My paper Essay

This general education course is designed to introduce the intentional learner to communication, collaboration, information utilization, critical thinking, problem solving, and professional competence and values. The course uses an interdisciplinary approach for the learner to develop personal academic strategies in order to reach desired goals and achieve academic success. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality. Course Materials Ellis, D. (2011). Becoming a master student (13th ed. ). Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. All electronic materials are available on the student website. Week One: Academic Success Details Due Points Objectives 1. 1 Identify university resources for success. 1. 2 Develop educational and professional goals. 1. 3 Recognize the importance of personal responsibility. 1. 4 Demonstrate the key elements of the writing process. Reading Read the introduction of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 2 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 10 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 11 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Video CWE Watch the Center for Writing Excellence (CWE) video on the student website. Video CME Watch the Center for Math Excellence (CME) video on the student website. Presentation CME View the Center for Mathematics Excellence (CME) presentation on the student website. Tutorial University Library Access the Toolwire ® Learnscape: Finding Information at the University Library through the link on the student website. Complete the Learnscape Activities. Tutorial Financial Options Review the Financial Options information available on the link provided on the student website. Tutorial The Writing Process Review the CWE Grammar and Writing Guides: Guidelines for Writing Academic Essays on the student website. Audio Goal Setting and Time Management Listen to the â€Å"Goal Setting and Time Management† audio lecture located on the student website. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Time Management and Goals Complete the following exercises in Ch. 2 of Becoming a Master Student. Exercise 7: Time Monitor/Time Plan Process Exercise 10: Get Real with Your Goals Participation Participate in class discussion. See Discussion Forum 3 Discussion Questions Respond to weekly discussion questions. See Discussion Forum Individual Ethical Lens Inventory Complete the Ethical Lens Inventory through the link on the student website. Due by Week 1, Day 7 2 Individual Personal Responsibility Essay: Thesis Statement and Informal Outline Resources: CWE Thesis Generator; CWE Sample Outline Review the assignment directions for the Personal Responsibility Essay, due in Week Five. Create a thesis statement and informal outline for your Personal Responsibility Essay. Complete the University of Phoenix Material: Thesis Statement and Informal Outline Worksheet on the student website. Due by Week 1, Day 7 3 Week Two: Collaboration Details Due Points Objectives 2 2. 1 Describe methods of collaboration. 2. 2 Determine strategies for enhancing team performance. 2. 3 Identify strategies for conflict resolution. Reading Read Ch. 1 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 9 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read the following materials in the Learning Team Toolkit: Welcome Handbook (appropriate to your campus) Why Learning Teams? â€Å"Team† Competence at Work Toolkit for Effective Team Building Team Basics Additional Resources References Reading Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Attitudes and Learning Complete the following exercises in Ch. 1 of Becoming a Master Student: Exercise 4: The Discovery Wheel Exercise 5: Develop your multiple intelligences Tutorial Overview of CWE Access the Toolwire ® Learnscape: Overview of the CWE through the link on the student website. Complete the Learnscape Activities. Audio University Goals & Collaborative Learning Listen to the â€Å"University Goals and Collaborative Learning† audio lecture on the student website. Participation Participate in class discussion. See Discussion Forum 3 Discussion Questions Respond to weekly discussion questions. See Discussion Forum Career Activity Interests and Competencies By completing the Career Plan activities in this course, you are creating a career plan that can help you focus on your career goals and relate those goals to your work in this course and throughout your academic program. You must complete each activity to proceed with building My Career Plan in the following weeks. You can access your results at any time in My Career Plan in Phoenix Career Services on the student website. For additional information, review the My Career Plan Student Guide on the Career Plan website. Access My Career Plan in Phoenix Career Services located on the student website. Complete the Career Interest Profiler (if you have not done so already). Complete the Career Plan Building Activity: Competencies. Take a screen shot of the results from the Competencies activity and post the Word document as an attachment in the Assignments tab: Press Alt + Print Screen on your computer keyboard to create a screen shot. Open a blank Microsoft ® Word document. Press Ctrl + V on your keyboard to paste the screen shot into the document. Save the Word document to your computer. Due by Week 2, Day 7 2 Learning Team Instructions Week Two Learning Team Exercises Complete the Week Two Learning Team Exercises presented by your facilitator. Due by Week 2, Day 7 1 Learning Team Instructions Career Plan Discussion Reflect on your results from the Interests and Competencies activities in My Career Plan and discuss the following questions as a team: In what ways can understanding your personal competencies help in a collaborative setting? What competencies did your career plan indicate you possessed? How might you apply your strengths to enhance your team performance? Online classroom: Summarize your discussion in 150 words and post your response to the â€Å"Career Building: Competencies† thread created by your facilitator in the Main forum. Local-campus classroom: Come to class prepared to give a 2-minute informal presentation of your thoughts. Due by Week 2, Day 7 1 Individual Collaboration Complete the Ethics Exercise: Collaboration through the link on the student website. Due by Week 2, Day 7 2 Individual Personal Responsibility Essay: Rough Draft Resource: University of Phoenix Material: Thesis Statement and Informal Outline Worksheet Write a 350- to 700-word rough draft of your Personal Responsibility Essay (due in Week Five) based on your thesis statement and informal outline. Include the following: Define personal responsibility and what it means to you. Explain the relationship between personal responsibility and college success. Include a preliminary plan to practice personal responsibility in your education. Note. APA formatting is required for this assignment. Due by Week 2, Day 7 8 Learning Team Team Building Worksheet Resources: Discovery Wheel and Develop Your Multiple Intelligences exercises in Ch. 1 of Becoming a Master Student; Ethics Exercise: Collaboration Complete the University of Phoenix Material: Team Building Worksheet on the student website. Due by Week 2, Day 7 6 Week Three: Information Utilization Details Due Points Objectives 3 3. 1 Perform research in the University Library. 3. 2 Evaluate sources of information for relevancy, reliability, and bias. 3. 3 Demonstrate summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting information from various sources. Reading Read Ch. 3 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 4 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 5 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Essay Review Submit your Personal Responsibility Essay rough draft to WritePoint ® for review. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Personal Responsibility Essay: Research Complete the Library Research Tutorial, available on the University Library home page. Find at least two library sources for the Personal Responsibility Essay. Summarize information for both sources. Tutorial Citations and References Review the CWE Tutorials and Guides: Writing Style Guidelines and APA Information on the student website. Explore the CWE Reference and Citation Generator on the University Library home page. Tutorial Plagiarism Review Access the Toolwire ® Learnscape: Plagiarism Review at the CWE through the link on the student website. Complete the Learnscape Activities. Video The Writing Process Watch â€Å"The Writing Process† video on the student website. Participation Participate in class discussion. See Discussion Forum 3 Discussion Questions Respond to weekly discussion questions. See Discussion Forum Career Activity Career Plan Building Activity: Work Culture Preferences Access My Career Plan in Phoenix Career Services located on the student website. Complete the Career Plan Building Activity: Work Culture Preferences. (Access is only available after completing the Career Interest Profiler and the Competencies activity). Take a screen shot of your Work Culture Preferences results and post the Word document as an attachment in the Assignments tab. Press Alt + Print Screen on your computer keyboard to create a screen shot. Open a blank Microsoft ® Word document. Press Ctrl + V on your keyboard to paste the screen shot into the document. Save the Word document to your computer. Write a 350-word summary discussing the results from the Career Interest Profiler, Competencies, and Work Culture Preferences activities. Research the following items in the University library and include your findings in the summary: Possible employers that would fit with your provided competencies Types of jobs that would align with your work culture preferences Due by Week 3, Day 7 5 Learning Team Instructions APA Reference and Citation Worksheet Review the following CWE materials: Grammar and Writing Guidelines: Plagiarism – Understanding Paraphrase Grammar and Writing Guidelines: Plagiarism – Using Direct Quotations Examine the importance and applicability of the APA guidelines for academic work. Complete the University of Phoenix Material: APA Reference and Citation Worksheet with examples from team members’ sources. Learning Team Instructions Week Three Learning Team Exercises Complete the Week Three Learning Team Exercises presented by your facilitator. Due by Week 3, Day 7 2 Individual Personal Responsibility Essay: Research and Organization Resources: CWE Annotated Bibliography and CWE Reference and Citation Generator Review the CWE Annotated Bibliography on the student website. Prepare an annotated bibliography for the sources in your Personal Responsibility Essay. Include the following information: Reference citation for each source Summary of the information in the source and how you determined it to be reliable Write a 350-word explanation of the following: How you determined the sources to be reliable and relevant, and whether or not there is an author bias How this information might strengthen or weaken your essay Format your explanation consistent with APA guidelines. Due by Week 3, Day 7 8 Week Four: Communication Details Due Points Objectives 4 4. 1 Prepare a research paper. 4. 2 Prepare a presentation. Reading Read Ch. 8 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Tutorial Creating a Presentation Complete the Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® tutorial on the student website. Access the Toolwire ® Learnscape: Making a Successful Presentation through the link on the student website. Complete the Learnscape Activities. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Personal Responsibility: Revision Revise your Personal Responsibility Essay rough draft to incorporate facilitator feedback, WritePoint ® suggestions, and your library research. Participation Participate in class discussion. See Discussion Forum 3 Discussion Questions Respond to weekly discussion questions. See Discussion Forum Career Activity Career Plan Building Activity: Reasoning Abilities Access My Career Plan in Phoenix Career Services located on the student website. Complete the Career Plan Building Activity: Reasoning Abilities. Take a screen shot of your Reasoning Abilities results and post the Word document as an attachment in the Assignments tab: Press Alt + Print Screen on your computer keyboard to create a screen shot. Open a blank Microsoft ® Word document. Press Ctrl + V on your keyboard to paste the screen shot into the document. Save the Word document to your computer. Due by Week 4, Day 7 2 Learning Team Instructions Personal Responsibility Essay: Peer Review Share your Personal Responsibility Essay rough draft. Discuss each team member’s rough draft and provide feedback. Use the University of Phoenix Material: Peer Review Form to note teammates’ suggestions. Learning Team Instructions Week Four Learning Team Exercises Complete the Week Four Learning Team Exercises presented by your facilitator. Due by Week 4, Day 7 1 Learning Team Instructions Career Plan Discussion Part 1 – Reasoning Abilities Reflect on your results from the Reasoning Abilities section on in My Career Plan and discuss the following questions as a team: How can learning about your reasoning skills help to improve how you write a research paper or give a presentation? How can learning about your reasoning skills help improve a work environment? Online classroom: Summarize your discussion in 150 words and post your response as a reply to the â€Å"Career Building: Reasoning Abilities† thread created by your facilitator in the Main forum. Local-campus classroom: Come to class prepared to give a 2-minute informal presentation of your thoughts. Part 2 – Career Planning Reflect individually on your My Career Plan results from the entire course. What are the next steps in your career plan? What milestones have you established in the Career Plan to monitor your progress towards your career goals? Why do you think these steps are important in helping you progress? How can you focus your time and attention in future courses based on your career competencies and goals? Online classroom: Post your response to the questions as a Reply to the â€Å"Career Planning† thread created by your facilitator in the Main forum. Local-campus classroom: Come to class prepared to give a 2-minute informal presentation of your thoughts. Due by Week 4, Day 7 2 Individual Ethics Simulation Complete the Ethics Simulation: Dilemmas: The Purloined Paper and The Big Presentation through the link on the student website. Due by Week 4, Day 7 3 Individual Personal Ethical Statement Resources: Ethical Lens Inventory Write a 350- to 700-word reflective statement that defines your personal ethical viewpoint. Include what you learned through the Ethical Lens Inventory: Your preferred ethical lens Your blind spot Your strengths and weaknesses Your values and the resultant behaviors Due by Week 4, Day 7 8 Week Five: Critical Thinking and Professional Competence Details Due Points Objectives 5 5. 1 Examine ethics issues. 5. 2 Identify personal bias and emotion. 5. 3 Determine the relationship between higher education and professional competence. Reading Read Ch. 7 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read Ch. 12 of Becoming a Master Student. Reading Read this week’s Electronic Reserve Readings. Nongraded Activities and Preparation Professional Competence Presentation (Preparation) Resource: Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® tutorial Create an outline for the Profession Competence Presentation. Consider the following questions: What role do ethics play in professional competence? How might you use what you have learned about your ethical perspective to develop professional competence? Tutorial Critical Thinking Access the Toolwire ® Learnscape: Assessing the Validity of Varying Points of View through the link on the student website. Complete the Learnscape Activities. Participation Participate in class discussion. See Discussion Forum 3 Discussion Questions Respond to weekly discussion questions. See Discussion Forum Learning Team Instructions Week Five Learning Team Exercises Complete the Week Five Learning Team Exercises presented by your facilitator. Due by Week 5, Sunday, Day 6 1 Individual Ethical Decision Making Complete the following Ethics Exercises through the link on the student website. Digital Footprint Financial Responsibility Student Marketplace Due by Week 5, Sunday, Day 6 5 Individual Personal Responsibility Essay Resources: Personal Responsibility Essay rough draft; University of Phoenix Material: APA Reference and Citation Worksheet; Learning Team peer reviews; facilitator feedback Write a 700- to 1,400-word paper expanding your Personal Responsibility Essay by incorporating feedback from your facilitator and teammates, and including the following: An introduction A minimum of 2 properly cited and referenced research sources from the University Library A plan to incorporate effective strategies for success as a student A conclusion Reference page Format your essay consistent with APA guidelines. Due by Week 5, Sunday, Day 6 10 Individual Competency Presentation Resources: Learning Team discussion; Professional Competence Presentation Outline; Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® tutorial; Career Plan Create a professional competency presentation plan that answers the following questions: Describe your competencies and how they reflect your work culture preferences. Do these competencies intersect with your potential career? Explain. Why are the competencies important to your future career goals? What is the industry outlook for your preferred career path? You can locate this information in the following places: Job Market Research Tool in Phoenix Career Services The Company Directories and Financials databases in the University Library (under Library Resources) BLS. gov Based on your activity results, what are three possible employers that align with your preferred career path? What actions can you take either to improve your stronger core competencies or to strengthen the areas in which you are not as strong as you progress through each course in the program? Create a presentation of 7 to 10 slides, or 5 to 7 minutes, with speaker notes, showing your plan for using your education to develop professional competencies. (Note: Oral presentations are not required for this assignment. ) Due by Week 5, Sunday, Day 6 5 Learning Team Learning Team Charter Resources: Learning Team Toolkit, activities, and University of Phoenix Material: Team Building Worksheet Complete the Learning Team Charter located in the Learning Team Toolkit. Due by Week 5, Sunday, Day 6 8 Copyright University of Phoenix ® and WritePoint ® are registered trademarks of Apollo Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Microsoft ®, and PowerPoint ® are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of these marks is not intended to imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation. Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix ® editorial standards and practices.

Is Child Behavior Better or Worse Today Than It Was Years Ago Essay

Parents determine the behavior of their children. If a parent is willing to take the time and work at being consistent,children benefit. If you say â€Å"no†,it must mean†no†. It may mean that as a parent, you must get off that sofa and physically STOP a child from misbehaving; even requiring the child to remain in a â€Å"time out† location for inappropriate behavior. Parents who try to discipline their children by just telling them to stop a behavior, are not teaching the children respect authority, nor are they helping the child to become a responsible adult. Having said that, there seems to be a greater number of parents who are unwilling to spend the time and effort necessary to properly teach their children how to behave, resulting in a greater number of children who miss behave. Family life compared to a hundred years ago is on the decline. Everyone moves at a fast pace these days. My Father and Mother are working to maintain the home, while my sisters and my brother are left to their own devices and there isn’t a coming together to sit down and communicate on some level. There just doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day. Technology has advanced so much compared to a hundred years ago, that we are well on our way to fuel less cars and robotic companions. Yet, with advanced technology comes the added responsibilities to maintain and seek out other avenues for even far move advanced technologies to help support the life styles we have come accustomed to. Is this then better than before when we were thankful just to have light and running water in the house? Education is by far better today than a hundred years ago! The fields of learning have been opened up to boys and girls equally to seek out far greater possibilities than were even imaginable a hundred years ago. Yet, with this privilege of learning has came a decline in our education system. The lack of adequate teachers, the high rise in disrespect for authority, just the lack of caring whether you learn or not has affected our education system. A hundred years ago the thought of a higher education was just a dream for most. If you acquired a fifth grade reading level you were doing good. Learning was a privilege, and yet today we cast an education around as if it were an article of clothing. While there has been such great strides in our would today compared to a hundred years ago, we have missed out on the carefree, thankfulness, and appreciation of the things and others around us. We take for granted what we hoped to have or even imagined we could have years ago. But now in this generation child behavior is much worse than it was years ago. Disrespect for authority figures. The fault lies with the parents to be sure. We are told to cater to our childrens emotional â€Å"needs† and that coperal puminshment is bad for them. Children require constant training, patience and love – most of todays parents are too busy or selfish to make this kind of investment. If children are allowed to control and manipulate their parents as in the description above, the parent will be helpless to teach that child anything. Oh! I agree! its worse. This is a prime example of a child rearing gone wrong: and the sad thing is it’s all too common these days. Children are not raised to respect anything or anyone, and they suffer no consequences. If these children are our future, we are in trouble. -Beating Death Structure-setting a strong foundation for a successful future. any expert will tell you that every child needs structure to flourish- especially teens. As parents today we face an even greater challenge because of working parents, more activities and mobility of kids and teens, communication devices and networking websites. The purpose of the Parent Teen /Child Behavior contracts is to create a structure that eliminates gray areas, creates new habits, and helps create a peaceful home with more contentment and less chaos. Parent Contracts behavior charts and behavior contracts were design for parents with children or teens who need a little guidance with rules, respect,and boundaries. We created the parent child contracts in an easy to use format and anyone can download the file to a MAC or PC computer. The parent teen agreements can be printed and filled out easily. The parent contract elements are displayed on different pages so you can use any parent child agreement you’d like or throw away a certain behavior contract that don’t need to be used in your home with your youth. The teen /child behavior contracts were developed by troubled teen industry experts. This included professionals who have worked with defiant youth and used successful behavior modifacation tools including their own teen behavior contracts (home contracts). As we have updated the behavior charts and behavior contract templates we have consulted with some of the most experiences parent coaches and licensed and therapist to create the best parent teen child contracts.

An Over View Of Apple Inc

An Over View Of Apple Inc Introduction One of the most fundamental factors that determine a successful business is the possession of feasible, clear and achievable business and corporate strategies with a purposeful organizational sense of direction. It is a statement of fact that business and corporate strategies are unachievable without a well laid-out plan at attracting a solid customer base for the organization (Parkinson, 1991). Customers are the facilitators of profits for organizations and any company that intends to remain in business should take the issue of customer service very seriously. Evolving a well-planned customer service automatically translate into programmes set out by companies to draw new customers and retain old ones. This forms the basic tenets or principles of marketing upon which organizational success in business rest. Though the aforementioned assertions have briefly introduced the core elements that drives a successful business, however, it takes far above the points mentioned f or a business firm to survive in whatever industry that it locates itself. This is due to the vociferous competing forces that are struggling with the business firm for the same customers and for the similar goods being offered by the industry. Despite the high rate of competition that threatens and even shut down some businesses, Jobber (2007) asserts that the principles and practice of marketing forbids customers to be chased about at whatever price. However, good marketing principles were identified as factors that would set a company to gain competitive advantage over the rest of the market players. Therefore, companies all over the world have been developing and establishing crack marketing team whose responsibilities will include devising policies and programmes that would impact on the company’s products through which the company can gain competitive edge (Jobber, 2007; Srinivasan et al, 2009). Having dwelt on the necessity of good marketing strategies for the success and survival of businesses in the highly competitive industries, this report will now narrow down its view on the case study of this research; APPLE Incorporations, one of the leading players in the computer retailing industry not only in the U.K., but globally. Suffice it to say that the computer retailing industry world over is a highly competitive one with many players competing for the patronage of their products. It may be rightly put that the industry is indeed saturated with products and services of the competing companies, however, the continuous growth in technological innovations has continued to enliven the industry and continued to open doors of marketing and sales opportunities for the industry. APPLE INCORPORATION: Background of the Company The company Apple Computer Inc. was established and cited in California, U.S.A on the 1st April, 1976 as Apple Computers Inc. for the design and manufacture of computer electronics, computer hardware and commercial servers (Hormby, 2005). However, in the year 2007, the company shed the word â€Å"computer† from its name to Apple Inc. to reflect its new business expansion into consumer electronics and telecommunication hardware. Apple’s most popular hardware products include Macintosh computers, the iPods, iPads and iPhone. Meanwhile for the software, Apple boast of the Max OS X operating system, the iTunes media browser the iLife suite of multimedia and creativity software; the iWork suite of productivity software; Aperture, a professional photography package; Final Cut Studio, a suite of professional audio and film-industry software products; and Logic Studio, a suite of audio tools. Presently, the company has about 284 retail stores in ten countries across the world. (MacRumors.com, 2010).

Operative Management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Operative Management - Term Paper Example Rigsby and Guy Greco, 2003) Sam Walton, the founder of Wal- Mart had a clear vision to establish Wal- Mart as the best retail store in the industry. The mission of Wal Mart was simple, easy to explain to those responsible for its achievement, and straightforward that left nothing to the imagination. The goal of the Sam was not the biggest retailer but the best retailer in the industry. Wal- Mart was equipped with certain basic values to attain its straightforward mission. These values are the ability to merchandise, creating innovative retailing ideas, best store operations, cost control, technologies, customer services, distribution, and establishing a culture as a retailer. The reason for such a phenomenal success as the best retailer in the word is to pursue the business with these pre-established values. Wal- Mart translated these values into its retail practices and achieved the best results. Wal- Mart executed its strategies by developing the skill of managers in areas of communication, motivating junior staff, team development through training, establishing standards for customer service, and fixing responsibility and accountability. Wal- Mart used one of the basic theories of management called ‘theory of motivation’. Theory of motivation seeks to persuade efforts from management to encourage employees. Sam Walton, the founder of Wal- Mart, used to visit his stores and meet employees at different levels of activities. He used to carry a tape recorder and treated it as his ‘tool of empowerment’. He used to tape his conversations with employees and later listened to those recordings for devising means to create motivation among his workforce. He was first in the industry to call his work as his ‘associate’. Addressing an employee as an ‘associate’ of the management is enough to instill in employees a sense of responsibility at par with ownership.

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

Aesthetic - Essay Example ..""Aesthetics"" or esthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the definition of beauty† (Singh 2008). The concept of beauty is subjective in nature as it had been popularly coined by the phrase â€Å"beauty is in the eye of the beholder† (Martin 2009). Film, which is an art of making motion pictures, encompasses different criteria or qualities by which its aesthetic quality can be evaluated depending on the person viewing it. Thereby, its classification as a beautiful film depends on the subjective nature of the person who viewed it. It is in this regard that this essay is written to determine the qualities of a good (and beautiful) film as hereby defined. The most critical factors that qualify a film or movie as good are as follows: (1) a good plot (or the content of the story), (2) the quality and choice of casts, (3) genre, (4) excellent audio visual quality, (5) cinematography (or the form which is the actual beauty of fine art) and (6) moral or message of the story. I consider the following films as meriting the aesthetic standards of a good film: (1) Apocalypse Now, (2) Psycho, and (3) 12 Monkeys. The Apocalypse Now, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, had been a controversial movie according to critics in terms of various concerns that besieged the director, actors, and other movie personnel. However, despite these concerns, Apocalypse Now passes my aesthetic standards because of the plot, quality and choice of casts, cinematography and the message of the story. The proof are the numerous awards that the film garnered including two Oscars for best in cinematography and sound and a host of other awards in the US, Cannes, Brazil, with 13 wins and 32 nominations. In Psycho, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, the aesthetic beauty comes out from the plot which leaves the audience in constant suspense. Despite the time that has evolved since its first filming, a lot of movie goers still remember this film due to the surprise ending.

Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 7

Summary - Essay Example In 1992, 14 tourism courses in universities were introduced among others in different parts. This article is intended to review the term† vocationalism†, it also brings out the typology to highlight degree content, the influence of this industry on the curriculum in various learning institutions. Vocationalism in the context of tourism studies refers to competence-based qualifications, and to have appropriate balance between practice and theory. Any vocationalism consideration in terms of tourism studies requires mentioning the National Vocational Qualification. That is why, National Council for Vocational Qualifications was established at five levels. Level four entails complex technical, specialist and professional work activities including those associated with design planning and problem solving techniques. The article that should emphasize on flexibility and flatter management hierarchies that has led to the recommendation of generic core of knowledge and skills, it also gives individuals the concept of connective specialization (Pender & Sharpley, 2004). Students are given opportunity to make choices and combine different kinds of teaching and learning methods in order to meet their target. It also outlines the significance of specialists having oversight of the relationship between their specialization and the whole curriculum. Tourism has grown inconsiderately across industrial sectors and academic disciplines. Therefore it is very problematic to identify the contents of the course at higher levels. The teachers have also not given the relevant definition of what they teach, and as a result many related courses have so far evolved due to initiatives of individuals. This may be the cause of problems with the identification of laws for tourism industry as well as its needs that must be respected and given much consideration. According to Hunter-Jones’ view, the discipline taught must be able to reflect the obligations of managers to con sumers, employee and the public at large. The course must at all times replicate the opportunities of organization to develop and run successfully. Therefore, a curriculum planning is very vital for educators to be able to operate their institutions with limited problems (Pender & Sharpley, 2004). There is a permanent problem of tourism versus hospitality studies that needs to be addressed. It is the issue of content of these related courses. According to the research carried out in Australia, many distinct learning towards hospitality and in one case it is hard to find any broader tourism content. It is clear that all institutions related to tourism or travel has tended to provide training for specific jobs that are vocationally motivated. These policies of universities have over the recent times become distorted, changing more and more toward career orientation. There is need for review of the type of tourism degree; this must consider the use issue of work experience- therefore t raining in practical skills should be seen as important by the industry. This should be reflected in the course structure, to offer guide to the business orientation of individual courses. A case study done by Swarbrooke in 1995, views tourism courses as vocational in nature and only focused on the supply side†¦ leisure courses are split between the more vocational leisure

Introduction to Requirements and Systems Modelling Essay

Introduction to Requirements and Systems Modelling - Essay Example Post Conditions The LED keep on showing the updated status of the water level received from the sensors. Assumptions It is assumed that the user has switched on the button of the Tunze Osmolator and checking / viewing LED to know the level of the water. Basic Flow: 1. The user of the Tunze Osmolator switches on the machine. 2. The sensor motor activates itself and detects levels of the water in the tank. 3. The sensor sends the information to the arithmetic unit to compare the sensor’s value with the lower set value of the tank. 4. Once the value has been compared, the LED would show the information whether the water level is lower than the threshold value [A – 1]. 5. The motor starts itself to increase the level of the water till it reaches to the upper limit of the tank. Alternate Flow: A – 1. The motor would not start if the water level in the tank is higher than the required or lower threshold value of the tank. Conditions Trigging Alternate Flow: The alterna te flow would only be initiated if the water level in the tank is within the prescribed threshold limits. Note: - The use case description format has been taken from the book of the R. S. Pressman. Unified Modeling Language (UML) In software engineering, the Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a standardized modeling language that facilitates to create a graphical depiction of the object oriented systems under development. The UML is utilized for specifying, building, visualizing and documenting the software artifacts for the software application is to be developed. The UML adopts a combination of various concepts including the Booch, Object Modeling Technique (OMT) and Object Oriented Software Engineering (OOSE). By utilizing these concepts the UML provides a single platform for describing and modeling the software systems. However, there are various limitations of the UML, as it focuses on software rather than hardware (Overgaard, Selic and Bock, 2000). In other words, there are ma ny issues in building the UML of the real-time systems include: the description of hardware elements, time constraints, communications tasks and network modeling. Many solutions have been developed to overcome these issues and one of the solutions is to build the diagrams in three (3) tier structure of the system. In the first tier the object building and software construction would focus on the software architecture, whereas, the system architecture would focus on the hardware and communications aspects of the system (Lou, 2000). The Tunze Osmolator water level controller system relates to the systems based on hardware more as compared to the software implementation. As described above, therefore, it can be stated that the implementation of the UML notation is quite difficult for the systems entirely based on hardware, time constraints and communications tasks. As the Tunze Osmolator includes the hardware and communications tasks, therefore, comparatively the UML notation cannot be as fruitful as for the data-intensive applications or the software applications mostly based on the software. On the other hand, the UML notation can effectively use in various software engineering areas include but are not limited to the enterprise resource planning, banking and accounting services, web based

Criminal Technology from the Past into the Future Assignment

Criminal Technology from the Past into the Future - Assignment Example Moreover, extensive technology application has heightened as crime prevention units try to keep up with advancement in application of modern day appliances to engage in criminal activities. Past Evolution of Technology Effects on Policing Styles and Public Relations Advancement of information technology has led to IT fragmentation where criminal are utilizing technology to commit crime, which may become a problem to security. In the past, the police force applied ancient technology such as pocket book to record information and source information while the night stick was used as a weapon to maintain law and order. A more advanced weapon as at that time was the multiple shot revolvers. However, technology advanced more where criminal were identified and arrested with the aid of photographs taken, after which the telephone came in. indeed, evolution of technology in the past fifty years has developed from use of cars, two way radio communication and guns into the recent times advance t echnology such as body armor, in-car computers and video cameras. ... Among the earliest forms of technology that are still being used at the moment is the use of finger print for criminal investigations, with the application of sound waves for measuring distance between the prints with automated fingerprints identification system. For instance, application of fingerprints and photographs has helped a great deal in identifying criminals and suspects during application and use of visa. Indeed, fraud and identity theft were the most applicable areas of the technology (Siegel, 2008, p 457). Technology is mostly characterized by computers that can carry out complex calculations within a fraction of seconds and the internet for networking in the developed global village. Combination of these two technologies has enabled easy access and storage of large quantities of information with high efficiency. Impact of Information Technology on Criminal Justice Information technology has developed in a dynamic way, with its application by criminals in their activitie s becoming more rampant with time. The society was not prepared to solve criminal technology that has outpaced counteractive measures to solve these problems. Therefore, information technology development mainly in the internet and computer sector has been a great challenge in putting in place security measures to curb the emerging and advancing criminal technologies activities such as cyber crime, identity theft, unauthorized intrusion to systems and sexually related violations. Computers and internet have impacted on the society negatively rather than helping in positive development of the society. In developed countries, criminal technology was extreme due to rapid development of technology easily available for criminals and terrorists. Although security forces have

Bait and Switch Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bait and Switch - Research Paper Example She was not expecting to take such a risk and effort then be frustrated by not getting what she had struggled for. Secondly, the advertised deal was too good and, therefore, she was quite aware that many buyers would bid for it and the first come, first served bases would be applied. Her stating of her traveling tribulations and undying effort to ensure she gets the deal, was assertive to the fact that there was no way she could imagine failing to secure the advertised pickup truck. Betty must have been aware of these advertisements and, to clear the doubt, she carried the copy of a magazine on which the advert was published. However, as the conversation goes on, she realizes that the advert was bait, and she had already been baited. She was undoubtedly in the stage of being switched to another substitute truck which was more costly. Her travel efforts, therefore, had no bearing that the dealer would be honest to the advert. In fact, it would be useful when switching Betty because th e journey had costed her. The goal of bait and switch advertising is to have buyers buy substitute goods as a way of avoiding disappointment over not getting the bait (Johar, 1996). Moreover, this trick is used as a way to recover the costs expended in trying to obtain the bait (Dingell, 1996). In this case, Tony has no intention of producing the advertised pickup track but instead will produce an expensive pickup track if not a similar one with a higher price margin. When Tony said over the phone â€Å"three thousand dollars firm,† explain whether or not he was making an offer that, if accepted, would bind the dealership in contract It would be futile to think that what Tony promised to Betty, over the phone, was what he meant. Since he was I a calculated mission of baiting his client, it means he could do anything pleasant to ensure that Betty gets into the dealership and buy a substitute truck (Johar, 1996). It seems that Tony just said it for formality and he cannot have the contract bidding for two reasons. First, Betty was not initially on her way to consummate this promise. She was rather going to buy a pickup track advertised by the dealership and whose deal was attractive. Secondly, Tony had not seen the old Ford pickup and he can prove that he never meant to buy something he had not seen. That is, probably, why Tony responded, by stating that they would have to look at it first. Considering that Betty just joked that the old Ford pickup, with its original parts all rattling is a nuisance to his journey, Tony could have also joked that he would buy it at three thousand dollars. Therefore, his offer, whether accepted or not cannot in any way bid the dealership in contract (Lee, 2000). Finally, Tony’s promise on the phone cannot be presumed binding in law and intentions. Explain whether or not advertised specials can be taken advantage of by employees of the advertiser In advertising, it is not speculative that employees of advertisers hav e colluded with companies to mislead and exploit consumers (Johar, 1996). For example, in this particular advertisement, the advertisement quoted in reduced print font that it was only one at that particular offer. These details were so small that interested buyers would have needed a magnifying glass or a microscope to see it. Without the collusion of the advertiser’s employees and the company, these particular details would have been made visible. Since this fact is well known, some jurisdictions, like the United States have held that using bait and switch operations may be sued in a court of law by affected customers for false advertising

Organization Psychology and Behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Organization Psychology and Behavior - Essay Example organizations assign responsibility to its people, develops hierarchy, discusses rules and regulations and how these elements collaborate together in affecting the overall life of the organization. This frame revolves around how an organization keenly steps forward to develop, train, manage, motivate and reward its employees. For majority of the organizations, their employees are their key assets. This frame also deals with issues that can give rise to employee satisfaction, retention, training and development. The frame revolves around the political aspects within an organization. It defines that how one can gain power; lose the authority, competition for scarce resources and the ability and the need to establish coalitions with other people. It also discusses that how people make new relations and cultivates friendship with other people within an organization on the basis of loyalty and negotiation skills. This frame discusses that how an organizational culture, the symbolic behaviors of the employees, rituals, organizational development, creativity, communication and organization represents itself through it’s vision, mission, values and goals. The ‘Safety Memo’ issue can be resolved if all and everyone in the organization have focused more on its hierarchical level. The Structure of the company was itself a problem; giving rise to many problems such as the loss control process by different individuals. The gap between different levels of managements has given rise to communication gap and therefore, it is one of the reasons that the company should focus on enhancing its hierarchical structure in more organized manner. It is important for the employees to resolve their issues verbally with each other rather accusing one another for the mistakes. It is also very important for the organization to build trust between employees in a working sphere. Every team or employee should have a strong reporting end that can defend his team or employees in front of

Global Warming - Persuasive Essay Essay Example for Free

Global Warming Persuasive Essay Essay The United States of America constitute four percent of the worlds population, yet produce one-fourth of the worlds carbon dioxide (Arbitrage 2005). It has been controversial if carbon dioxide is causing to rise the worlds temperature with long-term destruction to the environment or not. This research involves trying to find out if in fact global warming is happening or not. There are climate research findings which state global warming is happening, and there are also findings that this man-caused climate change is not evident. To the layman person, the conflicted issue can be rather confusing. The goal of this paper is to show which argument is stronger. International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC), the interest group which focuses on publicizing the consequences of ill-advised ideas of global warming. Its goal is to create awareness about rational discussion about climate changes, in so doing, moving the debate away from implementation of costly, dangerous, and ineffectual energy sources such as wind turbines, solar power, and biofuels. The core principles consist of ten criteria; however, these core principles can be overthrown with scientific discoveries by global warming activists such as EDF. The interest group, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), focuses on preserving the natural systems on which all life depends. Its mission is to find practical and lasting solution to the most serious environmental problems. ICSC (global warming skeptic) states the first core principle as following. 1.) Global climate is always changing in accordance with natural causes and recent changes are not unusual. To answer the Regarding the climate change issue, EDF stated that humans are causing global warming by two main actions burning fossil fuels and deforestation which causes large amounts of carbon dioxide to be released in the atmosphere and act as a greenhouse. The second core principle is 2.) Science is rapidly evolving away from the view that humanitys emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are a cause of dangerous climate change. EDF disputes, as the earths atmosphere plays a great role in the climate for an example the earth and the moon is the same distance from the sun but they both have drastic differences in temperature. Greenhouse gases are what keep the earth habitable because it acts like a giant blanket the more greenhouse gasses the hotter the earth becomes. The third core  principle is 3.) Climate models used by the IPCC, United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, fail to reproduce known past climates without manipulation and therefore l ack the scientific integrity needed for use in climate prediction and related policy decision-making. EDF defends that the EDF is not the only interest group that is supporting climate change for an example the IPCC has done research involving climate change without the use of manipulation. The IPCC has also made an assessment report on the reliability of their climate models stating the reliability of their conclusion. The fourth core principle is 4.) The UN IPCC Summary for Policymakers and the assertions of IPCC executives too often seriously misrepresent the conclusions of their own scientific reports. EDF states the IPCC once again made assessments of their own scientific reports reducing their misrepresentation of their conclusions. The fifth core principle is 5.) Claims that consensus exists among climate experts regarding the causes of the modest warning of the past century are contradicted by thousands of independent scientists. EDF declares International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC) has stated that many independent scientist debunked the fact that many scientist have a consensus on views but this is generally untrue because according to the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) ninety-seven percent of the climate scientists agree that climate warming trends over the past century are very likely due to human activities, and most of the leading scientific organizations worldwide have issued public statements endorsing this position. The following is a partial list of American scientific societies who gave statements on climate change: American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Chemical Society, American Geophysical Union, American Medical Association, American Meteorological Society, American Physical Society, and The Geological Society of America. The sixth core principle is 6.) Carbon dioxide is not a pollutant it is a necessary in plant photosynthesis and so is essential for life on earth. EDF came back with the ICSC has also stated that carbon dioxide is beneficial and It is true that carbon dioxide is a necessary factor as it is essential for life on earth but excessive carbon dioxide can disturb the balance of the greenhouse gasses which is harmful in great amounts. The seventh core principle is 7.) Research that identifies the Sun as a major driver of global climate change must be taken more seriously. EDF  argued the sun is a major driver of global climate change in the sense that i t is what gives us heat it is the atmosphere that regulates temperature it is important to keep our environment steady and it is taken extremely seriously. The eighth core principle is 8. ) Global cooling has presented serious problems for human society and the environment throughout history while global warming has generally been highly beneficial. EDFs argument was that due to global warming many travesties like Drought, insect overpopulation, disease spread, rising sea levels and weather related disasters have occurred. The ninth core principle is 9.) It is not possible to reliably predict how climate will change in the future, beyond the certainty that multi-decadal warming and cooling trends, and abrupt changes, will all continue, underscoring a need for effective adaptation. EDFs answer was it is impossible to reliably predict how the climate will change in the future but you cannot deny the evidence that the earth is progressively heating at a rapid level. EDF also states that scientists are almost certain that the humans are the utmost cause of global warming. The tenth core principle is 10.) Since science and observation have failed to substantiate the human-caused climate change hypothesis, it is premature to damage national economies with carbon taxes, emissions trading or other schemes to control greenhouse gas emissions. EDF, once again, stated the ICSC states that carbon tax will just destroy the economy but carbon tax will decrease the use of fossil fuels which may be a limited source and will help organizations efforts to decrease greenhouse gasses. The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which COMMITS its Parties by setting internationally binding emission reduction targets. From United Nation web: http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php

Benefits Of Urban Regeneration

Benefits Of Urban Regeneration Urban decay, usually associated with deprived areas, tends tend to be a characteristic of poorer communes, reflecting their low earning power and susceptibility to the higher unemployment rates associated with changes in the structure of the national economy (Skifter Andersen, 2003). The a feeling that buildings are physically falling into a state of decay particularly in some areas more than others, often results in an excrescence of dilapidated and vacant buildings. By remaining vacant, buildings are generally targeted for commercial signage and vandalism unless subjected to a population change or economic restructuring (McGregor and McConnachie, 1995; Skifter Andersen, 2003). The redevelopment of decaying, run-down or underused parts of urban areas with the intention of bringing new life and economic vitality is crucial in maintaining a market position (Bolton Council, 2009). Redeveloping these structural units, however, may not be an easy task, as a set physical as well as casual mechanisms likely to be different in every area, are also accentuating the problem of urban decay. According to Skifter Andersen (2003), one of the major causes of urban decay is the decline of the local economy. The changes in the structure of the national and international economy can directly or indirectly influence the local economy as outlined in Haggetts Cumulative Decline Model (2001). Certain government intervention and planning policies with regard to the industry and alterations in the locational preferences of the industries to better equipped sites are also assumed to be among the primary causes of decline by increasing the gap between the core and periphery. Similarly, the population age structure in most Western countries is changing with an increasing number of elderly dominating the demographic chart (Commission on Growth and Development, 2008). This disinclinati on of the population is likely to remain in the highly urbanised areas resulting in a number of blight properties that are likely to fall into a state of disrepair if structural investment keeps lacking. Perhaps, following Myrdals Cumulative Causation theory (1972) might help inject vigour into the local economy from the institutional set-up (Fujita, 2004). Nonetheless, this process of urban renewal, through which environmental quality redevelopments occur in derelict urban areas, is highly contested. This chapter reviews selected literature that concerns the effects of regeneration in the urban core of a settlement with regard to the value enhancement and positive externality of building refurbishment while considering the social and economic implications. Urban Regeneration Urban regeneration most likely to take the form of public policy in order to regulate urban processes, attempts to improve the urban environment through renewal (Couch et al., 2003). Although seeming fairly simple and straightforward, Home (1982) describes the concept of urban regeneration as involving complex socio-economic, environmental and political issues, with no profession or academic disciple claiming control over it. Roberts (in Roberts and Sykes, 2000) defines urban regeneration as a vision which leads to the resolution of urban problems and which seeks to bring lasting socio-economic, physical and environmental conditions of an area that has been subject to change. Broadly defined as a process that prevents the urban fabric from starting or continuing to deteriorate by improving the urban fabric, urban regeneration is fundamental to the structure plans established by the Malta Environmental and Planning Authority in 1998 and 2006. According to the Priority Actions Programme/Regional Activity Centre (PAP/RAC, 2004) of the Mediterranean countries, the aim of urban regeneration projects as a solution to this phenomenon in developed is to promote: return to the city, revitalise the city centre, restore activity in a fiercely competitive international context, and implement initiatives to improve the quality of the environment operating in a wide sense towards a smart growth. Such systemised and planned action concerning certain parts of a town would mean injecting new vigour into an area. Skifter Andersen (2003) argues urban regeneration would transform, strengthen and recreate places to act as a catalyst for further investments for the benefit of the local community. By concentrating public resources and private investments on specifically designated area may turn an area to a great appeal (Adair et al., 2000). However, urban regeneration is not only concentrated around property-led and retail-led regeneration but also through cultural regeneration to transform the city as a form of urban recreation (Evans, 2001). According to Evans (2001), arts and cultural industries can distinguish themselves by restoring identities and economies with other lifestyles. Whilst Calxton and Siora (2008) recognise the retail sector as offering opportunities and employing a wide range of different socio-economic groups, they argue that retail-led regeneration appears to provide a key reconnection to economic opportunity by engaging in direct employment and additional investment for a community and its residents. Furthermore, Claxton and Siora (2008) sustain that the most successful developments are those supported by the local authorities where planning or economic development departments work together. On the other hand, Rubin and Taylor (2008) question the enormous institutional corporate power of certain chain stores that might have some influence on the planning system and in regeneration projects. According to them, the benefits from such regeneration are overstated as this type of regeneration creates an inverse system that extorts money out of the local economy resulting in serious consequences for small local businesses. Pitkin (1963) sustains that as an important trait within various Mediterranean communities is the urban ethos, the city is depicted as a place of cultural richness, civilisation and civic pride (Leontidou, 2000). Strengthening this argument, Florida (2003) suggested that as social ethos is becoming increasingly dominant in most entrepreneurial and growing regions, it is attracting creative people to the city and accentuating the processes of gentrification. Additionally, Ley (2003) also accentuates the importance of cultural and lifestyle of the middle class, who value the preservation of the historic core and the utilisation of exceptional commodities. Bailey et al. (2004) suggests that culture-led regeneration has only been effective when associated with commercialised identities, thus stressing the need for economic investments and retail establishments. Hiller (2000) suggests that for waterfront regeneration with transformation of the urban environment with luxurious residences a nd gentrified neighbourhoods must be create jobs through a number of office towers as well as shopping centres, included in most projects. As cities are never still, Lancaster (1995) had previously argued that they are places where people strive to overcome negative effects and create hope in the place that history has located them. According to Dunn (1998), the consumer culture might therefore encourage residents to disattach themselves from their particular area and associate themselves to the new global culture irrelevant of the location. Bailey et al. (2004), disagrees and argues that cultural forms of consumption can actively enhance and enliven local communities. Bailey et al. (2004) goes further by suggesting that it is the people who live in the city themselves have to engage in regenerating the city rather than the planning policies. Kantor et al. (1997), stresses the significance of local urban democratic conditions in creating inclusive governing that can influence the local communitys ability to participate and have a reach in the business. Gentrification As defined by Kennedy and Leonard (2001), gentrification involves the processes of reinvestment and revitalisation to enhance the physical and socio-economic components of cities. In this relationship, higher income households settle in that settle in the area, upgrade the physical and socio-economic component of lower income residences. Smith (1987b, p.463), specifically stated that the crucial point with regard to gentrification is that: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦it involves not only a social change but also, at the neighbourhood scale, a physical change in the housing stock and an economic change in the land and housing market. It is this combination of social, physical, and economic change that distinguishes gentrification as an identifiable process/set of processes. Furthermore, Wyly and Hammel (1999, p.716) add that the process of gentrification complements: class transformation of those parts of the city that suffered from systematic outmigration, disinvestment and neglect, or neglect in the midst of rapid economic growth and suburbanisation. Badcock (2001), argues that today the process of gentrification and restructuring have become so interrelated together that they have formed the broader transformation known as revitalisation. Furthermore, households of median and higher incomes generally value the preservation of the historic core and contribute to raising the areas ethos (Ley, 2003). Therefore, employment in the tertiary, quaternary and quinary sectors of production, usually associated with having a university degree, is a key indicator of gentrification according to Ley (2003). In other words, the post-modern lifestyles of consumption are the solution towards revitalisation of a location through the processes of gentrification. Consequently, the process of gentrification can be said to be the outcome of the range of responses to the new economic and social opportunities that arise from prior dispositions of the social classes (Bridge 2001). On the other hand, Smith and Williams (1986) were particularly concerned with displacement and the side effects the middle class is having on the lower working class through the processes of gentrification. Although the extent of the problem is not agreed upon, Sumka (1979) argues that displacement of the working class through rent increases was undoubtedly a major issue. More recently, Blomley (2004) outlines that the social mix the processes of gentrification bring with them tend to expose the working classes to several equalities in the social hierarchy as interaction between the owners and tenants in gentrified neighbourhoods seems to be limited. Slater (2006) argues that this process can lead to social segregation and isolation when trying to revitalise a neighbourhood. Yet, according to Sigworth and Wilkinson (1967) the beneficial effects to the community through gentrification outweigh the issues of social segregation which can be resolved through several policies. Ideal Scenario In a society where the absence of building care culture is increasing, prompt maintenance would help make aging buildings less problematic to rehabilitate as it is often the case that such buildings are found in a state of disrepair with various safety problems. Throughout the 1970s, many of the European countries had already started emphasise the gradual renewal process of rehabilitation rather than focusing on the massive redevelopments simultaneously (Wood, 1991). Thomas (1977), suggested that making way for redevelopment would give an opportunity to replace any substandard buildings, any clashes with regard to the land-use, as well as any environmental nuisance. Although in essence the process of redevelopment causes a lot of inconvenience as it dislocates people (Sumka, 1979; Smith and Williams, 1986; Blomley, 2004), redevelopment can help utilizing the full potential of a site as well as exploiting the beneficial effects to the community such as solving the problems related to social segregation (Sigworth and Wilkinson, 1967). Amongst the main problems that dominate the list for the issue of urban renewal, the lack of institutional planning (Adams and Hastings, 2001) and unfair reimbursements (Kam et al., 2004). This raises the question of whether it would be eloquent to redevelop rather than to rehabilitate certain properties in some areas. It was proposed that the decision making on whether to rehabilitate or redevelop is generally influe nced by six aspects namely; political, legal, technical, institutional, social and economic forces (Walker, 2002). According to Olson et al. (2001) and Hobman and Bordia (2006), the influences of the professional work background on the attitudes towards a renewal project can also make a difference. For instance, building surveyors are said to consider the structural conditions of a particular building as the most vital concepts of consideration in a regeneration process. Conversely, the town planners tend to give more importance to the impacts of the project in the visual quality and micro climate of the neighbourhood rather than the structural conditions of a building (Olson et al., 2001, Hobman and Bordia, 2006). Despite these converging views, it is evident that the implementation of an urban renewal strategy especially when done on a massive scale would include a strong financial input. This would also have to be coupled with adequate public resources, and a determined commitment to solving to the urban dereliction problems while aiming towards increasing the social and economic benefits and fostering entrepreneurial activity (Hamnet, 2000; Skifter Andersen, 2003; Calxton and Siora, 2008). In such circumstances, it is also advisable that there should be improvements to the infrastructure, the transportation system as well as the environment that should all coincide with the renewal development that has the support of all social partners (Adair et al., 2000). Yet, as such conditions rarely occur, policy makers must shape their development plans based upon the constraints they face at the particular moment in time. Williams (2006) suggested that in order to ensure a more successful project, t he ruling authority can also use its powers relating to property development to influence the planning, the infrastructure and the compulsory purchase powers together with the availability of public land assets. When trading land for example, it is not a rare occurrence that one party missing from the market forum and thus the scenario of a compulsory purchase might be required in order for the renewal project not to be brought to a halt because by the private economic forces (Williams, 2006). To redevelop or to rehabilitate? Specifically on property-led redevelopment, Harvey (1992) highlighted that the timing of redevelopment projects depend on three essential issues being; the value of the current existing use of the land resource, the current value of the best of alternative use, and the cost of rebuilding. As the use of property is not irreversible, property has the potential to be redeveloped and converted into another type or usage to suit the expected socio-economic demands at a given time (Gunnerlin, 2001). According to the structure plan issued by the Malta Planning Authority (PA) (1998), there is a need: to use land and buildings efficiently and consequently channel urban development activity into planned developed areas particularly though rehabilitation and upgrading of existing fabric and infrastructure. Notionally, if the present value of the existing use of the land resources is greater than the present value of the best alternative use, redevelopment would not take place since it would not be financially viable, and the rebuilding costs would affect the occurrence of urban renewal. This explains why sometimes redevelopment in the old, urban core is less attractive to the developers (Harvey and Jowsey, 2004). As for the option of rehabilitation, which would mean securing the existing structure, it was concluded that it would only be advantageous when a number of conditions are met (Pugh, 1991). This would mean that the service life of a building would be prolonged by another thirty to fifty years. Furthermore, the value as well as the interest rate of the existing building would also have to be high. Additionally, Pugh (1991) argues that if the direct and indirect costs of rehabilitating are considerably less than those incurred by rebuilding, then the developer would be more tempted to rehabilitate rather than redevelop. Ratcliffe (1993) also estimated that the costs of renovating a building can amount to twenty-five percent less than starting a new building project and thus making it more attractive for developers. Aikivuori (1994) points out that refurbishments may sometimes be required when there is a need for change in the land-use as well as when there is a need to increase or secur e the market value of the building. Additionally, this would also help to preserve the existing building and its externalities that may be important in inducing a culture-led regeneration. Challenges facing the renewal process Housing has long been regarded as a durable commodity (Wieand, 1999), yet, like any other physical commodity, properties are subject to deteriorate as time goes by and eventually fall into a state of dilapidation if they are not properly maintained (Burton 1933). A number of previous studies have highlighted among of the main factors that would make a building deemed for renewal would be the serviceable environment (Sohmer, 1999). Others like Rosenfeld and Shohet (1999) have formed models to determine whether and when a building should be upgraded. This helped to reduce uncertainties and serve as an aid when deciding whether to upgrade or not. Nonetheless, one should not forget that there are always a set of constraints that are likely to slow or halt the process of urban renewal. The multiple ownership of a number of properties is one of them for example (Chun To Cho and Fellows, 2000; Galea Debono, 2009). So are the limitations on the development in the urban village core through the Urban Conservation Area (UCA) which restricts certain types of redevelopment projects. Additionally, it is also likely that there may be disputes in the process of resettling those affected and disagreements on compensation issues which make it more difficult for the private developers to find a compromise with the landowners (Sumka, 1979; Smith and Williams, 1986; Blomley, 2004). Furthermore, it is also often the case that the lack of a central governing body to implement redevelopment and private developers little presumptive power, end up with the developers having fragmented, slow progress (Gordon, 2004). Positive outcomes from urban regeneration Fundamentally, the process of urban regeneration would help to contribute towards the preservation of structures of architectural value and significant historical importance (Jim, 1994). A sustainable regeneration scheme should therefore endeavour to lesson social exclusion, boost economic reintegration as well as salvage architecturally rich buildings and edifices (McGregor and McConnachie, 1995; Skifter Andersen, 2003; Bailey et al.,2004). Otherwise, an urban regeneration project can be a source of conflict and thus it might prove valuable to develop a decision making tool to facilitate the planning process as suggested by Walker (2002) and Ho et al. (2004) in figure 2.1. Figure Project facility making tool (Ho et al., 2004). Eventually, project regeneration proposals can be assessed and alterations can be made in order to achieve a higher rating for the plan which is subject to time, budgetary and other practical constraints (Ho et al., 2004). According to Kocabas, (2000a), evaluating the impact of protection planning would ideally assess outcomes against the physical, social and economic objectives. This should preserve the physical historic environment, the needs of the existing residents during the process of upgrading as well as determining whether the conservation process is economically viable (Kocabas, 2000a). On the other hand, Borja et al. (1997) showed that the socio-spatial outcomes of globalisation on urban areas varied according to the correlation between the technological and economic processes that form the core for this transformation. Whilst it is now widely accepted that no city can escape the reach of global economic and political forces (Sassen, 2000; Taylor and Walker, 2001), it is also clear that cities can upgrade their position in the global hierarchy by their strategic intervention (Clarke and Gaile, 1997). This was the case with Ireland in 1988, for example. With the help of the European Commission, Ireland reflected on the mistakes made through the demolishment of buildings in inner Dublin through the Greater Dublin Area Development Programme secured and managed the preservation of the built historical environment (Pickard, 1994). Essentially, the upgrade or upkeep of neighbourhood externalities is also thought to contribute to the migration and related change in a neighbourhoods economic status for two main reasons. Firstly, certain types of households may behave in ways that generate social capital and affluence for the neighbourhood influencing the demand for that location, thus, the process of gentrification (Ley, 2003). Likewise, certain types of households might also choose to migrate into or out of a neighbourhood based on the demographic and financial characteristics of their prospective neighbours because of the social status, irrespective of how these neighbours may behave (Rosenthal, 2008). In spite of this, it is important to recognise that raising a neighbourhoods economic status does not necessarily alleviate poverty but could simply force the existing low income residents to relocate to other areas of the locality. Jacobs (1961) argued that rather than being suffocated by urban regeneration, soc ial life should be revived, thus, the process of gentrification might not be always seen in a good light especially from those who are less affluent and other deprived sections of society (Sumka, 1979; Smith and Williams, 1986; Blomley, 2004). Therefore, building rehabilitation may garner more support as it causes less social disturbances (Needleman, 1966; DeFilippis, 2007). Achieving success through failure Amongst the good examples of successful waterfront regeneration projects that have managed to generate enough employment opportunities for the locals, Gloucester, Swansea, Cardiff and Liverpool immediately stand out in the United Kingdom (Jones and Gripaios, 2000). In these cases, a number of listed warehouses were refurbished and transformed to provide residential, office, retail, museum, marinas and restaurant facilities. Liverpools Albert Dock, for instance, has been so successful as a heritage site that was previously in a state of decay that it now receives around six million visitors yearly (Jones and Gripaios, 2000). From being a totally abandoned and neglected eyesore, the Albert Dock has now been turned into a visually pleasing environment with the most obvious and tangible manifestations of successful regeneration project in the United Kingdom. Canary Wharf in London is another successful redevelopment that even managed to generate 7,000 jobs for the locals (Daniels and Bob e, 1993). In spite of these successful cases of regeneration, the process of urban renewal still generates a great deal of heated debate especially when faced fierce opposition from the locals that fear that there would no significant improvement in their standard of living such as in the case of Canary Wharf in London. Quite rightly as Jeffrey and Pounder (2000) suggest, the physical improvement of a building is a fundamental element in achieving a successful regeneration project, however Hausner (1993), suggested that on its own it is not sufficient as the development of any project reflects the conditions and requirements of the area in which the project is located from a wider perspective. In addition to this, Moore (2002) sustains that the proactive use of this policy might even improve the local economic development and even create new working places, however, this might only be for a short while. Hemphill et al. (2004) argues that much of the research conducted in the United Kingdom ten ds to be critical as there is a persistent sentiment that urban policy has not really left many of the desired effects on the regenerated area. This had already been thought earlier as even though the inner-city redevelopments generally improve and enhance the degraded built environments, there is criticism that such projects only cater to certain sectors of society and particular locations such as waterfronts and thus these types of projects can fragment cities (Fainstein, 1994; Meyer, 1999; Marshall, 2003). Further criticism concludes that the stated goal of urban design and renewal is often forgotten as the concepts have become merely a marketing tool (Gospodini, 2002). Moreover, it is generally felt that the concept of urban renewal is too vague with the fusion of the traditional architecture, the landscape architecture, and the planning and civil engineering. As a result, urban renewal is said to be focused mainly on the marginal cosmetic aesthetics of the landscape rather than helping to sustain a better standard of living in the area (Inam, 2002). Hubbard (2006) added that the social as well as economic conditions of an area are usually worsened though the regeneration and gentrification policies that are meant to be beneficial. On a wider scale, Newman and Thornley (1996) had previously suggested that in contrast with other cities, the key European cities such as; Paris, Milan, Berlin, Frankfurt and Stockholm are underpinned by the factor of the international competitiveness rathe r than by the notion of urban policy and therefore the residents standard of living has nothing to do concept of urban renewal. Bentley (1999) went even further and argued that apart from the social, economic and environmental limitations, the concept of urban design is often manipulated by developers and public authorities to covertly hijack public space and neglect local conditions and values. Revitalisation projects targeted parts of the cities, such as decayed port areas and other post-industrial sites, for major redevelopments so that the area in effect becomes totally gentrified resulting in a residential area for the more affluent citizens rather than the whole society in general (Bentley,1999). Proprietors awareness and involvement It is evident that one of biggest barriers when it comes to building maintenance is the owners awareness that find it difficult to realise the basic forms of decay and the resulting impact on the building material (Kangwa and Olubodun, 2003). To make matters worse, when action is taken, it is often the case that an inappropriate remediation technique is applied (Leather and Mackintosh, 1994; Forrest et al., 1996). Thus, any effective renewal system must be constructed upon well informed diagnostic skill structures. Chanter and Swallow (1996) and Davidson et al. (1997) have suggested that some of the main awareness problems apart from the variations in perceptions of objects of regular maintenance include the inability to tell whether inferior products or components are used to rehabilitate the building. In addition to this, they also add that the average owner is generally unable to determine the quality of work done by the traders and cannot judge accurately the extent of skill requ ired for a particular work. In the end they argue that the absence of a referral system within the local housing communities which would act as an initial contacts for advice and general information on housing maintenance. Consequently, it is often the case that waves of building depilation later turn into the process of urban decay that has been a major problem in most developed cities (Skifter Andersen, 1995). It must be recognised that the local inhabitants are fundamentally the problem solvers and play an important and useful role not only in implementing regeneration strategies but also in maintaining the socio-economic improvement of the neighbourhood over the years. As powerlessness is central to peoples experience of poverty and exclusion, the people in general are more likely to involve themselves if they can clearly see their contribution in the city (Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2005). Throughout the last number of years, the local citizens have also been emphasizing that new developments should retain their own characteristic and identity in order to reflect their collective memories. Public consultation meetings are no longer satisfying the citizens as they believe that a comprehensive public engagement exercise for the project is required and more channels should be provided for them to express their views on the developments (Lee and Chan, 2008). Research has shown that in the absence of government intervention, property owners are prepared to improve their buildings and edifices since it would enhance the market value of the refurbished properties provided that there is enough information for people to take sensible decisions (Holm, 2000; Gregg and Crosbie, 2001). Besides from having restored building edifices, this type of refurbishment project is estimated to increase the market price of the property which leaves a good profit after deducting the costs of the refurbishment project (Chau et al., 2003). Improvements on the buildings especially on the facades are intuitively expected to have a positive impact on properties adjacent to the building because of the improved visual quality enjoyed by the nearby residents. Likewise, unsightly externalities are created by the unsightliness of poorly maintained properties, thus, refurbishing these poor maintained buildings should reduce or even counter the negative impact (Colwell e t al., 2000; Boyle and Kiel, 2001). Nevertheless, while everyone would benefit from improving the exterior conditions of the buildings, the market value of the properties improved first would have their value depreciated by the dire condition of the neighbouring properties and thus for an individual to take the first step would not be easy. As a result, the unimproved properties would experience an increase in value as a result of the nearby investments done by the others. Consequently, this might also lead to a market failure as the refurbishment process may never take off completely resulting in an investment which is less than what was desired (Hui et al., 2007). Should more information on the enhanced market value of a refurbished building be made available, then the long-term sustainability of a rehabilitation effort would be incorporated into the urban renewal strategies easily, however, one must not forget that the effects may not be felt until a long time. In this particular scenario, the authority in charge sh ould encourage and encourage developers and owners to instigate redevelopment. Ultimately, the process of renewal is a product of an incremental decision making as owners have to decide whether to rehabilitate or redevelop their built land which is subject to facing obsoleteness (Bryson, 1997). Figure 1: Hamdi (2004) Everyone (civic society) should benefit by participating Concluding Remarks As authorities are widely considered as the ones responsible for the process of urban decay, they started to be seen as being unable to engage successfully with the private sector. With the rise of the new conservative movements, the local government started to be marginalised in favour of the private sector when it came to taking decisions (Gullino, 2008). This resulted in private sector being placed at the centre of the renewal activities as these kinds of projects are assumed to attract new financial capital (Bianchini et al., 1992; Loftman and Nevin, 1995). Despite the process of urban renewal through which envir

Overview Of The Firstbank Nigeria Plc

Overview Of The Firstbank Nigeria Plc FIRSTBANK Nigeria Plc is one of the oldest financial institutions and indeed the largest retail lender in Nigeria, its the 1st bank to be established in West Africa. The bank was incorporated in Liverpool as a Limited Liability company in March 1894 with the name Bank of British West Africa. The bank was listed on the Nigerian Stock exchange (NSE) in March 1971 after which it acquired its name First Bank of Nigeria in 1979. Following the CBN induced industry-wide consolidation in 2005 the bank acquired its merchant banking subsidiary, FBN Merchant Banker ltd and MBC intl Bank Plc. FirstBank maintains a subsidiary in United Kingdom which has a branch in Paris, the bank also has representative offices in South Africa, China and Dubai through which it offers offshore financial services. Presently the Banks assets are in excess of N100billion. 1.2 THE NATURE AND SIZE FIRSTBANK as a leading commercial bank has the largest network of branches in the country, over the years the bank has continually reviewed its organizational structure and corporate identity in line with changing financial environment. Known for its uniqueness for being dependably dynamic and stability, 1st Bank has made for its self a name, a brand goodwill associated with fidelity and safety of funds. Being a key player in the nations financial-banking sector, Firstbank delivers a wide range of financial services to its numerous customers; the bank is well known for innovative changes in technological device and service delivery. Being the first bank to introduce a Biometric ATM i.e. an ATM machine that uses both pin no selection and finger prints to identify transaction buttresses this point. The bank through its acquired subsidiaries also provide other financial services and they include, insurance policies, housing schemes, asset portfolio management. 1.3 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES FIRSTBANK offers a wide range of wholesale, retail and consumer banking products and services in ensuring that it keeps true to its name as the 1st bank of choice in the country,. Our products include: Æ’ËÅ" CONSUMER BANKING: Generic Savings Account, Current Account, First Premium Term Deposit, First Savings Plus Account, First Hifi (Children) Account, First Current Plus Current Account(with zero COT), FIRST Current Business Account, First Dom Account, First Instant Savings Account. All accounts have the flexibility of over the counter withdrawals given the new CBN policy, ATM cards, Dividend warrants lodgment and access to E-Banking services. . Æ’ËÅ" WHOLESALE BANKING: The services and products therein are further divided into ASSET PRODUCTS: They include- Term loans, Overdraft, Oil and Gas contract finance(OGCF), Bankers Acceptance, Commercial Papers, Bills Discounting, Project Finance, Equipment Leasing etc, INTERNATIONAL TRADE FINACE: Includes but not limited to- Import finance, Export Finance, Clean lineconfirmation, Letters of Credit, Bills for Collection, Forex Trading Invisible RemittancesPayment for Services. Æ’ËÅ" E- BANKING: First Online which allows you to transact business online at the comfort or your home or offices. First Alert-Instant notification on your account First Mobile-Access to your account through you phone, it includes buying of airtime and payment of utility bills. First Pay and First Collect-effect payment and several collection to and from your merchants. FIRST CARDS : Debit and Credit cards which include- MasterCard, FirstBank Naira MasterCard, First Cash Card, Visa Card (Gold, Classic and Infinite), Visa Credit Card. Notice that all cards issued by the bank comes with FIRSTBANK brand name- FIRST FIGURE 1C:UsersDanielDesktopCYNTHIAFirstBank MasterCard.jpg C:UsersDanielDesktopCYNTHIAVISA_GOLD2.gif C:UsersDanielDesktopCYNTHIAFirstCash Card.jpg Æ’ËÅ" MONEY TRANSFER: FIRSTBANK offers funds transfer services locally and internationally through mediums like- First Domestic Transfer, Western Union, Money Gram and RIA. Æ’ËÅ" OTHER SERVICES: Other services rendered by the bank includes- Agricultural Financing, FIRST Diaspora banking services for Nigerians in Diaspora and Bills Payment for prompt settlement of utility bills(e.g. PHCN, Water and DSTV) 1.4 VISION, MISSION AND ESSENCE Vision: To be the clear leader and Nigerias bank of first choice Mission: To remain true to our name by providing the best financial services possible Essence: The DNA of the FirstBank brand lies in its strength, size and dependability, typified by its brand icon, the African Elephant. Our brand essence is therefore Dependably Dynamic which is a holistic representation of our past, present and the future of FirstBank. 1.5 CORE VALUES The core values of FirstBank are coined in an acronym for quick recall and living by the guiding principle TELL SPIC Team Work Everyday a better way, the team spirit is embedded in our culture as the best possible way to work. Ethics The good will of the bank is to be maintained as you deal with both internal and external customers, ensuring that the client leaves your office satisfied. Loyalty the essence of brand name and its very existence evolves in loyalty to our customers, Firstbank has been in existence for generations and loyalty to our customers is what makes us tick. Superior Performance To strengthen the banks brand, leverage and upscale the customers experience through delivery of excellent services. Professionalism To revolutionize the Banks operations in line with the dynamics of the operating environment while ensuring that we provide the best financial services unmatched. Integrity Adopt high ethical values to guide the conduct of all banking business and transactions in conformity with all relevant regulatory requirements. Customer Centricity The customer is the king and the reason we are in business, their demands should be met in line with banks policy 1.6 OUR BRAND PILLARS LEADERSHIP Our statusability as truly the 1st and No1 SAFETYSECURITY- Security of fundsInvestments, job security, Integrity. ENTERPRISE Resourcefulness, Tenacity SERVICE EXCELLENCE Efficiency, Performance focused, Reliability, Accessibility 2.0 PLANNING This chapter focuses on goal setting, study plan, expected difficulties to be encountered in data collection and plan to overcome these challenges. 2.1 OBJECTIVE OF THE ORGANISATIONAL ANALYSIS The objective of the organizational analysis is to specifically examine the current state of the Banks operational and structural framework, analyse the functional units and the interface relations and also recommend ways of improving the interface relations. 2.2 GOAL SETTING Goals setting involves establishing specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-framed (S.M.A.R.T ) target by an individual or organization. Goal focuses attention towards goal-relevant activities, revealing the objectives and strategies in which the goals can be met. Figure 1 below is the structured project plan for the organisational analysis. Activity Timeline 20-Jun-12 22-Jun-12 24-Jun-12 26-Jun-12 28-Jun-12 30-Jun-12 2-July-12 4-July-12 8-July-12 10-July-12 12-July-12 14-July-12 16-July-12 18-July-12 22-July-12 Review of BSN course material Data Gathering Data compilation Report writing Draft Report Review Sub-set meeting Review Update report Draft submission to set adviser Correction and final submission Figure 2: Project Plan 2.3 PROJECT PLAN Reviewing of the BSN course materials and EBSCO database to understand theory on organisational structures, data collection method and research report writing style. The internet (Google search and Wikipedia) comes in very handy in enhancing project plan. The objective of the data collection stage of the project is to gather relevant and accurate information, to obtain the participation and co-operation of the appropriate target population and to facilitate the collection and analysis of data. The targeted populations are staff of the functional units, staff of hub branches, heads of the functional units (department) and some strategic business units and staff of Human Capital Management- Head Office. The medium to achieve this includes- Informal Interviews, telephone survey, one-on-one chats with some members of the targeted population e.g. the heads of departments and staff of the Human Capital management because of their exigent duties. All perceived sensitive questions would be handled through interviews (which are not formal) and not written questionnaires. The FirstBank Intranet and internet website will be used extensively to gather information on functional units and organizational structure while personal visits to the Head Office and hub branches will be utilized to objectively gather information on functions of various departments, interface relations and recommendations for improvement of the interface relations. Data compilation stage will include analyzing data collected and reviewing information from subset meetings and research report writing. Report writing stage would involve applying the reviewed data gained from the various materials and extraction of relevant information from FIRSTBANK intranet and periodic publications. Data structuring and report preparation will also be done at this stage. Reviewed responses from telephone calls and outcomes of informal interviews Discussed challenges with Set Advisor at subset meeting and via phone calls. Update and revised document with necessary corrections. 2.4 DIFFICULTIES TO BE ENCOUNTERED IN DATA COLLECTION Questionnaires could not be used because of the banks policy on bulk mails or questionnaires related to work and business environment hence adequate data collection seemed impossible. Network challenges when accessing both the internet and the Banks intranet. Time constraint and the busy schedule of visited staff will also be a limitation. Insufficient time due to researchers official duties. 2.5 PLAN TO OVERCOME THESE DIFFICULTIES All perceived sensitive questions would be handled through interviews and not written questionnaires. Extra hours to be dedicated for accessing the Banks intranet while a substitute internet modem was purchased to curb congestion or delays on web hosts. Personal interviews will be conducted for staff with busy schedule, telephone calls and communication chat applications were also utilized for other staff Ensure proper time management. 3.0 ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CULTURE This chapter focuses on the theories of organisational structure and organisational culture. 3.1 ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE Organisations exist to achieve goals; these goals are broken down into tasks as the basis for jobs. The term organisational structure therefore refers to the formal configuration between individuals and groups regarding the allocation of tasks, responsibilities, and authority within the organization (Galbraith, 1987; Greenberg, 2011). Said differently, The framework, typically hierarchical, within which an organization arranges its lines of authority and communications, and allocates rights and duties. Organizational structure determines the manner and extent to which roles, power, and responsibilities are delegated, controlled, and coordinated, and how information flows between levels of management. (Business Dictionary-Google). The structure of the organization can be defined simply as the sum total of ways in which its labour is divided into distinct tasks and the its coordination is achieved among these tasks /(Mintzberg 1983a) Very early organizational structures were often based either on product or function (Oliveira Takahashi, 2012). Others moved beyond these early approaches and examined the relationship between organizational strategy and structure (Brickley, Smith, Zimmerman, Willett, 2002). This approach began with the landmark work of Alfred Chandler (1962, 2003), who traced the historical development of some companies, He concluded from his study that an organizations strategy tends to influence its structure. He suggests that strategy indirectly determines such variables as the organizations tasks technology, and environments, and each of these influences the structure of the organization. More recently, social scientists have augmented Chandlers thesis by contending that an organizations strategy determines its environment, technology, and tasks. These variables, coupled with growth rates and power distribution, affect organisational structure. The Organisational structure as argued by Alfred Chandler can be seen in FIRSTBANK structure which was changed recently to suit the Banks intended strategy. The Bank in Oct 2010 had embarked on a re-structuring of its entire operational system and workforce, we can therefore deduce that Strategy determines organizational structure. A critical review of Mintzberg definition shows that it is not against the aforementioned, the design of every superstructure ends up as a compromise between the objective factors of work flow, process and scale interdependency, and the subjective factors of personality and social need. Organisations may be conceived on paper, but they must function with flesh-and-blood human beings. (Mintzberg, 1983). Hence for a critical analysis of FirstBank OA, the Mintzberg theory will be adopted. 3.1.1 ORGANISATIONAL CONFIGURATION Mintzberg claims that organisations are composed of five basic elements, or groups of individuals, any of which may predominate in an organisation. The design parameters determine individual positions (examples will be shown using FirstBank configuration) Operating Core: Staff or employees who perform the basic work related to an organisations product or service e.g.- Tellers, Customer Service Officer, Foreign Operations Staff Strategic Apex: Top-Management responsible for running an entire organisation. The Executive Directors and Executive Vice President of the bank sit at the Strategic Apex Middle Line: Managers who stand in a direct line relationship between the strategic apex and the operating core. They include the Group Heads, RegionalArea Office Managers. Techno structure: Organisational specialists responsible for standardising various aspects of an organisations activities eg- Internal Control and Audit, Compliance, Credit Risk Management(CRM) AND MANCO Support Staff: Individuals who provide support to an organisation outside its operating workflow.(I.T support, Security personnels) Mintzberg identified five organisational configurations, they however depend some contingency factors which include Age of the organization, Size Technical System, Environment and Power factors: Æ’ËÅ" Simple Structure is characterized by loose division of labor, relies on direct supervision and finds its key part at the strategic apex Æ’ËÅ" Machine Bureaucracy which relies on standardisation of work process, relatively centralized power for decision making; with its key part in the techno structure where the planners of the organisation reside. Professional Bureaucracy which deals with standardisation of skills and has the operating core as its key part. Divisionalised form -each division has its own structure, it centers on standardisation of outputs. Autonomous units are created to deal with entire product lines, allowing top management to focus on large-scale, strategic decision. The middle line is key part of the organisation. Adhocracy, a highly informal, strong presence of mutual adjustment, organic organisation in which specialists work in teams, coordinating with each other on various projects. FIRSTBANKS structure like most large corporations is characterized by the divisionalised form of Mintzbergs configuration as various divisions (departments) are created by their product lines or end products. The techno structure is located at Head Office to provide services to all divisions; support staffs are located within each division like we have the IT support for each area and marketing assistants who are support staff assigned to each branch. Most of the operational activities are conducted by the middle line managers, department heads or unit heads and they all operate with some form of independence and centralization within their units. They coordinate the output, acting between the strategic apex and the operating core. They also oversee the activities of the operating core and are expected to report back to strategic apex. The typical operational structure in a FIRSTBANK branch is divided into two divisions- i. The Operations Unit who are in charge of the everyday running of branch and attending to customers demand. The head of this unit is called The Branch Operations Manager. ii. The Retail or marketing unit who are in charge of increasing the market size and credit portfolio of the branch. The Business Manager heads this unit of the branch. Each of these units runs independently of each other with separate reporting lines even though they are situated in the same complex ant they form part of the whole group. Given the Banks ever evolving strategy in line with changes in market dynamics and technological advancement, the structure design is determined by the strategic planning and corporate transformation unit through the HCM department, stating unit and individual key responsibilities and the reporting lines. The final structure is then approved by the strategic apex and the statutory regulatory authority (Central Bank of Nigeria). Usually the bank makes the policies available on its local INTRANET and other periodic publications or circulars as organisational changes are initiated. 3.1.2 ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE EFFECTIVENESS EFFICIENCY Effectiveness of a system is about doing the right things. Its about producing the intended or expected result, In measuring organisational effectiveness, the relevant question would be: is the organisational system doing the right thing for its survival?, is it focusing its drive on opportunities to produce revenue? Is it producing the output it needs if it is to survive? Efficiency of a system, on the other hand is about the inputs the system uses in order to produce outputs that is doing things right, accomplishing your tasks with a minimum of time and resource, It centers on performance and cost reduction. To thoroughly examine organizational success, both measures should be considered because productivity is a function of inputs to outputs which is the theme of efficiency and effectiveness. Efficiency should always be the servant of effectiveness.(BSN Phase 1, module IX, p 575) Looking at the Banks history and evolutions, one can boldly say that FIRSTBANK has achieved some level of efficiency and effectiveness. The total assets of the Bank as at Dec 2011 as published equals N,2463,543, total equity was N373,572 while the total Customer Deposits was N1,783,777,(figures are in millions).however there is room and need for improvement, the Bank lacks behind in mobilization of current account deposits and booking of credit facilities. These lapses deny the bank of some benefits which include increase in customer base and collection of float income from these deposits. The FIRST Instant savings account was introduced by the Bank to bridge this gap on deposit mobilization, this product however has not recorded much success because of the strict requirements, the deployment of FINACLE 10 Banking solution which is scheduled to kick off this year July is an Efficiency measure in order to reduce turnaround time, this I believe is coming rather too late. The strategic Apex of the Bank needs to review these points afore mentioned and reach a favorable conclusion so that the Bank can edge forward. 3.1.3 DESIGN PARAMETERS Mintzberg identified nine design parameters. By using these parameters the organisational designer can influence the way individuals are positioned in the organisation and the way groups or departments are formed. The design parameters are Job specialisation; Behavior formation; Training and indoctrination; Unit grouping; size; Planning and control systems; Liaison devices; Vertical and horizontal decentralization. The design parameters predominant in FIRSTBANK are: Job Specialisation: In FIRSTBANK, all job titles are specified, the roles to be performed, the job description, key competences and reporting lines are well explained for staff to understand. Job Specification for each job title is easily accessible on the intranet, it is the banks believe that job specialization increases employee productivity. Æ’ËÅ" Training and indoctrination: In order to carry out task, employees need to possess particular skills and knowledge.(BSN Phase 1 Course Notes, pg 584). In FirstBank its a trend to continuously train staff on a need to know and improvement basis, this exercise forms part of appraisal marks to be awarded during year end performance rating. The heads of branches or departments recommend staff for training if a knowledge gap or improvement need is identified. Educational and career advancement is also encouraged. The Human Capital Management Development anchors this aspect of the bank. Given the ever increasing need for the aforementioned, the Bank has rebranded its HCMD training arm to be called FIRST ACADEMY. The essence is to inculcate the banks values, ensuring that their staffs are well grounded and ever ahead of industry trends. Indoctrination are done upon recruitment of staff be it new or experienced hirees in order to imbibe the banks culture and values into them. The unit grouping is an important design parameter in FIRSTBANK because it creates a system of supervision in which there is a reporting line, departmental, unit or group head for all strategic units of the bank, this encourages standardization of outputs. Firstbank adopts functional grouping Vertical decentralisation: Mintzberg (1983a, p.99) defines vertical decentralisation as the dispersal of formal power down the chain of line authority. FISTBANK adopts limited vertical decentralization. Heads of departments/units are delegated the power to control most of the decisions concerning their line units and such decisions are cascaded down to their subordinates, however they have their reporting lines and various limits. 3.2 ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Culture refers to the underlying values, beliefs and codes of practice that makes an organisation what It is. The customs of an organisation, the self image of its members, the things that make it different from others are its culture. Culture is symbolic; Culture is unifying and refers to the processes that bind the organization together. Culture is rooted deep in unconscious sources but is represented in superficial practices and behavior codes. Deal and Kennedy (1982) argue that culture is the single most important factor accounting for success or failure in organizations. They identified four key dimensions of culture: Values the beliefs that lie at the heart of the corporate culture. Heroes the people who embody values. Rites and rituals routines of interaction that have strong symbolic qualities. The culture network the informal communication system or hidden hierarchy of power in the organization. Peters and Waterman (1982) suggest a psychological theory of the link between organizational culture and business performance. Culture can be looked upon as a reward of work; we sacrifice much to the organization and culture is a form of return on effort. Schein (1992) says that organisational culture is developed over time as people in the organisation learn to deal successfully with problems of external adaptation and internal integration. It becomes the common language and the common background. Employee values are measured against organizational values to predict employee intentions to stay, and predict turnover. This is done through instrument like Organizational Culture Profile (OCP) to measure employee commitment (OReilly, ChatmanCaldwell 1991). However Daniel Denisons model (1990) asserts that organizational culture can be described by four general dimensions: Mission Strategic Direction and Intent, Goals and Objectives and Vision Adaptability Creating Change, Customer Focus and Organizational Learning Involvement Empowerment, Team Orientation and Capability Development Consistency Core Values, Agreement, Coordination/Integration Denisons model also allows cultures to be described broadly as externally or internally focused as well as flexible versus stable. The model has been typically used to diagnose cultural problems in organizations. 3.2.1 FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE ORGANISATIONS CULTURE (FIRSTBANK) According to Schein (1992), the two main reasons why cultures develop in organizations is due to external adaptation and internal integration. External adaptation reflects an evolutionary approach to organizational culture and suggests that cultures develop and persist because they help an organization to survive and flourish. If the culture is valuable, then it holds the potential for generating sustained competitive advantages. Additionally, internal integration is an important function since social structures are required for organizations to exist. Organizational practices are learned through socialization at the workplace. Work environments reinforce culture on a daily basis by encouraging employees to exercise cultural values. Organisational culture is shaped by multiple factors, including the following: External environment Industry Size and nature of the organizations workforce Technologies the organization uses The organizations history and ownership The external environment to FirstBank includes the ever emerging competitors, the realization of this pushes the Banks management is forge ahead and be innovative. The increasing number of banks offering same products that Firstbank had exclusivity to buttress this point, exceptional service delivery and brand value/positioning are the keys to have an edge over others. Other aspects of FirstBanks external environment include the legal or statutory regulations which the Bank must conform with, the political, socio-economic dynamics of Nigeria. The workforce of the bank is considerably large in comparism to other banks being the bank with the largest number of branch network and emerging diaspora banking through its subsidiaries. Prior to the rebranding of the Banks workforce, 1stBank had a culture of mostly old staff and few young staff, in 2008 the bank retrenched over 900 staff especially those who had spent over 25 years in service, the management immediately embarked on recruitment of new and experienced hirees who were relatively young, in addition to this, salaries were increased to suit the modern banker status. A new culture in that aspect had been achieved as 1stbankers were no longer distinguished by long suits and old staff. 3.2.2 FIRSTBANK CULTURE FIRSTBANK possesses a strong culture which is continually being improved. In the light of Daniel Denisons model of culture dimensions, FirstBanks mission strategic direction, goals and objectives, are clearly understood by members of staff. The Bank strives to make its staff live by its core values and this has so far helped the bank in terms of durability and goodwill. For the importance of the afore mentioned, FirstBank carries periodic mystery shopping exercise and branch spot checks to ensure that we live what we preach, hence staff are enjoined to move with the train. FirstBank adapts quickly to industry changes and are quick to identify a market opportunity hence they are most often the fore most bank for some products or innovations in the banking industry. Its the bank policy for staff to stick to a particular dress code, have the banks premises painted in a particular way and colour, have a products and services delivered to customers with the brand name FIRST and a unique way of service delivery. All this distinguishes the Bank and a Firstbanker from every other bank or person. The Elephant is also a historic symbol of FirstBanks culture which represents stability and strength, like Peters and Waterman (1982) suggests, the strong culture of the bank has positively enhanced its good will and market share, however things can get better. There exist an area of improvement in the Banks culture as it is normally being discussed within its members that staff are not been sufficiently motivated, the slow promotion process is a major aspect of this. A review of the Banks choice to downsize its work force recently by way of retiring (and firing) staff (although with mouth watering incentives) buttresses this point. Firing on the base of culture Usually pointed as a source of creating family like environment, the notion of corporate culture is also used for firing, with this practice started from shoe company Zappos, which granted its fired employees with huge compensations afterwards.(Google- Wikipedia .As the corporate culture may mean almost everything, firing on the base of culture means the employer does not accept and desire to be inclusive for the culture of the employee and thus the employee does not fit in corporate culture, although this may fall in the ground of discrimination, there is still not law or case law resolving or addressing the question making this practice possible and available for businesses for now. Firing on corporate culture is a recent practice, from 2008. 3.2.3 CULTURAL TYPES Handy (1985) identified four(4) types of organizational culture and they include: Power culture: Entrepreneurial in nature, central control, quick to response, built on trust flexible. Role culture: Roles are more important than persons, functional, rule and procedure driven Task Culture: Cross functional, based on jobs and projects, networked, coordinationcombination of jobs around tasks. Person Culture: People are the central focus, controls are only possible where members agree. FIRSTBANK adopts the role culture, this is because the roles are seen before the persons behind it, and the workforce is also driven by rule (policies) and procedure. 3.2.4 THE PROCESSUAL APPROACH The processual approach is a translation model in which movements of ideas or objects reside in the sense maki