * Celebrity associated values and celebrity-product match. * Costs of acquiring the celebrity and his or her popularity along with controversy risks associated with the celebrity. * Credibility, availability and physical attractiveness of celebrity. The above points can be put to perspective by using two examples, first Kapil Devs Palmolive da jawaab nahin and second Nakshatras brand recall due to its endorser, the gorgeous Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Both brands have edged out and carved out their niche in consumers mind due to image and credibility of their endorsers.  These were the cases of perfect match between the brand image and the image or persona of the celebrity endorser. Conclusion A brief assessment of the current market situation indicates, that celebrity endorsement advertising strategy can under the right circumstances indeed justify the high costs associated with this form of advertising. The use of celebrity for endorsements create a very favorable impact on the consumer and it creates a connect which forces a consumer to purchase a product. However, as several failures show, it is essential for advertisers to be aware of the complex processes underlying celebrity endorsement. It has been proved from the discussion that celebrity endorsements are a powerful and useful tool that magnifies the effect of a campaign but the word of caution to be followed seriously; celebrities alone do not guarantee success nor does a great advertising campaign or the best possible product. It is the combination of several factors and elements that work together for the success of a brand and its acceptance in the minds of consumers as well as for its market offering. Modern day consumers are well educated and smart, they know celebrities are being paid for these endorsements and this knowledge makes consumers rather more cynical about the product and celebrity endorsements. Majority of the consuming population also knows what is advertising and how it actually works and this knowledge of consumer makes the task of celebrity endorsement all the more difficult and challenging for the advertising companies and the sponsors. Indian companies both advertising and product offering companies have top make an effort to overcome this ever-mounting challenge. References * Aaker, David A. (1996), Building Strong Brands. New York, NY: The Free Press. * Daneshvary, Rennae and R. Keith Schwer (2000), The Association Endorsement and * Consumers Intention to Purchase, Journal of Consumer Marketing, 17 (3), 203-213. * Friedman, Hershey H. and Linda Friedman (1979), Endorser Effectiveness by Product Type, Journal of Advertising Research, 19 (5), 63-71. * McCracken, Grant (1989), Who Is the Celebrity Endorser? Cultural Foundations of the Endorsement Process, Journal of Consumer Research, 16 (3), 310-321.

Challenges facing Human Resource managers

Challenges facing Human Resource managers Q/1 Business environment is changing everyday and bringing new challengers to the HR managers. What are the challenges faces by Hr managers at British Gas in the UK? The ultimate goal of any organisation is to gain success in the market it is operating in. In order to achieve the aim organisations need to generate an agent that operates in a variety of real world environments. It is crucial to include some mechanisms that allow it to operate in a dynamic environment, one that changes over time independent of the actions. Certainly there are environments that do not change with time and are static but these are usually small organisations that are limited in size and scope. Traditionally the environments used to be static but the trends in the market are changed, the static and well predicted market changes have been distorted to dynamic and ever changing market situations. To deal with the changes in the market and achieve their ultimate goal organisations need to consider not only the external but also the equally important internal constituencies. Among all the internal factors employees can be said as one of the most important part. The role of the employees for the endurance of any organisation is well acknowledged in todays modern dynamic and competitive business world. Therefore employees have been the centre of attention and are being invested in by the organisations by providing them training and development, competitive remuneration and other benefits. Thus in todays dynamic market environment when organisations have felt the need of taking care of their employees, they can also sense the necessity of professionals who can deal with the above mentioned problems. This is where HR managers come into the picture who deals with all the issues related to the employees. The role of the Human Resource manager has been developed with time from just administrative roles to modern role of strategic partnership. (Bratton and Gold, 2007). British gas which is renowned energy brand in United Kingdom is a part of Centrica. British gas is operating in an intense rivalry and in order to stay ahead in the race to success they have to consider all the stake holders including employees. British gas recognises that their success has been dependent upon the capabilities and dedication of their employees, and as a result they are committed to meet their people needs.S The different changes within the business environment can be summed up using PEST analysis, which includes the changes in both the internal and external environment. PEST Analysis is a simple, useful and widely-used tool that helps you understand the big picture of your Political, Economic, Socio-Cultural and Technological environment. As such, it is used by business leaders worldwide to build their vision of the future. A diagram showing different components of the Pest Analysis can be seen below. This framework helps the HR manager along with other management to deal with different changes in the environment the organisation is operating by which they can provide a good working environment. Now lets analyse the changes within the different aspects of PEST analysis and the challenges it brings to HR managers in British Gas. Political: The political factor of Pest analysis deals with the effects of government policy. Inasmuch as government policy is worked out through legislation, it encompasses all legal elements of this analysis. This includes items such as government stability, taxation policy, and government regulations. Government stability is not a major issue in Western economies but plays a vital role. (Henry, 2008). Although In Europe UK is said to be the least protective legislation but still has many laws that can influence and ensure the smooth running of the businesses. Firstly there are many laws regarding the equal opportunity within the organisation. Any organisation has to consider candidates for recruitment and selection irrespective of race, gender, age and religion (CIPD). Avoiding any of the mentioned factors means discrimination which has its negative aftermaths and can damage the organisation. British gas has taken many steps in order to avoid this discrimination which would be discussed in detail later under Recruitment and Selection. Laws for health and safety at workplace have also been imposed and organisations should comply with it in order to make a safe working environment. British gas as being in energy related industry needs to consider this aspect in depth. It is role of a HR manager in particular to deal with the related issues. British gas considers health and safety for their employees and the environment as being fundamental to their business objectives. Conventionally Health and Safety was not considered in depth but in the modern world there have been many changes with laws ensuring a safer working environment. (British gas webpage). There are many changes made to the laws with time. Other laws for HR revolve around things like pay rates, fair competition, taxation and fair dealings with employees. The laws for these factors do change with the change in government as well and British gas has always been ahead with regards to the laws. Equally important is the discussion about the privatisation of British gas in late 1980s which actually had a vital role over the HR dealings within the company, example being the job losses (from 91,599 in 1986 to 78300 in 1992) which were made because of the privatisation, this had a real impact over the HR and they dealt with it in superior manner to keep their retained employees motivated. (International labour organisation, Sectoral activities programme) Economy: Economical changes such as economic uncertainly, changes from manufacturing to service or knowledge economy, mergers and acquisitions activity and increased energy and fuel costs. In a knowledge-based economy, the most important business investments involve investing in personnel, putting HR managers at the centre of some of economic debates. Issues related to human capital and people management are now among the most important challenges in business, bringing the expertise of HR managers to the core not only of business but also of nation economic competitiveness. Understanding the broader business and societal implications of these trends will be crucial how to address their resulting challenges at the organisational level and will require HR managers to be well informed about macroeconomic developments. Social: Social factors include cultural changes within the environment and are often referred to as socio-cultural. This includes health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. (Henry, 2008). HR managers may increasingly find themselves dealing with the impact societal trends, such as 24/7 work culture, changing family pattern, and a growing emphasis on work/life balance have on time-related issues in the workplace. Benefits linked to flexible working and controls over schedules are likely to continue to be in demand. Possible changes to the bargaining power of employees and women, in particular, could make meeting this demand a higher priority to employers. Finding ways to continue to engage workers with high levels of responsibility and skills but who may not be able to work full time may become more important. This will be exacerbated by the need to find enough skilled workers which could potentially pose a challenge in the coming decades as education cost rise and skills requirements increase. Technology: Any organisation needs to be the pioneer of the new technology and to be ahead in the competitive race in the market in order to lead. This undoubtedly has a major impact on HR as they need to train their staff accordingly and make them flexible enough to adapt to the changes within the technology. For HR managers, the efficient use of technology has emerged as a key skill. Recruitment strategies can also be affected by Changes in the technology while major advancement in e-learning could influence training strategies. Q/2 Comment on how HR activities contribute to the success of British Gas. Use any 2 HRM Models to explain you answer? Employees are the most important factor needed for the survival of any organisation and HR is responsible for catering the need of the employees and establishing a relation between the organisation and its employees. In order to succeed in the modern world it is provident that there need to be effective HR activities which could help the employees feel as a part of team rather than being alienated. Only then it can have the competitive advantage over their rivals and the employees would work hard and whole-heartedly in the favour of the organisation they are working for. In British Gas employees do feel valued and as a part of team only because of the effective HR activities. We now will discuss the HR activities in British Gas in accordance with two HR models which have helped them to be in the lead in their market. David Ulrich Model The first model which we will discuss is the David Ulrich Model. The model we made by David Ulrich in the year 2000, who is said to be the HR guru. In the model he proposed that the centre of attention for all the HR activities must be on the contribution to organizational success. He further explained that the key to excel organizational performance is to ensure that human resources activities are in line with the organization and focusing on productivity, service and quality. Below is the diagram showing David Ulrich model. Productivity can be explained as the output per employee. With the increase in competitive rivalry incessant improvement in productivity has a significant role. British Gas has been considering the significant importance of the afore-mentioned aspect of the model. With the view of increasing the productivity British Gas has been investing  £24 million every year in their Engineering Academy to continue their exceptional training for engineers working there. The Academy eve achieved grade one performance in a 2007 Ofsted inspection. In the academy employee are provided with related training which helps them to be more effective and efficient with regards to productivity. Quality of the products and services delivered extensively affects organizational success in the long run. The quality of products and services can provide competitive advantage to any organization. The quality of products and services is directly interlinked with the growth and performance of the organization as a whole, therefore it requires equal attention. The stress on quality requires continuous changes aimed at improving work processes. HR management considerations should be included in order to indentify the barriers and service blockages and redesigning operational processes. The process should also involve the employees as well rather than just the managers. The above mentioned activities should be done with accordance to the organizations mission. British Gas itself explains that its the service they provide to the customers which gives them competitive advantage over their rivals and sets them apart in the marketplace. The British Gas Academy of Customer Excellence has also been set up which underpins their aim to consider their customers as one of the key stakeholders. The academy provides training to the front-line employees. Warwick Model of HRM Bratton Jeffery (2007) proposed the Warwick model in which Harvard framework has been extended with 5 elements including Inner context, outer context, business strategy content, HRM context and HRM content. The model explains the link between the changes in internal and external and both the content and context in it. The strength of the model is that it underpins the important environmental influences on HRM. Below is the diagram showing the model. Outer context Inner context Business strategy content HRM context HRM context Basically HR Manager of British Gas firstly plans their future strategy and recruits people accordingly mostly through external sources like advertisements in newspapers, magazines and through employee referrals. Firstly they screen all the applications and then select candidates based on their potential, knowledge and experience mostly through face-to-face interview. Successful candidates are put through induction and are provided with continuous training. British Gas does consider the fact that monetary rewards is only one of the many needs of the people and therefore provides them with many non-monetary social needs such as flexible working hours and a better and relaxing working atmosphere. Employees within British Gas are also appraised regularly so that they know how well they are doing. Keeping in mind the broader aspect of the business HR manager maps the link between inner and outer context followed by an approach which leads to the changes in the content as referred in Warwick Model. Along with this HR managers also connects their activities of Planning, Integration, Staffing, Developing, Motivating, Designing, Managing Relationships, Managing change and Evaluating by keeping in mind the everyday changing business environment. But apart from this I think to survive and maintain a good market position in this globalized, competitive, innovative and rapidly changing business environment British Gas must change their Mechanistic Structure to Organic Structure which is very flexible and innovative. The HRM strategies at British Gas satisfy customers to the highest but surely not at the expense of their employees needs which helps them to lead in their industry. Q 3 Describe Recruitment Selection strategies that have been taken by British Gas to enhance organisation performance? Recruitment and selection is said to be one of the main role of a HR practitioner, as they need to ensure that they choose the right staff. While going through the process they need to consider many factors including equal opportunities without the factor of discrimination. In order to ensure this, there are laws to avoid discrimination against race or ethnic origin, religion and belief, disability, sex and age. The ones who avoid this practice will indeed break the law and will have to face the consequences (Tackling Discrimination, 2009). K Aswathappa (2003) defines recruitment as a process of finding and attaching capable application for an application for employment. The process begin when new recruit are sought and end when their application are submitted. The result is the pool of applications from which new employees are selected. Derek Torrington (1987) states that Planning the right people in the right place at the right time is seen to be essential to achieving rapid growth. The emphasis is on balancing the projected demand for and supply of labour, in order to have the right number of the right employees in the right place at the right time. In terms of recruitment and selection it is important to carry out thorough job analysis to determine the level of skills/technical abilities, competencies, flexibility of the employee required etc. Since 2003, British Gas has done a lot of work in order to improve the diversity in their workforce which helps them in their customer base and is a response to changing demographics as well. With the increase in demand and the competitive rivalry British gas had to attract more employees and for that the HR managers dealt with it in a well-mannered way. Carole Willsher, Recruitment and Diversity specialist, explains We tend to use the analogy of a pond gone; if we dont recruit women, thats over half the pond gone ; if we dont recruit people from an ethnic background, thats about another 10% gone, and were left with only a very small part of the pond to fish from. The process of recruitment and selection at British gas is shown in the following diagram. Acknowledgement Initial Review Online Application Assessment Centre Second Stage Job Offer In the process candidates have to complete an application form and online test which is then acknowledged by an email upon successful submission. The submitted application is then reviewed and candidates are updated within 14 days. After the successful initial review the candidates are required to give a telephonic interview for some job roles which is then followed by the assessment centre where the candidates go through a face- to- face interview, practical tests (for some roles) and role plays. After careful consideration of the entire application process candidates are then offered the job within 14 days of the assessment centre. Recruitment and selection is done by both internal and external manners. As mentioned earlier in order to attract a vast group of applicants HR managers at British Gas use both the ways. Internal recruitment includes promoting the current staff or moving them from one department to other. It also includes the referrals made by the current employees. The advantage with internal recruitment is that it allows the organisations to know the strengths and capabilities of their existing employees which help them to allocate them accordingly. As mentioned earlier, the main objective of British gas is to increase the number of applications for the different vacancies in order to attract a wide range of talent as possible. For this they use the different types of external recruitment strategies. Some of these strategies are as follows: Tester days: British gas regularly runs women only and BME tester days, with the specific aim of attracting women and ethnic minorities into engineering and apprenticeships. Partnership working: British gas also use different partnerships with different organisations in order to focus on under-represented groups including Jobcentre Plus, Windsor Fellowship, Women and Manual trades. Targeted Advertising: They also use a range of ways and media to appeal to its target audiences. They use advertising in magazines like Bliss and Sugar. They also redesign their special webpage for recruitment regularly. Attracting a wide range of candidates is not the only purpose of the managers but also to select the right staff. For that a right recruitment process has to be applied. A diagram is shown below which illustrates the different stages of the recruitment process within British Gas. The only way to increase the performance of the organisation is to have an efficient process. Q 4 Explain how HR training and development helps British Gas to develop highly competent staff and teams. Describe use of variety of HRD methods taken at British Gas. According to Mackey (2003), in our lifetime of learning we meet many people who contribute to our knowledge, and in todays world training is seen as an essential aspect in HRM practice. Training is often seen as something that is work related on-job training, off-job training or employment training schemes. Many organizations aspire to be learning ones, but it takes dedication to achieve this. It requires commitments from everyone to allow individuals to manage their own development and to support the process through coaching, feedback and outgoing performance management. Trainers have a key role to play in the creations of a learning environment. The typical role of Training Development functions has been to respond in a reactive manner to the training and development needs to other functions throughout the organization. British gas always ensures that it provides effective training at all levels, which can help its highly competent staff and teams to develop. In order to offer continuous training for their engineers British Gas is investing  £24 million each year in their British Gas Engineering Academy. The Academy also managed to achieve grade one performance in a 2007 Ofsted inspection. They have also aligned their apprentice scheme to the Duke of Edinburghs Gold Award, which actually provides enhanced personal development and life skills to the trainees. As any other company British gas also believes that it is the customer service which helps them to lead in the competitive race. The British Gas Academy underpins their aim to put customers at the heart of everything they do. The Academy therefore also provides training to their front line employees. Building on the success of our engineering academy, the customer service academy encourages best practice and knowledge sharing. By co-ordinating activities nationally, this new structure improves the consistency of our training design and delivery. Effective training to the employees leads to improve quality of the process they are working into. One of the key skills of a trainer is the ability to design training programmes and learning experiences that are innovative, exciting and fun. Trainer should also identify individual learning styles and respond to the needs of the business. The field of training and development (TD) has undergone changes that reflect the dynamic factors in the corporate world overall. TDs objectives continue to shift from a focus on programmed instruction (and behavioural and task analysis), to performance-system analysis. Learning is now defined as a competitive strategy in the global workplace. Therefore, trainers must engage in defining strategic goals, analyzing organizational processes and providing better systematic performance within the business context. Increased need for improved performance requires more efficient ways to identify, recruit, and improve the training and education of the workforce. As traditional, hierarchical organizational structures are increasingly transforming to self-directed, cross functional, process oriented, and knowledge-based models, both organizations and individuals are increasingly faced with the new challenges to maximize the organizations competitive edge, and to meet new standards of excellence in performance. First, in order to understand what is nowadays expected from management trainers and educators, it is essential to understand how current perceptions of the managers job and responsibilities have developed. Then, it will be argued that the adoption of a simple solely task-related model of training often used to train managers from developing countries has proved to be inadequate. Therefore, a realistic management training model ought to include the task related and people-related aspects of the managers job as well as the trainees own development, in its design and content. Based on the above a more realistic approach to management training and development will be offered and some of its implications for trainers and training institutions will be discussed and certain conclusions will be reached. Evaluating Training Development: This has always been a key topic for trainers. TD that is not delivering the expected results is likely to be potentially harmful to the organization, demotivating to learners and damaging to the reputation of trainers. In todays business world evaluation has taken on even greater significance than in the past. Evaluation is undertaken with the purpose of encouraging improvement. When evaluation is planned, it is done with the intention of analysing results and implementing suitable changes in a timely manner followed by further evaluation. Such cyclical approaches agreeing standards, evaluating, improving, checking standards and so on are the basis of really useful evaluation processes for each aspect of the training and development process. The focus is on maximizing the use of resources, maximizing the likelihood of business success and maximizing the impact of staff motivation. One needs to critically evaluate each TD event in which you are involved. This is as true for a week-long course as it is for an individual coaching event. The more one evaluates, the more one learns, the more quickly the business will benefit and the more quickly individuals skills will develop. Each type of TD event will have its own type of evaluation, but each has the common aim of change and improvement. As compared to other Departments like IT and Finance, TD is also one of the important departments in the organisation as its trains people in the organisations who with their full potential calibre help the organization to achieve its set goals with high quality standards. Q5 What role Performance Management plays in achieving higher performance at British Gas? Describe use of variety of performance appraisal strategies taken at British Gas. Staff development doesnt just happen. It takes a conscious and concerted effort on the part of the manager to support and encourage their employees initiative. It requires a continuous attention of both the employees and the supervisors or the managers involved. Performance appraisals are undertaken to let an employee know his/her performance and compare it with the expectation of the organisation as a whole. The process involves clarifying the job role, job description and responsibilities and explains how the role can contribute to the wider goals of the organisation. It is important that the employees understands how their performance contributes to the overall performance of the company. This direct connection helps to encourage team play and shared responsibility within the company, although the performance objectives should be individual and agreed between the employee and the manager. In a performance appraisal employees also get the opportunity to give their feedback about the working conditions and any advices which could be helpful for the organisation to improve their productivity. In order to ensure an effective performance appraisal the manager should keep a record of the process which could be helpful for the future reference. There are many different types of performance appraisals. Following are some of them which are mostly used at British Gas: Top-down Appraisals: According to Harrison (1995) this category of performance appraisal involves the line manager undertaking the formal appraisal of the employee. Managers in this type of appraisal can be biased and may be less open, honest and can lead to the favouritism factor. In such situations another manager or HR specialist can be involved to act as a moderator in the process. This is seen as a very traditional type of performance appraisal and is rarely practiced in the modern world. It was used at British gas as well but is replaced by other new frameworks and other types of performance appraisals. Self Reviews: Harrison (1995) explains that self reviews are based on the idea that employees are most familiar with their work and their involvement is vital. They have proved to be superior to supervisory reviews in identifying individual strengths and shortcomings. The biggest problem with this approach lies in the fact that this violates the traditional mores regarding the proper relationship between the boss and the subordinate. Upward Appraisal: Harrison (1995) describes that in this technique, the views of the employees, who report to the appraise (manager) are considered and can also be an important dimension of management development. It is effective in an organisation which has an open and supportive culture and which encourages participation as a legitimate element,. Upward appraisal may be threatening for a manager and uncomfortable for the subordinate appraisers. 360 Degree Feedback: N. Bahra (1997) states that This method is an assessment technique lies at the heart of many successful organisations. This briefing aims to provide an objective method of assessing an individuals performance in a number of critical and non-critical areas. This method being used in many big organisation in the modern world and is hence used at British Gas as well. Harrison (1995) explains that this is a way of limiting the effect of the top- down appraisal scheme and building on the positive aspects of self, peer and upward appraisals. This method includes peers, subordinates, internal and external customers and the managers. Its aim is to achieve a broader view of employee performance. It can increase customer focus, support team initiatives, decrease the hierarchical approach and provide greater employee evaluation. It is an assessment technique which lies at the heart of many successful organizations. This briefing aims to provide an objective method of assessing an individuals performance in a number of critical and non-critical areas. REFRENCES Book References: Bach, S. (2005) Management Human Resource: Personnel Management in transition. Oxford: published by Blackwell publishing. Henry, A. (2008), Understanding Strategic Management. published by Oxford. Bratton, J. and Gold, J., (2007) Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice. 4th Edition, London: Publisher Palgrave Macmillan. Bernardin and Beatty (1984). Performance Appraisal : Assessing Human Behaviour at Work. Published by Kent Pub. Co. Torrington, D., Hall, L. and Taylor, S. (1987): Human Resource Management. Sixth edition, Spain: Printed by Mateu cromo artes graficas. Aswathappa, K. (2005) Human Resources and Personnel Management. 4th edition, New Delhi: Published by Tata Mcgraw-Hill. Mackey, D. (2003) everything you ever needed to know about training. London: published by Kogan Page Ltd. Taylor, P. (2003) How to Design a Training Course. London: Continuum publication. Harrison, H. S. (1995) Advanced Appraisal Methods: General Certification Supplement. Oxford: Published by H2 Co. Bahra, N. (1997) 360 Degree Appraisal. London: Published by FT Pitman. Online References: British Gas and Diversity (online) Cited on 10/11/2009. Access Via British Gas Health Safety 2009 (online) Cited on 08th Nov. 2009. Access Via British gas and political factors (online) Cited on 04th nov.2009. Access Via British Gas introduction.(online) Cited on 06th nov.2009. Access Via British gas and the importance of employee (Introduction), (online) Cited on 10th Nov. 2009 . Access Via Equal opportunities at British Gas, (online) Cited on 16th Nov. 2009. Access Via Tackling discrimination (2009), (online) Cited on 26th Nov. 2009, Access Via

The Messiah Stones :: essays research papers

The main character in The Messiah Stones is John McGowan. He has a wife names Sarah, a son names Joshua who is eight years old, and Oliver who is six years old. His Dad left him when he was nine years old because he went to Jerusalem for an archeological dig and never saw him again after he left. Because of this he lived with his mother for his whole childhood. John is a family man who loves his wife and kids very much, and missed his father. It doesn’t tell what John does for a living but he is wealthy because Sarah owns a book store that does very well. John plays a big part in the story because everything in the book evolves around him. In the book he goes to a lawyer in Washington DC because he is told that he has received something from his father that has been passed down to him in his will. John gets to DC and receives a letter from his father to him. The letters tell him that when he was in Jerusalem for the archeological dig that he found three stones and 1 round stone globe. Each stone glowed and at the bottom of each stone was the word "McGowan" carved. The globe had the name "Sarah" carved on it. Later on in the letter it say that his correspondent Ari told him that the he knows of the stones and said that they have a great deal to do with god. He says that when the Messiah Stones are found that God will judge who is worthy. When John goes home he tells his wife and he decides that his destiny is to go to Jerusalem and find the stones. When they get there they go to a temple where people pray one to two times daily. When they get there a woman that is praying approaches them and says that she has been expecting them. She says that she has had dreams of them coming and she has also come to Jerusalem to find the stones. They go to a coffee house and compare dreams. Later on John finds Ari’s address and goes there. He finds him and Ari tells him a the story of how his father died. He says that when him and his father were in a war in Jerusalem.

Chaucers View of the Pardoner as a Character Essay -- Geoffrey Chauce

Chaucer's View of the Pardoner as a Character In the Pardoner’s Tale, Chaucer presents the Pardoner in a particular light, and being a religious figure, this allows him to make a general statement about religion at the time. Chaucer’s view of the Pardoner as a character, and also as something to epitomise religion at the time, is evident from his use of vocabulary, his style, and by using strong imagery and description. In this way, Chaucer builds the character of the Pardoner as someone who is ironically deceptive and driven by his own selfish motives. A key theme that runs throughout the Pardoner’s Prologue is religion, and as the Pardoner’s proper role is to act as an intercessor between those who wish to repent and God himself, it is appropriate that Chaucer uses a great deal of religious lexis. There are many examples of this all through the text, such as when he mentions that the Pardoner carries ‘Bulles of popes and cardinals’ or ‘official documents’ signed by popes and cardinals. The plural use of the word ‘popes’ reveals a lot about the Pardoner in that it immediately shows his disregard and contempt for the clergy. Religiously, there is only meant to be one Pope and pluralizing the word devalues the pro-noun to a simple noun. The lack of determiners only further degrades the Pope as it shows no differentiation in these religious figures and others. They are simply the same and en masse, whereas, believers of the religion would disagree and be of the opinion that the Pope is the highest religious authority, but the Pardoner brings him down to basic levels and standards. Another example of lexis related to religion is when the Pardoner says ‘I stonde lyk a clerk in my pulpet’. This simile un... ...oner and Chaucer does not let his readers forget it as he gives continuous reminders throughout the text. Chaucer is not always so subtle in his presentation of the Pardoner. Near the end of the prologue, the Pardoner boldly asserts that ‘though myself be a full vicious man, A moral tale yet I you telle kan.’ The pardoner describes himself as we have aready been made to see him by Chaucer’s other techniques and here he admits it shamelessly, which only adds to the readers’ negative impression of him, in that he is not only deceptive, deceitful and ‘vicious’ but he also has no regret or remorse for his actions and attitudes, hence he is unlikely to change. It is ironic that the Pardoner admits to this characteristic of his and then claims that he will still be able to tell a moral tale, although his admittance also shows that he is aware of this irony.

The Characters of Women in The Handmaids Tale and The Bell Jar Essay

Women in The Handmaid's Tale and The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath's renowned autobiographical legend "The Bell Jar" and Margaret Atwood's fictional masterpiece "The handmaid's tale" are the two emotional feminist stories, which basically involve the women's struggle. Narrated with a touching tone and filled with an intense feminist voice, both novels explore the conflict of their respective protagonists in a male dominated society. In spite of several extraordinary similarities in terms of influential characterization and emotive themes, both novels are diverse as far as their respective style, structure and setting is concerned. While Plath's preference of frequent flashback is admirable and absorbing, Atwood's choice of presenting her novel in terms of headed chapters that alternate between her peaceful past and chaotic present is, indeed, fascinating. On the contrary, although Atwood's symbolic style enriched with biblical metaphors is ironical and inspiring, Plath's touching use of meaningful motifs and descriptive imag ery suits its admiration as one of the best autobiographical fiction. "The Bell Jar" penned by Sylvia Plath, is a tragic tale of Esther Greenwood, her depressing experiences of life and social relationship and her eventual mental breakdown resulting with her attempts of committing suicide. On the other hand, Margaret Atwood's award winning novel "The Handmaid's Tale" depicts the haunting experiences of Gilead, where sexual repression and religious extremism was not uncommon. Both novels have female protagonist, who are victims of rape and sexual violence. Marco, a guy on a blind date with Esther, calls her a "slut" and tries to rape her, and Esther's struggle can be reveal... ...w did I know that someday . . . the bell jar, with its stifling distortions, wouldn't descend again?" (The Bell Jar, p.296). Conversely, the title of "The Handmaid's Tale" is straightforward which gives an initiative to the reader that it is a story of a handmaid struggling to survive in the midst of the cruelty. From the literary analysis of the novels it is evident that, both stories have similar themes and both authors used female characters to convey their feelings about feminist issues, especially in terms of loneliness and isolation. However, there are many diversities between these two stories, especially in terms of structure and style. In a nutshell, "The Bell Jar" and "The Handmaid's tale", are indeed, literary gems in the field of feminist literature that would definitely satisfy the literary thirst of their aspiring readers. The Characters of Women in The Handmaid's Tale and The Bell Jar Essay Women in The Handmaid's Tale and The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath's renowned autobiographical legend "The Bell Jar" and Margaret Atwood's fictional masterpiece "The handmaid's tale" are the two emotional feminist stories, which basically involve the women's struggle. Narrated with a touching tone and filled with an intense feminist voice, both novels explore the conflict of their respective protagonists in a male dominated society. In spite of several extraordinary similarities in terms of influential characterization and emotive themes, both novels are diverse as far as their respective style, structure and setting is concerned. While Plath's preference of frequent flashback is admirable and absorbing, Atwood's choice of presenting her novel in terms of headed chapters that alternate between her peaceful past and chaotic present is, indeed, fascinating. On the contrary, although Atwood's symbolic style enriched with biblical metaphors is ironical and inspiring, Plath's touching use of meaningful motifs and descriptive imag ery suits its admiration as one of the best autobiographical fiction. "The Bell Jar" penned by Sylvia Plath, is a tragic tale of Esther Greenwood, her depressing experiences of life and social relationship and her eventual mental breakdown resulting with her attempts of committing suicide. On the other hand, Margaret Atwood's award winning novel "The Handmaid's Tale" depicts the haunting experiences of Gilead, where sexual repression and religious extremism was not uncommon. Both novels have female protagonist, who are victims of rape and sexual violence. Marco, a guy on a blind date with Esther, calls her a "slut" and tries to rape her, and Esther's struggle can be reveal... ...w did I know that someday . . . the bell jar, with its stifling distortions, wouldn't descend again?" (The Bell Jar, p.296). Conversely, the title of "The Handmaid's Tale" is straightforward which gives an initiative to the reader that it is a story of a handmaid struggling to survive in the midst of the cruelty. From the literary analysis of the novels it is evident that, both stories have similar themes and both authors used female characters to convey their feelings about feminist issues, especially in terms of loneliness and isolation. However, there are many diversities between these two stories, especially in terms of structure and style. In a nutshell, "The Bell Jar" and "The Handmaid's tale", are indeed, literary gems in the field of feminist literature that would definitely satisfy the literary thirst of their aspiring readers.

Salary Surveys

The legal field in the United States is constantly changing. Assisting attorneys is no longer a one title job. An attorney can call his or her assistant a paralegal, a legal assistant, a legal secretary, and so on and so forth. The process to become an attorney’s assistant is also changing. Many attorneys in the United States prefer to hire paralegals. The American Bar Association defines a paralegal as â€Å"a person, qualified by education, training, or work experience, who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office, corporation, governmental agency or other entity and who performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which the lawyer is responsible† (American Bar Association, 1997). This broad definition allows a great variant in the salary paid to a paralegal. An entry level paralegal in Knoxville, Tennessee can expect to earn $35,000 per year according to www. salary. com. An entry level paralegal is defined as a paralegal with 0-2 years experience, and may or may not possess an Associate’s Degree in paralegal studies. In comparison, a Paralegal with five or more years experience and a bachelor’s degree can expect to earn $55,000 per year. The salary ranges throughout the state of Tennessee for paralegals are standard. This is not the case throughout the United States. Each state within the United States must account for cost of living. The cost of living in Southern California is significantly higher per year than the cost of living in Tennessee. The salaries that are paid to employees need to reflect this cost of living, at least to some degree. According to www. salary. com, an entry level paralegal in San Diego, CA can expect to earn $40,000 per year. A paralegal with five or more years of experience and a bachelor’s degree can expect to earn $70,000 per year. Cost of living is not the only reason for differences in pay based on region. Competition, education, and demand for certain positions also plays a part in the salary an employee can expect to earn. For example, in San Diego, CA major universities offer paralegal programs at the bachelor’s degree level. Because of this attorneys expect to hire the best educated paralegal, and a paralegal with only an associates degree will not be able to compete for jobs effectively in this region. In contrast, Tennessee does not offer very many paralegal programs at the bachelor’s degree level. The majority of paralegal programs in Tennessee are either certificate programs or associate’s degree programs. Population plays a major role in salary variants. The population of Knoxville, Tennessee does not require as many attorneys. The attorneys that do work in Knoxville, Tennessee most likely do not have the same work load as those attorneys who work in San Diego, California and do not need the same level of support form a paralegal. This also causes these attorneys to hire paralegals at a lower wage. The amount of money a person living in Knoxville, Tennessee can afford to pay an attorney is also less. Since attorneys in Knoxville, Tennessee earn less than attorneys in San Diego, California, the paralegals will also earn less. Another factor that affects the salary a paralegal will receive is area of law. A paralegal working for the US Attorney’s office in Knoxville, Tennessee can expect to make the same salary as a paralegal working for a private practice attorney in San Diego, California, educating and experience being equal. However, that same paralegal working for the US Attorney’s office in San Diego, California can expect to earn $5 more per hour than he or she did working in the same capacity in Knoxville, Tennessee. The area of law that a paralegal chooses to work in has a major impact on the salary received. By obtaining a bachelor’s degree and a graduate level paralegal certificate, obtaining a competitive salary in Knoxville, Tennessee has been disappointing compared to the salaries available in San Diego, California. However, due to the lower cost of living, a lower salary is acceptable. Holding a bachelor’s degree and a graduate level paralegal certificate also assists a paralegal in competing more effectively for the jobs that are available in Knoxville, Tennessee. The majority of the paralegals in Knoxville, Tennessee only possess an Associates degree in paralegal studies or relevant experience. These paralegals consistently earn less than a paralegal with a higher level of education, which is fair under the circumstances. Paralegals who have achieved a lesser amount of education can have a tendency to resent the inconsistencies in salary. Many of these paralegals feel that they are doing the same job as the more educated paralegal and should be receiving equal compensation. However, through further investigation one would conclude that a more highly educated paralegal will be allowed to conduct more research, write briefs, and work with minimal attorney supervision. This is in stark contrast to a paralegal with a lower level of education. In order to adjust for the inconsistencies in pay, an organization will usually offer bonuses for extra work put in as well as promotions. It is common practice to promote a paralegal with years of experience even if that paralegal is lacking in education. The promotion rate for a paralegal with a lower level of education may be on a slower timeline than that of a paralegal with a higher level of education, but this is an attempt to minimize the inconsistencies in salary. Receiving an adequate salary for a paralegal can be a complicated task. Many factors exist that provide for inconsistencies in salary. The region of the country a paralegal lives in, the type of law the paralegal works in, the amount of experience the paralegal has, and the level of education a paralegal has obtained all play a role in determining how much a paralegal should be paid. Reviewing the education programs available at the American Association for Paralegal Education will assist paralegals in receiving the highest possible salary throughout their career.