SWOT ANALYSIS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SWOT ANALYSIS - Essay Example It I this form of integration that makes it competitive. Throughout its history, the company has enjoyed strong economic growth and constantly increasing cash flow (Baines, Fill, and Page, 230). This has enabled it to expand and command a wider share of the market. At one point in the market, research was ineffective with the company failing to anticipate the need for new products such as phablets. What resulted was late entrance into the market thus affecting sales and revenue. The lack of a wider price differentiation strategy makes the company appear to be a premium category company. This means that many people in the middle and low socioeconomic status disregard its products. Further, the company has overtime depended on revenue from only two products, iPad and iPhone. Most of Apple’s products have remained popular and relevant to many people. This means that the company can continue investing on the same products with the assurance of revenue. The growing technology industry increases the demand for electronic products constantly. The company is thus assured of progress. Lack of price differentiation strategy is detrimental to the company’s quest to get into a wider market. The company is outperformed by competitors such as Samsung on this and the demand for its products may shift when lower priced products are in the market. There is increased a need for innovativeness in the industry (Kurtz, 23). As long as the company enjoys revenue from only two of its products, innovation may be delayed and with time, the products will lose

Clinical pharmacology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Clinical pharmacology - Essay Example 2010). Antibiotics especially co-trimoxazole, metronidazole, macrolides, fluroquinolones: As far as sulpha drugs which cause enhanced effect of Warfarin resulting in bleeding, in the absence of proven mechanism of action, it has been hypothesized by clinicians that systematic administration of such antibiotics results in reduced production of Vitamin K caused by intestinal flora. Same mechanism of action applies to macrolides that include Azithromycin etc and quinolones such as ciprofloxacin (Medication Management Home).As for metronidazole, it interferes with metabolism of S enatiomer of Warfarin. As for, Rifampin, it induces hepatic enzymes thus increasing metabolism of Warfarin (Horton and Bushwick, 1999). Antidepressants: Two theoretical hypotheses about Warfarin’s potential interactions with antidepressants are that because Warfarin is protein bound, antidepressants which are also protein bound, their interaction can result in displacement of Warfarin from its binding sites as stated by Sansone and Sansone (2009). They at the same time point out the observation of Sayal et al (2000) that there is no clinical evidence to that effect. Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), are found to potentially inhibit Warfarin metabolism through their isoenzymes 2C9 and 1A2. However Sertraline and Citalopran are not likely to cause interaction. While Paroxetine has low-to-moderate risk, fluvoxamine and fluoxetine have the potential to effects of Warfarin. Ginkgo biloba has properties capable of inhibiting platelet aggregation, if taken with Warfarin, it will enhance the toxic effects monamine oxidase inhibitors. However, Ginkgo on its own is capable of causing bleeding complications (Dharmananda). Dong qual increases the anticoagulant action of Warfarin. St John’s Wort induces P450 pathways resulting in lowering of INR. This increases the metabolism of Warfarin.

Recruitment Strategy at HiTec International

Recruitment Strategy at HiTec International Introduction: Problems: Advice: Step 1Provide a Positive Working Environment Step 2Recognize, Reward and Reinforce the Right Behavior Step 3Involve And Engage Step 4Develop Skills and Potential Step 5Evaluate and Measure   Introduction: HiTec International is the company which is emerging organization. It has annual turnover of more than $19billion in current and employs more than 30,000 people across the world. The headquarter of HiTec which is located in West Dublin employs 2500 people in which 90% are permanent employees and remaining are on contract basis. HiTec have some expertise in procurement of hardware and bespoke programming solutions for corporate customers to aid them in boosting the utilization of the web. HiTec likewise give a complete after sales services which go beyond maintenance of software. The organization is perceived as worldwide business sector pioneers in a few of its central line of business. Because of the focused market that HiTec works in development and persistently advancing engineering improvements through innovative work division is vital to the organizations future achievement. HiTec offers workers brilliant terms and states of livelihood with top-pay rates, liberal extra plans, rebates, benefits, and wellbeing and life coverage. The earth in which they work is extremely alluring with superb offices, for example, staff cafeterias, wellness offices and valet administrations. Staff retention is great; turnover levels are at present at 5% of which half are represented by dismissals and non-renewal of fixed term contracts. Problems: HiTec are encountering some troublesomely with discovering sufficient number of workers with the obliged aptitudes to reach its development needs. Because of the quick moving nature of the industry which makes it difficult to usefully employ graduates with limited experience and train them. With the time, they learned a lot of skills and then moved on to another organization to learn more skills. HiTec likes the people which are employed in companies to who with HiTec has a customer relationship and in partner companies but HiTec has a long standing policy to not recruit from these sources. However, HiTec is recruiting people through advertisement in national newspapers and with the use of headhunters but this also not succeeded because through national newspapers the people who are properly qualified are few and head hunters are also not succeeded due to target labor market is so small. Advice: HiTec should explore the fundamental reasons of people leaving the jobs. HiTec should distinguish new methods and strategies, for example, making a developing leaders program, giving preparing to directors, and enhancing their representative distinguished program. As a result, they will draw in better ability and all the more significantly will have the capacity to hold best individuals. And the HR Department will be more satisfied in light of the fact that they wont spend all their time conducting training. HiTech can improve their ability to attract, retain and improve productivity by applying the following five-step PRIDE process: P Provide a Positive Working Environment R Recognize, Reward and Reinforce the Right Behavior I Involve and Engage D Develop Skills and Potential E Evaluate and Measure Step 1Provide a Positive Working Environment HiTec should provide a positive working environment to its employees to retain them for a longer period. Employees quits the jobs for many reasons but one reason for quitting them is the relationship with their first line-supervisor because the fact is that managers and supervisors are totally unaware with their actions that can affect employees. Manager training is a critical aspect for an effective retention strategy. Suitably trained managers play a key part in an effectual recruitment and retention policy. Managers need the skills, tools, and knowledge to help them understand their employees retention needs and be able to implement a retention plan designed to increase employee engagement in the organization. Step 2Recognize, Reward and Reinforce the Right Behavior Cash and profits may draw in individuals to the front entryway; however something else needs to keep them from going out the back. Individuals have a fundamental human need to feel acknowledged and pleased with their work. Recognition and motivation projects help address that need. A fruitful prize and recognition program does not need to be confused or lavish to be compelling. Hitec ought to offer prize to its workers. In a few organizations CEO frequently give their extravagant auto keys to their workers for a week or for an outing. This inventive approach to remunerate workers has a greater effect than money. In the event that you gave someone a $200 reward, it wouldnt mean all that much. When somebody gets to drive an auto for a week, they always remember it. For Example, At First American, administrators exhibit a Greased Monkey Award to the machine specialist who is best in determining issues with machine programs. The recompense is a plastic toy monkey in a container of Vaseline alongside a $50 supper testament. A supplies wholesaler remunerates each workers work celebration with a cake and a check for $200 for every year utilized. Twice a year workers kids get a $50 reserve funds security when they accumulate their everything As report card. Whats more, they compensate workers with a Security Bonus Program. They screen each representatives driving record twice a year, and any individual who has a reference is expelled from attention. Those representatives staying toward the end of the year separate $2,000. On Fridays, all representatives pivot employments for one hour. This fabricates a stronger group, solidarity, and enhances correspondence inside the organization. Step 3Involve And Engage The directors of Hitec ought to be included and captivate with the workers. Individuals are more dedicated and captivated when they can help their thoughts and proposals. This provides for them a feeling of proprietorship. Hitec ought to have a capacity to make and produce new and creative items. Keeping in mind the end goal to encourage the trade of thoughts inside offices, they ought to support a yearly Idea Exposition. Amid the article, researchers and designers showcase ventures and thoughts they are chipping away at. This procedure makes a solid atmosphere of development and captivates each one of the individuals who take an interest. Organization should have a unique way of making its employees feel valued and involved. One wall within the company contains the photographs of all employees who have worked there more than five years. Their equality program goes beyond the typical slogans, posters, and HR policies. There should no reserved parking spaces or other perks just for executives everyone is an equal. This is one reason why companies can be best employer company. Step 4Develop Skills and Potential For the vast majority, vocation opportunities are generally as vital as the cash they make. In a study by Linkage, Inc. more than 40 percent of the respondents said they would consider leaving their present boss for an alternate occupation with the same profits if that employment gave better vocation improvement and more prominent difficulties. So Hitec ought to create abilities and possibilities for their staff to hold them/ Hitec ought to find that why they were losing gifted individuals to different organizations and they ought to lead passageway reviews to discover what number of representatives who left to take new occupations and vocations outside the organization and can accompany the same employments and professions inside Hitec. As an issue they ought to make with an intranet-based improvement and profession guiding project for all representatives. This will bring about over of workers who left the organization and representatives will exploited the project and perspective inside employment opportunities. Not just does the system give new openings for work, however Career Connections offers an assemblage of profession improvement instruments, for example, assessments toward oneself, apparatuses to create continues, and articles on different occupation looking for techniques inside the organization. Gifted individuals wont stay in a vocation in the event that they see no future in their position. To wipe out the inclination of being in a deadlock work, each position ought to have an individual advancement plan. Step 5Evaluate and Measure Nonstop assessment and endless change is the last venture of the PRIDE framework. The main role of assessment is to measure advance and figure out what fulfills and de-fulfills your workforce. The assessment procedure incorporates the estimation of demeanor, confidence, turnover, and the engagement level of the workforce. Here is an agenda of things that ought to be incorporated in Hitecs assessment and estimation process. Carry out an employee satisfaction survey at least once a year. Improve your contracting methodology to make a finer match between the singulars abilities and employment prerequisites. Examine those divisions that have the most elevated turnover rates. Hold chiefs in charge of maintenance in their area Initiate interviews and surveys concerning the real reasons people come to and leave your organization. Provide flexible work arrangements for working parents and older workers. Start measuring the cost of turnover. Focus on the key jobs that have the greatest impact on profitability and productivity. Design an effective employee orientation program.

DISCRIMINATION Essay -- essays research papers

Although I had always thought that I could never be discriminated for any reason, two years ago I felt discriminated. One Friday, while working in a large corporation in the administrative department, the president of the corporation organized a meeting for the administrative and accounting departments. The president of the company mentioned that the accounting department was opening a new position as Junior Controller Management. Moreover, he said that there were only two candidates who were postulated for it. I knew I was one of them. In fact, most of my co-workers started talking about it and all were claiming me as the winner. I was extremely happy. But, I wanted to wait for the real nomination that was going to take place the following Friday after the executive meeting in which each department’s director needed to vote either for me or for my co-worker, who was a man older than me. I knew I did not have to worry, so I was extremely relax the entire week. I always loved to work, and I always did a good job, so I thought that the position as a Junior Controller was mine. Unfortunately, it was not true. Although management knew that I was extremely qualified for the position, they could not give it to me for two reasons. The first one is that I was only 22 years old, and they thought that I was too young to handle such a high level position. Second, they told me, men always occupied the highest positions in this company, and even if they understand that life had evolved ...

How Close Is Too Close?

How would you suggest Tim analyze this opportunity? Senior Vice President of supply chain management Tim Tree of Top Line, Inc. Has to decide if being a partner is right for him. For Tree to make the proper decision he will need to list vital factors that will allow Dynamo and Top Line, Inc. To work as one. By strategically analyzing the short-term and long-term goals of Dynamo, Tree will see if the Dynamo organization will remain in a business with Top Line, Inc. For several years.He will see through evaluation of gains and losses if Dynamo will try to find nether company that could possibly offer the same thing that Top Tree Is offering. For the company to profit Tree will need to ensure that consumers are in the market for what is being offered if Dynamo does not partner with Top Line, Inc. For this to be accomplished Tree will need the help of those that work for him. Those that work the day-to-day operations of the company will are in the best position to tell him what they are observing, and If moving on will be the best choice. Question: What the Implications of saying â€Å"yes†?The Implications of Tim accepting the offer from Dynamo to become one of their few â€Å"partner suppliers† is a perplexing situation for Tim, who is the Vice President of Supply Chain Management at Top Line Inc. There are tremendous positives for Top Line if they were to accept this offer, but there are also some negative considerations that could be significant. The positive opportunities for Top Line Include the commitment of Dynamo to Top Line as their sole source for their products. This means stability for Top Line with this customer and as Dynamo grows so grows the Top Line Inc.There are also great opportunities for engineering and technology sharing between the two organizations and this could be a strong addition to the Top Line group. An additional positive of this acceptance into the partner/supplier is that Top Line will be included in the early develop ment and design of new products from Dynamo. This means that Top Line can design and be ready to supply Dynamo with their new requirements because of this early Inclusion and partnership agreement. The negatives of this agreement are very real and must be carefully considered before accepting this seemingly golden opportunity.There is a great deal of resource commitment that will have to be made to meet Dynamo's agreement. From mandatory meetings, to the sharing of technical resources, a great deal of resource time will have to be allocated to this one customer. There is also a mandate where cost, technological, and resource Information Is required to be shared with Dynamo. This Is a very sensitive area for Top Line as there patent strength Is one of their key intellectual properties and the information of these will be required to be shared tit Dynamo.Another consideration is the mandated cost reduction that Top Line must supply each year as a partner to Dynamo. This will have to b e evaluated, and the financial impact reviewed carefully. Question: What the implications of saying partner supplier for a Dynamo corporation or to decline this offer. Although Tim can see a lot of advantages of saying â€Å"yes† to this opportunity, he has to analyze the outcomes of his negative decision if he will have to make one. The positive sides of not accepting this offer would be not feeling the pressure of being a sole partner applier for a large corporation.He would not have to worry about the availability of resources to supply. The company would not have to be involved in all the organized agenda of a large company, I. E. Holding the mandatory meetings, sharing intellectual property, like technical resources, costs and resource information. The patents, therefore, would be safer here, not being shared with a large customer. Mandated cost reduction would not have to become an issue, because the impacts of reduced costs on financial stability of the Top Line are no t really known.All the process of reading the inventory would not have to be shared every single step of the way. In other words if Top Line would decline the offer, it would not have so many obligations to take upon itself and it would not have to follow an agenda of someone else. The negative side of declining the offer to become a partner supplier is that Top Line would not secure a large contract that could potentially lead to more revenues and better financial security of the company. The company would not get an enhanced publicity, which it would otherwise enjoyed by securing a large contract and gaining exclusivity status.That publicity is usually very good for marketing and getting the name of the company out there. The company would not have opportunities that could arise while sharing the engineering and technology between the large organizations. Top Line would also not be included in the early development and design of the new products, and that means that they would not have so much say in the design specifications and requirements of the product. Question: If the invitation is accepted, how can Tim assure a successful â€Å"partnership†? As Tim considers if Top Line Inc. Would partner with Dynamo he should consider hat saying â€Å"no† would do for the company. Currently Top Line Inc. Is doing very well and Dynamo has proven that they are a company that can be depended on for service by winning the supplier of the year award and being names the key stake holder. The fear of that Tom has on communicating information real-time, sharing technology, integrating planning and production schedules, and dedicating resources are all validate point of concerns but the Dynamo has shown that will to meet the needs of Top Line Inc. Saying â€Å"no† would be a missed opportunity to grow future business.

Changing Workforce Essay

Introduction: It is no surprise that the workforce is on the move and changing at a growing rate. There are several factors that lead into the changing workforce and play important roles. There are the workers who are leaving, the ones who will be staying and the new ones who will be entering, all of which have an important role to play in the US economy. This topic is important but it seems to weigh a little more heavily during an election period like we are in now. When the unemployed rate is high and the national debt is at an unprecedented amount it makes me wonder, who will our job force consist of and how will it be changing? Some of the important things that need to be considered when looking into how the workforce is changing is who is now entering the workforce that was not previously in it? How will this affect competition for jobs? Are education levels affecting the workforce? Childcare and Eldercare seem to be playing an increasing role in who works and who stays at home to care for th eir families, will this change? More minorities are also working in the US making a big change to the workforce, how does this play out with HRM and other parts of management? All of the questions and statements above need to be answered in order to find out why the workforce is changing and who comprises the majorities now. The workforce today is much more different than just 20 years ago. It is important as a human resource manager to stay up to date on these things and to know what the coming trends are for who you might be looking to employ. Significance of the topic to the field of Human Resource Management: The effects of the changing workforce on Human Resource managers are quite large. As of 2007 in healthcare there are older workers than younger ones. The issues arise in HRM with this when the technology is changing and schools are teaching different things that the older generations are not as familiar with if at all. The changing of technology in any field is greatly  affecting all parties involved. The issue of globalization and learning new policies and procedures of how to handle a workforce that is not in the same location you are is also something that is on the rise. The changing of the demographics as well as competition also plays a large role in why HRM is becoming such a fast paced changing job. The biggest issue that the US sees in the trend of the workforce changing is the older workforce. With an aged employee base come issues with health cost, retirements, age discrimination and succession planning. All of these things have to be considered and taking very seriously in HRM. It is important to handle all the issues legally and just fully but with the things like increasing healthcare cost for the older generations things get tough for the managers and decision makers. Literature Review: The article Trends and Challenges for work in the 21st Century goes over a lot of points on the changing workforce and what is making it change. It includes things such as changing demographics and why they are changing, the issue of people having or choosing not to have children while in and out of the workforce as well as our aging workforce. It looks at things such as insurance and pensions and whether or not those have any effects on people choosing to stay in the workforce longer or shorter amounts of time. Lerman, R. (n.d.). Trends and challenges for work in the 21st century. Retrieved from http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/history/herman/reports/futurework/conference/trends/trendsVII.htm This article had figures from the women in the workforce. It examined how many have children under 18 versus those who have children over 18 and are in the workforce. I think the goal of this study was to see how many females with younger children choose to stay at home rather than work. They also included a study of the race and sex of employees in the workforce and how it has changed. This article seemed to find that with the changes in technology, the adding of more women and more minorities to the workforce has made drastic changes and will continue to do so over the next decades. The article seems to lean on the side that people are choosing less or no children and that enables them to work more. However, having less or no children directly impacts the workforce for the coming generations. Nursing Leadership is a publication of where I found  the second article I reviewed. Although it focuses on one career instead of the workforce as a whole it is very specific how the workforce change has affected the nursing and medical industries. The change in technology seems to be the hardest adjustment for the ones who have been in the workforce the longest. Spinks, N. (n.d.). The changing workforce, workplace and nature of work. Retrieved from http://www.longwoods.com/content/19286 In this article Spinks talks about in 2010 that the older workforce will outweigh the younger ones. She talks about issues of predicting retirement, â€Å"Women’s retirement patterns are somewhat less predictable because we are only now beginning to experience large numbers of women in the paid labour force working until retirement†. (Spinks) Although the article is done about healthcare she makes a lot of good notations and observations about the workforce as a whole. In this article she lays out 7 strategies and solutions to help maintain a good strong workforce. Spinks did a lot of her observations and studies in Canada. One section of the article talks about having a workforce shortage and I can assure you the US has not had this issue in the last few years. She found that the workforce in Canada is much like the population there, many are not from Canada but rather born somewhere else and migrated there or their ancestors came to Canada making the work population there very diverse. To me it seems Spinks found that technology and diversity in the nursing and healthcare industry are the biggest struggles when you start to think about the workforce changing. That although this study was done in Canada where their health system is a bit different from that of the US the overall concept of the workforce aging and changing is the same. In the article the workforce is changing the way we do business printed in the USA today magazine the author talks about the corporations being able to keep up and how to handle the changes. The author goes into some detail on how to keep a completive edge even when your employee base that you once knew is now completely different. The author also talks about what to look for in the new employees that will be emerging, or what kind of people you should look to hire. Herman, R. E. (n.d.). The workforce is changing the way we do busines. Retrieved from http://www.retentionconnection.com/retention_article_workforce_changing.html This article explores the idea that its not just customers looking to be satisfied within a business but the workers are as well. Herman states that  while there are people out there willing to do work there are not enough qualified for the skilled jobs, thus making the competitive advantage harder to achieve today. One idea that Herman explores to help with this problem or situation is to concentrate on building workforce stability. He explains it like this â€Å"Concentrate on building workforce stability. Forget the revolving door of recruiting and hiring any warm body. It doesn’t work and will just create more problems for you. Replacing people who leave will become more chal lenging. Evaluate the qualifications for your next hire(s), and become more selective. If you’re going to invest in retention, you might as well have good people to retain.† (Herman) This article to me states there is indeed changes happening in the workforce but more importantly is how as a business we embrace the changes and hang on for what could be a rough time. It shows the importance of having skilled workers to help your company but at the same time there are not as many of them as there once was. Workforce planning makes for a smarter reduction in force is an article that seems to relate very well to the economic times the country has been and seems to be copiously enduring in regards to jobs and job demands. The idea that businesses need to cut cost means they have to look at lowering their work force to save money. This takes a different approach then the normal how is the workface changing articles bur rather how are businesses changing the workforce. Garbis, N. (01, 2010 06). Workforce planning makes for a smarter reduction in force. Retrieved from http://www.humanresourcesiq.com/business-strategies/articles/workforce-planning-makes- This article goes over the idea that businesses in this time of the economy being hard and not being as profitable they sometimes offer the employee to take some sort of severance package and leave. Garbis says you have the worse problem when to many leave, or you forecast incorrectly of how many of your workforce you need to eliminate. His studies show that having workforce planning in place can be very beneficial but it is something that needs to be re-visited often so that to many or to few employees are let go back out into the workforce when really they are needed. The article A Global March toward an aging workforce was written after a speech by an author of a man named Ted Fishman. Fishman looks at the ideas that the age range of the world population and those who are working now is not near the same as it was a decade or two ago.

Here Are Six Tips for Reporters Covering Press Conferences

Here Are Six Tips for Reporters Covering Press Conferences Spend more than five minutes in the news business and youll be asked to cover a press conference. Theyre a regular occurrence in the life of any reporter, so you need to be able to cover them - and cover them well. But for the beginner, a press conference can be tough to cover. Press conferences tend to move quickly and often dont last very long, so you may have very little time to get the information you need. Another challenge for the beginning reporter is figuring out the lede of a press conference story. So here are six tips for covering press conferences. 1. Come Armed with Questions As we said, press conferences move quickly, so youll need to have your questions ready ahead of time. Arrive with some questions already prepared. And really listen to the answers. 2. Ask Your Best Questions Once the speaker starts taking questions, its often a free-for-all, with multiple reporters shouting out their queries. You may only get one or two of your questions into the mix, so pick your best ones and ask those. And be ready to ask tough follow-up questions. 3. Be Aggressive If Necessary Any time you get a bunch of reporters in one room, all asking questions at the same time, its bound to be a crazy scene. And reporters are by their nature competitive people. So when you go to a press conference, be prepared to be a bit pushy in order to get your questions answered. Shout if you need to. Push your way to the front of the room if you must. Above all, remember - only the strong survive at a press conference. 4. Forget the PR Speak - Focus On the News Corporations, politicians, sports teams and celebrities often try to use press conferences as public relations tools. In other words, they want reporters to put the most positive spin possible on whats being said at the press conference. But its the reporters job to ignore the PR talk and get to the truth of the matter. So if the CEO announces that his company has just suffered its worst losses ever, but in the next breath says he thinks the future is bright, forget about the bright future - the real news is the huge losses, not the PR sugarcoating. 5. Press the Speaker Dont let the speaker at a press conference get away with making broad generalizations that arent supported by facts. Question the basis for the statements they make, and get specifics. For instance, if the mayor of your town announces he plans to cut taxes while at the same time increasing municipal services, your first question should be: how can the town provide more services with less revenue? Likewise, if that CEO whose company has just lost billions says hes upbeat about the future, ask him why - how can he expect that things will get better when the company is clearly in trouble? Again, get him to be specific. 6. Dont Be Intimidated Whether youre covering a press conference with the mayor, the governor or the president, dont let yourself be intimidated by their power or stature. Thats what they want. Once youre intimidated, youll stop asking tough questions, and remember, its your job to ask tough questions of the most powerful people in our society.

Contemporary marketing issue of how gender affects the decision making and buying behaviour processes. The WritePass Journal

Contemporary marketing issue of how gender affects the decision making and buying behaviour processes. 1.  Introduction Contemporary marketing issue of how gender affects the decision making and buying behaviour processes. 1.  Introduction1.1 Background1.2 Importance of study1.3   Research purpose (including research question and objectives or hypotheses as appropriate)1.4 Limitations1.5 Organisation of study2.  Literature Review2.1.1  Chapter introduction2.2 Overview for review2.3 Buying Behaviour  2.4 How the decision making process works  2.5 The impact of gender on the decision making processâ€Å"Consumer decision making is likely to be related to a number of consumer traits such as social class, the type of family unit, age, gender, lifestyle and life-stage – all of which can exert an influence.†Ã‚  (Meyers-Levy and Maheswaran, 1991;  Burton  et al., 1994;  Darley and Smith, 1995;  Costa  et al., 2001;  Mitchell and Walsh, 2004. Cited in Beynon, M.J. et al.  (2010)2.6 Key findings from literature review3.  Ã‚  Research Methodology3.1 Chapter introduction3.2 Research purpose3.3 Research approach (including justification)  3.4 Research strategy (including justification)3.5 Time horizons (including justification)3.6 Research methods (including sampling)  3.7  Data handling  3.8  Data analysis3.9.1  Reliability  3.9.2  Validity3.10  Ethical considerations  3.11  Chapter summary4   Results4.1 Chapter introduction4.2 (sub-sections reflecting the issues covered in your data, 4.2, 4.3 etc.)4.3 Chapter summary5   Discussion5.1 Chapter introduction54.2 (sub-sections reflecting your research objectives, 5.2, 5.3 etc.)5.3 Chapter summary6   Conclusions  6.1 Chapter introduction6.2 (Sub-sections reflecting your research objectives, 6.2, 6.3 etc.)6.3 Implications for research6.4 Implications for practic6.5 Revisiting the limitation6.6 Directions for future research6.7 Chapter summary  7  Appendices7.1 Appendix One – Personal reflection on the research process7.2 Appendix Two – Research ethics form and associated strategy7.3 Original copy of questionnaireRelated 1.  Introduction 1.1 Background It is quite obvious that, as men and women have different needs and wants they are going to be attracted to different products, however they are going to have a unique gender characteristics approach to the way the make a purchasing decision and embark on the process when deciding how to acquire the product they want. 1.2 Importance of study I feel the importance of this study is a contemporary marketing issue as the subject of how gender affects the decision making and buying behaviour processes is a key topic area. They way consumer approach to the buying and decision making process affects how marketing is being perceived in its effectiveness or ineffectiveness; by only appealing to one gender and sending the ‘wrong message’ out. 1.3   Research purpose (including research question and objectives or hypotheses as appropriate) 1.4 Limitations Time constraint was a major contributor to limitations of this study, however with good organisation and an academic thought process the hypothesis has been proven with some really interesting new facts. Without sounding patronising, I would assume you would agree that a worldwide collection of data from the questionnaire would bring in some interesting results, but as this study only needs to focus on a small majority, we are happy with the outcome. 1.5 Organisation of study For the purpose of this study a sample of 100 consumers will be taken. 50 men and 50 women between the ages of 16-40 will be surveyed using an specially designed questionnaire, to be distributed to our sample online using e-mail and social networking site. A ‘snowball effect’ is highly likely in this case and will only add more credibility to the validity of the results recorded in this research study. 2.  Literature Review 2.1.1  Chapter introduction In this literature review the comparison of findings from other researchers on the subject surrounding the differences between male and female purchasing and decision making process. This literature review will show a further understanding of the subject gender affecting consumers approach to their decision making and purchasing process. The intended outcome of this review of relevant literature will show the findings on whether there are any proven differences between the way male and female consumers make their purchasing and decision making process. 2.2 Overview for review In this chapter we hope to be able to share with your what we have found from other academic writers on this subject that we feel relevant. We have researched deeply into the subject, and have found articles from the US interesting. The chapter is now split into relevant sub sections leading to the summary and methodology where we hope to prove our hypotises. 2.3 Buying Behaviour   It is just not possible to study exactly what happens in the consumers mind when making a purchasing decision because, as we have found, the individuals mind is just so complex and varies dramatically from individual to individual. Instead theories of decision making process can help assess what makes the consumer decide in their buying process they are committed to purchase. Egan, J (2007) describes how two different types of paradigm called cogitative and behavioural are utilised by individual consumers when entering into a purchasing decision. Firstly, the cogitative paradigm is controlled by the individuals functioning and rational thought process, these are goal-orientated ways the individual can process information. The functioning and rational thought process linked closely with the cogitative paradigm is determined by the way the individual makes their choice by problem solving and decision making. The behavioural paradigm followers accept as true that it is not possible to be able to study exactly what goes on in the mind when making a purchasing decision as the mind is just too complex; so instead a black box is used to help measure the flow in and out of the mind representing how behavioural patterns occur. Egan, J (2007) has also shown that there are many processes in which the average consumer should and can experience when making a purchasing decision, to post purchase but not always in the same order and these are explained here further: Routinized problem solving: Is when repeated purchasing of the same product takes place, usually of low cost and limited external knowledge. Problem recognition: Acknowledging that a purchase must be made to accomplish a need or want. Information search: When the consumer collects information that compares the product before making a purchase decision. Evaluation: Evaluating the information collected for the purpose of making an informed purchasing decision. Decision: In terms of buyer behaviour, making the decision to purchase. Purchase: When the act of exchange takes place. Post purchase evaluation: When the product is evaluated and the consumer decides if they would re-purchase the product. Straight re-buy: This is a term widely used by B2B when the consumer decides to re-buy the same product from the same supplier. Total set: Meaning all the products that are available in the same category. Awareness set: When the consumer is aware of the available items in the same category. Evoked set: Are the products in the category that the consumer is aware of and intents to make a purchase choice from as they are at the front of mind. 2.4 How the decision making process works   The process of making a decision can be different for each individual but is largely accessed on the basis of common decision making traits by the decision making process. As the decision making process involves the use of thoughts and feelings, knowledge and past experiences, before the end decision is reached it can be affected by many external factors such as the opinions of others and previous behaviour associated with potential purchase. Integrated marketing communications looks closer at the way the individuals purchasing and the decision making process is affected by external influences. IMC is described by Pelsmacker as â€Å"The idea behind integrated marketing communication is coordination of messages for maximum impact.† Pelsmacker describes this as an impart that is created through the use of synergy. Synergy is the linkages that are created in the indivduals mind as a result of the messages that are received to create an impact, described as an impact â€Å"beyond the power of any one message on its own.† (Pelsmacker De, P. 2001). We have found that the decision making process consists of 5 main stages; the need of recognition and problem awareness, the use of information search, evaluation of any alternatives, purchase and the post purchase evaluation. This model suggests that each individual goes thought the same stages for every purchase; however for more routine purchases, it can be possible for the individual to miss out a stage or complete the decision process in the opposite order. The need for recognition starts the decision making process, by making the individual recognise a need/problem or simply respond to a marketing based stimulus by thinking about the decision making process. Problem awareness prompts the individual to consider how much or little information is needed. When the need is strongest to purchase, then the individual could make the purchasing decision to buy straight away; if the need is not strong then the individual will embark on processing information and will conduct an information search as Pelsmacker described. An information search is the main influence on the individual’s decision making process. The individual may seek to obtain any relevant information from many different sources, including; family, friends, work colleagues and neighbours. Commercial sources including advertising and sales people can also contribute. Sources considered as public such as newspapers, TV and radio can play a part in contributing. And finally, experiential sources such like physically handling, investigating and using the product will play a part in influencing the individual’s final purchasing decision. Evaluation of alternatives encourages the individual to assess what else is available to them in the market place, assessing prices, alternative brands and brand credibility and benefits/services. As every individual is different, the helpfulness and influence any sources of information could be to them will vary by product and individual. Here the Foote Cone and beldin (FCB) shows how the levels of involvement are ranked in a grid format. Foote Cone and Beldin (FCB) Involvement Grid   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Think  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Feel Informative (Thinker) Learn-feel-do (Economic) Affective (Feeler) Feel-learn-do (Psychological) Habit formation (Doer) Do-learn-feel (Responsive) Self-satisfaction (Reactor) Do-feel-learn (Social) (Fill, C. 2009). Involvement affects all consumers but in different ways. As different individuals can purchase the same product, their individual levels of involvement will be different as they are purchasing for different reasons and as the levels of involvement range from high to low there are always different expected outcomes as some individual’s levels of involvement could not be described simply as high or low. Engel and Blackwell (1982) showed their understanding of involvement levels based solely on high involvement routine decision making and repeated purchase behaviour in the low involvement products. Where as in the Foote Cone and Beldin Grid, they have made their understanding on thinking and feeling. For each factor there are resource implications as the individuals personal self-esteem can make the complex confusing. For example: â€Å"The purchase of a can of tomatoes, or a carton of milk, should be regarded as relatively low involvement because it has little financial or social risk attached to it. By comparison, the purchase of a car or holiday is highly involving. The potential benefits from the success could be very high but the personal costs of failing could also be very high. In addition to the product itself being more or less involving, individuals themselves can have different levels of involvement.† Pickton, D. Broderick, A. (2005). The individual uses the information obtained to feel involved with the product they are considering purchasing. So where the involvement is regarded as high, the individual is more likely to carry out an extensive evaluation. The post purchase evaluation is the final stage in the purchasing decision. If the individual is not entirely happy with the purchase they have made they may think that an alternative would have been better, this is called ‘cognitive dissidence’. When cognitive dissidence has taken place it is common that the individual will not repurchase straight away and will often choose a different brand when making a similar purchase in the future. 2.5 The impact of gender on the decision making process It is fairly common that, as men and women want different products that they are going to have a unique to their gender characteristics, a process when deciding how to acquire the product they want. It is also a widely regarded opinion that women do more shopping than men, does this make them more informed when making a purchasing decision perhaps, with all that experience surely women are more informed than men. In recent research published by the NFWBO (National Federation of Woman Business Owners) it has been found that women are the primary decision makers in 85% of households, women make 75% of the decision when buying a new house and 81% about groceries. The article goes on to reveal that women are the main influencers on spending for the household and women have over taken men in spending online. (bright-marketing.com/article-marketing-to-women-what-women-really-want.php) Firstly there are many factors that point towards the notion that men and women are likely to make purchasing decisions differently. Hennig Thurau, (1998) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006) found that men use more information and communications technology products (eg videos, mobile telephones and computers) than women, and that men show a greater interest in these products (Rudell, 1993) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006) also that men show a increased interest for the latest technical products compared to women (Dialoge 4, 1995) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006) . It has been found that men are also more likely to engage in variety-seeking purchasing (Helmig, 1997) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006), exhibit weaker brand involvement (Guest,1964) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006), be less environmentally concerned and be less likely to buy environmentally-friendly products (Ozanne et al., 1999). Having already established that men and women are looking for different outcomes in their purchasing decisions, gender affects consumers approaches to decision making (Mitchell and Walsh, 2004) and the decision difficulty (Walsh and Mitchell, 2005) cited in Mitchell, V. W., Walsh, G. (2006), while gender differences were also found for appearance-related attitudes and behaviour (Burton  et al., 1994). Mitchell and Walsh (2004) found in a study they lead which went further into examining how gender can affect the decision making process, that Sproles and Kendall’s (1986) ‘consumer styles inventory’ (CSI) had found five new male buyig behaviour categories, these discoveries include: A need for satisfying Enjoyment and variety seeking Fashion and scale seeking Time restricted Economy seeking Bakewell, C and Mitchell, V.W (2006) conducted a study on the different decision making styles of women and men, they used a sample of 480 young males and females and identified nine different decision making styles that both sexes used and three decision making styles that just males used which are; Store loyalty and low price seeking Confused time restricted Store promiscuity. These are interesting results, especially considering that young males have agreed with young females that they consider store loyalty important. Bakewell and Mitchell sum up their findings as this â€Å"The findings suggest retailers should focus on loyalty creation programmes, price related appeals and methods of improving shopping related efficiencies when targeting young male shoppers.† Bakewell, C and Mitchell, V.W. 2006. Elliott and Speck made an interesting discovery when they researched into how males and females differ when it comes to purchasing decision, they picked up on the fact that advertising affects individuals differently, even though all advertising is meant to make the consumer want that product that is being marketed to them. â€Å"Males are reported to perceive less advertisement clutter on television and in magazines† (Elliott and Speck,1998). Unusually it has been found that at least 9 researchers have found in existing literature and agreed on the following point â€Å"Consumer decision making is likely to be related to a number of consumer traits such as social class, the type of family unit, age, gender, lifestyle and life-stage – all of which can exert an influence.†   (Meyers-Levy and Maheswaran, 1991;  Burton  et al., 1994;  Darley and Smith, 1995;  Costa  et al., 2001;  Mitchell and Walsh, 2004. Cited in Beynon, M.J. et al.  (2010) This point is interesting as it shows that advertising does not affect every consumer the same way. So we know that males and females make purchasing decisions differently, but we are now aware that age, lifestyle and life stage can all contribute to the purchasing decision making process. It has been found and proven by another group of researchers, that gender type differences are highly evident in the decision making and purchasing behaviour process; as gender characteristics are evaluated differently, depending on the gender of the individual (Gefen and Straub (1997), Venkatesh and Morris (2000) and Sun and Zhang (2006) cited in Hernndez, B. et al (2011). We can reveal that the genders controlling the process all possess these three points: Men are more pragmatic Women experience greater anxiety when faced with new activities Women are more strongly influenced by their immediate environment 2.6 Key findings from literature review From investigating any relevant sources we have found that there are many factors, not just sex, that can affect the individuals buying behaviour such as: race, religion, culture which plays a great role in defining who we are from an early age. Family being a primary source and work colleagues being a secondary source are big external factors that can influence the individual’s decision. Internally there are primary factors that affect how consumers make purchasing decisions, attitude, perceptions and learning styles are significantly great influences. These characteristics like age, gender, income and family style act as further determinants to what the consumer finds interesting and appealing. Reed and Ewing (2004) describe the ‘Magic bullet’ theory is a stimulus-response concept; also how it was an underlying assumption of communication developed from early models of communication around the time of the evolution mass market (P.Reed and M.Ewing, 2004). The magic bullet theory was initially believed to be able to implant the media message to the audience in a ‘uniform’ fashion so that the audience would then be able to directly respond to the mass advertising message, sounding similar to a subliminal message theory. The ‘magic bullet’ theory was proposed to work on the belief that consumers were rational decision makers who were actively seeking products information; subsequently allowing this theory to work on the grounds that the consumers could draw stored advertising and marketing information from their memory. 3.  Ã‚  Research Methodology 3.1 Chapter introduction The proposal of this research study is collect data from a sample of participants that will decide if the hypnotises is proven. For the purpose of this study a sample of 100 consumers will be taken. 50 men and 50 women between the ages of 21-45 will be surveyed using questionnaires that will be distributed online. The questionnaires will be sent to a small sample of respondents, the respondents will be firstly screened for their age and location, thought the best effort will be made to only contact respondents that meet the studies criteria. The benefits of using the internet to distribute the questionnaires are that a theory known simply as the ‘snowball effect’ will help our questionnaire reach more respondents. This is because as we send our questionnaire to the selected respondents, they will forward on the link to our questionnaire to their friends, colleagues and family, who will be of similar specification to the respondents we original contacted. The ‘Snowball Effect’ is highly likely in this case and will be welcomed as it will add more credibility to the validity of the results. A focus group will take place after the results of the online questionnaire are analysed. The researcher has chosen to conduct the research in this manner as they feel it will give the them a good idea of what topics within the research question need to be addressed and investigated further with the member of the focus group. 3.2 Research purpose The purpose of this research study is to gather information on how and why males and females make their purchasing choices and decision making process when faced with the decision to purchase an item. The research aim and objective of this research study is to establish and verify if in fact men and do think and act differently when faced with making a purchasing decision. 3.3 Research approach (including justification)   The approach used to conduct the qualitative and quantative research is based on academic methods which are widely recommended thought UK universities. The researcher has chosen to conduct the research for this study purpose in this manner, as it is widely understood and proven tool to collect and analyse research. However a lot of academic research methods are out dated and long winded. In the case of this study purpose, the time constraint is just a few months so†¦. 3.4 Research strategy (including justification) The research strategy is to firstly establish our target audience; once we are aware of them we can word our questionnaire suitably to their level. This is a key starting strategy, as if they do not understand what we are asking them, they cannot be expected to give an honest answer, subsequently making the results un-validable. By selecting a sample group, it has given the researcher an opportunity to select from a wide range of consumers ie: professionals, students, unemployed and of different race and class. This is make sure every point is considered and analysed. 3.5 Time horizons (including justification) The amount of time allocated to designing and completing this research task was 3 months. 2 weeks, 4 days and four hours it actually took from researching, to designing, to distributing to finally analysing the questionnaires. To research into the target market: 1 week To research into the design on questionnaires: 1 day To design and create the questionnaire: 2 days Sourcing contacts suitable for taking part: 3 hours To distribute the questionnaires: 1 hour Collecting and analysing results: 1 week The researcher found time to complete this research around working a full time job, and made it possible in the time horizon stated. 3.6 Research methods (including sampling)   For this study purpose it was found the most effective way of producing a good quality of validable results using quantitative and qualitative research to gain a better understanding, first hand, of what today’s consumers are thinking and experiencing in the consumer market. As stated in the previous chapter, the questionnaire was designed by our researcher. The questionnaire was reached and created to suit the level of participants who took part. Using previous professional, academic and work colleagues the questionnaire was distributed thought email and posted on a social networking site. We felt both these avenues would be successful for our study purpose as we could reach a large amount of our sample. From the link submitted in the email and social network post, we advised out target group follow the link to a survey specialist website, where they could fill in the questionnaire we designed. We decided to use the survey specialist website for the reason that it was popular amongst other academics, it is trustiest and overall because it is safe. Safety is a big issue for consumers online and this is wanted to assure was fine. Another option for collecting responses to our questionnaire was by post, we decided against this idea for the reasons, it is slow and costs money; whereas online is free and fast. After we had reached a suitable number of responses we collected the results. After the results had been verified and sorted, our researched entered the data in a spread sheet. The data was then analysed into percentages and made into graphs.(Please see appendix 3.) The sampling has been aimed at including consumers between the ages of 21-45 because this guarantees that each individual has had experience in different purchasing scenarios and will be more inclined to be open and honest in their answers. Sampling is seen to be appropriate for this study purpose as time and money are a constraint meaning that a survey of the whole nation would take far too long and cost far too much money for this study purpose and could ultimately restrict the data collected to a sample between the ages of 16-40 in the UK and Ireland. The design of the questionnaire will be simple but not basic, with no confusing or ‘trick’ questions. The use of simple language will be used to insure that any questions will not be misinterpreted. 3.7  Data handling   All data received from the participants will be treated confidentially and will not be used for any other purpose or shared with any third parties. 3.8  Data analysis Questions were sent out via email to a large number of particiapnts, they were specially selected, depending on age range (16-40) and location. The researcher specifically controlled where the questionnaires were being sent as they did only want to receive replies from UK and Ireland consumers. Keeping the research within in boundaries has prevented the sample on becoming to large or collecting information that could not be used. Information that couldn’t be used for this study purpose would be from an individual aged under or above the requirements as this wouldn’t be viable from this study. Also individuals from other countries as this study is just testing the hypnotises in the UK and Ireland. 3.9  Data quality As the sample used to collect the qualitative data for this researched has been kept small, it allows the researcher to pay special attention to the results. The results will be analysed using excel, excel is a reliable and provides excellent validity to the results. The results will be calculated into percentages to give a good idea of how many participants answered each question. Each questions results will be displayed in a range of graphs, these include pie charts, bar charts, line charts and others. 3.9.1  Reliability   It was intended to keep the sample for this research purpose between 80-100 participants, this was to insure that every question answered could be entered into the excel database with ease, ensuring that the researcher did not miss any answers. To make sure the results reliable, any answers send by participants that did not meet the requirements of age and location were safely disposed of. Special care was taken here so that the main sample was not affected and kept to the guidelines stated by the researcher. 3.9.2  Validity For collecting the research there has been special attention paid to collecting both forms of qualitative and quantitative data, this is to insure that our results are fair as they will be analysed by a profession. 3.10  Ethical considerations   With a respect to ethics, each individual taking part in this research will be treated with an un-bias, understanding and fair attitude. To ensure that this project treats all individuals who take part in it and form part of the research, each participant will agree to sign a consent form being signed before taking part in the research. The consent form will give the participants ‘peace of mind’ that none of the information they share with the researcher will be shared with anybody else. All participants information will be safely stored, where they cannot be tampered with thought-out this study purpose. After this study purpose all information kindly collected from the questionnaire and focus group will be safely disposed of (shredded). 3.11  Chapter summary In this chapter we have discussed how to the research required for this study purpose would be carried out 4   Results 4.1 Chapter introduction In this chapter we will be examining the results interpreted from the data collected from our sample. All results are available in the appendix chapter of this document, they will be referred to thought-out this chapter. Interpretation okay you are going to add the statistics (nice, colourful charts I hope!) in an Appendix. But interpreting   and reporting the results   of No. 4 needs to be informative but above all, interesting. Feeding the anticipation I mentioned above is important. So, for example, you found that more 20-year old females bought Nike trainers than 20-year old males after seeing a male-dominated Nike advert wouldnt that be a big surprise to the marketeers? So that kind of stuff beating the old stereotypes finding something new is essential to the analysis and conclusion of the thesis. 4.2 (sub-sections reflecting the issues covered in your data, 4.2, 4.3 etc.) 4.3 Chapter summary 5   Discussion 5.1 Chapter introduction 54.2 (sub-sections reflecting your research objectives, 5.2, 5.3 etc.) 5.3 Chapter summary 6   Conclusions   6.1 Chapter introduction 6.2 (Sub-sections reflecting your research objectives, 6.2, 6.3 etc.) 6.3 Implications for research 6.4 Implications for practic 6.5 Revisiting the limitation 6.6 Directions for future research 6.7 Chapter summary   7  Appendices 7.1 Appendix One – Personal reflection on the research process 7.2 Appendix Two – Research ethics form and associated strategy 7.3 Original copy of questionnaire

All in the Family Essay Example for Free

All in the Family Essay Throughout one’s life, things are going to grow and change, yet one thing will always remain the same, one’s family. This social unit, whether it be related by blood or the love that comes from a family will always remain strong. While taking a look at two narratives, we will discuss the lessons learned, family functions, extended family, and the impressions that are made upon the readers of these stories. Taking a look at these powerful narratives, we as readers see many lessons that are learned throughout these pieces of writing. Taking a look at the narrative, An Indian Story by Roger Jack, this non-nuclear family shows us the readers, the lesion of who can and could be considered family. This important lesson shows how although his Aunt Greta is not immediate family like his father would be; she becomes immediate in his time of need. â€Å"My home and academic life improved a lot after I had moved in with Aunt Greta† (Jack 53). This improvement of life for these characters shows how this social network made of defined characters were able to adapt and transform to the ever-changing needs and circumstances of its â€Å"family† members. Moving on to the much different narrative entitled, Looking for Work by Gary Soto were we take a look at a nuclear family that is much different. The life of a Mexican American boy who strives for nothing less than for his family to be â€Å"perfect† like he sees on TV. His longing for the, â€Å"Father looks on in his suit. The mother, decked out in earrings and a pearl necklace, cuts into her steak and blushes. Their conversation so politely clipped† (Soto 29). These constant strives to be perfect and rich consumed most of his time. Yet by the end of this narrative, he would finally learn the most important lesson of all, his family is who they are. Much like Gary Soto in his story, Looking for Work I learned the same exact lesson. Although my family may have been crazy and somewhat embarrassing they are who they are and there was nothing I could do about it. My family was always going to be there for me no matter what and I couldn’t love them more for that. Throughout these two narratives, everyone experienced the presence of family in some form or another and I have to say, I don’t know what I would do without mine. While reading these stories I found a few similarities between the families in the stories and my own family that really stood out to me. First, the importance of 3family in general. I cannot stress enough how important my family is to me; yet when I was a child, much like the boys in these stories, I did not realize it. Another similarity I shared with these stories was how close I was to my grandma like Roger Jack was to his Aunt Greta. This warmed my heart because I love my grandma and so many instances throughout that narrative reminded me of my grandma and I. Much like when Roger stated, â€Å"I walked to Aunt Greta’s and asked if I could move in with her since I had already spent so much time with her anyway† (Jack 53). Yet one way in which my family is different from the families in these narrative is that I was blessed to have a mom and a dad growing up and I could not be more thankful for that. Growing up is an important time in any child’s life. Whether it is like the boys in these narratives or anyone else; that is a time for you to grow and shape into an individual. I believe that the environment I grew up in was a good thing for me and it shaped my entire worldview. I grew up with great yet strict parents, a loving, caring, hard working mom and housewife, and a tough, hard working, funny father. Together they taught me to work for everything I have because later in life nothing was going to be handed to me. I was taught a great work ethic and good morals from the very beginning. I believe that because of those teachings by my great parents, I am the person I am today. Extended family most definitely differed between the two narratives yet the importance was there. As with my extended family, we are very close, especially with my mom’s mom Erna. I always grew up with her right across the street and I loved every minute of it! She was always there for me and I always had fun whenever I was with her. I remember her cooking for me and us gardening together. Although the dictionary considers grandparents extended family, I do not. My grandma was so close to my family, especially my mom and I that to me she is immediate family. The importance of extended family and family in general to me is practically my life. I would do anything for them just as they would for me. I am so grateful to have such a close immediate and an extended family in my life. Looking at both narratives, there was one that made a more powerful impression upon me as a reader. Looking for Work by Gary Soto really stood out to me for one reason, the lesson. I believe in the fact that your family is who they are and there is nothing that you can do about it besides accept them. I love how Gary realized at the end that his family was not going to be like the family on Father Knows Best and that was ok. I think that made such an impression on me because I was the same way when I was little, I hated when my parents would make jokes and be silly but as I was growing up I grew to love it. My family is who they are and I love them for it! I wouldn’t trade my family for anything in the world and by the end of the story Gary seemed to feel the same way. In the beginning, Gary would be so frustrated when his siblings would wear bathing suits to dinner, when he had specifically asked them to dress up. Yet towards the end of the story such change took over Gary. â€Å"That evening at dinner we all sat down in our bathing suits to eat our beans, laughing and chewing loudly† (Soto 29). This quote is a prime example of the change that underwent the main character and showed the point in which he accepted everyone at that table for who they were, family. Works Cited Jack, Roger. â€Å"An Indian Story.† Ed. Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s, 2010. 52-61. Print. Soto, Gary. â€Å"Looking for Work.† Ed. Robert Cullen and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. Ed. Gary Colombo. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s, 2010. 26-31. Print. All in the Family. (2017, Jan 13).

Instruction and Student Learning Research Paper

Instruction and Student Learning - Research Paper Example One essential element that needs to be carefully monitored is the curriculum and instruction of the school. It is evident that any curriculum definition one way or another puts emphasis on the learning process, gained knowledge and skills, subject content and students’ comprehensive learning experience. In designing an appropriate course curriculum, an essential process needs to be considered including which curriculum model is most suitable for the needs of the learner. The process of learning is as important as the content learned (Newby 2005). One of the most traditional and most commonly used models is â€Å"content or syllabus-based†. Blenkin et al (1992) suggest that curriculum is delineated into subjects and delivered through a bulk of knowledge-content. Education, he states, is the route where these can be transferred to students using efficient teaching and learning methods. This type of curriculum emphasizes students attending schools to learn subject-specific facts. It also helps to use this model in assessment process where students, according to their gained qualification can be grouped in to high and low achievers. Schools at present may have similar goals of optimizing students’ learning and maximizing their potentials but may have differing philosophies, approaches and educational strategies in fulfilling these goals. â€Å"Predictably, the traditional teacher-centered model in which knowledge is â€Å"transmitted† from teacher to learner is rapidly being replaced by alternative models of instruction (e.g., learner-centered, constructivist, and sociocultural ideas) in which the emphasis is on guiding and supporting students as they learn to construct their understanding of the culture and communities of which they are a part (Brown et al., 1993; Duffy & Cunningham, 1996; Pea, 1993). In the process of shifting our attention to the constructive activity of the learner, we recognize the need to anchor learning in real-w orld or authentic contexts that make learning meaningful and purposeful. â€Å" (Bonk & Cunningham, 1998, p.27) Constructivist theory is gaining more attention, recognition and acceptance in many educational institutions. It premises on the belief that learners â€Å"construct† their own learning, and in effect, have better retention of it. In the Constructivist theory the emphasis is placed on the learner or the student rather than the teacher or the instructor.   It is the learner who interacts with objects and events and thereby gains an understanding of the features held by such objects or events.   The learner, therefore, constructs his/her own conceptualizations and solutions to problems.   Learner autonomy and initiative is accepted and encouraged (Van Ryneveld, n.d., n.p.). Teachers come up with several strategies in capturing their students’ attention, and courses are offered in helping educators become more efficient in imparting knowledge and skills t o their pupils. No longer do they limit their teaching strategies to boring lectures, dizzying written and oral examinations and students’ delivery of memorized answers to expected questions. Teaching aids have likewise expanded from using flashcards, blackboard demonstrations and textbooks to more concrete materials like actual 3-dimensional objects, dioramas and multimedia materials. Activities are likewise evolving to be more

Genre Analysis a Key to a Theory of ESP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Genre Analysis a Key to a Theory of ESP - Essay Example As stated in the module, there is a strong distinction between genres and text types; the former refers to the ‘external criteria’ or the nature of the content of the prose whereas, text type refers to the organization or the linguistic form of the text. It is not just a question whether or not I apply this knowledge when composing my essays or any written material but this is, in fact, necessary for any individual who has a keen interest in writing. Not only for the sake of coherence but once the writer has a firm grasp of the dynamics of genres and text types, they can steer the reader’s attention towards the true essence of the text and can help them decipher the writer intentions and emotions through the prose. Whilst writing a text pertaining to the horror genre, a writer would never employ a romantic setting or tone to help stimulate the reader’s imagination and that is why the distinction is necessary to make so that the writer knows which way to steer and the kind of description they must use to maintain the overall tone of the essay. Specifying the genre narrows down the line of thought for the writer that in turn enables us to create scenes and characters that complement the overall sense of the text. Similarly, for me, it is helpful as it tells me where precisely I should focus on and what kind of vocabulary is to be used to establish appropriate imagery and cohesion to make the written text sound consistent. Even though the terms text type and genre are actually mean different things but they are highly dependent upon each other since a genre is very helpful in enabling the writer to choose the most appropriate form of organization or text type that can project the writer’s implication.

Hip Hop Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Hip Hop - Essay Example These men were the rebels of the day. But as hip hop has become more popular, its stars have become brands and multimillionaires too. They do not commit crimes because it would reduce their brand value. Instead, like Michael Corleone, they try to become legitimate businessmen. In the process, they sell their music as entertainment. They become the fat cats and authority figures that they once railed against. In early times they would talk about how hard their lives were and how impoverishing the ghetto was—but now they told such stories from their Manhattan penthouses. This tension causes a real problem for hip hop. The answer to the above question must be â€Å"no.† With commercialization, hip hop has lost much of its authenticity. It is no longer a product of the street, but is instead a product of the businesses and record people who sell it at Walmart. Record labels can try to fabricate and market street cred, but that does not make it authentic (Watkins, 2). Authen tic hip hop still exists in clubs and among the undiscovered, but it has lost something over the years. It is no longer as real as it once was. What does the transformation of the â€Å"hood† from an inner city location to a consciousness allow artists like Jay-Z to do? Through his music, Jay-Z is capable of transforming a physical location or state of poverty into something much more inspiring.

Why is there a higher prevalence of lupus SLE found among females of Literature review

Why is there a higher prevalence of lupus SLE found among females of Afro Carribbean origins - Literature review Example These hormonal imbalances have the capability of changing the genetic makeup of an individual, resulting to the development of Lupus SLE. However, it is important to explain that genetics alone is not the factor responsible for the development of Lupus SLE amongst women. Another important factor is the environment. The environment plays a role in the development of Lupus SLE because of the ultra violet rays of the sun. Research indicates that women, who are heavily exposed to the ultra violet rays of the sun, are always vulnerable to developing Lupus SLE. In terms of ethnicity, Lupus is more common in people of African descent. One of the major reasons advanced, is because of the high rates of poverty amongst these people, making them to be unable to afford medical treatments in regard to the type of contraceptives to use. In as much as this is information that has been given, this fact is disputed, because hormonal changes are not the only factors responsible for the high rate of Lupus amongst women. This paper is a critical analysis of the ethnic and sex differences in the epidemiology and clinical course of lupus. This paper will analyze the ethnic and sex differences in the clinical and epidemiology course of Lupus. In meeting the objective of this paper, there will be a need of understanding the genetic predisposition of Lupus. This is important in helping us to understand why women and people of African origin are vulnerable to an attack by Lupus. Furthermore, for purposes of understanding this disease, and its epidemiological and clinical cause, there will be a need of identifying its causes. These are well explained in this paper. This paper would also identify and explain the neuropsychiatric consequences of lupus, and an example is the Lupus fog. It would further explain the epidemiology of this disease, and this is in relation to

Genetic Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Genetic - Lab Report Example The effects of other processes, such as genetic imprinting, are important in determining the traits for other characteristics of the organism. Sequencing the genetic material of a species, and determining all coding sequences and their corresponding proteins are vital projects in the field of molecular biology. The human genome project had been successful in sequencing the DNA of humans (Venter et al., 2001). The studies of (Kyrylkova et al., 2012; Yu et al., 2012) determine the characteristics corresponding to a particular genetic sequence by preventing the transcription of the latter and observing the changes afterward. A sequence identified to determine a particular characteristic can also be used as a molecular marker to determine the presence or absence of trait, even without actually seeing it in the organism. For example, markers for sex can help distinguish between males and females in monomorphic species or their young. The objective of this experiment was to demonstrate the use of DNA samples to determine the characteristics of the organism, particularly its sex. Specifically, the activity aimed to isolate DNA from different sources, blood, muscle and feather. After purification, the DNA isolates underwent polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using sexing primers 2250F and 2718R to replicate the sequence for sex determination. Agarose gel electrophoresis of the PCR products were compared with that of known male and female samples to identify the sex of the chicken from which the samples were obtained. Qiagen DNeasy Blood and Tissue Extraction Kit was used for extraction. Briefly, the tissues sample was lysed by incubating it in a solution containing 20 Â µl proteinase K, 4 Â µl RNAse A and 166 Â µl phosphate buffer solution (PBS) (blood) or 180 Â µl Buffer ATL (muscle or feather) for 30 min. After mixing with 200 Â µl Buffer AL for 15 sec, the DNA was precipitated by addition of 200 Â µl 95%

John Lasseter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

John Lasseter - Essay Example This artist has been developing his skills of drawing cartoons from his childhood. His mother was an art teacher and John has often tried to incarnate his vision in animation. When he went to the church together with his family, he drew cartoons. He was amazed by Chuck Jones cartoons on TV and rushed home after school in order to watch these cartoons. In high school John was interested in reading the book â€Å"The Art of Animation† by Bob Thomas (Paik, 2007). Thus his decision to become an animator was growing in his heart for years. Finally, he entered California Institute of the Arts and was a student of a new animation course. He was taught by Disney’s outstanding masters, such as Eric Larson, Frank Thomas and others. His first animation films were Lady and the Lamp (1979) and Nightmare (1980) (Paik, 2007). Lasseter won prizes for his first animation films. He joined Disney but after 101 Dalmatians Lasseter claimed that it was the largest masterpiece of this Studio and suggested to introduce some innovations. In the beginning of 80s Lasseter became interested in computer graphics. Lasseter felt a great potential of computer animation and propagated the idea that computers could be helpful in making movies with three dimensional backgrounds. His guidance was the book by Thomas Disch â€Å"The Brave Little Toaster† (Paik, 2007). â€Å"Where the Wild Things Are† was the first project where Lasseter and his followers decided to introduce computer graphics innovations. Unfortunately, producers saw no benefits and Lasseter was fired from Disney. It is possible to note, that all geniuses were not acclaimed at once. A process of acknowledgement requires time and patience and hard work from genius. Lasseter followed this line and step by step reached the heights in the sphere of his dream, short film animation. Lasseter rushed into searching of co-thinker, followers and professionals from computer industry. His first animation film â€Å"The

Genetic Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Genetic - Lab Report Example The effects of other processes, such as genetic imprinting, are important in determining the traits for other characteristics of the organism. Sequencing the genetic material of a species, and determining all coding sequences and their corresponding proteins are vital projects in the field of molecular biology. The human genome project had been successful in sequencing the DNA of humans (Venter et al., 2001). The studies of (Kyrylkova et al., 2012; Yu et al., 2012) determine the characteristics corresponding to a particular genetic sequence by preventing the transcription of the latter and observing the changes afterward. A sequence identified to determine a particular characteristic can also be used as a molecular marker to determine the presence or absence of trait, even without actually seeing it in the organism. For example, markers for sex can help distinguish between males and females in monomorphic species or their young. The objective of this experiment was to demonstrate the use of DNA samples to determine the characteristics of the organism, particularly its sex. Specifically, the activity aimed to isolate DNA from different sources, blood, muscle and feather. After purification, the DNA isolates underwent polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using sexing primers 2250F and 2718R to replicate the sequence for sex determination. Agarose gel electrophoresis of the PCR products were compared with that of known male and female samples to identify the sex of the chicken from which the samples were obtained. Qiagen DNeasy Blood and Tissue Extraction Kit was used for extraction. Briefly, the tissues sample was lysed by incubating it in a solution containing 20 Â µl proteinase K, 4 Â µl RNAse A and 166 Â µl phosphate buffer solution (PBS) (blood) or 180 Â µl Buffer ATL (muscle or feather) for 30 min. After mixing with 200 Â µl Buffer AL for 15 sec, the DNA was precipitated by addition of 200 Â µl 95%

Sports minded individuals Essay Example for Free

Sports minded individuals Essay High school days are usually regarded as the most memorable moment in a student’s life. For the conscientious group, it is a preparation for college life and a time to ponder on one’s interest and career choice. For the less serious and happy-go-lucky young students, it is a time to establish close friendship and romantic relationship. For the sports minded individuals, it is a time to gear up and grab the attention of various college and university officials who may hand them their athletic scholarships. Regardless of whether students are deemed hard-working, lazy, diligent, or carefree, there is a special event in their life that will remain unforgettable – the prom night. The summer of 2005 was not only spent swimming and sunbathing in the beach with my family and friends. I took advantage of the school break to scout for a reasonably priced and elegant prom gown. I spent many hours browsing the web for a suitable gown as I was undecided on whether to settle for a halter, strapless, off-shoulder, or V-neck gown. There were many times when I attempted to design my own evening wear but ended up tearing the paper and throwing them in the garbage can. I never realized that preparing for the prom was so difficult for a young high school lady. It was not only the gown that females need to prepare. The matching shoes and bag, earrings and necklace, hairstyle and make-up must also be an important part of our wardrobe. â€Å"Ahhh†¦. I wish that I am a male and all I need to wear is a tux, a white shirt, ribbon, black shoes and socks. No need to wear any make-up and jewelry. All that is needed is a good haircut and a well-shaved face†, I told myself while dropping to the bed when I reached a point of desperation in finding the right attire for me. Two weeks of my summer break was spent on learning how to do my own facial make-over. I had to call my friend, Gale to help me out as she was the most glamorous looking person in class. Gale never left home without fixing her hair and applying make-up. â€Å"Oww†¦that hurts! † I yelled as Gale plucked a fine hair in my eyebrow using a pair of tweezers. â€Å"Hahaha†¦Don’t be a sissy, Faye! † Gale uttered as she giggled at my reaction. â€Å"Can’t you just use a thread instead? † I asked as I vigorously massaged my eyebrow. â€Å"I’m not a beauty expert silly. It will only take a while and your virgin eyebrow will get used to this†, Gale said as she continued to pluck more strands of hair from my eyebrow. â€Å"Oww†¦Gale! † I yelled again and massaged my eyebrow that has turned pinkish due to skin irritation and pain. Gale did not give up on me and she learned to ignore my deafening shout of pain. I am glad that my parents and younger brother were not at home at that time. I could imagine how much my brother would make fun of me and would mimic every action and words that I uttered. Towards the end of the eyebrow plucking session, I felt the cold sweat on my body and the discomfort in my tummy. When I felt the need to run to the restroom, I stood up but it was too late to control the unexpected. â€Å"Poooottt†¦. poootttt†, the sound of my fart strikes the air. â€Å"Yucckkk†¦. Faye! That was gross! † Gale yelled as she covered her nose and walk towards to the window. â€Å"Sorry Gale! † I responded as my face turned pale. To blow the foul odor away, I grabbed a towel and wave it vigorously against the air. Just when I was about to wipe my sweat, Gale noticed something on my chair. â€Å"Faye†¦. what’s this on your chair? † she asked while looking closely at the chair I sat on. â€Å"Gosh†¦you peed on your chair! † she uttered in disbelief as her blue eyes widened. Suddenly, I looked at her, gazed at the chair, touched the front and back side of my shorts and realized that I must have peed while Gale was plucking my eyebrow. While Gale was giggling, I quickly ran to the bathroom to change my shorts and underwear. It was an embarrassing experience for me considering that this was the only time Gale witnessed someone lose control of her bladder as a result of an eyebrow make-over. When I returned to my room, my chair was already clean and dry. Gale cleaned the mess that I created and I felt that I wanted to hide my face under my pillows and bed covers. Sensing my uneasiness and shame due to my silence, Gale tried to divert my attention by discussing the things that I must prepare for the prom. She also gave me tips on how to choose the right gown for my physique and how to fix my hair for the evening occasion. In spite of the humiliating incident, Gale continued to drop by our home to prepare me for the event. There was also a time when we listened to some popular songs and music that may be played during our prom. Then, we pretended to be the King and Queen of the night and we danced to the music of our favorite love song while we were singing together. Before the end of our summer vacation, I was able to apply my make-up and fix my hair with ease. It took some time before I was able to pluck and shape my eyebrow independently. There were many times when I asked Gale to help me and in every session I became wary of my bladder. I learned to take a break each time I find it difficult to tolerate the pain. The prom was indeed a memorable event in my life. Everyone was impressed with the changes in my appearance when they saw me dressed in halter gown, wearing a 3-inch high heeled pair of shoes, a make-up and an attractive hairdo. Gale became the prom queen and I became the girlfriend of the prom king a month after he unintentionally stepped on the hem of my gown that led me to lose my balance on the dance floor and bumped on the waiter who was serving drinks. Well, that was another embarrassing moment. Gale became my best friend and from time to time we both laugh as we recall the summer of our pre-prom preparation days.

Authority-responsibility relationships

Authority-responsibility relationships Modern organizations are constantly trying to incorporate a humanistic approach in order to keep their employees happy. Organizational behavior is greatly affected by changes that occur inside the company. One that is seen as most important is that of the changes in organizational structures. The old way of doing things with bureaucratic models have given way to modern models using project and matrix designs. Every organization has objectives and goals that it strives to achieve. In order to do so, the people in the organization must work together. The activities of each of these individuals are broken down by authority-responsibility relationships. These relationships are often formed on the basis of the job hierarchy (Organizational behavior and basics, n.d.). An organization is a group of individuals that are broken down into different levels of authority and segments based on specialty for the intention of achieving the goals and objectives that have been set by the organization. When objectives are established for these groups a process is used to identifying and group the work that is to be performed. Responsibility and authority roles are also defined and delegated while relationships are established for the purpose of enabling the people to work most effectively together (Organizational behavior and basics, n.d.). Administration of an effective organization determines the goals that the company as a whole strives towards. Organizations often evolve out of a need clear, well defined system or structure, that allows people to execute their work responsibilities. This structure helps employees to relate to each other, organize their activities, and achieve the goals or objectives that have been set by the organization. It helps to minimize confusion, maintain an ideal environment and maximizes effectiveness (Organizational behavior and basics, n.d.). Hewlett-Packard is an example of a company that uses modern organizational behavior in order to emphasize productivity and good employee relations. In 2000, Hewlett-Packard was one of five winners of the Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership. This company was founded in 1939 by Bill Hewlett and David Packard. Early on this company has a good philosophy that encouraged good employee relations. David Packard fashioned the concept of management by walking around as a means to achieve a high involvement and open work culture. HP has been both a leader in technology and in human resource management practices. As a leader in technology HP designed and produced the first handheld scientific calculator. As a management innovator HP introduced the radical notion of flexible work hours and removed time clocks as a way to show respect for and trust in its employees (Organizational Behavior in Changing Times, n.d.). HP is a $41-billion-a-year business that consists of seven major product lines and three service lines. HP products include computer desktops and workstations, mobile products, printing and digital imaging products, storage products, servers, networking products, and software. The services lines include e-services, personal services, and business services. HP has approximately 88,500 employees and was one of the first companies to formalize telecommuting policies for its employees. The company has more than 540 sales and support offices and distributorships in 120 countries worldwide (Organizational Behavior in Changing Times, n.d.). The Santa Rosa Systems Division of Hewlett Packard (SRSD) was created in 1992 in order to target a new systems integration opportunity in the ever growing communication business sector. In 1994 SRSD faced many challenges that threatened its success as well as that of its leadership team. Those in the organization saw the following things as major issues: There were two competing strategies that were threatening to divide the organization There were problems between two functions that were competing for common engineering resources. This problem was caused by a functional structure that had very poorly designed cross-functional business teams The cross-functional teams that were not effectively led or managed and did not produce any needed coordination There was a top team that was not effective. There was a general manager who was not confronting and resolving key strategic and organizational issues. There was low trust throughout the organization that prevented organizational problems from being discussed and managed. There was underperformance in the rate of growth and profitability as well as low morale and turnover of key technical people (Beer, 2002). In order to help address these issues HP used a technique know as Organizational Fitness Profiling (OFP). This process enabled the leadership team to bring these problems to the surface and make changes that allowed the business unit to capitalize on many market opportunities. The leadership team and many of the key managers in theSanta Rosadivision had grown up in Hewlett Packards traditional business environment. Fitness Profiling enabled the leadership team to have an honest organizational conversation about the behaviors that were silent killers and diagnose the root causes (Beer, 2002). HP is a technology company that operates in more than 170 countries worldwide. They explore how technology and services can help people and companies address their problems and challenges while pursing their own possibilities, aspirations and dreams. They apply new thinking and ideas to create more simple, valuable and trusted experiences with technology. They are continuously improving the way that their customers live and work (Hewlett-Packard, 2009). Not many other companies offer as complete a technology product portfolio as HP does. They provide infrastructure and business offerings that range from handheld devices to some of the world’s most powerful supercomputers. They offer consumers a wide range of products and services from digital photography to digital entertainment and from computing to home printing. This comprehensive portfolio helps them match the right products, services and solutions to their customers’ specific needs (Hewlett-Packard, 2009). Hewlett Packards motto for their employees consists of Stretch. Strive. Succeed. This is a standard that they demand not only from themselves but from their employees as well. When a person goes to work at HP, they are given every opportunity to stretch their talents, strive for new solutions and succeed beyond what they thought was possible. And when the employee does this they are recognized and rewarded as they grow with the company (Hewlett-Packard, 2009). This approach is what has made HP the worlds leading information Technology Company and keeps them moving in new and interesting directions. This is how they have been able to provide ideas that help people around the world connect, create and accomplish amazing things. Its why their people are experts in so many areas including marketing, finance, HR, sales, IT infrastructure, personal computing and access devices, business technology solutions, global services, and imaging and printing for consumers, enterprises, and small and medium businesses. They believe that when you bring great minds together in over 170 countries, each person has a hand in driving the innovations that make the world a better place (Hewlett-Packard, 2009). The Sociotechnical system (STS) redesign process that was used by HP in order to chronicle the process as it actually occurs includes documenting how changes in managers’ and employees’ beliefs and behaviors as they are produced. STS redesign is not a new management trend but was first detailed by Eric Trist and his associates of the Tavistock Institute in 1963. Central to STS redesign are two principles. The first is that work is comprised of both social and technical components, while the second is that organizations are open systems. The second concept is composed of two important concepts. Organizations are open meaning that they are constantly interacting and negotiating with their environment. Just as significant is the character of their system. Real change occurs only with attention to all aspects of the organization. In order to implement STS redesign, top management must sponsor and demonstrate commitment to the change and the redesign team must be composed of employees from all levels of the organization. This is a change process designed by the workers whose work is being redesigned. Guiding principles include employee involvement, the reallocation of power and authority down the hierarchical ladder, open communications, and system wide transformation. Structurally, the result is an organization composed of self-managing teams (Besser, 1999).