Beauty in Architecture

Art has been around for so long that it has become an integral part of a human being's life. A thorough observation of all forms of art speaks of one common significance – art as the so-called â€Å"universal expression of the soul. † The ancient carvings in an Egyptian cave, the soothing melody of a harp, the beautiful words of a poet, and the abstract objects in a painting all define art as timeless, pure, and perfect. But how far can a universal language serve mankind? Can an old fine-tuned guitar or a gold-textured jug stand as a man's ally in his lifetime?It is somewhat ironic to admit to ourselves that we have gotten so used to the notion that the most beautiful will never be the most useful. One form of art though that has stood apart from this irony is architecture. In its most basic explanation, architecture is both a combination of a work of art and science to build and erect buildings. For a builder and designer called the architect, architecture is a monumen tal task. First, because it is an art that speaks of a meaning; and second, because its completion will serve more than man's desire for beautiful things.Architecture stands so unique from the rest of all artistic forms. A building will stand tall and proud for the entire world to see long after the beauty of the most expensive painting loses its appeal for the eyes. Architecture has a dynamic role to play and to sustain. One vivid example of its difference from all arts is a home. Inside a house are walls with paintings in every corner, an elegant piano in the living room being played by well-trained hands, and a long hallway lined with slender China vases about a foot tall.Overtime as the family living inside the house grew up and changed physically and mentally, so are their treatment for all these pieces of art. The hands that once played the piano may later find other interests to pursue, one or two of the vases gets broken into pieces because of carelessness or accidents, and the paintings may one day be moved to another room where no one can eventually look at it. A helpless and unhappy ways for these arts to retire. But not for the house.Children go to school, attend college, and get married but they always come back to the house that have been there since their birth. A few repairs here and there over the years, fresh interior and exterior paints, and an installation of new household technologies may be a part of the family’s growth but the house remains a house. A shelter and a fortress for mankind. It has protected the family from vicious storms and heavy rains, from the terrible heat of summer, from the freezing temperatures of winter. Above all, it has become a symbol of the family’s traditions and cultures.It no longer portrays a spacious neat place where children, parents, relatives, and friends can gather around comfortably. It has grown into something the inhabitants can be proud of because its structures and textures have been t ransformed into a representation of status, wealth, achievements, educational degrees, and even religion. This is only a brief and simple example of the importance of architecture in an ordinary life. Moving on to a broader and global view of the existence of architecture, we find buildings and establishments housing larger groups of people.From the family who lived in the house with occasional visits from friends and relatives, we shifted our eyes towards the cathedral or mosque in the city that symbolizes its flock of followers that goes in and out to worship and pray. There is also the hospital that is structured to accommodate as many sick patients as possible and the palace or mansion that epitomizes the actions and behaviors of a certain type of government and ruler. Bridges made of wood or steel provide a passage for fast and accessible transportation.The St. Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican became the seat of Catholicism in the world. Buckingham Palace symbolizes the royalty as the reigning ruler of Great Britain and the White House the powerful effects of a nation’s unity. The Chrysler Building exemplifies a wealthy businessman’s passion for automotives. Not only does architecture speaks of religion, government, and education, it also evokes feelings. The Great Walls of China was both a protection and defense from enemies in ancient Chinese times.Taj Mahal was a man’s undying profession of love for his wife and The Statue of Liberty was a gift of one nation to another. Architecture is more than an expression of our joys, anguish, rage, victories, and problems. Architecture must follow a strict set of guidelines before expressing man’s varying emotions. Tradition and culture lead the guidelines and principles in erecting and building. A man must design and create in accordance to the period or backdrop a piece belongs. Through architecture, the community and its inhabitants can speak to another generation their beliefs, righ ts, and traditions.When a building, a bridge, or a church has served its function, when we have declared architecture as more lasting than the rest of the arts, and when we have given the establishments too much credit for serving us loyally, we seek and desire for something more from them. As we evolved mentally and emotionally, we develop dissatisfaction for simplicity, plainness, and mediocrity. We use our common senses to start discerning that which is not plain, simple, and mediocre and the greatest tool for this task is our philosophy.And what better way to apply philosophy in architecture than to criticize a structure for its beauty or ugliness. Once we have applied this philosophy, we discover how sad our evolution has become. As our societies change forth into what we call a modernized world, our â€Å"modern† minds would dispose or discard slowly and gradually the old ways and traditions. There is no longer that appreciation for the artistic sides of things. They ha ve been dismissed as impractical, costly, and useless, turning everything we create into mere thresholds of function (McElwee, 1996).With this realization we go back to our dissatisfactions. Plainness and ugliness cannot stay visible forever, we consciously decide. It is no longer enough for a church to be just a place of worship. It has to speak through its design, color, and texture the religion of the people. To build a bridge is not only to nail pieces of woods and steel together and cover them up with solid cement. It has to be shaped in elegance and style. Monuments are not only a plain sculpture of a legend’s bust or body. It could be a palace or a beautiful arched tower. A business establishment is not merely a tall building.Its concept of design could be stemmed from a businessman’s view of a successful life. Even a house or an apartment is not at all roofs on our heads and walls on our sides. It could be an outstanding structure among its surroundings. This i s a tremendous challenge for architecture. It has to serve its basic purpose and function, and at the same time pass the critical judgment of philosophy, in this case, the philosophy of art and beauty called aesthetics. Of course there are always exceptions from the judgments and scrutiny. Poverty and economic instability are one.In modern America, the poorest has to live in dilapidated housings where shelter is the only option to survive the cold and the heat. The lower-class struggle everyday to earn a penny for food and clothing. An idea to build a beautiful and spacious home is too bleak to consider. Some might just dwell under the bridges or lie down on the side of the streets. However, modernization has almost found itself among the groups of the poor. It has created, too, a concept that a structure that serves a role other than functionality is simply preposterous. Style, color, and beauty are not among the plans of the design.They are costly and time-consuming for the owner. Architects are distressingly left with no choice but to build a cheap establishment that takes fewer amounts of time and effort. The concept of architecture has solely described the kind of life a man has with technologies around him. There is no longer a place for art and beauty in a vehicle and mobile revolution. A house or an apartment in this period is no longer designed with curves, arches, and elegance, but with dull straight lines that accommodate enough appliances and technologies the dwellers have in their life.Aesthetics can help our modern minds get back to the original fundamentals of architecture: that beauty is included together with function and structure (Gatto, 2002). There is so much more in architecture than anything found in a painting on a wall, a sculpture of a goddess, a song of an opera, and a rhyme in a poem. But one should never forget that architecture, too, could stand beside these forms of art and be functional and beautiful at the same time. What then are the criteria for beauty? Do we build houses, towers, and bridges the way we paint a picture or write a song?In a way, we do but, along with the history it represents, there are aesthetic values to consider. There has to be art and science in architecture. It is the aesthetic value of a piece of architecture that separates distinctly its function and purpose from the beauty and art in its form. It involves a calculative thinking of a mathematician and an expressive feeling of an artist. Beauty in architecture competes with beauty in nature. While nature has been the most beautiful and timeless piece of art ever created, architecture, too, has a responsibility to play as nature to man.A construction of an object has to make the nature in the background looked more beautiful and appealing. It does not destroy or diminish the surrounding to where it stood. Considering the background was a barren piece of land, the object doesn’t make the whole picture look uglier, boring, and dry. It has to stand out as a distinction from the place, like a garden in a dessert or a lighthouse in a terrible storm. And of course, its beauty has to sustain its purpose. To design and to build is also to preserve its function and appeal.It takes a specialty and an education to criticize a piece of architecture according to its beauty. According to Scruton, as cited in A Weekly Dose of Architecture website (2006), calling a painting or music beautiful is different from calling architecture beautiful. Only the keenest of eyes equipped with aesthetic knowledge can understand architecture’s details of structure, function and beauty. Beautiful for man is what he perceives as pleasurable to his senses. The colors of a painting, the sound of music, and the grace of a ballerina catches the eyes, the ears, and the sensations.It is man’s most basic instinct of his judgment of beauty. That which delights and pleases him is beautiful. That which irritates and disgusts him i s ugly. What makes certain things labeled as the opposite of beauty? A look at the surface of beautiful objects evokes timeless joy and appreciation. But to understand why it has delighted us takes a thorough observation and scrutiny of our eyes and minds. Beauty is an association and combination of the aspects of art – color, structure, shapes, texture, etc.A right combination of colors, a perfect variation of lines and angles, and a precise proportion of each shape constitute a very attractive model of beauty. As mentioned earlier, man’s mentality evolves and changes. Our judgment for beauty deepens together with our intellect. Our feelings towards pieces of architecture vary overtime depending on the type of piece. We may have an understanding tolerance for a house or a store lacking in repairs but we don’t give considerations to a government hall, a church, or a huge commercial building to become less than what they were originally created for.There are cert ain levels of judgment applied to different degrees of art. An architecture that houses, sustains, and encompasses a great number of dwellers requires greater attention and care for beauty and its preservations. Judgment is not only based in evolving intellects and mentality. So, too, can our emotions and beliefs towards certain things affect our taste for beauty. Religious biases, political dissents, racial and intellectual discriminations among other things provide a pre-conceived notion of how we view and react to things and objects.The grandeur of the Vatican may look commanding and dominant for others who see Catholicism as not entirely the perfect religion around. The White House may disgust other countries because of the government’s overbearing tactics in war. Even the handsomely restored Germany may forever be treated with dread and despise by the Jews affected by the nightmares of the holocaust. This is what the great German philosopher Immanuel Kant pointed out (In ternet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2006). Man simply has this idea inside his head about a certain object. Through these ideas he forms his judgment and reactions to it.So when the object has been made visible in front of his eyes, he already discerns it as beautiful or ugly. There is none of the hard work done in a careful assessment and scrutiny of every tiny detail. According to Kant, there are at least four factors to consider in making a judgment of beauty. A man has to experience joy and delight in something he sees as beautiful. The perfect blend of colors in a rainbow makes him smile that is why he calls it beautiful. Our judgment has to agree with almost everyone else, in fact with the whole universe, making the object universal.The object has to have a role to play other than for display and viewing and creation simply has to serve its purpose that it has been designed for. In Kant’s Critique of Judgment, he emphasized the importance of an experience of observing be auty before judgments as to how and why it is called beautiful are being set up. In Christopher Alexander’s Nature of Order, Book 1: The Phenomenon of Life, he pictures the present generation of architecture as lacking in life (Mehaffy, n. d. ). He blamed architects for the sluggish attitude in designing and constructing buildings.Architects have developed a similar attitude with the people, that in a technology-ruled and fast-paced world we lived in, we neglect to put details in architecture that breathes life. According to him, life is the most fundamental foundation of a structure. Life is breathing and moving. Architecture should be based on this and not on the robotic and mechanistic way our technologies convey. In our modern scientific way, the use of art has slowly been diminishing. Before it happens completely, let us bear in mind that without beauty in it is like a lonely statue of a hero standing out in a cold hard rain.The statue has no life and it no longer feels cold or heat. But architecture is an essential part of our life. So its essence and foundation must breathe life. We must take comfort not only for the roof it provides above our heads but also for the pride it makes us feel because of its beauty. Architecture is both a responsibility and a privilege to provide and attract. It has to welcome and not to frighten anyone away. It has to project a remembrance of its existence and not to kill all the memories forever. Even an old uninhabited castle’s haunted feeling depicts the lives of the powerful family who once lived there.But in our time today, the ugly unoccupied building gives us the shivers not because of the memories left there but of the hideous structure of the place. Architecture should never lose its beauty. After all, its ability to be the symbol of both science and art is what sets it apart. A house, a church, a store, a town hall, and a community that is devoid in beauty lack the true essence and purpose of life â €“ creation. If we are indeed too practical, busy, and perhaps too frugal to incorporate art with our dwellings, then we are better off to live in cold hard unshapely caves. Works Cited

High school diploma Essay

I did 4 years in Senn High School and there were a lot of problems in school. Dropping out of high school is a huge issue for many teens today. As society demands hardworking graduates with good character, the nation should require keeping teens from dropping out of school and improving student’s education for the future. There are many causes for why teenagers drop out of school. But there are few solutions for allowing them to finish high school with high diplomas. Pregnancies, drugs, gang involvement and bullying play a big role in the dropout rate. How can high schools help students to earn their high school diplomas and stop dropping out of school? Many kids attend High schools that have a different culture, or way of doing things. I will always remember my years of high school. However, I feel my high school years have been the most memorable. I strongly believe that high school is the open door, into the rest of my life. The last days of my high school career are fast approaching and I can only imagine how I’ll be feeling when I step out of Senn High School for the very last time. Throughout these four years, I have felt a lot of requirements about graduating high school. I didn’t think that the time to graduate would come soon enough. I came across a great interest essay that starts with the question of why smart kids are, on average, low status in the high school environment. The short answer is that being popular in that environment is a full time job, and smart kids, even if they want to be popular, want to do other things as well. The author goes on to make quite a lot of interesting, understanding, and disturbing points about how children are brought up. What bothers me is not that the kids are kept in prisons, but that they aren’t told about it, and the prisons are run mostly by the person who is confined in a prison. In my high school Spanish class we were supposed to speak in Spanish. I don’t think any of us knew Spanish well enough to make our way through this huge book. Like the rest of the class, I just study the notes. When we were given a test on the book, I noticed that the questions sounded odd. They were full of long words that our teacher wouldn’t have used. Where had these questions come from? From the notes, it turned out. The teacher was using them too and we were all just pretending.

Minimising risk in fashion

Explain how Buyers and Merchants minimise hazard when planning ranges for their manner company. Gabrielle ( Coco ) Chanel stated ‘Fashion does non merely exist in frocks, manner is in the air, it is brought in by the air current, one feels it coming, breathes it in the sky and on the paving, it depends on thoughts clients and happenings’ ( Charles-Roux, 2005 p.11 ) . The undertaking of construing how the changing universe is likely to impact the consumer’s desire for manner merchandises is hard, and this is why manner purchasers and merchants turn to command tools.There are many control tools which a manner company will utilize throughout its concern construction in order to accomplish maximal net income borders and to assist understate hazard and to give themselves a strong competitory advantage over rivals. Control tools are a critical portion of a manner company in order for it to turn successfully and to stay competitory. Despite supplying a figure of advantages to a manner company, control tools besides present a figure of disadvantages and restrictions whereby they are merely utile to a certain point, and this is when other control tools need to be put into the equation. A cardinal control tool used in the purchasing procedure is Range Planning. Range Planning involves roll uping a commercially acceptable aggregation of garments within fiscal and design parametric quantities, prior to production and bringing ( Goworek 2007 ) .The development of a scope of merchandises for a new season raises of import strategic issues for manner retail merchants about new merchandises and markets. In any season there is ever a balance struck between updated rudimentss that will be repeated in some signifier, and wholly new manner merchandises. A utile tool to assist entree the scope of merchandises for a season and to assist understate hazard is the Ansoff product-market matrix. This planning tool helps separate the basic options for increasing gross revenues by pull stringsing merchandise and market chances. It works good for the manner industry where merchandises are of all time altering and new markets continually developing, hence this will assist to understate h azard when planning ranges. Buyers and merchants should recognize the strategic options indicated by the Ansoff Matrrix, and the differing deduction of each to developing merchandise ranges in a season ( Watts, 1998 ) . Basically these options represent different methods of increasing gross revenues which will basically assist to maximize net incomes. The trouble manner retail merchants face is where to strike the balance between the breadth of the scope they offer and the deepness of pick available in their scope of merchandises. ‘Range width’ refers to how broad a pick of merchandises is to be offered to clients. Some manner retail merchants e.g. Miss Selfridge, began selling vesture and accoutrements but have widened their merchandise ranges to include jewelry, make-up and a whole host of other merchandises reflecting the lifestyle demands of the consumer. The deepness of a scope refers to the picks of manners, colorss, sizes and monetary values available to clients in important Numberss of units within production classs. When purchasers and merchants are be aftering the scope, they need to look at their mark consumer to place what merchandise categorization should be included and how many of each categorization, this is to assist understate hazard. Product Mix is an of import component of Range planning. If assess ed right, harmonizing to consumer demands and wants, the right merchandise mix will assist to maximize net incomes. The advantage of holding a merchandise mix is that it can potentially increase the volume of gross revenues, widening the scope on offer helps to distribute the fiscal hazards which are potentially involved. In add-on adding new scopes to the trade name will assist to diversify the manner company and convey approximately new concern chances and aid to increase possible gross revenues and net incomes. Having a wide merchandise mix will besides assist to aim new clients every bit good as making and prolonging the involvement of current consumers. Furthermore Product Mix is a cardinal driver in the scope planning procedure. The disadvantage of Product Mix as a control tool is an increased hazard of stock markdowns if Product Mix on offer is excessively broad ( Shaw, 2005 ) . When be aftering a scope program construction many retail merchants and purchasers struggle to make up one's mind whether to go on with merchandises which have sold good in the yesteryear but which are going ‘old fashioned’ such as the Laura Ashley jumper daisy print frock ( Shaw, 2005 ) . A clear and up to day of the month statement of the retailers’ market place and mark client, based on uninterrupted research, will give the purchaser assurance to be ruthlessly matter-of-fact over what to include and what non to maintain in a scope. This will assist to understate hazard within the manner company. When be aftering a merchandise scope, the Product Mix and categorization program are of critical importance ; each merchandise will hold its ain single merchandise life rhythm ( Doha, 2013 ) . The merchandise lifecycle of a merchandise has four really clearly defined phases, each with its ain features, that average different things for concerns that are seeking to pull off the life rhythms of their peculiar merchandises. These four distinct phases consist of: Introduction, Growth, Maturity and Decline. These four phases will change well harmonizing to the type of merchandise which is being sold, and whether it’s a authoritative, craze or manner merchandise. Product lifecycle direction is an of import control tool within calculating gross revenues and seasons. It makes it possible to command the whole lifetime of a merchandise and the information connected with it. Efficient merchandise lifecycle direction enables companies to vie successfully in international planetary markets ( Stark, 2006 ) . Product life rhythm direction is the activity of pull offing a company’s merchandises all the manner across its lifecycles in the most effectual manner. In so making, it enables the company to take control of its merchandises. If a company loses control of its merchandises this can hold black effects. Therefore merchandise life rhythm direction is a cardinal control tool, for merchants and purchasers. During the development of a merchandise, it doesn’t physically exist, so during that stage of its life it’s hard to command. PML helps to convey better merchandises to market faster, and enable better support of customersâ€℠¢ usage of merchandises. It is of import to convey a merchandise to market rapidly, otherwise the client will take a competitor’s merchandise before yours get to market. An advantage for purchasers and merchants of utilizing the merchandise lifecycle as a control tool is that it helps cut down the cost of a merchandise. The merchandise life rhythm can be used by purchasers and merchants to assist understate hazard for their manner companies by reexamining old products’ lifecycles, where they peaked and where they started to worsen. This can be used to an advantage to assist be after the merchandise life rhythms of similar futuristic merchandises which will assist to command and gauge the life rhythm of a merchandise. It’s of import to cut down merchandise costs ; otherwise consumers may halt utilizing your merchandise and utilize a competitor’s alternatively. PLM enables the value of a merchandise to be maximised over its lifecycle. With accurate consolid ated information about mature merchandises available, low-priced ways can be found to widen their revenue-generating life-times. PLM gives transparence about what is go oning over the merchandise lifecycle ; it offers directors visibleness about what is truly go oning with products.. However the disadvantage of utilizing the PLC is that the merchandise lifecycle is merely a theoretical theoretical account and the merchandise lifecycle is non needfully reflective of all manner merchandises. Forecasting gross revenues and seasons is a critical control tool which purchasers and merchants have to implement in order to understate hazard with planning scopes for their manner company. Manner prediction looks at the fiscal parts and the comparing of the seasons’ gross revenues last twelvemonth. Additionally manner companies have to equilibrate the customer’s pick with the demand to accomplish the best return of stock investing. The get downing point for many manner retail merchants is gross revenues history, as it identifies what clients expect to purchase from the concern based on their current and past demands. Gross saless history may mention to last week’s gross revenues, and as such besides reflects customers’ current seasonal demands ( Douglas 1997 ) . There is much valuable information available to the purchaser from the gross revenues history of old seasons. Forms have likely been established of the type of manner ware which the retailers’ clients have purchased in the yesteryear. Best sellers from old seasons need to be replaced with new yet every bit profitable ware, The purchaser needs to through ally analyse which fact ors contributed towards an points bestselling position ( Goworek 2007 ) . Manner season is an of import component of the control tool ‘Forecasting gross revenues and seasons’ . Historically there have been two clearly defined and traditional manner seasons, which are Autumn/Winter and SS. Easy ( 1995 ) explains that retail merchants have organised themselves around consumer demand that has traditionally been influenced by conditions forms. In the yesteryear there have been two clearly defined and traditional seasons and these are still steadfastly ingrained in our civilization, even though they have progressively less relevancy to consumers and manner concerns. With a greater accent on fulfilling the manner demands of customers’ altering life manners, manner retail merchants have to purchase more rapidly and maintain scopes focused on what clients want at peculiar times of the old ages, as opposed to fulfilling two big period of demand, i.e. summer and winter. Another factor which has influenced client demand is greater travel, as clien ts require vesture for a assortment of climes and occasions out of season, e.g. swimsuit in winter. In order to understate hazard manner retail merchants have to purchase more rapidly and maintain scopes focused on what clients want at a peculiar clip of the twelvemonth, as opposed to purchasing to fulfill two big periods of demand. In order for purchasers and merchants to understate hazard is it critical that they besides ‘buy’ in order to fulfill discreet ‘user occasions’ . Increasing consumer demand is coercing retail merchants to retink merchandise ranges about changed client behavior. Product categorization is a cardinal component of Range Planning. It is critical for the merchant and purchaser to calculate the merchandise lifecycle of merchandises with different categorizations such as Fashion, Fad and Classic. The merchant plays a cardinal function in working with the purchaser to accomplish the right balance of merchandises within the seasons range. This is done by utilizing a combination of gross revenues history combined with forward gross revenues and tendency anticipations. The sum of manner and fad merchandise in the Product Mix will find the sum of flexibleness needed. It is noted that the manner manner tendency reviews begin many months in progress of a season. Normally at the terminal of the old season the purchasing and selling squad will hold undertaken what is known as a ‘seasons station mortem’ . The advantages of set abouting a seasons station mortem is that it is a utile papers for be aftering the future manner way of a manner concern and is helpful during the planning of a new season. It is of import to command the degree of stock and type of stock that is in the concern at any given clip ; this is carried out through manner prediction, and the scrutiny of merchandise classs to utilize in a season, such as Authoritative trench coats manner or crazes. The ware program is an of import control tool in order to understate the hazard of holding excessively much ‘cost’ that hazards being unsold ( Shaw 2005 ) . This relates to be aftering and profitableness. It is critical to observe that one of the most of import ends in successful selling is to help the procedure of accomplishing the planned degree of purchasing profitableness. ‘Buying profit’ can be defined as the difference between the cost monetary value paid for the garment and the retail merchandising monetary value in the store. The grade up or net income made between the two monetary values can be explained by the undermentioned merchandising monetary value equation. Retail merchandisin g monetary value ( RSP ) -Cost Price ( CP ) =Gross Margin ( or gross net income ) . WSSI is an of import control tool which is used every twenty-four hours in the life of a purchaser and merchant. Throughout the twelvemonth, it is critical for the merchant and purchaser to construct stock degrees in expectancy of trading extremum periods such as Christmas and high summer. The WISSI is really good at assisting the purchaser and merchant program frontward stock consumption into the DC. Every Monday gross revenues figures are awaited in order that purchasers and merchants can place fast selling lines that need reiterate bargains to guarantee that they are kept in stock. On the other manus it is besides the Monday figures which reveal the worst Sellerss that finally will necessitate holding their monetary values marked down. Thus the WISSI helps to pull off and command hazard. The WISSI is one of the most valuable studies used by the purchaser. It includes gross revenues and stock list degrees by manner for the old hebdomad. The WISSI acts as an overall control mechanis m to guarantee that the flow of stock and money in the concern is go oning expeditiously. WSSI is an of import control tool for purchasers and merchants because it significantly works alongside the bringing agenda. It lists the hebdomad and the twenty-four hours when the providers have been requested to present the garments to the DC. Being cognizant of precisely what is traveling to be delivered is besides of cardinal involvement to shop and promotional direction maps of the administrations ; this can assist pull off hazard and supply a competitory advantage for the manner company. One of the cardinal selling activities controlled by utilizing the WISSI is the facet of line degree monetary value change that regularly occurs within all manner concerns. Ideally at the start of the season, the purchaser and merchant purpose to make a monetary value construction that relates to the type of clients to whom they are selling. Monetary values must besides be competitory to guarantee they a re in line with major competition. Overall WISSI acts as the cardinal selling direction papers within manner retailing ; it is lone portion of a wider scope of be aftering paperss. It is shamelessly an internal fiscal control papers which is a sum-up of all the trading activity within the section and finally the full concern. There are disadvantages of WISSI as a control tool. Taken out of context, it can be a nonmeaningful page of figures. It requires careful reading, utilizing experience to pull strings both it and the purchasing, if the section is to win. It is of import to retrieve that manner is non formulaic ; merchants try to utilize it in a formulaic manner, bring forthing it without understanding. Therefore it is of import that merchants and purchasers do non respond excessively rapidly to sudden good and bad gross revenues forms ; reaction to the WSSI must be both considered and careful. Overall the of import of understanding the workings of WSSI should non be underestimated. Using this control document the merchant has considerable advantages and is able to maintain hebdomadal updates of yesteryear, nowadays and likely future public presentations of the section and direction to on a regular basis look into their public presentations against the original program. More significantly it acts as a decision-making tool to assist the concern make up one's mind what action to take on an on-going regular footing. This will more significantly assist to understate hazard and aid to maximize net incomes. To reason there are a figure of control tools which purchasers and merchants can utilize in order to understate hazard and maximize net incomes when planning ranges for their manner companies. There are considerable advantages of utilizing a figure of control tools in order to derive competitory advantages over similar manner companies and rivals and to assist increase net income borders. Manner companies will strategically utilize a combination of control tools in order program in front to give themselves the greatest opportunity of success. For a manner company to win it has to â€Å"reflect the demands and the desires of a coevals at a peculiar point in clip. It has to be of the minute, but with ageless values that will ever be recognised† ( Menkes 2001 ) Mentions: Ahmed Doha, Ajay Das, Mark Pagell, ( 2013 ) â€Å" The influence of merchandise life rhythm on the efficaciousness of buying patterns † , International Journal of Operations & A ; Production Management, Vol. 33 Iodine: 4, pp.470 – 498 Charles-Roux, E. ( 2004_ .The universe of Coco Chanel. Friends Fashion Fame. London: Thames and Hudson, p.11 Douglas C. West, ( 1997 ) â€Å" Pull offing Gross saless Forecasting † , Management Research News, Vol. 20 Iodine: 4, pp.1 – 10 Easy, M. ( 1995 )Manner Selling.Oxford: Blackwell Science. Goworek, H ( 2007 ) .Manner Buying. London: Blackwell. p44-45. Hines.T, et Al. ( 2007 )Manner Selling: modern-day issues.Routledge ; 2 edition ( 2006 ) Jackson.T, et Al. ( 2000 )Manner Buying and trading direction #Gerald Watts, Jason Cope, Michael Hulme, ( 1998 ) â€Å" Ansoff’s Matrix, hurting and addition: Growth schemes and adaptative acquisition among little nutrient manufacturers † , International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & A ; Research, Vol. 4 Iodine: 2, pp.101 – 111 Stark, J ( 2006 ) .Product Lifecycle Mangament 21stCenturyParadigm for Product Realisation. London: Dordrecht: Springer 2006. P 4-5

Environmental Rights Annotated Bib Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Environmental Rights Bib - Annotated Bibliography Example The authors highlight that the current literature regarding environmental rights ignores the economic costs (transactional costs) such as welfare costs associated with the establishment of the right. The current literature therefore proposes that the only transactional costs involved are bribes and the like, which are of no economic significance. The whole economic literature also assumes that individuals are rational beings and hence the environmental policy making does not involve self-interest (Krutilla and Alexeeve, 2014). Through their article, the authors have tried to describe how transactional cost involved (such as welfare cost) can be reduced. The most important theme of the paper is that environmental rights are an important policy making instrument. Generally, the rights are defined in terms of taxation or through a stipulated pollution level which acts as a control. This provides an incentive for polluters to reduce their emissions of harmful gasses thereby circumventing the high abatement costs. For this reason, polluters often oppose such developments because it costs them highly in terms of taxation and other economic costs. Even though environmentalists work to advocate pollution taxation, the result is the imposition of infra-marginal rents. As a result, a new political economy has erupted which operates trading programs for polluted emissions (Krutilla and Alexeeve, 2014). The authors have provided a framework in order to model sharing of the environmental rights (Krutilla and Alexeeve, 2014). However, the authors have assumed an elastic demand for the polluters which means that they alone bear the taxation imposed on emissions. The authors however have made a good attempt at trying to quantify and monetize the welfare costs associated with the rights. The social, political, and economic aspects have been discussed very well by the authors due to the context of the issue. Towards

Bulimia Nervosa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bulimia Nervosa - Essay Example Social compulsions of trying to maintain a slim body have resulted in abnormal diet patterns. These abnormal diets have found acceptance in modern societies and this has led to bulimic behavior in the sub-clinical form. There can be no denying that the desire to remain thin, by attempting to restrict weight, is the trigger for the disorder. Bulimia has an effect on the emotions of the individual with the disorder and prevents the experiencing of uneasy feelings owing to the bulimic behavior. This is a paradox, as bulimia is the cause of their out of control behavior, and yet, is the only means for feeling that they are in control of the situation. The inherent dread of remaining without this protection is the reason that the bulimic behavior is maintained and gradually increases in severity to hold sway over all other emotional experiences. Diagnosis of bulimia nervous is not an easy task, as the bulimic individual tends to hide the disorder. All the same, there are several symptoms that indicate the disorder. Recurrently occurring binge eating is the first. Binge eating may be considered as the consuming of an amount of food, during a specific period of time that is definitely larger than is normal for most people during the same period given, given that the circumstances are similar. The next symptom is that during the binge-eating episode, the individual displays a lack of control on what or how much is being consumed. (McGilley, M.B., and Pryor, L.T. (1998). Assessment and Treatment of Bulimia Nervosa).

Moral Problem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Moral Problem - Essay Example This occurs when an organization has control over a large part of the market when compared to its main competitors (34). In most cases, the companies are normally given leeway to operate at the same level and in the same environment with other smaller companies. This is normally controversial because the smaller companies are expected to compete for the same customers as the bigger companies, even if they (the smaller companies) may sometimes have fewer resources. The matter is not helped by the fact that most governments do not have any legal frameworks to act as guides to what extent big multinationals can compete with smaller local companies (Koggel 47). Wal-Mart is inarguably the world’s largest retail store with operational branches in more than half of the world’s main cities. Due to its size and resources, the mega-store chain can afford to offer consumer products at relatively cheap prices as compared to other similar stores. This is normally a great problem to the smaller home grown retail stores which have to make profit and remain competitive at the same time. If they were to offer their products at the prices offered at Wal-Mart, many of them would incur great loses and would have to close business if they continued doing so.

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 19

Marketing - Essay Example One of the areas of differentiation that can distinguish Coke is the corporate social responsibility. CSR is used as a point of differentiation as CSR is not different from quality. A company has to demonstrate responsibility towards all of the seven stakeholders - the owners or the stock holders, the suppliers, the customers, the employees, the community, the government and the competitors. By having strategic approaches to philanthropy firms fulfill their responsibility to shareholders and their commitment to community (McAlister & Ferrell, 2002). Consumers globally have become socially conscious and they are concerned about the impact that companies have on the society. This includes the impact on the physical environment, the workers and the consumers. Mass media has contributed to consumer awareness towards these issues. Coke should try to seek competitive advantage through philanthropic activities. It has been found that integrating operations, quality, strategy and technology can help sustain competitive advantage and strengthen the focus on doing things right. By being socially responsible and adhering to the ethical principles, a company’s brand image is enhanced, and it is able to attract and retain employees. Other benefits that they can achieve are increased market share, lower operating cots and easier to attract investors (Labbai, 2007). 2. Due to internationalization and globalization firms often are confused whether to have a globalized or a localized business strategy. Differences in culture, behavior, the political stability, government regulations, demographics and customer needs across boundaries creates new challenges and provides new opportunities to firms and they need to adapt their strategy according to the need. A global strategy treats the world as a single market whereas localized approach takes into account the local opportunities

Mitigation and risk reduction (case) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mitigation and risk reduction (case) - Essay Example Despite the wide range of techniques initiated since the Lisbon earthquake, the increased population density in mega cities has impeded the efficacy of all those tactics. In addition to urbanization, there are several other impediments to preventive strategies. This paper tends to explore various elements that hamper disaster prevention programs in mega cities. Although earthquake is a natural phenomenon that cannot be averted, we can take some precautions in order to mitigate the destructive potential of its aftermath. The invention of Richter scale has enabled us for computing the magnitude of earthquakes. Today, it is possible to identify frequently earthquake occurring places and the intensity of every earthquake. Modern facilities such as earthquake alarming systems are some of the advancements in this area. However, lack of improved infrastructural deterrence techniques often affects the effectiveness of disaster prevention in mage cities. According to census reports published by Government of Maharashtra (2000) in 1991, 60% of the registered buildings in Mumbai were made up of non-engineered materials such as informal masonry. It is important to note that Mumbai is categorized under seismic zone 3, which indicates the high vulnerability to the occurrence of devastating earthquakes. The earthquake history of Mumbai reflects that large number of earthquakes occurred across different parts of the city during the last century and even in the last two years. Severe losses had not been reported until 1967 when one attacked Koyna region of Mumbai with a magnitude of 6.3. Large number of buildings was destroyed at this calamity. Damages of such sorts can be avoided to a large extent only if the city employs geotechnical guidelines for the disaster prevention. The Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative (EMI) reports that â€Å"poor governance structures, lack of awareness, and poor professional standards and ethics† are some of the major impediments for dis aster prevention in mega cities (cited in Wenzel, 2006). Poor governance implies that different communities and sectors of the society do not cooperate with one another in order to mitigate the impacts of the calamity. Impediments associated with poor governance are reflected in 2004 Indian ocean earthquake. Its magnitude was between 9.1 and 9.3 and it was recorded as one of the deadliest disasters of world history, which killed nearly 230,000 people (Online Colleges, 2010). The death rate would not have exceeded 200,000 if the various social capital of a community such as media, business, and other civil organizations had coordinately involved in rescue activities. Hence, it is advisable to design proper mechanisms for the effective communication between various social sectors as it would ensure disaster effects mitigation rather effortlessly. Similarly, paucity of awareness and poor knowledge about risk factor remain to be the major constraint to disaster prevention in mega cities . Evidently, urban people do not have proper awareness regarding the occurrence of earthquakes, and hence they do not know how to respond to such situations. This lack of awareness amplifies the intensity of the calamity since the people in mega cities get totally confused and distorted during such events. For instance, the impact of 2010 Chile earthquake can be attributed to lack of awareness or poor knowledge. This earthquake continued for three minutes with a magnitude

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

ESOLLinguistics - Essay Example Furthermore, written text production is always part of the general dynamics of human behavior. People write (or speak) because they want to achieve particular goals in particular situations in a particular way, or because they cannot achieve them in nonlinguistic ways. Consequently, written text production should not (only) be reconstructed as the outcome of separate subsystems, but its theoretical reconstruction must show the greatest possible compatibility with the relevant processes investigated in general psychology (i.e., with perceptive, cognitive, motivational and emotional processes). Basically, Writing is a demanding cognitive activity, yet some people appear to write without great effort. Writing involves both engagement (the direct recording of conceptual associations) and reflection (the deliberate and cognitively demanding process of re-representing embedded processes and exploring cognitive structures). An engaged writer who has created an appropriate context and constraints can be carried along by the flow of mental association, without deliberative effort. Most writing involves deliberate planning, but also makes use of chance discovery. The products of engaged writing become source material to inspire and constrain deliberate planning.

Memorable School Experience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Memorable School Experience - Essay Example It was not long before school became a strong social outlet and I began to experience great success in my courses. I excelled academically and was barely cognizant of a group of students in courses I had that were quickly failing. One day I showed up and they had transferred to another class. I went on for much of the year concentrating on school. While I experienced relative success, towards the end of the year I increasingly felt something was missing in my life. While at the time I thought it was simply the need of a more robust social life, in retrospect I recognize that even at this early age I was experiencing a slight crisis of personal meaning. At nights I would sit by myself and think about the purpose of even being successful in school or life. Like a miniature Camus or Sartre, I gradually came to believe that there was no real meaning to life and that the books and schoolwork I had so diligently devoted myself to was nothing but me fooling myself that things mattered. I so ught out ways to counter this depression. Increasingly I looked to others thinking they new the answers. It was this that led me to one-day talk with the kids who had dropped out of my courses a few months earlier. To me it seemed as if they similarly rejected school and found a different path. One day during lunch I ate with them and then walked with them as they went behind the school. There was a pasture next door where they would sneak away and smoke marijuana. As we were returning I turned my head and noticed the school resource officer standing right beside us; he had watched us the entire time. I ended up receiving a week-long suspension. At the time I was truly furious with what had happened, but today I realize it was a turning point in my life. I consider Hartman’s story when he writes, â€Å"I became a bulldog and I spoke --truly spoke, clearly-- for the first time† (Hartman). After this incident I too found my voice. While at times I continued to question l ife, I learned to find my own meaning and appreciate everyday for what it is. My favorite teacher in high school was my junior year English teacher Mr. Harvey. Before enrolling in his course English had always seemed to be to be a study of grammar, structure, vocabulary, and ancient texts that held little resemblance to my modern existence. Throughout my junior year of high school I came to gain a much deeper appreciation for literature and poetry, and the ways that writing empower our lives. The first day of class we walked in and after head administered an introductory talk had everyone in the class stand up. We then walked into procession to a desk he had at the front of the room; we were instructed to step onto the desk and then jump off. The intention was so that the class would become more comfortable with jumping into the intellectual unknown. Throughout the semester Mr. Harvey regularly came up with novel and unique teaching methods. One day the class would be outside at the lake writing poetry, the next day we’d be analyzing Sylvia Plath indoors. While the course was filled with excitement, in retrospect perhaps the things I appreciate most about Mr. Harvey were the things I disliked at the time. Regularly he would choose a student’s essay and place it on a projector and correct it in front the entire class. Everyone dreaded having his or her essay being chosen, albeit the individual

Cost Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Cost Management - Essay Example Using learning lessons from General Electric, and through referencing personal experiences with cost management, learning associated with cost management and future projections about competent business planning can be developed. It is necessary to understand the demand environment and operational costs in order to successfully meet budget guidelines and secure effective cost management. Main Issues Mattel company did not fully understand its demand environment, thus the business was making decisions, strategically for long-term financial gain, that would not be sustained according to models of product life cycle. The product life cycle model recognizes the gains associated with new product launch and then follows the viability of products throughout the time period where product would be accepted by consumer markets. The life cycle model recognizes that products will eventually reach a maturity stage where new technologies or innovations begin to make demand volumes obsolete, thus th e business must be equipped to launch new products to offset any losses that occur. Dooley (2005) offers that it is extremely difficult to predict whether a product will have a long and profitable life cycle or whether the product, due to competition or even changing social and lifestyle needs, will have a long period where profit is sustainable. Mattel acquired a software company, Learning Co., as a means of diversifying its product portfolio and thus offering customers more selection of product and to ensure the business sustained its quality brand in the minds of buyers. Some of the main software titles were Carmen Sandiego and other relevant software characters that were associated with lifestyle and child values. Mattel believed that this decision would provide software titles with significantly-long product life cycles, thus offering more profitability through sales volumes. Soon after acquisition, Mattel realized that the decision to utilize these particular software names wa s not leading to the profit expected, thus leading to higher operational costs without sales volumes to sustain projections. It was assumed that the Carmen Sandiego, and other relevant brands, would have a much longer growth period in the life cycle than consumers actually favored. The end result: Mattel was left with very high operational costs, such as inventory and supply chain, which left the business with little options but to divest some of its business holdings. General Electric, on the other hand, understands the importance of not only diversifying its portfolio of products, but to create systems and feedback mechanisms that recognize the majority of costs during the planning process. Mattel was looking too closely at the consumer environment without realizing that some products would ultimately reach the maturity stage long before projections suspected. What did this indicate? It suggested that Mattel was not proactive in creating a well diversified product line, the firm d id not understand fully what was driving consumer demand ratios, and that Mattel had significant failures associated with manufacture and related operational costs. Mattel, in its proverbial effort to put all of its eggs in one software basket, did not create a supply chain methodology that would sustain unique product innovation and growth

Prescription Drug Abuse in Teenagers Essay Example for Free

Prescription Drug Abuse in Teenagers Essay Although prescription drugs are not harmful if used correctly, prescription drug abuse is high in teenagers. Most parents would never think their teenagers are helping themselves to prescription medicine sitting on ones counter. The truth is, prescription drug abuse in teenagers has become very common nowadays. The drugs are easily accessible at home, or cheap to buy at school. They are highly addictive and can even cause death. Putting one’s prescriptions in a safe place may save a childs life. Prescription drug addiction usually starts with experimentation. Teenagers may be trying prescription drugs because their friends are doing it or it may just be out of curiosity. Some teenagers will turn to prescription drugs to forget their problems. As the addiction progresses, it becomes harder and harder to stop using the prescription drugs (Smith, 2010). Experimentation rarely leads to a good outcome. If one’s child starts with a simple experiment of prescription drug use, odds are it will ultimately end with addiction. Smith (2010), states â€Å"Addiction is a complex disorder characterized by compulsive drug use. People who are addicted feel an overwhelming, uncontrollable need for drugs† (Drug abuse and addiction, para. 1). When one has repeated drug use it will permanently alter the brain. The long-lasting effect on the brain changes ones ability to think, use good judgment, control ones behavior, or feel normal without the drug. It is the drug cravings and compulsions to use that make the addiction so powerful. These cravings and compulsions to use are partly cause by the changes the drugs make to one’s brain (Smith, 2010). The average prescription drug abuser will start between the ages of 12 and 17. Every day about 2,500 teenagers in this age group abuse a prescription drug for the first time (Havens, 2009). â€Å"The number of high school students who are abusing prescription pain relievers such as oxycodone (OxyCotin), a potent and highly addictive opiate, or sedative is on the rise† (Freedman, (2006), para. 3). Stimulants are the most common used, next is opiates, followed by tranquilizers, and then sedatives (Parenting Teens, 2005). The pain relievers such as Vicoden or OxyCotin are used to achieve a high, whereas the sedatives such as Xanax and Valium are used to relax or calm. These drugs can lead to dependence and addiction. Stimulants such as Adderall, Ritalin, Dexedrine, or Provigil decrease ones appetite but increases ones alertness and attention. These are dangerous because they can cause addiction, seizures, or heart attacks. Stimulants are often used to lose weight of for studying. Steroids are used to built ones bodies or promote athletic performance. The dangers involved in consuming steroids are mental and physical health effects as well as serious sexual effects (Havens, 2009). Findings from a 2005 survey conducted by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health â€Å"indicates that approximately 21% of the U. S. population age 12 and older report using any type of prescription drug nonmedically in their lifetime, 16% report us of opiate-type pain killers, 8% report tranquilizer use, 8% report stimulant use, and 2% report sedative use† (Ford, 2008, para. 10). The study also found that substance abuse can cause users to offend the law as well as impair good judgment. However, it has been found that the violations of the law are followed by the abuse of prescription drugs, or other illegal substances. Therefore if one’s teenager is addicted to prescription drugs, legal difficulties will probably follow. The researchers believe substance abuse is a definite road to a delinquent lifestyle (Ford, 2008). Reported prescription drug abuse by high school seniors in 2005 Parenting Teens (2005). According to Freedman (2006), an 18-year-old who lives in San Francisco believes as long as the prescription medication is taken properly, it is much safer than any street drug. According to the findings of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America study, forty percent said prescription were much safer than illegal drugs; while 31 percent said that there was nothing wrong with using prescription drugs once in a while† (â€Å"Prescription-Drug Use by Teens,† (2006), para. 1). Teenagers think that because a medication has a prescription for an individual, it makes it safe for everyone. Several factors are involved in prescribing certain medications such as medical conditions, age, other prescriptions on may be taking and the diagnosis of the individual. Most teenagers do not consider these factors when helping themselves to medications prescribed to someone else. Prescription drugs are easy for a teenager to acquire either from their doctors or from their own medicine cabinets. Most parents are not aware of the risks involved in leaving a bottle of prescription medication lying on the counter for everyone to have access. It will start with taking one or two at a time and then the teenager ultimately proceeds to steeling the entire bottle, buying the prescription medications at school from classmates or even lying to their doctors to obtain their own prescriptions. The increasing popularity of nonmedical prescription drug use is based on the putative advantages of prescription drugs over â€Å"street† drugs: the drugs are easier to obtain, there is less likelihood of arrest, use is more socially accepted, and there is a perception the prescription drugs are safer† (Ford, (2008), para. 10). Prevention is the best tool concerning teenagers and prescription drug abuse. Havens, (2009), â€Å"Most teenagers say parents are not discussing the dangers of prescription drugs with them† (6 Steps to Prevent Prescription Drug Abuse in Teens, para. ). It is the parent’s responsibility to monitor closely the prescription medication in the home and purchase a lock box if necessary to keep one’s teenager safe. One needs to educate one’s teenagers in the dangers of prescription medication and the factors that go into prescribing those medications to each individual. Take it as far as asking the family physician to speak with one’s teenager if necessary. Sometimes they listen to strangers better than their own parents. Take the time to ensure there are no or out-of-date medications in the home. If these medications are no longer needed, dispose of them properly by flushing those (Havens, 2009). Parents are not always aware of how dangerous their own medication can be to their teenagers. MSNBC (2010). Parents also need to educate themselves in the signs associated with prescription drug abuse. Some of the thing one needs to watch for with their teenager behavior is neglecting responsibilities, getting into legal trouble, and even problems with the relationships with one’s friends. If ones teenager is starting to fall on school grades, not do chores at home, or even skipping school a pattern of neglecting responsibilities in beginning to develop. Behavior to watch for in relationships with friends would be losing longtime friends, and sometimes fist fighting with them. One may also be fighting more than usual with one’s siblings or ones boss at the job. The signs of legal trouble can be anywhere from simple disorderly conduct to any type of major crime. If ones teenager suddenly becomes involved with the law, something is wrong (Smith, 2010). The most noticeable physical signs of a prescription drug addiction is if ones pupils are bigger or smaller than normal, ones eyes are bloodshot, grooming habit deteriorate, unusual odor on breath or clothing, slurred speech, bad coordination, and tremors (Smith, 2010). Psychological warnings one can detect are (Smith, 2010), â€Å"Unexplained change in personality or attitude, sudden mood swings, irritability, or anger outbursts, periods of unusual hyperactivity, agitation, or giddiness, lack of motivation; appears lethargic or â€Å"spaced out†, appears fearful, anxious, or paranoid, with no reason† (Drug abuse and addiction, para. 9). Warning signs that tend to show more in teenagers are when one starts being secretive about their friends, one has a new interest in one’s clothing styles, and ones teenager is suddenly in need or more privacy then usual. If one has money, valuables, or prescription medication missing, one may need to consider the possibility of one’s teenager developing a prescription drug addiction. Other common signs are depression, withdrawing from the family, using incense to hide the smell, or eye drops to cover the dilated or bloodshot (Smith, 2010). Drug rehabilitation can be a costly, but necessary, adventure. According to ChooseHelp, (2010), â€Å"the professional staff involvement at any comprehensive and quality rehab facility disallows bargain treatment, and you need to be prepared to spend a significant amount of money to get a quality and effective treatment program (The Cost of Drug Rehab, para. 3). † Considering all cost involved in housing, feeding, drug therapies, and professional involvement, prices can range from a few thousand dollars a month all the way up to $30,000 per month (ChooseHelp, 2010). Several insurance companies will absorb most of the financial burden. One needs to contact one’s private insurance company and receive all details pertaining to this type of treatment. If one contacts one’s local State Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Council, there are programs available to those that cannot pay nor have any insurance. One needs to take into consideration the seriousness of this addiction. When it involves a prescription drug addiction, one cannot let the cost be a factor in the determination of the treatment. According to ChooseHelp (2010), â€Å"family programs can help to heal a family harmed by the destruction and heartache of abuse; and bring back a healthier dynamic to the family as a whole (Families Need to be a Part of the Process, para. 3). † One needs to decide how much family involvement will be in the rehab process. Family involvement is extremely important not only for the family but for the addict as well. When family member are learning about the addiction from trained professionals as well as other families facing the same situation, families are taught what is most beneficial for the teen and it assures the family that they are not esponsible for the addiction (ChooseHelp, 2010). When seeking a prescription drug treatment center for teenager one needs to consider a program involving patient education as well as family education. The program should offer counseling sessions with a therapist or psychologist as well as peer group session involving several families. One needs to choose a facility close to home to achieve adequate family involvement (ChooseHelp, 2010). When the rehabilitation program is successfully completed it is also important to continue care in an outside group such as Alcohol Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous. Information for these meetings can be obtained in one’s local phone book. If the teenager in the home has been acting differently and medication is running out sooner than usual, take the steps necessary to help him or her. Admitting he or she may be addicted to prescription drugs is not easy but the help one can receive for him or her may save his or her life. Pay attention to the warning signs, ask questions at the doctor appointments and try not to have addictive medication prescribed to one’s child, especially if the child has had a problem in the past with any type of addiction. Be careful where prescription medications are located and consider investing in a lock box. It may be a decision that saves ones teenagers’ life. If one discovers one’s teenager has a prescription drug addiction, or any other addiction, do not be afraid to seek help. Money does not need to be an issue in saving ones life. References http://www.choosehelp.com/drug-rehab/families-need-to-be-a-part-of-the-process http://www.choosehelp.com/drug-rehab/the-costs-of-drug-rehab http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/12803776/ns/health-addictions/

Reflection On A Mentorship Role In Medicine

Reflection On A Mentorship Role In Medicine During this reflective piece of work I will discuss my role, responsibility and accountability as the students assessor and reflect on approaches that I have used within the mentorship role to support and facilitate the student to achieve specified learning outcomes. The ultimate goal of mentorship is for one individual to contribute to the professional development of another. (Lanser 2000) The NMC (2008) defines a mentor as a registrant who facilitates learning, supervises and assesses students in a practice setting. The student spends 50% theory and 50% in practice; practical training is an important and significant part of the nursing students education. I was informed that a third year nursing student would be attending my practice area a number of weeks before the placement start date, I used this to my advantage by contemplating about learning opportunities within the practice area. The NMC states that at least 40% of a students time at the placement should be spent with a mentor. Therefore the off duty had to be worked to reflect this, as now it is an NMC requirement for mentors to prioritise their workload to accommodate support of students. (NMC 2008) From my time as a student nurse the better placement experiences I had were when my mentor was well prepared and had thought about experiences that would enhance my learning. I feel that it is essential that from the first contact with the nursing student you are building an effective relationship. The ultimate goal of mentorship is for one individual to contribute to the professional development of another. Prior to the students start date it is important that the student has been contacted and informed of location, uniform, start time and name of allocated mentor. Fortunately my student contacted my workplace a couple of weeks before her placement began. I took this opportunity to introduce myself and went through a little of what to expect. Baumeister and Leary (1995) suggest that if students feel accepted secure, valued and respected that it motivates the students capacity to learn and instils confidence. I feel that this initial contact takes some of that first day anxiety away. The influence of the mentor on the student begins at first contacvt and forms the foundation upon which the mentor/student relationship will be based upon. The Nursing and midwifery council outlines eight domains of competency that a mentor must achieve in order to perform the role to an appropriate standard. These are: establishing effective relationships, Facillitation of learning, creating a learning environment, context of practice/ evidence based practice, assessment and accountability, leadership and evaluation of learning. On my student Sarahs first day I had allocated time to orientate and introduce her to the practice area. It is the mentors responsibility to establish an effective working relationship with the student and this starts with orientating and the setting of ground rules.(RCN 2007) Whilst going through the formal, professional, legal, national and local requirements I was conscious about making the orientation a positive experience. I introduced Sarah to the rest of the community nursing team. Levett-Jones, Lathlean, Higgins and Mcmillan() in their study discussed the students need to feel like they belonged as when students feel comfortable they engage with learning opportunities. I believe that the attitude and motivation of the mentor are crucial in creating a encouraging start to the placement experience. (cited in Beskine 2009) Reflecting on my experience as a student the negative aspects of work placements were not being supported by my mentor and feeling under valued and by remembe ring such experiences I feel that it influences how I am as a mentor. The benefit of working as a community staff nurse is that when a student is placed you work together on a one to one basis and have time to establish the student mentor relationship. Using this oppotunity to get an insight into her personality aswell as any concerns she has about the placement. Although it is good to achieve a good rapport with your student Wilkes (2006) advised caution during the social development of the relationship as the professional boundries need to be clear, as getting involved with the student socially or emotionally outside of work would influence your integrity when perfoming assessments. Also as a mentor you act as a role model and The Code(2008) requires a nurse to be of good character honest and trustworthy basing this on ones conduct behaviour and attitude. The NMC (2008) defines a mentor as someone who facilitates learning, supervises and assesses students in a practice setting. It also outlines that in order to do this effectively the mentor needs to have knowledge of the students stage of learning therefore selecting appropriate opportunities for that particular students learning needs. After orientation and Sarah shadowing me on a few visits I felt it was important to conduct the initial interview so we could discuss learning needs and opportunities in my particular area. Sarah had not had a previous community placement and didnt know what is available to learn therefore we had an informal discussion to identify the opportunities. During the initial interview I also established the students level of knowledge and expectations. I had noticed that Sarah was quite shy and was quite nervous. We looked through her portfolio from previous placements and she had passed each one. Also by reviewing the university requirements outlined in her portfolio I was able to see if Sarah was aware of her needs from this placement. My initial impression was that she may need more support than I had anticipated at her stage of learning. It appeared that she wasnt confident in her abilities. Sarah did express that she felt she would require support and guidance as the community setting was a completely new experience for her. Its also important to consider that studies have shown that placements can be very stressful for students especially in their first and third years of training.(Stuart 2007 cited in Beskine2009) Taking my concerns into consideration and Sarahs request we then created a learning contract, the goals set were based on mutually identified need. I decided that initially I would become as Berne(1961) described nurturing parent to Sarah to demonstrate boundries to ensure she felt safe. Until her confidence grew, then the relationship would be on an adult-adult basis on the same level for discussions and mutual expectations. Although fluctuations between different ego state as different circumstances arise throughout the mentor student relationship. In order to help Sarah I felt that by acting as an advocate would promote her confidence and self-esteem. (Neary 2000) To formulate an effective learning contract it has to have essential components as de scribed by Stuart (2007) learning objectives, the activities to facilitate these , strategies and resources for learning. As a registered health professional you have a responsibility to ensure the safety of the public. Therefore by mentoring pre-registration nurses you are accountable for ensuring students fulfil their learning outcomes for your practice area and develop practice competence. (NMC 2006) Assessing a students competence can become complicated by the mentors subjective view of what is competent? (Higgins and McCarthy 2005) Duffy (2003) concurs it is often easier to identify clear incompetence than those students borderline on achieving competence. Mentors need to address the issue of non-competence as soon as it is recognised. The study Duffy (2003) carried out found that mentors tended to give students the benefit of doubt. A view which has been highlighted in a recent survey in the Nursing Times (2010) which said 40% of mentors participating in the survey passed students as they could not provide sufficient evidence to back up their concerns. Before meeting with the student to discuss the issue it is important to collect evidence which has lead to your concerns about the students competence. Going through assessment documentation can help highlight if learning outcomes are achievable for that particular students ability. This evidence would be helpful for you to explore/understand reasons why the student is not achieving and early discussion can prompt students to consider their practice thus facilitating progress. (Duffy and Hardicre 2007) As the student doesnt seem to be aware of their limitations, for patient safety it is essential that you gently alert the student of their unconscious incompetence but if the motivation is there I would as a mentor be confident that they could develop competence. Feedback is a large part of assessment and progression and in this particular issue it is important to provide feedback so the student is aware that they are not meeting the required standard. An effective mentor should offer honest and constructive feedback to students (RCN 2007) Constructive feedback is objective and non-judgemental and should be based on specific observation to encourage discussion and allow future learning to take place. (Pearce 2004) It can be tempting to avoid giving negative feedback but performance cannot be improved without knowledge of what was wrong (Stuart 2006) Feedback to the student would be given in the form of the praise sandwich. NMC (2006) uses this form of feedback in its documents where it state that mentors should contribute to the evaluation of student learning and assessment experiences by proposing aspects for change as a result of evaluation. Mentors should remain positive and supportive also try to empathise with the student and how they will be feeling. A learning contract/action plan that is formulated collaboratively with the mentor and student can specify what the student will learn how it will be achieved and the time scale in which its success can be measured. (Nicklin and Kenworthy 2003) The RCN also advises regular meetings between the mentor and student to discuss progression and make adjustments to action plans based on the students learning. (RCN 2007) Ultimately the NMC in safeguarding the wellbeing of the public sets standards for pre-registration theory and practice competency and requires students to be fit for practice and purpose at the point of registration. (NMC 2008) Some of the learning outcomes were easy to facilitate with experiences that were available from a community placement but others not so easily accommodated. In order to address this we discussed other specialisms within the community neighbourhood team where she could spend time to achieve outcomes. In the initial interview with my student it was important to identify what stage of learning she was at and also determine her motivation to learning. Rogers (2002) suggests adults come to learning with intentions and that they have their own personal expectations of the learning process and hold personal reasons why they want to learn. After discussing mutual expectations from the placement it is essential to understand the students style of learning in order to best facilitate learning activities and opportunities and select appropriate learning strategies to integrate her learning practice and academic experience. Also to be effective learners students should also be aware of and understand their own learning style and manage their own learning. (Siviter 2004) There are various theories on learning styles, I chose to give my student a questionnaire based on the theory by Honey Mumford (2000). This model is broken down into four categories Activist, Reflector, Theorist and Pragmatist. The activist is open minded, enthusiastic and enjoys immersing themselves into new experiences. The characteristics of a reflector are cautious observers. Using all the information available to them to make conclusions. Theorists think things through in a logical manner and value rationally and objectivity. Finally pragmatist act quickly on ideas and are keen to put new techniques into practice. My student felt that she was a reflector and was motivated by understanding nursing processes in order to be able to work well and be a valuable team member. I felt that the strategy I would commence in order to meet the needs of a reflective learner would be facilitating experiential learning followed by reflective practice. Students benefit from action planning to assist them through the transitional period onto new placement areas by setting goals (Quinn Hughes 2007) A learning contract that is designed collaboratively by the mentor and student can specify what the student will learn, how it will be achieved and time span. (Nicklin Kenworthy 2003). Considering this we decided to match the nursing procedure to be trained with specific learning outcomes from the students portfolio and discussed in the initial interview process. Urinalysis was the skill that we focused on in this exercise. Therefore it was appropriate to teach this skill in the sluice area which was a quiet and spacious area where we wouldnt be disturbed. We discussed possible reasons why as a nurse you would take this test for example infection and as a reflective learner I felt that I should explain how her ability and knowledge of urinalysis would benefit her when working as a fully qualified nurse. We then went through the procedure showing all the clinical equipment needed and different ways in obtaining a sample. I tried to relate to practice to enable the student to take what she has learnt to future placement areas. In order for us to reflect on the task we went to a quiet office to avoid distraction. Studies have shown having quality time for reflection and one to one discussion with their mentor were very important to the student. Watson(2000) I felt that the student centred teaching strategy worked well with this particular student as she learnt best by doing and reflecting on the procedure afterwards rather than just being informed by others. Kolbs(1984) learning cycle describes four stages in the learning process from the experience to applying the new learnt information to similar situations, and therefore a component of reflective learning. NMC (2006) suggest that prioritised workload while you are mentoring giving you time to carry out the mentor role. I ensured that the allocated workload would enable me to have more time for effective listening and discussion. Also it gave us the opportunity to discuss events of the day and reflect and give feedback on a daily basis. The process of assessment I feel has to be continuous and developing with my student Sarah due to her lack of confidence I didnt want to increase any anxiety by making formal assessments of her practice. As the ENB/DOH( 2001)document that a mentor should observe a students achievement of a period of time to ensure validity in assessment. Having identified the learning that needed to take place from the university portfolio and personal development on the students part as discussed in the learning contract. The NMC (2007) clearly outlines the requirements for assessments of student nurses. The students performance should be assessed in practice with accountability resting with the mentor who is carrying out the assessment. It is important that a student is able to self assess, and after our discussion in the initial interview Sarah did identify that she needs more support to enhance her self-confidence, and due to this we incorporated this in our learning contact along with the learni ng outcomes in her portfolio. It is also important for a student with confidence issues to self assess as they will see that progression is being made in their learning, therefore gaining confidence.(chap. assessment of student practice from uni lib) A continuous assessment of the students practice is a more reliable tool as supervising/assessing the student on a day to day basis in a relaxed environment it is more likely to reflect the true ability of that student. (Stuart 2007) The NMC (2006) under the leadership domain specifies that mentors need to display leadership qualities within the practice environment. I feel that by planning series of learning opportunites for the student and prioritising workload to ensure time to support the student i have achieved this. Without planning or prioritising a busy workload it would inevitabley be to the detriment of the students experience. Interim interview is the first more formal assessment of the students abilities/progress so far. The learning outcomes/competences were discussed and documented at initial interview in the form of a learning contract. I ensured that we had time to discuss Sarahs progress and competences. Although Sarah has made progress with her self-confidence there is still areas to improve therefore a new action plan was formulated and mutually agreed. We clarified the area of weakness and advised how she would progress further and arranged for her to work with other assessors within the team so to ensure fairness. (Gopee 2008) Feedback is essential in the process of formative assessment Pryor (1998) highlighted the importance of feedback not only identifying what the student has learned but also what they may accomplish in future practice. ( cited in Gopee 2008) Feedback should when possible be given in private (RCN 2007) as this would prevent other people from listening to any discussion. There is also the potential for the audience effect (Quinn and Hughes 2007) where the student feels that everyone is watching or listening to the feedback in her performance. Feedback is most effective when given at the time or soon after and activity occurs. This ensures that the experience is still fresh in both mentor and students mind. Therefore the information discussed is more accurate and detailed making it more useful for the student. Not only is a mentor there for supervising and supporting the student it is advantageous to the student when giving detailed feedback it guides the to learn what is expected of them to improve that particular episode of nursing. My main concern was making Sarah feel comfortable when receiving feedback as within the interim interview there still remained things to improve on. I ensured that my body language was warm and open. Giving eye contact and smiling and nodding. It is important that when giving positive feedback she felt that I was honest and w hen discussing feedback on a more constructive basis she felt that I was self-assured in the information that I was imparting. We collaboratively devised an action plan for the last couple of weeks of placement. Involving Sarah enhancing her management skills and to gain confidence in her own decision making. The NMC (2004) state that prior to entry to the register pre-registration students should be able to manage the delivery if care with the scope of ones own responsibility. (cited DuffyMiddleton 20) To facilitate this I delegated the care of patients within a residential home, as working in community it isnt easy for the student to work independently without direct supervision due to visiting patients within their own homes. But in the residential home environment I was around but not directly supervising. At this stage in the placement I felt that Sarah had developed her confidence and that this experience would help in realising her own capabilities. As Sarah had now spent a couple of weeks within the practice environment and within the community nursing team she began to open up about previous experiences whilst on placement. She felt that not all of her relationships with her mentor has not been a positive experience. Darling (1984) did some research about the mentor/mentee relationship and creating the learning environment and those mentors who didnt create a positive environment he described as toxic mentors. Three different forms of the toxic mentor were dumpers, blockers and destroyers. The first of these describes those individuals who dump there students into experiences out of there depth. Blockers were those who didnt allow the student to partake in learning opportunities. Destroyers as the word describes, destroys a student confidence by undermining them and criticising without offering another possibility. Darling (1984) was also able to identify what the basic attributes that a mentor should possess, roles as an insp irer, investor and supporter. (cited in Pellatt 2006) Whilst discussing the subject with Sarah it became apparent that her confidence had been knocked by two negative mentor experiences in the past. As a girl who is quiet in nature was having trouble recovering from this. Refecting on my discussion with Sarah I came to realise the impact the mentor can have on the student and how detrimental this had been for Sarah. I was fortunate enough to be able to take part in all of Sarahs placement and therefore feel that spending time with my student put me in a better position to assess and be content with my evaluation on Sarahs ability. It enabled us to focus on areas were highlighted in the initial meeting. (Stuart 2006) Working in community one of the challenges as a mentor which you have little control over is the learning environment. Whilst for the interviews I was able to ensure we had a quiet room back at base. And reflective discussions took place in the car. The actual learning environment altered every visit to different homes. As Sarah hadnt had a community placement before I felt that I would inform her of problems that may arise. These included poor hygiene, living conditions but also discussed that we live within a culturally and socially diverse environment. The final interview is the only summative part of the assessment process as a mentor it is my job to reflect on the students abilities as a whole in my opinion and also draw on other team members experiences with my student. Therefore being an objective view, also by using the university portfolio as a guide to see if all learning outcomes have been completed. As a mentor I am aware of the accountability that I have when deciding if a student meets the required standard. Especially on a students last placement there can be no benefit of doubt as the pre-registered student will not have time to develop before registration occurs. Time was allocated at the end of the final meeting to ask the student how she had found her experience with me as a mentor . The role of the mentor is very important in the stage immediately prior to student nurses achieving registration is imperative in producing nurses who are fit for practice and purpose. (NMC 2004) The study carried out by Duffy and Middleton(20) concurred that a longer last placement gives students time to settle and become part of the team encouraging their confidence to grow. It enables the student to get their practical skills up to the required standard and also developing their management competences, an essential skill within the staff nurse role. Unfortunately it must be acknowledged that not all students will achieve the required outcomes to become competent and safe practitioners. Duffy (2005) stated that there has to be the recognition that some students need to fail. It is important to be aware as a mentor the assessments that we are taking is to safeguard professional standards, patients and the general public. During my time with my student it was essential that both Sarah and i recognised her lack of confidence and doing so early as possible interventions can be initiated within the work placement to achieve the required competences. As the mentor is accountable it is important that along with the professional standards and competences outlined, the NMC require that the registrants are of good health and character. Another aspect that the mentor is responsible for. Most teaching within the practice area does deal with all those aspects, the clinical skill itself and the interpersonal and management skills involved. The educational taxonomy considers that any learning topic has to be judged from three angles in relation to what the student has to learn. Those being psychomotor; the physical skills to conduct the duty. Cognitive; the understanding of the evidence base for the duty. Affective is the ability to conduct the duty with the appropriate communication and interpersonal skills. The assessment was mainly continuous in a formative basis and using the aids of learning contracts and facilitating achievement of the outcomes by allocating patients and tasks, liasing with professionals. On all the tasks I felt that my student Sarah had arrived with a lack of confidence but through the process of practice feedback and reflection and the support she was given from myself and the community nursing team all of the outcomes were achieved well. As a mentor it is my responsibility to identify and apply research and evidence based practice to my area of practice (NMC 2008) I think it is important that as a mentor you should assess your personal strengths and weaknesses as to me it is important that I gain confidence in my abilities as a nursing student mentor. Feedback from the student perspective on the practice area as a learning environment is advantageous as it is part of the ongoing evaluation of the learning environment. As it reviews the learning opportunities and audits the placement so to develop skills of the professionals within the team. Enabling the workforce to contribute in developing the profession for the next generation of nurses. (ENB/DOH 2001) Also these audits will highlight the practice areas where students are struggling to achieve and thus giving the University opportunity to address the concerns. The University have a responsibility to where possible ensure the placement has the necessary opportunites to facilitate adequate learning experiences to reflect the student experience. (RCN 2006) Action plans are defined as a must achieve device that identifies competences that need to be achieved by an identified date during the practice placement,non achievement of which would lead to a fail mark being awarded. (Gopee 2008) It is essential within any assessment that a mentor perfoms you are prepared, fair ,objective, honest timely and give effective feedback. All these componets ensures that evidence collected and documented within the students portfolio is a true objective illustration of the students competences and ability. Barriers that would affect the mentors role is documented by Gopee (2008) organisation, lack of resources, personality clashes attitude problems either student/mentor. As a mentor the main challenge in being able to perform mentor duties is that there is inadequate time to fulfil this role along with your clinical duties. Obviously on a day to day basis it is hard to forsee how your day may go as you never know what you will find when you open the door to each patient. But to minimalise this as much as possible I put my leadership and management skills into practice so that opportunites /experiences were planned to an extent and timetabled as much as we could with the nature of the profession. Therefore reassuring the student that I my motivation was that she got the best out of her experience within the community nursing team. By setting an action plan also helps promote underlying skills such as planning, scheduling, goal setting, negotiations and management. Skinners theory devised in1974 states that the environment is essential to any learning that takes place and if the environment is suitable then learning will occur as connections are formed from responses to stimuli and reinforcement of these occurs.(cited by Quinn 2000) As part of Sarahs action plan we discussed other resources available to her for example having practice days with other professionals within the neighbourhood teams. Nurses are expected to be able to validate their clinical decisions with research based evidence that results in care should be patient centred and clinically effective. (DOH 2000) Within the community some of the treatments we provide for example compression therapy for treatment of leg ulcers have a large evidence base for that treatment but also as a professional we also use the evience from patients living with these condtion and consider both those as evidence to provide a rational for certain decisions made about treatment. Fitzpatrick(2007) in her literature review found that opinions on what evidence based practice was depended on the perspective of the individual. Evidence can be sourced from experts, literature and views of patients. All assessment descisions must be evidence based. This is seen as crucial as the future of the profession, in both its integrity and knowledge are in the hands of students currently training to become registered nurses. (Hand 2006)

Project Team Roles And Responsibilities Information Technology Essay

Project Team Roles And Responsibilities Information Technology Essay The project Steering Committee includes management and other executive level stakeholders that will be directly impacted by the success or outcome of the CRM project. During the implementation, the Steering Committee will reach consensus or influence the most strategic objectives for CRM adoption as well as approve the implementation scope, approach, time frame and budget. Due to the relatively short duration of the actual software CRM implementation, the Steering Committee will incur more time and emphasis on CRM adoption, utilization, measurement and refinement. Post software implementation activities will include: Verifying the users are actually using, benefiting by and endorsing the system The information is being correctly organized and processed for operational support and analysis, Information is accurate, available and in proper format or structure so that customers are better served, are spoken to with uniformity across the organization (a consistent message regardless of whos speaking) and customer service consistent These individuals will include the executive level stakeholders, Project Leader, Project Manager, Lead Consultant, Finance and MIS management and sometime key users. These individuals are responsible for reviewing the progress of the implementation, understanding the current issues, resolving critical issues, providing vision of future business opportunities and direction, and supporting the efforts through moral support of the entire project team. Steering Committee responsibilities include the following: Corporate-wide data sharing: Clearly sponsoring the organizations customer information and data sharing strategy, which states that customer information is to be centralized and available throughout the organization (based on need and security pending) for sharing in order to promote effectiveness and better service the customer. This information strategy further prohibits individuals or groups from operating silo systems, shadow systems or other disconnected or standalone systems or systems which do not result in customer information being put in the designated CRM system. Provide interpretation of company or project vision, direction and execution of objectives. Provide project oversight and guidance on strategic issues and direction. Make decisions which can change project organization, project scope, or allocation of project funding. Ensure that the direction of the project continues to be in line with the original mission and goals set forth at the beginning of the project. Support the project team in the resolution of cross-functional areas. Keep informed of project status; ask questions to ensure accurate understanding. Deliver regular feedback to the project team on performance and expectations. Provide input for Project Leader and Project Manager periodic appraisal. Executive Sponsor The Executive Sponsor can be a liaison from the Project Team to the Steering Committee for a large project or can act as a substitute for a formal Steering Committee for a small project. The Executive Sponsor (often the VP of Sales, Director of Sales, President or Operations Manager) monitors the activities and progress of the Project Leader and Project Team. This individual is responsible for communicating project status to the Steering Committee, ensuring milestones are completed in a timely fashion, and providing the overall supervision of the employees assigned to the project. Additional responsibilities include being the primary contact for issues and questions from the Project Team as well as review and monitoring of the project plan milestones. Other specific responsibilities may include: Liaison to Steering Committee; Keep Steering Committee and project stakeholders updated as to project status, progress and/or any deviations. Identify and secure all required project team members for the project (e.g. Functional Champions, Key Uses, System Administrator.) Verify the dedicated participation of each required project team client representative (available to commit full-time during peak periods or coverage and backfill of team members particular areas). Regularly review project status and emerging risks and select/approve potential solutions from those presented. Provide direction on prioritization of emerging issues and risks. Provide advice and council on major project and policy decisions. Ensure the appropriate project team members and key decision makers are identified and available to fulfill their project responsibilities. Identify and secure access to additional end user staff as needed to support specific areas of expertise not represented by the project team. Provide informal project status and communications to project team members and various user communities. Project Leader This role will require an individual with strong management and communication skills who understands the operation and objectives of the CRM implementation. It is possible to have an outside consultant or vendor consultant and internal person that share the Project Leader responsibilities, however, advance planning must dictate specific roles and responsibilities. The Project Leader is the person responsible for the overall project planning and progress toward the implementation. This individual is responsible for monitoring, maintaining, and adjusting the project plan (based on the input and deliverables of team members), providing implementation experienced leadership strategies to the Executive Sponsor, and ensuring the effectiveness of the application consultants assigned to the project. Other responsibilities include reviewing and assisting in issue resolution, coordinating task dependencies, and establishing milestone project goals that keep the project on time and within budge t. Other specific responsibilities may include: Conduct or facilitate the Implementation Project Kick-off and Status meetings. Manage the customer relationship with the vendor. Confirm solid understanding of corporate objectives and expectations; if necessary, reset objectives and expectations. Approve the implementation schedule and project plan. Measurement of plan vs. actual with variance analysis. Continually monitor scope, time frame, budget and risk. Manage project resources to assure maximum efficiency, effectiveness and resource utilization. Manage consultants on project. Periodic risk management project risks and people risks and development of mitigating strategies. Significant or high impact risks should be addressed with the Executive Sponsor. Recognize change management issues and risks; develop recommendations and mitigating strategies. Periodically measure and confirm stakeholder, Executive Sponsor, Champion, Key User and System Administrator satisfaction. Functional Champions / Team Leads Functional Champions or Team Leads spearhead an individual functional area (such as SFA, Marketing, Customer Service, or a particular line of business). These individuals are stakeholders from the department or line of business most affected by the module (e.g., SFA), have complete domain area knowledge and are dedicated to the project (and generally relieved of traditional day-to-day responsibilities for departmental operations while participating on their area of the project) for the project duration. Functional Champions must be empowered to make decisions for their domain area and their user community. They lead the configuration efforts and decisions during the Conference Room Pilot (CRP) phase with each software module. They further determine the current and anticipated transaction flows within the software module. Their primary objective is to gather process and configuration information from the key users and define the business system based on that information. These individ uals may develop process flowcharts for the existing and new system processes, develop methods of resolving process gaps, identify report and data requirements for the respective modules to support the end users, and identify data conversion requirements to support their modules. Functional Champions are responsible for module testing, coordinating and facilitating key user meetings, scheduling key users for system tests, preparing process documents, approving training documentation, and ultimate training of the end users. Some of the major responsibilities for this role are as follows: Understand the as is environment and provide functional expertise and knowledge of the existing business practices. Responsible for the successful configuration, processing and implementation of functional area software modules. Reconciliation of user requirements to the new system capabilities. Liaison between user community and project team; Act as a mentor and liaison to other users of that functional area. Represent the user interests in system design and software configuration decisions. Design and configuration of software parameters for each module. Identify and implement business process improvements and changes. System Administrator (SA) In order to take and maintain ownership of CRM utilization and long term success, the client must appoint an internal System Administrator (SA). Although technical experience is not required, the SA is a more technical resource to the project team and actively involved throughout the implementation project and post production processing. The SA will utilize tools built in to the Aplicor CRM system for all or almost all SA functions. All CRM applications that operate on a relational database management system (RDBMS) require skilled SAs for steady operation. Configuration Setup: Data importing: Validate cleanliness of data, scrub data and perform imports of accounts, contacts and/or opportunities into the CRM system (e.g. uploading users data from prior systems (such as ACT)). Reconcile and verify import results. Web site configuration options: Selecting available option for system-wide utilization; such as system logo upload, splash page selection or updating of cascading style sheet (CSS). Portal User Interface (UI) management: Assist management or users with the customization or modification of Menus and menu navigation. Implementation: User and role management: The creation, modification and removal of all users and roles within the CRM system. Resetting user passwords when necessary. Security administration: Assigning and managing overall system security, user security and account-level security. Field level data list management and UDF configuration: Assist management or Functional Champions with determining or modifying acceptable values from all data list fields throughout the CRM application and assigning or utilizing User-Defined Fields (UDFs) at each page. Document Library configuration. System training: Provide initial training to staff, and new-hires on an ongoing basis, for system usage. Query management: Provide users training to create or modify queries throughout the system (using Query Manager and Query Builder). Management Administration: Troubleshooting: Provide first level response to user issues or problems. Most issues or problems that are user-oriented will be resolved by SA, all other issues and problems may be escalated to the Aplicor Helpdesk. User view management: Assist users with creation or modification of individual CRM views. Monitor system usage: Verify utilization and enterprise-wide access (subject to business need and security) and viewing of customer information. Continued user and role Management: Updating memberships and deleting outdated users and roles. Resetting user passwords. CRM Application Consultants CRM consultants require thorough software product suite skills along with a detailed understanding of the particular software modules assigned. The application consultants are expected to provide functionality information and guide the implementation of the assigned modules. Their experience with the modules provides options of configuration, process designs, options for gap and issue resolution, training to the Functional Champions, hands on task completion support and troubleshooting support for software issues. The application consultants will also provide for knowledge transfer to the key users during the User Training phase and prior to reaching a production environment. Some of the major responsibilities for this role are as follows: Provide input on task status and estimates to complete to the Team Leader Spearhead the Conference Room Pilot configuration for each module(s) Conduct analysis of business, transaction and individual user requirements Conduct Business Process Analysis for the assigned module(s) Resolve how the software will apply to the customers needs Performing Functional Champion training; conduct software training for the module(s) assigned Offer suggestions for process improvement Outline new business procedures or processes Confirm application test case scenarios, lead the process testing and analyze the test results Guide conversion efforts and strategies Lead the cut-over preparation, testing and verification Report software bugs and aggressively follow-up on fixes Provide post implementation support Identify and resolve open issues All Project Team Members Every project team member has a fiduciary duty to make a proactive and positive contribution to the project. All team members are owners of the project and the new system and are personally accountable for taking charge of their respective areas and promoting the project to their user communities and colleagues. Project Team member duties include the following: Provide input to process improvement ideas Review circulated correspondence; provide feedback as required Identify high impact / high return opportunities within respective areas Proactively ask questions and offer input Attend every Project Team status meeting; recognize the importance of this project to the organization Keep Project Stakeholders updated Act as liaison and constituent for represented user community: Keep user community informed of project status and progress, provide a mechanism for users to contribute to project and voice suggestions for improvement Contribute to the solution: never offer criticism without suggestion. Team members must be contributors, not listeners Project Office Provide day to day project management and oversight of the project. Track project status and provide status reporting Promote adherence to the project schedule Track issues and manage the resolution process Define change and risk management strategies to assure early identification and complete, expeditious resolution; Provide a framework for developing fundamental project management skills in the project team to ensure effective tracking of project status; Lead Application Consultant This role will require an individual with strong communication skills, technical skills, application expertise and business experience. The role of the Lead Application Consultant is to manage the project implementation to meet the agreed upon requirements and timeframe. In order to be successful in this role, the role will have the following responsibilities: Approve all application consultants to be placed on the project team Provide overall and daily management and support to all application consultants assigned to the project Review and verify each consultants time and expense report for accuracy Define roles and responsibilities for each application consultant Work with the Project Leader and Project Manager to learn and manage the implementation to meet the agreed upon project objectives Work with the users and other software publisher resources as required, and resolve queries and issues on an ad hoc basis Notify management of requirements for resources in order to provide sufficient lead times for resources to be made available Make timely decisions regarding the project priorities in order to minimize disruption on the project Overall responsibility for assuring the quality of work conducted by their representative consultants Attend all Implementation Project Status meetings Technical Analysts Ideally, there is one Technical Application Analyst for each module. These individuals generally come from the MIS area, are dedicated to the project and relieved of day-to-day responsibilities for departmental operations: Assist with reconciliation of user requirements to system capabilities Identification / design / development of required system interfaces Identification /design /development of required data conversion routines Modification of software applications forms/reports using publisher tools Development of working knowledge of the software application table structures/data base functionality System test planning and assistance to users in the execution of the system testing process Support for User Application Analyst tasks as necessary Focus Groups Support the project team by actively participating in the research and resolution of project issues Support the project team by actively participating in the assessment of configuration alternatives during the realization phase Engage actively in the generation of business case scenarios and the development of test scripts Participate, as required, in the execution and validation of test scripts