Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management Assignment - 2

Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management - Assignment Example The business planning process consists of different interdependent elements; each element geared for the ‘creation of a successful entrepreneurial venture.’ Since precious time is allocated for the completion of each element, it is necessary to evaluate their value in terms of successfully creating a business venture. Thus, the first part of this paper will provide a critique of each of the business planning process’ elements to determine and validate its inherent value. Elements: The Introduction Idea Generation. The first step of every business venture spawns from two personal views: the perceived market needs or wants and the manner by which these two can be met. The latter is commonly characterized by the prime planner’s personal capability, hobby, or any activity that has the potential economic value as a product or service commodity. These two views are the product of the prime planner’s idea generation and serve as the supporting backbone of t he whole business plan. The next set of ideas will then root from these two views. This being the case, it is essential to keep the main ideas valid, consistent and applicable to all other components to assure a sturdy framework for the whole business plan. Strategic Objectives. These are the types of objectives that are safeguarded by a unifying strategy (Robert, 1998). These objectives, which were set by the planner to secure both market and post its position as a reputable provider of services or products, have to be realistically realized; thus, the use of strategies. However, objectives are ever-changing and are periodically divided by the short-term and long-term goals. Objectives may come in the form of profit, equipment or service upgrades, advancement in market position against competitors, and other visions of business progress. Market Analysis and Research. Apart from building the foundations of the business plan through ideas and objectives, it is essential that relevant information about the market environment is incorporated. This element, amongst all the other, has the most potential of adding realistic facts and procures necessary strategies. The result of this research and analysis may specifically point the current and the target position of the business in terms of its industry. By realizing this position, the planner will have an inclination of what destination the business should take and importantly, how to get there. Understanding the Competition. Knowledge of the market environment introduces the presence of the business competitors. This element focuses on acknowledging the threats and opportunities these competitors present and serve to be part of the factors in designing the marketing strategies (Harvard Business School Press, 2010). In business, ignorance of the business’ competitors can be one of the most costly errors. Competition can be in several forms such as a strategic location (upon close proximity with clients), indu stry position, product or service bundle, et cetera. Financial Projections. Most helpful in delegating potential business investments are the financial information which consisted of cash flow, profit and loss forecast, and balance sheet projections. These proforma of figures immediately relate to potential financial returns - the investors’ gain (or loss) in joining a business venture (Parker, 2006). The investors also eye on the financial forecasts of cash flow as well as the profit and loss since these two

Health Care Enterprise (IHE) implementation Essay - 1

Health Care Enterprise (IHE) implementation - Essay Example Some studies conducted in practices of surgery and others in out-patient clinics (Littman, 1991). At the beginning of the literature reviews of search strategy to enhance the process of thinking regarding the focus and topic of the most important literature (Hunnicutt, 2010). The research conducted using the keywords; non-attendance rate, patient not turning up, no-shows, preoperative education, did-not- attends theatre utilization and preoperative teaching (Gupta, 2009). For the search to be refined techniques such as Boolean connectors (AND, OR), ex â€Å"preoperative patient education† quotations (â€Å"x†), ex. (non-attendance rate and theatre utilization) were applied. This aided in the achievement of the exact or accurate information and also saved time. Furthermore, this forwarded the search used to track the publishing of information by examining the lists of references that selected studies preferred and looked at the citations (Malika, 2005). Scott sought for non-attendance reasons from patients and a barium enema was requested. Literature proves the reasons of non-attendance as generally classified as multi-factorial (Wicker, & Oneill, 2010, 249). They differ in healthcare practices, settings, and/or times (McLaughlin, 1994). The impression given to the reader is that results change according to other factors. The validity and reliability of the used measures are reported clearly and precisely (Woodhead, & Wicker, 2005, 141). The overviewed literature is quite replete with evidence of the importance of improving the patient-hospital communication (Dickson, 2008). The communication was improved by the interventions of reminders from telephone and personal contacts with the patients (Stolt, 2009, 5). The interventions were used in most studies and shown the effectiveness in reducing the rates of non-attendance (Stolt, 2009,

Team Work Essay Example for Free

Team Work Essay Teamwork is the concept of people working together as a team to achieve the underlying objectives of the organization. The team  must have a clear vision of each of these short-term milestone goals as well as their impact on the long-term business goals of the organization. In many organizations today people working by themselves in achieving the overall objectives of the organization cannot accomplish certain goals and usually require people to work together with others due to its complexity, interrelatedness and the voluminous of the tasks undertaken. In fostering    there is no one individual who owns a work area or process all by themselves, people should be open and receptive to ideas and input from others in the TEAM. The values of teamwork should be shared among the members of the team while compensation and rewards should depend on collaborative practices as much as individual contribution and achievement. It is important to identify â€Å"† and thereby set a benchmark to the rest of the teams. However before embarking on   conflicts of all kinds should be resolved within the organization. Apart from the required technical expertise, a variety of social skills are essential for success in a culture. The Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing model (Bruce Tuckman, 1965) takes the team through four stages of TEAM development. These phases are essential and inevitable in order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems, to find solutions, plan the work effectively and deliver the end results. However there is a need to establish and develop collaboration and trust between team members vis a vis interactive exercises, team assessments which will enable teams to cultivate effective team building strengths amongst each other. Modern society and culture continues to become more dynamic and the factors contributing towards this include the communications revolution, the global market, specialization and division of labor. Thereby individuals are now required to work with many different groups of people in their working environment and also the personal lives. Successful   that creates effective, focused work teams requires attention to the following areas mentioned in Figure A. Figure A Empowerment is the process of giving an opportunity or authorizing an individual to take decisions, think creatively and have a control of his/her duties in an organization. It is the responsibility on the organization to create a work environment, which helps the desire of employees to act in empowered ways. Top management of organizations has a very important role to play in making employee empowerment successful. Initially the managers need to understand what empowerment really means; and thereby establish boundaries for empowerment, in the event of the managers absence, the decisions that could be made by staff members should be clearly defined; Managers should also build faith and trust on their decisions made by their employees; further managers should coach, train and provide necessary information and learning opportunities for staff to make effective decisions. They should tackle situations wisely and not blame or punish their staff for minute mistakes to avoid employees flee from empowerment, The organizations should ensure that they remove barriers that limit the ability of staff to act in empowered ways. Employees should be motivated in terms of compensation, recognition and responsibility in order to drive success of empowerment. The Flow Chart below depicts the increasing role for employees and decreasing role for supervisors in the decision making process in today’s context. The supervisor makes the decision and cascades it to the staff The supervisor makes the decision and obtains commitment from staff The supervisor invites idea’s into a decision while retaining authority to make the final decision The supervisor invites employees to join him/her in order to make the final decision The supervisor delegates to another person to make the necessary decisions. This is only where empowerment steps in. Ceylon Tobacco Company (CTC) Limited continued it’s Sri Lankan operations and was incorporated in 1932. Between years of 1990 – 1994, a self assessment was conducted and CTC identified the following lacunas such as lack of overall direction, lack of awareness on business issues, discontinued management team, departments functioning in isolation and in disciplined environment. After which the management identified Key initiatives and actions such as knowledge management, people involvement, culture change, gaining confidence of unions/employees and improvements in productivity via practicing concepts of Teamwork, industrial harmony etc. During the period 1995 – 1996 CTC focused on building Trust within the company employees by adapting Teamwork throughout the organization, extensive training for shop floor employees, common time entry system, common recreation facilities, common social events etc. During 1997, shared vision and mission with focus business strategy, re-engineered business processes, multidisciplinary cross functional project teams, extensive training and education, creation of a winning culture, industrial and non industrial benchmarking and focus on continuous improvement.

Concept Of Motivation

Concept Of Motivation This essay discusses the concept of motivation and its implications for the organisations. The author defines the theory of motivation and then reviews some of the theories (i.e. Maslows Hierarchy of Needs, Expectancy Theory, McGregors Theory X and Y, Hertzbergs Two-Factor Theory) that are significant to understand the human behaviour in the organisations. Further the essay provides arguments for the existing value of the concept of motivation for the managers and discusses the alternatives that are available for the managers to use the knowledge and develop strategies for increasing motivation at the workplace. At the end of the essay the author mentions limitations that still exist. Introduction: what is Motivation? The world was interested in building and studying the theories of motivation from the early 1950s, with the development of industrialisation and an appearance of mass manufacture. At the start, theories were aimed to increase the levels of production at the assembly lin es and the employees were motivated by basic needs and did not possess any power. The processes were monotonous and a set of tangible factors drove the workers to perform. As the job design changed, new theories were built to support the concept of motivation. The studies of motivation mainly focused on what motivated people and how the employees were motivated. This led to the division of the theories in 2 formats: content and process theories. Before these theories will be discussed in this essay, the concept of motivation should be defined: Motivation is a process in which a person is triggered to work for the achievement of his own aims and goals. Persons determination to perform and his/her effort are designed to satisfy his/her needs, e.g. get tangible rewards (an extrinsic motivation), or alternatively, he/she is interested in the job itself and the tasks (an intrinsic motivation). Overview of theories of motivation: The motivation theories are significant in sociology as they give a rational explanation on five patterns of behaviour of people in the organisation, based on their needs, reinforcement, cognitions, job characteristics and feelings /emotions. (Kreitner Kinicki, 2001) To discuss the value of the motivation theories in understanding the behaviour of the employees at the workplace, some of them should be described further. Content theories The main theories that are studied and can be used in the working environment are Maslows Hierarchy of Needs (1943), McGregors Theory X and Y and Herzbergs Two Factor theory (1968). According to the Maslows Hierarchy of Needs, individuals are driven by five needs, which serve as a basis for their effort in work. Starting from the physiological needs, after the satisfaction takes place, the individuals move up the next levels of the hierarchy, which are safety, belongingness love, esteem and self -actualisation needs. Therefore this theory suggested that people are motivated by basic to complicated needs. The theory is still used today, though it does not cover all the aspects of the concept. (Maslow, 1970) Theory X and Y suggests that there are two patterns of behaviour in the organisation. Theory X says that the employees are not willing to work and do not show any interest in the job. They are forced and controlled by the management who may offer remuneration or alternatively leave without it. Therefore this acts as a motivator for work. Theory Y suggests that the employees can control themselves and can be driven by their own goals and are responsible for their work and efforts. (McGregor, 1987) Herzbergs Two-Factor Theory suggests that various factors exist that can motivate employees, however, there are other factors, named hygiene which may dissatisfy the employees and in that case must be altered. The motivating and hygiene factors have different meanings in the organisation, the absence of one of these factors can brea k the balance of being motivated and satisfied at the same time. The motivating factors include recognition, tasks and success, alternatively the hygiene factors are job conditions, remuneration and company policy. (Robbins, 2001) Process theories From the process theories, the focus of this essay will be on Expectancy Theory and Goal-Setting Theory. According to Robbins (2001), Vrooms Expectancy Theory, peoples motivation is activated only if the energy spent on the work leads to a good performance and consequently, the performance leads to bonuses and rewards. Therefore, this theory aids to understand why some workers do not put much effort in their work, as they are de-motivated from the beginning, knowing that good performance is not likely to be achieved and/or rewarded. Accordingly, the performance rewards link has issues when the individuals do not see themselves capable of receiving rewards due to factors as incompetence or personal relations with the management and co-workers. When eventually the rewards are received, they can appear unattractive to the individuals thus cause frustration at the workplace. Goal Setting Theory developed by Locke (1968) suggests that the individuals are greater motivated when the goals are set by managers or by the individuals themselves when they are closely engaged in the processes at the workplace, rather than when the individuals do not see clearly what their efforts are directed at and what the management expects from them. Thus, the employees behaviou r suggests that they like to be guided by the managers and they achieve greater results even if the work is complicated. Moreover, the theory suggests that a feedback should be provided for the work done, which makes the workers willing to do the job, as they appreciate being commented on their performance. (Robbins, 2001) Application of the theories to practice The existence of multiple motivation theories makes it difficult to find the ideal one that can be applied to the organisation. This is due to the limitations and irrelevance of some of them in the modern work environments. To derive the value of each of the theories, a contingency matrix is used by the managers as a guideline on which of the theories to apply at the workplace to enhance performance and provide job fulfillment. For example, the Expectancy theory applied in the organisation activates the employee for action, effort and can increase an employee turnover. One of the most applicable theories is Hackman and Oldha ms (1980) theory that is a content theory, as it affects both effort and routine work, fulfillment, employee turnover and the reasons for frustration, as the theory is based on the job characteristics and encourages the managers to create interesting jobs at the workplace. (Kreitner Kinicki, 2001) Most of the motivation theories that are adapted in the organisations have to be altered to fit into the organizational context. They are used by managers for the assessment of motivation at the workplace and to find means of improving it by satisfying the needs of the employees or alternatively trigger them to work and perform. It is a process that changes with the time and new tendencies. Therefore it is essential to alter the job designs and introduce new benefits, e.g. flexible hours, possibility to work from home, regular skills assessments, informal communication, and to prevent a strict top-down communication between the manager and the colleagues. Value for managers The studying of the theories of motivation bring a great value for managers as was discussed above, as the concept is used on practice to analyse peoples behaviour, despite of existence of some pitfalls. The theories work on practice, when supported by contemporary theories, and they serve as a foundation for building strategies to increase motivation at the workplace. The old theories are a base for new theories; therefore their meaning is not lost. E.g. the contemporary theory developed by Ritchie and Martin divide the employees in high-need and low-need level individuals and assess their desire to be motivated by both tangible and intangible rewards, an interest, achievement, recognition, self-development, variety change, creativity, social contacts, money, structure and others. This approach serves as a useful tool for the managers to assess performance in their organsiations nowadays. (Buchanan Huczynski, 2003) And moreover, improve the motivation by introducing the rewards an d recognition schemes. The employees may be rewarded either individually or as a part of the group. Individual rewards are limited by the skills that he person possesses and can be increased only if a persons productivity increases. Kerrin Oliver, 2002, suggest that rewarding the group may have concerns with the theories of motivation but people engage in the processes, collaborate with their colleagues, set their goals in a competitive environment, have a potential for their creativity to be developed and all of this can serve as motivators and bring satisfaction from the job performed. The rewards should be then based on a both individual productivity and the performance of the group. Alternatively, managers are capable of designing the job for the employees and thus motivate them to work. According to theory of Hackman and Oldham (1980) described by Kreitner Kinicki, 2001, the job must offer an application of different skills, the tasks must be engaging and important in the pro cess, a substantial level of autonomy should be allowed and the feedback available. This will lead to a greater willingness to accept responsibilities and give a satisfaction from the job and result in a high motivation. Managers have an opportunity to analyse their style of control and behaviour using McGregors Theory X and Theory Y approach and thus choose the way the work is facilitated at the workplace, either by strict control or collaboration and empowerment. Gradual development of the motivation concepts led the managers from the strict rules of the assembly line to the empowerment and allowance of an autonomy and creativity at the workplace, thus enhancing the performance of the organisation as a whole. Limitations However, the following limitations exist that cannot be avoided in the studies of the motivation theories: ? The development of negative behaviour in the organisation hostility, obedience and lack of innovation when every single individual is trying to achieve his own goals collectively to the goals of the organisation. The competition leads to hostility, de-motivated people do not have any potential to progress if they are not satisfied. Punishments as motivation to work leads to obedience and stagnation in the organisation ? It is a time-consuming process to understand what really motivates each individual at the workplace as the theories were initially developed for the assembly lines when motivation factors did not vary. The theories have to be altered and further developed to be applied in the organisations ? Motivation theories seem inapplicable as sometimes it is obvious that nowadays people are driven by tangible rewards, i.e. they are in a pursuit of wealth which makes all the theories irrelevant

Capital Punishment Essay - Opposition To the Death Penalty :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Opposition To the Death Penalty    During the spring semester I read Evangelium Vitae: The Gospel of Life. Paragraphs 27 and 56 of this encyclical prompted a discussion of the death penalty with other students. Their first reaction was that the Pope was against it and that he was saying that the penalty has no justification. There was general resistance to the suggestion that while the Pope's attitude toward the death penalty is, to put it mildly, unfavorable, he did not flat out say that it was immoral, wrong, without justification.    Quite apart from exegesis of the encyclical, a majority of student-friends were against the death penalty. Period. Were they in favor of life imprisonment? Absolutely. Don't put killers and the like to death, just lock them up and throw away the key. Isn't that what the Pope was saying in paragraph 56? The tide of public opinion against capital punishment rises, he writes, both in the Church and in civil society, and there is a growing demand to limit its use even to the point of total abolition. Nowadays we are able to protect society from the offender without taking his life. Lock him up and he will have lots of time to repent and redeem himself.    Our discussion accordingly turned to the question of life imprisonment. While this admittedly looks attractive when compared to the death penalty, considered in itself it is a terrible thing. However antiseptic and humane his quarters might be, the thought of a human being locked up for life gives pause. Surely only the most grievous offenses could warrant such severe punishment. Are there really any offenses that severe? In Italy, later in the spring, I became aware of a campaign against life imprisonment.    What I detected, rightly or wrongly, was an animus against punishment as such. When I gingerly introduced the subject of Hell, those who had spontaneously rejected capital punishment and then had some second thoughts about life imprisonment when looked at in itself and not as an alternative to the death penalty seemed inclined toward a creative interpretation of eternal punishment. And of course there have been eminent theologians who have wondered aloud about the doctrine of Hell. Even Jacques Maritain, late in his life had written equivocally on the subject.

Arrival of Things from Another Culture in Hurricane hits England and Presents from my Aunts in Pakistan :: essays research papers

In ‘hurricane hits England’ (hurricane) by Grace Nichols the arrival of the hurricane challenges the thoughts of the poet, she is initially from the Caribbean but now live in Sussex, until the arrival of the hurricane she has not felt at home in England. This is similar to ‘presents from my Aunts in Pakistan’ (presents) by Moniza Alvi, she also has roots from another country and now lives in England. The arrival of presents from the Pakistan culture challenges her thinking, as does the hurricane to Nichols. The hurricane challenges her thinking by making her realise that it is possible to bring your roots anywhere. She comes to this realisation through the poem and at the end of it comes to the conclusion that ‘the earth is the earth is the earth’. She originally feels torn between her two cultures, it takes the arrival of the hurricane ‘to bring her closer’. Whereas in ‘presents’ it is the arrival of the presents from Pakistan that make her feel torn between cultures. The clothes are a symbol of culture, she feels ‘alien’ and awkward wearing them and much more comfortable in her English ‘denim and corduroy’. Nichols also uses symbolism in her poem, the hurricane is a symbol of her Caribbean culture. They are very irregular in England but a regular occurrence in her childhood in the Caribbean, this makes her feel comfortable and at home. The hurricane is used along with many other natural images, this is mainly because of the effect of the wind on the landscape, for example the 'trees / Falling heavy as whales' is an effective line because the huge trees become like whales when the torrential rain that accompanies a hurricane makes the land become almost like a sea. Another natural image is the ‘frozen lake in me’ which metaphorically is the poet being ‘frozen’ away from her county and now the hurricane has arrived to break the ice, so she can bring her roots anywhere. ‘Presents’ also uses natural images, the poet describes the sari that is sent as ‘apple-green’ and the salwar kameez as ‘peacock blue’ and the other ‘like an orange split open’. This vibrant simile and the repeated reference to colour draws her to the loveliness of the culture and emphasises the contrast to the boring English

Understanding the Supply Chain Sunil Chopra

CHAPTER ONE Discussion Questions 1. Consider the purchase of a can of soda at a convenience store. Describe the various stages in the supply chain and the different flows involved. When a customer purchases a can of soda at a convenience store, his purchase represents the end of a supply chain’s delivery of an item and the beginning of information regarding his purchase flowing in the opposite direction. The supply chain stages include customers, retailers, wholesalers/distributors, manufacturers, and component/raw material suppliers. A customer’s purchase moves product towards the customer and dollars and information towards the retailer.The retailer places an order from the wholesaler/distributor to replenish stock, thereby moving information back up the supply chain while moving product down the supply chain. As the order is filled, the retailer will move dollars back up the supply chain. The wholesaler/distributor transmits information and dollars to the manufacture r who produces product and ships it down the supply chain to the wholesaler. Finally (or initially, depending on your perspective) the manufacturer moves orders (information) and dollars towards suppliers in exchange for material flow into their production processes. 2.Why should a firm like Dell take into account total supply chain profitability when making decisions? Dell realizes that their ultimate success lies with the success of their supply chain and its ability to generate supply chain surplus. If Dell was to view supply chain operations as a zero sum game, they would lose their competitive edge as their suppliers’ businesses struggled. Dell’s profit gained at the expense of their supply chain partners would be short lived. Just as a physical chain is only as strong as its weakest link, the supply chain can be successful only if all members cooperate and focus on a lobal optimum rather than many local optima. 3. What are some strategic planning and operational decisions that must be made by an apparel retailer like The Gap? As The Gap plans supply chain strategy it must first consider the marketing function’s pricing plans in order to structure a supply chain consistent with these plans. Strategic considerations such as the capacity of each supplier and assembly operations, sourcing decisions and how logistics are to be handled are all part of the design. The supply chain must also settle on communication channels and frequencies.Supply chain planning takes the strategic decisions as a given and seeks to exploit efficiencies in the chain to maximize supply chain surplus. The entire chain should collaborate in forecasting and planning production to achieve a global optimum. The forecasts should take into account planned promotions and known seasonal fluctuations in demand. The operational decision takes the plans as a given and makes day-to-day decisions to process customer orders, allocate resources to certain customers, trigger or ders from supply chain members, and deliver product. 4. Consider the supply chain involved when a customer purchases a book at a bookstore.Identify cycles in this supply chain and the location of the push/pull boundary. All supply chain processes can be broken down into four process cycles that connect the five stages of the supply chain; the customer order cycle, the replenishment cycle, the manufacturing cycle, and the procurement cycle. The customer order cycle connects the customer with the retailer; this connection is made as the book, perhaps Supply Chain Management by Chopra and Meindl, is selected and paid for by the customer. The replenishment cycle connects the retailer and the distributor and is triggered by the retailer’s need to fill the empty shelf space with nother copy of this tome. The manufacturing cycle connects the distributor and the manufacturer. As demand for the book is realized and distributors empty their warehouses, they signal the manufacturer to p rint another million copies to fill their empty warehouses. Finally, the procurement cycle connects the manufacturer and the supplier. The manufacturer requires raw material inputs of paper, ink, etc. , to begin the assembly process for another batch of Supply Chain Management. The push/pull boundary exists where demand switches from reactive (pull) to speculative (push) production.For most bookstore supply chains the push/pull boundary is between the customer order cycle and the replenishment cycle. The customer order pulls the book from the book store shelf but the initial production of the book was triggered by a build order that moved materials along the supply chain to the retail outlet. 5. Consider the supply chain involved when a customer orders a book from Amazon. Identify the push/pull boundary and two processes each in the push and pull phases. In Amazon’s original operations design the push/pull boundary existed betwixt the retailer (Amazon) and their distributor.A mazon ordered product from the distributor and the customer order arrived. Today, Amazon has six warehouses where it stocks an inventory of items it is confident that will sell. In this scenario, the push/pull boundary exists between the customer and the retailer. Processes in the pull phase are the order fulfillment, shipping, customer returns, and customer billing. Processes in the push phase are production, stock replenishments, shipping, and payment. 6. In what way do supply chain flows affect the success or failure of a firm like Amazon?List two supply chain decisions that have a significant impact on supply chain profitability. The success or failure of a company like Amazon is decided by the effective function of its supply chain. The flow of products from publishers to distributors to customers must be rapid and reliable in order to satisfy customers. The flow of information back through the supply chain allows all members to coordinate efforts. The flow of money allows all supply chain members to maintain operations. Supply chain profitability is influenced by sourcing, promotion, and fulfillment decisions.