Issues of Managerial Accounting Essay

Managerial accounting is concerned with providing information to managers – that is , people inside an organization who direct or control it’s operations. Via managerial accounting managers understood that good business results come from dynamic processes , procedures and practices that are well designed and properly implemented and managed. Certified management accountants are qualified to help their fellow managers achieve good business results because they have earned an advanced certification that addresses all important aspects of accounting inside organization. The role management accounts play within organizations supporting decision making , planning , and control. In short , the emphasis in business and the role of accounting should be more about doing business rather than tabulating and reporting historical financial results. Now a days , management accounting plays a very important role for the success of an organizations. The current and contemporary issues of management accounting in manufacturing and service sector is developing the skills of the manager. Besides , Management accounting information is a useful ‘language’ to enable better collaboration between engineers, designers, marketers and other parties involved in product development, including suppliers. Managing suppliers is an important element of controlling production costs, and there are significant benefits to involving them and sharing data and specifications at an early stage of product development. Contemporary issues of management accounting plays an impact over manufacturing sector. Current issues help advanced manufacturing techniques (both production technologies such as robotics and management tools such as just-in-time) led to a reducing proportion of costs being accounted for by direct materials and direct labour. Other parts of the value chain therefore become more important than the production line, for example, relationships with suppliers and customers. Globalisation has increased the importance of supply chain management, as risk and costs increase with complexity. Management accountants can help develop a strategy to manage suppliers so that they fit in with the company’s own lean production methods and pursuit of value added. Management accountants can help companies analyse their value chain in order to understand better where the most value is created; and where costs arise. Using techniques such as whole of life costing, this analysis can extend beyond point of sale to the customer. Management accounting started as a discipline to support better manufacturing decision making. Although the discipline has evolved to also support service industries and not-for-profit organisations, it has also evolved to keep pace with new developments in manufacturing technology and practices. So we can understand how current issues of management accounting plays an impact in manufacturing sector. We will discuss about few important contemporary and current issues of management accounting and how this issues are helping a organization to gain it’s goal and to develop day by day. Some contemporary issues of management accounting are – TQM (Total quality management) : TQM is a set of management practices throughout the organization, geared to ensure the organization consistently meets or exceeds customer requirements. TQM places strong focus on process measurement and controls as means of continuous improvement. TQM functions on the premise that the quality of products and processes is the responsibility of everyone who is invoved with the creation or consumption of the products or services offered by an organization. Cross Functional Product Design : Cross functional product development is a widely used method for involving different functional areas in new product/process development. This process refers direct labor employees are involved to a great extent before introducing new products or making product changes. And manufacturing engineers are involved to a great extent before the introduction of new products. And in cross functional product design there is a little involvement of manufacturing and quality people in the early design or products before they reach plant.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: an Ecological Interpretation

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: An Ecocritical Interpretation Lieutenant Asit Biswas Bio-Notes: Lieut. Asit Biswas is an Assistant Professor, Dept. of English, and Associate NCC Officer, Acharya B. N. Seal (Govt. ) College, Cooch Behar, W. B. ABSTRACT: Shakespeare studies in India started as early as in the early decades of the 19th century when the Indians seldom engaged in Shakespeare interpretation and so the term ‘ecocriticism’ was unheard of.What we mean by the phrase ‘Critical studies of Shakespeare’ started in India in 1917 when Hindu College (later on Presidency College and now Presidency University) was founded. Then Shakespeare began to be evaluated from an oriental point of view. Some of those interpretations may be considered ecocriticism. The same thing was done by Purna Chandra Basu (in his article â€Å"Sahitye Khoon†, D. L. Roy (in his book, Kalidas O Bhababhuti) etc. Eco-criticism as a literary movement, as Yogesh K.Tiwari and N. D. R. Chandra say, began in the 1990s. But ecocritical evaluation of Shakespeare’s plays from Indian point of view is yet to flourish well. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream one can find plethora of materials relevant not only for the students of literature but of environmental studies also. The aim of the present play is to reinterpret Shakespeare’ play A Midsummer Night’s Dream from ecocritical point of view and thereby justify the contemporaneity of the Bard.Now-a-days many in many universities in India the students have to read English and Environmental Studies as compulsory subjects, Shakespeare being a part of the former. As the students of literature they would be keen to trace out the aesthetic aspects of the dramas of Shakespeare while belonging to various disciplines they would naturally seek for the relevance of Shakespeare in the present context. So the paper is an attempt to bring out Shakespeare’s anticipation of the environmental problems a nd thereby prove Shakespeare as a topic of both literature and environmental studies.Modern environmentalism began with ‘A Fable for Tomorrow’, in Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962). Mrs. Frederick Boas edited the Cambridge collection of Tempest Essays; Richard Kerridge N. Shammells published Writing the Environment, Eco-criticism and Literature (Zed Books-1998); J. Bate & L. Coupe published The Green Studies Reader from Romanticism to Eco-Criticism (by New York, Routeledge-2000);but the most outstanding book in this field is Green Shakespeare by Gabriel Egan who says, Crossing he boundaries of literary and cultural studies to draw in politics, philosophy and ecology, this volume not only introduces one of the most lively areas of contemporary Shakespeare studies, but also  puts forward  a convincing case for Shakespeare's continuing relevance to contemporary theory. There is a significant school named as the Association for the study of Literature and Envi ronment which was started in America and now has its branches in Japan and UK. It is mainly an association of the eco-critics. The Role of Literature in Placing a Value on the Environment: As Daniel B.Botkin and Edward A. Keller say in their book Environmental Science (5th edition, Page No. 11) the value of the environment is based on the following justifications: aesthetic, creative, recreational, inspirational, moral, cultural and utilitarian (materialistic). Aesthetic justification has to do with our appreciation of beauty of nature. Many people prefer living in the world of wilderness to one without it. Rabindranath Tagore created an instance by leaving the clutter of Calcutta settling down in the lap of Nature in Santiniketan.In Shakespeare the Forest of Arden minimizes the bereavement of the Duke in As You Like It. But in the Duke’s bemoaning for the subordination of the forest we hear the voice of an ecologist. It would not be a digression to say that Tagore’s e cocentrism is again found in Siksha: Tapoban in his comment on Shakespeare’s plays. While ecology is a mother branch of science, ecocriticism is comparatively a new branch which attempts to establish a relationship between literature and the physical environment.As Greg Garrard quotes in his book Eco-criticism from Glotfelty’s book The Eco-criticism Reader: Landmark in Literary Ecology: Simply put, eco-criticism is the study of the relationship between literature and physical environment. Just as feminist criticism examines language and literature from a gender conscious perspective, and Marxist criticism brings an awareness of modes of production and economic class to its reading of texts, eco-criticism takes an earth-centred approach to literary study.Garrard also adds that eco-criticism is closely related to environmentally oriented developments in philosophy and political theory. So eco-criticism may be interpreted as the analysis of a literary text from the point of view of an ecologist. Another epoch making writing that has relevance in our interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is Simon C. Estok’s research paper titled Shakespeare and Ecocriticism: An Analysis of â€Å"Home† and â€Å"Power† in King Lear in which the author explains the key terms â€Å"Anthropocentrism†, â€Å"Biocentrism/ Ecocentrism† and â€Å"Ecophobia†.Agreeing with Greg Garrard, Estok says that ecocriticism is not simply the study of nature or natural things in literature; rather it is any theory that is committed to effecting change by analysing the function – thematic, artistic, social, historical, ideological, theoretical, or otherwise— the natural environment, or aspects of it, represents in documents that contribute to material practices in material world. The explanation of the term ‘ecophobia’ is also very much necessary in our revaluation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Estok thinks that â€Å"ecophobia is the fear of loss of agency and control to Nature†.This ecophobia, found in both Oberon and Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, gives birth to various conflicts, both inner and outer, or, to say more explicitly, psychological and social (which includes ecological aspects also) and this sociological aspects of the play justify the contemporaneity of the bard. Some minor research works have been done on this particular topic on national and international levels. Some research papers have been published on eco-criticism in Shakespeare’s dramas in some journals; mention may be made of the one written by Dr.Subh Brat Sarkar, Rishi Bankim Chandra College, Naihati, W. B. The paper already written by the present researcher and published in the Research Spectrum (August-2012 Issue) contains some hints of the Eco-criticism in Shakespeare’s plays as seen by Rabindranath Tagore. Tagore considered it to be a kind of colonialism. Accord ing to him colonialism is not only the subordination of a weaker nation by a powerful one but the subordination of nature by human beings. Tagore also probably finds the ‘ecologist Shakespeare’ as in As You Like It, The Tempest etc.According to Nirmal Selvamony, the humans have introduced a hierarchy in nature. In that the humans have placed the domesticated animals higher than the wild animals. â€Å"Even animals were ranged in hierarchic order, the domestic and the wild† (Selvamony 4). But in A Midsummer Night’s Dream the role of the dominating power is taken by the fairies and the inferior race is the human beings. The fairies have occupied the topmost position in the hierarchy of Nature and they subordinate man and they quarrel in order to decide who will ‘domesticate’ the Indian boy who is the representative of the colonized people.This kind of colonialism found in Nature may be termed ‘Ecocolonialism’ or ‘Eco-imperiali sm’. In a supernatural drama like the present one the imperialists are the fairies but in reality they are the mighty people and the colonized ones may be the flora and fauna or even linguistically, culturally, racially, socially, politically, religiously or financially weaker section of the people. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream an ecologist easily finds plenty of materials relevant not only to the students of literature but of science, especially ecology also.The human beings in the person of the Indian boy or the European lovers are merely playthings to the mighty fairies. The fairies play with the humans for their own pleasure and showing their might and not for the amusement of the humans and they do it from anthropocentric point of view. In his Master’s Degree dissertation paper, (University of South Florida) Roy Patricia points out the environmental issues in MND by referring to â€Å"Folk Medicine and the Four Fairies of A Midsummer Night’s Dream,à ¢â‚¬  by Lou Agnes Reynolds and Paul Sawyer who have recovered the fairies from evil associations by casting them as herbal doctors.The article points to the strong early modern interest in the medicinal use of plants and finds that, by the use of this imagery, Shakespeare imbues his fairy characters and their natural remedies with beneficial, medicinal properties. Reynolds and Sawyer’s points are well taken, but we can develop them even further. Not only do the four attendant fairies – Cobweb, Mustardseed, Peascod and Mote – represent fairy medicine but all the actions in the forest also act therapeutically upon the lovers. The inversion of love-roles and the dreams of the lovers depend upon Oberon’s extensive knowledge of the herbal lore of his world.As Oberon himself states: â€Å"Fare thee well, nymph [Helena]. Ere he do leave this grove / Thou shalt fly him, and he shall seek thy love. (2. 1. 245-6). In Act-1I, scene-i of from the speech of Puck we come to know that the king, Oberon is angry with the queen, Titania as she has seized away a boy from India and made him her servant. â€Å"For Oberon is passing fell and wrath, / Because she as her attendant hath / A lovely boy, stolen from an Indian king†. But the king wants to roam about the forests (Nature), along with the boy. As a result whenever they meet, they quarrel.Titania also alleges him of emptying of the venom of jealousy. She says that whenever they meet they quarrel and as a result the wind cannot sing the song of peace and is sucking the fog from the surface of the seas and the water level of the seas has been raised up; the natural system has been disrupted, resulting in untimely flood and thereby destruction of vast area of crops and extinct of a number of species. The ever smiling spring, the scorching summer, the frowning autumn and the cruel winter have changed their plight and so people cannot identify them.Titania confesses that they are responsible for this unholy variation of the cycle of seasons. The people cannot endure the change of the cycle of seasons; suffer from untimely winter and also various kinds of diseases due to the change and endangered bio-diversity. In reply to the allegation of the queen, the king urges her to correct the ecological imbalance as she has the power to remedy. The reason of their quarrel is also clear to the readers—possession of the boy kidnapped from India.Here the quarrel is between a power that has deprived the creature of his natural habitat and made him her servant and the eco-friendly power that is keen to roam about the forests, along with the innocent creature. But none is ready to provide the boy with absolute freedom and so their quarrel does not come to an end here. The king requests the queen to hand the boy over to him but she is too obstinate to nod. She frankly declares that she cannot lose her control over the boy even if she is given the whole fairy land. So Oberon deci des to use tricks.He advises Puck to extract the juice of a certain flower which would act like black magic and leave its evil influence on Titania’s eyes, if administered properly. It would also be able to invert the usual behaviour and natural instinct of a person as in the modern age we see the evil influence of narcotics especially in the third world countries. The harmful effect of the use of drugs on eco system is mainly felt in the developing countries. Again Titania, admits that their quarrel has destroyed the usual course of the natural phenomena and nature has undergone vast changes, creating ocean of troubles for human beings.In Act-1, Scene-ii (Lines 81-117) Titania, the Queen of the fairies alleges that their quarrel has destroyed the usual habits of the natural phenomena and Nature has undergone vast changes, creating ocean of troubles for human beings. It may be considered Shakespeare’s anticipation of what McKibben says in his book The End of Nature (19 90): We have changed the atmosphere, and thus we are changing the weather. By changing the weather we make every spot on earth man-made or artificial. We have deprived nature of its independence, and that is fatal to its meaning. Nature’s independence is its meaning; ithout it there is nothing but us. (McKibben 1990: 54) In this connection it may be recalled that India was a favourite commercial place to the Western countries form the time of ancient history. And for the sole possession of India several wars were for between the English and the French and others. The Indian boy in the play is symbolically a colony, an ideal place for business. Now-a-day it may be a typical Indian plant for whose patent the economic colonialists are ever fighting among themselves and in order to supersede one another destroying the eco system of the whole globe.Recently we witnessed the war between Iraq and U. S. A. Various reasons may be found out but the naked truth is that the sole reason o f the notorious war is nothing but the shameless effort of control over the petroleum mines of the Arabian countries. When the two â€Å"do square, that all their elves for fear/ Creep into acorn cups and hide them there†. The peaceful people whenever get frightened, seek refuge in nature and it may be kept in mind that the best remedy of various pollutions including noise pollution is plantation.Nature is the man’s ultimate refuge because only nature can provide the human beings with eternal pleasure, both physical and mental. Puck also confesses that he, in order to make a fun and to show his prowess, perturbs the natural habits of an object both animate and inanimate. In modern age the modern Pucks very often destroy the Nature and subordinate the creatures of Nature very often out of fun. Examples may be given of the tortured animals in the circus shows, poachers’ activities etc; moreover, we torture the animals in the zoo.Keeping bird cages is a favourite b ut cruel hobby of a kind of people even after the passage of law against it. It is not only inhuman and unlawful but harmful to bio-diversity also. Recently a television channel telecast a live show of beating thousands of innocent seals to death in Antarctica by a community as it is the annual festival of the community. The pain of the poor seals, especially the half dead ones, the fear of the eco system to be disturbed, the melting of the glaciers and thereby upheaval of the sea level cannot render them anxious of the future of the earth.In this post-Modern age MND is quite relevant and significant since we witness the ecological imbalance, extinction of a large number of species, climatic change, global warming, uprising of the sea level, earth quake, tsunami, El Nino etc. The reason behind such troubles may be, along with the others, the wars (Gulf war, the long war between Iran and Iraq and of course the two World Wars), nuclear bomb testing and above all merciless deforestatio n. Here in the speech of Titania we seem to hear the voice of an environment scientist or of an ecologist.It may be noted that the more mighty the power, the more strong a destroyer is he in this post-Modern Age. Probably Shakespeare anticipated the natural problems created by the super-human power. The Titanias now-a-days are the war-mongers greedy of absolute power, who seldom think of the future of the globe. So in this age of science and technology the revaluation of the plays of Shakespeare is very much significant. In the same Act and scene the speech of Oberon (L-176–185) is also significant.He speaks of the juice of a flower that is able to hypnotize any man or woman and make him/her fall in love with any creature seen first. But the remedy is known to Oberon only. So it may be supposed that he wants to administer the cunning trick only to destroy the natural habit of a creature and to apply his remedy and thereby to prove his power. In the post-Modern age of economic colonialism this cunning theory is felt to have come back, but with a new dimension. For example the parthenium plant has allegedly come from U. S. A. As found in an e-article (http://www. streetdirectory. om) It appears that Parthenium is not native to India, but it came with the imported wheat as a mixture, when the US sent wheat to India under PL 480 (Public Law 480 passed in 1954 to give food grains to developing countries) in 1956. However this concept was contradicted by some as not the real story because Parthenium was present in India even in 1951 itself. Some people allege that this plant causes asthma whose medicine would be made in USA and so in order to sell the medicine and to prevail over the subcontinent, the Americans sent the parthenium seeds as adulteration with wheat seeds.So the purpose is to make the Indians asthma patients and then to sell to them asthma medicine. But we should not engage ourselves in this controversy, since we are not talking of international politics but of literary criticism. Here, in the drama the role of Oberon is like that of a modern capitalist who uses his cunning method in order to prove his supremacy and thereby dominate over the comparatively weaker sections and he is doing this out of ecophobia. Ultimately Oberon, the king realizes the harmful effect of his sports and then he feels sorry and takes the responsibility and so urges his assistant to correct the mistakes.He also pacifies his quarrel with Titania, once again with the help of the same narcotics. Here we see the constructive use of the herbs. Thus the play ends with an optimistic note and indirectly upholds the banner of Nature which is the best remedy for the revival of the impaired eco system. It also opines that man cannot remain happy by subordinating nature. Now in the age of global warming the plays of Shakespeare deserve a re-reading. One may recall the peaceful atmosphere in the Forest of Arden (As You Like It) and realize that subordination of nature cannot bring us mental peace as Tagore realized.He establishes his opinion by citing examples from As You Like It, Sakuntala etc. In the concluding song Puck urges the audience to consider the play to be a dream. We may do but it would not be an overstatement to consider it to be a dream of an ecologist because in the play we see what an ecologist would think of the vast change taken place in environment due to the modern leaders of the planet. Reference 1. Arumugam, E. (2008) Principles of Environmental Ethics, Sarup Book Publishers Pvt. Ltd. , New Delhi-2, India. 2. Bookchin, Murray, Anthropocentrism versus biocentrism – a false dichotomy http://climateandcapitalism. om. 3. Botkin, Daniel B. ; Keller , Edward A. , (2005), Environmental Science, John Wiley ; Sons, Inc, U. S. A. 4. Estok, Simon C. , Shakespeare and Ecocriticism: An Analysis of â€Å"Home† and â€Å"Power† in King Lear, http://simonestok. com. 5. Garrard, G. (2007) Ecocriticism, Routled ge, London and New York. 6. Gifford, Terry: (1999) Pastoral, Routeledge, London and New York. 7. Glotfelty, C. and Fromm, H. (ed) (1996) The Eco-criticism Reader: Landmark in Literary Ecology, University of Georgia Press, London. 8. McKibben, B. (1990), The End of Nature, Penguin, London, 9.Patricia, Roy, (2004), â€Å"Shakespeare’s Midsummer Fairies: Shadows and Shamen of the Forest†, http://scholarcommons. usf. edu/etd/1226 10. Purohit , S. S. ; Ranjan, Rajiv (2003), Ecology, Environment and Pollution, Agrobios (India), Jodhpur, India. 11. Sarkar, Subh Brat, (2005), â€Å"Ecological Theatre: Performance and Ecological Issues† (in Prakashkal) Unique; Panshila, Sodepur, W. B. , India. 12. Selvamony, Nirmal, (2001): â€Å"Persons for Alternative Social Order†, Chennai, India. 13. Shakespeare, William, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, New Delhi: Oxford ; IBH Publishing Co.Pvt Ltd. , 1980. 14. Tagore, R. , (1932) The Religion of Man, George Allen and Unwin, London. 15. Thompson, Jr. , E. , (1926), Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Dramatist, Read, p. 12, http://en. wikipedia. org. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 1. Dr. Amit Bhattacharya, Associate Professor ; Head, Dept. of English, University of Gour Banga, Malda, W. B. , India. 2. UGC (India) for MRP (No: F. PHW-131/09-10 (ERO) Date: Sept. 07, 2009) 3. The Essay was published in the International Journal of Innovative Research and Development (ISSN 2278-0211), Vol-1, Issue-6 September, 2012. www. ijird. com.

Forecasting financial statements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Forecasting financial statements - Essay Example The third step is the area of activity to be covered in the activity (Danielsson, 2011). In order to improve the accuracy of forecast, the forecasted financial statements should only cover a small period such as only a month. This is because forecasted financial statements that cover a long period are prone to distortion or inaccuracies arising from external factors that were unforeseen and therefore, not considered during the forecasting process. Markham (2006) stated that in 2005, the American Insurance Group engaged in an improper corporate valuation scheme whereby they told their traders to inflate their stock prices, which in turn lead to an inflated valuation of the company. In order to avoid such a scandal that occurred at AIG it is necessary to create rules that govern how corporate decisions should be made and they should be written in the corporation’s article of association. Secondly, the corporation’s decisions should based on a simple majority vote and incase a director of the corporation has a conflict of interest on the matter being addressed then the director should not be allowed to

Communication styles of JC Penny v. Sears Term Paper

Communication styles of JC Penny v. Sears - Term Paper Example Penny Company Inc. is one of the largest chains of American mid-range department stores, catalogue, and e-commerce retailers; with headquarters in Piano, Texas. It operates over 1, 100 departmental stores in U.S’s 50 states, Mexico, Chile and Puerto Rico (JC Penney 2012). It also runs 49 Renner department stores in Brazil. J.C. Penny began as a partnership between James Cash Penney, Guy Johnson and Thomas Callahan on April 14, 1902. The three created two more stores. In 1907, Johnson and Callahan dissolved their partnership and Penney purchased full interest in all three locations. In order to be closer to banks and railroads, Penney moved his company headquarters to Salt Lake City, Utah in 1909. The stores expanded and by 1912, there were 34 stores in Rocky Mountain States. The following year, all the stores were consolidated under the name J.C. Penney with William Henry McManus as co-founder. The company’s expansion was mainly due to its diversity of products and affo rdability. After much struggle in the 1970s, following stiff competition from upstart companies such as Wal-Mart that sold goods at discounted prices, the company reverted to a fashion oriented marketing strategy in the 1980s. It also moved its headquarters from New York to Texas, which reduced operational costs. The company was the first to sell zero coupon bonds in the public market. JCP stores are mainly located in suburban shopping malls, which is strategic in its operations. With about 1100 stores in America’s 50 states as well as Puerto Rico and Mexico, it is the second largest department store retailer and the largest catalogue merchant in the America. J.C Penny mainly targets juniors. The company focuses on value-priced fashion with an emphasis on classification and key-items focussed merchandising. JC Penney focuses on its pricing vis-a-vis its competition. Also, it focuses on providing mid-tier fashions in the malls. Its stores are located in attractive markets, tha t attract customers. It increasingly incorporating Sephora inside its locations, aimed at upgrading customers’ experiences in the stores. For the year ending January 2012, the company made sales totalling $17,260.0M and realized an annual growth of 2.8%; its net income for the year amounting to $152.0M (JC Penny 2012). 1.1 Background of Sears Holdings Corporation Sears Holdings Corporation is America’s fourth largest broad-line retailer with over 4,000 full-line and specialty retail stores in the U.S. and Canada. Its headquarters are based in Hoffman Estates, Ill. It became a multi channel store when it opened its first store to complement its catalogue channel which was launched in 1886 (Sears 2009). It provides quality merchandise and exceptional service, leading in retail of appliances, tools, lawn and garden, consumer electronics, and automotive repair and maintenance. The company provides diversified products through a wide range of retail channels. It was crowned the 2011 Energy Star Retail Partner of the year. Its leading brands are mKenmore, Craftsman and Diehard along with broad apparel offering including well known labels as Lands’ End, Jaclyn Smith and Jose Boxer, the Apostrophe and Covington brands. It is the

Girls and women in children's fiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Girls and women in children's fiction - Essay Example and motherhood that run counter to the mainstream views of their time, but that the earlier book uses distancing narrative techniques to disguise this fact while the later book uses intimate narrative techniques to celebrate it. The difference in approach is due to the social pressures, or absence of them, which had an effect upon the authors in their respective historical situation. The three children labelled â€Å"the railway children† are introduced as part of a prosperous middle class English family who have fallen on hard times due to the mysterious removal of their father, Mr Waterbury. It emerges later that he was imprisoned on a false charge of spying. The father is therefore absent, and the children’s mother removes herself also for much of the time in order to write and presumably earn a living for the family. This leaves the three children Roberta, Peter and Phyllis, free to roam around the railway area and get to know Mr Perks, a working class station porter and and old gentleman who travels on the trains. The story is in many ways typical of Victorian children’s fiction because it is highly didactic and promotes moral behaviour and adherence to the rather stiff and formal rules of society. What is unusual about the book for its time is the way that the railway children switch social class for a time, and in a spell of relative freedom from middle class observation and control, experiment with autonomy, devising their own amusements and coming face to face with harsh economic realities and the limitations of conventional society. The children confront class prejudice in the episode of coal stealing with Mr Perks, race prejudice in the encounter with Mr Sczepansky and gender prejudice particularly in the character of Bobbie. The main character Goggle Eyes is a primary school child called Kitty whose parents are divorced, and who consoles a distressed classmate by telling her about the experience of having parents who divorce. The book shows how

Persuade Your Employer That You Deserve a Raise Essay

Persuade Your Employer That You Deserve a Raise - Essay Example I was indeed workaholic. Working for late hours even after the fixed office hours was a trend which was rarely seen in American companies. Admittedly, it was the sincerity and passion I had toward my work that kept me boosted always. The task of recruiting hardware engineers for the iPhone and iPad projects were the most challenging and voluminous task in the whole span of my professional life. In many of the days, I was the only one who remained after the office hours and managed the extensive documentation works of the human resource department. I travelled through technology institutes to find young, vibrant and innovative engineers, of design, hardware and software for the successful accomplishment of the projects. It is clear that my diplomacy was beneficial for the company to persuade engineers and designers from other IT giants like Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo etc to work with Apple. And my expertise in computer programming was a surplus advantage for the company, for I got t he duty of supervising the iOS for iPhone and iPad. It must be noted that it was when many officers in the C level disagreed to supervise the immense task of supervising the development of iOS that I had to take up the responsibility. All this makes me upright to stately say that I played a substantial part in the successful completion of the iPhone project in 2007 as the HR manager as well as a software developer. I believe I have been loyal to my superiors in the company right from the day I joined Apple; and I have always been friendly with my colleagues too. I was always appreciated by my superiors in the HR department and my contributions and suggestions to the research and development wing was always well-considered. Our CEO Mr. Steve Jobs was always ready to listen to our opinions and suggestions. It is a unique feature in Apple that even though I am an employee in the HR department, my expertise in computer programming was also considered and exposure was given to me in the software development section. Such an easy and liberal working environment makes Apple a professional’s dream. The only thing that disappointed me in Apple is that there has been no change in my position and no additions to my salary apart from the usual annual increments. I have completed 10 years in Apple by now, and I am one of the well-qualified employees in the human resources wing. I graduated in business administration specializing in HR as well as computer science from the prestigious Harvard University. I was a topper in the university and that’s the reason for which Apple recruited me directly from the campus. It was my efforts that provided Apple a handsome amount of savings by taking up market analysis within the company instead of outsourcing it to external analyzers. This step was found exorbitantly helpful in maintaining a good position in the stock markets constantly throughout the financial years. Though I have such long stories of success to speak abo ut from the course of my work at Apple, I feel I never received a raise that I deserved while comparing with my track record at Apple. And I had to see many who were less academically qualified than I moving to higher positions in the firm. Apple had been always known as an employer who carefully listens to the concerns of its employees. Today Apple is the leading brand

Business analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business analysis - Essay Example The current ratio which is well above the benchmark of 1 should not be viewed as a healthy sign because the company is having major issues with its receivables and inventory management. The company has large amount of receivables pending resulting in high receivables days and the situation is the same for the company’s inventories. The company has good asset turnover but it is also declining over the period from 1993 to 1995. The company has a negative profitability in 1994 and 1995 because of its inability to generate profits. Though the company paid dividend in 1993 and 1994 the amount due from stockholders has been significant which could further dampen the company’s capital position. The financial ratios have been attached to this report as Appendix II. The company’s operating cash flow has declined sharply in 1995 leading to a negative figure of DM494,000 which surely have implications for the long term survival of the company if it is not able to recoup its business by altering its marketing and operating strategies. Marketing Analysis Haefren Baum is a home furnishing retailer which is engaged in selling high quality home furniture products of a German manufacturer Wiegandt GmbH Cologne. The understanding of the high-end furniture market suggests that the demand in this market is cyclical which is affected by two major factors – consumer buying confidence and also by the overall economic conditions. Due to the fall in the German economy during the year 1993 i.e. GDP indicated a negative growth of 1.2% the demand for furniture dropped and sales deteriorated. Haefren Baum’s sales also declined after 1993 showed as YoY decline of -19% (1994) and -5% (1995). In order to tackle the challenges the company cut down its pricing and also opened up new outlets Rhineland suburban areas however due to the competition attracting to the market it is difficult for a small retailer like Haefren Baum to survive for long as it is also fa cing problems with generating profits and maintain a strong cash position (Crane and Millett). Operations Analysis Since the company sells home furniture of Wiegandt GmBH Cologne therefore the amount payable to the company has reached DM 54,017.18. From the analysis it could be indicated that the operational efficiency of the company is becoming weak as the number of days that receivables are due for payment and the inventory held in its stock are increasing. Furthermore, the company is taking longer period to pay off its liabilities. The company has generated loss in 1994 and 1995 which suggests that the company is facing major difficulties in devising its strategies to coup up with the tough market conditions prevailing in Germany. Due to expansion of outlets the company’s borrowing has increased significantly and no positive outcome has been achieved. The credit department of the company must lay off loans and sell of non-profitable outlets to cut down pressure on its cash position. Appendix I: Cash Flow Statement Cash From Operating Activities 1994 1995 DM ‘000s DM ‘000s Net Profit -16 -55 -16 -55 (Increase)/Decrease in Receivables -386 35 (Increase)/Decrease in Inventory 8 -8 Increase/Decrease in Accounts Payables 8 88 Deferred Charges 32 0 Miscellaneous Accruals 74 -331 Current Maturities on Long-Term Debt 327 -223 Estimated Federal Income Tax -104 0 -41 -439 -57 -494 Cash Flow from Investing Activities Sale / (Purchase) of Net Buildings, Fixtures and

PhD Proposal The Effect of learning English in an early age on the Essay

PhD Proposal The Effect of learning English in an early age on the phonological errors in EFL Saudi classes - Essay Example his can cause a great deal of strain in the efforts to communicate in English when pronunciation is diminished because of difficulties with forming English words through a tongue that is trained to form sound within the framework of another language. Learning a second language at an earlier age may diminish this effect as the ability to form language can be more easily manipulated. Phonological errors occur when syllables are either missed or not pronounced within a communication. The forms of these errors can include, but not necessarily be limited to errors involving consonants, vowels, substitutions, additions, omissions, movements, exchanges, prosody (the metrical sound of the way that the language is formed), metathesis (the transposition of letters, sounds, or syllables), or non-contextual errors where there seems to be no definable source (Jaeger, 2005, p 147). According to Binturki (2008), the most common phonological errors that are found in Saudi speakers within their use of the English Language are with the interdentally fricative /v/ and to some degree with the /p/ and /i/. As well, the positions of certain words created difficulty form many users of the English language with the common Arabic dialect of Nadji as their primary language (p. i). The proposed study will be based upon the study done by Tiono and Yostanto (2008) on the phonological errors that were common among Indonesian speaking students when learning the English language (p. 80). The study was centrally focused on the English consonantal sounds that do not exist in the Indonesian language. The researchers identified six specific sounds that were absent in Indonesian and therefore caused difficulty for these students who had completed six courses of education in English (Tiono and Yostanto, 2008, p. 81). An auditory examination was given to 25 students from a private university in East Java, Indonesia where the phonological differences could be appreciated through listening to the

Human biology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Human biology - Essay Example Changes in hormone levels can create poor oocyte quality. Controlling blood levels are also determining factors used to time oocyte retrieval and increase the number of oocytes that are retrieved (2005). The three hormones that can be tested so the best time for oocyte retrieval are LH (Luteinizing Hormone), oestradiol and progesterone. An increase of LH is an important variable as it is an indicator that ovulation has begun and that the release of an oocyte has already begun. Many times if the LH levels are high, the possibility of retrieving mature eggs may be difficult, which is why most LH surges will delay the process of IVF. Oestradiol stimulates the lining of the uterus, making it ready for the arrival of the embryo (2005). The longer the oestradiol level rises the more mature the eggs will be. The problem with measuring the oestradiol levels is that they vary from person to person. This variance can make it difficult to measure whether it is appropriate to have a high or increased oestradiol levels for four days as opposed to eleven days. Also, one level may be considered high for one person, but low for another. Progesterone developed when the presence of LH increases and when oestradiol has readied the lining of the uterus for the embryo. This means that the presence of progesterone is acceptable during the process. However, levels that are considered too high for a particular patient are an indication that the quality of the eggs are poor. 'The woman's reproductive system is regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary ovarian axis'(1998). "Neurons that secrete GnRH in the preoptic and arcuate nucleus areas and stimulate the production of follicle-stimulating and LH, which can in turn create oestradiol and progesterone'(1998). The presence of follicle is an indication that eggs are being produced and possibly mature. The more follicles that are present, the higher the oestradiol levels. The advantage of stimulating follicular development increases the likelihood of pregnancy as the uterus is ready and eggs are more likely to be mature and of good quality. Multiple oocytes are likely to be also. Based on the figures present, it is clear that during normal cycles, the levels of LH, oestradiol and progesterone are affected. These hormonal levels are particularly affected by the presence of hormones. Hormonal levels are decreased with the use of certain steroids. Hormonal levels are much higher with treatments. Any hormone that stimulates ovulation is likely to increase the risk of multiple births. This is the case because ovulation inducement can create a "polyfollicular response," which increases the risk for multiple births as more than one egg is released (2004). IVF is known among the medical community to decrease the risk of unwanted multiple births. IVF is works effectively because the doctor and patient have a great amount of control over the process. IVF allows the physician to actually control the number of embryos that he/she implants. The fact that the process is so controlled increases the success rate of pregnancy even though only one embryo is implanted. REFERENCES Gemzell, Carl, 2004, Gonadotrophins and Steroid Hormones, viewed 06/13/2004, www.tylermedicalclinic.com Gleider, Norbert, August 1 2004, Limiting Embryo

Managers Function, Skills and Role Essay Example for Free

Managers Function, Skills and Role Essay

Ethical And Legal Issues In The Field Essay

Ethical And Legal Issues In The Field Essay As frontline health care professionals, nurses face various degrees of challenges and issues during the fulfillment of their duties. The constant pressure to quickly attend to the needs of many patients, while making sure that these services are provided to them efficiently, impels nurses to be always on alert for any issue which they may encounter. Handling ethical and legal issues is already being taught in the classroom and is being supplemented by practical application during internships. Studying ethics as a major concern for nurses supplements the already rigorous training they had undergone when studying the fields concepts themselves. However, new changes in legal and cultural aspects had led to new issues which are not traditionally being taught in nursing schools. For example, nurses may often face dilemmas pertaining to a patients (or his familys) decision to have his life terminated once it is apparent his medical condition is incurable. In addition, nurses also need to deal with maintaining their professional image while constantly interacting with their patients. Interpersonal-oriented careers such as nursing are often vulnerable to extra-professional relationships which may hamper the delivery of otherwise objective diagnosis of medical condition and of giving treatments. Previous researches have pointed out that nurses may take advantage of their roles as health care providers in seeking sexual favors from their patients in return for their quality of care provision. This researcher would like to focus in her study some of the most common ethical and legal issues which nurses face in their profession. She will discuss previous researchers pertaining to these issues. Finally, she will formulate her own conclusions based from the studies cited, supplemented by her own insights based from personal experiences as a nurse. Responsibility of Nurses As health care providers, nurses ethics are also influenced by the concepts of the Hippocratic Oath. Being placed within modern context, this oath stipulates that health care providers should do all they can in ensuring that their patients are treated well. At the same time, the Oath compels health care workers to act with finesse and avoid behaving in such ways as to besmirch their professions reputation. However, the complexities of modern health care has made it difficult to delineate which actions are ethically sound from the unethical. As shown in studies such as Fry and Jane-Johnstone (2002), the most common dilemmas in nursing at present involve: termination of treatment decisions, abortion, in vitro fertilization, surrogate motherhood, euthanasia and assisted suicide, allocation of scarce resources and treatment of disabled infants and the mentally retarded. As several cases had shown in the past years, handling these issues present no single, encompassing and correct respons e which is applicable to all situations. More complicated issues have even reached to the courts when the parties in a situation disagree with the legal validity of the decisions being made by nurses. Thomson, Melia and Boyd (2006) also point out that, in many cases, nurses do not have complete control over medical and health care decisions: Most nurses are unlikely to be directly responsible for decisions to terminate a pregnancy, terminate a treatment and in the allocation of medical resources. (emphasis by the authors). Yet, nurses are the first health care providers being approached by the kin of the patients involved in those treatment decisions. (Thomson, Melia and Boyd, 2006). As a result, nurses should have a deep grasp of legal and ethical issues so that they can respond accordingly for those issues. At the same time, students focusing about ethical issues in nursing should consider the degree of responsibility the nurse bears in handling patient care, viz-a-viz the doctor or head nurses over-all responsibility. Daly, Speedy and Jackson (2009) detail some legal aspects of health care which nurses must take into critical consideration. According to them, various laws have been made to regulate conduct and wrongdoing with regard to patient safety, nurses liability for civil and criminal negligence in mishandled patient care cases, regulation of patients freedom of movement, facilitating patient consent for their treatments, control over patient property and records, among others. Nurses face liability, in various degrees, if they fail to fully comply with these legal aspects. (Daly, Speedy and Jackson (2009) . Ethics in Nursing Clarifying the broad concepts of nursing ethics, Thomson, Melia and Boyd (2006) suggest students to initially define : a.) the concepts of care within the context of the nursing profession, b.) pointing out the importance of citing specific cases in resolving ethical issues and delineating the relationship between general moral rules and the specific moral decisions. In particular, the researchers point out that nurses should clearly delineate two contrasting demands in health care, namely: the sensitive regard for the unique needs of a personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ with recognition of the demands of a particular circumstance and the general duty of care based on contractual and institutional duties and rules. This researcher believes it is important to discriminate between these two aspects of care since this will govern the level of professional relationship between the nurse and the patient. This is important in preventing this relationship from becoming too personal to the point that the nurse is unable to objectively fulfill his or her duties to the patient. In terms of using specific cases to help resolve legal and ethical issues (casuistry), the authors point out that this is helpful in guiding nurses to reach a decision based on previous cases. However, it is still important for them to make their own decisions based on the circumstances of a pa rticular situation. Related to this is the delineation of general moral principles with specific circumstances. This researcher believes that it is important to balance the two when considering a legally and ethically sensitive decision. Breaking away from precedents may cause ambiguity on how similar cases in the future will be handled. On the other hand, excessive reliance on casuistry may hamper nurses from making the correct and relevant decision on a specific situation. In making decisions, it is relevant to go back to the basic ethical concepts applicable to nursing. Finkelman and Kener (2009) detail these concepts as respecting the patients autonomy, practicing beneficence and justice to them, and being truthful to the patients and his/her kin. In sum, a nurse should be able to respect a patients decision to continue or cancel the treatment, even as he/she is able to give him the best care possible in line with the health care principles and the available diagnosis on the patients health. Applying these principles needs some decision-making skills on the nurses part. These skills primarily pertain to interpersonal skills, perceptiveness, moral deliberation and skilled know-how. Conclusion/Recommendation As this paper had shown, nurses face numerous and very challenging issues as they provide health care services to their patients. They need to deal not only with ethical considerations which are specific to nursing, but are now also including law. Based from this discussion, this student believes it is vital for nurses to deeply comprehend nursing ethics and their legal implications. The changing dynamics and needs of health care blur the lines in situations which traditionally require only black-and-white answers, so to speak. Adjusting to these changes requires nurses and nursing students to constantly review previous cases of health care-related problems while foreseeing possible new circumstances in future issues. This may be done during classes or even during review sessions. This situation also requires nurses to modify the way their deal with patients, especially those posing problems. The nurses firmly impose the rules if the patients start crossing the line beyond their welf are.

Where there is no William Shakespeare :: Biography Biographies Essays

Where there is no Shakespeare "You can be a genius and still be an ordinary man," remarks literary critique and historian A.L. Rowse, debating on the true originator of Shakespeare's work. It has been questioned whether Shakespeare- undoubtedly one of the most remarkable and acclaimed playwrights that the world has ever known, was the actual originator of his work. Although much is not confirmed about Shakespeare's work and life, there are many assumptions that lead scholars to question Shakespeare's identity due to his limited background, lack of original manuscripts, and his undocumented birth and death. Historians assume that Shakespeare was educated at Stratford Grammar School where he learned Latin and possibly Greek. Shakespeare was uneducated; he never attended any college, and in fact, there is no real evidence that he attended the Stratford Grammar School. The plays, however, were obviously written by a well-educated man, with an excellent knowledge of classical literature and mythology. Shakespeare did not attend a university- this questions how Shakespeare learned the French, Italian, Latin and Greek that provided the material for the plays. If he had attended the village school, he would have learned only small Latin and possibly Greek. Never having attended university, it draws many doubts on how the man from Stratford gain the knowledge the plays reveal of the law and medicine. Never having been at sea, it is unclear how Shakespeare gained the knowledge the plays reveal of navigation. It has been questioned how Shakespeare- a hick, uses the language of kin gs and countrymen. The plays show that their author was well acquainted with the activities and attitudes of the aristocrats, was sympathetic to those attitudes, and was well acquainted with court life and scheming. This strongly suggests that the author was himself an aristocrat. However, Shakespeare was a commoner, and had no direct knowledge of court life. Another fact that questions Shakespeare's work is that there is no document showing that the man from Stratford did write these works. There should be a record: his manuscripts, his letters, the letters sent to him, the letters about him between others, and printed stories and pamphlets about him. The only works related to Shakespeare's works are reviews and comments on the plays and poems.

All Quiet on the Western Front by Maria Erich Remarque Essay -- paul, s

Away from the front lines, soldiers are perceived and act as individuals, however when pulled to the front, they come together creating and inseparable bond of camaraderie. Remarque’s All Quite on the Western Front illustrates the true content of war. The soldiers of the front lines fought with a common purpose, putting aside other desires and dining personal needs which created an in ignorable bond of camaraderie making life on the front lines bearable. This is particularly portrayed in Paul’s relationship to other soldiers. Through Paul’s protection of his comrades, the family-like relationship between the soldiers and the development of a close bond during free time, Remarque shows that the most important aspect of war is camaraderie. Soldiers in WWI had only each other to depend on for any chance of survival. Paul explores and puts into these actions time and again by protecting and trusting those around him. One day while pondering, Paul says to himself â€Å"we had to recognize that our generation was more to be trusted that theirs. They surpass us only in phrases and in cleverness†. He is referring to the older generations who are not fighting on the front who describe the war as glorious. Paul understands that the camaraderie is based on common experience, something only the front line soldiers experience and thus understand with Paul. Because they share these common experiences, Paul also shows compassion to especially the younger, new recruits. While in the trenches a young recruit â€Å"lay in utter terror. He had buried his face in his hands. He looked up, pushing the helmet off and like a child crept under [Paul’s] arm, his head close to his breast. The little shoulders heaved. Shoulders like Kemmerich’s† Paul’s compassion f... ...nother than even lovers†¦so intimate we do not even speak† this forever known camaraderie is set in stone for when one part is lost it leaves the group weak. This is shown after Kat dies and Paul is left alone. He realizes there is no one left for him and he gives up. He knew nothing but death and dieing without the camaraderie offered to him. War is a series of deaths for a greater gain for the people who do not fight at the front. However while on the front it becomes a fight for life through battle and friendship. The bonds created allow success and support. The family bond created is the most important effect of war and debatably the only good one. Through this bond Remarque shows this importance as the only light in the never-ending darkness of war. Works Cited Remarque, Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western Front. New York: Ballantine, 1982. Print. All Quiet on the Western Front by Maria Erich Remarque Essay -- paul, s Away from the front lines, soldiers are perceived and act as individuals, however when pulled to the front, they come together creating and inseparable bond of camaraderie. Remarque’s All Quite on the Western Front illustrates the true content of war. The soldiers of the front lines fought with a common purpose, putting aside other desires and dining personal needs which created an in ignorable bond of camaraderie making life on the front lines bearable. This is particularly portrayed in Paul’s relationship to other soldiers. Through Paul’s protection of his comrades, the family-like relationship between the soldiers and the development of a close bond during free time, Remarque shows that the most important aspect of war is camaraderie. Soldiers in WWI had only each other to depend on for any chance of survival. Paul explores and puts into these actions time and again by protecting and trusting those around him. One day while pondering, Paul says to himself â€Å"we had to recognize that our generation was more to be trusted that theirs. They surpass us only in phrases and in cleverness†. He is referring to the older generations who are not fighting on the front who describe the war as glorious. Paul understands that the camaraderie is based on common experience, something only the front line soldiers experience and thus understand with Paul. Because they share these common experiences, Paul also shows compassion to especially the younger, new recruits. While in the trenches a young recruit â€Å"lay in utter terror. He had buried his face in his hands. He looked up, pushing the helmet off and like a child crept under [Paul’s] arm, his head close to his breast. The little shoulders heaved. Shoulders like Kemmerich’s† Paul’s compassion f... ...nother than even lovers†¦so intimate we do not even speak† this forever known camaraderie is set in stone for when one part is lost it leaves the group weak. This is shown after Kat dies and Paul is left alone. He realizes there is no one left for him and he gives up. He knew nothing but death and dieing without the camaraderie offered to him. War is a series of deaths for a greater gain for the people who do not fight at the front. However while on the front it becomes a fight for life through battle and friendship. The bonds created allow success and support. The family bond created is the most important effect of war and debatably the only good one. Through this bond Remarque shows this importance as the only light in the never-ending darkness of war. Works Cited Remarque, Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western Front. New York: Ballantine, 1982. Print.

Socrates :: essays research papers

Socrates Socrates, as known by Renault, was a beautiful creature. Not physically beautiful, but internally and fundamentally beautiful. It was he who said: When you assume the show of any virtue, you open a credit account, which one day you will have to meet or go broke (pp. 398). According to Renault, Socrates taught children free of charge. He often walked and talked with children and young men in the market. They discussed, or more accurately argued in a calm manner, various issues ranging from the sciences to religion. Socrates, however, usually avoided the subject of government whenever possible. Socrates believed his role in life was to teach a new understanding of virtues, it was these virtues that revolved around much of the controversies. The citizens thought that Socrates poisoned the minds of children. Causing them to lose respect for parents and elders. It was said that he did not believe in conventional gods either. This is shown by Strymon on pp. 181 and 182, "I imagine the in your own circle of friends, what we have heard is nothing out of the way. Where the teacher (Socrates) does not even worship the immortal gods, but sets the aside for his new divinities, one can hardly expect in the pupil much reverence for age and kinship in mere men." Parents blamed the lack of respect for elders on Socrates. In truth Renault says that he was only giving them guidance so that they may guide themselves and be free of petty problems. This guidance and advice caused these young men to re-think their attitudes. Indeed Alexias, Xenophon, and especially Plato were all changed by Socrates. They loved Socrates like a mother or father: pp. 392, "In a word," said Xenophon, "We love him." This love for Socrates was often misinterpreted as love being lost for family, through argument. Parents were so afraid of losing children to him they made laws. One law stated that Socrates could not speak to anyone under thirty years of age. Socrates defied this law, and was not punished. However after a while all his defiance's and warnings caught up with him. He was given the choice of banishment or death. He chose death. Many of his students wanted to free him, but Socrates made the choice against it. In the end Socrates is holding the glass of Hemlock saying farewell with his students, and friends. According to The Encyclopedia, Socrates was born around 470 BC and died around 399 BC. He greatly impacted Western Philosophy through his influence on Plato. Socrates was born in Athens the son of a sculptor.

Medea Reflectiv Statement

Ana Maksimovic IB English 11/ 3 Per. Ms Bachmann 03/11/2012 335 Words Reflective Statement Medea has lot information that is often not conspicuous to the reader. In Medea the place and time play a big role. The place matters because of the events that happen. The events are related to Gods and gods were mainly famous in Greece. If you would change the place the meaning of gods would lose its importance.Time is always relevant because the play was written a long time ago and it shows how life was back then. Nowadays the country people live in is owned by the state; however this was not always the case. Back in the time there were individual kings who had the power over their whole land/country. Hard to understand was when the characters in the play referred to goddesses. If someone doesn’t know what the God stands for it was a bit confusing. Also easy for me to understand was the role of women.Not that I understand that they don’t have the same right but if you compare t he equality between women and men now it is easy follow the concept how it was in Greece a long time ago. Definitely the role of women can still be related to nowadays even if the equality between men and women got better; it is still not on the same level even if it should. Also the fact that the children stay with their mom when the dad leaves kind of reminds me of today in the society.A really big connection between today and Medea is that men had the power over a country. They used to own their own country but that hasn’t changed that much because most presidents are still male. The technique of using the voice of the population during speeches or just conflicts is very interesting. This kind of technique shows you what the other people think and it also makes the conflict more clear and understanding. Also the way Euripides uses the dramatic irony gives the whole play the final touch.

Riordan Manufacturing Executive Report

Riordan Manufacturing Executive Report Warren Buffet once said, â€Å"Price is what you pay. Value is what you get. † With a company that has over five hundred employees, four locations worldwide, and $50 million in annual sales, placing the value on the organization is simple; look at the bottom line and see the profit. This is the situation at Riordan Manufacturing where the price it paid to do business was less than what it made, defining a clear value in what Riordan provides.Riordan’s Sales and Marketing department has a clear value; $50 million is sales to show of it. But how do we show the value for other departments within the organization such as Information Systems (IS) and Information Technology (IT) solutions? While the IS and IT costs and what Riordan pays for it are clear from looking at the financials, the value is not. This brings us to the question of what value does Riordan Manufacturing get out of its IS services and IT department. This question is th e problem that Riordan Manufacturing has had for many years.Recently, Riordan executive management hired a new Chief Information Officer (CIO) to improve its infrastructure and to answer this question. While management wants to use more IS and IT solutions throughout the organization, it has had trouble finding the perfect fit in all aspects of its operations. Even though IS and IT costs have risen, the puzzle pieces still have not come together; the value and benefit has not been clear to the company. As we will see throughout this review, it is time to focus and find the value that technology and information brings to the organization.It is time to find the efficiencies and savings that the company needs to clearly see the value. With Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), or Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems, there has got to be value in the way they are used. There has also got to be value in using outside services such as Application Ser vice Providers (ASPs) than can help realize and utilize the value of these systems. Finding the best way to utilize technology will allow Riordan to find the best value in the IS and IT departments.Business systems analysis and recommendations Riordan Manufacturing prides itself on its public reputation as the leading edge manufacturer of plastic injection moldings that is backed by a powerful and innovative research and development team. However, internally, the organization is suffering greatly from severely outdated, labor-intensive, pencil and paper processes in the sales and marketing departments. Additionally, the business processes that are automated are departmentalized suited for the use of a single job function or department.Existing automated processes belong to the finance and accounting department as well as the inventory office of the manufacturing department. There is no connectivity between systems, and worse, attempts to establish communications between similar syst ems across the organization’s national and multinational locations have been fruitless. It is impossible for organization decision-makers to have a clear idea of the interworking of the organization and its financial health.Chief Operating Officer (COO), Hugh McCauley, has developed a comprehensive strategic direction for the organization decomposed into individual strategic initiatives and further broken down into various programs that are the responsibility of relevant departmental leaders to accomplish. Riordan’s COO has done an excellent job of initiating a strategic direction and smaller goals to ensure the organization maintains industry leader status, but the missing link that will truly drive each program’s success, is an information technology linkage.To remain ahead of competition and to transform into a more agile organization, it is recommended that Riordan’s management evaluate the benefits of enterprise-wide information systems. Enterprise-w ide information systems Organizations commonly implement enterprise-wide systems to improve access to information and as a result experience growth, reduce costs, and improve efficiencies. The benefits of enterprise-wide systems such as enterprise resource management (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), and supply chain management (SCM) directly align with Riordan’s strategic direction.Proper implementation of these systems will add value to Riordan’s business model. However, enterprise-wide implementations are characterized by large investments and large time commitments. Therefore, the organization must evaluate which systems will help it achieve the majority of its goals, in a reasonable time frame. In doing so, decision-makers can determine if each system’s value is worth its costs and the order in which to invest in and implement each system. Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) Pros.An ERP system is a necessary investment for Riordan because it i ntegrates all departments and their respective functions across the organization into a single IT system (UMaine, 2009). There are three main benefits of ERP systems that directly address problems with Riordan’s operations. One benefit is a logical solution to a mess of incompatible applications currently in use by the organization. ERP also allows global access and sharing of organizational data as well. Additionally, implementing an ERP system will help the organization bypass the difficulties and expenses of replacing legacy systems (UMaine, 2009).An analysis of Riordan’s current issues with its Finance and Accounting department reveal an immediate need for an ERP solution. Riordan’s current process to complete the general ledger, income statement, and balance sheet is so labor intensive that accountants cannot complete the task until two or three weeks after month’s end. Additionally, external audits are required monthly. Riordan’s process docu mentation is difficult to analyze, making this important task costly and labor intensive as well. Compliance with new, stricter government regulations is also extremely difficult for this department.Riordan management finds these issues unacceptable and expects them to be addressed first (University of Phoenix, 2012). An ERP solution will correct these error-prone, labor-intensive processes through automation (Business-Software. com, 2010). This will help employees of the Finance and Accounting department complete Riordan’s financial statements in a timelier manner. Further, ERP will ensure that all workflows and procedures are formally documented, allowing external auditors to complete their job more effectively and produce timely and accurate feedback for Riordan management.ERP systems also ensure there is only â€Å"one version of truth† by feeding data to one centralized, integrated database (Business-Software, 2012). Not only does ERP help the organization deliver timely, accurate information to its customers and suppliers but is also necessary for regulatory compliance. Cons. Although an ERP system will lay the foundation for modern, efficient enterprise-wide business systems, Riordan must weigh the risks of implementing the system. The first risk is cost. For a multinational company like Riordan, the cost of installation can range from $30,000 to $500 million (Demand Media Inc. , 2012).Riordan will need to do an extensive financial analysis to determine if the organization has enough capital to expend on an ERP implementation as well as enough contingency funding to bail the organization out should the implementation fail. Another risk of ERP implementation is the level of complexity that and ERP system will add to Riordan’s processes. Riordan’s current staff may find the system to be too difficult to use and rebel against the system as a result. Riordan may also find that a portion of their existing staff may turnover as a r esult of the implementation and will need to hire a more specialized user base as a result.These specialized employees may require higher salaries than those they replace. To avoid this, Riordan will want to provide comprehensive training to affected users, but it will be a time-consuming processefficiency benefits of the system will not be measurable until the organization adjusts to the changes that the ERP system will bring (Demand Media Inc. , 2012). An important risk of ERP implementation to consider is data integrity. Because the ERP system’s database will be the single source of Riordan’s data, it must be accurate and secure.Integrating the ERP system with existing systems may require some software modifications. It will be important to ensure that the integration of system results in data that is single version of the truth as well as securing any new transactions between systems. It is also important to note that some ERP systems will be too inflexible to work with Riordan’s current business process and strategy (Demand Media Inc. , 2012). The organization must evaluate vendor and implementation options to ensure the ERP system help drive Riordan’s objectives, not hinder them.Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Pros. Riordan’s strategic direction and initiatives are highly customer-centric. Riordan’s strategy is to compete in its market by serving the top 15 customer clusters, and driving this strategy by providing the highest level of customer satisfaction to its 20 most important account holders. Additionally, the COO wants the organization to transform the Riordan brand into a significant competitive advantage (University of Phoenix, 2012). A CRM system is an excellent way to drive the success of this customer-centric strategy.CRM manages all aspects of an organization’s relationship with its customers to help increase customer loyalty, retention, and the organization’s profitability (UMain e, 2009). Additionally, CRM systems are synonymous with building brand awareness and loyalty. A modern definition of a brand is the summation of hundreds of small interactions between an organization and its customers (Yarmoff, 2001). A CRM system can capture the data that results from these actions for analysis by the marketing department. Marketing analysts can determine what is unique about the organization that draws customers to it, helping Riordan build its brand.In the upcoming fiscal year, Riordan is launching an aggressive sales and marketing program to grow its revenue, expand its customer base, and retain its best customers. The sales and marketing department will find difficulty in successfully completing this program considering their outdated, pencil and paper processes within the department. It will be difficult for Riordan’s marketers to target customers effectively by sifting through hundreds of paper files of historical sales records to conduct market analys is.It will be difficult for the sales department to document special customers’ needs, and ensure they are served throughout the organization’s order fulfillment processes by using the disparate sales systems currently in use. For back office analytical purposes, CRM can assist the marketing department in drawing upon data from a single data source to reveal trends, explain outcomes, predict results of campaigns, and identify the organization’s most profitable customers (UMaine, 2009).Analytical CRM helps the marketing department understand what Riordan’s customers like, dislike, and what appeals to them and indicate if Riordan is meeting or is capable of meeting customer’s needs. Analytical CRM provides this deep understanding of an organization’s customer base through data analysis and business intelligence tools (UMaine, 2009). It sends pertinent information to the marketing department for campaigns and to the front-end part of the system to provide the sales force with the information it requires. On the front-end, operational CRM can assist the sales representatives.Technology will include a contact management system, and opportunity management system. In this use-case, the CRM system will alert the sales representative regarding what the customer likes/dislikes to enhance cross-selling and up-selling opportunities. Front-end CRM will also help the sales representatives in resolving customer issues by providing web-based customer self-service tips and call scripting to better equip the representatives with handling the most common issues (UMaine, 2009). The CRM system can log recurring customer issues.This will assist Riordan’s sales representatives in solving difficult problems that have been previously addresses as well as assist management in targeting recurring scenarios that require improvement, resulting in increased customer satisfaction and retention rates. Cons. Like other enterprise-wide systems, CRM systems are characterized by expensive and difficult implementations. Riordan management has to ensure that the CRM initiative is well planned, historical data is input accurately, and ensure workflow is properly defined to reduce the risk of project failure (Gartner Research, 2000).Success will also be highly dependent on cooperation with the ERP and SCM initiatives, as they eventually will become integrated systems dependent on one another’s data inputs and outputs. Solutions must be chosen with compatibility and interconnectivity in mind. In CRM, over-automation is always a risk (Gartner Research, 2000). CRM is about bringing a company and its customers closer together, and some human-to-human interaction is necessary for customers to feel as if they are being heard. Finally, CRM systems are difficult systems to measure numeric outcomes and value (Gartner Research, 2000).Riordan management must define what unique, possibly intangible outcomes they want to measure from the CRM system to ensure it is providing its intended value. Supply Chain Management (SCM) Pros. As a manufacturer, Riordan would experience many benefits from the implementation of a SCM system. As part of its business strategy, Riordan is currently striving for supply chain excellence. The organization will drive this strategy by streamlining time-to-market processes, achieving 90% of customer requested ship dates, and reducing inefficiencies associated with its current shipping methods (University of Phoenix, 2012).A SCM system can help the organization achieve these goals as it manages the information flows between and among stages in a supply chain to maximize total supply chain effectiveness and profitability (UMaine, 2009). A SCM system captures data from the five phases of the supply chain management process; planning, sourcing, making, delivering, and returning. This data translates into complete visibility and awareness of one’s supply chain, and in turn, competitiv e advantages. A SCM will be most effective in the planning phase if Riordan leverages information from an ERP and CRM system.With that data, the SCM system uses metrics to forecast and accurately meet customer demand. Riordan will eliminate waste from its inventory by having the right amount of materials on hand to fulfill customers’ orders as they are placed, reducing costs stemming from holding onto excessive inventory. Developing insight across all inventory locations will also permit better sharing of resources on-hand to meet emergency customer needs. In the sourcing phase, the SCM system will provide vendor management capabilities. Riordan can input data about eliable suppliers it has partnered with in the past as well as suppliers that have provided inadequate services to document differences in quality among vendors. Riordan can also capture pricing data to determine which vendors provide the best value for their products. This will make sourcing easier and more effec tive. The deals Riordan obtains from strong vendor partnerships could translate in more discounts for customers farther down the line in the supply chain. In the â€Å"make† phase of SCM, a SCM system can ensure Riordan is manufacturing its products in accordance with the organization’s quality standards.Managers can determine the desired quality levels, translate the quality levels into metrics, and have these performance metrics monitored with the SCM system. The system will indicate when manufacturing is in line with quality metrics, surpassing metrics, or below metrics. A good deal of Rirodan’s reputation is dependent on manufacturing high quality products, so performance metrics in this area are important. The deliver phase is important to monitor with the SCM system as Riordan is experiencing inefficiencies in its logistic processes.The SCM system will help Riordan deal with processes and controls of logistic process to create efficient and effective trans port and storage of its products as they are delivered to the customer (UMaine, 2009). A SCM system can analyze delivery times and help management determine where inefficiencies are occurring and why. The results may prompt management to create more conveniently located inventory facility locations to create more reliable transit times. The system will also help Riordan coordinate more effectively with its outsourced trucking company.The ability to share information between both parties will allow Riordan to load its trucks to 100% capacity, resulting in cost savings for itself as well as less trucks and drivers for its partner. Finally, the return phase of SCM will be most effective when combined with data from the CRM system. The return phase of SCM pertains to the process allowing customers to return defective and excess products (UMaine, 2009). It is important to capture why customers are returning products to serve them better in the future and learn from errors. It is also imp ortant forRiordan to be instantly aware that a return process has been initiated, so it can send out a replacement to a customer immediately. The customer may be dissatisfied as it is, so handling returns effectively can encourage the customer to continue using the company for future orders. This phase will help Riordan meet its goals of serving customers better as well as retaining them. Cons. Riordan must consider the many risks of supply chain management because this system is dependent on the cooperation of external business partners. The first roadblock is gaining trust from business partners.Riordan and its suppliers must be willing to exchange some confidential information in exchange for increase supply chain efficiency. Next a supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so if Riordan’s suppliers cannot provide quality goods in proper time frames, Riordan cannot get the most out of its SCM system (Wailgum, 2008). Internally, there will be resistance to change as well. Employees will need to adjust to stricter data entry requirements as well as higher scrutiny of their performance. Training will be crucial, as mistakes with the system will be made initially.A SCM system cannot absorb a company’s history and processes in the first few months (Wailgum, 2008) Management will have to be patient and continually feed the system clean data to reap visibility benefits. Recommendations The success of implementing enterprise-wide business tools is dependent on the creation of a single data source, populated by accurate and relevant information. To lay the foundation that will capture and integrate all information from Riordan’s unique workflows and processes, it is recommended that Riordan first invest in and implement an ERP system.Once this implementation is complete, and the organization is accustomed to the changes this system will bring, a CRM implementation can be considered. The ERP system’s centralized database will ser ve as the data source for the CRM system, making this implementation an easier transition for the organization. Once the CRM system is successfully implemented, a SCM implementation can be considered as Riordan’s financial health and strategic initiatives permit. A SCM system is recommended as the final enterprise-wide system to implement as it is reliant on information captured by both ERP systems and CRM systems (Wailgum, 2008).The success of these implementations will be dependent on a number of factors such as implementing the solutions in-house versus outsourcing the efforts, and implementing a performance metric system to ensure that the systems are continually providing the value intended. Outsourcing Models Riordan needs to consider outsourcing some of its business functions to reduce upfront cost and integration challenges faced while implementing enterprise applications ERP and CRM. There are many outsourcing models to consider and many benefits and advantages.There fore, a thorough analysis and understanding of outsourcing models is necessary for Riordan’s long-term strategic alliance with vendors. This section outlines outsourcing models and services provided by the application service provider or ASP and other outsourcing models. ASP Model Application service provider is one who has expertise in implementing and managing IT operations of the business applications over a secure Internet on behalf of its customer or client.ASP also known as Managed Application provider (MAP), or managed services â€Å"combine hosted software, hardware and networking technologies to offer a service-based application, as opposed to a company-owned and operated application† (Sans Institute, 2006). ASP services include end-to-end solutions necessary for executing and operation of ERP, CRM, accounting, payroll, cloud computing, and customized applications. In the ASP model, the provider typically identifies the applications common to many organization s (for example, ERP) and hosts them in their data centers.The access to applications provided via a browser-based or thin client software. According to Pearlson and Saunders (2010), â€Å"ASP not only provides access to software, but infrastructure, people, and maintenance to run it in a customized fashion for a client. † Hence, the objective of ASP is to provide a secure, error-free environment of application systems and infrastructure round the clock. The ideal candidates for taking the advantage of ASP are Riordan’s non-core applications, which relaxes IT resources and make them available for core applications.Another instance of ASP is Software as a Service (SaaS), which host multiple companies (multi-tenant) to use the same set of software and hardware, but still provide a user experience of single application. The application accessed via Internet, and provides rich web interface using technologies like AJAX and XML. The web applications delivered via SaaS is cus tomizable and integrates into in-house application using web services and ETL tools. For example, Sales Force applications from SalesForce. com are multi-tenant web applications used by many organizations as their primary CRM application.Engagement with ASP involves service level agreements (SLAs), which contains many clause and vendor expectations. SLAs consists of sections on â€Å"availability, accessibility, performance, maintenance, backup/recovery, upgrades, equipment ownership, software ownership, security, and confidentiality† (Pearlson & Saunders, 2010). ASP may provide cost-effective solution in their area of their expertise. However, for security professionals, the move to use the ASP model comes at an often-high cost. The ASP may be an expert in its domain, but its security function may be immature (Schoenfield, n. d. ).Hence, one should consider risk assessment and analyze the end-to-end solution of ASPs and their security models. Many ASPs available in the marke t, Riordan should evaluate them once the outsourcing requirement finalized. The table below provides list of ASPs and their domain expertise. Table 1 List of ASPs Application Service Provider Domain expertise Appshop www. appshop. com Oracle 11i ebusiness suite Applications BlueStar Solutions www. bluestarsolutions. com Managing ERP solutions with a focus on SAP Corio www. corio. com Specializes in Oracle Applications Outtask www. outtask. com Integration of budgeting, customer service, sales anagement, and human resources applications Surebridge www. surebridge. com High-tech manufacturing, distribution, health care applications USi www. usinternetworking. com Ariba, Siebel, Microsoft, and Oracle customer base Note. Adapted from â€Å"Information Systems Sourcing,† by K. E. Pearlson and C. E. Saunders, 2010, Managing and Using Information Systems. A Strategic Approach. Copyright 2010 by John Wiley & Sons Inc. According to Subramanian and Williams (2007), a complex scenario o f services provided by single or multiple vendors offer multiple benefits. The long term agreements are necessary to reap higher benefits.This model provides competence needed in the initial stage and provides better quality, increases productivity, and reduces cost as time progress. Service provider takes full end-to-end responsibility by investing on new technologies, mitigating risks to maintain business continuity and building high-level of trust. Figure 1. Services offered by managed Services. Note. Reprinted from Infosys White Paper (p. 5), by Subramanian and Williams, 2007, Copyright 2011 Infosys Limited Crowdsourcing Crowdsourcing is a new outsourcing model introduced in 2006 by Jeff Howe in an article titled â€Å"The rise of crowdsourcing† in WIRED online magazine.In the traditional outsourcing model, the work of an employee outsourced to external service provider. In this model, the available skilled resources and ideas limited to service provider and its industry and domain experience. Crowdsourcing reach out to a larger community over the Internet to complete a job or task. Thus, organizations gain access to a wide range of skills and resources available online. According to Jeff Howe the definition of Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a task traditionally performed by an employee or contractor and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people, in the form of an open call.Companies and individual make an open call to perform a job for a small amount. Open call to an Internet community of collective intelligence can increase productivity. With the advancement of Internet and Web 2. 0, many websites like elance. com, odesk. com and guru. com provide abundant resources of freelancers available globally. Riordan can make use of this model where the projects need specialized skills and risk is very low. Resources picked on reviews and rewards obtained from past assignments.For example, Riordan’s websites along with dyna mic B2B and B2C pages using PHP and open source technologies is a good candidate of Crowdsourcing. Disadvantages of Crowdsourcing are low quality, communication issues, and researching for reliable resources with required skill set. Full Outsourcing Full outsourcing refers to outsourcing overall IT functions in an organization to an external service provider. This is similar to ASP model but the hardware and software remain on-site and vendor resources may collaborate with employee on-site or remotely, depending on the IT functions.For example, an enterprise may outsource helpdesk and desktop support. In this case vendor’s resources remain on-site to provide support on hardware and software issues. Some of software issues rectified remotely. Software development and maintenance happen in the vendor’s location. Companies typically choose this model if their perspective of IT does not support organizations strategic initiative. Doing so managers, and employees can concen trate on other value-adding assignment. Companies outsource completely to accommodate growth and respond to their business environment (Pearlson & Saunders, 2010, p. 09) with SLA’s and multiple vendors. Riordan should not opt for full outsourcing because of risk in exposing copyrighted material, formulas, trade secrets, and unique manufacturing methods to competitors. Selective outsourcing fit well for Riordan. Selective Outsourcing Selective outsourcing allows IT executives with options of retaining few IT functions in-house for strategic reasons. Selective outsourcing gives greater flexibility and often better service because of competitive market (Pearlson & Saunders, 2010, p. 210). According to Subramanian and Williams (2007), another name for selective outsourcing is â€Å"Strategic out-tasking. IT executive will have total control, manage projects, and review deliverables in-house. Only few IT functions like new application development, enhancing application due busine ss changes, fix non-critical issues outsourced and vendor take responsibility. Selective outsourcing is best suited for companies new to outsourcing. Riordan must outsource short-term assignments and small projects before venturing outsourcing in a bigger scale and when they cannot find resources with specific skills or to gain strategic advantage.Outsourcing versus in-house implementations Rose India Technologies PVT. Ltd (2011) defines outsourcing as â€Å"the process by which a company contracts another company to provide particular services†. These services and functions would be otherwise carried out in-house by the company’s own employees. The main reason companies outsource supply chain management are to reduce cost, free up internal resources, save time, to gain better control of managing functions, not enough internal resources to handle the job and share the risk with a partner.Some of disadvantages of outsourcing SCM include the underestimation of cost due t o communication, inadequate governance meaning that an in-house overseeing committee needs to be set up, reduction of technical, key information and crucial knowledge control, dimensioning leadership with the business relations managed by supplier, increase in business continuity, increased cost due to salaries raises in other companies, and unethical suppliers. Outsourcing SCM will save the organization money in IT expenditures.The system becomes is streamlined and use by all location, more energy and money is left for core business strategies. The vendor will handle the development and implementation of custom finance software along with an accounting package along with the establishment of a joint venture offshore back office operation of the company’s invoicing, revenue processing, and auditing services. Some IT functions should not be outsourced such as core business competencies, functions that are knowledge based, and are company proprietary information.Multidisciplina ry, Interdepartmental, factuality, and critical business function that may involve political risk should not be outsourced as well. Riordan should not outsource its core business function this part of the project should be done in-house so that Riordan maintain and controls these function to keep down all risk whether they are security risk or political risk. The reason most companies outsource ERP system is because they do not have the experience and the expertise to implement an ERP package.When it comes to implementation the supplier has a perfected system for installation and implementation, and most organizations do not want to assign full time staff to implementation thereby taking away from the day-to-day work as well as ERP package can be confusing and frustrating to employees due to false starts and downtime. Outsourcing ERP tends to be a good decision when it comes to medium to lager companies because more than likely outside help will be need for consultation, references, credentials, implementation, and monitoring and check consultants.Stress within the company is one disadvantage because employees must learn a new system, and process that may affect productivity and efficiency. The effect can be short and long term. Other cons such cost overruns during and implementation, converting, training and customized modules. The ERP system should be outsourced to a vendor can handle the testing and coding of the new system to insure it integrates with the existing or new MRP systems well verification and documentation leaving the IT Department free to oversee vendor and other IT functions ( Janstal,1999).Many ERP vendors and consulting firms, who have professional implementation and customization skills for manufacturing ERP software less adjustments, are necessary because they will design software specifically for Riordan Manufacturing. The cost for the production of ERP software purchase depends on the size and functions of the software and the extent of the adjustment (Baihaki,2009).The business of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is evolving and changing in the market on a constant and constant base to meet the growing and demanding need for new strategies that increase business profit margin by having an application that create interactive analysis of the customers’ requirements and leading to the customers satisfaction. C. R. M s’ are all over the market place the need is to choose one, implement, install and train. Simple jobs no need to outsource. Value of Implementations and Outsourcing RecommendationsSupply Chain Management Implementation Studies show that the effective supply chain management (SCM) enables organizations to perform better and maximize profitability by aligning their supply chains with the market demand (Baltzan & Phillips, 2010). SCM implementation helps the organization to reduce inventory levels, minimize order-processing costs, improve responsiveness to customer needs, and compress or der cycle time by streamlining and automating information flow among the different components of the supply chain process (Sumner, 2005).SCM implementation enables an organization to gain competitive advantage by reducing operating costs and increasing process efficiencies to meet market demands and to ensure timely delivery of products or services. Customer Relationship Management Implementation Intense market competition is forcing organizations to change their business models from sales-focused to customer-focused making customer satisfaction a paramount for the organization’s success (Baltzan & Phillips, 2010).Customer relationship management (CRM) implementation will enable organizations to gain insight into customer buying behavior and purchase patterns and develop business strategies to improve customer satisfaction and service quality (Baltzan & Phillips, 2010). Riordan can improve customer satisfaction, service quality, customer loyalty, profitability, and sales volu me by implementing CRM systems to manage its interactions with the customers efficiently. Enterprise Resource Planning Implementation Business leaders require access to real-time business information to make business-related decisions in an efficient manner to improve performance.Enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation integrates organization’s business processes into an information technology (IT) system facilitating an integrated view of enterprise-wide business information (Baltzan & Phillips, 2010). ERP enables Riordan to streamline, automate, and integrate business processes to improve efficiency of business functions to reduce operating costs, improve customer service, increase revenues, eliminate redundancies, and improve decision-making (Baltzan & Phillips, 2010). Outsourcing RecommendationsOrganizations have to find ways to improve performance of business operations to sustain in the global competition. Outsourcing enables an organization to increase produc tivity, reduce operating costs, and improve flexibility by taking advantage of low labor cost regions and difference in time zones (Morello, 2003). Riordan should consider full outsourcing model for the implementation of SCM, CRM, and ERP systems to another organization while ensuring appropriate knowledge transfer to its employees during the implementation process.Service providers expertise in the implementation of SCM, CRM, and ERP systems will help the organization to streamline, automate, standardize, and fine tune business processes to increase efficiency of business operations. Knowledge transfer to Riordan’s employees during and after implementation process will enable the organization to gain and retain adequate knowledge to support business systems efficiently. Riordan can use the selective outsourcing model for ongoing maintenance of the SCM, CRM, and ERP systems.Outsourcing only the IT support services to another organization will enable Riordan to keep critical b usiness process knowledge in-house while ensuring round-the-clock IT support to its global business operations. Outsourcing redundant IT support services to another organization will help Riordan to concentrate more on business critical functions to increase productivity and improve operations performance. Providing Continued Value Once IT implementations are completed assessing the value of new systems is the next step.When companies invest in IT initiatives they want to see the added value to the organizations IT and IS departments. Setting up a process to measure continued value is essential in achieving this. For Riordan is recommend using IT metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to measure value. KPIs also known as Key Success Indicators will help the organization define and also measure progress toward organizational IT goals. KPIs are quantifiable measurements that are agreed upon, reflecting the critical success factors of the organization.If Key Performance Indicator s are going to be of any value there must be a way for it to be accurately defined and measured. Equally important, KPIs once defined should be consistent year to year. The organization should also look to set targets for each Key Performance Indicator. Once KPIs are defined a way to measure it needs to be set up to collect information, a target, has to be established. Below are some KPIs for Riordan in assessing success of IT initiatives: IS and IT implementation adds tangible value to organization Implementation reduce IS and IT costMeasuring Effectiveness Measuring the effectiveness of a system can show its value to the organization but also set a benchmark to continually assess the system year after year. Using Effectiveness IT metrics measures its effectiveness on IT systems from the standpoint of a business tool. The metric can measure how IT affects specific aspects of a business and the business process such as conversion rates, customer satisfaction, and sell-through increa ses. Specifically, the metrics goal is to show how well a company is doing in reaching its objectives.In constantly questioning, it determines if the right decisions are being made to reach these objectives. One way we can measure effectiveness is through surveys to IT, finance and HR departments. The survey giving to employees can give insight as to if the system is helping make work more productive to Riordan employees or caused increased difficultly. The surveys should look to answer these questions: Is the system increasing daily productivity? Does system work seamlessly with critical IT systems? Are there any disadvantages to the new system?Is the system easy to support? Easy to use? Is more staff training needed? Establishing benchmarks is a typical way of measuring performance of IT Effectiveness. Benchmarking puts IT in greater demand to align with the business and demonstrate the company economic value. IT benchmarks can show how competitive IS and IT services are, and if t here are ways to improve the process or increase efficiency of delivery of services. There are different models that can be used for Riordan to asses IS values. These are recommended:Peer/ industry comparisons Customer satisfaction IT effectiveness/value IT efficiency/cost Business IT process Cost benchmarking will address the problem of cost and quality of services. It can show what can be done to reduce cost and improve performance by showing best practices in the industry. Figure 2. Cost Benchmarking. Reprinted from IT Benchmarking: A Baseline for improving performance, by Ambuhl and Bitterman, 2004. A successful benchmark is valued by the actionable recommendation that yield immediate and long-term results.Be sure to outlining specifics in improving efficiency and effectiveness or it will have no significant value. Measuring Efficiency Measuring IT effectiveness is only one aspect to determining IT value. Efficiency IT metrics while similar has differences. This metric will meas ure the performance of an IT system. It measures performance such as throughput, speed, and availability of a system. This will also determine how well the newly implemented system works with established systems. To measure performance organized documenting and reporting process must be in place.Efficiency IT metrics can be used to measure the throughput, how fast information is travelling throughout Riordan’s intranet or the speed of transactions with its suppliers and customers. Additionally, it can measure traffic to a website. Traffic measures how many people come to a website in a given period of time. Additional benefits to the Efficiency IT metric, it not only measures the efficiency of a IT system for evaluating and improving its performance, but it makes sure the system is being used the right way, ensuring the effectiveness of the processes, and that they are in step with business objectives.Utilizing methods such as KPIs, Effectiveness IT metrics, Efficiency IT met rics, and benchmarking will help Riordan establish a clear dashboard, adding value to its IS and IT departments with every successful IT implementation. It will also show continual value of its IT systems by performance, which systems continue to add value and which do not. Conclusion As we have seen, Riordan Manufacturing’s utilization of information systems and information technology leaves a lot to be desired. With so much potential, they continue to have manual processes for tasks and information that can and should be automated and interconnected.Because of the lack of technology, executive management is not capable of seeing the big picture they need across the entire organization in order to make the best decisions. Because of this, it is hard for the company to see the value of the continued IS and IT investments. However, with the implementation of such systems as ERP, CRM, or SCM, value can be added, value can be see in the benefits they provide. While different sys tems may have a better fit within the organization, Riordan must determine what is best for them; they must determine how they will be used in the most beneficial way.With any major infrastructure change, there are new risks and costs to the organization. The correct hardware must be purchased; the right software must be installed; the business rules and requirements must be met; the systems must be maintained over time. Putting these puzzle pieces together might not always go as well as planned. This is why Riordan must consider some of the outsourcing solutions discussed. Deciding on using an ASP, running in a SaaS model, or installing and maintaining the systems themselves, each require extremely detailed analysis.While it is easy to see the cost of each of these systems and deployment methods, Riordan must continue to go back to determining the value of each system at the same time. If the value is a reduced IT staff; if the value is a more integrated system; if the value is a m ore productive manufacturing process, the systems will show their value themselves. Riordan Manufacturing wants to receive the value out of what they pay for. Yet we see that value is not a pay for what you get model, but value is in how you use what you paid for. References Ambuhl, C. , & Bitterman, M. (2004). IT Benchmarking: A Baseline for mproving performance. 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