Dantes Inferno The Levels of Hell

Level One According to Dante, there are various levels in hell. The first level in Hell is called Limbo. All the individuals who die before being baptized and those who live as virtuous pagans are condemned to spend the rest of eternity at this level. The people being referred to in this level are those who die before accepting Christianity.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Dante’s Inferno: The Levels of Hell specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More All the individuals who die non-Christians, including philosophers who typically do not associate themselves with any religion are going to be condemned to this level for eternity. Some of the examples that provided by Dente include famous philosophers like Socrates and Plato. This level is therefore the least severe in terms of punishment and is the farthest from Satan. Level Two The second level is known as lust and consists of the desperate and the despondent. All th e sinners who will be found to be guilty of lust will be condemned to this level for eternity. The souls of all the individuals found guilty of this sin will be scattered and blown about without any hope of rest.1 In this level, people will be subjected to eternal unrest and hopelessness. This level is the second farthest circle from Satan and is slightly harsher than the first one, but is not as cruel as the other circles that follow. Level Three The third level consists of gluttons who will be forced to eat and lie down in vile places. In addition, the gluttons will also be subjected to freezing slush, which is allegedly similar to the harsh environment subjected to pigs. The character considered to be the head of this group of gluttons is Cerberus. The conditions at this level will be like clumps of mud and other deplorable areas. The gluttony level will be harsher than the previous two levels and this means that the level of torture subjected to the culprits will also be higher. In addition, the surroundings will be characterized by dirt, filth and other bad states. The gluttons will be subjected to states similar to those that pigs experience in this world. Level Four The fourth level will consist of misers and spendthrifts who will be subjected to roll stones to crash them completely. Since they are used to abusing material goods, they will be subjected to stones crashing against each other. Avaricious and prodigal individuals will not be counted among the righteous, but will instead be subjected to banging rocks for eternity. This will be a punishment for spoiling the goods in this world. One of the supernatural beings perceived as a possible leader in this category of people is Plutus, the Greek god.2 The Greek god is perceived to be the luminary of all spendthrifts and misers, and this god will lead all its followers towards this crash. This level will be more severe in terms of punishment than all the other preceding levels.Advertising Looking f or essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Level Five The fifth level allegedly consists of the individuals guilty of wrath and sullenness. The wrathful are regarded as those who fight each other and they will be subjected to eternal conflict against each other. Anger and fury will be considered to be part of the fifth level and the perpetrators of these two acts will be subjected to various conflicts in opposition to each other. The wrathful will be condemned to the river of hate known as Styx and this will bring about various sullen lies under the marshy surfaces. The sullen anger will be concealed just as their tempers were silently concealed behind their lives. They will be subjected to unending conflicts between each other and there will be no chance of peace in this level. Since the involved individuals will be subjected to various conflicting scenarios, this level is considered as more severe that the previous ones. Level Six The sixth level will seize all followers of heresy and those who stand for opinions and doctrines that go up against Christian beliefs. All the people who oppose the church and profess opinions that differ from those that are in line with Christian doctrines will be condemned to suffer under this level. Examples of the heretics are Farinata and Epicurean, which are groups of people who presume the soul does not exist.3 These people believe that the core objective of humanity is engaging in pressure. The people who will fall in this category are those who will have developed different opinions and objectives that contravene Christianity. Individuals condemned to this level will have to spend their lives in burning graves for eternity. The punishment in this level will therefore be more severe than in the previous ones. Level Seven The other level in hell is the level that will hold all offenders of vicious crimes and perpetrators of all forms of violence. On e of the forms of violence addressed in this level is that against one’s neighbors.4 This type of violence will hold for all people who wage war against people who are close to them. The other form of violence will be that against oneself. All the people who will be found to have engaged in violent activities against themselves will be subjected to the same punishment experienced by any other violent group. In addition, those who will be found to have acted violently against God will also be subjected to similar punishments, just like any other person condemned to this level. In this level, there will be various rings that one will be subjected, which vary based on the various category of violence. The first ring will consist of those who are violent against others while the second one will be made of individuals who perpetrate violence against themselves. The third ring will include all the persons who perpetrate violence against God. Blasphemy and denial of God’s wor d are considered as some of the most serious crimes under this level.5Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Dante’s Inferno: The Levels of Hell specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Level Eight The individuals who will be found to have committed fraud will be subjected to the eighth level in hell. The panderers and seducers are some of the main players who will greatly feature in this level. The sorcerers and false prophets who are guilty of the same crime will also be subjected to similar punishments as stipulated under the eighth level. Other persons such as the liars and thieves will also be condemned to suffer in this level. Diomedes and Ulysses are some of the characters who are considered as possible leaders of this level. Level Nine The last level and the closest to Satan is that of treachery. In this level, the individuals who will be condemned are those who betray special relationships, including all trait ors to family members, those who betray their country, those who are disloyal to their guests and those who conspire against their masters. Cain, Judas, Ptolomea and Guelph, are considered as the potential leaders of all the people who will be condemned to this level. This level is therefore considered to be the most severe in terms of punishment as compared to the rest. Bibliography Dante’s Inferno. â€Å"The Levels of Hell.† Danteinferno.info. n.d. Web. Eileen, Gardine. Visions of Heaven Hell before Dante. New York: Italica Press, 1989. Goff, Jacques. The Birth of Purgatory. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1984. Himmelfarb, Martha. Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1983. Thompson, Diane. â€Å"World Literature I (Eng 251): Dante’s Inferno Study Guide.† Northern Virginia Community College. Last modified 2007. Web.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Footnotes 1 Jacques Goff, The Birth of Purgatory (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1984), 12. 2 Gardiner Eileen, Visions of Heaven Hell Before Dante (NewYork: Italica Press, 1989), 26. 3 Himmelfarb Martha, Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1983), 20. 4 Diane Thompson, â€Å"World Literature I (Eng 251): Dante’s Inferno Study Guide,† Northern Virginia Community College. Last modified 2007. 5 Dante’s Inferno, â€Å"The Levels of Hell,† Danteinferno.info. n.d. This essay on Dante’s Inferno: The Levels of Hell was written and submitted by user Ka1ley to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Words of Wisdom Quotes That Enrich Everyday Life

Words of Wisdom Quotes That Enrich Everyday Life Wisdom is the distilled knowledge that is created through experience and insight. It is not something only the educated have. Mankinds ancestors left behind a treasure trove of wisdom in the form of scriptures, folklore, and proverbs. Their wise words guide people through the meandering path of life through the legends, folk tales, and  sayings  that get passed from one generation to another. These words of wisdom can help guide your life. Read them once, and you will find them  interesting. Read them again, and you will perceive their depth. Sir Winston Churchill The price of greatness is responsibility. Khalil Gibran Yesterday is but todays memory, and tomorrow is todays dream. A little knowledge that acts is worth infinitely more than much knowledge that is idle. Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars. I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers. ​Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof. Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Lifes longing for itself. They came through you but not from you and though they are with you yet they belong not to you. Theodore Roosevelt Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. Dalai Lama When you lose, dont lose the lesson. Berthold Auerbach Years teach us more than books. A. Maude Royden Learn to hold loosely all that is not eternal. Mark Twain Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest. Epictetus Decide who you must be, then do what you must do. Buddha What you are is what you have been, and what you will be is what you do now. Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without. We are formed and molded by our thoughts. Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy when they speak or act. Joy follows them like a shadow that never leaves them. Thich Nhat Hanh To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself. William James The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook. Albert Einstein Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. Elizabeth Cady Stanton Self-development is a higher duty than self-sacrifice. Confucius Recompense injury with justice, and recompense kindness with kindness. What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others. Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star. Henry David Thoreau Do not hire a man who does your work for money, but him who does it for love of it. Kurt Vonnegut What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured. Ralph Waldo Emerson Do not be too timid and squeamish about your reactions. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better. Ruth Stafford Peale Find a need and fill it. Sun Tzu Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak. Jimi Hendrix Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens. Chinese Proverb The longer the explanation, the bigger the lie.

Decision-making traps Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Decision-making traps - Essay Example In the process however, I had observed that my effort of persuasion to direct the group in arriving at this decision, which was mostly a gratification of personal favor, was futile in the sense that majority of the members weren’t cooperating to their fullest capacities. Knowing each of them personally, I was certain about the reach of their potentials especially when they had appetite for work so it turned out that the succeeding objective of my leadership, which was to stimulate members to perform in a fashion that we could exceed average expectations in and out of the group, gradually became impaired. Primarily, I intended for us to practice executing around a task interdependently but since there were weak signs of self-motivation due to the nature of the project, I felt a growing sense of reluctance myself to push for the desired goal. Such excruciating instance of feeling ineffective in the midst of a crucial situation where I could not afford to deflect instructorâ€⠄¢s good impression at the expense of team quality brought me to the realization that I could have fulfilled each objective had I adhered to the application of utilitarian principle.

Cv Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cv - Essay Example I am proactive and have a strong determination to succeed. I am competent, reliable, enthusiastic and energetic. I have good convincing ability that was aquired through my prior job experiences which required me to handle various individuals. I possess good analytical and conceptual skills. I believe these attributes can prove to be extremely beneficial for the organizations I work for. I am a motivated and confident individual with a willingness to learn. I am adaptable and flexible and am adept at handling changes. Relevant Skills I possess extremely good communication skills which were acquired through my academic experience during which I had to make presentations. I have good convincing ability and during my job as an assistant in ‘The Nido Student’, I was able to improve my persuasive and negotiation skills. I am a team player and have the ability to work in cooperation and coordination with my team members to achieve the team’s goals. I could improve on thi s particular skill through my experience of working in teams during my university education. I am a self starter and make sure that tasks are accomplished with perfection. I was entrusted with the responsibility of planning and organizing various tasks and allocating the tasks to the various team members. I strictly adhered to deadlines and accomplished the assigned tasks within the stipulated time period. During my previous jobs, I have worked as a team member as well as a team manager. I have successfully fulfilled my responsibilities demanded by the various roles that I had to undertake in the teams. I had worked as the Student Ambassador and Student Representative in the London Metropolitan University. Computer Skills I am computer literate and have working knowledge of computers. I have an in depth knowledge of various word processing packages and Microsoft Office. Language Proficiency I am proficient in English and Arabic and possess slight knowledge of Italian. However, I am a quick learner and have the ability and the interest to learn new languages. Key Strengths I possess extremely good interpersonal skills and I am good at presentations. In my prior jobs, these skills have helped me to perform well since I have had direct interaction with customers and it requires good communication skills. I am a quick learner and can quickly adapt to changes. I am proactive and always take the initiative to accomplish tasks to perfection. I am capable of performing well in teams as well as individually. Mobility I am free to travel anywhere as demanded by my job. Academic Qualification Duration Year Degree Course College/University 2010- 2011 Third year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2009-2010 Second Year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2008-2009 First Year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2007-2008 Business Foundation Programme London Metropolit an University 2007-2008 Student Representative London Metropolitan University 2006-2007 Certificate of Advanced level of English EC London College, London 2001-2005 Intermediate Diploma in Accounting Libyan College Training Undergone I have received training in customer services, leadership and entrepreneurship from London Metropolitan University. I had also undertaken a security course for the position of a door supervisor

A Description of Marketing Essay Example for Free

A Description of Marketing Essay Philip Kotler has defined marketing as satisfying needs and wants through an exchange process. The marketing concept is the philosophy that firm should analyze the need of costumer and then make decision to satisfy those needs, the better than competition. A marketing plan is a comprehensive blueprint which outlines an organizations overall marketing efforts. The last step in the process is the marketing controlling. The marketing plan can function from two points that is strategy and tactics. In most organizations, strategic planning is an annual process, typically covering just the year ahead. Occasionally, a few organizations may look at a practical plan which stretches three or more years ahead. Behind the corporate objectives, which in themselves offer the main context for the marketing plan, will lay the corporate mission, which in turn provides the context for these corporate objectives. In a sales-oriented organization, the marketing planning function designs incentive pay plans to not only motivate and reward frontline staff fairly but also to align marketing activities with corporate mission. The marketing plan basically aims to make the business provide the solution with the awareness with the expected customers. According to Malcolm McDonald, marketing strategies can be seen as the means, or game plan, by which marketing objectives will be achieved and, in the framework that we have chosen to use, are generally concerned with the 8 Ps that is price, product, promotion, placement, people, physical, process and packaging. See more:Â  Mark Twains Humorous Satire in Running for Governor Essay * Price is the amount of money needed to buy products * Product is the actual product * Promotion is getting the product known by all people. * Placement is where the product is sold * People is represent the business * Physical environment is the ambiance, mood, or tone of the environment * Process is the Value-added services that differentiate the product from the competition e.g. after-sales service, warranties * Packaging is how the product will be protected A marketing plan for a small business typically includes Small Business Administration Description of competitors, including the level of demand for the product or service and the strengths and weaknesses of competitors, description of the product or service, including special features, marketing budget, including the advertising and promotional plan, Description of the business location, including advantages and disadvantages for marketing, pricing strategy, and market segmentation.

Female Ideals and Their Roles in Icelandic Society Essay -- Iceland Wo

Female Ideals and Their Roles in Icelandic Society Female ideals in medieval Icelandic society revolved around a woman's behavior and actions in her marriage, work, and family domains. The historical background of Icelandic women, women’s general function in society, and the roles of female characters in the Icelandic sagas provide hints towards the common attitude towards women of the time, that is, how women were expected to act, what they were expected to do, and essentially, what the ideal woman was. To examine what an ideal Icelandic woman would have been like, it is first necessary to look at some background information on the life of women in the period. While women were nowhere near the status of men in terms of the amount of power they had, they did enjoy a lot more rights than other women in medieval Europe (Simpson 129). A woman could own her own property (Simpson 128). Being able to manage her own property and refuse a second marriage, widows enjoyed the most independence (Simpson 129). At the same time, there were many things a woman could not do. For example, a woman could not vote at the Thing, be a judge, or conduct her own lawsuit. The approval of a father, husband, or other male guardian was needed for a woman to buy or sell anything above a low value (Simpson 128). While a woman did not have power over other people, especially men, she did have power in her own domestic sphere to make decisions in the household (Dommasnes 71). In her essay "Women, Kinship, and the Basis of Power" Liv Helga Dommasnes states, "As managers of all kinds of farm products, such as food, textiles, and hides, it was in the hands of the wife to see to it that the often quite big household of many generations, serva... ...sible to get a very clear picture of women in Icelandic society through the sagas alone, the coupling of historic background with the sagas provides a clearer image of the ideal woman - strong, confident, married or widowed, loyal to her family, concerned with her family's honor, and an extremely hard worker. 12 Works Cited Dammasnes, Liv Helga. "Women, Kinship, and the Basis of Power." Social Approaches to Viking Studies. Ed. Ross Samson. Glasgow: Cruithne Press, 1991. Jochens, Jenny. Women in Old Norse Society. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1995. Simpson, Jacqueline. The Viking World. New York: St. Martin's Press. 1980. The Sagas of Icelanders. Ed. Thorsson, Ornolfur. New York: Penguin Group, 2000. Sawyer, Birgit and Peter. Medieval Scandinavia: From Conversion to Reformation, circa 800-1500. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1993.

Alibaba Essay

He and his team have achieved many firsts’ in the area of Chinese Internet Trade. He founded the first internet commercial website in China, and created a 82B marketplace platform to all small and medium-sized enterprises in Asia and around the world. He promoted the â€Å"Trust Pass† plan on the website, which created the world’s first on-line credit platform for companies. Under Jack Ma’s leadership, the Alibaba 82B websites have attracted more than 17 million registered members in 220 countries globally, with daily postings exceeding 35 million, making Alibaba. om the most active Internet market place and 82B community worldwide. Since the inception of the company, more than 400 media have reported about Alibaba and Jack Ma, in dozens of languages. In addition to numerous awards presented to Alibaba. com, Jack Ma was lso selected by the World Economic Forum as one of the 100 Young Global Leaders in 2001; was named Business Leader of 2001 by Asia Commerc e Association of USA; and was featured on the covers of Forbes Magazine, Nikkei Magazine, and Fortune (China) Magazine. In 2004, Jack Ma was honored as one of the â€Å"Top 10 Economic Personas of the Year† by CCTV. In 2005, Fortune Magazine ranked him one of the â€Å"25 Most Powerful Businesspeople in Asia† and this year Business 2. 0 ranked him 1 5th among â€Å"50 Who Matter Now† and Silicon. com ranked him 1 lth among its top 50 â€Å"Agenda Setters 2006. † company, Alibaba. om builds its business success and rapid growth on entrepreneurship, innovation, and service. Says Jack Ma: The company will remain a ‘start-up’ no matter how long it has been in existence. What ever has been stable, I will disrupt that stability. The company needs to continue to innovate and grow. I want the employees to believe that we are a small company, no matter how big we get. I believe we can create a system and culture to perpetuate this culture of entrepreneurial and start-up spirit. To fuel the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit, along with a service attitude, Jack Ma is looking for people with the following characteristics: 1) People with a dream. â€Å"Don’t let your colleagues work for you. They need to work for their dreams! † If people don’t believe in the dream and Join the company purely for money, they won’t stay long (refer to Appendix 2 for Alibaba’s vision, mission, and values). 2) People with shared values. â€Å"The value system is very important at Alibaba. We are crazy for it! In China, we might be the only crazy company who so strongly maintains our value system. People who don’t fit our values cannot survive in the company. † (Alibaba’s six ore values are customer comes first, teamwork and cooperation, embracing change, integrity, passion, and honoring your Job). 3) People with a smile. â€Å"When we hire people, we look for people who are naturally optimistic and happy. In the start-up process we will meet with difficulties and challenges. Optimistic and happy people can better deal with these challenges and succeed. It’s hard to make a happy person unhappy, but it’s even harder to make an unhappy person happy. I am able to tell whether a person is on our staff by their smile. † 4) People who enjoy work and can turn stress and challenges into innovation. Employees must be able to handle pressure and challenges, and turn them into positive energy for innovation, not negative energy for depression. † 5) People who work together. â€Å"We don’t welcome people who think they are smart because they may think they are above others. This industry is so new that it really doesn’t have any real talents. The people who are real talents probably don’t know they are talents. Everyone has tremendous potential. We all use other people’s strengths to overcome our weaknesses We are all ordinary people, but our goals are extraordinary. † While Alibaba seeks people with strong rofessional skills, these characteristics are even more important in deciding whether a person will Join, stay, and enjoy working in the company. 2 Alibaba’s Unique Value Proposition † a Smiling Community with a Dream While Alibaba is clear about what kind of talent they need for business success, the question is: how can the company attract, retain, and engage such talent, especially in the startup stage, when Alibaba had limited resources? The answer is a dream, a dream to make a difference in the way people do business, and a dream to create wealth together. During the start-up stage of Alibaba, Jack Ma often told those nterested in working for Alibaba, not of the great working conditions or the high pay, of what they could earn elsewhere. Alibaba also strives to provide a community, where employees can have fun to work together to pursue their dreams with minimal bureaucracy and politics. Ma recently painted a vivid image of his ideal work environment for his employees as follows: Blue Sky Processes, systems, and decisions need to be open and transparent. There’s nothing that should be hidden from employees. We should be transparent. Solid Ground Everything we do should be honest, ethical and contribute to the welfare of the ociety. The company should be on solid financial ground so employees won’t worry about the financial future of the company. Free-flowing Ocean Talent must be allowed to rotate Jobs across subsidiaries and departments. Green Forest (R Conducive conditions for continued innovation. Harmonious Community Peers with shared values and simple interpersonal relationships. The ultimate objective of such a community is to offer employees a work environment to grow, contribute, and live out their dreams. Bureaucracy, secrecy, and stagnation are all attributes that inhibit employees, and the company must actively seek out these ehaviors and destroy them. Alibaba from the Eyes of Employees To what extent do employees at Alibaba experience what the company intends to offer? Why do they Join the company and how do they feel as employees working there? Our focus group discussion with employees in different functions and levels confirms that Alibaba is indeed a unique company to work with. The following themes and direct quotations capture their experiences and the feeling of working at Alibaba: A leader with charisma and credibility: Jack Ma is the magnet that draws people into the company and provides them with a credible dream. â€Å"When I spoke with Jack Ma, I was impressed with his vision and business model. I had been in the internet business for a while but had not seen a successful model like the one Alibaba is employing. † Tang Zhenrong, International Website Engineering Department, and one year with the company. Although the objectives for each year seem to be very high, somehow we have always managed to accomplish those objectives. With past success, we have built up confidence that we’re able to achieve the objectives no matter what they are. † Lili Li, Sales Research Department, six years with the company. The passion of Alibaba is from within and radiates outward to others. We can see that they truly believe in the company and the culture of Alibaba is built from there, not by programs or processes. † Echo Lu, Director of Organization and People Development. â€Å"The company is true to its values at all levels. When Jack Ma talks to management about hiring, he told us that we must hire people With the same smell. Zhang Yu, Director of Marketing, Taobao. com Changes, challenges, and growth: People grow under tremendous pressure to change and grow. â€Å"The speed of change is three to four times that of other organizations. The objectives are ‘crazy, but when we reach and surpass the targets, we then have a profound sense of accomplishment. With the constant pressure and changes, we’re also forced to evaluate how we do our own Jobs and how we work as a team. Is it sufficient to accomplish the new objectives? Do we need to look at the challenge differently and try different things? † Zhang Yu, Director of Marketing, Taobao. om 4 Communication and transparency â€Å"Jack will meet with all new employees in a group setting, has meetings with management at least quarterly, and bi-annual staff meetings with all employees. On the intranet, there’s a BBS that allows staff to post their thoughts and opinions. Jack often interacts with staff on the BBS in an open and casual way. † Echo Lu, Director of Organization and People Development A company that cares about employees â€Å"During the SARS crisis, because of one suspected case, Alibaba made the decision in one day to have all employees work from home and to pass the required isolation period. As a result of this quick action, we contained any possible outbreak, May. Employees continued to perform Jobs tremendously well at home. We encouraged each other through BBS, phone calls, and e-mails. † Lili L’, Sales Research Department â€Å"The most positive thing to result from the SARS crisis was an enormous amount of pride for employees who went through this crisis together. They built a strong bond through experiencing this event together. It’s still a much talked about event in the company. In fact, some employees have named the day that staff were sent home to contain the outbreak, Alibaba Day, to commemorate the event. The spirit of Alibaba came alive on that day. † Echo Lu, Director of Organization and People Development Leadership and Management Practices that Create the Unique Value Proposition Leadership priority: As CEO, Jack Ma invests most of his time in three areas: vision/ mission/strategy, customers, and employees. By clearly articulating and constantly communicating the vision and mission of the company, he creates the most important foundation in attracting outstanding talent. â€Å"Don’t let your colleague work for you, but work for their dreams! Also, it is important to deeply understand customer needs, not competitor’s actions. Understanding customer needs can help Alibaba develop concrete business plans and focus on realizing its dream. Finally, it is also critical to realistically assess the competencies of employees. It will decide â€Å"how fast,† â€Å"how far†, and â€Å"how’ the company can execute its business strategy and targets in the coming year and next three years. His attentiveness to talent is reflected in two management practices. First, in the monthly senior management meeting, the first question he always asked is â€Å"How is your team doing? † instead of â€Å"How many sales has your team made? † Second, he always spends a lot of time alking around different business units and departments to â€Å"smell† how the people are doing there. If he â€Å"smells† something wrong, he will immediately talk to the unit head to identify problems and improve the situation. As a matter of fact, all senior executives at VP level and above must develop such â€Å"smelling† skills at Alibaba, to make sure that people are being managed properly. Value alignment: Strong shared values are essential in building a harmonious community where people feel comfortable working together and in ensuring that decisions and behaviors are aligned with company direction. Alibaba has gone the extra mile to make sure that people share the same values. When Alibaba hires people, they look for people with th e same â€Å"smell†Ã¢â‚¬ people who are optimistic, happy, team oriented, hard working, and willing to invest their lives to achieve an ideal. When employees Join the company, they attend at least 10 days of orientation, focusing primarily on the company’s vision, mission, and values. When the company assesses the performance of employees, 50% is tied to values and 50% is tied to business results. When employees demonstrate behaviors contrary to company core alues, they are asked to leave no matter how strong their business results are, or very important at Alibaba. People who don’t fit into our values cannot survive in the company. † Stretch opportunities and challenges: While Alibaba offers different training programs for different levels of employees in both technical and management areas, people grow rapidly by achieving â€Å"impossible† targets year after year. Although the objectives for each year seem high and unreasonable, somehow, we have always managed to accomplish those objectives. With past success we have built up the onfidence that we are able to achieve the objectives, no matter what they are,† says Lili Li, of the Sales Research Department. â€Å"At Alibaba I have been stretched and challenged. I have seen myself grow m ore than in my previous Jobs,† says Zhang Yu from Taobao. com. Indeed, Jack Ma believes that all people have potential that can be unleashed in the right environment, allowing them to stretch and challenge themselves. Ma quoted one of his favorite examples, â€Å"Several years ago when I looked at the current COO Li Qi, there was no way he looked like a COO. Nowadays, from all different angles, he really looks like a COO. Talent has tremendous potential to grow. † However, in order for people to grow under challenges, three elements are important. First is teamwork. Alibaba uses teamwork to complement individual strengths and weaknesses to achieve extraordinary goals. Second are the right people, who enjoy challenges and have fun working. Third are line managers who are accountable for personal growth within their teams. Jack Ma remarked that all line managers at Alibaba are entrusted with two scarce resources (capital and talent) to create value for the company. In addition to ensuring good financial returns, they lso need to create value for their talent in terms of their growth and retention. That’s why Jack Ma also walks around the company to â€Å"smell† how people are being managed in different departments, and why he always asks business leaders how their teams are doing in the monthly CEO review. Wealth creation and sharing: All employees of Alibaba receive stock options, and in effect are owners of the organization. At Alibaba, stock options are not a tool for retention but for reward sharing. From five cents per share to five dollars per share in 6 years, many employees have not only shown tremendous pride in the company but also shared the fruits of their collective success for the well-being of both the society and themselves. Transparency and communication: Communication is an important practice within Alibaba that helps maintain a culture of transparency to all employees. Employees have easy access to all executives, including Jack Ma, through the use of email, BBS, and face-to-face meetings (monthly, quarterly or bi-annual staff meetings). Jack Ma sets a high standard for his executives to follow by regularly interacting with employees. â€Å"All decisions are transparent, and people can see how they are made. This transparency is getting somewhat lost as we get bigger, but we’re still given a lot of information when possible. Our trust in the leaders has helped us to overcome this change in transparency. Communication is always good and strong from Sales Research Department. Advice to other CEOs When asked about what advice he would like to offer to other CEOs in China, Jack Ma suggested four: 1) Always believe people are the most important asset, and capital comes second. 2) It is not necessary to find the â€Å"best† talent but the talent that best fits your company. 3) Find and groom the talent inside our company rather than keep searching for talent from outside. The best talent is home-groomed people who fit our company culture. It always takes at least three years before people become fully immersed into our company culture 4) Believe in the potential of talent.