Cooperative Learning (Grade 1 to Grade 12) Essay

Cooperative Learning (Grade 1 to Grade 12) - Essay Example Cooperative efforts this way result in participants striving for mutual benefits so that all the members are gaining by the work of every individual. It also helps to inculcate a sense of responsibility among individuals because they know their work and contribution will affect the outcome that is important for all the members. The group members also know that all of them will share the same fate no matter how they work, therefore they work intently and encourage others in the group to work in the same way. Last but not the least, celebration after the successful completion of the task is also mutual and everyone soul from the group is happy and proud of themselves. Group activities also help in the refining of the outcomes of the tasks because there is shared knowledge, expertise and hard work that everyone is putting in. Obviously not everyone has all the knowledge in the world. In cooperative learning situations there is a positive interdependence among students' goal attainments; students perceive that they can reach their learning goals if and only if the other students in the learning group also reach their goals (Deutsch, 1962; Johnson & Johnson, 1989). Learning goals may be structured to promote coo... e reason being that in today's world, individuals are expected to work together in teams for the accomplishment of tasks which is a tedious job if one doesn't possess the qualities required to work in groups with each other. However, competitive situations are present in which individuals work against each other to achieve one particular goal that only one or few of them can attain. In competition there is a negative interdependence among goal achievements; students perceive that they can obtain their goals if and only if the other students in the class fail to obtain their goals (Deutsch, 1962; Johnson & Johnson, 1989). The presence of competitive situation is equally important in this world. However, the disadvantage is that either they work too hard to beat their class mates or they don't work at all thinking that they don't stand a chance. Elements of Cooperative Learning The essential components of cooperation are positive interdependence, face to face promotive interaction, individual and group accountability, interpersonal and small group skills and group processing (Johnson, Johnson, & Holubec, 1993). It is under certain conditions that should be present for cooperative learning to be more effective than individualistic and competitive learning. Positive interdependence is when every individual possesses some unique ability or knowledge that contributes in the outcome of the task and the efforts are required and indispensible for the group success. Face to face interaction involves orally presenting and promoting ones ideas to everyone in the group, teaching current knowledge to everyone and discussing the concepts that are being learned so that they can be effectively applied by every individual present in the group. Group accountability should be present

Juvinile Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Juvinile - Essay Example These people are taken to regular courts and if need be are jailed after justice has been reached as per the rules of the land. On the other hand, if the offender is below 18 years of age, a different set of rules apply. These persons are tried under juvenile law where the goal is to rehabilitate rather than punish the minors for crimes done. This will be the focus of this discussion and this paper will look at various issues as pertains to a juvenile case The People v. Eric S. Considering juvenile case number A125758 of the people as the plaintiff and Eric S. as the defendant/appellant, there are a number of issues that arise. This case arose when the appellant, 17 year old Eric together with his two teenage companions attacked a 44 year old man. During the attack, the appellant hit the victim in the head with a two by four resulting in severe injuries. These injuries included a gash in the head that required seven staples, a fractured cheekbone resulting to swelling of the face, a contusion on his right forearm and a sprained knee and torn ligaments (Justia US Law, 2). In addition to this, the victim suffered a black eye and severe swelling of the knee and forearm. Being a member of the Kaiser family foundation, the victim received extensive medical treatment at a Kaiser facility. After the court hearing, the appellant was declared a ward of the juvenile court when he admitted to a felony assault count of using force likely to cause great bodily injury. The decision of the court was to release him but put him on home probation under a number of conditions (Justia US Law, 2). In addition to these conditions, he was required to pay direct victim restitution. In the restitution hearing, the district attorney asked the court to include the cost of the victim’s treatment at the Kaiser Foundation. This amounted to $51,270.06 which included $48, 619.90 for the cost incurred at the Kaiser Family plus an additional $2,650.16 for out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the victim. According to People v. Duong (2010) 180 Cal.App.4th 1533 (Duong), the court held that victim restitution ordered against adult offenders under Penal Code section 1202.4 may include amounts billed for medical services provided by a health maintenance organization (Findlaw, 5).As a result of this decision, there were a number of legal questions that arose, first of all, the question of having to pay for the cost of all the treatment that the victim received at the Kaiser Family Foundation. Would it not be fair enough if the appellant only covered the victim’s out of-pocket expenses? This is from reasoning that the victim was a member of the Kaiser HMO and thus would not have to pay for the medical services that he received from the institution. Another question that arose was the fact that direct restitution should be limited to the economic losses a victim occurs as a result of an attack and should not include medical expenses that the victim did not pay for per sonally. PART 2 In defense of the ordered restitution amount that was to include the medical care provided by the Kaiser Foundation, one critical question was answered by the case. This was the fact that ordering restitution for a victim in a juvenile case was to serve three functions which include, to rehabilitate the defender, to prevent future delinquent behavior and finally to make the victim whole by compensating him for the economic loss

A study of knowledge management leadership

A study of knowledge management leadership For the purpose of the assignment, the telecommunication industry was chosen from the services industry from Great Britain. Vodafone Group plc. (LSE: VOD, NASDAQ:  VOD), being a British multinational mobile network operator headquartered in Newbury, England has established prominent state within the business world. Vodafone is the worlds largest mobile telecommunication network company, and has a market value of about  £71.2 billion (November 2009). A multinational corporation (MNC) or transnational corporation (TNC), also called multinational enterprise (MNE), is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation. The first modern multinational corporation is generally thought to be the East India Company. It currently has operations in 31 countries and partner networks in a further 40 countries. It is the worlds second largest mobile phone operator behind China Mobile a nd over Telephonic based on subscribers, with over 427 million subscribers in 31 markets across 5 continents as of 2009. In the UK, its home ground, Vodafone has badly underperformed in the last few years due to brisk change in administration. It has slipped from first to third largest telecom operator generating revenue of  £4.9 billion from its 18.7 million customers in 2008-09. As of March 31, 2009, the company employs more than 79,000 people worldwide. The name Vodafone comes from voice data fone, chosen by the company to reflect the provision of voice and data services over mobile phones. (BBC, 2009) Vodafone has been working and operating within many countries and have created several opportunities of working with local companies. February 2010, Vodafone announced that it is bringing M-PESA, one of the worlds most successful mobile money transfer services, to South Africa, to be deployed by its subsidiary, Vodacom South Africa and its South African banking partner. With approximately 26 million people in South Africa without official bank accounts, M-PESA will enable millions of mobile phone subscribers who have access to a mobile phone, but do not have or have only limited access to a bank account, to send and receive money via their mobile phones. The M-PESA service was developed by Vodafone and has already been deployed by Safari com in Kenya, Vodacom in Tanzania and Roshan in Afghanistan (branded M-Paisa). More than 11 million registered customers now rely on their mobile phones for money transfer, airtime top-up and bill payments. Vodafone takes an unusual tack with success ful candidates. Vodafone feeds back information on how people performed into their development plans as no one is ever a 100 per cent fit. The assessment process is constantly re-evaluated, with employees being assessed regularly on their background and personality. It also tracks new hires on attrition, sickness absence, performance in training and performance in the job. The process clearly works. They recruit fewer people than before because there assessment process has had such a positive effect on both attrition and performance. Theres a key attrition measure in call centres at 13 weeks into the job. Its the first pinch-point. Theyve improved there dramatically by selecting the right people at the outset. There are several factors that influence the working of multinational companies such as market imperfections and international powers. For the company under consideration, the market imperfections are the possibility of not knowing the local laws, local customers or businesses. The international power factors could be tax exemption, market withdrawal, lobbying, patents and government powers. The SECI model (the acronym stands for Socialization, Externalization, Combination, Internalization) was first proposed in 1991 (Nonaka 1991), though was refined and expanded for a broader audience in the popular book The Knowledge Creating Company (Nonaka Takeuchi 1995). The SECI model met with broad acceptance, especially among management practitioners, due to its intuitive logic and clear delineation of knowledge types between tacit and explicit knowledge-utilising this knowledge delineation first espoused in management theory by Polanyi (1958). The core behavioural assumption in the model is that knowledge creating companies continually encourage the flow of knowledge between individuals and staff groups to improve both tacit and explicit knowledge stocks. Thus, knowledge value is created through synergies between knowledge holders (both individual and group) within a supportive and developmental organisational context. Figure (The Key Elements of the SECI Model, In the above diagram, the I, G, and O symbols represent individuals) group and organization In 1998 a third, more challenging, cultural assumption was added to the SECI discussion. Nonaka and Konno (1998) introduced the Japanese concept of Ba, a philosophical construct rooted in Japanese society that relates to the physical, relational and spiritual elements of place, or perhaps more expansively context. In the strategic management and organisational theory literatures, organisations are increasingly conceptualised in terms of their knowledge and capabilities (Poppo Zenger 1998), and less in terms of their physical and financial assets. Further, organisational alliances that draw together firms are being viewed as conduits for information and knowledge flows between organisations (Grant Baden-Fuller 2004). Trans-National Corporations (TNCs) sometimes referred to as multinational companies, are enterprises that control economic assets in other countries generally this means controlling at least a 10% share of such an asset. These companies command enormous financial resources, possess vast technical resources and have extensive global reach. In 2002, the most recent year for which full data are available, FDI made throughout the world totalled some $651bn. While most FDI goes to developed countries; for developing countries it is by far the largest source of external finance. The figures are striking: In 2002 $162bn in FDI went to developing countries. By comparison, official development assistance (ODA) amounts to some $58bn annually and remittances, another significant source of funds for poor countries, totalled $93bn in 2003. Above mentioned picture shows that Developed market multinationals gives more emphasis to Process Technology and Organizational Architecture. Their operating model is process technology driven and results were judged on the basis of performance metrics. They give very less importance to Leadership skills Inter-personal relationship between people however opposite is true for Emerging Market multinationals where more emphasis is given to Leadership Inter-personal relationship between people and less importance is given to process technology, organizational Architecture metrics. For Example: In the oil and gas industry, for instance, emerging-market NOCs do not seem to rely as systematically on the strict net-present-value metric that IOCs use in their decision-making process-which is consistent with a more-risk conscious leadership style. Rather than adopting this metric, NOCs change the game by creating deals that involve aid and infrastructure packages. This signals a market development mind-set as opposed to a market-exploitation mind-set. Knowledge Management plan: Overview Knowledge Management (or KM) refers to the processes and/or tools an organization uses to collect, analyse, store, and disseminate its intellectual capital. Besides deployment of appropriate technology and processes by a business enterprise in order to maintain and retain its intellectual capital, effective KM also refers to making optimum use of experience and understanding of organizational knowledge, in general. This includes a wide range of information artefacts, such as inherent knowledge-based documents (reports) available internally within the organization, as well as related information from the external resources. Definition A logical extension of this concept is into the entire organization, in the form of Enterprise Knowledge Management (EKM). Among the areas of greatest concern for the modern knowledge worker (from CIO down to the Content Manager), is identifying, collecting, securing and maintaining the information (aka knowledge base) of the organization. Without a process to ensure this systems usefulness, there are invariably holes which are only found when a user tries to obtain that (missing) information. As Intellectual Capital This intellectual capital can include training materials, processes, procedures, documents, ideas, skills, experiences, and much more. An effective Knowledge management plan allows a company to quickly and easily share this intellectual capital among the organization so it is available on-demand at any time it is needed. (EEC) KM Types KM can take many forms, depending on the purpose and requirements. The following is a partial list of related types of KM from which an organization may select one or many: Content Management Data Management Records Management Document Management Portal Online Education Information Architecture Knowledge Discovery Knowledge Retrieval KM Storage Methods of storing and sharing this intellectual capital include searchable knowledge bases, Learning Management Systems, other types of databases, enterprise portals, groupware tools, and email. KM Leadership Knowledge management leadership, in terms of position types and their associated titles, covers a broad category of positions and responsibilities. Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO), like any executive-level corporate leader, handles for enterprise-wide coordination of all KM-related issues and projects. Few corporations maintain a CKO or equivalent officer within their organization. More likely, this responsibility would fall either within the scope of the CIO or a director-level Knowledge Manager. Various categories within the lower-level Knowledge Management career field may be: Knowledge Analyst (Content Manager), Knowledge Engineer (Software Specialist), or, Knowledge Steward (Librarian). These are general career titles, since a specific taxonomy does not currently exist which applies to all organizations or positions within the emerging field of KM. Most of the challenges in knowledge management primarily stem from the types of knowledge reuse situations and purposes. Knowledge workers may produce knowledge that they themselves reuse while working. However, each knowledge re-use situation is unique in terms of requirements and context. Whenever these differences between the knowledge re-use situations are ignored, the organization faces various challenges in implementing its knowledge management practices. The Knowledge Management system enables employees to have ready access to the institutional documented base of facts, information sources and solutions. A typical claim justifying the creation of a KM system might run something like this: an engineer could know the mobile applications can help in transferring money to other countries without any security concerns. Sharing these informations widely could lead to more valuable money transfer plan leading to ideas for new or improved equipment. Following factors incorporate manag ement system such as Purpose: the Knowledge Management System depends upon explicit knowledge management objectives towards collaboration, effective practice and team work. Context: Knowledge is information that is significantly well thought-out, accumulated and embedded in a framework of creation and application. Processes: Knowledge Management System are always developed to sustain and extend knowledge-intensive processes, tasks or projects of e.g., designing, construction, identification, capturing, acquirement, variety, valuation, organization, linking, structuring, formalization, evolution, accessing, visualization, transfer, distribution, retention, maintenance, refinement, revision, retrieval and last but not least the application of knowledge, also called the knowledge life cycle (KLC). Participants: KMS designs are held to reflect that knowledge is developed collectively and that the distribution of knowledge leads to its continuous change, reconstruction and application in different contexts, by different participants with differing backgrounds and experiences. Although this is not necessarily the case. Employees can engage in recreation the roles of active, involved participants in knowledge networks and communities fostered by Knowledge Management System. Instruments: KMS support KM instruments, e.g., the capture, creation and sharing of the modifiable aspects of practice, skill management systems, collaborative filtering and handling of interests used to hook up people, the creation and fostering of communities or knowledge networks, the creation of corporate knowledge directories, taxonomies or ontologies, expertise locators. KM systems are being used within many transnational organizations with many success stories. The advantages claimed by the KM systems are: Sharing valuable institutional information throughout organizational hierarchy: Knowledge and information sharing are regarded as means to use resources more effectively in order to reduce costs and gain a competitive advantage (cf. Chuang, 2004; Johannessen and Olsen, 2003; Ringel-Bickelmaier, 2000; North, 2005). As a common feature, all international organizations work within the restraint of a tight regular budget that needs to be managed as effectively and ef ¬Ã‚ ciently as possible. Almost all international organizations have accordingly installed controlling systems or rede ¬Ã‚ ned their tasks as business cases. It includes creating plans such as helping in identifying, create, capture and share knowledge systematically in order to assist working smarter rather than harder. Modern strategies for improved reputation advertising capabilities and getting resource returns for further enhance development agenda; Widened pool of targeted knowledge makes organizational learning more strategic as Efficiency gains though improved results. Through the systematic system, the companies can avoid re-discovering the wheel, reducing outmoded work as well as committing same mistake again and again. It helps the businesses to improve the cost; time spent as well the better risk management. May lessen new employees training time. After the employee leaves, retention of Intellectual Property if knowledge can be codified. Knowledge sharing behaviours and facilitate knowledge transfer This study aims to examine the factors affecting knowledge sharing behavior in knowledge-based communities because quantity and quality of knowledge shared among the members play a critical role in the communitys sustainability. Past research has suggested three perspectives that may affect the quantity and quality of knowledge shared: economics, social psychology, and social ecology. In this study, we strongly believe that an economic perspective may be suitable to validate factors influencing newly registered members, knowledge contribution at the beginning of relationship development. Accordingly, this study proposes a model to validate the factors influencing members knowledge sharing based on Transaction Cost Theory. By doing so, we may empirically test our hypotheses in various types of communities to determine the generalizability of our research models. Benefits to sharing knowledge include: Enhancement of effectiveness and efficiency by spreading good ideas and practices. Cost effectiveness knowledge is developed and then re-used by many people. Time savings Professionals learn from their mistakes and those of others. Emotional relief and decreased tension are experienced when problems are shared. Bonds and connections between professionals are strengthened; solving problems brings people together. More sophisticated ideas, insights and information sources are applied to problems resulting in better solutions. Innovation and discovery increase as does: excitement, engagement and motivation. A feeling of satisfaction from sharing knowledge, much like giving charity, results from making a contribution to society. Respectful ways of using knowledge with attribution and permission benefit the person who generates the knowledge and the person who shares it. Management Development plan Management Development is the process by which managers learn and improve their expertise not only to benefit themselves but also their employing organisations. There are various approaches to management development programmes such as follow. Mentoring Mentoring is to support and encourage people to manage their own learning in order that they may maximise their potential, develop their skills, improve their performance and become the person they want to be.  Eric Parsloe, the Oxford School of Coaching. Mentoring is a technique for allowing the transmission of knowledge, skills and experience in a supportive and challenging environment much like coaching. The same skills of inquiring, listening, clarifying, reframing and many of the same models are used. Mentoring can also work as a way of inducting employees, as a form of employees development across departments and as a means of simple skills transfer. However, mentoring relationships can be much more long term, for example in a sequence planning scenario a regional finance director might be mentored by a group level counterpart where they might learn the basics of dealing with the boardroom, presenting to analysts, challenging departmental budgets, etc. all in a supportive environment. This is particularly productive when there is a gender or ethnic dimension to the relationship. An effective mentoring liaison is a learning opportunity for both parties.  Mentoring relationships work best when they move beyond the directive appr oach of a senior colleague telling it how it is, to one where both learn from each other. Management Coaching and Development The challenge of maintaining competitive advantage, delivering growth plans, restructuring and downsizing has never been greater. Developing people to deliver to their maximum potential can mean the difference between success and failure. And successful organisations know that developing their people not only leads to increased business performance, but that it is also a key factor in staff engagement and retention. In tough times, organisations that axe development activity do so at their peril. Coaching Although there is a lack of agreement among coaching professionals about precise definitions, in this service company, Coaching as developing a persons skills and knowledge so that their job performance improves, hopefully leading to the achievement of organisational objectives. It targets high performance and improvement at work, although it may also have an impact on an individuals private life. It usually lasts for a short period and focuses on specific skills and goals. There are some generally agreed characteristics of coaching in organisations: It is essentially a non-directive form of development. Coaching assumes that the individual is psychologically well and does not require a clinical intervention. It provides people with feedback on both their strong point and their weaknesses. It is a skilled activity which should be delivered by trained people. It focuses on improving presentation and developing individuals skills. Personal issues may be discussed but the emphasis is on performance at work. Coaching activities have both organisational and individual goals. Job rotation Job design  technique  in which  employees  are moved between two or more  jobs  in a planned manner. In Vodafone the objective  is to expose the employees to different experiences  and wider variety of  skills  to enhance  job satisfaction  and to cross-train them. Job rotation is a great way to discover your strength and interest in different areas of the Vodafone. On the job training This will be for the assistants who join fresh to help managers. A mapping procedure will be followed by the HR, to place the new assistant with a manager that has expertise in the field that the assistant aspires to enhance his/her skills. This will help reduce the training cost of the company and help the fresher become confident and be integral to the company Business Workflow Analysis In Vodafone Company the workflows is to diagram the way that a company works in an easy-to-read format. This chart allows managers to assess the way the company is performing and determine how productive its methods are. Flaws in the process where time or resources are wasted can often be identified quickly in format of a  workflow. These issues can then be addressed by preparing a new, more efficient business  workflow  to demonstrate the changes that need to be made. Upward feedback In leadership development and management development, upward feedback (also known as manager feedback and subordinate appraisal) is a structured process of delivering feedback from subordinates to managers, intended to identify ways to increase management effectiveness and enhance organizational performance.   Supervisory training This training provides an opportunity to learn about the transition to leadership so that new managers and supervisors can be more successful in their new role. For more experienced managers and supervisors, the training offers an opportunity to reflect on the style they have adopted in performing their duties, and it shows where they can make improvements. This is particularly true for those who have come up through the ranks over the years and now face a very different workforce, workload, and set of community expectations. This training is intended to help you better understand your role and provide strategies to enhance your effectiveness as a leader. Management Development Theories: The human relations and human factors approaches were absorbed into a broad behavioural science movement in the 1950s and 1960s. This period produced some influential theories on the motivation of human performance. For example, Maslows hierarchy of needs provided an individual focus on the reasons why people work. He argued that people satisfied an ascending series of needs from survival, through security to eventual self-actualization. In the same period, concepts of job design such as job enrichment and job enlargement were investigated. It was felt that people would give more to an organization if they gained satisfaction from their jobs. Jobs should be designed to be interesting and challenging to gain the commitment of workers a central theme of HRM. Scientific Management Theory (1890-1940) At the turn of the century, the most notable organizations were large and industrialized. Often they included on going, routine tasks that manufactured a variety of products. The United States highly prized scientific and technical matters, including careful measurement and specification of activities and results. Management tended to be the same. Frederick Taylor developed the :scientific management theory which espoused this careful specification and measurement of all organizational tasks. Tasks were standardized as much as possible. Workers were rewarded and punished. This approach appeared to work well for organizations with assembly lines and other mechanistic, routinized activities. Bureaucratic Management Theory (1930-1950) Max Weber embellished the scientific management theory with his bureaucratic theory. Weber focused on dividing organizations into hierarchies, establishing strong lines of authority and control. He suggested organizations develop comprehensive and detailed standard operating procedures for all routinized tasks. Human Relations Movement (1930-today) Eventually, unions and government regulations reacted to the rather dehumanizing effects of these theories. More attention was given to individuals and their unique capabilities in the organization. A major belief included that the organization would prosper if its workers prospered as well. Human Resource departments were added to organizations. The behavioural sciences played a strong role in helping to understand the needs of workers and how the needs of the organization and its workers could be better aligned. Various new theories were spawned, many based on the behavioural sciences (some had name like theory X, Y and Z). Points to consider *. What is the value of theory? Specifically, what is the value of a theory that has gone out of fashion? Most theories are not entirely new they adapt or develop older concepts as a result of perceived inadequacies in the originals. Management thinking is like an incoming tide: each wave comes further up the beach, then retreats, leaving a little behind to be overtaken by the next wave. You can also consider the limitations of common sense and the fact that most problems have been experienced already, in some form, by someone else. We can learn from that wider experience, whereas common sense is essentially individual. Conclusion: The SECI models help the business to improve the business turnout through traditional strategies such as emotional and regional factors. The Vodafone are employing all these strategies in order to strengthen their roots within those communities through the theses money transfer campaigns and employing people from those countries to introduce the desired factors within Knowledge system. Also thorough the management development schemes, Vodafone are getting the best out of them by educating and empowering them with the modern techniques. Nonaka, I Takeuchi, H 1995, The knowledge creating company. How Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation, Oxford University Press, New York. Nonaka, I 1991, The Knowledge Creating Company, Harvard Business Review, (November-December), pp. 96-104. Nonaka, I, Toyama, R Konno, N 2001, SECI, Ba and Leadership: a Unified Model of Dynamic Knowledge Creation, in I Nonaka DJ Teece (eds.), Managing Industrial Knowledge: Creation, Transfer and Utilization, Sage, London, pp. 1-43. Poppo, L Zenger, T 1998, Testing alternative theories of the firm: transaction cost, knowledge-based, and measurement explanations for make-or-buy decisions in information services, Strategic Management Journal, 19 (9), pp. 853-877.

Leonhard Euler Essay -- essays research papers

Leonhard Euler Euler made large bounds in modern analytic geometry and trigonometry. He made decisive and formative contributions to geometry, calculus and number theory. Born: 15 April 1707 in Basel, Switzerland Died: 18 Sept 1783 in St Petersburg, Russia Introduction Euler's father wanted his son to follow him into the church and sent him to the University of Basel to prepare for the ministry. However geometry soon became his favourite subject. Euler obtained his father's consent to change to mathematics after Johann Bernoulli had used his persuasion. Johann Bernoulli became his teacher. He joined the St. Petersburg Academy of Science in 1727, two years after it was founded by Catherine I the wife of Peter the Great. Euler served as a medical lieutenant in the Russian navy from 1727 to 1730. In St Petersburg he lived with Daniel Bernoulli. He became professor of physics at the academy in 1730 and professor of mathematics in 1733. He married and left Johann Bernoulli's house in 1733. He had 13 children altogether of which 5 survived their infancy. He claimed that he made some of his greatest discoveries while holding a baby on his arm with other children playing round his feet. The publication of many articles and his book Mechanica (1736-37), which extensively presented Newtonian dynamics in the form of mathematical analysis for the first time, started Euler on the way to major mathematical work. In 1741, at the invitat...

Globalization and Sustainability: The Importance of Government

The world was once vast and unknown. Communication was once dreaded as messages would take exceeded amounts of time from one point of destination to the next. Countries would not know of each other†s affairs for months because the world was large beyond anyone†s imagination. But as soon as technology reared its head the world rapidly became smaller. It modified everything within its grasp. Communication that once took months could now take seconds. Travelling abroad that would have taken years now took hours. Every institution that fell into this form of globalisation changed. It is obvious to see that governments have also been effected by globalisation in such ways that they can either imitate or contrast with each other. Yet a controversy exists about the issue on the effect of globalisation on governmental power. On one side of the argument globalisation is considered as a force that weakens the power of government whereas others debate the contrary, claiming that there is no effect and power remains constant. Still both arguments fail because of the extremity that they impose. A better argument would be that globalisation does effect government power, not to the point of weakening, but ensuring that no abuse of power occurs unknowingly. Globalisation is simply a tool that enables the actions of governments to be monitored by other countries and world organisations. With comparison of Australian and Canadian environmental policy, it will be clear that actions taken by the government have been influenced (not controlled) by globalisation. The idea of the world becoming a small interactive village is what many would consider the effect of globalisation. Boundaries are no longer an issue and can be crossed with an easy click of the mouse. But globalisation is far from being a new concept that came along with technology. It has existed since humans have had curiosity. The exploring of new lands, the discovery of new peoples and nations, to the fascination of nature†s physical features, people have been in the process of globalisation for centuries. Technology had simply allowed globalisation to progress a little more rapidly than what it had accomplished in the past. Although it seems that globalisation brings promise of a unified Utopian society this is far from becoming the truth. Today†s world is based on the market. The selling of goods and services to the consumer to gain profit. Therefore globalisation has become the expansion of the market place with greater opportunities for production and trade in new locations. 1 Relations are established between nations, not for the mere satisfaction of peace, but for the insurance that a trading partner exists where profit can be gained. This motivation from profit leads to the element of the manufacturing process. In order to achieve maximum profit corporations need to spend less in producing a product. They go about this through means of cheap energy fuel (usually fossil fuels like coal), low labour wages, and cutting costs in waste disposal. For an exceeded amount of time corporations have been able to escape the clutches of the law because it was seen that damage to the environment was a small price to pay in exchange for high profits. For instance abuse to the Canadian forests in the past two centuries has led to a large proportion of it being cut, 8 000 kilometres long and hundreds of kilometres wide. When large damage has been inflicted only then will people†s concerns be aroused. Governments then needed to intervene, to steer corporations from inflicting anymore damage to resources and environment. Canadian government had only made environmental policy a main concern since 1985. It was in the Ontario provincial election where pollution was made a significant issue. This was the first time ever that the issue of pollution was made a priority. Ever since the topic of concern for pollution has been maintained by both provincial and federal institutions. Australia on the other hand began its involvement on the issue in 1980. It was in this year that the World Conservation Strategy was published and the country took it upon itself to formulate a similar document that would help enforce the idea of sustainable environment throughout the nation. 4 Although government intervention seems to guarantee some progress towards sustainability the idea of globalisation alters the desired effects. World trade allows the cheapest producer to gain maximum profits. Competition for profits is then always present. In order for competition to exist all producers must somehow keep product costs low while maintaining or increasing product output. If legislation is passed within a country that holds a corporation responsible for destruction to the environment by means of their waste, corporations can still outrun any consequences from their actions. It is difficult to prosecute institutions because they are essential. 5 They provide jobs, goods and services, and distribute money towards many organisations. The industry allows economy to prosper as well as many citizens that partake in the production and consumption of the goods. The destruction of the environment is seen as irrelevant to the benefits of cash profit that the industry brings. What corporations fail to observe is the future outlook. The concern is only on maximum exploitation for maximum gain. No corporation has interest in conservation because of the mentality of whatever is left by a corporation will simply be used by a competitor. 6 Yet the immediate gains will not always be present because sooner or later resources will be exhausted and there will then be a failure to produce, soon followed by a collapse within the industry production and profit. Sustainability will ensure that resources can be reserved as well as allowing time for some replenishment. It is for this reason that governments have decided to be involved, for a fall in industry would lead to a fall in the economy and the welfare of the state. Canada and Australia share the same vision when it comes to sustainability. Both understand that environmental policy is essential to maintain a prosperous nation. There has been a similar vision on the purpose of developing environmental policy. The development is to allow (i) multiple times scales in which the present is considered as well as the near and farther future; (ii) effect on various dimensions of social life where economy, environment, and social equity are viewed as equal; and (iii) diverse social and ecological scales where region and locality are a concern as well as the global nation. 7 All three aspects are to produce an ecologically balanced society, with stable institutions designed to assure equilibrium within tolerances that the natural environment can support. This is much easier said than done. The event of there being total agreement is never achieved and compromising always leads to one or all parties involved to be unsatisfied. In order to satisfy government policy, as well as avoid negative outbreaks by environmental conscience citizens, corporations need to follow the specified guidelines of environmental sustainability. Institutions then need to pay much more attention and effort towards waste elimination and treatment. This costs a substantial amount of money. Two options are to either increase product prices or cut spending on other operations within the process. Increasing prices would allow costs to be covered and avoid in any profit loss experienced by the corporation but high prices could cause for decrease in profit for it causes a decrease in profits by the lower prices This again is a of current competitors. This is the reason why the second option is more favourable. Cutting costs in the operation allows for the same amount to be spent on production and in some instances even less. Most popular method of cutting is within the removal of management layers. By eliminating certain amounts of staff and replacing them with computers and automation manufacturing processes companies can then compete in the world market. 9 This occurs mostly in wealthy nations such as Canada, Australia, England, and the United States. Since poor nations have no strict policies on labour leading to low wage structures, production by corporations within these nations can produce product cheaply and sell at an admirably low price. Since wealthy nations have high labour costs, expensive social programs, and a high degree of foreign investment, in order to compete in the world market they choose to employ less. 11 It seems to be a simple enough tactic but other corporations have been so used to a certain process of production that instead of changing their methods they would rather relocate to poorer nations in which they could keep profits or exceed them tenfold. Globalisation leads to the reallocation of corporations. In less hostile environments, these corporate conglomerates can destroy and manipulate the environment to their pleasing and will not be accused for they supply many jobs in a poor nation that needs income to fuel its economy. This global mobility allows corporations to escape environmental policy. The acceleration of jobless growth in poor nations leads to unemployment, creating pressures that allow economic activity that is destructive as well as it undermines efforts of mitigation, planning, and regulatory enforcement. 2 Environmental policy with absence of enforcement leads to the lack of interest in enforcement. The NAFTA agreement, the elimination of tariffs among trading countries, between the United States, Canada, and the developing Mexico is a good example of how businesses escape strict policy. Because of Mexico†s low wage enforcement and anti-union government, environmental policy falls prey to lower standards and enforcement. 13 The nation really does feel opposed to the destruction but if they fail to allow industries to do so they will lose business to global mobility. The problem is does not lie on government passing legislation for policies have been made. The problem lies within the amount of enforcement that is dedicated on ensuring that the policies are practised to the full extent. Not every country has the same view when enforcement of policy is the issue. Some nations are better off than others so it is easier for them to proceed with strict enforcement but Third World countries, in order to compete in the world market, are more lenient because of the need to better establish a prosperous economy. This is a main concern among many because the problem is never fully solved but simply reallocated. This is when international policy becomes a suggested solution. Governments need to strike a common chord with each other when it comes to environmental sustainability. It needs to be seen that if restrictions are present and enforced equally throughout all nations then the concept of conservation will be spread throughout globally. In order for this to succeed a new flow of financing and technology for environmental conservation needs to be achieved. Third World nations would also not feel the pressure to exploit for maximum profit if debts were alleviated and industrial countries initiated programs to provide access to technical assistance, training technology transfer, and planning grants to increase their capacity to manage environmental and energy challenges. 15 Through this method it would allow nations to stand on equal ground and be able to maintain a harmony between nature and industry. This is a fantasy to be achieved for the motive of wealth is always the motivation that leads to the neglecting of policies. The proposal of a world government is an idea that could ensure that a universal policy be followed by all countries and ensure that enforcement be weighted equally among all nations. A world government generates both relief and fear when it boils down to policy making. The relief comes that all nations are treated equally and must follow all laws that have been passed by this supreme institution. Yet, not all nations are equal even though the idea of it sounds appealing. Some nations are better off than others are so it is difficult for everyone to participate fully when some nations can achieve goals easier than others can. The main fear springs from the idea of losing identity and power. A single government representing the world of many different cultures and beliefs is very hard to imagine. Minorities might feel threatened in that they have no legitimate say in the outcomes of producing legislation. This in turn leads to the representation of governments in countries. They would feel threatened in the sense that they truly have no power since the world government would be the one in control of matters of all countries globally. So, what needs to be done is not the production of a world government but an alliance between world organisations and existing governments. Globalisation through this method does not infringe on the power of government but allows for compromise to occur and for then to understand the need for a unified co-operation to maintain the environment and resources for future enjoyment and use. In Australia for instance, the Confederation of Australian Industry and the Australian Conservation Foundation, along side with a number of state governments, agreed to endorse the National Conservation Strategy for Australia in 1986. This promoted the need to save the environment and ecological beauty of Australia for there was a realisation that damage to the environment would lead to damage to the economy. The concern was in tourism. The natural environment is a critically important part of tourism and is increasingly being recognised as such through the term â€Å"Ecotourism†. 17 Through globalisation and government assistance it is possible to see the importance of conservation which in turn would set precedence for other countries to follow. This was the main intention by the Australian Tourism Industry Association who argued that tourism can and does (i) enhance environmental appreciation by changing people†s attitudes; (ii) act as a justification for environmental conservation; (iii) enhance environmental management for conservation; and (iv) enrich the social and cultural environment of the Australian community. 18 A global government may have a unilateral authority and may think broadly but it can not possibly reach out to everyone†s interests in the decision making. Mutual adjustment is the best method to solving the environmental problem by the use of global co-ordination. When this occurs it produces policies and plans that take account many positions that exist. A country†s own government needs to be aware of the essential needs of its people and must respond to the concerns of various authorities of energy, roads and highways, land use, city planning, air and rail transport, and industrial policy. 20 These needs then need to co-relate with those needs presented by organisations that stand for the protection of the planets resources and environment. Governments have not lost power but need to re-learn how to distribute their influence. Both the federal and provincial governments, at least in Canada, hold the distribution of authority over environmental policy. The municipal governments still participate even though they have been given no authority over the matter. 21 But the majority of the work is achieved by organisations that press governments for swifter actions towards policy making. In Canada, the Greenpeace group, located in Vancouver and Toronto, had a revenue of 7. 4 million dollars without government or corporal aid from 1987 to 1990. The source of revenue came from concerned individuals within the country who see the needed value of conserving the planet. In response, political parties must address these issues to ensure that the public receives the results that they desire. When the creation of the National Conservation Strategy in Australia took place both the Fraser Liberal government and the Hawke Labour government played an important role in the structure that the policy was comprised of. 23 Through globalisation the world can look upon itself and see that there are better methods of approaching problems. Profit can not constantly exist if there is no planet to work from. The governments see this and pressure each other to abide by a universal understanding that there is a great need for sustainability. Powers are not decreased or removed but simply placed into a different context where instead of the individual gain the overall gain should have more precedence. Both Canada and Australia have set example that industry and environment can exist together and it is the governments duty to ensure that guidelines are set to allow enforcement take place. Globalisation can help environmental policy only if other countries have full understanding of the benefits and participate with means of improvement. The poorer nations need to be guided by the wealthy to prevent any further destruction on the remaining resources that the planet contains. Global understanding and consensus will allow for countries to maintain their distinctiveness but allow for one common trait to exist, a total appreciation of the shared home we call earth.

Organizational Change Plan Essay

The proposal discussed is Electronic Health records. There are numerous advantages to using Electronic Medical health Records however, there are disadvantages as well. I believe that the Electronic Health Records process needs to be improved. Staff are having major difficulty using EHR‘s and this detrimental to the use because the staff feel uncomfortable therefore avoiding using EHRs. In order to change how the health care providers feel towards using EHRs, management must communicate adequately the need for the change and the great benefits of it. The next step would be for management to educate the staff by using evidence based processes. In this stage, management must make use of EHRs simple for staff to follow and provide enthusiasm in using EHRs correctly. An organizational boundary would be lack of deadlines, lack of funding, and lastly lack of participation from staff. Lack of deadlines leave staff to make their own deadline according to how necessary they feel the chan ge is. Usually, new processes get put off because they’re used to the then existing habit and feel that the new process would require more time and energy. Despite the fact that actually using EHRs require a lot of training the primary benefit of EHRs is that it doesn’t require an unnecessary amount of effort. One could save time and make other staff’s tasks much easier resulting in faster outcomes and more time to focus on more issues. Another organizational boundary would be lack of funding. EHRs need computers, trainers/ End users, training manuals, subject matter experts, and time which could be rather costly. If an organization does not have the funds to provide training manuals, subject matter experts, or any of the other matters reported then the use of EHRs will not be possible. Lastly, lack of participation from staff is an enormous regulatory barrier. Without the use of EHRs by the staff the employees won’t see the benefits of using EHRs and they will continue to use the old and less productive way. Individual barriers include problems comprehending the new information, fear of changing, and computer illit eracy. All the problem stated are rather large personal barriers and are interconnected. One may fear or feel that they don’t want to change to EHRs because they are computer illiterate and can’t comprehend how to use a computer. When using EHRs one must have basic  computer knowledge and be proficient in using all the necessary tools and software’s on a computer and without this knowledge then a person would feel overwhelmed in trying to use EHRs. There are both good and bad factors that may influence my proposed change. An example of a negative factor would be poor performing computers. Positive factors include good communication. Negative factors such as poor performing computes could negatively impact the use of EHRs significantly. The purpose of using EHRs are to save on time resulting in an increase of productivity but if working on a poor performing computer one may be result in going back to writing out information on health records. The main decisive factor i n using EHRs is the increase of communication. With the use of EHRs not only all the staff will be able to access a patient’s information but another organization like a hospital or insurance company will be able to see and use the record. Using EHRs inside an organization will allow for all the staff to view the same information and to be updated. Lewin’s model relates to the change proposed because the process needed to change the process of EHRs which require Lewin’s three steps unfreezing, changing and refreezing Spector (2010). Unfreezing would be getting the staff to realize that they need to make a change. It is said that communication is essential in this step because it is needed to convey the urgency and specific outcome wanted (Change Management In Ehr Implementation, 2013). However in this scenario the change wouldn’t be to implement EHRs it would be to get the staff to use go from avoiding the use of EHRs to become the new norm. The second step of the Lewin’s model is change. Change is moving from old habits or behaviors to the new and efficient implementations. Learning new habits and processes are what happens during this changing phase. Also, resistance is often seen in this stage, usually employees are set in their ways and view the new change as difficult or more challenging therefore they will resist the change Spector (2010). This is where the main problem occurs in the use of EHRs especially at my place of employment. The staff was introduced to a new method in recording health records however the staff still had doubts and felt intimidated towards using EHRs. In order to change or prevent the negative attitude towards the change, managers should let the employees know that the new change is necessary and that it contains more benefits than the last process. This is a problem within our organization. Usually providers state  to the workers that a change is going to be made then they train employees immediately and then they leave it up to the employees to continue to use the new process. In addition, managers and other employers sh ould make themselves available to the staff in assisting them with the new change. The last step discussed in Lewin’s model is freezing. The step freezing ensures that the new process is set in place and will continue to be the new norm. The employees at my workplace were not able to complete the final phase freezing because they resisted the change and reverted back to the old process. Internal resources available to support the change initiatives are using consultants or using expert help or allowing staff to take leadership roles in implementing the use of EHRs. Using expert help specialists allow the trainees to learn more about EHRs and how to prevent and correct problems with EHRs. Allowing staff to implement the use of EHRs through leadership is a very rewarding internal resource (Change Management In Ehr Implementation, 2013). The staff feels good about the change their making and the staff will use EHRs instead of writing this will provide them as well as the viewer with information about a patient and give them a better overview on what is happening with a patient. External resources available to support change initiatives are journals or using sites and articles. External resources would be journals, articles or websites on the subject matter of EHRs. These resources allow one to see anything from the purpose of EHRs, the history of EHRs, as well as how to resolve technical issues with EHRs. I believe that increased efficiency in EHRs will reduce the time it takes to access medical records. The pros outweigh the cons. Depending on whether or not staff has basic computer knowledge the education will be minimal as well as time. The advantages include better time management, more efficient communication, and less space taken up by papers and files. References Change Management in EHR Implementation. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/nlc_changemanagementprimer.pdf Spector, B. (2010). Implementing Organizational Change: Theory Into Practice (2nd ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix Ebook Collection database.