Grassroots Activism Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Grassroots Activism Project - Essay Example This gender mainstreaming is one of the best and very convenient to pursue. It involves looking at the way organization functions in terms of policy development and governance, agenda setting, the administrative function and the overall system as whole. According to Tiessen (2010) gender, mainstreaming is able to accommodate any institutional structure. Institutional gender mainstreaming policy should and must be equipped with channels that enables programmatic gender mainstreaming. Additionally, it is the line of action that ensure functionality of the organization that does not reinforce or conceal patterns of gender inequality in its staffing, functions and governance. In pursuing this line of action, gender inequality will come to be history in the society because it takes a multi-pronged dimension in redressing the social problem of gender inequality In the spirit of programmatic gender mainstreaming a number of action are taken to ensure that the issue of gender inequality is solved. It is one of the means that if its action are fully implemented then the myth of masculinity will be broken, it encourage inter gender competition that is healthy, it will enable women to be respected especially in areas where gender based violence is endemic. The issue or rather concern that is of priority to solve is the inequality that is being experienced because of the myth of masculinity, which is strongly held by a number of people in the society. It’s a myth that has crippled most of the institution that has led to a number social issues that is a concern that is related with imbalanced staffing in term of gender, administrative roles are biased toward one gender because of myth of masculinity (Inglehart, 2009). In order to break this myth of masculinity there is a number of actions that were taken. First and foremost was coming up with the policies that will regulate recruitment a cross the gender. This will ensure that

Understanding Management Essay Example for Free

Understanding Management Essay 1. How can you prepare yourself to become an effective manager in an increasingly uncertain and global business environment? 2. Would the task environment for a cellular phone company contain the same elements as that for a government welfare agency? Discuss. 3. What do you think are the most important forces in the external environment creating uncertainty for organizations today? Do the forces you identified typically arise in the task environment or the general environment? 4. Contemporary best-selling management books often argue that customers are the most important element in the external environment. Do you agree? In what company situations might this statement be untrue? 5. Why do you think many managers are surprised by environmental changes and hence are less able to help their organizations adapt? 6. Why are interorganizational partnerships so important for today’s companies? What elements in the current environment might contribute to either an increase or decrease in interorganizational collaboration? Discuss. 7. Many companies are â€Å"going green† or adopting environmentally friendly business strategies. Clorox, for example, now offers an eco-friendly household cleaner called Green Works. How do companies benefit from going green? 8. Cultural symbols are usually noticed through sight, sound, touch, and smell. For example, Abercrombie retail stores use music, attractive models, and fragrance to communicate elements of its retail store culture. Why are symbols important to a corporate culture? 9. Both China and India are rising economic powers. How might your approach to doing business with Communist China be different from your approach to doing business with India, the world’s most populous democracy? In which country would you expect to encounter the most rules? The most bureaucracy? 10. General Electric is famous for firing the lowest-performing 10 percent of its managers each year. With its strict no-layoff policy, Valero Energy believes people need to feel secure in their jobs to perform their best. Yet both are high-performing companies. How do you account for the success of such opposite philosophies?

Collective Bargaining Essay -- Labor Unions

Collective Bargaining Unions provide a vital service for employees and management by negotiating contracts, ensuring workplace safety, and representing employees in grievance hearings. While there are hundreds of unions in the United States, this paper focuses on three major unions, the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Furthermore, this paper will compare and contrast these agencies, summarize their roles in optimizing employee relations with organizations, describe four challenges management and union officials face, and evaluate privatization as a means of breaking public employee unions. Compare and Contrast Three Unions The NTEU started in 1938 as the National Association of Employees of Collectors of the Internal Revenue (NAECIR) to reflect their expanded membership they changed their name to NTEU in 1973 (History of NTEU, n.d.). The NTEU is an independent organization whose mission is "to organize federal employees to work together to ensure that every federal employee is treated with dignity" (Who We Are, n.d.). While the AFSCME started in 1932, in response to the depression and out fear of the reestablishment of the spoils system their mission "to promote, defend, and enhance the civil service system" (AFSCME: 75 Years of History, n.d.). Whereas the AFT started in 1916 Chicago as part of their mission, they sought to increase wages for all members including women and minorities (AFT History, n.d.). Consequently, the AFT and the AFSCME full under the AFL-CIO and the NTEU remains independent. While the AFT focuses on educators, the AFSCME centers on state and local employees and... ...s, R. S. (2011). Blue-collar public servants : How union membership influences public service motivation. The American Review of Public Administration, 41(6), 705-723. doi:10.1177/0275074010392367 Kearney, R. C. (2011). Randi Weingarten, the American Federation of Teachers, and the challenges of policy leadership in a hostile environment. Public Administration Review, 71(5), 772-781. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6210.2011.02418.x Masters, M. F. (1998). AFSCME as a political union. Journal of Labor Research, 19(2), 313-350. Perry, J. L., & Wise, L. R. (1990). The motivational bases of public service. Public Administration Review, 50(3), 367-373. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/976618 Tobias, R. M. (2004). The future of federal government labor relations and the mutual interests of congress, the administration, and unions. Journal of Labor Research, 25(1), 19-41. Collective Bargaining Essay -- Labor Unions Collective Bargaining Unions provide a vital service for employees and management by negotiating contracts, ensuring workplace safety, and representing employees in grievance hearings. While there are hundreds of unions in the United States, this paper focuses on three major unions, the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Furthermore, this paper will compare and contrast these agencies, summarize their roles in optimizing employee relations with organizations, describe four challenges management and union officials face, and evaluate privatization as a means of breaking public employee unions. Compare and Contrast Three Unions The NTEU started in 1938 as the National Association of Employees of Collectors of the Internal Revenue (NAECIR) to reflect their expanded membership they changed their name to NTEU in 1973 (History of NTEU, n.d.). The NTEU is an independent organization whose mission is "to organize federal employees to work together to ensure that every federal employee is treated with dignity" (Who We Are, n.d.). While the AFSCME started in 1932, in response to the depression and out fear of the reestablishment of the spoils system their mission "to promote, defend, and enhance the civil service system" (AFSCME: 75 Years of History, n.d.). Whereas the AFT started in 1916 Chicago as part of their mission, they sought to increase wages for all members including women and minorities (AFT History, n.d.). Consequently, the AFT and the AFSCME full under the AFL-CIO and the NTEU remains independent. While the AFT focuses on educators, the AFSCME centers on state and local employees and... ...s, R. S. (2011). Blue-collar public servants : How union membership influences public service motivation. The American Review of Public Administration, 41(6), 705-723. doi:10.1177/0275074010392367 Kearney, R. C. (2011). Randi Weingarten, the American Federation of Teachers, and the challenges of policy leadership in a hostile environment. Public Administration Review, 71(5), 772-781. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6210.2011.02418.x Masters, M. F. (1998). AFSCME as a political union. Journal of Labor Research, 19(2), 313-350. Perry, J. L., & Wise, L. R. (1990). The motivational bases of public service. Public Administration Review, 50(3), 367-373. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/976618 Tobias, R. M. (2004). The future of federal government labor relations and the mutual interests of congress, the administration, and unions. Journal of Labor Research, 25(1), 19-41.

Introduction to Computers by Peter Norton 6e

Seeing, Hearing, and Printing Data 1. This type of monitor is common on desktop computers. It looks much like a standard television. A) cathode-ray tube B) flat-panel C) monochrome D) projector 2. Monitors use various intensities of __________ colors to generate the rainbow. A) 16 B) 16 million C) three D) four 3. The __________ helps to align the electron guns. A) pixel B) shadow mask C) resolution D) refresh 4. LCD monitors often have a smaller __________ than CRT monitors. A) refresh rate B) viewing angle C) color depth D) price 5. The __________ monitor is similar to the LCD monitor, but has a phosphorescent film between the layers.A) Electro luminescent displays (ELD) B) Plasma displays C) Paper-white displays D) thin-film transistor 6. This specification of a monitor describes the usable portion of the screen. A) refresh rate B) resolution C) dot-pitch D) viewable area 7. To minimize eyestrain, you should adjust your monitor to a __________ degree angle. A) 5 B) 10 C) 15 D) 90 8. Newer projectors utilize __________ to achieve clearer and brighter images. A) mirrors B) thin-film transistors C) digital light processing D) cathode ray tubes 9. The most complicated part of your computer’s sound system is the __________.A) speaker B) microphone C) headset D) sound card 10. The __________ contains speakers and a microphone on a headband. A) speaker B) microphone C) headset D) sound card 1. Dot matrix and band printers are __________ printers. A) laser B) impact C) ink jet D) thermal 2. Which of the following measures the speed of dot-matrix printers? A) ppm B) dpi C) cps D) lpm 3. Printers use __________ colors to generate the rainbow. A) 3 B) 4 C) 8 D) 16 4. In a laser printer, the __________ transfers the image to the paper. A) laser B) roller C) toner D) drum 5. Home offices often purchase __________ to solve printing and scanning needs.A) all-in-one peripherals B) photocopiers C) ink-jet printers D) scanners 6. For a home user that has casual printin g needs, the __________ specification is the most important specification of a printer. A) speed B) cost of use C) resolution D) paper size 7. The __________ printers are used to produce low-cost posters and handouts. A) dye-sublimation B) thermal-wax C) laser D) ink jet 8. The __________ printer use temperature variations to achieve different colors. A) dye-sublimation B) thermal-wax C) laser D) ink jet 9. The __________ printer sprays ink onto the page. A) laser B) dot-matrix C) non-inpact D) ink jet 10.An organization that needs to produce hundreds or thousands of pages a day, the __________ is the most logical choice. A) dot-matrix B) laser C) ink jet D) thermal-wax Processing Data 1. Chips are made up of millions of tiny __________ or switches. A) etches B) transistors C) charges D) electrons 2. Computers use the __________ number system to store data and perform calculations. A) decimal B) hexadecimal C) binary D) octal 3. There are __________ bits in one byte. A) 4 B) 8 C) 16 D) 32 4. The text code originally used in personal computers. A) EBCDIC B) Extended ASCII C) Unicode D) ASCII 5.The __________ performs simple math for the CPU. A) ALU B) DIMM C) BUS D) register 6. A(n) __________ is one instruction from a program. A) task B) process C) thread D) assignment 7. The __________ is the electronic pathway between components in the computer. A) B) C) D) CPU bus RAM register 8. A modern desktop computer will likely use __________ chips to store RAM. A) SO-DIMM B) SIMM C) DIPP D) DIMM 9. The __________ controls how often the computer executes a task. A) CPU B) bus C) clock D) RAM 10. The __________ bus is used to connect Macintosh keyboards and mouse. A) USB B) Firewire C) SCSI D) ISA 1.The Intel __________ is primarily designed for servers. A) Pentium III B) Itanium C) Celeron D) Centrino 2. This company historically made chips for Macintosh computers. A) Intel B) AMD C) Freescale D) Seagate 3. The newest processor for Macintosh computers is the 64-bit __ ________. A) G5 B) Pentium IV C) Athlon FX 64 D) PowerPC 4. Which of the following specification has little effect on the speed of a processor? A) cache B) system bus speed C) clock speed D) socket type 5. Multiple processor systems that are required to have an even number of processors are said to be __________ multiple processors.A) symmetric B) even C) balanced D) distributed 6. The UART chip controls the __________ port on the computer. A) parallel B) serial C) USB D) Ethernet 7. To add an internal card to a computer, it must have an open __________. A) expansion slot B) bay C) bus D) USB port 8. The __________ interface transmits one bit at a time. A) parallel B) SCSI C) serial D) FireWire 9. Most likely the color of the port your monitor is attached to is __________. A) green B) purple C) red D) blue 10. The SCSI bus connects devices using a __________ cable interface. A) plug-n-play B) daisy chain C) un-terminated D) internal

‘Satyam †the Enron of India’

INTRODUCTION The case study ‘Satyam – the Enron of India’ looks at Satyam Computer Services Limited and its involvement in corporate fraud leading to one of India’s largest white-collar crimes. The Satyam scandal marks as one of India’s biggest corporate scandals where its stakeholders were continually fed misleading financial information from its late chairman Ramalinga Raju. This once promising, global IT company provided its services for some of the largest companies in Australia and the United States, such as Telstra, Suncorp and Qantas, to mention a few.The following case study analysis looks at the failure of Satyam Computer Services Limited due to fierce competition and the need to impress stakeholders, along with inaccurate, misleading accounting statements, unethical behaviour and poor leadership. PART 1: Management issues in the Satyam case study From reviewing the case, the management issues in the case study are unethical behaviour and po or leadership. As there was no approval needed form shareholders it gave Raju and his brother the ability to make all managerial decisions.The lack of leadership and abuse of power let independent directors and audit committee feel intimidated enough to trust in the managerial decisions without question. The need for power and money led to negligence of fiduciary duties and inaccurate deceptive accounting on Raju’s behalf. Raju’s total disregard for managerial ethics just to make short term figures to impress Satyam’s stakeholders resulted in a complete lack of corporate social responsibility.Raju’s greed led to the manipulation of financial records to show increased earnings, payment of salaries to ‘ghost staff’, diversion of funds to purchase property in family member names and fabricated profits ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬. It is believed PricewaterhouseCooper failed to perform its role correctly and therefore this failure to follow fiduciary responsi bilities lead to Raju’s manipulation of the businesses statements and cash flow was go undetected. PART 2: Why the issues are problematic? In the first instance we examine the unethical behaviour and the conflict of interest with family members in high company roles.Since the company was founded and owned by Raju himself, the chairman, and his brother occupying the role of managing director, which gave them and overwhelming majority and a psychological advantage into the decision making of the company. This advantage is how the company books were able to be cooked and inflated profits by selling inflated stakes for went undetected for so long. Without the approval of from the shareholder the directors were able to use company funds to be diverted into family real estate investments.Raju’s expectations for power and ambitious corporate growth also contributed to the fraud. Whist there is no right or wrong way to behave due to Raju’s lack of moral leadership Satya m’s stakeholders, clients and employees were also greatly affected by the demise. Rationalisation and justification lead to negative emotions which could have caused Raju to act emotionally and unethically without any regard for his stakeholders. The damage to the credibility of the company forced the cancellation of projects which in turn lead to the employee’s loss of wages, jobs and self esteem.The mistrust would have had clients question accountability and would have sought business with Satyums competitors. Shareholders would have lost money in the form of investments. Deceptive reporting practices and complete lack of transparency in the finances damaged the company’s future credibility. As PricewaterhouseCooper failed to detect the discrepancies I believe they also hold some accountability in the downfall of the company. As the falsifying of Satyam’s books would lower its stock values, which inturn would lead lower profits and less investors.Howeve r to leave the auditor out of the equation would be a mistake. As a result of negligence with both PricewaterhouseCooper and Raju, the outsourcing company suffered a massive blow in trust and leave further investment in the company questionable. However whilst the scandal put pressure on the Indian government and other Indian outsourcing, this type of scandal wouldn’t be limited to just India as a culture, as It comes down having a good global manager that exercises good ethical behaviour.As all mangers are human it’s the ability of mangers to be self disciplined and handle pressure to provide total quality management. PART 3: Recommendations. In Satyam’s case the need to merge or sell the company would be the first step to restore some faith in the company. What happened with Satyam served as a reminder that a universal, quality corporate governance mechanism is needed to ensure future companies don’t follow in Raju’s footsteps. Complete transpare ncies in finances would also avoid any temptation for unethical behaviour along with more deterring punishments for frauds of this scale.This would ensure higher loyalty and trust from stakeholders. Henri Fayol’s contribution to management thinking would be a great concept to start with, his five principles; I. Planning – Establishing objectives and goals. Recognising obstacles, these can be internal or external, and how to control them. Forming, implementing and following up of plans. II. Organising – Identification, classification, coordination III. Commanding – The delegation of duties to correct workers, successful leadership. IV.Coordinating – Make decisions and ensure all information is shared and to monitor the works involved. V. Controlling – Monitoring and making sure all things are running according to plan. Employee performance reviews Whilst policing manager personality traits would be a perfect solution the reality of policing t his is near impossible therefore management accountability and responsibility would be a good start. Having a universal Code of Ethical Conduct and setting out universal teachings or courses in global ethics may also provide a solution.By obtaining a better understanding of cultural diversity, understanding the abilities, vales and personality types of different cultures ultimately it is up to the manager to be fully accountable. REFERENCE LIST Schermerhorn, Davidson, Poole, Simon, Woods, Chau, 2011, Management Foundations and Applications http://www. mahindrasatyam. com/investors/documents/Annual-Repor-for-the-year-2011-12. pdf http://www. vrl-financial-news. com/accounting/intl-accounting-bulletin/issues/iab-2009/iab441/satyam-scandal-where-to-from. aspx http://www. telegraph. co. uk/finance/4161198/Satyam-accounting-scandal-could-be-Indias-Enron. html

Narrative essay Essay Example

Narrative essay Essay Example Narrative essay Essay Narrative essay Essay The pounding of the door awakened me in the dead of the night. Distinctive voices were calling through the door. I lay in my bed quietly as I heard the footsteps of my mother in the hallway. Lights went a blazing, lighting her way, some spilling into our room. Then I heard a door open and more feet shuffling into our quiet home. Police, said an unknown voice, so loud and so clear. Put your hands up in the air and get down on the floor. My mother moved to obey the order. More feet were moving about. Voices were talking above voices. Someone asked my mother a question. As I listened, I heard the fear in her response and the frustrations in the other. Doors were opened, and then shut closed. Footsteps trekked throughout the house, as if they were looking for something or someone. I heard voices talking, but I didnt understand what was being said, all I knew was that I was scared and curious. My curiosity got the better of me and I moved to get up. My older sister, Chile, grabbed my hand. Dont move, she whispered. I asked her, what was going on. She responded, I dont know. Go back to sleep. I lay back onto our bed, but I didnt sleep. Instead, I thought about my mom. What must she be going through? Who were these people? Minutes seemed to pass by with nothing happening in the other room, but talking amongst them. I couldnt Just lay here and not do anything, I thought to myself. I have to do something. They might hurt her. With wild imaginations churning into my mind, I decided I needed to face them and my imaginations. I untangled my hand from my sister and slowly got up. With the little light spilled underneath our door, I turned my head towards my sister. Her eyes were opened and tears streamed down. Im scare, she whispered. I plied, I was too, but I wanted to know what was going on. Ill go with you, she said, moving quietly about the bed into the next one where my two oldest sisters were sleeping. She shook them, but they were awake and listening to the noises in the other room. They both got up and sat on the bed. Whats going on? I asked the Jessica. Being the oldest, she had a better understanding of the situation. Theyre looking for Jeff and Johnny, she said, referring to my two oldest brothers. Why? Chile asked. They did something stupid, she responded. What did they do this time? my other sister, Amber, asked. I dont know, Jessica said, but lets go back to sleep. What about mom? Chile asked. They wont hurt her, Amber answered. They Just want Jeff and Johnny. Deciding that was the end, Jessica and Amber laid back down onto their bed. Chile and I looked at each other. She shrugged her shoulders, and then went back to bed. Being indecisive, I sat on the bed. What seemed like hours, only took seconds, as I got up. Three heads turned my way. l need to use the bathroom, I told them. Me too, Chile said. Jessica and Amber reluctantly got up. Well go together, they said. They were as curious as I was. And not one of us needed the bathroom. With a racing heart, I hallway and saw figures walking around. They were all dressed in black; black beanies, black shirts, black pants, black shoes. Most wore vests with SWAT written across in bold letters. Some wore their uniforms and others wore street clothes. Opening the door bigger, I bravely stepped out into the light, with my sisters taking the rear. Hearing our entrance, three figures with SWAT on their vests, drew their gun. Police, the one in the middle yelled. Put your hands up in the air and get down on the floor. Those same words they had echoed to my mom. Getting down on the floor, with my hands on my head, I heard footsteps going into our room. Watching through the corner of my right eye, I saw four legs go inside. Lights were being turned on, beds were overturned, and windows were opened. Someone raised their right leg to kick the closet door opened, while another one, with his gun drawn, looked inside. Clear, they shouted from the room. Upon leaving our destroyed room, they told us to get up and walk into the living room in a single formed line. Sitting down and across from my mom, I looked about our home. There were about fifteen to went people inside and outside. I watched them talking amongst themselves. Some were in the kitchen, discussing who knew what, and others were outside. But they were all alert, ready for anything and everything. One of the officers walked up to us. He asked my mom where my dad is. Sleeping, she replied. Point to the room, he said. My mom pointed to the last room on the right. My mom then told Jessica to tell him there were kids sleeping in the room. My mom said there are kids sleeping in the room, she translated. He nodded then left. Seconds later, my dad came out of the room with his hand behind his back. He was awake, the officer said to another. Seating my dad next to my mom, he went outside, while another talked to my dad. Tuning them out, I watched my surrounding again. A couple of officers opened kitchen drawers and cabinets to see whats inside. Someone went into the bathroom to check it out again. Another looked in the garage. Most of the ones outside looked about the yard and kept the neighbors at bay, while some pretended to be busy. I looked at the clock. In a bright red color, it changed from three twenty-five to three twenty-six and my brothers walked through the front door with their hands behind heir back Just as a cry wailed into the night. My strong and prideful mother wept in despair. My father, stoic and unbending, sat defeated. My sisters turned their head away in shame. I looked at my brothers and felt disappointment in them. They slipped into their room with the officers behind them. Minutes later, they came back out. My mom got up and started to ask my brothers what had happened, where had they been, and who had they been with, but was deterred when the officer blocked her. As my brothers left, my mother collapsed onto the floor and cried. We tried to comfort her as best however we knew we couldnt. Before the last of the officers left, one came up to us to tell us what had happened. We all sat in shock as we listened to what was being explained. My oldest brother was being charged with voluntary manslaughter and my other brother to be taken in as witness. Done with delivering his news, he left, quietly closing the door. Locking up the house, my sisters and I surround our parents and cried. We cried for loss of innocence, for our now broken home, and for our brothers. We knew we could never get back those days of happiness. We could only move on from this point and learn that with every action

The Social Economic Implications of a Gasoline Crisis

The Social Economic Implications of a Gasoline Crisis Free Online Research Papers Background Gasoline has been around for ages and is the driving force for much of the world. Gasoline is a mixture of hydrocarbons, although some contain significant quantities of ethanol. In its early days, gasoline was used as a cleaning agent and also as a treatment for lice. Gas became really important once the world started to get into the automobile and aviation period. Some of the first uses of gasoline in automobiles originated during the wars of the early 1900’s and is used everywhere in today’s age. Purpose The purpose of this report is to talk about the economic and social problems that are arising from the recent spike in gasoline prices. Also, it discusses what people can do to help fight against the continual rise in the cost of fuel. Methodology The internet is a tremendous source to use to gather information on a topic, and it proved extremely helpful in obtaining ideas on the problem being discussed in this report. The New York Times online, Wikipedia, Fox News online, and other databases were used to find out valuable information on the topic at hand. Significance Since gasoline is the driving force of the world, it is extremely important to keep and maintain the price of fuel at a reasonable level so that people can afford to drive their automobiles. II. Rising Gasoline Prices The number one reason for the sudden spike in gasoline prices can be easily contributed to the supply and demand curve. The demand for gasoline is up more than ever now, while the supply from the major companies in OPEC is not. According to some sources, the non OPEC countries’ supply of crude oil is dwindling, which is bad for the prices because they are not producing very much oil. This leads to a near monopoly in the oil production factor. Cheap oil, which runs around $60/barrel, may be gone. This summer the average price of a barrel of oil was around $120/barrel. This is a giant leap, a 200% increase, but it really isn’t as bad as it seems. A $120 barrel of oil is still a smaller fraction of the GDP than it was in the 1980’s. Even though many think that this price will shut down the entire world with their energy usage, they are in essence wrong. A major problem with the continual rise in fuel prices is its effect on the average American. The rising cost is putting a drain on a family’s money that could be used for entertainment. Most families live in more rural areas in the suburbs and have to drive a significant distance to travel to work. These long drives put a large drain on their gas tanks. This causes them to spend twice as much as it used to just to travel to work. This may not be as big of a problem as it seems, but these same parents are not getting a raise from work to make up for this deficit. They are not able to do they things as a family that they used to. Another factor that arises from the higher gas prices is the larger cost for the farmers to harvest their crops. A lot of people would not even think about this. They don’t look to the farmers as the producer of all of the items at the grocery store. The cost of fuel is a major factor in how much profit the farmer will make off of the crops that he or she raises. The farmer spends so much money to run their tractors, combines, semis, and trucks. A farmer that was recently interviewed stated that it was going to cost him over $20,000 more this fall to harvest his crops than it did the year before. The higher cost to harvest the crops leads to a direct impact on the cost of the products at the store. Companies have to pay more now to get the same amount of produce that they received originally. Not only does the produce cost more, but the cost of transporting theses goods is rising too. This leads to a direct price hike on the goods at the store. People wonder why they are paying more to go to the grocery than before and don’t understand it. They don’t see that the rise in fuel prices is accountable for a majority of the price increase. This leads to even more spending on families to provide the same food for them to eat. People are spending more money and not getting any more out of it. Not only do the rising gas prices put a damper on families, but it also hurts all transportation in general. Schools also have to spend more money just to drive their buses to pick up students from home, drive to athletic events, and also academic events. High gas prices hurt public transportation as well. They have to spend more to fill up their tanks just like everyone else. For them to keep making their same profits they have to raise the price of fares for citizens to travel with them. A person just can not expect to get the same services as before for the same price when the companies have to pay higher prices for fuel. If they were to do this, they would lose a significant amount of money. This in effect can lead them to going bankrupt after an extended amount of time. The same thing can be said about the airline industry and also tourist attractions. Their costs to operate continue to grow leading them to charge more for a plane ticket to help cover the costs. This then leads to people wanting to not travel as much, which in effect makes those companies lose the revenue that they are used to getting. With the loss of people traveling, the companies have to lay off more people all of the time to try and keep their profits up. II. Lowering Gas Prices There is some hope in sight for everyone. In the couple of months leading up to the election the gas prices have fallen significantly. This is a great relief to many people around the world. Lowering gas prices is a savior to many people. This will ultimately lead to folks having more money in their wallets. In the world today, this is a great thing with the credit crisis going on. So many homes have been foreclosed on due to financial means. This probably isn’t a solution to the problem, but it is a great start. Having more money will allow people to pay off these bills instead of not paying anything at all. The biggest help would be to lower income families and to small family-owned farms. These groups are the people just barely getting by as it is. With the increase in the gas prices it was putting an even larger strain on their already low incomes. Now they are taking a sigh of relief, at least for now. This lower fuel costs will possibly keep them afloat long enough until the government can get the prices under control. III. Who Is At Risk The bad thing about this dilemma is that it affects almost everyone in the world who uses an automobile for anything. Even if you do not use a car or truck for anything it will affect you in same way or another. Any person who drives a car is affected by the soaring gas prices. Whether you drive a long distance or just to the library. It is costing more and more to drive a vehicle. It is affecting many students here at Morehead State University too. Since this campus is like a suitcase college, students packing up and leaving every weekend to go home, it is putting a pinch on their pocketbooks as well. This in effect can actually be better for the campus and surrounding restaurants. With more kids staying around, it leads to them having more business on the weekends. Students will more than likely go out to these companies rather than sitting in their dorms all weekend. The rising gas prices can actually have a good effect on larger cities and metropolitan areas. If less people are out there driving, it will reduce traffic. This is a good thing resulting from the dilemma. With less traffic there is going to be a better chance of having fewer wrecks. Another benefit to less cars being on the road is pollution. There will be less exhaust fumes going up into the atmosphere. This is a great thing for the environment. IV. Conclusion The rising cost of gasoline is a major concern for the US and the World. Recent hikes in the cost of crude oil are having a tremendous impact on everyone. The group that is most vulnerable according to some is the farming industry. Everything that a farmer does with his farm has some use of gasoline involved, whether it is filling up their family cars or to filling their tractors and combines with diesel fuel. Diesel fuel costs around one dollar more per gallon than regular gasoline. People don’t think about all of the factors in the farm that involves gas and diesel fuel. If they are paying more to harvest their crop, then they will have to get more in return on their crops. This leads to a trickle effect onto all of the goods one will buy at the grocery store. As long as the prices stay high then it will be harder and harder for people to live in their comfortable bubble that they are used to living in. Gas prices do not affect only a small portion of society; it affects all. V. Recommendation The hike in gasoline prices has made many think of ways to reduce the impact of the problem. Here is a list of things that are currently happening to help fight the fuel price dilemma. 1. Hybrid cars are being produced and sold now more than ever before. A hybrid car is a basic car that has two different engines. It has the normal gasoline engine and also an electric motor. The hybrid car will run off of the electric motor as long as it is charged. Once the battery runs out it automatically switches over to the gas engine. A good thing about this is that once the gas engine takes over, it begins to charge the electric motor back to running capacity. A bad side to the hybrid car is that it costs significantly more than the average gas powered car, nearly double the price in some instances. It is not the best solution to the problem, but it is a start. 2. Another solution to the rising gas prices is more fuel efficient cars. Most of the big auto makers offer a car that can get 35-40 mpg. The problem with this is that most of these cars are a lot smaller and do not have the large capacity that the SUV owners are accustomed to. 3. A third solution is bio fuels. These are a whole different type of fuel. These include bio-diesel, hydrogen, and vegetable oil. A good thing about these fuels is that they are cheaper to run and also help the environment. They burn much cleaner than a normal gas powered car or truck. BIBLIOGRAPHY Alternative Fuel. Wikipedia. 16 Dec. 2006. 18 Nov. 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_fuel Ashton, Peter K. (2007). The method behind endless gasoline price spikes. Nieman Watchdog. niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.viewbackgroundid=187 Dunn, Phillip. Hybrid CarsPros and Cons. Physorg. 19 Jan. 2006. 16 Nov. 2008 physorg.com/news10031.html. Krauss, Clifford. (2008). Rural US Takes Worse Hit as Gas Tops $4 Average. The New York Times Online. nytimes.com/2008/06/09/business/09gas.html?_r=1scp=15sq=gasoline%20crisisst=nyt Lawinski, Jennifer. OPEC Cuts Oil Production in Move to Boost Prices. FoxNews. 24 Oct. 2008. 15 Nov. 2008 . McKay, Steve. High Fuel Prices Effects on Farming. Telephone interview. 10 Oct. 2008. Why Are Gas Prices So High ? ZFacts. 3 Dec. 2007. 15 Nov. 2008

How to Overcome College Student Homesickness

How to Overcome College Student Homesickness Being homesick in college is more common than most students want to admit. With these 5 tips, however, dealing with it can be a little easier. Call home. This may sound like common sense, but it can really help. The key factor, however, is not to call home all of the time. Dont call more than once a day, and keep the conversation positive. But if you miss your friends, family, boyfriend, or girlfriend, giving them a call can sometimes help ease the heartache. Go visit home once. Visiting home can be a great way to recharge yourself and get some of that TLC (not to mention home cooking) that you need. But going home too often can frequently make homesickness worse. Let yourself go home when you need it, but make sure it doesnt turn into an every-weekend occurrence. Go out with your college friends. Sometimes, a night out with your college friends can do wonders for homesickness. It can take your mind off of things back home, can help you relax and have a good time, and can reinforce relationships that will make your school feel like home sometime soon. Call a friend from back home. Chances are that your group of friends sp read out as each of you went to different colleges. And chances are that your group of friends is missing each other. Give a friend from home a call and catch up for a little while. It may do wonders for your homesickness to just touch base for a quick phone call. Get out of your room. Its incredibly easy to hide in your room in college. But doing so prevents you from meeting new people, trying new things, and experiencing college life in general. You didnt go to school to hide in your room, right? Make sure to spend large chunks of your time out of your room even if its just at a campus coffee shop, the quad, or the library and get your mind on other things. You never know what might happen, but you do know that it wont happen if youre alone in your room all the time.

Review of David Crabtree lecture Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Review of David Crabtree lecture - Assignment Example The third concept was that of knowing about learning in order for the teachers to be able to meet every childs need in terms of learning and reaching their potential. 2) Teachers have to know about learning so they can work out the learning differences with the young people they are working with and also adopt and change their teaching to suit the young people’s needs. 4) The disability social structure is such that the society disables people because it orders things in some way that not all people get access. It is the society to make changes and not the individual with special needs. 6) The legal framework is that if a child with disability is not educated to their potential or suffers discrimination in some way then they have a right to sue. The teaching standards are that a teacher needs to have the skills, ability and training to effect change and have an understanding of all pupils including those with special needs. 10) Funding was initially based on individual needs but now schools receive a global fund for all children with needs that require special attention, not considering whether they have had an assessment or not. 19) All teachers must be trained on cognition learning in order to be able to identify areas that they need to help in and also know how to deal with various issues that arise in the course of their teaching. 20) Transition arrangements are necessary in enabling the teachers to undergo the various trainings and ample time to learn the skills they need in order to teach children with special needs in the right way. This lecture aims at providing detailed information on inclusive learning and ways of helping young people who have special needs in reaching their potential. The information was obtained by David Crabtree through becoming a teacher trainer for teachers who teach children with special needs, especially dyslexia. The observation made was that teachers needed more training in order to be able to

Camera Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Camera - Essay Example The high creativity and innovation of new cameras such as smart phones, which have numerous uses apart from taking photographs may lead to the decline of sales and profits reaped by camera companies (Kurtz 79). This indicates that the product has reached the decline stage, and it may become extinct if the innovation of new photo taking gadgets continues. Introduction Stage This is the stage when the product enters the market the first time, and firms reap low sales and profits because they conduct intense marketing to attract customers (Kurtz 30). The camera was first introduced in the market during the proto globalization period that began in the sixteenth century. Human intelligence increased during this period leading to the invention of various objects such as the wheel and the camera. The first camera, known as obscura, took inverted images that were not saved on any material. The object was as big as a house, and it allowed photographs of one person only. The camera had a hole through which light passed and formed inverted images of the objects in front of the gadget. The images taken by the camera were unclear and unattractive. The inventors of the product later developed portable cameras that increased the need for photography in the world (Joanne 65). Image of the first camera obscura (writtenshots.wordpress.com) Image taken using camera obscura (fineartamerica.com) Growth Stage The growth stage is the second phase of product development, which involves increases in sales and profits. Organizations reap higher benefits in this stage than in the introductory phase because of the incoming of new customers. During this stage, new firms begin producing the good so that they can reap the high profits and sales in the industry (Kurtz 84). In the introductory stage of the camera, Kodak was the only company that produced the product. However, new companies such as Nixxon and Sony entered the industry. The growth stage also involves the addition of features to the products to make them more attractive to existing customers. The additional features also help companies in attracting new users, and this enables them to recover they capital they invest in the production of the good. Eastman, the director of Kodak developed the camera by enabling the saving of images in films. The films were of limited length meaning that they would save a limited number of images. Users of the camera went back for film refilling to the companies where they bought the product when the existing space finished. The images saved on the films were also produced by the producing companies when there was no additional space in a film (Joanne 76). This meant that customers would wait for numerous days to view their pictures. The photographs taken using the film cameras were not also clear; although they were better than those of the obscura. The film camera (www.retrothing.com) Image taken using the film camera (www.shootingfilm.net) Instant cameras were also develop ed during the growth stage of the product life cycle. This is the camera that enabled consumers to recover their photographs immediately. Users did not have to wait for days or months to see their photographs like they did with the film camera (Joanne 93). The invention of this camera increased the sales of Kodak and other companies in the industry. This is because they attracted new customers and recovered sales from those who were dissatisfied by the extensive periods taken to produce

(Intro Psychology) Phobias and Addictions (as related to classical and Essay

(Intro Psychology) Phobias and Addictions (as related to classical and operant conditioning) - Essay Example Both phobia and addiction are contrasting psychological disorders. While phobia causes fear due to certain substance, addiction increases dependency of certain substance. In short, phobias and addictions are two emotional difficulties which learning theorists can account for. Phobias and addictions can be better analyzed with respect to classical and operant conditioning in psychology. The theory of â€Å"operant conditioning† was formulated by B.F. Skinner in 1930. â€Å"It is based upon the idea that learning is a function of change in overt behavior. Changes in behavior are the result of an individual's response to events (stimuli) that occur in the environment† (Operant Conditioning (B.F. Skinner), n. d). On the other hand the theory of classical conditioning was put forward by Pavlov which states that certain responses can be developed with the help of certain stimulus. This paper analyses phobias in relation to theory of classical conditioning and addictions in re lation to operant conditioning. Phobias and theory of classical conditioning â€Å"Several types of learning exist. The most basic form is associative learning, i.e., making a new association between events in the environment. There are two forms of associative learning: classical conditioning and operant conditioning†(Classical conditioning, 2008). Pavlov explained his theory of classical conditioning with the help of a dog’s response to meat. ... However, the dog’s mouth filled with saliva immediately after hearing the bell. Pavlov argued that the stimulus (Sound of Bell) produced a response (the saliva). In other words, he proved that certain behaviors can be conditioned with the help of certain stimuli. Phobias can be explained with the help of classical conditioning. For example, suppose a person suffered the attack of a dog once. He can develop the phobia of feeling afraid of dogs from then onwards. It is not necessary that all dogs may attack human. However, the person who suffered the attack of a dog may always watch dogs with fear and concerns because of his previous experience. Addictions and theory of operant conditioning â€Å"Skinner used the term operant to refer to any "active behavior that operates upon the environment to generate consequences† (Wagner, 2009). â€Å"When a particular Stimulus-Response (S-R) pattern is reinforced (rewarded), the individual is conditioned to respond† (Operant Conditioning (B.F. Skinner), n. d). Skinner argued that certain stimulus can reinforce positive or negative behaviors. Consider a parent tries to wake up his son early in the morning at about 4am for studying his lessons. Initially the child may show some reluctance to wake up and study early in the morning. Also consider the child may be very much interested in having a black coffee early in the morning. If the parent provides him the black coffee after waking him up by 4 am for a period of one week continuously, the child may automatically wake up from the next week onwards asking for the coffee. Here the reward, black coffee has strengthened or reinforced the behavior of waking up and studying early in the morning. Addiction can be better understood with

Conducting e-Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Conducting e-Business - Essay Example Challenges faced by start-up businesses wanting to make the best use of the Internet are first to know why they should take up the e-business route, to know what options are available, and then know in more detail how to go about the whole process of setting up and running the system. All companies under the capitalist system seek competitive advantage over their competition. Therefore, minimizing costs and maximizing profits are the higher priorities. Greater challenges faced by those start-up businesses wanting to use the Internet as its core medium of operation through the deployment of a data-centric service or product: Effective integration of business processes so that the e-business solution is capable of delivering reliable and accurate product/service information online in real time. The company should be able to react quickly to take on new opportunities and reduce costs and time to market their products/services. Additional modules of the e-business system should be flexible, meet industry standards, and allow new implementations to be added easily and quickly, and with minimal disruption. The system must be able to handle the different computing systems across all the company’s offices and departments. Security issues dealing with authorization and access to the system both internally and on the Internet. Seamless integration of internal database with Internet system. Implementation of feedback loops to tailor service based on individual decisions and requirements. This requires faster data analysis tools and greater integration.

Presentation on Web-Based Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Presentation on Web-Based - Essay Example These functions are inevitable and their successful execution ensures the achievement of aims and objectives of every organization. Specific functional areas are given the responsibility of executing specific types of business processes within a Human Services Organization. The following purposes are narrated well by Teachmebusiness.co.uk (2011): Considering Customer services a web based example of a customer services software would be highlighted. The tasks involved in the Customer Services Functional Area can be summarized in tabular form as follows: An example of the functional area of customer services can be SugarCRM. CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. This is an integral functional area of every Human Services Organization as it involves all the customer related processes in it. Details of SuagrCRM are stated on the pages that follow. These CRM based information systems integrate the CRM related processes of a business environment and provide effective and productive linkage between a business environment and its customers. A leading present day commercial example of a CRM based management Information System is SUGAR CRM. SUGAR CRM is web based Open Source CRM software that has many Project Management Tools Embedded right into it. Gantt Charts and Other Add-ons are also available. Being open source means that modifications can be made within the software at almost all levels of it. Created by a California based company in the early years of 2000, it is an application that enables multi user login and contains excellent reporting provisions. Sugar CRM integrates best into the environment of just about any business. The OPEN nature of this software enables businesses to integrate this application package in accordance with the requirements of their business processes. Being labeled as OPEN the entire source code of the software is provided to the

Conducting e-Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Conducting e-Business - Essay Example Challenges faced by start-up businesses wanting to make the best use of the Internet are first to know why they should take up the e-business route, to know what options are available, and then know in more detail how to go about the whole process of setting up and running the system. All companies under the capitalist system seek competitive advantage over their competition. Therefore, minimizing costs and maximizing profits are the higher priorities. Greater challenges faced by those start-up businesses wanting to use the Internet as its core medium of operation through the deployment of a data-centric service or product: Effective integration of business processes so that the e-business solution is capable of delivering reliable and accurate product/service information online in real time. The company should be able to react quickly to take on new opportunities and reduce costs and time to market their products/services. Additional modules of the e-business system should be flexible, meet industry standards, and allow new implementations to be added easily and quickly, and with minimal disruption. The system must be able to handle the different computing systems across all the company’s offices and departments. Security issues dealing with authorization and access to the system both internally and on the Internet. Seamless integration of internal database with Internet system. Implementation of feedback loops to tailor service based on individual decisions and requirements. This requires faster data analysis tools and greater integration.

How has the nuclear agenda influenced American popular culture from Essay

How has the nuclear agenda influenced American popular culture from 1945-1962 - Essay Example The main advances of technology allowed for film advents and television to be introduced to many people. The advances in technology gave one way of communication on the world wide scale of reality and hence they opened a gate through which influences of the popular culture from other world countries got introduced. WWII changed most of ideas which the Australians had in their culture before. Shapiro, J. F. (2002) said Britain being there â€Å"Mother Country† and most of majority living in Australia being British, or form British descent, they were closely associated with Britain and their allegiance towards Britain was strong. In WWII, the United States had offered Britain with many required military support and unfortunately their soldiers got slaughtered in Gallipoli campaign. When the WWII incurred, the battle was near the United States regions and they got themselves encompassed and bombed. However, Britain was as well being attacked directly and the United States came into realization that their defending Australia was not available on the list Britain’s priority. The country had less than 7 million people attacking almost 3 million square miles and hence they required for a super power to help them in their defence. The popular culture in America changed extensively during and after the nuclear era. It involved everything dealing with so called common culture to folk culture. It has been the occurrence of these things in the post war era in American culture which is related with commercial culture and other trappings in: television, movies, radio, advertising, cyberspace, and other commodities which were available for purchase. It also involved other forms of art, games, photography and group experiences such as rave dancing on ecstasy and comet-watching. While social science departments and humanities before 1950s could rarely include anything former in their culture.

Reading habits Essay Example for Free

Reading habits Essay First of all I would say thank you to our Almighty God for giving me the wisdom and the knowledge in doing this project. To my very intelligent, kind, and very patient Instructor, the Area chairman of the Teacher Education Student, Dr Angelita S. Nagun for giving advices to make this successful. Of course to my supportive and loving Parents, â€Å"Mr Danilo C. Cabato Sr and Mrs Violeta M. Cabato who sacrificed and giving their efforts for me especially for financial things. And to my friends and classmates, cousins, Especially Mr Nesty Esteben, for helping me to do this project and giving me the words of wisdom and  encouragement, all of you thank you so much and God Bless.!! APPROVAL SHEET In Partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree, Bachelor of Elementary Education, this research proposal entitled â€Å"LEVEL OF READING HABITS OF THE TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA† has been prepared and submitted by Philip Anthony M. Cabato who hereby recommended for oral examination. Angelita S. Nagun, Ph. D. Adviser Approved by the Committee on Oral Examination Angelita S. Nagun, Ph. D. Chairman Mariluz Segui , Ph. D Ofelia Imatong, MA. ED Member Member Accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of  Elementary Education. CRISTITA C. DULOS, Ph. D. Zenaida U Suyat, Ph. D. Area Chairman, College of Teacher Education Campus Executive Director LEVEL OF READING HABITS OF THE TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CHAPTER 1 THE PROBLEM BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Francis Bacon’s off quoted observation that â€Å"reading make the man full† was made almost five Centuries ago, but still rings true today in an age of wireless communication and computer technology. Educators have expounded on the significance of reading in enhancing individual development and Cultural awareness. Whether pursued us as a pastime or as a means of furthering one’ education,  for both reading keep us aware of what is going around us. It enforces us of what took place in the past affords us glimpses of what will happen in the future. The world of one who reads in necessarily wider than that of the other who does not. It is on the forgoing premise that the literate populace, especially the youths, are argued to devote more in readings broaden their mental horizon increase their awareness of the environment, and be abreast of the chances in modern society Reading is a very important issue which is not only about enjoyment but a necessity: basic tool of education (Makotsi, 2005). The impact of reading in people lives is extraordinary widespread. A reader can learn new skills, can become a more knowledgeable person of the whole world, and he can be stimulated to both thought and emotion. One should read books and other materials to acquire knowledge. If the reading habits is not inculcated among the student community, the school of knowledge will go in vain. The hour is come for the student community to rise up and read books. So it is found necessary to study about the reading habit to the student especially to the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN. The TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN are now having a problem as regards to their reading habit. As the researcher observed, many of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA, URDANETA CITY CAMPUS are reading only when they are told to do so and when examination or quizzes are coming. This study will conduct to help the students and encourage TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA, URDANETA CITY CAMPUS to determine the level of reading habits and to help them determine to themselves if they have good or poor reading habits. STATEMENTS OF THE PROBLEM. The study will seek to determine the Reading Habits of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN A. Y. 2014-2015 Especially, this study will sought to answer the following questions. What is the Demographic Profile of TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN A. Y. 2014-2015. a. Age b. Sex c. Parents Educational Attainment; and d. Family Income What is the Level of Reading Habits of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA, CITY PANGASINAN as measured by the Likert Scale questionnaire when group in terms of: a. Age b. Sex c. Parents Educational Attainment; and d. Family Income What is the Level Reading Habits of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN as measured of by Likert Scale when group as a whole? SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This study will be focusing on the Reading Habits of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF PSU URDANETA CAMPUS, URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN and deemed to benefit several factors. INSTRUCTORS. Teacher may be able to realize that they have the ability to motivate and encourage students to read. STUDENTS. The researcher will help the students know their level of Reading  Habits and for them to be aware to themselves if they have good and poor Reading Habits. PARENTS. Parents may be able to realize that they have a certain influence to make their children read and make it one of their Habits. RESEARCHER. The whole process of the research will serve as a training on how to become an effective and efficient teacher. SCOPE AND DELIMINATION OF THE STUDY The research study will conduct to the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OFPSU URDANETA CAMPUS , URDANETA CITY PANGASINAN during Second Semester of A. Y. 2014-2015. DEFENITION OF KEY TERMS The following terms are defined lexically and operationally to provide a  common understanding of terms in the study. READING. In this study, it is thee cognitive process of understanding a written linguistic method. It also means the action or practice of a person who reads. HABIT. In this study, it is a tendency or disposition to act in a particular way. It also means an established custom, usually practice. READING HABITS. Reading Habits refers to the behaviour which express likeness of reading of individual types of reading and tastes of reading. (Sangkeo, 1999) In this study, it is the creation of a strong desire to read that continues throughout the student’s life. LEVEL. It is a position on a real or imaginary scale of amount, quantity, extent or quality. As used in this study, it refers to the degree or standing of the TEACHER EDUCATION STUDENTS for their reading habits. CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES This chapter presents a brief discussion of relevant and selected literature and studies. This will give the researcher the needed insight and background for discussion and analysis of the finding in this study. It includes Literature and studies reviewed by the researcher which serves as guide and references for the paradigm of the study. RELATED LITERATURE Reading is important for students in general in order to cope with new knowledge in a changing world and technological age. The ability to red is the hearth of self- education and lifelong learning. Reading according to Fatimayin and Lawa(2010), connotes the ability to read well not only English Language and literature text, but also newspaper, magazines, journal, periodical, etc. Reading is a key to a wealth of experience that links people in a way unlimited by distance or time. It provides experience through which the individuals may expand his horizons, identify and develop his  interest while gaining a deeper insight of himself, his fellow human beings and the world generally. Potter (2011) opines that reading fire’s children’s imagination and encourage quick learning as well as widens, expand horizons, and help reader learn about dimes. He further argues that it encourages imagination, curiously and the ability to handle complex ideas. Reading plays a vital role in any worthwhile efforts to learn English. It is also a tool for learning other subjects and a yardstick for measuring academic progress. It is also a through reading that educational objectives can be accomplished. Above all, reading is related to other language skills. Bright and McGregor(1971:3) describe that it has the â€Å" core of the English Language Syllabus† by explaining that the language acquisition of the large extent on reading. It is a gateway to academic success, that is the reason on its importance cannot be overstated. Reading makes way for a better understanding of one’s experience and it can be exciting voyage to self-discover ( Panigrahi and Panda, 1996: Eyre, 2005). According to Deverajan and Gray, as cited in Panigrahi and Panda (1996)0, reading influences the extent and accuracy of information as well as the attitudes,  morals, belief, judgement and action of reading. According to William S. Grey, reading influences the extent and accuracy of information as well as the attitudes, moral beliefs, judgments and action of readers. Books are one of the best tools for training and upbringing. A good book always has a salutary effect on the mind of a reader. It will elevate spirit and thoughts. It will augment his store of knowledge. It is possible that the reading of book might have a deeper impact on the minds of the readers than the other sources of acquiring knowledge. Sometimes, reading brings about a revolutionary change in the outlook  of a person. Reading is the basic foundation on which academic skills of an individual are built, and that has been verified by various studies time and again. Frequent reading is related to the development of sophisticated language structures; higher levels of comprehension, improved word analysis skills, and fluency in significant amounts of voluntary reading are associated with greater interest and skill development (Irving, International Reading Association, 2000). According toChow Chou, 2000, â€Å"a moderate amount of reading will lead to substantial vocabulary gains†. Also in the subject of vocabulary, Parry (1991)  investigated how language learners acquire vocabulary. The subject in her study, whose vocabulary is limited, read very little. She concludes; â€Å"To establish a firm foundation for the vocabulary building to be done in academic courses, we should encourage our students to read as much as they can before they leave our classes† (Parry, 1991:649). RELATED STUDIES Reading habit refers to the behaviour which express the likeness of reading of individual types of reading and tastes of reading ( Sangkaeo 1999). It is a pattern withwhich an individual organizes his or her reading. Similarly, Shen(2000) identifies  reading habits, as how often, how much, and what student read. Researchers in the past decade have devoted efforts to examining learner’s reading habits( e. g. Mokhtari, and Sheorey, 1994). With their endeavours, these researchers have discovered that reading habits are associated with student’s gender, age, educational background, academic performance and professional growth. A good reading habit is necessary for a healthy intellectual growth and play’s a very crucial role in enabling a person to achieve practical efficiency. Furthermore, an individual interest are determine to a considerable extent by the amount he will  read and the intensity with which he will pursue his reading activity. By reading books, onegets confirmation or rejection of one’s own ideas, which makes one think more critically about right and wrong in a society. Reading provides people with a sense of values which enable them to gradually to develop the greatest of all virtues, that is the ability to understand rather than condemn. Books can also be very comforting, especially at times when one doubt’s one’s self and one’s belief. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Behaviourist psychology of the 1950’s influenced the Traditional Bottom-up  Approach to reading, which claimed learning was based upon â€Å"habit formation, brought about by the repeated association of a stimulus with a response† and language learning was characterized as a â€Å"response system that humans acquire through automatic conditioning processes,† where â€Å"some patterns of language are reinforced (rewarded) and others are not,† and â€Å"only those patterns reinforced by the community of language users will persist† (Omaggio 1993, 45-46). Behaviorism became the basis of the audio-lingual method, which sought to form second language â€Å"habits† through drilling, repetition, and error correction. The main method associated with the bottom-up approach to reading is known as phonics, which requires the learner to match letters with sounds in a defined sequence. According to this view, reading is a linear process by which readers decode a text word by word, linking the words into phrases and then sentences (Gray and Rogers, cited in Kucer 1987). According to Samuels and Kamil (1988: 25), the emphasis on behaviorism treated reading as a word-recognition response to the stimuli of the printed words, where â€Å"little attempt was made to explain what went on within the recesses of the mind that allowed the human to  make sense of the printed page†. In other words, textual comprehension involves adding the meanings of words to get the meanings of clauses (Anderson 1994). These lower level skills are connected to the visual stimulus, or print, and are consequently concerned with recognizing and recalling. Like the audio-lingual teaching method, phonics emphasizes on repetition and on drills using the sounds that make up words. Information is received and processed beginning with the smallest sound units, and proceeded to letter blends, words, phrases, and sentences. Thus, novice readers acquire a set of hierarchically  ordered sub-skills that sequentially build toward comprehension ability. Having mastered these skills, readers are viewed as experts who comprehend what they read. Another theory closely related to top-down processing called schema theory also had a major impact on reading instruction. It describes in detail how the background knowledge of the learner interacts with the reading task and illustrates how a student’s knowledge and previous experience with the world is crucial to deciphering a text. The ability to use this schemata, or background knowledge, plays a fundamental role in one’s trial to comprehend a text. Schema theory is based on the notion that past experiences lead to the creation of mental frameworks that help a reader make sense of new experiences. Smith (1994: 14) calls schemes the â€Å"extensive representations of more general patterns or regularities that occur in our experience†. For instance one’s generic scheme of an airplane will allow him to make sense of airplane he has not previously filed with. This means that past experiences will be related to new experiences, which may include the knowledge of â€Å"objects, situations, and events as well as knowledge of procedures for retrieving,  organizing and interpreting information† (Kucer, 1987: 31). Anderson (1994: 469) presents research showing that recall of information in a text is affected by the reader’s schemata and explains that â€Å"a reader comprehends a message when he is able to bring to mind a schema that gives account of the objects and events described in the message†. Comprehension is the process of â€Å"activating or constructing a schema that provides a coherent explanation of objects and events mentioned in a discourse† (Anderson, 1994: 473). For Anderson and Pearson (1988: 38), comprehension is the interaction between old and new information. They emphasize: â€Å"To say that one has comprehended a text is to say that she has found a mental ‘home’ for the information in the text, or else that she has modified an existing mental home in order to accommodate that new information†. Therefore, a learner’s schemata will restructure it to accommodate new information as that information is added to the system (Omaggio, 1993). According to Block (1992), there is now no more debate on â€Å"whether reading is a bottom-up, language-based process or a top-down, knowledge-based process. † It is also no more problematic to accept the influence of background knowledge on readers. Research has gone even further to define the control executed by readers on their trial to understand a text. This control is what Block has referred to as meta-cognition. In the context of reading, meta-cognition involves thinking about what one is doing while reading. Strategic readers do not only sample the text, make hypotheses, confirm or reject them, and make new hypotheses while reading. They also involve many activities along the process of reading, whose stages can be divided into three, i. e. before reading, while reading, and after reading. The activities the readers involve before reading are to identify the purpose of the  reading, identify the form or type of the text. In the second stage (while reading), they think about the general character and features of the form or type of the text— such as trying to locate a topic sentence and follow supporting details toward a conclusion, project the author’s purpose for writing the text, choose, scan, or read in detail, make continuous predictions about what will occur next based on information obtained earlier, prior knowledge, and conclusions obtained within the previous stages. Finally, in the last stage, they attempt to form a summary, conclude, or make inference of what was read. PARADIGM OF THE STUDY  This study shown in Figure 1 in the study next page shows the direction of the study. The Paradigm further shows the demographic profile of the Teacher Education Students. Such as age, sex, parents educational attainment, and family income also respondents with regards to their level of reading habits. Figure 1. Paradigm of the Study The Teacher Education Students Profile in Terms of: Age Sex Parent’s Educational Attainment Family income Level of Reading Habits of Teacher Education Students Age Sex Parent’s Educational Attainment Family Income Figure 1. A paradigm showing the demographic profile of the respondents in  terms of their age, sex, parents educational attainment and family income as well as the levels of reading habits of the respondents. Chapter III METHODOLOGY This chapter presents the research methodology. This contains the research design used, the subjects of the study, sample population, data-gathering instrument, datagathering procedures, and the statistical treatment of the data. Research Design The researcher made use of the Descriptive Survey Method. We will this method through giving our questionnaires to our respondents which are the Teacher-Education students in their most convenient time. The use of the method is to justify by the purpose of the researcher to gather information about the said topic. Respondents The respondents of the study were sixty (60) students. In every section of the Teacher-Education Department of Pangasinan State University from first year BEED and BSED to third year. A random sampling of students in every section was made. Table 1 Presents the distribution of Respondents Course/Section Number of Respondents BEED I 10 BEED II 10 BEED III 10 BSED I 10 BSED II 10 BSED III 10 Total number or Respondents 60 Ten (10) students from every section/course will be select. The chosen  respondents are cooperative and willing to answer the questionnaire. All the respondents in the study will answer the questionnaires in order to find and determine their level of reading habits. Sample Population The researchers will be using random sampling since we are only limited from first year to third year students. Random sampling is the selection of a random sample; each element of the population has an equal chance of being select. The researchers will select the students that belong to the desired course and year level. Data Gathering Instrument The main data-gathering instrument was the two (2) set of survey questionnaires. The first part is intended to gather Teacher – Education students’ background information and the next part is a five-point Likert-Scale Type questionnaire. The questionnaire consisting of items under reading habits that requires the students to rate themselves in terms of scale: 5 – I strongly disagree, 4 – I disagree, 3 – I partly agree, 2 – I agree, 1 – I strongly agree. The researchers made use of the five-point scale likert type test as the main data gathering instrument. The test is made up of 27 questions to be answered by the respondents. Each questions as well as its corresponding options will explain thoroughly. All the  options given are correct except that they differ on the degree on how the respondents answered the questions. Data Gathering Procedure The researchers will personally administer and retrieve the questionnaires to the respondents in the Teacher-Education Department. Assistance from their friends will seek in the administration and the retrieval of the questionnaires in other sections. Data from the questionnaires will be tally and tabulate for interpretation. Statistical Treatment of Data For the profile of the students of this research study, will tally and tabulate in the frequency (f) and percentage (p) table using the formula shown below. P= f/n (100%) Where, P = percentage equivalent f = frequency n = total number of respondents The mean use in describing the language acquisition will determined using the scale below: Mean Scale Rating Verbal Interpretation 4. 20 – 5. 00 Very High 3. 40 – 4. 19 High 2. 60 – 3. 39 Average 1. 80 – 2. 59 Low 1. 00 – 1. 79 Very Low To be able to answer the problem number 2, the Weighted Average Point (WAP) was employed to determine the reading habits level of the Teacher – Education students of the Pangasinan State University – Urdaneta Campus. The following formula used to compare for the Weighted Average Point (WAP). WAP = (f5x5) + (f4x4) + (f3x3) + (f2x2) + (f1x1) N Where: N = total number of respondents WAP = f5 = number of the responses who answered â€Å"I strongly disagree. † f4 = number of the response who answered â€Å"I disagree. † f3 = number of the response who answered â€Å"I partly agree. † f2 = number of the response who answered â€Å"I agree. † f1 = number of the response who answered â€Å"I strongly agree. † Pangasinan State University Urdaneta Campus Urdaneta City, Pangasinan March, 2014 Dear fellow Education Student in Pangasinan State University, May I request you to kindly fill up the attached questionnaire in connection  with my special problem entitled Level of Reading Habits of the Teacher-Education Students of Pangasinan State University year 2014-2015. This will fulfil the requirements for the completion of our subject Introduction to Research. Thank you very much for your kind and cooperation. Very sincerely yours, Philip Anthony M. Cabato BEED II Direction: Please supply the needed information by filling up the given blanks or checking your answer to the questions asked. Name: Sex: Age: Birthday: Course/Section: _____________________ Parents: Father: Mother: 1. Educational Attainment: a. Father: Elementary Secondary. Vocational College b. Mother: Elementary Secondary Vocational College 2. Occupation: a. Father: Manual Vocational Technical Professional *manual *vocational *technical *professional Laundering Dressmaker/ Tailor Technician Lawyer -Teacher Carpenter Beautician/ Barber Mechanic Doctor -Employee Baker Driver Electrician Nurse Housekeep Midwife Mason Dentist Janitor Engineer Farming Architect Labourer a. Mother: Manual Vocational Technical Professional *manual *vocational *technical *professional Laundering Dressmaker/ Tailor Technician Lawyer -Teacher. Carpenter Beautician/ Barber Mechanic Doctor -Employee Baker Driver Electrician Nurse Housekeep Midwife Mason Dentist Janitor Engineer Farming Architect Labourer 3. Family Income: a. Father: _____ Low (P7, 000 below) _____ Average (P8, 000-P10, 000) _____ High (P11, 000 above) b. Mother: _____ Low (P7,000 below) _____ Average (P8,000-P10,000) _____ High (P11,000 above) Self- Assessment Questionnaire for Reading Habits Directions: For each of the following statements, put a check mark on the appropriate column that corresponds to your answer. SCALE RATING 1 I strongly agree 2 I agree. 3 I partly agree 4 I disagree 5 I strongly disagree Statements 1 2 3 4 5 1. When I read books, I feel happy. 2. When I have to read something, I feel anxious. 3. Reading books helps a person learn a language. 4. I read only when I need to find some information. 5. I would rather see a play in a theatre than read the play in a book. 6. I enjoy reading things on the Internet. 7. I enjoyed reading at school. 8. I didn’t enjoy reading at school. 9. I have many books at home. 10. I don’t have much free time for reading. 11. Reading teaches me a lot about life and about people. 12. I get bored in my free time if I don’t have a book to read. 13. I learn more from TV than from reading books. 14. If you want to be well- educated, you must read books. 15. Reading books teaches you things that help you make decisions. 16. I would rather spend money on books than on clothes. 17. I read books only when my teacher tells me I should. 18. I think reading books will be helpful for me in my life. 19. I don’t think reading books will be helpful for me in my life. 20. When I don’t understand something I am reading, it makes me feel less confident about myself. 21. I want to be like my friends, and they don’t read. (If your friends like reading,   don’t answer this question. ) 22. I had a teacher or teachers who enjoyed reading and made me feel I would like to read. 23. My parents encourage/have always encouraged me to read. 24. I think books are too expensive for me to buy. 25. I have a quiet place where I can read undisturbed. 26. At University, I had a quiet place where I could read and study undisturbed. 27. I don’t think books will be important fifty years from now. Bibliography (http://balaibahasa. upi. edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/01_Noorizah-R eading_habit-edited. pdf ) (http://www. buzzle. com/articles/importance-of-reading. html).

Strengths and Weaknesses of Bureaucracy

Strengths and Weaknesses of Bureaucracy The advent of 21st century, the global economy has dramatically undergone changes. Developed and emerging economies are converging to one gigantic global economy; this has directly impacted the businesses compelling organisations around the world to competitive at the international level. The protection shield enjoyed by the organisations behind a closed economy earlier under the cloak of the government restricting entry for foreign players are getting slimmer each year. Consequently, organisations have to compete in their home country against MNC with vast resources, and search for opportunities elsewhere. However, there are numerous other factors which have influenced organisation world wide to reconsider their strategies in the wake of the changing global business dynamics. Free trade area agreements, creation of trading blocs such as the European Union, South East Asian countries (ASEAN) and other similar existing and ones which are still under consideration have immensely pressurized companies, and exposed them to the competition. The competitive and comparative advantages enjoyed by these organisations earlier are now threatened by the new foreign entrants. As a result to survive and grow in the 21st century most organisations either adapted or withered away to the changing conditions. The ones which survived the strong wave of forced adaption have learned their lessons that change is a constant factor in the global business environment, and being reflexive and adaptive is the only way out. Technological innovation is another aspect that has influenced change in the organisation. Technology is evolving at a rapid pace warranting organisation to absorb the changes at the same speed. Other influential factors : Intensity of international competition; presence of key competitors in all key international markets; internationalization of product standards; stronger push by international bodies such as the world Trade Organization (WTO), International Monetary Fund (IMF) increasing level of international trade between countries ; increase in Intra-firm trade ; Technological intensity. At the organizational level, there is continuous pressure to perform in the new business economy; factors such as availability of scarce resources, Value Added Activities, presences of Propriety Technologies, Management Skills , Marketing Skills, creation of strong brand equities, Production know-how , achieving economies of scale , productive capability and presence of low labour costs centres( India , Chain and etc.) and many others. 1.b Strengths and Weaknesses of bureaucratic organizations: BUREAUCRATIC organizations functions well and are suitable for environments which are stable in nature and involve routine tasks and minimal technological changes. A Bureaucratic organisational structure is often centralized; they have a clear, well defined vertical hierarchy of command, authority and chain of control. Productivity and efficiency are achieved through standardization of processes. Emphasis is given to specialization of processes and is most often formalized. As a result of these factors, the tasks in a bureaucratic organisation often results in rigidly defined jobs, process , applications of technology leaving very less or often no space for creativeness or innovative inputs into the system. Since every tasks, process are predetermined and predictable by strict standard operating procedures, the system resemble a machine (Max weber, 1978, cited in Beetham, 1996). According to Max Weber (1978), Strengths and Weakness of a bureaucratic organisation are as follows: Strengths Strict rules and regulation regarding work , behaviour and employee code of conduct Impersonal orientation specific sphere of competence Continuity in uniformity of operations Less impact of any changes to the organizational structure or management Rational allocation of tasks Division of labor based on various specialized functions Membership constitutes a career Promotions are usually based on experience and technical knowledge and competence qualifications tested limited discretion of officers legally based tenure Educational and technical qualifies are tested periodically Prescribed chain of authority and legal compliances Weaknesses Very less or often no space for creativeness or innovative inputs into the system Highly rigid decision making system. Participation is based on defined authority There is a severe lack of empathy or rationality. The origination is highly regulated by set rules and regulations. Productivity and efficiency are achieved through standardization of processes Rigidly defined jobs, process , applications of technology Slow reaction to unexpected crisis Bureaucratic organizational step up is not suitable for industry or companies which are under great pressure to perform and compete in the market. Neglecting group thinking and initiatives 1. c Alternative forms of organizational development: Organisation development is a planned intervention. The primary intention of OD is to improve the current organisational functions to create a strong foundation for strengthens; work towards reducing weakness ; address threats arising due to various factors influencing the business internally or externally; to mitigate risk or at least reduce the exposure or damage, and all these ultimately results to reflect the changing business environment. There are multitudes of intervening areas within the organisation warranting intervention on regular bases, and also at times of contingencies or unexpected crisis. Organisation intending for a higher level of changes often adopt a full range of interventions. This would also include aspects such as the transformation of employee behaviour and attitudes to towards their roles responsibilities and in general, towards the organisational boarder objectives. On the other hand, partial attempt in change management would result in organisational le vel failures. Subsequently, operating policies, personal policies, management structures and organisational skills sets would fall short of it expectations. Typically, organization development programs will implement multiple interventions simultaneously. There are various methods / types of organization development interventions considered for change management: structural interventions, third party peace-making interventions, Intergroup team building interventions, process consultation interventions, forced field analysis Kurt Lewin, Team interventions, and process consultation interventions. Structural Interventions: It is also known as techno structural interventions and mainly focuses on changes in tasks, organisational structure, technological processes, quality circles, TQM, restructuring and work/job design. Intergroup team building interventions: These interventions advocate in the improvement of intergroup relations between work teams, facilitate effective communication. The steps involved are: OD practitioner meets the group leaders and study their requirements. Groups meet separately and encourage noting down about perceptions, related problems, attitude towards each other. This also involves group anticipating each others expectations. This process helps in improving interaction between individuals and groups; find solution to unresolved problems; and minimize the communication gap. Team Building interventions: These interventions are focused on improving team organizational processes, Task accomplishment, Problem diagnosis and establishing strong team relationships. The process involves analysing the purpose of teams existence, objectives and team preparation for task accomplishment. Human Resources management interventions: involves employee performance and assessment management, employee wellness and reward systems, organisational diversity management and many others. Third party peace-making Interventions: various methods and techniques are used , such as the confrontation technique, Insist on exploring possible solutions, Efforts to overcome negative feeling, solving interpersonal conflict Differentiation phase understand differences of perspectives , Integration phase sharing of positive feelings and thoughts. Other intervention areas are team building, self-designing organizations, facilitating, organizational restructuring, conflict management, training, coaching, and organizational transformation, cultural change and strategic management. Key Stakeholders in My Chosen Organisation My chosen organisation for Change Management Process is a local grocery supermarket located in Bangalore, India. It was founded in the year 2001. Initially the retail store supplied only stationery and foods items; however, over the years, more products were added to their portfolio. Today, the retail store known as Naveen Supermarket has range of products such as house hold goods, food items, electronic items among other products commonly found in general grocery stores. Naveen Supermarket has about 20 to 25 employee working in different shifts around the clock. The employees are divided into three main sections, the first group manages the supermarket floor, the second group is engaged with the stock management, and the third group manages telephone orders and delivery system. The supermarket store is situated in a convenient location, surrounded by huge residential complex, transportation points and also major educational and business institutions. Since its inception as a small retail store in 2001, it has now grown into a busy 24 / 7 store serving over 5000 customers every week. From the last few years, world economy has seen a dramatic change in its location. While Naveen supermarket experienced exponential growth, it also faces increasing competition from new entrants especially, large supermarkets, transforming the market into highly competitive business. The usual old ways of attracting and retaining customers have been found ineffective, and consequently, the supermarket is seriously planning to have a major overhaul in the organisational structure, and also business functions to reflect the changing conditions in the market. Change in demographic profile of the surrounding population has also mandated changes including the product portfolio to accommodate multi-cultural food products, different age group especially increasing student and higher working class population. Apart from this, the management of the supermarket is also envisioning of opening similar stores in other locations in Bangalore. Bangalore is known as the second silicon valley of the world, and emerging as one of the major metropolitan city in India, consequently, today the city has adapted a culture similar to other major cities around world attributed by fast moving busy life style. Opportunity A study done by Davies (2001), point out that food customers in UK are not interested to cook food in their kitchen. The quote of Davies stated: Food manufactures should address the need of this fast moving, time starved generation. This can be done by making branded and own label products that fits the changing lifestyle of new era family. Speed is required while preparing food as there is no time to cook. Healthy and convenient food is in demand. The similar trend is rising in India as well. So Naveen Supermarket has the tremendous opportunities to expand their chain across India. Analysis of the type of Change Company is initiating The organization is going to have recent development of the operational change consists of the operational modifications will change the techniques of on-going operations of the company, like the automation of the various operational processes. The operational changes would help Naveen supermarket in improvement in supply chain management practices, increase in revenue, improvement in quality of service and products by applying Total quality management and Kaizen systems for continuous improvements. The main aim of implementing to have cost-cut in long run and achieve competitive edge in the higher competitive market conditions. The change proposed for the automation of transaction and operational activity will also lead to quick decision making and helps in the analysis of current situation. Now, these four different types of changes as per consultant David A. Nadler and management professor Michael L. Tushman together developed an instructive topology of organization change as shown in the diagram shown below. (Kreitner, 2007) Four types of organization change topology Incremental Strategic Anticipatory Tuning Re-orientation Reactive Adaption Re-Creation Based on this model shown in above table, the company is doing Re-creational change. The change is reactive in the sense the company is growing and wants to optimize the operational activities by taking advantage of automation and changing strategic vision of company. Changes Appropriate for Naveen supermarket. 1. Provide quality in its product and services focusing on improve personalized dispositions; improve the order placing and delivery mechanism including online platform. 2. Aggressively market by introducing various promotional offer to match other competitors especially MNC. 3. Control operating costs thereby saving could be too transferred to the customer as increased services or price reduction, and thus building a strong competitive advantage over the time. 4. Recruit professionals in the field retail management, so as represent a fair mix of talents in the organisation representing wide background. 2. B Analysis of models for stakeholder engagement Stakeholder engagement models and its analysis/application: Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholder Analysis and Stakeholder Management are the important aspects of Change Management Process to garner support for change in the organization. This technique can be used to identify the key areas of change, and affected persons in the implementation of the change. Stakeholders are an important asset to the organisation, and therefore its imperative to consult the stakeholder prior to the implementation of change to achieve the desired outcome. Disagreement or partial commitment would jeopardize the entire undertaking, eventually, resulting in unwanted conflicts and disagreement. The stakeholder analysis tool would assist Naveen Supermarket to comprehend and gain an early support from the stakeholders especially the influential ones. This requires that the management educate the stakeholder on the transpiring conditions that the business is surrounded with, which lead to the decision of undertaking change management in the organisation. The stakeholders should clearly be exp lained about the consequences of both options considering and not considering change in the short and long run. Winning the support of the influential stakeholders, and eventually others is the key to the successful implementation of change. The key stakeholders of Naveen Supermarket are: Management Staff Customers Suppliers Investors Government Municipal corporation Community (General Public) The following questions can provide an understating about the key stakeholders thoughts: What is expectation in terms of monetary or emotional? Optimistic or destructive? What is the key inspirational aspect of the project to them? What facts are they looking for? What is the most effective way to communicate the message to them? What steps are required in the management of their objections and opposition? Creating a platform for effective communication with the stakeholders would yield their exact thoughts and feelings of the project, and would enable how much of the support it can gather eventually. In case of objections, what step needs to be taken to turn around the objections into constructive support need to consider? This process can start with establishing an effective communication system, tailoring the information or message to suit the end receivers. Organise training programs, consult and include the stakeholders according to the proportion of their interests in the new development. Stakeholder mapping is a powerful tool allows a quickly analysis of the stakeholders impact, and how to improve the support system. (SVQ, 2007). Stakeholders mapping Stakeholder mapping matrix (MayersVermeulen, 2003) A- Key Players Management Employees Suppliers B- Keep Satisfied Government Local councils C- Keep Informed Customers Investor D- Minimal Effort Community High Interest Low H I GH Power L O W High power, highly interested Stakeholders: These key players should be actively engaged in the project and more efforts should be put to satisfy their curiosity and requirements in the project. High power, less interested Stakeholders: Keep them interested however avoid over indulgence. Low power, highly interested Stakeholders: These players should be kept informed regularly about the developments of the project. Though they constitute low in the power play matrix, their collective number or size has immense influence on the project. Low power, less interested Stakeholders: They dont have direct impact; however, they form the part of the entire system and therefore would require their inclusion in a constructive manner. Task 3: 3A Change models appropriate for my chosen organisation. CHANGE MANAGEMENT MODELS There are many models of change management such as Learning organization approach (LOA), Hope and Hope theory of competition in the third wave, the Kaizen approach to improve the quality of service, Business process re-engineering (BPR), de-layering, downsizing etc. Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) BPR is one of the important steps prior to the implementation of ERP in an organisation. Basically BPR is the fundamental reconsideration of the organisational processes and involves radical thinking. It helps the organisational to improve various business operations dramatically so as to achieve excellence in customer services, reduce operating costs, and transform itself into a global competitor. BPR according to Hammer and Champy (1993), the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service, and speed. The greatest approach to implement change is to understand that change is the only constant in the dynamic business environment and embracing it is the key to survival and future growth. BPR is a methodical training process to enable companies to conduct feasibility evaluation for managing vibrant change. (Erpwire, 2010) John Kotters 8 step change model Kotter (2002) describes a methodical process to change management. Kotter suggests that for change to be successful, at least 3 /4 of the companys management need to embrace the change factor positively. The Kotters 8 step change model illustrated with a diagram in the context the supermarket.Identify short priorities and set achievable objectives Focus on accomplished and future milestones. Strengthen the importance of fruitful change via employment, promotion, and intertwine change into the organisational culture. Construct the regulatory team Repeatedly and robustly with the stakeholders Establish a simple vision and strategy within the team. Inspire people to move Allow positive feedback and tons of backing from leaders reward and recognize improvement and accomplishments. 8. Make change stick 7. Build on the change 6. Create the short-term wins 3. Create visualization for change 2. Construct the regulatory team 1. Increase urgency 4. Communicate the Vision 5. Remove Obstacles Kotters 8 step change model Kotters 8 step Change model, Source: www.Leadershiphub.com 3.b Implementation of change model in my chosen organisation In my opinion, Kotters model would the purpose of implementing the change management to achieve desirable results for Naveen Supermarket. According the model followings steps need to be undertaken: Create the sense of Urgency Step One Sense of urgency should be created among the stakeholders especially ones with most influence on the Naveen supermarkets business. This would include the shareholders primarily, employees, customer and other as deemed fit into the system for the change management. Form a Powerful Coalition Step Two Naveen supermarket must create effective leadership platform to implement and monitor change in the organisation. This requires coalition and support with key employees who can initiate and control and monitor the change process through its life. Create a Vision for Change Step Three To get employee and other stakeholders participating actively, Naveen supermarket should have clear and transparent, comprehendible vision about the change and its implications. Otherwise the enthusiasm would fade slowly from the epicentre of the core activities of the change management as it moves away and as time pass by. This would require that the leader regularly reinstate the vision to the employee to keep them altered of its progress and active involvement. Communicate the Vision Step Four Naveen supermarket should communicate the vision to the participants effectively through various channels such as media, training programs, organisational announcements. The more the emphasis on the key points in the vision the better the influence of it on the stakeholders. The vision should be comprehensive, cover every operations of the business that need change, influence and motivate the employee to be part of the change management. Remove Obstacles Step Five There are likely chances of obstacles crippling into the implementation process very often. However, the organisation should remained focused on the key action plans, closely monitor, get regular feedback and undertake any necessary actions required to adjust to the changing factors of the environment. Obstacles can come from internal source or external. Naveen supermarket should take speedy actions to restore the plan on its due course of execution. Obstacles that can be removed should be eliminated, others which tend to remain and deeply rooted must be accommodated without actually diluting the vision or jeopardizing the actions plans. Create Short-term Wins Step Six The Naveen Supermarket store must identify tasks, which can be accomplished easily. The results achieved would encourage further involvement and motivate others to join the effort whole- heartedly. Proper compensation and reward system should be built in the change management process. Employee who contributed considerably should be recognized and rewarded accordingly, thereby, setting an example of the personal benefits from its involvement. Short term achievement should be communicated effectively to the stakeholders to keep them interested. Build on the Change Step Seven This is one of the important steps. Naveen supermarket should build on the change, evaluate every winning factor and leverage on it. Failures should be identified and corrective steps need to be taken, so as to avoid similar failures in the future. Success got at this stage should not be assumed as the final victory rather, it must enable deep thinking, and serve as input to the next stage of change management after all change management is a continuous process. Anchor the Changes in Corporate Culture Step Eight In a long and continuous effort of change management, the process should eventually be observed into the main stream culture of the organisation. For changes to be a part and parcel of the organisational culture, the leaders should regularly alert and create awareness about the existence of the change management that is deeply rooted in every organisational activity. The perception of change management should become an inseparable part of the organisational culture in a long run; this in turn would create a platform and facilitate any major undertaking in the future. Desirable Outcomes of Change Program The change management would eventually yield desirable outcome if it is undertaken constructively and effectively throughout its various implementation phase by the Naveen supermarket management. The three key areas of noticeable changes are: Operational changes The operational changes would help Naveen supermarket to improve various business operations. The changes should result in considerable improvement in the near future in the online orders and delivery mechanism which it is planning to launch very soon, floor management, supply chain management practices, improvement in quality of service and products , employee performance, reduction in operating cost resulting in increased revenue generation. Strategic changes Changes in the areas will give clear vision and direction to all the stakeholders of Naveen Supermarket. In a long run it will create value and ethos that is conducive for achieving growth and increase performance. Cultural changes Key values and ethics in business operations created along during the process of the changes would be imbibed into the organisational culture. It would serve as motivation and sense of purpose for the employees and other stakeholders to achieve and contribute to the organisational goals. The success achieved would drive home a message that, organisation to survive and grown in the highly competitive business environment mandates change, and the stakeholder, especially, the employee are the agents and catalyst to the change management process. In a long run the process would reflect that organisational culture is based on change management philosophy for success. Conclusion The change in organization generally also brings several issues. To make the change process a success it requires a lot of effort from the change leader. The change management model chosen by company needs to be thoroughly monitored and implemented. It is also measure and controls the success of the change process. Changes often result in individuals taking on greater responsibilities, retraining, performing new tasks and developing new skills and new ways of working. Individuals are taken out of the comfort zone they have operated in for some time. The anxiety and stress that can be caused if the process is not well managed will manifest itself in resistance to change. Greater degree of consultation and worker participation, both in the development of the strategic vision and the implementation of change, should increase ownership, thus reducing anxiety and stress that often drives resistance to change. Failure in most change processes can be traced back to poor communications and f ailure to appreciate the amount of retraining that is required. To conclude, I found that the scope of change is too wide and I would suggest that company should bring changes in different phases such as first of all bring the change of automation of some operational activity and later on when this change is successful implement other change.