My Argument Essay ~B~

Embrace the New World Economy


Americans play three roles at once: consumer, worker, and citizen. The consumer in us wants faster service and cheaper prices. The worker in us wants job security. The citizen in us is horrified of America’s uncertain future. In order for Americans to survive in the new world economy, the consumer in us must understand how the new world economy will benefit us, the worker in us must adapt to changes that occur within companies, and the citizen in us must embrace the new world economy.

Consumers want faster service. UPS’s collaboration with corporations helps corporations provide their customers with faster service. A customer who owns a Toshiba laptop computer that is under warranty and it breaks can call Toshiba to have it repaired, Toshiba will tell the customer to drop it off at a UPS store and have it shipped to Toshiba, and it will get repaired and then be shipped back to the customer. However, here is what they do not tell the customer: UPS not only picks up and delivers the customer’s Toshiba laptop. UPS actually repairs the computer in its own US-run workshop dedicated to computer and printer repairs at its Louisville hub (Friedman 168).

Consumers want cheaper prices. Wal-Mart’s low costs are possible due to Wal-Mart’s focus n three things. The first is bargaining with manufactures to get them to lower their costs as much as possible. The second is working on its supply chain from those manufacturers, wherever they are in the world, to Wal-Mart’s distribution centers, to make it as low-cost and seamless as possible. The third is constantly improving Wal-Mart’s information systems, so it knows exactly what its customers are buying and can transfer that information to all manufactures, so the shelves will stay stocked with the right items at the right time (Friedman 158)

Outsourcing benefits consumers. Corporations send sectors of work to countries like China because it is cheaper. The wage rate in China can start off as low as $50 to $60 monthly. China also has an abundant labor supply. There is a high availability for labor intensive, multi-shift, and repetitive operations (Ting 48). The less money corporations have to pay to run their businesses, the more savings that are passed on to the consumer. Outsourcing benefits corporations and consumers, but what about the American workers who are losing jobs due to outsourcing?

American workers want job security. Dietetics is a save profession to enter, for now. Employment of dietitians is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2014 as a result of increasing emphasis on disease prevention through improved dietary habits. A growing and aging populations will boost the demand for meals and nutritional counseling in hospitals, residential care facilities, schools, prisons, community health programs, and home health care agencies. Public interest in nutrition and increased emphasis on health education and prudent lifestyles also will spur demand, especially in management. In addition to employment growth, job openings will result from the need to replace experienced workers who leave the occupation (bls.gov 1). Even though the future of dietetics looks bright, Americans still need to be ready for change.

American workers must adapt to change within changing companies. Jacque Howard started her employment with Voicestream Wireless in the fall of 2000. A year after starting her employment, she experienced the T-Mobile merger. Voicestream then became T-Mobile, and the company spokesperson went from Jamie Lee Curtis to Catherine Zeta Jones. In November of 2003, all wireless companies had to comply with federal legislation, allowing wireless customers to transfer their mobile numbers to any wireless provider they wished (Peterson 1). With that came the headache of explaining to customers who were still under contract, that they would be charged a $200 early termination fee if they transferred their number to another wireless provider. Within the mix of everything else that was happening in her job, Jacque also had to adapt to multiple changes to the companies policies and procedures. She could not get comfortable with one set of policies and procedures before they were replaced by new policies and procedures. Through it all, Jacque knew that if she wanted to stay employed, she had to embrace these changes with a smile.

American workers must be creative in combining multiple professions in order to become “untouchable” ( Friedman 278). According to Friedman, an untouchable is someone whose job cannot be outsourced, digitized, or automated. Who would have thought that the combination of nutrition and mobile technology would create an innovation such as My Food Phone? My Food Phone is a camera-phone food-journaling feedback service. Basically the mobile phone user can take a snapshot of their dinner, which may consist of cornbread, mashed potatoes, and green beans, and send it to their personal MyFoodPhone.com nutritionist. The nutritionist would evaluate the food for its caloric, fat, carbohydrate, and protein content, then reply back, via video, to the user’s cell phone. The nutritionist might commend the user for including green beans on their plate, then point out that their plate contained all carbohydrates, and might suggest substituting the cornbread with baked fish or baked chicken, and the mashed potatoes for whole grain rice. This demonstrates the synthesis of nutrition and mobile technology (Fried man 283)

American citizens are scared to death of Americas uncertain future. At Penn Valley Community College in Kansas City Missouri, an English 101 online class discussion about outsourcing is full of concerns about job loss, and security of personal information. The main statement that stands out is “It is scary”. It is scary, but the unknown is always scary. How can Americans let go of this fear and adapt to the new world economy?

American citizens will have to let go of the nation state way of life in order to embrace the new world economy. In the wake of the triple convergence, the more the playing field is leveled, the more challenging it will be for Americans and to hold on to our cultures, values, identity, democratic tradition, and bonds of restraint that have historically provided some protection and cushioning for workers and communities. Some people will be excited about it – an opportunity to soar, expand, dig, or build in any direction with a whole new set of tools. Others will react with the anxiety of person in free fall, with nothing to hold them up or in place in any direction and nothing to protect their privacy. Some will feel totally liberated, others totally disoriented (Friedman 237 and 238).
To some of us, assuming the role of consumer, worker, and citizen may be a challenge, even scary at times. However, in order to make a smooth transition into the new world economy, Americans must marvel the benefits that come with being a consumer, become adaptable workers, and receptive citizens.

Works Cited
Friedman, Thomas L. The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. Updated and Expanded Edition. NY: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2006.

Ting, Anthony. “Outsourcing in China” Industrial Engineer 36.12 (2004): 45-50

U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Job Outlook.” Dieticians and Nutritionists. http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocoidf.htm#D

Peterson, Molly M. “Telecom Industry Accused of Trying to Delay Portability.” Congress Daily AM 10/30/2003: p10-11

My Food Phone, Inc. “The User’s Experience.” MyFoodPhone.com Presentation. http://www.myfoodphone.com/demo.htm

I haven't recieved my evaluation sheet back yet, so not sure of the problems that resulted in 123 points/150 possible.