Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Chicory Root Extract Atopic Dermatitis Health And Social Care Essay
Atopic dermatitis is a genetically transmitted, chronic inflammatory tegument disease that is characterized by chronic redness of epidermis1. The disease normally presents during early childhood but may get down or prevail in big life 2. 10 % to 20 % of kids and 1 % to 3 % of grownups are affected by this status. Adult atopic dermatitis is normally a continuance of the childhood status although in 2 % of the entire instances may get down after 20 old ages of age 3. It is the earliest presentation of atopic characteristics in patients who suffer from allergic coryza and/or asthma in ulterior life 4. The atopic dermatitis may undergo remittal at pubescence and so gets exacerbated in big life particularly in response to environmental exposure to thorns 3. The characteristic characteristics of disease are pruritus, scrape, and chronic and/or get worsing eczematous lesions 5. Presently, there is no unequivocal remedy for this status and direction is aimed at relieving the symptoms of the status hence it presents a clinical challenge 6. The direction includes good tegument attention ( such as usage of moisturizers and creams ) , trigger turning away while pharmacological interventions such as usage of anti-inflammatory drugs ( topical corticoids and unwritten antihistamines ) besides contribute to the curative armamentarium 3. The new calcineurin inhibitors are among the new intervention options which limit the badness and frequence of flare-ups 6. Due to an increased hazard of infection, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral drugs are besides portion of the intervention regimen 6. Different intervention options available are shown in the figure 1: hypertext transfer protocol: //onlinelibrary.wiley.com/store/10.1111/j.1398-9995.2006.01153.x/asset/image_n/ALL_1153_f5.gif? v=1 & A ; t=ghv2sj68 & A ; s=0e428ba76d59dc1a7fd694a0dcbd25f4c38e76d4 Beginning: Akdis et Al, 2006 The furnace lining or terrible instances present a challenge in their direction and necessitate alternate therapies like the application of wet dressings in combination with topical corticoids, short-run intervention with systemic corticoids, phototherapy with ultraviolet visible radiation 8, immunomodulatory or immunosuppressive agents ( cyclosporins, pimecrolimus and tacrolimus ) 9, Imuran, interferon- IA? , 3. However, bulk of these therapies have been found to be associated with side-effects like nephritic toxicity, hepato-toxicity 3, skin combustion and thinning etc.9 This has resulted in involvement in the alternate traditional therapies. Cichorium is a medicinally of import works that belongs to the household Asteraceae 10. The tuberous root of this works is made up of a figure of medicinally of import compounds such as inulin, acrimonious sesquiterpene lactones, coumarins ( esculin ) , flavonoids and vitamins 10. Hence, the root infusion of the works has been used as an antihepatotoxic, antiulcerogenic, antiinflammatory, appetiser, digestive, gastric, liver tonic, cholagogue, cardiotonic, depurative, diuretic, emmenagogue, antipyretic, alexeteric and besides as tonic 11. Furthermore, it is besides helpful in headache, heapatomegaly, degenerative arthritis 12, anorexia, indigestion, flatulency, gripes, urarthritis, firing esthesis, icterus, splenomegaly, hyperdipsia, Hansen's disease, , amenorrhea, chronic and biliary febrilities, ophthalmitis, sore throat and emesis, arthralgia, lumbago, asthma and general infirmity 13. Chicory root has been shown to hold anti-inflammatory action by suppression of COX-2 activity 14. Furthermore, the chicory root infusion has been shown to possess antibacterial 10 and clamber protecting belongingss 15. The safety profile chicory root infusion is good 16 and is better tolerated 17. A combination of these belongingss makes it a suited agent to be tested against atopic dermatitis. Although its usage in the intervention of skin allergic conditions has been mentioned in the literature, no surveies could be identified proving the efficaciousness of chicory infusion against atopic dermatitis in grownups or kids. Despite the deficiency of identifiable research into the usage of chicory root infusion in pull offing grownup atopic dermatitis, the grounds available pertaining to its widespread usage and anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial usage suggests that chicory root infusion could be a good direction option by bettering the disease symptoms and associated conditions. In drumhead, a randomised control test on an equal sample size, focused entirely on the consequence of chicory root infusion on the symptoms of atopic dermatitis should be carried out utilizing blinded research workers.Research QuestionDoes the chicory root infusion better the symptoms in patients enduring from grownup atopic dermatitis?Proposed ProbeThe probe aims to find whether the root infusion of chicory works decreases the badness and symptoms of grownup atopic dermatitis. A randomized vehicle-control dual blind test will be performed on 100 patients enduring from atopic dermatitis at the Liverpool infirmary. Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria Participants between 20 to 50 old ages of age enduring from or diagnosed with non-exudative atopic dermatitis utilizing the Hanifin and Rajka criteria 18 will be indiscriminately assigned to instance and control groups. Exclusion standards for participants enduring from exudative dermatitis, patients who received UVB phototherapy or photo-chemotherapy in the last 1 month, and patients who received systemic therapies such as steroid or other immunosuppressive drugs in the last 3 months were excluded. Study and vehicle Group Preparations The ethyl ethanoate chicory infusion will be dispensed in an ointment signifier with a standard base pick which contains a mixture of glyceryl mono/distearate and polythene ethanediol stearate, isoparaffin and cyclopentadimethylsiloxane 19. This base will function as vehicle and cream merely with no other actions. The control group will have the base pick merely along with ethyl ethanoate to minimise the consequence of any confounders. Intervention Following blessing from the local moralss commission, informed consent will be taken from all the patients while making the baseline hiting for atopic dermatitis. Subjects will so be indiscriminately allocated into either the intervention group or control group after baseline appraisal and marking. The survey group ( n=50 ) will have ethyl acetate chicory root infusion in ointment signifier whilst the vehicle group ( n=50 ) will have a placebo in ointment signifier with indistinguishable visual aspect and wadding. Treatment will dwell of using a thin bed of unction on the affected country twice daily for a period of eight back-to-back hebdomads. All other signifiers of interventions will be prohibited during the survey period. The marking will be done at 4 hebdomad intervals. Both the clinicians and the patients will be blind to the intervention that they are giving or having as the survey and vehicle unction will be dispensed in indistinguishable wadding. Result Four major parametric quantities of the disease, viz. , extent, strength, waterlessness, and itchiness, will be flatly recorded harmonizing to the eczema country and badness index ( EASI ) 20. The symptoms will besides be estimated by hiting patient reported symptoms utilizing a structured questionnaire with nonsubjective standards. A usage of hiting systems and nonsubjective standards will assist to standardise and compare the results in both groups. The result tonss of the two groups at baseline and at 4 hebdomads interval will be compared utilizing a two-tailed Studentaaââ¬Å¡Ã ¬aââ¬Å¾?s t-test with the significance degree set at 5 % . All the analysis will be done utilizing SPSS. Restriction Restrictions of the survey include the fact that the participants may endure from flair ups due to surcease of all other types of interventions. However, if at any point it is felt by the wellness attention squad that the intercession is arousing any unwanted effects and patient demands systematic therapy, the test will be terminated early or that patient will be dropped out. This may increase the bead out rates and compromise the cogency of the survey. Ethical Issues Participants will be informed that non-participation or backdown at any phase wonaaââ¬Å¡Ã ¬aââ¬Å¾?t compromise their medical attention. Informed consent will be taken from the patient and his doctor before get downing the intervention and will be discontinue at any clip if the patient or his physician want to make so.
Ethical Issues and Problems in Business and the Corporate World: Sexual Harassment Essay
Strike, Inc. is a well known company in the field of Information Technology (IT). It has been the main and primary producer of educational software and business operational progress like database filing, computerized payroll system, and hardware designed swipe machine and bar code system. Jeffrey Jacobs, the manager, has been working for the company for almost 25 years. His expertise in system application and development made him the best and the most competent in the managerial position. He is aggressive and hardworking but at times unpredictable and bossy. His personal attachment and close professional interaction with female employees of the company have been noticed by many. One day, Bernadette Ryan, the head of the system developers, went to Jeffreyââ¬â¢s office for product consultation. The meeting went on and Jeffreyââ¬â¢s comment about the new project is its marketability and user-friendly functionality. Bernadette, on the other hand, continued to explain the advantages of the system when Jeffrey stood up and approached the door. She just continued discussing the features of the new system being developed. Without her knowing it Jeffrey suddenly appeared at her back, sort of listening to her discussion. Jeffrey started to make sleek moves; he intentionally put his hands, touched and sort of massaged Bernadetteââ¬â¢s shoulders. Bernadette was surprised about the actions of her boss. She stood up and said, ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢d rather go. â⬠As she was walking her way out of the room, Jeffrey got hold of her arms and said, ââ¬Å"I know you like what Iââ¬â¢m doing. Come on, try me! â⬠Bernadette felt that she was being harassed and exclaimed, ââ¬Å"Stop or Iââ¬â¢ll scream!à This is sexual harassment! â⬠Jeffrey felt more aggressive and told Bernadette that being the manager, he has the right to be the boss and handle his subordinates his own way. Jeffrey further imposed that if she would not submit herself to his personal aggression, he would tell other employees about the incident. Moreover, he would definitely fire her and tell everyone that it was Bernadette who did the first move of flirting. Bernadette was shocked. She ran out of the door to get out of Jeffreyââ¬â¢s malicious and questionable disposition.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Operations Management at HOLLY FARM Essay
1. Introduction This consultancy report is prepared for Holly Farm in order to improve its future business. In the second part of this report; ââ¬ËEvaluation of Current Operations and Gillianââ¬â¢s Business Strategyââ¬â¢ and ââ¬ËConclusionââ¬â¢, Holly Farmââ¬â¢s operations will be critically evaluated in the aspect of current and future potential capacity constraints and any other operational problems. Also, I will discuss the feasibility of Gillian Gilesââ¬â¢ strategy for the business there. In the last part; ââ¬ËRecommendations and Action Planââ¬â¢, I will show a recommended alternative strategy for the business and several solutions for alleviating its constraints. 2. Evaluation of Current Operations and Gillianââ¬â¢s Business Strategy 2.1 Gillianââ¬â¢s Aims and Objectives 2.1.1 Sales Forecast According to Gillianââ¬â¢s forecasts, while there will be an increase in farm shop sales by 50%, there will be a decline in retail shops sales by 13.3% in 2004 (Table 1). However, these forecasts are unlikely to come true. Firstly, its retail shops sales has increased by 75% on average of each year, and its farm shop sales has increased by 28% on average each year for the latest five years. It may be unreasonable that she dramatically changes these recent growth trends on her forecast without any factors that could impact on both channels. Secondly, since the ice cream market in the UK is mature and stable (Table 2), sudden changes of previous trend hardly happen excepting entering strong new players into the region, spoiling the farmââ¬â¢s reputation hugely and investing tremendously on the marketing for its farm shop. Moreover, in terms of Holly Farmââ¬â¢s managing on its farm visitors, this sudden change of the number of visitors could lead to collapses of its operations. These reasons discussed above clearly show that Gillianââ¬â¢s demand forecast is not reliable. Hence, they have to forecast in the other way. 2.1.2 Line Extension Gillian wishes to increase the number of ice cream flavours from four to ten. However, this line extension can cause the following problems. First of all, many products of relatively lower demand items would be abolished due to their expiration dates. In 1999, the Ice Cream Alliance published the date of top ten ice cream flavour in the UK in 1998 (Table 3). I can assume that, when Holly Farm produced all of these ten items, the share of each item in their products would be the same as the market shares of each flavour ice cream in the whole market. The items that total demands are less than 1,516 litres per annum, hence below the fourth position, should not be produced because it is obvious that the items would be abolished due to their expiration dates (Table 4, Calculation 1). Moreover, in the case of retail sales, the minimum annual demand for each item is 3,035 litres (Calculation 1). Secondly, also major of the raw materials would be thrown away before they are used. Since the periods that are needed raw materials to be completed to use are longer than maximum storage times allowed, even strawberry flavour for strawberry; 2nd item and chocolate flavour for chocolate; 3rd item could be abolished before being completed to use. Much more could raisins for rum and raisin; 5th, lemon sorbet for lemon sorbet; 8th, banana flavour for banana; 9th and tropical fruits for tropical fruits; 10th be (Table 5). Finally, the line extension would result in higher cost through frequent changing items and smaller amount of production than maximum production in most items. For example, when the different item from before one is produced, the production line should be carefully cleaned up beforehand in order to avoid producing different colour or flavouring ice creams from their original specifications. In fact, it takes one hour to clean the ice cream making machine between flavours in Holly Farm. This careful clean-up tends to cause higher cost and lower productivity. Furthermore, smaller amount of production will lead to higher fixed cost per production unit and, as a result, will result in higher total cost. 2.2 Capacity Constraints 2.2.1 Production Line Although it is clear that Holly Farm has a crucial capacity constraint on its production line, Gillian has hesitated to tackle this problem, as a result, has abandoned the growth strategy in spite of the recent sustainable growth trend of its annual revenue. In order to proceed the growth strategy, she should try to solve the problem. For instance, she should negotiate with its employees for the expansion of working days in a week from 4 days to 5, 6 or 7 days in the busy period. While Holly Farm groped about the probability of producing the different volumes of packages of ice cream for responding special orders for the local catering trade, I would recommend that they stop attempting to do this. Wasting a lot of ice cream, taking 2 or 3 hours to set the dispenser up and being demanded low justify my statement enough. If they continued this trial, more serious capacity constraints would be caused. 2.2.2 Milking Parlour According to this case, the number of visitors who want to see the milking parlour on a busy day in2003 was 206. However, the capacity of the gallery for watching milking parlour is 200 visitors per day (Calculation 2). It could be said that they are about going over the capacity in 2003. Moreover, Gillian wishes to increase the number of farm visitors in 2004 by 50%. The problem would grow in 2004. The problem in milking parlour is not ignorable. 33% of total revenue of Holly Farm, including paying visitor sales; 11% and entrance fee; 22%, is provided from farm visitors, and 27% of total revenue of the farm is related to its milking parlour (Table 6). This incident clearly shows that if the milking parlour made visitors dissatisfied, the revenue of the farm would decline seriously. Therefore, without any solution for the capacity constraint related to milking parlour, the farm would neither be successful nor survive in the near future. Apart from the capacity constraints, the milking parlour has queuing problems. This case mentioned that about 100 people visited the gallery from 4 pm to 5 pm on a busy day. Then I have already mentioned above that 206 people visited the gallery on a busy day (Calculation 2). Thus about half of the visitors arrived there within only one hour. As a result, a queue is made before starting the milking parlour and is not solved the queue for a while. The queuing problem easily leads to customer dissatisfactions and could result in serious decline in its total revenue as I warned above. 2.2.3 Distribution According to this case, Gillian delivers ice cream to retail customers by the delivery van once a week, and the delivery van has a capacity of 500 litres of ice cream and does not have a freezer. While the average maximum temperature in the warmest month in the UK from 1971 to 2000 was less than 20 degree centigrade (Met Office, 2003), the temperature on the van could be much than 30 degree centigrade. Moreover, attempting to deliver all ice cream for that week at once tends to lead to longer duration of delivery. As a result, melting ice cream would be accelerated. It means that these facts cause over half of corporate customer complains in 2003, which regard melting ice cream. This problem may be one major reason why Gillian forecasted that retail sales in 2004 decrease by 13.3 %. However, it is more reasonable to tackle and solve the problem in order to meet market demand than to forecast wrong in order to avoid the problem. 2.3 Other Problems 2.3.1 Raw Material Stock Control This case mentioned that Holly Farm has currently ordered raw materials on an ad hoc basis when an operative feels that the materials are required. Whileà it maybe true that the quantities of the raw materials the farm uses are so small that the farm hardly has any other better ways to control them properly than one an ad hoc basis, their way to deal with stocks is obviously unsuitable because companies are to have raw material stocks in order mainly to have a buffer for productions, response to unexpected larger or smaller demands and take advantage of price discounts on large order. In fact, they have had several experiences unwanted stocks and short stocks of materials and flavour. The former led to unnecessary cash outs, the later caused disruption, rescheduling of productions and re-timing of maintenance periods (Waters, 2002). 2.3.2 Inventory control of final products Holly Farm did not control its stock level of final product in 2003. As a consequence, a short stock occurred at the end of September (Figure 1). Short stock of final products is more serious than one of raw materials. While it directly causes retailersââ¬â¢ loss from their sales, its indirect effects are more widespread, including lost goodwill, loss of reputation and loss of potential future sales (Waters, 2002). Moreover, from January to February, there was a minus cash flow caused by overstock, hence, by overproduction (Figure 1). If the farm had not retained enough cash to supplement this negative cash flow, they would have had to raise money. However, potential cash suppliers such as banks, building societies and individual investors would not be willing to lend or give money to the farm because of the farmââ¬â¢s mismanagement of cash. 3. Conclusion As I discussed above, Holly farm has many problems in its operations. These problems seem to be appearing through its current remarkable growth. Holly Farm is at a turning point. Should they grow with huge investment? Should they cover up their problems with sacrificing their bright future? In the next part of this report, I will give several suggestions to their problems. 4. Recommendations and Action Plan 4.1 Business Aims and Objectives 4.1.1 Sales Forecast Since Gillian understands Holly Farm has a number of capacity constraints, she seemed to decide not to take the growth strategy but to take the profit focusing strategy, which is feasible by expanding the share of its farm shop sales in its total revenue only on the assumption that it is possible to increase in the number of its farm visitors and to accept all of the visitors. Nevertheless, neither a significant rise in the number of the farm visitors is probable, nor ignoring growth opportunities for its retail sales is reasonable. Therefore, I would like to propose to adopt the growth strategy to Holly Farm with several solutions to capacity constraints. By linear regression (Waters, 2002), the annual sales of retail shops, the farm shop and total are calculated at 93.0, 32.5 and 125.5 thousands pound, respectively (Table 1, Figure 2). In this case, both correlation coefficients of retail shop sales and farm shop sales are above 0.9500. Thus these forecasts can be said to be reliable in terms of the linear regression. However, when Holly Farm adopts this forecast, they have to mention the following things. First, the forecast by linear regression is based only on historical data. Thus it is assumed that the future trend is referred to the past one. Then, because the trend is recognised as linear one without any particular reason, if the trend were based on the different pattern such as logarithmic, exponential and moving average, the forecast could become failure. Furthermore, the forecast does not include any expertise. Therefore, it could be a vulnerable argument in terms of environmental changes. In any case, due to the risk of the forecastââ¬â¢s failure and the huge impact of the sales forecast on the following plan, I strongly recommend that Holly Farm and its consultants again discuss on the sales forecast of 2004 before proceeding the plan. 4.1.2 Line Extension As a result of the discussion in the section 2.1.2, I recommend Holly Farm not to expand its production line from four items in 2003 to ten items in 2004. All of the problems I mentioned, which are related to the expiration dates of final products and raw materials, can cause unexpected cost up. Besides the discussion above, the argument over whether or not they should decrease the number of items from four is also controversial because the demand of the other items than top one is still so low that keeping these items is hardly justified. However, I propose Holly Farm to keep the number of items four based on the following discussions. First, while it is no problem for Holly Farm to have only one item if they did business only on their farm shop, in order to expand their sales on retail channels, keeping several items is inevitable for the marketing reasons. Second, even when they sale ice cream on their farm shop, only one item may not be attractive for their customers. Finally, in terms of accountability of companies, it is difficult to explain why they abolished the items to their customers unless they prove keeping the items that they stopped selling is harmful for the business. By keeping the number of items at four, Holly Farm can keep the stock level of final products of each item more than 1,516 litre per annum (Table 7). Although the problems over raw materialsââ¬â¢ stock level still remain, the solution for these items will be discussed in section4.3.1. 4.2 Capacity Constraints 4.2.1 Production Line The process line of ice cream in Holly Farm consists of batch processes, an industrial manufacturing method in which several separate serial and, or parallel operations are carried out to produce a product, in contrast to continuous process (Williams et al, 2001). Hence, the capacity of the line is limited by the one of the bottle neck process. In this case, the bottle neck process is the ageing process, a continuous freezing process in the iceà cream machine, and one batch capacity of the process is 350 litres. Moreover, the process takes 8 hours. In order to increase in the capacity, they have to make the machine bigger or to shorten the time. Nevertheless, since it is hard for Holly Farm to make any big investment, they do not have any other way than one to give up to improving capacity of the process line in a short-term. As the alternatives to increase in the annual production, there are contract-out and extension of operation days from 4 days per week to 5, 6 or 7 days per week. Because of Holly Farmââ¬â¢s difficulties in disclosure of its own original recipes to the counterpart due to its conservative corporate culture, the risk of rise in total cost and capacity constraints of whole ice cream manufacturers in the busy time, it would be hard for Holly Farm to contract out its ice cream production. Therefore, I propose extensions of operation days as solution for capacity constraints of the production line. 4.2.2 Milking Parlour I propose the following three solutions for the capacity constraint and queuing problems in the milking parlour. Firstly, abolishment of explanatory tape through headphones would be effective. It is obvious that the tape makes a bottle neck of a series of processes in the gallery. By replacing the tape through headphones to one not through headphone but merely broadcasted in the gallery and waiting room (Figure 3), service time per visitor would be shortened, and the capacity of the gallery could be improved. Secondly, arrangement of visiting time to the gallery would alleviate its queuing problem. For example, the farm divided the duration of the milking parlour into five; 4.30 pm ââ¬â 5.00pm, 5.00pm ââ¬â 5.30 pm, 5.30pm ââ¬â 6.00 pm, 6.00 pm ââ¬â 6.30 pm, 6.30 pm ââ¬â 7.00 pm. When visitors enter to the farm, it allocates them into each time block. While there are vacancies in the time block visitors want, it is good idea that visitors choose which block they are in. Finally, queuing entertainments are effective to allay customer dissatisfactions. For instance, while visitors are in a queue, the scene of milking parlour will be broadcasted on a TV screen of the waiting room. This solution can be expected to make service time shorter at the same time to make customer dissatisfactions reduced. 4.2.3 Distribution In order to carry out growth strategy I proposed in section 4.1.1, solving problems in distribution is essential because bigger burden on distribution is inevitable for the strategy. Hence, I recommend that Holly Farm uses a delivery van equipped with a freezer of about 1,000 litres and replaces old one by it. I assume that the farm rent a VW LT35 Chiller / Freezer Van from a rental company (Figure 4). The monthly rent of the van should be considered à £1,911 as a variable cost. 4.3 Other Problems 4.3.1 Raw Material Stock Control I propose that minimum order quantities of strawberry and chocolate flavour decrease from current 1,000 ml to 400 ml, because the farm could not complete using them within their maximum storage time allowed in 2004(Table 8). While the reorder costs for these items will be charged three times as much as usual ones, the cost of the raw material that will be abolished, hence, abolishment cost can be eliminated. Even though the cost down will be almost offset by reorder charges, this action would be essential in aspect of green issues. Since Holly Farm has used relatively large amount of milk powder, box and cardboard, I recommend these raw material orders at the economic order quantities (Waters, 2002). When they assume that the farm attempted to order these raw materials at minimum order quantities in 2004, the cost down is expected to be more than 2,000 pound per annum (Table 9). In terms of the time to place orders, I propose the reorders of raw materials based on the reorder level (Waters, 2002). When calculating the reorder levels of each items, I assumed that demands can be equally divided into each day. The reorder levels of raw materials are shown in Table 10. This control method is not considered any uncertainties about consumption of raw materials, in other words, production schedule of ice cream. However, since the farm has not taken any flexible scheduling method for its production; Just-in-Time, MRP, MRPII (Waters, 2002) and so on, it is thought that there is no problem. 4.3.2 Inventory control of final products In the farm, production of ice cream has been carrying out based on a fixed schedule. Thus it is crucial to hedge the risk regarding uncertainties of future demands. Therefore, I propose the final product stock control based on the safety stock level considered standard deviation as future uncertainties (Waters, 2002). Since the uncertainties in each month are different, the levels should be varied (Table 11). I assume that the main factor that affects to ice cream demand is weather including temperature. Thus the safety stock levels of each month are calculated by standard deviations of five months including before and after each two months. This method is not as safe as periodic review approach is. However, the approach can be reasonable because the risk of unexpected change of demand was controlled below 5%. 4.4 Aggregate Planning Based on sales forecast of each month (Table 12), I made an aggregate plan for Holly Farm in 2004 (Table 13). In order to meet all forecast demand without any big investment in its production line and to eliminate unnecessary stocks, I recommend them to take the policy of chase demand production (Waters, 2002) (Figure 5). While this is not only the best policy but also only one policy for the farm at the present time due to its capacity constraints, they have to operate carefully because it can be veryà difficult to organise. By taking this policy, they can keep the stock level relatively low (Figure 6). 4.5 Cash Flow Analysis Basing on an assumption that Holly Farm has to pay 50% more money for overtime works of part-time workers than usual ones, I analysed cash flow of the farm ( Figure 5 Demand and Production in 2004 Figure 6 Stock Level Control Table 14). 14% of the total cash out, à £9,958/anum out of à £91,158/anum, will be spent for extra payment for overtime in 2004. Hence, the farm should start considering expanding the capacity its production line when the sales forecast comes true. Compared with the actual cash flow in 2003 and the cash flow forecast based on Gillianââ¬â¢s plan in 2004, the cash flow in 2004 will be relatively allocated among each month equally. Especially, even between January and May, there will be few negative cash flows ( Figure 7). The farmââ¬â¢s credit during the term can be improved. In terms of cash flow during the year, although the cash flow on my proposal is less than one on Gillianââ¬â¢s plan, the cash position will be better than one in 2003. 4.6 Break Even Analysis The profitability on my plan is not improved from 2003 result due to an increase in the percentage of the variable cost in the annual revenue. The main reason for the decreased profitability is the serious increase in extra payment for overtimes. While the break even point on my plan drops from 2003 result, the reason is a remarkable increase in total revenue in 2004. The margin of safety to unexpected decrease in total sales would be improved. The break even point on my plan is higher than one based on Gillianââ¬â¢sà optimistic plan. The reason is that Gillian assumed that they can increase farm shop sales with a à £1 margin per litre of ice cream and à £2 entrance fees (Table 15, Figure 8). However, as I mentioned in section 4.1.1, her forecast is unreliable. Therefore, the farm should withstand against the unprofitability in 2004 and should keep its growth strategy. Euromonitor plc. (2003) Euromonitor market research: Ice cream in the United Kingdom. London. Met Office (2003) UK Climate and Weather Statistics: 1971 ââ¬â 2000 Averages [Online]. Available from: http://www.met-office.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/areal/uk.html [Accessed 27th December 2003]. Office for National Statistic (2003) New Earnings Survey 2003 [Online]. Available from: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=5749 [Accessed 29th December 2003]. SMV Commercials of Yeovil (2003) SMV Commercials website: Vehicle rental [Online]. Available from: http://www.smvcommercials.co.uk/code/vehiclerental.asp?vehicle=13 [Accessed 28th December 2003]. Waters, D. (2002) Operations Management: Producing Goods and Services. 2nd edition. London, Prentice Hall. Williams, T. and Rathwell, G. (2001) Glossary: Enterprise Integration and Communications Systems [Online]. Last updated on 29th May 2001. Available from: http://www.pera.net/Tools/Glossary/Enterprise_Integration/Glossary_B.html [Accessed 27th December 2003].
Monday, July 29, 2019
Fire-fighters - DOD and Civilian Certified Essay
Fire-fighters - DOD and Civilian Certified - Essay Example Fire fighters help protect against these dangers by being the first emergency personnel at the scene of a fire, traffic accident, hazardous material spills, medical emergency and other emergency incidents. They also provide leadership and support services for natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods (CDF). For a person to join and make a career in this work there are two avenues available, one through the Department of Defense (DOD) and the second through the civilian colleges that offer specialized courses in fire fighting. This paper explores the features of the two alternatives to compare and analyze the differences. Any person joining the defense services may opt to be a member of the firefighting arm of the army, navy, air force or the Marine Corps. According to the Department of Defense Fire and Emergency Services Certification Program (1995), the purpose of providing training in firefighting is to enhance the training process, improve performance, and strengthen the professionalism of all the Department of Defense Fire and Emergency Services personnel. The program measures the competence of the Department of Defense (DOD) Fire and Emergency Services personnel and provides a quality control element for the training process. ... This program meets the NFPA Professional Qualifications Standards outlined in the 1000 series standards. To be eligible to this training, the following conditions must be met: 1. Military and civilian Department of Defense (DOD) Fire and Emergency Services personnel, including civilian contractors, who have successfully passed the written and performance evaluations are eligible for certification 2. Eligibility for an individual to be administered the written and performance evaluations are based upon completion of a study program. The study program can consist of formal classroom instruction, formal schools, self-study, or a combination of these programs 3. The study program will not be used to render invalid any rank, qualification, certification, or appointment acquired before the implementation of this program 4. Training should be delivered in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible, including the increased use of distant learning technologies (Department of Defense Fire and Emergency Services Certification Program, 1995). According to the Department of Defense (DOD) Fire and Emergency Services Certification Program (1995), a person who enrolled at the Department of Defense Firefighter College Program will receive the certificate of completion in four months time. This is the highest level of fire service certification. Up until June, 1998, participation in the Certification Program was a "condition of employment" per DODI 6055.6 (DOD Fire and Emergency Services Program, 1994). As such, a fire fighter only had to be working toward certification to be "participating" and, as a "condition of employment", the program was fully negotiable at the local level (The Department of Defense Fire and
Sunday, July 28, 2019
Argumentative paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Argumentative paper - Assignment Example However, an objective observation of this issue and ready commonsense do indicate that Etzioni is highly misplaced in his beliefs. McDonaldââ¬â¢s and other fast food outlets are actually safe and viable platforms for encouraging values like hard work and discipline amongst youngsters, while allowing them to earn money for investing in education and other value addition activities. One single belief that rings throughout the article written by Etzioni is his disbelief in the capabilities, decision making capacities and commitment of the contemporary teenagers. Perhaps, Etzioni is totally oblivious of the fact that these so called ââ¬Å"young, yet uninformed individuals (2)â⬠he is so doubtful of could be much more informed and ambition driven than he expects them to be. Yes, it is true that some teenagers earning money from fast food chains may spend it in an irresponsible way. However, this fact could not be transposed on all the teenagers working with fast food chains in a much generalized context. Fast food chains only provide an avenue for earning money and acquiring skills to the teenagers. They simply cannot have such a pervasive impact on the academic and career choices of the teenagers, if they are well placed in the basic values, which are mostly imparted at school and at home. So, fast food chains are in a sense neutral. If the parents and the schools do take pains to impart the right values to the kids and have confidence in them, there is nothing much to fear. The second peculiarity of Etzioniââ¬â¢s approach towards the issue is that the vantage point from which he tends to observe it is utterly distant from an understanding of the contemporary realities in which the teenagers live and grow. Etzioni is still hovering in the era of ââ¬Å"newspaper route and sidewalk lemonade stand (1)â⬠, while the world has moved on into the realm of the internet and satellite TV. The teenagers today are much more informed and are introduced to the r ealities of life at quiet an early age as compared to what it was a few decades ago. The careers they aspire to pursue in the future mostly require an insight into and grounding in the way organized corporations work and operate. Besides, considering the rising cost of education, good earning opportunities during school days could somewhat cushion their college expenses at a later stage. Fast food chains like McDonaldââ¬â¢s facilitate the teenagers with both these requisites, and that too in a safe and regulated environment. Some critics of the teenage employment opportunities provided by fast food chains may seem right in suggesting that engaging in relatively high paid and comfortable jobs, with no opportunities for skill enhancement, at such a tender age may dilute the sense of ambition and aspiration in the teenagers. One thing that such individuals and groups need to realize is that fast food outlets are never supposed to inculcate ambition and drive in school going kids. Th ey are simply running a business, which extends an opportunity to the teenagers to work and earn. The work ethics and aspirations of the teenagers are influenced by a much larger environment, which includes the guidance, support and expectations extended by the family, the education and skills imparted by the schools, the extracurricular activities accessible to the teenagers,
Saturday, July 27, 2019
Theory of Speech and thought presentation in Ulysses and The Dubliners Essay
Theory of Speech and thought presentation in Ulysses and The Dubliners by James Joyce - Essay Example Many of the formal features telling apart the modes of speech and thought presentation are similar. Their effects, however, vary and more so in the narratorââ¬â¢s language distance from or proximity to the ideology they seek to put across. Free Indirect Speech and Free Indirect Thought are usually put under the umbrella of Free Indirect Discourse (FID) (Zelma, 2010). Theory of speech In analyzing the theory of speech, its presentation can be categorized as follows: 1. Direct Speech In the following sentence: She said, ââ¬Å"I will make avocado juice tomorrow.â⬠The formal markers are as follows; There are two clauses. One being the reporting ââ¬ËShe saidââ¬â¢ and the other the reported ââ¬ËI will make avocado juiceââ¬â¢ There are the quotation marks placed around the reported clause First and second person pronouns have been used The tense of the verb used in the reporting clause is always either in the past or historical present, for example,ââ¬â¢ She saidâ⠬⢠or ââ¬ËShe saysââ¬â¢ Any tense can be applied in the reported clause as per the time reference of the proposition. However, the correct grammar has to be adhered to at all times. Deictic markers can be used as per the time and place reference (Zelma, 2010) 2. Indirect Speech (IS) She said she would make avocado juice the following day The formal markers that point to the transition from direct speech to indirect speech are: The reporting clause in this case is viewed as the main clause (She said), and the reported clause is seen as the dependent clause. The sign that she shows this dependency is the use of the relative pronoun ââ¬Ëthatââ¬â¢ (Zelma, 2010). There are no quotation marks placed around the reported clause The first and second person pronouns transform into third person pronouns. The tense in the reported clause is brought from the back to the front à ââ¬Å"Closeâ⬠deictic markers transform to farther markers. For example, here changes to there a nd tomorrow changes to the following day. Verbs of movement that imply ââ¬Å" motion towardsâ⬠(come) transform to verbs of movement that imply motion ââ¬Å"away fromâ⬠( return, go) However, depending on the perspective, the deictics may retain their form. This is especially relevant in the case that the perspective refers to the person ââ¬Ëhereââ¬â¢. In such a case, the sentence becomes ââ¬ËShe said she would make avocado juice tomorrowââ¬â¢ (Zelma, 2010). 3. Free Direct Speech Free Direct Speech is a type of Direct Speech which does not include either the quotation marks or reported clauses. The effect of Free Direct Speech is that the narrator appears as the intermediary. 4. Narrative Reports of Speech Acts This entails sentences that only give the impression that speech occurred without necessarily stating what was said. 5. Free Indirect Speech Thought presentation The presentation of s characterââ¬â¢s thought is not very easy given that the thoughts of a human being can not be directly reached. However, the authors tend to make the readers believe that they can read the minds of their characters in order to enable the full understanding of characters. The author may choose from the categories of the speech presentation but despite this, the very fact that they are posing to be readers of othersââ¬â¢
Friday, July 26, 2019
The Corporate Citizenship of Avon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
The Corporate Citizenship of Avon - Essay Example According to James Post, corporate citizenship does not merely involve good acts. One central requirement of citizenship is the promotion of social harmony. A company should, therefore, ensure that its social activities are those that are directed to the building and sustaining of a harmonious society. A company and its operations should also have a harmonious existence with the society in which it operates under because it cannot promote harmony if it is the first to rub shoulders with its stakeholders and the community (Post 146). AVON Company has achieved this to a good level by speaking violence and ensuring that its operations do not cause disputes with the society of operation. AVON Company has sustained and even increased its public social works as they continue with their own private business. This means they have met the key corporate citizenship requirement that businesses are supposed to re-connect private work and public work. As corporate citizens, multinational companie s are required to take responsibility for the impacts that the companyââ¬â¢s activities have on the environment and its stakeholders (Wood and Logsdon 53). AVON Company participates in and focuses its environmental protection and rehabilitation activities in opportunities and places that will achieve the greatest impact hence it is a corporate citizen. Another requirement for a corporate citizen is to voluntarily extend its social activities beyond those that are required by the countryââ¬â¢s legislation (Post 145). As a demonstration to this, AVON Company has been actively involved in helping women affected by cancer by donating approximately $700 million towards breast cancer programs. It also participates in emergency relief and has awarded millions of US dollars to women affected by natural disasters.à Ã
Thursday, July 25, 2019
Federal Liability Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Federal Liability Law - Essay Example They also started destroying the properties of the Black Americans so that they can accomplish their objections and influence the forthcoming elections. Moreover, they started discriminating in the registration of voting on the basis of color and race. In order to stop the violence of the Ku Klux Klan Act, President Ulysses Grant took power in his hands and implemented the Civil Act of 1871 against the southerners on April 20, 1871. President Ulysses Grant made use of his power and sent federal troops to the south to stop the harassment and slaughtering of the Black Americans. During his period many supporters of the Ku Klux Klan Act were under arrest and prisoned for the massacres they had committed. He also had forbidden discrimination on the basis of color and caste (Kappeler, 2006). According to the section of 1983, if any police officer, government officer, mayor or municipality violates any constitutional law then he will be sued by the citizens. In the past the government and the municipalities could not be sued under the law because they enjoyed immunity. According to the section of 1983, the state enjoys immunity but the municipality and other government parties do not. The Supreme Court has developed various tests to check whether the conduct constitutes the state or the private action of the state officer. These tests include the public function test, the nexus test and the state compulsion test. A policy was established by plaintiff to create municipal liability for the conduct of the police officer. In order to establish municipal liability a police officer must violate a constitutional right. According to the Supreme Court, the failure to train results in deliberate differences. The concept deliberates that indifferences exist when police officers com e in contact with the rights of the people. Therefore various steps were taken by the Supreme Court to reduce the deliberate differences. Training programs
Maria Laach Abbey Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Maria Laach Abbey - Essay Example A basilican axis is pressed between the towers of the structure, bordered by the traditional aisles and brightened by clerestory windows. A patio facing the west entryways provides a greater connection to the churches of the late Antiquity (Stalley, 1999). Such conventional aspects create a center to which have been inserted various additional components, most apparently the towers, insertions which it is simple to ignore or assume. Similar to numerous structures of the early medieval period, Maria Laach is a complex building, a combination of distinct elements, and a particular mission of the historian is to shed light on how the different elements became unified. In fact, a valuable way of examining medieval churches is to start by analyzing those components which have been inserted to the basilican nave. In the case of Maria Laach such would comprise the western set of towers, the crossing tower, the eastern stair steeples, the catacomb, the western cove, the long chancel, and the transepts (Torgerson, 2007). In order to make sense of the history and significance of these components, one should revisit the world three centuries ago, to the purported Carolingian Renaissance, a time of extraordinary development in the field of European architecture (Stalley, 1999). Maria Laach is a previous Benedictine abbey in Germany. It was known to be built in 1093, under the command of Palsgrave Henry II. It was handed over to the Cluniac Benedictines. It stayed in Benedictine possession for several centuries, becoming a hub for the monastic activities and in specific periods for education and literary arts (Torgerson, 2007). The Maria Laach Abbey is situated on the forested coastlines of a crater lake. The structure is regarded an essential model of German Romanesque architecture; due to its squatness and horde of towers, the church looks like an enchanted castle, highlighted by its panoramic, lakeside scenery. At the east end of the
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Compare and Contrast the Spaniards' Attitudes toward the Native Essay
Compare and Contrast the Spaniards' Attitudes toward the Native Culture and People They Encountered with the Aztec - Essay Example The modern appreciation of historical facts gave birth to a thorough analysis of the events of the past and what the Western historians were at times unable to point out or those that were dismissed. Essentially, there were things that must be taken into consideration. ââ¬Å"The conquistadors caught a fleeting glance of a civilization with a theology and symbolism as complex as contemporary Catholicismâ⬠(Fagan, p.343). The full understanding of any story must involve weighing in all possible accounts of what took place. It cannot be limited to an assertion inferred as fundamental facts. The same goes for a deeper understanding of the Conquistadors arrival and their colonization of the Aztecs. Limiting to the Spaniardsââ¬â¢ accounts and personal inclinations gives rise to bias so that revisiting the available accounts of the natives must be integrated. This illuminates any historical reading to have an impartial assessment to reconcile facts from fiction. What Bernal Diaz pr ovided in ââ¬Å"The True History of the Conquest of New Spainâ⬠was a personal account of the battle with the Aztecs. It was a vivid narration that aims to disclose the true occurrences of the battle to provide for a more genuine description to put to rest all other claims proliferated by others. It contained detailed descriptions of the practices of the actual encounter. The most graphic were the practices of the natives on their captives, ââ¬Å"with stone knives they sawed open their chests and drew out their palpitating hearts and offered them to the idols that were there, and they kicked the bodies down the steps, and Indian butchers who were waiting below cut off the arms and feet and flayed (the skin off) the facesâ⬠(Diaz, n.p.). The autobiographical account described the cannibalistic practices of the natives. The cries of the people on the destruction of their city, though veiled through the words of Diaz, seem to be valid reason for their anger. The people soug ht for the reconstruction of what they have lost. Diaz, as Wyman noted in her introduction came from a more deprived background wherein his venture into foreign land was for personal gain. The mind of a soldier and his hardships primarily regulate his point of view. The brotherhood among soldiers and their sufferings would be most palpable to him. This is apparent in the account as a strict narrative of a battle. This particular endeavour was the principal reason for his ascent into the social strata which maintains his courageous stance amidst the difficulties. Inadvertently, Diaz divulged Aztec practices such as how women helped the men by making their crude weapons including the preparation of the stones for their slings and in the sounding of the devices. In contrast to the narrative of Diaz, Hernan Cortes presents to the monarchy a descriptive account of the city of Temixtitlan under Moctezuma. He illustrates a place filled with life and vitality. It is one where there are soci al centers filled with economic growth. The market is filled with products and various trades. There are also specialized shops such as apothecaries and an indication of medicinal application including the sale of much sought after herbs and spices. ââ¬Å"This Province is in the form of a circle, surrounded on all sides by lofty and
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
WHAT ARE THE RECENT TRENDS IN EUROBOND MARKET CONCENTRATE ON ISSUES OF Essay
WHAT ARE THE RECENT TRENDS IN EUROBOND MARKET CONCENTRATE ON ISSUES OF SIZE, VOLUME, BORROWERS AND INNOVATIONS - Essay Example Therefore, the market is highly dependent on the reputation of the issuer. The following discussion will see how the Eurobond market has grown since its inception to its current size. The essay will also discuss the current volume of the market and the diversity of the borrowers participating in the market. Finally, the essay will look at the innovations in the Eurobond market with major types of products offered in the market. The bond market is the primary provider of medium or long-term financing for corporations and the market is dominated by the Eurobonds in the international environment. Prior to the appearance of Eurobonds, long-term capital from international source was raised by floating a bond issue in some other country denominated in the currency and meeting the requirements of the country it was issued in. These are called foreign bonds and the total annual volume was an average of $2.6 billion from the period 1964 to 1974 (Smith, 2003). The number of foreign bonds increased substantially after 1974 because of the removal of US capital market controls. However, the number of foreign bonds traded is very small compared to the total international bond market. Smith (2003) points to the various reasons which hampered the growth of foreign bonds. These include the fact that issuers had to meet local requirements which caused delays while issuers prepared the necessary documents or permissions. Expenses were also high because of the underwriting fees and other expenses incurred by the issuer. The 1960s saw the emergence of Eurobonds which rapidly went on to dominate the international bond market. Originally, Eurobonds were unsecured promissory notes denominated in US dollars. They were not registered with US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and therefore could not be sold in US or to US citizens. They were sold to non-US residents, primarily wealthy individuals and foreign institutional investors. Madura (2006) mentions that the emergence of Eurobond market has been highly influenced by the introduction of Interest Equilisation Tax (IET) by the US government in 1963. This IET of 15% on interest received from foreign borrowers was originally designed to restrict foreign debt sold in US market and discourage investors in US from investing in foreign securities. However, the tax actually stimulated the development of Euromarkets and dollar driven financial activity in London. IET was removed in 1974. Eurobonds found further boost in 1984 when the US government repealed the 30% withholding tax on interest income paid to foreign persons or corporations. This allowed US corporations to issue bonds directly to non-US investors. Previously, many foreign investors showed reluctance in purchasing US corporate securities as US issuers were required to withhold part of the required interest payments in order to ensure any tax due would be paid. They were also required to disclose their names and addresses to the issuer. To attract such investors, American companies had to issue bonds in the bearer form through subsidiaries in various tax-haven jurisdictions, such as the Netherlands Antilles (Smith, 2003). Thus removing the withholding tax ensured that foreign investors could
Monday, July 22, 2019
A Comparison of Four Literary Works Essay Example for Free
A Comparison of Four Literary Works Essay Great writing does not necessarily make a great work of literature. More often than not, there has to be something special about a writerââ¬â¢s work of art. This could be also considered their trademarks, signatures that had set them on canonical status. Shakespeare has his soliloquies, Hawthorne attacks the Puritans, Hemmingway uses symbols, Borges possesses fondness for infinity, and the list goes on. However, there could be some similarities between these literary signatures of writers. It is important to take note that having similarities does not render a writer less special than others. What is remarkable about the works sharing similarities in their trademarks is that they all express a common concernââ¬âconcerns that could be considered as major issues in the society. The selected works had all talked about women and social status. à à à à à à à à à à à The literary works that this paper would feature are Nathaniel Hawthorneââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"The Birthmarkâ⬠, Flannery Oââ¬â¢Connorââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"A Goodman Is Hard To Findâ⬠, William Faulknerââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"A Rose For Emilyâ⬠, and James Joyceââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"The Dead.â⬠à à à à à à à à à à à Hawthorneââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"The Birthmarkâ⬠had shown us how the male-dominated society perceives women. In the narrative, there was a beautiful woman named Georgiana. She was almost perfect, however, her most visible flaw was her hand-shaped birthmark on her cheekââ¬âthus the title. She was married to a scientist named Aylmer who is not pleased with Georgianaââ¬â¢s birthmark. Since he was a scientist, Aylmer conducted a procedure to supposedly fix his wifeââ¬â¢s face. As a consequence of the Aylmerââ¬â¢s discontent, Georgiana died while under operation. à à à à à à à à à à à Hawthorne story tells us that women are commonly judged according to their physical appearance and not according to the beauty of their intellect and character. Moreover, the story suggested to us that the pride of the male specie is on of the main reason for the oppression of women in the society. It is very likely that Aylmer had treated his beautiful wife as a mere accessory to display to the public. As we could observe in the history of societies, husbands are judged according to their wives, and vice-versa. à à à à à à à à à à à In William Faulknerââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"A Rose For Emilyâ⬠, women are presented in a rather disturbing manner. The story is basically about a former aristocrat woman who had kept the corpse of her beloved in her bedroom. That is not to mention that she is the one who killed her beloved and she had slept with the dead corpseââ¬âââ¬Å"sleptâ⬠, with all the connotations of the word. à à à à à à à à à à à Faulkner has this talent to disturb people with seemingly harmless countryside scenarios. But what is remarkable about this particular work is the depiction of how a woman could love a man. A womanââ¬â¢s version of love is a topic that is rarely touched throughout the long history of literature. ââ¬Å"A Rose For Emilyâ⬠tells us that a woman could love unconditionally even if their love is unrequited. Moreover, ââ¬Å"A Rose For Emilyâ⬠touches the topic of social status. In the story, Emily came from a family of aristocrat status. The object of her affection, Homer Barron, came from a common family. The difference in their social status had somehow prevented them from getting married. In addition to that, it is Emilyââ¬â¢s social status that had made the townspeople treat her differently. On a different tone, Flannery Oââ¬â¢Connorââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"A Goodman Is Hard To Findâ⬠had depicted women and social status on a less favorable stance. The protagonist of the story was an annoying grandmother. The family in the story wanted to go to Florida, but the grandmother insisted that they go to Tennessee. The grandmother cited the news that there was a roaming criminal along the way to Florida just to scare off the family. On their way to Florida, the grandmotherââ¬â¢s words became true that she and the family had actually encountered the criminal. As a ploy to save herself, the grandmother constantly tells the criminal sarcastic remarks like ââ¬Å"you are a nice person.â⬠With regards to social status, the criminal was aware that the grandmother was just pretending to treat him as a nice person. The criminal already knows what to expect from the society with regards to place of criminals within the social thread. The criminal knows that people like him would always be discriminated by people. à à à à à à à à à à à It is almost the same case for James Joyceââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"The Dead.â⬠The author had reiterated the notion that women are good at telling lies. The disturbing ending of the narrative tells the readers that Gretta, the wife of the protagonist (Gabriel), was deeply in love with someone who already died. The conflict was she was already married with an insecure man. The ending of the story shows us how Grettaââ¬â¢s action of not telling her husband her past had such a tragic impact on his insecurities. On the note of social status, Gabrielââ¬â¢s insecurities were highlighted during the gathering, where most of the plot had developed. His insecurities were most rooted from his social status. When he was interacting with people of higher social status, he would be insecure of his intellect, language, and physical appearance. There is a subtle hint in the story that social status has some effects on a personââ¬â¢s confidence. à à à à à à à à à à à All in all, the recurring themes of women and social status could be roughly considered as clichà ©s. However, it is important to take into consideration that these issues should not be forgotten. It is just remarkable for these great writers to reiterate these issues that the society is seemingly eluding. Moreover, the recurrence of these themes tells us that the issues of women and social status are still unresolved by the society. Perhaps if people would read these stories, the society could come up with solutions to the problems at hand. à à à à à à à à à à à If I were made to choose a favorite among the feature stories, I would have to choose Faulknerââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"A Rose For Emily.â⬠Aside from its innovative use of point of view through the townspeople, the story touches themes that are both close to heart, like love, and socially relevant like social status. Works Cited Faulkner, William. A Rose for Emily. An Introduction to Literature. Ed. Joseph Terry. New York: Longman, 2001 Hawthorne, Nathaniel. ââ¬Å"The Birthmarkâ⬠. Demas, C. Various, Mjf. Great American Short Stories: From Hawthorne to Hemingway.à Spark Educational Publishing: USA, 2004 Joyce, James.à Dubliners. Penguin Books: England, 1993 OConnor, Flannery. A Good Man is Hard to Find. NJ: à Rutgers University Press, 1993
Sunday, July 21, 2019
Nigerian Civil Service History
Nigerian Civil Service History In tracing the emergence and growth of the civil service in Nigeria, Nwosu (1977) started from 1900 when Britain formally established the authority in most of the administrative purposes. They were in the colony of Lagos and the protectorate of Northern and Southern Nigeria. Later in 1906, the Lagos colony was merged with the southern protectorate and renamed the colony and protectorate of Southern Nigeria. In 1914, the two protectorates were amalgamated and subsequently became known as the colony and protectorate of Nigeria. In order to be able to administer the territory, Britain imposed a unified alien civil service on Nigeria without giving much thought to its impact on the Nigerian traditional communities with their conflicting values, interest, norms and authority structure (Kingsley 1963). It must be pointed out that despite the amalgamation and its attendant unification of the civil services of the North and South, the two are still developed at their own pace. The major function of civil service at the time was mainly the maintenance of law and raising enough revenue to sustain the colonial authority. According to Okoli Onah (2002), the service was geared towards the negative policy of preventing trouble in the areas under its administration. Economic and social development was never a major objective of the administration. The colonial civil service according to Nwosu 1977 had its structure; at the Head of Public Service was the Governor-General, who was accountable to the colonial secretary in London. The colonial secretary was himself accountable to the British cabinet and the parliament. The governor-general delegated his authority to the Chief Secretary, who was the effective head of the service. The chief secretary coordinated the whole service which was divided into two major parts the departmental and the political administration. The departmental administration covers the technical and professional functions of the colonial regime. These include education, health, treasury, agriculture, forestry, public works and audit. The various heads assisted the chief secretary. They not only advised the Governor but initiated policies, participated in legislation and supervised the execution of enacted bills and approved policies. While the head of technical department operated from Lagos. Their subordinates were in charge of field offices. The field officers included the lieutenant-governor, the resident and district officers, the officers who are pillars of colonial civil service were fully responsible for maintenance of law and order and the mobilization of resources which were the main object of colonial administration. The field officer did not rule the people directly, rather they owned the people and that is indirect rule. In the north, it was completely successful because of the indigenous political and administrative structure on ground. In the west, it was partially successful because of the peoples contact with western education and in the east; it was a complete failure because of the republican nature of the peoples government. The fusion of western administration with the traditional African system produced a new structure which Nwosu (1977) says corresponded with Fred Riggs description of the pattern of role differentiation in a traditional society. At this early period, Nigerians were restricted to the lower echelons of the civil service. The south and the north; though amalgamated, still had their separate civil services. Principles of the Civil Service The civil service is guided by the triple maxims of anonymity, neutrality and impartiality. The principles of permanence are also seen as part of the maxims (Obiajulu Obi 2004). Anonymity: this states that civil servants should be seen and not heard. Though they advise political office holders on issues relating to government, they neither take the blame nor the glory of such policies. They are not expected to be seen defending such policies. Civil servants as far as possible are anonymous and should not be seen as craving for publicity. Neutrality: the civil servant must be politically neutral. His job is to serve the government of the day irrespective of what he feels about that particular government. He should not allow his personal prejudices color his dedication to his duty. He is not expected to be a card carrying member of a political party or get involved in partisan politics though he is expected to vote at election times. Impartiality: Civil servants are paid from tax payers money which does not belong to anybody or group in particular. They are therefore expected to discharge their duties without fear or favor in rendering such service to the public. The civil servant is expected to treat everybody with a high degree of impartiality. Permanence: the civil service is often defined as a permanent body of officials that carryout government decisions. It is permanent and its life is not tied to the life of any particular government. Government come and goes but the civil service remains. Functions of the Civil Service According to Obiajulu Obi (2004), the major function of the civil service is the implementation of government policies. Civil servants are not policy makers and are not really in a position to question government policies. Whenever a policy is made, it becomes the role of the civil servants to implement the policy the way the government of the day wants it to be. The federal and state civil servants play important role in policy formulation and advice. They play a major economic, social and educational objective of both the federal and state governments. The civil service also gathers statistical information for the activities of the government. Senior civil servants also have to inform the public about the achievements, abilities and problems facing the government. Also, Ezeani (2005) noted that the civil service is a store of knowledge of past government decisions and procedures. Thus, it plays an educative role by assisting professionals and military political executives (as is the case in Nigeria), especially the new ones to adapt themselves to the realities of their offices (This Week, 1988:19). The civil servants also play investigative and regulatory functions. CHAPTER TWO Structure of the Nigerian Civil Service The civil service is mainly organized around the federal ministries headed by a minister appointed by the president, who must include at least one member of the 36 states in his cabinet. Presidents appointment is confirmed by the senate of Nigeria. There are less than 36 ministries. In some cases, a federal minister is responsible for more than one ministry and a minister may be assisted by one or more ministers of state. Each ministry has a permanent secretary who is a senior civil servant. The ministries are responsible for various parastatals (government owned corporations) such as education, National Broadcasting Commission (information) and Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Other parastatals are the responsibility of the office of the presidency such as the Independent Electoral Commission, the Federal Civil Service Commission, etc. Role of the Civil Service in National Development The civil service is a vital part of government machinery and its role is decisive in ensuring the stability of governance, its quality and ability to perform and push the frontiers of national development. According to Edozien, a former permanent secretary, the civil service inherited from the British was effective, efficient offered a socially responsible service and was well respected and regarded by the political class. So also was the civil service under phase one of the national development plan covering 1960 1975). He said that phase two 1975 1999 started with a blow of the morale of the civil service as permanent secretaries were compulsorily retired and were barred form accompanying their ministers to federal executive council (FEC) meetings, while job security was no longer guaranteed. Engr. Ebele Okeke described the civil service as a critical contact between the government and the people in the area of good government and the people in the area of good governance and service delivery. The success of any government depends on a virile civil service. Hence, the civil service remains very crucial and critical to national development and democratic stability. In developing states, why years of military and authoritarian rule in most developing societies have impacted negative political culture on the character and philosophy of the service, yet its role in national development cannot be undervalued. However, since military regimes and authoritarian rule have lost their appeal in modern government. The need to reform civil and public service to be in tune with democratic values becomes highly imperative. An efficient civil service acts as a catalyst in the development of all nations. While on the other hand, its inefficiency can constitute as one of the heaviest mill stones round the neck of developing nations. Therefore, it is important to most that the civil service must be efficient to service the newly found democratic project for stability and survival of the polity. Since it is the vehicle and machinery of public policy formulation and implementation, it is also to be noted that democracy with its attractive values will enhance the workings of the public service and redefine, reorient and reposition it to be more affective, mobile and productive partner in national reconstruction agenda (Ayodele and Bolaji). Bureaucratic bottleneck, high levels of corruption and personalization of governmental affairs exhibited hitherto by the civil service are highly anti-democratic. Democracy is expected to bear on the attitude and change this negative democratic attitude to service. Democracy has rekindled the expectation and optimism of the people in the ability of the civil service to be relevant to he challenges of growth and development. The strategic relevance of civil service in policy formulation and implementing cannot be over emphasized. In the developing societies especially in the immediate past independence era the public service assumed the pivotal roles as the vehicle of development. In fact, Ejifor (2003) posits that civil service in the developing societies is everything and that the most important catalyst of development is an efficient service while at the same time its inefficient constitute the heaviest millstones of any nation. This is similar to the view of Agagu (1997:233) who contends that public and civil service is the continuously active business part of government concerned with carrying out the law, as made by the legislative bodies in the process of organization and management. In scope, the influence of the civil service is not debatable; it remains definitely a major force in todays governance. The civil service contains a network of human relationships and associations extending from the highly influential government officials to the lowest paid and powerless individual charged with all resources, natural and human and all other aspects of the life of the society with which the government is concerned (Nnoli, 2000:44). In essence, public service is the totality of how progress and development are made in the society. The Nigerian civil service has faced a number of challenges, which has considerably undermined its capacity to serve as agent of national development. Such challenges include those of achieving technical competence, coping with public expectation and change, behaving ethically and maintaining constitutional order. The truth is that all these problems are inextricably linked to failure of the civil service to play its rightful role in system maintenance and continuity. Again, in order to enhance the nations development, the civil service under the auspices of the public service can partner with the private sector. In Nigeria and other developing countries, sustainable access to healthcare and other socio-economic services and products can be accomplished through public-private partnerships, where the government delivers the minimum standard of services, products and care, the private sector brings skills and core competencies while donors and business bring funding and other resources. Such collaborations will be especially productive in promoting poverty alleviation through partnerships as has been the case with polio eradication and other child immunization efforts. However, this public-private partnership would help to highlight perspectives on development, from leaders in civil society, government, business and the media, share information of development alternatives, provide forums for informed debate on related issues; seek to accomplish better understanding of the nature of relationships between governmental and non-governmental organizations and introduce conceptual frameworks for understanding such relationships. Intrinsic in the aforementioned objectives of typical public-private partnerships is the mission to contribute to the economic integration of a country/region accelerate its economic growth and sustainable development, engender and sustain private sector participation in traditionally public sector projects; and expand local assess to international markets, thereby ensuring the countrys deeper integration into the global economy. For Nigeria in particular, this could be done within the official NEPAD structure, ECOWAS and other regional economic communities in Africa, governments, private sector, civil society and other stakeholders. Finally, a vibrant and healthy civil service is the key to good governance and national development. Challenges of the Nigerian Civil Service According to Ezeani (2005), the Nigerian Civil Service has over the years been plagued by a number of problems which adversely affected its role as an instrument for socio-economic and political development of the country. The problems include: The nature of political competition in the Nigerian environment. The Nigerian civil service has been transformed into a theatre of sharing the national cake among the major ethnic and sub ethnic groups, a factor responsible for the unending demand for fragmentation of governmental structure units of ministries, divisions of major departments etc.) despite the obvious difficulties in sustaining the existing ones. The conflictual relationship between politicians and administrations Corruption e.g. looting of national treasury and lack of accountability Poor remuneration of civil servants Politicization of the civil service. As Olowu et al (1997) rightly points out politicization of the top civil services in an environment of high political instability and high turnover of officials has not only been wasteful of personnel, it has also led to a weakened role for the civil service in the development process. Ethnicity and indiscipline. A family local ethnic and other primordial ties and loyalties, sometimes compete on take precedence over loyalty to the nation and the service (Nwosu 1997) Social distance existing between the senior civil servants and the masses. Most senior civil servants have contacts with the masses and therefore do not experience their problems Lack of flexibility among bureaucrats. Civil servants cling tenaciously to routine well established procedures for doing things or red-tapism. The Military Rule and Nigeria Civil Service The history of post colonial Nigeria is fraught with military authoritarianism. This has reflected in its bureaucracy. Scholars agree that since 1966 when the military intervened in the Nigeria government and politics up to 1999 civil service has enjoyed enormous popularity due to the inability of the military class to dictate the pace of government without recourse to bureaucrats wealth of experience. It should be noted that civil servants are often used as stabilizers of the staff under military regimes. Generally, military administration manifests certain characteristics which are hallmarks of military regimes, these are: Method of Civil Service Appointment: The civil service has laid down rules and regulations guiding appointment, discipline and promotions. Under the military these processes are rubbished. Merit and seniority are relegated and mediocrity celebrated. This has brought into the service deep hatred among the rank and file of the system. This has undermined professionalism in the civil service. Decision Making Process: This under the military is usually centralized. There is no constitution, no rule of law, absence of separation of power, no democratic institution with the legislature, executive and judiciary. The decision making process are vested in one centralized body like the Supreme Military Council or Armed Forces Ruling Council. Related to the above is the military often acted with dispatch in administration. The tradition military culture has affected their method of operation even in official bus. By their training and due to their low educational background, they dont know their power limitations. Thus, most of them give appointment, promotions, contract and other forms of state privileges without due process. Absence of Separation of Powers and Function: over-concentration of power and function in one body is another feature of military regime. Military governments dont subscribe to separation of powers. Hence the issue of rule of law is out of the question. The doctrine of separation of powers presupposes that whatever power accruing to one organ shouldnt be interfered with by another. But the precepts of the military regime all governmental powers i.e. legislature, executive and to some extent, the judiciary, are concentrated in few hands. Prevalence of Spoilt System in Appointment: Often, appointments under the military are not done on merit. Successive military regimes often adopted some faithful members of the public into public administration without regard to their qualification. By this arrangement, sensitive federal and state positions were left for people who arent competent. This is in line with the military belief that any person can do the art of administration. Again because of military governments could be ousted any day it becomes a tradition among staff office occupiers to appropriate or personalize the trappings of their office. CHAPTER THREE How can National Development be fully Realized? Development has become more crucial in the developing countries to avert the lingering problem of bureaucratic maze paralyzed by partisan politics and ideological imperatives, poor coordination, implementation and sheer miscalculation that bedevil many administrative issues in the developing countries. These problems can be tackled through better monitoring accountability checks and more rigorous project evaluation. Development does not take place in a vacuum but in an environment, the environment in the field of development is a countrys socio-economic and political set up. To be conducive to national development, the civil service as an environment has to have minimum level of stability, peace and order. (Obi Obikeze 2004). National development is crucial in developing countries such as Nigerian to help them enhance their level of political economic, social and cultural wellbeing with the aid and instrumentality of the civil service. Recommendations Todays civil service needs to rediscover the time-honoured inbuilt system of training, retraining and adaptive skills in consonance with modern work practices and processes. It must imbibe the culture of innovation both in imagination and routine works as well as in developing appropriate tools for anticipating change and challenges. It must be able to institutionalize change in modern governance and societal development. It must see itself as a tool for the promotion of growth, peace, stability, development and democracy. Conclusion In conclusion, for the civil service to be both relevant and effective, it must rediscover its cherished tradition of service, loyalty and excellence and complement them with integrity, credibility, leadership, innovation and transparency in the management of scarce resources. With this, the Nigerian civil service can be capable of meeting modern challenges of national development.
Change Management Process And Basic Needs Management Essay
Change Management Process And Basic Needs Management Essay Change as we call it is quite inevitable and it is very necessary in todays fast changing environment and competition. Organizational change management is focused at when big changes need to take place. There are numerous change management models that can be used by companies today in order to successfully implement the change and meet its objectives. The Kurt Lewin Model is an old model still used today. Change management aims at bringing better results than those currently experienced. In change management one understands that there are better ways of performing a particular task in an effective and efficient manner while meeting all the customers expectations and standards of performance. So we can use the ADKAR model here to manage change. Change management theory has 5 principles based upon it like: At first we see that people display and show different reactions to change as each individual is different and unique in their own way. Secondly people strive to meet their basic needs regardless of their stature, occupation or living standards. Thirdly for each of the change to take place the person has to loose something initially to help make the implementation of the change successful. All the people put in varied amounts of efforts for the change as per their perception so the change activity needs to be realistic in nature. Change brings with it fear and a feeling of mistrust so change management can only take place if these people face their fears. These five principles need to be implemented properly by the company to actually make the change process feasible and successful. Change management requires acceptability from all the concerned stakeholders as it cannot succeed by acceptance of one but by only a collective effort of many. (Change Management 100 Success Secrets) A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be Wayne Gretzky, Canadian ice hockey player Change Management (2008) Literature Review Kurt Lewin Change Management Model In 1947 Kurt Lewin proposed a three stage theory of Change which is very relevant till date and most newer models are quite based on this model. The three stages are: Unfreeze This is the most critical stage as it involves preparing oneself before a change is implemented. It involves understanding that a change needs to take place and the employees need to get out of the comfort zone. A deadline needs to there to which some reward/punishment is linked to motivate the people to go for the change and accept it. So unfreezing one-self and seeing the inherent advantages outweighing the disadvantages lead to a successful change. This refers to another Kurt Lewins theory called the Force Field Analysis. So as per the Force Field Analysis if the pros outweigh the cons then change can take place smoothly as it acts as a pushing factor but if not then there is resistance which can be detrimental to the objective and purpose of the change. We can actually take a practical example to illustrate the above diagram in a better position in the case of Tata motors in the Analysis section. Change So the next stage is the transition stage where the change actually happens. Here we see people have inhibitions as they are unsure of the results or consequences from the change process are taking place within the organization. Certain factors like training, guides and mentors can be used to make the learning process easier and faster as it helps the people to adapt and understand the objective and rationale for the change activity. Through self involvement and proper communication one can encourage the change to take place in an easier fashion. Freeze This stage is also called the refreezing stage as it involves if there is stability after the change has actually occurred. People now tend to adapt and accept the change and it becomes a part of their daily routine. Change is a continuous process and soon after the implementation of the change the next change process starts off at any point and can finish at any point of time. (Kurt Lewin Change Management Model (1947)) ADKAR: Simple, Powerful, Action Oriented Model for Change This model was developed by Jeff Hiatt, CEO of Prosci Change Management and it was first published in 2003. This model tells us that organizational change can succeed when each of the individual members of the organization transition through the change management process. There are five steps in this model: Awareness of the need for change This involves understanding why a particular change is necessary is the primary aspect of a successful change. We here find out the rationale and need behind the change. So the employee will fully understand why change is necessary. Desire to participate in and support the change Here the employee needs to make a personal decision to support the change and participate in the change. Only when the person is confident and convinced that the change is essential then only will he participate in the change activity. Proper incentives need to be formulated in order to motivate the person not to deter from the path of change. Knowledge on how to change This is the third stage of the model in which knowledge about the change can be imparted through training, mentorship and other educational methods. Two types of knowledge needs to be addressed: knowledge on how to change (things to be done during the transition or the time during which the change is being implemented) and knowledge on how to perform after the change activity is implemented. Ability to implement required skills and behaviors In this part of the building block Ability is referred to the difference between theory and practice. Once knowledge on how to change is in place then this is the theory being referred to and then comes the practical aspect which is the actual performance of the individual. This is a time conduming process and can be successfully implemented through practice, coaching and feedback. Reinforcement to sustain the change In the final stage of the model there is an essential component in which efforts made by the individual to sustain the change are pressed upon. Here it is ensured that changes made stay in place and that the employee does not slip back to his old ways which can be ensured through positive feedback, rewards, recognition, measuring performance and taking corrective actions. ADKAR Model of Change (2003) Kotters 8 steps for Leading Change Dr. John Kotter developed the 8 steps to change which can help organizations to avoid failure and be proactive to change. They are: Acting with Urgency It refers to identification of the problem and crisis areas in regards to the company, market and the competitive forces. Developing the Guiding Coalition Form a team of employees who would be responsible to handle the change efforts in a collective manner. Developing a Change Vision This step involves creating a vision and formulating the strategies to achieve the vision. Communicating the Vision buy-in There needs to be clear communication between the employees and the vision and the means to achieve it both need to be known by all the employees while keeping the team as the source of example. Empowering broad based action Use varied risky ideas, non-traditional means and other techniques not in the book to remove all the obstacles to the change. Generating short term wins Visible improvements need to be planned and all the incumbents should be duly rewarded for their efforts. Do not let up To change all the systems, structures and policies new employees maybe needed to be recruited, old ones removed and other promoted to meet the vision by also putting in new projects, ideas, work patterns, etc. Make change stick Use the leaders in the organization to show its employees the benefits of the change activity in both qualitative and quantitative terms so that people do not digress from the change activity. Kotters 8 steps of change (2005) Beckhard Harris Change Formulae In 1987 Beckhard and Harris developed the Change equation which helps the organization to identify all the possibilities to change. The change equation propounded is: D x V x F > R = Dissatisfaction x Vision x First steps > Resistance to Change All the three components must be present in congruence in order to overcome resistance to change. Dissatisfaction with the current happenings, Vision of what is to come in the near future, and the way/direction/First steps to reach or achieve this vision should all be there to repel the resistance to the change activity. Beckhard and Harriss Change Equation (1987) CASE STUDY Tata Motors Jaguar Cars Limited and Land Rover, based in the UK, are one of the key global auto majors companies that are engaged in manufacturing luxury sports saloons and sports cars that cater to the premium end of the market. On June 22, 2008; Tata Motors, Indias largest automobile company, acquired the Jaguar Land Rover businesses from Ford Motor Company for a net consideration of US $2.3 billion. (Press Release: 2nd June, 2008) But just immediately after the acquisition; the global financial sector collapsed and squeezed out global liquidity. The consequent lack of access to credit and working capital, along with the meteoric rise in commodities and fossil fuel prices, has an unprecedentedly devastating effect on the global automotive sector. All the automobile companies, hard hit by the crisis, posted major operating losses. Two of the three major U.S. car makers, General Motors and Chrysler, filed for bankruptcy. Jaguar Land Rover was hit hard in the second half of the year ended 31st March 2009. In the U.S, Europe and Japan, sales of new cars have declined by 16% in the second half of the year. Stimulus packages designed to rekindle demand were only partially successful. The volumes at JLR over the 10 months post acquisition reduced by 32% as compared to the comparable period in the previous year resulting in a Loss before tax of GB à £ 281 million. Europe was in doldrums. This was a major concern for the Tatas since it is a big market for Jaguar Land Rover. By the end of January 2009, Tata Motors had US$ 2 billion outstanding as regards the bridge loan. Moreover, JLR required additional investments, that too quickly, in order to sustain its operations that were burning cash at that juncture. Terming the acquisition as irrationally exuberant , critics started questioning the rationale for the companys move To compound the companys woes, the commercial launch of Tata Motors small car Nano required much more time than anticipated. The Nano was always more than just a car. It was Tata group supremo Ratan Tatas dream project to bring an affordable transportation solution within reach of the masses. The promise of a small car priced at Rs. 1 lakh had fired the imagination of an entire nation and the global automotive industry (Forbes) Faced with the altered dynamics of the new business environment, the company adapted its productive model as well as profit strategy to respond to the need of the hour. Prompt action was taken to reduce inventory, improve working capital, reduce investments and payroll costs including more than 2000 job losses. Transition initiatives were undertaken in marketing, customer financing support, IT and related infrastructure. The company appointed KPMG International and also Roland Berger Strategy Consultants to suggest appropriate action plans to reduce costs at the two brands. It retrenched 2,200 employees of JLR since it took over the management of JLR. The move was in sharp contrast to the well entrenched business practices followed by the Tata Group where no employees are retrenched. The company to secure flexible arrangements with the workforce in the UK. Tata Motors had Rs 191 crore in employee separation costs at JLR during the year ended 31st March 2009 The company finalized guarantee arrangements to access a à £340 million loan approved by the European Investment Bank. These funds will be used to develop new technologies for JLR. The Company prepaid part of the said facility out of proceeds of a Rights Issue and certain divestments and the balance outstanding as on March 31, 2009 was US$ 2.02 billion. For repayment of the said amount, the Company in May 2009 raised resources through further divestments and issued Secured Non-Convertible Credit Enhanced Rupee Debentures in four tranches, having tenors upto 7 years, aggregating Rs.4,200 crores on a private placement basis. The balance facility of US$ 1 billion was rolled over and guaranteed by the Company, by extending the final maturity upto December 2010. New launches were planned. Range Rover Evoque is to be launched in summer of 2011. With a view to capitalize on the growing demand for luxury cars in China, the company gave a major thrust to strategy for China and also explored possible assembly in India Tata Motors non-executive vice chairman Ravi Kant was quoted as saying: A lot of restructuring has happened at JLR but these are early days. We will continue with the cost reduction measures. (Press Meet, November 2010) Tata Motors Group CEO and Managing Director Carl-Peter Forster said, We are focussing on reducing costs and selective hiring for JLR. (Hindu) While sales of JLR, along with that of the Indian commercial vehicle segment significantly reduced in 2008-09 during the global meltdown, resulting in a consolidated loss for the company, all these segments registered an impressive recovery in 2009-10, an event that vindicated the sound fundamentals of the Companys longer-term strategies. The revival of Jaguar Land Rover was significant in April 2010 with global unit sales of the two British brands growing 61 percent, compared with the same month the year before. (Automotive News Europe) Source: Tata Motors Press Meet The efforts bore fruit when Tata Motors Limited posted a more than 100-fold gain in profit for the second-quarter ended 30th September 2010. Group net income, including Jaguar Land Rover, reached 22.2 billion rupees ($502 million) in the three months through September, compared with 218 million rupees a year earlier. This was attributable to global economic recovery, growing Chinese and US demand. (India Watch) Jaguar Land Rover reported a profit after tax of à £238 mn for the quarter ending Sept 2010. In a time span of eighteen months after the takeover, Tata Motors was able to turnaround the JLR story, adopting a strategy of cost-cutting and pushing sales. (MSN News) While JLR turnaround has been achieved, the declining sales of the Nano, the worlds cheapest car, continue to a major challenge for Tata Motors. For Nano, again, flexible to change, the company has initiated a pan-India campaign in order to promote and market the car. The strategy is to reach out to that class of buyers who were the original target base of the company. Senior executives at Tata Motors are closely following pro-active measures to reach out to customers. These include ensuring better coordination between banks and customers, facilitating tie-ups with regional finance institutions and opening newer channels to reach out to the end-consumer, among several others. However these efforts are yet to bear fruition. (Rediff) ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION We can see how the Force Field Analysis can be used in the analysis of the Tata Mators case: Eliminates Errors 1 Managers unhappy with clerical work 2 Faster execution of administrative work 1 Requires trained people 2 Online documentation eliminates the use of paper 4 Some of the activity costs shift to high paid staff 2 Reduces need for clerical staff 3 Cost of eliminating clerical staff 1 Increase Control and audit capabilities 1 Start up costs 1 Total 10 Total 8 From the above example we can clearly see that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages thus change can me possibly be implemented. Successful implementation of change is achieved by either making the driving forces strong or by making the preventive forces weak. After all these theories we can also look into some of the facts stated in regards to change management by research scholars in their papers. As per the findings of the paper Nobody in charge: Distributed Change agency in Healthcare we can clearly see that the authors that in complex organizations where a formal structure and environment is not present a more of a distributed change agency can be established where small teams and groups are formed. These teams have a wider scope of roles with distributed responsibility among all the stakeholders which was possible due to the change goals. Here nobody was watching over the other thus change was a lot voluntary. This is a good approach for such organizations to tackle with change. This concept could have been used by Tata Motors also to help in involving all the levels of management to get the due turnaround strategy in a faster and better manner. Nobody in charge: Distributed change agency in healthcare (2009) Another paper on change management in a dynamic business process tells us that we can make the execution of any business process flexible and adaptable to any situation through the change management technique. Run time change management softwares are used to make all the business processes in a company flexible and dynamic thus helping cope up with the demand for changes even after the new process has been implemented. Change Management in Dynamic Business Process (2010) Prof. Robert E. Ledez in his paper has shown change in a totally different picture. According to him employees perceive change with a very negative connotation and often relate it to downsizing, paycuts, layoffs and relocation. So the employees need to alter their mindset and enable change to take place as in this competitive and ever changing world change needs to take place in all forms like new technology, new ideas, innovations, structural changes and others. Change Management: Getting A Tuned Up Organization Kaizen means continuous improvement of productivity and quality which depends on the participation level of the entire workforce. This is a low-cost approach to productivity and quality improvement. Kaizen is applicable not only to the manufacturing sector but also to the service sector, public organizations, and non-profit organizations. Kaizen is one of most critical components of Japanese industrial support in developing countries. Introducing Kaizen (2009) In the review article of Asian Journal of Management Research it has explained change management as one that incorporates the tools of the company which can be utilized to help individuals to make winning personal evolutions resulting in the adoption and realization of change. The concept of change is not new to Indians, because change management programmes were conducted for Ministers in the Indian government and civil service officers during the 1980s. Change should be implemented smoothly while adapting all concerned stakeholders through planning, idea generation, sharing of information, preparation, evaluation, and reinforcing. There has to be the human resource as the backbone of this change. Implanting Change (2010) In the research paper Getting Organizational Change Right in Public Services: the Case of European Higher Education has thrown light towards the need or requirement of organizational change and the way to manage this change. Change for the sake of change can be detrimental to the organization so we can use the Bys model developed in 2007 called the conscious V/s unconscious change management theory which brings in successful organizational change. The rationale for the model is that most employees will realize that change initiatives are put forward and drilled into by personal interests, self preservation, indecision, lack of knowledge and incompetence rather than by requirement, knowledge, choice, competence, awareness and what is in the best interest of the sector and its stakeholders. Journal of Change Mangement (2008) Conclusion Actually in Kaizen (kai means change) and (zen mean for good) which is very relevant for all organizations today. The participative attitude of all the employees in any hierarchy can be used to find out different varied suggestions with regards to change in all the areas of the business. Change Management is a very evoking area and its necessity increases as the current economic and global climate demands constant evolution and change if companies want to prosper and grow. The technological innvovations, products and rising global competition will only enable the change that will be needed in order to compete. One cannot manage the past but can sure take charge of the future. In a book on managing change we see that organizations of today need to identify the skill set required to control, plan and manage the change activity. The employees need to determine the objectives, scope, and the direction of change and then formulate a structured implementation plan to cope with all the changes in the competitive environment. Managing Change (1991) In this book we see that today externally we find ourselves in an unpredictable economy with turbulent markets, self eclipsing technology and dramatic demographic trends which makes change imperative. It says that there needs to be a process of change in which there are Inputs are seen then strategy formulated, Transformation process and then Output is derived for the change activity. Through a proper strategic intent can change be formulated. Managing change (2004) Strategic Intent (1989) This book talks a lot about change and time period for change. It tells that organizations should focus on certain things for success like: Dont Delay the change activity as time and tide wait for no man. Change Today and not Tomorrow as there may be no tomorrow if the problem escalates. Do not let Bureaucracy hinder change. Change is for the good and is possible through proper communication. Change is simple but needs to be adapted well for results. By Reinventing and Repositioning the organization one can deal with all the oppositions to change. If we monitor the market and the environment we can anticipate and forecast change easily. Harvard Business School (2007)
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