How Laszlo Biro Changed the History of Ballpoint Pens

How Laszlo Biro Changed the History of Ballpoint Pens No man was more foolish when he had not a pen in his hand, or more wise when he had. Samuel Johnson. A Hungarian journalist named Laszlo Biro invented the first ballpoint pen in 1938. Biro had noticed that the ink used in newspaper printing dried quickly, leaving the paper smudge-free, so he decided to create a pen using the same type of ink. But the thicker ink wouldnt flow from a regular pen nib. Biro had to devise a new type of point. He did so by fitting his pen with a tiny ball bearing in its tip. As the pen moved along the paper, the ball rotated, picking up ink from the ink cartridge and leaving it on the paper.   Biros Patents This principle of the ballpoint pen actually dates back to an 1888 patent owned by John Loud for a product designed to mark leather, but this patent was commercially unexploited. Biro first patented his pen in 1938 and he applied for another  patent in June 1943 in Argentina after he and his brother emigrated there in 1940.   The British government bought the licensing rights to Biro’s patent during World War II. The British Royal Air Force needed a new pen that would not leak at higher altitudes in fighter planes the way fountain pens did. The ballpoint’s successful performance for the Air Force brought Biro’s pens into the limelight. Unfortunately, Biro had never gotten a U.S. patent for his pen, so another battle was just beginning even as World War II ended.   The Battle of the Ballpoint Pens   A lot of improvements were made to pens in general over the years, leading to a battle over the rights to Biros invention.  The newly-formed Eterpen Company in Argentina commercialized the Biro pen after the Biro brothers received their patents there. The press hailed the success of  their writing tool because it could write for a year without refilling. Then, in May 1945,  Eversharp Company teamed up with Eberhard-Faber to acquire exclusive rights to Biro Pens of Argentina. The pen was rebranded as the â€Å"Eversharp CA,† which stood for â€Å"capillary action.† It was released to the press months in advance of public sales. Less than a month after Eversharp/Eberhard closed the deal with Eterpen, a Chicago businessman, Milton Reynolds, visited Buenos Aires in June 1945.  He noticed the Biro pen while he was in a store and recognized the pen’s sales potential. He bought a few as samples and returned to America to launch the Reynolds International Pen Company, ignoring Eversharp’s patent rights. Reynolds copied the Biro pen within four months and began to sell his product by the end of October 1945. He called it Reynolds Rocket and made it available at Gimbel’s department store in New York City. Reynolds’ imitation beat Eversharp to market and it was immediately successful. Priced at $12.50 each, $100,000 worth of pens sold their first day on the market. Britain was not far behind. The Miles-Martin Pen Company sold the first ballpoint pens to the public there at Christmas 1945.   The Ballpoint Pen Becomes a Fad Ballpoint pens were guaranteed to write for two years without refilling and sellers claimed they were smear-proof. Reynolds advertised his pen as one that could write under water. Then Eversharp sued Reynolds for copying the design that Eversharp had acquired legally. The 1888 patent by John Loud would have invalidated everyones claims, but no one knew that at the time. Sales skyrocketed for both competitors, but Reynolds’ pen tended to leak and skip. It  often failed to write. Eversharp’s pen did not live up to its own advertisements either. A very high volume of pen returns occurred for both Eversharp and Reynolds. The ballpoint pen fad ended due to consumer unhappiness.  Frequent price wars, poor quality products, and heavy advertising costs hurt both companies by 1948. Sales nosedived.  The original $12.50 asking price dropped to less than 50 cents per pen. The Jotter   Meanwhile, fountain pens experienced a resurgence of their old popularity as Reynolds’ company folded. Then  Parker Pens introduced its first ballpoint pen, the Jotter, in January 1954. The Jotter wrote five times longer than the Eversharp or Reynolds pens. It had a variety of point sizes, a rotating cartridge, and large-capacity ink refills. Best of all, it worked. Parker sold 3.5 million Jotters at prices from $2.95 to $8.75 in less than a year. The Ballpoint Pen Battle Is Won   By 1957,  Parker had  introduced the tungsten carbide  textured ball bearing in their ballpoint pens. Eversharp was in deep financial trouble and tried to switch back to selling fountain pens. The company sold its pen division to Parker Pens and Eversharp finally liquidated its assets in the 1960s. Then Came Bic   The French Baron Bich dropped the ‘H’ from his name and began selling pens called BICs in 1950. By the late fifties,  BIC  held 70 percent of the European market.   BIC bought 60 percent of the New York-based Waterman Pens in 1958, and it owned  100 percent of Waterman Pens by 1960. The company sold ballpoint pens in the U.S. for 29 cents up to 69 cents. Ballpoint Pens Today   BIC  dominates the market in the 21st century. Parker, Sheaffer, and Waterman capture smaller upscale markets of fountain pens and expensive ballpoints.  The highly popular modern version of Laszlo Biros pen, the BIC Crystal, has a daily worldwide sales figure of 14 million pieces. Biro is still the generic name used for the ballpoint pen used  in most of the world.

Whole Food Markets Business Analysis

Whole Food Markets Business Analysis (Q1) Company and Industry OverviewWhole Food Markets is America's biggest chain of natural and organic food supermarkets. The products it sells are free of additives, colorings, preservatives, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics and any genetically modified ingredients. In 2005, the group has 159 stores in United States, 7 stores in United Kingdom and 2 stores in Canada. The company will continue to pursue opportunities in Canada and eventual expansion throughout Europe.The global organic food industry has been growing at over 20% per annum along with an increase in accessibility . The world market was calculated to be worth over $14.4B in 1999. The largest markets of organic food exists in the USA, with sales of $6.5B, Germany $2.4B and Japan $1.4B. Buyers of organic food are affluent, better educated, in the age bracket of 18-34 or 45-54. They live in small households and have low confidence in food safety regulation.Healthy Berries are Good Food for HealthProducts range from baby fo od, meat, dairy, non-dairy beverages, bakery, produce to Ready to Go Meals.In United States, the retail sales of natural products grew to over $18.3B in 2003, an 8% growth compared to prior year compared to a relatively flat growth in the traditional grocery industry. This growth reflects a broadening of the natural products consumer base. While the USA organic market is still growing in absolute terms, the market is predicted to drop slightly as the industry matures and consolidates over the next 5 years.Europe accounted for 45-50% of global organic food sales . Food fears such as Mad Cow disease, industry-related promotions and government subsidy programs have been the main driver of the industry in Europe. For most of the last decade, Europe had the largest market however it has been overtaken by North America. Market growth slowed to 7% in 2002. The German...

Mental health psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Mental health psychology - Essay Example 7). And until today, the question as to what defines normality from abnormality, remains debatable. But it was also in defining and categorically classifying mental disorders that psychiatry – which was under a decade severe attack in the 70’s – won its bid for professional legitimacy and authority in this field, as brought about by the third edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s diagnostically based Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, commonly referred to as DSM-III (Mayes & Horwitz, 2005, p. 249; Kirk & Kutchins, 1994, p. 71). As Robert Spitzer, the primary force in the development of DSM-III, stated â€Å"[W]hether we like it or not, the issue of defining the boundaries of mental and medical disorder cannot be ignored. Increasingly there is pressure for the medical profession and psychiatry in particular to define its area of prime responsibility† (cited in Healy, 1997, p. 233). However, although DSM-III had given so much influence to psychiatry, it did not actually resolve old-age questions regarding mental health, especially so that â€Å"Psychiatric diagnosis provides the fundamental rubric for discourse about mental illness† (Kirk & Kutchins, 1992, p.10). Additionally, although it is now widely used as a biblical text not only by psychiatrists but even by lawyers, federal agents, insurance agents, pharmaceuticals, it is on the other hand criticised in different fronts, which when analysed, such criticisms essentially attack DSM’s integrity as to its true intention, as to its scientific claims, and as to its usefulness. Whether such criticisms hold water could be scrutinised from critically evaluating DSMs origin and contemporary role. The development of DSM from its very beginning to its latest version has consistently compromised with other political and financial interests shrouding its validity as a scientific, diagnostic instrument for

Concept of correlation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Concept of correlation - Essay Example An example of a perfectly positive correlation can be supply of good with respect to the price of good. As the price increase, the suppliers tend to supply more of the product. This graph above shows that the variables are perfectly negatively correlated as an increase in the value of the independent variable causes the value of dependent variable to decrease by the slope of the equation. An example of a perfectly negative correlation can be the demand of good with respect to the price of good. As the price increase, the consumers tend to less of the product. The correlation between two variables is weak if they are close to zero whether they are negative or positive. GDP and interest rates of the economy are correlated but the magnitude of correlation is very low. On the other side, there might be a strong correlation between smoking and lung cancer. 1) As per the government policy, the federal government subsidizes or gives free school lunches to students whose family income is below a certain level, usually close to the poverty level. So higher the number of eligible students for lunch, higher will be the amount of funding received by the school WidgeCorp can use this correlation analysis to effectively market its cold drinks in public schools. Since we know that there is a positive correlation between free school lunches and poverty level therefore WidgeCorp can approach the government to offer quality foods at affordable rates. There will be a stiff competition on the basis of price therefore as a case of bulk discounting WidgeCorp should offer quality foods to Government on competitive

Hsbc Strategy Essay Example for Free

Hsbc Strategy Essay Proposal on HSBC’s strategic shift with the organization based growth model (410 words, 2011). Research topic: How HSBC’s changed its strategic direction using organization-driven growth model to achieve long-term economic and strategic success. Rationale and literature review The long-term economic success of an organization is dynamically associated with the organization’s ability to create new modes of production (Chandler 1990). A number of factors influence an organization’s ability to grow and achieve strategic success in today’s era of globalization. These are: * The dynamic processes that govern an organization’s operations are not uniform but diverse across different parts of the world (Martin Verdier 2008). * Organization’s changes and the dynamic process that influence do not necessarily have a consistently progressive development phase. i. e they go through a phase of high-development and low-development (Martin Verdier 2008). Organizations, like HSBC, who have recognized this, have invested resources to evolve their economic development over time. HSBC developed their organizational-driven growth model to successfully create a model for long-term sustainability, growth and profitability. The model is shown below: Figure: The HSBC organizational-growth model (Image source: Deans Kroeger 2004) HSBC was founded by Thomas Sutherland in 1865 in Hong Kong and for many years was a small-sized bank that operated in Asia (Ahlstrom Bruton 2009). In the 1980’s, the management developed the organizational growth-model to address the need for HSBC to become global and diversify in the long-term. This model led to the development of the ‘HSBC character’, which is the cornerstone of HSBC’s growth strategy today (Deans Kroeger 2004). By implementing this model effectively across all areas of HSBC holdings, HSBC was able add scale to its business such as insurance, leasing and fund management and be cautious and thrifty while using their international experience to acquire or merge with a myriad of businesses (Syrett 2007). Using the model, training systems for employees were put in place that encouraged a growth culture within the organization (Syrett 2007).

Capital Punishment :: essays research papers

Capital Punishment I recently read an article from the ACLU, written by Adam Bedau. It explained, quite eloquently, that for society to execute a murderer made society no better than the murderer himself. He said, â€Å"The executioner is no better than the criminal.† I was impressed by this moral stance, but I was surprised to read that he failed to apply this logic consistently. For example, the he went on to argue that life imprisonment would be a more appropriate penalty for murder than death. Using this ACLU logic, it appears that for our society to lock someone in a room against his will and not free him for a considerable length of time makes our society no better than the everyday kidnapper. But if an individual locked another up against his will, wouldn’t the ACLU view this as kidnapping. Being from the Methodist faith I found this argument somewhat difficult. For in the Bible there is a scripture that states, â€Å"an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.† I presume the ACLU would agree that beatings or torture are also unacceptable forms of punishment for crimes. They seem to be inhumane. Yet in Eastern cultures, if one steals something, they lose a finger or two and sometimes an entire hand depending on the severity of the crime. This seems to be reason enough not to steal, as in these cultures there is a very low theft rate. Maybe the ACLU would find a monetary fine a more appropriate punishment? For society to take money away from someone against his will without giving him any tangible goods in return would make society a thief. Of course, the Bedau also explains that capital punishment brutalizes society, leading to even more murders. If we, as a society, adopt this no-punishment position, it logically follows that there would be less crime. Once criminals realized that no matter what they did, no fellow citizen would lift a finger to stop them, why, they’d just be so overcome with the generosity of their neighbors tha t they’d naturally be inclined to become upstanding, productive citizens.

Making a Job Offer

Making a Job Offer Klaudia Barsi ORG 522 – Managing Performance for Results Colorado State University – Global Campus Dr. Danielle J. Camacho April 20, 2013 1. Recommend whether Jane should receive a best shot, competitive or lowball offer? Why? Clean Car Care (3Cs) should make the best-shot offer to Jane. She is a high-quality finalist, and her current employer is a strong competitor regarding the benefits she receives. Jane is an excellent employee of her current employer.She is also up for a promotion and soon receiving 2 weeks of vacation a year. Jane’s employer will most likely make a counteroffer, if Clean Car Care extends the offer to her as the manager. Therefore; Clean Car Care should make the best-shot offer to her with strong incentives that could make her leave her current employer. The best-shot offer also needed to compensate her for the job's requirement for working on the weekends. Clean Car Care needs to go present the best overall offer to be ab le to employ Jane.Unfortunately, the low ball offer would be uncompetitive with Jane’s current employment situation. She is an excellent employee who is also up for promotion, making a competitive salary with benefits including health insurance with no co-pay. She is only willing to change jobs if the terms are right. Additionally, the competitive offer would still be unlikely to make Jane leave her current job and to accept the job offer from 3Cs. Especially, that she prefers not to work on the weekends and Clean Car Care requires her to work both Saturday and Sundays.A competitive offer could potentially match Jane’s current employment terms in salary and benefits; however, she is likely to be promoted shortly; which would make 3Cs â€Å"competitive† job offer pretty much a lowball offer. 2. Recommend other inducements beyond salary, health insurance, vacation and hours schedule that might be addressed in the job offer and why. There are different inducements that could be offered to Jane and convince her to leave her current employer. I would recommend Clean Car Care to offer Jane a one-time hiring bonus and relocation assistance.I would leave out offering the hot skill premiums. The one-time hiring bonus would be helpful for Jane and it would only be a one-time expense to Clean Car Care. In this scenario, Jane is willing to move and work for Clean Car Care if the terms are right. Since she is willing to move, the relocation assistance, such as paying for moving expenses and providing house hunting services should be included in her offer letter. This would help the transition from Jane’s existing work and home to her new work and home.OFFER LETTER Clean Car Care (3Cs) Company April 20, 2013 Ms. Jane Roberts 2423 Fenton Parkway Tucson, AZ 87658 Dear Jane: On behalf of Clean Car Care (3Cs) company, I am pleased to offer you the position of manager at 3Cs’ Northside facility. You will directly report to Arlan Autospritz, Pre sident, Clean Car Care. This is an exempt position with an initial annual salary of $33,500, which equates to $1,288. 46 per bi-weekly pay period. Annual merit increases can be earned based on your job performance.We have established Tuesday, June 4, 2013 as your first date of employment. Please report to our main office located at 4356 Northside Dr. , Tucson, AZ 23456 at 8:30 am. Your benefits go into effect as of your date of hire. Your benefits include, health insurance, flexible work schedule, and vacation time. Clean Car Care would be happy to assist you in the relocation process by providing $1,500 for house/apartment hunting and $5,000 for normal and reasonable moving expenses.Additionally, we would like to provide you with $2,000 of signing bonus. This offer is contingent upon the successful completion of a background check; a drug screening test; signing this offer letter; and any attached documents and returning those signed documents to our Human Resources department. Aga in, Jane we look forward to your joining Clean Car Care (3Cs) Company and wish you a prosperous career here. Please indicate your acceptance of this offer below no later than April 22, 2013.Please keep a copy of this offer for your personal records. If you have any questions regarding this offer, please feel free to contact me. Sincerely, Arlan Autospritz President Clean Car Care I accept the offer as stated above. I understand and acknowledge that this offer does not guarantee me employment for any period of time and that the employment relationship between Clean Car Care and me will be â€Å"at will†, which means that either the Company or I may terminate the relationship at any time.However, we will request that you provide at least two weeks notice of your intent to terminate your employment with us. /// I also understand and acknowledge that the Company may change the terms and conditions of my employment at any time. Signature: __________________________________________ ______________________ Jane Roberts Date References Heneman, H. G. & Judge, T. A. (2012). Staffing organizations (7th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold and Fly Away Peter Comparative Essay Essay

Menace and threat are two elements in fiction that often help to create tension and build towards a climax. These components are evident in David Malouf’s â€Å"Fly Away Peter† and Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s â€Å"Chronicle of a Death Foretold† under two overarching themes: sense of duty and violence. Through the perspectives and experiences of different characters in the stories, both Malouf and Marquez develop the concept of peril that is sustained throughout their stories of war and murder. In â€Å"Fly Away Peter†, Malouf introduces the notion of threat in the context of war – a place where people, including peace lovers like Jim, are forcibly drawn into. Jim is invited by Bert to ride on the bi-plane and Malouf reveals his â€Å"blood fear, a bone fear, of leaving the earth† and is thus portrayed as being resistant to change. When the war arrives, he feels â€Å"panicky† on this new and â€Å"dangerous slope† that had once been â€Å"ground [that]†¦ stretched away to a clear future† Brisbane is â€Å"sliding† towards Europe and the war as it is a duty befallen on patriotic men to prove their worth in defending the honour of their country. Many people seem to be supporting this view; Jim meets a girl who says â€Å"passionately† she would â€Å"want to be in it† because it is â€Å"an opportunity†, and similarly his father feels it is a â€Å"chance to reach out and touch a unique thing†. Malouf thus draws our attention to Jim’s change as he â€Å"slide[s] with the rest†¦ down into the pit† of war with â€Å"superstitious dread† and juxtaposes this to his initial â€Å"uneas[e]† about the â€Å"new presence† of bi-planes and man-made technology. This creates a sense of foreboding and threat, further emphasized by warnings such as â€Å"catastrophe† and â€Å"madness†, as Jim plunges into a brutal world of war from his sacred haven in the sanctuary (â€Å"the light, and then the dark†) to fight for his country. On the other hand, Marquez expresses the idea of threat in â€Å"Chronicle of a Death Foretold† through the rigidness of the townspeople in their ideas regarding tradition and family honour. To uphold the honour of their sister, the Vicario twins perceive as their duty to kill Santiago who supposedly took her virginity. However, this crime is largely condoned by their Catholic society and even Father Amador the priest pronounces their innocence â€Å"before God†. Marquez presents a town where first-degree murder is justified in the name of the cult of virginity and it is the responsibility of the men in the town to defend this tradition. Prudencia Cotes â€Å"would never have married [Pablo] if he hadn’t done what a man should do†. Her mother tells Pedro and Pablo them â€Å"honour doesn’t wait† and Clotilde Armenta voices her sympathy in saying it is a â€Å"horrible duty that’s fallen on them† as they are duty-bound to avenge Angela. The twins are forced to conform to society’s expectations of masculine assertiveness even if they â€Å"couldn’t sleep for the rest of [their lives]† on their conscience. In killing Santiago, the twins have â€Å"proved their status as men [and] the seduced sister was in possession of her honour once more† in defending the validity of their culture. The town can be viewed, to an extent, as dysfunctional and a tense atmosphere is present throughout the book as readers know the threat of this cult will result in an innocent man’s death. The theme of violence is exemplified in many characters and through the eyes of Jim, we see the menace posed in Man’s capacity to cause suffering and death in â€Å"Fly Away Peter†. Even before the war, violence is hinted as being part of daily life when Jim witnesses the killing of a lone man â€Å"with his hands over his face with blood between them† as â€Å"another figure, hurling itself from the shadows, brought him down†. Although Jim has always been consciously rejecting any notions of violence, he discovers â€Å"black anger† in himself and a potential for violence when he faces Wizzer’s bullying later. He is shaken to realize that he has come â€Å"closer to his father’s [similar] nature† of violence unwittingly to the extent that he does not wish â€Å"to be confronted with some depth in himself†¦ that frightened him and he doesn’t understand†. Killing in war is also epitomized by the brutality of Clancy’s death where Jim experiences for the first time Man’s ruthlessness on a personal level. Clancy’s senseless death comes as a shock to him and Jim is greatly affected by this; â€Å"the hosing off never†¦ left him clean† and often â€Å"woke from nightmares drenched in a wetness that dried and stuck†. Malouf forcefully juxtaposes the previous setting of Jim â€Å"buttering slabs of bread† with the diversely opposite scene of Clancy’s accident, effectively demonstrating the harsh reality of war. Clancy’s passing further shows another step in Jim’s loss of innocence as he feels touched by the horrors of war and menace is manifested in â€Å"Fly Away Peter† through the ordinariness with which violence presents itself. Violence is a dominant theme in â€Å"Chronicle of a Death Foretold† as it is in â€Å"Fly Away Peter† as it leads to the ultimate menace of Santiago’s death. It is a minor yet significant part of everyday life for most of the town; Victoria Guzman â€Å"[disembowels] rabbits†¦ pull[s] out the insides†¦ by the roots and throw[s] the steaming guts to the dogs† and Leandro Pornoy dies â€Å"gored in the jugular vein by a bull† – all of which are accepted by the town matter-of-factly. The murder of Santiago is brutal as his â€Å"liver was almost sliced in pieces†, his â€Å"pancreas [was] destroyed† and there were â€Å"perforations in the transverse colon and†¦ small intestine† among other injuries. His death has been â€Å"brought on by any one of the seven major wounds† and this reflects an unnecessary level of violence on the part of the Vicario twins. Even after his death, Santiago’s autopsy is mishandled as â€Å"a syrup-coloured liquid began to flow from the wounds, drawing flies, and a purple blotch appeared on his upper lip and spread out very slowly†¦ up to his hairline† and Father Amador remarks â€Å"it was as if we killed him all over again after he was dead†. Through the use of violence in the lives of common people and graphic imagery illustrating the aftermath of a murder, Santiago’s killing mirrors the menace in which the town is under in their acceptance of the idea of violence. The themes of male duty and violence in both â€Å"Fly Away Peter† and â€Å"Chronicle of a Death Foretold† develop the concepts of threat and menace. Malouf uses Jim’s dilemma in enlisting for the war to highlight the threat of the blind trend in which men fight to prove their masculinity even though it results in countless lives lost and Jim’s experiences in the war that draw on the idea of menace in the form of violence. Conversely, Marquez develops the notion of threat through the tradition of the town surrounding Angela Vicario’s enigmatic predicament which precipitates the menace of Santiago’s murder wherein violence plays an important role. A tense and portentous atmosphere is thus crafted in both books as the authors expand on these themes, building up to a final climax.

Computer & Printer Comparison essays

Computer & Printer Comparison essays Our Group was tasked with the project of developing a proposal for the purchase of five (5) new computers and a network color printer. The spreadsheet information was derived from information gathered by group members and from direct buy internet companies. The minimum criteria for each proposal are listed in its respective section. The computers were selected using as close to same components as possible for easy comparison. The printers were selected based on the estimated usage per computer, per day. Key comparison items looked at in this category were print speed in both color and black, printer memory and if it was expandable and processor speed. Once the group had begun looking into the best printer for the operation, we noticed supplies would be an additional key factor in the purchase of the printer. Again to provide ease in comparison, supplies were factored to print an estimated 250 pages per day over 250 days per year, (5200 + pages monthly; 62,500 pages annually). Spreadsheets on both proposals are listed as appendix 1 Computers and appendix 2 printers. Pentium 4 Processor w/ 2 GHz speed Microsoft Windows XP Professional CD-RW with optional DVD capabilities 3.5 Floppy Drive 1.44 MB 15 Color Monitor (LCD Plasma Preferred) The computers had options added to make the comparisons as similar as possible. These options and costs for them are listed on the spreadsheet breakdown for each computer (Appendix 1). LCD screens were available as options on all computers but due to the significant increase in price, this option price is listed on each spec. Optical mouse were selected for each computer due the time and maintenance required for the rollerball type mouse. Individual differences will be listed in the explanation of each computer. The Dell computer had a base price of $600. This price included a Pentium 4 processor, 256 MB ram, and a 17 CRT monitor. Up...

How to become a payroll clerk

How to become a payroll clerk If you’re a stickler for details and get a warm glow of satisfaction from the idea of people getting their paychecks on time, then you might want to consider becoming a payroll clerk. These financial professionals are responsible for maintaining and processing large amounts of financial data and payment information for companies.What does a payroll clerk do?Payroll clerks are employed by just about every kind of company (large or small, corporate or nonprofit, etc.) that has employees. These professionals manage employees’ financial data and are typically responsible for processing paychecks and other payments, keeping time records, and handling any pay-related information for employees (like tax information, insurance deductions, or other factors that can affect an employee’s pay).A payroll clerk’s duties may include:Calculating pay for employeesUsing payroll software to manage employee pay and financial informationCalculating taxes and deductionsProducin g and processing employee paychecksTracking employee work time and keeping accurate recordsInitiating direct deposit paymentsCalculating unemployment or severance payVerifying and resolving discrepancies in employee financial data or payKeeping detailed digital or paper financial records to be reportedIssuing pay statements and invoicesProcess and distribute financial documents like W-2 tax formsFollowing financial reporting procedures and legal best practicesThis is typically a 9-to-5 kind of job, with a standard 40-hour work week. Payroll clerks can be found across industries, as their skills are needed by just about any company that handles employee pay.What skills do payroll clerks need?This is a highly specialized role, so there are specific skill sets that will be an asset to you in this field.Math Skills:Â  Although this is a highly administrative position, it also calls for very strong math skills. The payroll clerk is responsible for money going in and out to employees, so they really must be able to do financial math effectively and accurately.Attention to Detail:Â  Because of the emphasis on accuracy, a payroll clerk needs to be able to spot discrepancies or problems in financial documents or paychecks. Mistakes can have significant impacts on employees or the company, so an eagle eye is essential, whether the clerk is using advanced accounting software or good old-fashioned paper and calculators.Problem Solving Skills:Â  Part of the job is resolving issues that inevitably come up when money, math, and humans are involved. If there are discrepancies in amounts paid versus amounts owed, the clerk needs to be able to resolve the issue quickly and accurately.What do you need to become a payroll clerk?The baseline minimum combination is a high school degree and a stellar set of math skills, but many companies prefer their payroll clerk to have at least an associate’s degree in business, accounting, or finance.How much do payroll clerks get pai d?According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, payroll clerks earn a median annual salary of $43,580, or $20.95 per hour.What’s the outlook for payroll clerks?Because these professionals have a strong and versatile set of skills and can work in any industry that has need of payroll processing, it’s a solid career choice in the financial services and administration field. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects that the demand for payroll clerks will continue to grow by about 6% through 2024.

Progressive era through the great depression Assignment

Progressive era through the great depression - Assignment Example Another major turning point was the Depression and the Unemployment that occurred in the late 1920’s after the Great Depression; this period was characterized by extreme economic crises and high rates of unemployment. At this time several factories were shut down and many workers were laid off. Discussion 2 The two historical turning points discussed above led to several economic, social and political facets whose effects are still faced by the current American Society. To begin with, the rise of the social movements specifically the Labor Movements that were propagated by the Muckrakers who exposed the Corruption, poor working conditions and lack of respect to human rights that were experienced at working places. In this respect, various groups of activist were forced to take several actions geared to towards opposing the poor working conditions and the corruption at the work places. ... ded with proper remunerations and proper working conditions; such labor laws are currently still practiced to promote proper working conditions and promote proper employee-employer relationships. The Second pertinent turning point in the history of the American Society in the progressive era through the Great depression was the unemployment and the depression that led to an extreme economic crises featured by closing of factories, over-production and high levels of unemployment. This also occurred in the early to the late 1920’s; the crash of the stock market in 1929 in the USA which caused a drastic reduction in economic growth of the nation; workers and farmers were also faced with conditions of low income. Several organizations such as the Robert La Follett’s and the Wisconsin made various attempts to formulate strategies to enable the society to enable the society to cope up with the deteriorating economy; however, their efforts were fruitless (Wisconsin University 2008). In the Mid 1930’s the then United States’ President Roosevelt formulated the New Deal policy and the unemployment bill that was developed by the Harold Groves as an economic model succeeded in improving the economic status. These models together with the current economic models have facilitated the relative stability in the current economic status in the American Society. Discussion 3 The late 1980’s through the 1920’s saw the rise of several women empowerment movements and social groups for instance: The Women Suffrage Movement, Women and Peace Movement, Legacy of Women in the Progressive and the Status of Women. All these groups were focused towards empowering women; the American Society during the progressive era was characterized by the perception that women were the Moral Guardian

Select two manufacturing multinational firms (one from the US, one Essay

Select two manufacturing multinational firms (one from the US, one from Europe) and select two services multinational firms (one - Essay Example The discussion shall compare and contrast the internationalization process of the both sectors by discussing representative multinationals from the continents. Internationalization is perceived to be the process of enhancing organizational involvement in the international market. Unilever is based in United Kingdom and Netherlands. Unilever has an international presence lasting for decades. The internalization of the manufacturing multinational has been driven by renowned imperatives. They include growth, knowledge, efficiency, globalization of consumers and competitors. The company has a market presence in more than 150 countries and over 220, 000 employees. The company has been labeled as both multi-local and multinational because of a heavy presence in the domestic and international markets. The internationalizations strategy involved adapting local market differences. The strategic team targeted the optimal locations for product launches and resources in the foreign markets. Unli ke the internationalization plan for Barclays which involved joint-ventures with domestic firms, Unilever embarked majorly on acquisitions to expand the sphere of influence (Edwards & Rees 2006). The management believed that the company needed to have a direct response to the customers through production of superior products (Altinay & Roper 2007). A telling example is in Latin America where Unilever used the ULA strategy. The Unilever Latin America) strategy involved implementation of common processes, innovation and leadership. This caused the multinational to become the market leader in four countries in the region. However, when it came to opening branches, the Unilever tends to have shared a similar strategy with Barclays. Unilever has head offices in every foreign market location (Hill 2002). These regional branches are semi-autonomous (Boome & Riley 2011). The top level management of the multinational has been trying to review the strategy because extreme decentralizations ha ve been counterproductive in the internalization process. The strategic team is targeting the emerging and developing markets in the internationalization plan. In manufacturing sector it is easier to develop products tailored for consumers than in service sector. Therefore, the multination has been able to target different income groups (Boome & Riley 2011). Barclay’s depended on intermediaries in many emerging markets. This means most of the branches were stationed in major urban centers, where infrastructure supported. Unilever believes that a seamless international development would be effective (Altinay & Roper 2007). This company hopes to use technology to synchronize data and automate systems. The management has been countering threats in specific domestic markets while rolling out internationalization strategy. Some of the solutions have been obtained through transplant learning. Unilever has ensures that the retail stores are close the end user. Internationalization p rocess must address the complexities that arise from ineffective supply chains (Battilossi & Cassis 2002). Banking sectors in heavily dependent of technology. Barclays has been affected be unhealthy foreign laws and extreme exchange rates. Studies show that banking sectors is subject to multiple regulations (Boome & Riley 2011). Unilever has established a rapport with consumers directly.