Analysis of UK Economy in Comparison with Qatar Economy Essay

Analysis of UK Economy in Comparison with Qatar Economy - Essay Example This essay presents a brief informative analysis of the economic statuses of the United Kingdom and Qatar. These countries demonstrated high levels of economic development in recent years. Economic trends usually differ from country to another. Economists have developed several economic measures to determine which country is ahead of the other in terms of economic progress. The availability of goods and services to the citizens of the country and the affordability of the commodities may be used to know how the citizens are in terms of accessibility to the national income. Other factors that are looked at in determining the wealth of the nation in comparison to another include; health facilities accessibility and affordability, food, housing and other social amenities. The U.K. wealth is one of the best in the globe. The lifestyle of the people of the kingdom is desirable, and the state is ranked among most developed economies of the world. The wealth of the kingdom is also one of the oldest, aging back to the pre-colonial period. The country was thus able to amass wealth from the colonies and developed itself on various social and industrial sectors. There are various components of the UK that can be put into comparison with Qatar. During the economic meltdown that was experienced globally, the country sought to protect her banking industry and therefore was not strictly harmed. The country’s GPD is mainly supported by the natural gas investment. More than 50% of the GDP is obtained from this industry.

Understanding of Working Practices Essay Example for Free

Understanding of Working Practices Essay Understanding of working practices and strategies that can be used to minimise abuse in health and social care. The discussion within this essay is about some of the sections of the children’s act, it will explain the existing working practices, which are designed to minimise abuse and neglect within health and social care contexts, also evaluating the effectiveness of working practices and strategies used to minimise abuse and neglect within health and social care contexts, also discussing possible improvements to working practices and strategies to minimise abuse in health and social care contexts. Also within this discussion Hamzah Khan will be drawn upon as examples of when the children’s Act did not come into action when their abuse and neglect was at its strongest point. Strengths, weaknesses, positives and negatives will also be drawn upon through the lives of Hamzah Khan. As well, the Munro review and timescales. Within the role of the LADO –Local authority designated officer they are set to safeguard children, a LADO could have helped Hamzah Khan and possibly saved his life, not resulting in death (government, 2013). The Lado has certain strategies and working practice they have to abide by to ensure a child’s safety. For example if a child is in the hands of suspected abuse or neglect they must consider a police investigation of the possible criminal offence; enquiries and assessment by children’s social care about whether a child is in need of protection or in need of services; and consideration by an employer of disciplinary action in respect of the individual (government, 2013). They are also responsible for letting the child’s voice be heard, providing advice, information and guidance to employers and voluntary organisations around allegations and concerns regarding paid and unpaid workers. These strategies and working practices are here to help prevent abuse in cases such as Hamzah Khan, However Hamzah did not receive a LADO, but if he had he might not have been abused and he might not of died with the tools that the LADO has, he or she could have took Hamzah away from that home, when suspected abuse was first brought up and could have formed a case, which then could have gone to the courts, leading to Hamzah possibly going into foster care where he could not have been abused anymore. Improvements could be made in the children’s Act of the LADO. A LADO needs to be contacted more, and needs to be in contact  more with other health care professions so they can communicate together with what is happening with the child, but in Hamzah’s case the Lado obviously failed to do so (Wirral, 2015). The LSCB are required to produce policies and procedures for supporting the welfare of children in their local area. The board are required to take immediate action when a child’s welfare is at risk, also to investigate any allegations of people working with children, i.e. teachers, nursery workers, etc. They are to communicate with other health and social care professionals, also promoting the welfare of children and raise awareness to deal with the situation. The board is also responsible for observing and evaluating inefficiency of what’s done by authorities and their bodies to safeguard and promote welfare of children and advice on how to improve things. Monitor and evaluating the effectiveness of what is done by the authority and their board partners individually and collectively to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and advising them on ways to improve. In addition to all of the above they are to evaluate serious cases within the local areas and find a better solution to improve the situation at hand. For example finding a foster family for a child that has been previously abused and neglected in their home, in this case blood ideology (blood related) would not been ideal, as placing a child back into an abusive home where the child is more likely to get abused and neglected again, whereas in a foster home the child is safe and not at risk with this non- blood ideology family. The board use these strategies and working practices to help prevent children from getting abused, the positives to the LSCB are that they are required by law to communicate with people and bodies in areas of authority to safe guard children, so they can get in touch with these authorities and find out of them all different information that can help prove suspected abuse is going on and then get the right authority to remove the child of suspected abuse however a negative is that  The LSCB says that blood link ideology is better than non blood link ideology so even if a child has previously been abused at a home they are preferred to go back there as it is blood linked. (Working together online, 2013) In Hamzah’s case one of these officers was not provided, as he was described as ‘the invisible child’ (The Guardian, 2013). Improvements such as removing the blood link ideology from this section of the act would improve it greatly as this means that there are  less chances of this child getting abused by their previous abuser again. The LSCB did not occur in Hamzah’s case, he was not a priority and he wasn’t safeguarded by this board. His case was not evaluated, and the situation he was in which he was being abused and neglected was not being improved by any health care profession, like the LSCB are supposed to do, for example improving his situation by putting him into a foster family so he could not be put at risk any longer. â€Å"An emergency protection order is when a person applies to a court for an order to be made under this section with respect to the child† (www.gov.uk, 1989). The court may make the order, but only under these criteria; There is belief that the child is very likely to suffer harm, neglect or abuse if he or she is not moved to accommodation immediately tha t is provided by the applicant or on behalf of the applicant. He or she does not stay in the place in which he or she is being accommodated. An emergency protection order could have been issued so many times within this case, however all health care professional failed to see something wrong as quoted he was the â€Å"invisible child† to social services especially, during a visit too Amanda Hutton’s house it was found that one of Amanda’s children didn’t have a bed, one child’s sleeping arrangements were made unclear and Amanda herself seem to be under a unknown influence of alcohol or drugs, but none of these professionals thought that any of these would be a reason to issue a EPO, if this EPO was put in place they could have helped Amanda for example make it a court order that she goes to rehabilitation and be sober before Hamzah was back in her care, they could have also got her property in a better state as there was rubbish everywhere, they could have also help find her a job and get a steady income so her family wasn’t neglected and in poverty; all of these things if put in place within the EPO could have resulted in Hamzah being a healthy boy today. (Bradford safeguarding children board, 2013) These strategies and working practices did not help Hamzah as stated above; the EPO needs many improvements to that for example someone like Hamzah doesn’t die again, for example a negative to this section is that the child in question of abuse can be returned after 8 days if they have failed to find valid evidence and the EPO can apply again for a further 7 more days, but this still not long enough, so even if Hamzah  did get an EPO he could have been returned and then further abuse could have carried on and this is going to happen to other children if the time limit is still so short, however this time could be considered quite a long period away from the family as the suspected abuser may not even be abusing the child. â€Å"The Munro review was critical of the current system used for monitoring performance in child protection, Munro explained that by focusing on specific aspects of process within child protection system- as opposed to the quality of practice –performance indicators have skewed and misdirected local priorities, current performance indicators focus on data which is easy to collect and achievements are measured in the form of numbers e.g. number of C.P plans and efficiency targets† (tri.x, 2011) This proves to be a negative aspect, the system is more bothered about quantity rather than quality and this intervention tell us nothing at all about children being safer as a result of the intervention. One improvement on the Munro is that these new indicators place a clear emphasis on the importance of collecting outcome data. Within the Munro improvements are set to get even better with stronger focus on outcomes and impact, they are set to also get feedback from children, young people, families and the work force. They are also now set to improve the scope of the new data collection measures for example; focusing on timelines, workforce issues and outcomes and experiences. (tri.x, 2011) To summarise if these improvements were made earlier could this review have saved Hamzah? Bibliography 1. The guardian (2013) Hamzah khan: social services missed warning signs, report finds [online]. Available from: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/nov/13/hamzah-khan-social-services-warning-signs [accessed on 29/12/14] 2. Government (2013) if your child is taken into care [online] Available from:https://www.gov.uk/if-your-child-is-taken-into-care/care-proceedings [accessed on 2nd December 2014] 3. Government (2013) Local Authority designated officer for allegations [online]. Available from: https://www.wirral.gov.uk/my-services/childrens-services/wirral-safeguarding-childrens-board/information-professionals/allegations [accessed on 29/12/14] 4. Government (2013) Local Authority designated officer for allegations [online]. Available from: https://www.wirral.gov.uk/my-services/childrens-services/wirral-safeguarding-childrens-board/information-professionals/allegations [accessed on 29/12/14] 5. Government (2013) Local Authority designated officer for allegations [online]. Available from: https://www.wirral.gov.uk/my-services/childrens-services/wirral-safeguarding-childrens-board/information-professionals/allegations [accessed on 29/12/14] 6. Government (2013) working together to safeguard children [online]. Available from:http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/254669/Safeguarding-children,-child-protection-policy-2012.pdf [accessed on 22nd November 2014] 7. Trixonline (2011) The Munro review interim report: ‘the child’s journey’ [online].Available from :(http://www.trixonline.co.uk/website/news/pdf/policy_briefing_No-11.pdf [accessed on 29/12/14 8. Trixonline (2011) The Munro review interim report: ‘the child’s journey’ [online].Available from :(http://www.trixonline.co.uk/website/news/pdf/policy_briefing_No-11.pdf [accessed on 29/12/14]

The Effects of Peer Leadership

The Effects of Peer Leadership Theory Leadership, by definition, is the process of guiding and directing the behavior of people in the work environment (Nelson/Quick, 2011). The leader influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal, usually set by the organization. Leadership and management are not interchangeable; they deal with very separate things in the work place. In general, management involves tasks that are necessary for the business, such as staffing, budgeting, and problem solving, whereas leaders focus on the people within the organization and their needs, such as motivation, goal setting, and camaraderie. Currently in the workforce, there are three different generations of leaders: the Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), Generation X (1961-1981), and Generation Y (1974- 1994) (Robbins, 2008). Stereotypically speaking, there are differences in leadership styles and work ethics between these generations. Baby Boomers resist change and are unwilling to understand the new age. Those in Generation X are seen as unmotivated and selfish, though they generally have strong communication skills and are technologically savvy. Individuals born in the Generation Y do not have the same, strong work ethic as previous generations and do not understand the meaning of hard work, but are viewed as energetic, able to multitask, and very technologically savvy. Because of the differences between the generations, this could make leading groups or teams difficult. However, according to Robbins, all leaders  ¿Ã‚ ½must learn to dismiss stereotypes and gain an understanding of all generations ¿Ã‚ ½Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ (Robbins, 2008). Today ¿Ã‚ ½s leaders face many challenges. From diversity and generational differences to globalization and technological progression, it is how leaders face these challenges that set apart effective leaders from unsuccessful ones. The most important implications for leaders are that they need to be good diagnosticians. Leaders must be flexible enough to vary their own behavior in relation to the needs of individuals in particular situations in an appropriate way. Peer leadership is great for situational leadership. Successful peer leading in university settings is the result of relationships among students, mentors and instructors (Ashman, 2010, pg. 121). Teaching also occurs between and among students as they work together and at times mentor each other in and outside the classroom. Though instructors may wish otherwise, this sort of peer teaching may have an even greater impact on students than teaching in the classroom (Goodlad, 1998). They suggest that academic involvement and interaction with faculty and fellow students increases the time and physical and psychological energy that students devote to the academic experience. Two of the most common situations that involve students helping other students are peer mentoring and peer leading, such as residential life settings (Ashman, 2010, pg. 122) .Peer leading focuses on more experienced students helping less experienced students improve overall academic performance, encourages mentors ¿  ½ personal growth (Falchikov, 2001; Kram, 1985), and provides advice, support and knowledge to the mentee (University of South Australia, 2003). Using peer tutors requires a whole system of training and support concerning the socialization of students, teachers and instructors. Peer leaders are a great help to the student body. It is because of the similarity in age that students can better relate with the peer group they are leading. They are the connecting link. In other words, they help other students inside and outside of class get involved with their campus and education (Sanft Jensen McMurray, 2008). Also, because peer leaders are less authoritative, students feel more comfortable at times approaching them making them more effective leaders. It ¿Ã‚ ½s really important for students to have leaders ¿Ã‚ ½ knowledge of resources and events on campus. Students are the  ¿Ã‚ ½go-to ¿Ã‚ ½ people when it comes to learning information about things relevant to their age group. Peer leadership guides and motivates other students (Ashman, 2010, pg. 125). Peer leaders encourage their students to get involved on campus, study more efficiently and improve academically.  ¿Ã‚ ½They ¿Ã‚ ½re not just leaders to the students [in their class], they ¿Ã‚ ½re leaders to all students ¿Ã‚ ½ they ¿Ã‚ ½re an example to all students. ¿Ã‚ ½ (Interview 40) In the role of learning coach, peer leaders teach students important academic and life skills (9 of 29). Almost every proponent of peer approaches indicates some sort of benefit to both sides of a peer mentor relationship (Ashman, 2010, pg. 127). In the past two decades, much new research on inspirational leadership theories has emerged. Transformational leadership, charismatic leadership, and authentic leadership are all important developments in inspirational leadership. As the Residential Life program assists in the development of life skills, such as respect, accountability, mindfulness, responsibility, and patience, transformational leadership is demonstrated through staff forming emotional bonds with residents and  ¿Ã‚ ½arousing enthusiasm for a common vision ¿Ã‚ ½ (Kearney 1). Instead of using their official position to manage residents, Residential Life staff members rely on their personal attributes to inspire and excite. As role models, Residential Life staff members are charismatic, provide inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation, and show individualized consideration, all sub-dimensions of transformational leadership (Kearney 1). According to Nelson and Quick (2011), individualized consideration refers to how much attention leaders place on individual needs, and inspirational motivation is how well a leader is able to  ¿Ã‚ ½articulate a vision that is appealing to its followers ¿Ã‚ ½ (Nelson/Quick 197). Studies have shown that transformational leadership increases firm performance (Nelson/Quick 197). According to Judge and Piccolo (2004), it is positively related to a number or important outcomes, including the satisfaction, motivation, and performance of followers. Transformational leadership is effective because leaders encourage followers to set goals that are equal to their own personal interests and values (Nelson/Quick 197). This results in followers valuing their work more because their ultimate goals match up with who they are. The Residential Life program consists of staff members ranging in age. With student RAs in every residential hall, there is little age difference between leaders and followers. This small age gap could conceivably influence the relationship between transformational leadership and team performance. Eric Kearney sought to examine the question of whether transformational leadership is more effective when it is provided by team leaders who are older than the other team members. According to Bass and Riggio (2006), personal identification and respect for a leader, as well as the internalization of the leader ¿Ã‚ ½s values, are all key mediating processes through which transformational leadership exerts its effects. Kearney proposes that as well as being perceived as  ¿Ã‚ ½competent and extraordinary (i.e. transformational), ¿Ã‚ ½ leaders must also be considered deserving of a special status. He then refers to Festinger ¿Ã‚ ½s (1954) social comparison theory that states that people have a natural tendency to evaluate themselves and their abilities (Kearney 2). In teams consisting of members of similar levels of education and qualifications, members will search for legitimate reasons why one among them has been selected to lead. As RAs enforce rules and regulations in residential halls, residents of the same age may question the RAs authority. If students do not fully accept the legitimacy of the status and power of the RAs, it greatly reduces the potential positive impact of the RA. Through studying 49 Research and Development teams in a multinational pharmaceutical company, Kearney hypothesized that  ¿Ã‚ ½the age difference between a team leader and his or her followers moderates the relationship between transformational leadership and team performance such that this relationship is stronger with increasing leader age relative to the team. ¿Ã‚ ½ He examined teams consisting of researchers and technicians who interacted often and worked interdependently toward common team goals. The average mean age of the 49 teams was 38.78 and the mean age of the team leaders was 42.98. After 6 months, the direct supervisor of each team rated team performance. Kearney ¿Ã‚ ½s results indicate that it makes a difference whether transformational leadership is provided by a leader who is older than or close to the same age as the followers. When the leader was older than the other team members, there was a positive relationship between transformational leadership and team performance. He interprets his findings based on the social comparison theory. Kearney states that leaders who are about the same age as the other team members are more likely to be viewed by similarly qualified team members of lacking the  ¿Ã‚ ½legitimacy to occupy a privileged position ¿Ã‚ ½ (Kearney 7). This in turn may make the team identify less with the leader and resist the internalization of the leader ¿Ã‚ ½s visions and values. Kearney does note however, that the non-significant correlations between leader age and both transformational leadership and team performance show that older leaders themselves are neither perceived as more transformational nor are they more effective as leaders than younger leaders. Thus, leaders who are of a similar age as the other team members can be successful as leaders who are older than their followers. Kearney ¿Ã‚ ½s findings do suggest that leaders of a similar age as the followers are less likely to positively affect team performance through transformational behaviors. Application At Skidmore College, students are used to help lead the student body in the residential halls. Students are hired to work as  ¿Ã‚ ½Resident Assistants ¿Ã‚ ½ to help foster a healthy and happy living environment for the students. Resident Assistants generally employ one of three potential leadership styles. These styles are laissez-faire, autocratic and democratic. 1) Laissez-faire: The laissez-faire leadership style has an unusual approach. Rather than actively directing a team to perform a task, the laissez-faire style gives little to no direction. Known as  ¿Ã‚ ½hands off, ¿Ã‚ ½ the laissez-faire system provides freedom an individual team. Although the laissez-faire leadership style in many situations can prove to be controversial and negatively affect the outcome of a group ¿Ã‚ ½s performance, it is not completely useless. Often if people are intrinsically motivated in a particular area the role of an active leader is not prevalent to encourage. The laissez-faire style can also be important and works very well for a team of experienced and trustworthy individuals. For example, consider a construction site with an architect and a five of his workers. The five workers have been building homes for ten years and understand construction very well. In this scenario the architect designed the home laying out the details and materials needed to get the job don e safe and efficiently. Although the architect is the leader, his expertise consists of imagining the home but not necessarily the process of how it is to be built. Based on the architects original plan, the works build the house without any additional guidance from the architect, unless necessary. To clarify further, the architect knows where to put the window, but is not quite as sure how to put it there subsequently trusting his workers to build it. The  ¿Ã‚ ½hands off ¿Ã‚ ½ approach allows the workers to utilize their personalized techniques and work with each other in order to complete the task. The laissez-faire leadership style also applies to residential life at Skidmore College. The jobs of residential assistant aren ¿Ã‚ ½t solely to boss students around and keep order, but also to make student feel comfortable. As new students arrive at school they are filled with an array of emotions including anxiety, excitement, and fear that can make any individual uncomfortable. It is the job of a residential assistant to make the transition easier by creating a welcoming feel and sense of community within the dorm. That does not mean that an RA is responsible for a particular student ¿Ã‚ ½s friend making process, or work balancing skills. In order to expose a new student to the rest of their dormitory without  ¿Ã‚ ½holding ones hand, ¿Ã‚ ½ a laissez-faire approach is an intelligent direction to go in. Fun icebreakers that involve the young adults and allow students to meet each other work significantly well. The RA is initiates the interaction and explains the rules for th e ice-breaker, then steps aside as students take control of the outcome of the game. If the RA gets too involved it can take away from the experience. For returning students, the laissez-faire style is also necessary as these students are experienced and have already gone through the process. Therefore, the returning students do not need much guidance and are fine on their own. In the concept of the laissez- faire behavioral theory, leaders believe that their followers will perform to their greatest ability if they let them  ¿Ã‚ ½respond to their responsibilities and obligations in their own ways ¿Ã‚ ½ (Web Finance. 2010). This principle allows their followers to excel at their own expense and allows them to be accountable for their decision making. This concept gives followers more freedom to work at their own pace and allows them to feel as if they are in charge of themselves. Although this shows that the leader is respecting that there may be different work needs among their workers, this type of leadership method does not always work. Within this laissez-faire concept, the leader may be seen as trying to relinquish his or her tasks that they were originally apportioned (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 81). This style of leadership can cause uncertainties within one ¿Ã‚ ½s position and it can  ¿Ã‚ ½cause interpersonal conflict at work ¿Ã‚ ½ because t here is a poor communication between what the leader wants and what the followers do (Nelson Quick, 2011, pg. 189). Take the role of a resident assistant in a resident at a university. When a resident assistant has his or her first floor meeting with their floor there is usually a discussion about what the rules and expectations of the resident hall. If this resident assistant decides not to set any ground rules or give any direction many conflicts would arise. There would not be a clear and concise framework for this situation which would leave the question,  ¿Ã‚ ½Who exactly is the leader and what does their position really entail? ¿Ã‚ ½ Many of residents would not have any guidance to know how to act when sharing a living space with different people and this could create tension among one another which would later cause disagreements and confusion. To further discuss this point, there was a study that wanted to prove that laissez-faire leadership behavior was considered to be a damaging management behavior within the workplace (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 80). According to the experimenters, some problems this concept caused in the work setting were conflicts and misperceptions about role positions, disagreements among employees, harassment, and  ¿Ã‚ ½ psychological distress ¿Ã‚ ½ (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 80). With these variables, the researchers came up with these five hypotheses to correlate these problems with laissez-faire leadership:  ¿Ã‚ ½Hypothesis 1: Experiencing laissez-faire leadership by one ¿Ã‚ ½s immediate superior is associated with high levels of role conflict and role ambiguity ¿Ã‚ ½. (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg.81)  ¿Ã‚ ½Hypothesis 2: Experiencing laissez-faire leadership by one ¿Ã‚ ½s immediate superior is associated with high conflict levels with coworkers ¿Ã‚ ½ (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 82)  ¿Ã‚ ½Hypothesis 3: Role stressors and conflicts with coworkers mediated the relationship between superiors ¿Ã‚ ½ laissez-faire leadership and subordinates experienced exposure to bullying at work ¿Ã‚ ½ (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 82)  ¿Ã‚ ½Hypothesis 4: Superiors ¿Ã‚ ½ laissez-faire leadership is directly associated with subordinates ¿Ã‚ ½ exposure to bullying at work. ¿Ã‚ ½ (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 84)  ¿Ã‚ ½Hypothesis 5: Role stressors, conflicts with coworkers, and bullying mediate the relationship between superiors ¿Ã‚ ½ laissez-faire leadership and psychological distress among the subordinates ¿Ã‚ ½ (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg.84). With these hypotheses in mind, the experimenters mailed surveys to 2,273 Norwegian workers to assess whether or not they were exposed to this type of leadership behavior (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 84). The mean age of this sample was 43.4 years and half of the test subjects were women (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 84). Skogstad et al. (2007) used a number of testing measures to evaluate the responses of the workers such as one from  ¿Ã‚ ½the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire ¿Ã‚ ½ to gain insight on the subjects contact with this leadership style (p. 84). In a portion of the survey, the researchers also used  ¿Ã‚ ½the Bergen Conflict Inventory ¿Ã‚ ½ to find out what types of conflicts the subjects experienced whether it was job-oriented or personal differences among coworkers (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 84). Within the results, the experimenters discovered that more than half of the workers  ¿Ã‚ ½experienced a low level of laissez-faire leadership, but that out of all the ot her effects of this concept, there was a sound relationship linked to harassment as well as the other office stressors mentioned before. (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg. 84-85). The reasoning behind this conclusion was when a leader does not meet up to their followers ¿Ã‚ ½ anticipations or show that they are apparent within the workplace, mannerisms such as role conflicts are initiated (Skogstad et al. 2007, pg.86). This study shows how, at times, laissez-faire leadership can be a hindrance in certain organizations and business. 2) Autocratic Leadership: Autocratic leadership is considered to be an outdated, classical style of leadership. Fundamentally, autocratic control places all power into the hands of the leader. In autocratic leadership managers seek to make as many decisions as possible, have the most authority and control in decision making, retain responsibility rather than utilize complete delegation, consult with other colleagues in minimally and prefer to work on the task at hand (Gastil, 1994, pg. 386). The reason autocratic leadership survives, is because it is intuitive, has many short-term benefits and comes naturally to many leaders (Gastil, 1994, pg. 387). Despite having critics, autocratic leadership offers many rewards to managers who emply it. For instance, stress is reduced due to increased control (Gastil, 1994, pg. 387). Also, group productivity often increases under increased surveillance (Gastil, 1994, pg. 388). The oversight that an autocratic manager exerts over a team improves their efficiancy and makes them less likely to be negligent. This is good for under-motivated employees who have little concern or interest in the quality of work and the speed with which that task is accomplished. Also, logistics of operations are improved (Gastil, 1994, pg. 390). Having one leader with in charge of everything makes it more likely that problems are foreseen and deadlines are met. This makes autocratic leadership best for complex projects where efficient cooperation is imperative to success. Faster decision making is another benefit (Gastil, 1994, pg. 392). When only one person makes decisions, choices are made faster. Unfortunately, in most instances, autocratic leadership only leads to short-term improvement and carries grave long-term effects (Gastil, 1994, pg. 393). Even though leading autocratically can cause faster decisions making, the manager is actually hindering his or her workforce from progressing. This is a result of depriving employees of the opportunity to gain experience and learn from their mistakes, which leads to poorer decisions and productivity in the long run (Gastil, 1994, pg. 394). Managers with poor leadership skills with often revert to this leadership style (Gastil, 1994, pg. 394). By assuming all responsibility an autocratic leader naturally works at his or her full capacity. This hyper-focus on work comes at the expense of good leadership development (Gastil, 1994, pg. 396). While autocratic leadership has virtues in certain instances, autocratic leadership is not appreciated by employees. People dislike being ordered around (Gastil, 1994, pg. 396). As a result, the autocratic leadership style can create in a non-motivated workforce. Although autocratic leadership is a good solution for non-motivated workers, it is the leadership style alone that often demotivates employees (Gastil, 1994, pg. 397). After becoming accustomed to receiving orders with little return on cooperation, workers lose the confidence to make their own decisions. Accordingly, workers become ineffective functioning on their own. 3) Democratic Leadership: Democratic Leadership encourages the distribution of responsibility, the use of delegation and continual group input (Woods, 2004, pg. 4). Democratic leadership is characterized by managers seeking assistance on decisions, delegating tasks, welcoming feedback and encouraging others to become leaders (Woods, 2004, pg. 4). The result of this very involved leadership style is a more positive work environment (Woods, 2004, pg. 7). An environment where employees are given responsibility are challenged results in an organization where employees are more inspired to work. Similarly, the process of receiving feedback corresponds with better decision making and effective operations (Woods, 2004, pg. 8). In other words, democratic leaders ¿Ã‚ ½ engagement with employees results in their knowing when something is going wrong, while employees under autocratic rule are discouraged from informing the leader. Another benefit is that democracy breeds creative thinking (Woods, 2004, pg. 10). Unrestricted flow of ideas and positivity is the unsurpassed vehicle for creativity. Reduction of friction and office politics is another reward of democratic leadership. By allowing employees to think freely, managers reduce the amount of tension employees are subject to (Woods, 2004, pg. 11). When autocratic leaders refuse to listen to their workers they are effectively asking to be undermined. Unfortunately, democratic leadership can be in danger of pseudo participation (Woods, 2004, pg. 19). If managers simply pretend to employ democratic leadership to seem friendlier, employees will realize this when their ideas are not actually valued. Accordingly, the manager-employee relationship will be subject to further misfortune.

Free Essays on Homers Odyssey: Scylla and Charybdis :: Odyssey essays

The Odyssey - Scylla and Charybdis One of the most difficult tasks as a parent is to teach your child lifes lessons. Many have tried, and many have failed. But over the ages most successful ideas have come in a form of story or tale. Aesops Fables, nursery rhymes, and other tales of caution are used even today to teach this common knowledge one must have. In the Greek civilization, thousands of years ago, many children were taught through these fun and interesting stories. The Odyssey is one of these tales. Through the many episodes telling the adventures of one man, Odysseus, numerous life lessons and morals were taught to the reader. One valuable episode in The Odyssey is Scylla and Charybdis. Not only does it provide excitement and interest for the reader, but it is an effective part of The Odyssey because of its superb insight to Odysseus character, and the clear life lesson that is taught. Especially in todays' world, one key to making a story interesting or exciting is to include action. For example many recent blockbuster hits are action packed. Titanic, Independence Day, and Terminator 2, all are examples of these hits. The Odyssey is no exception to this trick or technique. In the episode Scylla and Charybdis the plot is filled with intense confrontations, a heroic leader, and more. Some of this can be easily identified, for example, when Homer writes; "... scarcely had that island faded in the blue air than I saw smoke and white water with waves in tumult- a sound the men heard, and it terrified them. Oars flew from their hands; the blades went knocking wild alongside till the ship lost way..." (756-763) What the author is doing is letting the reader foreshadow. A technique which creates suspense, a vital element in any action story. The author then explained what was being hinted at; "... we rowed into the strait- Scylla to our port and on our starboard beam Charybdis, dire gorge of the salt-sea tide. By heaven when she vomited all the sea was like a cauldron seething over intense fire..." (796-800) "... [The] dark sand raged on the bottom far below.

Personal Interest Essay -- Essays Papers

Personal Interest I have been interested in the study of shy children and their inability to actively participate in a classroom environment since my youngest daughter, who is extremely shy, started kindergarten. I saw the difficulty that she faced in class because of her shyness and I became frustrated because I knew that her lack of self-confidence was affecting her ability to excel in school. Fortunately, we were able to work with her teachers and help her develop the self-confidence to eventually become an excellent student who is an active participant in her class. Because of my experience as a parent, I am very aware of the potential to overlook or mislabel shy students and have found myself extremely conscientious of these children since I began teaching. I want to find ways to help these students develop the confidence to become more active participants in my classroom. I wondered what I could do differently in my classroom to help a shy student develop self-confidence. The student who I observed for this inquiry project came to my attention the first day I visited the class I was to student teach in. While she was clearly intrigued by a book I was reading to the class, I noticed that she was the only student to not participate in the discussion which followed the reading. It became apparent the first week I was in the class that she was not an active participant and had difficulty answering questions during class discussions. Although she was quick to raise her hand, she became very distressed when called on in class. I noted that my cooperating teacher often bypassed her, calling on other students who were more outgoing. As a teacher, I want to develop tools to help my student... ...Bibliography Brody, Jere. (1996). Working with Shy or Withdrawn Students. Learn2Study. Retrieved February 1, 2005 from http://www.learn2study.org/teachers/shy.htm Crozier, W. Ray & Perkins, Pam. (Sep. 2002). Shyness as a Factor when Assessing Children [Electronic Version]. Educational Psychology in Practice, Vol. 18, Issue 3, p. 239-244. Hyson, Marion C. & Von Trieste, Karen. (1987). The Shy Child. Child Development Institute. Retrieved February 1, 2005 from http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/disorders/shy_child.htm Kemple, Kristen. (June 1995). Shyness and Self-esteem in Early Childhood [Electronic Version]. Journal of Humanistic Education & Development, Vol. 33, Issue 4, p. 173-183. Malouff, John. (2002). Helping Young Children Overcome Shyness. Retrieved February 3, 2005 from http://www.une.edu.au/pshychology/staff/malouff/shyness.htm

Operations Management and Productivity Essay

Service and product design decision is one of the very important issues of operations management. Indeed this decision determines the health and fate of any organization (Krajewski & Ritzman, 1998). A company that designs products and services that are of superior quality and that click with the intended market, definately succeeds. Hard Rock Cafe’s operations management has been successful in designing products and services in entertainment hospitality sector. This sector is one of the most competitive sectors, but they have been able to design and offer quality products and superior services in cafes, hotels, casinos and lately in music venues, Rock museum and Rock concerts (Evans, 1996). To respond to changing customer needs and expectations, they have continuously changed their menus and the services they offer. Hard Rock’s success comes as a result of continuous monitoring of quality of their products and services (Saheli, 2007). Their Quality Management Department has devised techniques to continuously monitor quality so as to improve quality of products and services and also make timely corrective measures and hence reduce quality costs. In the cafe, regular surveys are done to evaluate quality of food and services, where a scale is devised to measure scores (Ibid, 2007). To ensure quality products and services, production processes and capacity have been enhanced by using state-of-the-art equipment in catering, entertainment services in casinos, hotels and music venues. Technology is also embraced to increase production capacity in cafes and hotels (Krajewski & Ritzman, 1998). Hard Rock started its operations in London. However, in 1988 it moved its headquarters to Orlando, Florida as it targeted the booming US market (Evans, 1996). It has later spread its cafes and hotels to more than 40 locations in US. The decision of spreading its wings to many states is to tap into unsaturated markets as well as diversify operation risks (Ibid, 1996). Due to increasing customers and hence operations, Hard Rock has expanded their cafe facilities to handle their clients. For example at Orlando Universal Studios, their cafe serves over 3,000 meals a day with about 400 employees and the number is expected to grow especially during high tourist seasons (Saheli, 2007). To ensure high labor productivity, Hard Rock Cafe has provided their workers with excellent working conditions. This is achieved through good industrial relation management and employee-management relations. Human Resource Management has ensured that the company has the best of employees who are competent, skilled and fit for their positions, hence Hard Rock expects the best out of their labor force (Krajewski & Ritzman, 1998). Productiveness is the main task of the supply chain management in Hard Rock. The department has developed supply chain strategies aimed at reducing procurement costs and value adding the process. Hard Rock has entered into strategic partnership with suppliers to improve efficiency and effectiveness of this activity (Evans, 1996). To effectively manage inventory, the company has inventory management system that guides the managers on when to order inventory and how much (Saheli, 2007). To increase efficiency and reduce costs, they have embraced Just-In-Time philosophy where the materials required are procured in time and used in time (Saheli, 2007). During low season, Orlando Cafe staff is scheduled down to 15-minutes intervals to meet seasonal and daily demand changes in tourist environment. Annual Routine maintenance is exercised in all their facilities. Maintenance department is charged with responsibilities of ensuring that Hard Rock Cafes, hotels, casinos, music venues and rock museum are renovated and machines maintained at good conditions (Krajewski & Ritzman, 1998). The productivity of the kitchen staff and wait staff can be measured by dividing the number of meals they prepare and serve by the number of labor hours they input (Saheli, 2007). During low seasons wait staff may serve fewer meals as demand gets low and also kitchen staff prepares fewer meals. Nevertheless, they will also use less labour hours as they are scheduled and down-sized to respond to low operations (Evans, 1996).

Postmodern Literature Essay

â€Å"The Garden of Forking Paths,† by taking the form of a signed statement made by the main character of the story, Dr. Yu Tsun, has a specific instance that reverts back to the past which is the technique of flashback in postmodern literature. That precise instance is when Dr. Tsun reflects on his great ancestor, Ts’ui Pen, and recalls the life of the man. More importantly, the story itself is already a flashback by virtue of its form, a signed statement, which implies that reading the ‘signed statement’ of Dr. Tsun is already a way of flashing back to his life before his death. Apparently, the flashback scene where Dr. Tsun recalls his memory of his great ancestor also indicates a ‘flashback’ within the main ‘flashback,’ which all the more signifies the postmodern character of the short story.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Chinua Achebe’s â€Å"Things Fall Apart† is also a literary work with a postmodern characteristic. This can be observed from the way in which Achebe preferred not to ‘romanticize’ the story of the Nigerians by portraying the history of the Ibo tribe as flourishing while ending when the colonizers came, and is contrasted by the ‘self-destruction’ of the story’s main character, Okokwo. In sum, the downfall of the Ibo tribe has also been brought about by the self-destruction of the society’s hero aside from the harms done by the invading colonizers. Scott Momaday’s The Way to Rainy Mountain is also an example of postmodern literature because readers can hardly identify whether it is the author who is narrating his life experiences or the characters in the story who are revealing their journeys in the so-called Rainy Mountain. Thus, readers may tend to interpret Momaday’s work as a combination of the stories of his life and his people, or readers may tend to interpret the same work as the story of the characters from the eyes of the author or the story of the author from the eyes of the characters.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lastly, both Primo Levi’s â€Å"Two Flags† and â€Å"Survival in Auschwitz† indicate the blurring of the character and the elements of the story. For instance, the character in â€Å"Two Flags† mentions an â€Å"umpire† in a soccer game when in fact there is no umpire in a soccer game but a referee. Quite oddly, Levi also reveals how the main character in the story died upon seeing the two flags of the nations he loved and hated respectively swaying side-by-side. On the other hand, â€Å"Survival in Auschwitz† has a climax in the opening parts of the story which tells us that the story departs from the conventional placement of the climax in stories. These elements are just some of the notable examples as to why both â€Å"Two Flags† and â€Å"Survival in Auschwitz† are also postmodern works in literature. Works Cited Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Anchor, 1994. Levi, Primo. Survival in Auschwitz. New York: Touchstone, 1996. Levi, Primo. â€Å"Two Flags.†Ã‚   The Longman Anthology of World Literature. Ed. David Damorsch. Vol. F. New York: Pearson, 2004. 406-08. Momaday, N. Scott. The Way to Rainy Mountain. New Mexico: University of New Mexico Press, 1976.