Buy report: July 2019

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Umass Dartmouth Reflection

I am currently on year six at Umass Dartmouth, and thus far it has been quite the journey. I have been a commuter for all six years and my experience hasn't been too enjoyable. If I could restart my college experience I am not sure if I would not even put this school as a possibility. I have experienced some positive experiences at this school, but the negative aspects definitely outweigh the positive. However, this current semester has really changed my view on the University. Umass Dartmouth's campus is definitely unique.One thing that has always bothered me about Umass Dartmouth is the look of the buildings. The outside and inside of the buildings definitely help to impact the negative feeling I get about the campus. The campus is so gray looking that it makes me feel somewhat Ã¢â‚¬Å"gray'. The classrooms are very uncomfortable regarding seating, temperature, and desk space. One positive aspect of the campus is the layout. Personally as a commuter student I really like the Ã¢â‚¬Å" ring roadÃ¢â‚¬ effect. I feel it makes the campus really navigable.A big negative when I think about Umass Dartmouth is how I feel as though a large majority of the staff does not care about the students. I have had many experiences ith different departments of the school being very rude to me in different situations. I feel as though the advisors at least should be interested in your wellbeing at this school, but even with most advisors I have had awful experiences. I have switched majors a few times so I have experienced many different advisors.Not every employee of the university has given me a negative experience. I have had a few professors who I felt were very dedicated to making sure I was learning and understanding the material. This is an aspect that I feel is very important, so I am rateful to have had the experience to be taught by some very educated, caring professors. The core business classes that I started taking as an operations management manger were a very good b ase to my major. The classes really helped to give me a broad understanding of different business areas.The class sizes for these classes were medium sized which I thought was perfect for these types of classes. Most of the professors I had for these classes I felt taught me the material very well. However, I did come across one or two professors that I feel really did not benefit me at all. I really find it unfortunate there are professors in this university who do not teach the material well at all. At the end of a semester looking back at a class and feeling like I can take close to nothing from it really frustrates me.I feel as though the university should really be monitoring the classes and spectating them. So far the operations management major required classes have been very good. The sizes of the classes are perfect. I have found all my classes very interesting, and felt the material is being taught very efficiently. I have learned more this semester than any other semester at Umass Dartmouth. One thing that I really have enjoyed this semester is the amount of class interaction. I have experienced a lot of class discussions and have done a lot of presentations.I absolutely hated presentations at much more confident in giving presentations and participating in class discussions. Another part of this semester I have enjoyed regarding my major required classes was a recent trip I took toa manufacturing plant that one of my professors setup. I felt this was extremely beneficial. Being able to actually go toa real life plant and see concepts being used in real life really opened my eyes, and made me really excited to raduate and start my career to apply concepts I have learned.My experience at Umass Dartmouth started out negative, but as I continued through it seemed to start to improve. This current semester has really impacted me positively. I feel as though these operations management courses are really starting to prepare me very well for my career. I really feel as though Umass Dartmouth's campus is a very big negative for myself as well as for other students. If they Just added a little more color to every building it would really help to improve the atmosphere!

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Tqm Syllabus

Monday, July 29, 2019

Interim Progress Review Question 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Interim Progress Review Question 5 - Essay Example normal distribution for the given sample, because the sample is a randomly distributed set of human reactionsÃ¢â‚¬â€which ideally fall in the pattern of the normal distribution. The 95% confidence interval is given by the formula where M is the mean, SE is the standard error of the distribution, and z is the z-score for the confidence interval being used. The standard score z is derived by subtracting the sample mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the sample standard deviation. z represents the number of standard deviations between the raw score and the mean. (b) CNN and ActMedia provided a television channel that showed news feature and advertisements. It was targeted at people waiting in grocery checkout queues. The television programmes were designed with a 8 minute cycles on the assumption that the population mean time a customer stands in the queue is 8 minutes. A sample of 120 shoppers at a major grocery store produces a sample mean waiting time of 7.5 minutes with a sample standard deviation of 3.2 minutes. There is a close relationship between confidence intervals and significance tests. Specifically, if a statistic is significantly different from 0 at the 0.05 level then the 95% confidence interval will not contain 0. All values in the confidence interval are plausible values for the parameter whereas values outside the interval are rejected as plausible values for the parameter. ... There is a similar relationship between the 99% confidence interval and Significance at the 0.01 level. (Lane, Lu, Peres, Zitek) Adding and subtracting from the figure of 7.5 hours, only 5% of normally distributed queues will last longer than 7.5 + 0.57496 = 8.07496 minutes. To be more precise, 95.46% of queues will fall within (7.5 - 0.57496) = minutes and 8.07496 minutes = 8 min 4.498 seconds. We can also go the p-value and t test way, using the "level of significance" method. Since we cannot obtain the p-values directly, we thought of

Sunday, July 28, 2019

The main ideas of Buddhism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The main ideas of Buddhism - Essay Example Buddhism is a dharma or non-theistic religion that promotes the norms of the people. It consists of a range of beliefs, traditions and practices. These components are rooted in the teachings accredited to Buddha which is also known as Siddhartha. The religion followers believe that Buddha means, Ã¢â‚¬Å"The awakened oneÃ¢â‚¬ Statistically, the Religion is practised by over 300 million people around the world with most of the followers coming from India. Buddhism has two common branches, namely; Theravada and Mahayana. The former has extensive followers from Sri Lanka while the latter has followers from East Asia.Different religions emphasize on differing aspects, while others advocate for proclaiming faith on the religion, others stress the importance of putting into practice the norms of the religion. Resultantly, Cohen (182) supposes that Buddhists accept as true that practising is obtained through comprehension of the Ã¢â‚¬Å"Four Noble TruthsÃ¢â‚¬ . Cohen (182) brought to light the exact and ultimate goal of the Buddhism Religion, the practice. The principal goal of Buddhism is the achievement of Nirvana state by practising the Ã¢â‚¬ËœNoble Eightfold PathÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ which is also known as middle way as per the submission of McDaniel, (250). In a nutshell, the eight factors include; having the right understanding, professing the right intention, practising the right speech and actions, righteous living, making correct efforts, at all times maintaining good mindfulness and right concentrations.

Saturday, July 27, 2019

European & Equity Law of UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

European & Equity Law of UK - Essay Example The Treaty obligates UK to legislate in line with the international law in securing universal human rights it envisages. The Treaty also established the European Court on Human Rights (ECtHR) to give individual British citizens an appeal option for those who feel that their rights have been violated under the local law (Davies, & Virgo, 2013). As such, many UK citizens have filed their appeals at the Strasbourg Court, with a majority of the cases being decided in their favour and thus piling more pressure on UK government to make more liberal laws. Such EU Decisions prompted the UK parliament to pass the Human Rights Act 1998, which has been in effect since 2000. The Act is deemed as a local reflection of the human rights provisions under the EU Convention, which the Labour government promised the voters in 1997. The domestication of the EU law arguably ensures justice by limiting the cost and time of having to pursue justice at the Strasbourg Court. The HRA Act 1998 also imposed an obligation on the local UK courts to adopt the precedents set by the ECtHR when deliberating similar cases in a manner that explains the tremendous influence on local law. In the event that local courts and parliament disagree with the international law, UK would be deemed as failing to safeguard individual rights. As such, I believe UK would be at pains to fend off arguments that it is in utter violation of its international duties under the treaty. The ECtHR has in it its rulings attempted to create harmony with local state mechanisms by ensuring that its rulings are flexible under the principle of margin of appreciation. When issuing its verdicts on cases, this principle gives states some freedom in enforcing human rights based on their customized needs. Regardless, this has been insufficient on the issues where London starkly is in conflict with the ECtHR decisions. In the recent past, UKÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s government has been in

Friday, July 26, 2019

Codes of Professional Conduct in Accounting Essay

Codes of Professional Conduct in Accounting - Essay Example A code of ethics ensures that the professionals do not get into conflicts with the society as the professionals become more aware of the limits to which their activities can go. A code of ethics is important in that it specifies the ethical responsibilities of the accounting professionals something, which is meant to minimize any dilemmas that come whenever professionals act in contravention of the code of conduct1. The code of ethics for Accounting professionals is designed so as to ensure that, any issues facing the professionals and is likely to impact on the American society is taken care of. In addition, the code of ethics is more of guidelines, which specifies the extent to which a professional can go especially in regard to news, or reporting of a given event. The professionals' code of ethics for the Accounting professionals is also meant to protect the actions of the professionals from harming the American society and curb financial scandals. For the Accounting professionals, honesty and trustworthy is indispensable. The professionals must always ensure that they are consistent otherwise they risk losing credibility. This is why a code of conduct is very central to the functioning of the Accounting professionals. ... In addition, honesty and trustworthy are key tenets of Accounting practice especially given the fact that, for a very long time, the Accountants in the United States have been blamed for perpetrating scandalous activities. The AICPA professional code of conduct needs to be modified to reflect the changing nature of the Accountant's duties in this era of information technology and especially concerning the increasing menacing threat of cyber fraud. The code of ethics stipulates what a professional can or cannot do. This has ensured that, accountants remain professional and committed to their duty in honesty. The code of ethics has ensured that, the AICPA professionals understand that, it is their duty to serve Americans in honesty and trustworthy. The Nursing code of conduct calls upon all nurses to conduct themselves in a manner consisted with compassion, respect, dignity, worth in terms of professional relationships and practice. The code of conduct for nurses requires them to be committed to the patients' in spite of whether the patient is an individual, family or a group3. The code of conduct for nurses requires them to promote the health safety and rights of patients by being committed to their duties. The code of conduct for media professionals on the other hand is designed to ensure that, the media professional present balanced and true information which must not hurt the society. If not well taken care of, media professionals can create a lot of disharmony in the society. It has happened in other countries. For instance the 1992 Rwanda massacre was partly ignited by a largely biased media profession, which never gave credence to the media professional code of ethics. As a result, the

Evidence Based Practice Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Evidence Based Practice - Research Paper Example 167-168) state, Privacy can be seen as an individualÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s freedom and having private space to be by oneself, being protected against physical and psychological intrusion, having the opportunity to achieve emotional release, ensuring that certain personal information is protected from others, and controlling how personal information is handledÃ¢â‚¬ and Ã¢â‚¬Å"Altman defines privacy as Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe selective control of access to the selfÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ and Westin10 as freedom of choice. These are important notions in the context of the research discussion as they provide an overarching framework within to examine the nature of privacy in the emergency setting. The research goes on the articulate the core notions of privacy as consisting of autonomy and confidentiality. With the implementation of computer technology the research notes that there is increasing concern with patient privacy. As a result, the study examined privacy issues within this context. The research analyzed patient sati sfaction with current medical privacy levels. The study was a descriptive analytical approach that involved 360 patients within three emergency departments. The study measured three areas of privacy: physical, informational, and psychosocial. The study results demonstrated that over half (50.6%) of the respondents believed that their privacy was either weak or average. Conversely, 49.4% indicated that their privacy was Ã¢â‚¬Ëœfairly goodÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ or Ã¢â‚¬ËœgoodÃ¢â‚¬â„¢. There were also demographic factors that correlated to some of the privacy statistics. Finally, the study demonstrated a strong correlation between perceived privacy and satisfaction. Shepherd, Ho, Shepherd, and Sivarajasin (2004) further considered patient privacy questions through the investigation of confidential registration in health services.... The research discussion revealed a number of pertinent information that can be applied to the investigation of HIPAA violations. In terms of HIPAA privacy violations, Nayeri and Aghajani established medical notions of privacy as being highly important to the functional medical environment. Their study measured three areas of privacy: physical, informational, and psychosocial. The results demonstrated that over half of the respondents believed that their privacy was either weak or average Ã¢â‚¬â€œ a statistically significant figure. While this study established patient concern and desire for privacy, Shepherd, Ho, Shepherd, and Sivarajasin examined the issue in more specificity considering its implementation in confidential registration of health services. This study implemented control and intervention patients as a means of statistically determining patient perspectives on medical privacy when speaking to a receptionist. The results proved significant in that many patients in the co ntrol group expressed a desire for increased privacy. The applicability of these results are such that allowing increased privacy levels could have a corresponding benefit for patient confidence and satisfaction; notably this is a theme that was also echoed in the research by Nayeri and Aghajani.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Arguments about oral sex Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Arguments about oral sex - Essay Example The only thing oral sex can be considered safe for is if the couple wish to avoid pregnancy (incase the couple in question is heterosexual) because the transmission of disease is not stopped if partners engage in oral sex. Diseases like Chlamydia, HPV, gonorrhea, herpes, hepatitis, and HIV can all be transmitted through the unsafe practice of oral sex. For all practical purposes, if the objective is to avoid disease then oral sex is no safer than anal or vaginal sex. In fact, as reported by the University of Malmo in Sweden, unprotected oral sex with a person who is already infected with HPV increases the risk of oral cancer (Wikipedia 2006). Additionally, health advisors recommend that oral sex should be totally avoided when either participant has any cuts or scrapes on the genitals or the mouth. Moreover, brushing teeth before oral sex may not be a good idea since it can cause small scratches on the lining of the mouth which may help the transmission of microscopic bacteria or viru ses. Similarly, flossing, dental work or crunchy food can also make oral sex more unsafe that it already is for the same medically recorded reasons (Wikipedia 2006). However, in spite of all the risks involved, there are simple ways in which oral sex can be made as safe as other sexual practices. The first and foremost recommendation for safe oral sex is to use a condom in case it is being performed on a man. There is little reason not to since there are flavored condoms available for those who say that they do not like the taste of regular condoms.

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Philosophy of Professional Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Philosophy of Professional Nursing - Essay Example All these influences are reflected in the radical changes in nursing philosophy and culture of the nursing profession. In nursing profession, 'an individual' is interpreted in terms of his relation to family and community, and as a unique personality suffered from health-related problems. For a nurse, a patient is an individual who is ill or injured, and needs professional care and medical treatment. The individuals do not exist in a social vacuum but are partly determined by the culture which surrounds them. In nursing practice, the individual as a patient is a part of family and community. In general sense, every family has internalized values and traditions that influence ideas of health and illness (Blais et al 2006). Society both reflects change in families and that society effects change upon families over time in a feedback loop. Wherever families are struggling to maintain or restore equilibrium, to find ways of coping effectively with crisis or with long-term stress, nurses may find themselves in a supportive role. In this case, nurses should develop empathetic intuitive responses to differ ent situations, and provide skilled care to relief pain and sufferings of the patient and emotional stress of his family (Sines et al 2005). The role of the nurse within the healthcare delivery system is an important one, whether assessed in terms of in or out patient care, of hospital or community care settings. The importance of the professional nurse within the health care delivery system is acknowledged and supported throughout the world. Nursing is quite often regarded as a science itself and many who are already in the field of nursing seek further studies to improve their status. As such they are considered to be "nursing practitioners" which tread a fine line between nursing practice and general medicinal practice (Sines et al 2005). The creation of this type of profession is made possible through a number of factors such as changes in the education system, advancement in technology, employment requirements and many more. Health Care Environment Healthcare environment involves treatment facilities and supportive climate, basic care services and managed care. Modern healthcare environment offers patients more flexibility in selecting providers but typically include many of the utilization management methods. Within a health environment, nurses assist in establishing a valid diagnosis early in treatment, crystallize a focus for brief treatment, enhance quality by effectively matching patients to treatment approaches, and reduce the length of treatment by assessing openness and attitudes toward therapy (Baily et al 2006). Evaluation and testing also play a critical role in primary care settings, where the need to rule out health problems and consider their role in treatment compliance, is crucial to quality care and cost-effective utilization of services. Today's modern nurses are also held responsible for other achievements in the medical industry, from research to the design of more modern facilities that were never thought t o be possible. Following the Department of Health: "good healthcare environments are key drivers of patient experience.Good environments matter to patients, their visitors and to staff" (2007). Nurses are encouraged to develop a program of outcome evaluation within their own practice,

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Fundamentals of Quantitative Research Template Assignment

Fundamentals of Quantitative Research Template - Assignment Example two variables, this study goes ahead to dissect each of variables into its constituents and analyze how these individualsÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ constituents relate to the second variable and its constituents. As already mentioned, a cross-sectional sampling technique is adopted for this research. The cross-sectional sampling technique adopted offers room for an all-inclusive study. Undertaking the study across diverse industries, the author brings a wholly representative study with respect to the area covered. Additionally, the sample is large enough to offer a representative sample. Additionally, considering the fact that the study participants are not aware of the study hypothesis, chances of biased occurring is highly diminished (Tzafrir, 2005). Nonetheless, the sample is non-purposive and this could have an impact on its representative of realistic findings of the research. The approach used in collecting the data used in the research suits its context. For starters, it should be mentioned that selecting participants from various organizations as sources of data allowed obtaining of representative data. Additionally, the researchers consider the ethics behind data collection. Although the sample chosen are unaware of the hypothesis of the study, they were well briefed on the research and those willing to, participated on voluntary basis participated in the research. Additionally, collection of primary data offers room for realistic and more current data for analysis. The research took an in-depth measurement of variables. Other than simply measuring the relationship between the two study variables, research further measures various components of the respective study variables. As a matter of fact, this offers room for undertaking an in-depth exploration of the relationship between the variables. It is simply like answering the question as to whether two countries have good relationship and going a step further to explore the area in which the two countries enjoy a good

Monday, July 22, 2019

Working Partnership Essay Example for Free

Working Partnership Essay 3.1 Explain why it is important to work in partnership with others. It is important that you work in partnership with all of the people surrounding the individuals that you are supporting, in order to ensure the best possible support and care are provided. This will include Carers, Families, Advocates and other people who are sometimes called Ã¢â‚¬Å"Significant OthersÃ¢â‚¬ . In order to work well in partnership, there has to be good communication therefore you will need to have good communication skills. Other people may be able to provide useful information to support you in your work, and you may be able to find useful information to support them in being part of the individualÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s life. An example might be if there are communication difficulties. A Carer or Family member can share information on how you can communicate efficiently with the individual. Therefore this enables the individual to be listened to and supported in ways that they desire and choose. 3.2 Identify ways of working that can help improve partnership working. To learn from other and working in partnership is important. It will help you to understand the aims and objectives of different people and partner Organisations, as they may have different views, attitudes, and approaches. It is important that everyoneÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s focus is on providing the best care to individuals. By supporting the individual to achieve goals and to be as independent as possible, to respect and maintain the dignity and privacy of individuals. Making sure you promote equal opportunities and respect diversity and different cultures and values. By making sure you report dangerous, abusive, discriminatory or exploitative behavour or practice. By Communicating in an appropriate, open, accurate and straight forward way. Treat everyone as an individual. You must share knowledge and respect views of others, help to achieve positive outcomes for individuals. Always feedback any concerns you may have to you r manager/supervisor, even if it feels minor to you it can be important evidence. 3.3 Identify skills and approaches needed for resolving conflicts. Skills and approaches you will need for resolving conflicts are managing your stress levels, remaining calm in all situations, being aware of both verbal and non-verbal communication, by making sure you do not use any jargon and talking so everyone involved can understand you. Make sure you control your emotions and behaviour towards others, as aggressive behaviour can be intimidating. Avoid threatening others, pay attention to the feelings being expressed as well as the spoken words. Respect the differences of the individual, develop a readiness to forgive and forget. Have the ability to compromise, try and find a way to resolve the situation. Try to avoid making assumptions and accusations, as this can make the situation much worse. You must try not to over generalise and stick to the facts of what went on. Active listening plays a big part in trying to resolve conflict, as the person will feel that you are paying a ttention to them. 3.4 Explain when and how to access support and advice about: Partnership working Ã¢â‚¬â€œ You will need to seek advice and support when there is a dilemma that you need help in solving. Support and advice can come from your colleagues, your supervisor/manager, external agencies i.e. Care Quality Commission, Social Services, Unions i.e. Trade Union. CarerÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s Organisations such like the Health Care Professionals Council, Workforce Development Council and Sector Skills Council for Care. Resolving conflict Ã¢â‚¬â€œ You can resolve conflict with colleagues or managers by going to Employment Counselling or Mentoring Support or where possible you can go to a Trade Union. Issues with individuals or their families you can go to an Independent Advisory Organisation such like Citizens Advice Bauru.

US and US Government Formation Comparison

US and US Government Formation Comparison CONTENTS PAGE (Jump to) INTRODUCTION Communication strategy used by George Bush and Tony Blair [Similarities and Differences] LITERATURE REVIEW METHODOLOGY FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Reformation of the Labour Party Labour gets new supporters The Tony Blair effect The Media Ã¢â‚¬â€œ role of press, television and papers American Value system and Image Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Differences between USA and UK- Social, Cultural, Political and Electoral CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY INTRODUCTION The political environment of two of the worldÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s leading countries has always held a degree of interest amongst researchers of international relations and politics. It has perhaps to do with the level of impact that the internal and external policies of these two governments have on the global economy. In this paper, we shall attempt to understand the differences and similarities between the political setups of the UK and the USA and follow the strategies and tactics of the elected governments over the past decade or so. At this stage, it is important to point out that there are many contrasting viewpoints on some of the decisions taken by the governments of these countries, hopefully; they can in their own way provide an all encompassing picture of the political canvas that surrounds these countries. On the one hand, we shall discuss in detail the formation of the Democratic government with Bill Clinton until the current Republican administration of George Bush. On the other side of the Atlantic, we shall visit a different piece of history where Tony Blair and the British Labour Party which has been in power over much the same period. Beginning with the UK, the Labour Party has been somewhat of a trendsetter. It has been in power in the UK since 1992 with its first elected leader as John Smith. 2 years later, with the passing away of John Smith, Tony Blair was elected as the leader of the Labour Party and has remained so ever since. The party has been in existence through the most part of the 20th century and it came into being on the backs of the large labour force during the advent of the industrial revolution in the UK. It has been seen as the voice of the people and responsible for many social causes such as the introduction of free education and healthcare (when it has been in power during various pockets of the 20th century). The NHS (National Health Service) was created by the Labour Party and is the lifeline on which the people of Britain are heavily dependent upon. Over the years, the Labour party has also been known to be the Ã¢â‚¬ËœPeopleÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s partyÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ Ã¢â‚¬â€œ as the name suggests it represent s the needs of the people at all levels of society. Interestingly, Tony Blair in the Book Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Ã¢â‚¬Å"The PeopleÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s PartyÃ¢â‚¬ by Wright Carter (1997) mentions that the Labour Party is different from all other parties in Britain for 2 primary reasons. Firstly, it is a relatively new party that has been created over the course of the 20th century and imbibes the modern values and cultural needs of the people. Unlike other parties, it understands the contemporary needs of people and is proxy to the more recent callings of the nation. Secondly, the formation of the party did not take place in the City of Westminster. It was created as a result of the needs of the people in the countryside and in the small towns that lined the UK. The Labour Party was also renowned for bringing in a breath of fresh values and beliefs in comparison to the Conservative Party that had become to be known as the party which didnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t bring about changes to the degree required by the people. With Labour in power over the last decade, things have changed today. It all began very well with Tony Blair drafting policies that was well accepted by the people, but ever since; the Party has seen a steady decline in support over the years. A few years back, there were reservations that the Labour government could not take the country beyond a certain point. Soon after, Tony BlairÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s uncompromising support of the US to enter the Iraq War was seen as a shot in the foot for the party. The people were divided in their sentiments on supporting Labour to take down the Saddam Hussein regime. In their opinion, it was correct to go into Iraq but through the United Nations and not as part of the US Taskforce. The few who believed otherwise b egan to change their minds after the invasion of Iraq when more and more British soldiers were killed in action. This created huge waves of disappointment in the UK and the support of the British people slowly left Labour. Whilst Tony Blair was re-elected in 2005, it was by the narrowest margin in the decade old history of the government. And even though Tony Blair finds himself in power, his position at the moment isnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t the best it could be. Moving on to the US side of elections and government policies, the most basic difference in the US is that it has adopted a presidential form of government as opposed to the parliamentary system in the UK. Bill Clinton, a democrat was voted into power in 1993. This was around the same time that the Labour party came into power in the UK. However, the political campaign was not a bed of roses for Clinton. His character was questioned with examples being cited from the Vietnam War of a Ã¢â‚¬Ëœcharacter issueÃ¢â‚¬â„¢. At the same time, he was also personally attacked for alleged infidelity which both him and his wife Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Hillary refuted and embarked on a campaign through television interviews and other media vehicles to reassure the American public that they had a strong and workable marriage. To add to this, just prior to the elections, the ClintonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s were involved in what came to be known as the Ã¢â‚¬ËœWhitewater Real estateÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ scandal. Through trial in 1996, the partn ers in the venture were all convicted of fraud whereas the Bill Clinton was never accused of any wrong-doings on his part. The first real challenge that Clinton faced after being elected was to allow homosexuals in the armed forces. This was faced with a lot of resentment and he received considerable flak for allowing such a rule to prevail in the military. After much debate, it was agreed that homosexuality would not be used against the people serving in the armed forces Ã¢â‚¬â€œ more like a Ã¢â‚¬ËœDonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t ask me and I wont tellÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ policy. Internally, Clinton also faced problems with the issues of welfare reform, the prevention of crime and the healthcare system. The one area that Clinton really shone was on the international map. He instrumented many successes for the US and built valuable bridges for the countryÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s future. Some of these achievements included the showcasing of America as a friend to the Israel Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Jordan peace program, an improvement in the re lations with Russian by proposing economic benefits to President Boris Yeltsin, tackling the instability and security issues in countries in Eastern Europe such as Bosnia and lastly, the improving of relations between the US and India, China and the Far eastern countries. The one significant area which was worked upon together with Tony Blair was the NATO intervention in 1999. Here, the 2 leaders worked to get the NATO to respond to the ethnic cleansing that was taking place in the Serbian capital of Kosovo. As a result, they were able to bomb Serbia for 78 days. However, Clinton did face some degree of criticism of holding back the troops to enter Serbia but was rewarded soon after since the President of Serbia did sign a peace treaty in the following months after the bombing campaign. And Clinton was re-elected and stayed in power till 2001. During his stint, he was popularly renowned for giving America its most prosperous period in terms of peace and economic well-being. The US faced its lowest ever period of unemployment, the highest home ownership in the history of the country and the lowest rate of inflation as well. The only slur on his tenure came in the form of the Ã¢â‚¬ËœMonica Lewinsky ScandalÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ where he was allegedly involved intimately with one of the White House interns. It must be noted that Clinton was the first president to ever appear before a grand jury in an investigation. Over a period of time, the people of the US gradually forgot about this scandal and allowed him to move on with the governing of the country. On the whole, Clinton was remarkably adept at improving the American equation with a host of countries it had not done so in the past Ã¢â‚¬â€œ South Africa, India, China and many more especially in the South East. (http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0760626.html) George Bush came into power in the year 2001 as the successor to Bill Clinton. However, he is a Republican and in a short space of time, came to have an impact on world politics and international relations in a way never conceived before. BushÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s tenure has been populated wit the fight against terrorism which began with the attack on the World Trade Centre on September 11th 2001. This has been somewhat of a 2 phased campaign against terrorism. Initially, it began with the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, the terrorist responsible for the September 11th attacks and the corresponding hunt to catch him in the country of Afghanistan. More recently, the campaign trail has focused its efforts on the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq. And this in turn, has divided the American public in their opinion on whether the act of entering Iraq was in fact, justified. The problems for Bush rose closer to the end of his first electoral period when many American soldiers were being killed in Iraq. The peop le of the US were growing more and more uneasy with the Iraq campaign and Bush was on the verge of losing his chances of being re-elected in the next election. Experts found that Bush had unfortunately concentrated his efforts and attention too heavily on the war against terror and people were getting tired of it. Additionally, the common man was looking to improve his / her standard of living and with unemployment rising and a stained economic scenario, Bush was looking like he might be in trouble. However, the primary strategy adopted by the Republican administration was to try and highlight the economic benefits that the Bush administration had created over the years and try and push into the background, the campaign against terrorism and the Iraq War. Add to this, the opposition leader from the Democratic Party did not have the political clout to seriously challenge the Republicans. All these ingredients came together to ensure that George Bush was re-elected into power for the second election term. Ever since his second elected term, George Bush and his political policies have stayed relatively sublime in the eyes of the people and the media. What has never ceased to stir interest and conflict in the minds of the people of both the US and the UK is the relationship shared by the two leaders. Both Bush and Blair have been known to share similar political agendas and Tony Blair has received a lot of flak for supporting Bush on the Iraq War and other global political campaigns. The general consensus in the UK is that Tony Blair has not done justice to the UK by bending backwards to the demands of the US. This was once again, explicitly highlighted with growing number of deaths of British soldiers in Iraq. At the time of writing this report, the feeling shared by most people is whether the War on Iraq was justified in the first place and was there a need to go in to it supporting the US as opposed to entering Iraq as the United Nations. Unfortunately, the UK has been hit by a wave of terrorist attacks in the last few months and this has made the people much more uncomfortable in the security assurances by the Blair government. Going forward, the relationship between these 2 leaders is always going to be tested as the people of these countries learn to live through problems inflicting upon them. (http://www.whitehouse.gov/) People and Democracy have been long standing battles between governments and masses. There are a lot of issues which are of prime importance to the government for resurrecting their policies and objectives, the people on the other hand have to understand the impact of these policies to determine how they vote for the government and their representative. In the current scenario, the re lections of George Bush and Tony Blair took place amidst a lot of surprise, indignation, horror and laxity, while some people were expecting it, the others had nothing but stingy remarks about how uninformed people are about world issues to bring back leaders like Bush and Blair back in the lime light. The highlight and common issue which has plagued both these leaders has been terrorism and the Iraq war. It all started with the unfortunate 9/11 attacks on the twin towers. In his quest to prove to the American public his commitment to the people, Bush extended his powers to regimes in Iraq and other pla ces which were supposed breeding grounds for the likes of Osama Bin Laden and terrorism. Tony Blair in his quest to support the American government participated in the war at an equal footing. The people and democracy in USA and UK has harnessed a notion of fight against terror yet the public has been against the governmentÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s initiatives. Communication strategy used by George Bush and Tony Blair [Similarities and Differences] Canvassing Approach and Messaging Public Meetings Agendas for these meetings Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Iraq, Health, Taxation, Drugs, Education, Homeland Security, National Security and Environment Advertisements Press Relations Communication is a powerful tool which has been used many a times to gain power and win elections. The communication strategy can be based on various levels covering press releases, campaigns, canvassing, advertisement and mailers among other avenues. Even then the communication strategy used in USA differs a great deal from that of UK; this will be discussed and dissected later in another section. LITERATURE REVIEW Richards Paul(2001) in his book, How to win an election talks about preparation and planning, the different tribes of politics, planning a campaign, direct campaigning and indirect campaigning. Elections are probably one of the most components which differentiate a democratic society from a non democratic society. An election is what makes a democracy work when people truly have a right to vote and choose who is their representative and who would drive and support their. General elections decide which party goes ahead and forms a government and also how the politics and economy work for a country. There have been various attempts to increase interest in elections and their outcomes. In UK, the home office came up with a list of variations:- Ã¢â‚¬Å"Polling hours: variations in polling hours to allow different start or finish times. Polling days: moving polling to an alternative weekday or a day at the weekend or allowing voting over more than one day. Early voting: opening a limited number of polling stations in the period before polling day at accessible locations to allow any eligible elector to vote. Mobile polling: providing a mobile polling station which could take the ballot box to groups of voters, for example, by visiting residential and convalescent homes. Out of area voting: allowing electors to vote at any polling station in the electoral area, or even outside it All postal ballots: allowing an election to be held on the basis of postal voting only Electronic voting: supplementing polling booths and polling stations with automated voting equipment, telephone voting or online remote voting via the internet.Ã¢â‚¬ [Richards Paul (2001), p 20-70] No election can be fought in isolation; there are always background issues which have relevance to the election and campaigning. In September 2000 the British government almost came to a halt due to the widely proclaimed petrol price protests, yet no politician or government was prepared for this action and its repercussions. Candidates who are seen as rising stars could soon be biting dust; history is littered with example of failed careers as aspiring politicians have lost their claim to fame due to the unpredictable ways of elections. Elections have always been a ground of unpredictability and surprises, who would have thought that Winston Churchill after his brilliant win in the year 1940 would be miserably defeated in 1945. The conservatives suffered badly in the year 2001 when Tony Blair defeated them with a massive victory. One does not need massive knowledge about political theory and how it works to know that elections are random and unpredictable. The reason being, that ele ctions are all about people, people who decide who they want to vote for or who they want to disregard based on their perceptions. People are beyond scientific interpretation or calculations, how they react and what the do is beyond anyoneÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s understanding of the human psyche. Interestingly so the way people choose a brand of washing liquid is probably the way they choose their next political leader. Elections need a lot of research and manpower; there are strategists, campaigners, sociologists, pollsters who work on the way the votes would swing in a direction. There is intense study involved about the last elections and the way they panned, the way people reacted to the campaign and the activities undertaken by the previous government. Modern politics has become an art, the most unlikely candidate can sweep house, and how does one explain the theory behind the victory of George W. Bush? Although politicians will try to sway the way voters work but in a democratic society it is always difficult to understand what really make the people tick. A lot of incidents in political history show how elections can actually sway either way for any candidate and no amount of confidence can confirm the victory or loss in a campaign. In the April 1970, Prime Minister Harold Wilson was extremely fond of using a football metaphor, Ã¢â‚¬Å"If I were a football manager, on present form I would be more worried about job security than I am a prime ministerÃ¢â‚¬ . Harold Wilson lost the elections in June, 1970, his confidence in his victory was based on real time facts like good poll ratings, sound majority in the House of Commons, media and peer opinion led him to think so. [Richards Paul (2001), p. 45-55] Yet the voters had other ideas in mind, despite all the facts pointing in the direction of a straight win, Wilson lost badly. So no matter how one campaigns, votes cannot be taken for granted as situations can change really fast. Election campaigns are a very expensive task, consuming hundreds of millions for resources like advertising, media, posters, television broadcasts, direct mail and canvassing. In short winning an election is a tough job and a risky business. Politics is similar to fashion, it runs of trends and fads which are hard to predict and adopt. Election campaigns are also dependent on unforeseen circumstances which can prop up anytime, scandals, loose press criticism, reports and issues which can blow the campaign in minutes. Campaigns are dictated by what Harold Macmillan calls Ã¢â‚¬Å"events dear boy, eventsÃ¢â‚¬ , they cannot be run with static rules, one need to get innovative and adapt to the current environment and what it seeks. A set of tactics is not what drives one to political victory; itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s the form of changing and learning from others mistakes and best known practices. As the soviet foreign minister said to Ernest Bevin, Ã¢â‚¬Å"the disadvantage of free elections is that you can never be sure who is going to win themÃ¢â‚¬ . [Richards Paul (2001), p 30-40] Richard Paul (2001, p. 65 75) says Ã¢â‚¬Å"Other than the artistry of the campaign, there is science too. There are components and buildings blocks of a campaign which are crucial to standing a chance. There are the techniques tested against real experience and real elections, and the accumulated knowledge of a thousand campaigns and campaigners. There are a plenty of representative politicians in office today all over the world who owe their positions of power not to have a better ideas or even a majority of support, but thanks to better organization. The result of the 2000 US presidential election was decided on the tiniest margins, was won by an organization Ã¢â‚¬â€œ the ability to get out the voteÃ¢â‚¬ . This takes us to how much a campaign contributes in the election results and which way they go. Political choices are made by voters not just by weeks and months of campaigning. Neil Connock famously said that Ã¢â‚¬Å"elections are won in years, not weeksÃ¢â‚¬ , the voters get to decide whom they vote for based on a combination on reasons, one of them being a campaign which serves a reminder of what has been done in the past. Analyst David Butler echoes the idea of a campaign as a ritual. He says, Ã¢â‚¬Å"The campaign may to some extent be a ritual dance, a three-week repetition of well-aired themes, making no substantial net difference to the outcome. British elections are usually won over the long haul. A very large proportion of people vote out of loyalty, supporting the party that they and their parents too have always supported; those that change their minds are usually converted, not because of the final three weeks, but over the months and years because of an accumulated impres sion, positive or negative, and of the values and the performance of rival partiesÃ¢â‚¬ . [Richards Paul (2001), p. 50 65] Politics in America has been an integral part of International Politics and it affects all nations. If we look at the American political and electoral process and their insightful history, it would help understand how democratic they are in their ways. Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993) in their book, Ã¢â‚¬Å"the American political processÃ¢â‚¬ , talk about liberal democracy in the American political system. The language of the current American politics can leave little doubt in our minds that itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s all about democrats and upholding the values and power of democracy where the public and voters stand the strongest. A very important factor which distinguishes the American society and the people also its political stance is the society. The lack of class consciousness in the American society, the heterogeneous religious and social environment also the lack of feudal system has made it into such a democratic society. The American attitude towards government politics has bee n very individualistic. The stress has always been on the American offices being run by a place of legality and enshrined in the view that this is what makes this society and political distinctive. The nation is so heterogeneous in its approach and outlook that itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s difficult to pinpoint the political culture. The American politicians have had a large share of history and legacy to deal with, the American history which needs the same culture to carry on. The politicians need to make their own choices of public policy options all of which need acceptance on a wider level within the system. It just means that the boundaries are being stretched and the politicians and political systems so that there is a room for more man oeuvre. George Bush had a lot to inherit and manage considering that they were taking over from the Reagan administration right at the beginning of his political career. In 1989, the relationship between the Soviet Union and the USA were brimming the brightest and that the time due to a lot of positive activity in Easter Europe the USAÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s position was fairly strong. In this light of the American political system one does need to consider the importance of congress in the political arena of America. The congress has always been an important aspect of the American election and political arena. In 1985, Woodrow Wilson wrote of the congress: Ã¢â‚¬Å"It is unquestionably the predominant and controlling force, the center and source of all motive and of all regulative power Ã¢â‚¬ ¦the legislature is the aggressive spiritÃ¢â‚¬ ¦it has entered more and more into the details of administration, until it has virtually taken into its own hands all the substantial powers of governmentÃ¢â‚¬ ¦I know no t how better to describe our form of government in a single phrase than by calling it a government by the chairman of the standing committees of congress (Wilson, 1956, pp.31, 44, 49, 52)Ã¢â‚¬ [Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993), p 110-140] Some years later another very distinguished gentleman who took great care in understanding the American society said, Ã¢â‚¬Å"Congress has been the branch government with the largest facilities for usurping the powers of the other branches, and probably with the most dispositions to do so. It has succeeded in occupying nearly all of the area which the constitution left vacant and unallocated between the second authorities it established. (Bryce, 1889, Vol.2, pp. 711-12)Ã¢â‚¬ . [Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993), p 140-180] Brian White, Richard Little and Michael smith (1997) in their book, Issues in World Politics, talks about the political environment across the world, states and statehood, trade money and markets, regions, development and inequality, arms and arms control, nationalism and ethnic conflict, environment and natural resources. An important aspect of todayÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s political systems and elections is the role media plays in keeping everyone informed. All the information that we now receive locally, nationally or internationally is thanks to media which may come in various forms like television, radio, newspaper and the modern internet communications. Information is now available free and easy unlike the olden days when a lot of places were thought to be remote and so information traveled slower than usual. All that has changed now, all the political issues and what affects the leaders from coming to power is all available on media. The media is playing an important role now where globaliza tion is making the world a smaller place. Someone like George Bush had to see CNN to understand the Iraq situation since it brought the latest news to the public. The elections use the television as a medium to get their message across to the public and let them know of the work being undertaken by them. All of the canvassing and public debates between political opponents are covered by television on a global scale so that countries across continents have complete up to date knowledge about the happenings. Elections in USA and UK the world super powers are an important place for international policies or national policies which will affect other countries that are in business/trade with them. The selection of the political leader is also an important cause since it determines the amiability or hostility of maintaining relationships with leaders of some countries. The two last most controversial elections have been that of George Bush in USA and Tony Blair in UK especially in the wak e of the much controversial Iraq war. A lot of movies, documentaries and new articles have since then been published trying to give the general public across continents a more varied and comprehensive insight into the election process and what tipped the scales in favour of the two most contentious leaders. The American president has been surrounded with controversy since the twin tour attacks and his rebuttal to that, the capture of Saddam Hussein and finally the Iraq war which is a dark reality which has still not ended. The civil disputes are ongoing between the army and anti social elements in that society trying to keep the dispute ongoing. USA has been at the helm of lot of international criticism; all this has been made possible due to the regular broadcasts and news items being provided by television and other media mediums. An interesting name in media who has brought a lot to the fore front and what George Bush has really set out to do is Michael Moore. His book, Ã¢â‚¬Å"Dude, whereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s my country?Ã¢â‚¬ is an attempt to uncover some truth and factual information about George Bush, his strategies in the past, terrorism, the use of tax issues to buy the public vote and America the liberal paradise which is no more. The book is a poignant account of how much has changed in America the land of the free under the regime of George Bush who has worked on his terms and conditions against popular demands and International interventions. The history for this big calamity is set in the time when Bill Clinton was the USA president. He being a liberal did not use radical moves to counter attack everyone considered AmericaÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s enemy. Clinton was a popular leader by choice who really put USA up there as the world super power and not so by doing direct attacks on countries like Iraq and other nations who pr esented a threat to AmericaÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s prosperity. It was during the regime of Bill Clinton that one learnt in the 1990s how to fight all the wars yet keep the losses of the Americans to a bare minimum. Clinton closed down bases, reduced the number of troops, and funneled money into other projects which were indirect attacks on other nations but without jeopardizing the lives of many Americans. The Clinton era built America to become a high tech lean machine which is was really helped pentagon and the Bush government in fighting back the terrorist attacks. The book further goes on to pin the blames of the terrorist attacks in USA on George Bush and his former collaboration with the Bin Laden family. The book is highly controversial in nature as it makes factual claims about Bin LadenÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s close association with America and with the Bush family. Despite all this being published openly in the wake of the attacks and the negative profiling George Bush underwent, he still came back successful in the next elections which followed. Is this a surprise or does it contain more fact about the truth in brainwashing the public voters into believing what one wants them to. George Bush in a very strategic move has used the war to win the elections; he has put the fear of public safety and the war against terrorism to pass more and more acts which give them control over public records, their activities and lives. The patriotic act is one such act which takes a bite out of American democracy and freedom of speech and action. George Bush has effect ively used the wars to tell the public that he won these for them and that all his actions are only to serve and protect the American public. Although there is democracy itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s more under pressure that people practice the same for the fear of prosecution under these new acts which give the government and officials more control over a citizens life. Some of the information in this book is insightful and frightening as it explores all the dirty facts which have been so far hidden from the public eye but the most inspiring fact is that the man embroiled in such controversy is once again been reelected as president of Unites states of America. The defense budget was increased drastically in the wake of these attacks and the office was in sync with these efforts given the attacks and the inkling of more such attacks in the future. Also George Bush has had a powerful ally in UK, Tony Blair who has

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Construction Productivity Measurement Techniques

Construction Productivity Measurement Techniques The construction industry remains one of the few most labour intensive industries in the developed world. It is therefore imperative to understand the measure of construction labour productivity. Furthermore, recent institutional and industrial calls for an increase in productivity suggest a desperate need to get the measurement of productivity levels right. The research reported in this paper forms part of an ongoing Ph.D. study into the issue of construction labour productivity. An earlier study highlighted that less than 50% of the industry actually actively measure and monitor productivity levels, with a majority of those companies that claim to measure go about measuring on the basis of the intuition of key site management personnel. This may seem alarming, however, it was argued that productivity measurement techniques could be perceived as theoretical, arduous and expensive for construction companies to adopt. This paper reviews the methods of productivity measurement availabl e and describes two case studies conducted during this research, with a view of reporting the problems and issues faced when attempting to establish productivity levels at a project level. Lessons learnt are then drawn from the experience. INTRODUCTION The quest for productivity improvements in the UK construction industry has been an especially important agenda over the last decade (Latham, 1994; Egan, 1998). However, what is found baffling is the fact that the measure of productivity is often conflated with the measure of performance. One only needs to turn to the Construction Productivity Network (CPN) to seek an instance of such misapprehension. Indeed, the very name of the network is misleading since it deals with such far wider issues as risk management and knowledge management. Clearly, the network might be more suited to have adopted the term Construction Performance Network as compared to the use of the term productivity, which traditionally refers to the quantifiable ratio between inputs and outputs in physical terms. Indeed, the industrial Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) rightly recognise the clear distinction by acknowledging the measure of productivity as a subset of the wider measure of business performance. However, in the pursuit of convincing the industry to take on board improvement programmes and initiatives, recommendations have tended to represent simplistically improvements through headline measures such as reduction in construction time, defects, accidents etc., for instance, in the case of the Movement for Innovation (M4I) demonstration projects. Productivity, interestingly, was measured by the M4I by taking the median of the company value added in monetary terms per employee. This value added approach mirrors the value-added approach conventionally applied at the industrial (macroeconomic) level (see e.g. Jonsson, 1996). While it is understandable, from a marketing perspective, to report headline indicators per se, given the fact that embarking on any initiative undoubtedly needs corporate buy-in by senior managers, it is felt that capturing productivity measurements at the strategic level may be insufficient to guarantee that improvements actually occur at the operational level. Therefore, it is firmly believed that going back to the basics of measuring productivity at the project site level would be necessary in facilitating improvements. This is because the construction industry is largely project-based. GroÃƒ ¡k, for instance, issued a stern warning that there is an inherent failure to recognise that the site was the defining locus of production organisation (1994: 288) for construction. However, there lies a problem here. Apart from the formal measures propounded by such initiatives as the M4I stated above, many construction companies just do not have formal measures in place at the project level. For example, Chan and Kaka (2003), in a questionnaire survey to 400 UK contractors, found that of the 77 respondents, more than half of them do not monitor productivity levels at the project level. Furthermore, a third of those who claim to do so base their judgement of productivity on gut feeling and experience of dealing with contract schedules. Similar findings were noted in a large study commissioned by the Investors in People in the UK, which was aimed at examining productivity measurements inter alia across sectors including manufacturing, transport, service and construction. The Investors in People (2001) noted that while 22% of the respondents did not measure productivity levels at all, 36% and 22% of the respondents used formal and informal techniques to establish productivity levels respectively. Yet, past research have shown that the very process of formalising on-site productivity measurements itself delivers project improvements. For example, Winch and Carr (2001) notably identified a growing competitive spirit among the workforce as they progressed in their study investigating the benchmarking of on-site productivity, thus reinforcing an earlier comment made about the importance of measuring productivity levels at the project site level. Nonetheless, Chans and Kakas (2003) and the Investors in People (2001) reports beg the question as to why there is reluctance for formal productivity measurements, and which forms the premise of this paper. The chief aim of this paper is to explore the pertinent issues that would explain some of the reasons behind what we would call industrial inertia towards productivity measurement at the project level. In so doing, we would tackle it from both theoretical and practical perspectives. The next section briefly reviews the key textbook approaches to measuring on-site productivity and highlights the limitations in terms of reliability and relevance of these approaches that restrict industrial adoption. Thereafter, we will report on the relevant findings of two live projects observed as part of a wider study into understanding the concept of construction labour productivity, revealing some of the practical issues encountered when measuring on-site productivity. Conclusions are then draw n from both the review and the case studies that lead to the recommendations for future research that would hopefully encourage the industry to measure on-site productivity. PRODUCTIVITY MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUES Construction textbooks are awash with details of key productivity measurement techniques and it would be inappropriate to replicate the explanation of these techniques within the constraints of this paper. According to Noor (1998), productivity measurement techniques fall within a spectrum between two broad categories of observational methods, namely continuous observation (e.g. direct observation and work study) and intermittent observation (e.g. audio-visual methods, delay surveys and activity sampling). Noor recognised that while continuous observations such as direct observation and work study provide high levels of accuracy and detailed data for understanding productivity, these are often time-consuming, arduous and costly. Given the operational imperative of construction projects and the ever increasing time pressures exerted on project schedules, the cost of employing personnel to conduct such observations both in terms of the monetary cost of wages and the time value of observation that does not result in the physical growth of buildings (i.e. non value added) would deter companies from adopting such measurement techniques. Furthermore, the benefits of continuous observations are marred by the inexorable restriction of scope and thus, would make it difficult for large projects to pursue this approach. Where the use of technical equipment for audio-visual methods is concerned, Winch and Carr (2001) were especially cautious that the workers might feel that the surveillance was un necessarily intrusive. As such, they avoided the use of such methods to observe the workers and opted instead for direct observation where the researchers got to know the individual workers on a personal level. Therefore, while the absence of the workers uneasiness was achieved, the inability to observe the whole construction process became an evident trade-off. With respect to intermittent observations, Noor noted that these are prone to errors in determination since the data tends to be aggregated statistically through the observation of a representative sample. To add to this, Radosavljevic and Horner (2002) recently revisited formwork and masonry productivity data sets across eleven sites in the USA and the UK, only to confirm their suspicion that productivity is not normally distributed, thereby implying that some basic statistical diagnosticsÃƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ may give misleading results and are not applicable (p. 3). Accordingly, this questions the dubious reliability of conventional productivity measurement techniques. Serendipitously, Radosavljevic and Horner made a brief comparison of the data with volatility studies in econometrics to reveal surprising similarity with Pareto distributions, which are typical of chaotic systems. They concluded therefore that using test statistics that rely on normality usually have been taken for grant ed, and consequently not much could have been done to achieve a better understanding of the ubiquitous complexity (p. 11) as they call for a paradigm shift to understand the complexities of construction labour productivity, possibly through chaos theory. However, it is felt that such complex methods of analysing productivity levels might further discourage companies to measure productivity since this would mean additional investment of statistical expertise. Another problem with many of the conventional productivity measurement techniques is the reductionistic approach in analysing work time (see e.g. Drewin, 1982). To put simply, much of the analysis of productivity data had been concerned with the binary relationship between productive (or value-adding) time and time loss. However, contenders such as Thomas et. al. (1990) challenged this underlying assumption the inverse relationship between productive and non-productive time, and that reducing time loss leads to productivity improvements as they claimed while these assumptions seem sensible and logical, they will be shown to be unsupportable for most construction operations (p. 712). In fact, a later study (Thomas, 1991) provided evidence that would cast doubts on the assumption of the binary relationship between productive and non-productive time, and hence on the productivity measurement techniques. A further limitation relates to the application of productivity measurement techniques in past research. A review of the literature revealed that measurement techniques were mainly concentrated, in past research, on a number of key construction operations: namely concrete works (Proverbs et. al., 1999; Winch and Carr, 2001), masonry projects (Thomas and Yiakoumis, 1987; Olomolaiye, 1990), structural steel (Thomas and Yiakoumis, 1987) and electrical works (Thomas, 2000). Evidently, with the exception of electrical works, much of the studies were concerned with the structural elements, i.e. elements that contribute to the structural frame of the building. This means there is an overwhelming lack of research aimed at studying such other aspects of the building process as architectural elements (e.g. plastering, internal fit-out, painting and decoration) or services installations (e.g. mechanical and sanitary installations). Indeed, the studies surrounding electrical works were related t o the effects of schedule acceleration, in part, due to the effects of productivity-related problems of the earlier structural phase of projects (see e.g. Noyce and Hanna, 1998; and Thomas, 2000). One of the possible reasons for this phenomenon is the lack of previous studies (unlike where areas such as bricklaying and concrete operations are concerned) or industrial productivity data for comparison. Notably, the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) in the US has been deeply keen in examining productivity issues ever since the late 1960s (Thomas et. al., 1990) and have been actively developing labour consumption curves (NECA, 1983) to inform the industry for possible applications on different project types (Thomas, 2000), offering perhaps an explanation as to why productivity on electrical projects are examined. Olomolaiye (1990) is one of the few who explains his decision to focus on bricklaying as he attributed his preference to the predominance of bricks as one of the main construction materials in the UK. He added a bulk of construction manpower still goes into bricklaying as it remains highly labour-intensive (p. 302). On the decision to focus on concrete operations, Winch and Carr (2001) cited Horners and Zakiehs (1996) claim that studies of estimating have shown that the largest items in the bill can be used to determine overall outputs very closely. Furthermore, they expounded that data on concrete deliveries by ready-mix trucks for any given period are easily obtained from site records, and because concrete is perishable, we can infer that deliveries on a day have been poured that day (p. 581). It is argued, however, that concentrating on the predominant or largest activity results in a reductionistic approach, which fails to take into account the entire construction process. Intere stingly, Kazaz and Ulubeyli (2004) in a recent study aimed at reconciling governmental statistics and real project data on productivity rates in Turkey elected to examine only 82 work items deemed to be used most in practice, thus affirming the researchers observation, although they acknowledged that these only constitute 6.11% of all possible work items. In this respect, conclusions made in past studies are limited in their scope in offering plausible recommendations for implementation for the improvement of construction labour productivity. The limitations of productivity measurement techniques discussed hitherto, to some extent, help to explain the low industrial uptake within construction. These encompass the issues of reliability and relevance of existing techniques that would inhibit the ability of companies to meaningfully analyse their project productivity so as to bring about improvements to the entire construction process. Furthermore, there are the investment constraints of time and expertise in implementing the existing productivity techniques. These emerging issues from the brief review explains some of the general difficulties claimed by the participants of the Investors in People (2001) study, particularly the difficulties in obtaining accurate information, the varied nature of individual job roles and the complex nature of productivity that is dependent on several intervening factors (p. 6). CASE STUDIES AND PRELIMINARY FINDINGS Having briefly discussed the theoretical issues surrounding existing productivity measurement techniques, this section now turns to the two projects, hereinafter known as projects A and B, observed during the course of the study. The purpose of the case studies is to explore the issues faced by practitioners when measuring project productivity. The two projects were selected because project participants had either attempted to measure productivity (project A) or claimed to have a formal method of measuring productivity in place (project B). Each case will begin with a brief synopsis of how the researchers got involved with the projects and an account of the observational process. This will then be followed by a succinct report of the key issues involved in the implementation of the productivity measurement techniques in the two projects. Project A: Multi-storey Car Park Background to project A Project A is the construction of a multi-storey car park for a Scottish airport. This was initially selected as a pilot study at the onset on the basis of convenience, access and geographic proximity as instructed in Yin (1994: 75). It is perhaps worthwhile, at this point, to provide an insight into how and why access was given to this project in the first place. A marketing flyer accompanied by a cover letter was sent to companies to seek collaboration and access to projects, people, data etc. at the start of the research. A positive response from the main contractor executing project A then resulted from this initial call for participation. The contractor was a fast growing company at that time that aimed both to penetrate the Scottish construction market and to succeed in gaining repeat business with British Airports Authority (B.A.A.). Because the company had not undertaken any on-site productivity measurement, they were therefore keen for the researchers to assist in the develop ment of on-site productivity measures. And so, access to the project was granted on a two-days-a-week basis and the project quantity surveyor of the company was involved with the researchers in developing the measurement technique. To overcome the problems discussed in the previous section regarding the isolation of construction activities in measuring productivity, a decision was made to measure productivity levels using the existing company worker timesheets. Timesheets were found to be extremely useful mainly because timesheets were used for the purpose of calculation of hourly wages and linking this to productivity measurement would probably show meaningfully the notion of a fair wage. Furthermore, measuring productivity on a daily basis was considered to be the most appropriate technique as corrective action could be taken as quickly as possible. For data collection purposes, foremen were instructed to complete time inputs and physical outputs for each worker under their charge within a set time sheet on a daily basis. Table 1 below shows a simplified example of a recording on the activity of pouring concrete by a gang of concrete labourers. Based on the data presented in table 1, a total of 66 man-hours w ere used to produce 232m3 of concrete, yielding a productivity rate of Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ » 3.5m3 of concrete per man-hour. Emerging issues A number of issues arose whilst attempting to measure on-site productivity levels for project A in this way. The desire for a speedy construction process meant that many proprietary systems, e.g. in the case of formwork, were used as part of the construction techniques. These were undertaken by specialist subcontractors (with whom access was not granted). What was observed was that the core labourers used by the main contractor were general operatives who were often mobile in terms of the task they did. So, for example, an operative could be involved in general housekeeping on day n, shifting what is known as tables (a proprietary form of the conventional birdcage scaffolding that is on wheels to support the formwork) on day n + 1, and putting stop ends along the perimeter of a plot prior to concreting to prevent the concrete from spilling over on day n +2 and so on. Perhaps the only stable groups of workers were those who were relatively more skilled, e.g. concretors and steelfixers , who tended to stick within the task of their trades. Even so, these workers moved to other projects in the vicinity when their tasks were not scheduled for project A. Therefore, while measuring productivity levels in this way appear to be more holistic and probably closer to reality than the methods highlighted in the previous section, the mammoth task of tracking workers posed an immense challenge. Moreover, although the data was collected at the gang level (through the foremen), the boundaries of the gang were found to be arbitrary because of the volatile movement of the workers. This resulted in high variability of the productivity data obtained, which supports Radosavljevics and Horners (2002) observations, but which implies that discerning the factors affecting productivity especially those related to the workforce issues was particularly problematic. Administering the measurement was also not without problems. To start with, foremen were not akin to filling out forms and throughout its implementation, the project quantity surveyor discovered that there was a need to constantly explain to the foremen the mechanisms of recording. Two reasons accounted for this. The first relates to the inevitable problem with determining output quantities given that construction operations are often associated with work-in-progress that can be difficult to ascertain. Rules of credit (see e.g. Thomas and Yiakoumis, 1987) may go some way to facilitate this process, although time and manpower is needed to maintain a database of such information for which the project quantity surveyor did not have. In fact, the project quantity surveyor resigned in the middle of the project and the measurement of productivity halted due to the absence of a willing successor. To exacerbate the problems of measurement, the project quantity surveyor had identified a compl ex list of more than 170 task descriptions, thus causing further confusion for the foremen in the recording process. This enormous list of task descriptions is believed to be due to the fact that many proprietary systems were used in the construction process. Still, as the predicted trend for the construction industry is towards greater outsourcing and use of innovative technology in the production of buildings (see e.g. CRISP, 2001), it would be sensible to take into account such complexities when measuring productivity. It is here that project B sheds some light. Project B: Headquarters of a Commercial Bank Background to project B Project B involves the construction of the headquarters of a commercial bank on a greenfield site just outside Edinburgh. Access was given to interview senior project managers and to conduct questionnaire surveys with the site operatives. During the interviews, the researchers were struck by the ability of the managers to report what they allege to be the precise number of man-hours expended on the project to date, a phenomenon that was non-existent in other projects observed during the study. Inquisitively, the researchers investigated how project participants captured this data through further probing during the interviews. According to the project managers, project B utilised what is known as The Last Planner system, a planning system that has gradually gained recognition and refinement since its inception in 1994. Much has been written about the system (see e.g. Ballard, 2000), although this is really related to planning and never intended to be used as a means of measuring on-site productivity. However, one of the KPIs resulting from this system, known as the Percent Plan Complete (PPC), was thought to be extremely valuable by the project participants for them to gain an informed view of the on-site productivity levels. Basically, the PPC refers to how much of the planned work on a weekly basis is actually completed. In a similar vein, this ostensibly is comparable to the earned value analysis used in project management (see Project Management Institute, 2000). Figure 1 above shows an extract from a weekly progress update, which enables project Bs participants to keep track of how productively the wo rk packages were performing to plan. To help improve the PPC, the progress meetings were used as a platform to understand what went wrong, i.e. what intervening events or factors resulted in a low PPC (e.g. weather, lack of materials etc.). Emerging issues While this paper is not aimed at analysing whether this system constitutes a credible means for measuring on-site productivity, it was felt that this system provided an effective way for managers to establish how progress was being made. Hence, this allowed project participants to get a feel of the productivity of the workers by complementing the measure of PPC with the number of man-hours expended. To show a simplistic example, using figure 1 above, let us assume that work package 1 utilises the same amount of man-hours throughout the project. Therefore, one can safely deduce that achieving 100% PPC in say week 13 and 76% PPC in week 14 would signify a dip in labour productivity. In other words, PPC can be viewed as an output in the productivity ratio and so alleviate the problems of complexities involved in construction operations and sub-contracted work packages experienced in project A above. Furthermore, such information should provide useful feedback to the workforce regarding their performance. Implementing this system for the project participants was also met with a number of challenges. For instance, the system is largely paper based and therefore archiving such information and managing it within a database would still require the deployment of manpower. Nonetheless, as compared with the attempts in project A, this is perceived to be relatively more straightforward. It would also be tempting to proclaim that running this system commenced from the first day of the project. In fact, the project managers had attempted to implement such a system on a previous project six years ago but faced immense resistance from the project workers as it was then thought to create a blame culture so that fault could be apportioned when things went wrong. Interestingly, another project observed, which involved the construction of an office block in central London and built by the same contractor running project B, had initially tried to adopt the system. However, it was abandoned as soon as it started on the same basis of resistance. Still, project B participants learnt from their previous experience from six years ago and thus, made a conscious effort to allay fears of a blame culture right from the very start of the project through constant reassurances given during early briefing sessions. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, the paper raised the issue of the importance of, and lacklustre attitude of companies towards, measuring on-site productivity. Thereafter, a review of the limitations behind the key textbook approaches to measuring productivity was provided and these represent some of the problems, which contribute to the industrys reluctance to measuring productivity. We have then taken the reader on a journey through two projects observed and summarised here some of the practical issues faced in the implementation of an on-site productivity measurement system. These include the time and expertise needed in handling the complexities of productivity data and resistance from the workforce. In essence, the underlying theme throughout the experience is that a productivity measurement system has to be comprehensive enough to take into account the complexities of todays construction operations and ever increasing emphasis on sub-contract work packages as seen in project A; but simple enough to be effective as portrayed in The Last Planner system in project B. However, the reliability of using The Last Planner system to measure productivity was beyond the remit of this current study. Nonetheless, the experience of project participants in project B shows that it works in reality to help provide that informed view of on-site productivity levels needed to bring about improvements. Therefore, further work is required to establish the feasibility of using such a system in measuring productivity.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Limitation of International Trade Essay -- Economics

Limitation of International Trade One limitation of International Trade is "dumping." The Investopedia states that, "dumping in international trade occurs when one country exports a significant number of goods to another country at prices lower than in the domestic market (Investopedia. 2010)". For example, if a country decides to sell exported products cheaper than it does to its residents, the process is known as dumping. Romadia has to decide whether to impose tariffs, or set a quota on its import products. Dumping has created a probability that an adverse effect can happen because the result of the adverse effect is a shortage and increases in the prices of the products. Price increases lower the demand for the products. The countryÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s growth progress hindered because dumping is hurting those countries competing. Four Key Points The four points from the simulation are the supply and demand of the items and the cost factors that came with cheese, corn, watches, and DVD players; the balance of trade; opportunity cost; and dumping. This means that the supply and demand of the items and the cost factors were cheap to receive the items and have the items imported in than to make them locally. The balance of trade was discussed in the simulation. The balance of trade is the difference between what goods a country produces and how many goods the buys from overseas. For example, it was the difference between the value of the goods from Uthania and Alfazia exports and the value of the goods to Rodamia imports. The concept of opportunity cost provides for differences in comparative advantage among countries because it is the cost of passing up the next best choice when making a decision. Each county has a different mix of ... ... trade derives from being strong-minded against trade, not concerns based on ideological concerns. Works Cited Investopedia (c) 2010. Dumping. Retrieved from http//www.investopedia.com/terms/d/dumping.asp. Retrieved on August 18, 2010 Lee. Dwight R. "Comparative Advantages Continued" The Freeman:Ideas on Liberty-October 1999. Retrieved from www.http\\www.CommonSenseeconomic/Reading/ComparativeAdvantage. Carbaugh, Robert, Wassink, Darwin. (1992). International dumping: final and intermediate products. Retrieved on August 19, 2010, from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6W53-45JK7H1-1M&_user=10&_coverDate=07%2F01%2F1992&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1436752361&_rerunOrigin=google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=68fed43879d5ff1560c8af4c96253305

Friday, July 19, 2019

The Free Will of Macbeth Essay -- Macbeth essays

The Free Will of Macbeth Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Destiny "Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved." (William Jennings Bryan) Are we in control of our own destiny, our own fate, or are our lives really already planned and mapped out for us? Does Macbeth willfully choose evil in order to achieve his "destiny"? Or, is his "destiny" doomed by the witches' prophecies? Macbeth may not have made any of his same choices, if the three Weird sisters hadn't come to him. In Shakespeare's play Macbeth, Macbeth is no pawn of fate. Although Macbeth was destined to become king, the path he chose to take to achieve his aspiration of obtaining the throne was of his own free will. Macbeth knew exactly what he was doing in order to attain his destiny of becoming king. Although Macbeth was skeptical about the witches' predictions he later learned as the play progressed that destiny truly determined his future. Ã‚ The prophecy of the witches was that Macbeth would become king. Nowhere did the witches predict the following events in Macbeth's life before he reached the throne. The prophecy of Macbeth becoming Thane of Cawdor had already come true, enhancing Macbeth's aspirations of becoming king. The second prophecy would certainly come true for him, but he has to choose how to get there. Macbeth was destined for the throne, however obtaining that destiny was completely up to him. Killing Duncan seemed to be the only way for him, even though he knew it was wrong. Macbeth was well-aware his actions were immoral and unjust, and he continued with the murders anyway. He contemplates the reasons for why it would be wrong to kill Duncan, showing he could have ... ...rely different way if he had not already been told his future. The witches could have very well enhanced Macbeth's desires he had held up inside him, causing him to make such evil and terrible choices. Macbeth believed that there was a destiny, for he was so threatened by Banquo's destiny of being father to a whole line of kings, that he had Banquo murdered. As the play progressed, Macbeth learned that his destiny ultimately forms his future. Ã‚ All Macbeth's actions were choices to attain his destiny, but they were nonetheless choices of his own free will. Macbeth was destined to become king; however, destiny doesn't come along with the choices made to achieve that destiny. Macbeth knew what he was doing. Ã‚ Work Cited Shakespeare, William.Ã‚ Tragedy of Macbeth . Ed. Barbara Mowat and PaulÃ‚ Ã‚ Warstine. New York: Washington Press, 1992.Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚