The Slightly True Story of Cedar B. Hartley free essay sample

The slightly true story of Cedar B. Hartley (who planned to live an unusual life) By Martine Murray As Bo Diddley quoted, â€Å"Dont judge a book by its cover† I have always believed in this quote. So one day when I picked up The slightly true story of Cedar B. Hartley (who planned to live an unusual life) I was tempted to but it down when I saw the cover, but I remembered what Mr Diddley had said and decided to give it a go. To my disappointment the book was pointless and extremely boring. Martine Murray is an Australian author and illustrator currently living in Melbourne, Australia.She has written many critically acclaimed books. She started writing because she thought it would be a good idea to learn a practical skill like typing. The slightly true story of Cedar B. Hartley (who planned to live an unusual life) is a book that I simply did not enjoy reading. We will write a custom essay sample on The Slightly True Story of Cedar B. Hartley or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I found the plot very boring and the story was very slow paced. There was no originality in the book. The characters on the other hand is very different matter itself. Martine Murray has developed each characters personality thoroughly. Cedar B. Hartley has hellish red hair and is exasperatingly infamous.She avoids action in her street and drifts instead towards the puddles. In Cedars puddle theres Cedar whod really like to be called Lana Munroe. Her friend Caramella Zito and Ricci a fifty year old lady. But suddenly, things seem to change. Its starts off when her dog Stinky disappears or when her brother Barnaby ran away. Cedar meets a boy called Kite, who swings from trees and does hand springs. Her puddle is getting bigger and more complicated. Kites father Ruben used to be in the circus, his friend Oscar who wobbles and is unstable. Oscars mother ran off with another man abandoning him. New things are happening. Cedar is learning to balance and tumbles with Kite. They practise tumble turns and handstands. Riccis dog is sick and needs an operation. Cedar plans to organise a circus to raise the money needed. This story is told by Cedar herself in first-person. I would recommend this book to those who just want to lie back and read a book that is slow paced with no exciting parts. But if you are looking for an exciting, fast paced novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat, this book is just not for you.

Management Communication 1 Example

Management Communication 1 Example Management Communication 1 – Coursework Example Management Communication The use of the passive voice in written communication is generally discouraged as it often causes confusion to readers. Writers are generally encouraged to write sentences in the active voice as this form is found to be clearer to the readers. This paper seeks to show this by contrasting two sentences written in the passive voice against the same two sentences written in the active voice.Management Communication 1IntroductionThe Use of the Active and Passive Voice in Written CommunicationPassive Voice UseIt has been noted that a lot of extra duties outside their regular job descriptions are being performed by managers, in this company. Therefore, a consensus has been reached by, the company executives, to allow amendments to be made in the company general guidelines, bonus payments will be paid to managers based on the extra duties performed. It is sincerely hoped that further diligence will be encouraged by these new measures that are being undertaken (Burak , 2010).Active Voice UseManagers in this company seem to be taking on a lot of extra duties outside their regular job descriptions. The company executives have, therefore, reached a consensus, allowing amendments to be made to the company general guidelines providing for managers to be paid extra bonuses based on any extra duty performed. Hopefully, these new measures will serve to encourage further diligence (Kessler & McDonald, 2012).Passive Voice UseDear students, cases of frequent truancy have been observed in this institution to be on the increase. On Fridays is when the vice is mostly perpetrated usually by students from all faculties within the institution. Students are being warned to note that they should desist from this conduct. The risk of expulsion will be faced by any student who will be caught committing the offence (Burak, 2010).Active Voice UseDear students, In this institution, Cases of habitual truancy are on the increase. Students from all faculties are usually r esponsible for perpetrating this vice on Fridays. Students should kindly desist from this conduct. Any student caught committing the offence will face expulsion (Kessler & McDonald, 2012).References:Burak, K. (2010) .Boston : Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.Kessler, L. & McDonald, D. (2012) When words collide : a media writers guide to grammar and style. Boston, MA : Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.

How to Self-Study for AP Exams 7-Step Plan

How to Self-Study for AP Exams 7-Step Plan SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips AP self-study is when you study for an AP exam on your own and then take the AP test without taking the class. This is possible because the College Board does not actually require you to take the class associated with a given AP exam to take the test! You might be asking yourself: why do people self-study? Is self-studying right for me?Then, once you've decided to self-study, and you’ve chosen the AP exam you want to study for, you may find yourself wondering how to go about preparing for the test on your own. Where should you start? What do you need to cover? What materials should you use? Never fear, intrepid self-studiers! My seven-step approach to self-studying, from deciding if self-studying is right for you to taking the exam, will explain exactly how to self-study for an AP testand help you tackle the task ahead of you in a way that is manageable, makes sense, and prepares you for the exam. Onward and upwards! Step 1: Decide If Self-Studying Is Something You Should Do Before we get into how to self-study, make sure it's the right approach for you. You might self-study for a variety of reasons: your schedule doesn’t allow you to take an AP course when it’s offered at your school, your school doesn’t offer an AP course in a subject you want to study, you have a pre-existing knowledge base in a subject (like a foreign language you speak at home), and so on. Some students also self-study for an AP exam while they are taking the non-AP version of a course. For example, you might self-study for AP Biology while you are taking Honors Biology and just supplement what you learn in class with the extra material that’s covered on the AP exam. These are all valid reasons to self-study. When you do decide whether or not to self-study, you’ll need to consider how self-motivated you are, how much time you actually have to do extra studying outside of class, and how difficult the exam you want to take is. In general, you’ll want to self-study for an AP exam that is limited in scope, not too conceptual (so no Calculus!), and that you are interested in. Some popular self-study choices include AP Environmental Science, AP Human Geography, and AP Psychology. For further info on self-study, as well as a guide to deciding whether or not to self-study, you can see my introduction to AP self-study.To help you choose a self-study exam, you can also see my list of Best APs to Self-Study. Step 2: Figure Out What You Need to Learn I’m assuming you have a general idea of what your chosen self-study exam is about, or you wouldn’t have picked it. But you need more than that to prepare- you need specific, actionable knowledge on exactly what the test is going to cover. Exactly what you personally need to cover will depend a lot on where you are starting from. If you already have a basic proficiency in the skill or subject, you will not need to cover the material as comprehensively as you will if you are starting from scratch. Similarly, if you are going to self-study for an AP while you are in the Honors (or other non-AP) version of the class, you will only need to cover the material that won’t be taughtin the classroom. No matter your situation, though, you will need to compare what you know with what you are required to know for the exam. So you’ll need a complete list of all of the core competencies necessary for the AP test. For this, you will want to turn to your trusty College Board website.The first thing you’ll want to look at is the â€Å"AP Course and Exam Description† for the course you are self-studying. Find this document on the main course page which you can access from the College Board’s AP Student list of AP courses.This document will include a comprehensive description of the skills and content areas you need to know for the exam. (Note: for courses that haven’t been revised for a long time, the document will just be called â€Å"AP Course Description.†) Examine this document closely; take separate notes on what things you still need to learn based on the course description.If you have preexisting knowledge in the subject, you should also note content areas listed in the description that you already have a handle on and things that you sort of know but might be shaky on. If you are self-studying concurrently with a non-AP class, it will help you a lot to have a copy of the syllabus for your non-AP course. This will letyou see what the examcovers but your class doesn't,andthose are going to be the areas to focus on. You should also look at the teacher resources on the AP course audit page for the course you are self-studying. There, you’ll be able to look at sample syllabi for the course. This may help you clarify some of the competencies in the course description if you aren’t sure exactly what they mean. You can also see textbook recommendations from the College Board on this page. Essentially, you’ll use the College Board’s resources to develop your own document describing what you need to learn before the exam. It doesn’t quite have to be a syllabus, but that’s more or less how it will function for you- it will help you keep track of what you’ve learned and what you still need to cover. This can be a working document- if you realize during the course of your prep that there’s a topic area you missed, or one that doesn’t seem particularly relevant for the exam after all, feel free to change stuff around! This is just how you’ll establish a starting point for your preparation. On your mark, get set, prep! Step 3: Make a Schedule and Stick to It! Once you’ve gotten a working document of what you need to cover for the test, divide it up into a schedule. Again, some topics may end up taking you a little longer than you thought, and some may take less time. This is fine, just so long as you keep a steady pace and don’t fall way behind in your schedule. In addition to having an overall schedule - cover topic X for two weeks, Y for three weeks- make a schedule of when you are going to sit down and prepare every week. Having consistent times each week that you set aside for self-study prep will keep you on track and make it easier to get through the material. To that end, you may also want to decide on a specific place where you’re going to study: your kitchen table, the library, your grandma’s back porch- wherever, but a consistent place where you can work free of distractions will make preparation feel more routine and keep you motivated. Step 4: Find and Use a Variety of Study Resources Once you’ve drawn up a rough schedule, you’ll need to figure out how you’re going to learn the material: what resources will you use? I recommend using a variety of resources. Processing the information multiple ways and in multiple formats will help you retain it and keep the studying process interesting (well, as interesting as it can be). That said, do be aware of how you learn best- if you aren’t an auditory learner, for example, podcasts won’t be a particularly useful study tool for you. Here are four kinds of study resources you might consider. Textbooks A good textbook is, in truth, the most important item in your arsenal for most AP exams. It’s your one-stop learning shop that will help you learn the material, structure your preparation, and try outreview questions. So, it’s critical that you choose a good one (or good ones! There’s no rule that you can’t use more than one textbook to prepare). Here are some ideas for finding good textbooks: Check the College Board’s list of textbook recommendations onthe AP course audit page for your exam. If you’re self-studying for an AP course that is actually offered at your school, you might see what textbook is used for the course. Ask students what they think of it and if they find it helpful. Read reviews of any textbook you are thinking about purchasing (or getting from the library). Pay special attention to whether or not students felt it prepared them for the exam. You can also see our textbook recommendations for AP US History, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Psychology. Review Books A good review book is probably the second-most important resource a self-studier can have, after a good textbook. It isn’t necessarily the best way to learn the material in a comprehensive fashion, but a lucid, exam-focused prep book will help you review everything that’s most important to remember for the test. As the day of your exam draws closer, review books will help ensure all the knowledge you learned by self-studying stays in your head. To find a good prep book, read reviews! We have recommendations for AP US History, AP Biology, AP Human Geography, and AP Psychology, but you can also look on Amazon, College Confidential, and elsewhere for reviews. The Princeton Review and Barron’s are two generally well-regarded AP review book sources, but making sure you’re getting the best book for the specific course you are studying is important. Don't do this to your books if you got them from the library, please. Online Content Providers and MOOCs You will probably get the real meat of your self-study material from your trusty textbook(s) and review book(s), but there are other, supplemental resources that can help you learn and review AP concepts. Online lecture videos and MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are an excellent example of a supplementary resource you might use for self-study. Massive Open Online Courses are online classes created by educational institutions to make their educational resources accessible to a broader audience. They generally involve lecture videos; some also have additional material like practice exercises and assessments. Many of them are free! You can use online lecture videos and MOOCs to learn all kinds of material. Some will have a more general, topical focus that is not AP-specific; others are specifically for learning AP material and review. Even AP-specific MOOCs are generally not accredited by the College Board (i.e. they do not have the College Board’s official seal of approval, like an AP class at your high school). This just means that you should stick to the most reputable providers and look for reviews from other self-studiers if you can find them. (You might try to College Confidential forums or the Reddit AP pages.) Some of the best online content and MOOC providers: Khan Academyoffers tons of free educational modules on a huge variety of topics covered by AP exams. In addition to awesome video lessons, they have helpful quizzes to check your skills. You can also find most of their videos on their YouTube channel. EdX, founded by Harvard and MIT, has tons of free MOOC modules applicable to the AP, including some specifically targeted to AP exams. Coursera also offers tons of relevant MOOCs from a variety of colleges and universities. Podcasts and YouTube Videos Podcasts and YouTube videos are another great supplemental resource for learning about specific topics and concepts. You can find channels on everything from WWII History to astronomy to foreign language learning- definitely poke around to see what might be useful! To give you a head-start, here are some helpful resources you might want to check out, sorted by topic: General (Little Bit of Everything) TedEd - a YouTube channel from the people who bring you Ted Talks. Videos on all kinds of subjects that could be useful for your AP exam. Science The Sci Show - This YouTube channel explains all kinds of scientific phenomena. Probably of specific interest to AP Bio self-studiers, as there are lots of explanations of biological processes (and answers to some very important questions, like whether or not you have to give up bacon.) The Naked Scientists - a podcast covering all kinds of science topics. Useful for self-studying any science AP. (But please don’t self-study AP chemistry or AP physics! I’m very serious! See my list of best AP classes to self-study if you don’t believe me). History Biography channel - Their YouTube channel offers tons of â€Å"mini-biography† videos for notable historical figures. A good way to learn some key points about the major players in your history textbook. APUSH review by Adam Norris - a YouTube channel about, you guessed it, reviewing AP US History. He also has videos on AP Government. The Podcast History of Our World - A podcast series focusing on world history. Most of the current episodes cover ancient history (so, periods 1 and 2 for the AP World History exam). The History Chicks - A podcast by women about notable women from history. Mostly Euro-centric. English Grammar Girl - A podcast with super-short episodes ongrammar and writing tips. If there’s a particular idiom or grammatical rule that trips you up, this is a great resource! Foreign Language Audiria - A podcast site specifically for Spanish-language learners. You can pick podcasts by difficulty level and topic. How cool is that? An early podcaster in his native element. Step 5: Take Notes and Self-Assess While you’re consuming all of your top-quality study resources- reading your textbook, watching your Khan Academy videos, perusing your review book- it’s very important that you interact with the material. That means take notes! I know; taking notes is boring and not fun. But you will use your self-study time more efficiently if you take good notes that you can refer back to later. This way, when it’s time to review everything you’ve learned, you’ll have an easy, comprehensive resource to look at. You don’t have to take regular outline-based notes if you don’t want to. You could draw out a mind map or make flashcards for the content you learn instead. (In fact, I highly recommend making flashcards at some point for content-heavy courses like AP Biology or the history APs.) The important thing is that you are making a record of the significant information as you learn it, to help you retain it and to help you review. On a similar note, it’s also important that you occasionally test yourself to make sure you are actually learning the material. Your trusty textbook probably has practice problems at the end of each chapter you can complete. As you learn more material, you’ll probably want to use AP practice tests to make sure you’re really getting at the essential knowledge for the test (see step sevenfor more on AP practice exams). Step 6: Register for the Test! This is an essential step that you will need to complete in early March. If your school offers AP courses, you’ll need to talk to your school’s AP exam coordinator (probably a guidance counselor) about ordering the exam for you. If your school doesn’t offer AP courses, you will need to call AP Services (domestic number 888-225-5427) by March 1 to get the information for schools in your area that will test outside students. You will then need to get in touch with the school the College Board directs you to by March 15. You can see complete instructions for registering for the test here, including registering for an exam your school doesn’t offer. Registering will set you back $92. If you qualify for financial assistance from the College Board, you’ll get a $30 discount. You should also remember to make arrangements with your regular teachers since you’ll be missing class the day of your exam. Not much else to say here except that if you forget to complete this step, all your prep time will be for naught! Step 7: Exam Prep and Review When the exam starts to draw closer- I would say around the midpoint of your designated study time- you’ll want to start reviewing material you already covered and prepping for the exam format. This is when you’ll want to bust out your notes/flashcards, your review book(s), and your practice tests. See my article on finding the best AP practice tests for tips on how to find top-quality practice resources. Practice AP tests will help familiarize you with the exam formatand let you know how to adjust your studying and what to focus on going forward. If you keep missing questions about the Enlightenment even though you already covered it, you’ll know to go back and review that some more. In terms of how many practice tests you should complete, that’s somewhat dependent on how much time you’ve allotted for self-study, but somewhere in the three-five rangewill work for most students. You may do more individual free-response or short-answer practice questions than that, but in terms of complete practice tests, three to five should be sufficient. You should plan to wrap up learning new content a few weeks to a month before the exam so you can dedicate the last few weeks solely to reviewing content and practicing. This will help you make sure that everything is polished and ready, and you aren’t scrambling to cram information on the Civil Rights Movement into your head the night before the test. Once you’re all prepped, all that’s left is to take the test! Be sure to do all the usual test-taking best practices like getting a good night’s sleep and packing everything you need the night before, and then go rock that thing! Rock it like this stack of rocks! Staying Motivated While Self-Studying Even with a solid study plan, it can be hard to stay motivated when you are taking on a pretty big project like studying for an AP exam on your own. So here are three tips for keeping on task when you self-study: #1: Build in Rewards If you can think of a reward to give yourself every time you complete a scheduled study session and for milestones in your self-studying process, you’ll have an easier time staying on track. Maybe you’ll watch an episode of your favorite show to close out every study session or bake cookies every time you finish out a topic area. The key is to save that reward for studying- so no binge-watching your show outside of study sessions or baking cookies for no reason! That way you’ll keep the reward tied to your progress. #2: Recruit a Study Buddy If you know someone else who is self-studying, study together! It doesn’t even have to be the same AP just so long as you are consistently meeting. This will help ensure that you show up for study sessions. Make a pact to help keep each other on track, though- don’t fall into thehabitof goofing off together during your study times instead! #3: Be Accountable to Someone Even if you don’t have a dedicated study buddy, you can still make yourself accountable to someone else- a parent, friend, or other trusted person in your life. Tell them your study schedule and ask them to help you enforce it. If you can get them to text or call you when it’s time for you to start studying and ask you about your progress throughout the year, it will help you keep on task. There’s nothing like knowing someone else expects you to get something done to help you push through! I'm accountable to this donut...for eating it. Key Takeaways You’ll find self-studying much easier if you’re armed with a plan. Here are my six steps to self-study success: Figure out what you need to learn. Make a schedule. Find a variety of high-quality materials. Take notes and self-assess as you learn. Register for the test. Prep for the exam and review what you’ve learned! Even with a plan, it can be hard to stay motivated. Some strategies that might work for you include: Reward yourself for getting work done. Find someone to study with! Be accountable to someone else. Now you know how to self-study for an AP exam. If you follow these steps and put in the work, you’ll be sure to hit your target score! What's Next? If you want to know all of your AP course and exam options, we have a complete list. Thinking about online AP courses as an alternative to self-study? See my introduction to online AP courses and reviews of the best online AP class options. Be sure to check out our guide to the redesigned SATto see what's been changed. You might also think about taking the ACT instead. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Organisational Change Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 3

Organisational Change Management - Essay Example ...........page 4 Discovery...............................................................................................................page 4-5 Dream....................................................................................................................page 7 Design...................................................................................................................page 8 Destiny...................................................................................................................page 9 Recommendations...............................................................................................page 9-10 Reference list.......................................................................................................page 15 Introduction Human resources/change management can be initiated in an organisation, especially on workforce planning, after reviewing organisational charts, its employee files, customer information, and sales and marketin g information systems, it can be evident that a company plans for change and communication management. In this regard, a functional organisational structure would be the most effective for an organisational workforce planning. This is because the structure makes it possible to classify a company’s departments into different functional areas, such as finance, engineering and marketing. As a result, a company’ employees are grouped according to their special talents, expertise and experience (Houldsworth & Jirasinghe 2006, p.112). For example, a finance team is more effective brainstorming together, especially when testing an accounting reporting system. This can be done by selecting the most effective organisational structure. The selected functional organisational structure will make the employees of the company to behave differently, for instance, there will be increased communication. This is very healthy for the business operations of a company because more informat ion and knowledge will be shared among the departmental employees. Moreover, there will be efficient allocation and use of the company’s resources among its employees, and since there will be a more harmonized chain of command; the employee’s morale will be higher. As communication is improved among the employees, there is more knowledge sharing because the staff members tend to form a strong work relationship. In this regard, decision making processes are made faster since there is a lot of coordination among the employees. This also implies that there is little duplication of the company’s resources since its raw materials and labour operate more efficiently, because every employee concentrates more in his/her role, as outline in the firm’s job description manual (Beardwell & Claydon 2007, p.68). Managements of various organisations recognise the roles played by the human resources in the workforce planning initiatives. For this reason, the human resour ces managers are expected to assume the broader role of implementing the overall strategy that is geared towards attaining the most efficient workforce in an organization (Robbins & Judge 2009, p.92). Regarding this, workforce planning should incorporate the right number of employees, who have well defined roles/job descriptions. This will help in managing issues of understaffing or overstaffing in different departments within an organisation. Human resources investments practices also reduce employees’ turnover, a situation which facilitates stability within the organisation. The department

Individual innovation appraisal- Concise written description of an Essay

Individual innovation appraisal- Concise written description of an innovation- proposal and evaluation - Essay Example For the innovation to existing in the market, availability of capital and implementation of sustainable market strategies will play a great role. Through proper planning, goal-setting a decision-making, the innovation will go through thorough market testing. After its viability is established, it will be released into the market. Another aspect that has contributed to its existence is availability of resources including human and financial resources. Without resources, it is impossible to get through with any innovation. Over the years, 3D has acquired popularity with more people being attracted to this kind of technology. The situation has forced entrepreneurs to develop new business models. In recent times, most companies are raising capital towards tapping the growing demand and market for 3D (Taylor, 2014). The aim maintaining relevance drives them. The Mink is triggered by the level of profitability expected. The Mink is likely to be successful mainly because of the much hype it has received from the general population. People are always attracted by unique and new ways of doing things. People also like to experiment even with things that they do not necessarily need. Marketing strategies that have been adopted to market The Mink will also ensure this success. Through advertising, the innovation is receiving popularity with more people embracing the idea every day. It is evident that advertising influences the success of a business to a great extent. Through various exhibitions, awareness has been created regarding The Mink. Social media has also played a role in enhancing the popularity. The innovation is, therefore, likely to succeed. Furthermore, it is a common believe that women are impulse buyers; profits are likely to increase since they are the main users of the innovation. Nonetheless, the cosmetic industry is doing well in the business market (Restauri, 2014). Most women use

Police Officers Discretion Essay Example for Free

Police Officers Discretion Essay Discretion is defined to be an individual’s capabilities and freedom to make responsible preferences and judgments. People working in all fields require making decisions in every day life; however, some need to be more proficient at it. Police officers usually fine themselves in chaotic and critical situations, where their decision can change the entire scenario. The most appropriate decision within the legal boundaries must be made, varying from situation to situation. Discretion is broadly characterized as five different subjects – discretion by judgment (sense of bending rules in legally appropriate ways to fit the situation), discretion as choice (to show courage and give personal contribution to form decisions as the authority in that situation), discretion by discernment (to be diplomatic, tolerant, considerate and cautious and not very generous while making decisions), discretion as liberty (to not be restricted by the law and stretch boundaries of freedom as long as it is acceptable) and lastly discretion as license (basically the permission to act there and then in whichever way thought to be appropriate without the permission of the superiors). There are some police officers who abuse their right of discretion; they believe that they are unaccountable and since they are the authority at the point of chaos, they can do as they will. Having the right of discretion does not mean that an officer can make whatever decisions that they will; they are restricted by professional, society, legal and ethical norms (Sullivan, 1972). The officers these days have just the right capacity of discretion. The only major areas that they use discretion in are domestic violence, drunk driving, mental illness, hate crime, use of force and even vice crime. These are the areas where the personal opinion and judgment of the police officers matters while arresting or giving punishments. In the rest of the important and critical areas such as rape, murder, dacoits and robberies; they have to abide by the law whether they personally approve of it or not. Only easy and fields of everyday crime are left up to the intellect of these officers. Since, there are only some areas where officers are given the right to exercise discretion, it is easy to conclude that the officers are neither given too much or too less of power. Giving them the right to decide is rational because they have been selected as officers and have been given good enough training, which gives them the sense of making correct decisions. These officers make up the entire police force, thus, their opinion should also matter – however, to only some extent. The problems that these police officers face while enforcing laws and giving verdicts is that there are hardly any fields involved in the police forces that are uncontroversial; usually, everybody has a different stance on things. Also, there is a problem is public confidence – the public is too unpredictable to please (Walker, 1993). They desire accountability but nothing seems to satisfy them; also, they wish for strict enforcement in only those areas that they are not related to, that is, they want leverage for themselves but not others. This controversial and unpredictable attitude makes it difficult for the police offers to come up with the right solution that will make everybody happy. I have witnessed one such event myself where differing opinions lead to confusion. A mentally disabled boy of around seventeen became a source of disturbance to other boys playing cricket. One of them was violent and hit the mentally disabled boy out of frustration, who hit the boy back causing him to bleed. Surprisingly, a police car was passing from there at that instant and stopped to check the situation. Everybody demanded that the mentally disabled boy should be punished for his act as he often becomes a cause of nuisance in the neighborhood. The police officer was by nature sympathetic and was of the opinion that the mentally ill boy should be let go of as he is underprivileged and does not possess the ability of making sensible decisions. Here, in this chaotic situation, even when the public was against the officer’s decision, he used his power of discretion and made an appropriate decision according to his judgment instantly. This shows that the right of discretion is extremely important for an officer to deal with everyday situations. Although, if you look closely, it was not a situation where major or critical decisions need to be made; thus, the police officer without any doubts and fear abided by his opinion – this shows limitation of power of discretion to only some areas.

Online Courses vs. Traditional Courses Essay -- Higher Education, Inter

Today, more and more colleges are offering courses to students that are entirely online. Students who are drawn to online courses include students working full-time jobs, students who would prefer a private study environment, or students who find that online courses are easier than traditional (campus-based) courses. Advertisements geared to encourage students to register for online classes have the tendency to portray them as being easier and requiring less work than its campus counterpart. For instance, some television advertisements show students wearing night clothes working in a relaxed environment within their home - free of the pressures caused by deadlines and testing. Despite the fact that online courses and traditional courses generally cover the same material on a given subject—the two are markedly different with regards to technical requirements, social interaction, testing, and practice. Possessing strong computer skills is one of the fundamental requirements for a student taking an online course. In contrast, traditional courses seldom require the use of computers; instead, online courses are conducted entirely on a computer via the internet. Students must know how to navigate the internet, use email to communicate and submit assignments, and use word processing and other programs required for the specific course. Students who are novice computer users will be at a great disadvantage and likely will not complete the course with a satisfactory grade. Students who possess these skills will be able to excel through online courses with greater ease, and more flexibility than courses taught on campus. Lack of social interaction is another factor that a student should consider when registering to take an online course. A... ...es, than courses taken on campus. Students absolutely must possess great self-discipline in order to successfully complete an online course. All things considered, besides a private study environment, the single most advantage of an online course over a traditional course is the flexibility they offer in scheduling, especially for students with fluctuating schedules. Nevertheless, despite advertisements, online courses require students to work as hard as courses taught on campus—if not harder. Students who lack computer skills, students who require strong social interaction, and students who are not strongly disciplined should take courses that are offered on campus. Students must carefully evaluate all of these points and any course literature available in order to select the type of course that best fits their learning style, as this has been most helpful for me.

Brand Awareness and Perception towards Branded Jewellery Essay

The gems and jewellery industry occupies an important position in the Indian economy and is one of the fastest growing industries in the country. In the late 1990s, the Indian jewellery market witnessed a shift in consumer perceptions of jewellery. Apart from its historical religious significance, Jewellery is valued as an important savings and investment vehicle in India. Even in present times, Jewellery remains the Indian bride’s `Streedhan’, the wealth she takes with her when she marries and which remains hers. Gold jewellery is the preferred jewellery worn by women in India irrespective of their religious beliefs. In marriages, gold jewellery is the gift preferred by the near relatives of the bride and the groom. Jewellery is very popular among farmers, with an upsurge in gold sales after a good agricultural season. Buying of gold is an important part of every stage of an Indian citizen’s life— at birth, marriage, construction of home, festivals, relig ious ceremonies, setting up of new business, and death. Instead of being regarded as only an investment option, jewellery was being prized for its aesthetic appeal. In other words, the focus seemed to have shifted from content to design. Trendy, affordable and lightweight jewellery soon gained familiarity. Branded jewellery also gained acceptance forcing traditional Jewellers to go in for branding. As India makes rapid progress in the retail arena, the Indian Jewellery market is undergoing a gradual metamorphosis from unorganised to organised formats. Jewellery retailing is moving from a ‘storehouse of value’ to a precious fashion accessory. Plain gold is gradually easing its stranglehold on the Indian consumer psyche to give way to diamonds, platinum and coloured gemstones. The way jewellery was worn before is undergoing a tremendous change. However branded jewellery players will continue to face lot of competition from local jewellers. In order to gain market share, they will have to come up with designs that customers want and win the trust and confidence of consumers by hallmarking and demonstrating the purity of the gold used by them. To compete with traditional players, branded players must also find some way to differentiate themselves. While the success of a particular brand will depend on differentiation, affordability and quality will be a key element  in sustaining a brand. The present study will help us to understand the brand awareness and perception of the customers towards MALABAR GOLD jewellery in Bangalore. 3. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM In the emerging knowledge based economy it has become necessary to know how much market power lies with the brand name. Awareness and Perception are the two key metrics that any company would use to measure their brand strength. The study of brand awareness and perception is essential in marketing planning. Customer needs and preferences keep changing where brands ultimately command customer’s loyalty. Without brand awareness occurring, no other communication effects can occur. For a consumer to buy a brand they must first be made aware of it. Brand attitude cannot be formed, and intention to buy cannot occur unless brand awareness has occurred. Brand perception is created by consumer experience with the brand’s product or service. In other words, perception is the values consumers attach to a brand. After the purchase of specialty goods or shopping goods, the customer exhibits post purchase behaviour. It may be either cognitive consonance or cognitive dissonance. The consonance leads to dissatisfaction. But when it comes to customers going in high value premium segment goods such as gold, diamond and platinum ornaments, in a high competitive with too many players in the market, then the customer surely has a wide range of choice to choose from and carefully evaluates the different showrooms before making a purchase decision. In such a situation, any purchase dissonance will lead to very high degree of dissatisfaction, which may also lead to spreading negative opinion to the prospective buyer of jeweller’s outlet. Hence a research is undertaken to understand the brand awareness and perception towards branded jewellery with specific reference to Malabar Gold and Diamonds, Bangalore. 4. OBJECTIVES OF STUDY Primary objective The main objective of the study is to determine the level of brand awareness  and brand perception of Malabar Gold Jewellery, and the use of it as a measure to increase the marketing effectiveness of Malabar Brand Jewellery. Secondary objectives i. To compare the customer preference between the branded and non branded jewellery ii. To understand the parameters the customers consider while buying jewellery iii. To know how brand preference is formed in purchasing Malabar Gold jewellery among customers iv. To measure the level of satisfaction of customers of Malabar Gold v. To analyze the marketing strategies of Malabar Gold with regard to brand awareness and perception 5. RESEARCH DESIGN TYPE OF RESEARCH The study will be descriptive in nature POPULATION Customers buying gold in Bangalore City SAMPLE SIZE The sample for the study would be limited to 105 respondents. SAMPLING UNIT For this study the respondents will be the customers buying gold and diamond jewellery TYPE OF SAMPLING Simple random sampling method will be used for the study. TOOLS OF DATA COLLECTION Primary data: Primary data will be collected using a structured questionnaire as well as personal interview method. Secondary data: The secondary data for this work will be obtained from company magazines and brochures, website, newspapers, internet, text books, reports and other promotional materials. HYPOTHESES STATED FOR THE STUDY: Hypothesis 1 Null Hypothesis (H0): Gender of customers and preference for branded and non-branded jewellery is independent. Alternative Hypothesis (H1): Gender of customers and preference for branded and non-branded jewellery is independent. Hypothesis 2 Null Hypothesis (H0): Marital Status of customers and purchase of jewellery is independent. Alternative Hypothesis (H1): Marital Status of customers and purchase of jewellery is dependent. PLAN OF ANALYSIS The data collected from various sources will be tabulated and represented using the percentage and ranking method. Graphical tools like bar diagrams, pie charts etc., will be used to illustrate the tabulated data pictorially. Inferences and interpretation of the data will be done on the basis of tabulated data. In both Hypotheses 1 and 2, the null hypotheses will be tested using Chi-Square test for independence of attributes at 5% level of significance. 6. PROPOSED CHAPTER SCHEME: a. Introduction b. Review of Literature & Research Design c. Profile of Industry/Business/Selected Organisations d. Results, Analyses and Discussions e. Summary of Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations.

Virginia Mason Hospital

What were reasons for implementing lean management at Virginia Mason Hospital? Lean thinking begins with driving out waste so that all work adds value and serves the customer’s needs. Identifying value-added and non-value-added steps in every process is the beginning of the journey toward lean operations. In order for lean principles to take root, leaders must first work to create an organizational culture that is receptive to lean thinking. The commitment to lean must start at the very top of the organization, and all staff should be involved in helping to redesign processes to improve flow and reduce waste. Although health care differs in many ways from manufacturing, there are also surprising similarities: Whether building a car or providing health care for a patient, workers must rely on multiple, complex processes to accomplish their tasks and provide value to the customer or patient. Waste —of money, time, supplies, or good will — decreases value. And the CEO of VM realized several reasons for them to implement lean management to improve the poor performance of the old system: 1. The path to better quality and safety is the same as the path to reduced cost. 2. VM’s old system is full of waste (non-value-added activities), need to systematically reduce and eliminate that waste. 3. Improvement is not coming from a technological arms race. What is VMPS and what are its main principles? The Virginia Mason Production System (VMPS) is a management method based on manufacturing principles that seeks to continually improve how work is done. Using this method, Virginia Mason (VM) identifies and eliminates waste and inefficiency in the many processes that are part of the health care experience, making it possible for VM staff to deliver the highest quality and safest patient care. By streamlining repetitive and low-touch aspects of care delivery, staff and providers spend more time talking with, listening to and treating patients. Virginia Mason’s vision is to be the Quality Leader in health care. This vision requires adopting a paradigm shift from expecting errors and defects, to believing that the perfect patient experience is possible. Key to accomplishing this is understanding that staff who do the work know what the problems are and have the best solutions. VMPS strategies range from small-scale ideas tested and mplemented immediately to long-range planning that redesigns new spaces and processes. VM uses several continuous improvement activities, such as Rapid Process Improvement Workshops (RPIWs) and kaizen events focused on incremental changes, as well as 3P workshops intended to completely redesign a process. VM has held 850 continuous improvement activities involving staff, patients and guests. VM leaders saw value in the TPS principles of mak ing quality and safety a top priority, relentlessly focusing on the customer, reducing waste (of which health care has an abundance), and engaging staff in continuous improvement. The idea behind VMPS is to achieve continuous improvement by adding value without adding money, people, large machines, space or inventory, all toward a single overarching goal — no waste. Explain main wastes of resources that VMPS targets. The idea behind VMPS is to achieve continuous improvement by adding value without adding money, people, large machines, space or inventory, all toward a single overarching goal — no waste. VMPS has six areas of focus: †¢ â€Å"Patient First† as the driver for all processes to eliminate †¢The creation of an environment in which people feel safe and free to engage in improvement–including the adoption of a â€Å"No-Layoff Policy† †¢Implementation of a company-wide defect alert system called â€Å"The Patient Safety Alert System† †¢Encouragement of innovation and â€Å"trystorming† (beyond brainstorming, trystorming involves quickly trying new ideas or models of new ideas) †¢Creating a prosperous economic organization primarily by eliminating waste †¢ Accountable leadership Instead of doctors waiting until the end of the day to go though a stack of patient records, they now write comments and recommendations immediately after seeing the patient before going to see the next one. The time saved increases the time a physician can spend with a patient. Most of the cost of medical care involves clogs in the flow of information — paper forms, lab results, phone messages, often leading to irritated patients. Two details on this list bear further explanation. The No-Layoff Policy is critical to the success of implementing lean management. People will more fully commit nd engage in improvement work if they are not worried about improving themselves out of a job. Attrition, typically steady in health care, will enable most organizations to reassign staff to other necessary work. A culture shift is important here as well: Staff, especially in health care, do not typically view themselves as working for the organization, but for their individual department and/or care team. In lean thinking, the patient/customer drives all processes, and staff/providers must come to understand that they work for the patient. This means they may be reassigned depending on the needs of the patients. Secondly, the defect alert system is a fundamental element of the TPS, known as â€Å"stopping the line. † Every worker in the Toyota plant has the power and the obligation to stop the assembly line when a defect or error is identified or even suspected. Workers pull a cord, a light goes on, music plays as a signal for supervisors to come and help, and the entire assembly line either slows or stops (depending on the degree of the defect resolution time) while line workers and supervisors assess and fix the problem, often preventing an error from becoming embedded in the final product. This typically happens many times a day. The theory behind stopping the line is that mistakes are inevitable, but reversible. Defects are mistakes that were not fixed at the source, passed on to another process, or not detected soon enough and are now relatively permanent. If you fix mistakes early enough in the process, your product will have zero defects. Mistakes are least harmful and easiest to fix the closer you get to the time and place they arise. The reverse is also true. What is patient safety alert system and how it works? Virginia Mason used VMPS to develop a Patient Safety Alert (PSA) system requiring all staff who encounters a situation likely to harm a patient to make an immediate report and cease any activity that could cause further harm. If the safety of a patient is indeed at risk, an investigation is immediately launched to correct the problem. Most reports are processed within 24 hours – a significant improvement from when reports took three to 18 months to resolve. Patient safety at VM has increased and professional liability claims have dropped. Explain the main results of implementing VMPS. Since adopting VMPS, Virginia Mason teams have achieved significant organizational and departmental improvements: †¢Reduced the time it takes to report lab test results to the patient by more than 85 percent. †¢Improved the percent of time nurses spend in direct patient care from 35 percent to 90 percent. †¢Reduced bedsores (a common problem in hospitals) from 8 percent to less than 2 percent, preventing 838 patients per year from acquiring bedsores. †¢Saved $1 million in supply expense in 2009. Reduced professional liability insurance 48. 9 percent from 2004 to 2009. †¢Reduced laboratory staff walking distance by 2. 8 miles and removed 357 hours of lead time from lab operations. †¢Pharmacy improved medication distribution from physician order to availability for administration from 2. 5 hours to 10 minutes and reduced incomplete inpatient medication orders from 20 to 40 percent to less than 0. 2 percent; bo th were achieved through process improvement and computer physician order entry (CPOE) implementation

La-Z-Boy Recliner

La-Z-Boy Recliner Put your feet up, lean back, and relax. Most of us either own a La-Z-boy recliner or know a friend or family member who does. The innovative chair design was invented during the spring of 1928, about the same time Dr. Fleming discovered penicillin, Mickey Mouse starred in the first talkie cartoon, Steamboat Willie, and Lawrence Welk started intoxicating America with his champagne bubble band. Edward Knabusch Edwin Shoemaker Invent La-Z-Boy In 1927, the cousins abandoned secure jobs, joined forces, and invested in their own furniture business in Monroe, Michigan. Suddenly, Knabusch, a woodworker, turned into a marketer, and Shoemaker, originally a farmer, became an engineer. The locals thought they were crazy, but the Floral City Furniture Company flourished. La-Z-Boy Moves off the Porch and into the Living Room Automatic Adjustable Chair - Not a Good Name The Competition Gets Uncomfortable with La-Z-Boy With only a brief slow-down during World War II, the La-Z-Boy Chair Company continued to grow, adding new furniture pieces and changing designs to suit the times. La-Z-Boy workers now make more than 30,000 chairs and sofas each weekthats 6,000 a day. Continue Home Innovations

Managing Creativity for Marketing and Advertising Essay

Managing Creativity for Marketing and Advertising - Essay Example Beem (2010) reckons that if carefully prepared and properly executed, co-branding is one of the best strategies that can be used to penetrate markets, survive financial down times and even grow. Taking the strongest elements of one brand and combining these with the best complementary brands to create a new product can in fact lead to the potential worth of the new product being greater than that of the sum of the two products (synergy). Gap Clothing and Apple I-pod The two brands chosen for co-branding in this case are GAP - a popular brand from the apparel industry, and Apple - one of the most popular brands in the music/technology industry. To make the new product, GAP’s hoodies and Apple’s iPod will be combined to create clothing from GAP that encompasses Apple’s slogan and promotes the values that Apple stands for. The new product is to take advantage of the position of the two in their specific markets and further strengthen their image of being trendy and cool. Visual of the New Product: The Techno Hoodie The form of presentation of the co-branded product will be a techno hoodie. A hoodie is a sweatshirt characteristic of a hood and is regarded as the most important cultural product of the Western world in the 20th Century. McCartney (2008) contends that hoodies are the only commodity the current generation will be remembered with, and given the popularity of the hoodie; it is difficult to argue against this. It is urban apparel, often made of cotton or poly-blend and is usually in the form of a zipper-front or pullover (Kayne 2011). Hoodies are regarded as unique urban clothes, forming the fashion statements of many people. The new product will be a representative of a one-of–a-kind style and will bear screen-printed designs on its back as are popular with many people. The techno hoodie will come in two types: 1. A pullover hoodie, which will have one single, large pocket in the front 2. A zipped hoodie: which will have a zip per dividing the front and the pocket into two Instead of the usual material or poly-blend material strings, the drawstrings of the hoodies are going to be high-quality iPod headphones, a design that will be unique and trendy. The pockets will be designed to be holding the iPods among other things. The hoodies will be designed in different colors to match with the range of colors the iPod comes in. The designs on the hoodies will include the two logos; GAP and Apple written either as graffiti or just plain, alongside decorations regarded as cool including elements of anime and pop culture. Creation of a Brand Image Techno hoodies are the next-best-thing in the apparel market with a promise to be fashionable into the future. A combination of the high level of comfort, capacity to hold the iPod and an image of being cool and trendy and subscribing to pop culture results in a scenario in which techno hoodies are going to be massively popular into the future. â€Å"The market for this item should be huge as anyone who likes taking walks, working out, or most young adults will love these† (TEP 2011). Such reviews indicate that techno hoodies are not only a hit now but also what can be termed as â€Å"futuristic clothing†. Therefore the two brands will collaborate to make clothing that accommodates the vast music collection of the youth. GAP will provide the trendiest, top-notch

Written Practice in English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Written Practice in English - Essay Example I have improved upon the following skills, but I still need some on working them: introductions/ conclusions, argument/persuasion, evidence/support, sentence/paragraph structure and staying on topic. I will need more, significant work on tone, revision, meeting/staying within page length, pre-writing and transitions. When I started the course, I was not even aware of the dynamics of writing. However, I was introduced to the various elements involved in good writing, and the first component that struck me and I wanted to specialize in was the ability to summarize. I practiced a lot on this because I thought it contained many subsidiary skills of writing related to identifying and choosing the significant ideas, editing, organizing and so on. I could say that I have mastered this skill after some dedicated hours of work. I have also mastered the skill of responding to a reading. For this, I spent quality time to read things carefully and to identify the main and supporting arguments. I am convinced now that my responses could be effective only if I understand properly whatever I read. I have improved drastically with my word choices. Earlier, I used to believe that words did not matter much as long as the content was significant. Now I am aware that the content can be made significant only if the r ight words are used. With the proper choice of words, I reached high levels of clarity as well. Before I start writing anything, I try to identify my thoughts clearly and ask myself whether this could be presented with clarity. With the help of my professor, I could identify various formats of writing and can claim that I am adept at it now. Though it all seemed restricting in the beginning, I was able to grasp the logic that worked with every format, and this helped me a lot to master them.