Food Traceability And Safety Business Essay

Food Traceability And Safety Business Essay Food traceability and safety is an up and coming trend. With the slow food, organic, and natural movements more consumers are wanting to know where their food is coming from. Food producers also are making food traceability a trend because each producer wants to know who they can point fingers at when a customer claims that they have become sick from a producers food. For most producers, traceability is just one element of any supply-management or quality/safety control system. Tracking an apple from the tree to your mouth is something that each producer needs to know. They need to know where that apple was to make sure that the apple did not go anywhere it shouldnt have been. So, what exactly is traceability? How does it work, and what can it accomplish with regards to safety? Most important, does the U.S. food supply have enough traceability and therefore, safety? What is traceability and how does it pertain to our food system? The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines traceability as the ability to trace the history, application, or location of that which is under consideration (CITE). For this paper, that which is under consideration will be food. The ISO uses a very broad definition for traceability which is necessary for several reasons. First, because food is a complex system and traceability has not been developed for every product. Second, because no traceability system is ever complete. Things change, the purveyor changes, the field changes, the picker changes so each companys food traceability plan must be fluid. For instance, Even a hypothetical system for tracking beef-in which consumers scan their packet of beef at the checkout counter and access the animals date and location of birth, lineage, vaccination records, and use of mammalian protein supplements-is incomplete. This system does not provide traceability with respect to bacterial control in the barn, use of genetically engineered feed or animal welfare attributes like hours at pasture and play time (CITE). Finally, the definition must stay broad because new products are constantly being developed. Each company will have their own definition of food traceabilit y because each company must determine the necessary breadth, depth, and precision of their traceability systems depending on characteristics of their production process and their traceability objectives. (CITE) Food traceability needs to be a fluid system in order to compensate for the constant changes in the food systems. Money has been invested into the food traceability industry since companies first started to realize that food traceability was important in the late nineties. Industry analysts calculate that during 2000, American companies spent $1.6 trillion on supply-related activities, including the movement, storage, and control of products across the supply chain (CITE). However, spending money on food traceability will probably have a return on investment, and often is the difference between a successful company and an unsuccessful one. Food traceability is becoming an important area of concentration for companies. When margins are thin, as they are in the food industry, knowing where your product comes from and the possibility of avoiding a consumer lawsuit in some cases justifies the expense. This means that if a company invests one million dollars into creating a food traceability system, they will probably save more money from avoided lawsuits in the end run. This is not only true for ver y high risk foods but also true of any food product that is at risk. The government is also aware that food traceability is an issue that is going to have to be looked at. There was an increase in the FDA budget in 2009 of $275 million. This increase brings the total budget for the FDA in 2009 to $406.3 million, a 17.9% increase over fiscal year 2008. A large portion of this increase ($125 million) will be used for food safety and will allow FDA to intensify actions to implement the Food Protection Plan (CITE). Many industry analysts believe that every company that deals with food and the supply chain will have to eventually embrace food traceability, if they do not, the consequence may be their business. The facts are uncompromising and pressure continues to mount from consumers, the media, retailers and numerous government regulatory agencies (CITE). With the government endorsing food traceability systems, most companies are realizing that food traceability is important. However, most companies do not know where to start to build a food traceability system. How does a company trace food? Often electronic coding systems are used to help trace food. In some cases the buyer manages the food traceability system; in other cases supply companies manage the system. Retailers such as Wal-Mart have created proprietary supply-chain information systems, which they require their suppliers to adopt (CITE). Companies start with a primary producer, which include the farmer and grower, then the processor, which include the packer, re-packer, processor and, if applicable, the manufacturer. Then the product moves to distribution possibly including the wholesaler or the distributor,a retail store or foodservice operator. For examplie, if you own a small restaurant and need to trace an apple used for apple pie. First, you have the farmer who takes care of the apple trees. The farmer will need to record who came into contact with the tree, and what supplies or chemicals came into contact with the tree. Then the apple will be picked. The farmer will need to record the person who picked the apple. Next, the apple is shipped to the processor who packs the apples. The processor must record everyone who came into contact with the apple or the boxes that the apple is packed in. Next, the apple goes to the distributor. The same thing happens at the distributor, everyone who comes into contact with the apple or anything that comes into contact with the apple is recorded. When you, the purchaser for the small business, order the apple you need to know that the supplier knows where the apple came from so that if one of your customers gets sick because of the apple you can tell the supplier and the supplier can s top all distribution of that apple. Suppliers are adapting to the changing food traceability systems. For instance the ratio of private inventories to final sales of domestic business has fallen by half since the end of WWII. This downward trend reflects growing efficiencies in supply management in the U.S. food industry, including traceability systems. This trend is expected to continue as food manufacturers continue to adopt technologies already in use in other industries (CITE AND EDIT). This is because as a small business owner, you want to rely on a supplier to trace your food rather than your company tracing the food. Also, larger companies, consumers and retailers all realize the need for food traceability so they in turn buy from companies with food traceability-like the apple example, the company needs to know where the apple or product originated and where it has been. Companies have a few objectives when using food traceability systems. First, improve supply management. Supply management improves because when you are using food traceability you will know where a single product is in your supply line. Second, facilitate trace back for food safety and quality. This means that if a consumer becomes sick from a product that came from a producer; the producer can trace the product to make sure no other contaminated products go out and the contaminated products that are circulating are recalled. Another objective is to differentiate and market foods with subtle of undetectable quality attributes. Companies improve supply management when using food traceability because they know which producers are giving them Grade A product and which producers are giving them Grade B product. This allows the supply companies to decide which producers they want to keep and which they want to let go. This also can contribute to a lower cost distribution system and reduce d recall expenses because suppliers know which producer made the mistake so they can pass most of the expense onto the producer. Food traceability also ensures trace back for food safety and quality. Traceability systems help companies isolate the source and extent of the safety or quality control problems. This makes sure if an infected product gets to the shelf it can be removed right away and possibly stop an outbreak. The better and more precise the tracing system, the faster a producer can identify and resolve food safety or quality problems. Companies also have started to enhance food traceability by sending third party safety/quality auditors to the sites to audit the quality of the food traceability system. These auditors provide consumers with verification that traceability systems exist to substantiate credence claims. For example, auditors from Food Alliance, a nonprofit organization, certify foods grown with a specific set of sustainable agricultural practices. Having a representative on site also ensures companies are sending the correct product. For instance, in the United States a farm has to be organic for three years in order to get the organic certification on their product. If a producer claims to be organic, and a consumer finds out that they are not organic, consequences can occur for the company, supplier, and producer. With food traceability there is no danger that producers would try to cheat consumers by selling non-GE (genetically engineered) soybeans as GE soybeans. In cases where markets do not supp ly enough traceability for food safety trace back, a number of industry groups have developed food safety and trace back standards. For example, the California cantaloupe industry has incorporated traceability requirements in their marketing strategy in order to monitor food safety practices. In addition, buyers in every sector are increasingly relying on contracting, vertical integration, or associations to improve product traceability and facilitate the verification of safety and quality attributes. The government may step in to ensure food safety by creating policy aimed at increasing the cost of distributing unsafe (non traceable) foods, such as fines or plant closures, or policies that increase the probability of catching unsafe food producers, such as increased safety testing or foodborne illness surveillance, will also provide firms with incentives to strengthen their traceability systems. Foodborne illness surveillance systems increase the capability of the entire food suppl y chain to respond to food safety problems before they grow and affect more consumers. In the past decade the United States has had many outbreaks. Food can become contaminated at many different steps on the farm, in processing or distribution facilities, during transit, at retail and food service establishments, and in the home. The ability to trace pathways of any food, including tomatoes and other fresh produce, through every point in the supply chain is crucial for limiting foodborne illness in an outbreak, for preventing future outbreaks, and for reducing the impact on the segments of the industry whose products were not associated with the illnesses. The pathways that fresh produce travels from field to consumer have become increasingly complex, with items sometimes changing hands many times in the supply chain. For instance by the time an apple goes from a tree to a consumers mouth it comes into contact with multiple people, the person who checks the apples, the person who picks the apple, the person who transports the apples, and the person who checks the appl e at the distribution plant. In 2007 there was a multi-state outbreak of Salmonella associated with the consumption of peanut butter. In 2006, CDC informed FDA of a multi-state outbreak of illnesses associated with the consumption of fresh spinach contaminated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 (CITE). There are many illnesses associated with fresh produce, which causes food traceability to be a growing concern for the FDA. FDA is the Federal agency that regulates almost everything we eat except for meat, poultry, and processed egg products, which are regulated by the partners at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Fresh produce presents special challenges for the FDA. Addressing the way fresh produce is grown, harvested, and moved from field to fork is crucial to minimizing the risk of microbial contamination. In recent years the FDA have worked with the industry to develop guidance on ways to prevent or minimize potential contamination, conducting educational outreach to consumers on safe food handl ing practices, sampling and analyzing both domestic and imported produce for pathogens, and working with industry and foreign countries to promote the use of good growing, harvesting, packing, transporting, and processing practices. However, education is only one part of better food traceability, research is another critical element. The FDA is currently working on improving the identification and detection of disease-causing bacteria and toxins in a variety of foods. Currently, there are four recognized classes of enterovirulent  E.  coli  that cause gastroenteritis in humans. These are collectively referred to as the EEC group. E. coli  O157:H7 is one of hundreds of strains of the bacterium  in the EEC group. The U.S. Department of Agricultures Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) defines  Escherichia coli  0157:H7  as a bacterium  that lives harmlessly in the intestines of animals such as cattle, reptiles, and birds (CITE). However, in humans the bacterium, which can be transmitted by foods, animal contact, and drinking water- can cause bloody  diarrhea, and may lead to  hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a life threatening disease. Although other generic strains of  E. coli  are thought to be harmless to humans, the O157:H7 strain is particularly virulent and dangerous. E. coli  O157:H7 was first recognized as a cause of illness in 1982 during an outbreak of severe bloody diarrhea; the outbreak was traced to cont aminated hamburgers. Since then, eating undercooked ground beef has caused more infections in the United States. Most people recover without antibiotics or other specific treatment within 5 to 10 days. Antibiotics should not be used to treat this infection. There is no evidence that antibiotics improve the course of disease, and it is thought that treatment with some antibiotics could lead to kidney complications. E. coli O157:H7 can cause death in humans. To prevent E. coli 0157:H7 cook all ground beef and hamburger thoroughly. This is because ground been can turn brown before disease causing bacteria can be killed. Drink only pasteurized milk, juice, or cider. Wash fruits and vegetables under running water, especial those that will not be cooked- doing this will may not remove all contamination because bacteria is sticky but it will remove most. Finally, make sure that persons with diarrhea, especially children, wash their hands carefully with soap after bowel movements to reduce the risk of spreading infection, and that persons wash hands after changing soiled diapers. E. coli 0157:H7 is a major health problem. It is estimated to cause infection in more than 70,000 patients a year in the United States. It has been reported to cause both large outbreaks as well as isolated sporadic infections in small numbers of individuals. In 2006, CDC informed FDA of a multi-state outbreak of illnesses associated with the consumption of fresh spinach contaminated with Escherichia coli O157:H7. Although this outbreak involved a perishable food, the food was sold in a package. The traceback investigation was facilitated because several consumers who had become ill still had packages of fresh spinach in their refrigerators. The information on those packages ultimately led investigators to the spinach processors. By looking at the processors records, the investigators were able to identify the implicated farms associated with the identified production lot of bagged spinach. This is an example of a trace back of medium complexity that took a little longer than the peanut butter outbreak in 2007. In 2007, CDC notified FDA of a multi-state outbreak of Salmonella Tennessee infections. In this case, because it was not a perishable food, consumers who had become ill still had jars of peanut butter available for testing. This enabled investigators to confirm the presence in that food of the contaminant associated with the outbreak. Further, because the food was packaged, the investigators were able to identify the manufacturer through the information on the jars. This is an example of a rapid trace back in which the necessary information was readily available. Salmonella  (S.) is the genus name for a large number (over 2,500) of types of bacteria. Every year, approximately 40,000 cases of salmonellosis are reported in the U.S. Because many milder cases are not diagnosed or reported, the actual number of infections may be 30 or more times greater. Salmonellosis is a rod-shaped, motile bacterium which is more common in the summer than winter. Salmonellosis can be caused by contaminated food processing or handling, especially by handling food with unwashed hands. Salmonella may also be found in the feces of some pets, especially those with diarrhea. You can become infected if you do not wash your hands after contact with these feces. Reptiles, baby chicks and ducklings, and small rodents such as hamsters are particularly likely to carry salmonella. Beef, poultry, milk, and eggs are most often infected with salmonella. But vegetables may also be contaminated. Contaminated foods usually look and smell normal. Symptoms include diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps. These symptoms develop 12 to 72 hours after infection, and the illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days.  Most people recover without treatment. But diarrhea and  dehydration  may be so severe that it is necessary to go to the hospital. Older adults, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are at highest risk. Food traceability is becoming an important area for concentration for companies because when margins are thin, knowing where your product comes from and the possibility of avoiding a consumer suing the company is worth the company (in some cases). The government and companies are now seeing the rewards of food traceability and putting money into food traceability. They have realized that spending money on food traceability will probably have a pay off in the end, and often is the difference between a successful company and an unsuccessful one. Food traceability also ensures traceback for food safety and quality. Traceability systems help firms isolate the source and extent of safety or quality control problems. This makes sure if an infected product gets to the shelf it can be removed right away and possibly stop an outbreak. The better and more precise the tracing system, the faster a producer can identify and resolve food safety or quality problems. Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Sal monella  are responsible for a large number of deaths each year, these can in part be avoided with better food tracing systems to ensure that food gets to consumers quicker. The concept of food origin tracing is not new to the industry. The safety and integrity of our food has always been a concern for meat, food and beverage producers. However, the world has become more risky. Increased globalization of supply chain sourcing and distribution, combined with political instability, more rapid spread of contamination and disease, and the growing threat of international terrorism have brought the issues of food supply safety and traceability to the forefront of public concern.

Sony Corporation Innovation All The Way Business Essay

Sony Corporation Innovation All The Way Business Essay The report is an evaluation of the organization structure implemented by Sir Howard Stringer in October 2005. The transition of Sonys organization structure from Transnational structural to multidivisional structure has been analyzed in detail. Goold and Campbells five tests have been conducted to determine the appropriateness of Sir Howard Stringers structural choice given his desire to make Sony a more innovative and flexible organization. The risks and benefits of the structural choice has also been assessed. The report displays the cultural web of Sony before and after Sir Howards arrival. It was derived that the Reconstruction type of strategic change had been used to bring about the transformation in the organizations culture. Consequently, Sir Howard adopted the Education and Communication and the Collaboration/Participation styles of strategic change implementation. In conclusion, it can be seen that the stock share value has increased during 2005-2007 which means that Howard Stringer was doing a good job at implementing his change. Acknowledgement We thank Heriot-Watt for giving us the opportunity to enhance our learning in Strategic Project Management by means of this group assignment. We would like to give a hearty thanks to our Professors at Heriot Watt, namely Dr. M. A. Salama and Dr. Michael Clarke for their time and guidance for completing this assignment. We would like to thank the university librarian Ramakant for his cooperation in providing us the appropriate books and journals for reference. We would also like to thank our families and friends for their support through out the completion of this assignment. We could not have done this without them. PM Stars Incorporated Introduction As a part of this report let us start by introducing Sony Corporation. SONY Sony is one of the leading manufacturers of electronics, video, communications, video game consoles, and information technology products for the consumer and professional markets. Sony was founded on 7th May 1946. The representative corporate executive officers at Sony as of today as Howard Stringer(Chairman, CEO and President), Ryoji Chubachi (Vice Chairman) and Nobuyuki Oneda (Executive Deputy President and CFO). (Sony Global (2009) has provided the above information). Sony Corporation (commonly referred to as Sony) is a multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, and one of the worlds largest media conglomerates with revenue exceeding  ¥ 7.730.0 trillion, or $78.88 billion U.S. (FY2008). Its name is derived from sonus, the Latin word for sound. Sony Corporation is the electronics business unit and the parent company of the Sony Group, which is engaged in business through its five operating segments-electronics, games, entertainment (motion pictures and music), financial services and other. Sonys principal business operations include Sony Corporation (Sony Electronics in the U.S.), Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment, Sony Music Entertainment, Sony Ericsson, and Sony Financial. As a semiconductor maker, Sony is among the Worldwide Top 20 Semiconductor Sales Leaders. The companys slogan is make.believe. (Wikipedia (2009) provided information regarding Sony Corporation). Company Strategy Vision (2005): make Sony cool again Vision (2009): make.believe When Howard Stringer joined as the CEO of Sony Global Japan he made new strategies and used those strategies to restructure the organization to be in-line with these strategies. Firstly, he looked at the core competencies of the company and focused mainly on the electronics, games and entertainment sector. He established a growth strategy saying, Our target is for the Sony Group to achieve consolidated sales of over 8 trillion yen and an operating profit margin of 5% (electronics 4%) by the end of fiscal year 2007. NewsBlaze (2005) published the company strategy from the fiscal year 2005 to 2008 as given in Appendix C of this report. The three-year revitalization plan/strategy was as follows (in brief): Restructuring the Electronics Organization Eliminated the corporate silos and bring more focus on competitive growth. Improving Sonys Profit Structure Cost Reductions Sale of Real Estate, Stock and Non-Core Assets Strengthening Sonys Current Electronics Business Focus on areas of the Electronics business by bringing profitability in television by the second half of 2006. Focusing Resources on Growth Strategy Making the HD World and Major Profit Pillar Launching of a range of high-definition products in 2006. Focusing on Intelligent Interoperable Products Developing network-enabled products and applications Strengthening Technology Development Creation of Home and Mobile Platforms Concentrating Investment on Semiconductors and Key Component Devices Next-Generation Display (OLED) Enhancing Software Development Group Convergence Strategy Pursuit of mobile entertainment Establishment of Cell Development Center Group Strategy by Individual Sector focus on: Games Entertainment Motion Pictures Music Mobile Phones Financial Services Network Services, Retail Retail Business Note: Refer to Appendix C for a detailed Company Strategy. Organizational Structure Corporate Structure of Sony Corporation From the analysis on the organizational structure that Howard Stringer was trying to implement in 2005 we can see that it was clearly a multi-divisional structure. This structure has been further worked on since 2005 and there have been slight changes to the same. Multi-Divisional structure (M-form) The multi-divisional structure is also known as the product structure where the divisional structure groups organizational function into a division. Each division works as an independent section within the company and the divisional structure contains all the necessary resources and functions within it. Each Division will have its own sales, engineering and marketing departments. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2009). The organizational structure in 2005 that Howard Stringer was trying to implement is a hybrid structure which is as follows (Please refer to Appendix A for the assignment of each person in the division): Figure 1 Sony Organizational chart (as of Oct 2005) (Source: Johnson, Scholes and Whittington, 2008) Please refer to Appendix B for the new Organization Structure as of 1st July. From the organizational structure above it can be seen that Howard Stringer was attempting to implement the multi-divisional structure. He had assigned Ryoji Chubachi to handle the main Electronics business and Chubachi had implemented the multinational matrix structure. We will not go into details of the matrix structure but will explain it below in brief. In case of the Multinational Structure of the organization we can see that there were a few business units that were put together in order to increase their responsiveness in the market. There were five committees created across all these business units and business groups. This gave a better integration of knowledge, flexibility and the ability to analyze these units across its procurement, technology, product strategy, sales and productive business outcomes. Strategy and Organizational Structure When Howard Stringer took over the Sony Global Corporation in 2005 he gave strategies for each product in the company. The strategies are stated above in the Introduction section of this report. As per the strategies implemented we can see clearly that he had devised different strategies for each core product that Sony was providing and so he also divided the companys organizational structure the same way. Thus, we see that the company is become more flat and each division is reporting to the Headquarters. As in a multidivisional organization such as Sony, the divisions become flexible as in the sense that they are able to merge, add or close divisions. This is apparent in the fact that Sonys Mobile division merged with Ericsson to produce Sony Ericsson range of mobiles. It can also be seen that Sonys Music Entertainment division had a 50-50 joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group naming Sonys Music division as Sony BMG Music Entertainment and in August 2008 Sony bought Bertelsmanns 50% shares and Sony renamed its Music division as Sony Music Entertainment. Ergo, it is apparent that because of Sonys multidivisional structure each division is able to work as its own company which is flexible enough to have joint-venture projects as in the case of Sony Ericsson and the company is also able to make the decision of buying over another company such as the Bertelsmann Music group. When Howard Stringer took over Sony he also closed down a chain of restaurants and other non-core business companies that Sony owned. With a multidivisional structure in place Sir Howard Stringer was able to control and oversee each division from a distance by monitoring the business performance of each division. If we look at the advantages of a multi-divisional structure we can see that because the structure is divided by product lines it allows each division to grow and specialize on their competences. We can see that each division has actually become its own company like the Sony Electronics Inc., the Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. As we will see in the redundancy test later in this report we can see that each of the companies that are based in each country have their own head offices. This means that there are many parent levels in this organization which means that many of the supporting departments such as HR and IT will be redundant but due to the large organization structure of the company Sony needs these headquarters to be set-up. Although the knowledge sharing and cooperation between the business units become very limited but Howard Stringer has tried overcoming this by placing five strategic committees across the business units which are the product, technology, production, procurement and sales. Thus standardizations and centralization has helped to reduce effort and poor coordination. Also, with Howard traveling around Sonys operations at a rate of 30,000 air miles a month (Nakamoto 2006) is building spirits and reflecting in the eyes of the employees all around Sony. Goold and Campbell Tests We will use the Goold and Campbell last 5 tests to determine the appropriateness of Howard Stringers structural choice given his desire to make Sony cool again (Clayton 2005). The Specialist Cultures Test: The Organization Structure: Specialist Culture test Figure 2 The Specialist Culture test In the Specialist Culture test we placed Sony between Good and Very Good as Sony has an Engineer-driven culture (Edwards, Lowry, Ihlwan, Hall 2005). Sony is an engineering culture (Paczkowski 2008) says Howard Stringer and they really take care of their engineers. Engineers have the freedom to think and come up with new designs. When a certain project was untaken engineers from all the different departments met in one place to finish that task. This shows that there is no organizational contamination of the specialist engineer culture test. The Difficult Links Test The Organization Structure: Difficult Links Test Figure 3 The Difficult Links Test Shared know-how Links Sony holds Knowledge-sharing sessions and several other activities company wide. They host forums to enable interactive discussion about the company news and they engage their employees in company developments and in-the-Know at all times as claimed by them on their website. Sony also provides all documents, policies, lessoned learned and all other types of documents on their intranet sites. Shared Tangible Resources Links Though with a multidivisional organization with so many parent companies the amount of duplication of work increases but after Sir Howard Stringer came into Sony he divided all core businesses by products into separate units that would report to the Corporate office and setup a corporate RD unit to reduce the duplications and also brought in standardized engineered products to help the reduction of cost. Pooled Negotiating Power Links Sonys Mobile division merged with Ericsson to produce Sony Ericsson range of mobiles. Ericsson had the latest mobile technology and Sony had the vast experience in consumer electronics and entertainment like music, pictures and games. Bringing them both together in a 50-50 joint venture gave Sony power in the market. This would help both the companies generate economies of scale. It can also be seen that Sonys Music Entertainment division had a 50-50 joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group naming Sonys Music division as Sony BMG Music Entertainment. Financial analysts covering the merger anticipated that up to 2,000 jobs would be cut as a result, saving Sony BMG approximately $350 million annually (Wikipedia, 2009) Coordinated Strategies Links After Sir Howard took over he put together the Electronics Unit which consisted of: The Semiconductor Business unit Core component Business Unit BP Business Group Audio Business Group Digital Imaging Business group VAIO Business Group Video Business Group TV Business Group Connect Company He strategically placed all these units and groups together in order to establish Sony as a leading player. They wanted to develop a semiconductor and core components group thus they put these two relevant new business units under the Electronics Unit. With this new engineering structure Sony wanted to increase their internally sourced components, centralize their engineering functions and reduce their cost by consolidating and cutting down their manufacturing sites. Vertical Integration Links By coordinating the flow of its internally sources components and by standardizing designs through out the company Sir Howard has managed to reduce cost and enhance product development. New-Business Creation Links Vertical integration is very obvious in the Sony business as they try to enter the digital world they are buying companies and doing joint ventures to meet the specific needs of their customers and that is to bring the mobile, music, gaming and video entertainment together. Sony is in a good position to do a backward or forward integration in case it decides to do so. The structure is flexible enough to accommodate that. The links are best handled through self-managed networking among units n top management should leave this up to the unit rather than impose to-down coordination process. The Redundant Hierarchy Test: The Organization Structure: The Redundant Hierarchy Test Figure 4 The redundant Hierarchy Test The reason we have placed them between satisfactory and good is because although the company had many parent levels in the organization they were able to reduce the redundancy through standardizing they internal sourced components. Sony also standardized its designs across the different units and in its core business which was the Electronics Business they had five committees across each group which were the product, technology, production, procurement and sales. This centralization has helped to reduce effort and poor coordination. Also, with Howard traveling around Sonys operations at a rate of 30,000 air miles a month (Nakamoto 2006) he tends to increase the communication gap between the different groups and companies at Sony. The Accountability Test The Organization Structure: The Accountability Test Figure 5 The Accountability Test The reason we have placed them between good and very good is because in the multidivisional structure the overall structure of the company is flat. Thus, most of the units are directly reporting to the corporate office. This increases the responsibility and accountability of each unit heads. The Flexibility Test The Organization Structure: The Flexibility Test Figure 6 The Flexibility Test The reason we have placed them between good in the case of its flexibility is because Sonys structure after Sir Howard Stringer had made it flexible for the company like the Sony Mobile business unit to merge with Ericsson Sonys Music Entertainment division had a 50-50 joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group. Sony also sold many of its non-core assets like the restaurant chains etc after its restructuring since it made it easy by moving these non-core business units out of the way to concentrate on the core business. The Risk and Benefits of the Multidivisional Structure As we found out through our analysis that Sony Corporation has a multidivisional structure and Goold and Campbells five tests of good general design principles helps us to see what risks and benefits that Sony Corporation faced when Howard Stringer took over. The Benefits   In Electronics group Sony placed centralized decision-making power over key areas under the Electronics CEO. This change assures coordination and focus across newly defined business groups. Exact horizontal coordination in main areas- product planning, technology, procurement, manufacturing, and sales and marketing-will allow fast and streamlined decision making across product lines. Concentration on particular business area (Games, Entertainment, Electronics, Mobile phones) Flexible (Sony Corporation can focus its resources on different business groups, which depends on market situation, add, close or merge divisions ) Specialization of competence (We can see that each division has actually become its own company like the Sony Electronics Inc., the Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.) Ability to give clear direction and make a working environment that draws out the unique talents of employees and helps them to reach their full potential Encourages general management development Ownership of strategy (As per the strategies implemented we can see clearly that he had devised different strategies for each core product that Sony was providing and so he also divided the companys organizational structure the same way) Investment in core businesses Sony divisions enable to work in tandem for their mutual advantage (to develop new-age products). The Risks Conflicts between divisions Additional cost of the center Difficulty of co-operation between business groups (due to the large organization structure of the company the knowledge sharing and cooperation between the business units become very limited but Howard Stringer has tried overcoming this by placing five strategic committees across the business units) Divisions might grow too large (as we said before each division has actually become its own company like the Sony Electronics Inc. or the Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. and there is a risk of them grow too large) Power is centralized As CEO Sir Howard Stringer recalled in a 2005 New Yorker article, the engineers started to suffer from a damaging not invented here syndrome, even as rivals were introducing next-generation products such as the iPod and Xbox. As a result of their belief that outside ideas were not as good as inside ones, they missed opportunities in such areas as MP3 players and flat-screen TVs and developed unwanted products-cameras that werent compatible with the most popular forms of memory, for instance. Looking at the above risks and benefits we can see that though there were a lot of risks in the structure Sir Howard needed to make a decision and he made this decision with the help of allies in the company and he also took help from persons who were made in-charge of changing the IBM structure many years back. They were successful in doing so and since Sir Howard was declared President of Sony Global we can say that he is still in there and is still fighting and restructuring to put Sony back on to globe again. Sony is today coming up with new customer focused products rather than products that are innovative but it is not what the customer wants. The Cultural Web Before Howard Stringer Organizational culture sometimes influences the organizations strategy if taken for granted. Culture has played a role in Sonys current financial difficulties. They had power blocks which hindered the flow of communication and corporation between the management, designers, production and marketing. The Cultural Web, developed by Gerry Johnson and Kevan Scholes in 1992, provides one such approach for looking at and changing your organizations culture. Using it, you can expose cultural assumptions and practices, and set to work aligning organizational elements with one another, and with your strategy. The Cultural Web identifies six interrelated elements that help to make up what Johnson and Scholes call the paradigm the pattern or model of the work environment. By analyzing the factors in each, you can begin to see the bigger picture of your culture: what is working, what isnt working, and what needs to be changed. The six elements are: Power Structures: Sony had a culture, were long serving executives have very strong influence on the organization. At their annual general meetings all these executives take up the front seats whiles the lower ranks are relegated to the back. Many of the working seniors did not even discuss their share values and did not have the involvement in the business. Control Systems: Sony emphasized on budget plans and emergency fixes as their main control systems. Quality was not really emphasized, they believed in getting the work done with the least amount of cost. Lower level staffs were not awarded for their achievements or bonuses given at the end of the year. All these were aimed at controlling cost. Organizational Structure: They had the functional/Transnational type of organization where the CEO sits at the top and all functional heads report to him. They believe in top management taking all the decisions without the involvement of the junior level engineers. These caused lack of communication and co-operation between the various units and more of delegation to get the problem solved. Stories: Sony had gone through continuous restructuring for the past 9 years to improve their financial positions. Sony was not customer focused. They did not invest in non-core businesses and lacked new-age products even though they had very good and talented engineers. Although Sony believed in harmony of the people and the company but with all this restructuring the morale of the employees was down and this was evident when there was a comment that there is sparkle in the eyes of the employees after Howard Stringer took over. Rituals Routines: As per the Japanese culture of respect Sony had a ritual that it never fired its high rank executives even after retiring. The senior managers were made Advisor (Gunther, 2006) and each of them had their own secretary, a car and driver and they also had the authority to second-question people who were actually working at Sony. At Sony the ritual was that if an engineer came to know about a fault in the product they would let the seniors know they would just fix the problem and just do it. Thus seniors were not involved in the business Symbols: There was a symbol of seniority when the company never really retired its senior managers and also in the fact that during annual meetings the seniors would be given the preferred and best seats in the hall while the others were given uncomfortable seats to symbolize the importance that Sony gave to its senior managers. To create the harmony they want and give employees a range of different health and wellness programs. Some of those (as taken from the Sony Site) are as below: They provided On-site fitness centers On-site flu shots On-site cafeterias Wellness fairs 100% medical and dental plans Health risk assessments Gym discounts Stop Smoking programs Nutrition information Ritual Routines Respect for senior managers Work in Harmony giving employees the best working environment. Seniors never got fired. Engineers got the freedom to do what they wanted to. Engineers did not inform senior managers of faults they just fixed it. Stories Continuous restructuring Morale was down Believed in the harmony of the environment and the peoples freedom of working in that environment Symbols Senior management given big pays No one really gets retired Health related programs and discounts available. Complete Medical covered. The Paradigm Respect for Seniors Emphasis on Harmony through-out the company Health and wellness programs, discounts and medical coverage Engineer-driven Culture New innovative products Power Structure A lot of power was given to seniors in the company who were not involved in the day to day work. Less responsibility on the shoulder of the seniors managers as responsibility was not taken Control Systems Budgets Emergency Fixes Organizational Structures Transnational Branches/devolved Delegative leadership style Engineer-driven culture Figure 7- Cultural Web before Howard Stringer became CEO of Sony Global Sony Corporation mainly focused on giving the best environment to its employees especially its engineers who were the minds behind the innovations. A high level of respect was kept between the senior and junior employees in the company. Various Health and wellness programs and benefits were available for employees. Sony was an engineer-driven culture which put what the engineers thought and innovated before what the customers wanted or what the market demanded. The Cultural Web After Howard Stringer Power Structures: Howard was made the new CEO thus giving power of the company to him. He was able to make changes but very smartly Howard made Chubachi his right hand man since he was aware that he was the first non-Japanese CEO of the company. His power can be seen in the fact that Howard is now President of Sony in 2009. Control Systems: There was a more cost control in the company through reduction of employees in many of the sites. Manufacturing companies were consolidated and shut down in many areas. Rewards and bonuses based on group performance (not seniority) after Howard Stringer had taken over. Organizational Structure: With the structural changes that Howard had made to the company Sony had a flatter structure. Management was made to be more involved in each of the business units of the company. There was more responsibility given to senior and middle management. Stories: As per Chubachi, it was said that since Sir Howard had taken over there was a sparkle in the eyes of the employees. The over all morale of the company was better. After Howard came people were still not sure if they knew where they were leading to but they understood the company strategy which was to make the company cool again. People were more excited. Rituals Routines: After Howard came he dissolved the advisory board that consisted of 45 senior mangers who had a say in the company even after they had retired. Main customer who had used Sony products for a long time where now giving their inputs on the Sony products. Engineers were given more appreciations. Success was being celebrated through Award ceremonies, Christmas parties, training programs and knowledge sharing sessions. Symbols: After Howard came he dissolved the advisory board that consisted of 45 senior managers who had a say in the company even after they had retired. Each of them had a secretary, a car and driver and probably many other benefits. The gap between the senior management and the juniors was being reduced. Ritual Routines Good communications Customer involvement Appreciations Giving praise Celebration of success Stories Reduced Gap between the senior managers and juniors. People were more aware of the company strategy. Symbols Senior management who had retired where not taken care of by the company. Promotions based on group performance The Paradigm Respect for Seniors Emphasis on Harmony through-out the company Health and wellness programs, discounts and medical coverage New innovative products Power Structure Engineers given limited power Management given more responsibility along with current power. Restructuring of power in the company Control Systems Budgets Partnership agreements Financial controls Organizational Structures Multi-divisional Units based on market priority and business needs. democratic leadership style Figure 8- Cultural Web after Howard Stringer became CEO of Sony Global From the above cultural web we can see that Sony did not undergo major paradigm changes but did move from a transnational structure to a multi-divisional (Electronic department was a matrix) structure. Sir Howard Stringers Change Management Change management is also known as Change control. It is usually referred to the process by which the change of a system/process/organization is implemented in a controlled manner. If we look at the above Cultural Webs before and after Sir Howard Stringer took over Sony we can see that in order to bring the changes as per the paradigms shown above he had to adopt a Change Management program. Organizational change management processes include techniques for creating a change management strategy which is getting everybody involved in the change process. Engaging senior managers as change leaders, they become the sponsors of the change program. You also need to build awareness of the need for change (communications) getting everybody to understand why the need for change. Developing skills and knowledge to support the change (education and training), helping employees move through the period of change (coaching by managers and supervisors), and methods to sustain the change (measurement systems, rewards and reinforcement). Howard Stringer had instituted all these processes for his change management, but due to the dominance culture

The Tragedy Of Hamlet :: Hamlet William Shakespeare

In Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the death of a character becomes a frequent event. Although many people lose their lives as a result of their own self-centered wrong-doing, there are others whose deaths are a result of manipulation from the royalty. This is the case of Polonius' family. The real tragedy of Hamlet is not that of Hamlet or his family but of Polonius' family because their deaths were not the consequence of sinful actions of their own but rather by their innocent involvement in the schemes of Claudius and Hamlet. The first character to die in Hamlet is Polonius. Although Polonius often acts in a deceitful manner when dealing with Hamlet, it is only because he is carrying out plans devised by the king or queen to discover the nature of Hamlet's madness. Being the king's Lord Chamberlain, it is his duty to obey the king and queen's wishes and it is this loyalty that eventually proves to be fatal for him. An example of how Polonius' innocent involvement with the royalty results in his death can be found at the beginning of Act III, scene iv, when Hamlet stabs him while he is hiding behind the arras in Gertrude's room. This shows how Polonius, a man unaware of the true nature of the situation he is in, is killed by a member of the royalty during the execution of one of their schemes. This makes Polonius' death a tragedy. The next member of Polonius' family to die is his daughter Ophelia. Ophelia's death is tragic because of her complete innocence in the situation. Some may argue that Polonius deserves his fate because of his deceitfulness in dealing with Hamlet while he is mad, but Ophelia is entirely manipulated and used by Hamlet and the king for their own selfish reasons. An example of how Ophelia is used by Hamlet takes place in Act II, scene i, when Hamlet uses her to convince his family he is mad. Ophelia explains to Polonius how Hamlet has scared her, causing Polonius to draw the conclusion that Hamlet has an "antic disposition". Although this is subject to interpretation and many believe that this is simply Hamlet taking one last look at Ophelia before he becomes engaged in his plan to kill Claudius, the fact that he scares her and does not try to alleviate these fears points to the conclusion that he is simply using her to help word of his madness spread throughout the kingdom via Polonius.

Hopelessness of the Irish in Nineteenth Century England Essay -- Europ

Hopelessness of the Irish in Nineteenth Century England Throughout my research into the subject of the Irish in England's industrial north during the early nineteenth century, one fact became quite clear; contemporary writers' treatment of the Irish was both minimal and negative. I consulted many sources, Friedrich Engels, Leon Faucher, James Kay-Shuttleworth to name but a few and the reoccurring theme as pertaining to the Irish in all these works was mainly consistent; the Irish were a lazy, vulgar people prone to drinking and brawling. It was not until 1841 that Great Britain's government made its first attempt to count the number of Irish migrants in the Census of 1841. Data compiled from the actual census and other parliamentary sources at the time illuminate the fact that in 1841 and in the preceding years of this century, most migrants from Ireland were of the seasonal type. Typically, they would plant their potatoes in their mostly minuscule plots of land in May, travel to Great Britain for the summer months to partake of seasonal harvesting work and return in time for their own harvest. During this same time there were Irish who settled in Great Britain on a more permanent basis but they were outnumbered by their fellow countrymen who were strictly seasonal migrants. This latter group seemed quite successful in finding work in the agricultural districts of the industrial north, those parts of the country surrounding Manchester, Liverpool and the other great towns. After the Irish potato famine of 1822, the in flux of Irish into England grew and a large majority of these were seasonal migrants. These Irish were in great demand in the agricultural districts of England and in Labour Migration in England 1800-1850, Ar... ...ion of the Working Class in England Oxford University Press,1993. Faucher, Leon. Manchester in 1844. Frank Cass and Company Limited,1969. Gaskell, Elizabeth. Mary Barton. Penguin Group 1970,1985. Gaskell, Peter. The Manufacturing Population of England: Its Moral, Social. and Physical Condition and the Changes which have Arisen from the Use of Steam Machinery, with an Examination of Infant Labour. Baldwin & Cradock, 1833. Harris, Ruth-Ann M. The Nearest Place That Wasn't Ireland. Iowa University Press,1994. Jackson, John Archer. The Irish in Britain. Richard Clay and Company,1963. Kay-Shuttleworth, James. The Moral and Physical Condition of the Working Classes Employed in the Cotton Manufacture of Manchester. Frank Cass and Company Limited, 2nd ed. 1970. Redford, Arthur. Labour Migration in England 1800-1850. Manchester,1926 reprint,1964.

Huntingtons Disease :: essays research papers

Huntington's Disease   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Huntington's disease, or Huntngton's chorea, is a genetic disease that causes selective neural cell death, which results in chorea, or irregular, jerking movements of the limbs caused by involuntary muscle contractions, and dementia. It can cause a lack of concentration and depression. It also may cause atrophy of the caudate nucleus, a part of the brain. However, symptoms vary between individuals, with some sufferers showing symptoms that others do not. Those suffering from Huntington's disease normally begin displaying symptoms between the ages of 30 and 50, but has been known to show itself in people as young as two and as old as 80.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Huntington's disease is inehrited from one of the victim's parents. Since the gene for HD is dominant, there is a 50% chance of a sufferer's offspring inheriting the disease. Because a victim usually does not begin to display symptoms until after the period in which he or she would have children and the disease may have been misdiagnosed in earlier generations as Parkinson's disease or other similar affliction, he or she might pass along the gene without even knowing it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The gene for Huntington's disease is located on the short arm of chromosome four in cytogenetic band 4p16.3. It was first identified in 1993. While everyone posseses this gene, in someone suffering from Huntington's disease, the number of repeats of a certain trinucleotide, cytozine-adenine- guanine (CAG), is much larger than what it is in a normal person. In an average person, the number of repeats is between 9 and 37. But is a sufferer of HD, the repeat count is from 37 to 86. While nobody has found a direct correlation between the number of repeats and the age when symptoms appear, there is evidence that people with very high numbers of repeats contract the rarer early- onset Huntington's disease, which usually affects people under the age of 20. It is estimated that between .1 and 10 % of people who suffer from Huntington's disease have obtained it through new mutations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three different tests for Huntington's disease. The first, presymptomatic testing, is for people who are at risk for the disease. The second, prenatal testing, is a testing of a fetus at risk for the disease. The third type of testing, confirmatory testing, is used on someone suspected of having Huntington's disease.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Treatment of Huntington's disease usually involves counciling and education about the disease of both the family and the patient. Since the symptoms are so varied in both type and severeness from patient to patient, medical treatment must be individualized.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Depression, a common symptom, is usually treated with tricyclic

Achilles

* Wrath in its fullest potential can fuel the most heated of battles, but it can also corrupt and destroy the rational mind. In Homer’s, Iliad, wrath is a key component to understanding Homer’s input of emotion on the battlefield of Troy. Achilles creates this emotion throughout the epic. He shows his anger in three ways. First, he leaves command with his soldiers. Second, he curses the Greeks. And finally he kills Hektor to avenge Patroklos. He is justified in revenge because Agamemnon dishonored him by taking his concubine.He has a right to get revenge and reclaim his honor because he is a superior fighter. Achilles, however, was taken over by anger and acts dishonorably in this haze of emotion. * The beginning of Achilles’ wrath begins when he becomes infuriated by the way Agamemnon has publicly humiliated and dishonored him. Achilles feels that he is a greater warrior than Agamemnon and deserves more than he is rewarded after battles because he shows more hon or and bravery than any other man.After being publicly humiliated and dishonored, Achilles is pushed to the edge of anger and announces, â€Å"So must I be called out every order you may happen to give me. Tell other men to do these things, but give me no more commands, since I for my part have no intention to obey you. And put away in your thoughts this other thing I tell you. With my hands I will not fight for the girl’s sake, neither with you nor any other man, since you take her who gave her. † Achilles leaving with his soldiers is dishonorable because he must fight to fulfill his fate and he cannot gain any glory by not fighting.Achilles inhibits his destiny to leave after he is humiliated by Agamemnon and striped of his concubine Briseis. If Achilles does not fight in Troy, he will not be able to fulfill his destiny of bringing honor and having his name live on forever. This state of wrath he feels inside almost destroys his path to destiny by bringing him away f rom battle. As he leaves in his rage, he sends a prayer to his mother asking that the Trojan armies defeat his fellow Achaians to bring shame on Agamemnon, which is a result of his wrath.As the war rages on, the Trojans have pushed the Achaians back to their ships. This is a huge turning point in the war for the Trojans, because if they are able to set fire to one ship, they could destroy the whole camp, leading to a swift defeat of the Achaians, thereby fulfilling Achilles prayer. Achilles cursing the Greeks is somewhat justified because he is using tricks to gain honor. Lendon takes this theory of trickery and expands saying the smartest and strongest warrior will bring gain the most honor.Achilles’ act of ensuring the Greeks will be brought to the edge of defeat will ensure that he will be able to come in at the end when all hope is lost and save the day by fighting to the death, making him the greatest warrior of all time and carving his name into immortality. When Achill es hears of his beloved friend, Patroklos’ death he weeps, tearing his hair and throwing himself to the ground. This sets the tone of revenge in his heart, as he decides to enter the war, and slay Hektor and twelve Trojans at the funeral prye of Patroklos.Homer brings to this scene the fury of a man who has lost everything that he held dear to his heart. His king stripped his honor, his lover was taken away from him, and now his closest friend was brutally killed by Hektor. Achilles rage and wrath become so great in this book that he accepts his fate of entering the war, and gaining the glory and honor he deserves by ultimately dying in the war. This act of extreme lament and sadness shows how much Achilles truly cared and respected Patroklos as a person. He becomes enraged from the loss of his ally, and swears to have Hektor slain.Revenge is a way of honor in the Greek culture. If a father is slain in battle by someone, it is usually the son’s mission to revenge kill the person who had slain his father. In this case Achilles was going to slay Hektor to make right what happened to Patroklos. As the battle rages on, Achilles slays many Trojans. His honor comes into question, as his wrath is so overwhelming he kills opponents before they even have time to announce themselves. Achilles’ honor is somewhat lost as he disrespects the bodies he has slain, by filling up the River Xanthos with blood.The disrespect of the bodies even angers the river god, who chases Achilles across the battlefield. As his wrath reaches its climax Achilles finally finds Hektor and faces him in combat, killing him in the process. Achilles’ honor comes into question again as he maliciously drags Hektor’s body around the Trojan wall. Achilles is justified in killing Hector to avenge Patroklos, but he acts dishonorably when he defiles Hector’s body. By killing Hektor, Achilles has restored honor to his dead friend Patroklos by revenge killing Hektor. In the heat of the moment Achilles becomes overwhelmed with wrath and drags Hektor’s body around the walls of Troy. He greatly dishonors the body by letting it get eaten by dogs, and by not giving it to Troy for a proper burial. His wrath at this point has reached its climax, until the old king of Troy, Priam, snaps him out of his wrath by reminding him of when he yearned to have a proper burial for his father. As he becomes remorseful, he becomes ready for the final chapter of his life and Troy falls and his death becomes eminent.When you look at how Achilles acted on the battlefield, with his bravery and anger, the feeling seem must be mutual for other Greeks. As the readings Achilochus of Paros and Tyrtaus show that Homer’s views changed dramatically in the Archaic age. These views of the Archaic age changed so drastically due to the formation of the phalanx style of war, by bringing single fought combat to a larger scale combat where honor was gained by killing one person, but holding your line in the phalanx and protecting your brothers you were fighting with.Achilochus first poem states that cowardice is acceptable as long as you survive battle. This goes against every moral fiber of a Homeric point of view. In Homer’s view this would be a sign of great shame and dishonor. His second poem is about how leaders should be experienced in battle and not fresh out of training. This agrees with Homer’s view of how the greatest warriors have been in the most battles. Tyrtaus poem states that holding the line in a phalanx is honorable, while in Homer’s view Achilles gained the most honor, by acting alone and fighting for his own personal glory.These views of the Archaic age changed so drastically due to the formation of the phalanx style of war, by bringing individually fought combat to larger scale combat where honor was gained by not necessarily by killing, but holding your line in the phalanx and protecting your brothers you were fighting with. Wrath in its fullest potential can fuel the most heated of battles, but it can also corrupt and destroy the rational mind. He became justified in revenge because Agamemnon dishonored him by taking his concubine.He reclaimed the honor of his fellow friend. And he ultimately slain Hektor and brought forth his of his name living forever. Achilles, however, was taken over by anger and acts dishonorably in this haze of emotion. Bibliography Homer, Illiad, translated by Richmond Lattimore (Chicago: TheUniversity of Chicago Press 1951) Lendon, J, Solders & Ghosts (New Haven: Yale University, 2005) ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Lendon, J, Solders & Ghosts (New Haven: Yale University, 2005)

The Legend of the Pearl

Once upon a time, there was a butterfly who was so sad and lonely that he did not want to live anymore. As he stood, very depressed, on the sea-shore, thinking about the uselessness of his life, he heard a soft, clear voice beside him. â€Å"Good morning. Who are you? † The voice asked. â€Å"I'm a butterfly, but who are you? A speaking stone? I don't believe it! † The voice replied. â€Å"I'm not a stone. I'm a shell, an oyster! I'm a living being just like you are. † â€Å"Would you like to be my friend? † The butterfly asked. I have no friends, and I'm very unhappy because nobody loves me. I want to die in the sea. † â€Å"I don't want you to die,† said the shell. â€Å"I am just as lonely and sad as you, and I too have never known what it is like to be loved, but, now that you are here neither of us is alone. Stay with me, be my winged prince and tell me all about the things that you have seen in the world; things that the eyes of a daugh ter-of-the sea will never see. † The butterfly stayed at the shell's side and they grew to love each other, more than anyone could ever imagine.The butterfly had collected all the colours in the world in his wings and he gave them, as a bouquet, to his sweetheart, while the shell gave, as her gift from the sea, all the mysterious whispers of the deep. Their joy was short-lived, as butterflies have a shorter lifespan than shells, and when the butterfly died, the shell buried him in the sand. Then she cried and cried so much that she died of her sadness, and was dissolved by her tears. Next morning, on a small mound of sand, marked with a coral cross, appeared the very first pearl, made from the tears of the shell, the colours from the butterfly's wings and their love. The End