How Single parenting has negative effect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

How Single parenting has negative effect - Essay Example In this regard, the current discourse aims to contend that single parenting has negative effects that are detrimental to the children, and to the single parent, in the long run. Single parenting poses risks to the parent tasks to raise the children alone due to exposure to more stressors in responding to the needs of the family. As a single parent, the mother or father has to find ways and means to support the children holistically; meaning, financially, physically, emotionally, mentally, and even spiritually. As asserted by Hertz, â€Å"women who came from working class backgrounds were at one and the same time proud of their mothers’ employment achievements and sad that it was their mothers who were doubly burdened with keeping family life together† (6). As such, the need to fit all tasks and endeavors in a limited time frame poses health risks to single parents, including risks for developing anxieties, depression, cardiovascular diseases, and even burnout. Concurren tly, single parenting also exposes the children to be recipients of bursts of emotions and negativity. This fact was revealed by Aldort and Aldort who contended that â€Å"sometimes, in spite of all our intentions to love and be kind, what we might feel toward a child is anger and even resentment† (15). ... These are often feelings that we may not be aware of because of fear and discomfort rooted in our past experiences† (Aldort and Aldort 15). The negative impact of these outbursts to children include loss of confidence in themselves, depression, low morale, and even fear to socialize, trust others, and open up, as required. After having presented the negative effects of single parenting to the parent and the children, it could also be asserted its damaging repercussion to social structures, particularly in terms of maintaining a solid and unified family as the basic unit of society. Single parents need to exert double efforts to make up for the loss of the physical presence of spouse and of a father or mother to the children. As such, there seems to be something lacking that is felt by the parent and the children alike. This void could not be replaced by material things or by other people. Therefore, the negativity associated with trying to fill the void remains persistent. As a verred, â€Å"warmth, discipline, materialism - dealing with all these issues effectively demands that we address not only the challenges that parents face, but also the needs that they have as they try to be the best parent they can† (Levine 169). As such, inasmuch as the single parent focusing all his or her efforts to provide a holistic support to the children, the needs of the parent could most likely be neglected and wanting. Thus, the core values of maintaining a cohesive and supporting family, as the basic unit, are definitely eroded as society begins to accept single parenting as the socio-cultural norm in contemporary societies. There are those who argue that

The Core Objective Of JWD Organisations

The Core Objective Of JWD Organisations The case study that we are going to cover is of JWDs consulting project management intranet site project, the objective of this case is to identify and to recognize the critical assumptions and constraints of project management. The core objective of JWD is to provide world class project management services related to project management to various organizations that is in need for better project management services. According to the CEO of JWD, Joe Fleming the company can streamline its services and also can increase and maintain its business opportunities and services by providing all the informations related to project management and its services on the companys intranet site, to make the services and products informations available to its current and potential clients. Objectives The business objective of JWD is to formulate strategies to find new opportunities and to continue their growth in the market along with increasing the profitability of the company. The major objective of the company in formulating the project management intranet site is to support the objectives as defined by the company in its strategy and to increase the visibility of the expertise of the firm to its internet. The company will not only achieve their strategic objectives but also help in reducing the organizations internal costs by presenting standard tools, techniques, templates, and project management knowledge to all the internal consultants that are associated to the company. The project management intranet site will give a threshold to the company in meeting those objectives finally. Current situation and problem/opportunity statement JWD currently has a fully functioning web site as well as a corporations intranet; the organization uses the website to provide information about the company. And the intranet is basically used for providing human resource information to the employees such as let know the employees about the hours where they have to put their efforts on various projects and also let know the employee about their benefits and other assets and also allowing them to change certain informations about them at times. The other major advantages of the intranet for the employees is that they can access the online directory related to the company and its clients, the intranet also provides the employees with the benefit of using the web based e-mail system where they can read and compose mails from their ID that is given to them from the company. The firm also uses an enterprise-wide project management system where the firm can track the progress in the projects and other reports and processes that is going on in the organization. The major focus of the enterprise-wide project management system is that it can focus on the status of deliverables and other meetings scopes, time and cost goals. The opportunity that the company has about including a new section on the companys intranet is that of sharing the consultants project management information and knowledge across the organization. The main point about the JWD consultancy is that it recruits only professional and experienced consultants that have wide knowledge and an area of expertise in the field of consultancy and gives them freedom to work on projects that they feel feasible according to the corporations requirements, and which they think might fit in the structure of the organization. However even the most experienced and the most talented professionals is seeking for advice in the company on how to work effectively and efficiently as the business is growing exponentially and the projects are becoming more and more complex. Critical assumptions and constraints The intranet site that is proposed should be a valuable asset to the company as the company had invested a huge amount and resources in the project. For the success of the project many factors plays a major role such as the consultants and the clients should actively support the project to give a threshold and a sense of satisfaction to the company as it is very important for the company to keep their morale up. The intranet site must have the capability of generating back the amount that was invested in the project by reducing the internal costs of various other processes that were going on in the organization before the introduction of the project of intranet site, and also to provide new business opportunities to the company. The main part that is to be played in the success and the initiation of the intranet site project should be that of the project manager who should make sure that all the processes related to the project is successfully implemented and is of worth. Secondly there should be an active participation in the project by expertise from various sections of the company as well as from the clients organization. The new system should be capable of running on the existing softwares and hardwares of the company so that no extra cost of implementing new hardware and software should be faced by the company. One more thing that the software should be capable of is that the software should be very handy to use i.e. there should be no complexity in operating the software by the client and other user form the public so that no extra cost should be faced by the company in providing the training and knowledge about the software. But the main thing is that the software should be secured enough so that no unauthenticated user can access the data that is not meant for him. Analysis of options and recommendations There are three options before the company to address the opportunity The first option before the company is to do nothing i.e. any need for any new software or service solution as the business is doing well, new service can only make the job more complicated for the company. The second option before the company is to buy new specialized software rather than building one and to make a little development about the software to increase and to maintain its capability in the company. The third option before the company was to design and develop new intranet capabilities in the company itself using mostly the resources that they already had with them like the existing hardwares and softwares and the human resource that they have in the organization. Based on the discussion that was done with the stakeholders the ultimate conclusion that JWD arrived to is to use the third option. 6. Preliminary project requirement The major features and services that the intranet site promises to provide are: The intranet site will give user an access to several project management templates and tools. I.e. the user must be able to use the templates and tools and also get have access to the instructions of how to use these templates and tools along with the examples to use these templates and tools on real time projects and services. One more feature that is included is that the user will be able to submit new templates and tools that can prove to be beneficial for the company and also reflects the users ability. The submission of templates and tools are subjected to be first edited and screened from the project management office. The user will have an access to related project management articles that will help them in working on their own project. The clients and consultants will feel as there is an information overload when they will research on the project management information. This results in the wasting of precious time that they should be spending with their clients. The new intranet facility will include an access to all the project management articles that will prove to be very important in the project management, the articles will be made available to be searched by the topic name, this will save the precious time of the user and hence results in high productivity. The user can also send a command to the project management office requesting them to find additional articles that will meet their needs. The intranet site will also have links to other main web-sites that will help the users in gaining important knowledge about the subjects. The site will also have a brief description about the external web-sites. The site will have a very important feature named ask the experts that will help in building relationship with the current and the future clients, this feature will also help in sharing knowledge with the internal consultants. The intranet will have appropriate security measures so that only authenticated persons can get the informations and no person can get that information that is not meant for him, only the internal consultants and the authenticated persons can have access to the required information. The site must have a feature to charge for the premium services to the internal members and the internal consultants. The site must also have a feature to charge the external users for some features. The payment option should have a credit card option along with other payment options. The user should be able to download the required information and data only after the verification of the payment. The other features that should be included in the site should be suggested by the users. 7. Budget estimates and financial analysis The JWD consultancy estimated the cost for the entire project to be $1, 40,000. The estimate that the consultancy arrived at is based on the factors that the project manager has to work for 20 hours per week in a total for about 6 months, and the other internal staff that is estimated to be working for 60 hours per week for a total duration of 6 months. The customer representatives were not considered to be paid under the project, the staff project managers pay will be $50 per hour, the pay of other members of the project management staff was considered to be $70 per hour, some initial cost were also estimated to be $10,000 for purchasing softwares and services from suppliers. After the completion of the project JWD estimated that the cost for the management and the maintenance of the software thereafter is estimated to be $40,000 per year by the company, this cost that was estimated were primarily to update the ask the expert feature and the online articles. The projected benefits were based on the reduction of hours that the consultants will spend on doing the research on the project management information, tools and templates and other related features. The projected benefits that the consultancy estimated were of the profit and new services that the project will develop for the country and hence will count in the companys revenue. The company estimated that if 400 consultants will save 40 hours per year and if they could bill that time span to other projects that have generated a profit of $10 per hour, then it is estimated by the company that they could earn a profit of $1, 60,000 per annum, and if the intranet produces new business by 1% then it is estimated that the profit generated by the new project would be at least $ 40,000 per annum. Therefore the total profit that the company estimated would be around $ 2, 00,000 per annum. 8. Schedule estimate The sponsors of the company were hoping to see the project completed within six months, but there were flexibility in the schedule. The estimated life cycle of the product was assumed to be around 3 years by the company, and the product is considered to be very useful in its lifetime. 9. Potential risks Several risks were involved with this project. The first and the foremost risk that was assumed by the company was that of the internal consultants and the external clients, as they dont have any idea about the interest of the clients and the internal consultants in the new system i.e. the clients and the internal consultants were not satisfied that if the project will be proved to be fruitful and will be profitable for the organization. User input also has a great significance and is very crucial for the system to be successful as the users are the ones that populate the data into the system, and the users were the ones that could tell the efficiency of the system and also realize the potential benefits of using the system. The technical risks that were involved in the system were the searching method that was used to search the data on the intranet, and the security risks that were involved in the system like that of hacking into the system and the failure of the payment system. But the system were using only that technologies that are technically proven by the experts therefore, there is a very little chance that the system will fail because of the technical failure. The major business risks that were included in the system are the risk of the investment of money and time along with the investment of human resource. One more major business risk associated with the system is that of the projected benefits of the system i.e. not realizing the projected benefits of the system would be a great business risk for the organization as the organization would suffer a huge loss if they couldnt identify the potential of the software. 10. Exhibits (Budgeting) Exhibit A: financial analysis for the project management intranet site Table : financial exhibit Project charter Project title The title of the project was project management intranet site project Project start date The project was scheduled to be started on May, 2, 2008 Project finish date The project was scheduled to be ended on November, 4, 2008 Budget information The budget that the firm allocated for the project management intranet site was $ 1, 40,000. The initial estimate that the project manager estimated was a total of 80 hours per week work and that work was estimated to be done by internal labors majorly. Project manager Erica bell was appointed as the project manager for the whole project. Project objectives The objective before the firm was to develop a new capability that is accessible on JWD consulting intranet site, the main task of the site will be to help internal and external customers in managing new projects effectively and conveniently. The main features of the site is that the site will contain several tools and techniques that can be downloaded by the authenticated users and the outside users after paying some amount, the site will also contain examples of completed projects and templates that will be based on real time projects and that can be used by the internal consultants and clients for detailed understanding and completion of their projects effectively, the site will also contain important articles based on project management topics and that can also be used for gaining knowledge and understanding about the project management related topics, the site will also have an article retrieval service that will allow the user to send their query for the related article to the project management section and the project management section will made available those articles to the user. The intranet site will also have links to various other useful sites with a brief overview of the contents and the usefulness of the site, this feature will help the user in getting all the information about any related topic that they are unable to find on the companys intranet site. The intranet site will also have an ask the expert feature on the site that will help the users to post questions and queries that they have about any project, after asking the advice from the experts about a related project the user will get an expert advice on how to tackle that problem and the related strategies about that project. Some sections of the intranet site will be made available to the user so that they can access for free of cost, the other features of the site will be paid for the external users. But most of the section of the intranet site will be accessible to current customers and the internal consultants of the company, but there could be some features for which the internal consultants and the clients would have to pay, that features would be the value added or the add-on features of the site. Approach The approach applied by the firm on the project is: The first thing that the project management team does is that they conducted a survey among the consultants and the customers to determine the critical features of the new intranet site. The second approach that the project management team applied is to review the external and internal templates and to review the project management documents thoroughly. The third approach by the project management team is concerned with the security and the accessibility features of the intranet site i.e. the project management team researched on the softwares that will provide the security features, manage user inputs in a corrected and well accessible mode, facilitate the articles, and to use and to implement the ask the experts feature. The fourth approach that had being taken by the project management team is to use the iterative approach to develop the intranet site i.e. to continuously feed suggestions from descent users and to make the changes accordingly if applicable anywhere in the site like that related to the security features, and the applications. The fifth approach that the project management team has taken is related to the financial aspects of the project intranet site i.e. the team is developing approach to determine the ways to measure the value of the intranet site in terms of reduced costs and in terms of finding ways to generate new revenues, both of these strategies is being monitor during the project and for one year period after the completion of the project. Roles and responsibilities Table : role and responsibilities of the team Comments: I will support this project as time allows, but I believe my client project take priority. I will have one of my assistants support the project as needed-Michael Chen We need to be extremely careful testing this new system, especially the security in giving access to parts of the intranet site to the public and clients.-Kevin Dodge and Cindy Dawson Project management planning Planning phase in the project management process is considered to be the most difficult phase as it consists of various processes and often is an unappreciated process. As planning is not always facilitated therefore many peoples assume that project planning is a vein process and view it in negativity. The main purpose of the project planning is to guide the project in executing successfully. And to successfully execute the project it is necessary that the planning for the project execution should be realistic and useful i.e. it should be feasible, therefore a fair amount of time and process is required for the project planning process. In the project planning process peoples who is knowledgeable with the project planning phase should work on the project planning process. The planning and processes table explains all the areas of project management planning like knowledge area of the project, planning process of the project, and the outputs that the team was getting after executing each and every task. In view of the fact that the project management intranet site project was relatively small therefore, the project manager Erica believes that the most important planning documents that the team should consider should be the: A team contract that will bound the team to their responsibilities. A project scope statement that will clarify the scope and other aspects of the project A work breakdown structure i.e. WBS should also be included. The team will also need to formulate a Gantt chart analysis that will cover all the dependencies and the resources that is entered. All the documents that were discussed and other information that is related to the project will be available to all the team members so, that the team members would have a detailed understanding of all the processes that is going on and will have a chance to make suggestions wherever applicable. JWD consulting had already used project websites for quite a few years and had been very successful in facilitating communications and document related informations. JWD consulting had also created project organization charts, along with a formal communications management plans, quality management plan, a detailed cost estimate plan, procurement plans, and other planning documents that is really helpful for the company in formulating strategies and other plans. As soon as the project team had signed the charter, the project manager Erica organized a team-builder meeting related to the project management intranet site, the purpose of calling the meeting was that she wants each and every person of the group to get comfortable with each other i.e. she wanted that each person in the group should not be shy of any other person of the group and should feel comfortable with working with them, Erica herself had talked and met other members of the team personally and shared her professional experiences with them, this was the very first time that the whole project team is spending much time together. The team members consisted of Jessie faue who worked with Erica in the project management office, therefore they knew each other very well, but as Jessie was new to the company therefore she needed a team gathering to interact with others, Michael Chen was the senior consultant for the firm and had been involved in highest priority projects for the exte rnal clients, Michael attended the meeting with his assistant Jill Anderson who will support the project in the absence of micheal, michaels involvement in the project was a double benefit for the team as he is very straightforward in dealing clients and is very experienced in his field, Michaels assistance would also be a great benefit for the team as Michael knew both of the client representatives from past projects. Kevin dodge was JWDs intranet guru who had a great insight of technical aspects and had a very good experience in this area. Cindy Dawson was also from the IT department of JWD and she also had a good experience in working as a business consultant and has remarkable negotiating skills. Kim Phuong and page miller was the two client representatives, and they were very excited about the project, but they were cagey of sharing sensitive information about their company with the team of JWD. Erica had used certain techniques to let the team members get to know each other, she asked everyone about their dream vacations and where they want to spend most of their time, this activity proved to be an ice-breaker activity for the team as everybody felt relaxed after sharing their thoughts with each other. After the session, Erica explained each and every aspect related to the project to the team and also explained the importance of the project and other major aspects, she also explained that the most important thing in working as a team is an effective teamwork therefore she then asked everyone to sign a contract that every person in the group felt comfortable in signing the project. Contract signing between the team members for all projects had always been the key strategy of JWD to help in promoting the team work and to clarify the communication between the team. Erica then explained the major aspects of the contract explaining all the details and aspects related to the contract, and then showed the team a sample template related to the contract. Erica then divided the project management team into a group of two, the first group is the group consisting of all the members from the consulting department and in the other group she departs all the members of the information technology department. This strategy of Erica helped the team as all the members are now related to a particular group where they expertise their field, now everyone can provide their ideas and contribute to the knowledge related to the project in their fields. Table : planning processes and output Scope statement Project name: project management intranet site project Date: may 18, 2008 Prepared by: Erica bell, project manager Project justification The CEO of JWD consulting, requested this project to support the company in meeting its strategic goals. The main features of the intranet site is that the site would increase transparency of the companys products and services to the current clients and to the potential clients, with the help of the intranet which would be available to the clients and potential clients. The intranet site will also help the company in reducing its internal costs and also help in streamlining the processes and operations that is going on in the company, the intranet site will also help the company to increase the companys profitability by providing new opportunities, standard tools, new techniques, templates for assistance in project development, and will also provide project informations and knowledge to internal clients. The budget passed for the project is $ 1, 40,000. An additional amount of $ 40,000 per year will also be required after the completion of the project for the maintenance of the site and to include new features in the site. The benefits that are estimated that the site would produce per year would be $200,000 per year by generating new businesses. It is very important to keep focused on the system paying for itself i.e. the amount that is invested in the development of the project, within one year of the completion of the project. Project management related deliverables Business case, charter, team contract, scope statement, WBS, schedule, cost baseline, status report, final project presentation, final project report, lessons-learned report, and other related documents are important for the management of this project. Project execution Executing any project involves taking necessary actions to ensure all the processes are executed and is complied in the project management plan. Project execution also includes the work that is required to include any new hardware or software or any new process to include into normal operations. Most of the products that the project had promised to deliver had been completed in the project execution phase and usually requires most of the resources to accomplish most of the processes. All the processes are like knowledge area, executing processes, and the output of the project execution phase is listed in the planning process and outcome table. The main focus of many customers and project sponsors is the outcome that is related to providing the products, services, or the particular result that is desired from that project. Besides the outputs that are listed below other outputs are equally important like change requests, corrective actions. As the project was relatively smaller project, therefore it was very much possible for Erica to work closely with other team members on the project to make sure that they all are working correctly and in the right direction. Erica had a very good networking with peoples across the world that can help her whenever there is any problem related to the project, through networking Erica can well take advantages of her networking skills by getting the work done through other peoples in the firm and external peoples without any additional cost. She assured everyone that whoever uses the intranet application will also understand that they were producing as part of the project and assured them that this project will surely help each and every one of them in the future. Erica knew that providing a strong leadership and using excellent communication skills will surely help in the project execution in a much better way. that the firm majorly uses to outsource the portions of the projects. Erica knew that Joe the CEO of the company and other project sponsors would like to see project reports and progress made in the project through milestone reports therefore Erica formed a milestone report based on that. Joe also wanted Erica to alert him to any potential issues and problems whichever arrived in the project, Erica used to meet all the project team members to talk on the issue quite frequently and also use to give Joe review about the ongoing in the project on a regular basis like once in a week or after completing a particular milestone. Instead of using the project management software, Erica used the word processing software to create milestone report because the project was a relatively low level project, and she can very well manipulate the report format easily in the word processing software. Table : milestone report as of June 17, 2008 Gantt chart Network Diagram Note: Path shown in red color is critical path. Many conflicts did arrive in several meetings like conflicts on human resource and other issues. Sometimes it often happened that Michael seemed a little bored and Erica did noticed that thing, Michael often left the room in the middle of the meetings to talk to other clients, seeing that Erica asked Michael about the situation and found that though Michael was supportive for the project but he told Erica that he can only spend a little time for the project. Erica saw that Michael was much more productive outside the meetings, therefore Erica thought that Michael should attend minimal time for team meetings and should concentrate on other issues like project development and related issues, Erica saw that Michael was contributing to the team by contributing to the team by providing the feedbacks and also through his leadership on the ask the expert feature for the intranet site. Therefore Erica adjusted his communication style and allowed Michael to manage the things as he would like to manage. Another major conflict arose when Cindy was contacting the potential suppliers for asking assistance on ask the exert feature and related user request features. Kevin wanted to develop and write all the software for the project itself but instead Cindy insisted on purchasing the softwares and thought it would produce more business sense to buy all the softwares from a reliable source. Cindy had to convince Kevin to buy the software requirements and that it would be more effective if we purchase the required softwares from reliable sources. Cindy discovered that their estimate of $ 10,000 to buy the software was only half of the amount that were needed for the project, she therefore discussed this problem with Erica explaining the need for custom development of the softwares no matter which supplier they choose for the project. Erica therefore agreed on to buy the softwares from some outside source, and therefore asked the suppliers to approve the additional funding that is required for the software. Joe did agree on to allocate additional amount but he still emphasized on the fact that the project should pay for itself within one year of completion of the project. Erica also had to ask Joe on the matter that the project team were receiving low responses from the user on the surveys and requests. Therefore Joe sent out an email to all the JWD consulting consultants and other employees requesting them to provi

Natural Disaster :: Earthquakes, Tornados, Flood

Debris is scattered for miles, houses are destroyed, trees are bent, and vehicles have been thrown. This would be an aftermath of a natural disaster. Natural disasters come in many forms such as earthquakes, tornados, floods, blizzards, fires, and volcanic eruptions, just to name a few. Every type of disaster is not subjected to one specific area. This means that people in certain areas only have to prepare for those disasters that are likely to occur in their region. Throughout the world, natural hazards are a frequent occurrence. On a range of scales they create disaster, destruction and deaths of people. â€Å"A natural process only becomes a natural hazard when the risk of human loss is presented.† (Page 2) An earthquake is â€Å"a sudden shake of the Earth's crust caused by the tectonic plates colliding.† (Page 2) The vibrations may vary in magnitude. â€Å"The underground point of origin of the earthquake is called the focus. The point directly above the focus on the surface is called the epicenter.†(Page 3) Earthquakes by themselves rarely kill people or wildlife. â€Å"It is usually the secondary events that they trigger, such as building collapse, fires, tsunamis and volcanoes, that are actually the human disaster.† (Page 5) Earthquakes may last only a few seconds or may continue for up to several minutes. They can occur at any time of the day or night and at any time of the year. â€Å"They are caused by stress that builds up over time as blocks of crust attempt to move but are held in place by friction along a fault.†(Page 8) â€Å"When the pressure becomes stronger than the friction holding them together, adjoining blocks of crust can suddenly sl ip, rupturing the fault and creating an earthquake.†(Page 10) Volcanoes can cause widespread destruction through several ways. â€Å"The effects include the volcanic eruption itself that may cause harm following the explosion of the volcano or the fall of rock. Second, lava may be produced during the eruption of a volcano. As it leaves the volcano the lava destroys any buildings and plants it encounters. Third, volcanic ash generally meaning the cooled ash - may form a cloud, and settle thickly in nearby locations.†(Page 14) The main killer of humans in the immediate surroundings of a volcanic eruption is the â€Å"pyroclastic flows, which consist of a cloud of hot volcanic ash which builds up in the air above the volcano and rushes down the slopes when the eruption no longer supports the lifting of the gases.

The Age of Social Influence

We know that the once linear and transaction-centric purchase funnel is now multi-directional, random and heavily influenced by opinion and information gathered by consumers. And we know that because of social media and technology, consumers can now enter the purchase cycle at various points, and spontaneously influence others as they travel along the path the purchase. But do we really understand how marketers can unlock the real value of all this? Do we know how social media works with other more established media?And do we know how to harness the power of social media for real commercial gain? In order to find aanswers to some of these crucial questions, Initiative set out to explore the individual and combined strength of TV, social and mobile, and how consumer interaction with each has altered the path to purchase. Specifically, we wanted to investigate: †¢ Howdoweproducegreatersynergybetweenoursiloed media,socialandmobilebudgetsandtacticsthatresultina greaterreturnoninvest ment? †¢ Whataretheimpactofsocial,TVandmobileonshopper decision-making? †¢ Whatroledoesconsumerinfluenceplayalongthepathto purchase?However, our study found that while the integration of social, TV and mobile has indeed altered the way consumers make decisions about brands, it is not because of their ability to simply multiply brand messages. Increasingly, consumers are becoming the driving force powering what, when and where brand interactions occur. Based upon our findings, Initiative believes that by leveraging the consumer’s natural inclination to engage with media across multiple screens and social media, we can create a consumer-powered media synergy effect that is both non-linear and emotional – driving deeper engagement and trust.

Supporting Good Practice in Performance and Reward Management

Supporting Good Practice in Performance and Reward Management 3PRM Activity 1 Performance management Performance Management is both a strategic (about broad issues and long-term goals) and an integrated (linking various aspects of the business, people management, individuals and teams) approach to delivering successful results in organisations by improving the performance and developing the capabilities of teams and individuals.Two main purposes of performance management are; * To help the employees in identifying the knowledge and skills required for performing the job efficiently as this would drive their focus towards performing the right task in the right way, which in turn helps work towards the business objectives as their tasks are generated and focussed around the organisations goals. Promoting a two way system of communication between the supervisors and the employees for clarifying expectations about the roles and accountabilities, communicating the functional and organisat ional goals, providing a regular and a transparent feedback for improving employee performance and continuous coaching and development. The most important stage and component of any performance management process which forms the basis of performance is Appraisals.Appraisal systems are a formal method of monitoring and reviewing individuals’ performance. This is important as they enable the individuals to gain a clear picture of how they are doing and to identify areas where they may need additional support or training. They also ensure that the work of the individual is focussed towards the overall objectives of the organisation and whether they are on track to meet their objectives they have been set. There are three main components of performance management; Planning – This is done in form of appraisals. Performance planning is jointly done by the appraisee and also the appraiser in the beginning of a performance session. During this period, both the manager and staf f decide upon the targets and the key performance areas which can be performed over the next year. * Monitoring – Regular monitoring of performance is one of the key component to performance management it is usually done in the form of informal appraisals and these should also occur though regular contact and one to ones.It gives an opportunity to monitor the achievements of objectives for staff, keeps a check on how the individual is getting on in relation to the tasks, identifies any problems which can prevent the individual from achieving their work objectives. * Review/evaluating – Managers should be giving feedback on a regular and continuing basis. This is the stage in which the employee acquires awareness from the appraiser about the areas of improvements and also information on whether the employee is contributing the expected levels of performance or not.The employee receives open feedback and along with this the training and development needs of the individua l is also identified. The appraiser adopts all the possible steps to ensure that the employee meets the expected outcomes for an organisation through guidance, mentoring and representing the employee in training programmes which develop the competencies and improve the overall productivity. This stage also is an opportunity for strengths to be identified and how these can be utilised to support the business objectives further. Motivation and performance managementThe relationship between motivation and performance management is a close one, they work along each other. Motivation is the key to an individual's degree of willingness to exert and maintain their efforts towards the organisational goals. Motivation levels are likely to have an effect on performance. If an individual has high motivation, it is likely to increase their performance. Although this may not always be the case. Here is a list of some of the things that motivate individuals; * Money * Reward schemes * Sense of ac hievement * The environment * Professional Development * Benefits Etc. There are many motivational theories here I will explain two of them. Herzberg’s two factor theory of motivation at the workplace shows the difference between two factors of motivation. The two factors being satisfiers, which are the main causes for job satisfaction (motivation), from hygiene factors which are the main causes for job dissatisfaction (demotivation to stay in the job). Examples of motivating factors are achievement, recognition, responsibility and the work itself. Hygiene factors include: working conditions, salary, relationship with colleagues, supervision, etc.An organisation needs to influence satisfiers through performance management using range of tools such as: job descriptions, supervision, performance appraisals, continuous development/training, rewards and career development. Maslow’s theory of motivation is called the â€Å"hierarchy of needs†. Maslow believes that pe ople have five main needs in the following order of importance; 1. Physiological – the need to eat, drink, sleep, reproduce. 2. Safety – the need for shelter and to feel secure. 3. Love/Belonging – the need to feel part of a group and to be accepted. . Esteem – the need to feel good about themselves and the need to be recognised for achievements. 5. Self-actualisation – the need for personal fulfilment and the need to grow and develop. Maslow's hierarchic theory is represented as a pyramid, with the lower levels representing the more fundamental needs, and the upper levels representing the growth/being needs, and ultimately the need for self-actualisation. According to the theory, the higher needs in the hierarchy become evident only after all the needs that are lower down in the pyramid are met. RewardsMost organisations use rewards within their performance management system to motivate individuals. Two main purposes they do this are; * To help at tract individuals – The better rewards that the organisation gives the more people are going to be attracted to work for them so more people will apply for jobs there. * Retain the individuals – Rewards for good performance is motivation for staff to stay with the organisation it helps make them feel valued in turn makes them work harder. Rewards are not just financial but non-financial too. Rewards can be things such as; * Pay rise/ bonus.Some bonuses are based on performance of an individual, the team or the organisation and is usually target / objective focused. * Recognition. This could be through increased responsibility, praise during one to ones, a certificate of recognition, etc. * Flexible hours and time off – This could be a generous holiday period or increased holiday to reward employees for long service. Also some organisations use flexible working as a reward. Data needed for managing performance All materials need to be prepared for managing perfor mance (appraisal meetings) these would include internal and external data, although most are internal.An internal piece of data for example would be if it was a sales organisation they would bring along the report for the percentage of sales the individual has made and this would be compared to the targets set. The comparison would show how well individual has done to meet these this would then be discussed in the next stage. Other examples would include notes agreed tasks and records of performance, achievements, incidents, reports, previous performance appraisal documents and a current job description.An example of an external piece of data would be benchmarking, where the manager would collect data from other organisations to analyse and compare the sales the individual has made, this would show how the employee's participation is developing not only themselves, but also the constitution as a whole, compared to the other organisations, earlier collected data from. Another example would be feedback from external customers or other organisations. Managing Performance The key aims of performance management are to continuously improve the performance of individuals and that of the organisation.It involves making sure that the performance of employees contributes to the goals of their teams and the business as a whole. Part of the management is to review the individuals performance whether it be good or poor performance. The aims of the meetings for performance management are to encourage and motivate not to undermine. Factors to be considered whilst managing good performance would be reward for the individuals’ performance, how to keep the individual motivated to keep up the good work and any training needs to help develop further.Factors to consider whilst managing poor performance would be thinking about how to deal with discussing the performance as these can be difficult conversations for managers, thinking about why the performance is poor and think ing about how to improve the individuals’ performance, what measures can be put in place and how this can monitored. Most organisations have their performance reviews at once a year in the form of appraisals and have 6 month reviews. Although managers should keep their staff informed of their performance and giving feedback throughout the whole year.This can be done through one to one’s or regular meetings. The purposes of the performance reviews are * to check how the team member is getting on in relation to the tasks and objectives agreed, * to identify any problems which may be preventing the individual from achieving their work objectives, * to highlight opportunities for improving work processes, * to build confidence and self-esteem within the individual * to plan future work, set tasks and agree objectives * to agree ways to support the individual in the future, * to discuss the individuals feedback and how they feel about their job.The process of appraisals App raisal systems vary in different organisations, some have standardised procedures, some have few guidelines and leave it to the manager to plan and implement. There are three main stages of an appraisal preparation, the meeting and the follow up. * Preparation – Both the manager and the individual need to prepare for the appraisal by reviewing the individuals performance including the overall performance, the quality of the work and checking if targets have been met. * The meeting – The manager needs to make sure that a suitable venue is planned and available, private and free from interruptions.Within the meeting the manager needs to set the tone which will influence whether the discussion is helpful to both manager and individual they need to make sure that the individual is relaxed. Then both the manager and individual going through the appraisal document discuss * Performance and identify areas of good performance and the weaker investigate the reasons for the weak ness and highlight the areas for improvement * clarifying, defining, redefining priorities and objectives making sure that they are specific to the organisations objectives * motivation through agreeing helpful aims and targets motivation though achievement and feedback * training needs and learning desires – assessment and agreement * identification of personal strengths * career and succession planning – personal and organisational * team roles clarification and team building * organisational training needs assessment and analysis * the individual and managers mutual awareness, understanding and relationship * reinforcing organisational philosophies, values, aims, strategies, priorities * additional responsibilities, employee growth and development * counselling and feedback * manager development The follow up is the review by the manager where they need to complete the documentation by writing up what had been discussed. Making sure that the write up is agreed and s igned by the individual. Managers need to keep continuous monitoring and evaluation on the individual throughout the year and ideally hold a review within that time. Activity 2 The hopeful outcome of the meeting was to discuss with the individual their performance over the last six months, including what went well and what hadn’t gone so well. Why things had gone well or not so well and if there was anything to improve performance or training needs.The outcomes of the appraisal with Hannah were that over the last six months as the manager I felt that Hannah has been doing well and providing a good service. Her only downfall is that sales have gone down but this was due to Hannah having a month off work with a broken leg. This was discussed within the meeting using the Appraisal form and was met with targets to be achieved. The appraisal form used was effective as it covers all areas of performance including how the individual felt about the previous six months it also covers how the manager felt they performed.It discusses what they have enjoyed most and least, quality of their work, management of workload, targets and identifies if any training is needed. These things covered are important as it lets both the manager and individual know how the individual is doing within the organisation and whether they need any further development or training. This is a motivator to the individual as they can gain job satisfaction that they are going in the right direction and helping towards the overall aim and objectives of the organisation.This appraisal system could be improved by having more input from the individual so they can have their say on what they have done and how they feel they have done which maybe the manager has not recognised. This would help the individual to feel they receive the recognition they deserve for the work they have input. SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely) should be incorporated to the form as the targets need to be SMART otherwise it would be unfair for the individual to set unattainable targets to meet as they won’t meet them which will affect their performance reviews.

Catch-22 essays

Catch-22 essays Joseph Heller lived a long and prosperous life, throughout his 76 years he divided his time as a writer, teacher, and air force bombardier in World War II. He wrote a lot of books including some of his most famous; Something Happened, Good as Gold, Picture This, and Closing Time. His first, most remembered, and popular novel was Catch-22. Catch-22 is closely related to his experiences in the Air Force during the Second World War. Catch-22 is a war novel that is grotesque, cynical, and funny all at once. The story is based around the main characters events and feelings during the Second World War. The main character is a soldier named Yosarian who hates the war. He has a desire to live and be free, but is unable to do so because of the constraints that bureaucracy places on him. The war is no place for him and he feels like everyone is trying to kill him. Yosarrian just wants to go home, but he is constantly being thrown into brutal combat missions, where his safety is of no concern. His colonels are also continually raising the amount of missions that the members of the squadron are required to fly before given a dispatch home. Yosarian is forced into this brutal war and fights to stay alive and one day be free. The Story forms around Yosarian and the reader sees the gruesome war through his eyes. For example you see that Yosarians view towards war was obviously changed because of the death of his friend Snowden, who died in his arms on one of his missions. This haunts him and is part of the reason Yosarian lost all desire to participate in the war. Yosarian tries to get out of war in many ways. He spent a lot of time in the hospital faking illnesses and injury. For example in the opening chapter of the story Yosarian is in a Italian hospital pretending that something is wrong with his liver. Yosarian also pleas insanity, when he comes across a military law known as Catch-22. Catch-22 can make it p...

Free Essays on Silver Mining

Roughing It This Literature selection from Roughing IT by Mark Twain was about the gold and silver mining experience of Mark Twain. Everyone at that time had â€Å"silver fever†. Mark Twain like everyone else had a goal. Goal to find silver! Mark confessed without a shame that he expected to find masses of silver just lying all round the ground. Things weren’t as easy as Mark thought they would be! They had to build small, rude cabin. The first chance that Mark got he went away from the cabin; keeping his eyes on the others he began his search. He found something shinny and he realized it was gold. Never did he dream of finding gold only silver! Making sure no one sees him he started scooping the gold out. He decided to keep his gold find a secret. Eventually he told Mr. Ballou, who was a gold miner about his gold find. As Mr. Ballou looked at the â€Å"treasures† he told Mark that it wasn’t real gold! Nothing-gold glitter. Mark Twain’s dreams went down the hill. When I first read the article I didn’t understand it at all. After re-reading it few times I understood it more. I don’t think I would ever go mining. You spend so many days away from your family with no guarantee. Why not just live on what you have? In my opinion people who go mining are just greedy! In a way I could see where they are coming from. They just want more and better things for their loved once. They go through so much and in the end in most cases they have nothing. Mark Twain got his hopes up so high and in the end, he had nothing, and that’s what happens to most people. This article was really had me thinking. I definitely don’t think I would ever go through all that torture just for money. Money isn’t everything. Health and Happiness is!!!... Free Essays on Silver Mining Free Essays on Silver Mining Roughing It This Literature selection from Roughing IT by Mark Twain was about the gold and silver mining experience of Mark Twain. Everyone at that time had â€Å"silver fever†. Mark Twain like everyone else had a goal. Goal to find silver! Mark confessed without a shame that he expected to find masses of silver just lying all round the ground. Things weren’t as easy as Mark thought they would be! They had to build small, rude cabin. The first chance that Mark got he went away from the cabin; keeping his eyes on the others he began his search. He found something shinny and he realized it was gold. Never did he dream of finding gold only silver! Making sure no one sees him he started scooping the gold out. He decided to keep his gold find a secret. Eventually he told Mr. Ballou, who was a gold miner about his gold find. As Mr. Ballou looked at the â€Å"treasures† he told Mark that it wasn’t real gold! Nothing-gold glitter. Mark Twain’s dreams went down the hill. When I first read the article I didn’t understand it at all. After re-reading it few times I understood it more. I don’t think I would ever go mining. You spend so many days away from your family with no guarantee. Why not just live on what you have? In my opinion people who go mining are just greedy! In a way I could see where they are coming from. They just want more and better things for their loved once. They go through so much and in the end in most cases they have nothing. Mark Twain got his hopes up so high and in the end, he had nothing, and that’s what happens to most people. This article was really had me thinking. I definitely don’t think I would ever go through all that torture just for money. Money isn’t everything. Health and Happiness is!!!...

Battle of Ridgefield in the American Revolution

Battle of Ridgefield in the American Revolution Battle of Ridgefield - Conflict Date: The Battle of Ridgefield was fought April 27, 1777, during the American Revolution (1775-1783). Armies Commanders Americans Major General David WoosterBrigadier General Benedict Arnold700 rising to 1,000 menBritishMajor General William Tryon1,800 men Battle of Ridgefield - Background: In 1777, General Sir William Howe, commanding British forces in North America, commenced planning operations designed to capture the American capital at Philadelphia.   These called for him to embark the bulk of his army in New York City and sail to  the Chesapeake Bay  where he would strike his target from the south.   In preparing for his absence, he  provided the  Royal  Governor of New York, William Tryon, with a local commission as a major general and directed him  to harass American forces in the Hudson Valley and Connecticut.   Early that spring, Howe learned through his intelligence network of the existence of a large Continental Army depot at Danbury, CT.   An inviting target, he instructed Tryon to  put together a  raid to  destroy it. Battle of Ridgefield - Tryon Prepares: To accomplish this objective, Tryon assembled a fleet of twelve transports, a hospital ship, and several smaller vessels.   Overseen by Captain Henry Duncan, the fleet was to transport the 1,800 men of the landing force up the coast to Compo Point (in present-day Westport).  Ã‚  This command drew troops from 4th, 15th, 23rd, 27th, 44th, and 64th Regiments of Foot as well as contained a group of 300 Loyalists  taken from  the Prince of Wales American Regiment.   Departing on April 22, Tyron and Duncan  spent three days working their way up the coast.   Anchoring in the  Saugatuck River,  the British advanced eight miles inland before making camp. Battle of Ridgefield - Striking Danbury: Pushing north the next day, Tryons men reached Danbury and  found Colonel Joseph P. Cookes small garrison attempting to remove the supplies to safety.   Attacking, the British drove off Cookes men after a brief skirmish.   Securing the depot, Tryon directed  its contents, largely foodstuffs, uniforms, and equipment, to be burned.   Remaining in Danbury through the day, the British continued the destruction of the depot.  Ã‚  Around 1:00 AM on the night April 27, Tryon received word that American forces were approaching the town.   Rather than risk being cut off from the coast, he ordered the houses of Patriot supporters burned and made preparations to depart. Battle of Ridgefield - The Americans Respond: On April 26, as Duncans ships passed Norwalk, word  of the enemys approach reached  Major General David Wooster of the Connecticut militia and Continental Brigadier General Benedict Arnold at New Haven.   Raising the local militia, Wooster ordered it to proceed to Fairfield.   Following, he and Arnold arrived to find that the commander of the Fairfield County militia, Brigadier General Gold Silliman, had raised his men and moved north to Redding leaving orders that newly-arrived troops should join him there.   Uniting with Silliman,  the combined American force numbered 500 militia and 100 Continental regulars.   Advancing towards Danbury, the column was slowed by heavy rain and around 11:00 PM halted at nearby Bethel to rest and dry their powder.   To the west, word of Tryons  presence reached Brigadier General Alexander McDougall who began assembling Continental troops around Peekskill. Battle of Ridgefield - A Running Fight: Around dawn, Tryon departed Danbury and moved south with the intention of reaching the coast via Ridgefield.   In an effort to slow the British and allow additional American forces to arrive, Wooster and Arnold split their force with the latter taking 400 men directly to Ridgefield while the former harassed the enemys rear.   Unaware of Woosters pursuit, Tryon paused for breakfast approximately three miles north of Ridgefield.   A veteran of the 1745 Siege of Louisbourg, the French Indian War, and the American Revolutions Canadian  Campaign, the experienced Wooster struck and successfully surprised the British rearguard, killing two and capturing forty.   Quickly withdrawing, Wooster  attacked again an hour later.  Ã‚  Better prepared for action,  British artillery repelled the Americans and Wooster fell mortally wounded. As fighting commenced north of Ridgefield, Arnold and his men worked to build barricades in the town and blockaded the streets.   Around noon, Tryon advanced on the town and commenced an artillery bombardment of the American positions.   Hoping to flank the barricades, he then sent forward troops on either side of the town.   Having anticipated this, Silliman had deployed his men in blocking positions.   With his initial efforts halted, Tryon made use of his numerical advantage and attacked on both flanks as well as pushed 600 men  directly against the barricade.   Supported by artillery fire, the British succeeded in turning Arnolds flank and  running battle ensued as  the Americans withdrew  down Town Street.   In the course of the fighting, Arnold was nearly captured when his horse was killed, briefly pinning  him between the lines. Battle of Ridgefield - Back to the Coast: Having driven off the defenders, Tyrons column camped for the night south of town.   During this time, Arnold and Silliman regrouped their men and received reinforcements in the form of additional New York and Connecticut militia as well as a company of Continental artillery under Colonel John Lamb.   The next day, while Arnold established a blocking position on Compo Hill that overlooked the roads leading to the landing beach, militia forces conducted an intense harassment of the British column similar to that faced during the British withdraw from Concord in 1775.   Moving south, Tryon crossed the Saugatuck above Arnolds position forcing the American commander to join the militia in  pursuit. Reaching the coast, Tryon was met by reinforcements from the fleet.   Arnold attempted an attack with the support of Lambs guns, but was pushed back by a British bayonet charge.   Losing another horse, he was unable to rally and reform his men to make another assault.   Having held, Tryon  re-embarked his men and departed for New York City. Battle of Ridgefield - Aftermath: The fighting at the Battle of Ridgefield and supporting actions saw the Americans lose 20 killed and  40 to 80 wounded, while Tryons command reported casualties of 26 killed, 117 wounded, and 29 missing.   Though the raid on Danbury achieved its objectives, the resistance faced during the return to the coast caused concern.   As a result, future raiding operations in Connecticut were limited to the coast including an attack by Tryon in 1779 and one by Arnold after his betrayal that resulted in the 1781 Battle of Groton Heights.  Ã‚  In addition, Tryons actions led to an increase in support for the Patriot cause in Connecticut including an upswing in enlistments.   Newly-raised troops from the  colony would aid Major General Horatio Gates later that year in the victory at Saratoga.   In recognition  for his contributions  during the Battle of Ridgefield, Arnold received  his much-delayed promotion to major general  as well as a new horse. Selected Sources: Town of Ridgefield: Battle of RidgefieldKeeler Tavern Museum: Battle of Ridgefield Ridgefield Historical Society

PI4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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The sculpture of Kuoros Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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BIOGRAPHY ON MY HUSBAND Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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Information management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Information management - Essay Example 38). It provides an opportunity to introduce best practices and organizational transformation to deliver significant contribution for result-based corporate achievement. This paper will explicate the role of information and knowledge management in company development but focused on the application of the principles to case at hand—the THB Confectionary, a producer of hazel nut toffees which evolved and maximized e-commerce to expand its products from what was originally produced. Tim Hazel-Brown (THB) operated a factory in Derby by selling hazel nut toffees. Recently, THB Confectionery expanded its business line by launching an online competition to guess the time and place of old coins and stamps imprinted on to the inside of their product’s sweet wrappers. This added a new angle in the business management. The guessing competition pertaining to sourcing coins and stamps was sustained and gathered responses globally; from those who shared interests and enthusiasm. Most of those who joined are presumed to be coins and stamp collectors. This inspired Tim to add more value in customer management because the approach evokes new meaning that ‘last longer than the taste and memory of a delicious candy.’ What the company has done was to imprint coins and stamps in gold and silver foil that are historically emanating from AD60 – a historic representation of gem indeed. Tim professed that the entry of modern information technology hastens their decision to integrate e-commerce in their business operations – which is supporting the whole chain from supply, delivery, and customer service. Through internet and social media, THB Confectionery was able to develop its global market, thus, the expansion of confectionary and the sourcing of coins and stamps in 2007 that enticed supports from other businessmen in Asia. These online communities, which came from varied countries, have wealth of information that has

Financial Performance for SAC 2010 & 2011 Assignment

Financial Performance for SAC 2010 & 2011 - Assignment Example At the end, recommendations are presented for Sparklin Automotive Company on the basis of performance evaluation presented in the report. Ratio analysis refers to the financial analysis tool through which financial analysts carry out the analysis of a company’s financial performance by conducting a quantitative analysis. For the purpose of determining different ratios for the company, its financial statements are considered, which include comparative information, i.e. information pertaining to more than one financial year (Albrecht, Stice, & Stice, 2008; Eugene F. Brigham, 2012; Needles & Powers, 2010). Current ratio is a measure of liquidity position of a company, which determines the amount of liquid assets possessed by a company in comparison with the amounts owed by it in short run. The ratio is determined by dividing current assets with current liabilities of the company (Needles & Powers, 2010). The debt to equity ratio for a company shows that how far a company’s finance is obtained through borrowing with reference to the total equity of the company. This ratio, as the name suggests, is determined by dividing the total debt of the company with total equity (Needles & Powers, 2010). The inventory turnover ratio shows the frequency with which a company’s inventory is sold over a period of time. The ratio is determined by dividing the total sales revenue with the average inventory level or ending inventory, as the case may be (Needles & Powers, 2010). This ratio signifies the efficiency of a company with respect to the collection of its amounts owed to debtors. When accounts receivable turnover is high, it is considered favorable because the company is able to maintain a lower level of receivables with respect to total revenues earned on credit. The ratio is determined by dividing the total revenues earned with accounts receivables (Needles & Powers, 2010). The gross margin percentage is a ratio which shows gross margin as a

Business Function and Processes. (Coca Cola Company) Research Paper

Business Function and Processes. (Coca Cola Company) - Research Paper Example Because of the multidisciplinary nature of developing a design for a new product or service, most managers in this company considered risk calculations inappropriate within such a broadly creative and developed environment. This paralleled most scholars’ view that design is something that reflects both inner and outer environments of a firm with the interface between the two becoming that that meets the preferred objectives (Chiu, 2005: 6-7). This paper will seek to evaluate critically the implications of developing a decision to design and deliver a new product or service with which to enter either a domestic or an international market. Indeed, it is a heard task. The largest number of companies enters different geographical or international markets as a stratagem of finding and getting new customers. A product may be in maturity stage in one market while it might be in the introductory level in another. Making some product modifications like changing its size or packaging de sign can also prolong the maturity stage of the product. However, introducing a new product is a completely new story (Brooke and Mills, 2002:72). Every product must move through the four stages of a product life cycle, which include introduction, market growth, market maturity, and sales decline (Mohr, Sengupta, and Slater, 2009: 56-57). Therefore, when deciding to introduce a new product or service into the market, company decision makers must resolve to look into the kind of implications the new product will pose to pervasive issues affecting the company. Sustainability When Coca Cola is introducing a new product into the market, it means challenges and opportunities. A new drink going into the market must pass through the introductory stage of a product life cycle whereby, customers are not aware of the product and are certainly not looking for it. Coca Cola Company will likely operate at a loss because it is investing the new drink that is bringing in minimal sales. This new dr ink can pass through this life cycle stage commonly referred to as â€Å"kick them back† with much ease since Coca Cola is a large, well-known company and has many means of advertising a new product. This means that, when deciding to introduce a new drink, Coca Cola has the advantage of sustainability. This is because, when the drink enters the second stage of a product life cycle, market growth, its sales will increase at a quick pace (Daft, 2009: 280-82). At this stage, Coca Cola should make sure that the product moves through this stage at a slow pace since currently, customers are deriving satisfaction from the drink and continue to purchase it. As competitors start entering the market, they will try to imitate the product or make it better and at the process, the profits realized from its sales will start declining. At this stage, the drink maturity takes place when the industry sale level off and competition starts to grow stiffer. In some cases, some companies drops ou t of the market probably because that are inefficient and cannot withstand stiff competition. Decision basing introduction of a new drink must stage strategies on how overcome kick them back stage and withstand competition by engineering ways of establishing survival tools (Brooke and Mills, 2002:119). In order to achieve introduction of a vital new drink decision, Coca Cola’s design must cover the drink design, process selection, capacity planning, design of work systems, facility layouts, location planning, as well as decision analysis. The decision must bear in mind that satisfying customers begins with the new drink design

Financial Performance for SAC 2010 & 2011 Assignment

Financial Performance for SAC 2010 & 2011 - Assignment Example At the end, recommendations are presented for Sparklin Automotive Company on the basis of performance evaluation presented in the report. Ratio analysis refers to the financial analysis tool through which financial analysts carry out the analysis of a company’s financial performance by conducting a quantitative analysis. For the purpose of determining different ratios for the company, its financial statements are considered, which include comparative information, i.e. information pertaining to more than one financial year (Albrecht, Stice, & Stice, 2008; Eugene F. Brigham, 2012; Needles & Powers, 2010). Current ratio is a measure of liquidity position of a company, which determines the amount of liquid assets possessed by a company in comparison with the amounts owed by it in short run. The ratio is determined by dividing current assets with current liabilities of the company (Needles & Powers, 2010). The debt to equity ratio for a company shows that how far a company’s finance is obtained through borrowing with reference to the total equity of the company. This ratio, as the name suggests, is determined by dividing the total debt of the company with total equity (Needles & Powers, 2010). The inventory turnover ratio shows the frequency with which a company’s inventory is sold over a period of time. The ratio is determined by dividing the total sales revenue with the average inventory level or ending inventory, as the case may be (Needles & Powers, 2010). This ratio signifies the efficiency of a company with respect to the collection of its amounts owed to debtors. When accounts receivable turnover is high, it is considered favorable because the company is able to maintain a lower level of receivables with respect to total revenues earned on credit. The ratio is determined by dividing the total revenues earned with accounts receivables (Needles & Powers, 2010). The gross margin percentage is a ratio which shows gross margin as a

Qualitative Research critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Qualitative Research critique - Essay Example In this, research becomes important in understanding safe and best practices (Barker, 2010). Additionally, research reveals information on other factors related to the profession and their effects. This essay seeks to analyze a research done by a group of nursing professionals entitled Men and Infant Feeding: Perceptions of Embarrassment, Sexuality, and Social Conduct in White Low-Income British Men. Just as is with any other profession, the use of current and relevant information in a practice is important. New and relevant information on any practice is only determined through research, researchers must therefore employ efficient and effective research methodology, data collection methods and data analysis tools capable of developing factual and relevant conclusions (Rees, 2011). The findings segment is normally the most important in any research; it is in this section that the researcher states all his new knowledge. Efficacy of a research is measured based on the techniques, trea tments, and technologies used in collecting and analyzing data. These three especially technology has kept changing through time; this therefore implies that knowledge held on a particular field need to change too. The Nursing and Midwifery Council recommend that practitioners pay close attention to the three in ensuring that knowledge in the field is fostered and developed though frequent researches. The frequency of research aids in developing a link with the society, this way the profession establishes a sense of currency with the trends in the society. Furthermore, researches should be as diverse as possible; this way they address all the possible factors affecting the profession. This essay through the use of a tool called the Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP), will analyze the use off the three: techniques, treatments and technology employed in the above stated research to evaluate the relevance and factuality of its finding therefore the efficacy of the claims it makes in its conclusion. This criticism extends to the research structure, terminology and the actual choice of words as used by the researchers in developing and communicating their research findings and actual ideas. These are important in any research as they aid understanding of the research report. Without following the accurate format and or use of correct terms, the report becomes confusing and may end up being of no relevance to the target audience (Brayford & Weston, 2008). Breastfeeding refers to the act of mothers feeding their young babies milk straight from their breasts. Health researches have established that breastfeeding has more health advantages to both the mother and the infant. A baby should be fed on the breast milk for a minimum of six months; such babies grow faster and develop stronger self-immunity. Effectively breast fed babies are always less likely to suffer from such diseases as respiratory infection, gastroenteritis, and urinary tract infection. In addition to faster growth, breast feeding is a means of communication between a mother and her baby. Effectively breast fed babies develop a unique attachment to their mothers making them understand their mothers behavior and intuitions. A mother on the other hand uses this as a means of monitoring the baby. Such elements of the infant as its mood and comfort are determined

Overview of the Consequences of Cognitive Neuropsychology

Overview of the Consequences of Cognitive Neuropsychology The ability to study and understand the brain has evolved dramatically since people were first interested in the brains seemingly miraculous capacities. However, comprehending the input/output nature of the brain (and everything in between) has always been limited to behavioral tasks of healthy individuals. Unfortunately for science, a machine that cant be reverse engineered cannot be fully understood. To truly make sense of the diverse functions of each part of the brain, it is necessary to see the importance of studying individuals with brain damage. The field of cognitive neuropsychology occupies itself precisely with this concept. More or less, it offers the analogy of the brain as a sort of appliance, perhaps a television with lots of wires plugged into it. Assuming that none of the cables functions are labeled (as is obviously the case with the brain), the best way to discover which cable controls each part of the television is to unplug each cable one at a time and observe which parts of the television stop functioning. This analogy works well, given that a lesion in the brain is small enough to only effect a certain function. More diffuse brain damage is like more cables being removed at once; it becomes more difficult to declare, with precision, which cable controls which function. As non-invasive methods of imaging the brain have improved over the decades, it is no longer necessary to limit studies to healthy individuals, non-human animals, and less precise guessing as to the localization and diffusion of brain damage in patients. Techniques like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allow researchers to pinpoint where brain damage exists in patients, and, from further behavioral experiments, determine how the damage has affected the brain and, moreover, for which behavioral aspects the damaged part of the brain used to be responsible. Additionally, another technique, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), allows researchers to simulate a momentary lesion on superficial portions of the cortex. Clearly finding a patient with brain damage for every part single part of the brain is a scientific pipedream. Thus, by following the previous analogy, TMS offers the possibility to remove a cable and witness the effects without causing any permanent damage to the brain. This paper will show three cases of brain damage studies from the past, before such technology was available, and three from the present to contrast the difference in techniques and what the studies contributed to the field of neuroscience and demonstrated about brain function. No discussion of brain damage studies is complete without mentioning the case of Phineas Gage. Occurring in the 1840s, and arguably one of the most famous cases of all time, Gages face, skull, and brain were penetrated, through-and-through by a 3cm thick, 109cm long tamping iron. He was momentarily stunned but regained full consciousness immediately thereafter. He was able to talk and even walk with the help of his men (Harlow, 327). John M. Harlow, the doctor who looked after Gage after his accident, made observations about Gages behavior, such as [Gage has] succeeded in raising himself up, and took one step to his chair, and sat about five minutes. , and Intellectual faculties brightening. When I asked him how long since he was injured, he replied, four weeks this afternoon, at 4Â ½ oclock. Relates the manner in which it occurred, and how he came to the house. He keeps the day of the week and time of day, in his mind. Says he knows more than half of those who inquire after him. Do es not estimate size or money accurately, though he has memory as perfect as ever. (Passage of, 282) Assuming Gage had a normally developed brain, such observations essentially prove the concept of functional localization within the brain. Although it is easy to see this retrospectively because of what modern science has shown, Harlow didnt have the luxury of MRI or other techniques, apart from simple observation. By recognizing that Gages memory, speech, movement, and ability to learn were spared, but [h]is respect for the social conventions by which he once abided had vanished [(His abundant profanity offended those around him)] (Harlow, 327), Harlow was later able to connect Gages changed behavior to the frontal regions of the brain, which paved the way for further studies in seeking out the neural basis of various human capacities (ibid.). Understanding that each part of the brain does, in fact, have its own specific function was a crucial discovery in neuroscience and would have likely been impossible without patients such as Phineas Gage. Another patient similar to that of Gage, in terms of fame and selective damage, is Tan (named for the monosyllabic sound the he produced when trying to speak), the aphasic patient of the French surgeon Paul Broca. In 1861, Broca observed that Tan differed from a sane man only in the loss of articulated speech (Broca, 343). Given Tans symptoms, (for later in life he also presented with insensitivity on the right side, paralysis of both right limbs, weakened vision in his left eye ,and incomplete paralysis of the left cheek, in addition to the lack of speech) (347), Broca claimed that the principle cerebral lesion had to occupy the left hemisphere (ibid.). Only years later during the autopsy could Broca precisely observe the extent of the brain damage. In terms of Tans general behavior, however, Broca noted that [it was] certain that Tan understood almost everything that was said to him (345), that [n]umerical responses were those that he could make the best, by opening or closing his fingers (346), and that [t]he tongue was perfectly freethe patient could move it in all directionsThe muscles of the larynx seemed in no way altered, the quality of the voice was natural, and the sounds that the patient made in pronouncing his monosyllable were perfectly clear (345). These observations clearly indicate that Tan was still capable of expressing concepts, even if he was unable to express them strictly verbally, and that there existed a distinction between general vocal tract usage and speech production. These observations coupled with the results of the autopsy led Broca to realize that there existed of faculty of articulated language (as translated from French), lateralized to the left-hemisphere, distinct from comprehended language (35 6). However, the drawback to Tans case is that given the extent of his brain damage, Broca was still left pondering whether the faculty of articulated language depends on the anterior lobe considered as a whole, or especially on one of the convolutions of this lobe (357). Advances in technology in the next century would greatly strengthen his findings. Though in any case, Tans deficits led to the discovery of language in the left hemisphere and the notion that speaking meaningful words is distinct from general expression of concepts or of comprehending concepts as a whole. The case studied by Carl Wernicke greatly added to Brocas findings and strengthened the model of how language was processed in the brain by presenting a double dissociation between speech production and speech comprehension. Basically, Wernicke found a stroke patient in 1873 whose speech and hearing were unimpaired, but he couldnt make sense of what he read or what was said to him (Alic, 666). As it turned out, this condition, which essentially contrasted that of Brocas patient, Tan, was indeed localized to a different part of the brain. Upon autopsy, Wernicke found a lesion in the rear parietal/temporal region of the patients left brain hemisphere (ibid.). However, Wernicke regarded this facet of speech production and posited a connectionist-style theory of language production, thus he postulated that Brocas area and [his] area were connected, anddamage to this connection would cause conduction aphasia, a syndrome wherein a patient could both speak and understand language, but would misuse words (ibid.). From this connectionist notion, Wernicke theorized more deeply about general associations of a concept with language. In 1886, he made the claim that, in order to understand the word bell, the telegram arriving in [the speech comprehension center] must arouse in us the concept of the bell, i.e. the different memory images of the bell deposited in the cortex and localized in accordance with the sensory organs involved in their development. These areacousticoptictactileand finallymotor imagesthe arousal of each one separately is communicated to the others and they constitute a functional unit (Code, 15-16). Unaided by modern neuroimaging technology, Wernicke made a big step forward in connectionist-model theories on semantic associations and language production/comprehension. Together, Broca and Wernicke set the stage for studying language in the brain by having observed patients with specific brain damages and consequently conjecturing about the nature of the healthy human brain. Modern cognitive neuropsychology certainly follows the same principles in terms of assessing brain damage and theorizing about models of information streams. However, contemporary neuropsychologists have the benefit of computers, brain scanners, TMS, and, as seen in the next case, also infrared emitting diodes (IREDs). This next case is another classic, albeit much more recent: the study of patient DF by Goodale and Milner. DF was a middle-aged woman who was plagued by brain damage after carbon monoxide poisoning (Goodale, 154). The researchers could localize the damage without needing an autopsy thanks to MRI, which allowed further testing and studying to occur with knowledge of which structures were afflicted: the ventral and lateral occipital region, and in the parasagittal occipitoparietal region. After beginning neuropsychological testing, the researchers discovered that DF had a visual form agnosia (ibid.). Overall she showed poor perception of shapeorientationcolourintensitystereopsismotionproximitycontinuity, or similarity (Goodale, 154-155). Goodale and Milner ran several tests to discern how profoundly the visual form agnosia affected DF, and they came to realize a striking dissociation between [her] ability to perceive object orientation and her ability to direct accurate reaching movements toward objects (155). In one experiment DF had to indicate the orientation of a slot using a card by orienting the card similarly to the slot. Goodale notes that results here were grossly impaired (ibid), but when [she] was asked to reach out and post thecard through the slother performance was excellent (ibid.). The researchers ran a similar test to measure grip aperture between her index finger and thumb when she would pick up a small plaque. Here they employed the IREDs to measure the distance between the fingers and have numerical data to work with. Such a simple task is rendered quantitative (and thus scientifically measurable) merely by the technology available at the time. This second experiment had results similar to those of the first. Goodale notes that DFs estimates [of her grip aperture] did not change as a function of the width of the plaques (ibid.). However, when DF had to reach for the plaques and grab them, the aperturewas systematically related to the width of the object (ibid.). This profound dissociation arising from DFs brain damage led Goodale and Milner to suggest that at some level in the normal brains the visual processing underlying conscious perceptual judgments must operate separately from that underlying the automatic visuomotor guidance of skilled actions. (ibid). Such a claim of the brain having information that lies at a subconscious level could not have been postulated at the time without the (un)fortunate brain damage that afflicted DF. Building off of this notion of subconscious visual processing, the development of TMS has allowed researchers to test visual awareness (among other things) by momentarily disrupting parts of the brain via a magnetic pulse, effectively creating fake brain damage that is reversible: the immediate benefit being a neuropsychological approach to a question without needing to wait for a patient with precisely the right brain damage to appear. Ro discusses TMS experiments whose behavioral results are similar to those found by Goodale and Milner when testing DF. In the experiments, TMS suppressed primary visual cortex and despite unawareness of the orientation of a line in one experiment and unawareness of the colour of a dot in another experiment, subjects were nonetheless able to guess the orientation and colour of these stimuli presented within their TMS-induced scotomas at well-above chance levels (111). From this, he concludes that the results suggest a geniculoextrastriate pathway that bypasses V1 and projects directly from the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) into extrastriate cortex, likely area V4. [Such] a direct anatomical pathway from LGN to V4 has been demonstrated in lower primates (112). However, Ro further postulates that information relayed through [the aforementioned] pathway is unconscious, at least without a functioning V1 (ibid.), a profound step toward the comprehension of human consciousness and what actually gives rise to the experience of awareness. The final case discussed in this paper is that of Etcoffs 1991 study of LH, a minister who suffered a severe closed head injury in an automobile accident at the age of 18. The accident and the surgical procedures it necessitated[resulted in] bilateral lesions affecting visual association corticesthe right temporal lobe, the left subcortical occipitotemporal white matter, and bilateral perietooccipital regions (Etcoff, 27). Etcoff remarked that predominant resulting behavior change was that LH can recognize most pictures of objects and most objects encountered in daily life, [but] he is unable to recognize the faces of his wife, children, friends, or members of his family of origin (28). Etcoff noted that in various tasks, LH found other strategies to guess the identity of the person. During a famous faces task, he recognize hairstyles, insignias, and uniforms to correctly guess whose face was presented to him, even though he couldnt recognize the face itself (28-29). This indicates that LH still has a semantic connection between, for example Einsteins hair and his identity, but the facial recognition portion of this association network was knocked out. More interestingly, LH was given the task of recognizing impossible faces from normal ones, i.e. duplicate facial features, strangely oriented features, etc., and consequently Etcoff commented that LH was able to distinguish a true from an impossible face with 97% accuracy[he] can truly recognize faces as faces, and is sensitive not just to gross information such as number of features and relative placement, but to subtler relational information about feature orientation (29). This shows a clear distinction between recognizing a face as an object and recognizing the semantic information that each individual face carries with it, thus the human brain must process faces specially, a process that is still studied extensively today. Etcoff even shared that LH likens the experience of looking at a face to attempting to read illegible handwriting: you know that it is handwriting, you know where the words and letters stop and start, but you have no clue as to what they signify (29). These six cases have demonstrated important discoveries about how the brain works through the lens of neuropsychology. From functional specialization and a man surviving a tamping iron blasting through his prefrontal cortex disrupting his personality, to distinct linguistic systems for producing and comprehending speech, to visual information existing in the brain without conscious knowledge of it, to the idea of primary visual cortex leading an essential role in consciousness, to faces being specially processed entities in the human brain, studying damaged brains has arguably led to understanding certain facets of the brain that otherwise might have been unimaginable. Furthermore, these six cases were only a handful of discoveries that have arisen from observing the behavioral results of brain damaged patients, used to illustrate the benefits of taking a neuropsychological approach to unraveling the mysteries of brain. However, every methodology has some amount of drawbacks, and neuropsychology is not excluded. For example, given a lesion in some area of the brain, the resulting change in behavior must be a function of how the damaged area was affected. But what is this function exactly? Why should brain damage cause the output that it does instead of some very similar but sightly different behavioral change? If it is a question of reductionism, then its only a matter of time before the gap between behavior and structure is solved, but at present, neuropsychology doesnt answer this. Secondly, brain damage tends to be accidental, and accidents can be messy (e.g. car crash). Lesions dont tend to be as simple as unplugging a single cable from the television, where only one aspect of the TV is clearly affected. Thus, finding clean, precise lesions that alter only one part of the brain is far less likely then finding diffuse brain damage. Even if a patient tends to have only one predominant behavioral change, it cannot be said with full certainty that other parts of his brain werent affected or arent contributing, to some degree, to the new behavioral output, thus possibly confounding data despite very careful experimental designs. Additionally, there is the question of neural plasticity, which Ro brings to attention in his study by mentioning that reorganisation of brain functionalso complicate[s] examinations of sensory processing and visual awareness (110), which is where the advent of TMS has been very helpful in that, apart from its aforementioned advantages, it drastically reduces or eliminates any opportunities for neural plasticity (ibid.). The issue here is that plasticity in brain damaged patients might result in a level of rewiring that is abnormal or unexpected, thus rendering the way in which parts of their brain function unique only to them. All in all, however, every methodology has its pros and cons, and neuropsychology has provided science with a myriad of profound insights into the brain and its functions. The disadvantages it carries with it serve as a reminder as to how careful one must be when interpreting data about an entity as enigmatic and elusive as the brain.