Thursday, October 31, 2019

Discuss how certain advertising strategies can be used to fool or Essay

Discuss how certain advertising strategies can be used to fool or manipulate consumers - Essay Example Some others try to attain the maximum attention through incessant talk. Such people are always the life of the party, where they catch the glimpse of all those around them. When a group of people is gathered in a room, the attention of all people is towards the one who talks more. There is nothing wrong with talking itself. However, utilizing â€Å"the gift of gab† alone is not enough to develop a pleasing personality. However, there are a lot of people who draw the attention of others not just by loose talking but informing, enlightening and persuading through their talk. There are some who are shy and reluctant to speak as they would make any mistake. Such people develop low-self esteem thinking that they do not have anything sufficient to contribute to the conversation. People who want to draw attention to themselves dress provocatively, exhibit incongruously seductive, and behave in a flirtatious manner. In order to get the maximum attention they shift their emotions rapid ly while interacting with another person. Moreover, while talking with somebody, such persons behave very dramatically as though presenting in front of an audience. However, they appear to have lack of genuineness. To be the center of attraction, they want continuous reassurance and support form others about each of their activity. And so, they are always overly concerned about their physical appearance and the way how others are looking at them. The most important weakness of such people is that they are easily influenced by others. They are highly sensitive to criticism and cannot withstand any disapproval from others. To obtain the attraction of all, they are ready to do anything and thus make rash decisions. They are always self-centered and seldom show concern for others. They are weak in maintaining a relationship and are bogus or shallow while dealing with others. Even further, they threaten or attempt to commit suicide to get the attention of the society. On the other hand, Histrionic Personality Disorder (HPD) is a condition referred as dramatic personality disorders. Such disorders are the negative impacts out of a person’s psychological imbalances. People who suffer from such disorder face with extreme and unsound emotions and distorted self-images. As Sperry points out, people having histrionic personality disorder depend on the comments of others and not believe their own feeling of self-worth (131). They always have an irresistible desire to be noticed, and often behave noticeably or inappropriately to grab the attention of others. The literal meaning of histrionic refers to dramatic or theatrical. The histrionic personality is commonly seen in women and in men, and the symptoms are evident by early adulthood. In almost all cases, the people with such disorder seem to have excellent social skills and talents; but they are more likely to use these skills to influence others in order that they could be the center of attention. They feel much uncomfortable unless they are noticed by all others. Even though the exact reason for Histrionic Personality Disorder is not found out, health care professionals suggest that both inherited and learned elements play vital roles in the development of such disorder. Besides environment, factors evolved with a child can create an atmosphere for the child to develop a disorder (Sperry, 131). Lack of sufficient criticism and punishment as a child, and other positive support elements are often an important factor

Monday, October 28, 2019

Carlisle fieldwork write up Essay Example for Free

Carlisle fieldwork write up Essay How our data was collected: We all split up and positioned ourselves in different places of Carlisle’s CBD. We then approached different members of the public and to make it fair we chose different age groups, gender, and closed style questions. This is known as using stratified sampling. We used a questionnaire which consisted of 3 questions, so it was nice and quick so that we wouldn’t hold people up during their day out. For the distance Q we had pre-selected margins so it made it easy to record the results for each person without putting down the exact distance and instead using a rough estimate which was sufficient for this exercise. How our methods of data collection could have been improved: We could have chosen to do the questionnaire at various times during the day so we would gain a fair representation of the different groups of people visiting Carlisle during the whole day, and therefore making our results much more reliable. Also we could have covered a much larger area and retained a lot more results and variety of results. Methods to represent data: We used a table to record the questionnaire results with the no. Of person down the side with the 3 questions as the columns with the answers jotted down. It was a good way to record the results as it is easy to read from and make assumptions. In conclusion I believe the questionnaire we used to obtain our results was a good way of collecting the information as it made it easy to read from and to notice patterns in the results. Although there are some ways in which the investigation could have been improved such as spending more time interviewing people or covering a much larger area, or just asking them more questions such as what method of transport they used to travel to Carlisle on that day. 2nd Human Study: Aim: To see if pedestrian numbers peak at lunchtime. Annotated Sketch Map of the study area: image01. png How our data was collected: We positioned ourselves at the desired point just outside the main shopping area of the centre of Carlisle. It was a reasonably busy area of the town. We recorded each person who passed around us as designated by the survey area in the sketch map above. How our methods of data collection could have been improved: We could have taken more surveys around different places around the city centre to obtain more reliable results. We could have noted down what age groups the passer bys were. Also we could have taken the survey over more time periods to obtain more reliable results. E. g. 9:00, 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00. Methods to represent data: We noted down the results in a table so it is easy to read from and comment by understanding it correctly. We used a tally system also so that recording the numbers was simpler as it took less time as we could count up the final result at the end of each survey. In conclusion I believe the method we used to collect the data was the most efficient way of doing so as it was quick and it meant that we wouldn’t let anyone pass by unnoticed. To improve this study we could have recorded how many children and elderly passed by marking them with a different colour or symbol to see which kind of people walked these areas at that time of the day.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Differences Between Greek And Roman Gods Theology Religion Essay

Differences Between Greek And Roman Gods Theology Religion Essay From ancient times different societies have worshiped gods, believing in their power and being afraid of their fury. People have prayed and made sacrifices in order to achieve the gods mercy and generosity. They believed that, if the gods are in good mood, they will provide people with good weather conditions for growing crops  [1]  . Moreover, people needed explanations for different natural phenomena, such as rain, drought, lightning, thunder and earthquake. So, ancient people believed that these natural phenomena are caused by the gods  [2]  . A good example of such societies could be ancient Greeks and Romans. Ancient Greeks and Romans existed in the middle ages. This essay will describe main gods and goddesses of ancient Greek and Roman societies. It will also look at main similarities and differences between the gods and goddesses of theses societies. Investigation To begin with, there are a lot of similarities between Greek and Roman gods, because Roman religion was based on Greek religion. The Greek mythology was founded about a millennium before the Roman. Romans founded their religion on the basis of the Greek religion.  [3]  So, Greek and Roman religions are similar, because both of them are polytheistic religions.  [4]  Polytheism is belief in, or worship of, multiple gods or divinities.  [5]  There were more than thirty gods in each of these cultures. Furthermore, Greeks and Romans had almost the same gods, despite differences in their names. As an example, both cultures had the god of sea, the goddess of love, the god of war, the god of wine and the goddess of wisdom.  [6]  Importantly, there was a chief god, who was the king of all gods, in both Greek and Roman societies. In Greek mythology the king of gods is known as Zeus, whereas Romans call the king of gods Jupiter.  [7]  There is also a queen of gods in Greek and Roman mythologies. Greeks call the queen Hera, whereas Romans queen of gods is Juno.  [8]   Finally, both ancient societies have twelve main gods and goddesses. In Greek mythology they are known as the Twelve Olympians.  [9]  They are Zeus, Poseidon, Aid, Ares, Apollo, Hermes, Hephaestus, Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, Artemis, and Dionysus. Greeks call these twelve main gods and goddesses as follows: Jupiter, Neptune, Pluton, Mars, Feb, Mercury, Volcano, Juno, Minerva, Venus, Diana, and Bacchus.  [10]  Actually, they are the same gods and goddesses with same powers, but with different names. Even though the Roman religion is based on the Greek religion, there are number of differences between gods of these societies. Romans have not just adopted their religion from Greeks. They have also changed their religion according to their culture.  [11]  So, if you read about Rome and Greek gods and goddesses, you will see differences in their names. Romans gave their gods names that are different from names of Greek gods. Thus, there are only few Greek and Roman gods and goddesses that have similar names. Usually Roman gods and goddesses have names of planets of the sun system, such as Jupiter, Mercury, Neptune and Mars. In contrast, Greek gods and goddesses have their own names, such as Zeus, Hermes, Ares and Hera.  [12]  For example, the goddess of love is Venus in Roman mythology and Aphrodite in Greek mythology. Romans call the god of war Mars, while Greeks call Ares. The god of sea is called Neptune in Roman mythology and Poseidon in Greek mythology.  [13]   Furthermore, if you read about Roman and Greek gods, you will notice differences in characters of gods and goddesses. Gods and goddesses usually have characters similar to people that believe and pray to them, because people think up their gods themselves.  [14]  Ancient Greeks were polite and creative. They held creativity above physical works in the mortal and mythical world.  [15]  Greeks were also interested in poetry. In contrast, Romans were more focused on actions rather than on words. They valued bravery and courage.  [16]  So, Roman gods and goddesses are more military and aggressive, whereas Greek gods and goddesses are more cultural and polite. Finally, when you look at pictures of Greek and Roman gods or goddesses, you will see differences in their clothes and physical appearance. Ancient Greeks highly valued creativity and beauty. So, Greek gods and goddesses were usually given a beautiful and perfect physical appearance.  [17]  They were dressed into white and light cloth. By contrast, Romans were more focused on warfare and valued bravery. So, Rome gods and goddesses had military clothes. Romans did not pay much attention on physical appearance of gods and goddess.  [18]   Conclusion In conclusion, by comparing Greek and Roman gods, you can see both similarities and differences between gods of the two ancient societies. Greek and Roman religions are similar, because the Roman mythology was founded based on the Greek. Religions of both ancient societies are polytheistic religions. Moreover, both cultures have almost the same gods with the same powers. Finally, there are twelve main gods, known as the Twelve Olympians, in both cultures. However, Greek and Roman gods also differ from each other, because Romans have changed their religion according to their own culture. So, Roman and Greek gods had different names. Furthermore, there is a difference in characters of Greek and Roman Gods. And finally, Greek and Roman gods had different physical appearances and wore different clothes. Therefore, Greek and Roman gods have similarities as well as having some differences.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Glacier :: Nature Wildlife Geography Essays

Glacier The glacial run off river was colder than ice, so cold it was like a torrent of broken glass against the skin. The water itself is bluish white, the color of skim milk. On the bank of the glacial river, a hundred dead and rotting fish lay scattered around like casualties of a recent battle. The corpses lay in every stage of decay, from fresh, as if just pulled from the water, to pure white skeletons stripped by scavengers. The stench is like an enormous natural gas leak. The river itself is so crowded with spawning silver salmon, that it resembles a giant can of sardines. The sunlight shining off their silver backs gleams like polished chrome. These amazing fish are swimming upstream against the current, jumping often with the power and agility of an Olympic gymnast. The terrain surrounding the river is frozen tundra. It has slimy green and brown muck on top due to the unusually warm summer, but dig down an inch and you will encounter ground as hard as concrete. The vast tundra is in sharp contrast to the rolling hills far in the distance. The retreating glacier literally cut its path through the landscape, voiding this stretch of land of everything but hard ground and arctic grass. Thousands of years of glacial movement had cut a distinct scar that could read history as well as any sedimentary rock. In the distance you could clearly see the boundaries of the ancient glacier. Hills suddenly appear out of the frozen wasteland. Tall evergreens jutting into the sky, look like giants, even at a distance, compared to the flatness of the tundra. Thick grey clouds hang ominously over head, as if further threatening any one who might dare this rugged country. The mountains far away have rings around them like halos, and one can see that they are emptying their heavy burden upon the green mountain slopes. When looking up the river, you can follow it west and trace it to its source. There, stands a magnificent mountain of ice, known as portage glacier. The glacier strongly resembles a real mountain, one that has endured a blizzard of phenomenal proportion. Instead of being a brown dirt slope with patches of white snow and ice, it is the opposite. A perfectly white slope pocked with patches of brown. The end of the glacier, which is about as far away as the eye can see, is pressed against the ground, like an unstoppable force working against an unmovable object.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Employee Welfare and Satisfaction

Employee satisfaction is supremely important in an organization because it is what productivity depends on. If your employees are satisfied they would produce superior quality performance in optimal time and lead to growing profits. Satisfied employees are also more likely to be creative and innovative and come up with breakthroughs that allows a company to grow and change positively with time and changing market conditions Employee welfare defines as â€Å"efforts to make life worth living for workmen†. These efforts have their origin either in some statute formed by the state or in some local custom or in collective agreement or in the employer’s own initiative. Job satisfaction represents the constellations of person’s attitude towards or about the job. In general, job satisfaction is the attitude towards the job as a whole. Job satisfaction is a function of satisfaction with different aspects of job, i. e. supervision, pay, works itself, co-workers, promotion, etc. , and of the particular weighting or importance one attaches to these respective components. Modern management considers human being as resource and it is an importance for the success of any organization. It is the strength and aid. Therefore employees attitudes, interest, quality, job satisfaction, etc. , have a bearing productivity of a firm unless the management is able to recognize employees needs and wants they will lose motivation and morale and it will affect the best interest of the firm. Work is one of the most important activities in a person’s life. Who do have satisfying job rarely have fully satisfying lives. Dissatisfaction in work can lead in many circumstances to lower production and friction on the job. So that it must be considered by the management and steps should be taken to find out the factors which cause job dissatisfaction and to reduce such dissatisfaction. In general employee satisfaction is the attitude towards the work environment, salary, relationship with their colleagues, job security, grievance handling, performance appraisal, training and development, management style, quality policy, career counseling and so on.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

III Rape

III Rape is a crime of violence, not of passion, rooted in cultural norms. Many men tend to view women as sex objects, often subjecting them to sexual harassment in the work place and elsewhere. The statement above can be portrayed in many different ways and it is really hard to distinguish whether this is a(n) valid or invalid statement. Depending on the way you view it, it can mean many different things. A man and womens perspective on this issue would obviously differ due to the fact that the statement is a burden to the reputation of all men. Some men may take offense to this statement therefore disagreeing with the statement. While with women, since they are the main victims of rape who agree whole From a guys point of view I agree with the statement to an extent. I believe the men who do commit these crimes have this mentality about them. Of course there are going to be exceptions to everything where a particular man is looking for some sort of relationship with a women and may be confused. This is no excuse to commit the crime, but the impulse a man has to need a women may cause him to do something he may not normally do or in some cases he may just be nuts. This statement can really just be thrown up in the air because there are just so many different issues to be touched on it would not be a possibility to just close out this argument, it can only be based on opinion. All human beings have different mentalities and personalities so therefore it cannot be said that all men think the same or that all women think the same for that matter.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Free Essays on My First Guitar

One of the greatest days of my life was the day I received my first guitar. Ever since the first time I watched MTV and saw an electric guitar I’ve wanted to play the guitar. In middle school I met a few guys that played guitar. They taught me an easy song that I knew and I was hooked for life. When it was time for Christmas to roll round I began to beg my parents for an electric guitar. This was the first time that I couldn’t figure out what I was getting for Christmas. It made Christmas so much more exciting. On Christmas Eve I could barley tame my exciment. I remember staying up late with my brother, who was home from college, on Christmas Eve. After we went to sleep I woke up at about four in the morning for some reason. As my eyes opened to the cold air I was filled with the excitement of Christmas as if I was still a five-year-old boy staying up to catch a glimpse of Santa Clause. I got out of my warm cozy bed and stepped onto the icy cold floor. I made my way for the steps and began slowly placing one foot before another going down the steps while trying not to wake anyone with the creeks that sounded like a loud drum being beat in the dead silence. Once I got down the stairs I slowly tip toed into the living room. As I entered the room the smell of a smoldering fire and a Christmas tree grew stronger and stronger with each step I took toward the decorated tree. Once my eyes adjusted to the darkness I could see an outline of a guitar case and a black box beside it. My heart pounded with excitement and relief of finally achieving my life long dream. I cautiously took the shiny midnight black guitar from it’s case and placed it on my knee. I wanted to sit down and play on it for hours, but lack of sleep and the fear of my parents walking in and seeing me with my presents before they were awake prevented this. I put my fingers in the only chord position I knew and strummed the cold shiny strings with my thumb. It sounded lik... Free Essays on My First Guitar Free Essays on My First Guitar One of the greatest days of my life was the day I received my first guitar. Ever since the first time I watched MTV and saw an electric guitar I’ve wanted to play the guitar. In middle school I met a few guys that played guitar. They taught me an easy song that I knew and I was hooked for life. When it was time for Christmas to roll round I began to beg my parents for an electric guitar. This was the first time that I couldn’t figure out what I was getting for Christmas. It made Christmas so much more exciting. On Christmas Eve I could barley tame my exciment. I remember staying up late with my brother, who was home from college, on Christmas Eve. After we went to sleep I woke up at about four in the morning for some reason. As my eyes opened to the cold air I was filled with the excitement of Christmas as if I was still a five-year-old boy staying up to catch a glimpse of Santa Clause. I got out of my warm cozy bed and stepped onto the icy cold floor. I made my way for the steps and began slowly placing one foot before another going down the steps while trying not to wake anyone with the creeks that sounded like a loud drum being beat in the dead silence. Once I got down the stairs I slowly tip toed into the living room. As I entered the room the smell of a smoldering fire and a Christmas tree grew stronger and stronger with each step I took toward the decorated tree. Once my eyes adjusted to the darkness I could see an outline of a guitar case and a black box beside it. My heart pounded with excitement and relief of finally achieving my life long dream. I cautiously took the shiny midnight black guitar from it’s case and placed it on my knee. I wanted to sit down and play on it for hours, but lack of sleep and the fear of my parents walking in and seeing me with my presents before they were awake prevented this. I put my fingers in the only chord position I knew and strummed the cold shiny strings with my thumb. It sounded lik...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

What Is a Personal Statement Everything You Need to Know About the College Essay

What Is a Personal Statement Everything You Need to Know About the College Essay SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips In addition to standardized test scores and transcripts, a personal statement or essay is a required part of many college applications. The personal statement can be one of the most stressful parts of the application process because it's the most open ended. In this guide, I'll answer the question, "What is a personal statement?" I'll talk through common college essay topics and what makes for an effective personal statement. // Even the terminology can be confusing if you aren't familiar with it, so let's start by defining some terms: Personal statement- an essay you write to show a college admissions committee who you are and why you deserve to be admitted to their school. It's worth noting that, unlike "college essay," this term is used for application essays for graduate school as well. College essay - basically the same as apersonal statement. (I'll be using the terms interchangeably.) Essay prompt - a question or statement that your college essay is meant to respond to. Supplemental essay - an extra school or programspecific essay beyond the basic personal statement. Many colleges ask for only one essay. However, some schools do ask you to respond to multiple prompts or to provide supplemental essays in addition to a primary personal statement. Either way, don't let it stress you out! This guide will cover everything you need to know about the different types of college essays and get you started thinking about how to write a great one: Why colleges ask for an essay What kinds of essay questions you'll see What sets great essays apart Tips for writing your own essay // Why Do Colleges Ask For an Essay? There are a couple of reasons that colleges ask applicants to submit an essay, but the basic idea is that it gives them more information about you, especially who you are beyond grades and test scores. #1: Insight Into Your Personality The most important role of the essay is to give admissions committees a sense of your personality and what kind of addition you'd be to their school's community. Are you inquisitive? Ambitious? Caring? These kinds of qualities will have a profound impact on your college experience, but they're hard to determine based on a high school transcript. Basically, the essay contextualizes your application and shows what kind of person you are outside of your grades and test scores. Imagine two students, Jane and Tim: they both have 3.5 GPAs and 1200s on the SAT. Jane lives in Colorado and is the captain of hertrack team, while Tim lives in Vermont and regularly contributes to the school paper, but they both want to be doctors and they both volunteer at the local hospital. As similar as Jane and Tim seemon paper, in reality they're actually quite different, and their unique perspectives come through in their essays. Jane writes about how looking into her family history for a school project made her realize how the discovery of modern medical treatments like antibiotics and vaccines had changed the world and drove her to pursue a career as a medical researcher. Tim, on the other hand, recounts a story about how a kind doctor helped him overcome his fear of needles, an interaction that reminded him of the value of empathy and inspired him to become a family practitioner. These two students may seem outwardly similar but their motivations and personalities are very different. Without an essay, your application is essentially a series of numbers: a GPA, SAT scores, the number of hours spent preparing for quiz bowl competitions. The personal statement is your chance to stand out as an individual. // #2: Evidence of Writing Skills A secondary purpose of the essay is to serve as a writing sample and help colleges see that you have the skills needed to succeedin college classes. The personal statement isyour best chance to show off your writing, so take the time to craft a pieceyou're really proud of. That said, don't panic if you aren't a strong writer. Admissions officers aren't expecting you to write like Joan Didion; they just want to see that you can express your ideas clearly. No matter what, your essay should absolutely not include any errors or typos. #3: Explanation of Extenuating Circumstances For some students, the essay is also a chance to explain factors affecting theirhigh school record. Did your grades drop sophomore year because you were dealing with a family emergency? Did you miss out on extracurricularsjunior year because of an extended medical absence? Colleges want to know if you struggled with a serious issue that affected your high school record, so make sure to indicate any relevant circumstances on your application. Keep in mind that in some cases there will be a separate section for you to address these types ofissues, as well as any black marks on your record like expulsions or criminal charges. #4: Your Reasons for Applying to the School Many colleges ask you to writean essay or paragraph about why you're applying to their school specifically. In asking these questions, admissions officers are trying to determine if you're genuinely excited about the school and whether you're likely to attend if accepted. I'll talk more about this type of essay below. Want to write the perfect college application essay? Get professional help from PrepScholar. Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We'll learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay that you'll proudly submit to your top choice colleges. Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now: // What Kind of Questions Do Colleges Ask? Thankfully, applications don't simply say "Please include an essay about yourself" - they includea question or prompt that you're asked to respond to. These prompts are generally pretty open ended and can be approached in a lot of different ways. Nonetheless, most questions fall into a few main categories. Let's go through each common type of prompt, with examples from the Common Application, the University of California application, and ApplyTexas, as well as a few individualschools. Prompt Type 1: Your Personal History This sortof questionasks you to write about a formative experience, important event or key relationship fromyour life. Admissions officers want to understand what is important to you and how your backgroundhas shaped you as a person. These questions are both common and tricky. The most common pitfall students fall into is trying to tell their entire life stories - it's better to focus in on a very specific point in time and explain why it was meaningful to you. Common App 1 Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. Common App 5 Discuss an accomplishment, event, orrealizationthatsparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. University of California 2 Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side. University of California 6 Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom. // Prompt Type 2:Facing a Problem A lot of prompts deal with how you solve problems or how you cope with failure. College can be difficult, both personally and academically, and admissions committees want to see that you're equipped to face those challenges. The key to these types of questions is to identify a real problem or failure (not a success in disguise) and show how you adapted and grew from addressing the issue. Common App 2 The lessons we take fromobstacles we encountercan be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced achallenge, setback, or failure.How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? Common App 4 Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution. ApplyTexas B Describe a circumstance, obstacle or conflict in your life, and the skills and resources you used to resolve it. Did it change you? If so, how? // Prompt Type 3:Diversity Most colleges arepretty diverse, with students from a wide range of backgrounds. Essay questions about diversity are designed to help admissions committees understand how you interact with people who are different from you. In addressing these prompts,you want to show that you're capable of engaging with new ideas and relating to people who may have different beliefs than you. Common App 3 Reflect on a time when youquestionedor challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? Whatwas the outcome? ApplyTexas A Describe a setting in which you have collaborated or interacted with people whose experiences and/or beliefs differ from yours. Address your initial feelings, and how those feelings were or were not changed by this experience. Prompt Type 4:Your Future Goals This type of prompt asks about what you want to do in the future: sometimes simply what you'd like to study, sometimes longer term career goals. Colleges want to understand what you're interested in and how you plan to work towards your goals. You'll mostly see these prompts if you're applying for a specializedprogram (like pre-med or architecture) or applying as a transfer student. Some schools also ask for supplementary essays along these lines. ApplyTexas C Considering your lifetime goals, discuss how your current and future academic and extracurricular activities might help you achieve your goals. University of California (Transfer Applicants) Please describe how you have prepared for your intended major, including your readiness to succeed in your upper-division courses once you enroll at the university. // Prompt Type 5: Why This School The most common style of supplemental essay is the "Why us?" essay (although a fewschools with their own application use this type of questionas their main prompt). In these essays, you're meant to address the specific reasons you want to go to the school you're applying to. Whatever you do, don't ever recycle these essays for more than one school. Yale University What is it about Yale that has led you to apply? Chapman University There are thousands of universities and colleges. Please share with us why you are choosing to apply to Chapman. Rice University How did you first learn about Rice University and what motivated you to apply? Prompt Type 6:Creative Prompts More selective schools often have supplemental essays with stranger or more unique questions. University of Chicago is notorious for its weird prompts, but it's not the only school that will ask you to think outside the box in addressing its questions. University of Chicago The word floccinaucinihilipilification is the act or habit of describing or regarding something as unimportant or of having no value. It originated in the mid-18th century from the Latin words "floccus," "naucum," "nihilum," and "pilus"- all words meaningâ€Å"of little use.† Coin your own word using parts from any language you choose, tell us its meaning, and describe the plausible (if only to you) scenarios in which it would be most appropriately used. Tufts University Whether you've built blanket forts or circuit boards, produced community theater or mixed media art installations, tell us: what have you invented, engineered, created, or designed? Or what do you hope to? University of Virginia What’s your favorite word and why? University of Chicago(Phil Roeder/Flickr) // What Makes a Strong Personal Statement? OK, so you're clear on what a college essay is, but you're still not sure how to write a good one. To help you get started, I'm going to explainthe main things admissions officers look for in students' essays:an engaging perspective, genuine moments, and lively writing. I've touched onthese ideas already, buthereI'll go into more depth about how the best essays stand out from the pack. Showing Who You Are A lot of students panic about finding a unique topic, and certainly writing about something unusual like a successful dating app you developed with your friends or your time working as a mall Santacan't hurt you. But what's really important isn't so much what you write about as how you write about it. You need to use your subject to show something deeper about yourself. Look at the prompts above: you'll notice that they almost all ask you what you learned or how the experience affected you. Whatever topic you pick, you must be able to specifically address how or why it matters to you. Say a student, Will, was writing about the mall Santa in response to Common App prompt number 2 (the one about failure): Will was a terrible mall Santa. He was way too skinny to be convincing and the kids would always step on his feet. He could easily write 600 very entertaining words describing this experience, but they wouldn't necessarily add up to an effective college essay. To do that, he'll need to talk about his motivations and his feelings: why he took such a job in the first place and what he did (and didn't) get out of it. Maybe Will took the job because he needed to make some money to go on a school trip and it was the only one he could find. Despite his lack of enthusiasm for screaming children, he kept doing it because he knew if he persevered through the whole holiday season he would have enough money for his trip. Would you rather read "I failed at being a mall Santa" or "Failing as a mall Santa taught me how to persevere no matter what"? Admissions officersdefinitely prefer the latter. Ultimately, the best topics are ones that allow you to explain something surprising about yourself. Honesty Since the main point of the essay is to give schools a sense of who you are, you have to open up enough to let them see your personality.Writing a good college essay means being honest about your feelings and experiences even when they aren't entirely positive. In this context, honesty doesn't mean going on at length about the time you broke into the local pool at night and nearly got arrested, but it does mean acknowledging when something was difficult or upsetting for you. Think about the mall Santa example above. The essay won't work unless the writer genuinely acknowledges that he was a bad Santa and explains why. Want to build the best possible college application? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. Even this little kid is a better Santa than Will was. EloquentWriting As I mentioned above, colleges want to know that you are a strong enough writer to survive in college classes. Can you express your ideas clearly and concisely? Can you employ specific details appropriately and avoidcliches and generalizations? These kinds of skills will serve you well in college (and in life!). Nonetheless, admissions officers recognize that different students have different strengths. They aren’t looking for a poetic magnum opus from someone who wants to be a math major. (Honestly, they aren't expecting a masterwork from anyone, but the basic point stands.) Focus on making sure that your thoughts and personality come through, and don't worry about using fancy vocabulary or complex rhetorical devices. Above all, make sure that you have zero grammar or spelling errors. Typos indicate carelessness, which will hurt your cause with admissions officers. Want to write the perfect college application essay? Get professional help from PrepScholar. Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We'll learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay that you'll proudly submit to your top choice colleges. Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now: // Top 5 Essay-Writing Tips Now that you have a sense of what colleges are looking for, let's talk about how you can put this new knowledge into practice as you approach your own essay. Below, I've collected my five best tips from years as a college essay counselor. #1: Start Early! No matter how much you want to avoid writing your essay, don’t leaveit until the last minute. One of the most important parts of the essay writing process is editing, and editing takes a lot of time. You want to be able to put your draft in a drawer for a week and come back to it with fresh eyes. You don't want to be stuck with an essay you don't really like because you have to submit your application tomorrow. You need plenty of time to experiment and rewrite, so I would recommend starting your essays at least two months before the application deadline. For most students, that means starting around Halloween, but if you're applying early you'll need to get going closer to Labor Day. Of course, it's even better to get a head start and begin your planning earlier. Many students like to work on their essays over the summer when they have more free time, but you should keep in mind that each year's application isn't usually released until August or September. Essay questions often stay the same from year to year, however. If you are looking to get a jump on writing, you can try to confirm with the school (or the Common App) if the essay questions will be the same as the previous year's. #2: Pick a Topic You’re Genuinely Excited About One of the biggest mistakes students make is trying to write what they think the committee wants to hear. The truth is that there's no "right answer" when it comes to college essays - the best topics aren't limited to specific categories like volunteer experiences or winning a tournament. Instead, they're topics that actually matter to the writer. "OK," you're thinking, "but what does she mean by 'a topic that matters to you'? Because to be perfectly honest, right now what really matters to me is that fall TV starts up this week, and I have a feeling I shouldn't write about that." You're not wrong (although some great essays have been written about television). A great topic isn't just something that you're excited about or that you talk to your friends about; it's something that has had a real, describableeffect on your perspective. This doesn't mean that you should overemphasize how somethingabsolutely changed your life, especially if it really didn't. Instead, try to be as specific and honest as you can about how the experience affected you, what it taught you, or what you got out of it. Let'sgo back to the TV idea. Sure, writing an essay abouthow excited you are for the new season of The Vampire Diariesprobably isn't the quickest way to get yourself into college, but you couldwrite a solidessay (in response to the first type of prompt) about how SpongeBob SquarePants was an integral part of your childhood. However,it's not enough to just explain how much you loved SpongeBob - you must also explain why and how watching the show every day after school affected your life. For example, maybe it was a ritual you shared with your brother, which showed you how even seemingly silly pieces of pop culture can bring people together. Dig beneath the surface to show who you are and how you see the world. When you write about something you don't really care about, your writing will come out cliched and uninteresting, and you'll likely struggle to motivate. When you write about something that is genuinely important to you, on the other hand, you can make even the most ordinary experiences - learning to swim, eating a meal, or watching TV - engaging. As strange as it sounds, SpongeBob could make a great essay topic. #3: Focus onSpecifics But how do you write an interesting essay?Focus. Don't try to tell your entire life story, or even the story of an entire weekend; 500-650 words may seem like a lot, but you'll reach that limit quickly if you try to pack every single thing that has happened to you into your essay. If, on the other hand, you just touch on a wide range of topics, you'll end up with an essay that reads more like a resume. Instead, narrow in on one specific event or idea and talk about it in more depth. The narrower your topic, the better. For example, writing about your role as Mercutio in your school's production ofRomeo and Juliet is too general, but writing about opening night, when everything went wrong, could be a great topic. Whatever your topic, use details to help draw the reader in and express your unique perspective, but keep in mind that you don't have to include every detail of what you did or thought - stick to the important and illustrative ones. #4: Use Your Own Voice College essays aren't academicassignments: you don't need to be super formal. Instead, try to be yourself. The best writing sounds like a more eloquent version of the way you talk. Focus on using clear, simple languagethat effectively explains a point or evokes a feeling. To do so, avoid the urge to use fancy-sounding synonyms when you don't really know what they mean. Contractions are fine; slang, generally, is not. Don't hesitate to write in the first person. A final note: you don’t need to be relentlessly positive. It’s OK to acknowledge that sometimes things don’t go how you want - just show how you grew from that. #5: Be Ruthless Many students want to call it a day after writing a first draft, but editing is a key part ofwriting a truly great essay. To be clear, editing doesn't mean just making a few minor wording tweaks and cleaning up typos; it means reading your essay carefully and objectively and thinking about how you could improve it. Ask yourself questions as you read: is the progression of the essay clear? Do you make a lot of vague, sweeping statements that could be replaced with more interesting specifics? Do your sentences flow together nicely? Do youshow something about yourself beyond the surface level? You will have to delete and rewrite (potentially large) parts of your essay, and no matter how attached you feel to something you wrote, you might have to let it go. If you've ever heard the phrase "Kill your darlings," know that it is 100% applicable to college essay writing. At some point, you might even need to rewrite the whole essay.Even though it's annoying, starting over is sometimes the best way to get an essay that you're really proud of. Ludwig/Flickr What's Next? Make sure to check out our other posts on college essays, including our step-by-step guide to how to write your college essay,our analysis of the Common App Prompts, and our collection of example essays. If you're in need of guidance on other parts of the application process, take a look at our guides to choosing the right college for you, writing about extracurriculars, and requesting teacher recommendations. Last but not least, if you're planning on taking the SAT one last time, check out our ultimate guide to studying for the SAT and make sure you're as prepared as possible. Want to improve your SAT score by 160points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Diversity's Influence on Virtual Teams in International Business Essay

Diversity's Influence on Virtual Teams in International Business - Essay Example , and organizational boundaries through the use of technology to facilitate communication and collaboration, are the outcome of teamwork in firms and increased geographic dispersion (Lipnack & Stamps, 2000; Snow, Lipnack, & Stamps, 2001). Organizations are relying more heavily on virtual teams due to a more competitive global market, the benefits of integrating the work of specialized employees who might be geographically dispersed, and the need to save time and travel expenses (Kock, 2000; Mohrman, 1999; Townsend, DeMarie, & Hendrickson, 1998). Virtual teams allow organizations to expand potential labor markets by continually altering and improving organizational processes to capitalize on strengths, which is especially importance in a global environment that has become increasingly competitive (Duarte & Synder, 1999). Time is a crucial corporate resource; communication technologies help organizations avoid delays and attain immediate feedback (Opper & Fersko-Weiss, 1992). Moreover, communication tools allow team members to work on projects at a much quicker pace than if they had to travel and meet face-to-face and permit organizations to use â€Å"relay race† procedures to accomplish tasks, resulting in a continuous workflow (Cascio, 1999). For example, as Texas employees are leaving for work, team members in Hawaii are just beginning their day. These team members finish their day and transmit their work to team members in Bombay who are starting the workday. Finally, the Bombay team members contribute to the project and then send it back to Texas for further work. This â€Å"relay race† continues until the project is completed, which should require, which should require less time due to the virtual tools that allow these team members to work round the clock. In reference to softwar e development teams, Gorton and Motwani (1996) referred to this process as â€Å"software shift work† in which teams in different time zones work on a product in continuous

Friday, October 18, 2019

Personal statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 46

Personal Statement Example One thing I love about Marketing is that it is never boring. I see myself in a role where I would be constantly updating myself on the latest trends and consumer preferences, the latest techniques of advertising, and new wonders of digital technology. Another very appealing aspect of Marketing is that it requires teamwork. People from different cultures join hands, bringing the very best from their respective cultures, to promote a product or service. As a Marketer, I shall be able to socialize with culturally diverse peers on daily basis and form long-lasting contacts and bonds with them. Marketing is like artwork. It takes an innovative approach for an ad or other means of marketing to gain that special attention for the audience which can make the sales for a particular product or service stand out. It takes thorough knowledge, deep thinking, prudent planning, teamwork, dedication, and commitment to successfully market a product or service. All these elements combined in one profession make it worth more than just a source of income. The satisfaction and feeling of accomplishment that comes with the success of a product or service because of effective marketing is overwhelming. Successful brands like Gucci, Giorgio Armani, and Pepsi heavily invest in marketing and the sales profile reflects the fruit of investment. I love the experimentation in Marketing. From issuing loyalty stamps to the customers to discount days, Marketers are always busy trying something new to enlarge the customer base and gain customer loyalty. Having practiced these techniques for some years in some big firms, I intend to apply the lessons and techniques thus learned to make my own brand successful, which I intend to establish some years later. Marketing can make or break a business, so it is crucially important for someone who aspires to become an entrepreneur in the long-term to be formally

Paradise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Paradise - Essay Example These days, we use it as a getaway since none of the member of my family is interested in hunting. A night in the cabin is a wonderful and peaceful experience, the sound of night birds and sometimes a cool breeze lulls you to sleep gently so that I not I fall asleep feeling as if the wild is inside with me, but not in a fearful but natural and comforting way. The cabin is made of logs, and it has seen better days, however as I said paradise does not have to be perfect in the sense of the word. In the morning, rays of; sun stream merrily trough the some of the crack in the walls and make incredibly beautiful patterns and with dust particle seemingly dancing in the light which appear to be carrying them like long super thing multicolored florescent bulbs. Then there is the music, in the morning here, birds seem to set up an orchestra, and one wakes up to the most melodious and sweet music imaginable, birds crowd the bird feeder at the back of the house. As they feast, on whatever I had put out for them the previous night, their singing more than makes up for the trouble. At the cabin, there is no telephone or electricity and I have to depend on lanterns and a wooden fire, under other circumstances, I would find this tedious, but here it simply adds novelty to the adventure and makes it more romantic. For breakfast, I normally have fried bacon and coffee the latter, which I cook using an old-fashioned skillet that used to belong to my grandfather. Most of the times when I go to the cabin, I spend the day wandering around in the neighboring woods often snapping pictures and enjoying the idyllic life of woodsman. Apart from my camera the only other gadget, I allow myself is an iPod on which I sometimes listen to my favorite songs as I watch the sunset from one of the hammocks at the back of the cabin. While the cabin holds its own unique thrills, the highlight of any visit is in the long walks I take through the woods, my favorite is a path I transverse the wood for about 4 miles and ends up at a beautiful waterfall. I often set off after breakfast at around 7 am as I slowly make my way downwards, I often stop to admire the flowers as they blossom in their thousands of different colors all, which I take in with new wonder each time I see them. The morning dew glistens and the yellow rays of the new sun reflect on them forming kaleidoscopes that simply astound me. The earth is soft since it is rarely trodden on, on the leaves of the many overhanging trees, as a result of deficient sunlight reaching the soil has a sweet dump smell that reminds me of the smell that results when sudden rain hits parched earth. The soil is mostly dark almost blackish and soft enough to make one feel like they are walking on cotton, but not damp enough to be muddy. The flowers different scents added to this make it a cocktail of the sweetest and freshest smells I very get to experience. I often walk this way for a few hour, and I take many pictures, which often end up adorning my desktop others some posters on my walls back home. The woods thin out as I approach the river and by this time the sun is beginning to be a bit too hot, but this doesn’t bother me in the least since I k now I will soon find respite, from the heat. From afar, the waterfall looks almost like a cutout from a Disney world movie, and one almost expects it to fade away and give way to something

Teacher Evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Teacher Evaluation - Essay Example There are teachers who don't teach very well according to my evaluation but still students are able to score high grades in their courses. Hence the greatest challenge while teaching is to measure the effectiveness of a teacher. The evaluation process used is quite simple. The process includes the evaluation of the average grade report of the class the teacher is teaching. There is a separate teacher's evaluation form that is filled by each and every student, without their names. I regularly inspect classes and the way teachers are teaching. All these methods combine to give us a clear picture of how the teacher is teaching and help us to evaluate his or her performance. From my point of view a regular visit of 5 to 10 minutes in a class by a principle is good enough to inspect a teacher but then the principle has to make sure the visit is unannounced, which will give the principle a clear view of what is happening (Danielson & McGreal, 2000). Long observing hours distract the students and teachers both hence short and regular observing periods are most suitable. Well there are a number of settings, for example a teacher assigns some work to the students and then we observe how is he or she helping the students in completing their work, it shouldn't be overdone like the teacher shouldn't help the student too much or too less. There should be a balance. Then a teacher is observed while giving a lecture to check on the methods that are being used, we prefer interactive lectures that keep the students interest, boring and less interactive sessions are of no help to the teacher and the students both. These settings are important as being a teacher is not that difficult but handling situations and maintaining the interest of the class in a lecture are two difficult things that a good teacher must learn. We can learn how well the teacher is at maintaining healthy relationships plus a good teacher will always have a scheduled life. An effective teacher would always be motivating people around as that's how he treats the students in his or her class. A teacher should be polite and should listen to each and everyone. We don't often use conferencing techniques while evaluating a teacher but in some cases where problems are being faced by the students and no possible solution is being derived and the root cause is not being caught, we prefer conferencing. The teacher goes through a brief meeting with the principle and other higher staff members like the vice principle and the coordinator. The primary concern for holding a teacher incompatible to teach in any class is the fact that the students do not understand the core concepts of the course and the overall grades are lower than expected. After the initial assessment of the teacher we predict an average grade of the class keeping in mind the ability of the students and the past trends. If the grades are higher or lower than expected we conduct an evaluation of the reasons for that and then accordingly change our evaluations about the teacher. If the teacher is performing at a higher level than expected we do promote the teacher in terms of the class and rewards are also given, in case a teacher does not want renewal of contract than a meeting is held where the vice principal the coordinator and the principle talk to the teacher for the reasons of this demand and try to make every possible

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Lab Report Example The product produced is easy to handle and easy to apply due to the use of peppermint oil. The peppermint also improves its flavor. As provided by the ingredients we can see that calcium carbonate is the major ingredient with the heaviest weight (Field). As discussed above the ingredient is responsible for protection against tooth decay, dental carries and other forms of tooth infections. Re-mineralization is a basic concern in preparation of any toothpaste since it helps in fighting dental carries a common disease worldwide. Calcium and phosphate are also important since they are able to alter cariogenic potential of dental plaque biofilm. The paste is applied depending on the size of the toothbrush. A small amount is applied and brushed over the teeth in a normal brushing way (Perlich, Bacca and Bollmer). The contents should be disposed immediately the process of brushing is over. The mouth should be cleaned and rinsed with fresh clean water. The toothpaste has no harmful effects and can be used regularly depending on the user needs. The paste should be stored in a cool and dry place to prevent it from drying. The paste should be used while fresh and valid. If it expires it can have negative and harmful effects. Since it is homemade and non-medicated it is advisable that little content is made at a time to prevent cases if impurity. Homemade paste made ensured protection of the gums and the teeth in general since these are the main reasons as to why people go for toothpastes. The paste helps in re-mineralization which is also an important aspect of dental carries control and other infections in the mouth. Perlich, MA, et al. "The clinical effect of a stabilized stannous fluoride dentifrice on plaque formation, gingivitis and gingival bleeding: a six-month study." The Journal of Clinical Dentistry (1995): 6 (Special Issue):

Course Project Benefit Plan Analysis Term Paper

Course Project Benefit Plan Analysis - Term Paper Example Organization profile This report assesses and analyzes the benefit plan and design. It revolves around the profile of an organization called the Metropolitan Chicago Health Council (MCHC). This organization is engaged in the provision of valued added healthcare services, governmental advocacy and educational services. It has a wide range of hospital human resources section requirements which handles the benefit plan on behalf of the employees. The benefits that the employees accrue involve an indirect compensation designed to improve the quality of work together the personal lives of all employees. The benefits for the employees are approximately 43% of their total gross salary. Since these benefit programs are costly in nature, this report looks into their costly nature. It further acknowledges the need for a revision of these benefits programs in order to meet the current regulatory requirements and changing market needs. Benefits program The benefit program also requires developme nt of structural choices at all levels. According to Bohlander (2009), the inclusion of defined or non-defined retirement schemes in the benefit plan leads to risks and more workload in terms of resource management. The project will consider the need of considering factors to be taken into consideration when implementing the benefit plan and the reason for stakeholder involvement. Main focus is centered towards the aspect of cost of the benefit program. Solutions relating to the cost issue are cost analysis, cost description and cost minimization. Cost minimization will be the preferred solution out of the three. Cost analysis and description are equally good though cost minimization ensures maximum and optimal benefits to both the employer and employee in the short and long run. Characteristics of a sound benefit plan A sound benefit plan should be the one that values all the needs of both the employees and the employer. It should also take into consideration the ever changing mark et expectations both in the short and long term and should also meet all the regulatory requirements (Rosen, 2005). Finally, it should be cost effective meaning that cost are easily managed and kept at a minimum. Part 2: Statement of the issue The issue in Metropolitan Chicago Health Council is the need for a revision of its benefits programs in order to meet the current regulatory requirements and changing market needs. Health benefits for employees are issued by insurance companies. The criterion used in deciding the kind of benefit to be given to each employee is that of expertise and skill. Most of the benefit packages are custom made by worksite solutions. Every staff member is given a custom benefit statement that included the salary. With the increased demand in healthcare benefit schemes, the cost of implementing and sustaining the benefit plans has increased. Therefore, cost minimization is a goal in most organization. An online system is an advantageous way of minimizing c osts. This is because it

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Teacher Evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Teacher Evaluation - Essay Example There are teachers who don't teach very well according to my evaluation but still students are able to score high grades in their courses. Hence the greatest challenge while teaching is to measure the effectiveness of a teacher. The evaluation process used is quite simple. The process includes the evaluation of the average grade report of the class the teacher is teaching. There is a separate teacher's evaluation form that is filled by each and every student, without their names. I regularly inspect classes and the way teachers are teaching. All these methods combine to give us a clear picture of how the teacher is teaching and help us to evaluate his or her performance. From my point of view a regular visit of 5 to 10 minutes in a class by a principle is good enough to inspect a teacher but then the principle has to make sure the visit is unannounced, which will give the principle a clear view of what is happening (Danielson & McGreal, 2000). Long observing hours distract the students and teachers both hence short and regular observing periods are most suitable. Well there are a number of settings, for example a teacher assigns some work to the students and then we observe how is he or she helping the students in completing their work, it shouldn't be overdone like the teacher shouldn't help the student too much or too less. There should be a balance. Then a teacher is observed while giving a lecture to check on the methods that are being used, we prefer interactive lectures that keep the students interest, boring and less interactive sessions are of no help to the teacher and the students both. These settings are important as being a teacher is not that difficult but handling situations and maintaining the interest of the class in a lecture are two difficult things that a good teacher must learn. We can learn how well the teacher is at maintaining healthy relationships plus a good teacher will always have a scheduled life. An effective teacher would always be motivating people around as that's how he treats the students in his or her class. A teacher should be polite and should listen to each and everyone. We don't often use conferencing techniques while evaluating a teacher but in some cases where problems are being faced by the students and no possible solution is being derived and the root cause is not being caught, we prefer conferencing. The teacher goes through a brief meeting with the principle and other higher staff members like the vice principle and the coordinator. The primary concern for holding a teacher incompatible to teach in any class is the fact that the students do not understand the core concepts of the course and the overall grades are lower than expected. After the initial assessment of the teacher we predict an average grade of the class keeping in mind the ability of the students and the past trends. If the grades are higher or lower than expected we conduct an evaluation of the reasons for that and then accordingly change our evaluations about the teacher. If the teacher is performing at a higher level than expected we do promote the teacher in terms of the class and rewards are also given, in case a teacher does not want renewal of contract than a meeting is held where the vice principal the coordinator and the principle talk to the teacher for the reasons of this demand and try to make every possible

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Course Project Benefit Plan Analysis Term Paper

Course Project Benefit Plan Analysis - Term Paper Example Organization profile This report assesses and analyzes the benefit plan and design. It revolves around the profile of an organization called the Metropolitan Chicago Health Council (MCHC). This organization is engaged in the provision of valued added healthcare services, governmental advocacy and educational services. It has a wide range of hospital human resources section requirements which handles the benefit plan on behalf of the employees. The benefits that the employees accrue involve an indirect compensation designed to improve the quality of work together the personal lives of all employees. The benefits for the employees are approximately 43% of their total gross salary. Since these benefit programs are costly in nature, this report looks into their costly nature. It further acknowledges the need for a revision of these benefits programs in order to meet the current regulatory requirements and changing market needs. Benefits program The benefit program also requires developme nt of structural choices at all levels. According to Bohlander (2009), the inclusion of defined or non-defined retirement schemes in the benefit plan leads to risks and more workload in terms of resource management. The project will consider the need of considering factors to be taken into consideration when implementing the benefit plan and the reason for stakeholder involvement. Main focus is centered towards the aspect of cost of the benefit program. Solutions relating to the cost issue are cost analysis, cost description and cost minimization. Cost minimization will be the preferred solution out of the three. Cost analysis and description are equally good though cost minimization ensures maximum and optimal benefits to both the employer and employee in the short and long run. Characteristics of a sound benefit plan A sound benefit plan should be the one that values all the needs of both the employees and the employer. It should also take into consideration the ever changing mark et expectations both in the short and long term and should also meet all the regulatory requirements (Rosen, 2005). Finally, it should be cost effective meaning that cost are easily managed and kept at a minimum. Part 2: Statement of the issue The issue in Metropolitan Chicago Health Council is the need for a revision of its benefits programs in order to meet the current regulatory requirements and changing market needs. Health benefits for employees are issued by insurance companies. The criterion used in deciding the kind of benefit to be given to each employee is that of expertise and skill. Most of the benefit packages are custom made by worksite solutions. Every staff member is given a custom benefit statement that included the salary. With the increased demand in healthcare benefit schemes, the cost of implementing and sustaining the benefit plans has increased. Therefore, cost minimization is a goal in most organization. An online system is an advantageous way of minimizing c osts. This is because it

Sales and Inventory System Thesis Sample Essay Example for Free

Sales and Inventory System Thesis Sample Essay Collaborate more Productivity and quality tools for everyone in the provider organization. Working with limited resources, healthcare providers today are challenged to meet ever-increasing demands. In order to meet this challenge, your organization needs to be as efficient as possible. This starts with giving your most important resource—your people—smart, timesaving tools that help them be more productive to increase quality and contain costs. That’s where Microsoft ® Office 2010 comes in. It’s not intended to replace your EMR or hospital information system; rather it bridges the gap between these and your other core systems to play a vital role in helping all your staff connect with information, people, and processes—when, where, and how needed. Microsoft Office 2010 Today everyone inside the healthcare provider organization is responsible in his or her own way for improving quality, safety, and reducing the cost of patient interactions inside the organization. Central to accomplishing these objectives is the ability to access information, collaborate in teams around that information, and analyze that information. Given the team-oriented nature of healthcare delivery today, you don’t want to keep people out of the loop; everyone needs access to the tools you use to analyze, share, and present data. Whatever the scenario: a clinician looking at her oncology service line and analyzing the effectiveness of specific treatments or a porter checking his e-mails to see if much needed supplies will arrive on time—it is important for everyone to have access to core productivity and information tools. In response to these healthcare provider requirements, Microsoft Office 2010 offers enhanced features to help healthcare professionals: †¢ Bring Ideas to Life—Simplify how physicians, administrative staff, and other clinicians understand, use, and present information. †¢ Work Better Together—Help enable care team collaboration for greater employee satisfaction and improved patient outcomes. †¢ Use Office Anywhere—Help enable staff to connect with information, people, and processes in all the different places that care is delivered. †¢ The Practical Productivity Platform—Give staff the ability to complete patient and administrative processes from within Office and give IT and the board the peace of mind that sensitive organizational and patient information is secure and protected. Microsoft Office 2010 provides flexibility of information delivery along with a rich user experience to support the role of everyone in your organization as a quality worker. Collaborate more Analytical capabilities help make informed decisions With access to analytical tools, clinicians, and administrators can make informed decisions and present results, analysis, and trends about service lines and key performance indicators that contribute to quality improvements. Administrators will be able to: †¢ Gain insights from complex or disparate data sets to help provide higher quality care and services. †¢ Help empower everyone in your organization to analyze trends and measure and monitor quality. †¢ Monitor and respond promptly to financial indicators and trends. †¢ Present information and educate care teams in more engaging ways. Equip Staff to Find Insights from Information Office 2010 gives your clinicians and administrators ways to draw insights from complex or disparate sets of data so they can turn information into knowledge they can apply. Medical and nursing staff can present and educate about quality initiatives, key performance indicators, patient safety initiatives, or condition management pathways. Department heads and executives can make on-the-spot quality comparisons and decisions from lists of data using improved conditional formatting in Excel ® to visualize data. And management can improve financial responsiveness in the budgeting process by enabling multiple users to collaborate on the same spreadsheet. Office 2010 makes it easier for staff to capture, search, and reuse different types of content. You can equip them to express ideas and educate in more compelling ways, such as with the use of multimedia for grand rounds or board presentations. Support Connected Care from Anywhere In every area of the healthcare system, organizations that develop and deliver healthcare products and services are challenged to deliver better and safer care to more patients—in less time and at a lower cost. Given the mobile nature of healthcare delivery today, the ability to use Office applications from wherever your staff’s work takes them is critical. For example, a nurse manager might be working from a dedicated PC, then later reviewing the same data from a nurse station in the medical ward or bedside in a patient room. With Microsoft Office 2010, she has the ability to access that data with the correct modality and consistent ease of use—no matter where she is—to make better knowledge-driven care decisions. Clinicians and administrators can take action on-the-go and around-the-clock by being always connected to information, communications, and processes. And Office 2010 helps ensure that work done while mobile is securely in sync across documents and devices with protection features in place to safeguard patient and organizational data. Collaborate more Improve Responsiveness and Productivity through Secure Collaboration Use the capabilities of Office 2010 to help caregiver and administrative teams easily share, review, discuss, and update information from different locations. This means simplifying how people work together on documents, such as discharge summaries, research papers, or staff communications. Care teams can improve their productivity and care management by simplifying meeting scheduling and project coordination of external team members with shared calendars. Everyone can make and see updates in real time from their PC, Web browser, or phone* to simplify versioning and coordination. And you can ensure that data shared in personal productivity and team collaboration is secured and only available to those intended. Office 2010 enables Web-based collaboration in Word, PowerPoint ®, and Excel ® Web apps, and OneNote ® notebooks so multiple people can edit documents simultaneously. And offline access to SharePoint ® servers means they can always get to the resources they need. Presence indicators Host on-premises with SharePoint Using co-authoring capabilities, staff can work on Word and PowerPoint documents simultaneously with other team members, allowing everyone to see who is working on which section of the document at any given time. Option to lock paragraphs Improved collaboration capabilities help care teams work better together Organization staff, such as human resources or administrative staff, can improve their responsiveness with co-authoring of policy documents or care plans—enabling multiple experts to collaborate to produce documents more efficiently: †¢ Web apps improve collaboration by providing access to documents from virtually anywhere and preserving the look and feel of a document. †¢ Staff can author and edit Word and PowerPoint documents simultaneously with other team members, giving everyone the ability to see who is working on which section of the document at any given time. †¢ Team members can use SharePoint offline, and then reconnect when collaborating. Collaborate more Deliver the Essentials—Security. Manageability. Performance. Provide clinicians and administrators with flexible, intuitive tools that are robust but easy to use and require little to no training. With Office 2010, you can allow IT to customize deployment to suit the individual roles, work styles, and modes of users in a way that is easy to manage. And Office 2010 supports a broader array of devices and allows access to information and tools from virtually anywhere while helping to ensure patient and organizational data is safeguarded and maintaining the security of your infrastructure. Helping you meet the needs of those you serve With Office 2010, Microsoft has innovated to introduce new capabilities—all based on customer feedback and volumes of usage data—that can result in transformational efficiency gains to help you better meet the needs of those you serve. *An appropriate device, Internet connection, and Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Safari browser are required. Some mobile functionality requires Microsoft ® Office Mobile 2010, which is not included in Office 2010 applications, suites, or Web apps. Office Mobile must be installed on the device to make edits with Web apps. There are some differences between the features of the Office Web apps, Office Mobile 2010, and the Office 2010 applications. For more information, contact your Microsoft Partner representative and visit: †¢ Office 2010 preview site: www.office2010forbusiness.com: – Download the Office 2010 beta. – Discover what’s new in Office 2010. – View application demo videos for a glimpse of new capabilities. †¢ â€Å"Backstageâ„ ¢Ã¢â‚¬  with Office 2010: www.office2010themovie.com: – Gain insights into the making of Office 2010. – Listen to interviews with the creators of Office 2010. Learn about the latest in transforming health: †¢ Microsoft in Health: www.microsoft.com/health. †¢ Health ICT Resource Center: http://www.microsoft.com/healthict. †¢ Microsoft for Healthcare Providers: http://www.microsoft.com/ industry/healthcare/providers/default.mspx. †¢ Health IT Blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/wwhealthit/. †¢ Dr. Bill Crounse’s Health Blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/healthblog.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Review of TQM Concept from Quality Gurus

Review of TQM Concept from Quality Gurus An extensive literature review is done to explain the concept of TQM, which is extracted from four quality gurus namely; Deming, Juran, Crosby, and Ishikawa. Theories of these gurus are very essential in understanding the concept of TQM. Principles and practices of these gurus are explained in following section. 2.5.1 Deming Approach to TQM The main theory of Demings approach is to create an organizational system that wills faster cooperation and learning. This is to facilitate the process of management practices and implementation that leads to the improvement of the organizational process, products, and employee fulfillment, which are all essential to customer satisfaction (as cited in Zhang, 2000). According to Rvans and Dean (2000), Demings philosophy is aimed to improve products and service by reducing the uncertainty and variation in design and manufacturing processes. Researchers explained that high variation will lead to inconsistencies in performance and as a result will represent poor quality. Deming invented the plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycle or commonly known as Deming cycle to relate the production of a product with the consumers need and to utilize the resources within the organization to fulfill those needs (Goetsch and Davis, 2000). It is a continuous cycle that requires the addition of new knowledge. In addition, Demings 14 points of management also received good reviews from the research society over the years. Ross (1999) indicated that a company must adopt the 14 points of his system at all levels of an organization. In retrospect, Dr.Deming has tailored some of the principles to integrate into the current management style of organizations. Table 2.4 lists out the Demings 14 points of management. Table 2.4: Demings 14 Principle of Management No Principles 1 Create constancy of purpose toward the improvement of products and service in order to become competitive, stay in business, and provide jobs. 2 Adopt the new philosophy. Management must learn that it is a new economic age and awaken to the challenge, learn their responsibilities, and take on leadership for change 3 Stop depending on inspection to achieve quality. Build in quality from start. 4 Start awarding contracts on the basic of low bids. 5 Improve continuously and forever the system of production and service, to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly reduce costs. 6 Institute training on the job 7 Institute leadership. The purpose of leadership should be to help people and technology work better 8 Drive out fear so that everyone may work effectively. 9 Break down barriers between departments so that people can work as a team. 10 Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the workforce. They create adversarial relationship. 11 Eliminate quotas and management by objectives. Substitute leadership. 12 Remove barriers that rob employees of their pride of workmanship. 13 Institute a vigorous of education and self improvement. 14 Make the transformation everyones job and put everyone to work on it. Goetsh and Davis, 2000 2.5.2 Juran Approach to TQM Jurans philosophy indicates that Total Quality Management is a system or activity that aims to delight customers, empower employees, increase the level of revenues, and reduce cost (as cited in Zhang, 2000). Demings, alternatively, focuses on the employees pride and their satisfaction. Juran posits that top-down management and technical methods are pertinent to manage organizations (Ross, 1999). Based on a special report published on Business week, an article entitled Dueling Pioneer, suggest that Juran contribution may be better than Demings theory in the long term, primarily owing to the fact that Juran has a broader concept while Deming focuses on statistical process control which is technical-oriented (as cited in Ross, 1999). In this study, Deming believes that customer focus is essential for a companys success and quality is defined as fitness for use. This is comprised of four categories which include quality of design, quality of conformance, availability, and field service. A famous prescription by Juran is quality Trilogy (A registered trademark of Juran Institute). Here, researcher illustrates that quality can be managed through three important processes: Quality Planning, Quality Control, and Quality Improvement. Researcher articulates that problems are traceable in an adequate planning process that will be sent trough a quality control process where a particular problem will be executed. This evidently will lead to the improvement process (Zhang, 2000). Figure 2.1 summarizes the three managerial processes. Figure 2.1: Juran Trilogy Quality Planning Establish quality goals Identify customers needs Develop product features that respond to the quality needs. Develop systems and process that allow organization to produce these features. Deploy the plans to operational levels. Quality Control Evaluate quality performance. Compare performance with goals. Act on the difference between performance and goals. Quality Improvement Develop the infrastructure necessary to make annual quality improvements. Identify specific areas in need of improvement and implement it. Establish a project team with responsibility for completing each improvement project. Provide the resources, motivation, and training needs by the teams to diagnose the causes, stimulate establishment of remedies, and establish controls to hold the gains. Zhang, 2000 2.5.3 Crosby Approach to TQM Crosbys theory is considered as an important theory that contributed to quality management. Researchers theory focuses on (1) Prevention of defect item; (2) Stress on individual conformance; (3) Clear customer focus and education for employee (Kanji, 1990). Crosbys theory also emphasizes on changing the organizational attitudes and behavior towards quality orientation. According to Taylor and Pearson (1994), Crosbys principles comprises of participation of all employees in the organization, stress on individual conformance, requirement and effective changes of corporate culture and motivation. Apart from that, Boaden (1997) also stated four important quality concepts from Crosby: Conformance to requirement is the definition of quality, not elegance. Prevention in the key to quality, not detection and assessment. Performance standard if zero defects. Price of non conformance is the measurement of quality. In addition, Crosby believes that a company would rather spend the lesser on prevention cost than bear the cost of detection and failure. As stipulated by Deming and Juran, Crosby also stressed the importance of quality improvement. Table 2.5 below listed out the Crosbys 14 steps to quality improvement. Table 2.5: Crosbys 14 steps to Quality Improvement Management Commitment Quality Improvement Team Measurement Cost of Quality Quality awareness Correction action Zero Defects plan Quality education Zero defects day Goal setting Error cause removed Recognition Quality councils Repeat Kanji, 1990 2.5.4 Ishikawa Approach to TQM Ishikawa is the quality expert that addressed TQM as TQC which is Total Quality Control. Since the terms management and Control are pronounced as Kanri in Japanese, it implies linguistic ambiguity between Quality Management and Quality Control in the above context (as cited in Boaden, 1997). Ishikawa is a quality tool expert that participated to develop tools such as the (1) Pareto Chart; (2) Cause and Effect Diagram or known as Ishikawa Diadram; (3) Stratification Chart; (4) Scatter Diagram; (5) Check Sheet; (6) Histogram; and (7) Control Chart (Evans and Dean, 2000) Ishikawa also stressed on continuous improvement and customer orientation where organization should keep a track log on what their customer like, their tastes, and applications (Dotchin and Oakland, 1992). As stipulated by Zhang (2000), the six concepts of Ishikawa are described as follows: Company should put quality in the first place, not short term profits. Company should focus on customer, not producer. Company should break down the barrier of sectionalism of customer. Company should use facts and data to make presentation by using statistical tools. Company should apply the cross functional management. 2.5.5 Summary on Quality Gurus Based on the concepts mentioned above, there remains on overarching idea that is shared by all of them, quality improvement. Quality improvement is necessary to lead a company to success. Although all of the experts mentioned above have different views on quality improvement, their intentions are the same. However, their fundamental approaches were slightly different. For instance, the approaches illustrated by Deming and Juran focus on detection and correction while Cosbys theory emphasizes on prevention than detection. All in all, all four theories are widely accepted and are still being used by many organizations. Theories like Demings PDSA Cycle, Juran Trilogy, Crosbys 14 Steps to improvement, and Ishikawas diagrams are still widely used to explain the fundamental concept of TQM. 2.6 Review of Knowledge Sharing Knowledge as a resource of value creation, allows for exceptional marginal rates of productivityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦., appreciating value with continuing use and sharing knowledge instead of depreciating value of tangible products or natural resources (As cited in Yang, 2007) As illustrated in the above phrase, knowledge has to be shared in order to maintain and appreciate the value it has to offer as it will depreciate and vanish over time. Knowledge sharing is a process where knowledge and skills are transferred from one individual to another (Lin, 2007). Pangil and Nasurdin (2005) posit that a number of discussions and research about knowledge sharing is studies to comprehend key element in knowledge management. According to Chua, (2003), a well managed company can capture knowledge from a segment of its organization, shared, and utilized in a completely different in its operations. Moreover, Nonaka (1994) stressed that the efficiency of knowledge sharing is based on the willingness of an individual to identify the knowledge he possess to the company and share it when it is required. However, knowledge sharing among companies throughout the world does not seem to be well accepted among employees and organizations. One of the reason has been notified; where knowledge is being codified and expressed, it is easy to leak the important codified knowledge to the outside world and results in damages especially to an organizations competitive advantage, (Michailova and Husted, 2003). In addition, Mivhailova and husted (2003) conducted a research the Russian and Chinese industries and found that the reason employees refuse to share their knowledge are due to (1) cost involved during knowledge sharing; (2) the psychological fear that their personal value will drop after sharing their knowledge; and (3) accepting and respecting a strong hierarchical and former power. Nevertheless, according to Arduchvili et.al (2002) on his empirical research, the trend that employees do not want to share knowledge has nothing to do with selfish attempts but fear of misleading their colleag ues. Despite the minor negative impact of knowledge sharing as above, many researchers have proven that knowledge sharing will bring more benefits than harm (Yang, 2007; Chua, 2003) Effective knowledge sharing among organizational employees is useful to increase the long term sustainable competitive advantage (Lin, 2007; Yang, 2007; Ruhi, 2003) of the company as it encourages creativity and innovation (Hong et.al.2004; Patrick and Dotsika, 2007). This creates a place that generates information for decision making. New knowledge will indirectly form while the old knowledge is shared through discussion, meetings, and informal chats (Fernie et.al.2003). Ruhi(2003) discovered a number of benefit on effective knowledge sharing which includes (1) increase responsiveness to changes in the economic landscape; (2) dynamic creation and application of custom content; and (3) better manage business partner relationships. Additionally, a successful knowledge sharing environment will strategically alter employee attitudes towards promoting willingness and reliability in sharing knowledge among employees (Connelly and Kelloway, 2003). As there are a myriad of benefits in knowl edge sharing, motivational programs should held frequently to encourage employees to share knowledge (Ardichvili et.al 2002) 2.7 Relationship between TQM Practices and Knowledge Sharing 2.7.1 Leadership Leadership in an organization can be defined as the ability of a role player to influence a team of employees to follow his instruction or missions that have been assigned to them in order to achieve the goals or objectives that been preset by the company (Bounds et. al. 1999). In addition, Zhang (2000) and House and Dessler (1974) illustrated leadership to commit the following: Clarification of vision Coaching management Change of participation within company Employee empowerment Planning as well implementation They implementing the organizational change to provide guidance and recognize employees input such as ideas and suggestion as valuable resources. In parallel, a leader should move away from command managing to control oriented I order to make knowledge sharing successful (Macneil, 2004). Knowledge sharing in an organization does not occur automatically. Thus, a leader plays an important role to ensure that it materializes (Ellinger and Bostrom, 1999). As mentioned above, team members are likely to be recognized by leaders due to their contribution and information, and this will indirectly motivate them to share their knowledge with others (Srivastava et.al. 2006). A leader should also empower and encourage employees to participate in the decision making process and organize meetings where team members are free to express their ideas and suggestions (Arnord et.al. 200). Through these avenues, employees will be aware that their knowledge shared is actually significant and indispensable. Moreover, Arnord et.al (2000) emphasized that leaders should always show censer to his or her team members well being. By doing this, a connection of trust is built between the employee and leader so that knowledge sharing will be easier to function. Based on the literature findings abo ve, the following hypothesis has been proposed: Hypothesis 1: Leadership is positively associated with knowledge sharing. 2.7.2 Organizational Culture As Gore Jr. (1999) mentioned in his research study, organizational culture is considered as key that leads to organizational success. It can create competitive advantage for a company by defining the boundaries of organization in a manner which will help in individual interaction such as sharing ideas and suggestion (Kefting and Frost, 1985). Holistically, organizational culture in the context of knowledge sharing can be described as a combination of theory, values, beliefs, ways of thinking, and acting that are shared by all the employees within the organization (Nor, 2005). In addition, researcher illustrate that a successful organizational environment is when the companys values are cultivated and glued into employees beliefs where their behaviors are derived from social pressure but not from formal procedures and policies. Kim and Lee Stipulate (2004). That there are three components in an organizational culture that cannot be neglected to affect knowledge management and his includes vision and goals, trust, and social network. As knowledge sharing is one of the key components is knowledge management, it is assumed that these three components are also significant. Clear organizational visions and goals will definitely help to encourage employees to share knowledge. This is due to the involvement and participation of employees that is essential to achieve the goals and missions of a company (ODell and Grayson, 1998). Alawi et.al (2007) and Von Krogh (1998) however, explained that interpersonal trust or trust between co -workers is very important in organizational cultures that have strong influence over knowledge sharing. Moreover, (Gruenfeld et.al. 1996) stated that the existence of trust among employees is necessary in order to respond openly and share their knowledge. ODell and Grayson (1998) also hi ghlighted that social interaction between individuals or groups ids helpful in knowledge sharing when different kinds of perspective and knowledge will be exchanged and transferred during the interaction. Based on this discussion, organizational culture is linked to with knowledge sharing and a hypothesis is formed. Hypothesis 2: Organizational Culture is positively with knowledge sharing 2.7.3 Teamwork Ideally, a company project would require a team of personnel that work together to accomplish the project goals. Thus, the composition of the team is crucial and leader needs to understand the abilities of each team member (Anderson, 1994). Generally, teamwork is defined as a work or project done by associates, where each member does a part in line with the efforts from subordinated in hierarchical levels (as cited in Macneil, 2003). However, Goh (2002) found that hierarchical levels of teamwork was obsolete and introduced a framework termed as horizontal communication. This goes beyond technology and encourages cress functional teamwork in the organization that will lead to knowledge transfer and exchange. She explained that employees can easily communication using horizontal cross-functional collaboration. Likewise, Lu et. Al. (2006) verified that good teamwork should contribute to knowledge sharing. Although many academicians and researchers elucidate such as the increase in operations productivity (Kirkman and Rosen, 1999), improvement in the level of customer satisfaction (Kirkman and Rosen, 1999), enhancement of jobs satisfaction among employees (Wall et.at. 1986), and development of a better organizational commitment, there is one fundamental benefit of framework that they disregarded, and this is complementary to the team members knowledge (as cited in Zarraga and Bonache, 2003). This can be clarified by analyzing the study of Wright et. Al.(1994) that explains in detail the idiosyncratic knowledge that is relevant to another member of the team and is transferred from an individual to that particular person. When this occurs a synergy is formed and results in a rise of a new knowledge to a higher level called group knowledge where combinations of unique skills of each team member are consolidated towards achieving missions and goals. Nevertheless, the social dilemma theory explains that knowledge sharing might arise from a problem called public- goods dilemma (Cabrera and Cabrera, 2002). Researcher explains that when knowledge is shared by a volunteers contribution to a team, every member in the team will benefit from it, whether they have made a contribution or not. In order to solve this problem, the company should plan rewarding strategy where people who share their knowledge will be rewarded. Therefore, a hypothesis is developed and stated as: Hypothesis 3: Teamwork is positively associated with knowledge sharing. 2.7.4 Training and Development Training and development is the development of new knowledge and skills as result of imparted knowledge (Goetsch and Davis, 2000). In relation to the context of knowledge sharing, Pangil and Nasurdin (2005) explained that training is crucial for knowledge sharing because it generates an opportunity for people gain new knowledge and share that knowledge. The role of training and development is expended to provide an environment that encourages and facilitates employees to share knowledge within the company. As discussed in the previous chapter, trust and motivation are very important in knowledge sharing. Thus, Goh (2002) stated that training in experimentation can help overcome constraints such as lack of increase an employees job satisfaction (Barli et.al. 2005) and organizational commitment (Ahmad and Bakar, 2003). A formal and successful training will encourage employees to share their knowledge (Lamoureux, 2006). Some options for formal and development programs can stem from hiring trainers and facilitators to provide in -house development programs, outstation training for employees, and e-learning courses that are provided by service providers (Lamourex, 2006). Researcher identified that formal training requires the trainee to perform after -action reviews and give suggestion. Thus, they will express, share and improve their knowledge to others during the training period. Apart from that, as the technology used is growing pervasively in todays corporate world, many tools are developed to faster information exchange. In this course, employee training is necessary get themselves familiarized the technological tools. Stoddart (2001) stated that a good internet management practice will improve the usability and knowledge sharing capability among employees. In addition, Curry and Stancich (2000) elucidated that knowledge sharing will only work if the culture of the organization promotes it and re al time applications such as computer conferencing are used. However, the most important element in accruing new knowledge is pointless without training. In short, training aids to ease the process of knowledge sharing. Surprisingly, there have been limited empirical evidences to prove that training can affect employees to share knowledge. With that reason, a hypothesis is formed. Hypothesis 4: Training and Development is positively associated with knowledge sharing. 2.7.5 Reward System It is irrefutable that a proper reward system in an organization is necessary to keep the working environment alive. In general, reward system comes in a monetary from or recognition which is awarded to employees that achieve the goals and mission that has been preset by the company. To elucidate, from a neurobiological perspective, it is a set of structures that can regulate and control behavior by inducing rewards. Pangil and Nasudin (2005), Mc Dermott and ODell (2001), and Sharatt and Usoro (2003) agreed that a companys reward system can effectively motivate people towards knowledge sharing. Knowledge sharing is so important that companies today have included them into performance assessments (McDermott and ODell, 2001). Pangil and Nasudin (2005) describe two purposes of a strategic reward system. Firstly, employee will be rewarded by performing knowledge sharing practices in the organization. Secondly, incentives will be given to those who continue perform desirable practices. Reward system for knowledge sharing can be segmented into: Individual Reward Group Reward Individual rewards are self -achieved where the company will award the individual who puts the most effort to share knowledge. According to Bartol and Srivastava (2002), value pay plans are suggested in individual award system to assess the performance of employees in knowledge sharing. In other words, financial enticement is used to motivate knowledge sharing (Hall, 2001). However, recognition sometimes can be more valuable than monetary rewards. For instance, the recognition of a journalist, researcher, or lecturer is considered as a reward to them after their efforts for publishing and teaching where knowledge sharing has created provocative change in the mindsets of people. Conversely, as discussed in the previous section, reward system is obligatory to ensure that every member in the team contributes to knowledge sharing (Zarraga and Bonache, 2003). Group reward system is slightly different from individual system, where rewards will be given based for group performance (Bartol a nd Srivastava, 2002). They explained that reward for group consist of profit sharing, gain sharing and stock ownership plans. As discussed above, reward system are crucial for practicing knowledge sharing, thus, following hypothesis is formed: Hypothesis 5: Reward System is positively associated with knowledge sharing. 2.7.6 Customer Focus Customer focus can be defines as the degree a company embarks to satisfy the customers needs and expectations in continues manner (Zhang, 2000). From a business perspective, it is a known fact that the customer solely determines the success of a company. To illustrate that notion, general Motors, AT T, and IBM had to reengineer their business function in order to meet the growing needs of their customers (Pinar, et.al. 2007). Thus, customer needs and expectations are considered as the baseline for any kind of business. Liao (2006) explained that sharing information on customer needs among co-workers or leaders could from as a competitive advantage to company. Apart from that, fast learning and knowledge transfer from an individual to another is what an organization must perform in order to maintain the products and services ahead of the needs and expectation of customers (Pfister, 2002) How do we get as many people as possible to create and transfer as much knowledge as possible in the best way possible in order to have a positive impact on our customer. (Buckman, 2004) Buckman in his book Building knowledge Driven Organization cited the above statement and explained that the full involvement, commitment, passion, to share and use the knowledge among employees are essential to satisfy customers (as cited in Buckman, 2004). Furthermore, requirements of customer can be tackled easily when knowledge is shared among team members. For an instance, Fang and Tsai (2005) illustrate and example; the intensive care unit is a place where fast decision making is necessary as patients lives are in danger. In this case, the customers need would be the treatment while the service team which includes surgeons and consulting doctors will share knowledge among themselves to make resourceful decisions to save a patients life. At present, there is a lack empirical research to examine the relationship between customer focus and knowledge sharing. Therefore, the following hypothesis is presented: Hypothesis 6: Customer Focus is positively associated with knowledge sharing. 2.7.7 Research Framework The relationship between the six dimensions of TQM and Knowledge Sharing is shown by Figure 2.2 below. Formulation of this research framework was based on the hypothesis thats discussed above. In this research framework, TQM practices are independent variables and knowledge sharing is a dependent variable. This study will focus on the relationship of each TQM practices to knowledge sharing. Figure 2.3: Research Framework Total Quality Management (TQM) Practices Leadership (H1) Organizational Culture (H2) Teamwork (H3) Training and Development (4) Reward System (5) Customer Focus (6) Knowledge Sharing