Guides to a Good Management Strategy

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By: Mabel Miles

Choosing the decision of having your own business is a great risk to take especially if it is your first time. If you haven?t even had the chance to handle your own business or even had a background of what a business is then you would really need to learn a lot. When you decide to build your own business, a business plan would be needed to identify the major and minor turning points your business would take. One of the most important factors a business should have is a good management to manage the production. If the father is the foundation of a home then a good manger does the same when it comes to business. Guidance is needed for every business especially during the first three months of the venture. Having a good manager to guide the production is crucial since the growth of business would depend to this factor. The quality of a good manager should come with the talent of handling things with composure typically during stressful moments. A good manager should also be able to head a team wherein he/she can become a good role model for values like hard work, patience, open mindedness and a whole lot more that can contribute to a business to prosper.

Leading the team is one of the most important roles a good manger should portray. It takes a good managing strategy for the workers or employees to love their job. Every business owners should keep in mind that workers are the most valued workforce in the society. This situation typically applies to lines of businesses that offer services and big mass production. Without the cooperation and hard work of the employees and workers a successful business would not be in hand. That is why the manager is in charge of offering good benefits and incentives for the workers to be satisfied with their jobs. The manger is also the one in charge for assigning the perfect leaders to get a job done. This one typically applies the method of outsourcing workers for big business ventures.

However on the other side if you are starting up with a small business of your own, you are going to be left with no choice but to do things on your own. The good side for this one is the fact that it is much better to be on hand on your business rather than trusting it to a paid employee. There are some instances that big companies are being swindled by their trusted employees because they don?t monitor the job and records being assigned. You would not want this to happen to you right? So it is still a best decision to start things on your own first. Just consider this one as training on your part especially if you?re a first timer in the business world. If you would really put into considerations the things that are needed for your business and use all the efforts you have learned then expect your business to prosper with unlimited profits. Remember to stick with the good values and beliefs by giving service to the people and you will see the good effect it does to your business.

Author Resource:->??Mabel Miles likes to share information on venture capital and sample business plan as well as related business matters. http://www.venturecapitalpitchformula.com/ http://www.growthink.com/products/business-plan-template/

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'Twins' May Find Long-Lost Triplet In Eddie Murphy

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito may reunite for 'Triplets,' the sequel to the 1988 comedy 'Twins.'
By Gil Kaufman

Eddie Murphy
Photo: Getty Images

Some old movie franchises never die, they just go into the deep freeze for, oh, almost a quarter century. Case in point: "Twins." Surely you remember the hit high-concept 1988 comedy starring then-huge actor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his half-sized "brother" Danny DeVito? The goofball premise had the two stumbling through wacky adventures, with the, ahem, intellectual, physically perfect Julius (Arnold) struggling to connect with his long-lost small-time crook fraternal twin bro Vincent (DeVito) after the pair were separated at birth.

Bottom line: The movie grossed more than $200 million worldwide, and now, Universal Pictures is hoping to reboot the franchise nearly 25 years later. There is, of course, a new twist: Not only would the former California governor and the "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star be reprising their roles, but they would find out that the mad scientists who created them also cooked up a third brother.

Cue "Triplets," with third comedic wheel Eddie Murphy. The Hollywood Reporter said no director is connected to the flick yet, but noted that original director Ivan Reitman, would be onboard as a producer through his Montecito Picture Co. banner. The backers are still looking for writers to work up a script, and while the actors are reportedly attached to star, the studios have not yet sat down to discuss the creative aspect of the project.

The film could be a boon for Murphy, who is coming off yet another box-office bomb with the long-delayed "A Thousand Words," while Schwarzenegger is still attempting to revive his acting career after two terms as California governor and a nasty split from his wife, Maria Shriver. DeVito has continued to appear in mostly under-the-radar films for the past five to six years, but has a solid hit on his hands at the moment as the voice of "The Lorax."

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Schwinn 220 Recumbent Push bike ? Is it best to Buy One particular ...

The Schwinn 220 recumbent bike is probably the most popular stationary bicycles available. But how must a fitness expert at a fitness center compare to a online machine? Is a truly much better than the gym for sale? And how to decide that is definitely best without encountering the trouble of spending a lot of money to learn?.

Most qualified gyms could be decked out along with a fitness community that stock option treadmills, rowing equipment and cross training shoes, which great methods of burn out of that unwanted weight. There will more than likely also become a large amenable room that is definitely used tailored for fitness instructors to jog kinds of group modules, including rewrite, kickboxing, together with dance, which on their own are fun methods of lose excess fat. If you prefer to save money next you might possibly find made use of commercial training equipment for sales agreement. So get a better price and receive a Shuffle. There in fact is nothing more which you can ask to get.

Aside through the exercise products, personal trainers also can advise most people on other issues with your lifestyle which include your diet program and healthy eating plan, after intensive workout could have little effect in the event you then eat an eating plan of takeaways, large fat recipes and out of balance nutrition. Variation is significant since around challenges parts of your muscles to succeed harder producing a more effective exercise routine and a very physically fit along with healthier most people. ?No matter where you reside you are able to likely look for a little space or room,? diligent online columnist Ana Duffy added. This custom package includes what you may could want in accordance with a industrial grade quality designed to enable that to be preserved longer! Some more options that get along with this installation include: any lat bartender, Olympic excess fat pins, triceps string, ankle wrist strap, as well since the shiver bartender. Keeping fit at residential eliminates travel around time together with membership charges. Gym mats ordinarily are not similar with the help of exercise yoga mats, yoga yoga mats or various other mats that can be usually in sports halls. Installing an ac may be a method otherwise an important mobile fan is ideal. 9. The way to turn? There usually are several adventures. Their bags have got added protection features due to the fact a health and fitness locker might be easily bypassed. Used Exercise equipment For Purchase ? Approaches for People Thinking about buying Fitness Devices.

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Intuit shows off MicroMint concept app for the WIMM One smartwatch, we go hands-on

Given the amount of time we spent with the WIMM One smartwatch, you'd think we would have had enough fodder for a full-blown review. Alas, though, one critical piece was missing: apps. Not test apps, like a balance ball game, but honest to goodness apps from major third-party developers. As it happens, the app store still isn't live yet, but we did get to check out a concept app from Intuit, the company behind Mint.com (no TurboTax for this 1.41-inch display, sorry).

What can we say? When a device has a screen this tiny, the elevator pitch is going to be mighty brief. Here's how MicroMint works: just swipe left to right to see your balances for different accounts. There's no limit to how many it can display, and when you reach the end of the list, the app will just start cycling through again. As you can see in the video demo below, the app's performance is limited by the watch's 667MHz ARM11 CPU and 256MB RAM, which is to say you'll notice some lag as you swipe from one bank balance to another. And that's it. This is all the app does; don't expect to take advantage of Mint's other features, like budget-planning and mapping out savings goals (not that you'd want any graphs or itemized lists crammed onto that 160x160 screen).

For now, of course, this concept app is just that, a prototype. Intuit won't commit to releasing it, much less share any sort of timeline. Interestingly, though, David Siegel on Intuit's development team suggested to us that the app might be of more use when WIMM releases its next-gen watch with NFC. With that radio on board, he says, the app could potentially allow not just for balance-checking, but credit card payments as well. Additionally, the outfit is mulling a similar app for the Sony SmartWatch, which also runs Android and supports Java-based apps. The only development hiccup, he says, would be adapting the app for Sony-specific APIs. That's a whole lot of ifs for one paragraph, though, so for now we'll leave you with a super quick hands-on video, just past the break.

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.

Gallery: MicroMint concept app hands-on

Continue reading Intuit shows off MicroMint concept app for the WIMM One smartwatch, we go hands-on

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Why Rick Santorum's once-generous lead in Wisconsin is eroding

The Wisconsin GOP primary is Tuesday. Current polling in the state shows Mitt Romney leading, 39 percent to 31 percent for Rick Santorum.

By the time Mitt Romney arrives in Wisconsin Friday ? his first campaign stop in the state before its GOP primary on Tuesday ? his challenger Rick Santorum will have already become a familiar face. Mr. Santorum has been in Wisconsin since last weekend and has dined, bowled, and played shuffleboard with residents in every pocket of the state. He?s even tossed a football at Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers.

Skip to next paragraph

Not that any of it will necessarily help him on Tuesday.

Santorum?s once-generous lead in Wisconsin is eroding. In February, the former US senator polled at 34 percent among the state?s likely Republican voters, while Mr. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, trailed far back at 18 percent, according to a Marquette University Law School poll.

Current Wisconsin polling shows Romney leading, 39 percent to Santorum?s 31 percent.

What happened? The easy answer is money. The Romney campaign is armed with seemingly unlimited campaign resources to flood local airwaves and phone banks, resulting in the candidate not necessarily having to step foot in the state until just before its voters head to the booths.

By early this week in Wisconsin, combined spending by the Romney campaign and Restore Our Future, a pro-Romney ?super political-action committee,? totaled about $2 million in television advertising, much of it negative. By contrast, Santorum?s campaign had spent under $100,000 by last Sunday, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and the Red White and Blue Fund, a super PAC backing Santorum, had spent about $300,000.

Santorum?s feet on the ground versus Romney?s pocketbook ?has been the pattern in a lot of primary states,? especially since Super Tuesday, says Marquette University law professor and polling director Charles Franklin. While Santorum is trying to show ?he?s more invested in the state personally ... Romney?s media campaign is more or less dominating the airwaves.?

The bankroll disparity is frequently referenced at Santorum campaign stops to support the candidate?s narrative that he is a working-class underdog being outflanked by an out-of-touch, Harvard-educated former investment manager.

?We?re fighting hard. Governor Romney is supposedly spending $3.5, $4 million here. We?re not. When you?re that badly outspent, it?s hard to win,? Santorum told a crowd in Beaver Dam Tuesday.

But spending may not be the key factor in why Santorum is slipping in Wisconsin polls. Since February, Santorum?s positions on social issues such as his opposition to birth control, as well as his comments that President Obama is a ?snob? for advocating college education, have dominated the media?s coverage of his campaign ? possibly turning off independent voters, particularly women.

John McAdams, a political scientist at Marquette University in Milwaukee, says what Santorum meant in those comments was ?not terrible,? but they became gaffes because he could not articulate his positions in a way that sounded reasonable.

?Clearly he said some things that were imprudent to say and were controversial, and sometimes voters don?t key in on the substance of what a candidate says but are put off by the controversy,? Professor McAdams says.

Still, Santorum does have some hopeful things to point to in Wisconsin. His polling numbers have dropped just three points in Wisconsin since February. And according to the Marquette poll, his favorability rating among Republican voters in the state remains positive. Plus, Santorum ranks well when it comes to his conservative identity: Forty-two percent of likely GOP voters in Wisconsin say he has the best moral character, with Romney coming in at 29 percent.

At the same time, however, voters are starting to shift support to Romney because they perceive he is the only candidate who has a chance of beating Mr. Obama in November. Although the Marquette poll shows Romney trailing Obama 43 percent to 48 percent, Santorum?s matchup is worse: 39 percent to 51 percent.

?It?s Romney?s game more, much more, than Santorum?s collapse,? says Professor Franklin. ?The [Republican] Party is beginning to see [Romney] as the likely nominee, and that?s acceptable now that we?re down to two candidates.?

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German hermaphrodites push for human rights

Courtesy Of Fackeltraeger Verlag / Courtesy of Fackeltraeger Verlag

Christiane Voelling is a 52-year-old intersexual who lives in Dusseldorf, Germany and has fought for greater rights for people like herself whose sexual gender is indeterminate.

By Andy Eckardt , NBC News Producer

MAINZ, Germany ? Pink? Or blue? For most parents this is the paramount question when it comes to organizing a baby shower or choosing a color for a newborn's room.

But, what happens if the exact gender of the child cannot be determined? It is estimated that in Germany alone approximately 80,000 people are intersexual, so-called hermaphrodites, who have physical features ? such as chromosomes, hormones, gonads and outer sexual organs ? which cannot be unambiguously attributed to just one gender.?

---

Christiane Voelling, 52,?is an intersexual.

She is a nurse living in D?sseldorf who was born without defining gender characteristics.

Because German law requires that a newborn's personal data ? including gender specification ? is registered within a week, Christiane was proclaimed a boy at birth and called Thomas after a midwife supposedly mistook her enlarged clitoris for a penis.

In Voelling's case, it was later diagnosed that her indeterminate external genitalia were the result of a rare genetic disorder of the adrenal gland, the so-called congenital adrenal hyperplasia, or CAH.

"My childhood and teenage development was often agonizing because I did not really know what was wrong with me and where I belonged," Voelling said in a recent interview with NBC News.?

Following a push from various human rights groups, Germany?s government commissioned its National Ethics Council in December 2010 to consider the issue and come up with recommendations on how to identify intersexuals so they could live with greater dignity. The council, which in February of this year released its recommendations, even grappled with the question of whether or not a ?third sex? should be introduced.??

Invasive surgery
For Voelling, her gender issues were rarely discussed in her family growing up in a small town in a rural area of western Germany since her parents were convinced that they were raising a male child. Yet, in school, she would often be reminded of her ambivalence, when she played soccer with the "other boys," but also felt very much integrated in the girls clique.?

She was experiencing an inner conflict that is rather common among intersexuals, or so-called differences of sex development (DSD) affected individuals, experts say.

"By the mid 90s, the first intersexual patients started seeking psychological help at our offices and most of them were preoccupied with feelings of shame, humiliation and a burdening tabooization of their problems," said Dr. Sophinette Becker, a sexologist and psychologist from Frankfurt.

For Voelling, her emotional trauma grew significantly larger at age 18, when physical scars were added in an unnecessary operation.

After being admitted to a local hospital for an appendix surgery, doctors diagnosed that their patient had mixed male-female genitals and an atrophied reproductive system.

But, when the young adult landed on the operating table, the surgeon found a full set of female reproductive organs, including an intact womb and ovaries.

Without consent from the patient, the organs were removed.

"I never received a truthful explanation of my condition and after the operation I felt a lot of physical and emotional pain for many years,"? Voelling said.

"Some 95 percent of all intersexuals systematically undergo genital surgery and other interventions without medical informed consent and without clear scientific proof," said Lucie Veith, the head of "Intersexuelle Menschen eV" in Hamburg, a group that represents hermaphrodites in Germany.

Gratification after legal battle
Only a couple of years later, Voelling also started receiving the regular administration of testosterone, or steroid male hormones.

"For 27 years, I was more or less exposed to severe doping," Voelling said.

"At age 47, when I felt more like a woman than a man anyway, I said enough is enough," she added.

Today, intersexual activists are trying to educate the medical community, affected families and the public about the often harsh consequences of genital reconstruction surgery and other severe medical interventions.

"These massive medical interferences plunge the intersexed child into total imbalance and lead to irreversible damages," said Veith, whose organization has nearly 600 members in Germany.

In 2008, Voelling decided to take her case to court and sued the doctor that had removed her female reproduction organs over unlawful intervention.

In its verdict, the court ordered the surgeon to pay 100,000 euro, (approximately $133,000)? in compensation for performing an operation converting a hermaphrodite into a man without consent.

"I felt very relieved and it was really more of a moral reparation than anything else, but it unfortunately did not have consequences for the legal rights of intersexuals," said Voelling.? She officially changed her gender from male to female, as well as her name from Thomas to Christiane, in a long bureaucratic process that same year.

Preparing legal framework
While experts say that Voelling's case is legally unique and will not set a precedent, the topic nevertheless started to receive more public attention after she wrote a book called "I was man and woman ? My Life as an Intersexual.?

Despite some disagreements with the recommendations of Germany?s National Ethics Council released last month, Voelling and other intersexuals hope that the council?s recommendations will help give their status a legal framework in the future.

"In our recommendation to the German government earlier this year, the main message was that intersexuals are different from other human beings, but they need to be respected and belong in the center of our society," said psychologist Dr. Michael Wunder, a member of the German National Ethics Council.

Because irreversible medical interventions of gender assignment in people with ambiguous genitalia are typically conducted during early childhood years, the German Ethics Council determined that these operations present an infringement of the right to physical integrity, thus a violation of basic human rights.

The Ethics Board also said that "a non-justifiable encroachment on the personal rights and the right to equal treatment is present when people who cannot be assigned as ?female? or ?male? because of their physical condition are legally compelled to assign themselves to either category in the civil registry."

Following Australia's example, the German Ethics Council recommended that in addition to the registration of? "female" or "male," the German government should introduce the category "other" or should allow a ?no entry,? until the affected person have made a personal decision themselves.

Last September, Australia? introduced new guidelines, which allow its citizens to change the sex details on their passport to female (F), male (M) or indeterminate (X).

"This amendment makes life easier and significantly reduces the administrative burden for sex and gender diverse people who want a passport that reflects their gender and physical appearance," said Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd.

In Germany, rights activists, representatives from the Ethics Council and intersexuals now hope that German lawmakers will soon implement regulations, which will help to protect the rights of hermaphrodites and remove discrimination on the grounds of gender identity and sexual orientation.

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Davis, Haith win AP player, coach awards

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis is presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans, La. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis is presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans, La. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Missouri coach Frank Haith poses with his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball coach of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Missouri coach Frank Haith picks up his daughter, Brianna, 7, as he poses with his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball coach of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Kentucky forward Anthony Davis bends to reach the microphone as he speaks after being presented his award as the Associated Press NCAA college basketball player of the year on Friday, March 30, 2012, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? Anthony Davis was busier than any of the other players in the Final Four.

The Kentucky freshman had to make the circuit of Player of the Year presentations Friday, not that he was complaining.

"There were a lot of awards yesterday and today," Davis said with a big smile. "It's a great feeling, especially as a freshman. I've been working hard and now it's rewarding."

Davis became the first Kentucky player and second freshman to be selected The Associated Press' Player of the Year. He picked up his latest trophy, along with Coach of the Year Frank Haith of Missouri.

It was Davis' second ceremony of the day, and he had to make a quick exit to get to practice, part of the preparations for the national semifinal matchup against Louisville on Saturday.

"This is great to be here and hopefully we can win the national championship and accomplish our goal," he said. "Even if we come up short we still had a great season."

The 6-foot-10 Davis sure did.

He averaged 14.3 points ? on a team with six double-figure scorers ? 10.0 rebounds and 4.6 blocks while shooting 64.2 percent from the field. His block total is a school record and third-best ever for a freshman. He was the Southeastern Conference's Player, Freshman and Defensive Player of the Year.

"My expectations were nothing like this; I wasn't planning on any awards," he said of how he approached his first ? and what many project will be his only ? season in college basketball. "I have to thank my teammates for those lob passes for easy baskets and for them getting beat off the dribble for all those blocked shots. Without them there are no awards."

No Kentucky player had won the award which started in 1961, and the only other freshman to win it was Kevin Durant of Texas in 2007.

"I'm surprised because you've had a lot of great players from Kentucky," Davis said. "Hopefully I'm starting something, and a lot of Kentucky players will win this award."

Davis received 43 votes from the 65-member national media panel that selects the weekly Top 25. Balloting was done before the NCAA tournament.

Thomas Robinson of Kansas was second with 20 votes, and Draymond Green of Michigan State received the other two votes.

Jimmer Fredette of BYU won the award last season.

Haith's first season at Missouri got off to a rough start and ended with a second-round thud in the NCAA tournament. In between his unpopular selection to replace Mike Anderson at Missouri and the Tigers' stunning loss to 15th-seeded Norfolk State, things went very well.

Missouri won 30 games and the Big 12 tournament and was ranked in the AP poll the entire season, reaching second for one week and was third in the final poll.

Haith received 21 votes from the media panel, while John Calipari of Kentucky and Tom Izzo of Michigan State tied for second with 10 votes each. The voting was done before the NCAA tournament.

Unlike Davis, Haith didn't have a practice to rush to Friday.

"It's good to see your peers at something like the Final Four, but the disappointment of your season being over is still there," Haith said. "Still, I can't tell you how honored and humbled I am with all the recognition."

Haith left Miami after seven seasons to take over the program at Missouri.

"My landing in Columbia wasn't greeted with a lot of yeas and congratulations, but I wasn't disappointed, rather encouraged because that showed me passion. And I wanted that, because that kind of passion means you have a chance to be successful," he said.

Haith's coaching style was very different from Anderson's uptempo pressure way and that meant change, something a lot of college players don't take to easily.

"Mike Anderson left me some pretty good players," Haith said. "They bought into change, and that's not always easy when you have a system in place they want. I give the players a lot of credit for buying in. When the players buy in you have a chance to be successful."

Haith, who joined Norm Stewart in 1994 as the only Missouri coaches to win the award, said it was early in the season when he knew the players had bought in.

"We were in Kansas City for the CBE Classic, and we beat Cal and Notre Dame," Haith said. "We changed things, and I think you have to have success to make change. We saw success, and those guys started to buy in. And it was all because of the leadership on the team."

Haith was hired at Missouri with the knowledge the program he was leaving was under NCAA investigation for possible rules violations.

"I think we, the Mizzou Nation and my family, all will be happy when it's all over with, but we can't control the NCAA and the time frame in which they work," he said.

He was asked if he was confident the investigation would come up empty.

"Absolutely," he said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-03-30-AP%20Awards/id-031a68a6517444938e2b2dcce876bc0b

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Organizational Transformation: Required Tools And Techniques ...

A while back, managing large companies was an easy task for senior executives. This was because all they were expected to do is maintain the stability of the business, in a rather
co-operative environment.

On the other hand, the shareholders expectation was a growth in their annual earnings, something that was easily met through the strategic plans put in place. Ultimately, everyone was happy!

Market changes

However, the happiness was short-lived. Emerging forces and factors came into play and threatened the stability of business. Market transparency, labor mobility, global capital flows and instantaneous communication, to mention but a few.

Today, most, if not all industries are faced with a high level of competition among its companies. For this reason, management is focusing on something that just yesterday was non-existent: change.

According to Professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter of Harvard Business School, successful companies can only survive if they have strategies that are flexible with a constantly changing culture.

This development has presented leadership with an unfamiliar challenge. In order to succeed, a company can not solely focus on the organizational change. It needs to have an understanding of the human side of change management. That is, how does the desired change align with the company?s culture, values, people and behavior?

Take for instance value: value cannot be captured by simply planning. It requires a sustained and collective action of the employees who are responsible for designing, executing and living with the changed environment.

CEO?s and change management

A survey conducted on a sample of CEOs? indicated that most were not worried about the change per se, but how the workforce would react to the change. Will they be willing to work
to attain the desired results? Will the collaborative teams they form work together to achieve the goals at the best time possible?

These are not unfounded fears on the part of executives as they know that they will only reap rewards only when change occurs at the level of the individual employee. They also worry about retaining their company?s unique values and sense of identity and about creating a culture of commitment and performance.

Guiding principles for change management

• Address the ?human side?

Any significant transformations within an organization result into ?people issues?. Maybe some employees will be rendered redundant, job specifications and descriptions may change all issues that are likely to make the employees resistant and uncertain.

It is important that the change management approach be fully integrated into program design and decision making, in a manner that informs and enables strategic direction.

Change is usually unsettling for people at alllevels of management. However, for successful implementation, the leaders should be the first to embrace the changes, as a means of motivating the rest in lower management.

Transformation programs move from defining strategy and setting targets to design and implementation, a process that affects different levels of the organization. Change efforts must be inclusive of plans that identify leaders at each level within the organization so that change can cascade through the organization.

These leaders must then be trained and equipped with knowledge that is line with the company?s vision and mission.

Individuals are inherently rational and will question to what extent change is needed, whether the company is headed in the right direction, and whether they want to commit personally to making change happen. Making the change formal involves creating a vision statement that induces leadership-team alignment.

Without change management strategies, it is becoming increasingly hard for companies to cope with the changing business environment. However, incorporating the above principles will enable a company grow and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage.

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Source: http://www.inquid.com/organizational-transformation-required-tools-and-techniques.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=organizational-transformation-required-tools-and-techniques

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'Game Of Thrones' Season Two: The Reviews Are In!

Critics are raving about new season, with one reviewer describing HBO fantasy series as 'spiritual heir' to 'The Sopranos.'
By Josh Wigler

Carice Van Houten as Melisandre in "Game of Thrones"
Photo: HBO

Winter is behind us in real life, but in the brutal realm of Westeros, it's just days away.

When "Game of Thrones" returns Sunday for its second season, the days of Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell will be behind us, with the reign of Tyrion Lannister (and another Emmy-worthy performance from Peter Dinklage) in our future. Based on the second novel in George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series, "A Clash of Kings," season two of "Thrones" promises even more political intrigue, warfare, sex and violence than ever before — and given the show in question, that's certainly saying something!

Several critics have already seen the first episode of the new season of "Thrones," and with very few exceptions, their reactions have been overwhelmingly positive. Here's a taste of the reviews:

The Story "It's a pleasure to see that 'Game of Thrones' hasn't lost a grip on its ability to tell a vast, interconnected story without slowing down the pace. What's truly impressive is that as life is breathed into these storylines, 'Game of Thrones' just gets better and more fulfilling as a top-tier television series. The intrigue of the plot and the keenly drawn characters — plus the sense instilled in Season 1 that absolutely anything can happen and no one is safe — makes the show all the more compelling." — Tim Goodman, the Hollywood Reporter

Accessibility for Non-Readers "I had read the first volume of George R.R. Martin's saga 'A Song of Ice and Fire' (the source material for this series) before I watched the first season of 'GoT' so I would be familiar with the vast array of characters and plots that would develop. But I intentionally did not read the epic's second volume, 'A Clash of Kings,' before watching the start of 'GoT' season 2, because I wanted to see if I'd have trouble following the new intricacies. And I'm here to report that my lack of homework in no way prevented me from becoming enthralled with this series all over again. That's a testament to what adapters David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have accomplished in whittling down and reshaping Martin's novels for weekly TV. It's difficult enough to hook a viewer like me, who resists sprawling, noncontemporary narratives; it's another level of pop culture wizardry to make such storytelling seem so vivid, so vital, and just plain fun." — Ken Tucker, Entertainment Weekly

Blood and Boobs " 'Thrones' creates such a rich visual feast — replete with plenty of gratuitous nudity and blood-letting — as to almost obscure its fundamental storytelling pleasures, which are as much a mob drama as anything else, having traded bullets for broadswords. By that measure, this really might the closest spiritual heir to 'The Sopranos' HBO has delivered since the show's notorious whiteout." — Brian Lowry, Variety

The New Guys in Town "Even though I'm a fan of Martin's novels, I must confess that I always found the Stannis retainer Davos Seaworth fairly bland and boring, but Liam Cunningham, like Emilia Clarke, ably brings to life a character who could seem rather remote on the page. Several other smaller roles have been filled with lively specificity, but I have to wonder if we'll get enough time with each of these people. Will the plight of Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie), a stoic warrior who nurtures an unrequited love for royal contender Renly Baratheon, be as sadly evocative as it was in the books? Will there be time for the show to do more than lightly sketch the dilemmas of minor but interesting characters like her?" — Maureen Ryan, Huffington Post

The Bottom Line "As with the novels, this 'Game of Thrones' is breathtakingly ambitious, an ever-unfurling tapestry that threatens, at times, to overwhelm its frame. That it does not is a testament to the power of piecework — art is not defined by the space it occupies but by its details, the truth it captures. Many heads bend over this adaptation, each belonging to a master of his or her craft, and what emerges is a truly new, and miraculously accurate, definition of epic television." — Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times

Are you excited for more "Thrones" action? Tell us in the comments section or hit me up on Twitter @roundhoward!

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1682107/games-of-thrones-season-2-reviews.jhtml

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FAMILY LAW ATTORNEYS REAP BENEFITS ... - The Legal Assistant

Modern technology continues to improve the life of attorneys, paralegals and legal secretaries throughout the United States.? The Legal Assistant is one of the companies participating in this technological change.? The Legal Assistant has added recently their newest product, The Family Law Assistant (TFLA).? TFLA provides to family attorneys a simple and yet profound case management system to improve law office management, efficiency, quality of work, and help provide peace of mind to the family law practitioner.

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Practicing in the family law area has its own distinct problems and sophistications.? This new family law software provides the case management, contact management, and document management services needed in order for family law practitioners to practice more efficiently and lower the cost of doing business.

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The software, TFLA, was developed over the years primarily from two sources.? First, the software was designed by and in consultation with attorneys thoroughly experienced in the particular problems in the practice of family law. ?As in all areas of law today in the United States, the attorney, paralegal, and legal secretary need to practice only in areas that they are able to provide appropriate and competent services.? Developed with these family law experts, TFLA allows experienced attorneys and newer attorneys, to both practice safely and productively.? Second, there are the years of experience that The Legal Assistant has had in the use by attorneys throughout the United States of our previous products, The Personal Injury Assistant, The Real Estate Assistant and The Criminal Law Assistant.

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A partial list of the specific areas that are covered in this software, TFLA, includes:

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• Time management and billing system
• Document assembly
• Legal calendaring
• Contact management
• Case management
• Clients, Dependents and Spouse Database
• County Court & Judge Database (New Jersey by default)
• Attorney Database (New Jersey by default)
• Expert Database

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While this program comes with a default set of data for New Jersey, including judges, court data and other information, the complete package dovetails perfectly with the use of court forms in other jurisdictions.? For example, in California, fillable all court forms are provided by the governing State Judicial Council.? Those forms are available at http://www.courts.ca.gov/, are able to be uniquely filled out on your computer, and relate to the case management aspect of your case provided by The Legal Assistant.

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Of course, there is constant updating of the system because of not only the change in technology, but also the constant change in court personnel, information concerning the court system, and general databases.

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The TFLA, The Family Law Assistant, contains pre-designed family law templates for divorce, domestic violence, pre-nuptial agreements, visitation, child support, child abuse, child custody, military divorce and spousal support, but also allows you to use a customizable database which allows you to add in other areas of family law practice.? In all circumstances, the forms can be modified to fit your case.? In addition, the workflow management of the TFLA software allows you to modify it easily in order to optimize the custom workflow system already in place in your office.

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The Legal Assistant allows you to manage all aspects of the case, and use the court forms independently. All systems work within one software application which allows you to smoothly transition from one type of work on an individual case, and also transition smoothly with no change of software to another client.? Importantly, TFLA is also extremely easy to use, and The Legal Assistant provides free chat and webinars.? You can sign up at any time for the seminars, and of course, the legal chat results in either immediate results during business hours, or a response the next day.

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All of the programs of The Legal Assistant work from the same database so that other work such as real estate or criminal law is easily accessed.? TFLA is also fully compatible with Microsoft Office and allows you to use Outlook, Word and Excel seamlessly.

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Finally, The Legal Assistant includes financing functionality, which allows you to get the complete package including the time management and billing system for just $75.00 per month with only a six-month commitment.? This pricing system allows all legal practitioners to easily afford the upgrade in their practice of law, which in a short period of time saves them money, increases their efficiency and provides them with peace of mind, which sometimes can be difficult in the field of family law.

Source: http://www.thelegalassistant.com/blog/family-law-attorneys-reap-benefits-with-the-family-law-assistant/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=family-law-attorneys-reap-benefits-with-the-family-law-assistant

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More Patent Legal Woes: T-Mobile Sued By OTI Over Use Of NFC in ...

Here we go again: today brings another mobile patent infringement suit ? this time against T-Mobile USA, and over a technology that has had very little use to date, but a lot of potential.

On Track Innovations says that the carrier is selling two handset models ? the HTC Amaze 4G, Nokia Astound ? that it claims violate a patent owned by OTI. NFC is the technology that is the centerpiece for a number of contactless mobile payments services and data sharing other applications.

The case was filed today in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, OTI says.

OTI says that it holds some 100 patents ? both approved and pending applications ? covering a pretty wide range of areas, from NFC and other contactless payments technologies, to secure ID, and? ?petroleum and parking solutions.?

OTI has been enforcing its patents already and says it has signed a licensing deal ?multibillion dollar? corporation, covering a different patent for contactless smart SIM cards. It doesn?t specify the name of the company.

?We believe in the strength and value of our intellectual property and have the resources to protect it,? Oded Bashan, chief executive of Rosh Pina, Israel-based OTI, said in a statement.

OTI says that its technology is supported by MasterCard and Visa. Among the products it sells itself are NFC devices and readers, including a product, the?COPNI (Contactless Payment and NFC Insert), that can be attached to a phone to make it NFC-capable, even if it does not have an NFC chip built into the device itself.

Although some companies like Google, Nokia and RIM have committed to implementing NFC, there are others that have not and some have seen these ?bolt-on? solutions as one way forward to speed up usage and adoption.

We are contacting T-Mobile for a comment and will update this story as we learn more.

Source: http://www.mobile-apps-news.com/more-patent-legal-woes-t-mobile-sued-by-oti-over-use-of-nfc-in-nokia-htc-smartphones?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=more-patent-legal-woes-t-mobile-sued-by-oti-over-use-of-nfc-in-nokia-htc-smartphones

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Source: http://rosario331.typepad.com/blog/2012/03/more-patent-legal-woes-t-mobile-sued-by-oti-over-use-of-nfc-in.html

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Trayvon Inc: Fla teen's case turns into brand

FILE -In this Monday, March 26, 2012 file photo, Andre Parker, of Atlanta, wears a t-shirt in memory of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed 17-year-old who was killed by a Florida neighborhood watch captain while returning from a convenience store, during a rally outside the Georgia Capitol, in Atlanta. From the T-shirts and hoodie sales to pass-the-hat donations to trademarking slogans such as "Justice for Trayvon," the wheels are in motion to make money from the Florida shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin. His mother says at least some of the proceeds will be used to help other families. Experts say it is impossible to say how much could be made off the case but it's the latest example of a cause turned into an Internet-fueled brand. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

FILE -In this Monday, March 26, 2012 file photo, Andre Parker, of Atlanta, wears a t-shirt in memory of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed 17-year-old who was killed by a Florida neighborhood watch captain while returning from a convenience store, during a rally outside the Georgia Capitol, in Atlanta. From the T-shirts and hoodie sales to pass-the-hat donations to trademarking slogans such as "Justice for Trayvon," the wheels are in motion to make money from the Florida shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin. His mother says at least some of the proceeds will be used to help other families. Experts say it is impossible to say how much could be made off the case but it's the latest example of a cause turned into an Internet-fueled brand. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

FILE -In this Tuesday, March 27, 2012 file photo, Trayvon Martin's parents, father, Tracy Martin, left, and mother Sybrina Fulton, attend a House Judiciary Committee briefing on racial profiling and hate crimes on Capitol Hill in Washington. From the T-shirts and hoodie sales to pass-the-hat donations to trademarking slogans such as "Justice for Trayvon," the wheels are in motion to make money from the Florida shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin. His mother says at least some of the proceeds will be used to help other families. Experts say it is impossible to say how much could be made off the case but it's the latest example of a cause turned into an Internet-fueled brand. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

MIAMI (AP) ? From the T-shirt and hoodie sales to trademarking slogans like "Justice for Trayvon" to the pass-the-hat rallies that bring in thousands, the case of an unarmed black teenager killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer is quickly turning into an Internet-fueled brand.

Websites are hawking key chains bearing Trayvon Martin's likeness. His parents have bought two trademarks, saying they hope to raise money to help other families struck by tragedy. Trayvon clothes, bumper stickers, buttons and posters are up for grabs on eBay.

Vendors selling Martin T-shirts and hoodies have become fixtures at rallies in Sanford, the central Florida town where Martin was shot last month. At one Sanford rally this week, a man had a variety of T-shirts laid out on the ground as marchers went by, yelling out, "I've got every size!"

The Martin shooting by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmernan, who says he shot the 17-year-old Miami teen in self-defense, has inflamed racial tensions across the country, brought out thousands for rallies, prompted a civil rights probe and a personal reference to the case by President Barack Obama.

A phenomenon on that scale is bound to be commercialized, said Donna Hoffman, a marketing professor at the University of California-Riverside.

"People can start to wear their feelings and emotions. It makes sense, even if there's a profit motive," Hoffman said. "There's a legitimate interest in sharing the pain, and these products do that."

Van Johnson, who designs T-shirts and other apparel in Charlotte, N.C., said he initially wanted to come up with something for his 12-year-old son to show solidarity with Martin's supporters. He produced a color drawing based on a photograph of Martin wearing a hoodie, which the teenager was wearing on the night he was killed.

"I really don't expect to make more than $200 at the most," Johnson said. "I'm happy some people bought my products, that way a few people will have a very nice design on their shirt or hoodie to show their support."

Karrie Muhammad, who runs Young Nation Apparel in St. Louis, is selling a separate hoodie for $35 with the words "Please Don't Shoot Me I Only Have Skittles And A Drink!!!" Martin was returning from a convenience store with the candy and iced tea when he was confronted by Zimmerman.

"We really just kind of put the shirt out there this week. It's not necessarily profit at all," Muhammad said. "I wanted to bring some awareness to the issue. I felt it would be a good way to expose the store, to get our name out there."

Zimmerman, 28, who has a white father and Hispanic mother, has not been charged. Martin's parents have demanded he be arrested. The U.S. Justice Department has launched a probe to look for possible civil rights violations; a special state prosecutor is also investigating. Jackelyn Bernard, spokeswoman for special prosecutor Angela Corey, said Wednesday the investigation could take weeks and said it's unclear if a grand jury will be empaneled.

Hoffman said it's difficult to gauge how the Trayvon sales might stack up against those from similar cases, such as the 1992 Los Angeles riots following the Rodney King beating, because those were before the explosion of Internet marketing.

"Anyone can do it with any image," she said.

Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton, headed off potential profit-seekers by filing trademark applications last week for the words "Justice For Trayvon" and "I Am Trayvon." The applications say the slogans may be used in digital media formats including CDs and DVDs. A family attorney said Wednesday the purpose is mainly to prevent others from exploiting Martin's image.

"It wasn't to make money off Trayvon's name, it was to stop the exploitation of Trayvon's name," said the attorney, Natalie Jackson. "We wanted this family to own their child's legacy."

A sign company called FamilyGraphix decided this week to pull its Martin-related decals after learning of Fulton's move. One such decal, which was to sell for $8, said "Don't Shoot Me, All I Have Is A Bag of Skittles."

Johnson, the T-shirt designer, questioned Fulton's move.

"You would think the parents of Trayvon Martin would encourage the spreading of their son's name and image," he said. "As a parent of four, I personally would welcome any and all exposure. I would want my son's name everywhere."

At rallies and church services, thousands of dollars in pledges have been made to help Fulton and Tracy Martin, Martin's father, pay expenses including travel to events in Washington and New York, Jackson said. At one early rally, the Rev. Al Sharpton asked people to make out checks to Fulton and put them in buckets that were passed around.

"Let's show the world we're going to finance our own movement," said Sharpton, who pledged $2,500 himself.

The case has had other benefits for involved organizations. More than 30,000 people signed an NAACP petition to Florida prosecutors in just a 24-hour period. Eric Wingerter, spokesman for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored people, says the organization hasn't used the case as a fundraising tool but has seen an uptick in memberships.

At some point, Hoffman said, the Trayvon Martin brand could wear thin if it's overused.

"People might feel, 'I'm sick of hearing about this.' That feeling could be accelerated if everywhere you turn, there are people wearing their hearts on their sleeve," Hoffman said. "All this merchandise out there will start to have a taint in the mind of the public."

_____

Associated Press writers Kyle Hightower in Sanford, Fla., and Mike Schneider in Orlando, Fla., contributed.

_____

Follow Curt Anderson on Twitter: (at)Miamicurt

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-03-28-Neighborhood%20Watch-Trayvon%20Inc/id-0d109cfb653440db8e1f8a1f99aa99ea

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Obama concedes strains between US, Pakistan

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-concedes-strains-between-us-pakistan-083114927.html

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Lower death risk with heart bypass vs. angioplasty

CHICAGO (AP) ? Older patients with clogged heart arteries may have a little lower death risk over time if they get bypass operations instead of angioplasty and stents to fix the problem, new research suggests.

It's not the kind of study that gives conclusive evidence, but doctors say it gives a "real world" look at how people fare in ordinary practice. As such, it could tip the balance toward surgery for patients considering the choice, especially because research already shows bypass gives a better and longer lasting result for people with multiple blockages.

In a bypass operation, doctors move healthy blood vessels from other parts of the body to detour around clogged arteries supplying blood to the heart. Angioplasty treats the problem via a tube pushed through a blood vessel. A tiny balloon is inflated to flatten the clog and a mesh scaffold, a stent, is placed to prop the artery open.

Researchers compared these approaches using records on 190,000 Medicare patients with two or three blockages ? the largest study ever of this issue. Death rates were similar one year after either treatment. But after four years, nearly 21 percent of the angioplasty patients had died versus about 16 percent of those who had bypass surgery.

Results were discussed Tuesday at an American College of Cardiology conference in Chicago and published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.

In the United States, more than a million operations or procedures are done each year to treat clogged arteries, and the study "provides comprehensive, large-scale, national data" to help doctors and patients decide which treatment is best, Dr. Susan Shurin said in a statement. She is acting director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which sponsored the study.

Comparative effectiveness studies like this one are taking on greater importance as more attention turns to the cost of health care.

Researchers used databases kept by the American College of Cardiology Foundation and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons on 86,244 people who had bypass surgery and 103,549 others who had angioplasty between 2004 and 2007. They used fancy statistical adjustments to try to compensate for differences in the groups that might affect the results.

They found bypass to give a survival advantage even when they considered factors such as sex, race, age, and conditions like diabetes.

"Everything lines up" in favor of surgery, said study leader Dr. William Weintraub of Christiana Care Health System in Newark, Del. "We were frankly surprised by that."

Still, researchers say differences in the overall health of people who had surgery versus the less drastic procedure could account for some of the results. They say angioplasty remains a good and safe option for many people.

"You're not making a mistake if you still have angioplasty," especially if you have only one or two blockages, said Dr. Kirk Garratt of Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. He is a spokesman for the Society for Cardiac Angiography and Interventions, doctors who do angioplasties.

There are tests to help decide whether one treatment will be better than another, but "in general, doctors do it intuitively" based on how frail patients look, how easily they walk across the room, how firmly they shake your hand, said Dr. Harlan Krumholz, a health outcomes research specialist at Yale University.

The new study "nudges you a little closer" to favoring bypass, but because of the caveats, "in the end, it says it is a close call," he said.

The fact bypass gives a longer-lasting result is a selling point ? it means fewer repeat procedures, said Dr. Michael Crawford, chief of clinical cardiology at the University of California, San Francisco.

"Some patients buy that and want to go for the long term. Others, it's a tough sell," he said.

The real message is how safe both procedures are, said Dr. Vince Bufalino of Advocate Health Care, a 100-doctor cardiology group that serves 10 hospitals in the Chicago area.

"We still think a traditional operation is excellent" for people with multiple blockages, said Bufalino, an American Heart Association spokesman.

___

Online:

Heart meeting: http://www.cardiosource.org

New England Journal: http://www.nejm.org

Heart disease info: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/cad//

___

Marilynn Marchione can be followed at http://twitter.com/MMarchioneAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2012-03-27-Heart%20Bypass%20Safety/id-c25692fa4cd446df81820b0a9715cc31

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Is Foster Parenting Right For You?

Foster care is a home to many children in need, and a child to many adults. Foster care is for adults that have children in the home and do not, and is one of the most loving things that you can provide a child. To become a foster parent, you must have a good heart, be ready to be a parent, have a room for the child, and provide a safe environment, as well as, being an understanding adult that is 21 years of age or older. You must have good ears to listen with, and a knack for caring and loving. It is a job that is rewarding, and providing foster care for a child is being the parent to the child. The children are between the ages of eight to 18 and are children that come from various backgrounds, but, each needs love and caring and a place to call home.

Foster care parents can be married or single, or living with a partner of the same sex or opposite sex.

It is important, when you consider foster parenting, that you are a good fit for the child and the child is a good fit for you.

For those that are interested in foster caring there are a few basic tips that you should be aware of. First off, foster parenting is something that will have an impact on your life. You have a new life introduced to you, provide it with a home, love and understanding. But, that life can be taken back to its parents, which is the intent, so, you must be sure that it is a situation that is right for you. You may have the child for a few days or a few years, it all depends, and the attachment can and should grow strong.

When you are sure that foster parenting is the right decision for you it will be necessary to fill out an application to become a foster parent. You will need to go through a screening process and be approved prior to becoming a foster parent. The agency will have a orientation that you will go through to help to ensure that you are fit for the job.

Foster parenting is something that is very respected and something that there is a great need for and most agencies are more than willing to help you to become a foster parent. They will provide a great deal of information about Fostering at various places such as churches and help you to find the support that you will require to become a foster parent. It is a job that is rewarding, but, you definitely want to ensure that you are fit for the job and that you have what it takes to let the child go when the day comes that the child will go back to the arms of their parents. For more information on foster parenting, you can perform a search on the Internet, which will yield a great number of results and information.

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Radio Ink Hispanic Radio Conference | Adam R Jacobson Editorial ...

ADAM R JACOBSON, reporting from San Diego?

DAY TWO HIGHLIGHTS

?CULTURE IS WHAT LINKS US TOGETHER?

And, says SBS CFO Joe Garcia, culture is what will make Spanish-language?radiocontinue to maintain a sizeable audience in the U.S. Hispanic market. Garcia was joined by other group heads at the?Radio?Ink?Hispanic?Radio?Conference?s concluding ?Super Session,? with Davidson Media Group chairman Sanjay Sanghoee noting that Spanish-language?radio?stations the company owns and/or operates are likely to stay Spanish for years to come. Adelante Media Group CEO Jay Meyers believes that it will be at least 20 years before Hispanics start to tune out of Spanish-language?radio?in great numbers. Today, use of Spanish, or English, or a mix of both languages is highly dependent on how a company should best serve its particular market, says Entravision Communications?radio?division president Jeff Liberman. And if it is German Polkas that the Hispanic 18-49-year adult wants, that?s what they?ll get, says Univision?Radio?president Jos? Valle.

?IT?S TOUGHER THAN IT WAS TWENTY YEARS AGO?

Entravision?s Jeff Liberman says Hispanic?radio?needs to step up in unison and start fighting for its rightful share of the ad dollars. ?We have to do a better job in sales and provide our advertisers reasons to buy us. Today, we have a more competitive marketplace. Research has gotten better. We need to unite, as an industry, and go after Corporate America. We can worry about competition later, but we need to hit Corporate America over the head ? I?m going to do it whether I am joined or not.? Taking a similar tone, Adelante head Jay Meyers said he?s not one to go into an agency to talk about getting Hispanic advertising dollars. ?I?m here to talk about how 100 percent of the dollars are going to reach 87 percent of the market ? and that?s stupid! If we got 33 cents on the dollar for the percentage of the audience that is Hispanic, we wouldn?t be here [in San Diego] today. We?d be in Maui, paying our own way.?

DIGITAL COMPREHENSION VITAL TO LONGTERM INDUSTRY GROWTH

In opening comments on the second day of the?Radio?Ink?Hispanic confab,Radio?Ink?publisher Eric Rhoads implored broadcasters to understand the impact online?radio?presents to them. ?If you cannot understand these devices, you cannot protect your brand. You need to understand because it is changing the way people listen to the?radio.? He discussed Tunein?Radio?(see Andres Cantor interview, above, for more) as a one-stop platform for?radio?and how manufacturers of audio systems desire one central delivery platform. ?Ultimately, you need to be where your listeners are.?

?CONTENT FLUIDITY IS REALLY IMPORTANT?

Tapestry Media Director Victor Garcia believes developing content that the media buyer can take wherever they want, free from the restrictions presented by working with one broadcast company over another, will best monetize beyond the AM/FM band and bring greater ROI. ?To depend on one specific vehicle will leave us all shut,? he said. Speaking on a panel devoted to finding new accounts and fostering advertiser growth, Garcia noted that Starcom Mediavest?s Tapestry unit ?wants to hold our multicultural plans to the same rigor as the general market.? He?s seen many situations where an investment occurs, but without a goal. His job ? to stop such scenarios.

SESSION SOUNDBYTES

?The recording industry through downloads and digital content have taken it on the chin and are now trying to recoup by putting it on the backs of?radiobroadcasters.? ? Francisco Montero, co-managing partner of Fletcher, Heald and Hildreth, discussing the Performance Rights Act.

?When you sit around and look at some of the regulations broadcasters are forced to deal with, it?s just stupid. Having a public file was great stuff in the sixties, and the fifties, and the fourties. In 1977 people actually came in and looked at our public file. But today?? ? Adelante Media Group CEO Jay Meyers, on how Federal government regulations need to better reflect today?s consumer environment.

?We need to think?about creating environments and programs that get people engaged and stop offering one-way messages and treat them as users ? and not as consumers.? ? Sensis Agency president Jos? Villa.

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DAY ONE HIGHLIGHTS

Action. Unity. Those were the two words?Radio?Ink?publisher Eric Rhoads asked attendees of the?Radio?Ink?Hispanic?Radio?Conference to write down and act upon. Kicking off the two-day confab yesterday, Rhoads advocated for industry unity. ?This conference represents opportunity for the heart of the?radio?industry to make change.?

Still, the industry has come a long way since 1962, when honorary conference chair and industry icon Eduardo Caballero launched a Spanish-language?radiostation in New York. Later, when he launched a national network advertising sales representation firm for Hispanic?radio, there were still challenges ? just 49 Spanish-language?radio?stations were on the air in the U.S., and agencies ignored him. This forced Caballero to go direct to the advertisers ? something that gives Hispanic broadcasters an advantage today, capitalizing on the ability to sell to people without having a microfocus on CPM.

?DON?T MISUNDERSTAND THE THREAT OF THE INTERNET?

In a moving acceptance speech of the 2012 Lifetime Achievement ?Medallas de Cortez? award, Lotus Communications CEO Howard Kalmenson urged conference attendees to pay heed to the threat of in-vehicle internet access ? something that will end?radio?s exclusivity while on the road. ?Exclusivity in the car has been our life blood. Now, you?ve got competitors you?ve never dreamed of. They don?t need towers. They don?t need offices. Think?over what?s really coming ? and ask, ?What do I do for the next 50 years??? Going back to basics is one of Kalmenson?s suggestions; he refused to reveal the other ideas he has in mind. Receiving 2012 Medallas de Cortez as Station of the Year for Markets 1-25: Entravision?s Mexican Regional KDLD-FM 103.1 ?El Gato? in Los Angeles. Taking the award for markets 25+ is Connoisseur Media?s KBBX-FM in Omaha. For a full list of award winners, visit http://www.radioink.com.

A POLITICAL STORY THAT MUST INCLUDE HISPANICS

Hispanic entrepreneur Charles Garcia, best-selling author of A Message from Garcia and Leadership Lessons of the White House Fellows, told conference attendees in a keynote address that?radio?s key business trait is its ability to touch people?s hearts. He devoted much of his conversation to the importance of Latinos in the 2012 Race to the White House: Of the 15 ?swing states? Republicans must capture, the majority have significant numbers of registered Hispanic voters. Given the lack of support among Latinos of the two leading Republican presidential nominees, Garcia believes it is nearly impossible for President Obama to lose the November election. For?radio, bringing the political message of both the Republican nominee and Obama?s reelection campaign to Latinos is essential ? and the industry should do its part to foster political advertising at its stations.

In a prerecorded statement, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) noted that?radio?plays a critical role, not just in this year?s elections, but moving forward with respect to connecting to a large segment of voters. Politicians should rely on Spanish-language to get the message out, and to continuously inform the public on information pertinent to them.

SESSION SOUNDBYTES

?We have to keep a particular eye on what is going on in digital. It is growing and it is working and at the end of the day it is about the right ROI.? ? MEC Managing Director Gonzalo Del Fa

?To win the game, you have to know what the rules are to win that game.? ? Programming consultant Bob Perry, who says a station with both English-language and Spanish-language programming is dependent on the unique dynamics of each individual market.

?In the PPM world we?re programming on a minute-by-minute basis.? ? Haz Montana, Operations Manager, Univision?Radio/Los Angeles, who believes growing the ?big tent? has led to the end of Spanish-language?radio?shows known for ?shock moments? designed to aid recall when completing an Arbitron diary.

For complete conference coverage, please visit?http://www.radioink.com

Source: http://www.jakeadams.net/2012/03/radioinkhispanic122/

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