Performance Measurement for WWP

Performance Measurement for WWP Introduction Performance measurement has been described as a key tool in the achievement of TQM (Total Quality Management) in all types of organizations. The traditional approach to performance measurement has been focused on the examination of financial performance of an organization. This has mainly focused on a performance indicator that is available through changes in either profits or losses.Advertising We will write a custom proposal sample on Performance Measurement for WWP specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, researchers who work in this area indicate that cost accounting information does not avail a complete bundle of information to support quality journeys. This is because they do not consider a contingent of issues, such as improvements, seen by the customer. Furthermore, they focus on the examination of a stakeholder from the view of an investor or shareholder. This has presented a number of challenges for non-profit organizations with the main aim to serve a specific segment of the society. Furthermore, performance is best measured through an examination of all perspectives of an organization. Regardless of the industry, organizations have the responsibility to come up with strategies that make it easy for customers to not only know about their goods and services, but also have the desire to provide assistance with them (Armstrong, 2007). This feat is not easy to accomplish because of challenges businesses have to face. There is the issue of stiff competition from other businesses in the same industry, economic problems that hinder the customers’ willingness to buy some products, and the presence of several distractions, which have the potential to come in between the customer and the company’s products. These are just some of the challenges that managers have to deal with in their bid to reach out to the intended audience. Need For Performance Measurement Many organizations in th e todays business world recognize that there is the need to capture a complete picture of organizational performance. This has led to the incorporation of a whole cocktail of performance measurement tools in attempts to capture their organizations’ performances. It is within this perspective that the need to institute effective performance measurement mechanisms has attracted a host of organizations and researchers. General understanding is that through the entrenchment of a culture that takes cognizance of organizational objectives, a cocktail of benefits and efforts focused on better organizational performance can be implemented.Advertising Looking for proposal on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More According to Kaplan and Norton (1992), the focus of these performance measurement initiatives should revolve around finances, internal processes, learning, growth and, of course, customers. In fa ct, empirical research on performance measurement shows that undertaking this process can help management with implementing the process that supports process improvement and development of a cost-effective product design (Turney, 1991), and avail managers with an integrative framework to manage organizational activities. WWP (Wounded Warrior Project) stands at a vantage position to meet the expectations of the stakeholders by examining the performance of the four major organizational perspectives i.e., learning and growth, customers, internal business processes and finances. The learning and growth perspectives â€Å"will be viewed as an attempt at promoting growth and development by creating an enabling atmosphere that supports change and innovation† (Amstrong, 2007). According to Armstrongs opinion (2007), this strategy should be boned in mind of any Chief Executive Officer of the organization in order to ensure an overall efficiency of the business process. This may be imp lemented through the modernization of the services or goods, especially through the employment of modern technology and replacement of obsolete equipments in order to cultivate and enhance better quality of services to clients’ satisfaction. Focus on infrastructure improvement should be paid cognizance to. The development of staff should also be carried out through creation of a learning organization and where organizational learning takes place at the same time as advocated for by Armstrong (2007). This should be carried out through the provision of avenues that promote learning, training, and development. It should be understood that while technology, products, and services can be replicated, knowledge cannot. In the global competition today, attention to the human capital has grown in bounds. To move forward and drive successful business, staff focus, engagement and involvement should be paid cognizance. Subsequent benefits would include better quality of services to achie ve total customer satisfaction, increase business, obtain lesser complaints, and a train a fully engaged workforce that is fully committed to its responsibilities.Advertising We will write a custom proposal sample on Performance Measurement for WWP specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The internal business perspective, on the other hand, addresses issues related to how business processes are adopted to the needs of the customers and shareholders. This should be implemented through the creation of an internal infrastructure that supports high quality of services in time at a cost effective manner with registered benefits in overall businesses performance. Clients focus should ideally center on better service delivery and should reflect the company’s value attached to the customers (Armstrong, 2007). This should be applied through improvement of service delivery and creation of better efficiency in the delivery of services to the cl ients. Essentially, this should be geared towards timely and efficient services delivery to clients in a cost effective manner that ensures for sustained competitiveness. Ideally, the management should embrace strategies that ensure the delivery of high quality service and integrity, development of products that really match with the needs of the clients, ensure value for money spent and devise mechanisms that make it easier to do business with the clients. Finally, the financial perspective addresses how WWP wishes to be viewed by the stakeholders. The management can implement this though several initiatives. The first one would be the establishment of a price control that would allow for significant improvements in investment in the services that ensure better advantage. WWP will create strategy maps highlighting the areas it want to measure. This will act as the overall architectural framework specifying the critical elements and associated linkages for the overall strategy. This , in essence, acts as a universal message presentation forum for the top executives towards specification and subsequent presentation of the envisaged destination, mapping of the route to be followed and communication mechanisms. Stakeholder Analysis and Recommendation for Participation With the mission to honor and empower wounded soldiers, WWP consists of a number of stakeholders whose interests and views must be given cognizance in performance measurement program. These include the wounded soldiers, donors, families of the wounded soldiers, the government, and social welfare organizations. This is because for WWP to achieve its objectives, it must develop links with other industry players and enlist the support of its stakeholders.Advertising Looking for proposal on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Ideally, the focus on well defined performance dimensions should require that the development of specific measures to be done, that helps to effectively monitor and progress in the articulated dimensions (Armstrong, 2007). As Kanji (1997) has noted, the dynamics of the operational environments dictates that the changing needs of all the stakeholders be captured in the performance measures. Consequently, it is important for WWP to examine performance from an internal as well as external perspectives, listen to customers, suppliers and other stakeholders, and not fall into the trap of building a self-centered performance measurement system. It is therefore necessary that WWP develop an ideal system that leads to the development, which supports learning and innovation. This should be the essential and final aim of a good performance measurement system that captures the interests and expectations of the stakeholders (Kanji, 1997). The complexity of an organizational management entails t he need for managers to view performance in a holistic manner, where several areas are captured simultaneously (Kanji, 1997). This should be structured around the tenets of several factors that provide performance of a multi and interrelated perspective, and is linked to organizations’ values and strategies. Furthermore, WWP’s performance measurement should be based on critical success factors or performance driver, valid, reliable, and easy to use, one that facilitates comparisons to be made and progress to be monitored, that is linked to the rewards system and encourages the appropriate behaviors and finally, one that highlights the improvement areas or recognizes the opportunities and suggests improvement strategies. As it can be deduced form the above presentations, it appears that the approach to performance management needs to be holistic, inclusive, and systematic. Essentially, a good performance system should present the combined effect of measuring different a spects or dimensions that are interacting or interrelating with each other. SWOC analysis of WWP A SWOC analysis is a major way to examine the position of a business and examine areas of weaknesses and challenges it needs to focus on and areas of strengths and opportunities it needs to explore. A SWOT analysis simply means looking at the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges to the business in order to achieve its strategic intents (Hill and Westbrook,1997). WWP has several strengths, a couple of weaknesses, several opportunities, and a small number of challenges. For example, WWP has the capacity to attract highly trained personnel from a large pool of wounded soldiers it seeks to serve. Furthermore, WWP has a well-established knowledge base, makes use of technology in its programs, and has extensive contacts with its clients. However, it is encompassed by a number of weaknesses that hinder to strive towards meeting its objectives. These include possible lack of moti vation and low reputation. This because WWP is still in its formative years and as such, has not developed extensive networks and attain reputation of high status. On the other hand, WWP has a number of opportunities, thus it can ensure that it lives up to the expectations of the stakeholders. These include availability of technological innovations to reach larger donor bases and increasing levels of understanding and empathy shown towards wounded soldiers. A number of challenges that reduce its capacity for competence can also be pointed out. WWP relies on donors for support and as such may suffer from the challenge of adequate resources to undertake its programs. Furthermore, it must be subjected to a number of government regulations that may limit its scope in soliciting funds and operations. Performance Measurement Performance management (PM) refers to the assessment of progress at different organizational levels, toward achieving predetermined goals, as well as communication an d action in response to actual progress (Bourne, 2003). Within this perspective, it is fundamental to recognize that PM is not merely a tool for operational management. On the contrary, it is, at its best, an overall, integrative approach, linking operational activities to strategic outcomes. Organizations in the business world employ some type of strategic planning in the development of objectives or initiatives. It has been advanced that the key to achieving success in the organization’s performance is an accurate and insightful linkage of the organizational visions and daily activities within the organization. Empirical evidence would however paint the picture that is not always easy or attainable (Armstrong, 2007). One of the chief bottlenecks has been cited as the use of poor performance measures (Kaplan and Norton, 2007). Several researchers have buttressed this point and pointed out that the lack of appropriate measurement tools as positively correlated to organization ’s failure to attain envisaged goals (Kaplan, 2007). For example, Armstrong (2007) in his study on organization’s use of performance measures has concluded that a majority of organizations fail to link their firms’ strategies with the performance measures. In the opinion of Kaplan (2007), the failure to encapsulate the strategic intents in performance measures has proved to be a major headache to many managers. This is particularly worrying when an effective measurement system provides the managers with an ample tool that can be employed in the assessment of whether activities occurring within a facility, division or department are in support of the attainment of the firms overall objectives as stipulated in the vision and missions of the firm. Brotherton and Hacker (2006) have pointed out that what is missing out in most management strategies may not be the planning aspect but rather the implementation. In their opinions, the implementation should encapsulate a n effective measurement system in order that the actions and plans are appropriately linked and are in tandem with the envisaged corporate objectives. This should ideally present an accurate presentation of where WWP is now and where it intends to be. A salient limitation has conversely been cited as the failure to link other aspects of organizational activities such as internal business organization, employees’ development, learning and organizational growth and customer relations in performance measures and the sole reliant on financial assessments of organizational performance. As Kaplan (2007) has pointed out, â€Å"over 70% of CEO failures came, not as a result of poor strategy, but the inability to execute.† Indeed, the departure from traditional financial measures as the anchorage on which organizational wellbeing is grounded has been pointed out as the reason for the invention of the Balanced Score Cards (Kaplan, 2007). According to Brotherton and Hacker (2006) , putting the organization vision and linking this to the strategy of organizations is the key ingredient to success in performance measurements, and thus, the strategic planning process should ideally encapsulate the strategic intents of the organization. This, to the authors opinion should be the starting point in effective measurement system. Essentially, the vision of the organization needs to be translated into specific, measurable objectives or initiatives. This is because by quantifying the vision through measurable objectives, an organization is able to determine whether it is on the right track. This will enable WWP to assess the rate of progress towards the attainment of the stipulated objectives. Unfortunately, majority of organizations appears not to pay heed to these sentiments (Armstrong, 2007). Armstrong (2007) has pointed out that performance measurements at their broadest forms that should involve the setting up of performance goals and the subsequent measurements o f the organization’s attainment or lack of such goals against a set criteria (Brotherton Hacker, 2006). Towards this, performance metrics are developed for each level and function within the organization, structured around the frameworks in order to facilitate the attainment of the envisaged goals and objectives. Thus, while the specific steps and verbiages may vary among the performance management methodologies and systems, the general bearing is essentially the same among the multitudes of organizations that claim to measure their performances. Kanji (1997) has observed that accounting figures alone do not provide a clear direction or an emphasis on whether the particular elements under scrutiny will result in good or poor financial results. This is because these financial measures may not pay cognizance to the need for improving customer satisfaction, quality, cycle time, or even employees’ motivation. Indicators of the Achievement for the Projected Outcomes As it has been stated above, performance measurement has been described as a key tool for the achievement of TQM (Total Quality Management). The main indicator for the achievement of the projected outcomes of the performance measurement in WWP will be the attainment of TQM constructs. These include leadership, management, and empowerment. In essence, TQM attainment in WWP as a non-profit organization calls for the inclusion of all stakeholders in decision-making. Total quality management (TQM) has been considered an important theme in business and management studies over the years due to its capability of influencing the desired outcomes of individuals and organizations alike (Kaplan, 2007). Various definitions of TQM have been used in numerous studies and no general definition of TQM exists in today’s literature. So far, the concept of TQM has different meanings to different individuals. Dale (1999) states that TQM refers to the overall participation of organizational members to e ffectively make use of their business processes and generate the products and/or services necessary for accommodating the needs and desires of customers. Meanwhile, Yang (2005) defined TQM as â€Å"a philosophy and a set of guiding principles that represent the foundation of a continuous improving foundation.† TQM can also be described as a continual process that aims at providing excellence by developing and maintaining the proper skills and characteristics among organizational members, so they can generate satisfaction among their customers (Lakhe and Mohanty, 1994). Similarly, Yang (2005) believes that TQM is a set of practices that promotes improvement, frequent evaluation of results, as well as long-term planning. Though there have been different definitions for TQM that have been mentioned above, the concept’s general principles and values are still described in each of them (Yang, 2005). TQM’s philosophy of management is centered on customers that encoura ges members of a TQM organization to efficiently facilitate the improvement of their company through the active involvement of employees. Within WWP, the individual concepts of process control, service quality, and quality improvement are all integrated into the TQM approach. Conclusion and Recommendations Many organizations in the business world today are recognizing that there is a need to adopt performance measurement tools that present a complete picture of organizational performance and are mushrooming towards effective tools in their performance measurements. WWP stands to reap a cocktail of benefits through the initiation, development, and implementation of effective performance measurement mechanisms that have the capacity to enhance its performances levels. As it has been stated above, critical organizational perspectives that should emphasize on this program include finances, internal processes, customers, growth and learning. These may be adjustable providing particular o rganizational contexts in terms of the number and perspectives. WWP is best placed to create strategy maps highlighting the areas they want to measure. This will act as the overall architectural framework specifying the critical elements and associated linkages of the overall strategy. This in essence acts as a universal message presentation forum for the top executives towards specification and subsequent presentation of the envisaged destination, mapping of the route to be followed and the communication mechanisms. The philosophy behind this step is developing a measure that goes beyond just financial performance. The advantages are that the manager can adopt a holistic view of the organizational performance, a cohesive and ongoing assessment is also possible, a focused connection of the top level and mid levels strategies is established, and it improves the organizational performance reporting system. The benefits of adopting performance measurement program outweigh its limitatio ns, chief among them the fact that the process of design and implementation is all-inclusive. While being a top down approach, the strategic intents still have to involve the mid level and floor employees. The key to success are therefore reliant on proper planning, implementation, and follow up and the performance measurement tool must have the capacity to present a more holistic approach to the organizational performances that would essentially encapsulate all the key elements of performance. References Armstrong, A. (2007). A hard book of human resources management. Kogan Page Publishers: London. Bourne, O. (2003). The balanced scorecard: translating strategy into action. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press. Brotherton, L and Hacker, L. (2006). The golden rules for implementing the balanced business scorecard. ,Information Management Computer Security, 45 (3): 12-25. Hill, T. Westbrook, R. (1997). SWOT Analysis: It’s Time for a Product Recall. Long Range Plannin g, 30 (1): 46–52. Kanji, Y. (1997). Total quality management and the performance measurement barrier. The TQM Magazine, 10 (2): 45-63. Kaplan, R. and Norton, D. (1992).The balance scorecard-measure that drive performance. Harvard business Review: Harvard. Lakhe, R.R. and Mohanty, R.P. (1994). Total quality management concepts, evolution and acceptability in developing economies. International Journal of Quality Reliability Management, 11 (9), 9-33. Turney, K. (1991). Essays on performance measurement models, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Australia. Yang, C.C. (2005). An integrated model of TQM and GE-Six Sigma. International Journal of Six Sigma and Competitive Advantage, 1 (1), 97-105.

Slavery in the USA Essay Example

Slavery in the USA Essay Example Slavery in the USA Essay Slavery in the USA Essay Essay Topic: In the Us The history of slavery is one of the constituent parts of the historical development of the Untied States, actually it started from the first settlers of the USA and only in the year 1865 Emancipation Proclamation declared freedom for all slaves. (Claudia, 1986)The first mentioning of slavery can be traced from 1619, when a Dutch ship transported twenty blacks to Virginia that was at that moment the English colony. Their position was defined as indentured servants. Later on this notion developed into racial slavery. Virginia Slave Codes defined the social position of slaves in 1705.During the times of British colonies there were various types of slaves: starting from house servants and to those who were engaged to work on farms and plantations. Farmers were growing rice, tobacco and cotton. Only rich farmers, owing good lands could buy expensive slaves for developing their cotton business. In the 17th century appeared the notion – Native slaves – slaves brought to other colonies. (Menard, 1995). Thousands of them were used for work on â€Å"sugar islands†.   Some tribes like for example Cherokees also bought black slaves during 1800 – 1830s.The situation with slaves after 1776 was rather tense, the attitude to slaves was mostly very brutal: it was allowed to whip them when they were working on plantations, it was even prescribed by slave codes. For black people there were also separate Black Codes, the fulfillment of theses codes was under the control of white patrollers, who in fact had the right to mutilate or even kill runaways. Slaves could never be sure that they will have the chance to live with their families as the owner could sell any of the family members if there was such necessity for him. There were also cases of rebel from slaves who escaped or tried to revenge their owners by burning barns or killing their possessors.   Owners when buying a slave had to provide clothes and food for him, some even paid bonuses, slav es were allowed to keep the money they earned with gambling or in lottery. There was even a case, when a slave won in the lottery and then was able to buy freedom for himself. (Claudia, 1986).The first sighs of abolitionism can be traced in the 1750s, when the gatherings of Quakers pushed their members to refuse from having slaves. The American Revolution brought the spirits and beliefs that slavery was a disaster for America and its white residents. Between the years 1780 and 1804 practically all Northern States signed the emancipation acts. In the Constitution of Massachusetts of 1780 appeared a statement that all people were â€Å"born free and equal† (Menard, 1995).At the beginning of the 19th century this movement was gaining strength in the whole country.   There was even a campaign organized to deliver back the black people – former slaves who wanted to return to their homeland. This movement suddenly received a support from religion as well, in 1830 William L loyd Garrison stated that slavery was a personal sin and appealed to refusing from it. In spite of the best intentions of the movement, in reality this was the main reason of the Civil War in America.In fact refusal from slavery seemed to be not so easy step for economics, especially after the invention of the cotton gin in 1793 by Eli Whitney (Barzel, 1985). This led to increase of cotton need fifty times, which in its way resulted in growing need for more slavers’ labour in the southern states. The cotton boom coincided with slavery ban in the North of the country. However not all slaves became free, a lot of them were in reality shipped to the states where there was no ban for slavery yet, this means to the South. The situation was getting tenser due to the increased number of slaves in the South; slave owners became even more convinced that slaves can not be freed because of their fear of consequences.   The supplies of slaves from outside were stopped from 1808 by the decision of the Congress, however the inside slave trade was still allowed.   After in 1820s Midwestern states also banned slavery and in the North states slaves became free due to emancipation policy, the country was divided into two parts by the Ohio River into a slave part and into a free part. This distinction between northern and southern parts of the country grew even stronger when â€Å"with the formation of the Southern Baptist Convention on the premise that the Bible sanctions slavery and that it was acceptable for Christians to own slaves† (Menard, 1995).Franciscan mission resulted in development of slavery in colonial and Mexican California. Officially it was called Native labour, in reality this was continual slavery. After inroad from America in 1848, native inhabitants of California were made slaves with the help of so-called four-month penalty for â€Å"vagrancy† (Menard, 1995). At the same time in Kansas the situation was also rather tense. In 1854 Ka nsas- Nebraska Act was signed and it was up to natives to decide whether Kansas State should be a free or a slave state. John Brown was doing his best in supporting the abolitionist movement, but Republicans were too much afraid of the slaves’ possible control of the national government.When the time for presidential election in 1860 came, the absolute partition in the country became evident. The main parties could not come to an agreement: the Southern Democrats supported slavery, The Republicans wanted to stop it, The Northern Democrats stated that all the states should take local decisions, as this would mean the real democracy, at last the Constitutional Union Party struggled for the durability of the Union. Lincoln, the representative of Republicans won the election. The great problem was that abolition of slavery presented not only moral issue, this could also negatively influence the state of economy in the county, which was already used to the profits brought by worke rs, who needed no salary. There was also a point of view that the balance in the country, which was sustained with the help of number of slave and free states, could be broken. Mostly the South was concerned, because this part of the country depended a lot on agriculture, whereas in the north the industry could develop quite well without slaves. For Lincoln slavery was first of all political problem and he would prefer to have more control over the Mississippi river region. (Barzel, 1985)The logical consequence of this opposition was the Civil War in 1861, which resulted in final abolition of slavery. On the 1st of January 1863, Lincoln signed Emancipation Proclamation. After the war around four million slaves were set free, which made more than 12 % of the whole population in the USA. Arizona and Tennessee states revoked slavery in 1863-1865 by the special Acts passed and the Union army freed the rest of the slaves in the southern states. This was actually the formal end of slavery in the USA and it was followed by the period of Reconstruction.Overall, the history of slavery in America was long and controversial, full of sufferings and political intrigues. Slavery played great role in the economical development of the country, of the other side weakening its moral and cultural traditions in a way. We mentioned briefly some key events of the whole slavery history, omitting the description of rebels and names of the slaves who took part in them, omitting the details of all hardships that enslaved people had to come through and so on.

How to Style Legislative Terms

How to Style Legislative Terms How to Style Legislative Terms How to Style Legislative Terms By Mark Nichol Capitalization style for words and phrases related to legislation and international agreements is fairly straightforward, but here are some notes about treatment: Constitutions The phrase â€Å"US Constitution† (or â€Å"United States Constitution,† though the form with initials alone is sufficient) should be capitalized as such, as should names of state constitutions (â€Å"the California Constitution,† for example), but the word on its own is lowercased even as a subsequent reference to a specific document. The same is true of a word for components of a constitution, such as article. Names of specific amendments to the US Constitution are capitalized, but whether words or numerals are used to indicate them is contingent on which authority is used: The Chicago Manual of Style, the style manual of record for book publishers, calls for generally spelling out numbers up to one hundred, but the Associated Press Stylebook, which prescribes style for newspapers (some magazines and many Web sites adhere to it as well), uses numerals for 10 and up. So, write â€Å"Thirteenth Amendment† or â€Å"13th Amendment† according to the style your self-selected or externally appointed style guide recommends. Proposed amendments to the Constitution are often identified by their chief proponent (for example, â€Å"the Bricker Amendment†) or their aims (â€Å"the Equal Rights Amendment,† though some people argue that because there is no such amendment, only a movement to pass one, it should not be validated with capitalization). Bills and Acts A proposal for a new law enacted by the US Congress is offered as a bill. A bill proposed in the House of Representatives is given the body’s initials and a number (HR 99), followed by the name of the bill; a Senate is identified similarly (S 13). (As with US and other abbreviations, the initials are often followed by periods, but this style is unnecessary.) This style isn’t exactly mirrored in state and local legislation; for example, in the California Assembly, the local equivalent of the House of Representatives, a bill is abbreviated AB (for â€Å"Assembly Bill.†) If passed, the bill becomes an act, such as the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act of 2010. (Note that the year of enactment is often but not always part of the official name of the act.) In generic usage, even to a specific act, the word act is lowercased, though many legislative bodies and associated publications capitalize it when it refers to a specific act, as in â€Å"The Act would reverse a long-standing military policy that discriminates against gay service personnel.† Many other names for legislation exist, including code, ordinance, and statute. These words are capitalized as part of the name of a body of laws, such as â€Å"Civil Code† or â€Å"Municipal Code,† but are otherwise lowercased. Treaties and Such Nomenclature for treaties includes formal and informal styles. For example, one notable example’s formal name is the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, but the treaty associated with the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks is informally called the SALT treaty (with treaty lowercased because that is not the official name). A similar international understanding is referred to as an agreement, as in â€Å"the Sykes-Picot Agreement.† Then there is an armistice, which is merely a cessation of hostilities that may or may not be followed by a peace treaty. Many notable armistices have occurred, requiring specific nomenclature such as â€Å"the Korean War Armistice Agreement,† but the default event, that formalizing the end of World War I, is referred to simply as â€Å"the Armistice.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Possessive of Proper Names Ending in SWhat is the Difference Between Metaphor and Simile?

Teaching Literacy Midterm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Teaching Literacy Midterm - Essay Example 326.) The demands of making meanings, stresses the students to activate their prior knowledge and schemata abilities. Schema theory explains how our previous experiences, knowledge, emotions, and understandings affect what and how we learn. (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). Lapp, Flood & Farnan (2004, p.326) writes that, "Content area teaching has a detailed link with schema theory and prior knowledge."The notion of 'prior knowledge' comprises of few subordinate ideas, which are the 'characteristics of prior knowledge', 'historical back ground', the circumstances of learning and 'classroom acts' (Lapp, Flood & Farnan (2004, p. 326). Lapp, Flood & Farnan (2004, p. 326) write that, "This collection of related, hierarchically arranged ideas is a schema." Few followers of this theory even believed that the single most influential factor is the existing and prior knowledge of the readers on which it depends that what he ends up learning from the material (Eric Digest). The accuracy, sufficiency and appropriateness of a schema, needs to be tackled by the instructor in a very delicate and planned manner. Students can make most out of their schemas if only the teachers know how to activate it. (Lapp, Flood & Farnan, 2004, p. ... The renewed awareness in reading was reinforced by the International Reading Association in 1999. The document focused on "advanced levels of literacy" and considered "their ability to read will be crucial". Many instructors turned to interactive manner of teaching reading. Boothe and Walter (1999) quote McCormick, T. (1988) who writes that, "It one of the most promising approaches to the theory of reading today." Boothe and Walter (1999) write that, "An interactive reading model is a reading model that recognizes the interaction of bottom-up and top-down processes simultaneously throughout the reading process." But the reader needs "to interacting with the text, is selective in using just as little of the cues from text as necessary to construct meaning (Goodman, K. 1981). Most of the reading models, share a common postulation, that many "variables impact student's learning from text" (Pearson, Kamil, Bar & Mosenthal, 2000, p.647). They concerned themselves with cognitive psychology, schema, instructional strategies and the text. Boothe and Walter (1999) while quoting Rumelhart, D. 1985 write, "write that, "These various sources of information appear to interact in many complex ways during the process of reading In this scenario the teacher has to play a role of an instructional designer and their tool is 'text'. Once students are able to develop an understanding of text and identify the text structures then the road begins for towards independent reading. According to Buehl (2009, p.72) the benefits of involving the students in this model means "to condition the students to read material at different rates for verifying purposes" is similar to the core principle of content area literacy. The learners

AT&T Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

AT&T - Research Paper Example As such this product will serve the needs of the young and middle aged individuals and families looking for entertainment on the go. Apart from this, the durability and reliability of the product is another important quality variable which can play important role in satisfying the needs of the customers. After sales services, good warranties as well as good coverage for the mobile phone services are some of the key needs of the target market to be satisfied. It is critical to note that firm needs to perfect its strategy in order to continue to serve the market. As such constant focus on improving the focus on the customer coupled with better delivery and service. (Kotler and Keller). AT&T needs to develop an extensive off-line and online distribution mechanism in order to facilitate the customers to obtain the product with relative ease. It is also important that AT&T must develop an alternative channel for distribution. As such, this product will fulfill the needs of those customers who are willing to enjoy entertainment on the go and belong to middle income level group.

Accounting Management at Shell Company Case Study

Accounting Management at Shell Company - Case Study Example Management accounting information is the information which is necessary for the higher management to take into consideration when making important decisions regarding the organization. It allows the management to make well-informed decisions which can drastically help the company to achieve improved results. Management accounting information is future-oriented which means that unlike financial accounting, it does not just report the past performance of the company but also highlights the sections which can be improved to achieve greater efficiency and profitability. There are basically three types of management accounting information which can be significant for business decision making. This information can be classified into three statements or reports which include the cost allocation reports, budget reports, and forecasting statements. The first type of management accounting information that can be used by Shell management is the cost allocation reports. This report consists of t he information regarding the money invested or supposed to be invested, in particular projects. Organizations today have limited resources and they need to evaluate very carefully the projects they invest in. In the case of Shell, most of its projects involve huge investments and they cannot afford to make a mistake in choosing the right project. Therefore, Shell management can use the cost allocation reports to evaluate the projects which give the highest possible return and also are in line with its company goals and strategy. The second type of management accounting report is a budget report which usually has to be formulated and presented at the start of the financial year. A budget report will consist of the money the business should invest in each business operation and function. Managers usually refer to master, standard and flexible budgets to take decisions. Master budgets include all the allotted resources for expenditures of the whole company as well as for separate depar tments. On the other hand, a standard and flexible budget can help the management to compare the actual and budgeted expenses of the company which can again provide very useful information to the Shell management.

Management styles within the cultures of UK- and Iran-based Dissertation

Management styles within the cultures of UK- and Iran-based construction joint ventures - Dissertation Example Case Study) 27 Chapter 6 - Presentation and Discussion (Semi Structured Interview) 30 Chapter 7 – Recommendations 33 Chapter 8 – Conclusion Limitation and Future Research 34 8.1 Conclusion 34 References 36 Bibliography 41 Appendix – Semi Structured Interview Questions 44 LIST OF TABLES & FIGURES Table/Figure Page No. Cultural Differences between Iran and UK 13 Culture Comparison of Iran and UK 13-14 Comparative chart from the case study 24 Similarity Chart from the case study 24 Abstract The management style adopted by a firm plays an indispensible role in the success of that firm. It is often considered as an amalgamation of motivation, attitudes towards responsibility and leadership. This study aimed to explore the relevance of 'culture' when defining and comparing management styles in the UK and in Iran. In addition, the study also aimed to develop insights about these cultures and styles that might inform construction managers preparing to work on one or both of these environments. In order to accomplish it, the study has made use of case study method and has chosen two companies, one from the UK construction industry and the other one from Iranian construction industry. The study also considered the importance of national culture while exploring the differences of management styles among the two companies. The study revealed that there are vast differences among the national cultures of UK and Iran. Furthermore, the study also made it evident that national cultures play crucial roles in shaping the management styles of a company. As a result of that the management styles of the companies belonging to Iranian and UK construction industry greatly differs. On the basis of these findings, some recommendations have been made to the potential construction managers for the purpose of preparing them to work with Iranian counterparts, and vice versa. The key recommendations were to develop culture awareness among the managers and promote open c ommunication. 1. Introduction 1.1 Background Research objectives are The primary research objective of this dissertation is to explore the relevance of 'culture' when defining and comparing management styles in the UK and in Iran. The aim is to gather information and to discover the clear Constructs and if possible their relationships. The secondary objective is to develop insights about these cultures and styles that might inform construction managers preparing to work on one or both of these environments All mutual behaviours are linked to other intensely held beliefs and morals and implanted in a certain context. This means the risks are high for mishandling cultural dissimilarities.