Risk Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Risk Management - Case Study Example The first concern area is the president and founder decision to hand shareholding to family members. This may be seen as a measure to safeguard the company’s interests and those of the main shareholders, it also poses significant threat as it limits the company’s access to additional capital, the assumption here being that any amounts that the company may have at the time are already committed to improving the business. Another eminent risk is the exposure of the company’s assets; as presented in the case, the company’s total assets are valued at 52.6 million dollars. In case these assets are destroyed by any type of occurrence, it would cost the company about $73.5 million to replace them. It is definite that such loss would also translate to a loss of significant information stored in the equipment. Other costs that the company should consider is through disruption - in any case, that there is such an eventuality the company’s operations will defi nitely be disrupted. The entire period of disruption represents a significant loss of company revenue. Yet another major point of concern is the company’s revenue. The case indicates that the company’s revenue has been on the rise for the past two years and dipped in the third year by a significant amount - 15 million. A quarter of this revenue is generated by a single employee, which implies that the firm is overly reliant on a single or a few individuals. This implies redundancy as well as inefficiency which are significant risks. The greatest risk in this case is the fact that if this individual leaves the company, then this hugely affects the company’s revenue stream (Hamilton, 2004). This will definitely have a spiral effect as the company operations rely on the revenue generated by its activities. The last significant threat to the company is loss of market share. The case indicates that the firm

Ppd 3 mock interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ppd 3 mock interview - Essay Example Do you have a pen and piece of paper if necessary) X Presentation (Are you presentable? Professional and smart? Dressing for the job and not for university? Do you have a smart suit/shirt/tie/skirt/ blouse/ shoes etc? Have you removed excessive/extravagant jewellery? Have you covered up any outstanding piercings/tattoos?) X Ice-breakers (How confident are you in meeting someone for the first time? Be prepared for questions aimed at putting you at ease i.e. How was your journey, finding the location etc?) X Understanding the question (Do you find it easy answering questions? How accurate are you in terms of actually answering the question and not digressing to something else?) X Answering questions (How structured are your answers normally? Do you know when to stop talking? Have you enough confidence to answer a question without any rehearsal before an interview?) X Competency-based questions (Do you know what you said on your application form? Have you prepared a list of examples to demonstrate competency in case

Mintzberg's 5 Ps for Strategy (1987) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Mintzberg's 5 Ps for Strategy (1987) - Essay Example In this paper, we proceed to structure our argument thus: in brief, we summarize Mintzberg (1987) covering the key points of his paper and its implications. Secondly, we proceed to review his own works that support and contradict his proposed definitions. Thirdly, we review the works of several scholars who either support or oppose his work implicitly; this can be understood by uncovering the context of their studies. Towards the end, we proceed to integrate our findings and conclude. Critical Review Mintzberg (1987) provides five broad definitions for strategy stating that it could a Plan, Ploy, Pattern, Position or Perspective. While plan and ploy fall under the same construct for his definition, there is a subtle difference in his usage of ‘ploy’. Ploy is defined as an action or strategy that is designed for someone else to react. The real action may or may not transpire in practice. Pattern is observed behavior. This results when the ground reality can be seen. Mintz berg, in his paper, refers to this as a realized strategy. Observe the parallels with one of his other research papers (Mintzberg & Waters 1985). In this paper, the authors observe that the final strategy which is enacted by the organization, also called the realized strategy may not be the one they started out with. In his earlier research, Mintzberg (1978) describes patterns as being parallel to the realized strategy, which in effect is a series of decisions taken by the firm. Being manifested in terms of the operational or pricing actions, they can be observed. Clearly, Mintzberg has been focused in developing his research ideas and theories in a sequential manner based on empirical observations. Position refers to the interaction of the organization with its business environment. In other words, here we can draw parallels with a firm operating within an industry. The strategy in this case is a question of how the firm positions itself within the environment. The final definition of strategy through ‘perspective’ seeks to locate it within the confines of the ‘collective mind’ of the organization. Mintzberg provides an internal view in this case, as opposed to the external environment defined view in the earlier definitions. Psychologists refer to this as the cognitive make-up of the organization, anthropologists refer to this as the cultural aspect and management theories discuss this in terms of the ‘driving force’. At this stage, it is meaningful to analyze the contention (our title) with references from other scholars. While there has been a flood of research into strategy definitions, some of the texts offer us more in-depth expositions. Consider De Wit & Meyer (2010) who discuss strategy from three different perspectives: process, content and context. It is appropriate to explain it further. Process refers to the thoughts, mapping and schema that reside in the individual’s mind or the collective organizatio nal mind. Here the first stage is thinking, wherein an idea is visualized. Possibly, here one can relate to Hambrick & Mason (1983) who suggest that most strategies in any organization are conceived in the mind of the top management, who then proceed to ensure percolation through the rank and file; their conceived strategies form the future of the organizatio

Read the case study below Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Read the case study below - Essay Example This in turn affects the motivational level of customers, who are to be looking at the professional employee as an example of organizational leadership, but see only in the burnt-out employee an expression of fatalism or giving up, along with signs of frustration and even associated depressive symptoms such as wanting to sleep all the time. In other words, the average employee who has been in the profession for some time is often burnt out through emotional exhaustion, which may have occurred due to several factors. They will treat clients differently in this state of burnout and they will have a reduced sense of accomplishment. The consideration for informal groups can aid in mentoring opportunities for Western Motels, to solve this motivation problem. A mentoring program blends together elements of environmental impact and interpersonal communication skills. It posits that the formulation of a mentor relationship can help a new maid like this contextualize their own directions within a workplace amid competing issues by following the pattern of another individual. Mentoring can help new employees develop new skills. Often, the mentoring relationship can vastly benefit both parties. Employee motivation is a major problem in many organizations. â€Å"Motivation should relate to individual needs. For instance, a staff member who enjoys collaborating with others may prefer team goals; an independent worker will strive for individual objectives.† (Messmer, 2005). It is true that personal identity and pride in the job should be given top priority in redesigning the position of hotel maid, so I would keep in mind that maids need their cognitive capacities served too; they are not just manual laborers. â€Å"If we remember that the cognitive capacities (perceptual, intellectual, learning) are a set of adjustive tools†¦ then it is clear that any danger to them, any deprivation or blocking of their free use, must

Causes of lung cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Causes of lung cancer - Essay Example Smoking, exposure to radon gas, reactive metals and genetic vulnerabilities has come up as the major causes of lung cancer. Research has identified cigarette smoking as the main cause of lung cancer in the world today. Stoppler (Para. 5) identifies that smoking contributes to over 90% of the total lung cancer infection in the world today. The level of smoking among direct smokers is quantized depending on the number of cigarettes they smoke per day and the number of years that one has smoked. The higher the product of the two, the more is the risk of getting lung cancer. Indirect smokers are those that inhale cigarette smoke within a smoker’s environment and are ultimately subjected to the risk of getting infected with lung cancer. Bhang smokers who smoke cigarette have a higher risk of contracting lung cancer since they have a tendency to take deep puffs exposing their lungs to a more contact with the smoke. Tobacco smoke contains carcinogenic compounds that trigger cancerous cells to grow more rapidly into a tumor. Research has proved that tobacco contains over 4,000 chemical compounds including nitrosamines and polycyclic hydrocarbons that are cancer causing compounds. The chances of developing cancer increase as the level of smoking increases. ... In essence, Radon gas is the second, after smoking, a common cause of Lung cancer in the world today (Stoppler Para. 1-2). When Uranium gas decays spontaneously, it releases many chemical compounds including Radon gas that has exposed many homes to the risk of developing lung cancer. Although uranium is a rare compound, its emissions can travel over long distances in the soil and can accumulate in the houses to reach toxic levels. The fact that Radon gas is odorless and is colorless, it is hard to detect it or measure its levels. Consequently, most families will be exposed without their knowledge unless experts assess the presence of the gas. When, Radon gas is inhaled, its radio activities are severe enough to trigger abnormal cell growth. In case of long exposure, the illness becomes severe and effective treatment cannot be realized. The third leading cause of cancer, as the Center of Disease and control (Para. 7) states, is exposure to asbestos fibers. Asbestos are silica compound fibers that were commonly used in work environments for thermal insulation and acoustically treated rooms. For instance, most music studios have asbestos linings to protect them from external sound mechanisms. The employees in such studios are highly exposed to the risk of developing lung cancer during their life time. When an individual inhales asbestos fibers, they attach to the lining of their lungs and can persist in this position for a long time. The fibers have carcinogenic compounds that affect the normal cell growth in the lugs eventually leading to cancer of the lungs. Research has it that cigarette smokers who are exposed to asbestos have the highest chances of developing complications. About 50% and 90% of all the smokers who

Slave resistance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Slave resistance - Essay Example the behaviors exhibited by individuals are observable and does not necessarily require the observation of their mental states in order to explain their behaviors in the environments that they live in (New & Cochran, 2007). However, Watson indicated that observable behaviors are the only ones that can be included in the observation rather than those that include subjective emotions. Drawing on this, this essay will delve into the concept of behaviorism with a focus on learning behavior based on the research findings of Pavlov’s dogs and Skinner’s rats. Essentially, behaviorists deem that people can receive training in order for them to execute various tasks irrespective of their genetic composition or their personalities as long as the conditioning is the right one. In this regard, the two types of conditioning are classical and operant conditioning in which most of the adherents of behaviorism abide by. In essence, operant conditioning is a learning method that involves the inclusion of rewards or punishments depending on the behavior exhibited. On the other hand, classical conditioning is another form of behavioral training method whereby there is a natural response in terms of behavior to the stimulating factor applied (New & Cochran, 2007). The terms used to define the two factors applied in this form of conditioning are conditioned stimulus and response. Based on this school of thought, Russian Psychologist Pavlov applied the conditioned response drawing from the behavior that his dogs portrayed when it came to them salivatin g whether or not their master brought food during his entry into the room that they were in. Through research, Pavlov discovered the salivating behavioral trait that dogs tend to have is not a trainable behavior, meaning that the response is unconditioned indicating food is not the only stimulant that provokes this response. In the course of Pavlov’s research, this psychologist unearthed that dogs salivated or exhibited the same

Final Paper on Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Final Paper on Philosophy Essay In its known usage, the word Reality pertains to something that actually exists and which can be felt by the senses. Metaphysics, a branch of Philosophy, tries to discern reality from illusion, as it investigates on things that are real which could also be just illusions of what people want to be real—ideals. However, what can be sensed from the surroundings does not seem to be just mere illusions, as the body and the mind react to everything it senses. In Philosophy, reality usually pertains to existence since it is contrasted with nonexistence—those unreal—and mere possibilities—could be real but does not necessarily exist, unless discovered. To this date, there are still speculations about the Nature of Reality. It could be possible that people are living on their dream worlds, and not in reality (like in the Matrix movie). However, these people perceive their dream worlds as an equal of reality. Hence, they are still living in reality unless someone drags them out of that reality and into another level of reality, which is more real. 2. On a nutshell, the documentary film â€Å"Zen and Now† by Alan Watts points out that people should live in the Now which is actually the main principle of Zen philosophy. Unnecessary baggage could only hinder the person’s progress, in moving on with his or her life. Personal progress seems to be the undying aim of Zen philosophy as it promotes moving forward rather than shackling the self behind in the past. It also does not entail the idea of expecting what could happen in the future. The primary focus is the Now, neither the past nor the future. The principle of Zen pertains to establishing a harmony with the self before people could establish it with others and with the world. Hence, it should be quite simple to understand what Alan Watts wanted to convey. Living in the now is the best way to live life since it gets rid of the excess baggage that drags the person towards his or her sinkhole—the past. This baggage usually make up of the person’s regrets, basically anything negative about his or her past (events, personalities, and the like). 3. The Zimbardo film is about the Stanford Prison Experiment which was conducted by Philip Zimbardo. Basically, it entailed the role-playing of both prisoners and guards by participants who were screened before being accepted. As the film would show, the participants’ imagination grew out of hand, even with the presence of the research team. It may possibly be an act out of human nature, when these participants were given their respective roles. They acted as if it were the real deal; guards taking out their frustration towards the prisoners and prisoners would plan of escaping or creating riots within the prison. The role-playing seemed to unleash genuine human nature of many participants as some would show sadistic tendencies towards the prisoners. It also seemed that imagination initially played a part on this â€Å"unleashing† but it was more the work of the subconscious that guided these people to completely assume their respective roles. The environment, upon which a person belongs to, can have an astounding effect towards him or her. It can actually alter some of the person’s traits as it is part of human nature to adapt to certain environments. It also influences the person’s perception of his or her reality as some situations and conditions involved in the environment would affect the person. 4. The Milgram experiment entailed the testing of a person’s obedience to an authority who orders would instruct him or her to do unethical things that opposes with the person’s conscience. Many of the experiment’s participants were reluctant of administering a high voltage shock of 450 towards the receiver. As the result would show, the willingness of the participant to administer the 450-volts shock greatly conflicts with his or her conscience. They have to be coerced, threatened, or abused in order to successfully administer the shock; unless it served a higher purpose. Humans do not obey commands that can be classified as unethical, immediately. Human conscience seems to prevent the person to follow the commands without hesitation. The experiment could already be perceived as unethical because it entailed the electro-shocking of the learner by the teacher—the participant. The relationship between authority and conscience was tested in this experiment. Many of the participants were reluctant to follow the commands of the authority figure. They showed signs of disobeying the authority figure since they would believe that what they were tasked to perform is unethical. 5. Steve Pinker’s stand is to refurbish the current English Language that has been ravaged by various media influences, by reclaiming the respect for the English language. Every person is capable to speak grammatically but somehow they would choose to follow the English language that popular culture seems to promote (as mentioned, rockers, surfers, valley girls), as well as the standards proposed by Mavens which he utterly despises. As long as these two would continue to promote their version of English, then relearning proper grammar would be a hard task. The promotion of the proper usage of English will definitely be a tough road ahead for the likes of Pinker, as media and the mavens would continue to influence society. 6. Both the environment and free will play a significant role in shaping a person into what he or she can become in the future. Free will would involve decisions to certain situations that could actually be summoned by the person’s environment. However, free will would ultimately shape the person more significantly than the environment as it is his or her decisions that promote the development of the person. The environment could only play a minor role on the person’s development. It is the person’s free will that shapes his or her future. I believe on free will as the catalyst in shaping the person. Free will enables the person to participate with the environment like making the right decisions for certain situations wherein some are raised by the environment. A person could not and should not rely on fate in order to help him or her progress in life or move forward. It is all the work of free will that allows such change to occur within the person and his or her life. 7. Charlie Manson experienced social regression in his childhood life, as his mother rejected him a few times; at one point, even trading him for a pitcher of alcohol. In prison, he learned the teachings of Scientology (a cult led by L Ron Hubbard) and applied many of it to his own established philosophy that he and his followers believed in. The growing crisis of the racial tension between the whites and blacks made him fear that one day, the blacks will take over the whites’ position in society, upon which believing that the Manson family will then have control over the blacks and their society. The Manson philosophy (coded: Helter Skelter) was as destructive as it can be, as it involved spurring chaos in society. His followers were made to believe that they were following the commands of a Jesus Christ incarnate, as they were forced to do anything he commands. It was not fate that brought him into becoming the person that everyone feared in the past. It was his free will that spurred the numerous murders, ordered his â€Å"family† to commit these killings, and sent him to prison. Apparently, he did not have control over his free will as he did everything that seemed to please him. 8. There would be a noise created as it falls to the ground. However, it would not be heard by anything or anyone as there are no living creatures in the forest; unless one would consider the surrounding trees as living things (frankly speaking, they are). It is for certain that there will be noise created as the tree would come crashing down, but without a creature to hear the noise, then it would not be considered as noise in the first place. Two sides could be drawn up from this question: (1) There is a noise since it fell to the ground hard (I suppose it would be hard), and (2) there would not be a single noise as no living creature heard it. For (1), anything can make a noise, intentionally or unintentionally. So it is impossible for the tree to fall down hard silently. In (2), even if the tree creates a noise while falling down, who would be there to receive the sound and conclude it as a sort of noise? That seems to be the main problem here as most living creatures (if not, all) could hear sound. Then again, noise was created but nothing was able to receive it and conclude that it was noise. 9. The Sensory Transduction involves the detection and translation of any form of stimulus. It involves the five senses, making sensory transduction an indispensable part of people’s lives. It involves how people would interpret what they could sense. It may be possible for people to control the transduction of sensorial vibrations (usually associated with feelings), although it might require immense amounts of concentration and will power. The brain would translate these sensorial vibrations for the benefit of the individual; which he or she later translates into experience by how he or she reacts to the translated sensorial vibrations (by the brain). On the other hand, these sensorial vibrations may travel too fast for the person, enabling instinct to take its course in providing the individual how to react on the given situation; given that he or she already experienced the same condition before. I believe people could control the transduction of sensorial vibrations simply because they could choose what they want to sense. A child would close his or her eyes on the scariest parts of the horror movie simply because he or she does not want to get scared. However, it could also be considered that instinct comes into play when the person would fail to react to these transductions. 10. Universal reality is simply the existence of all things; the totality of time, space, and being. Yes, there is a Universal reality in people’s lives because everything around them exists and it will continue to exist until it is removed from time, space, and being. Basically, Universal Reality makes up everything that people could sense around them inside this chamber. People may be unaware of this fact but the Universal reality does not remain constant forever, as it could experience constant changes; changes that enable people to adapt to an altered perception of that supposed Universal reality. Somehow it is thought that all realities originated from a single source of energy or force, upon which all top religions considered as God—the universal being. Basically, the answer would be that there is an existing Universal reality as it entails everything that people would perceive as real and those that can be unreal—as some individuals could perceive them while others could not. Universal reality is all that exists in people’s realities. Hence, there is such a thing.