Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Ally Bireley. Mr. Cone. Apush - 1St. 24 February 2017.

Ally Bireley Mr. Cone APUSH - 1st 24 February 2017 A Soldier’s Tale Amongst almost 3 million Civil War soldiers, over 600,000 lost their lives defending their notions of freedom and liberty in America. Approximately two-thirds of these soldiers, nonetheless, died from disease rather than wounds received on the battlefield. Lack of efficient medicine and health care caused much more impacting damage, as well as scarce, not up-to-date resources, and social divisions between the soldiers. Typically, an average Civil War soldier could expect to face extreme hardships and difficulties in their wartime lifestyles, including bad weather, unprepared, inappropriate clothing, spreading infections, and tensions regarding race and gender. Across†¦show more content†¦According to Schroeder-Lein, of the two amputation methods, Confederate doctors preferred and further developed the circular operation which was more efficient and less painful, while the Union doctors leaned toward the faster flap operation. Combined, soldiers on both sides received over 50 ,000 amputations, with a 27% mortality rate. Over time, the doctors transitioned towards performing more excisions of bone fragments and application of splints once realized that they could avoid amputations (Schroeder-Lein, 520). Also with the onset of the Civil War came the conversion of popular anesthesia from ether to chloroform, the safer substance that led to the administration of anesthesia in areas will good air circulation, like the procedure would be performed today if chloroform were the last resort (Schroeder-Lein, 613-633). Innately, soldiers feared the endless possibilities of blood loss, gangrene, et cetera, and experienced historic levels of discomfort and death. Rather it be experiencing extreme passion to discover the world, patriotism and determinism to fight for their beliefs, or simply a desire to help, many women joined the Civil War. As an amazing step of progress in history, these heroes effectively challenged traditional values

Monday, December 16, 2019

Sports Psychology Essay - 602 Words

It has been identified that through sports psychology one can improve their physical ability and performance. Sports psychology is the study of how the mind, mental states and behaviour effect sporting performance. There are several sport psychology techniques, which have helped me become a better volleyball player. These techniques include planning for performance, controlling arousal levels, mental rehearsal and concentration. The first technique of planning for performance is all about goal setting and rating your performance. Goal setting can be broken down into three distinct categories, outcome, performance and process. An outcome goal is when a goal is set purely about the outcome of an event/game. In volleyball my outcome goal†¦show more content†¦Personally I find being calm and collected works best for my performance, in order to get into this state of mind I find it better not to think about the stakes of the game. To combat pre match nerves the techniques of mental rehearsal and concentration are best used. Mental rehearsal is when an athlete plays a certain situation or technique over and over in their head to better capitalise on the situation in the future. An example of this may be mentally viewing the best technique to serve the volleyball. By using mental rehearsal and athlete will be able to adapt to situations with a greater ease. The second technique to combat nerves is centering. Centering is when an athlete blocks out all the unimportant details of a situation and just focuses at the task at hand. Centering can be achieved my controlled breathing and not thinking about past mistakes. Personally I use the technique centering to help combat my pre match nerves. By using this technique I am able to block out all the unimportant factors and think about one thing at a time. It can be seen that if an athlete choses to use the tools of sports phycology they will effectively increase their sporting performance and ability. These tools have helped me to improve volleyball ability andShow MoreRelatedSport Psychology : Sports Psychology1599 Words   |  7 PagesSports Psychology Sports psychology is a relatively new topic of research that first started out in 1925 as a preparation tactic for athletes before an important event to increase chances of success (Joyce, 2008). In the world today sports psychology is increasingly being used in sports but also manipulated into research to use in organizational groups. Athletes are always looking for the next way to win, even if it is by the smallest of margins, however, competition may be fierce and very competitiveRead MoreSports Psychology, Sports Nutrition, And Strength And Conditioning Essay742 Words   |  3 PagesCAREER GOALS: Through applied sport psychology, sports nutrition, and strength and conditioning, my goals are to give back to my community by: 1. Leading local athletes through a process of discovering their true potential and greatness, so that they can perform successfully to a level that brings true peace of mind and self-satisfaction that they did the best to which they were capable.   a. Volunteer to teach leadership and life skills training to athletes in my community with the Habitudes imageryRead MoreThe Psychology of Sports Essay1921 Words   |  8 Pagesgoverning sports is over, and the age of the mentally tough athlete has arrived. Athletes are no longer the superficial jocks and robots programmed to accomplish one goal, victory. Modern athletes ranging from the high school to professional levels are faced with many pressures and temptations, normally outside the realm of their sport. These pressures can inhibit an athlete’s performance substantially; therefore, the pressures need to be dealt with by psychologists. The effectiveness of sports psychologyRead MoreSport Psychology1034 Words   |  5 Pageshumans that helps motivate us to continue the journey of life. arousal regulation, imagery, self confidence, attention, or concentration , goal setting memory write a 4-5 page paper. the assignment thing said you will write an article for a sports magazine on a topic from the psychological skills training section of the book that you find interesting. ( choices are: arousal regulation, imagery, self confidence, goal setting attention or concentration ) The format of your aticle should be similarRead MoreThe Importance of Sport and Exercise Psychology Essay1050 Words   |  5 PagesSport and exercise psychology is a mandatory aspect of the sport science discipline. This discipline contributes to the various professional practices associated with physical activities such as - teaching of physical education, recreation and health promotion, and kinesiology related professions - because it plays a mental role for the participants. Sport and exercise psychologists view physical activity in several different ways: physical activity as a tool for health, physical activity as a toolRead MoreEssay on Sport Psychology1037 Words   |  5 Pages Sport Psychology: How it Helps Athletes nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In our society today it seems like sports rule the land. Everywhere we look, there is some kind of sporting event going on or being televised. Almost everyone could be considered a fan of at least one sport. Some people follow sports like a religion. With such an increased focus on sports, the athletes performances are put under a microscope. This puts more pressure on athletes to give a winning performance. No longer do athletesRead More Sport Psychology Essays1652 Words   |  7 PagesSport Psychology In earlier days sports psychology was mostly concerned with developing assessment methods that would identify those people with the potential to become serious superior athletes. Today the focus is on psychological training, exercises that strengthen the mental skills that will help athletic performances on the path to excellence. These skills include mental imagery and focus training. If an athlete is serious about becoming the best he or she can possibly be, the most essentialRead MoreEssay Sports Psychology1172 Words   |  5 Pages The five main things that I learned in sports psychology from is Goal Setting, Awareness, Leadership, Reboundability, and Routines. These all help me not only in the sport world but also in life. It is important to study these things and practice them as much as possible to achieve the greatest benefits from them nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Until recently I have never really thought about my goals. I have had them, but have never planned them out or evaluated outcomes. When we had a guest speakerRead MoreProfessional Philosophy : Sports Psychology778 Words   |  4 Pagespotential career that I have in mind is becoming a Sport Psychologist. The first scholarly article I found is titled â€Å"NCAA Athletic Administrators’ Preferred Characteristics for Sport Psychology Positions: A Consumer Market Analysis†. The study conducted in this article looks into the market for Sport Psychologist in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It compares different Athletic administrator’s preferences for sport psychology positions based on time, commitment, affiliation,Read MoreTaking a Look at Sports Psychology1561 Words   |  6 PagesCome on – don’t let the picture creep into your mind. Stop thinking of that†¦ Pink Elephant (Gardner). It has been prove n that putting a â€Å"don’t† or a â€Å"not† into a statement can cause the brain to have difficulties in interpreting the statement. In sports, players tend to tell themselves â€Å"not† to do something. In soccer, a goalie might tell him/herself to not let the other team score a goal, and then the team does. Or in tennis, players tell themselves not to serve the ball into the net, and then they

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Management and Organization Global Management Functions

Question: Describe about the Management and Organization for Global Management Functions. Answer: Introduction Planning is a management function that is concerned with defining goals and objectives of the organization to be achieved for its future growth and development. Planning aims at providing direction to the overall functions of the organization and is done according to the vision and mission of the organization. Planning is the preparatory step, and chalks down future course of action for a business. It determines what activities are to be performed, what resources would be required to successfully undertake the planned objectives, who will be responsible for completing planned activities and how it will add value to the overall organizational efficiencies (Reiss 2013). Todays business operates in a highly dynamic and unpredictable environment, therefore, it is important to plan future course of action that an organization should adopt in order to be in the market in the long run and to achieve its objectives. Planning involves analysis of firms internal and external environment and understanding their implication on the organizations functioning. Planning enables managers to select most appropriate course of action for the business from different available alternatives. Planning helps the business to effectively allocate organizational resources and achieve organizational efficiency in meeting its short term as well as long-term objectives (Burke 2013). In this context, managers (decision makers) have variety of tools at their disposal that assists in undertaking planning activities. These planning tools help in environmental scanning, forecasting and benchmarking. Planning helps businesses in taking well considered course of action to achieve its objectives, scheduling of various activities, provides control and monitoring of the overall activities and also, assists in taking appropriate measures in case of deviation from the planned objectives (Kerzner 2013). There are multiple planning tools and techniques that are employed for different purposes. For instance, budgeting and forecasting are used for allocation of resources, Gantt Charts are used for production planning and scheduling, PERT networks are used for project planning, sensitivity and scenario planning are used for understanding possible future conditions and enhancing managerial decision making, and so on (McNeil et al. 2015). The purpose of this assignment is to discuss planning tools and techniques that assist in making strategic decisions and to take the organization to right direction in the unpredictable business environment. The report, therefore discusses various planning tools such as budgeting and planning, PERT networks, Gantt charts, and sensitivity and scenario analysis. The essay discusses in detail about the concepts, application, advantages as well as limitations of these planning tools or techniques and helps to understand how these tools assist in developing effective plans for business organizations in order to achieve their final goals or objectives. Budgets and forecasts Forecasting and budgeting is one of the most important and commonly used planning techniques used by managers. It is used to determine and to detail an organizations long term as well as short-term financial goals. Budgeting and forecasting are financial planning techniques that assist managers in the decision making process. Budgeting technique uses estimation to quantify or to monetize the expectation of revenues a business aims to achieve for a future period, forecasting on the other hand, is used to predict the volume of revenues that will be achieved (Verzuh 2015). Budgeting aims at outlining a plan for an organization concerning where it wants to go; while, forecasting indicates where the organization is actually headed. In addition, budgets provide detailed list of incomes and expenses and provides a realistic guide for planning activities. While, forecast simply presents list of possible income and expenses scenarios. Moreover, budgets are generally based on past performance and include some forecasting; however, a budget that takes into consideration multiple forecasting is more effective as it allows the business to opportunities and downturns more quickly (Bozarth and Handfield 2016). Budget: A budget is the estimation of revenues and expenses an organization that a firm has to incur over a future period (particular accounting period). It is a detailed financial outline of what business thinks will happen over a period of time financially. Budgets are written documents that include information about business revenue, expenses, cash flows and it represents business financial position (Leach 2014). Budgets can be understood as a quantified expectation of resources that a business would require in order to achieve some predetermined goals and objectives. Budgets are prepared for future period considering various goals and objectives of the firm such as vision, mission, business strategies, and goals and objectives. It provides necessary direction to the business activities as well as serves the purpose of business control tool to achieve predetermined business objectives (Hope and Fraser 2013). In order to develop budget that would guide spending, both fixed and variable expenses are considered. Fixed expenses are those expenses that do not change each budgeting cycle such as rents, interest payments and insurance premiums. Variable expenses changes each month and include electricity bills, utilities, commissions, and phone bills. It involves documenting how the organizations overall plan would be executed over a specified period, outlining expenditures. Budget is a control tool that is frequently employed by managers to compare actual outcomes with expected results to determine variances and to develop strategies to minimize those variances (Kerzner 2013). In order to use budget as useful tool to manage business operations, managers have to consider some important things such as the budgets should be based on realistic cash flows. The budget should be able to differentiate between essential expenses and discretionary expenses. In addition, incorporating cash reserves into the budget can be good strategy as it acts as cushion future downturns in business (Kendrick 2013). Forecast: Forecast is an estimate of what the organization wants to achieve. Forecasting is used to predict companys income and is undertaken using accumulated sales and revenue historical data of the organization and the industry (trend analysis)s to predict financial outcomes for some predetermined period. Forecasting helps to estimate possible fixed and variable expenses based on different sales and revenue scenarios. Forecasting is used to determine how a company should allocate their budget for a future period. Unlike budgets, financial forecasting is updated more frequently if there is change in business market outlook or change in business plan. It is an important tool that assists managers to make necessary adjustments in expenses and align business functions with changing market conditions within the budgeting period (Acebes et al. 2014). Further, it is crucial for managers to consider some points while doing forecasts for the company. The most important point that managers have to consider is to develop more than one forecast for the company, preferably three forecasts; one that presents positive outlook, one for pessimistic scenario, and one most likely. This helps managers to plan for growth, but also helps to prepared for unexpected markets conditions that are not originally thought of. Next important point is to keep updated about market conditions and updating forecasts on regular basis. Moreover, it is also important to involve key people from the organization while developing forecast document as they have better understanding of the business goals and market condition, which will improve the accuracy of forecasting document (Goodman et al. 2013). Advantages of budgeting and forecasting There are many advantages of budgeting and forecasting in the organizational context, that can be given as Budgeting and forecasting are frequently in business organizations as they provide an effective way of allocating and utilizing resources within the organization. It improves managers understanding of future business environment and contingencies. It also acts a motivational tool as it presents overall vision of the organization, helps in identifying roles and responsibilities of employed in achieving organizational objectives and improves inter organizational communication (Reiss 2013). Drawbacks Though, there are many advantages of budgeting and forecasting in planning, these tools are not full prove and have following disadvantages such as Developing organizational budgets and forecasts requires considerations for a lot activities and factors, which carries real opportunity cost. Moreover, due to changing market conditions, business plans or any other factors, forecasts are required to be frequently updated that makes the previous budgeting and forecasting exercise futile. The frequency of errors and inaccuracies in the budgets and forecast are very high as compared to other planning tool and techniques. In addition, budgeting and forecasting may lead to inter department conflicts as organizational resources are limited and each department wants to get hold of maximum resources (Acebes et al. 2014). PERT Pert is an abbreviation for Program Evaluation Review Technique. It is a statistical tool that is widely used by business for planning and coordinating business operations or projects. It is developed to analyze and represent various tasks involve in completing a given project. PERT was designed by United States Navy in 1950s and is generally used in conjunction with Critical Path Method (CPM). It is a network based tool for planning and scheduling multiple inter related tasks in large and complex projects. It helps to answer the shortest possible time for completing the project and what activities must be undertaken first and in what order to minimize project completion time (Wyatt 2012). PERT employs statistical techniques to measure to measure and forecast development in business projects. The technique is widely used in manufacturing organizations. It provides a framework for decision making that helps managers to take effective decisions in order to achieve end objectives, and also saves time in taking business decisions. Moreover, the PERT is an effective decision making tool that helps managers to save time in decision making functions for those projects where time is a vital factor. It takes into consideration all the three crucial factors that influence the successful achievement of end objectives. These factors are time, resources and technical performance specifications (Hajdu 2013). PERT uses time as a variable factor that presents planned resource applications and performance specifications. PERT helps to quantify uncertainties that may arise in the course of achieving business objectives about which little information is available, thereby allowing management to develop greater understanding of the business environment (market) and formulate appropriate strategies to minimize such risks (Wang 2013). PERT technique is used to processes the data concerning the major events or finite milestones that are necessary to accomplish end objectives, establishes inter dependencies between those events and predicts the time (or range of time) that are necessary to execute activities between two successive events. The time estimates in PERT includes optimistic time, most likely time, and pessimistic time for individual activity between two successive events (Hajdu and Bokor 2014). PERT is management control technique that helps the in helps in achieving the objectives of the business in the specified time, highlighting the risks in the market that requires management intervention. It helps in identifying and defining both the methodicaness and slack in the network of sequential activities that has be undertaken to achieve business objectives. It compares the current expected time with planned completion time; and calculates the probability of meeting objectives on time and simulates effects of various decision options that are available to meet the business objectives. Thus, PERT helps the decision makers (managers) to identify and implement best available decision alternative to meet the business goals and objectives (Heagney 2012). PERT technique helps simplifying the planning and scheduling of large and complex projects in uncertain business conditions, when details and durations of various activities in meeting the final objective is not known. It is used for one time projects where historical data are not available. Further, it is used for those non-routine business decisions or projects where time is the critical factor rather than cost (Hajdu 2013). Pert planning process It consist of following six steps Identifying the individual tasks to be performed Identifying the dependencies between the tasks to determine the sequence of tasks to be undertaken Drawing a network diagram representing these tasks Obtaining estimates of time for completing each activities Identifying critical path Keeping the network diagram and critical path throughout the project Example In order to, better understand the application of PERT technique, following example can be considered: Task Predecessors a (Optimistic time estimate) m (Realistic time estimate) b (Pessimistic time estimate) A 2 5 8 B A 1 2 9 C A 0.25 0.5 3.75 D B 1 1 7 E B, C 1 2 9 F D, E 1 3 11 (Source: As created by author) Activity duration estimates: PERT technique employs three time estimates (a, m and b), to minimize the error in estimating activity duration. These time estimates are a = shortest possible time to complete an activity assuming everything goes perfect. m = most likely time to complete an activity under normal circumstances. b = longest possible time to complete an activity for worst case scenarios. Based on these time estimates, a weighted average and variance is calculated for individual activity duration as a measure of average duration and corresponding variability. Nodes represent events and activities are represented by arrows Weighted average = (Shortest time + 4 x Most likely time + Longest time) / 6 Standard deviation = (b a) / 6 Average critical path The estimated duration for the critical path is sum of expected durations of the critical activities i.e. (5 + 3 + 3 + 4 = 15) and expected variance of the critical path is equal to sum of variances of the critical activities i.e. (12 + {8/6}2 + {8/6}2 + {10/6}2 = 7.33. Moreover, it is important to note that activities on average critical path are considered for calculation of variance. The network diagram for the above activities are given as Fig: Network diagram and average critical path (Source: As created by author) Advantages: PERT provides the project manager with expected period within which the project can be executed and provides direction to the project functions. PERT chart helps in explicitly defining and making visible dependencies between work breakdown structure (WBS) elements. PERT helps in identifying the critical path of an activity. It helps in reducing overall project duration by providing a better understanding of dependencies between various activities by reducing overlapping of activities and tasks where viable. PERT presents large amount of project data in the form of diagrams that assists in effective decision making (HazÄ ±r 2015). Disadvantages For a large project, there can be hundreds or thousands of activities and individual dependency relationships, which cannot be represented in a single sheet and therefore, cannot be used for practical reasons. Another limitation is that all the estimates are subjective and depends on the abilities of the managers. PERT focuses on the time aspects of the project in achieving and does not account for the overall costs. In addition, PERT network charts becomes complicated and unmanageable for large projects that constitutes hundreds or even thousands of activates and dependency relationships. Further, for large and complex projects, PERT charts become expensive to develop, update and maintain (HazÄ ±r 2015). Gantt chart A Gantt chart is kind of bar chart that was developed by Henry Gantt in the 1910s which depicts project schedules. It is essentially a timeline view of the entire project tasks and helps to visualize data. Gantt chart consists of series of horizontal lines that represents the amount of work done or some activities completed in certain periods of time in relation to the amount of time planned for completing those planned activities. Gantt charts are useful planning and monitoring tool that are commonly used in project management. It is one of the most helpful ways of representing activities (tasks or events) against time. In Gantt chart, the left side represents a list of activities that has to be undertaken and at the top is represented a suitable time scale that is deemed correct for completing the mentioned activities. In Gantt charts individual activities are represented by a bar; the position and length of bar indicates start date, duration and end date of the activity (Sharon et al. 2014). Gantt charts are the graphical representation of various activities that are to be undertaken to successfully complete the project. It helps to understand what activities are to undertaken, when each activity begins and ends, how long each activity is expected or scheduled to last, where activities overlap and by what magnitude, and the starting and end date of the entire project. In other words, Gantt chart helps to represent what activities have to perform the schedule for completing those activities. It in the modern business organizations Gantt charts are frequently used tracking project schedules. It provides crucial information about the various tasks or phases of the a project i.e. how various activities of the project are related to each other, how far the each activity of the project has performed, resources employed for individual activities and other project related information (Ong et al. 2016). In order to complete the project successfully, it is important to manage and control a large number of activities so that the project can be completed on time. Time is an important factor for achieving the desired objectives. Even if a part of a project is delayed, it can have serious implications on the entire project and overall cost of the project will increase manifold. Gantt chart, in this context, helps managers to have complete control on project tasks and effectively eliminate deviations, if any. It provides a quick overview of the entire project, its associated tasks and the order in which it needs to be completed (Baker and Trietsch 2013). Gantt chart preparation In order to develop an accurate Gantt chart, following steps are required to be taken Identify essential tasks Linking various tasks Adding constraints Including resources Enhancing Gantt charts Reviewing the project In the todays world, there are many software applications that enable manager to develop accurate and holistic Gantt chart. Some of the popular software for developing Gantt cart is Microsoft Project, MindView Business Edition, and Primavera Project Planner. In order to develop Gantt chart, it is important to first completely understand the complete project plan and various aspects associated with it. The best way to understand project plan is to use work breakdown structure that splits the tasks into sub tasks and presents them in hierarchical order. In this regard, mind mapping of the entire project can be undertaken to ensure that all the activities of the project is included. Once the project plan is completed, data is feed into the application to get the relevant Gantt chart (Dayani and Gelbard 2015). Example In order to better understand the importance and application of Gantt chart, following example for a shop floor planning can be used Task Length Type (sequential or parallel) A - Brainstorming and high level analysis 1 week S B - Preliminary market research 3 week P C - Preliminary manufacturing study 1 weeks P D - Evaluation and selection of best product design 1 week S E -Developing detailed marketing plan 1 week P F - Designing manufacturing process 3 week P G - Developing detailed product design 3 week P H - Building and testing prototype 1 week S I - Finalizing product design 2 week S J - Ordering product components 1 week S K - Ordering production equipments 3 week P L - Installing production elements 2 week S (Source: As created by Author) Based on the activities identified for the above project, the Gantt chart can be generated as given below: Time in weeks 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 A - Brainstorming and high level analysis B - Preliminary market research C - Preliminary manufacturing study D - Evaluation and selection of best product design E -Developing detailed marketing plan F - Designing manufacturing process G - Developing detailed product design H - Building and testing prototype I - Finalizing product design J - Ordering product components K - Ordering production equipments L - Installing production elements (Source: As created by author) Advantages During the process of setting up Gantt chart, all the tasks related to the project are well thought of in advance, this helps managers to avoid any instances of forgetting any crucial aspect related to the project. Moreover, during this process, people responsible to execute various activities, time required to execute various activities and problems that may arise in the process of project completion are considered and remedial measures are planned in advanced. Thus it can be said that developing a Gantt chart ensures that the project plan is workable, right people are assigned for each task and management have workarounds for potential problems even before the project starts. In addition, Gantt chart helps to determine minimum time required to deliver the project and the critical path to be followed in executing various tasks related to the project. This also helps the interested stakeholders to keep informed about the projects progress (Browning 2014). Limitations One of the greatest limitation of Gantt chart is that it works effectively only for smaller projects. As the project becomes larger and complex, it becomes practically difficult to rely on Gantt charts for the purpose of scheduling and controlling the project objectives. Moreover, Gantt charts do not represents various sub tasks that are important to achieve a milestone (Riol and Thuillier 2015). Sensitivity and scenario analysis Sensitivity analysis Sensitivity analysis is a mathematical tool that helps decision makers to determine how different values of an independent variable can influence a particular dependent variable under some particular set of assumption and circumstances. It is data driven analysis that of how some variable variables impacts a single variable. This method is widely use in decision making and is sometimes referred to as what if analysis as it provides managers a simulation analysis to predict the outcome of a decision within a particular set of decision variables. In sensitivity analysis, key quantitative assumptions and computations related to a decision are changed systematically in order to determine their effect on the final outcome (Weglarz 2012). Example: In order to better understand the concept, following example can be considered Sensitivity analysis can be used to determine the influence of customer traffic on total sales. The sales are dependent on price and transaction volume. Assuming, that the price of merchandise is $1000 and the company sole a total of 100 items last year, for an overall sales revenue of $100,000. Further, it is established that 10 % rise in customer traffic increases transaction volume by 5%. This knowledge can be used to develop a financial model and sensitivity analysis around this equation based on what if statements. The model can be used to explain what would happen if the customer traffic increases by 10%, 20%, 50% and so on. Based on the current data, the 10%, 20% and 50% increase in customer traffic would lead to increase in transaction by 5, 10 and 50 respectively. This analysis also indicates that sales are highly sensitive to change in customer traffic (Fang and Marle 2012). Sensitivity analysis is one of the important business decision tools. In order to make an effective decision managers have to identify cost drivers as well as other quantities that influence the quality of decision making. On the other hand, some quantities do not have any influence on overall quality of decision taken by the managers and the collection of information about these quantities can be relaxed. This helps the business to save some valuable resources without any loss in the accuracy of decision (Young 2013). Advantages Sensitivity analysis helps business managers to identify critical assumptions and compare alternative model structures. It helps the mangers in collecting relevant data for future use and also helps in resource allocation. It helps in testing the robustness of an optimal solution and highlights about the riskiness of the strategy developed by the organization (Gal and Greenberg 2012). Limitations In most of the business decision scenarios, variables are interconnected or correlated with each other and thus, it becomes practically difficult to examine each variable individually. Moreover, sensitivity analysis is based on assumptions that employs past data, which may not hold true in future. In addition, the maximum and minimum values used for the analysis is open to subjective interpretation. This can have adverse effect on the overall accuracy of the analysis (Deif 2012) Scenario analysis Scenario analysis can be defined as a process of analyzing future course of events by considering alternative possible outcomes. Thus, it helps to predict future scenarios and enables managers to develop greater understanding of the future market conditions to that they can take effective decisions (kmen and ztaÃ…Å ¸ 2015). Moreover, scenario analysis does not rely on past or historical data to make projections about the future; instead it tries to possible developments and turning points. It is helpful to develop optimistic, pessimistic and most like scenarios, so that the managers or decision makers can formulate appropriate strategies to deal with future market conditions. Further, the purpose of undertaking scenario analysis is to improve managerial decision making by allowing consideration of outcome and its implications (Chow 2014). In order to undertake scenario analysis following steps can be undertaken Defining the problem: having a clear understanding of the problem enables the managers to understand final outcome that the business wants to achieve. For example, if the business wants to launch a new product that cater to corporate clients in managing their financial data. In this context, it is important to access where the business would be headed in the next five years and what future conditions might affect the success of the business. Collecting data: Once the problem has been identified, the decision makers are required to identify key factors, trends and uncertainties that would influence the business plan. This can be achieved through running a situational analysis comprising of both external and internal business environments. Based on the analysis, key assumptions are required to be identified on which the plan depends (Hassani 2016). In this case, the key assumptions can be the state of economy i.e. clients have suspended their business development plans due to recession in the economy, perceived importance of the business plan for the clients in enhancing organizational productivity. Separating certainties from uncertainties: Based on the assumptions identified, it is important to determine the validity of those by thoroughly challenging them and selection of validated assumptions as certainties. Other assumptions that are not so significant or crucial for successful implementation of business plans can group as uncertainties (Lee et al. 2016). For the above business plan, certainties are identified as large organizations face problems financial management for diverse group of products and services they deal in and the new product provide by the organization would help corporate clients in enhancing their organizational capabilities. However, there are other competitors in the proposed business plan category that may significantly hamper the business plan in the long run. Developing scenarios: Now depending on the uncertainties, different scenarios are developed starting from the top uncertainty. Based on all the uncertainties, optimistic, most likely and pessimistic scenarios are developed (Amer et al. 2013). The three scenarios for the above example can be First, the new product would be a success as the economy is growing steadily. Second, the product would be able to pull through the market slowly as the economy is in declining stage and lastly, the product would require time and organizational resources to establish in the market and the intensifying competition and recession in the economy would ultimately lead to product failure. Using scenarios for planning: Based on the scenarios, the managers can plan accordingly. Advantages of scenario analysis Advantages of scenario analysis include Scenario analysis helps management in making most appropriate decisions considering all the available alternatives available. It helps the organization to avoid poor investment decisions. Scenario analysis presents best and worst outcomes that an organization might face in the future, therefore, it allows the organization to be prepared for possible future opportunities and threats. This helps organizations to be proactive instead of being reactive (kmen and ztaÃ…Å ¸ 2015). Drawbacks of scenario analysis One of the major disadvantages of scenario analysis is that it is subjective in nature and its accuracy depends on the capabilities and experience of the planner. Other disadvantage of scenario analysis lies in the fact that it is not possible to accurately predict future scenarios for long-term projects, especially if the project is expected to exceed two or more financial years. Moreover, it is impossible to implement scenario analysis in those conditions where trends change frequently, or some natural disaster or some unprecedented financial events (Chow 2014). Conclusion From the above discussion, it can be concluded that planning tools and techniques plays an important role in formulating and implementing organizations plan. Planning tools helps in scheduling and coordinating various organizational plans and assists managers to ensure that the organizational objectives are effectively accomplished. There are different planning tools that assist managers in the planning process. Some of the most commonly employed planning tool include budgeting and forecasting, PERT network diagrams, Gantt charts, and sensitivity and scenario analysis. Although, all these tools and techniques helps managers in planning, they all serve different purposes and are employed according to the type of project, complexity and organizational needs. Budgeting and forecasting helps in determining future expenses that the organization has to incur to reach its objectives whereas forecasting helps in determining the how these objectives would be achieved. PERT network diagrams he lp managers to identify various activities that have to be undertaken to accomplish a project. It also helps the managers to identify the shortest possible time within which a project can be completed. Moreover, it also helps to establish dependencies between various tasks necessary to successfully complete the project. Gantt charts on the other presents the project milestone in the form of horizontal bar charts. Gantt charts helps in scheduling the project tasks and provides a overall idea about projects progress. Lastly, sensitivity and scenario analysis helps in determining future conditions related to the project and presents various situations that might occur at some point in the future, thereby enabling managers to prepare for such contingencies and select most appropriate course of action. References Acebes, F., Pajares, J., Galn, J.M. and Lpez-Paredes, A., 2014. A new approach for project control under uncertainty. Going back to the basics. International Journal of Project Management, 32(3), pp.423-434. Amer, M., Daim, T.U. and Jetter, A., 2013. A review of scenario planning. Futures, 46, pp.23-40. Baker, K.R. and Trietsch, D., 2013. Principles of sequencing and scheduling. John Wiley Sons. Bozarth, C.B. and Handfield, R.B., 2016. Introduction to operations and supply chain management. Pearson Higher Ed. Browning, T.R., 2014. Managing complex project process models with a process architecture framework. International Journal of Project Management, 32(2), pp.229-241. Burke, R., 2013. Project management: planning and control techniques. New Jersey, USA. Chow, J.Y., 2014. Activityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ Based Travel Scenario Analysis with Routing Problem Reoptimization. Computerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ Aided Civil and Infrastructure Engineering, 29(2), pp.91-106. Dayani, M. and Gelbard, R., 2015. Automatic Conversion of Software Specification into a Gantt-chart subject to Organization's Constraints. Procedia Computer Science, 64, pp.73-78. Deif, A., 2012. Sensitivity analysis in linear systems. Springer Science Business Media. Fang, C. and Marle, F., 2012. A simulation-based risk network model for decision support in project risk management. Decision Support Systems, 52(3), pp.635-644. Gal, T. and Greenberg, H.J. eds., 2012. Advances in sensitivity analysis and parametric programming (Vol. 6). Springer Science Business Media. Goodman, T.H., Neamtiu, M., Shroff, N. and White, H.D., 2013. Management forecast quality and capital investment decisions. The Accounting Review, 89(1), pp.331-365. Hajdu, M. and Bokor, O., 2014. The effects of different activity distributions on project duration in pert networks. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 119, pp.766-775. Hajdu, M., 2013. Effects of the application of activity calendars on the distribution of project duration in PERT networks. Automation in Construction, 35, pp.397-404. Hajdu, M., 2013. Network scheduling techniques for construction project management (Vol. 16). Springer Science Business Media. Hassani, B., 2016. Scenario Analysis in Risk Management: Theory and Practice in Finance. Springer. HazÄ ±r, ., 2015. A review of analytical models, approaches and decision support tools in project monitoring and control. International Journal of Project Management, 33(4), pp.808-815. Heagney, J., 2012. Fundamentals of project management. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn. Hope, J. and Fraser, R., 2013. Beyond budgeting: how managers can break free from the annual performance trap. Harvard Business Press. Kendrick, T., 2013. The project management tool kit: 100 tips and techniques for getting the job done right. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn. Kendrick, T., 2015. Identifying and managing project risk: essential tools for failure-proofing your project. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn. Kerzner, H.R., 2013. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley Sons. Leach, L.P., 2014. Critical chain project management. Artech House. Lee, S., Cho, C., Hong, E.K. and Yoon, B., 2016. Forecasting mobile broadband traffic: Application of scenario analysis and Delphi method. Expert Systems with Applications, 44, pp.126-137. McNeil, A.J., Frey, R. and Embrechts, P., 2015. Quantitative risk management: Concepts, techniques and tools. Princeton university press. kmen, . and ztaÃ…Å ¸, A., 2015. Scenario based evaluation of a cost risk model through sensitivity analysis. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 22(4), pp.403-423. Ong, H.Y., Wang, C. and Zainon, N., 2016. Integrated Earned Value Gantt Chart (EV-Gantt) Tool for Project Portfolio Planning and Monitoring Optimization. Engineering Management Journal, 28(1), pp.39-53. Reiss, G., 2013. Project management demystified: Today's tools and techniques. Routledge. Riol, H. and Thuillier, D., 2015. Project management for academic research projects: balancing structure and flexibility. International Journal of Project Organisation and Management, 7(3), pp.251-269. Sharon, A., de Weck, O. and Dori, D., 2014. Teaching and Assessing Project-Product Lifecycle Management and Gantt Chart Models to Systems Engineers: A Comparative Study. Submitted for publication. Verzuh, E., 2015. The fast forward MBA in project management. John Wiley Sons. Wang, P., 2013. Optimization algorithms of PERT network diagram in software project management system. In Applied Mechanics and Materials (Vol. 321, pp. 2056-2059). Trans Tech Publications. Weglarz, J. ed., 2012. Project scheduling: recent models, algorithms and applications (Vol. 14). Springer Science Business Media. Wyatt, N., 2012. The Financial Times Essential Guide to Budgeting and Forecasting: How to Deliver Accurate Numbers. Pearson. Young, T.L., 2013. Successful project management (Vol. 52). Kogan Page Publishers.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

The Movie “Serpico” and Police Corruption Research Paper Example

The Movie â€Å"Serpico† and Police Corruption Paper The movie, â€Å"Serpico†, (Maas, 1973) was based on a true story about Frank Serpico, a New York police officer who wanted to expose the corruption in law enforcement and went undercover in order to reveal their criminal activity. He is offered a share of the money in which the corrupt officers share and when he refuses to take part in their activity, he is shunned by his fellow officers and they don’t want to work with him and he remains in danger because he chooses to be honest. Serpico understands that the other officers in his force, are likely to place him in a position that is ultimately, life threatening. Al Pacino plays the role of Frank Serpico, in this movie, who was a real life NYPD detective, (Cannan, 1997) who almost died because of his loyalty to his belief that good cops really do exist. Even when Serpico talks to his superiors in his department, he gets nowhere. Police Commissioner, White acted as if he didn’t care about Serpico’s concerns and ignored his plea for help. We will write a custom essay sample on The Movie â€Å"Serpico† and Police Corruption specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Movie â€Å"Serpico† and Police Corruption specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Movie â€Å"Serpico† and Police Corruption specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Serpico was sure that there were as many crooked cops working in New York City, as there were criminals. He remains loyal, throughout the movie, to his strong belief that police officers should be trustworthy, even though it places his own life in imminent danger. When Commissioner White doesn’t help, Serpico took his plea to a New York Times editor. With the scandal being talked about causes the mayor of New York City to conduct an intense investigation; The Knapp Commission, into Frank Serpico’s bold claims. Frank Serpico became a police officer in 1960 when he had faith in law enforcement and thought that criminals were arrested with traditional methods without using excessive force while arresting them. Seeing all the corruption, Serpico wanted to refrain from joining in one the corruption and asks another officer, by the name of Bob Blair, whom he trusts, to help him in his battle against criminal activity within the New York City police force. Eventually, Serpico went to court, in order to expose the corrupt officers who had tried for so long to bring him down. He testified to the fact that he had witnessed the corruption with his own eyes. The definition of corruption is described as â€Å"forbidden acts involving misuse of office for gain.† (Trautman, 1997) Author, Jack Gattanella tells us about the movie, â€Å"Serpico. â€Å" He says, â€Å"The real powerhouse performance by Pacino, thirty years down the line, still one of his finest.† Al Pacino was perfect for the role of Frank Serpico. Pacino depicted Serpico as an honest and good natured cop who only wanted to do the right thing while exposing those officers who weren’t. Global standards to combat corruption in police forces and services, (Interpol, 2007) have a duty to ensure honesty and ethical behavior and should use force in normal boundaries, in police departments. Frank Serpico (U.S. News, 2007) states that, â€Å"Frank Serpico, the former New York City cop who became a symbol for police honesty, lashed out at society’s leaders.† Serpico continues to hold strong to his faith that society can be led by honest individuals who hold police positions. From the very beginning of the story, where Al Pacino is slumped over in his car seat and dripping blood on his car seat, on his way to the hospital to get treatment for his injuries from being shot, the movie is shown as flashbacks in Serpico’s mind as he thinks about his days of being an honest cop, until the end of the story where he is testifying against the corrupt officers who tried to kill him. Police corruption still remains in our society as we read in Daniel J. Shanahan’s book, â€Å"Badges, Bullets and Bars†. (Shanahan, 2006) We learn a firsthand account of police disloyalty on the force as Shanahan tells us about some of his own experiences while being a cop. Frank Serpico was very courageous in his fight to show human decency and honesty in this movie. He left behind guidelines for all officers who work in law enforcement and will always be remembered as an early display of the way cops are supposed to perform in their duties. In today’s society, there still remains corruption in law enforcement but we still do have loyal officers just like Frank Serpico who are truly dedicated to their careers and work toward upholding the proper standards of the law and not getting involved in pocketing money that doesn’t belong to them, while performing acts that are of criminal nature. â€Å"Serpico† proved to be both educational and enlightening about the corruption in New York City police forces.