Pick a country other than india and write a paper on business ethics Research

Pick a country other than india and write a on business ethics - Research Paper Example This paper analyses some of the ethical principles that business operators in PRC have to adhere to and the challenges posed by these requirements. Natural right and social construct Property rights give people legal ownership of property and hence decide on how and with whom to share such properties. This therefore would leave all wealth with the rich as the poor forever remain in poverty. But Nair (2012) argues that owners hold a legal obligation to other people in the community and that this principle propagates that. Therefore, to operate ethically, there is need to give back to the society. Unlike the Western countries’ promotion of individualism culture, PRC propagates Confucianism with focus on organization of the society to propagate collective welfare and stability. This appreciates the interdependence in humans and their welfare which determine the resultant quality of the society. Wang (2006) gives an example of the Chinese authorities’ requirement for more e ndowed businesses to be taxed more than the ones who are not, for the benefit of the whole community. Production This type of business ethics dictates that firms have the duty of ensuring that their processes do not cause harm needlessly. This covers even the products that get released to the market. But most organizations would hold the fact that the products they produce do not have any risk to the consumers. It would be however important to consider other related factors such as the environment. Firms have a legal obligation to ensure that their processes and products do not harm the environment. Therefore, they would be responsible for the environment for the entire product cycle. Wang (2006) gives an example of eco-economics ethics that combines both ecological and economic ethics in business. In China, there is emphasis on human harmoniously living with nature (Chan, 2001). The Taoist philosophies require that man finds ways to adapt to the environment and integrate with it in order to achieve unity between nature and man. The government has crafted various regulations to conserve the environment but lack of emphasis on implementation has led to continued pollution as witnessed in its capital, Beijing. International issues China being an international player in trade has players from all over the world. Therefore, business entities operating in the region face the challenge of adapting to regulations that are in line with the international communication behavior due to some localized regulations in the country, China known for its richness in culture. The confines of Guanxi for instance dictate that â€Å"if someone does a favor for you, there will be an expectation that you, at some point in the future will return the favor† (Clair & Norris, 2011, p.4). From the international perspective, this could be viewed as corruption and therefore unethical. But in China, this would simply be taken as a promise for a future accomplishment, which if met woul d be considered as ethical. This relationship-focus nicety is what differentiates Guanxi from corruption which international corporations should be aware of so as to avoid falling into problems with the Foreign

Medical Mentoring Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Medical Mentoring - Essay Example Since there is a rarity of women in several elite fields in medicine, which reduces their chances of getting mentorship or sponsorship in these sub-fields, women are rarely inducted into these fields. Most female medical students have wondered whether there are women in some fields of medicine for them to contact. In addition, there was also a feeling that female medical students could mentor undergraduate female students; especially the undergraduate students interested in science, but short on ideas and encouragement (DeLaat, 2007). However, the issue of what mentors would get out of mentoring female students came up, to which the contended that hospitals and institutions must recognize how important mentorship is, especially as the unequivocal support from senior management or organizational leaders for the concept of sponsorship and mentoring. This will encourage mentors to consider a serious mentorship, while allowing the professional time to support the programs (DeLaat, 2007). From this case study, it is clear that gender has a major role to play when it comes to the expectations of female students with regards to mentoring, while also having an influence on their career planning. Optimal relationships in sponsorship and mentoring are relational, while relational mentorship is more crucial compared to gender concordance (Humphrey, 2010). In addition, power dynamics, which are gender-based, have a greater influence on the thinking of students concerning mentoring. Stereotypes and assumptions based on gender also have a significant effect on sponsorship and mentoring relationships. Successful relationships in mentoring can only occur when the mentors in the faculty, whether female or male, attempt to take the time required to know the students on a personal level, as well as to know the students from a career point of view. From the case study, it seems that the female medical students and physicians have gender expectations that they will relate better to female mentors, who will also be more supportive compared to male mentors. This could be because male mentors are more content focused, direct, and less comfortable when discussing with female students on work-life balance (Humphrey, 2010). From the case study, it also seems that those attending the seminar believe that the gender of the mentee will affect the advice that they are given with regards to choices of career. The students may also wish to go beyond stereotypes of gender when interacting with the mentors (Humphrey, 2010). A perception exists where the gender of female students may potentially hinder their sponsorship opportunities and networking, as well as the perception that mentors of the female gender are not in a position to provide the access female students require to vital networks. However, while the case study does not provide enough evidence whether this is the case, it is clear that there is a need for more female mentors with experience, as well as for women holding powerful positions in medicine, particularly in fields that are dominated by women. While the case study was mainly focused on female students in medical school, the mentee and the

Organisatonal Learning Research Project

Organisatonal Learning Research Project 1.1 Organisational Learning This section determines if records about product, services and project are being kept for future references in the present system and the expectations of a future system. Question 38: Provides Information for Project Debriefing and Follow-Up This question identifies if the present system provides information for project debriefing and follow-up in comparison to the future system. Availability of information for project debriefing and follow up shows that reference is made to past activities or occurrences to avoid making the same mistake. Thus it indicates if there is an organisational learning tendency. The present system does not seem to adequately provide information for project debriefing and follow-up with 54% that agree (41% agree and 14% strongly agree) and 35% that disagree (30% disagree and 5% strongly disagree) with the statement. In contrast, 97% consider (51% agree and 46% strongly agree) that the future system will provide information for project debriefing and follow-up. Figure 4‑45: Provides Information for Project Debriefing and Follow-Up Question 39: Promotes a Knowledge Sharing Environment in the Organisation This question indicates if there is a knowledge sharing environment in the present system in comparison to the aspiration of the future system. There is a clear distinction from knowledge share and information sharing. This shows that employees are not only willing to share information but also their knowledge for the benefit of customers and the organisation. This portrays if the organisation is open in its approach and culture. The figures show that 51% agree (41% agree and 14% strongly agree) that the present system promotes a knowledge sharing environment in the organisation. This is the lowest rating for the present system in this section showing a lack of knowledge sharing. On the other hand 90% believe (41% agree and 14% strongly agree) that the future system will promote a knowledge sharing environment in the organisation. Silo-based organisational myopia must be replaced with a customer-focus one so that departments will collaborate rather than compete with each other. A customer-centric model requires sharing the data throughout the enterprise; this usually requires a fundamental paradigm shift in the culture to sharing information and knowledge. Many of these changes efforts can be aided by effective communication throughout the entire project and targeting and reaching all levels of employees. (Injazz J. Chen and Karen Popovich, 2003)(Refer Literature Review, Pg. 29, Paragraph 3). Figure 4‑46: Promotes a Knowledge Sharing Environment in the Organisation Question 40: Provides Technical Details of Products Services This question asks respondent if the present system provides technical details on product and services in comparison to the future system. This shows that if an employee or a manager is not aware of a particular specification, is he/she willing to go on the system and find out about the technical information. The results show that 60% agree with the statement (41% agree and 19% strongly agree) that the present system provides technical details of products and services. In comparison, 95% agree (54% agree and 41% strongly agree) that the future system will provide technical details of products and services. It was noted that no respondents disagreed with the statement that the future system will provide technical details of products and services. Figure 4‑47: Provides Technical Details of Products Services Question 41: Learn from Past Resolved Issues This question compares the present system and the aspiration of the future system, in term of referring to past resolved issues to solve problems that the firm is currently encountering. Only 53% (28% agree and 25% strongly agree) of respondents agree that the present system helps them to learn from past resolved issues and 28% disagree with the statement (19% disagree and 8% strongly disagree). On the other hand, 92% agree (35% agree and 57% strongly agree) that the future system will help them learn from past resolved issues. Figure 4‑48: Learn from Past Resolved Issues Question 42: Learning New Methods is Essential for Success This question basically checks if the present system promotes learning new methods for success in comparison to the aspirations of the future system. This in turn identifies if respondents are willing to learn. The figure indicates that 61% agree (31% agree and 31% strongly agree) that with the present system, learning new methods is essential for success. Yet, 92% agree (30% agree and 62% strongly agree) that the future system will provide opportunities for learning new methods which is essential for success. From the literature review, Laudon Laudon (2004) highlight that organisational learning in support of change requires the acquisition of complex knowledge of new business rules and processes and the ‘unlearning’ of the previous ones. This question tests if learning new methods is essential for success indicating that respondents understand the importance of learning. ) (Refer Literature Review, Pg. 30, Paragraph 3). Figure 4‑49: Learning New Methods is Essential for Success It has to be highlighted, that 35% disagree that the present system provides information for project debriefing and follow-up and only 51% agree that the present system promotes a knowledge sharing environment. The highest rating for the present system is 61% that agree that learning new methods is essential for success. It has to be noted that all the ratings for the future system in this section is above 80% with the lowest rating 89% for promoting a knowledge sharing environment in the organisation. This evidently shows that employees understand the significance of a knowledge sharing environment. Embracing a CRM business strategy requires more than the development of a mission statement, it requires employees to acknowledge it, believe it, and understand how the strategy will change the way they do their jobs. Within Royal Bank, the training of employees to deliver a true customer-focused business strategy is acknowledged to be the most critical aspect of the CRM implementation (Kathleen Khirallah, 2001). Busyshop.com regards employee learning as an investment, essential to sustainably address customer problems and satisfy customer demands. (Hsin Hsin Chang, 2007). MOCOTO Bank believes that, given the competitive nature of the finance industry, and its high degree of IT dependence and innovation, continuous employee learning is an essential investment. Question 43: We believe that the Implementation of CRM is This question determines if the respondent understand the importance of a CRM in their daily task. From the survey 94% consider (26% important and 68%% very important) that the implementation of CRM is important, with only 6% neutral. No respondents disagree with the statement. The Literature review also highlights that, CRM does much more than just track customer interactions. It also helps organisations optimize their operations by automating routine tasks and standardizing best practices. Ultimately, CRM allows organisations to better acquire, manage, serve, and extract value from their customers while improving operational efficiency something that is critical in today’s economy (Microsoft Dynamics, White Paper, 2009) (Literature Review, Pg. 9 Paragraph 3). Figure 4‑50: We believe that the Implementation of CRM is CRM does much more than just track customer interactions. It also helps organisations optimize their operations by automating routine tasks and standardizing best practices. Ultimately, CRM allows organisations to better acquire, manage, serve, and extract value from their customers while improving operational efficiency something that is critical in today’s economy (Microsoft Dynamics, White Paper, 2009) (Literature Review, Pg. 9 Paragraph 3). Open ended questions are used to obtain more insight into the problems of organisations and the recommendations that respondents would like to propose. Question 44: What are the main difficulties in carrying out your responsibility in your department? Table 4‑1: What are the main difficulties in carrying out your responsibility in your department? It is noted that the problems are three folds, either strategic, system related or employee related. Strategic issues that were pertinent were: lack of information, information needed for decision making, proper management of information, issues with planning, cooperation, coordination and the process itself. Other concerns were that the system was slow, need for training regarding communication channels, lack of communication channels, planning issues. The present system is not user friendly with no proper graphical user interface and limited functionality. It does not track customer complaints effectively moreover respondents have difficulty in following up issues in a timely manner (time and resource management). The system is also complicated with too many passwords to remember. On the human aspect, some consider that there is too much work load, follow-up of employees is tedious, the need for implementation of a systematic and coherent culture throughout a large organisation. It has noted that respondents have difficulties in managing customer attitude and perception. There tends to be limited resources and human approach – indicating organisational culture issues. Issues with managing people, low team spirit, lack of training. The difficulties enumerated demonstrates that strategic, system and employee related issues impact on the efficiency of the organisation and should be considered when implementing the CRM system. Question 45: Any Recommendation you wish to propose Table 4‑2: Any Recommendation you wish to propose Likewise the recommendation also tends to be in three folds: strategic, system and employee related. There is a need for a tool that can bring efficiency in back office while ensuring visibility on overall operations. In addition there is a necessity for inter department meetings and regular meetings – basically a more reinforced communication and collaboration between departments. Equally important is proper planning, training and support to achieve business objectives. Respondents expect the new system to provide flexibility while doing several tasks at the same time. It is evident that an upgraded system is required which will necessitate training. It requested that the system is designed as per respondents’ requirements. Essentially the system should enable respondents to manage several tasks at the same time. The new system is also expected to enhance quality output for any task assigned, linking time sheets, complaints, warranty, maintenance scheduling, blacklisted clients in other departments, claim back up among others. In addition the CRM should be updated daily – which should be a prerequisite. There is a need for a proper and organised procedure to manage and distribute information and follow-up issues in a timely manner. Employee related issues entail the need for regular follow-up and employee initiative, concerns about the hierarchy, and the need for training As seen above the recommendations are three folds where the system is a major limitation, hampering strategic progress and creating frustration due to an out-dated system which is no longer aligned to the actual requirements of the organisation. In turn the present system does not facilitate strategic analysis and is concerned mainly to facilitate operations.

The Move from Doubt to Certainty; A Look at the Theories of Descartes and Locke :: essays research papers

Descartes is interested in the certainty of his existence and the existence of other people and things. Descartes’ beliefs vary from those of Socrates. Descartes argues that knowledge is acquired through awareness and experience. Using this approach, Descartes moves through doubt to certainty of his existence. He asks himself various questions about the certainty of his existence and solves them through clear thought and logic. Using this method Descartes establishes doubts to be truths and by the end of the book, he has established that he does indeed exist. In this paper, I will show how Descartes moves through doubt to certainty. I will explain how Descartes uses the cogito, proves the existence of God and what that means to his existence. I will also discuss the general rules of truth that Descartes establishes. In the First Meditation Descartes begins to examine what is certain and what is doubtful. Descartes wants to establish that his knowledge is certain and not doubtful. He states, ...I had accepted many false opinions as being true, and that what I had based on such insecure principles could only be most doubtful and uncertain; so that I had to undertake seriously once in my life to rid myself of all opinions I had adopted up to then, and to begin, and to begin afresh from the foundations, if I wished to establish something firm and constant in the sciences.(Descartes 95) By this Descartes means that he wishes to establish a foundation for his knowledge based on certainty instead of doubt. Descartes first looks at the senses. This is important because the senses are the first thing to cause doubt. He focuses on the perception of things. He says that things far from him, in the distance, give him reason to doubt their certainty, while things that are close to him are indubitable and he is clear about their certainty. However, Descartes realizes that dreams pose an obstacle to his beliefs. Even up close, dreams can be indubitable. Descartes believes that if a person has had a dream that was so intense that the person could not determine it form reality, then they have reason to doubt objects that are close to us and appear to be indubitable. In order to resolve this problem, Descartes suggests that one must examine whether they are dreaming or not. Descartes realizes that he can not rely on his senses anymore to give him dubitable truths.

“Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd”

Assignment ON â€Å"Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd†. Submitted to: Chowdhury Sifat Kamal Course Instructor of Introduction to Business Department of Business Studies Prepared by: Fuad Mohammad Shah – UG01-22-09-007 Kawsar Ahmed – UG01-24-10-023 Md. Emdadul Hasan Santo – UG01-24-10-001 Bachelor of Business Administration Batch – 24, Section – A STATE UNIVERSITY OF BANGLADESH Date of Submission: 20th April , 2011 [pic] â€Å"Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. † [pic] Founder Late A. C. Abdur Rahim (1915-1982) Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited 01. Background Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited was established in 1950A.D. as a trading company. Late A. C. Abdur Rahim was the proprietor in this time. From 1954 it was established as a limited company. In the new environment he had to start afresh. He had little capital. His main assets were self-confidence and a strong faith in the Almighty, which carried him through all th e difficulties with a remarkable triumph. He finally established a small proprietary trading company named Rahimafrooz & Co, in Chittagong in 1950 which was later incorporated on 15th April 1954, which is now Rahimafrooz (Bangladesh) Ltd. Rahimafrooz expanded rapidly into various trading items. Within 5 years, Mr.Rahim was able to enter into a joint venture with Lucas (UK) to set up a modern automotive battery factory. He acquired the principal company Lucas Service Ltd in 1980 which is now known as Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd. Apart from business, he engaged himself in benevolent activities. All through his life he was respected for his values and caring attitude. After a few years he left that job and ventured into a small partnership business. During early 1940s, he got active in commercial trading of scarce items and gained valuable experience. In 1947, he decided to move to Chittagong to live in an environment of religious freedom. pic] Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited was started in business agreement with world famous England battery company Lucas from 1959. Later on, they established an ultramodern battery production factory in Nakhalpara Tejgaon, Dhaka with the â€Å"Lucas† Brand name. Then from 1980 it got license from the England Lucas Company collaborating technological and information support. He passed away on the 14th March 1982 in London leaving behind his dream, Rahimafrooz. At present Rahimafrooz has been producing and marketing various kinds of batteries like automotive battery, storage battery etc. Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. lso has been marketing world famous tire â€Å"Dunlop†. Now Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. is involved with various kinds of production distribution and agency ship business. 02. Vision â€Å"To be leader in each market segment by being the most preferred supply source of quality products and services with high degree of customer delight. † 03. Mission Statement 1. †¢ Increase volume & value share 2. †¢ Reduce per unit distribution cost 3. †¢ Increase product portfolio 4. †¢ Strength distribution network 5. †¢ Ensure quality people with high level commitment 6. †¢ Benchmark customer services. 04. Milestones |1954 |Incorporated by Mr. A. C.Abdur Rahim   | |1959 |Distributorship of Lucas Battery | |1978 |Exclusive distributorship of Dunlop tyre | |1980 |Acquisition of Bangladesh operations of Lucas UK | |1985 |First producer of industrial battery | |1985 |Pioneering Solar Power in collaboration with BP | |1992 |First ever battery exports to Singapore | |1993 |Launched Rahimafrooz Instant Power System | |1994 |Acquisition of Yuasa Batteries (Bangladesh) Ltd and launched Excel Retreads. |1997 |Attained ISO 9002 certification for RBL operations | |2000 |First India office opened in Ahmedabad | |2001 |Awarded â€Å"Bangladesh Enterprise of the Year† | |2001 |Attained ISO 14001:1996 for RBL operations | |2001 |Launched â€Å"Agora† â€⠀œ the first ever retail chain | |2002 |Launched Rahimafrooz Energy Service promoting distributed power | |2003 |Established Rahimafrooz CNG Ltd. |2003 |Awarded â€Å"National Export Trophy† | |2004 |Metro net Bangladesh, a fiber optic based digital solution provider for data  communication, launched  in joint | | |venture with Flora Telecom | |2004 |Received McGraw-Hill Platt Global Energy Award for Renewable Energy | |2004 |The Group celebrated its 50th anniversary on April 15, with a renewed, enhanced commitment to being successful | | |while upholding its core values | |2006 |Received the â€Å"Ashden Award† for Sustainable Energy | |2009 |Established Rahimafrooz Globatt Limited and Rahimafrooz Accumulators   limited | |2009 |Rahimafrooz   launched  multi  brand  consumer  electronics  outlet  UREKA   | |2009   |Rahimafrooz   launched world renowned consumer electronics brand  Daewoo | |2010 |Rahimafrooz Inaugurates its biggest and m ost modern warehouse at Hemayatpur, Savar. | 05. Product & Service Products: Rahimafrooz mainly deals with electronics products like (TV, FRIEDGE, IPS, BATTERY, TYRE, LUBRICANTS etc). The brands that Rahimafrooz launch are given below†¦ [pic] Service: Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd service center is situated in 13 Mahakhali commercial areas in Dhaka. Here the product of Rahimafrooz is sold and servicing also. Here the service is done in modern computerized system.The complaints are also solved and handle from here. [pic] 06. Organization chart [pic] 07. Awards & Achievements [pic]  Ã‚   [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  [pic] Asia's Best Brand  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Asia's Best Employer  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C& FE,  CSR  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  CMO Award 2010  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     CMO Award 2010  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Award 2008 [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  [pic] Brand Leadership  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ashden Award  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   National Export Trophy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Award 2008  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Award 2006  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚   Award 2001-2002 08. Delivery Network The manufacturer and wholesaler must decide how to distribute their products. Working through the whole sellers, dealers or agents generally is easiest way of entering in the market.Whole sellers and dealers consider about cost and traffic flow, commission before keeping a product in the store. Location is less a concern for products or services that customers are willing to go out of their way to find. 08. 1: Dealers They are the authorized vendor who deals with the specific brand. (John M. Rathmell, Manager of the Marketing Function. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ) 08. 2: Retailers Traditional: Home to home, general stores, single line stores, specialty shops, department stores, catalog retailers, planned shopping centers The Mass Marketers: Supermarkets and discount houses (John M . Rathmell, Managing the Marketing Function. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ) 08. 3: WholesalersDefinition: Wholesaling is concerned with the activities of those persons or establishments who sell to retailers and other merchants, or to industrial, institutional, and commercial users. But who do not sell in significant amounts to ultimate consumers. But in the tyre market, the wholesaler serves the purpose of the retailer at the same time. Functions from the producer perspective: provide part of selling Four strategies can be produced through the tows matrix. SO strategy represents internal strength to take advantage with the external environment. WO strategy represents the internal weakness and to overcome that weakness by the external opportunity. ST strategy represents the strength of the company and to over come that the threat by the strength.WT strategies are defensive tactics directed at reducing internal weakness and avoiding external threats. 09. Advertising & Promotion [pic] Rahi mafrooz Company limited carefully integrates and coordinates its many communications channels to deliver a clear, consistent, and convincing message about the organization and its products. [pic]Rahimafrooz is using all kinds of promotional afford including: †¢Print Media †¢Broadcast media †¢Outdoor Media †¢Internet & Websites Rahimafrooz is using huge promotional afford in print media. This is the biggest promotional afford of  the company. They are giving advertisement on the news paper, they are also publishing there own newsletter service through by them. [pic] [pic]Promotion, in its broadest sense, provides extra incentives for any group that is an important factor in the marketing of a brand. It is most often directed to the consumer or to the trade or other influential group. It is used to encourage sales or purchase a product. (Principal of marketing 8th edition Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong) 09. 1: TRADE SALES PROMOTION TECHNIQUES Push Policy emphasize s promotions focused on the next intermediary. Trade sales promotion techniques-stimulate wholesalers and retailers to carry products and to market them aggressively. Producers use sales promotion techniques to encourage resellers to carry their products and to promote them more effectively. 09. 2: TYPES OF SALES PROMOTIONSSamples (offer consumer for trail), Coupon (certificate that gives buyer savings), Cash refund (Refund money who send a proof of purchase), Price pack (Reduce price marked by producer), Patronage reward (reward for regular use), Discounts (direct reduction of price), Allowance (money offered to the seller to feature the manufactures product) (Principal of marketing 8th edition Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong) 09. 3: PREMIUM ITEMS OFFER Offer free or at minimum cost as a bonus. Use to attract competitors customers, different sizes of established products. Study identified from the net that Burger King with the Lion King movie was offered few years back in USA. 10. SW OT Analysis The SWOT analysis is a valuable step in your situational analysis.Assessing your firm’s strengths, weaknesses, market opportunities, and threats through a SWOT analysis is a very simple process that can offer powerful insight into the potential and critical issues affecting a venture. 10. 1: Strength o High company reputation. o Enable to provide much more customer satisfaction than competitors. o Higher product quality. o Provide higher service quality. o Distribution effectiveness is better than the others. o Strong management team enables to provide geographical coverage. o Able to launch a new product faster than the competitor o Financial position is much more stable than the other. 10. 2: Weakness o The major weakness of Rahimafrooz is the internal conflict of the management.Working sprit sometimes hampered by management conflict of the organization. o Though Rahimafrooz has a very good team for the marketing plan, but not all the people are experienced. o C ommunication barrier is the major weakness of the organization. o Expectation of the top management is very high. Sometimes they set very high target which is not achievable at all time. Sometimes it becomes burden for the employee. 10. 3: Opportunity o To get new customers after modification. o To provide more qualities in products. o Providing more benefit for products to increase more customer satisfaction. o Increasing the advertisement. o Increasing the distribution channel. Incentive for the employee who dose outstanding performance in their respective area. 10. 4: Threat o Major threat arises from the new entrants. o Many competitors in the electronic market. o Unethical competition. Such as, price cut, advertising, giving gift by the competitor may threaten position of Unilever. o Following the same strategy by the competitors. o Worsening law and order situation of the country. o Availability of the substitute product in the market. —————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ MANAGING DIRECTOR ACCOUNTS MANAGER REGIONAL MANAGER DISTRIBUTION MANAGER MARKETING MANAGER CHIEF OPERATION OFFICER PRODUCT MANAGER ADMIN MGR C & F MANAGER NI SYSTEM DIRET SALE RETAIL MGR

Classroom Management Paper Essay

I am in the process of creating my classroom management plan for my future classroom. Each day that I substitute teach, observe a classroom, or acquire new information from my classes, I learn something new that I may wish to incorporate into my classroom management plan. A well written management plan is a key to success in the classroom. The more I plan for my lessons and plan to run my class, the more of an effective learning climate I will have for my students. This paper includes my personal philosophy of classroom management, rules for student behavior, a task analysis, substitute teacher plans, classroom implementation plan, letter to parents explaining my classroom management plan, and my strategies I plan to use to assess my classroom management plan. Personal Philosophy of Classroom Management The following is my personal philosophy of classroom management listed in bullet format. †¢ My goal is to provide a productive, safe environment, which is conducive to learning. My students will be welcomed and feel a sense of belonging to the class community. Every student is just as important as the next. †¢ I plan to help my students become quality students and help them develop the characteristic traits of responsibility, trustworthiness, caring, and respectful. †¢ I hope to spark enthusiasm for learning by creating engaging lessons, reaching all types of learners. To achieve this, I plan to differentiate instruction, use multiple modalities, and technology. I also plan to have students work independently, in collaborative groups, and in pairs. †¢ I hope to create a student-centered or constructivist style classroom where students are active participants in their learning, which allows students to make a deeper connection to curriculum. †¢ To challenge my students, I plan to use effective questioning techniques, which will allow my students to use higher levels of thinking. †¢ I will create a class climate where students can express themselves freely without judgment. †¢ Create a cooperative classroom where the students and teacher work together. To do this, I will call my students† my teammates† and express to them the importance of teamwork. †¢ It is my hope to encourage students to do their best and that it is to make a mistake. †¢ I will use positive reinforcement and positive praise when I see my students doing something good. †¢ I will model respecting everyone and accepting differences. I will ask that my students do the same. †¢ To create a sense of power among my students, I will have students participate in the creation of the classroom rules. When students create the rules, they have a tendency to adhere to the rules. In addition, I will have students perform weekly classroom jobs. †¢ I will be fair and consistent and I will establish guidelines for my students so they know what is to be of them in both learning and behavior. †¢ To manage off-task behavior, I will use nonverbal and verbal cues, body language, and proximity. In some instances, I will move students to avoid further disruptions. Students who require extra assistance, will be strategically seated for easy access. †¢ If a lesson or style of teaching works one-day and not the next, I will be flexible and change either my style of teaching or the lesson itself. Student Behavior – Positive and Negative Consequences To minimize disruptions in the classroom, students need to know what is expected of them. I will not have rules listed in my classroom. Instead, my class will have the â€Å"quality student† and â€Å"quality teacher† posters displayed, listing what characteristics the students and teacher should display at all times. I will these characteristics often and engage in role playing activities at the beginning of the school year. Whenever I see that there is an issue regarding a characteristic trait, I will remind students model to be â€Å"quality students. † For off-task behavior in the classroom, I have established a tiered system of responses that will range from various nonverbal and verbal cues, reminders, and possibly relocating student in the classroom. If behavior continues to disrupt the class for a total of three times, I will instruct the student to write a note home explaining the off-task behavior. If off-task behavior continues in the classroom, I will call the parent or ask to set up a meeting to discuss the student’s behavior and work with the parent toward a positive solution. Kelly (n. d. ) states, â€Å"B. F. Skinner’s theory on â€Å"operant conditioning† says that rewards are much more effective when they do not occur regularly. In other words, intermittent rewards mean more and have a greater effect than routine rewards. Students who never know when a reward may happen will behave better than those who know that you never give out rewards on Tuesdays† (para. 3). To motivate students in achieving good behavior in the classroom, I will use verbal praise and reward students from time to time individually, by table, or by class. Individual rewards will be given from to time when I see a student modeling quality behavior and other students are off-task in the classroom. I will give this student an extra 10 cents. By doing this, the other students will understand positive reinforcement. Throughout each week, I will also award table points. If I see a group of students at a table on-task, I will award their table a point. The table that earns the most points at the end of the week, will win and will be able to select from a few choices that include lunch in the classroom and extra computer time, to name a few. If the class is doing a job on a lesson, I will have the marble helper add one marble to the celebration jar. Once the students reach their predetermined goal (discussed monthly at class meeting), students are allowed to participate in a celebration of their choosing. Task Analysis for Morning Routine To help students ease into their day, I have created a morning routine. With this morning routine, students know what to expect and do each morning entering the classroom. This routine will be displayed on the Promethean Board each morning as a reminder for my students. |General area |Needed Procedure |Specific Procedures | |Whole Class |Morning Routine |Unpack backpacks and hang up coats and | | | |backpacks | | | |Turn in notes/homework to purple bin | | | |Make lunch choice | | | |Morning work (daily math worksheet to complete)| | | |Unfinished Work folder | | | |Independent Reading | During the morning routine, morning announcements are displayed on the class television and students perform their class jobs such as library helper, lunch counter, and office messengers. In addition, I will use this time to take attendance and perform other housekeeping duties as necessary. Substitute Teacher Plans The following is a sample of my substitute teacher plans. The more detailed information the teacher leaves for the substitute, the better. This helps the substitute teacher run the class more smoothly in the teacher’s absence. Thank you for covering my class while I am out today. Here is some information on a few procedures or routines in our class. Helpful Teachers – Mrs. Fowler, room 6, Ms. Nuckles, room 4. Attendance: please use attendance sheet on my desk and mark any students who are missing. Please note any absent students on attendance sheet on my desk and place in office envelope and have office helper take to office during morning announcements. Morning lunch count: This is a student’s job (see listing hanging from tv). The students mark their choices on the wall chart behind the tv, and the lunch count helper writes out the slip and takes it to the cafeteria in the lunch folder after announcements. Bathroom breaks: Students have â€Å"boys† and â€Å"girls† hall passes hanging on the wall by the door. When they need to go to the restroom, they put the pass on their desk and go. Only two at a time are allowed out of the room. Class management/rules: If class is going a good job, I usually ask the marble helper to add a marble to the class jar. If the class receives a compliment in the hallway, they earn two marbles. If the class is off-task and several reminders are given, a marble may be taken away. For individual behavior: Banker gives each student 15 cents (fake money) at the start of each day. Students are to place their money in their money pocket at the back of the room during morning announcements. If a student is caught doing something good, you may reward him or her an extra 10 cents. The money earned allows for students to make purchases at our classroom store at the end of each month. If a student is off-task, use nonverbal cues as first reminder, and verbal cues as second reminder. If the student continues behavior, please have him or her write an apology letter to you and leave on my desk. If the student continues to disrupt class, please call one if the listed teachers above and ask to send student over to her class to finish working on assignment. Please leave me a note if you have any issues with any of my students. Lunch: Line students up (line leader, caboose, home lunch, choice 1,2, and 3). Please walk students down to cafeteria at 12:08. The students will go through the lunch line on their own. Most teachers eat in the Teacher’s Lounge, which is behind the office. The teacher restrooms are also by the teacher’s lounge. At 12:38, please pick them up from the cafeteria and walk them back to class. Students with Special Needs (Food allergies, medicine, asthma): |Student |Difficulty/Need | |Tom |Medicine- Goes to nurse after lunch to receive medicine | Specials: My calendar on my desk has specials listed according to the day. Day1- Music Day2-PE Day3- Computer Lab, Library Day4-PE Day5- Art Recess: 2:15-2:30 Activities should be supervised at all times. Teachers should have class backpacks, walkie talkie, and key (both located in office). Teachers should be positioned so that all students are visible at all times. Report any injuries to school nurse. The nurse will determine whether an Accident Report needs to be completed. If so complete form and send white copy to office and have student take yellow copy home. In Case of Emergency: Please locate red backpack and evacuation plan in the classroom. In case of emergency, have students line up quickly and quietly. Bringing backpack, follow evacuation route listed in the classroom. Once outside, count students to make sure everyone is accounted for. Inform supervisor (person with walkie talkie and clipboard) of all students present in the class and state any parents’ names volunteering in the classroom. Remind students to be single, straight, and silent and to face away from the school building. Once given the all clear from the supervisor, lead students back to class in a single, straight, and silent line. The following diagram is our class seating chart. Please be sure that students sit in their correct seats. This seating plan should be helpful in familiarizing yourself with the students. (Note: Please see Appendix A-seating chart). I have provided a list of helpful students, disruptive students, and special needs students. Helpful students: Mary, Tyrone, Amy, and Tom. Disruptive students: Dane and Alex (these students may need to have several reminders to stay on task. Students who require assistance: Daniel, Marco, and Aaron. Either you can help or ask one of my helpful students listed above to help these students. Computer username: cuttingjm Password: student123 8:45-9:15-Morning Routine (please log on to computer and put the following on the Promethean board). 1. Unpack backpacks and hang up coats and backpacks 2. Turn in notes to red bin/homework to purple bin 3. Make lunch choice 4. Morning work (daily math worksheet- today’s number to complete-on back table) 5. Unfinished Work folder 6. Independent Reading Please inform students of their jobs for the day. Jobs are on poster in front of room by the t. v. Please ask Mary to turn on t. v. for you when the bell rings. During the morning routine, morning announcements are displayed on the class television and students perform their class jobs such as library helper, lunch counter, and office messengers. During this time, please take attendance using attached attendance sheet. Place any notes and attendance sheet in clear folder and have office messenger take folder to the office for you. Ask lunch helper to take lunch count and place any money and lunch count in lunch folder. The lunch helper will take folder to the cafeteria for you. 9:15-9:20- Ask Tom to give each student 15 cents. Each student will come and will put the money in his or her money pocket located on the back bulletin board. 9:20-9:30- calendar- Have students join you on the carpet (call them by table numbers). Ask questions about the calendar (what is the date, what weekday, year, what was the date a week ago, what will the date be in one week). Have students give you math problems about the lunch graph. 9:30- 10:00- Have students begin centers. Please read off the names from the chart to let them know where they go. 10:00-10:45- Library- please stay with class and bring library cards with you (they are on my desk). 10:45-11:26- Students finish centers 11:26-11:56- Lunch. Have line leader and caboose line up first. Lunch from home will line up first, followed by choice 1, 2, and 3 . (during lunch, please check my mailbox in the office). 12:00-1:00- MATH- Review today’s number on overhead projector (Ask a helper to set up for you). Pull a popsicle stick out of the cup on my desk and have the student complete one problem. Continue until today’s number is complete. Refer to Math Investigations book, lesson 2. 1 â€Å"guess my number on the 100 chart. † Tell students they will use the 100s chart on page 16 in their math binder for this game. Review directions and model how to play game with a student. Have students pair up and give each a copy of the directions to play on their own. Once completed game twice, students can work on pages 13-15 in their textbook. 1:00-1:45- ART 1:45-2:10- Science- Students are to take out weather journals. Overhead helper will pull out overhead projector. Laura is cloud helper, and Teresa is temperature helper. Cloud helper will go to window and look to see what kind of clouds are outside. They will come to overhead and draw clouds on calendar page and graphing page. Overhead helper will fill in date and will write down weather words that students agree on (ask students to give weather words from each table). Choose one person from each table to predict the hi/lo temperature of the day. The temperature helper will pull up the temperature for the day on the computer. The overhead helper will record the temperature on the overhead. Students are to write this information on their calendar page and graphing page. 1:45- 2:00- RECESS 2:00- 2:45- Have students watch video on water cycle and have them complete science worksheet on back table. If the students finish early they can do scholastic news and work on their weather book report. 2:45-3:00- Please call one table at a time for students to get lap top. Students are to work on their social studies research project on the laptops. 3:00-3:15- Call tables one at a time and have students place laptops back in cart. Have students perform classroom jobs at this time. Call tables one at a time to pack and stack. Read book (students’ can select) until bell rings. 3:15- Dismissal Please let me know of any issues with any students. If they do a good as a class, they can earn marbles in the jar. Thank you so much! Classroom Management Implementation Plan I will conduct a classroom meeting at the beginning of the year for the students, and we will discuss the character traits of a â€Å"quality student† and â€Å"quality teacher. † Students will create poster of each and, the class will discuss and list what qualities students and teacher should have. Qualities will include responsibility, trustworthiness, caring, and respect. After posters are created, students will be asked to sign the poster, stating that they understand the guidelines of the classroom. Posters will be displayed in the class as a reminder of what a â€Å"quality student and teacher† should look like. I will review procedures of various topics such as morning routine, lunch count, dismissal, lining up for lunch, etc. During the first few weeks of school, I will walk the students through each procedure, often modeling procedures. After the first month or the majority of the students get the hang of the procedure, procedures will be reviewed and reinforced as necessary. In addition to communicating to the students, I will also share my classroom management plan and expectations in a letter addressed to the parents at the start of the school year. I will ask parents to discuss management plan and expectations with their child and ask that they he or she sign and return the document. In addition, I will provide my contact information and encourage the parents to contact me should they have any questions throughout the year and promote working together for the well-being of their child. Prior to the start of the school year, I will develop a seating chart based on the academic needs of my students. I will place students’ desks in groups that will allow for a cooperative or collaboration learning environment, in which students will work in groups with varying learning abilities. By having students clustered in groups, higher academic students will work with those students who will require help. Using group seating, I will also be able to reach and work with my students more easily. For students who require instructional assistance, I will place those students close to my desk or in front of room. I will also work with my students in a small group or one-on-one setting. To prevent misbehavior, I will strategically place ADHD students away from door, window to prevent distractions. To help motivate my students I will use positive reinforcement as previously mentioned. Students will have opportunities to be rewarded individually, by table, and as a class. To keep the students’ attention during my lessons, I am going to use as many hands-on methods and employ the effective questioning and popsicle stick strategy. To gain my students’ attention, I will use â€Å"1,2,3 eyes on me. † The students’ response will be â€Å"1,2 eyes on you. † I will also use various hand clapping signals and use online timers to keep students on track during transitions, learning centers, and assignments. Letter to Parents The following is a sample of a letter I plan to send out to my students’ parents during the first week of school. Dear families, As we are settling into a routine and becoming familiar with the class, I wanted to introduce myself to you and share some information with you about how I conduct my classes. My name is Jennifer Cutting, and I am your child’s teacher for the school year. This is my first year in my own classroom however I have been in education for the past five years. I have a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from Radford University and a master’s degree from University of Phoenix. Our classroom is built on the characteristic traits of respect, trustworthiness, caring, and responsibility. On the first day of school, our class created both a student teacher poster that lists the qualities of each trait. In our class, we are always striving to be a â€Å"quality student† and â€Å"quality teacher. † We look forward to sharing these with you at Back to School Night on Tuesday, September 20, 2011. To encourage students to be reminded of being a quality student, I will recognize positive behavior by verbal praise, earn fake money to be used for purchases at the classroom store, and other modes of communication to you. For off-task behavior in the classroom, I have established a tiered system of responses that will range from various nonverbal and verbal cues, and reminders. If behavior continues in class, I will instruct your child to write a note home explaining the off-task behavior. If off-task behavior continues in the classroom, I will call you or ask to set up a meeting to discuss your child’s behavior and work together toward a positive solution. Our class has discussed our classroom management plan and students understand the consequences. By working together, we can help your child have fun and succeed in second grade. Below, please sign this document, indicating that you and your child understand my classroom management plan. In addition, please indicate a daytime and nighttime phone number and e-mail address. If you should ever have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me via email, school phone, or schedule a conference. My email is fourcuttings@msn. com and the school’s phone number is (703)791 – 2099. I am happy to talk with the families of my students. Here’s to a wonderful year of learning in the second grade! Fondly- Mrs. Cutting I have read and understand Mrs. Cutting’s classroom management plan, and have discussed it with my child. Parent/Guardian Signature______________________________________Date_________ _____ Print Name________________________________________________________ Strategy for Assessing Classroom Management Plan I plan to use a variety of ways to assess my classroom management plan. One way to assess my classroom management plan is to have another teacher observe my class and rate my classroom based on the following chart: (Note: Please see Appendix B- Classroom Assessment chart) Another strategy I would use is to make antidotal notes and keep a journal of what strategies or techniques seem to work or not work for my students. By reflecting, I can look back at my successes as well as reflect on areas that need to be improved. I need to be flexible. If a strategy does not work one day, I need to try something else. My third strategy to help assess my classroom management plan is to participate in peer group discussions and compare what strategies or techniques in other classrooms. Listening to other teachers’ can generate a multitude of ideas for my own classroom. Conclusion As of today, this is my classroom management plan that I hope to implement in my classroom. However, I believe it will change to meet the needs of my students in the classroom. Although I will plan for my students, classroom, and instruction, I will need to learn to be flexible if something does not work. I believe I will be able to prevent most misbehaviors from occurring and meet the goals of my classroom by implementing my classroom management plan. I will always strive to look for ways to improve my classroom management. It will always be a work in progress. References Kelly, M. ( n. d. ). Positive and Negative Reinforcement. Retrieved April 20, 2011from, http://www. netplaces. com/new-teacher/behavior-management/positive-and-negative-reinforcement. htm Teachers on Target (2008). Classroom Management. Retrieved April 20, 2011 from http://www. teachersontarget. com/Management. htm Appendix A [pic] (source: University of Phoenix. (n. d. ). Classroom design Microsoft presentation. [PowerPoint slide]. Retrieved from https://portal. phoenix. edu/classroom/coursematerials/mte_520/20110315/ Appendix B |3 2 1 |1. I foster an â€Å"on-task† learning environment? | |3 2 1 |2. Students understand that when they enter my classroom they are | | |going to work | |3 2 1 |3. Students believe that my assignments are directed, productive, and| | |enjoyable | |3 2 1 |4. Students know that the tasks in my classroom are never presented | | |as punishment | |3 2 1 |5. Students believe that work done in my class has a definite purpose| | |and objective | |3 2 1 |6. My classroom is a celebratory environment? | |3 2 1 |7. Students understand that they will be rewarded and praised for | | |their hard work. | |3 2 1 |8. Students believe that my approach to them and their learning is | | |positive. | |3 2 1 |9. My classroom is an engaged environment? | |3 2 1 |10. Students engage quickly in my assignments | |3 2 1 |11. Students know exactly what they are to do. | |3 2 1 |12. Students are clear why they are doing each assignment. | |3 2 1 |13. My classroom ethos is one of mutual respect. | |3 2 1 |14. Students know that they must respect one another. | |3 2 1 |15. Students are willing to cooperate with me. | |3 2 1 |16. Students are willing to cooperate with their classmates. | |3 2 1 |17. Students listen carefully to me. | |3 2 1 |18. My classroom procedures are clear? | |3 2 1 |19. Students know what they must do to succeed. | |3 2 1 |20. Classroom rules are consistent and fairly enforced. | |3 2 1 |21. Students know how much time they have to do assignments and how they| | |will be assessed. | |3 2 1 |22. My classroom rules do not appear arbitrary. | |3 2 1 |23. My classroom is focused? | |3 2 1 |24. Assignments don’t â€Å"float† or appear â€Å"out of left field. † | |3 2 1 |25. There is a consistent routine to handing in assignments. | |3 2 1 |26. Work time in class is uninterrupted. | |3 2 1 |27. Students are expected to settle down quickly and work in class. | |3 2 1 |28. My classroom is a place where assignments are meaningful. | |3 2 1 |29. â€Å"Throw away† or filler assignments are never given. | |3 2 1 |30. Classroom work is not overly repetitive or redundant. | |3 2 1 |31. Students are clear about the objectives for each assignment. | |3 2 1 |32. There is a sense of humanness in my classroom. | |3 2 1 |33. Students are treated as human beings who have good and bad days. | |3 2 1 |34. Rules rarely if ever override human concerns. | |3 2 1 |35. Students understand that my classroom operates from a set of values. | |3 2 1 |36. My classroom is a predictable place. | |3 2 1 |37. There are no negative or unexpected surprises. | |3 2 1 |38. What I say in the classroom actually happens. | |3 2 1 |39. Students stay on task in my classroom. | |3 2 1 |40. When an assignment is given, students do it. | |3 2 1 |41. I expect and require all students to stay on task. | |3 2 1 |42. I deal with disruptions in a timely manner. | |3 2 1 |43. Student who stay on task are rewarded. | (Source:http://www. teachersontarget. com/Management. htm)

Maturation of the Plantation System 17761860 essays

Maturation of the Plantation System 17761860 essays In the essay, Maturation of the Plantation System 1776-1860, John B. Boles writes about the evolution of the Southern way of life from the end of the Revolutionary war to the beginning of the Civil war. Unlike the North, the South depended on agricultural products for revenue such as sugar, indigo, and tobacco, but mainly cotton in the later years. In order to produce these products, the plantation owners of the South used the cheapest labor available, which was slave labor. Slavery evolved to become the backbone of the South. Slavery was upheld in the early stages of the United States because Southern slaveholders referred to their slaves as property. Slaves realized that all men arent created equal as stated in the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson. Freedom was only a dream. Slavery increased because of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 that doubled the size of the United States. In 1810, the Census reported that there were 1,163,854 slaves in the South, mainly due to the growing production of cotton and sugar. England first realized the potential of black slaves when in 1775, Lord Dunmore granted freedom to all indented servants, Negroes, or others...(83). Southern whites did not like this proposition and they took emergency militia and police action to prevent a slave exodus to the British side. By 1777, the need for men forced the English and Colonials to rely on the use of black troops. However, although some blacks did fight side by side with their white counterparts, the majority of black involvement in the war was in a supporting role as cooks, wagoneers, and servants. After the war, there was an industrial revolution in the production of cotton cloth in England. Several species of cotton were known in the South before the revolution, but it was not easy to produce. However, with the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793, the production of cotton in the...

Education is a RIght essays

Education is a RIght essays An education is a basic human need. It is a need by which human existence of striving and developing depends on. I Reneika Knowles believe that an education is not a privilege but it is a fundamental right. Madam Chairman, Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen good evening. The word Education is simply a process of learning. A right is a term used to show that we are entitled to something. If combined the equation would be = Education + Right = A right to an education. When put into effect it will help man to communicate better with himself, the world and society. (1 minute) As a child growing up, my parents have taught me the basis of an education. From being taught my first word right down to learning how to read and write. As well as being taught discipline, manners, respect, patience and how to conduct myself. These are the ingredients that made me a well-rounded and open-minded individual. Therefore I firmly believe that education is a right that has begun within the home. And in the home the bible is the book that the lord granted us, as the most vital educational tool for our spiritual development. How are we supposed to therefore read this human element, in order to understand the world and Gods purpose for us.................. if we are stripped of the right to an education? This spiritual education is a God given right and will not be taken away by any man. (35 sec) Education was recognized as a basic human right 50 years ago in the United Nations Declaration of Human rights. 10 years ago the world community promised primary education for all by the turn of the century and to halve adult literacy, 5 years ago the promised slipped by 15 years, to 2015. A country where no one is educated. This would lead to chaos, no inventors, no pioneers and no leaders. And this would cause a vicious cycle of igno ...

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Welcome back to the black-hole time-sucking wasteland known as Youtube, HipsDontLie6969! It’s been an eternity since we’ve last seen you. What, a whole two days? Unacceptable. You have 53 videos piled up in your subscription box– a record high! How have you managed to survive without staring at Michelle Phan slap makeup on for five minutes or watching yet another adorable puppy video? No, don’t look away from the screen. You still need your daily dose of prank-gone-wrong videos and low-budget trailers for movies you’ll never see. There we go, two hours you’ll never get back! Oh, but you’re not done yet. In fact, we’ve barely just started! To tell you the truth, we’ve been worried about you. First you haven’t posted an Instagram picture in three days, now you’re talking with your friend and haven’t checked your phone in over five minutes. What’s next, no more selfies every three seconds?Don’t make Siri ask you what’s wrong. This is getting incredibly unhealthy and you’re showing signs of all the symptoms: being attentive to other people, engaging in conversation, good god, even LOLing (or as the prehistoric barbarians used to call it, â€Å"laughing†). I’m afraid you have a severe case of the â€Å"Life’s So Much Better Not Looking Through A Screen But Actually Enjoying the Present Syndrome†. I’m afraid recovery is not going to be an easy process. People complain about recovering from cancer or a surgery, yet they don’t understand the amount of work it takes to find a post-worthy selfie with just the right cleavage-to-duckface ratio. Then you need to find an adequate (usually irrelevant) caption, maybe another Taylor Swift lyric or movie quote? How about a good ‘ole hashtag? â€Å"#selfiesunday #hashtag #love #girl #boobs† it is . Oh, don’t even get me started on the filters. Yet the hardest part of healing is relearning the unspoken rules of â€Å"text language†: to be able to typeâ€Å"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA† without a remnant of a smile on the face or decimate the English language so u tlk lik dis and sound rly smart lol:) Recovery is also hard on your loved ones, as you slowly sink back into to the habit of taking pictures of your food at the dinner table instead of eating it or texting while your Mom has, or at least attempts,a one-sided conversation. This journey back to health will be full of glazed eyes and relapses back to reality, but #webelieveinyou. We see a large cause of this sickness is due to that boy you’ve been flirting with in math class. Don’t think we haven’t noticed like Google, we know everything. Also like Google, we’re here to help and make sure you don’t have to use your own brain for anything. If you would like to talk to him, text him instead! Everyone knows talking online is the same if not better than in person. You get to filter your true thoughts and hide behind a rampage of smiley face emojis. If that doesn’t work out, welcome to Tinder! With just a swipe right, this mobile dating app matches you with sweet sentimental guys who are looking for nothing short of a lifelong romance (long walks on the beach and kisses in the sunset not included). Next, we’ll prescribe a strong dose of Twitter; make sure to take this at least once an hour. After all, everyone is dying to know where you are, what your mood is, and what youre wearing at all times, Now don’t forget, if you want to heal faster, make sure to also subtweet your ex-boyfriends new girlfriend around once a week, because who doesn’t love a good twitter fight.Sure you could be paying attention in class, but Nicole’s status on the cloudy weather seems much more important . Favorite. As the saying goes, pictures/videos or it didn’t happen. This treatment is one of of the best cures towards your diagnosis. What would be the point of going to a concert if you didn’t take a video? Concerts used to be about the live experience, the intimate connection between artist and fan, and the swarming energy that causes people to dance, laugh, sing along. Never mind that when now you can capture it and just re watch it again later. This applies when you hang out with friends as well. Make sure to take as many pictures as possible so you can brag about your friendship through â€Å"candid† laughter photos and Snapchat storiesthen you can go back to â€Å"hanging out†, aka being in each other’s presence as you both stare away at your phones. Have you ever walked into a silent room where everyone’s heads were craned down, scrolling through their Facebook newsfeed? Satisfying, isn’t it? Silence speaks louder than words. You seem to be doing much better pale ghastly skin, a sore neck from constantly looking down, and the inability to go to the bathroom, or anywhere really, without your phone seemingly attached to your hand. You used to make small talk with the stranger in the elevator or only Facebook friend people you really knew, but fortunately we’ve successfully removed those malignant actions. Now you’re a living success story: socially impaired with+800 Facebook friends who couldn’t give a rats ass about you! With our current treatment, less and less people are getting struck with this contagious virus. Luckily, we are starting vaccinations at a younger age, with little kids playing on smartphones instead of outside and taking bathroom mirror pictures before they’re tall enough to reach it. By the next five years, kids are projected to have smartphones handed to them right out of the womb! In the age of technology and advancement, those struck down with the syndrome are dying out while the rest of the population is progressing forward. I’m glad you were able to recover and join us.Make sure to follow the necessary steps to prevent the â€Å"Life’s So Much Better Not Looking Through A Screen But Actually Enjoying the Present Syndrome† from resurfacing. Have as many social media applications as possible and when in doubt, never look up. Your screen is your reality. If you’re reading this off paper (does that still exist?), you’re doing it wrong. Oh , well pardon me, I forgot to look at the time! It’s that time of the day again. Welcome back to the black-hole time-sucking wasteland known as Youtube, HipsDontLie6969! It’s been an eternity since we’ve last seen you. What, a whole two hours?

Unified Financial Accounting Standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Unified Financial Accounting Standards - Essay Example Unified Financial Accounting Standards Indeed, since the modern business takes place in a global market, there is absolute need to define how to do business across all nations (Ingram, & Albright, 2007). As such, various organizations seek to establish different business and financial measures to define the universal manner of doing global business. Financial accounting standards are some of the measures, which all companies must comply with while doing business, assessing their progress, and reporting their success. Financial accounting standards seek to establish fairness, equality, uniformity, accuracy, and transparency in the preparation and presentation of financial statements. As such, financial accounting standards must be clearly understandable and comparable so that the users can apply them effectively. The accounting profession adopted the generally accepted accounting principles, which defines universal reporting principle in the global market (Ingram, & Albright, 2007). Financial accounting standards derive ma ny merits in the business field and various users rely on financial accounting standards to perfume their business and accounting responsibilities. The users may include investors, companies, and auditors. This paper defines the characteristics of the unified financial accounting standards and discusses the benefits of unified financial accounting standards to investors, companies, and auditors with reference to preparing, reporting, and comparing the financial performance in the modern global market. The unified financial accounting standards have certain characteristics, which guarantee accurate and material communication of the business firm’s financial position and performance. ... These characteristics include reliability, transparency, relevance, consistency, comparability, understandability, uniformity, and fairness. The unified financial accounting standards derive significant benefits to the investors. Most assuredly, the unified financial accounting standards make it easy for investors to compare between companies since they can establish the true financial position of the reference companies. This is usually important especially when the investor is a foreign company since the financial standards apply universally globally. It is quite clear that unified financial accounting standards provide a means of communication between a company and the investors in the company. Through unified financial accounting standards, the investors can deduce the effectiveness of the company and its management in comparison to other companies in the same industry (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 2013). In addition, the unified financial accounting standards avail rele vant financial information that helps the investors to make concrete decisions in reference to the company. Indeed, the investors use this financial information to assess the effectiveness in implementing the company resources by the management. Actually, it is from the information that the investors decide whether to invest in the company since the financial information can manifest the profitability, the competitive position, the going concern, and viability of the company in the stock market. More so, the unified financial accounting standards define the accrued returns of the company to the investors. At the same time, the financial standards evaluate the cost of making accounting changes and derive the benefit of

Lower Limb Prosthetics Evolution Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Lower Limb Prosthetics Evolution - Article Example Presently, there has been the use of Carbon fiber springs in the prostheses that allows improved shock absorption and mobility without increasing any weight. Additionally, the carbon fiber have allowed active amputees to wear limbs that can help in the absorption of two to four times their total body weight. In 2004, the esteemed international event aided the drive of development of lighter and more functional devices such as the gait-adaptive knee and an artificial limb that can be modified for its users2. There has been the advancement of the technology today where scientists and developed with the advent of microprocessors, robotics and computer chips have allowed amputees to get back to their accustomed lifestyle. United States., United States., & United States. (1984). Journal of rehabilitation research and development. Washington, D.C: Veterans Administration, Dept. of Medicine and Surgery, Rehabilitation R & D

Discussion 3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Discussion 3 - Assignment Example There is an emphasis for interdisciplinary collaboration in healthcare provision and clarity of how concepts relate to nursing help DNP nurses to interact, meaningfully, in teams (Fitzpatrick & Kazer, 2009). Preventive care is a concept under the clinical problem of hypertension among African Americans. Base on population differences, preventive care denotes the measures that different populations such as African Americans and Hispanics do in order to stay free from diseases. In regards to cultural differences, preventive care means the things that different cultures prescribe for their adherents to prevent illnesses. In sociology, preventive care refers to upholding lifestyles that promote health such as eating a healthy diet and consulting with physicians (Wilson & Cooley, 2006). The social context definition of preventive care is the maintenance of behaviors that are supportive of good health. OT professional may define preventive care as the measures that help one prevent getting difficulty engaging in their everyday activities. On the other hand, a nurse may define preventive care as the care that incorporates public health services and other programs aimed at promoting good health in the general population (Neinstein,

The Better Man Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Better Man - Essay Example By examining the single most important feature of both candidates’ policy i.e. economic policy, the author argues that Obama is the better man because he has a comprehensive approach to solving the most pressing issue today: the American economy. As shown by a Times-Rockefeller Foundation poll, the biggest problem that 85% Americans want to see resolved is related to the economy in some way (Saporito, 2008). The current economic situation and its impact on middle class, working Americans is a sharp shift away from the expectations brought by living the American dream. A further classification of the TIME poll found that 96% black Americans and 88% latin Americans were unhappy with the economy. It does make sense that most Americans are extremely unhappy dealing with falling income, real-estate bubble burst, a shaky stock market and rising poverty (Saporito, 2008; FOX Business, 2008; Epstein & Gorzelany, 2008; Villaraigosa, 2007). In Michigan alone, unemployment has risen by 76% from 2001, Income has fallen 11.5% and poverty has increased by 30% from 2000 to 2006 (FOX Business, 2008). It is clear that the most pressing issue for Americans is in fact their own economy. As the author of this paper will continue to show, the Ame rican people, and more specifically the working class Americans deserve an economic policy that reflects their hard work and strength to survive the impending doom in their lives. According to Epstein and Gorzelany (2008), more than 5 million people will fall under the already large poverty line by 2010. The poverty rate would increase an average of 2 points to about 16%. More importantly, â€Å"the US stands second only to Mexico as having the worst rate of relative poverty among the world’s developed nations. Let us examine what this means for a lower-middle or lower income American: These figures are not being quoted

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a Essay

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a major life activity under the americans with disability act, how Supreme Court precedent def - Essay Example ecord of such impairment; or (C) being regarded as having such an impairment.5 The EEOC defines "a mental impairment" as "any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, Bi-Polar Disorder II, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities,"6 for purposes of the ADA.7 Thus, the question becomes whether this impairment substantially limits a major life activity.8 Interacting with others is listed as a major life activity in the EEOC's Compliance Manual: "Mental and emotional processes such as thinking, concentrating, and interacting with others are other examples of major life activities."9 This listing is significant insofar as the Appellate Court accords "great deference to the EEOC's interpretation of the ADA, since it is charged with administering the statute."10 Although, the EEOC provides a list of examples of major life activities that does not include interacting with others,11 this list is not exhaustive, and courts have routinely recognized major life activities not included in the EEOC regulations.12 Interacting with others is analogous to the major life activities enumerated by the EEOC because it is an essential, daily activity.13 It is not possible to exist in our society without interacting with other people. "Interacting with others, by any definition, is a required precursor to an individual's ability to work, to love, to re produce, and to function on a day-to-day basis in modem society."14 Furthermore, interacting with others is no more difficult to define than caring for oneself, a widely recognized major life activity.15 B. Judicial pronouncements of the Supreme Court and applicable jurisprudence supports the view that "interacting with others" is a major life activity As social human beings we come into contact with each other on a daily basis and that contact involves the use of abilities such as seeing, listening, talking, communicating and walking.16 These abilities have been described by ADA as "major life activities". As previously stated, the EEOC has prepared a list of abilities that constitute major life activities and they are: "...functions such as caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working."17 These lists of abilities

Graphs for Dirt Bikes sales history from 2008 to 2012 Assignment

Graphs for Dirt Bikes sales history from 2008 to 2012 - Assignment Example Have international sales grown relative to domestic sales? There is not growth in international sales with respect to domestic sales. Are sales (revenues) growing steadily, and if so, at what rate? PERIOD 2010/2011 2011/2012 Year I sales 64063 60144 Year II sales 61529 64063 Sales Growth rate 1.0412 0.9388 There is not steady growth rate. For example, in the period 2010/2011 there was a growth rate of 1.0412 whereas in the period 2011/2012, there was a decline in sales. What is the cost of goods sold compared to revenue? Cost of Goods sold vs. Sales (in ‘000) Cost of goods sold compared to revenue = Cost of Goods Sold Sales YEAR 2010 2011 2012 Cost of goods sold 41072 43155 45835 Sales 61529 64063 60144 Cost of goods sold/sales 0.6675 0.6736 0.7621 Is the cost of goods sold compared to revenue (sales) increasing or decreasing? The cost of goods sold compared to revenues is increasing across the years. Are the firm’s operating expens es increasing or decreasing? Both the gross and net margins for the firm are decreasing across the years. Total Assets vs. Total Liabilities (in ‘000) Is the firm heavily in debt? No! The company is not in heavy debt as total assets throughout the years are more than total liabilities. Does the firm have assets to pay for expenses and to finance the development of new products and information systems? Total Current Assets vs. Current Liabilities (in ‘000) Yes! The company has assets capable of paying expenses as well as financing the development of new products and information system. This is so because current assets are more than current liabilities throughout the years. Work Cited Parr, Danny. Dirt Bikes. Minnetonka: Capstone High Interest [Imprint], 2001. Print.

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a Essay

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a major life activity under the americans with disability act, how Supreme Court precedent def - Essay Example ecord of such impairment; or (C) being regarded as having such an impairment.5 The EEOC defines "a mental impairment" as "any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, Bi-Polar Disorder II, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities,"6 for purposes of the ADA.7 Thus, the question becomes whether this impairment substantially limits a major life activity.8 Interacting with others is listed as a major life activity in the EEOC's Compliance Manual: "Mental and emotional processes such as thinking, concentrating, and interacting with others are other examples of major life activities."9 This listing is significant insofar as the Appellate Court accords "great deference to the EEOC's interpretation of the ADA, since it is charged with administering the statute."10 Although, the EEOC provides a list of examples of major life activities that does not include interacting with others,11 this list is not exhaustive, and courts have routinely recognized major life activities not included in the EEOC regulations.12 Interacting with others is analogous to the major life activities enumerated by the EEOC because it is an essential, daily activity.13 It is not possible to exist in our society without interacting with other people. "Interacting with others, by any definition, is a required precursor to an individual's ability to work, to love, to re produce, and to function on a day-to-day basis in modem society."14 Furthermore, interacting with others is no more difficult to define than caring for oneself, a widely recognized major life activity.15 B. Judicial pronouncements of the Supreme Court and applicable jurisprudence supports the view that "interacting with others" is a major life activity As social human beings we come into contact with each other on a daily basis and that contact involves the use of abilities such as seeing, listening, talking, communicating and walking.16 These abilities have been described by ADA as "major life activities". As previously stated, the EEOC has prepared a list of abilities that constitute major life activities and they are: "...functions such as caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working."17 These lists of abilities

Inadequate Qualified Nurses Essay Example for Free

Inadequate Qualified Nurses Essay HealthCare industry in United States and across the globe carried so much responsibility that they are often referred to as â€Å"god† because of the relevance, power and most importantly, their job as lifesaver. Health Care industry is a very lucrative industry in United States and they constitute the large workforce. Despite of all their numerous duties and the entire good job, they are doing, â€Å"The problem Lies Within: Inadequate Qualified Personnel. Health Care industries in United States constitute of a large workforce and most importantly, it is an essential service that carries duty non-stop. The inadequacy of the Nurses, the qualified ones, have been blamed on many factors such as working environment, societal attitude about the profession, to mention but few. The shortage of Nurse appears to be heading towards a path of decline unless an urgent measure is taken to address the situation. That not only the majority of nursing professional are aging but many young people are choosing other careers. This could be because of the hours of work put into the job, as well as the stress involved. In view of this, the experienced among them are opting out and look for less stressful and more lucrative careers. According to the statement, by the House of Education and Workforce Committee, â€Å"The nursing workforce is aging and there are not enough new nurses entering the profession to replace those retiring or leaving† (Heinrich, 2001). A survey conducted shows that half of the current employed RNs by the Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals had considered leaving the patient care field for reasons other than retirement over the past two years (Heinrich, 2001). The implications is that less qualified personnel will be handling most of the health issues which is very dangerous and most importantly all the administrators and other facilities will be affected. Meanwhile, the economy will be affected as well as social issues. The statistical rates of the birth and death rate will be affected as well. The Death rate according to the statistical data released by the United States Census bureau shows a significant increase in death rate since 2008. Most aged people and our seniors will have to be the ones that bear the great effect of this, as they need the attention as well as the touch of our Nurses. The shortage of Nurses is the issue that affects anyone who is a provider or consumer of healthcare services in United States. From the foregoing, it is clear that â€Å"Problem Exists†- Inadequate Qualified Nurses. There is no problem without a remedy or a solution. Having identified the problem, the next thing is to look for the ways out. The first thing is to improve the working conditions and the workplace environment; government should encourage the students with tuition assistance and grants as this would serve as a motives for the intended ones who will like to enroll in nursing school, though the present administration have promised to invest in education and training, this is a good step in a right direction. We should also develop a strategy for awareness and respect for the profession; this they can do to uplift the profession. Government should invest in this noble venture as well and thereby encouraging people to have an interest in the profession. There should be incentives to the new and old among them, as this would put a stop to frequent occupational mobility moving from one job to other. The incentives such as tuition reimbursement, employee’s stock purchase plan, and other incentives that improve the working environment. Finally, improving the workplace environment starts from within the profession itself. We have to take pride in whatever we are doing and this is very significant as willingness to do things come from the inside and not when someone are forced or coerced to do so. References Heinrich, J (2001, July 10). Emerging nurse shortages due to multiple factors. FDCH government account reports. Retrieved from http://ehostvgw20.epnet.com Nursing Shortage: It is likely to get worse before it gets better (Electronic Version) (2001 August) Occupational Health Management, 11(8). 85 The Evolving Nursing Shortage: A Study of Nursing Shortage in America Retrieved from: http://www.ayatravelnursingjobs.com/nursingshortage/ Facts on the Nursing Shortage in North America: Why is there a Nursing Shortage? Retrieved from: http://www.nursingsociety.org/Media/Pages/shortage.aspx

Total Quality Management And Excellence Management Essay

Total Quality Management And Excellence Management Essay Over the last two decades organisations have witnessed great variations in markets, tremendous competition, rapid globalisation and economic turbulence. With customers becoming more demanding, satisfaction of customers has taken priority in running a successful business (Porter and Tanner, 2004). As a result, organisations have embraced a range of quality initiatives into every conceivable aspect of organisational work (Wilkinson and Willmott, 1995). In the older sense, Jurans edited work [2] on A History of Managing for Quality relates quality to meeting the requirements of a person obtaining a product or receiving a service. In a wider sense, Fisher and Nair(2006), refer toQuality as the way an enterprise goes about its business, inspired by a theory that acts as a guiding principle for behaviour and informed by the knowledge and knowhow needed to make it occur. In an attempt to survive competition and sustain a competitive advantage, many firms have witnessed the implementation of various quality management systems and standards like the ISO9000, the growth of total quality management(TQM), Business Process Re-engineering(BPR), business excellence, US Baldrige Model, European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM), lean thinking, Six Sigma etc.,(Porter and Tanner, 2004). What is TQM? Total Quality Management (TQM) has been on the agenda for a very long time. The concept of TQM has origins in the 1920s where product quality control was dealt with the application of statistical theory. Moving forward, the concepts developed in Japan in the 40s and 50s piloted by Americans, like Deming, Juran and Feigenbaum who gave a broader picture beyond quality of products to quality across the organisation which pioneered the beginning of TQM (DTI). TQM is an approach aimed at improving quality to establish effectiveness and efficiency across the firm. It defines ways of planning and organizing every activity associating it to every member at every level of the organization. (Oakland, 2003). Thus, despite the comprehensiveness and fullness of the TQM framework, there seems to be a decline in interest. This essay aims at critically analysing and discussing two works (a book by Wilkinson, Willmott (1995) and an article from Dale et-al (2000)) and evaluating the arguments stated i n them with respect to the emergence of more recent so-called Excellence Frameworks. This leads us to another question. What is excellence? With the evolution of Quality awards, principles of continuous improvement and organisational performance improvement became top priorities. The model devised by the European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM), supporting the European Quality Award offers a greater focus on business results and hence, Business/organisational Excellence is generally associated to EFQM(Poter and Tanner). The core themes of excellence are heavily influenced by TQM principles. These forms a management system stresses on leadership for attaining quality by formulating policies strategies for developing and managing personnel in order to implement process with a customer focus to achieve excellence in business results. The article by Dale et-al (2000) essentially discusses about the fallen star image of TQM. It highlights the tampering of TQM models to develop excellence frameworks like EFQM and MBNQA. Dale et-al (2000) dismiss the new models for building fads and bringing about futile cosmetic and peripheral changes to the excellence models. The authors also critique the emphasis on point-scoring system which is drawing focus away from the quintessence of quality management and only aim to win quality or excellence awards. The article draws similarities between the key ingredients of TQM philosophy and the principles of excellence. It challenges that excellence is essentialy only a replacement to words like quality and TQM. However, Adebanjo(2000) has a different view about the shift of focus from TQM to Excellence Models and asserts that they both complement each other. He maintains that quality never actually died. While Dale et-al (2000) attributes the failure of TQM to managers, Deming (1986) argues that poor leadership is the cause for poor performance. Adebanjo(1997) discusses this further stating that the failure is partly because managers are often hard to convince, didnt have a clear understanding, demonstrated resistance or viewed TQM as a responsibility of the quality departments . The failure rate of TQM was as high as 75% (Cao et-al, 2000). Fisher (1995) emphasises that TQM doesnt really help everyone, unless the commitment to TQM is across the organisation which is difficult to attain. The introduction of other models like TQMEX, MBNQA further support the view that excellence models are the necessary and sufficient route towards business excellence Ho(). But the overshadowing of TQM by glamorous excellence models doesnt exactly translate into quality performance (Dale et-al, 2000). In terms of the link between excellence models and performance, MBNQA was criticised for the reasons like: winning rewards involves high resource commitments and expense, failure to lead to superior quality standards and winning these certifications does not necessarily result in improved results. Its quite difficult to find companies with good bottom-line results and good quality initiatives (Zairi,Oakland1994). Despite the apparent confusion of terms- TQM, excellence, continuous improvement- all these eventually mean one thing making things better. The article by Wilkinson, Willmott (1995) also suggests that the fluid meanings assigned to quality initiatives make it elusive. In the attempt to introduce quality into manufacturing and service deliveries, quality management techniques like quality control, quality circles and (more holistically) TQM have been sought. TQM has also been critiqued for paying more attention to processes, procedures and policies of the business with little focus on people management, support and culture (Wilkinson, 1991). Rees (1993) also highlights this issue stating that there is little detail interms of how employees perceive TQM. Quality initiatives do not essentially give employees collective sense of objectives, instead it bounds them to procedures and goals defined by the managers who expect them to deliver performance based on the objectives laid down for every job role. A balance between the hard and soft approaches of TQM philosophy seems to be reconsidered and reviewed in recent times. Oakla nd (199), emphasises the importance of motivation and quality required to serve both internal and external customers. TQM strives to introduce quality into every aspect of the business. Wilson-Willmott (1995) also argue that TQM is not directly associated to work-design or employee empowerment and instead follows an iron-clad hierarchal structure. Oakland(2004) stresses on the need for effective communication and leadership for the development and accountability of all employees to implement TQM philosophies successfully. The article also draws attention on the importance of culture on to support Quality Management. Employees associated with strong organisation culture have clarity of their job roles. Thus the culture-strategy fit should hold good for any philosophy to be implemented. Irani(2004) highlights the relationship among culture, quality, and competitiveness. Sluti et al. (1995),studies indicate that corporate culture contributes to quality and performance, but there is alw ays an element of doubt about the level of organisational commitment that is required for TQM implementation. Oaklands(2003) addresses this through a modified TQM-framework for achieving high quality performance using business excellence approach, through people, planning and processes with the soft outcomes of culture, communication and commitment. Wilkinson-Wilmott(1995) also discuss the contributions of various authors. To highlight a few, Stephen Hill relates effective implementation of TQM to business productivity, reduced wastage, better decision-making and sustainable competitive advantage . To develop a rounded approval of TQM, he brings up the subject of social effects of TQM, and its adoption or non-adoption to de-staffing. Walsh challenges the implementation of TQM in service sector because of the difficulty involved in measuring quality as per monitoring levels of customer satisfaction. Webb and Munro highlight the managerial authoritarianism and challenges the effectiveness of the participative scenario during economic slump. McArdle et-al takes this further stating how power-centred participation was replaced by task-centred forms of involvement over the years. Dawson challenges the culture improves commitment aspect of TQM and its success in countries with cultural-pluralism. Kerfoot Knights discuss empowerment a nd assumptions about employee behaviour and argue that control over employees is a consequence of the inconsistency of engineering-like model of firms than that of TQM. Both articles provide strong views on the subject of quality management. In order to evaluate how different TQM actually is from the more recent models, this essay aims to compare and contrast it with the Excellence Frameworks, Lean and Six-Sigma programmes. In the 1980s, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award started gaining popularity. This aimed at identifying US companies that have achieved quality excellence. The framework focuses on customer and market-driven excellence to achieve business results. It focuses on harnessing te talents of employees through effective leadership and management. (Oakland, 2004). The EFQM is a model developed in Europe and it recognises the need to improve processes by involving people and continuous improvement of processes. (Oakland, 2004). Ho(), also advocates a need for an integrated approach to support the process of continuous improvement through the companys commitment to managing by quality and proposed the TQMEX model that encompasses 5-S, BPR, QCC, ISO 9000 and TPM, thus forming a basis for company-wide TQM implementation. Traditional TQM approaches and excellence models are based on rational paradigms, where traditional and normative, research data, includes survey responses associated with deductive theory and testing.(McAdam et-al, 2006). To address complex socio-political events and phenomena, a strategic TQM has been developed representing the dynamic nature of business and environment. Quality initiatives date back to after World War-II and the bombings in Japan. Unable to imitate the US practice of manufacturing in masses due to limited capital, Toyota developed a Production System, minimising waste across its operations, a technique now known as Lean Manufacturing. Lean Manufacturing overlaps TQM significantly. The TQM process orientation eventually leads to almost the same results as lean manufacturing. But, TQM starts with quality which may or may not be the most critical area or the area that produces quickest results. http://www.strategosinc.com/tqm_benefits_0.htm A more recent model gaining favour in industries is Six-Sigma. Its a model developed by Motorola. Motorola was also cited as the first winner of MBNQA in 1988. Six-sigma is efficient, often statistical, techniques are used in a systematic way to reduce variation and improve processes and there is a focus on results including customer-related ones that lead to enhanced marketplace performance and hence improved bottom-line financial results. (Klefsjo ¨ et al. 2001). Mikel Harry[1], developer the Six Sigma program at Motorola, has defined Six Sigma as a disciplined method of using extremely rigorous data gathering and statistical analysis to pinpoint sources of errors and ways of eliminating them. and is all about improving customer and business results by linking the tactical with the strategic. The improvement model follows DMAIC and has 5 phases as illustrated below: C:UsersuserDesktopUntitled.jpg Six-sigma is a subset of TQM and not an alternative to TQM. It is a methodology within TQM which also considers the dynamic nature of the management system (Klefsjo ¨ et al. 2001).In contrast to TQM, six-sigma aims at delivering breakthrough tangible benefits in the short-term and doesnt focus on a step-by-step improvement(Oakland, 2004). Both excellence models and six-sigma can complement eachother where the former baselines the phase for improvement and the latter attains excellence through delivering breakthrough strategy, leadership, learning, innovation, customer-market-business-focus and continuous reinforcement. (Oakland, 2004). Demand for Lean has surpassed six sigma by almost 35%. This indicates that most companies are looking at Lean techniques to face the challenges of the economic slump. (Avery Point Group,2010) To conclude, heres a warning: TQM may not be the in-thing for most organisations anymore. But it is here to stay. As firms gear themselves up to rapid advancements interms of its operations and information management and to meet customer needs, there will always be a challenge to make products or deliver services faster through a reliable system. That kind of a system can be established only by getting the basic TQM philosophies right. The underlying objective is to make things better, both for the customers and the organization. The means of achieving this may slightly vary through quality or excellence models. However, it is all about Do the right things right the first time, every time. . http://qualitytricks.wordpress.com/2006/10/26/introduction-and-implementation-of-total-quality-management-tqm/ Ans2: IMPLEMENTING BUSINESS EXCELLENCE IN THE HOTEL INDUSTRY: This essay particularly focuses on implementing BE framework in the hotel industry which is a service industry. To attain customer satisfaction and excellence in an industry, various models ranging from EFQM, Lean, Six-Sigma, TQM could be implemented. However, among the available models, this essay proposes to use the model devised by EFQM, to analyse the quality perspective of both management and customers of the Tristar Group, a chain of 3-star hotels. Oaklands (1999) Total Organisational Excellence (TOE) framework for performance-based measurement embraces all areas like strategic planning, process analysis, self-assessment, benchmarking measurement, people, teamwork, and continuous-improvement (Oakland, 1999). While EFQM helps benchmark core processes for a limited period in time and defines current standing, TOE focuses on continuous improvement for achieving organisational excellence. Every sector exists in a highly competitive market. Succeess is largely dependent on delighting customers important (Irani,2004). In order to understand the how the quality frameworks can be implemented in Hotel Tristar, it is primarily important to understand the customers and their needs with respect to Tristar. Who are our customers? The hotel must recognise the needs of all its clients the value of the guest as a paying customer; the importance of its employees as internal customers; the expectations of the local community as an environment conscious corporate citizen and its responsibility to the owners and operators as a producer of high profit margins with an all round positive image. The key external customers are from the commercial,corporate and M.I.C.E((Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Events) segments.. Tristar also has customers on business and leisure travel from international and domestic markets. The target market is currently divided as follows: What do our customers want? Customers desire better quality services, but it is always difficult to reaching an agreement on the conformance to specification, mainly because measuring quality in the service sector isnt easy (Wilkinson,Willmott,1995). However, to state a few basic services any hotel is expected to provide: Good value for money, reliability and efficiency High standards in terms of its facilities and pricing. Quality personal service, home-like experience and on-time delivery of services. Good IT systems to make reservations and bookings quick and easy. A luxurious, pleasing environment to relax or conduct their business. Complimentary breakfasts and free in-room wireless internet. Customers treated with basic courteousness, kept informed and not to be passed around Effective feedback and suggestion systems. Conduct responsible business, both on the social and environmental fronts. The Hotels success in the current environment will depend on corporate contract business, tourism and customer loyalty to the brand. To address this Oaklands (1999) framework for TOE helps the organisation achieve business excellence by implementing the following steps. 1. The effectiveness of an organisation depends on efficient leadership and commitment from the people to perform their roles aimed at moving towards common goals and objectives. TOE involves comprehensive planning for gaining competitiveness through people management and employee involvement. The top management must demonstrate commitment to improvement and leadership through supervision, training and process management. There must also exist a shared motive of need for change to attain excellence among the top management and the stakeholders of Tristar. 2. The next step involves developing a clear strategy for implementation. The vision describes the strategic intent of the organisations existence. Hotel Tristars vision involves commitment to creating extraordinary customer value by ensuring quality and responsiveness of customer services. The mission statement is used to communicate this vision for the organisation of where it is going. Tristars mission is dedicated to provide hospitality service through motivated human resources and inspired leadership. The goal to ensure financial strength and sustainable growth can be achieved by focusing on domestic and international markets through innovation and technology and Tristar must strive to create value for owners and shareholders and operate as an environment conscious corporate citizen. 3. The next step is identifying critical success factors (CSFs). CSFs are what must the organisation accomplished to achieve the above mission The CSFs for Hotel Tristar can be recognised as: Positioning and guest profile Site and location On-time and Quality customer service Motivated and skilled staff/ efficient management Quality suppliers and effective distribution channels Identification of potential business opportunities and markets 4. The Key Performance Indicators support the mission and CSIs to help translate the directional statements to clear targets. They help monitor progress and the KPIs for Hotel Tristar can be identified as: Yield Management and Differential pricing Job rotation and training for timely delivery of services Brand Recognition and marketing methods Optimal resource utilisation and cost effectiveness 5. The next step is understanding the core processes. The top management team identify the action plan on how the organisation must institutionalise the mission and meet its CSF. For Hotel Tristar, the core process can be identified as: Revenue Wealth Management Process for the operations Reservation process: from the time a guest makes a booking until they arrive at their room. Asset Management Process for brand extension Event management process: from the time the organizers book the banquet/conference room to the completion of the event. Selection and Recruitment process Advertising and Brand promotion process Each of these processes could have a sponsor from the management team. The process sponsorship can be owned up by the existing Managing Director, Financial Controller, HR Manager, COO and CEO of the Hotel. 6. This step involves breaking down the core process into sub-processes, tasks and activities and formulating improvement teams. To illustrate the breakdown of a CSF to individual task through an example: CSF: On-time and Quality customer service KPI: Job rotation and training for timely delivery of services Core- Process: The event management process, from the time the organizers book the banquet/conference room to the completion of the event. Sub- Process: Develop an event concept and determine the feasibility Activity: Formulate budget and monitor finance Task: Prepare a chart to track progress of the event 7. The people and processes identified must be aligned to integrate excellence into business strategy. This is through a policy deployment or goal translation process. For Tristar, the top team must study the customer preferences to understand how the goal of creating quality customer service can be achieved. Once the core processes and the sub-processes are identified, they must be successfully analysed to lay foundation for systems and procedures. A process classification framework for a generic view of the business process is documented for systematic development of mapping and flowcharting the processes. The core-processes need to be self-assessed and benchmarked. The EFQM framework is used to self-asses Tristar to figure out what the hotel is good or bad at and where there is a need for improvement. EFQM Model Implementation: The European quality model highlights the significant strengths and weaknesses and the relationship among people, processes and outcomes. The model represented in Figure 2, People and customer satisfaction and positive impact on society provide a competitive advantage. There are nine factors to evaluate the level of excellence of a company, The primary problem is related to the first element in the model, that is leadership. The management and directors showed very little interest in quality management initiatives. This absence of commitment and lack of conviction results in failure to recognise good performance, inability to efficiently guide culture changes, less interaction with customers and suppliers, little involvement in running a sustainable and responsible business. This problem also raises concerns at the strategic level in the policies strategy element of the model. The external strategic analysis explains problems in the context of the hospitality industry. The challenges relate to the changing patterns in travel tourism during recession. The decline in business travelling and the re-location of the airport in Hyderabad have hit the business hard. Internal strategic analysis highlights problems of incorporating very little total quality measures into policies strategies. Lack of audits and process plans d o not support continuous improvement. Personnel Management is another key element in hotel industry. The companies HR policies, training and retention are factors that determine successful implementation of any TQM project. Hotel Tristar has staff on temporary or contract basis. This hinders effective implementation of training activities and results in low employee commitment and motivation. Resource Management through optimization of technical, financial, infrastructural resources should generate cost and quality benefits. However, Hotel Tristar lacks effective asset management system to improve return on capital employed and reduce cash-flow volatility. Processes should be continually reviewed and redesigned for successful implementation of quality policies aimed at customer satisfaction. Effective customer feedback system does not exist, thus making it impossible to assess the existing quality of services provided to various customers (rooms, banquets, restaurants and leisure gu ests). Quality does not necessarily mean luxury. Improvement programs aimed at services that provide value for money should be top priority during the recession period. The social impact with regard to responsible trading is largely emphasised in the hospitality industry. CSR activities and eco-hospitality are gaining popularity and Hotel Tristar has a long way to go at implementing sustainable and environmental friendly practices aimed at energy conservation, waste management etc., Economic results have shown a dip in ROCE and steady decrease in productivity. Thus, this model highlights a serious problem of lack of coordination of various operations and initiatives that run independently without synergy therefore impeding continuous improvement. (1) After the identification of the potential areas of improvement, the next step involves defining improvement opportunities and prioritizing the actions needed. This requires effective use of tools and techniques by the workforce. The employee commitment and involvement is attained through effective performance management systems implemented by the management team. This involves clarifying roles, providing training, developing action plans and setting targets. Teamwork is key in hospitality industry. Besides demonstrating leadership and commitment, the pioneers of TOE must also be proactive in visualizing ideal processes and competent in the mechanics of business process re-engineering. For Tristar, this must be focussed on identifying prospective clients in the right sectors, understand their needs, and implement processes to service these needs by involving the people. Potential problems with implementation: Implementing changes in the organisation can potentially face the following problems: 1. Employee resistance to change: Change efforts usually experience human resistance. There are many reasons for employees to resist change. These could range from a desire not to lose something of value, a fear of making mistakes, risk-averse, a misinterpretation of the change and its benefits and implications, a belief that the change does not add value to the organization or a general low tolerance for change. 2. Lack of senior management interest and support: For implementing change of any magnitude, it is essential to clearly communicate strategies and objectives of change to all the stakeholders. Some managers view quality management as just another managerial fad or fashion (Wilkinson and Redman, 1994). Hotel Tristar lacks effective pioneers to responsibly lead this change process and confidently implement practices to achieve continuous improvement. 3. Emphasis on Short-term results: Implementing a change is a time consuming affair. It is a matter of concern that the stakeholders involved usually hold a short-termist attitude (Wilkinson and Redman, 1994). Hotel Tristar, which is classified in the luxury segment, is constantly facing demands for quicker results interms of increased cash-flows and profitability. 4. Inflexible and rigid organisation hierarchy: Tristar is a 27 year old family-run business with deep-rooted culture and inter-group relationships. Any decision making process resulting in disturbing the complex hierarchy and deviating from the traditional methods is bound to face strong resistance and confrontation. It is a challenging task to overcome traditions. This is true when employees do not see the relation between their traditions and an existing problem. (http://www.themanager.org/strategy/Change_Problems.htm) 5. Lack of individual development opportunities: High performance seeks appropriate skills and capabilities. This requires creating effective training and learning opportunities for the employees or recruitment of new labour. Tristar lacks appropriate training structure and also has a high attrition rate due to the fluid market conditions. 6. Unfavourable Market Conditions: Tristar has faced sudden plunge in its sales due to the re-location of the Airport. This has resulted in an urgent need to refocus on its target market segment to lay more emphasis on repeat customers and business customers. The changes in demographics and customer spending also pose as potential barriers to achieving competitive advantage. 7. Lack of resources and cost constraints: Inefficient management of financial resources and assets could pose some serious problems in implementing organisational excellence. According to Wilkinson et al., (1994), Quality management appears to suffer from resource limitations. Keeping up-to-date with the latest information and technology will be challenging for Tristar. During the recession, there is also a major emphasis on value for money. The training and implementation of quality management process is a costly affair. 8. Problems in measuring quality : Lack of complete and accurate information makes it difficult to convince the employees of long term gains of implementing best practices. In service industry, it is always difficult to measure quality. If customer satisfaction is used as a yardstick to measure quality, what level of satisfaction can be attributed to high quality? Plans for overcoming these problems Kotter and Schlesinger(2008) have highlighted methods for dealing with change. These are can be applied to Hotel Tristar as follows: Training and Communication: One of the most effective ways of dealing with resistance to change is by educating and clearly communicating the goals and strategies of the organisation to all the members. This will help people understand the need for change. Tristar could conduct group presentations, individual discussions, pass on reports and statements to the concerned employees, to facilitate the same. Employee Empowerment and involvement: It is highly effective to actively involve the employees with the quality management process and decision making. This gives the participants a sense of responsibility and commitment to achieving excellence. The MD could ask the 2nd and 3rd level managers to recommend changes in the current event management and reservation system of the hotel. Facilitating and Supporting: The managers could also support those who are resisting change by listening to their concerns and taking actions to address those concerns through appropriate training and development. So, Tristar could talk to the members about their re-focus strategy towards customer service and identify beforehand who would have difficulty in adjusting to new roles. Measure quality efforts: By investing in reliable and accurate information to identify effective information gathering and analysis techniques. TQM is based majorly on rational thinking and problem solving (Oakland, 1999), thus the probable best solution is to provide a balanced mix of information and creative ideas. Emphasis on long-term goals: Tirstar can overcome the short-termist attitude of the stakeholders involved by communicating the budget, financials involved and the pace of change generated. Thus, by encouraging transparency, the stakeholder gain the broader picture and understand the long-term gains of quality programmes. Trial Runs: To identify teething problems before releasing the change systems across the departments and to rectify these, as very often, first impressions are considered last impressions.