Monitoring and Evaluation Handbook.Doc Uploaded Successfully Essay Example

Monitoring and Evaluation Handbook.Doc Uploaded Successfully Essay This handbook deals with the basics of setting up and using a monitoring and evaluation system for a project or an organization. It clarifies what monitoring and evaluation are, how you plan to do them, how you design a system that helps you monitor and an evaluation process that brings it all together usefully. It looks at how you collect the information you need and then how you save yourself from drowning in data by analyzing the information in a relatively straightforward way. Finally it raises, and attempts to address, some of the issues to do with taking action on the basis of what you have learned. Need of Having Handbook on monitoring and evaluation If you don’t care about how well you are doing or about what impact you are having, why bother to do it at all? Monitoring and evaluation enable you to assess the quality and impact of your work, against your action plans and your strategic plan. In order for monitoring and evaluation to be really valuable, you do need to have planned well. Planning is dealt with in detail in other toolkits on this website. We will write a custom essay sample on Monitoring and Evaluation Handbook.Doc Uploaded Successfully specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Monitoring and Evaluation Handbook.Doc Uploaded Successfully specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Monitoring and Evaluation Handbook.Doc Uploaded Successfully specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Application of the Handbook The Handbook can helpful in following events: †¢ To set up systems for data collection during the planning phases of a project or organization. †¢ To analyze data collected through the monitoring process. †¢ To know how efficiently and how effectively you are working. †¢ To evaluate what impact the project is having at any stage. In fact, monitoring and evaluation are invaluable internal management tools. If you don’t assess how well you are doing against targets and indicators, you may go on using resources to no useful end, without changing he situation you have identified as a problem at all. Monitoring and evaluation enable you to make that assessment. CHAPTER-1 BASIC CONCEPT OF MONITORING EVALUATION Monitoring is the systematic collection and analysis of information as a project progresses. It is aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of a project or organization. It is based on targets set and activities plann ed during the planning phases of work. It helps to keep the work on track, and can let management know when things are going wrong. If done properly, it is an invaluable tool for good management, and it provides a useful base for evaluation. It enables you to determine whether the resources you have available are sufficient and are being well used, whether the capacity you have is sufficient and appropriate, and whether you are doing what you planned to do. Evaluation is the comparison of actual project impacts against the agreed strategic plans. It looks at what you set out to do, at what you have accomplished, and how you accomplished it. It can be formative (taking place during the life of a project or organization, with the intention of improving the strategy or way of functioning of the project or organization). It can also be summative (drawing learnings from a completed project or an organization that is no longer functioning). What monitoring and evaluation have in common is that they are geared towards learning from what you are doing and how you are doing it, by focusing on: †¢ Efficiency †¢ Effectiveness †¢ Impact Efficiency tells you that the input into the work is appropriate in terms of the output. This could be input in terms of money, time, staff, equipment and so on. When you run a project and are concerned about its replicability or about going to scale, then it is very important to get the efficiency element right. Effectiveness is a measure of the extent to which a development project achieves the specific objectives it set. If, for example, we set out to improve the qualifications of all the high school teachers in a particular area, did we succeed? Impact tells you whether or not what you did made a difference to the problem situation you were trying to address. In other words, was your strategy useful? Did ensuring that teachers were better qualified improve the pass rate in the final year of school? Before you decide to get bigger, or to replicate the project elsewhere, you need to be sure that what you are doing makes sense in terms of the impact you want to achieve. Need Of Monitoring Evaluation Monitoring and evaluation enable you to check the â€Å"bottom line† of development work: Not â€Å"are we making a profit? † but â€Å"are we making a difference? † Through monitoring and evaluation, you can: †¢ Review progress; †¢ Identify problems in planning and/or implementation; Make adjustments so that you are more likely to â€Å"make a difference†. In many organizations, â€Å"monitoring and evaluation† is something that that is seen as a donor requirement rather than a management tool. Donors are certainly entitled to know whether their money is being properly spent, and whether it is being well spent. But the primary (most important) use of monitoring and evaluation should be for the organization or project itself to see how it is doing against objectives, whether it is having an impact, whether it is working efficiently, and to learn how to do it better. Plans are essential but they are not set in concrete (totally fixed). If they are not working, or if the circumstances change, then plans need to change too. Monitoring and evaluation are both tools which help a project or organization know when plans are not working, and when circumstances have changed. They give management the information it needs to make decisions about the project or organization, about changes that are necessary in strategy or plans. Through this, the constants remain the pillars of the strategic framework: the problem analysis, the vision, and the values of the project or organization. Everything else is negotiable. Getting something wrong is not a crime but failing to learn from past mistakes because you are not monitoring and evaluating, is. It is important to recognize that monitoring and evaluation are not magic wands that can be waved to make problems disappear, or to cure them, or to miraculously make changes without a lot of hard work being put in by the project or organization. In themselves, they are not a solution, but they are valuable tools. Monitoring and evaluation can: †¢ Help you identify problems and their causes; Suggest possible solutions to problems; †¢ Raise questions about assumptions and strategy; †¢ Push you to reflect on where you are going and how you are getting there; †¢ Provide you with information and insight; †¢ Encourage you to act on the information and insight; †¢ Increase the likelihood that you will make a positive development difference. The effect of monitoring and evaluation can be seen in the fol lowing cycle. Note that you will monitor and adjust several times before you are ready to evaluate and replan. EVALUATION Monitoring involves: Establishing indicators of efficiency, effectiveness and impact; †¢ Setting up systems to collect information relating to these indicators; †¢ Collecting and recording the information; †¢ Analyzing the information; †¢ Using the information to inform day-to-day management. Monitoring is an internal function in any project or organization. Evaluation involves: †¢ Looking at what the project or organization intended to achieve – what difference did it want to make? What impact did it want to make? †¢ Assessing its progress towards what it wanted to achieve, its impact targets. Looking at the strategy of the project or organization. Did it have a strategy? Was it effective in following its strategy? Did the strategy work? If not, why not? †¢ Looking at how it worked. Was there an efficient use of resource s? What were the opportunity costs of the way it chose to work? How sustainable is the way in which the project or organization works? What are the implications for the various stakeholders in the way the organization works? In an evaluation, we look at efficiency, effectiveness and impact. There are many different ways of doing an evaluation. Some of the more common terms you may have come across are: †¢ Self-evaluation: This involves an organization or project holding up a mirror to itself and assessing how it is doing, as a way of learning and improving practice. It takes a very self-reflective and honest organization to do this effectively, but it can be an important learning experience. †¢ Participatory evaluation: This is a form of internal evaluation. The intention is to involve as many people with a direct stake in the work as possible. This may mean project staff and beneficiaries working together on the evaluation. If an outsider is called in, it is to act as a facilitator of the process, not an evaluator. †¢ Rapid Participatory Appraisal: Originally used in rural areas, the same methodology can, in fact, be applied in most communities. This is a qualitative way of doing evaluations. It is semi-structured and carried out by an interdisciplinary team over a short time. It is used as a starting point for understanding a local situation and is a quick, cheap, useful way to gather information. It involves the use of secondary data review, direct observation, semi-structured interviews, key informants, group interviews, games, diagrams, maps and calendars. In an evaluation context, it allows one to get valuable input from those who are supposed to be benefiting from the development work. It is flexible and interactive. †¢ External evaluation: This is an evaluation done by a carefully chosen outsider or outsider team. †¢ Interactive evaluation: This involves a very active interaction between an outside evaluator or evaluation team and the organization or project being evaluated. Sometimes an insider may be included in the evaluation team. INTERNAL VS EXTERNAL EVALUATIONS |Advantages |Disadvantages | |Internal Evaluation | |The evaluators are very familiar with the work, the organizational |The evaluation team may have a vested interest in reaching positive | |culture and the aims and objectives. conclusions about the work or organization. For this reason, other | | |stakeholders, such as donors, may prefer an external evaluation. | |Sometimes people are more willing to speak to insiders than to |The team may not be specifically skilled or trained in evaluation. | |outsiders. | |An internal evaluation is very clearly a management tool, a way of |The evaluation will take up a considerable amount of organizational | |self-correcting, and much less threatening than an external |time. | |evaluation. This may make it easier for those involved to accept | | |findings and criticisms. | | |An internal evaluation will cost less than an external evaluation. It may cost less than an external evaluation; the opportunity costs | | |may be high. | |External evaluation (done by a team or person with no vested interest in the project) | |The evaluation is likely to be more objective as the evaluators will |Someone from outside the organization or project may not understand | |have some distance from the work. |the culture or even what the work is trying to chieve | | | | | | | | | | |The evaluators should have a range of evaluation skills and |Those directly involved may feel threatened by outsiders and be less| |experience. likely to talk openly and co-operate in the process. | |Sometimes people are more willing to speak to outsiders than to |External evaluation can be very costly. | |insiders. | | |Using an outside evaluator gives greater credibility to findings, |An external evaluator may misunderstand what you want from the | |particularly positive findings. |evaluation and not give you what you need | Selecting An External Evaluator or Evaluation Team Qualities to look for in an external evaluator or evaluation team: †¢ An understanding of development issues. †¢ An understanding of organizational issues. †¢ Experience in evaluating development projects, programs or organizations. †¢ A good track record with previous clients. †¢ Research skills. †¢ A commitment to quality. †¢ A commitment to deadlines. †¢ Objectivity, honesty and fairness. †¢ Logic and the ability to operate systematically. †¢ Ability to communicate verbally and in writing. A style and approach that fits with your organization. †¢ Values that are compatible with those of the organization. †¢ Reasonable rates (fees), measured against the going rates. When you decide to use an external Evaluator: †¢ Check his/her/their references. †¢ Meet with the evaluators before making a final decision. †¢ Communicate what you want clearly – good Ter ms of Reference †¢ Terms) are the foundation of a good contractual relationship. †¢ Negotiate a contract which makes provision for what will happen if output expectations are not met. Ask for a work plan with outputs and timelines. †¢ Maintain contact – ask for interim reports as part of the contract †¢ Build in formal feedback times. Do not expect any evaluator to be completely objective. S/he will have opinions and ideas – you are not looking for someone who is a blank page! However, his/her opinions must be clearly stated as such, and must not be disguised as â€Å"facts†. It is also useful to have some idea of his/ her (or their) approach to evaluation. DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO EVALUATION Approach |Major purpose |Typical focus |Likely methodology | | | |questions | | |Goal-based |Assessing |Were the goals |Comparing baseline | | |achievement of goals |achieved? Efficiently? |(see Glossary of | | |and objectives. Were they the right |Terms) and progress | | | |goals? |data (see Glossary of | | | | |Terms); finding ways to | | | | |measure indicators. | |Decision Making |Providing information. |Is the project effective? |Assessing range of | | | |Should it continue? How might |options related to the | | | |it be modified? |project context inputs, | | | | |process, and product. | | | | |Establishing some kind of | | | | |decision-making consensus. |Goal-free |Assessing the full |What are all the |Independent | | |range of project effects, |outcomes? What value do they |determination of needs and | | |intended and |have? |standards to judge project | | |unintended. | |worth. Qualitative and | | | | |quantitative techniques to | | | | |uncover any possible results. | |Expert judgement |Use of expertise. |How does an outside |Critical review based | | | |professional rate this |on experience, informal | | | |project? surveying, and subjective | | | | |insights. | A combination of all these approaches is recommended as the best option. However an organization can ask for a particular emphasis but should not exclude findings that make use of a different approach CHAPTER-II PLANNING FOR MONITORING AND EVALUATION Monitoring and evaluation should be part of your planning process. It is very difficult to go back and set up monitoring and evaluation systems once things have begun to happen. You need to begin gathering information about performance and in relation to targets from the word go. The first information gathering should, in fact, take place when you do your needs assessment (see the toolkit on overview of planning, the section on doing the ground work). This will give you the information you need against which to assess improvements over time. When you do your planning process, you will set indicators (see Glossary of Terms). These indicators provide the framework for your monitoring and evaluation system. They tell you what you want to know and the kinds of information it will be useful to collect. In this section we look at: †¢ What do we want to know? This includes looking at indicators for both internal issues and external issues. †¢ Different kinds of information. †¢ How will we get information? †¢ Who should be involved? There is not one set way of planning for monitoring and evaluation. The ideas included in the toolkits on overview of planning, strategic planning and action planning will help you to develop a useful framework for your monitoring and evaluation system. If you are familiar with logical framework analysis and already use it in your planning, this approach lends itself well to planning a monitoring and evaluation system. WHAT DO WE WANT TO KNOW? What we want to know is linked to what we think is important. In development work, what we think is important is linked to our values. Most work in civil society organizations is underpinned by a value framework. It is this framework that determines the standards of acceptability in the work we do. The central values on which most development work is built are: †¢ Serving the disadvantaged; †¢ Empowering the disadvantaged; Changing society, not just helping individuals; †¢ Sustainability; †¢ Efficient use of resources. So, the first thing we need to know is: Is what we are doing and how we are doing it meeting the requirements of these values? In order to answer this question, our monitoring and evaluation system must give us information about: †¢ Who is benefiting fro m what we do? How much are they benefiting? †¢ Are beneficiaries passive recipients or does the process enable them to have some control over their lives? †¢ Are there lessons in what we are doing that have a broader impact than just what is happening on our project? Can what we are doing be sustained in some way for the long-term, or will the impact of our work cease when we leave? †¢ Are we getting optimum outputs for the least possible amount of inputs? Do we want to know about the process or the product? Should development work be evaluated in terms of the process (the way in which the work is done) or the product (what the work produces)? Often, this debate is more about excusing inadequate performance than it is about a real issue. Process and product are not separate in development work. What we achieve and how we achieve it are often the very same thing. If the goal is development, based on development values, then sinking a well without the transfer of skills for maintaining and managing the well is not enough. Saying: â€Å"It was taking too long that way. We couldn’t wait for them to sort themselves out. We said we’d sink a well and we did† is not enough. But neither is: â€Å"It doesn’t matter that the well hasn’t happened yet. What’s important is that the people have been empowered. † Both process and product should be part of your monitoring and evaluation system. But how do we make process and product and values measurable? The answer lies in the setting of indicators and this is dealt with in the sub-section that follows. What Do You Want To Know? Indicators Indicators are also dealt with in overview of planning, in the section on monitoring and evaluation. Indicators are measurable or tangible signs that something has been done or that something has been achieved. In some studies, for example, an increased number of television aerials in a community has been used as an indicator that the standard of living in that community has improved. An indicator of community empowerment might be an increased frequency of community members speaking at community meetings. If one were interested in the gender impact of, for example, drilling a well in a village, then you could use â€Å"increased time for involvement in development projects available to women† as an indicator. Common indicators for something like overall health in a community are the infant/child/maternal mortality rate, the birth rate, and nutritional status and birth weights. You could also look at less direct indicators such as the extent of immunization, the extent of potable (drinkable) water available and so on. Indicators are an essential part of a monitoring and evaluation system because they are what you measure and/or monitor. Through the indicators you can ask and answer questions such as: †¢ Who? †¢ How many? †¢ How often? †¢ How much? But you need to decide early on what your indicators are going to be so that you can begin collecting the information immediately. You cannot use the number of television aerials in a community as a sign of improved standard of living if you don’t know how many there were at the beginning of the process. Some people argue that the problem with measuring indicators is that other variables (or factors) may have impacted on them as well. Community members may be participating more in meetings because a number of new people with activist backgrounds have come to live in the area. Women may have more time for development projects because the men of the village have been attending a gender workshop and have made a decision to share the traditionally female tasks. And so on. While this may be true, within a project it is possible to identify other variables and take them into account. It is also important to note that, if nothing is changing, if there is no improvement in the measurement of the key indicators identified, then your strategy is not working and needs to be rethought. DEVELOPING INDICATORS Step 1: Identify the problem situation you are trying to address. The following might be problems: †¢ Economic situation (unemployment, low incomes etc) †¢ Social situation (housing, health, education etc) †¢ Cultural or religious situation (not using traditional languages, low attendance at religious services etc) †¢ Political or organizational situation (ineffective local government, faction fighting etc) Step 2: Develop a vision for how you would like the problem areas to be/ look. This will give you impact indicators. What will tell you that the vision has been achieved? What signs will you see that you can measure that will â€Å"prove† that the vision has been achieved? For example, if your vision was that the people in your community would be healthy, then you can use health indicators to measure how well you are doing. Has the infant mortality rate gone down? Do fewer women die during child-birth? Has the HIV/AIDS infection rate been reduced? If you can answer â€Å"yes† to these questions then progress is being made. Step 3: Develop a process vision for how you want things to be achieved. This will give you process indicators. If, for example, you want success to be achieved through community efforts and participation, then your process vision might include things like community health workers from the community trained and offering a competent service used by all; community organizes clean-up events on a regular basis, and so on. Step 4: Develop indicators for effectiveness. For example, if you believe that you can increase the secondary school pass rate by upgrading teachers, then you need indicators that show you have been effective in upgrading the teachers e. g. evidence from a survey in the schools, compared with a baseline survey. Step 5: Develop indicators for your efficiency targets. Here you can set indicators such as: planned workshops are run within the stated timeframe, costs for workshops are kept to a maximum of US$ 2. 50 per participant, no more than 160 hours in total of staff time to be spent on organizing a conference; no complaints about conference organization etc. With this framework in place, you are in a position to monitor and evaluate efficiency, effectiveness and impact. DIFFERENT KINDS OF INFORMATION (QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE) Information used in monitoring and evaluation can be classified as: †¢ Quantitative †¢ Qualitative Quantitative measurement tells you â€Å"how much or how many†. How many people attended a workshop, how many people passed their final examinations, how much a publication cost, how many people were infected with HIV, how far people have to walk to get water or firewood, and so on. Quantitative measurement can be expressed in absolute numbers (3 241 women in the sample are infected) or as a percentage (50% of households in the area have television aerials). It can also be expressed as a ratio (one doctor for every 30 000 people). One way or another, you get quantitative (number) information by counting or measuring. Qualitative measurement tells you how people feel about a situation or about how things are done or how people behave. So, for example, although you might discover that 50% of the teachers in a school are unhappy about the assessment criteria used, this is still qualitative information, not quantitative information. You get qualitative information by asking, observing, interpreting. Some people find quantitative information comforting – it seems solid and reliable and â€Å"objective†. They find qualitative information unconvincing and â€Å"subjective†. It is a mistake to say that â€Å"quantitative information speaks for itself†. It requires just as much interpretation in order to make it meaningful as does qualitative information. It may be a â€Å"fact† that enrolment of girls at schools in some developing countries is dropping – counting can tell us that, but it tells us nothing about why this drop is taking place. In order to know that, you would need to go out and ask questions – to get qualitative information. Choice of indicators is also subjective, whether you use quantitative or qualitative methods to do the actual measuring. Researchers choose to measure school enrolment figures for girls because they believe that this tells them something about how women in a society are treated or viewed. The monitoring and evaluation process requires a combination of quantitative and qualitative information in order to be comprehensive. For example, we need to know what the school enrolment figures for girls are, as well as why parents do or do not send their children to school. Perhaps enrolment figures are higher for boys than for girls because a particular community sees schooling as a luxury and prefers to train boys to do traditional and practical tasks such taking care of animals. In this case, the higher enrolment of girls does not necessarily indicate higher regard for girls. HOW WILL WE GET INFORMATION? This is dealt with in some detail in the toolkit on action planning, in the section on monitoring, collecting information as you go along. Your methods for information collecting need to be built into your action planning. You should be aiming to have a steady stream of information flowing into the project or organisation about the work and how it is done, without overloading anyone. The information you collect must mean something: don’t collect information to keep busy, only do it to find out what you want to know, and then make sure that you store the information in such a way that it is easy to access. Usually you can use the reports, minutes, attendance registers, financial statements that are part of your work anyway as a source of monitoring and evaluation information. However, sometimes you need to use special tools that are simple but useful to add to the basic information collected in the natural course of your work. Some of the more common ones are: †¢ Case studies †¢ Recorded observation †¢ Diaries †¢ Recording and analysis of important incidents (called â€Å"critical incident analysis†) †¢ Structured questionnaires †¢ One-on-one interviews †¢ Focus groups †¢ Sample surveys †¢ Systematic review of relevant official statistics. WHO SHOULD BE INVOLVED? Almost everyone in the organization or project will be involved in some way in collecting information that can be used in monitoring and evaluation. This includes: †¢ The administrator who takes minutes at a meeting or prepares and circulates the attendance register; †¢ The fieldworkers who writes reports on visits to the field; †¢ The bookkeeper who records income and expenditure. In order to maximize their efforts, the project or organization needs to: †¢ Prepare reporting formats that include measurement, either quantitative or qualitative, of important indicators. For example, if you want to know about community participation in activities, or women’s participation specifically, structure the fieldworkers reporting format so that s/he has to comment on this, backing up observations with facts. (Look at the fieldworker report format given later in this toolkit. ) †¢ Prepare recording formats that include measurement, either quantitative or qualitative, of important indicators. For example, if you want to know how many men and how many women attended a meeting, include a gender column on your attendance list. Record information in such a way that it is possible to work out what you need to know. For example, if you need to know whether a project is sustainable financially, and which elements of it cost the most, then make sure that your bookkeeping records reflect the relevant information. It is a useful principle to look at every activity and say: What do we need to know about this activity, both process (how it is being done) and p roduct (what it is meant to achieve), and what is the easiest way to find it out and record it as we go along? CHAPTER-III DESIGNING A MONITORING AND/OR EVALUATION PROCESS As there are differences between the design of a monitoring system and that of an evaluation process, we deal with them separately here. Under monitoring we look at the process an organization could go through to design a monitoring system. Under evaluation we look at: †¢ Purpose †¢ Key evaluation questions †¢ Methodology. MONITORING When you design a monitoring system, you are taking a formative view point and establishing a system that will provide useful information on an ongoing basis so that you can improve what you do and how you do it. On the next page, you will find a suggested process for designing a monitoring system. For a case study of how an organization went about designing a monitoring system, go to the section with examples, and the example given of designing a monitoring system. DESIGNING A MONITORING SYSTEM Below is a step-by-step process you could use in order to design a monitoring system for your organization or project. For a case study of how an organization went about designing a monitoring system, go to examples. Step 1:At a workshop with appropriate staff and/or volunteers, and run by you or a consultant:Introduce the concepts of efficiency, effectiveness and impact. Explain that a monitoring system needs to cover all three. †¢ Generate a list of indicators for each of the three aspects. †¢ Clarify what variables need to be linked. So, for example, do you want to be able to link the age of a teacher with his/her qualifications in order to answer the question: Are older teachers more or less likely to have higher qualifications? †¢ Clarify what information the project or organization is already collecting. Step 2:Turn the input from the workshop into a brief for the questions your monitoring system must be able to answer. Depending on how complex your requirements are, and what your capacity is, you may decide to go for a computerized data base or a manual one. If you want to be able to link many variables across many cases (e. g. participants, schools, parent involvement, resources, urban/rural etc), you may need to go the computer route. If you have a few variables, you can probably do it manually. The important thing is to begin by knowing what variables you are interested in and to keep data on these variables. Linking and analysis can take place later. From the workshop you will know what you want to monitor. You will have the indicators of efficiency, effectiveness and impact that have been prioritized. You will then choose the variables that will help you answer the questions you think are important. So, for example, you might have an indicator of impact which is that â€Å"safer sex options are chosen† as an indicator that â€Å"young people are now making informed and mature lifestyle choices†. The variables that might affect the indicator include: †¢ Age †¢ Gender †¢ Religion †¢ Urban/rural †¢ Economic category †¢ Family environment †¢ Length of exposure to your project’s initiative †¢ Number of workshops attended. By keeping the right information you will be able to answer questions such as: †¢ Does age make a difference to the way our message is received? †¢ Does economic category i. e. do young people in richer areas respond better or worse to the message or does it make no difference? †¢ Does the number of workshops attended make a difference to the impact? Answers to these kinds of questions enable a project or organization to make decisions about what they do and how they do it, to make informed changes to programs, and to measure their impact and effectiveness. Answers to questions such as: Do more people attend sessions that are organized well in advance? †¢ Do more schools participate when there is no charge? †¢ Do more young people attend when sessions are over weekends or in the evenings? †¢ Does it cost less to run a workshop in the community, or to bring people to our training centre to run the workshop? Step 3:Decide how you will collect the informati on you need (see collecting information) and wh

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Business Organisation and policy - Essay Example The PESTLE analysis is an important tool for understanding main environmental forces affecting global pharmaceutical industry based on data on political, economical, socio-cultural, legal and environmental concerns analysis provides. Political factors affecting pharmaceutical industry are in most cases interlinked as governments work to establish regulatory frameworks to govern both state and international issues involved in the industry. Therefore, governments have introduced both formal and informal rules to manage the industry through measures that include taxation policies, trade restrictions and tariffs, political stability. Apart from providing an enabling environment through political stability, governments have supported this industry based on the understanding of the role of healthy citizenry to economic development of the country. Pharmaceuticals have therefore worked with governments in introducing drugs to different countries based on the understanding of their importance to the wellbeing of a country. Governments have also moved to create monopolies in the industry as powerful buyers of drugs for controlling expenditure in states’ health care systems (Smith, 2012). Therefore, political arena influences regulations concerning practices of pharmaceutical business and depends on government practices that supports healthcare as an important contributor to welfare of the nation. Political goodwill from the government is important for the pharmaceutical industry especially with regard to patent from period covering experiments to release into the market. Renewal of patents is a concern for manufacturers in the industry especially due to the long period it takes for manufacturers to conduct research, test, then release drugs for human consumption. Given that patents exist for approximately twenty years, political goodwill is necessary for the renewal of such contracts to allow manufacturers proceed

Population Sustainabiltiy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Population Sustainabiltiy - Essay Example At this current rate, the world is quickly becoming overcrowded, a fear that many countries are trying to handle before it is too late. There are a number of negative impacts that are brought on by human overpopulation. The greatest of these impacts is that human overpopulation is causing a quicker depletion of resources. In countries that are already overcrowded, some natural resources are harder to come by and difficult to accommodate everyone. Career and educational opportunities are also scarce as everyone attempts to obtain them. Overpopulation also leads to a rise in poverty and homelessness as Earth runs out of space to contain everybody. Overpopulation of humans gradually comes to a point where there is not enough of anything for everybody. As a whole, the world is facing an overpopulation of human beings. The amount of babies being born is significantly greater than the amount of people dying; the correlation between the two is almost nonexistent. Nevertheless, there are som e countries that are facing an opposite condition: a drastic decline in the overall number of people. Among them are Germany and Italy, countries that face very low birth rates and an aging population. There is a continuous decline in their population. Because of this decline, these countries stand a better chance at achieving a sustainable society. A sustainable society is defined by the ability to maintain a society that can progress without devastating setbacks in the near future (Chapman, 2000). They have less people to accommodate, and therefore need less. However, having a smaller population is only the beginning. There are policies that countries like Germany and Italy can follow to ensure a sustainable society. One such policy is to strengthen the ethics of caring for the community, which would require sharing the benefits and cost of resource use and environmental conservation. If development is managed, threats toward the survival of other species and habitats is eliminate d. Another policy is to grow economically; given the current recession, it is easy to see how economic failure can effect the possibility of a sustainable society. Job availability is rare, making it difficult for people to survive. A third policy is to minimize the depletion of finite resources by using less of them and finding infinite alternatives. There are some downfalls that come with underpopulation as with overpopulation. With underpopulation comes an abundant amount of resources. This may seem like a benefit, but resources need to be paid for. If a society lacks the people to pay for the resources that they need, it becomes difficult to maintain the resources (Zuckerman, 1996). In this case, too much is not a good thing; less is more. Countries like Germany and Italy may be set for a while, but resources will eventually become unaffordable, and the towns and cities risk dying out. Were it not for immigration and migration, which helps boost economies, cities in these countr ies would cease to exist. References Chapman, A. R. (2000). Consumption, population, and sustainability. Washington, D.C.: Island Press. Dobkowski, M. N. (2011). On the edge of scarcity (2nd ed.). Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press. Zuckerman, B. (1996). Human population and the environmental crisis. Boston: Jones & Bartlett

Write a research paper on Amazon.com INC Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Write a on Amazon.com INC - Research Paper Example Jeff Bezos was not a born entrepreneur, he graduated from Princeton University and began to work in the field of computer science on Wall Street moving on to become the vice president at Bankers Trust (Byers). Due to his interest in the rapid use and growth of Internet technology, he devised the idea of Amazon.com. Thanks to the idea generated by Jeff Bezos, he quickly gained the identity of being the prominent entrepreneur who devised the dot-com idea and made him a billionaire soon. It started off as the bookstore initially and has now transformed in to the largest online retailer of the world as well. It has expanded its operations in a variety of ways and offers millions of online books, movies, songs, merchandise and just about anything. It can be safely concluded that Amazon has converted into an ‘everything store’ where merchandise of every kind is traded online. Shoppers are offered convenience that have the facility of shopping for almost anything online and can easily download books, games and films to even their portable devices such as tablets or smart phones. Other products such as the self publishing and online advertising are also offered on Amazon.com. Therefore, the customers’ Amazon Inc serves have been stated in the mission statement itself, which are consumer customers, seller customers and the developer customers. Therefore, Amazon Inc is a platform which does not only let the customers to download and buy the merchandise, but at the same time gives them a platform to sell their merchandise online as well to the interested customers. The marketing strategy that has been introduced by Amazon rests on six facets: it not only offers products and services to be purchased by the customers but at the same time, interface is user friendly which can be easily and conveniently used by the customers. The services and products offered at Amazon vary from small scale to the

Population Analysis of Yemen

Population Analysis of Yemen Geography Yemen is basically situated on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, between Oman to the northeast (288 km of borderlines) and Saudi Arabia to the north (1,458 km of borderlines). Yemen has border with the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden to the south, and the Red Sea to the west. The length of coastline constitutes 1,906 kilometres and the width of coastal strip is between 30 and 60km. Yemen is world’s 49th largest country covering the area of 527,968 square kilometres or nearly twice the size of the US state of Wyoming or about the size of France. Topographically, Yemen is divided into five main geographical areas: mountains, plateaus, coast, Empty Quarter (AR-Rub-Alkhali) and islands. Yemen has 112 islands (mostly volcanic origin) of which the biggest and most inhabited is Kamaran. Kamaran is known for exceptional wild animals and plant species. Mayonoon Island (Breem) has strategic importance due to its location which lets to control the strait of Bab Al-Mandab. The specific feature of this country is that it is situated at the entrance to the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, which links the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean (via the Gulf of Aden) and this circumstance permits it to call one of the most active and strategic shipping lanes in the world. Temperatures are generally very high in Yemen, especially in the coastal regions. This part of country is hot and humid throughout the year. The central highlands at 10,000 feet (3,048 meters), experience an average annual high temperature of 21 °C: average daily temperature in January stands at 14 °C and in July reaches 22 °C. The climate of western coastal plain is tropical, therefore temperatures occasionally exceed 54 ° C, and the humidity ranges from 50 to 70 per cent. Rainfall usually comes in irregular heavy torrents with averages of 130 millimetres annually. The climate in Yemen is mostly desert, very hot and humid along the coastal sections. In addition to this, Yemen‘s western mountains are affected by seasonal monsoons, which rains may occur from April to August and from November to January. Chart 1 Location of Yemen Source: Euromonitor International Regions Yemen administratively is divided into 21 governorates, including the three newly created governorates Amran and Al-Daleh and Reymah. The governorates are further subdivided into a total of 333 districts and around 2,000 sub-districts. Yemen is a relatively rural country, at an urbanization rate of just less than 33% at the end of the period. Most governorates boast low urbanization rates with the exception of Aden and Sana’a City that were 100% and 98% urbanized in 2013, respectively. According to the World Bank report 2012, governorates with the greatest poverty rate were Amran, Al-Bayda, Hajjah, and Shabwah and moat wealthy are Sana’a City and Al-Maharah. Yemen is suffering from a strong north-south divide, with violence, armed clashes and protests hindering not just regional development and agricultural activities, but also detracting investors and much needed tourists away from the region. Up to late 2013, the UN-backed national dialogue between northern and southern representatives was mostly unsuccessful, causing UN to warn participators about â€Å"procrastination† and â€Å"obstruction† and urge breakthrough in the talks. The northern regions are expected to remain in a relatively better position than the south, due to greater political power and control of most natural resources. The future of Yemen and its administrative division will depend on the performance of the National Dialogue Conference and the president’s decision. A new federal system in Yemen is to be expected in the near future. In early 2014, the National Dialogue Conference’s committee presented a final report on resolving the North-South tension issue. The Southern region would get 50% representation in executive, legislative and judicial bodies, as well as the army and security services. The final step is for the president to form a committee to decide on the number of regions in Yemen. Chart 2 Regional Map of Yemen Source: Euromonitor International Table 4 Regional Statistics: Population, Urbanization Rate and Share of Population in Poverty Population 000 (2013) Urbanization rate (2013)% of population in poverty (2006) Taiz2,9542238 Al-Hodeidah2,6843532 Ibb2,6221830 Sanaa City2,2059815 Hajjah1,825948 Dhamar1,6411426 Hadramout1,2854636 Sanaa1,1362.828 Amran1,0871764 Laheg896947 Saadah8591517 Aden74810017 Al-Baida7121952 Al-Mahweet611731 Al-Daleh5831344 Shabwah5821654 Al-Jawf5451350 Abyan5402646 Reymah4861.034 Mareb2951346 Al-Maharah111429 Total24,4073335 Source: Euromonitor International from National Statistics Cities As of 2012, there were 225 cities in Yemen. The most significant and the largest urban centres in terms of population were the capital Sanaa (2.2 million people in 2013), a seaport city of Aden (748,000 ) and Ta’izz (around 600,000). Although an overwhelming majority of Yemenis live in rural areas (close to 70% in 2013), urbanisation is increasing. Sana’a Sana’a – Yemen’s capital city has played a key political and economic role in Yemen for centuries. Sana’a is one of the major transport hubs in Yemen. A road link from the capital leads to Ta’izz and further to the old port of Mocha. Sana’a’s function as one of the most important transport nodes in Yemen, however, was underscored by the country’s biggest international airport located in the nearby town of Al Rahabah. Through this airport, Yemen’s capital is connected to key metropolises on the Arabian Peninsula, nearby African countries and India. In 2013, United Arab Emirates national airline Etihad Airways launched its new Abu Dhabi-Sana’a route by conducting an inaugural flight with high level officials from both countries. Excellent education is one of the most notable characteristics of the Sana’a city the University of Sana’a, founded in 1970, is one of the biggest higher education institutions in the Arab countries. In terms of manufacturing, a once flagship plant in the city – a cotton textile mill – after years of neglect and mismanagement, stands vacant awaiting for more funding. Nevertheless, Yemen’s capital is witnessing a major real estate boom, as urbanisation processes in the country are moving forward. Some of the on-going projects include Sana’a City Mall and Sana’a East Sana’a Terraces. Sana’a City Mall was estimated to cost US$200 million and was scheduled to be completed in 2013. The mall is expected to become the biggest shopping centre in Yemen, hosting shops, 10 cinema halls, an amusement area, a food court, a supermarket, and a parking space for 2,000 cars. Sana’a East Sana’a Terraces is a project worth US$400 million and expected to be completed in 2016. It will be a mixed use development encompassing residences, hotel facilities, recreation, shopping and office zones. Sana’a’s main strengths in attracting business opportunities are the proximity of government agencies and relatively extensive infrastructure. As of 2013, Sana’a international airport was undergoing a major renovation initiative amid the governmental ambition to boost tourism revenues: the construction of 12 air bridges and four halls to enable simultaneous handling of 18 aircrafts. Yet the future development of the city is likely to be significantly constrained by an on-going severe water crisis and lack of security. If the city’s water resources do not get replenished, Sana’a is expected to become a â€Å"ghost town† by 2030, according to an insight by the Reuters investigation. Aden Aden, located 400 km south of the capital Sana’a, is a vital seaport of Yemen, handling more than 60% of the country’s total incoming ships in 2012 and nearly 70% of net registered tonnage. Throughout its history, commercial activities in the port dominated in Aden’s economy. It used to be a major refuelling stop for vessels under the British colonial rule in 1950-1960 and later an economic engine of South Yemen. However, recently, the port has been witnessing a major blow to its operations, resulting from political protests in the country following the Arab Spring and disagreements between the national government and the port operator Dubai Ports (DP) World that abandoned its obligations in 2012. With the port operations having been so essential to Aden, as of early 2013, Yemeni authorities were negotiating a master plan for the city’s future development with the World Bank. Aden has strengths that may be utilized to realise its commercial and tourism potential. It is strategically positioned in close proximity to major trade routes. Given its location on the Gulf of Aden, the city can potentially avoid widespread water shortages in Yemen if resources are mobilised to implement sea water desalination projects. Yet a major weakness in the city’s development has been the poor execution of laid out plans. For example, Aden Free Zone, created in 1991, is still only an empty parch of land, while in nearby Djibouti, the Free Zone, established in 2004, is already up and running. Aden’s port has seen a precipitous decline of transhipment volumes of 37% per year in 2007-2009, whereas Djibouti port’s figures have been on the rise (15% growth per annum in the same period). Future development of Aden will greatly depend on whether city’s officials can follow through with commitments and plans. Tai’zz Ta’izz is one of the most populous cities in Yemen. Ta’izz is Yemen’s most developed industrial city. Adequate rainfall and arable soil in the surrounding areas boost agro-industrial activities in Ta’izz, particularly coffee, cotton and vegetable cultivation. The city is also known for its leather and jewellery industries. Another important factor contributing to the development of Ta’izz’s industrial sector is the proximity of Aden, Al Hodeidah and Mocha ports which provide for an easy shipment of produced goods. Ta’izz is the capital of the most populous governorate of the same name, with a relatively large consumer market providing further benefits for local companies. In fact, numerous biggest businesses in Yemen are located in Ta’izz, some of which belong to the HSA Group Yemen’s major conglomerate engaged in manufacturing, commercial and services sectors. Ta’izz has good prospects for continued growth; yet as in all of Yemen, progress is primarily stalled by political upheavals and lack of security.

The Role of Leadership

With the increased level of competitiveness in the business world and high tempo of change at present, leading a change is currently a key leadership aptitude, and the capability for companies to discover, grow up, adjust, and change is becoming a key organisational ability. Transformational leaders are capable of identifying the need for key organisational transformation or change, and subsequently get employees concerned in carrying out the change. Through the use of a range of skills from other leadership concepts, transformational leaders are capable of leading & managing change projects of all extents.Transformational leaders are generally extremely good at selling their initiatives, building commanding support systems, organizing different professionals around decisive projects and be able keep them determined and also energized until when the transformation is over. These leaders recognize when to act; get things made; commence and complete the projects successfully; and bring positive results; Transformational leaders usual make things to happen. (Bassand and Avolio, 1999) The Role of LeadershipFor a company where the employees have faith in the capabilities of leaders, the employees look forwards to the leaders for several of aspects. Through radical changes times, the employees will anticipate efficient and reasonable planning, self-assured and effectual decision-making, and frequent, inclusive communication which are timely. In addition throughout these periods of change, the employees will observe leadership as encouraging, committed and concerned to their interests, whilst at the same moment identifying that hard decisions must be made.The best manner to sum up is that there should be an environment of trust among a leader and all employees of the organization or a team. The continuation of this trust and faith brings optimism for improved moments in the future, and this makes handle the radical change quite easier. (Bassand and Avolio, 1999) In or ganizations which are characterized by bad leadership, employees anticipate nothing positive from any change. In an environment of mistrust, employees find out that leaders will operate in indecipherable manners and in manners which do not appear to be for anyone's best concerns.Bad leadership implies a lack of hope that, if permitted to continue for a long time, results in such organizations becoming entirely non-functioning. Such an organization ought to tackle the practical effect of distasteful change, however more significantly, have to work under the burden of the employees who have lost hope, have no trust in the organization or in the capability of leaders in turning the organization about. Importance of leadership in the management of transformational changeprudent leadership previous to, through and following change implementation is the solution to attainment during the swamp. Regrettably, if a leader hasn’t created a track record of efficient leadership, at the ti me the leader will have difficulties during changes, it might be too late. If a leader is to manage transformational change successfully, a leader needs to be conscious that there are three distinctive period zones where transformational leadership is significant. We shall call these â€Å"Preparing for the Journey†, â€Å"Slogging through The Swamp†, and â€Å"after Arrival†.We shall examine more circumspectly at all of these. The Journey preparation We would be a mistaken to presume that the Journey preparation takes part only subsequent to the purpose has been defined or selected. When talking about the Journey preparation for change, it means that leading in a manner that lay the groundwork or foundation for any changes which may happen in future. Preparing is regards creating resources, through building strong organizations in the initial position.Much akin to healthy persons, who are well capable to deal with infection or illness than unhealthy persons, or ganizations which are strong in the initial position are better capable to cope with any change. (Kochan and Useem, 1992) A transformational leader will require to institute credibility and a impressive track record of efficient decision making, in order to create trust in his/her capability to find out what is needed in bringing the organization through. (Kochan and Useem, 1992) Slogging through the SwampA transformational leader plays a crucial role throughout the change implementation, the time from the when the change was announcement throughout the setting up of the change project. In this middle time the organization is in highly unbalanced, characterized with fear, confusion, reduced productivity, failure of direction, and absence of clarity regarding mandate and direction. This can be a time of emotions, with the employees mournful for what they lost, and at first incapable of looking to the prospect or future. (Kochan and Useem, 1992)During this time, effective transformati onal leaders require to put focus on two aspects. One; the confusion and feelings of the employees have to be recognized and confirmed. Two; the transformational leader ought to work with the employees to start crafting a new vision for the transformed organisation, and assisting employees to comprehend the future direction. Focusing barely on the feelings, might end in wallowing of employees. That is reason it is essential to start the transformation into the fresh approaches or situations.While, focusing just on the fresh vision might result in a perception that the transformational leader is not in touch, uncaring and cold. A core part of transformational leadership in this stage is to understand when to put focus on the pain of the organisation, and when to put focus on construction and getting into the future. (Kochan and Useem, 1992) After Arrival In a feeling change is never complete, thus in a way a leader will never arrive, however here, we are looking at the time when the early instability of enormous change has been able to be reduced.Employees at this time have now become less emotional, and thus more steady, and with efficient transformational leadership during the prior stages, are currently more open to looking in to new innovative directions, authorization and manners of performing things. This is the ideal moment for transformational leaders to commence positive new change, for example the BP transformational management change that Horton, initiated in BP in the 1990s.The crucial aspect here is that, transformational leaders should now provide hope and trust that an organization is running towards being better, through solving its problems and also improving the standards of the organisation and of employees’ work life. Whereas the fresh vision of an organization might have started whereas employees were trudging through the swamp, this is the moment to complete the progression, and also ensure that employees and all other stakeholders buy it, and comprehend their functions in this fresh organization. (Kochan and Useem, 1992)The Extent the process of change adopted by BP was consistent with theories of change management. Change in a work place is normally initiated by an organization in order to improve its service delivery. Change in management requires a thorough planning and responsive implementation, most of all, consultation need to done involving the people who are going to be affected by the planned changes. If change is forced to the people usually it brings problems. Galpin (1996) observes that, change has to be realistic, attainable and measurable, these factors are important especially when considering personal change in management.It has been observed that people change their ways because of being given statistics that change their way of thinking rather than the truth in the content. (Walton, 1995) In the case of BP, the management adopted change with resistance, and as stated in some theories for cha nge, human being are habitual creatures that will resist change even if it is good, a person don’t like changing the way he has been operating, this resistance is shown both in personal life and at place of work. Thus, as stated above it is a true person will require analysis of the issue to make him change.For example if when BP was undergoing the transformational change from traditional ways of management, a lot of questions were asked. The analysis will include, how successful is the change compared to the current ways of doing the activity, and what are the trend taking place. Also comparison has to be made in relation to other plays. If the analysis shows that the project if implemented will be successful then it is bound to get acknowledgement from the workers than if when the analysis shows that it may fail.Despite the fact that the, truth of the matter was different. The board of BP did not wait to realize the end results; this is may be due to the fact that the time frame of the transformation was to long while the board required faster outcomes. (Stoner and Freeman, 1992) Walton (1995) also says that change management implies that, employees need to feel that they are part of a process, thus, in bringing a change the people, the must be consulted and their suggestions sought.Stoner and Freeman (1992) observes that, In initiating the change ensure that it agrees with them, and that they understand the need of having the change, the people also need to chose how they will manage the change and in also should be involved in planning and also implementing the change. It is also important to use face to face way of communication in handling a sensitive issue. Thus, in the case of BP the management adopted changes on basis intellectual stimulation, through adopted the transformational process brought about by the Horton.According to this concept leaders stimulate the efforts of their employees through they innovativeness and also creativity, which w as adopted by BP Company. (Stoner and Freeman, 1992) Question two: the extent to which organizational culture may impede the process of change Organization culture is the manners in which activities are performed in an organization, the culture of an organization are guided by its values, beliefs, attitudes and experiences of an organization.Organization culture is a defined collection of norms and values that people and groups share in an organization, which directs the manner they interact with one another and with organization’s stakeholders. According to Schein (1992) concept, organizational culture is a model of shared fundamental assumption which an organization has leant in the process of solving its internal integration which has worked adequately well to be taken valid in order to be used to be taught to other new members of the organization.(Schein, 1992) Schein identifies three main aspects which are; †¢ Artefacts; evident organizational structures and procedu res †¢ Espoused values; these are goals objective and strategies of the organization †¢ Underlying assumptions; unconscious, assumed, thoughts beliefs perceptions and feelings (the eventual source of values and acts) Schein (1992) also points out that we have a deeper essential assumption that has a relationship with views of employees about the organization; that influence how employees feel and perceive the organization.(Bowditch and Buono (1990) states that; culture of an organization is dynamic and it is a continuous process. Leadership structure o an organization has a major position in defining organizational culture of an organization. Managers and founders of the organization play a significant role in as creators of culture of an organization. There are various aspects which decide the perception of the employees, these aspects includes how the organization treats its workforce, or how the management treats professional ethics or even the social relationship in or ganization, whether it is warm or cold.The organization climate created can help the organization achieve its goals and objectives or hinder it. Recent research reveals that management structure of an organization plays a significant function in defining the organizational climate in an organization. (Bowditch and Buono, 1990) Culture has an enormous effect on success rate of change Bowditch and Buono (1990) states that the organization's culture has much to do with success rate of an organisation’s projects. This entails any change that the organisation will adopt whether managerial or technological.The expression culture in general means â€Å"how things are done. † visualizes where a person asks you how effectively your organization succeeds on projects. If you answer, â€Å"We’re very poor at projects delivery,† you’re just voicing a view of one feature of your organisation culture. Culture comes into participation on changes or projects in sev eral areas. Process orientation A lot of organizations have got good processes in position and employees normally follow them well. This is possibly the principal single issue in generally project success.When an organization adheres to a well, scalable project management practice, a leader is more possibly to be constantly successful on the projects he initiates. The whole project team usually knows how to formulate and pursue a work plan, and can also apply standard procedures to successfully manage risk, extent of change, and issues of change. (Bowditch and Buono, 1990) However if the culture of the organization do not have a good processes then change procedures will not be followed and success may not be realized.Governance Numerous organizations have placed processes in position, although no one adheres to them. This underscores a difficulty with management control. In basic terms, governance of organisation entails the management role that has deals with ensuring people do wh at they’re ought to do. Usually, if the management arrangement is engaged and concerned in any projects, and if managers or leaders ensure that the project management procedure is well followed, a leader bring about change will be highly successful.But when each project manager is by his/her own and the management support is disorganized, though, a leader may try, he/she will fail. (Bowditch and Buono, 1990) Training Several organizations poorly train their project managers. Normally, such organizations have a poor training programme in genera even for other employees. When project managers in general do not have the correct skills, the transformational leader will not be successful. Organisation with poor culture on employee training will not be supportive to new changes. Roles and responsibilitiesBowditch and Buono, (1990) points out that, in a successful organization, employees usually know the function they ought to play on projects and also what is anticipated of them. T his comprises of active sponsors, concerned clients, and connected management stakeholders of organisation. The sponsors, for example, require carrying out a quality assurance functions and, being the project defender in his/her organization. Supposing an organization begins projects and then leaves a project manager in a leadership void, then, such a leader is not going to be constantly successful.Culture plays possibly the largest part in whether an organization will be successful in executing its projects. If an organization has difficulties completing their projects effectively and successfully, then, the organisation should not fault the project manager. A project manager only toils within an organisation culture which is not supporting their efforts. Managers, and even the head of the organizations, require stepping in and assess the project culture in organisation.Until an organisation culture changes for good, project managers will constantly struggle in being successful. (B owditch and Buono, 1990) Organizational structure can assist or harm project success To a lager extent, an organizational structure and culture can hinder, or assist support, the generally success of organisation projects. However, the organisational structure can be changed to some degree with time. Indeed, the management can change the organization chart regularly, and several companies do simply that. Culture, in contrast, is not easily to change.It takes many years for a big organization to build up a culture and thus it will take so many other years for such culture to be changed. A strong culture of an organization emphasis status-quo and any new ideas are not easily assimilated by employees or the management of such organisations. Conclusion As Tichy and Devanna (1986) states, transformational leaders are persons who through their own innovativeness, ability knowledge and imaginations and to influence the conduct of employees create circumstances for transforming.Thus, the ma nagement employees during the time when the organizational is going through transformation, is the critical substance of the progression of overseeing the transformation. The victorious management of this substance also comprises, (transactional) capabilities of the management, proper transformational abilities (inspirational motivation, idealized Influence, etc), and proper transformational attributes (creativity, team orientation, teaching).Organisation culture can also hinder or assist the change to take place and it’s very vital in determining how successful the transformation change will be. Hence, we conclude that qualities of transformational leadership and the organisational culture make the core of transformational management in an organisation and the means to successful running of transformational organization changes. Reference Bass, B. , M. and Avolio, B. , J (1999): (ed. ) Improving Organizational Effectiveness through Transformational Leadership, Sage Publicati ons, Ltd., USA. Bowditch, J. , L and Buono, A. , F. (1990): A Primer on Organizational Behaviour, John Wiley and Sons, New York, Galpin, T. , J. (1996): The Human Side of Change: A Practical Guide to Organization Redesign, Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco, Kochan, T. and Useem, M. (1992) :(ed. ), Transforming Organizations, Oxford University Press, Inc. , New York, Lorenz, C (1990): ‘A drama behind Closed Doors That Paved the Way for a Corporate Metamorphosis’, Financial Times, (March 21), Parry, K. , W., (1996): Transformational Leadership: Developing an Enterprising Management Culture, Pitman Publishing, Pearson Professional Pty Ltd. , Melbourne, Australia, Schein, E. H. (1992): Organizational Culture and Leadership (2nd edition. ). San Francisco; Wiley & Sons Stoner, J. , A. and Freeman, R. , E. (1992): Management, Prentice Hall, Inc. , New Jersey, Tichy, N and Devanna, M. , A. (1986): The Transformational Leader, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. , USA, Walton, A. , E. , (1995): (ed. ), Discontinuous Change: Leading Organizational Transformational, Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco,

One can learn a great deal about the Boreal Shield by taking a trip to Sudbury

One One can learn a great deal about the Boreal Shield by taking a trip to Sudbury. It is a city in the Boreal Shield region where the lumber and mining industries dominate its economy. The paper and pulp mills and the Nickel mine are symbols of this great city. Also, the re-greening program at Sudbury is a success, making the city unique in Canada. Sudbury continues to grow and strive from the benefits of the lumber and mining industries and the world-own re-greening program. Sudbury is famous for its mines that are filled with many types of ores. After the ores are mined, they become valuable minerals such as nickel and copper. It all started when Tom Flanagan, who is a blacksmith, discovered copper sulphide while constructing the Canadian Pacific Railway back in the 1883. (Noda) These copper sulphides were believed to have come from a meteorite that had crashed near Sudbury 1. 8 billion years ago. It also created a crater, which is now called the Sudbury basin. Today, two big companies, INCO and Falcon Bridge, are the most well known for mining the valuable minerals in Sudbury. INCO has been operating for twenty more years while Falcon Bridge has been around for less then twenty years. (Aelick) These mining companies provide jobs to Canadians living in the Boreal Shield. INCO employed nearly 20000 Canadian workers to dig and mine for the ores. Their jobs require them to go down to the open pits, which are approximately 1. 2 km long and 180 m deep. Each time they mine, they take out about 60 million tones of ore. Each ore mined only has 2. 5% of valuable minerals usable. Other minerals in the ore include 1. 2% of silver, 1. % of copper and 97. 5% of unusable waste. In average, mines can produce 462,000 kg of nickel and 116, 800 tonnes of copper per day. The mining industry is very important to the economy in Sudbury because nickel mined there are worth about 1. 5 billion dollars. That is also about 15% of the world's production of nickel. In Ontario, about 60% of copper is mainly found in Sudbury. Over the years of developing INCO, fewer employees work for the company. Since now, there are only 5000 employees left because technology and machines are built to mine for them. With better technology, the mining companies in Sudbury can be more productive and competitive in the global economy. (Aelick) It is reasonable to say that the forest industries survive well in the Boreal Shield because of the plentiful lumbers in the area. The trees near Sudbury are grown really slowly because of its low precipitation and long winters. The types of trees are mostly white spruce, balsam fir, black spruce, jack pine and tamarack. Lumber productions and Pulp and Paper industries use about 80% of the technique of clear cutting on the forest because it is a lot cheaper than selective cutting. Wallace) They are environment friendly because they replanted trees after cutting so new forests can grow. Another reason why the forest industries are doing so well is because they use efficient tools. Some machines they use to harvest wood are the feller buncher, skidder and de-limber. The feller buncher is used to grab and cut down trees. A skidder is a machine that pulls the wood out of the ground. A de-limber is another machine that snaps off the limbs of the trees. (DOMTAR) Paper and Pulp Mills is a company that uses chips of wood to create wood pulp. They use about 2000 tonnes of wood chips and cook it as it turns into pulp and paper. The wastes go into lagoons. They will drain it out to collect solids that are to be sold as fertilizers. (Ramsay) Today, approximately 95% of Canada's papers are made out of wood pulp. This pulp can create different sorts of papers such as newspapers, paper towel, magazine paper and cardboard, which may be sold to other parts of Canada. The success from the re-greening program in Sudbury is well known and complimented by many people. Many years ago, Mrs. O'Leary's cow accidentally kicked over a lamp, which caused a fire and destroyed most of Chicago. This affected Sudbury because of the sulphur dioxide blown from Chicago by the wind and it destroyed much of Sudbury's vegetations. Vegetations have started to grow again. It has been hard to get rid the sulphur dioxide. Later in the 1969's super stacks were made to lift the poisonous gas to a height of 381 meters high. (Anonymous) As soon as the super stacks were created, the citizens want to re-green Sudbury. They started to plant thousands of trees but hardly any of them survived. They thought of new ways to plant and finally they experimented with limestone. It worked! As a result, they hired many students who were looking for part-time jobs. At one time, there were 200 students and 200 miners helping to re-green Sudbury. They would spend their summer pulling dead limbs, hauling countless bags of lime fertilizer and grass seed through Sudbury. Because of its success in re-greening, Sudbury won 4 national and international environmental improvement awards. One of them for highly respected commendation from the United Nations. (Globe and Mail) Along with the mining and forestry industries, the re-greening program in Sudbury allowed the city to be an important center for activities in the Boreal Shield. The mining and forestry created many jobs for Canadians and provide many products to the world. The re-greening program helped promote Sudbury and Canada to be environmental friendly places. All of this created a great place to live called Sudbury.

Free Essays on The Case for Greatly Increased Immigration Vrs Timeout

Contrasing Two Essays In the argumentative essay â€Å"The Case for Greatly Increased Immigration† written by Julian L. Stein and also the essay â€Å"Timeout† written by Dan Stein, they are both trying to convince the audience to take their side. Stein and Simon both have different views on the subject of immigration, Simon wants the immigration rate to be increased and on the other hand, Stein wants to stop it all together until the issues are under control. Not only does Simon have evidence to justify his facts, but he also uses a number of reasons and explanations. Although Stein has some strong points, he seems to use his facts in negative ways. Simon’s essay seems to be more effective in persuading the audience to increase immigration. A strong point that makes Simon’s essay more effective than Stein’s, is that almost every one of his statements and facts are backed up by some sort of evidence. In both of the essays they talk about the number of immigrants that arrived in the U.S. in 1991. Simon said that there were about 600,00 to 750,000 admitted in that year (457). Simon also states where he got these numbers. On the other hand, in Stein’s essay he claims there were over 1,800,000 immigrants admitted to the U.S. in 1991(469). Not only was that number more than two times the number Simon gave, but also Stein does not even explain where or how he got the numbers, which makes his facts less effective. Another point, that would make Simon’s essay more effective would be the statements that he makes in letting the audience know of the ways the natives can benefit by admitting a certain number of immigrants in. Not only is he just stating the reasons, he is explaining them in detail and using examples to make them more convincing to the reader. One statement Simon’ makes is that immigration would actually save the native money: The tax and welfare data together indicate that, on balance, an immigrant famil... Free Essays on The Case for Greatly Increased Immigration Vrs Timeout Free Essays on The Case for Greatly Increased Immigration Vrs Timeout Contrasing Two Essays In the argumentative essay â€Å"The Case for Greatly Increased Immigration† written by Julian L. Stein and also the essay â€Å"Timeout† written by Dan Stein, they are both trying to convince the audience to take their side. Stein and Simon both have different views on the subject of immigration, Simon wants the immigration rate to be increased and on the other hand, Stein wants to stop it all together until the issues are under control. Not only does Simon have evidence to justify his facts, but he also uses a number of reasons and explanations. Although Stein has some strong points, he seems to use his facts in negative ways. Simon’s essay seems to be more effective in persuading the audience to increase immigration. A strong point that makes Simon’s essay more effective than Stein’s, is that almost every one of his statements and facts are backed up by some sort of evidence. In both of the essays they talk about the number of immigrants that arrived in the U.S. in 1991. Simon said that there were about 600,00 to 750,000 admitted in that year (457). Simon also states where he got these numbers. On the other hand, in Stein’s essay he claims there were over 1,800,000 immigrants admitted to the U.S. in 1991(469). Not only was that number more than two times the number Simon gave, but also Stein does not even explain where or how he got the numbers, which makes his facts less effective. Another point, that would make Simon’s essay more effective would be the statements that he makes in letting the audience know of the ways the natives can benefit by admitting a certain number of immigrants in. Not only is he just stating the reasons, he is explaining them in detail and using examples to make them more convincing to the reader. One statement Simon’ makes is that immigration would actually save the native money: The tax and welfare data together indicate that, on balance, an immigrant famil...

Robinson Crusoe Questions for Study and Discussion

'Robinson Crusoe' Questions for Study and Discussion Robinson Crusoe is the famous first novel by Daniel Defoe. A young man is shipwrecked and stranded on a deserted island. Its the stuff dreams are made of, but theres more to it than that. Here are a few questions for study and discussion. Discussion Questions What is important about the title?What are the conflicts in Robinson Crusoe? What types of conflict (physical, moral, intellectual, or emotional) did you notice in this novel?How does Daniel Defoe reveal character in Robinson Crusoe?What are some themes in the story? How do they relate to the ​plot and characters?What are some symbols in Robinson Crusoe? How do they relate to the plot and characters?Are the ​characters consistent in their actions? Which of the characters are fully developed? How? Why?Do you find the characters likable? Are the characters persons you would want to meet?How do loneliness, fear, and isolation affect (and shape) the characters?Does the novel end the way you expected? How? Why?What is the central/primary purpose of Robinson Crusoe? Is the purpose important or meaningful?How essential is the setting to the story? Could the story have taken place anywhere else?How important is friendship and/or camaraderie to Robinson Crusoe?Compare/contrast R obinson Crusoe with other works by Daniel Defoe? How does Robinson Crusoe fit into Defoes body of works? Would you recommend Robinson Crusoe to a friend?

All-Weather Case Audience Analysis Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

All-Weather Case Audience Analysis Memo - Essay Example The VP is the primary audience in the conversation. The secondary audience includes the other four managers in the marketing department of the company, and the other seven executives. The number of audience determine how Miguel, Linda and Doug as they prepare to meet the marketing department. In order to pass the message about benefits of using the newly introduced performance appraisal system in the company, it is crucial to understand the audience first. In order for the speaker to convince the audience, he or she must defend each point in support of the message he wants to pass. In this case, the speaker must understand the working of the Web-based system and the unique features it has that rates it higher than the ordinary methods of appraisal. The speaker has to expect objection from the audience either due to ignorant about the new idea or its viability. The speakers need to create a favorable atmosphere to the audience to attract them to listen keenly as they explain the new idea. This system will help save on the time lost in managing the ever increasing documents of staff records in the company. Since the company has a large number of employees, it is necessary to keep track of each member of the staff and increase efficiency during staff appraisal. The system will enable the company to increase its net profit from the current $25 million by reducing the company expenses. Presently, the company is spending a lot of its income on running costs, which are unnecessary due to ordinary data handling

Top business management teams Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Top business management teams - Essay Example Wrong approach on these issues has seen different companies; organizations and firms topple while as correct measures have seen their excellence and succession. Recently, each and every firm has its human resource management department on the spotlight. Even though the situation is so, critics and analysts point out that it the high time line managers and human resource professionals rethought and redefined the exact meaning of human resource (Bowen and Ostroff, 2004). As a result, human resource managers are responding to scrutiny by applying new thinking and approach. They are trying to transform from the earlier concept of do-ables to focusing on more proactive measures, the deliverables. While the do-ables usually dwell on improving HR practices, upgrading HR professionals, and re-instituting or re- engineering of human resource departments. Activities involved here are emphasizing on taken actions, activities and an organizations happenings, occurrences and events. Deliverables deal mainly in outcomes, values and results that emerge from carrying out or under taking human resource upgrading or practice. Survey done on aspects towards managing performance and development of workers: shows a variety of differences depending on the nature of business. Some of the strategies applied included strategies, policies and employee recruitment, promotion, appraisals, pension payment and compensation: job design, complains handling and labor management. Managers must take competence of their workers into account very serious, technically/functionally that is individual achievements in finance, marketing and customer care, core basically in organization, crisis management, logistics and manufacturing. Social capabilities like leadership, setting directives, diversity, commitment, teamwork and credibility among other reasons. They should also consider organizational merits such as long distance work, time, speed and intellectual capital. Competencies result to correct total income and balance sheet reflection. Incase of errors or omissions, reports annual reports published would reflect a lie, even from a slight discrepancy. Competence also ensures that final products or services are of high standards thus increasing customer in flow and a growth in demand (Bowen and Ostroff, 2004). Managers should make change happen by being the change agent: In an environment that is unpredictable or even unforeseeable, they should emphasize on the ability to quickly change rather than investing on policies that might not work in such cases. They ought to prepare their workers for anything anytime. Change in the sense of perceptions and euphoria about the company is also worth consideration in efforts towards HR management. They should create an intellectual capital and play employee champions: the challenge lies in what they have and how to increase it. With keen interest on workers progress, managers can encourage and campaign for even better working conditions. By championing for their welfare in turn morale can be boosted among employees. Human resource managers need also to improve on their employee relations in order to create that friendly atmosphere. This involves understanding of their pros and cons, practicing empathy and creating a close relationship between them and the working team in their company. By showing that they really care, the workers will feel