Thursday, November 28, 2019

Sunday, November 24, 2019

The Trade Deficit Causes and Solutions essays

The Trade Deficit Causes and Solutions essays There is a strong tendency among American politicians and economists to attempt to deal with issues and problems in isolation. Politicians take this approach because they apparent have difficulty dealing with complexity. Economists take this approach so that they can factor troublesome variables out of their equations. One result of the approach of treating issues and problems in isolation is the development of solutions that are ineffective when they are implemented in the real world where isolation from other factors is no longer an option. The tendency to deal with the issue of international trade in isolation has led to policies that tend to make the situation worse rather than better. The United States government (it makes little difference which administration is in control of the White House) likes to play the role of the world's policeman (and it likes to be involved in all disputes). This role is very expensive, but the United States government and United States taxpayers do not like to ask Americans to pay the bill in the form of a balanced budget. A balanced budget would require an increase in taxes, as there is just so much the Congress can squeeze out of services for the poor and the old without bringing the electorate down on them (Gale Therefore, the Congress and the President agree to pay the bill resulting from foreign policy by resorting to deficit spending. Deficit spending on a massive scale by the federal government places the government in direct competition with American businesses and American consumers in the capital markets. The government needs money to fund the budget deficit. American businesses need money to fund new projects. American consumers need money to buy new houses and cars. In the normal course of events, however, there is not enough capital to satisfy all of these needs when the federal government is a massive borr...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Operations Management at Superior Maintenance Services Case Study

Operations Management at Superior Maintenance Services - Case Study Example Through the help of the government agency for technical education and skills development it has developed a manpower training programmeand is considered industry partner for skills development in this sector. With its widespread popularity and good reputation, it has recently diversified its offerings to include marketing and distribution of other organisation's products through joint venture agreements, such as those for restroom odourcounteractant dispensers, floor mats, electronic air cleaners, waterfree urinals, air fresheners, liquid soap dispensers, and rent-a plant services. Business operations at SMS include massive recruitment of potential workers, manpower training, client sourcing, client servicing, manpower deployment and deployed manpower monitoring and supervision, and customer accounting. A full time staff of 30 employees handle administrative services such as accounting and finance, personnel administration, recruitment, marketing and sales, and accounts management through regular coordination by account officers with clients as well as deployed personnel at client premises. According to Slack et al (2004), there are five operations performance objectives: speed, quality, flexibility, dependability or reliability, and efficiency, which includes cost-effectiveness. Speed is the length of time to serve customer orders for products or services, from the moment a customer order is placed up to the time a product or service is delivered. The performance objective of speed is to lessen this length of time. At SMS, speed is a very important objective because normally, a client requests for janitorial or manpower services because of a present and usually urgent need. The ability to serve such requests speedily is critical, otherwise the client may opt to place the order with a competing service provider. To help assure a ready supply of manpower for deployment purposes, continuous recruitment and training is conducted by SMS. Qualified recruits are immediately asked to undergo training to prepare them for immediate deployment as soon as assignments are confirme d with the client. Trainees pay a minimal fee for to cover the cost of materials used during training, consisting of reading materials. At times, some qualified personnel have already joined another organisation. But sine, the manpower pool is large, service delivery times are maintained. The cost of recruitment and training are borne by the company as part of its operating expenses. Quality is the degree to which products and services meet the specifications promised by the organisation to its customers. And to achieve a high and consistent quality, a set of standard procedures must be stringently followed to ensure quality service as well as high-quality products manufactured. In terms of quality service delivery, SMS ensures that the workers it deploys are sufficiently skilled and qualified to perform the services they have to deliver by making them undergo the standard training which is a combination of lectures, demonstrations and hands-on drills and exercises. Moreover, since SMS manufactures its own cleaning solutions, equipment and materials, it has

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Price Analysis for Navigation System Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Price Analysis for Navigation System - Assignment Example Thus, the forecast of the price mainly depends on the price comparison of the competition taking into consideration that this company offers a similar service of the mine. Navigation system fundamental information entails grouping presentation industry chain configuration, which mainly encompasses international analysis, local market breakdown, macroeconomic situation and corresponding economic condition analysis (Murphy, 2009). Moreover, navigation policy and plan in regard to the underlying navigation system product depends on the specification, manufacturing process and underlying cost structure. The fundamental manufacturer of the navigation system volume manufacture cost price, income manufacture worth gross information and corresponding navigation system volume manufacture marketplace share mainly dictates the underlying market share supply demand import export consumption. Navigation system volume manufacture value cost mainly revolves around the value gross margin information. The concepts allowability, allocability and reasonableness in regard to the cost of the navigation system of the Navo tech mainly addresses directly the prevailing legitimacy of the cost charged against the corresponding cost charged on a particular research cost award (Murphy, 2009). Thus, the process of determination of the allowability, allocability and corresponding reasonableness of the prevailing expense is majorly based on particular guidelines of the federal cost principles. Moreover, it is will be dictated by the office of the management and budget of the Navo tech. Reasonable costs are the prevailing price that is normally consistent with the cost a reasonable individual would pay in the similar conditions for the navigation system to the same company producing similar product. Allowable costs are the ones that are utilized in the connection of the navigation system. It is the cost incurred under the budgeted agreement and mainly benefits the

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Reflection in Business Research Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reflection in Business Research - Dissertation Example I could visualize a reality of applying and implementing suitable models, frameworks and theories that I choose and got surprised how I used it to base on realities of social research. According to Peter Jarvis (1995:75), learning from primary experience is essentially obtaining through sense experience. I believe it reaffirms what Weil and McGill’s (1989:3) described in the four ‘villages’ model. I can derive from the Village one my life and work experience at Coventry University drew from my ability to assess and accredit learning. Village two allowed me to focus on experiential learning on the platform of brings change to my perception of business research methods on how to write professional reports. In Village three, I aroused group consciousness of my colleagues as I sought their views regarding preparing administering questionnaires and carrying out interviews. Because of these concepts, I read through them then picked some ideas and implemented them by doi ng the above. In Village four, I came to the realization that I needed to engender personal growth and self awareness in graduate research. It taught me how to take advantage of hidden opportunities in academic institutions of identifying research areas, questions and designing research methodology. I was able to gather data through successful communication with respondents to allow me (source), conduct a knowledgeable conversation with the respondents (receiver), which relayed a message on marketing content (Kolb, 1984). The feedback was outstanding; I effectively executed my research tasks in the business discipline at Coventry University. I feel nurtured to become a distinguished scholar and researcher providing professional trainers, state of the art university facilities and equipment for training. I have felt that I needed to hone my communication and business skills including wring professional reports. With the help of 5Ws strategy, I utilized it to ignite my writing process (Mohan et al, 2008). In the 5Ws (who, what, when, where, and why), I used it as an effective strategy to enhance my creative thinking especially when it comes to writing business reports. In times of difficulty, I requested help from my tutor at the department in the university who assisted in proof reading my work and giving me feedback. I also applied (Mohan et al, 2008), the transition process of communication. In order to be more clear and concise, the set of questions provided by (Emerson, 2009), applied to all my questionnaires work. I also made sure to proofread and edit all my works. It proved to be an effective technique, especially when it came to communicating with Vodafone clients and suppliers. In addition, I developed a habit of applying the 5Ws strategy on every message and email that I write to ensure the key points stand out. According to Kolb’s learning styles, I felt that I was feeling and watching the different customer and product perspectives. I slowly found myself accommodative to the views by feeling and doing aggressive marketing. To improve on communication skills, I employed the communications model (Solomon, Charbonneau, Hughes, Chitty, Marshall and Stuart, 2008), to comprehend how ideas transforms into messages. They are then  relayed from the marketer to the consumer. In assimilating, I conjured the ideals of watching and thinking by updating with the latest business news, through joining online communities and utilizing social networking to make connections. I took the time to understand the operations and functions of Vodafone marketing research department. My strength was always in the willingness to research and investigate new ideas that I felt were beneficial to my tutor. It has helped me to undertake a

Friday, November 15, 2019

Supervision Model for Psychological Assessments

Supervision Model for Psychological Assessments Smith and Harty (1987) were pioneers in providing a model of supervision for conducting psychological assessments. Their model put forth that the supervisor’s responsibility is to ensures that the beginning supervisee accurately score their protocols and help him/her respectively create and order hypotheses by clinical relevance and amount of certainty. Additionally, this model features the supervisor having expectations that the supervisee will individually generate hypotheses while the supervisor judges and double-checks his/her work. The final portion of Smith and Harty’s model entails the supervisor serving as a consultant to the supervisee once the supervisee is competent. Finkelstein and Tuckman (1997) build upon Smith and Harty’s model by adding onto what is typically already done by supervisors (i.e., modeling the behavior of their own mentors when they received supervision in the past). Specifically, Finkelstein and Tuckman outline a model of supervisee development from beginner to expert. The first step for supervisors to teach supervisees is entitled â€Å"Learning the Basics of Test Administration and Scoring.† In this step, the supervisor serves as a â€Å"tour guide† for information found in test manuals (e.g., testing conditions and general scoring rules), teaches â€Å"macro-level scoring† of each test (e.g., calculating IQs, percentiles, and age levels), and emphasizes the pros and cons for each tests and how it can best answer corresponding referral questions. The next step, entitled â€Å"Generating Primary Inferences†, involves extrapolating inferences from all aspects of the assessment process includin g tests, behavioral observations, and relevant history. During this step, the supervisor’s role is to explain the rationale for the generated hypotheses, address how experience aids competence in hypothesis development, and curtail idealization of the supervisor and devaluation of the supervisee’s own abilities. The third step in this model involves clustering related hypotheses. This step involves the supervisor helping the supervisee integrate multiple sources of data into digestible patterns and clusters that will ultimately be documented in an outline that serves to guide the formal report. The fourth step, entitled â€Å"From Outline to the Written Word,† involves the supervisor’s role in helping the supervisee convert the outline into a useful report (e.g., proofreading, suggesting revisions, and preparing supervisee to provide feedback). The fifth stage in this model, entitled â€Å"Internalizing Diagnostic Norms,† is designed for more advanced students who have mastered basic assessment skills and are in need of more â€Å"content knowledge.† Specifically, the supervisor’s role in this stage involves ensuring exposure to a wide variety of assessment questions and helping the supervisee recognize patterns and deviations in test results and specific patient populations. The sixth stage encourages autonomy and promotes consultation when there is less need for direct guidance. The authors state that supervisors need to be aware that this stage often involves a â€Å"dynamic tension† between autonomy and dependence for the supervisee. The sixth stage involves the supervisor encouraging complete autonomy for the supervisee, which typically occurs after one has obtained his/her license and will be generating reports independently. The final stage in this model involves the former supervisor help ing the former supervisee transition into becoming a supervisor for the next generation and serving as a consultant throughout this life-long process. Regarding the take home message for their model, Finkelsten and Tuckman proclaim that this interpersonal and intrapersonal process should produces supervisee that are able to master assessment by integrating â€Å"all the various and diverse introjects from past supervisors into a unique self (p. 95).† Yalof and Abraham (2009) summarize core supervisory considerations and promote an integrative approach to supervision that is aimed to strengthen psychological report writing and improve preinternship preparation for psychology graduate students. The first area these authors address is regarding assessment competency and citing the foundational skills in assessment education and training (e.g., psychometrics, theory) outlined in the 2002 Psychological Assessment Work Group (PAWG: Krishnamurthy et al., 2004). Next, the authors describe the various developmental stages that supervisees evolve from and outline several markers that are used to define â€Å"assessment† competency. From this point, Yalof and Abraham go into greater detail regarding multicultural supervision. Specifically, they encourage supervisors to help supervisees address differences in cultural background and determine if assessment measures are culturally sensitive (Allen, 2007) as well as discuss the importan ce of attending to personal and community histories (Hernà ¡ndez, 2008). Next, Yalof and Abraham advise supervisors to help supervisees consider ethical applications and acculturation in assessment. Furthermore, the authors cite the APA Ethical principles and standards (2002) as a good starting point for supervisees to develop their own ethical identity. Furthermore, the supervisor needs to address how the supervisee should best adapt different learning strategies that will promote greater integration within the practice of psychological assessment (Handelsman, Gottlieb, Knapp, 2008). Next, Yalof and Abraham spell out seven supervisory techniques that draw upon extant literature to promote growth in assessment supervisees. The first technique involves providing information related to ethical practice in assessment including risk management strategies (e.g., documentation, informed consent, consultation). The next technique involves emphasizing the skills that correspond with rapport building and diagnostic interviewing. The third technique suggests that supervisees be provided with extra practice activities (e.g., scoring protocols, reading sample reports, critiquing reports) that will further their respective competency. The fourth technique advises supervisees to conduct a literature review regarding the referral question to become more familiarized. The fifth technique promotes supplemental peer supervision as it promotes collegiality, socialization, and a collaborative learning environment for learners. The sixth technique suggests that the unconscious influen ces between the client, supervisee, and supervisor that occur throughout an assessment explicitly be explored. Finally, the supervisor needs to encourage and promote critical thinking skills corresponding to which ever developmental stage the supervisee is currently in. Yalof and Abraham recommend Johnson-Laird’s typology of thought (e.g., inductive thinking, associative thinking, creative thinking, and self-reflective thinking) to help guide supervision. The final portion of this article features a case illustration to demonstrate how supervisory probes encourage growth and development for the supervisee. The take home message for this article revolves around the supervisor’s ability to most effectively intervene in the supervisee’s cases. Specifically, Yalof and Abraham propose that the supervisor needs to thoughtfully and instructively probe the supervisee throughout the assessment process to maximize conceptual, critical, and creative thinking regarding the client. References Allen, J. (2007). A multicultural assessment supervision model to guide research and practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 38(3), 248-258. doi: 10.1037/0735-7028.38.3.248 American Psychological Association. (2002). Ethical standards and code of conduct. American Psychologist, 57, 1060-1073. Finkelstein, H., Tuckman, A. (1997). Supervision of psychological assessment: A developmental model. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 28(1), 92-95. doi: 10.1037/0735-7028.28.1.92 Handelsman, M. M., Gottlieb, M. C., Knapp, S. (2008). Training ethical psychologists: An acculturation model. In D. N. Bersoff D. N. Bersoff (Eds.), Ethical conflicts in psychology (4th ed.). (pp. 122-127). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association. Hernà ¡ndez, P. (2008). The cultural context model in clinical supervision. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 2(1), 10-17. doi: 10.1037/1931-3918.2.1.10 Smith, W. H., Harty, M. K. (1987). Issues in the supervision of diagnostic testing. In R. H. Dana, W. T. May, R. H. Dana W. T. May (Eds.), Internship training in professional psychology. (pp. 410-418). Washington, DC, US: Hemisphere Publishing Corp. Yalof, J., Abraham, P. (2009). An integrative approach to assessment supervision. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 73(3), 188-202. doi: 10.1521/bumc.2009.73.3.188

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Personal Narrative - The Day the Police Came for Me :: Personal Narrative

The Day the Police Came for Me The door opened and in walked the hated vice-principal of my high school, who walked straight up to my 3rd hour English teacher and whispered something into his ear. They both turned and looked in my direction. I stared back blankly, wondering why they were looking at me. Through an undoubtedly bad experience in high school, I learned a very valuable lesson about life, people, and events. Mr. Burton, also the "dean of discipline", asked me to take my things and come with him. I obeyed as my mind scanned itself over and over to think of what I had done. I had always been a good kid in school, had always received at least honor roll or principal’s list every quarter since elementary school, and never got in trouble. Yet, here I was riding with the vice-principal in his golf cart through the rows of cars in the student parking lot, until he stopped behind mine. We got out and then he asked me to open my trunk, and then asked a very confusing and ridiculous question at the time, "Do you have a gun or any other weapon in your vehicle?" I almost laughed at him, and then stopped, realizing I did have a pellet gun I accidentally left in my car. How he knew or why he cared I didn’t know, so I said "Yeah I have a b.b. gun under the front passenger seat," as I reached under and grabbed it for him. We then proceeded to his office, where a police officer was waiting for me. They then informed me then of what the incident was about. The day before, like I always do, I usually take home about three or four friends in my car. That day, there happened to be about five or six people who wanted a ride. However, me being a nice guy and kind of gullible, and them being my friends, I couldn’t say no. So we crammed about three or four people in the backseat, one in the passenger seat, and one in the trunk. It was not a very wise decision to let my crazy friend Chris ride in the trunk with it open. I had left my b.b. gun in there by accident one day when I was bringing it to a friend’s house. Chris found it as we were driving down the road, so he opened the trunk up and pointed the gun at cars driving behind us.