To What Extent was Self-Preservation the Prime Motive of the Catholic Churchs subservience to the Nazi Regime Essay Example

To What Extent was Self-Preservation the Prime Motive of the Catholic Churchs subservience to the Nazi Regime Essay The Catholic Church (referenced as simply The Church from here on) was a fairly unique resistance group during the Nazi period 1933 1945. It was unique for two main reasons; firstly it was the only counter-authority1 to the Nazi Regime permitted under Nazi Law, and secondly, it was the only institution that radically changed the interpretations of its core principles through the introduction of new personalities.The question above deals with three major areas of debate. The first, and most crucial, is whether the Church used resistance to ensure its own survival and whether it was central to their controversial role during the above period. The second area of debate is contrary to the first; it deals with the other motives that the Church may have had for collaborating or assisting the regime, specifically whether or not Anti-Semitism, played a significant part of the Churches actions during the Nazi Period. However, the third area of debate, the extent to which the Catholic Church was strictly subservient to the Nazi Regime is so substantial, there is just not enough space in this project to cover it adequately. Therefore, my investigation will not concern itself it detail with the actions of the Catholic Church, but rather its motives for undertaking those actions.In writing this, I will reference many sources from a number of political and religious backgrounds. There are a number of sources of varying utility, which help to develop an argument. For example, Primary sources such, as the Encyclical Humani Generis Unitas are invaluable when discussing the dissimilarities between Pope Pious XI, and Pope Pious XII. As a direct Issue of the Church it can be seen as a genuine attempt by the Church to clarify its position on the persecution of the Jews, rather than a piece of apologetic historical commentary after the event and is therefore able to described as politically untainted. On the other hand however, a quote from Daniel Goldhagens book A Moral Reckoning has a clear motive behind it. As a radical Jewish historian he has tried to throw open the debate on the Nazi period by referencing heavily the Anti-Semitism of the Church and the German People thus creating a Judo-centric view of Nazi activities. He may therefore exaggerate the truth slightly to make his points seem more convincing. Consequently, when evaluating his work we must keep this motive in mind. Generally however all historians work have some value, due, in part, to the extensive research involved in forming their compositions. Thus we can never therefore simply discard a source because it is biased or extreme since sometimes it is these extreme opinions, which can create the most useful suppositions.The Church has, throughout modern history, been arguably the biggest obstacle to dictatorship. Whether it was Kulturkampf in Bismarcks Germany, War Communism in Lenins Russia, or The Papal Land Seizures in Mussolinis Italy, the Catholic Church has proved to be an institution t hat has needed to be dealt with specifically, in order to successfully create a truly Totalitarianist state. The Catholic Church before the Nazi period represented around 32% of the population in Germany (22 Million members) with a wide range of powerful institutions such as Youth Organisations, Political Parties and Schools. Hence when Hitler rose to power in 1933 the Church plausibly saw another threat to their position emerging and thus there was an urgent need to re-affirm their status and position within this new Germany.The consequence of this anxiety was the agreement of the Church to enter into a Concordat agreement with the new Nazi leader. The Concordat, which was signed on 20th July 1933, by Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli (later to become Pope Pious XII), which ensured the basic freedom and co-existence of the Church within the Nazi regime. It offered the Church partial anonymity from the state, by allowing them to retain their own schools, and their religious social clubs. How ever, it did recognise that the Church would be subservient in Law to the state, disband its political wing, The Catholic Centre Party, and, made the Nazi Curriculum mandatory in Catholic Schools.The signing of this Concordat I believe shows the willingness of the Catholic Church to agree to restrict their political progression in favour of a guaranteed existence. The purpose was self-defence, not a wider political opposition2As Jonathan Wright comments, the Church was far more interested in preserving its status as a religious institution, rather than trying to promote a political agenda, thus they were prepared to concede political activism, if they could carry on practising their religion freely. J R C Wright himself is a Political Historian and a practising Anglican3 and therefore the quote above can be coloured by his religious background. As such there is a possibility that he could be anti-Catholic, but because the source doesnt seem to be unfairly critical of the Church, it is likely this is not the case. This article was however written in the 1970s, when the Vatican had not opened any of their archives from after 1922,4 and as such J R C Wright would not have had access to the detailed information they have revealed when writing his article. Thus there is a possibility that his article is not as qualified as that of a later historian who would have had access to the Vatican Archives. Later historian Beth Greich-Polelle puts forward another argument; she believes it was previous experiences with a nationalist Germany that rationalises the actions the Church undertook.The fear of another state-sponsored attack on Catholicism (much like the one waged under Bismarck in the 1870s) was a serious factor in the minds of many German clergymen5The state-sponsored attack that Greich-Polelle refers to is the Kulturkampf. Roughly translated, the Culture Wars were a direct attack by Bismarck on the Catholic Church in Prussia, during the 1870s. Even though the sup pression was eventually overturned, the violence that ensued against the Catholics coupled with the vulnerability the Catholic Churchs authority represented outside the Papal States became clear, the Clergy could not allow the Nazis to create another Kulturkampf.Beth Greich-Polelle believes Kulturkampf is key to understanding why the Church allowed itself to have its power removed, and in her book Bishop von Galen: German Catholicism and National Socialism she tries to relay the importance of the psychological impact that this piece of recent history would have on the Clergy. She attempts to justify the acceptance of the new regime as a move to preserve the position of Catholicism in the modern state and by creating a Concordat (something Pacelli had been trying to do all over Europe for roughly a decade); he would make this a reality.As an accredited historian working as a Professor of Modern History in the USA, Greich-Polelle uses a vast amount of primary sources from the diaries of Bishop von Galen, a German nationalist who initially welcomed Hitler before becoming an outspoken critic of the Nazi Anti-Semitism after 1934, roughly the same time as Niemà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ller and Bonhà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ffer broke away to form the Confessional Church for the same reasons. With this in mind the source above seems very useful when deciding what motives were really behind Pacellis signing of the Concordat since von Galens view as a fellow nationalist would have been somewhat in line with Pacellis.In addition to J R C Wright and Beth Greich-Polelle, Martyn Housden also agrees that the Church wanted to preserve its own position, rather than ratifying the Nazi establishment. He comments:The Churches and their followers generally were more interested in defending their religious space rather than rooted in a politically active anti-Nazi morality.6As with Wright and Greich-Polelle, Housden agrees that the Church was attempting to distance itself from the political aspects of Nazi sm in order to preserve its religious position. However while reviewing his work, Richard Steigmann-Gall of the University of Toronto, points out that by overlooking [the] admittedly more disturbing acts of ideological commission, he leaves the reader with a flawed analysis7. He does this by ignoring the works of Wolfgang Gerlach, Hermann Grieve, Richard Gutteridge, and Markje Smid, authors who have all directly tackled the issue of the Catholic Church in Germany and whose works includes anti-Semitism. Steigmann-Gall goes on to point out that when reading his chapter entitled opposition born of belief; Housden again does not discuss Christian Anti-Semitism. Steigmann-Gall in a sense therefore is making the claim that there must have been some tacit-support of Anti-Semitism in the church and that the actions of the Church cannot be solely for self-preservation. This of course is a crucial feature of Goldhagens thesis and backs up his claim that anti-Semitism, in some form, did exist within the Catholic Church. Housdens failure to include anti-Semitism could be for two reason, either Housden has failed to address the critical debate of Anti-Semitism by mistake, or he may be trying to distance his own personal beliefs in Christianity, from that of the atrocities synonymous with the Anti-Semitism within the Nazi concentration camps. As a result, his work becomes questionable, compared with Wrights and Greich-Polelles.On the other extreme of the overall debate, Daniel Jonah Goldhagen, and John Cornwell, both believe that the Church as an institution was anti-Semitic and that racism played a massive part in what they believe, was the Churches acceptance and collaboration with the Nazi Regime. They both publicly denounce Pope Pious XII as Hitlers Pope and criticise the Church as ignoring the atrocities performed by the Nazis, even though it posed a complete antithesis to their moral code of ethics.In Daniel Goldhagens book A Moral Reckoning, he condemns the Church as wholly racist against the Jews and attacks particularly Pacelli as a nationalist. He cites the suppression of the encyclical Humani Generis Unitas as a clear example of Pacellis true anti-Semitism and his abandonment of decent Catholic morals and ethics. This encyclical was written by Pius XI in which he condemns the actions of the Nazis and those who are involved in the racial segregation of the Jews.The practise of evasion and denial began as early as 1939 when Pope Pious XII suppressed Humani Generis Unitas, the antiracism encyclical of his predecessor It would finally have the Church defend the hounded Jews8Goldhagen rightly points out the importance of this encyclical because it would clarify, officially, the position of the Church on genocide in Nazi Germany, specifically condemning it, such persecutory methods are totally at variance with the true spirit of the Catholic Church9.Goldhagen goes on to make clear the distinction between Pope Pious XI and Pious XII, citing Pio us XI as an ideologue who was set to uphold the Catholic moral of denouncing the Nazi Regime through the hidden encyclical. Goldhagen then presents Pious XII as a nationalist in his own right and hints that this suppression was part of a deal between Hitler and Pious XII. He paints a picture of Pacelli as an ambitious anti-Semitic who wanted to pursue his doctrine due to his belief in the Jews unshakable guilt over the death of Jesus.He then goes on to claim that only German Catholics were capable of being united behind anti-Semitism thus being able to create the circumstances for genocide. He claims, rightly or wrongly, that the German mindset was the only one capable of rallying so quickly to nationalism and that the German way of thinking does play a significant part in understanding the Catholic Churchs role during the Nazi period. So powerful was the racial cognitive in Germany that the Catholic Church by and large accepted and disseminated it in its own teaching.Goldhagen be lieves that this does not just include Catholics, but Lutheran Protestant Christians, as well as non-believers. Goldhagen makes this point in his first book (Hitlers Willing Executioners) but touches only briefly on it in A Moral Reckoning, a book devoted to the Churches involvement during the Nazi Period. He concentrates much more on the individual Catholic mental struggle with the past. He claims that the Church still blamed contemporary Jews for the death of Jesus. Goldhagen cites Archbishop Konrad Grobers published pastoral letter10 of 1941 as evidence of this: -[Archbishop Grober] placed the blame upon the Jews for the death of Jesus, which he implied justifies what Germans were then doing to the Jews8This clearly attempts to justify the persecution of Jews as retribution for the murder of Jesus. However, this may not however a fair appraisal of the contents of the letter as we are only provided with a limited extract in the book. Goldhagen, as mentioned before is a radical Zi onist historian and is likely to overemphasize evidence in order to discredit the Church, this selective use of the Grà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ber letter can be evidence of this.Norman Finklestein, a Jewish Political historian cites numerous examples of Goldhagens exaggeration in his book The Goldhagen Thesis and Historical Truth. He cites the example of the 12 Ritual Murder trails (1867-1914), where Goldhagen reverses the findings11 of Pulzer (whom he quotes in Hitlers Willing Executioners) by exemplifying the single guilty case when the meaning of the findings was to show how eleven of the cases came to other conclusions, conclusions Finkelstein suggests, may have proved his point flawed. Finklestein also points out a number of Diary entries, and covertly placed texts, like that of crucial evidence referring to the anti-Semitic petition in 19th Century Bavaria, as being buried in the back pages9. As a result, Goldhagens work can never be taken at face value, due, in part, to his selective use of sources, which Finklestein suggests, tries to undermine the Churches authority in the eyes of the readerJohn Cornwell also attacks the Church for its anti-Semitism during the Nazi period. He places a greater emphasis than Goldhagen does on the actions of Pious XII but is still critical of the Catholic Church in general for its involvement with the Nazi regime. Cornwell references, like Goldhagen, the importance of the encyclical Humani Generis Unitas and condemns Pacelli for sitting on it10, as well as including information about the true extent to which Pius XII had detailed knowledge of the final solution.Cornwell believes that Pious XIIs anti-Semitism had a lot to do with the links between Russian Communists and world Jewry. This is qualified by the fact that most of the top KDP members in Weimar Germany were infact Jewish. One of the main reasons why the Church was so afraid of Communism was because of the atrocities in the Soviet Union during the periods of War Communism wit h Churches being shut down and outlawed. It is for this reason that Cornwell believes that Pacelli is not willing to stand up for the Jews, moving away from the traditional anti-Semitic argument, to a more Communist influenced anti-Semitism.Pacelli and the office for which he was responsible betrayed an antagonistic policy towards the Jews [based on] a link between Judaism and the Bolshevik plot to destroy Christendom.12It is clear that Cornwell seeks to link Pious XII to this misconception and does make a very convincing line of argument. It could be possible for the link between Judaism and that of Communism to be forged so closely and that, what Goldhagen describes as the German mindset, could have pushed Pacelli to the extent of anti-Semitism. Cornwell then goes on to heavily criticise Pacelli for not condemning those members of his clergy engaged in the unmasking of Jews and the stopping of conversions in very strongly Catholic areas. This unmasking of Jews by Catholics and Ca tholic Bishops is well documented in the Gestapo reports of the period. Catholicism never accepts racism or any attempt to assist racism under any circumstances.Nor did he [Pacelli] attempt to intervene in the process by which Catholic Clergy collaborated in racial certification to identify the Jews13This collaboration Cornwell goes on to say, aided the persecution of the Jews and contributed heavily in the rural communities assistance during the Final Solution. He then moves on to make the accusation that the Church was not as unaware of the Final Solution, as it historically has claimed. With the opening of the Vatican archives, letters and diaries14 from prominent members of Pacellis Privy Council display that Pacelli was infact one of the first in the world to know of the Nazi plans and took no action whatsoever, even waiting months before accepting that he had even received the letter. This can be interpreted as self-preservation, but Cornwell is convinced by Pacellis actions d uring the 1930s that anti-Semitism was the main factor in Pacellis decision not to act upon this information. The Vatican archives prove this by showing Pacellis registered disagreement with Pius XI over condemning anti-Semitism in the mid 30s, which adds weight to the accusation that his actions werent just for self-preservation. Through the mid to late 1930s, Pacelli failed to sanction protests by the German Catholic episcopate against anti-Semitism it is clear that Pacelli believed that the Jews had brought misfortune on their own head11When discussing the merits of Cornwells work, Dr Peter Gumpel S.J15, a leading expert on the Catholic Church during the period, cites a number of clear mistakes in Cornwells work. His work mainly concerns itself with a lack of proper research, referring to the list of archives, which Cornwell claims to have consulted. Gumpel claims that a book, which makes such pretentious claims, should have consulted such archives as the German, Italian and mos t notably the Acts of the Nuremberg Trials which would, Gumpel claims, have shown Pacellis work to save the Jews, which Ralph McInerny estimates is around 860,00016. He goes on to question the value of the content describing the first section of the book as wishy-washy, while describing his criticisms of the Concordat as wholly unfair as at no point does he ever discuss the primary papal importance of the Concordat. He even shows a massive translation error, which completely changes the whole context with which a Chapter of his book refers to. The Encyclical letter with burning preoccupation and not with great appreciation as Cornwell mistranslatesAs a result, the value of Cornwells work has come under massive strain. Although Dr Gumpel also has been criticised for his attacks on Cornwell, the evidence that Cornwell has misrepresented Pacelli as a character is considerable and as a result, his work is less useful that it at first appears to be.In Conclusion, the evidence supportin g the claim that the Churches actions during the Nazi period were purely in self-defence, in other words, for self-preservation, I believe outweigh the accusations of anti-Semitism within the Church. There is strong evidence that the Church as an institution is anti-Semitic, and there can be no doubt that there are sections of the Catholic Church that do believe that the Jews still posses an unshakeable guilt over the death of Jesus. There is also a chance that Pacelli (Pope Pious XII) could have been one of those people who believed in this guilt, but when critically appraising the merits of the historians that have claimed this, I have found myself more convinced by Bette Greich-Polelles explanation of events. In reference to her work, it is my belief that the Church during the Nazi period was self-interested and was set on trying to avoid another Kulturkampf, thus by accepting restrictions on their political freedoms it would ensure the spiritual dimension of Catholicism would li ve on throughout and beyond Nazi Germany.

Blacks from 1880-1955 essays

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Production and operations management

Production and operations management Production and Operations Management (POM) is about the transformation of production and operational inputs into outputs that, when distributed, meet the needs of customers. The process in the above diagram is often referred to as the Conversion Process. There are several different methods of handling the conversion or production process Job, Batch, Flow and Group POM incorporates many tasks that are interdependent, but which can be grouped under five main headings: PRODUCT Marketers in a business must ensure that a business sells products that meet customer needs and wants. The role of Production and Operations is to ensure that the business actually makes the required products in accordance with the plan. The role of PRODUCT in POM therefore concerns areas such as: Performance Aesthetics Quality Reliability Quantity Production costs Delivery dates PLANT To make PRODUCT, PLANT of some kind is needed. 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The decisions made about programme will be influenced by factors such as: Purchasing patterns (e.g. lead time) Cash flow Need for / availability of storage Transportation PEOPLE Production depends on PEOPLE, whose skills, experience and motivation vary. Key people-related decisions will consider the following areas: Wages and salaries Safety and training Work conditions Leadership and motivation Unionisation Communication ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ production types of production method Definition In our introduction to production and operations management (POM) we suggested that there are several different methods of handling the conversion or production process Job, Batch, Flow and Group. This revision note explains these methods in more detail. Introduction The various methods of production are not associated with a particular volume of production. Similarly, several methods may be used at different stages of the overall production process. Job Method With Job production, the complete task is handled by a single worker or group of workers. Jobs can be small-scale/low technology as well as complex/high technology. Low technology jobs: here the organisation of production is extremely simply, with the required skills and equipment easily obtainable. This method enables customers specific requirements to be included, often as the job progresses. Examples include: hairdressers; tailoring High technology jobs: high technology jobs involve much greater complexity and therefore present greater management challenge. The important ingredient in high-technology job production is project management, or project control. The essential features of good project control for a job are: Clear definitions of objectives how should the job progress (milestones, dates, stages) Decision-making process how are decisions taking about the needs of each process in the job, labour and other resources Examples of high technology / complex jobs: film production; large construction projects (e.g. the Millennium Dome) Batch Method As businesses grow and production volumes increase, it is not unusual to see the production process organised so that Batch methods can be used. Batch methods require that the work for any task is divided into parts or operations. Each operation is completed through the whole batch before the next operation is performed. By using the batch method, it is possible to achieve specialisation of labour. Capital expenditure can also be kept lower although careful planning is required to ensure that production equipment is not idle. The main aims of the batch method are, therefore, to: Concentrate skills (specialisation) Achieve high equipment utilisation This technique is probably the most commonly used method for organising manufacture. A good example is the production of electronic instruments. Batch methods are not without their problems. There is a high probability of poor work flow, particularly if the batches are not of the optimal size or if there is a significant difference in productivity by each operation in the process. Batch methods often result in the build up of significant work in progress or stocks (i.e. completed batches waiting for their turn to be worked on in the next operation). Flow Methods Flow methods are similar to batch methods except that the problem of rest/idle production/batch queuing is eliminated. Flow has been defined as a method of production organisation where the task is worked on continuously or where the processing of material is continuous and progressive, The aims of flow methods are: Improved work material flow Reduced need for labour skills Added value / completed work faster Flow methods mean that as work on a task at a particular stage is complete, it must be passed directly to the next stage for processing without waiting for the remaining tasks in the batch. When it arrives at the next stage, work must start immediately on the next process. In order for the flow to be smooth, the times that each task requires on each stage must be of equal length and there should be no movement off the flow production line. In theory, therefore, any fault or error at a particular stage In order that flow methods can work well, several requirements must be met: (1) There must be substantially constant demand If demand is unpredictable or irregular, then the flow production line can lead to a substantial build up of stocks and possibility storage difficulties. Many businesses using flow methods get round this problem by building for stock i.e. keeping the flow line working during quiet periods of demand so that output can be produced efficiently. (2) The product and/or production tasks must be standardised Flow methods are inflexible they cannot deal effectively with variations in the product (although some variety can be accomplished through applying different finishes, decorations etc at the end of the production line). (3) Materials used in production must be to specification and delivered on time Since the flow production line is working continuously, it is not a good idea to use materials that vary in style, form or quality. Similarly, if the required materials are not available, then the whole production line will come to a close with potentially serious cost consequences. (4) Each operation in the production flow must be carefully defined and recorded in detail (5) The output from each stage of the flow must conform to quality standards Since the output from each stage moves forward continuously, there is no room for sub-standard output to be re-worked (compare this with job or batch production where it is possible to compensate for a lack of quality by doing some extra work on the job or the batch before it is completed). The achievement of a successful production flow line requires considerable planning, particularly in ensuring that the correct production materials are delivered on time and that operations in the flow are of equal duration. Common examples where flow methods are used are the manufacture of motor cars, chocolates and televisions. +++++++++++++++++++++++++ capacity management the meaning of capacity Introduction The capacity of a production unit (e.g. machine, factory) is its ability to produce or do that which the customer requires. In production and operations management, three types of capacity are often referred to: Potential Capacity The capacity that can be made available to influence the planning of senior management (e.g. in helping them to make decisions about overall business growth, investment etc). This is essentially a long-term decision that does not influence day-to-day production management Immediate Capacity The amount of production capacity that can be made available in the short-term. This is the maximum potential capacity assuming that it is used productively Effective Capacity An important concept. Not all productive capacity is actually used or usable. It is important for production managers to understand what capacity is actually achievable. Measuring capacity Capacity, being the ability to produce work in a given time, must be measured in the unit of work. For example, consider a factory that has a capacity of 10,000 machine hours in each 40 hour week. This factory should be capable of producing 10,000 standard hours of work during a 40-hour week. The actual volume of product that the factory can produce will depend on: the amount of work involved in production (e.g. does a product require 1, 5, 10 standard hours? any additional time required in production (e.g. machine set-up, maintenance) the productivity or effectiveness of the factory Constraints on capacity In capacity management there are usually two potential constraints TIME and CAPACITY Time may be a constraint where a customer has a particular required delivery date. In this situation, capacity managers often plan backwards. In other words, they allocate the final stage (operation) of the production tasks to the period where delivery is required; the penultimate task one period earlier and so on. This process helps identify whether there is sufficient time to meet the production demands and whether capacity needs to be increased, albeit temporarily. Production Scheduling A schedule is a representation of the time necessary to carry out a particular task. A job schedule shows the plan for the manufacture of a particular job. It is created through work / study reviews which determine the method and times required. Most businesses carry out several production tasks at one time which entails amalgamating several job schedules. This process is called scheduling. The result is known as the production schedule or factory schedule for the factory/plant as a whole. In preparing a production schedule, attention needs to be paid to: Delivery dates (when are finished products due?) Job schedules for each relevant production task Capacities of production sections or departments involved Efficiency of these production sections or departments Planned holidays Anticipated sickness / absenteeism / training Availability of raw materials, components and packaging There are two key problems with production scheduling: (1) Measurement of performance (e.g. should financial performance be most important (e.g. minimise the amount of stock), or are marketing objectives more important e.g. always produce enough to meet customer demand). (2) The large number of possible schedules often caused by too much complexity or variety in the production needs of the business. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ introduction to break-even analysis Introduction Break-even analysis is a technique widely used by production management and management accountants. It is based on categorising production costs between those which are variable (costs that change when the production output changes) and those that are fixed (costs not directly related to the volume of production). Total variable and fixed costs are compared with sales revenue in order to determine the level of sales volume, sales value or production at which the business makes neither a profit nor a loss (the break-even point). The Break-Even Chart In its simplest form, the break-even chart is a graphical representation of costs at various levels of activity shown on the same chart as the variation of income (or sales, revenue) with the same variation in activity. The point at which neither profit nor loss is made is known as the break-even point and is represented on the chart below by the intersection of the two lines: In the diagram above, the line OA represents the variation of income at varying levels of production activity (output). OB represents the total fixed costs in the business. As output increases, variable costs are incurred, meaning that total costs (fixed + variable) also increase. At low levels of output, Costs are greater than Income. At the point of intersection, P, costs are exactly equal to income, and hence neither profit nor loss is made. Fixed Costs Fixed costs are those business costs that are not directly related to the level of production or output. In other words, even if the business has a zero output or high output, the level of fixed costs will remain broadly the same. In the long term fixed costs can alter perhaps as a result of investment in production capacity (e.g. adding a new factory unit) or through the growth in overheads required to support a larger, more complex business. Examples of fixed costs: Rent and rates Depreciation Research and development Marketing costs (non- revenue related) Administration costs Variable Costs Variable costs are those costs which vary directly with the level of output. They represent payment output-related inputs such as raw materials, direct labour, fuel and revenue-related costs such as commission. A distinction is often made between Direct variable costs and Indirect variable costs. Direct variable costs are those which can be directly attributable to the production of a particular product or service and allocated to a particular cost centre. Raw materials and the wages those working on the production line are good examples. Indirect variable costs cannot be directly attributable to production but they do vary with output. These include depreciation (where it is calculated related to output e.g. machine hours), maintenance and certain labour costs. Semi-Variable Costs Whilst the distinction between fixed and variable costs is a convenient way of categorising business costs, in reality there are some costs which are fixed in nature but which increase when output reaches certain levels. These are largely related to the overall scale and/or complexity of the business. For example, when a business has relatively low levels of output or sales, it may not require costs associated with functions such as human resource management or a fully-resourced finance department. However, as the scale of the business grows (e.g. output, number people employed, number and complexity of transactions) then more resources are required. If production rises suddenly then some short-term increase in warehousing and/or transport may be required. In these circumstances, we say that part of the cost is variable and part fixed. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ quality management introduction One of the most important issues that businesses have focused on in the last 20-30 years has been quality. As markets have become much more competitive quality has become widely regarded as a key ingredient for success in business. In this revision note, we introduce what is meant by quality by focusing on the key terms you will come up against. What is quality? You will comes across several terms that all seem to relate to the concept of quality. It can be quite confusing working out what the difference is between them. Weve defined the key terms that you need to know below: Term Description Quality Quality is first and foremost about meeting the needs and expectations of customers. It is important to understand that quality is about more than a product simply working properly. Think about your needs and expectations as a customer when you buy a product or service. These may include performance, appearance, availability, delivery, reliability, maintainability, cost effectiveness and price. Think of quality as representing all the features of a product or service that affect its ability to meet customer needs. If the product or service meets all those needs then it passes the quality test. If it doesnt, then it is sub-standard. Quality management Producing products of the required quality does not happen by accident. There has to be a production process which is properly managed. Ensuring satisfactory quality is a vital part of the production process. Quality management is concerned with controlling activities with the aim of ensuring that products and services are fit for their purpose and meet the specifications. There are two main parts to quality management (1) Quality assurance (2) Quality control Quality assurance Quality assurance is about how a business can design the way a product of service is produced or delivered to minimise the chances that output will be sub-standard. The focus of quality assurance is, therefore on the product design/development stage. Why focus on these stages? The idea is that if the processes and procedures used to produce a product or service are tightly controlled then quality will be built-in. This will make the production process much more reliable, so there will be less need to inspect production output (quality control). Quality assurance involves developing close relationships with customers and suppliers. A business will want to make sure that the suppliers to its production process understand exactly what is required and deliver! Quality control Quality control is the traditional way of managing quality. A further revision note (see the list on the right) deals with this in more detail. Quality control is concerned with checking and reviewing work that has been done. For example, this would include lots of inspection, testing and sampling. Quality control is mainly about detecting defective output rather than preventing it. Quality control can also be a very expensive process. Hence, in recent years, businesses have focused on quality management and quality assurance. Total quality management Total quality management (usually shortened to TQM) is a modern form of quality management. In essence, it is about a kind of business philosophy which emphasises the need for all parts of a business to continuously look for ways to improve quality. We cover this important concept in further revision notes. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ quality control Quality control is the more traditional way that businesses have used to manage quality. Quality control is concerned with checking and reviewing work that has been done. But is this the best way for a business to manage quality? Under traditional quality control, inspection of products and services (checking to make sure that whats being produced is meeting the required standard) takes place during and at the end of the operations process. There are three main points during the production process when inspection is performed: 1 When raw materials are received prior to entering production 2 Whilst products are going through the production process 3 When products are finished inspection or testing takes place before products are despatched to customers The problem with this sort of inspection is that it doesnt work very well! There are several problems with inspection under traditional quality control: 1 The inspection process does not add any value. If there were any guarantees that no defective output would be produced, then there would be no need for an inspection process in the first place! 2 Inspection is costly, in terms of both tangible and intangible costs. For example, materials, labour, time, employee morale, customer goodwill, lost sales 3 It is sometimes done too late in the production process. This often results in defective or non-acceptable goods actually being received by the customer 4 It is usually done by the wrong people e.g. by a separate quality control inspection team rather than by the workers themselves 5 Inspection is often not compatible with more modern production techniques (e.g. Just in Time Manufacturing) which do not allow time for much (if any) inspection. 6 Working capital is tied up in stocks which cannot be sold 7 There is often disagreement as to what constitutes a quality product. For example, to meet quotas, inspectors may approve goods that dont meet 100% conformance, giving the message to workers that it doesnt matter if their work is a bit sloppy. Or one quality control inspector may follow different procedures from another, or use different measurements. As a result of the above problems, many businesses have focused their efforts on improving quality by implementing quality management techniques which emphasise the role of quality assurance. As Deming (a quality guru) wrote: Inspection with the aim of finding the bad ones and throwing them out is too late, ineffective, costly. Quality comes not from inspection but from improvement of the process. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ total quality management tqm Total quality management is a popular quality management concept. However, it is about much more than just assuring product or service quality. TQM is a business philosophy a way of doing business. It describes ways to managing people and business processes to ensure complete customer satisfaction at every stage. TQM is often associated with the phrase doing the right things right, first time. This revision note summarises the main features of TQM. Like most quality management concepts, TQM views quality entirely from the point of view of the customer. All businesses have many types of customer. A customer can be someone internal to the business (e.g. a production employee working at the end of the production line is the customer of the employees involved earlier in the production process). A customer can also be external to the business. This is the kind of customer you will be familiar with. When you fly with an airline you are their customer. When Tescos buys products from food manufacturers, it is a customer. TQM recognises that all businesses require processes that enable customer requirements to be met. TQM focuses on the ways in which these processes can be managed with two key objectives: 1 100% customer satisfaction 2 Zero defects The Importance of Customer Supplier Relationships Quality Chains TQM focuses strongly on the importance of the relationship between customers (internal and external) and supplier. These are known as the quality chains and they can be broken at any point by one person or one piece of equipment not meeting the requirements of the customer. Failure to meet the requirements in any part of a quality chain has a way of multiplying, and failure in one part of the system creates problems elsewhere, leading to yet more failure and problems, and so the situation is exacerbated. The ability to meet customers (external and internal) requirements is vital. To achieve quality throughout a business, every person in the quality chain must be trained to ask the following questions about every customer-supplier chain: Customers à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Who are my customers? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ What are their real needs and expectations? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How can I measure my ability to meet their needs and expectations? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Do I have the capability to meet their needs and expectations? (If not, what must I do to improve this capability?) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Do I continually meet their needs and expectations? (If not, what prevents this from happening when the capability exists?) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How do I monitor changes in their needs and expectations? Suppliers: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Who are my internal suppliers? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ What are my true needs and expectations? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How do I communicate my needs and expectations to my suppliers? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Do my suppliers have the capability to measure and meet these needs and expectations? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How do I inform them of changes in my needs and expectations? Main Principles of TQM The main principles that underlie TQM are summarised below: Prevention Prevention is better than cure. In the long run, it is cheaper to stop products defects than trying to find them Zero defects The ultimate aim is no (zero) defects or exceptionally low defect levels if a product or service is complicated Getting things right first time Better not to produce at all than produce something defective Quality involves everyone Quality is not just the concern of the production or operations department it involves everyone, including marketing, finance and human resources Continuous improvement Businesses should always be looking for ways to improve processes to help quality Employee involvement Those involved in production and operations have a vital role to play in spotting improvement opportunities for quality and in identifying quality problems Introducing TQM into a Business TQM is not an easy concept to introduce into businesses particularly those that have not traditionally concerned themselved too much with understanding customer needs and business processes. In fact many attempts to introduce TQM fail! One of the reasons for the challenge of introducing TQM is that it has significant implications for the whole business. For example, it requires that management give employees a say in the production processes that they are involved in. In a culture of continuous improvement, workforce views are invaluable. The problem is many businesses have barriers to involvement. For example, middle managers may feel that their authority is being challenged. So empowerment is a crucial part of TQM. The key to success is to identify the management culture before attempting to install TQM and to take steps to change towards the management style required for it. Since culture is not the first thing that managers think about, this step has often been missed or ignored with resultant failure of a TQM strategy. TQM also focuses the business on the activities of the business that are closest to the customer e.g. the production department, the employees facing the customer. This can cause resentment amongst departments that previously considered themselves above the shop floor. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Alice Walkers Roselily - Two Stories in One :: Walker Roselily Essays

Alice Walker's Roselily - Two Stories in One In the short story "Roselily", Alice Walker tells two stories in one. The most obvious story is the one about the Black American woman Roselily, who stands before the alter, just about to marry a muslim, while she thinks about her past, wonders about the future and is questioning wheter she is making the right choice. The other, hidden story is the story about Black American women in general, their history and their ongoing search for something better. The way I understand the short story, Roselily`s story is, as it is presented to the reader through Roselily's thoughts as she is in the middle of her wedding, a reflection of Black Americans` (and women`s in particular) situation around the 1960s. At this time, Blacks are free Americans with the equal rights as other Americans, in theory. Roselily is an independent woman of her time, but being a single mother of four children, working long hours for most likely lousy wages in a sewing plant, she is far from free. The Blacks are no longer slaves in the cotton fields, they are now paid slaves in the refinement industry. Roselily is most aware of her situation, and she is willing to leave her past and start a new life with a new man. She has probably been searching for a better life for quite some time, by being with different men, who all could give her a child, but not a new life. I am sensing an urge in Roselily, to move on, symbolized by all the cars described in the short story: They are constantly moving from one place to another, they give you mobility, prevent you from being stuck somewhere you do not want to be. Roselily knows that she does not want to stay in the sewing plant, she knows that she wants to move on to something better, but she does not know what better is, and she certainly doubts if what she has chosen will be better than what she had. Her divided personality is like the different groups of Blacks in the civil rights movements. Some Blacks wanted segregation, some wanted their own nation, some wanted to be more African, some wanted to live like the White Americans, some were Muslims and some were Christians. They all agreed that their current situation was not acceptable, but they did not know how to improve it.