Thursday, December 19, 2019

Personal Letter For Recruiting New Members - 1426 Words

9) Three personal traits I possess that impact my professional endeavors are dependability, optimism and persistency. I was the director of recruiting promotions for my business fraternity, Pi Sigma Epsilon. I was responsible for recruiting new members by tabling at involvement carnivals throughout the summer and the fall. The chapter was depending on me to show up at each carnival and pitch our fraternity to the incoming students. When recruiting, persistency is key. If you simply let people pass by, you are missing opportunities. You have to engage them and insist that they come and listen to your pitch, in hopes that they will be interested in what you have to say. I was very persistent and as a result, we recruited our largest class in†¦show more content†¦I had a wide range of responsibilities and was required to communicate with a great deal of people in many ways. When problems arose, as they frequently did, it was my job to fix them. We were filming in an old historic house in downtown Wilmington, NC, that was currently in the process of being renovated. At about two in the morning on the last day we were filming, we lost power. We were on a very tight schedule and we had to finish filming that evening or we would risk failing the project. The only power source that remained were a few outlets located under the house. We found them, but our extension cords did not reach all the way from under the house to the front door and through the living room. So, I needed to come up with a solution. As a result of both the housing being old and in the middle of construction, there were multiple places where there were small holes in the floor. At my direction, we were able to run the cords from under the house, up through the floorboards and into the proper rooms. We had just enough energy to run our lights and we were able to continuing filming. 11) I examined the article, â€Å"Emotional Intelligence: Key Skills for Raising Emotional Intelligence† written by Jeanne Segal and Melinda Smith, published on helpguide.org. According to the article, Emotional Intelligence is made up of four components: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

A Levels-Based Strategic HRM Approach Action-Plan

Question: Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual models of HRD, and explain the associations between HRD and various other aspects of HRM and how HRD strategies can potentially contribute to achieving overall organisational goals in different national and organisational contexts. Analyse and critically assess the role and influence of power and politics in HRD policy and practice in a range of contexts, and how to work effectively and collaboratively with key partners and stakeholders. Demonstrate an ethical and professional approach to HRD with a commitment to equality of opportunity and diversity and to continuous professional development. Threshold standards In order to pass the assessment you will need to: Develop and apply strategies and behaviours to increase influence on decision-makers and decision-making processes. Apply principles of reflective learning to continuous professional development activities. Individually report all research undertaken and presented and show your own understanding of the assignment and individual participation. Answer: Introduction: Gibbs reflective cycle is the theoretical model which often is used as the experiential learning. Description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan are six different stages. In this regard, the current report would focus on challenging the assumptions, exploring different ideas by following the stages of Gibbs cycle. The promotion of the self-improvement will also be there. In this regard, several conceptual models of HRD will be discussed. Using Gibbs reflective cycle, I have been assisted to acquire learning experience regarding human resource development. Description: It has been learnt from different conceptual models of HRD that the HRD is the way to effectively influence the individual behavior in respect to all human resource practice. McLagans model of HRD has suggested the competency models which can be implemented for developing individual development plans. This is the basic administrative model which has helped me to understand the contingency approach to understanding the personnel management during my personal experience on the HRD. Considering the opinion of McLagan, the indicators of the HRD are career development, organization development and training and development (Arthur and Boyles, 2007). I have been able to gather knowledge through demonstration of various conceptual models of HRD like McLagan that the main focus of HRD is to achieve the competitive business advantage (Asthana, 2012). This is done by being flexible to adapt several change processes. I have acquired the significance of HRD for the development of the management a nd leadership to develop the competencies. I have been able to gather the skill for designing and organizing the work progression at different organizational level. The models of HRD are required to adopt the high-level organization and recognition for the contribution. Feeling: The human resource management (HRM) is the broadly discussed approaches for managing the people within the organisations. The HRM also involves the policy, processes and procedures regarding the human resource of the companies. I have recognized this approach as the personnel management being the functional dimension of the HRM. On the other hand, the strategic nature of HRM is involved with various decisions and actions for the management of people. Considering the opinion of Gilley et al. (2008), the HRM is totally linked with the company performance along with individual which is holistic and strategic by nature. I have gathered knowledge on how the HRM is helpful for creating and sustaining the competitive advantage. The crucial reason behind this is the people management is directly related to the corporate strategy. To me, the functional integration of the HRM is evident with personnel function as the maximum organizations are decentralising the roles of the line managers. Cons idering the opinion of Holton and Yamkovenko (2008), like HRD, the HRM has also the wide agenda, including the strategy, vision, quality, integration, attitudes, values and flexibility. On the other hand, the HRD is associated with the organizational development. Thus, HRD is functional, strategic, process and practical oriented like the HRM. I have acquired that HRD also implies the major concerns with the culture, commitment and leadership. Hence, the HRD is directly associated through the strategic implications of HRM for the long-term survival of the organisations. Evaluation: Effective organisations have the employees who are highly committed to make contribution for the organizational success. In this regard, there is the relationship between various strategic HRD practices and the organizational learning. By following Gibbs model, I have found out the HRD is the process or activity to potentially develop the work-based knowledge, productivity, expertise and satisfaction. This ability helps the HR professionals for the continuous professional development activities. In different national and organizational context, the HRD is effective to develop and unleash the human expertise through the organization development, individual training and the purpose of improving the employee performance. On the other hand, Jacobs (2011) addressed that the HRD has the specific focus on the proactive change management approach. This helps the organisations to survive in the increasingly unstable, competition and the global environment (Kramar, 2013). Thus, the possibility of the general growth of individual and performance change can lead to the organization to achieve the overall organizational goal. Analysis: In the modern business organization, the power and politics play the vital role in the growth of the organizations in influencing the HRD practices. I have obtained the fact from the practical experience that the power and the politics are two major elements which can cause the success or downfall of any company. Considering the opinion of Kramar et al. (2012) the organisational power and politics involve the money, people, human resources, authority and time. The organisational management and the leadership practices are the vital part of the HRD policy. The power is usually established by the organisational culture, behaviour, social responsibilities and the management of teams. On the other hand, Lombardozzi (2007) argued that the politics are highly associated with the culture, personal values and managerial positions. The role of the power and politics is visible in developing the human resources for any organisation. I have realised from the practical learning that the positive power in any organisation encourages the productivity. This provides the employees the power for framing own decisions. On the other hand, the negative type of power hampers the quality of the work of the employees leading to higher turnover rates in any organisation. Conclusion: From this experience, my personal feelings are that the HRD policy are really vital for the organisational development by utilising the human resources. The impact of the power and politics in the negative way was really bad for the development of the organisation. Moreover, I can make sense of this experience that the ethical approach for HRD is highly essential to maintain equality and diversity in the organisational context. The professional and ethical approach of HRD has the importance of the commitment and motivation for the employees The professional approach of HRD also creates the strong public image in the market. The organisations culture is also shaped by the ethical approach of HRD policy with the commitment of equality and diversity (Kramar et al. 2012). When the ethical philosophy is there in the organisation, all the employees are treated with equal importance regardless of race, gender, ethnicity age and other factors. Action plan: The action-plan is vital for improving the performance in the specific situation.The current action plan includes the coaching on teh effective employee communication, regular meetings with the top management. For every plan of this action there would be the performance indicators nd specific deadlines. The continuous monitoring by the respective managers can give the employees a huge sense of collaboration for reaching the overall organisational goal. References: Arthur, J.B. and Boyles, T. (2007) Validating the human resource system structure: A levels-based strategic HRM approach,Human Resource Management Review, 17(1), pp. 7792 Asthana, A.N. (2012) Decentralisation, HRD and production efficiency of water utilities: Evidence from India,Water Policy, 14(1), pp. 112-115 Gilley, J.W., Maycunich, A. and Quatro, S.A. (2008) Comparing the roles, responsibilities, and activities of Transactional and Transformational HRD professionals,Performance Improvement Quarterly, 15(4), pp. 2344. Holton, E.F. and Yamkovenko, B. (2008) Strategic intellectual capital development: A defining paradigm for HRD?,Human Resource Development Review, 7(3), pp. 270291. Jacobs, R.L. (2011) HRD and management,Human Resource Development Quarterly, 22(2), pp. 123125. Kramar, R. (2013) Beyond strategic human resource management: Is sustainable human resource management the next approach?,The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(8), pp. 10691089. Kramar, R., Catholic, A., and Syed, J. (2012)Human resource management in a global context: A critical approach. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. Lombardozzi, C. (2007) Avoiding malpractice in HRD . . .Five imperatives for HRD professionals in organizations,Human Resource Development Review, 6(2), pp. 208216. Lorange, P. (2006) A performance-based, minimalist human resource management approach in business schools,Human Resource Management, 45(4), pp. 649658. Muller-Camen, M., Croucher, R. and Leigh, S.K. (2006)Human resource management: A case study approach. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Electronics Engineering Intelligence - Capabilities

Question: Discuss about the Electronics Engineering for Intelligence, Capabilities. Answer: Introduction Background: The cultural safety refers to an environment that is safe for the employees, space where there is no denial or challenge for their identity of what they need and who they are and three is no assault (Cox and Taua 2012). A safe area is a place there the rules protect each person's dignity and self-respect and highly encourage everyone to respect each other. Scope: The report presented here describes the cultural safety and safe space and define it with respect the video scenario that is selected. In the given example video the workplace is entirely unsafe area. Aim: The reported aim is to analyze an unsafe and safe space on the video (House of Lies, Episode 5: Racist). The safe and unsafe space refers to an environment in the workplace where employees are either protected or not protected by the rules and in safe space, everyone is treated with self-respect and dignity. By interacting with people who think you are wrong and dont take any risks and always be optimistic are some of the recommended ways that can be helpful to improve the safety of the space. Summarizing House of Lies Video: Marty Kaan got a new client Mr. B. Butterfield, and he is racist by nature. He had a perception in mind while entering into Martys Cabin that Marty Kaan is a white man, so he introduces himself to two white men's who are the Marty's management team, and he expected that a white will be the boss. While introducing to everyone, he found that Marty Kaan is a black man and he wished him luck and leave the cabin with an unexplained face. Then Marty asked who will handle Mr. Butterfield both of his teammates were raising hands to assign the client to one of them, but Marty gave the responsibility to his lady team mate for handling the customer and then told and warned her, if she fails to manage the customer, then we will be sent back to whatever place she has come from (YouTube.com 2016). The video was made on January 30th, 2012 United States of America. Summarizing the Literature: The safe space is a space where everyone or anyone can relax and can express themselves fully without any fear and any feelings of discomfort, unsafe or unwelcome on biological sex, ethnicity, gender expression or identity and mental and physical ability (Ringland et al. 2015). This is a place where some rules are there to protect individual's dignity, self-respect and actively encourage individuals to show some respect to their workers or other employees. Cultural intelligence: The Cultural intelligence defines a person's ability or capability to function efficiently and more in situations represented by cultural diversity. It can also be said that a person's capacity that is consistent with modern conceptualizations of intelligence because it does recognize that general mental ability is less, and intelligence is more than it (Ang and Van Dyne 2015). Cultural Awareness: Cultural Awareness refers as a base or foundation of communication where it involves the capacity of standing back from individual and can become aware of cultural perceptions, beliefs, and values. We can also say that its all about knowledge and understanding of cultural history and difference (Tomalin and Stempleski 2013). It's about got aware of various cultural groups, and that includes identification of own identity, practices, and cultural values. The CI (Cultural Intelligence) becomes apparent in different situations where the individual is unknown about the present environment. The cultural difficulties can be faced by the person when they work in a workplace where the knowledge, age and experience are different from one another and or when someone visits an unknown country for the first time (Takeuchi and Chen 2013). The individual needs to go through the following stages of culture shock represented in figure 1. Figure 1: Cultural Adjustment Curve (Source: Chao et al. 2012, pp-20) The communication is always a fundamental aspect across different cultures when to develop a cultural intelligence (Ting-Toomey 2012). But there are some distinct hurdles which prevent an effective communication. The hurdles that are stereotypes, behavior and language and this can avoid the communication to be better. Strategies that are need to be addressed to overcome the entire obstacles to create a safe space. They are avoid stereotyping, honest communication, clear and open questions and active listening. The cultural intelligence and cultural awareness are the fundamental requirements to create a better safe space (Bowe et al. 2014). Observation made from selected video Considering the physical factor of the given video, it has been observed that the area in the office is a single cabin where all the teammates were sitting in their appropriate position. The size of the office space was limited and is filled with Red color showing class and professionalism. Marty seems to be confident while taking with the client with a polite voice and body language. But there is a lack of cultural self-awareness and cultural intelligence because Mr. Buttterfield was racist by nature and was addressing Marty with less value and belief etc. Scene Number/Timeframe Physical Factors Communication Factors Exclusion Cultural self-awareness and Cultural Intelligence House of Lies Scene (5) Racist and Time frame is 1 minute and 13 seconds. -The dark red color has been used in this video, and the room looks brighter with light, some plants are placed in the office room. -Everyone was sitting in their chairs and seems to relax and surprised by seeing the client visiting and addressing Marty. -Eye contacts are properly made among the four characters. Especially with Marty and Mr. Butterfield. -The body language of everyone was tensed because the client was addressing the wrong guy and he clearly seemed to be racists. -Marty thinks that it should be a white person who can handle the client, so he asked her employee to follow Mr. Butterfield project. -People were very confused with the client presences in the room, and they were not much humor in the scenes that can be related to inclusion. -Marty seems to be bit angry and warns one of her staff to take care of the clients project or else she will be fired. -There no signs of cultural awareness and cultural intelligence because Mr. Butterfield showcased racism among the management team. -Marty got angry on the client and showed his anger on the staff and warned her lady employee that she will be fired if she didnt handle him well. Table 1: Description and Observation in Video (Source: Created By Author) Discussion The early video scene displays that a relax working culture in the office where one of the staff is completely relaxed and been causally eating and working in the given workspace (Crowne 2013). But they all displayed a high cultural intelligence because they all adjust their behavior as soon as the client enters the room. They all show an instant reaction which gathers the customer's attention, and a warm welcome was shown towards the customer and the client begin to talk. Now this demonstrates an excellent example of cultural intelligence (Eisenberg et al. 2013). It was clearly seen that Marty was reading the body language of the customer and others and was adjusting his approach because the customer was racists and he didn't want to make him angry. Moreover, the lady employee also shows some intelligence. On the other aspect of the scene after the client leave the office room, Marty displayed an unsafe space for working, because Marty asked everyone that who is going to handle the customer, and he showed his anger on the lady employee by just giving her the warning that, if she fails to manage the customer then she will be sent back to the place from where she has come from. Recommendation Racism is the personal view of individuals, in this case, and the client displayed racism which cannot be controlled. The video scene clearly showed that the office is an unsafe space to work (Leatherman and Griffin 2014). Because the boss Marty seems to show anger and threats his employees about the client because he was racists. The following things can be done to neglect such incident. The freedom of speech needs to be given to the employees because they seem that in the scene that Marty seems to be dominant with his employees. Marty has to be an active listener (Mae et al. 2013). Active participants of all the staff are required to improve the unsafe space to a safe area. The employee needs to feel much more secure working with Marty. Conclusion The report presented here to showcase how a workspace can be made safe space using cultural intelligence and capabilities and cultural awareness as well. The report is made based on the selected video where a scenario is displayed, and it has been explained in general on safe space, cultural awareness, and cultural intelligence. The purpose of this report is to understand how a safe space can be created using the above factors that are cultural advocacy and information. The report covers various aspects on the establishment of a safe space and moreover a detailed report is submitted with a recommendation to improve the unsafe area to safe space. References Ang, S. and Van Dyne, L., 2015. Handbook of cultural intelligence. Routledge. Bowe, H., Martin, K. and Manns, H., 2014. Communication across cultures: Mutual understanding in a global world. Cambridge University Press. Chao, M.M.C., Takeuchi, R., Farh, J.L., Zhang, Z.X. and Hong, Y., 2012. The Role of Essentialist Beliefs on Cultural Adjustment and Cultural Intelligence Development. In 2013 Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management, Orlando, FL. Cox, L. and Taua, C., 2012. Cultural safety: cultural considerations. Jarvis's Physical Examination and Health Assessment, pp.40-60. Crowne, K.A., 2013. Cultural exposure, emotional intelligence, and cultural intelligence An exploratory study. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 13(1), pp.5-22. Eisenberg, J., Lee, H.J., Brck, F., Brenner, B., Claes, M.T., Mironski, J. and Bell, R., 2013. Can business schools make students culturally competent? Effects of cross-cultural management courses on cultural intelligence. Academy of Management Learning Education, 12(4), pp.603-621. Leatherman, J. and Griffin, N., 2014. Unsafe Spaces: Trends and Challenges in Gender-Based Violence. World Politics Review-First Response: Health Work in Conflict Zones. Mae, B., Cortez, D. and Preiss, R.W., 2013. Safe spaces, difficult dialogues, and critical thinking.International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning,7(2), p.5. Ringland, K.E., Wolf, C.T., Dombrowski, L. and Hayes, G.R., 2015, February. Making Safe: Community-Centered Practices in a Virtual World Dedicated to Children with Autism. InProceedings of the 18th ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work Social Computing(pp. 1788-1800). ACM. Takeuchi, R. and Chen, J., 2013. The impact of international experiences for expatriates cross-cultural adjustment: A theoretical review and a critique. Organizational Psychology Review, p.2041386613492167. Ting-Toomey, S., 2012. Communicating across cultures. Guilford Press. YouTube.com, (2016).House of Lies Season 1: Episode 5 Clip - Racist. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKPI5jSjt0M [Accessed 31 May 2016

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Knock, Knock free essay sample

Ive heard thatsometimes God has to knock us on the head to get our attention, but I never expected Him to actually do it.In my case, though, He knocked on my left knee. I wasnt really sure what I wanted to do with myfuture but had generally decided to become a history teacher, more because I liked history and was good atit than for any other reason. My decision, however, abruptly changed in the middle of sophomore year. Youcould say my future fell out of the sky and landed on me. Or you could just say I fell down. I wasplaying basketball and landed on my knee with a sickening twist. After reconstructive surgery, I hadphysical therapy. Surprisingly, I enjoyed it. I liked it so much I started to think about it as acareer. Ive spent the last two years volunteering in the rehabilitation department of a localhospital, and though it began as a chance to see what physical therapy was all about, it has become apassion. We will write a custom essay sample on Knock, Knock or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Ive always known I wanted to do something to help others, I just didnt know I could make a livingat the same time. What better job, in an increasingly impersonal world, could there be? One of thebest feelings Ive ever had was seeing an elderly womans expression as she laughingly kicked her feet in aswirling whirlpool. For a few moments, as I talked with her and the soothing water bubbled around herbattered foot, I helped take her mind off her pain. That moment was valuable enough for me to devote mylife, time and energy to. My goal is to earn degrees in physical therapy and Spanish. Why? To make lots ofmoney? No. To drive a fancy car and wear designer clothes? That wont happen. I just want to be happy,and do something to make others as happy. Thats a goal worth working for.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Sample Letter of Recommendation for an Internal Promotion

Sample Letter of Recommendation for an Internal Promotion SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Beyond helping someone get an initial hire, recommendation letters can also go a long way toward assisting someone with an internal promotion. If the promotion involves moving into a position of leadership, then a great rec letter from a supervisor or colleague can be useful in showing that the candidate's ready to move up. In this sample reference, a supervisor recommends that a Customer Experience Advisor at a glasses company move into the position of Team Lead. Read on to see how the supervisor frames her letter. Sample Letter #5: Written by a Supervisor for an Internal Promotion Zachary ParkerDirector of Customer RelationsLark Lenses102 Charles St.Boston, MA 02114 Dear Zachary Parker, It’s my pleasure to provide this recommendation for Alex as she pursues the Customer Experience Team Lead position with Lark Lenses. As her supervisor on the customer service team for the past three years, I’ve worked closely with Alex on a day-to-day basis. I'm confident that Alex is ready to transition into a leadership position. Please allow me to give three examples of Alex’s qualifications for this promotion. First, Alex embodies our â€Å"customer-centric† philosophy and delivers an extraordinary shopping and ownership experience to our clients. She has impressed me with her warmth, wisdom, and kindness online, over the phone, and in person. A few months ago, for example, she spent an hour consoling a woman who was going through a tough time. The customer has since bought several glasses from us and referred friends and family members who have done the same. Alex builds strong relationships with customers and strengthens our business in the long term. Outstanding support is a cornerstone of our business model, and Alex consistently provides that service as a Customer Experience Advisor. Second, Alex has an in-depth knowledge of our products and operating procedures. After three years on the support team, she’s dealt with a variety of issues and understands the day-to-day operations and big picture aims of our business. She can solve problems fast and has introduced several new initiatives for improvement. Recently, she began working on a new framework to facilitate communication between the support team and the product team. Alex is improving the delivery of case notes from support representatives to product designers. She uses her in-depth knowledge to drive innovation. Third, Alex has shown leadership skills throughout her time with Lark Lenses. Her colleagues recognize her as an expert in all things support, and they often go to her with questions. In the past year, she’s helped with the onboarding of several new employees, assisting with training and checking in weekly to discuss their progress. Since new employee onboarding will be a large part of her role as Customer Experience Team Lead, Alex has already proven her capability in this arena. I know that she has her colleagues’ support in stepping into the role of team leader. Alex has proven her expertise in customer relations time and time again, and she is ready to move into a position of team leadership. She is capable, confident, and committed to our mission of extraordinary support. I look forward to seeing her in the position of Customer Experience Team Lead with Lark Lenses. Thank you very much. Please feel free to get in touch with any questions. Sincerely, Lucie WarbyCustomer Experience ManagerLark Lenseslwarby@larklenses.com617-729-5555 // Based on this letter, Alex sounds like the kind of warm, understanding person who wouldn't judge you if you were shopping for eyeglasses for your dog. Recommendation Letter 5: The Breakdown While you may write a letter for someone seeking external employment, you might also get tasked with producing a letter in support of an employee seeking an internal promotion. In this case, you should focus on why the candidate is the right person to move up in the company. How has she proven her capabilities in terms of both her professional skills and connections with her coworkers? In this letter, Lucie Warby expresses her support for Alex’s promotion from Customer Experience Adviser to Customer Experience Team Lead. She focuses on three main strengths: Alex’s customer service, her knowledge and innovative ideas, and her leadership skills among her colleagues. Lucie discusses Alex’s success as a support representative and the reasons she’s ready to move into a position of leadership. To give a few specifics, Lucie mentions Alex’s supportive conversation with a distraught customer. She also talks about her project to deliver case notes from the support team to the design team. // Finally, Lucie mentions how Alex has helped train new employees, a responsibility that would be a large part of her job as team lead. From Lucie’s portrayal, it’s clear that Alex has already started to move beyond the parameters of her current job and take on a leadership role. As a supervisor within the same company, Lucie’s high opinion of Alex’s work would hold a lot of weight. She knows the company and can speak realistically to Alex’s fit with the new position. By stating that Alex already has the support of her team, Lucie further proves that Alex could be the right choice for Customer Experience Team Lead. This letter uses strong, positive language and specific examples to support Alex as she applies for an internal promotion with Lark Lenses. What's Next? Ready for another sample? Check out this letter written by a supervisor for a student intern! // Are you looking for even more samples of recommendation letters for jobs? Head over to our main article for eight more samples and tips on how to write great reference letters. Want to provide a strong recommendation for your employee, but don't have the time to craft the perfect letter? PrepScholar's new recommendation tool, SimpleRec, takes you from good intentions and a blank page to a fully written and formatted letter of recommendation in under 5 minutes. All you need to do is give us some simple pieces of information about your employee and your experience working with them, and we'll do the rest. Try out SimpleRec risk-free today:

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Racial and Ethnic Groups Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Racial and Ethnic Groups - Assignment Example Under the Jim Crow laws, blacks and whites were not allowed to intermarry; it was considered a criminal offense. Canada has a large proportion of indigenous people as compared to other countries worldwide. The need to preserve cultural traditions shapes the strategies established to promote economic development. The number of immigrants in the country increases early. These immigrants maintain the same cultural pattern adopted in attaining economic development. It has been suggested that Brazil is a racial paradise. That is not the case, as the country continues to deal with significant disparity among people of color. Mexico maintains a mosaic of native indigenous people and mestizos to create a diversified society (Schaefer, 2001). Segments of the population that feel ignored and disadvantaged are encouraged to participate in public and civic activities. The apartheid era in South Africa indicates how race can be used to suppress millions of people. The post-apartheid era is denoted by the continuous reconciliation of the different ethnic and racial groups. Reconciliation is fundamental for these groups, which are facing issues involving education, land, health and public safety. Slave trade in both Brazil and the United States began in the 17th and 18th centuries. Slavery was central to the colonial economy. Slave trade was brought about by the need for laborers to assist in building economic foundations. In Brazil, slaves were required to work in the mining and sugar cane sectors. In the United States, slaves worked in the cotton fields (Schaefer, 2001). Captives from Africa were transported through the Atlantic Ocean to the United States and Brazil. The main point of departure of the slave trade in these two countries is the slave death rate. In Brazil, the slave death rate was higher than that in the United States. Colonialists in Brazil could not sustain the slave population without importing more captives from Africa.