Free Essays on Honor And Loyalty In Hamlet

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet honor and loyalty play a large role in the way that this tragedy unfolds. After being told about his fathers murder, Hamlets loyalty to his loving father begins the plot. Fortinbras’ personal honor and loyalty to his father thickens the plot, while Laertes’ loyalty brings about the tragic ends of many of the lead character’s lives. Honor and loyalty are very human characteristics especially when dealing with one’s dead father therefore these themes arelaced throughout the plot of the play. Honor and loyalty are shown in Hamlet through the three main father/ son duos of the play. First of all, in the play Hamlet by Shakespeare Hamlet and King Hamlet’s relationship can be used as an example of honor and loyalty. Hamlet is presented as a devoted son to the memory of his father, King Hamlet. He is displeased with the marriage of his uncle, Claudius, to his mother so soon after the death of his father. It has been a mere two weeks since the death and his uncle has now become his father and king of Denmark. Hamlet’s difficulty to except his father’s death is because of his great love for his father. Hamlet is the only one still mourning when the play opens because his loyalty to his father is so strong that he would not just simply forsake it as many of the other characters did. While talking to Horatio, Hamlet reveals, "He was a man. Take him for all in all,/ I shall not look upon his like again" (1,2. 195-196). Hamlet holds his father in high regard, one in a million, and knows that he will not be replaced, as no man’s father shou ld. King Hamlet held a great deal of honor and loyalty to his people and the kingdom, therefore Hamlet feels great respect for his father and great honor towards him in death. Hamlet reveals more of his love for his father and disapproval of his mother’s hasty marriage to Claudius in his lines to Gertrude, "See what a grace was seated on his brow,/ Hyperionï ¿ ½... Free Essays on Honor And Loyalty In Hamlet Free Essays on Honor And Loyalty In Hamlet In Shakespeare’s Hamlet honor and loyalty play a large role in the way that this tragedy unfolds. After being told about his fathers murder, Hamlets loyalty to his loving father begins the plot. Fortinbras’ personal honor and loyalty to his father thickens the plot, while Laertes’ loyalty brings about the tragic ends of many of the lead character’s lives. Honor and loyalty are very human characteristics especially when dealing with one’s dead father therefore these themes arelaced throughout the plot of the play. Honor and loyalty are shown in Hamlet through the three main father/ son duos of the play. First of all, in the play Hamlet by Shakespeare Hamlet and King Hamlet’s relationship can be used as an example of honor and loyalty. Hamlet is presented as a devoted son to the memory of his father, King Hamlet. He is displeased with the marriage of his uncle, Claudius, to his mother so soon after the death of his father. It has been a mere two weeks since the death and his uncle has now become his father and king of Denmark. Hamlet’s difficulty to except his father’s death is because of his great love for his father. Hamlet is the only one still mourning when the play opens because his loyalty to his father is so strong that he would not just simply forsake it as many of the other characters did. While talking to Horatio, Hamlet reveals, "He was a man. Take him for all in all,/ I shall not look upon his like again" (1,2. 195-196). Hamlet holds his father in high regard, one in a million, and knows that he will not be replaced, as no man’s father shou ld. King Hamlet held a great deal of honor and loyalty to his people and the kingdom, therefore Hamlet feels great respect for his father and great honor towards him in death. Hamlet reveals more of his love for his father and disapproval of his mother’s hasty marriage to Claudius in his lines to Gertrude, "See what a grace was seated on his brow,/ Hyperionï ¿ ½...

Where to Get the Money to Write a Book

Where to Get the Money to Write a Book This is the most common request I receive. Where can I find the money to write my book? This is the second most common request I receive. Where can I find the money to publish my book? First and foremost, you do not need money to write a book. Writing is the most liberating, free-rein, no start-up money required art on the planet. You and the paper. If you need research, you have a phone, the Internet and the library. Easy-peasy. If you need money to publish your book, you are self-publishing. Fine. Nothing wrong with that. Lets make some assumptions here. You wrote the story. Youve edited the story. Youve HAD the story edited. You want that book out in the world and you dont have two dimes to rub together. What do you do? 1. You try to traditionally publish. Yep, this means you have to learn the publishing business. But you want complete control over your book, you say. Do you even know what that means? Can you talk traditional vs. self-pubbing? If you cannot, then stop trying to publish. Learn which road to take before get totally lost and ruin that story 2. You publish an e-book. I know you want to hold paper in your hands, but why not sell e-books until you have the money saved to pay for print? 3. You publish through CreateSpace.com or Lulu.com. This requires you understand formatting, cover design, and so on. If you want someone to publish your book without you thinking about these things, then go back to Item 1. 4. You crowdfund through Kickstarter.com or Indiegogo.com. Not only has Kickstarter funded many books, plays and films, but it makes you develop a defined plan for your book project. Most crowdfunding projects fail because the author doesnt want to think marketing or development . . . doesnt plan deeply enough. Either that or the book is a bad idea to start with. 5. You freelance and save your money from articles and gigs to pay for the publishing. No elaboration needed here. If you think youre good enough to write a book, you should be shrewd and talented enough to make money freelancing. 6. You save money from other sources. Only you can define your other sources. 7. You borrow the money. Gasp! Borrow? What if the book fails? Truth is you need to believe in this book hard enough to be willing to borrow money for it. That means youre more likely to do your homework on the process, edit a few more times, create the start of a platform, and design a short-term and long-term plan. What about grants? Grants should be your last resort. Besides, most grants wont fund a self-published project, especially from a first-time author or a second-timer who didnt sell the first. You have to prove yourself to a certain degree. But hey, with all of the above options and a little bit of elbow grease and sweat, youll be published in no time.

How Technology Has Hade Lives Easier Research Paper

How Technology Has Hade Lives Easier - Research Paper Example â€Å"Technology seems to have made our lives easier but it doesn't make us happier† (Jackson). We can call the world a global village today only because of the influence of technology on it (â€Å"Benefits of Technology Facts†). Technology has totally removed the significance of distances. One can reach places hundreds of thousands of miles away in few hours. In the past, people used to travel for months and months and sometimes, it took them years to reach their destination. This has not only enabled people to see their loved ones more often, but has also benefited all countries of the world through promotion of trade and business. A Chief Information Officer (CIO) in the past would only take decisions but due to lack of expertise in the use of technology, he was obliged to pass the responsibility to other employees (â€Å"Benefits of Technology†). However, a CIO in the contemporary age is competent enough to use ICT and take more responsibility, thus making th e business totally according to his aspirations. With the evolution of technology, the brick and mortar business has received a severe set back. More and more businesses are becoming totally computer based. Need to interact physically is obviated by the virtual interaction. A lot of businesses in the present age are being conducted on internet. Employees fulfill their respective responsibilities from their panels. An e-business offers numerous advantages in comparison to the brick and mortar business. Shift from the real world to the virtual world reduces overhead charges. Owners do not have to bear additional cost of transportation or other kinds of utility bills because of which, profit margin of the business is enlarged. Technology has had great impact on the life of individuals since its evolution. Comparing the technologically deprived past to a technologically rich present, Giovanni says: I grew up in the 1960’s and 70's when there were no computers, PDA’s or cel l phones. There were no microwaves, no DVD’s, no MP3 players and there were only about 7 good stations on television. We didn’t stay home and play video games all day because there were no video games to speak of back then. Instead we played outside, talked to our friends on the phone and listened to music. (Giovanni). Giovanni and people like her had no access to the various forms of technology that is known by the present age man. 1960s were only four to five decades ago but the world was a totally different place to live in as compared to what it is today. There were no cell phones. Cell phones have silently become the most integral part of life in the modern age. It has facilitated the communication, and has allowed people to enhance their social networking. Letters that took days and sometimes, months to reach the target location can today be transferred sooner than the blink of an eye with the help of cell phones or emails. Another aspect that draws our attention in Giovanni’s statement is that technology has brought us impacted on our social relations. Although people today do not visit one another as often as they did in the past, yet paradoxically, they happen to exchange words with one another in the virtual world much more often than they did in the real world in the past. Internet is by far, the

Operating System Simulator Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operating System Simulator - Essay Example It also supports JRE version 1.2. Java as language offers various capabilities including running the application as a Java applet or as a java application. Therefore, this CPU process-scheduling simulator can be run either as a Java applet or as a Java application. This CPU process scheduling algorithm can be used to perform several experiments on different process scheduling algorithms. Tables of data, graphs, and Gantt charts in form of log files in HTML can be produced by the simulator at the end of each experimental run. One experiment can be carried out involving several processes, for instance, the experiment can be based on eight different CPU processes. The tabular data obtained for different CPU process scheduling algorithms can then be analyzed and important conclusions drawn. Graph or Gantt chart data obtained can also be analyzed. Comparison between the various CPU scheduling algorithms can be drawn and explained based on the analysis of such data and the conclusions arri ved at. The statistic to be evaluated and analyzed from the experimental runs includes data on processes throughput, CPU burst times, I/O Burst times, Waiting times, Turn Around time, and the ratio of CPU Burst Times to Time to Ready plus CPU Burst time. As noted earlier, this CPU process-scheduling simulator supports various CPU scheduling algorithms such as First Come, First Served (FCFS), Shortest Job First (SJF), and the Round Robin algorithm (RR). This simulator manual report will aim at reporting on experiments carried on two CPU process scheduling algorithms; the First Come, First Served (FCFS) algorithm, and the Shortest Job First (SJF) CPU scheduling algorithm. The experiment will be carried out on eight processes for both the algorithms and the characteristics of bot the algorithms evaluated based on those processes. Graphs, Gantt charts, and table data for both the CPU scheduling algorithms will be drawn, analyzed, and evaluated. The evaluation and analysis to be carried out is aimed at illustrating the differences between the two CPU process-scheduling algorithms based on the data obtained. Normally, it is expected that, for the Shortest Job First SJF also referred to as the shortest remaining CPU burst time first, the process with the shortest CPU burst time is the one that is executed first. For the First Come, First Served CPU scheduling algorithm, the first job to arrive in the ready queue is the one that is executed first, and it must be executed to completion before any other process takes up the CPU. However, there are scenarios such when there is an I/O request, a process being executed in the First Come, First Served algorithm is returned to the waiting time and a new process in the queue is executed before the other process continues executing. This is known as context switching and they are normally two. In the Shortest Job First CPU scheduling algorithm, there are scenarios where more than one process with the shortest CPU burst time; m ore than one process have the same CPU burst time exist in the ready queue. In such cases, these processes are evaluated depending on the time each job or process arrived in the ready queue, this implies some sort of First Come, First Served CPU scheduling algorithm is implemented, and the job that arrived in the re

Compare and contrast Kennedy and Reagon's Inaugural Address Essay

Compare and contrast Kennedy and Reagon's Inaugural Address - Essay Example However, only Reagan, by far the better man manages to achieve this. John Kennedy became President as a youngish man. America was dawning in the 1960s and they were swept up with enthusiasm. He noted in his inaugural speech that there was great promise, but also great danger ahead: The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe-the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God. (110). He evokes God and purpose in his speech and it is powerful in its way. What is sad about his speech, however, is how his administration did not live up to the principles it espouses. Kennedy did very little as President. He spent much of his time leading an absolutely scandalous personal life, which surely proved a great distraction. He led America into the humiliating Bay of Pigs fiasco and nearly destroyed the world through Cuban Missile Crisis. He was not a man in touch with the people. He was a millionaire who was President as a kind of hobby. We dare not tempt them with weakness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed. But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course-both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankinds final war. (110) In a sense this is similar to Reagan’s own political philosophy of building up America’s nuclear arsenal and defences. However, Reagan did this simultaneously while engaging in reasoned negotiations not brinksmanship. He knew what he was doing, while Kennedy was just playing at it. Flash forward

Induction in health and social care Essay Example for Free

Induction in health and social care Essay Explain why induction is important for practitioners, individual and settings. Induction process is very valuable and of great importance for any early year practitioner, individual or organization. In my opinion this is an ongoing process starting from the advertisement. a) For practitioners: The process of Induction is important for the Early birds in the nest so as to help them integrate into their roles in the organization quickly and effectively. They should be familiarized with the campus first. Like cafeteria, restrooms, classrooms, emergency exits etc. After that introduction with her new colleagues, rules and regulations, benefits and facilities that she will enjoy working here will follow next. Necessary trainings in safety and all her questions/ needs should be addressed. Induction is also very important for the new employees to let them know the organizational structure of the work place. The mission vision of the workplace is introduced and they are informed as to what quality drive is expected from them. They are given an opportunity to know where they stand in the crowd. The timetable of the CPDs and school extracurricular activities are handed out to them. They are given documents related to class they are going to start teaching. b) For individuals: Induction should not be limited to the new comer only rather it should be executed for the old employees as well. I would like to organize induction process at least twice a year. One before the new session starts in September, because they might need a lot of motivation and enthusiasm after spending 6-8 weeks holidays away from school. This can also be extended to 4-5 days. In this process we can review policies and procedure to refresh their minds and remind them of the goals they have to achieve throughout the year, in case of some policies being altered it’s a good time to share with them and get their opinion. Some new incentives can also be shared to boost up their energy and loyalty with the organization. This is a good time to introduce a new staff if there is any or if any staff member is promoted then he/she can be given induction about the new responsibilities attached  with the new position. c) For organizations: If the employees are properly inducted then they will work more efficiently and happily for the workplace. The progress of each child will be consistent and improved, as a result parents are happy and a reputation is built and demand of that work place will increase more in market. 1.3 Explain the link between induction process, qualifications and progression routes in the sector. Every workplace wants to ensure that they recruit new teachers that are most suitably skilled and qualified for their jobi This they do by a rigorous recruitment process. Then through a structured induction process the workplace prepares them for a new role and motivates them so that they give their best. This also helps the newbie to develop upon the knowledge and skills they already have. An effective induction helps the new staff to meet the core standards of the work place and provide a foundation for CPDs towards becoming a more effective teacher. The leader is responsible for selecting mentors for the induction process from the staff depending upon the requirements of the induction process. The mentors should have the skills, expertise and knowledge to coordinate the induction effectively. The  observations and notes taken from the induction process states where the new staff is standing and now what skills and abilities should be focused for further development. Thus the progression should continue to give the new staff a chance to enhance their qualifications and skill where they lack. 1.4 Analyze the role of the induction process in supporting others to understand the values, principles and agreed ways of working within a work setting The induction is a planned process which involves various members. The process of induction depends upon how clear and effective your induction policy is. The policy clearly states the role of each member involved in the induction process; and there is a checklist present for each phase. In this way let a newbie join at the beginning of the session or in the mid of the session every newbie is going to enjoy the induction process so that she understands all her duties and responsibilities adhered to the job. This newbie will learn all the tricks of the trade going on in the organization pretty well including the mission vision and what quality work is expected from her to derive learning and motivation from the students. It is not a one day process it depends the new recruit. If he/she is already an experience teacher then induction for a few weeks are enough but if it’s newly qualified teacher then induction can go as long as 1 term or may be more than that. However if the new teacher is not being monitored as it should be by the mentor or instead of mentoring the mentor has started dictating than induction process loses its effectiveness. It merely becomes a chit chat session If the induction is done effectively with the old staff members as well. One of the advantages of the process is that you get to know where your staff stands. The members of your staff are hard working but lacking in some skills or the other, there you can hold different workshops and training sessions by calling the expertise. Also during the session the mission vision, policies new or updated can be explained/refreshed so your team  members avoid mistakes and know what you expect from them during their tenure. In this way you can ensure quality education for your students by providing competent staff members. However this can turn the table over if the policy does not fully cover all areas of induction and that there is no checklist to keep track of the induction progress. 1.5 Analyze the role of induction in safeguarding individuals and others with a work setting One of the aims of the induction process is safeguarding individuals from any harm coming to them. If I were to head the process of induction in my setting then first and foremost I would make sure that I have all the policies updated and required for safeguarding, e.g. fire safety, health and safety, child protection policies etc. I would make sure that each member of my staff undergoes basic child protection and first aid training, to raise awareness that equips them to recognize and respond to child welfare concerns. This training would start soon after a staff is appointed. They would also be induced on how to deal with emergency situations such as fire. I would hold a fake fire alarm schedule so that the staff and the children know how to react in emergency situations. However, this might not be effective if a large number of staff is present as time can become an issue. But yes if the process is scheduled in batches then this can be overcome. Once it happened in a classroom a child who was usually active was feeling low and wanted to lie down from time to time. Had not my colleague taken child safety training she would have let him sleep but she quickly responded and dashed to the clinic by the time the child had collapsed in her arms. The Dr. called the parents and the child was taken in an emergency to a nearby hospital. The Doctors praised the teacher for timely help otherwise the child’s condition could have worsened. The parents later on admitted that the child had fever and that they gave him medicine which had a  sedative effect. In the end I would like to conclude that to make induction effective w.r.t. time, money and resources there should be an effective carefully planned induction policy and checklist. This policy should be revised from time to time and should also involve feedback from the staff in order to update and make the policy more effective. The team chosen should be carefully chosen according to their abilities. However If there is no check list or policies and procedures up to date or not in place or the mentor is not qualified and knowledgeable enough then the induction process will lose its spirit and it can go totally wrong leaving behind a mere chit chat session.

Strategic Changes That Reversed Sainsburys Fortunes Management Essay

Strategic Changes That Reversed Sainsburys Fortunes Management Essay In the last two decades of the twentieth century the UK supermarket chain, Sainsburys, suffered from an almost continuing decline in its corporate fortunes, which its management of the time seemed unable to stop. Not least important of these events was the loss of its competitive position within the UK supermarket sector. From a position of being the market leader by 1995 Sainsburys had relinquished this spot to its rival Tesco (Johnson, Scholes Whittington, 2005) and even this second position was lost to Asda, a brand that had been strengthened as a result of its takeover by the American giant Wal-Mart.(BBC News, 2006).As a result of the corporations problems, during the early part of this decade it began to look very likely that the Sainsburys brand would either disappear from the UK or be acquired by new owners as investors became increasingly disheartened with the business returns and performance. Justin King, the current CEO of Sainsburys, joined the business in March 2004 (Sainsburys 2005), at a time when, due to lack of competitiveness and poor performance in comparison with rivals, Sainsburys had become a constant target for potential takeover bids (Hutchings 2004). Contrary to expectations at the time of his appointment, during the course of the past five years King has been seen as responsible for the reversal of Sainsburys fortune, which can be evidenced by the fact that a 2007 takeover bid valued the business at  £10.6 billion, more than twice the  £5 billion bid considered three years earlier (Mail online 2009). It is the changes in Sainsburys fortunes that form the focus of this essay. The intention is to both analyse and evaluate the strategic choices the corporation has adopted under Kings leadership in order to improve its response to changes that occur within the industry and its marketplace. Strategic changes at Sainsburys post 2004 Research into corporate strategy, once concerned mainly with the internal operations of the business, has now been extended to include the impact of external forces and events (Johnson et al, 2005). Thus as Johnson, Scholes Whittington (2008) observe, it can be defined as an organisations abilities to renew and recreate its strategic capabilities to meet the needs of a changing environment. In this respect corporate strategy within supermarkets such as Sainsburys, was focused upon the creation of competitive advantage (Porter, 2004a), a position that was deemed as being achieved whenever it outperforms its competitors (Pettigrew, Thomas Whittington, 2002, p.55). However, as Grant (2004) and others have suggested, simply achieving competitive advantage is not sufficient. To sustain its success, a business has to continue to build upon its advantage to ensure is does not lose out to other competitors in the future, a situation which the management at Sainsburys had failed to address prior to 2004. On his appointment as CEO, King reviewed the current business strategy and introduced changes in several key areas as part of his three year programme aimed at turning the business around (Sainsburys 2005). The first task to be faced was to identify the core areas of potential business growth, which was deemed by King to be the UK market. This led to the sale of Sainsburys US supermarket chain and the use of the proceeds to acquire a number of Morrison stores that were sold as a part of regulatory conditions attached to its purchase of Safeway, as well as a planned expansion into the convenience store sector. As King said at the time, this was needed to strengthen our market position and deliver future growth (Food Drink Europe, 2004, para3). The second task was to decide where and how the business should refocus its drive for competitive advantage, which as Grant (2004) indicates, meant using either cost and/or differentiation as the main strategic drivers for success in terms of adding value for the customer and shareholder. It is clear from the latter part of this explanation that to create such an advantage it is important for the Sainsburys brand, to be seen as sufficiently different from those of its competitors so as to establish its own brand identification and customer loyalties (Porter, 2004b, p.9). In other words, as Tyreman (2009 para10) indicates within his study on marketing, the key and essential element of brand design and promotion is for the corporation to ensure that the chosen strategy of differentiation must be unique enough to enable it to stand out from its competitors. This is especially important in a case like Sainsburys which is competing for market share within a UK supermarket and grocery sect or, which is considered by many people to have reached a position of saturation over a decade ago (Q Finance,n.d.para15). In terms of cost, both Tesco and Asda had overtaken Sainsburys in the sector as a result of their low-price strategy. In addition, their quality of service and differentiation was perceived by the customer to be superior to the Sainsburys brand, which meant that Sainsburys new management team needed to develop a strategy that would address both of these issues. In relation to low-cost the business and marketing strategy was changed to concentrate more upon reducing prices. In addition to this impacting upon recognised brand goods, this led to a change of direction, which included the expansion and promotion of its low-price own brand alternatives within its stores, an area where competitors had built a significant advantage. To ensure that this approach did not have an adverse effect upon the financial performance of the business and the value being added for shareholders, this also meant that the business had to introduce a cost reduction and efficiency programme across the supply chain (Porter, 2004a). Improvements were therefore made to the supply chain processes, which included the introduction of new technology aimed at increasing cost efficiency, such as the implementation of IT knowledge and data management systems (Mari, 2009). As an integral aspect of this process the relationship with suppliers, and their influence upon the supply chain, particularly product design, cost and distribution were also re-evaluated in an effort to lower costs and improve delivery to the customer, for example with the adoption of a system geared towards the JIT inventory model (Just in Time). The effect of these changes was to aid the lowering of in-store prices whilst at the same time continuing to retain and grow business value. However, on their own these changes would not provide the change in fortunes required by the business unless they were accompanied by a process that would improve the relationship and brand image that it was promoting and marketing to both existing and potential customers (Wilson Gilligan, 2005). In terms of quality of service, this also meant that the business would require the commitment of its employees. As Sainsburys had learnt, through loss of market share, the relationship that a business builds and develops with its potential customer is essential to the long term success of the business and its ability to expand its share of the market(Lancaster Massingham,2001).As Kotler ( n.d. P.159) observes, the organisation that develops and implements the best tools to enable it to forecast where customers are moving, and to be in front of them, will be the one that gains the competitive advantage from these processes. Having failed to maintain its advantage in this respect, it was apparent that the existing approach to customer relationships at Sainsburys was another area of corporate strategy that King needed to address. Three main strategic changes were made within the business with regard to its relationship with customers. The first of these was to improve the communication process that existed between the business and its potential customer base, so that it could gain the required feedback that would help the business to understand the changing demands and needs of the customer (Lancaster and Massingham, 2001). This was achieved through a programme that included additional market research, which included in-store and external surveys and questionnaires. In addition, the management team was encouraged to spend more time in the corporations stores, talking to customers as well as employees in order to gain a better insight into how the business service and quality was perceived (Blackhurst, 2005). Secondly, driven by the results of this feedback, the business improved its employee training processes, particularly in the area of service quality, with the focus being on improving the customer shoppin g experience within their stores. One crucial element of strategy aimed at improving the customer shopping experience is reliant upon the management of the human resource function (Grant, 2005). In simple terms Human Resource Management (HRM) is defined as a strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organisations most valued assets-the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of its objectives(Armstrong, 2006.p.2.). It is the considered opinion of most academics that the type of relationship that business management has with its employees will have an important effect upon the success of its aims and objectives (Grant, 2005). Therefore, in keeping with other competitors within its own and other retail sectors, Sainsburys has had to review its HR policies and processes as part of the strategic changes required following the appointment of King in 2004. This review included both the internal aspect of human resources as well as the benefits and disadvantages the se will have upon the external business environment. One option that was immediately chosen was to increase the number of employees by 3,000; most were engaged in customer facing positions (Sainsburys, 2005). In addition the internal HR processes were changed. As Armstrong (2006) observes, there is generally considered to be two alterative options to HRM in business. These are the hard approach, which considers the management of employees should focus solely upon the effect that the individual or group of employees have in terms of assisting in the achievement of corporate goals, in other words what value the employee adds to the business. Alternatively, there is the soft approach, which is based upon employee involvement and motivation (Armstrong, 2006). With this approach the business seeks to understand and address the needs of the employee as well, primarily because it is considered that this will improve motivation and, as a result, increase quality and productivity. In Sainsburys it had already become apparent by 2004 that its major competitors, Tesco and Asda, had embarked upon a process of employee involvement which, using an appropriate approach to leadership and team building, was enabling these businesses to improve the success of their respective businesses in the area of human relationship management (Pettigrew et al. 2002). As Armstrong (2006) indicates the chances of successful adoption of a corporate strategy are much improved if the business has developed a relationship with the workforce that encourages involvement and participation at all stages of its development and implementation. It is not surprising therefore, that King and his management team decided the corporation needed to introduce a more robust HR regime and system; one that paid more attention to the importance of employee involvement and satisfaction within the decision making process of the business. Taking into account that it is the business front line employees who have the closest contact with the customer they therefore designed a strategic change that was designed around the soft approach. This change was achieved to a large extent by copying their competitors systems. In other words, they made management more accessible to the employee, involved them to a greater extent in business decisions, through a process of individual store and regional meetings and encouraged the employee to submit innovative and new ideas to their management team at all levels (Sainsburys, 2005). Finally, Sainsburys made significant changes to its approach in relation to the marketing and promotion of the brand. As Lancaster Massingham (2001) rightly observe, when any change in strategy is introduced it is important to communicate that message to the existing and potential customer. Therefore a new style of campaign has been developed by the corporation over the past four years that has concentrated upon delivering a message that focuses upon the low-price and customer service quality of the business offerings and shopping experience. This focused upon two main areas of the new strategy. The first, using a low-price approach, which concentrated on the promotion of its value brand and Meal for  £5, emphasised its commitment to a low-cost approach. The second, using celebrities such as Jamie Oliver to provide advice to customers about meals, using the companys products and portraying the friendliness of its employees, sought to reaffirm and build the business relationship wi th the customer. It is through the introduction of all of these strategic changes, culminating with the development of a promotional campaign, which includes the use of household celebrities that Sainsburys has sought to reposition the brand and increase its competitive advantage over other market players. The intention of this new approach has therefore been to improve its brand image, incorporating its new low-price focus with an improved range and choice of products and services. The objective being to change the customers previously held perception of the business. Impact of the Strategic changes Having analysed and discussed the various improvements that have been introduced at Sainsburys since King became CEO, the question that remains is to assess how positive the impact of these strategic changes has proven for the business and in this respect an evaluation of subsequent results produces mixed results. As will be discovered from the following comments, not all of these are positive. In relation to the change in Sainsburys market share within the supermarket sector, although there has been some improvement in this area resulting from the changes made to the corporate strategy, it still remains in third position (figure 1). This is in spite of the fact that in the past two years Sainsburys has improved its market share of the industry by almost 1% (BBC News 2006). Figure .Market Share Comparison Source: BBC News (2008) What is equally apparent from the decade comparison is that, when judged against its two main competitors, even taking into account recent improvements, it is noticeable that Sainsburys has still lost significant ground, in the case of Tesco by over 12%. It therefore follows that, in order to narrow the gap still further, and indeed to re-secure its position as the second biggest competitor in the sector, Sainsburys will have to continue to develop its strategy in a manner that provides it with a level of competitive advantage that remains superior to that of its rivals. Another aspect to consider in evaluating the success of strategic changes made from 2004 onwards, is the extent to which the strategic changes have delivered on expectations and predictions made at the commencement of the term of the new management team. In part it is these predictions that were responsible for the failure of the takeover bids being made for the business at that time, as investors considered that, if delivered, the return on their investment was likely to be improved. In the CEOs report within the 2005 financial statement, King suggested that the business had embarked upon a three-year programme designed to grow sales by  £2.5 billion by the end of 2007/08 and return Sainsburys to sustainable growth in both sales and profitability.(Sainsburys,2005).The subsequent financial results (figure 2) show that, this has been achieved, if one views this improvement from the 2005 results and, furthermore, that the improvement has been continued in subsequent years and, up to the year end for 2009 at least, seems to be defying the impact of the recent economic and financial crisis. Figure . Sainsburys Turnover 2001-2009 Source: Sainsburys (2005 and 2009) This potential improvement can be measured in another way, namely the performance of the share price for the same period of time. Figure .Sainsburys-10 Year Share Price Source: http://markets.ft.com/ft/markets/interactiveChart.asp It is confirmed from this comparison that, from its lowly position when King was appointed, Sainsburys share performance improved dramatically until around the end of 2007, when a new bidder for the business was rumoured to be occurring (Peston,2007). At that stage its performance almost matched those of Tesco and Morrisons. However, since the 2007 bid was aborted the adverse share performance between Sainsburys and the others has widened considerably, meaning that shareholders value is now a little more than 15% better than it was five years ago. Future Focus and Strategies Since 2004 Sainsburys has adapted and embraced change to secure its survival and prosperity. In todays challenging trading conditions it continues to focus on capitalising on these changes by identifying consumer trends and forecasting where such trends are leading, always with the end goal of securing trading success (Wilson Gilligan, 2005). In this current economic crisis Sainsburys has shown it has managed not only to ride out the recession but to emerge from it a winner with like for like sales in the quarter to January 2010 increasing by 4.2% .Analysts in 2010 are now saying that Sainsburys strong performance shows just how far the supermarket chain has come since March 2004 under King and acknowledge that his strategic changes have broadened the brand appeal of Sainsburys and turned its future around (Hall, 2010). With its future plans to focus on estate development and to step up its on-line resources in both food and non food, the support of its suppliers will be crucial to sustain Sainsburys future growth. To this end in March 2010 a Sainsburys Trade Briefing will be held to give all suppliers the opportunity to ascertain how they can work in tandem with the retailer in the testing year ahead to everyones mutual benefit. Conclusion In conclusion therefore, whilst it would be correct to say that the strategic changes made following the appointment of King have, to some extent led to a reversal of its former fortunes, certainly in respect of the comparison of its own revenue streams, in other areas the improvements have not been as beneficial as investors and the management anticipated. Gains in market share sufficient for the business to recover second position have changed little between 2005 and 2008, which means that the brand image and its promotional message needs to be improved to encourage more customers to choose Sainsburys in preference to other competitors. Similarly the share performance indicates that the business has still not totally convinced the markets that it can sustain its recovery.