Soil Liquefaction Dangers During Arthquake

Ground shaking and shifting can cause major damage, tearing apart houses, buildings, and roads. †¢Flooding that arises from broken water dams or river levees is another hazard. †¢Tsunamis, triggered by an undersea earthquake as well as seiches – waves coming from lakes shaken by a temblor – can submerge whole communities, sweep away edifices, topple trees and drown people. †¢Fire is another seismic hazard. It can flare up from broken gas and power lines, or from overturned wood, coal, or gas stoves. But there’s another major earthquake danger that not many are familiar with. Soil liquefaction is a phenomenon that occurs when soil mixes with groundwater during a moderate or strong earthquake, turning the ground into quicksand in minutes. Soil Liquefaction in Low-Elevation Areas Because the soil must be saturated for liquefaction to take place, it is more likely to occur in low-lying areas that are near bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, bays and oceans. It happens most often in areas with sandy soil, where water takes hours to wend its way through the tiny channels of the mixture. More resistant to liquefaction are large-grained, permeable soils like gravel, which drains quickly, and clay soil, where particles are packed closely together.. It was in 1964, when earthquakes shook Niigata, Japan, and Anchorage, Alaska, that soil liquefaction was recognized as a major cause of earthquake damage. Scientists have since linked it to major historical earthquakes worldwide. Soil liquefaction inflicts great damage to property. Since the ground is too unstable to withstand pressure, anything resting above the mush—a building, a bridge, a house, a pier, a runway, a nuclear power plant, an earth dam—may lean, tip over, split open, or sink several feet. Ways to Reduce Soil Liquefaction Risks What can be done if a soil has been identified as susceptible to liquefaction? An undergraduate research paper written by Alisha Kaplan lists three ways to reduce liquefaction risks when constructing new buildings and structures. †¢Avoid building on liquefaction-susceptible soils. Besides soil tests, vulnerable places can also be pinpointed by investigating past events in an area. Soils that had liquefied in previous seismic events can liquefy again if another quake occurs. †¢Erect liquefaction-proof structures. If construction on weak soil cannot be avoided, the structure’s foundation should be designed to resist the damaging effects of liquefaction. The building must be made ductile, equipped with adjustable supports, and constructed to withstand large deformations and span soft locations on the ground. †¢Improve the soil. Improvements should increase ground strength, density and draining capacity. Installing vibroflotation, vertical wick drains, compact piles, and stone columns can lower the possibility of liquefaction. Soil liquefaction cannot be taken lightly, especially by those living in suspected liquefaction-prone areas. With earthquakes seemingly in the news more often, it serves residents and authorities alike to take a look around them and assess if they are standing on firm ground, literally. Taking safety measures in advance can save lives and property should a calamity strike.

Mba 1st Sem, Principle and Practice of Management

IIBM Institute of business Management Semester – 1 Principle and Practice of management Answer Sheet Section ‘A’ – Part One: 1. A plan is a trap laid to capture the FUTURE. 2. STAFFING is the function of employing suitable person for the enterprise. 3. DEPARTMENTATION means â€Å" group of activities & employees into department†. 4. ACCEPTANCE THEORY states that authority is the power that is accepted by others. 5. DECENTRALIZATION means dispersal of decision-making power to the lower level of the organization. 6.MASTER CHART is the basic document of the organizational structure. 7. Communication which flow from the superior to subordinates with the help of scalar chain is known as DOWNWARD COMMUNICATION . 8. Needs for belongingness, friendship, love, affection, attention & social acceptance are SOCIAL NEEDS. 9. A management function which ensure â€Å"jobs to be filled with the right people, with the right knowledge, skills & attitude i s STAFFING DEFINED. 10. COUNSELING is a process that enables a person to sort out issues and reach to a decision affecting their life. Part Two: 1). The difference between management & administration are that:-Administration is the function in industry concerned with the determination of the corporate policy, the co-ordination of finance, production and distribution whereas Management is the function concerned with the execution of policy within the limits setup by administration. Thus, administration is formulation of policies and is a determinative function while management is execution of policies and is an executive function. Administration involves the overall setting of major objectives determination of  Ã‚  policies, identifying of general purposes laying down broad programmes etc. hile management is the active direction of human efforts with a view to getting this done. 2). The common drawbacks of the classical and the neo classical theories of management are listed be low:- i) Both the theories had certain unrealistic assumptions and hence were not applicable to the organisation at a later date. ii) Both the theories had limited application, the formats and structures of organisations are not universal in both the theories. There is no particular structure which may serve the purpose of all the organisations.They also overlook some of the environmental constraints which managers cannot ignore and this lapse makes the practicability of the theory limited. iii) Lack of Unified Approach: The theories lack the unified approach of an organisation. 3). Line Organisation is the oldest form of an organisation. This is known by different means, i. e. , military, vertical, scalar and departmental. All other types of organisation structure have mostly been modifications of the line organisation. The concept of the line organisation holds that in any organisation derived from a scalar process, there must be a single head who commands it.Although an executive can delegate authority, he has ultimate responsibility for results. According to some writer â€Å"Line structure consists of the direct vertical relationship which connect the positions and tasks of each level with those above and below it, and some others say â€Å"organisationally, the line is the chain of command that extends from the board of directors through the various delegations and re-delegations of authority and responsibility to the point where the primary activities of the enterprise are performed. 4).Acceptance theory is a theory which states that authority is the power that is accepted by others. Formal authority is reduced to nominal authority if it is not accepted by the subordinates. The subordinates accept the authority if the advantages to be derived by its acceptance exceed the disadvantages resulting from its refusal. The subordinates give obedience to the mangers because they visualise the following advantages- i) Receipt of financial incentives. ii) Contr ibution in attaining the objectives of the enterprise. iii) Fulfilment of responsibilities. v) Appreciation from colleagues. v) Setting of an example for others. vi) Responsibility to leadership of superior. vii) Moral obligation because of regard for old age, experience, competence, etc. According to acceptance theory, authority flows from bottom to top. A manager has authority if he gets obedience from the subordinates. Subordinates obey the managers because of the fear of losing financial rewards. This theory emphasises sanctions that a manager can use and overlooks the influence of social institutions like trade unions. Section ‘B’- Case let – 1Q1) Critically analyse Mr. Vincent’s reasoning. Ans: Mr. Vincent was a good and successful manager but he followed the traditional type of management skills, and that is why he was not unsuccessful. But when he was taught of many other ways of managements he started to think that he should only know it for the t est because he was confident thinking that whatever he knows is enough as he was successful, but he was wrong because with other skills applications he could have not only been successful but could also grow his organisation and take it to the top of his competitors.He could make an increase in the profit of his organisation and save the wastes as much as possible. Being an manager he should have always been innovative in his ideas of management but he was going the other way, even though his professor was teaching him new thought he was busy thinking that he will stick to his old way of planning, organising and controlling approach to manage his store. Q2) If you were the professor and you knew what was going through Vincent’s mind, what would you say to Vincent?Ans: If I was the professor and knew what was going through Vincent’s mind then I would have explained him the concept again but this time the other way giving him his own example and then make him feel the la cking part of his successful management career making him feel that his thought were also correct put old enough and needed to be updated according to the needs of the environment today.I would have told him that with modernization he should become innovative too and that not only planning, organising and controlling are steps of successful management but it could also be thought of as quantitative models, system theory and analysis, and even something called contingency relationship, so that he could implement many other theories and methods in his process of managing his job, so that he should not only be successful but Also that his organisation should grow and give good competition to the other organisations around him and so that he could make good and proper use of his available resources.Case Let – 2 Q1). Diagnose the problem and enumerate the reason for the failure of D’Cuhna? Ans: D’Cuhna was a good professional executive but being good and equal someti mes might go against one’s self only.The problem with D’Cuhna was that he was going to quickly in his work and not giving others time to catch up, everyone knew that he was selected because of his experience, background and abilities but he should also understand that he was the part of an organisation which was new and not even fully trained for the work so how could they work at his speed and expectations, the problem with D’Cuhna was that he being an old executive should know that in an organisation there human beings and that they are emotional in nature so he should not treat everyone i. . male and female staffs in the same manner, he had no right to scold someone on account of others pending work, because it was his duty to see that if someone is on sick leave he should replace that position temporarily, but D’Cuhna did not do so and went on to scold the female staff. When he was cross answered by the female staff for the first time then only he sho uld have understood her emotional nature and talked to the higher authority for suggestions. Q2). What could D’Cuhna have done to avoid the situation in which he found himself?Ans: If at the very beginning only D’Cuhna had looked into the matter as why the female clerk was submitting nil returns and after knowing it if he would have filled the vacant officer’s place with a temporary staff then the matter would not have been raised higher, later when the lady clerk was cross answering him then instead of firing her and scolding her if D’Cuhna had gone and spoken to the higher authorities regarding the matter then planned and taken any step to solve the problem and then taken any strict action then also D’Cuhna could have found himself out of this trouble.Even after all this had happened if D’Cuhna had apologised to the lady staff and then explained her politely then also some chances were there for him to get out of this trouble which he had created for himself, as ladies are very emotional in nature and like politeness. But after all what had been done and finally the only option for him to get out of all this was to quit as he did. Section ‘C’ – Q1) What is training? Explain the different method of training?Ans : Training is the act of increasing the knowledge and skills of an employee for doing a particular job, traditionally training had focused on technical and mechanical skills. Training has to focus also on interpersonal and social skills, on listening, on control over body language, on communication and presentation skills, etc. The different method of training is as follows:- i) Case Method: This method can be said to be midway between â€Å"learn by doing† and â€Å"learn by listening. In this method the trainees get a descriptive record in the form of a case. The participants, have chance to see themselves as one or another person in the case ii) Incident Process: Unlike the case m ethod the incident is also a brief statement of an event or a situation. Additional data is event or a situation. Additional data is made available in response to specific questions from the participants. iii) Lecture Method: This is a very popular method. The lecture is actively involved while the participants are largely passive. v) Business games: In business games, the participants may form into groups of three or four, each groups would be given data about plant capacities, material costs, availability of materials, cost of carrying inventories, etc. and based on the fact provided to the participants they have to make decisions simulating situations which arise in business organisation form time to time. v) Role Playing: In this method different participants are given details and fact of a character about its past and are told to act like it. Q2) Explain Decision–Making Process of an organization?Ans: Decision-making: Management process involves decision making at all le vels. Decision-making describes the process by which a course of action is selected as the way to deal with a specific problem. If there is only one alternative, the question of decision making does not arise. The quality of alternatives which a manger selects determines the organization’s performance, and the future of the organization. The decision making process of an organization are listed below:- * Setting objectives: Rational decision-making involves a concrete goal of objectives.So the first step in decision-making is to know one’s objectives. * Perception of the problem: Perception involves defining and recognising the problem in a clear-cut manner. * Analysing the problem: After defining the problem, the next step in decision-making is analysing it. The problem should be thoroughly analysed to find out adequate background information and data relating to the situation. * Developing alternative solutions: After analysing a problem, with the help of relevant in formation, the decision-maker should formulate several alternative solutions for the problem. Screening the alternatives: After developing various alternatives, the next stepshould be to judge and evaluate them through some decision criteria. * Selecting the best solution: After evaluation of various alternatives, the nextstep is the selection of the best solution. * Implementing the decision: After taking the final decision the next problem isto put decision into effect. * Feedback and Control: The last step in the process of a right decision is to follow up the decision.

Cargills Quality

It is a public listed subsidiary company under Cargills Quality foods which is fully owned subsidiary of Cargills PLC since 2010. Kotmale is a leading brand in the dairy sector in Sri Lanka. Under the â€Å"Kotmale† brand milk packets, chees, curd, yogurt and milk powder are produced. Kotmale Holdings PLC is named as Cargills Quality Dairies (Pvt) Ltd since 2010. In this report, Cargills Food City Retail Supply Chain is discussed by considering the product brand Kotmale Milk Packets. ? Retail Supply chain Above figure shows the retail supply chain of Cargills Food City regarding product â€Å"Kotmale UHT milk packets†. Stakeholders of this retail supply chain Milk Farmers who live in Upper country Sri Lanka Flavors suppliers Packaging supplier – Tetra Pak, Colombo Cargills Quality Dairies(Pvt)Ltd Cargills warehouse Cargills Food City Marketing and distribution operator – Millers Customers Final Consumer Milk Farmers When consider about this retail supply chain, milk farmers are the 2ndtier supplier. Mostly Cargills buy fresh milks from upper country milk farmers. This retail supply chain has about 15000 small scale milk farmers. For the better link with these milk farmers, Cargills has introduced HNB farmer insurance schemes free of charge. Cargills directly connect with these suppliers without having intermediaries. It is an advantage of this retail supply chain. Tetra Pak Another 1sttier supplier is Tetra Pak branch which is situated in Colombo. Tetra Pak is a multinational food packaging company. Cargills Quality Dairies The second tier supplier of the retail supply chain is Cargills Quality Dairies (Pvt) Ltd. It is the manufacturing and processing plant of Kotmale UHT milk packets. In this report we consider about manufacturing plant which is situated in upper Kotmale. Cargills Warehouse Cargills warehouse is the distribution center. It keeps the stock of milk packets and distributes one delivery per one week per each retail outlets. This is the largest warehouse in Sri Lanka. It handles over 50000 items. Cargills Food City The retailer of this retail supply chain is Cargills Food City. It is the most valuable retail brand in Sri Lanka. The largest retail chain consist the Cargills food cities all over the country. It has the motto â€Å"On your way home†. Mostly Cargills Food City focuses everyday busy customers. Cargills food city outlets have the mass customization strategy. There are around 232 outlets which a spreader in 23 districts. Millers The distribution and marketing operator of this retail supply chain is Millers. It is also a subsidiary company of Cargills Ceylon. â€Å"Millers† is the national distributor for all the Cargills manufactured and branded products. â€Å"Millers† links the raw material suppliers with manufacturing plant, manufacturing plant with warehouse and warehouse with Cargills food city outlets. †Millers† makes the Cargills retail supply chain unique by being the one and only distributor. Customer Customer may or may not be the final consumer. He is the person who purchases the product from retailer. In this supply chain, father who buys the Kotmale milk packet will be the customer. Retailer also is a customer of Cargills warehouse. Cargills warehouse is a customer of Cargills Quality Diaries and that manufacturing plant is a supplier of raw material suppliers. Customer buys these milk packets because of the influence of final consumer. Final Consumer Final consumer is the person who uses the products. In this supply chain, a small kid who drinks that milk packet will be the final consumer. ? Key Performance Measures Key Performance Indicators measures the organizational performance which is most critical for the success of the business. They should measure frequently. KPIs significantly affect the behavior of an organization. And also KPIs show the capabilities of managers, staff and the individuals. Let’s consider following framework to analyze the key performance of Cargills Food City retail supply chain. Business Strategy Supply chain strategy Supply chain objectives Operational Metrics Customer service Metrics Financial Metrics Current, Cargills use a competitive strategy of business strategy alignment in supply chain. It has aligned the supply chain strategy to the core business strategy. And Cargills has a strategy of lower retail price for customers. â€Å"On your way home† is the slogan of Cargills food city for everyday customers who live busy lives. Cargills Food city has a unique backward integration with suppliers. Operational metrics In operational metrics Cargills Food city, measures the internal performance of the supply chain and the business. Operational metrics are derived from processes, decisions and actions taken internally to meet or exceed the customer expectations. The goals of Cargills to measure operational metrics are waste reduction, inventory management, evaluate supplier performance, unit cost reduction and time compression. Interface: Cargills Food City Cargills has a Made to Stock order fulfillment strategy regarding Kotmale UHT milk packets. Cargiils food city keep a finished products inventory of Kotmale milk packets. So, it is vital to measure following key performance indicators under operational metrics. Invrntory turn over= (Cost of goods sold)/(Inventory investments) Inventory Holding days= 365/(Inventory turnover) Cargills food city has about 9. 125 inventory turnover value and the Inventory holding days is about 40 days. Interface: Cargills Warehouse/Cargills Food city interface Key performance indicator of this interface is stock holding day. Minimum stock holding days of Cargills warehouse is 15days. Interface: Suppliers Cargills retail supply chain regarding Kotmale has vertical integrated supply chain. Further it is a backward integration. In supplier interface, Cargills measures daily volume of collected milks from milk farmers in upper country. Present daily milk collection is about 60000-70000 liters. And also under waste reduction, Cargills measure KPIs regarding water consumption and energy consumption of manufacturing plant, Cargills Quality Dairies (pvt) Ltd. It measures in terms of cost per kilo. Interface: Distributor Rather than having third party distributor, Cargills retail supply chain has own distributor, Millers. In this interface, Cargills measure the delivery time of products and the transportation cost as key performance measures. Customer service metrics Customer service metrics are indications of a company’s ability to satisfy the needs of customers by meeting customer needs on timely basis and creating exceptional value to the customers. The ultimate output of this sector is satisfied customer. Through this performance measures, Cargills ensures about customer satisfaction, response time and delivery performance whether that the right product is available at right time in right place to the right customer. Cargills retail supply chain measures case fill rate, customer profitability, delivery time for customer and average response time. Interface: Cargills food city and manufacturing plant/customer interface In these interfaces, case fill rate is measured as a key performance indicator. Case fill rate=((No of cases customer received)/(No of cases in the customer order))*100 When consider about the responsive time, Cargills Food city has higher responsiveness. Another key performance indicator of Cargills Food city is time period of handling customer complaints. They handle those complaints within minimum time periods. They have a customer relation officer to handle those complaints within the premises. Cargills Food City measures four specific key performance measurements. They are customer retention, average purchase value, sales per square foot and sales increment. Customer retention rate gives the idea about customer loyalty towards the Cargills food city regarding product Kotmale Milk packet. And also it is a good indicator to evaluate the customer service level of the retail outlets. Customer Retention Rate=(((No of customers at the end of the period)-(No of new customers within that period))/((No of customers at the start of the period) ))*100 Besides customer retention rate, Cargills use Customer satisfaction metric to identify the customer perception towards the company. According to customer satisfaction rate, Cargills can decide whether the customers spread the good name or the bad name of the company. According to survey done by Cargills at the point of purchases, they have identified that a customer share the positive experience within Cargill outlets with another 2 or 3 people. But the negative experience is shared with the 8 to 10 people. So it is very important to measure this key performance indicator. The average purchase amount measures the value that gets per purchase order. Average purchase amount= (Total Revenue in a given period)/((No of purchase orders in that period)) Interface: Distribution- Millers When consider about product Kotmale UHT milk packets, Cargills supply chain has customers all over the country. They have divided country into regions and assign a day to deliver products. They have a schedule for it. That schedule goes with a route plan. In this interface Cargills’ key performance indicator is â€Å"Adherence to the route plan†. Millers do one delivery per one week per one branch with full loaded truck. Financial Metrics Financial metrics indicate whether the company’s strategy, implementation and execution are creating value for the shareholder by contributing bottom line improvements. Cargills measures the economic value as a key performance indicator. It describes about generation of wealth and the distribution within stakeholders. The direct economic value generated by Cargills group in 2013 is Rs. 10. 3 Bn. Besides that Cargills measure the return on assets, return on equity and profit margins to measure profitability of the business and the wealth generated from assets. Return On Assets=(Profit/(Total Assets))*100 Return On Equity=(Profit/(Shareholders equity))*100 Cargills measure PE ratio to identify the share value. PE Ratio= price/Earnings This PE ratio gives an image about the company portion towards the share. Higher PE ratio attracts more and more investors to the Cargills retail supply chain. Current PE ratio of the Cargills is about 50. SWOT Analysis and Recommendations SWOT analysis The competitive strategy of Cargills is business strategy alignment. Strengths Vertical integrated supply chain. The stakeholders of this supply chain, Cargills quality dairies (pvt) Ltd, Cargills warehouse and Cargills Food city are owned by one owner. That is Cargills Ceylon PLC. So it integrates supply chain partners properly. And also it reduces the transaction costs and uncertainty of the supply chain. Because of this vertical integrated supply chain, Cargills can keep a strong position in the market against international market partners. Low retail price for Kotmale UHT milk packets and high volume of sales. Cargills Food City’s slogan is â€Å"On your way home†. It mostly focuses the busy everyday consuming customers. Cargills Food city is the ease of one stop shop that gives the shopper convenience of purchasing groceries. So, customers attract to these retail outlets and buy more. Only one distributor along the whole retail supply chain. Cargills retail supply chain has only one distributor, Millers. So, the transportation cost is low. Has the largest retail outlets chain Most valuable retail brand in Sri Lanka This attracts more and more customers to the retail outlets. And Kotmale milk packet’s brand name also is more popular. Clear direction and coordination of top management It is strength of having a good coordination within supply chain. Coordination in collaborative manner improves the performance of supply chain. High technical advanced communication system Cargills has the largest IPVPN wide area network in Sri Lanka. It consist hundreds of router and network links. Through this communication tunnels, Cargills provide lot of value added services to the customers. Belongs the largest warehouse in the Sri Lanka Strong relationship with suppliers Direct link to milk farmers and rural areas Direct link with milk farmers improve the trust within suppliers and manufacturing plant. This trust is vital for long term success of the supply chain. Foe get quality raw milk, the trust is important. Long successful history Cargills retail supply chain has a long history. With an experience, they can clearly identify the obstacles in the supply chain and take action for them. Weaknesses Poor leadership in store level and operation level Storage issues at outlets, Cargills food cities Delay of payments for small scale milk suppliers Inadequate maintenance response time Manpower shortage Opportunities Capability of expanding supermarket chain After the war, market opportunities have been increased. Every successful business tends to start a business branch in Northern part of the country. So as a leading retail company, Cargills has a huge opportunity to start retail out lets and milk manufacturing plants in those areas. High demand for UHT milk packets. Rapid development in the supporting infrastructure and information technology in the world. Today the technology regarding supply chain increases without stopping. Adopting those technologies without delaying will be a competitive strategy for the retail supply chain. Adding more and more value added services Developing closer rural network and emerging markets to rural areas. Now the rural areas are also developing with high accessibility towards the market. There are better road network too. So, starting retail out lets in those areas will improve the quality of life of people and also will increase the market share. Highways. The development of road network reduces the transportation cost and travel time. Higher increase of population. The current trend of people is consuming products like Kotmale milk packets. Increase of population leads to increase of demand for these kinds of products. It is an opportunity for Cargills retail supply chain. Threats Force of competitors like keels super and Lak Sathosa. Keels super compete with Cargills Food city in terms of quality, price and customization. And also Lak Sathosa provides products at low prices. It attracts middle class and poor people highly because they concern about price rather than quality. Highly increasing inflation rate Pressure of international markets Recommendations for the improvement of supply chain The ultimate goal of any supply chain is satisfied customer. So it is important to keep existing customers while attracting new customers. When consider about profit, 80% of profits comes from the existing customers. So, Cargills should take action to retain the existing customers. For that except for having gift cards and senior citizens card systems, customer loyalty card system is highly recommended. Now, there is an increase of customer complaints towards the Cargills Food city. To handle those customer complaints efficiently and effectively, a better customer relationship management system is recommended. Cargills retail supply chain has the largest warehouse in the Sri Lanka. To improve the performance of this warehouse, RFID tracking system will be very useful. For better replenishment process, a good vendor management system is vital. For better coordination in collaborative manner within the retail supply chain of Cargills regarding Kotmale milk packets, starting a call center is vital. If Cargills can expand this retail supply chain out of the country, new markets can be achieved. Online shopping system which gives real time information will be a great an opportunity increase the market share. Today, customers’ lives are complex. They have busy schedules. So they like to do online shopping mostly. Rather than having supplier centered supply chain, it is good to have customer centered supply chain. Although it has a huge inventory in Cargills warehouse, it is a cost for the supply chain. It does not gain any revenue. So if the supply chain makes more visible to the supply chain partners, it will reduce the bullwhip effect while reducing inventory cost.

(SOCIAL WORK) Social Circumstances Report - Case Study Essay

(SOCIAL WORK) Social Circumstances Report - Case Study - Essay Example She likes to spend time with her grandmother and learn Gujarati from her. Till this age she has not dated or selected her lover. She comes from a conservative family background. In their family culture they respect Muslim traditions and follow their customs. Ruksana suffers from certain disabilities like learning disability and physical weakness. Many people in the world faced this problem in their childhood. â€Å"Learning disabilities are problems that affect the brains ability to receive process, analyze, or store information.† (Learning disabilities 2009). Her speech is impaired and she struggles due to phonological disorder. These two problem forces her to take help from others in her personal chores. She travels short distance by electric wheelchair. She completed her schooling from a residential specialist school. Students of such schools are different from normal students. They cannot learn like normal students. They are physically weak and have learning disability. According to a report about safeguarding disabled children in residential special schools â€Å"protection from abuse of disabled children living in residential settings has received much less attention than the protection of children looked after by local authorities.† (Paul, Cawson & Paton 2006). People need patience to communicate with her. It indicates that one reason for her impaired speech may be lack of attention from her parents or other close relatives. Had they given more attention to her in her childhood, this problem could have been solved to an extent. Her speech and language therapist Mr. Jean helps her for this. He adopts computerized assistive voice technology and she is interested in this computer based study. Usually such people seek help from learning and speech therapists when they face problem in learning and reading (About academic language therapy 2004). Here Ruksana did not get help at the initial stage. When she got such a

BP Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

BP - Article Example Horton applied Bureaucratic leadership style and his major source of influence to get the organization following transformation was the need to increase the profit margins of the oil company. David Simon (1992-1995) was the successor of Horton. His major source of influence was to expand the oil company in continental Europe, Asia and South America. He was to make this possible since he spoke five languages. His main leadership style was control and direction. After Simon becoming the Chairman of the company, he was replaced by John Browne (1995- 2007). His major source of influence was to change the oil company in continuity. He was a charismatic leader (Dumas 2011). The three CEO’s of the company have the desire for the company to expand to other regions and also increase the volumes of sales and profits in the company. The main consequence of these methods of leading is that sometimes it can result to the company operating at losses (Dumas 2011). Simon’s strategy can be referred as market oriented versus resources. This is because he was able to revive the company and also the company was able to pay its debts, which it had incurred during the leadership of Horton (Dumas

Communication in Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Communication in Organizations - Essay Example It is an established company with a wide scope that involves extensive communication within the organization and with other stakeholders. Its administration is as a result characterised by a number of management meetings for ‘decision-making’. The company’s organizational structure consists of a board of directors at the top with seven directors, a chairperson, a general manager, and line managers. Decisions are made through deliberations in meetings and resolutions passed to line managers for implementation. Communication refers to a process in which a party sends a message to another who receives the message, comprehends it, and submit a feedback to the sender. In any organizational set up, effective communication leads to successful pursuit of objectives while poor approaches to communication undermines objectives and may lead to negative impacts. Kelly however argues that people can achieve effective communication through â€Å"vigilance, perseverance, and by using their power to change course† and laid down structures (2011, p. 199). This means that success in a communication process depend on the parties capacity as well as skills towards effective communication (Kelly, pp. 199, 200). ... Effective communication also means clarity in message content as well as accuracy in targeting the recipient. The subject of communication should not be vague and should directly target the intended recipient. Similarly, effective listening skills facilitate a successful communication process through enhancing the recipient understanding of the communicated piece of information. Attitudes, as developed by either the sender or the recipient, also affect effectiveness of a communication process (Auer and Blumberg, p. 113). Theories into communication have also been used to explain the communication process. Trait theory for instance explains that people have different characteristics that define their personality and behaviour. Such traits determine a person’s ability to demonstrate the essential elements of effective communication. A person’s characteristics will for example defines the applied level of attentiveness to the communication process as well as attitude towar ds the communication process. Negative traits therefore undermine effectiveness of a communication process (Littlejohn and Foss, 2007, p. 66- 68). Consistency theories, another communication theory, explain the essence of consistency among parties to a communication process. Such consistencies are necessary with respect to the parties’ attitudes, the parties’ behaviour as well as between behaviour and attitude. The fundamental principle is that while consistency creates a favourable environment for effective communication, its absence initiates change in attitudes that may adversely affect a communication (Littlejohn and Foss, 2007, p. 78). Similarly, the theory of identity suggests that a person’s identity affects his or her

Perspectives on People at Work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Perspectives on People at Work - Essay Example They make possible the application of the process of management and create a framework of order and command through which the activities of the organisation can be planned, organised, directed and controlled. In this case, the personality of a manager and his own individual differences determine the style of management and have a great impact on the staff. Without the direct participation and support of a manager, this power cannot be pushed to its full potential. Successful management require many of the characteristics common to all managers, but also requires special abilities to manage any organization in today's rapidly changing environment. The concerts of perception, individuality and attitudes play the most important role here. The impact of individual differences on the staff is important, because managers are judged not just on their own performance but on the results achieved by subordinate staff. There are many ways of looking at the meaning and role of individuality. It should be mentioned that for many oganisations, individuality of the manager and his personal skills as a leader is the main criteria in recruiting. For some corporations, individuality is the major criteria for further promotion. The personal qualities of managers are identified as an essential part of the process of management and require that proper attention be given to the personnel function. The effectiveness of any team or staff is dependent upon the efficient use of their skills and knowledge. In this case, the human element plays a major part in the overall success of the organization (Robbins, 2004). Proper attention to the personnel function of a manager helps to improve the efficiency of the labour force and the level of organisational performance in general. The influence of the manager's individual differences can be explained by the fact that the manager is an example for his subordinates. The manager is a leader who has a great influence on employees through his image, personal values and ability to motivate people. Good communication skills of the manager will result in an open and friendly atmosphere in the organization. If the manager has a reserved character, the staff relations will be restraint and emotionally limited. The staff can exercise self-direction and control to achieve objectives to which they are committed, if they are persuaded by the manager. The practical manager can be helped by analysing various approaches to leadership styles, but he must come to his own conclusions and adapt to the actual situation. Under proper conditions people can learn to accept and seek responsibility to follow his style of management and personal characteristics. The impact of manager's differences is closely connected with the process of perception. The concept of perception means that people select from the environment around them the information they need the most. The process of perception includes comprehension of sounds, shapes, smells, colours, pain, movement, taste, touch, pressures and feelings. And the most important, the process of perception determines individual behavioural responses to particular situations (Schuler, 1998). From the psychological point of view, perception is explained by the fact that people are not able to respond to everything around them, and they subconsciously select the information. The process of perception is important for a manager, because he has individual differences perceiving other people, and employees perceive him

America Business History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

America Business History - Essay Example Strategically designed and economical office furniture is therefore needed by all organizations. Getting custom built furniture and employing local labor and designers is both cumbersome as well as a painful process. Catering to the demands of office furniture for most organizations by provided prefabricated, custom designed and ready to fit furniture according to space availability and nature of organization is therefore the need of the hour. As mass production of furniture is already well established, particularly in some areas of New York, the company will have its headquarters at New York and will solely focus on office furniture for small and medium organizations, whose demands can be met in a timely and efficient manner. My company will commence operations from a hired shed in an area earmarked for small industry. A small workforce of 25 people composed of skilled and semi skilled carpenters and labor will be hired and their services utilized for designing and preparing small furniture items like office tables, chairs, filing cabinets, and foot rests ideal for small offices. Two engineers will be hired for visualizing and designing the components as per the type of raw material available, the present requirements of the upcoming US industries. The company will utilize only wood as the raw material as it is available in plenty with no resource crunch. Adequate quantity of raw material and hardware will have to be pro cured, stored and maintained by a single logistics manager of the company. The resources needed are wood as the principal raw material, hardware which includes tools and semi automation products, electricity and ideal premises for setting up the factory. Capital for setting up the industry can be procured as a loan from the bank which should be gradually paid off after meeting the initial sales targets. The focus of the company will be to become self reliant in terms of finances within a period of 5 years or even lesser,

An Investigation into the Effects of the 2012 London Olympics Dissertation

An Investigation into the Effects of the 2012 London Olympics - Dissertation Example Initial Literature Review This literature review focuses on the basic theories to be considered in the influencing of an investigation into the effects of the 2012 London Olympics. This review is divided into three main sections i.e. the paradox of globalization and localization, strategy perspective, and impact of culture. ïÆ' ¼ The paradox of globalization and localization: According to the theory of globalization and localization, the global convergence is mainly composed of convenience, low cost and high frequency of international communication, transportation and travel (De Wit & Meyer 2004). With the development of technology, the issue of distance has been overcome, and this has been a major boost in the Olympic games, considering that each time these games are held in different countries. This has improved the relationship amongst countries globally since they have become more closer than before. In the recent past, globalization has become extremely important expecially in the development of international strategy which includes global products and brands. With the opportunity of being the host country of the Olympic games, London opens doors for a markets, as well as target customers for global products and brands. Although there is the adoption of a standardized strategy, which might be desi rable under certain conditions, we cannot ignore the fact that there are several constraints to restrict the development and implementation of a standardized strategy. ïÆ' ¼ Strategy perspective

Shopping consumerism researsh Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Shopping consumerism researsh - Essay Example It has popularly grown over recent years, mostly because customers find it easy and convenient to negotiate shops from the comfort of their home or office. One of the most persuading factors about online shopping, mainly during holiday seasons, is that it reduces the need for waiting in long lines or searching from store to store for an item. In shopping malls, traditional shoppers peruse through the displays and aisles to find what they want, sometimes finding products that they were not even seeking. Online shoppers tend to use search engines to find products or product categories. Online shopping will be increasingly based on the shop knowing more and more about the individual shopper. Therefore, we’re going to see the online shopping experience be based more and more on automatically displaying products that the shopper is known to like (Chuanlan 2007). It is easier to shop over the internet. I have tried it a lot of times, and I know why I say so. According to (Elmer 2012), consumer information, which in online shopping is in the internet, plays a vital role in diminishing the spheres of sales, production, and distribution. The internet offers a wider platform for sellers to market and advertise their products, and for consumers to view, select and purchase whatever they are interested in. The most fundamental aim of Internet shopping is to cause an improvement on the customer and vender services. It upholds the details of addition of new customers, product receipts, product deletion and updating, and customer payments. Internet shopping also stocks up details of invoices generated by consumers and their payments, including details of payment such as credit card. In online shopping, customers find a merchandise of interest by paying a visit to the retailer’s website directly or by performing a search among optional vendors with the use of a shopping search engine. Once a

Inductively Coupled Plasma †Atomic Emission Spectroscopy Essay Example for Free

Inductively Coupled Plasma – Atomic Emission Spectroscopy Essay The aim of this practical was to use an ICP-OES to perform a multi-elemental analysis of different types of tea. The elements that were analysed in the tea were copper, iron, manganese and magnesium. The sample is introduced into the plasma as an aerosol. Argon gas flows through three concentric quartz tubes in the plasma torch. This argon gas transports the sample from the nebulizer, acts as a cooling gas and is also a source of electrons and ions for the plasma [1]. A magnetic field is created around the plasma torch. The ionisation process is started by the ignition of the argon gas from a spark produced by a tesla coil [1]. During this process the plasma reaches a very high temperature and the sample is atomised. The atoms are then excited to a higher state. Since this is an emission analysis, the analysis is performed as the atoms emit energy and return to a lower energy state or their ground state. A spectrometer or monochromator is used to select the wavelength that is being analysed. The multi-element detector then gives us a readout that can be understand for each element that is analysed Explain the benefits and limitations of plasma over a conventional flame used for FES with photometry and AAS. The benefits of using plasma are that the chemical interferences are decreased due to the high temperatures that the plasma reaches and refractory elements can also undergo excitation. There are also many wavelength for different that can be chosen for analysis so you don’t have two elements that have wavelengths that are close to each other as this would interfere with the analysis. A limitation is that spectral overlap can occur and the preparation of the samples is a very long process compared to that of the flame spectrometry Data Show the calculations for you multi-element standard. Instrument: Perkin Elmer OES (optima 5300 DV) The preparation of multi-element standard 1000ppm solutions of (Cu), (Fe),(Mg) and (Mn ) were given. A working standard solution containing the entire four elements was prepared in the following way; 1 ml, 10 ml and 5 ml of Fe, Mg, and Mn were respectively added in one 100 ml volumetric flask. A solution of Cu was prepared separately (intermediate solution) by placing 1 ml of the 1000ppm Cu solution in a 100 ml volumetric flask and made up to the mark with distilled water, the resulting concentration was 10ppm. The formula that was used to calculate the volume of the 1000ppm Cu solution needed to prepare 10ppm solution in a 100 ml volumetric flask is; C1V1 = C2V2 †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ equation 1 Where C1 is the initial concentration C2 is the final concentration V1 is the volume of the initial concentration V2 is the total volume of the initial concentration and the solvent The volume of the barium required was calculated as follows C1V1 = C2V2 1000ppm x V1 = 1ppm x 100ml V1 = 10 ppm x 100 ml 1000 ppm = 1 ml Then 1 ml of the 10 ppm Cu solution was placed in the 100 ml volumetric flask that contained the other three elements, and made up to the mark with distilled water, this was the working standard solution. Using equation 1 it is found that the concentrations of the elements in the working standard solution are as follows. Explain why the type of sample preparation carried out was necessary. The Acid digestion was suitable because a complete transfer of analyte into the solution in order for the determination step to be introduced in liquid form is highly desirable and this method completely transfers the analyte into solution. This thus means that the digested sample is a complete solution of the analyte and has a complete decomposition of the matrix however with minimal loss or contaminated of the analyte Explain what matrix matching is and what problems may arise if this is not carried out. Matrix matching involves preparing solutions in which the major chemical compositions of the standards, blanks and samples are made identical thereby cancelling out the effect of the sample matrix on the analysis results. While matrix matching involves matching the solvents, it also involves matching the concentrations of acids and other major solutes. In case where the standard and sample matrices are quite different or cannot be matched and interference occurs as a result, internal standards can be used. Comment on the correlation coefficient of your calibration graphs. The correlation coefficient measures the strength in the linear relationship between two variables. A correlation coefficient of 1 would mean a very strong linear relationship between two variables, which means the points form a perfect straight line. The correlation coefficients for the calibration graphs were very good. The calibration graphs for copper, iron, magnesium, and manganese gave correlation coefficients of 0.991539, 0.991005, 0.999874, and 0.999952 respectively. This shows that the samples were prepared very well and that there is a strong linear relationship between the emission and the concentrations of the elements. Compare the different elements in the different types of tea. Which tea would you recommend and why? The tea that seems to be most essential for human consumption is the green tea owing to the high content of each and every element present in it. It has high concentration of manganese which is a vital substance in the body as it is an enzyme activator; it keeps bones strong and healthy, and also maintains the health of our nerves. References 1. Dr L Pillay, Chem 340, Instrumental Analysis, ICP-OES notes 2. http:// www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrint dbod=77(accessed 16/04/2013) 3. http://www.chemplex.com/petrochemical/multielementMetal.aspx(accessed 16/04/2013)

Spring 2012 WOU Dance Concert Essay Example for Free

Spring 2012 WOU Dance Concert Essay Attending the Spring Dance concert was a fun learning experience. I am glad that this was a required assignment for this dance class because if it was not required I am sure I would not have attended . The variety of dances have taught me different things, and one of them is that you do not have to do complex moves in order to dance. The dance I have decided to write about is Voicing Acceptance choreographed my Nancy Sorensen. There are many reasons why I have chosen to do my paper on this specific dance. I will discuss how the sound or movement, lighting,movement and females/males contribute to the overall success of the dance piece. First, I will discuss the message of the dance piece and how the sound/music contribute to the achievement of dance piece . The dance was about students expressing their feelings towards dance. Each of them did a recording of them speaking and that recording was played at the While the recording was playing the student was dancing. I like the sound and music because it supported the dance. The dance just as the music and sound was soft and emotional. The students were really good at expressing the music and what they feel with facial expressions. For example some of them were smiling and some were serious. The dance piece supports the title because hey are voicing their personal opinion on why they are attracted to dance.As the sound was playindg there was a pattern I saw which was that every student would dance as their recording was playing. The lighting on stage made this dance piece be even better. The lighting during the dance was great. When everyone was dancing the light was constant. But, when a particular student was dancing they would use a spot light on him or her. I really liked the idea of putting a spot light on each student when their recording was playing, because we as the could identify the student. While the student was dancing the lights were pointed towards him/her. Their dancing was both imaginative and communicative. I think that it was imaginative because you hadhave to imagine what each movement was about, while at the same time was communicative, because they were telling the audience what they felt and they were also communicating through body language. For example, when a student was dancing he used his arms and it went well with the sound and music. The movement of their hands was soft and it was slow just like the music. The idea of incorporating females and males into the dance helped this dance piece be great. In the recording a student said that many people stereotype dance. They said that dance is only for females, but Voicing Acceptance proved that this is wrong, anyone can dance. Having females and males gave the dancers the opportunity to have a partner and together they were able to express what they felt. In conclusion, definitively my favorite dance was voicing acceptance by Nancy Sorensen. throughtout my paper I have explained why I think how the sound or movement, lighting,movement and females/males contribute to the overall success of the dance piece. Overall the dance concert was great. I got the opportunity to enjoy different types of dances. This dance made me really emotional. I loved the way each student expressed themselves; I was almost going to cry. I believe that one of the purposes of this dance was to get in the audiences heart and it really did.

Reflecting On Ones Practice Nursing Essay

Reflecting On Ones Practice Nursing Essay Striving to become better at what one does entails reflecting on both the positive things that one has achieved and the mistakes committed in the process of performing ones duties and responsibilities. Reflective practice focuses on the learning that has evolved and correcting what has been done wrong. This essay assesses my professional, clinical development through an analytical reflection from a patient seen in the Emergency Care Centre (ECC), as part of the holistic health assessment module. The assessment model used in the consultation will be examined, together with theoretical and evidence based practice, and how this has helped developed my approach, linking decision-making and best practice outcomes. Following Gibbs (1988) model of reflection, I shall establish the integration between theory and practice. This model identified six stages involved in reflective practice where at each stage the I would ask myself a number of questions leading to the final stage of an action plan. It begins with selecting a critical incident to reflect upon followed by keen observing and describing of the incident, then analyzing my experience. This is followed by interpreting the experience and exploring alternatives leading up to an action plan. This is is a cyclical process which enables continual retrospective reflection. II. Reflective Practice Reflective practice has been a key underpinning of qualified nurses since the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) (1992) required them to keep a professional portfolio. As professionals, we are accountable for our ongoing learning and self development, providing the best care to our patients. To ensure this, we need to focus on our actions and skills to be able to meet the demands of patients, colleagues and professional bodies. In order to be reflective practitioners, we need to be reflective thinkers. Reflective thinking is thinking that is aware of its own assumptions and implications as well as being conscious of the reasons and evidence that support the conclusion (Lipman, 2003, p.26). John Dewey defined reflective thinking as an active, persistent and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusion to which it tends (cited in Martin, 1995, p.167) . Reflective thinking leads one to be more self-aware so he can develop new knowledge about professional practice. Reflective practice has been recognised to be an important tool for professional development. Rowls and Swick (2000) agree and observed that practitioners who regularly reflected enabled them to develop their skills and the way they deal with patients. Schunk and Zimmerman (1998) describe how a self- reflective practice allows us to monitor, evaluate and adjust our performance during learning. Adjusting strategies based on assessment on our learning helps to achieve the goal of learning and identifying the activities well suited to our situations (Schunk Zimmerman, 1998). However, practitioners often found the process quite time consuming and there was a greater fear of becoming introspective or being critical of oneself too much in practice. It is likely that one can be too engrossed in his reflection that he gets to neglect the delivery of a great work performance. Schons theory outlines two different types of reflection that occur at different time phases: reflection on action (Schon 1983) and reflection in action (Schon 1983). Reflection in action is often referred to the colloquial phrase as thinking on your feet a term used to being able to assess ourselves within a situation, making appropriate changes and still keeping a steady flow in the process. Reflection on action is when reflection occurs after the event. This is where the practitioner makes a deliberate and conscious attempt to act and reflect upon a situation and how it should be handled in the future (Loughran 1996). This means while performing a professional task, and one keeps thinking if what he is doing is right, he is doing reflection-on-action. After the task, he gets to evaluate what he has done right or wrong, and at that point, he is engaging in reflection-in-action. I am aware that I practice both kinds in my profession. However ,Fry, Ketteridge and Marshall (2003) seem to take a balanced view and define reflection to be an integration of existing knowledge and new knowledge. This implies that as a reflective practitioner, I should always evaluate if my current knowledge is still applicable, and in updating myself, should be able to incorporate my new learning with what I already know. My Own Practice I have been an Emergency Nurse Practitioner for the past 6 years. My task was mostly seeing patients in the emergency setting with minor injuries. I took this course to gain further knowledge and revise what needs to be improved in what I previously learnt during my 15 years as a nurse. Basically, I assess patients with localized problems (i.e, sprained ankles, lacerations, painful joints, minor head injuries etc.). I found it very daunting having to deal with the person as a whole again and investigate multiple systems (respiratory, cardiac, muscular, etc). Having attended tutorials regarding the assessment of these systems using the inspection, palpation, percussion and auscultation (IPPA) methods, I was eager to practice what I have learned and felt ready to assess a patient. Reflecting on Ones Practice In the tradition of Gibbs (1988) reflective practice, the first step is concentrating on one particular example from my own work experience. One incident that is worth reflecting on was my encounter with a patient with left-sided chest pain. I immediately thought that the patient was suffering from cardiac chest pain, but upon further examination, I found out that the patient actually had a recent chest infection which was treated by a GP with antibiotics. The chest infection was resolved, but the patient was left with residual chest pain. It turns out that it was mild pleuritic chest pain after all. In this incident, I initially felt confident in my diagnosis of cardiac chest pain due to my years of experience as an emergency nurse. Such vast experience exposed me to a variety of symptoms and its diagnosed illnesses. My confidence also came from having attended enough tutorials regarding the assessment of symptoms manifested by different body systems. Upon reading the patients notes, the symptom of left-sided chest pain immediately made me conclude that it was cardiac chest pain. I know that merely reading the patients notes is not enough in coming up with conclusive diagnosis. The clinical evaluation may include the basic inspection, palpation (feeling with the hands), percussion (tapping with the fingers), and auscultation (listening) (IPPA) (The Free Dictionary, 2013); CURB 65, which is a simple well-validated tool for the assessment of severity in community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is another essential evaluative method in checking the presence of a deadly respiratory diseas e. The Ohio State University College of Medicine (2012) shares its guideline in the use of this approach. CURB is short for checking the patients confusion, blood urea nitrogen, respiratory rate, and systolic blood pressure. If the patient seems to be delirious or confused, then he is given a score of 1 on the confusion item. If his blood urea nitrogen value is greater or equal to 20 mg/dL, then it also garners a score of 1. A respiratory rate that is more or equal to 30 breaths/minute is also credited for 1 point. The same is true for the systolic blood pressure if it is less than 90 mm Hg or a diastolic blood pressure less than or equal to 60. If the patient is 65 years old and above, then it also gains 1 point. Computing all the points, if the patients score is 0 or 1, then he can safely be treated as an outpatient. However, a score of 2 may indicate that he needs closer supervision when receiving outpatient treatment, or he may be recommended for inpatient observation admission. Most of the time if the collated score of the patient is 3, 4 or 5, then this usually means the patient needs to be confined to inpatient treatment (Ohio State University College of Medicine, 2013). Clinical judgment of the professional is necessary for a decision to be made for the patient. (Karmakar Wilsher, 2010). Still another evaluative method in examining the patient is the Pulmonary Embolism rule-out Criteria (PERC) (Hugli et al., 2011). The thorough process it entails determines if there is a potentially life-threatening cause of chest pain which may include pulmonary embolus, acute coronary syndrome, aortic dissection or tension penumothorax (King et al., 2012, para.3). If the patients chest pain becomes worse when he is applied deep inspiration and recumbency, then it is likely that it is due to a pleuritic cause. With Gibbs reflection model, so far, the first three steps of identifying a critical incident, observing and describing of the incident have already been done. Now comes analyzing my experience. Triage notes stated a 57 year old female who was suffering from left sided chest pain. Observations were blood pressure ; 184/78, pulse ; 74, respiratory rate; 16, saturations on O2; 98%. I had decided to take this patient and perform an assessment on her. The immediate thoughts were of cardiac chest pain as it was stated to be left sided in nature. Since starting the health assessment module the cardiac patient was the system I was least confident in, in the assessment process. I was anxious before seeing the patient. I had concluded that she was suffering from a cardiac chest pain, and imagined her to be requiring some form of intervention from the cardiac team. However, when meeting the patient and gaining further medical history it was clear that she was in fact a stable patient with a different complaint from my first impression. She had recently been treated for a chest infection by her GP, she had undergone a course of anitbiotics, amoxicillin 500mg for 1 week, after which she had felt much better, but over the following week had been left with a residual left sided chest pain which was worse on deep inspiration. She had initially had an expectorating cough, which had now resolved to an occasional dry cough. After a thorough assessment including IPPA, baseline observations, chest x ray, bloods including D Dimer, full blood count, UEs, cardiac enzymes, and a Wells score to rule out PE, the patient was diagnosed with pleuritic chest pain or pleurisy by the Doctor. (see appendix 1) Initially, I was uncomfortable evaluating the patients condition because it was my first patient with a cardiac problem.Throughout the assessment process I felt uneasy with the knowledge that I had initially made a judgement about the patient without even meeting her. It made me revise my approach to patients as a whole and not jump to conclusions before all avenues had been investigated. I was humble enough to accept my mistake when it was confirmed that it was a mild pleuritic chest pain, garnering from the information from further examination and history taking. I felt the need to read up on cardiac chest pain and push myself into seeing patients with that particular problem so that I can overcome my apprehensions. Next in Gibbs model is the interpretation of my experience. The interpretation of the patients condition from the initial triage notes made me aware of myself making a judgement before setting eyes on the patient. This concerned me and made me question my actions. I understood that I was nervous and uneasy at the thought of assessing a patient unaccompanied, and with hindsight put too much pressure on myself regarding responsibility and duty of care. I recognised the need for me to understand that I was gaining knowledge and skills as part of the degree module that I was completing, this didnt require me to diagnose the clinical conditions of the patients, but facilitated in the learning process of assessment skills and putting into place ideas of diagnosis / differential diagnosis. It also made me reflect on my thought processes regarding making snap judgements without gaining further information. The last stage in Gibbs model entails creating an action plan. The experience I have just analyzed made me realize that the current knowledge and experience I currently have are not enough. I need to learn to be more open in my evaluation of the patients symptoms, and hold my judgment until I have completed the necessary information derived from both examination tests and consulting the medical history of the patient. The fast rate of change in the medical field necessitates health practitioners like me to constantly update myself of current trends and the latest methodologies in nursing care. I should also remind myself all the time that the patients welfare comes way before my own ego in terms of priority. Conclusion Through reflective evaluation I was able to adjust the way I assessed patients with chest pain. I relaxed considerably more and let myself enjoy the assessment process. I was able to consolidate the new skills I had learnt and put in place a methodical process of evaluating differential diagnosis. I understood that the official diagnosis was going to be made by the Doctors mentoring my practice which considerably lessened the pressure I put on myself. Through this reflective process it became evident that good and bad working practice can be monitored and evaluated. Mistakes can be avoided and good working practice can be upheld. Although the feelings initially were disheartening, support from colleagues and my own learning outcomes have helped me progress and develop my skills of assessment. As Atkins and Murphy (2003) suggest that reflection should be made in times of uncomfortable feelings and thoughts surrounding a situation.

A comparative study of Sydney Carton in Dickens A Tale of Two Cities :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

A comparative study of Sydney Carton in Dickens’ novel, A Tale of Two Cities, and Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet in Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, requires the reader to analyze various aspects that the transforming effect love can have on a personality. As we study each character, it is relatively easy to see that no matter how painful love can be, it is usually to one’s betterment to have experienced it. Love affects each person differently. Some become more introspective, searching to better themselves for the sake of themselves or another. Others do not recognize what they are lacking in their lives until they find love. In either event, it permanently redirects the course of one’s life. Or causes one to end it in some cases. We see that all three characters learn to love themselves better, to love others anew and in the end, make the ultimate sacrifice for their love for another. Point A: Both author’s illustrate well, that a lack of love can have a profound effect on the behavior of a person. Whether a person has never experienced love by fortune or by design, the initial introduction of love into the personality can be intense. Dickens introduces Sydney Carton to us immediately after a trial, speaking to his client. It is at this point that we get a glimpse of the character of Carton, "†¦who smelled of port wine, and did not appear to be quite sober†¦" (Dickens, 100). Carton is so disillusioned with his own life, that he can’t even like his client [who looks like him], "Do you particularly like the man?’ He muttered, at his own image; ‘why should you particularly like a man who resembles you? There is nothing in you to like†¦" (Dickens 103). Romeo Montague is no less desultory, but youth is his excuse, while alcohol and lifelong disappointment are Carton’s. Shakespeare has Friar Lawrence state [about Romeo’s multiple infatuations], "Young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes" (1.3.67-68). Having not experienced life yet, Romeo does not yet understand the nature of love. He still sees it as a physical reaction, rather than emotional, "For beauty, starved with her severity / cuts beauty off from all prosperity" (1.1.227-228). Juliet is so immature and unskilled in the ways of love, that she shares her youthful desperation with her nurse, "Go ask his name; if he is married / my grave is like to be my wedding bed" (1.

LSD and PCP :: essays research papers

LSD and PCP Use Today there is increasing usage of two very powerful, and dangerous drugs in the youth of this Nation. LSD is one of these drugs, this hallucinogen more commonly known as Acid and is one of the longest lasting highs that are out there. LSD was first researched in 1953 when the Central Intelligence Agency thought that the Soviets and Chinese would use LSD to brainwash American diplomats. The Federal Drug Enforcement Administration lists this drug as a "schedule I" drug that means that it has high potential for abuse. During the "turn-on, tune-in, drop-out" time of the 60's LSD became the thing for social and political movements to freedom, creativity, self-discovery and opposition to the Vietnam War. Some freaked out during bad trips as LSD caused panic and advansded mental illnesses. Most are curried with flashbacks that are recurrences of hallucinations. Some people thought they could fly, and jumped to their deaths. The popularity of the rug in the 60's started research and laws making its use illegal. LSD is the chemical term or lysergic acid diethyl amide. National Institute on Drug Abuse surveys indicate illicit use of LSD has remained relatively constant. Almost 2 percent of high school seniors are current users and 8.7 percent have taken LSD at least once. Its not creating the problems it created in the 60's because the average street dose is al least 50 percent lower. Washington, D.C. is known as the PCP capital of the United States because there are more illicit PCP lads here than anywhere both water and fat soluble. In other words, any way ap person gets it in his or her body, it will be absorbed. PCP can be snorted or inhaled, put in a pill form and swallowed, sprayed on any thing and smoked. In Washington, dealers spray it on marijuana and sell it to all the street junkies. People high on PCP either end up overdosed, where they become kind of robotic in their movements and behavior, or they act really crazy. PCP patients show signs of visual hallucination, they show psychotic behavior. Many crimes of violence have been done under the have no an amnesia component. When people smoke PCP, the high comes on in two to five minutes, peaks at about 20 minutes, and takes 24 to 48 hours to come back to what they call normal. Most users also smoke a combination of PCP and crack known as bazooka. There are a lot of mixtures of there drugs in fact not many

The Cultural Politics of Pokemon Capitalism :: Entertainment Games Collectors Papers

The Cultural Politics of Pokemon Capitalism It is fall 1999 and a jet from Japan has just pulled up to its berth at LAX airport in Los Angeles. Immediately a crowd of kids excitedly gathers by the window to view what appears to be a huge flying Pikachu: the yellowy cute, electrically charged mouse-type pocket monster of what was then the biggest kid’s craze of the decade, Pokemon. Even parents recognize this iconic figure, familiar as they are with the basics of the phenomenon. Starting out as a gameboy game in Japan in 1996, it grew quickly to a multi-stranded empire: comic books, cartoon, movies, trading cards, toy figures, video games, tie-in merchandise. And, starting in 1997, Pokemon got exported, hitting the U.S. in August 1998. The principle of the game, duplicated in the plotline of the movies, cartoons, and comics, is to become a pokemon master by trying to capture all 151 monsters (expanded to 251 in recent editions) inhabiting the playscapes of Poke-world. In this world, any child can become a master lik e Satoshi (Ash in English) who, in the story versions, is the 11 year old protagonist traveling the world with his two buddies, Misty (an 11 year old girl) and Brock (a 15 year old teenage boy). All one needs to do is keep playing: maneuver one’s controls to move through this game space, discovering and catching (mainly by fighting) new monsters whom consequently become pocketed as one’s own. Hence, the name â€Å"pocket monster.† Pocketed monsters are trained to fight new monsters therefore becoming both the medium and end of this game. The logic here is acquisition; â€Å"gotta catch ‘em all† is the catchword of Pokemon. But entwined into this, as Benjamin noted about commodity fetishism at the dawn of modernity, is enchantment. The monsters to be gotten are not only things, possessions, and tools but also enchanting beings akin to spirits, pets, or friends. Pikachu iconizes this weave of relationality taken, I will argue, to the age of millennial postmodernity. With its electric powers, Pikachu is a tough, therefore prized, pokemon. But, with its smallish, yellow body, Pikachu is also cuddly and cute: features played up on screen whe re it becomes the best buddy pokemon of the lead character, Ash. This monster is at once property and pal, capital and companion: the key features in a form of intimate or cute

Bottled Water Distribution In The Uk

The UK bottled water market, a sub segment of the soft drink market has continually increased it share of the soft drink market. Thomson (2008) reports that the UK market for bottled mineral and spring water alone experienced consideration expansion and is now worth an estimated E1. 7 billion annually, taking up about 15 percent of the soft drink sales in the UK. The market is projected to rise to 21 percent of the soft drink market by the end of 2008. Datamonitor (2007) reports that the UK bottled water market generated total revenues of $2.8 billion in 2006, representing a compound annual growth interest (CAGR) of 9. 4 percent for the period between 2002 and 2006. Further, market consumption volume is estimated at 2. 3 billion liters in 2006, representing a compound annual growth rate of 8. 5 percent between the same periods. The authors further projected that the performance of the bottled water market should increase by an anticipated compound annual growth rate of 8. 6 percent d uring the five year period ending in 2011 to about 3. 4 billion liters, expanding the market to about $4.2 billion by the end of 2011. The projected expansion of the market enhances the chances of new entrants into the market (Datamonitor, 2007; Thomson, 2008). The UK bottled water market is mainly comprised of sparkling flavored water, sparkling unflavored water, still flavored water and still unflavored water. Breaking down the market performance of each of this group of bottled water, Datamonitor reports that still unflavored water proves to be the most lucrative for the year ended 2006, generating revenues estimated at $1. 3817 million or taking up about 49.6 percent of the total market. This is closely followed by sales of sparkling unflavored bottled water that generated revenues of $916. 5 million representing 32. 9 percent of the market share. In sum, Thomson (2008) reports that still bottled water, both flavored and unflavored, accounts for 86% of the market (Thomson, 2008) . The entrance of Herbal Water into the UK bottled water market will be enhanced by a couple of factors. Most significant among these factors is the trend, the increasing demand for spring, mineral or nutrient rich water.Thomson (2008), reports that the market demand for mineral water continues to grow faster than other sections of the bottled water market. As mentioned previously, the market share for mineral water was estimated at ? 1. 7 billion annually in 2007 and it is projected to experience further growth. Furthermore, the author reports that there appears to be excess demands for the product, with several customers reporting that they experience out-of-stock, when shopping for mineral water in their grocery store.Ayala’s Herbal Water with her first herbally flavored water is expected to make a difference in the UK bottled water, especially within the mineral water sub-segment. The UK bottled water market has a fragmented structure with no definite distribution chain. Although major players like the multinational company Danone and Nestle are involved in the market, the major buyers are retailers. The most apparent distribution chain involves major retailers, such as larger supermarkets and hypermarkets like Tesco and Asda.Retailers are very concentrated in the UK bottled water market, taking up almost 50 percent of the market share. Other distribution channels include convenience stores, online trades and an increasing significance of hotel sales that has been experiencing growth lately. It is well established that retailers represent the major distribution channel for bottled water in the UK. Datamonitor reports that large supermarkets and hypermarkets take up 49 percent of the total market share of bottled water in the UK.However, two primary factors play significant roles in the buying capacity and choice of the retailers. It is reported that the buying choice of retailers is greatly influenced by the need to respond to the demands of the cus tomers. Thus, while retailers are the strongest distribution channel for bottled water, the choice is primarily influenced by the demands of the immediate customers they serve. This fact weakens the power of retailers relative to manufacturers with strong and well known brands. Consequent upon the above fact, brand significantly influences distribution of bottled water.While products may be differentiated and unique as a result of its content and characteristics, the herbal approach to water flavoring adopted by Herbal Water, for example, branding is most likely to play significant roles. Retailers will be more willing to stock popular brands that are in demand, and manufacturers of popular brands can get their product across the distribution channels of several retailers. However, Datamonitor (2007) contend that â€Å"Bottled water manufacturers and retailers operate in quite different businesses, and vertical integration rarely occurs to blur the boundaries between them.As bottle d water is a sub-segment of the soft drinks market, its importance to retailers is not very great, especially for the more powerful supermarket chains, which sell a wide variety of food and drink products† (p14). Again, the rivalry in the UK bottled water is further strengthened because retailers which play the most significant role in distribution do not experience any considerable costs in switching from one manufacturer product to the order, building strong brand around consumer loyalty can help defend manufacturers from this situation.Moreover, this increased rivalry is compensated for by the healthy revenue accruable to each manufacturer due to the huge market potentials of bottled water (Datamonitor, 2007). Convenience stores and hotel sales are other channels for distributing bottled water; these channels represent 19. 2 and 13. 6 percents of total market volume respectively, while other channels such as the increasing demand for bottled water in the leisure industry ac counts for 22. 4 percent of total market volume.In sum, the UK bottled water market is has retailers as the primary buyers, these are well concentrated in the market and determines the success of any bottled water manufacturer in the market, although, to a large extent their buying power is influenced by the demands and choice of the customers they supply. Convenience stores and online sales are important channels, but they do not directly influence consumer loyalty and branding as would the retailers chain.The fragmentation of the UK bottled water has both positive and negative implications, but the ability of the Herbal Water Company to effectively harness the positive implications should greatly enhance the success of its product in the UK market. References Datamonitor (2007). Bottled Water in the United Kingdom: Industry Profile. Reference Code: 0183-0016. Thomson, Steven (2008). Bottled Spring Water. Scottish Agricultural College, Edinburgh. Acessed 24 Mar, 2008. Available at (Feb 6, 2008).

Freud’s Model of the Human Mind Essay

Nowadays, it is no doubt that human beings are suffering from depression and pressure in daily lives. However, most of the people are not aware of it. Psychologists have been focusing on how these repressed, and subconscious emotions play an active role throughout life since the early twentieth century. The ‘Father of Psychology’, Sigmund Freud, theorized a system of categorizing individual’s mental life into three parts: the id, the ego, and the superego. The id is the primitive part of a personality that respond directly to the human instinct; the ego is the decision-making component, and it develops to satisfy between the lust of the id and the external world; the superego is the preconscious part of the personality that deals with moral judgment. Many authors have incorporated this theory into their works by means of the characters. The novel Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, tells a story about the end of the innocence and the beginning of the savagery t hat a group of British children left stranded on a beautiful island after a plane crash, and they were immersed in freedom until the human nature took over. Golding utilizes Jack, Ralph, and Piggy who are the primary characters to interpret Freud’s concepts of this three types of human personality, respectively. First of all, Jack is the best concerned with the personality suggested by id. He represents the dark side of human nature, and he displays the id mentality through his violent actions. He had tried to maintain civilized before he started hunting. However, it does not remain constant. It fades soon while he is driven by his desires. The dictator becomes dominant in his personality. Following his desires, every time the first thing that comes to his mind is always to kill or hurt others. While Jack and his boys are managing to kill a wild boar, they begin dancing and saying, â€Å"[k]ill the pig. Cut her throat. Bash her in† (Golding 79). This chart indicates the unit desires among them and it also becomes a symbol of their savagery. It is obviously not a primary need but only meant for fun and pleasure. They are now driven by the innate desire for destruction. Furthermore, according to the ‘pleasure principle’, it seeks to avoid pain and unpleasantness in order to satisfy one’s biological and psychological needs. It is not bad enough to have desires but to act upon it. Jack does so to a mother sow, â€Å"Jack [is] on top of the sow, stabbing downward with his knife†¦the spear move[s] forward inch by inch and the terrified squealing [becomes] a high-pitched scream. Then Jack [finds] the throat and the hot blood spout[s] over his hands† (Golding 149). The imagery and action indicate that Jack does things without thought of any consequences, only for his own impulsive desires. Like the id aims to take over the thought in one’s mind without determining the needs of others rather than reality and morality. Secondly, Golding portrays Ralph as an embodiment of ego that makes sure to satisfy all the needs and wants of the id in a way that seems proper in today’s world, which means that ego not only interacts with conscious but also the unconscious mind. Ralph is the chief and one of the most influential boys in this little society. He constantly acts as a democratic leader that balancing between the id and superego. For instance, realizing Jack’s desire of being the chief, Ralph gives him control of the hunting team, â€Å"Ralph look[s] at him, eager to offer something. ‘The choir belongs to you, of course.’†¦The suffusion drained away from Jack’s face† (Golding 19). He cares about others’ feelings and does something realistic that is allowed by the society. At the same time, he fulfills Jack’s desire to be a leader to a certain extent. This reasonable action, which is controlled by the ego, also satisfies the urges of id in a so cially accepted way. Moreover, Ralph has a strong sense of responsibility. While he is complaining to Piggy that the other boys do not care about the importance of the fire going, he makes a confession, â€Å" ‘[s]upposing I got to like the others—not caring. What ’up become of us’ † (Golding 153). He is more conscious of the society rather than himself. Ralph is a neutral leader as he identifies the savagery of it and the morality of superego in order to come up with a realistic situation for the public. Like the ego represents the rational aspect of the mind, and maintains peace and stability. To end with, Piggy personifies the concept of superego to carry out the instinctual moral good most of the times. Golding represents Piggy as being more logically and intellectually mature than the others. Acting as the voice of reason, the superego inside his personality moralizes him as a sympathetic and sensible boy and guides him to choose what is morally right. While Jack leads the boys to make noise and rush, â€Å"Ralph [is] left, holding the conch, with no one but Piggy† (Golding 37). As the mob is full of noise and movement, Piggy does not follow Jack in overexcitement, rather he keeps calm and stays with the chief. His superego dominates him to maintain civilization. He displays consistent attention to societal rulings and feels like structure is the most important thing to the boys. Whatsmore, Piggy is willing to contribute to the society. He is â€Å"so full of pride in his contribution to the good of society, that he helped to fetch wood† (Golding 142). The moral goodness and devoted nature of Piggy come from his instinct human nature. Like the superego meets the ethical standards by which the ego operates. In conclusion,

Department of Marketing, Tourism and Hospitality Essay

1. Introduction and welcome Marketing is part of all of our lives and touches us in some way every day. It is also a key factor in business success and is increasingly used by organisations in a wide range of sectors. The unit begins with an examination of the marketing concept and marketing theory. It goes on to consider the various issues that marketers face in marketing decision making and the concepts and theories that can help. The unit helps you to understand the challenges of marketing management in manufacturing and service industries: analysing marketing environments; evaluating strategic alternatives and designing marketing programmes involving decisions about products/services and important concepts of the services marketing theory. The focus in this unit therefore is on the theory and practice of marketing in the context of organisations. On completion of the unit you will have gained understanding of the decisions that face marketers in a complex and dynamic environment and the concepts and theories that can be used to inform these decisions. This handbook outlines the content and key features of the unit. We hope you enjoy this unit and find the variety of tasks and assessments both interesting and challenging. The unit essentially continues the theme of integration by providing the necessary marketing input into the Applied Integrated Business core unit. Accordingly, the subject content will serve to reinforce and contextualise the learning within that unit. The focus will be on an interactive and active learning environment to engage students in learning activities throughout the sessions. This handbook should be your first point of reference. It outlines everything you will need to know about how this unit is structured, the assessments and the reading that is required. Please take some time to read it carefully. This handbook will help you progress smoothly and enjoyably through this unit. You will also find a regularly updated source of information and an electronic copy of this handbook in the unit website on Blackboard BREO. The address is: http://breo.beds.ac.uk (no www required) 2.Unit leader and team details Unit Leader Ioannis Kostopoulos Ioannis Kostopoulos is a Lecturer in the Department of Marketing Tourism and Hospitality at University of Bedfordshire. His research interests are in services marketing, internal marketing and market research. During his consulting work he has worked with many large organizations in the hospitality, telecommunications and sports’ industry. He holds a PhD in Services Marketing, a master’s degree in Marketing and Communications and a bachelor’s degree in Statistics. Email: ioannis.kostopoulos@beds.ac.uk Office hours: Wednesday 10-11 am and Thursday 12- 13 pm Office: To be arranged (Students will be informed through BREO) Telephone Number: To be arranged (Students will be informed through BREO) Other Lecturers Tony Pyne Tony Pyne, now semi retired, has taught marketing at the University of Bedfordshire for 20 years. His research interests are in not for profit marketing and services marketing. Prior to becoming an academic he was the marketing director of a small international market research agency specialising in high tech products and before that its operations director. He has a master’s degree in marketing, a PGCE and is a graduate chemist Email: ioannis.kostopoulos@beds.ac.uk Office hours: Friday’s 10am -2pm Office: JM02 Telephone Number: 3457 Field Administrator Sally Mayne Vicarage Street (H Block). Email: Sally.mayne@beds.ac.uk 3. Aims and learning outcomes 3.1 Unit aims The focus in this unit is on the theory and practice of marketing in the context of organisations. On completion of the unit you will have gained understanding of the decisions that face marketers in a complex and dynamic environment and the concepts and theories that can be used to inform these decisions. 3.2 Learning Outcomes | On completion of this unit you should be able to:| To achieve the learning outcome you must demonstrate the ability to:| LO1| Understand the nature, scope and role of marketing in organisations| Describe and apply the basic marketing tools and concepts and articulate the role of marketing in a variety of organizations| LO2| Be able to identify and discuss the key issues that marketers face as they make decisions| Critically review published work on a range of marketing issues| LO3| Understand and discuss the key concepts and theories that inform marketing decisions| Propose well researched and theoretically underpinned solutions to marketing problems | LO4| Identify and analyse marketing problems and plan appropriate courses of action| Be able to formulate plans for marketing activities, including appropriate marketing mix policies and be able to defend and justify proposals for marketing plans and actions.| L05| Apply marketing theory in different organisational contexts| Be able to formulate plans for marketing activities, including appropriate marketing mix policies and be able to defend and justify proposals for marketing plans and actions.| LO6| To express ideas and findings and proposals both verbally and in writing| Write coherently on the subject with accurate referencing, spelling, punctuation and grammar and make clear, timely and well structured presentations.| 4. Approach to learning * Unit delivery will use a combination of lectures and seminars, with the emphasis in seminars being on discussion and debate providing students with an opportunity to relate theoretical content to real-life practical situations. The one hour lecture aims to provide students with useful elements from the pertinent theory and increase their theoretical knowledge and technical skills. Practical seminar activities will be used where appropriate (for example video material, case studies, role play) and students will be encouraged to work individually and in groups to develop a thorough appreciation of the many issues examined. The use of small groups to prepare and present case studies in workshops will aim to provide further experience of working collaboratively, the opportunity to manage a problem-solving group, and the ability to present material clearly and concisely. The primary objective of the presentation is to further develop the ability to present complex ideas orally in a clear, coherent and concise fashion. There will also be a need to defend the ideas in the subsequent group discussion. The presentation topics, which are an integral part of the module, are designed to enhance and deepen understanding of the subject material. * * Attendance and participating in classes Studying at the University of Bedfordshire is not just about subject knowledge. We are also concerned to help you develop your wider attributes and skills. To do this you will need to attend and actively engage in the range of learning activities the course provides. Because attendance is fundamental to your development we do expect you to attend. We will monitor your attendance and contact you if it gives cause for concern. The Division operates a strict non-attendance policy which is available to view on BREO. You can help us by notifying us of any factors that affect your ability to attend. If you are absent from your studies through illness then it’s important that you let us know. You should contact the unit leader or the Field Administrator, Sally Mayne at sally.mayne@beds.ac.uk. If your absence is likely to affect your ability to complete your studies or submit assignments then you can apply for an extension or deferral through the Student Engagement and Mitigating Circumstances Teams. If you feel that your problems are serious enough to be considered for Mitigating Circumstances you will need to apply before the deadline by filling in a Mitigating Circumstances form. Forms can be printed from SiD online or a hard copy can be collected the Student Information Desk (SiD). A decision will normally be available to you within 48 hours of receipt of the claim form and evidence. Progress of the application can be checked by accessing SiD online or by visiting the Student Information Desk (SiD). They can be contacted at sid@beds.ac.uk or by telephoning 0300 300 0042. 5. Assessment brief 5.1 Assessment Overview No| Assessment method | Description of assessment methods| Weight (%)| Submission date | Form of feedback| 1| GroupAssignment| Group Presentation with Report| 30%| 7th December 2013| Summative & Formative| 2| IndividualAssignment| Progress Portfolio| 30%| 22nd March 2013| Summative & Formative| 3| UnseenExams| End of Unit Examination (2 hours)| 40%| End of Unit| Summative| 5.2 Group Assignment You are asked to form groups of 5-6 persons. Then you should visit a store(s) of a chosen international chain of coffee shops (e.g. Starbucks, Costa Cafe) or fast food restaurants (e.g. McDonalds, KFC ), observe and make notes regarding the following: * Store’s Service capes * Service delivery process * Customers and employees’ reactions during the service encounter * Service quality You may use photographs to support your discussions. However, please ensure that you ask permission from the store manager before doing so. Then you should prepare and hand in an audio visual podcast presentation and a written report that should contain the following: – Presentation Your presentation is to be in the form of an audio visual podcast submitted via DVD, memory stick e.t.c. There will not be an in-class presentation. The presentation should be no longer than 10 minutes and it is a presentation to a formal business committee. In this presentation you will point out any fail points or points that need improvement, in the delivery of the provided service in the store and suggest ways in which the store can upgrade the level of quality of the service provided to customers without significantly increasing the cost of the service delivery. – Written Report For your report you should use your notes from the store observation, general information you will collect on the international chain of your choice as well as material from the pertinent literature and include in your report the following: * A blueprint of the provided service * An evaluation of the store’s physical evidence and the degree to which they are aligned with the company’s general profile * An evaluation of the degree to which the specific chain is market oriented Format for submission – Presentation The length of the presentation should not be longer than 10 minutes The presentation is to be in the form of an audio visual podcast submitted via DVD, memory stick or Utube, i.e. there will not be an in-class presentation. – Written Report * The word limit for is 2000 words. * All work should be word processed using either Times New Roman or Arial font, Arial 12 point; 1.5 line spacing; single side A4 paper with numbered pages with line spacing of 1Â ½ and justified. * Left hand margin of 3cm; Right hand margin 2 cm; Header 2.5 cm and Footer 2 cm * A bibliography and referencing (where applicable) is essential * Harvard system of referencing * A minimum of 10 referenced academic sources is required. * No more than 50% of references may be from the internet. Extent of collaboration allowed: All members of the group should contribute equally to the research and preparation of the report. Average peer grade: All individuals will receive a mean average peer grade (out of 16), based upon a detailed diary addendum completed by all group members, confirming individual weekly contributions and responsibilities toward the completed report. Full group names and accompanying averaged grades should be clearly presented. The tutor reserves the right to adjust any grade if upon evidence &/or investigation any student is deemed to have failed to effectively contribute. Failure to include diary and peer grades will result in the loss of the 25% overall peer grade. Marking Criteria Excellent work, 16 – 14 points *An analysis which deals fully with the major elements from a services marketing point of view *Selection and amplification of ideas which accord with the analysis presented . *Work which shows very good grasp of the concepts in services marketing *Effective use of formatting and layout *An excellent and cohesive report. Above average work, 11 – 13 points *A report which is attractive in appearance which addresses the key issues of the assignment competently and creates a positive overall impression *An analysis which deals competently with most of the assignment’s tasks. *A reasonable choice of ideas which in aggregate show the students understanding of the major elements of the assignment. *Answers which are appropriate and show a good awareness of the services marketing concepts and principles which relate to the assignment areas. *Good use made of formatting and layout. *A good cohesive report. Average work, 8 – 10 points *An analysis, which deals with most areas in a manner which, is correct. * A report which is in the main appropriate and shows a good awareness of the services marketing concepts and principles and which relate to the key areas designated in the assignment *Reasonable use of formatting and layout *A cohesive report. Below average work, 5 – 7 points *A report which would be considered very poor in a commercial or industrial context and which do not allow the assessor to identify most of the achievement of specified tasks. *An erroneous or substantially incomplete analysis from a services marketing point of view *Answers which show poor understanding of the concepts in question. 5.3 Individual Assignment Picton and Broderick define integrated marketing communications as A process which involves the management and organisation of all agents in the analysis, planning, implementation and control of all marketing communications contacts, media, messages and promotional tools focussed at selected target audiences in such a way as to derive the greatest economy, efficiency, effectiveness and coherence of marketing communications effort. Select a large service organisation (e.g. Bank, Airline Company, Telecommunications Company, Hotel) that advertises heavily in many media and by way of a portfolio show how it makes use of the integrated marketing communications concept. You will need to collect your examples over a period of several weeks. If you leave it to the day before it is due in you will inevitably receive a failing grade. This is an individual assignment and I would expect 1500 words plus several examples which may include your notes on what you observe on a store visit. Format for submission Written Report * The word limit for is 1500 words. * All work should be word processed using either Times New Roman or Arial font, Arial 12 point; 1.5 line spacing; single side A4 paper with numbered pages with line spacing of 1Â ½ and justified. * Left hand margin of 3cm; Right hand margin 2 cm; Header 2.5 cm and Footer 2 cm * A bibliography and referencing (where applicable) is essential * Harvard system of referencing * A minimum of 10 referenced academic sources is required. * No more than 50% of references may be from the internet. Details for the assessments will be supplied as separate documents throughout the unit. They will also be available on BREO. Please read the assessment instructions very carefully. 5.4 Submission details – Plagiarism You should hand in assignments through the Assignment Hand in point, located outside the LRC in Park Square next to the Book Return point. For LRC opening times please see http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/. You can deposit your assignments at any time throughout the opening times of the University building. Although you will be able to submit your piece of work until 8am the next day and it will be accepted as on time, for example: if an assignment is due in on Monday 19 April it can be submitted up to 7.59am Tuesday 20 April, this is NOT recommended and you should submit your assignment by 4pm on the published due date. You will need to print your own top cover sheets from eVision (these carry the details of the unit and assessment on the front). Attach the top sheet to the assignment securely and then collect a barcode label from the dispenser located at the Security Desk next to the LRC. Follow the instructions on the Assignment Hand in point display to submit the assignment. Collect the receipt which indicates that a piece of work has been handed in. A receipt confirming the unit, assessment and time of submission for the assignment will be sent to your email account. Receipts must be retained as proof that the work has been submitted. You must also submit a copy of your assignment through TURNITIN via BREO. It will graded as a non-submission if written work is not submitted on time through TURNITIN. Coursework must be handed in by the date and time specified in your student handbooks or on BREO. Late work is not accepted, and will be deemed a fail and graded G(0) (no work submitted). Written work must be legible and comprehensible, work may be rejected work which does not meet reasonable standards of presentation, and this may result in you failing or being referred. Written work must be presented in English. Extenuating Circumstances If you believe that you are likely to miss a deadline because of extenuating circumstances (for example illness), you should apply to apply for an extension through the Student Engagement and Mitigating Circumstances Teams via SID. Your application should be accompanied by documentary evidence of your extenuating circumstances. Individual tutors are not able to extend published deadlines. Plagiarism Plagiarism takes the form of repeating another person’s words or images and claiming them as your own, or presenting someone else’s line of thinking as if it was your own. To plagiarise is to give the impression that you have written or designed or thought something that you have in fact borrowed from someone else. You can use other people’s ideas, words and images, but it’s important that you acknowledge them through appropriate referencing. Remember that your examiners are wanting to assess your ability, not those of others, so it’s important that you also interpret others’ work and that there is sufficient of your own work in your assignments that your ability can be assessed. You should keep a careful record of all the sources you use, including all internet material and ensure that you understand correct referencing practices. These are outlined the course handbook and online at: http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/guides/resources/referencing You are also not permitted to re-present any assessment already submitted for one unit as if for the first time in another unit. Double counting of assessed work is not normally allowed. If submitting work previously included in another assessment then you should attribute the section of text from the earlier work so that it can be taken into account by the examiners. Plagiarism Detection Service To help address plagiarism and protect your award, please also ensure you submit a copy your written work electronically through ‘Turnitin’ via BREO. We may also submit your assignment to the UK universities’ JISC Plagiarism Detection Service. Working together Discussing ideas with your fellow students is part of learning and we would encourage you to do this and to exchange interesting and relevant sources and references. However, there is a distinction between sharing ideas and collusion which is an academic offence. You must not work with others to the extent of exchanging written materials you have prepared, such as notes or drafts of assignments unless you have been expressly told that this is permissible. If these types of materials are shared this will be regarded as an assessment offence for the person who lends the material as well as for the person who uses it. Your own work should be regarded as your own property and you should protect it. If you are working in a shared space, log off from the computer you are working on whenever you take a break so that others cannot access or copy your own work; take care to destroy printed drafts or copies of work, rather than just discarding them; and, don’t give your work to others in any format. If you are working on a group assignment make sure you understand the allocation of responsibilities between yourself and the other members of the group. 5.5 Feedback Assessment will be provided individually to students, through group feedback (where relevant) and on your individual student BREO site. There are also opportunities for formative feedback on your work throughout the unit which will help you complete your final assignments. Marked work will be available for collection from the tutor three weeks after the assessment deadline. 6. Teaching and reading schedule You can check your timetable at: http://timetable.beds.ac.uk then follow the links under ‘units’. If there are changes to the timetable, you will be notified on the BREO site for this unit. Please check it regularly. *Further reading suggestions will be provided to students in a weekly basis through BREO. Further reading includes academic articles, book chapters and case studies. 7. Reading and resources The majority of directed readings will be in the form of books, published conference papers, and case study materials. You will be advised of essential reading relating to each topic covered and directed towards the most relevant textbooks and articles for these subjects. This guidance will be communicated by tutors and via BREO. In addition, you are encouraged to access journal articles via electronic databases and encouraged to search for appropriate examples of relevant research. You are strongly encouraged to access information electronically but to exercise critical judgement when identifying useful sources. The Learning Resources Centre at Park Square houses our main tourism collection. Here you can expect to find copies of essential texts on your reading lists as well as supplementary reading. Many of our resources are in electronic format and can be accessed off-campus. Extensive reading is essential and it is important you reference this work accurately and correctly. Please make you sure you read and follow the guide to referencing found at: http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/guides/resources/referencing Subject –specific library guides are available in printed format in the Learning Resource Centre and on the Learning Resources web site http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/guides/subjectguides. Go to Advice and Help, then Subject Guides. These guides tell you which resources are important for your particular course. The Subject Librarian is Bill Mortimer who can be contacted by e-mail bill.mortimer@beds.ac.uk or by phone 01234 351671, ext.4374. Bill is based in the Polhill campus, Room: R1.01. If you want to call him free of charge, that’s possible from the LRC. Essential reading Brassington, F and Pettitt,S (2006) Principles of Marketing, Fourth Edition, Prentice Hall, NJ. ISBN 0-273-69559-2. Recommended reading Christopher H. Lovelock, Jochen Wirtz, Patricia Chew (2009), Essentials of Services Marketing First Edition, Prentice Hall ISBN-13 978-981-06-7995-8 Kotler, P., Wong, V., Saunders, J. and Armstrong, G. (2005) Principles of Marketing: 4th European Edition, Prentice Hall International/Pearson Education Limited. ISBN: 0273 68456 6 Groucutt, J, Leadley P, Forsyth P (2004) Marketing: essential, principles, new realities First Edition, Kogan Page ISBN 0-7494-4114-3