Consider the taxation of benefits in kind for employees in the UK, Essay

Consider the taxation of benefits in kind for employees in the UK, should benefits in kind be taxed at all To what extent does - Essay Example This monetary value is included in the total earnings of the employee and then taxed accordingly. There has been a debate whether benefits in kind should be taxed or not. Taxing such benefits is essential because employees cannot be allowed to have numerous benefits but low salaries so that they are taxed less. However, the same can prove to be very unfair when an employee is provided with a one-time benefit in kind and he has to pay too much tax as a result. Another problem arises when an employee is provided with a benefit in kind which is clearly of a great value but is not taxed u/s 62 because it cannot be converted into something having monetary value. Valuation can be very tricky for some articles and it can end up relieving the employee of tax liability for the benefit hence giving him an unfair advantage. There have been numerous cases which had to be settled in court due to the confusion of valuation. The courts have a history of deciding theses cases while remaining within the confines of S 62. This section seems inadequate and unfair on occasions where an accommodation can go untaxed but a mere provision of a suit is taxed because one can be valued and the other cannot. In order to be fair, the valuation system is required to be adequate and broader in scope. Another problem is that the benefit code does not apply to lower paid employees. The lower paid employees are defined in such a way that can include those employees who are not actually lower paid. According to S 217(1), a lower paid employee is one who has an earning rate of less than ?8,500. By the inclusion of benefits obtained under the benefit code, many employees, who have the monetary earnings rate of less than ?8,500, do not fall in the definition of lower paid employees. However, when employees hold benefits of great values, which are such that are not convertible to something having a monetary benefit, the employees fall in the definition of lower paid employees and become exempt from the benefits code. This is a huge problem which can only be solved by broadening the scope of S 62 and the valuation system. Section 64 is also of importance as it deals with the relationship between earnings and benefits code. There may be a case that a single benefit is provided to an employee but it gives rise to both an amount treated as earnings and an amount to be treated as earnings under the benefit code. Section 64(2) provides that in such a case, the amount that is constituted as earnings is to be treated as earnings, and only that portion of the second amount is to be treated as earning under the benefits code which exceeds the first amount. This section actually attempts to avoid the double taxation of a benefit if it falls both under S 62 and S 63. It is not a bad idea to tax such benefits in this way but there can be another way that is simpler to understand. Such benefit could also have been taxed entirely under the benefit code system. This would not have brought any changes to the resulting revenue but it would have been a better tax due to its simplicity. The underlying principle of having the benefit code system is very fair. This system is designed to make employees accountable for their perquisites. However, this system has many loopholes which allow avoidance of tax. Also, employees are also open to the danger of paying more tax than the fair amount. As mentioned above, most of the problems are created by the valuation process. Another problem arises in cases of benefits

Pursuing Growth Opportunities in Business Sector Personal Statement

Pursuing Growth Opportunities in Business Sector - Personal Statement Example As far as my family background is concerned, I was the first in my family to complete a college education, not because I was smart, but because it was my ambition and I was passionate about it. For instance, I took advantage of the available opportunities in pursuit of my dream to become a patriotic soldier who would contribute to prosperity and well – being of my beloved nation. During my tenure at military quarters, I came across with hundreds of new things and worked with thousands of personnel from diverse cultural backgrounds and life experiences. I learned a lot in those years because I had to even work with many military officers; no matter I disliked them from the core of my heart. Nevertheless, patience and tolerance was the biggest lesson I received in the past 30 years in the military. I also pay tribute to my mother and am thankful to my siblings who laid the foundation in my life. My dearest mother and beloved siblings always trained, endorsed and motivated me to make my own decisions with confidence and to never get scared from any extremely challenging and tough assignments or jobs. Indeed, she portrayed a life of Godly and steady fast character. That was what I saw in her throughout life, which in fact, made the difference more than what she communicated and presented to me. My family members taught me not to just become a woman of success, ra ther a woman of value and character who is always extolled and commended. Apart from my dream to become an exalted army officer, I was also interested in university education, more specifically the business studies. I initially had plans to join a business school for a Masters in Business Administration (after college) but then I postponed the idea after multiple growth opportunities in the military. However, the lust and ever-rising internal desire for MBA compelled me to take retirement from the army after 31 years of service and active participation in the stability  of the USA.

Organization and Behavior Essay Example for Free

Organization and Behavior Essay 1. Understand the Relationship between Organizational Culture and Structure 1.1. Compare and contrast three different organizational structures and cultures. The long term success and failure of every company depends on its structure – no matter how vague it may sound, structure of a company decides where the company will be in the near future. The three types of structures are: Functional structure – under this kind of structure, the company is divided into different groups, who are then assigned different tasks – like the accounts, the sales and admin, and the marketing departments. Divisional structure – this kind of structure is followed by companies with huge geographical area coverage. Each part of the area has a smaller division within the same umbrella group. Matrix structure – this is a combination of both the divisional and functional structures, and operates upon theories imported from these two structures. But, this structure is associated with ego clashes among the top positions, and power clashes. The different kinds of organizational cultures are as follows: Power culture: organizations following this kind of culture may be able to respond to crisis very quickly, but the problem is that the system is very centralized. This kind of culture relies heavily upon people rather than committees (Harris, 1994). Role culture – position is main criteria in the role culture. The organization is controlled by senior management at the top of the pyramid, and the system is also highly formalized. Task culture – this type of culture is practiced more often by organizations with a matrix structure. Main emphasis in this structure is given to completion of tasks. It strongly believes in the unified power of a team (Harris, 1994). 1.2. The relationship between an organization’s structure and culture There is a very strong relation between organizational structure and its culture, as only the perfect match of the two factors will lead to a good working environment in office. At TESCOS, as a store manger, it is  definitely a priority to look at the kind of attitude and behavior the employees are having, and how clean and suitable the culture is. If the structure of a company id hierarchical, with all the decisions being made at the top, the employees will have no or less freedom, and there will lack of autonomy at the lower level of the pyramid. On the other hand, if the power is divided between all the sections, the company culture will be lot more friendly, with the employees at all levels enjoying equal freedom (Parker, 2000). 1.3. Overview of four factors that can influence individual behavior at the Irish TESCOS Environment – more emphasis put on building a friendly and mutual environment in the workspace will ensure that team work and productivity of the company increases. Technology – the better the prevailing technology at the core of the company, the lesser the employees will have to work, and hence, better streamlined workflow and productivity can be ensured. Locus of control – employees who have an external locus of control will constantly criticize people, find faults, and also depend on others for their success. On the other hand, people with internal locus of control think that their own destiny is in their own hands. Customer Demand – though and external factor, but it is to be noted, that the more the demand, the more the sales, and greater the growth of the company (Parker, 2000). Task-2 2. Understand the Relationship between Organizational Culture and Structure 2.1. Compare three different leadership styles for three different business  organizations Leaders are different, and so are their leadership styles. Leaders are meant to motivate their team, and hence, leadership styles sculpt the outlook of the staffs. Here are the various leadership styles: Laissez Faire – in this kid of leadership style, the leaders allow a certain level of freedom is given to the staff, and trained directors are appointed to coordinate efficiently between the high level managers and the working staff (Antonakis et al, 2004). Autocratic style – under this style of leadership, the leaders keep an eye on the employees at all time, and face time is increased. There are a lot of arguments over this style of leadership, as there exists no or little freedom for the employees, and they sometimes find it extremely uncomfortable to work under these situations. But when practiced in a controlled manner, this style can be effective, especially under tight deadlines (Antonakis et al, 2004). Participative – This is a good balanced style, and a mix of both the autocratic and Laissez Faire styles. This gives a little bit of freedom to the employees, while the managers are still around supervising at all times. 2.2. How organizational theory underpins the practice of management for the Irish TESCOS In the Irish TESCOS scenario, organizational theory has a vital role to play. The authenticity and practicality of organizational theory has been questioned by many modern scholars, but the fact remains that these theories underpin and supports the stability of an organization. These theories, apart from helping the managers to find out the prevailing problems in the company, also help them to find the right method to deal with the problem, and ultimately solve it. There are a lot of these theories – they have been created in different  periods, with different economic and socio economic conditions – and the real art for managers’ lies in finding the best method out of these, and applying them in the present context. Some of these theories may seem to be obsolete these days in the age of ever changing technology, but it is to be understood that they form the base and foundation of companies across the world. 2.3. Evaluate four different approaches to management used by different organizations. The four different managerial approaches are as follows: Participative- Under this approach, the managers discusses and collaborates with his team managers about the decision making process. [pic] Bureaucratic- Bureaucratic is opposite to participative process, where the manager forces the team members to follow strict rules, and to obey a chain of commands (Tittemore, 2003). Autocratic – An autocratic manager is almost a ‘dictator’ who supervises his people at all steps and ensures job is done at the right time. Hands off approach- This is the friendliest approach of all, where the manager gives complete freedom to his men in all respects (Sapru, 2008). Task-3 3. Understand ways of using motivational theories in organizations 3.1. How different leadership styles impact employee motivation in periods of change Periods of change are often the periods when crisis happens. Hence, good leadership techniques are to be adopted by the leaders to protect the company from sudden jerks. Here are the most commonly practiced leadership  styles: Autocratic – managers following this style will never allow the team members to contribute towards the decision making process, and will try to establish huge confidence towards their own decisions. Democratic – totally opposite to autocratic style of leadership, when special attention is paid to what the team members think. The point of views of the employees is hence at least heard before making the final decision. Quiet – in this process of decision making highly trained employees are recruited by the manger, and then leaves day to day decision making to them, as he remains ‘quiet’. Transformational – as the name suggests, the manager practicing this method tries to encourage and motivate his team about the bright future of the company, and hence tries to extract more productive work from them (Robbins and Judge, 2008). 3.2. Identify the application of three different motivational theories within the workplace. Listed below are three different motivational theories: Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs – Maslow states that human needs can be graphically represented as a pyramid, and they move from the bottom to the top; as the needs at the bottom are satisfied, man focuses on the next need at the top. These needs range from love needs, social needs, to self actualization (Maccoby, 1998). Carrot Stick – this theory was coined by Bentham, and explains that human is motivated by either of the two forces – fear or incentives. Either he will work to fulfill his money, security and other material needs, or he will work due to pressure and fear. The motivation – hygiene theory – this theory was introduced by Herzberg in 1959, and stresses on the fact that employee satisfaction and dissatisfaction is caused by some ‘hygiene factors’ (Maccoby, 1998). 3.3. The usefulness of a motivation theory for managers at the TESCOS in Ireland. Companies like the TESCOS do rely on their employees for not only production, but also for proper distribution and even product quality control. But to get exceptional performances from them it is required for the managers to provide proper motivational incentives. Motivational theories can help the TESCOS managers to properly motivate their employees and provide them proper job roles for increased productivity. Organizational Management – organizations use motivational theories to promote favorable working conditions at the organizational and departmental levels. Rewards – The reward system takes a lot from the expectancy theory, and helps motivating the employees to work even harder, as they see their work being appreciated. Perception of the employees in the equity theory, it ca be learnt that employees perceive the rewards given to them in exchange of the work that they need to do. When the perception and actual incentive matches, the employee gets motivated to perform better in the future (Robbins and Judge, 2008). Productivity – a lot of company incorporate goal setting as a fine tool to increase the productivity level of the employees. Task-4 4. Understand mechanisms for developing effective teamwork in organizations 4.1. Explain the nature of groups and group behavior within organizations. A group may be defined as a collection of individuals who have similar aims and are set to achieve the same goal. Groups are mainly of two types: Formal Groups – these groups are designed by companies, and each group is assigned different and specific tasks. Informal groups – these are groups formed by individuals themselves. Hence, they are not properly arranged, and not at all structured (Butler 1986). Groups are formed over a series of steps. They are: Forming – the initial stage of group formation. In this stage, the resources and other details required to form the group are procured. Storming – much like ‘brain storming’, in this stage, the individuals in each group challenge and try to find answers. Conflicts are common in this stage. Norming – in this stage, all conflicts are resolved, as the answers to the questions asked by the members are found. Performing – in this stage, coordination, and team work starts taking place between the different team members, and they start becoming a single unit. 4.2. Factors that may promote the development of effective teamwork in organizations The factors that can improve teamwork are: Good leadership – A good leader ca motivate his men in performing better and reaching greater heights. Hence, leadership is a factor that should never be underestimated. Leaders are adept in different theories and motivational methods, and the best leaders are those who can take spontaneous decisions (Parker, 2000).. Diversity – good teamwork develops as and when the members embrace diversity in terms of age, sex, religion and culture. Communication – if communication is strong among all the team members, everyone will be on the same page, and will also be equally informed. Great communication is the key to effective team building. Team Building Exercises – proper training is to provided for effective team building; and the training is to provided with the help of professionals who can indulge the team in proper drills and exercises. 4.3. Impact of technology on team functioning within TESCOS in Ireland. In the modern era, no organization can work without upgrading to the latest technological trends. Technology not only makes sure that the employees have to work less, but also ensures that the results are always accurate, and there is no repetition of jobs. While emails can help the employees to communicate with themselves and the third parties, devises like the Blackberry and Smart phones enable them to properly communicate. Teleconferencing allows the team to communicate over distances effectively without being physically present there. And of course, computers are, the more advanced, the better. Not only TISCOS, but every company these days understand of the important role that technology plays, and hence have started to upgrade to the latest technological updates. References Antonakis, J., Cianciolo, A. T. and Sternberg, R. J., 2004. The Nature of Leadership. New York: Sage Publications, Inc. Butler Jr., J.K., 1986. A global view of informal organization. Academy of Management Journal, 51, 3, 39-43. Harris, S. G., 1994. Organizational Culture and Individual Sensemaking: A Schema-Based Perspective. Organization Science, Vol. 5,(3): pp. 309–321. Maccoby, M., 1998. Why Work: Motivating and Leading the New Generation. New York: Simon Schuster. Parker, M., 2000. Organizational Culture and Identity. London: Sage. Robbins, S. and Judge, T., 2008. Essentials of Organizational Behavior. 9thEd, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Sapru, R.K., 2008. Administrative Theories and Management Thought. New Delhi: Prentice-Hall of India Private Limited, p 276 Tittemore, J. A., 2003. Leadership at all Levels. Canada: Boskwa Publishing.

Critical Analysis of Organisational Change Development and Management

Critical Analysis of Organisational Change Development and Management INTRODUCTION Sometime in the 5th century BC, Heraclitus of Ephesus philosophised the only constant is change. (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Heraclitus). All organisations go through change as they develop and evolve, whether to success or to failure. This essay will look at two companies as they go they go through change, planned and unplanned, their approach and the extent to which they succeeded and applying organisation development and change theory to these two case studies. Organisational change is a recurring theme in the study of organisational development there are several factors, internally and externally, that will influence the development of the organisation, initiating a change which may, or may not, lead to success and sustainability. How the change is implemented is essential to its success as it often impacts one, if not all, areas of the organisation. Early change management theorists include: Kurt Lewin (1951). Doug Stace and Dexter Dunphy (2001) identify organisations which they describe as prudent mechanistics, which retain traditional structures, avoid the organisational fashion show, and perform well. (Buchanen, p566). Harold Leavitt (2003) argues that, while rigid beaurocratic structures encourage authoritarianism, distrust, dishonest, territoriality, toadying, and fear, they also provide ways of handling complexity, give us structure and predictability, and offer psychological rewards by fulfilling needs for order and security. It is argued that the study of change is paradoxical (Buchanan, 565) as the reasons for organisational change are many and complex and because change is a process not a static moment in time, hence can be only understood in relation to continuity. Not all change needs to be deep change it can be a fine tuning to an appropriate response. Transformational change of the Australian Defence Force. The companies were chosen because other their organisational similarities. Company A Company B Similarities Large > 20,000 Reactive International Public Sector Strong corporate culture Founded 1921 Large >20,000 Reactive International Public Sector Strong corporate culture Founded 1922 Differences Australia 90s Organisational structure Approach to change England 00s Organisational structure Approach to change Scope: PESTEL Organisational behaviour terrain. Study this at the organisational level. This essay is not going to examine the group or individual level. Australia has maintained military forces since federation as a nation in January 1901. Upon Federation, the Australian Government established the  Australian Army  and Commonwealth Naval Force. In 1909, the Government established the  Royal Australian Navy, which absorbed the Commonwealth Naval Force. The Army established the Australian Flying Corps in 1912 although this separated to form the  Royal Australian Air Force  in 1921. The services were not linked by a single chain of command, as they each reported to their own separate Minister and had separate administrative arrangements. The three services saw action around the world during  World War I  and  World War II. The importance of  joint warfare  was made clear to the Australian Military during World War II when Australian naval, ground and air units frequently served as part of single commands. Following the war, several senior officers lobbied for the appointment of a  commander in chief  of the three services. The government rejected this proposal and the three services remained fully independent.[13]  The absence of a central authority resulted in poor coordination between the services with each service organising and operating on the basis of a different  military doctrine.[14] The need for an integrated command structured received more emphasis during  the Australian militarys experiences in the Vietnam War.[14]  In 1973, the Secretary of the  Department of Defence,  Arthur Tange, submitted a report to the  Government  that recommended the unification of the separate departments supporting each service into a single Department of Defence and the creation of the post of Chief of the Defence Force Staff. The government accepted these recommendations and the Australian Defence Force was established on 9 February 1976.[15] The  British Broadcasting Corporation  (BBC) is the principal  public service broadcaster  in the United Kingdom. It is the largest broadcaster in the world with about 23,000 staff.[1][2][3]  Its global headquarters are located in London, and its main responsibility is to provide  public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom,  Channel Islands  and  Isle of Man. The BBC is an autonomous public service broadcaster[3]  that operates under a  Royal Charter.[4]  Within the United Kingdom its work is funded principally by an annual  television licence fee,[5]  which is charged to all United Kingdom households, companies and organisations using any type of equipment to record and/or receive live television broadcasts;[6]  the level of the fee is set annually by the  British Government  and agreed by  Parliament.[7] he BBC was the worlds first national broadcasting organisation[8]  and was founded on 18 October 1922 as the  British Broadcasting Co mpany Ltd. The original company was founded in 1922[9]  by a group of six telecommunications companies-Marconi, Radio Communication Company,  Metropolitan-Vickers,  General Electric,  Western Electric, and  British Thomson-Houston[10]-to broadcast experimental radio services. The first transmission was on 14 November of that year, from station  2LO, located at Marconi House, London.[11] Outside the UK, the  BBC World Service  has provided services by direct broadcasting and re-transmission contracts by sound radio since the inauguration of the BBC Empire Service in December 1932, and more recently by television and online. Though sharing some of the facilities of the domestic services, particularly for news and current affairs output, the World Service has a separate Managing Director, and its operating costs are funded mainly by direct grants from the UK government. These grants are determined independently of the domestic licence fee. How do organisations change why do they change. How change is implemented, their impact and their success factors? Two organisations will be compared and contrasted against the various theories, their similarities being that they are both large and complex organisations whose purpose is to serve the public. Initition What are the triggers for change? Why did the organisation have to change. Organisational life cycle (Greiner L) Mintzberg types of change possible step change (company 1) Elements of change : Whipp, Rosenfeld and Pellige The Change Kaleidescope Bolgrum, Barly Whitepaper 1986 Organisational behaviour terrain. Types of change planned and unplanned Strategy Safari Punctuated equilibrium Organisational structure Cultural Era Implementation Strategic Elements of change (Whipp) Levels of change Change Kaleidescope Factors faciliting change Levels of change Wilson, D Forces for change, Lewin K (disagree in co1 cas but potentially for co 2) Total quality management nstep process : c1 y c2 elements of Resistance to change bellelan co1 n long terms, c2 yes short-term bursts Managing resistance : Kotter Co1 yes, co2 no The coping cycle Kublar-Rosser co2 yes ; n/a to company 1 Factors facilitating change Yes co1 2 but co2 fainlied in mid-implementation Unless structure follows strategy, inefficiency results. (Chandler 1962: 314) Impact Contingency approaches Dunphy and Stacy : Yes can be applied to both Effectiveness of change strategy The change kaleidoscope (culture leadership) Time Preservation Capability Scope diversity Organisational structure- tie into first part (initiation) Organisational culture- tie into first part (initiation) Efficiency Resistance 5 types of organisational structure : Mintzberg Divisional Form, mechanistic 1982 : Peters and Waterman in search of excellence Mckinney 7 steps Elements of change context : Economic Political ? Organisational effiveness/ development maturity? Transformational Political and economic forces Restructure of organisation Culture Organisational design IT communciation Conclusion: Bluprint for change One must consider the culture re: effectiveness and how deep it is to go Contigiency Approach Lawrence and lorsh structure depends on factors from the environment. Contingencey Theories : imprecise specification of factors such as environment Ashridge leadership and management BPR radical decentralisation BBC petal. The management of innovation burns stalk mechanistic Æ’Â   organic The Australian Defence Organisation (ADO) has an enduring strategic priority is to keep Australia and the Australian people safe from attack or the threat of attack, and from economic or political coercion. To meet this requirement, the Defence Department employs a full time workforce of over 92,000 personnel consisting of both uniformed Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and civilian Australian Public Service (APS) personnel. The Defence Environmental Scan 2025, identified that the Defence Organisations workforce consists of an ADF with 50,600 full time members and 20,600 Defence Public Servants. In addition, the ADF has 21,000 Active Reserve members.2 2. As a whole, the Defence workforce is responsible for delivering the range of defence outcomes required by Government. While the military and civilian components of the Defence Organisation are required to contribute collectively to the achievement of these Government objectives, the management of the Defence workforce is currently stovepiped along ADF and APS lines, with limited consideration of the workforce as a total resource. Scope. This essay will examine the theories current Defence workforce structure across the ADF and APS. It will consider the potential disadvantages of the current stovepiped separation of ADF and APS personnel management, and examine the merits of moving towards an integrated and total Defence workforce. It will explore the potential benefits of increasing the number of contested positions available to ADF and APS members, particularly in middle and senior management. ONE DEPARTMENT TWO WORKFORCE COMPONENTS Experience and Opportunity 7. The Department of Defence is consistently praised for its success in the planning and conduct of military operations, while also being criticised for failings in its corporate and strategic management. This somewhat paradoxical situation is in part a result of the Defence Departments personnel management processes, where on one hand significant effort and resources are applied to ensure that ADF personnel are adequately educated, trained and prepared for roles they are likely to undertake within the Defence Organisation, while within the APS, individuals are expected to undertake any task without subject matter expertise or professional qualification.6 8. The structured and formalised ADF approach underpins a culture where the importance of experience and professional development are valued and built into career pathways. The APS personnel management approach is not supported by the appropriate personnel structures or management mechanisms required to enable this development. While ADF senior commanders understand and expect ADF personnel to be released from mainstream responsibilities at certain times during their career to meet professional development milestones, the APS management framework does not offer senior managers this flexibility. The APS workforce structure provides limited ability to backfill APS staff undertaking formalised professional development and as such, it is very difficult for senior APS managers to release personnel for extended periods professional development and education. 9. The lack of opportunities for professional development in the APS is compounded by the relative inexperience of the APS workforce when compared to their ADF counterparts. This inexperience has been exacerbated by the accelerated promotion of individuals in recent years as a byà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ product of the rapid growth in civilian numbers.7 A comparison of the relative experience levels of senior and middle management in the Defence Organisation shows that 27 %of all APS Senior Executive Service (SES) staff are under the age of 45 and 26 %of Executive Level 2 (EL 2) staff are below the age of 40.8 For ADF members, the minimum period of commissioned service for promotion to one star rank is approximately 23 years, with a minimum of 20 years service required before being eligible for promotion to colonel equivalent rank. The accelerated progression to middle and senior management in the APS limits the time and opportunity for staff to pursue professional development and education for civilian personnel is very much an exception rather than a rule. A TOTAL AND INTEGRATED WORKFORCE Workforce Integration 11. The Chief of the Defence Force and Secretary are currently focussed on moving the Defence Departments people management in a more strategic direction so we [Defence] can better recruit and retain the talent we need to meet the security challenges of the future.11 To meet these challenges, the Defence Department will require a people management framework that draws together the capabilities of the current personnel resources available to the Department more effectively. Key to this approach is breaking down the culture of stovepiped management of ADF and APS personnel. A move to a more integrated workforce management framework, that selects the most experienced and qualified candidate from across the Defence Organisation for particular appointments, would provide significant benefits to the Department. 12. While acknowledging that certain areas of the Defence business requires a degree of specialisation, particularly in the ADF for the planning and conduct of operations and the APS in the delivery of specialist services, there is a great deal of scope for a more integrated approach to personnel management across large sectors of the Department. This is particularly the case across middle and senior management within the Department at the EL 1à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ lieutenant colonel (05) equivalent level and above, where the requirement for specialisation is often not as important as a sound knowledge of the broader functioning of Defence. 14. In relation to the ADF, an integrated workforce would significantly improve the capacity of the Defence Organisation to better leverage the experience and skills of ADF members. ADF members detailed knowledge and skills gained through experience in a variety of operational and nonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ operational appointments, and structured professional development, can be applied in a range of areas within Defence. For ADF members, an integrated approach would provide increased career opportunities for the large majority of ADF officers who currently find themselves with limited options midà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ career. Achieving Improved Effectiveness and Efficiency 15. An integrated personnel management framework and the corresponding improvement in experience and professional development across middle management within the Department would provide considerable scope and opportunity for senior management to consider delegating additional responsibility to a more capable middle management group. This would assist in focussing the decision space of senior management on the strategic direction of the Defence Organisation as opposed to the more routine issues currently consuming their limited time. The empowerment of middle management would also provide increased job satisfaction, leading to improved productivity and retention. This is a significant benefit in an environment where the Defence Organisation is aggressively competing to recruit and retain the best. 16. The introduction of an integrated workforce will require cultural change within both the ADF and APS. There will need to be an acceptance that the lines of accountability for personnel issues to the Secretary for APS members and CDF for ADF personnel will become less clear. The personnel management framework will need to move away from a differing model for the APS and ADF to a more integrated management system, particularly in the area of middle and senior management. The recent appointment of a human resource management professional into the role of Deputy Secretary People Strategies and Policy, provides a real opportunity to realign personnel management across Defence. 17. To assist in this process, a review of all middle and senior management positions from EL 1à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ 05 equivalent and above is required. The review should focus on identifying which positions are suitable to be classified as contestable between APS and ADF members. With an understanding of the nature and scale of these contestable positions, an overarching management structure that incorporates both APS and ADF senior and middle managers can be developed. This overarching approach requires Defence senior and middle management personnel to be centrally managed to best meet Defenceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ wide requirements. For this approach to be successful, the Departments personnel numbers would need to be managed in a more flexible manner, with a move away from separate ADF and APS caps, towards an overarching cap on total Defence employees. 18. There are many examples within industry and other Government agencies where personnel with diverse skills and backgrounds are managed as a total resource. Studies of these approaches would be of benefit when developing a revised framework for the Defence Organisation. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has addressed these issues very effectively and achieved a wellà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ integrated workforce incorporating both sworn and unsworn officers. Defence should consider using the AFP experience as a case study on how to integrate differing elements into a total workforce. CONCLUSION (Substantial conclusions are drawn about the implications of the analysis for theory and practice) 19. The Defence Department can no longer afford a stovepiped approach to workforce management and must move towards greater integration between the ADF and APS components where the total personnel resources of the Department can be applied to achieve best affect. A move to a more integrated workforce, particularly in the areas of middle and senior management would have significant benefits for the individual APS and ADF members and the Department as a whole. It would provide opportunities to build mechanisms and flexibility into APS personnel management to enable increased professional development and enhanced experience levels. This will improve the job satisfaction and overall employability of APS members both within the Defence Department and the wider APS. For ADF members, greater workforce integration will provide improved career opportunities for the majority of experienced and qualified personnel who, under the current construct have limited career options once they reach the mid career point. This will have significant benefit for ADF retention. 20. A more integrated workforce would provide a framework that ensures the most qualified and experienced personnel from across the entire Department are identified for appointments at the middle and senior management level. Increased integrated can only improve overall workforce effectiveness and efficiency as the Defence Organisation confronts the complex security challenges of the future. RECOMMENDATIONS (Detailed, relevant and considered recommendations for practice are offered).In developing a total and integrated Defence workforce the following is recommended: TQM-What Is It?   If you are reading this book, it is likely that you already know what we mean when we use the term Total Quality Management. Still, its a good idea to define the term, and provide a brief overview.   Certainly TQM can be defined in a number of ways, and the details of different approaches can vary somewhat. However, a good starting definition, drawn from Capezio Morehouse is:   Total Quality management refers to a management process and set of disciplines that are coordinated to ensure that the organization consistently meets and exceeds customer requirements. TQM engages all divisions, departments and levels of the organization. Top management organizes all of its strategy and operations around customer needs and develops a culture with high employee participation. TQM companies are focused on the systematic management of data of all processes and practices to eliminate waste and pursue continuous improvement.    Perhaps a better way of understanding TQM is to compare a TQM organization with what we might call a traditional organizations. tets look at a number of differences.   1. Customer-Driven vs. Company-Driven   Traditional organizations tend to make their decisions based on what is most convenient for them, rather than what is wanted and expected by their customers. Being customer-based means gatf7ering information from customers/clients and modifying services and processes to meet those needs as well as possible. In government, this is not always easy, due to the conflicting responsibilities of a department, and the multiple customers/stakeholders involved in government situations. However, in many cases moving to a customer-driven organization can yield many positive results for government departments.   2. Long-Term vs. Short-Term Orientation   Traditional organizations tend to think and plan with respect to short term outcomes, white TQM organizations tend to think in much larger time spans. A typical example might be that a TQM organization would look at downsizing as having effects over a decade or two, while a traditional organization would look only at the immediate budgetary issues, letting future chips fall where they may.   Also, successful TQM organizations make a long term commitment to the principles of TQM, rather than looking at TQM as a program; something with a beginning and end. This means patience.     3. Data-Driven vs. Opinion-Driven   Traditional organizations tend to be managed by gut feel, or by opinion. They guess at what their customers want, and guess at the costs of waste, etc. TQM organizations base their decisions on data they collect; on customer needs, on waste, on costs, and on the sources of problems. While judgment is always involved in any decision, TQM organizations begin with the data, not with the solution.   4. Elimination of Waste vs. Tolerance of Waste   Most organizations operate with a high degree of waste and inefficiency. Traditional organizations consider waste, whether it be in time, materials, etc, as a normal part of their operation. TQM organizations are very active in identifying wasteful activities, and eliminating them.   5. Continuous Improvement vs, Fire Fighting   Traditional organizations tend to address problems with the way they do things only when there is a major problem or crisis. The watchword in traditional organizations is: if it aint broke, dont fix it, except that often it IS broke, but nobody is paying any attention .   TQM organizations are always looking for improvement, and are constantly engaged in problem-solving to make things better.   6. Prevention vs, Inspection   Traditional organizations tend to fix problems after the fact. Rather than trying to prevent problems, they catch them after the fact, which is very costly. TQM organizations work to prevent problems and errors, rather than simply fixing them.   7. Cross-Function Teams vs. Fortressed Departments   Traditional organizations tend to have sub-units that work autonomously and with little communication or involvement with other units. For example, personnel may have only limited interaction with other departments. Or, on a local level, administrative staff may have little communication with other staff in a government branch, and have a different reporting structure.   In TQM organizations, there is more use of cross-functional teams; teams convened for a particular purpose or purposes, with representation from a number of units or levels in the organization. The use of cross-functional teams means that input is gained from parts of the organization that need to be involved.   8. High Employee Participation vs. Top-Down Hierarchy   Traditional organizations tend to have very restricted communication and decision- making patterns. Employees are told what to do, rather than being inctuded in figuring out what to do. Information tends to flow from top to bottom.   In TQM organizations, employees are much more actively involved in both the decision-making and communication processes. Information flows both top to bottom and bottom to top. For that matter, information also flows sideways.   9. Problem-Solving vs, Blame   Traditional organizations tend to look to affix blame for things that go wrong. TQM organizations attack the problems in their organizations rather than the people. They fix things.   10. Systems Thinking Vs. Isolation   Traditiona~ organizations tend to see the parts and processes of their organization as single things, unretated to other part of the organization. TQM organizations tend to recognize that most often, probtems arise as a result of multiple causes, and that sub- units are interdependent. TQM organizations tend to see problems as a result of the entire system.   11. Leadership vs. Management   Traditional organizations tend to see people as objects to be managed; told what to do, disciplined, tracked, etc. TQM organizations exhibit more confidence in staff and more trust, and expect MORE from them, not less.   Thats a good starting point. There are probably a number of other comparisons to be made, but that gives us some common ground for discussion.   The Three Quality Gurus   While TQM may seem to be a new development to many, it has been around since the 1940s. One of the reasons why TQM seems to be the newest fad was that it was not embraced by North Americans, but it did find a home in post-WWII Japan.   The most well-known advocate of TQM was W. Edwards Deming, a statistician who, while largely ignored in North America, was actively involved in the 40 in the rebuilding of Japan. Deming passed away recently, and was in his 90s.   Two other gurus are Philip Crosby and Joseph Juran. Both are a bit younger than Deming, but have been influential in the field. It is worthy of note that the three gurus do not always agree, probably due to differences in terms of what each thinks is important, rather than in basic principles.   For those interested in learning more about TQM, it might be a good idea to read material from each of these experts.   TQM As Organizational Change Overview Moving to TQM is like any other organizational change. It must be managed effectively, and leaders of the change must take into account aspects of the organizations current culture. In fact, although TQM brings a number of benefits to those in the organization, you can expect some people to be cynical and resistant to change. Lets face it. Everyone in government has seen management fads come and go. Thankfully, a well managed TQM organizational change is likely to bring most if not all people on side over time. Organizational Change Principles 1) Time Any change (and its attached benefits) will take longer to realize than you expect. Typically, it may take as long as two or three years to have TQM working at its peak. 2 Resistance Regardless of the objective nature of the change, some (even many) people will resist it because it is unfamiliar. TQM must be introduced so that it maximizes peoples enthusiasm and minimizes resistance. 3. Leadership Any change will succeed or fail based on the ability of the change leaders to lead. People will take their cues about TQM from the management. If management show that they are committed, employees will become so. If management waffles, hedges, and backs off, then employees will see this as just more rhetoric of little importance. 4. Persistence Nobody is telling you that this process is easy. The worst thing a manager can do is start the process, and when it gets difficult, stop it. That breeds contempt for both the process and the manager. Managers need to commit over the long haul and realize they must be persistent while the rest of the organizations works at getting it. 5. Consistency The primary mistake managers make is that they become inconsistent. Perhaps most of the time, their thinking and actions reflect the principles of TQM. However, not all the time. This tells employees that the manager is not serious. As soon as a manager suggests that a poor product or service be delivered, the game is up. Instant lack of credibility. Consistency also means including employees in the planning of TQM activities, treating employees as the managers customers, and a number of other things. 6.Incentive People will embrace changes that they see are in their own self-interest. When presenting or deal ing with TQM changes it is important that managers highlight and focus on the benefits to the other people in tt7e organization. 7. Communication Change will be accepted or rejected based on the effectiveness of the communication about it. Communication must be frequent, of a two-way nature, and balanced (both positives and negatives). It must begin as early as possible in the process. http://work911.com/articles/tqm2.htm accessed 23102010 Impact Culture does not change because we desire to change it. Culture changes when the organization is transformed; the culture reflects the realities of people working together every day. Frances Hesselbein The Key to Cultural Transformation, Leader to Leader (Spring 1999) Implementation Ten years ago, Peter Senge introduced the idea of the learning organization Now he says that for big companies to change, we need to stop thinking like mechanics and to start acting like gardeners. Alan M. Webber, Learning for a Change Vision without action is merely a dream Action without vision just passes the time Vision with action can change the world Joel A. Barker The Power of Vision In times of rapid change, experience could be your worst enemy. J. Paul Getty Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change. Confucius

The Unreality of MTVs The Real World Essay -- Media Television MTV Re

The Unreality of MTV's The Real World   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"This is the true story, of seven strangers, picked to live in a house, and have their lives taped, to find out what happens when people stop being polite, and start getting real†(MTV). This marks the beginning of MTV’s reality show, The Real World. The show takes 7 strangers, puts them in a trendy luxurious home, taping them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for about 4 months. The cameras capture petty arguments, late night hook ups, and pure laziness. How could this not be real? There are not many people that can live in an expensive home while laying around all day, and partying all night with little work involved. The Real World is a display of 18-24 year olds, typecasted to have their most extreme stereotypical qualities blown out of proportion for the world to see.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Real World gives the viewer a false outlook on life. Sure there are a select few that have the opportunity to live lavishly with little to no responsibilities, but that is a small percentage. The show depicts the cast lounging around in their up scale home all day, then going out to amazing night clubs drinking enormous amounts of alcohol through out the night. Many of the cast members wake up in the afternoon hours only to repeat this process. In reality the world does not work like this. Many people have to work one to three jobs just to get by leaving no room for lounging and bar hopping.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The show is geared towards teens and college students, filling their heads with false outlooks on life. Not only does it depict laziness, it is a good display of immoral behavior.â€Å"Advertising and movies send kids the message that smoking and drinking make a person sexy or cool and that everyone does it†(AAP). In almost every episode there are hook ups, or confessions of wanting to sleep with a roommate. The show puts all 18-24 year olds in the â€Å"party† category, even though not everyone is like that. Stereotypically, young adults are supposed to be lazy, party animals unsure about their future. I feel there are many more young adults taking the academic route, trying to make a good future for themselves.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The majority of The Real World cast members are put into a mold. The producers will not admit doing this, but the cast members turn into characters throughout the show. If you look at past seasons there is always the gay person, ethn... ...ws. How real can you get when you are not even seeing their whole stay. Many of the episodes are different scenes just blended together, you could be watching a scene from the first two weeks of their stay along with one from the last two weeks of their stay and not even know it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Real World is not a good learning tool unless you are wanting to know how to stereotype people. This show will fill your head false preconceptions of a group of individuals. There are already enough discriminatory problems in the world today, why make it worse? If you want to know how to be lazy all day and party all night, watch The Real World. If you want to fill your head with false hopes and dreams of living in luxury with out working a real job, watch The Real World. Do you want your children thinking it is ok to party or hook up with random people? The Real World needs to start putting real people on their shows and stop creating characters based on how society views a group of people. Works Cited Berkowitz, Carol. American Academy of Pediatrics: Dedicated to the Health of all Children.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  American Academy of Pediatrics. 8 Dec. 2004 MTV Networks. The Real World. 8 Dec. 2004

Essay --

â€Å"The sandy beach is a harsh, constantly changing environment,† explained by the UKMCS (2). This is the ocean is constantly moving because of the wind in the earth’s atmosphere (Crawford 4). Along the edge of most coastlines, a commonly found zone is an estuary (Marine Conservation Society (UK) SouthEast 1). This is where brackish waters, an area where freshwater is released and mixed with the ocean’s salt water, is created (1). However, even though there are small amounts of freshwater added, this does not change that the salinity of the ocean is remarkably high. Salt is carried into the ocean by rain, rivers, streams, and underwater volcanoes (Office of Naval Research 3). Because of the multiple sources of salt, the levels of salinity within the ocean shoot up rapidly. The Office of Naval Research states, â€Å"Salinity is expressed by the amount of salt found in 1,000 grams of water† (3). Marine ecologist created an expression for the amount of salt inside a given area. If there is one gram of salt within 1,000 grams of water, then it is represented as 1 pound per ton (3). The oceans salinity varies between about 32 and 37 ppt (3). Most humans would not be able to live in an ecosystem with salinity levels being this high, however some organisms have adapted to surviving is such an environment. Osmosis is an animal’s way of adapting to different types of salinities (Office of Naval Research 3). All marine mammals have special traits that they adapted to help them survive in or around marine habitats (Marietta College 1). As prompted by the Marietta College of Ohio â€Å"Many organisms in saltwater are osmoconformers.† (1). An osmoconformer is an organism that has the same concentration of salt within its body as the surrounding water (1).... ...terials into the water and can threaten organisms (1). Most NSP is located close to people’s homes. Most importantly is the hazard material that is used and not properly cleaned or disposed of. If people have a septic tank on their property, and it is not the correct size, they can leak and pollute surrounding ground water (1). Poisonous materials from cars and other vehicles such as oil, brake fluid, grease, and gasoline, can be washed off and channel into storm drains, giving them direct access to the ocean (1). If it is not being washed off, then another large problem is when it is spilled or dumped out (Hemminger 4). These products can be picked up by rain and pushed down into storm drains (Natural Resources Defense Council 1). The last most common NSP is when non-degradable products are flushed down the toilet, which can damage the sewage treatment process (1).

History of Philippines Essay

The history of the Philippines is believed to have begun with the arrival of the first humans using rafts or primitive boats, at least 67,000 years ago as the 2007 discovery of Callao Man showed. [1] The first recorded visit from the West is the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, who sighted the island of Samar Island on March 16, 1521 and landed on Homonhon Island (now part of Guiuan, Eastern Samar province) the next day. Homonhon Island is southeast of Samar Island. [2] Before Magellan arrived, Negrito tribes inhabited the isles, who were subsequently joined and largely supplanted by migrating groups of Austronesians. This population had stratified into hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior societies, petty plutocracies and maritime-oriented harbor principalities which eventually grew into kingdoms, rajahnates, principalities, confederations and sultanates. Iron Age finds in Philippines also point to the existence of trade between Tamil Nadu and the Philippine Islands during the ninth and tenth centuries B. C. 3] States included the Indianized Rajahnate of Butuan and Cebu, the dynasty of Tondo, the august kingdoms of Maysapan and Maynila, the Confederation of Madyaas, the sinified Country of Mai, as well as the Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao. These small maritime states flourished from as early as the 1st Millennium. [4][5] These kingdoms traded with what are now called China, India, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. [6] The remainder of the settlements were independent Barangays allied with one of the larger states. The â€Å"balangay† or â€Å"barangay† represented an independent community in the Archipelago ruled by a â€Å"Datu†. There were, however, instances where a Datu of a certain barangay was aided by a council of elders in running the affairs of the barangay similar to privy councils of European monarchs. In that patriarchal society, the Datu and his family constituted the highest authority in the barangay and were therefore considered the equivalent of European monarchs. His rule was absolute. He dispensed justice and declared war against other barangays. Therefore, at the apex of pre-Spanish nobility in the Philippine Archipelago, was the Datu – the term commonly use by the Tagalogs. In Mindanao, ‘Sultan’ and ‘Rajah’ were used accordingly for the highest chief of their respective communities. Spanish colonization and settlement began with the arrival of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi’s expedition on February 13, 1565 who established the first permanent settlement of San Miguel on the island of Cebu. [7] The expedition continued northward reaching the bay of Manila on the island of Luzon on June 24, 1571,[8] where they established a new town and thus began an era of Spanish colonization that lasted for more than three centuries. [9] Spanish rule achieved the political unification of almost the whole archipelago, that previously had been composed by independent kingdoms and communities, pushing back south the advancing Islamic forces and creating the first draft of the nation that was to be known as the Philippines. Spain also introduced Christianity, the code of law, the oldest Universities and the first public education system in Asia, the western European version of printing, the Gregorian calendar and invested heavily on all kinds of modern infrastructures, such as train networks and modern bridges. The Spanish East Indies were ruled as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain and administered from Mexico City from 1565 to 1821, and administered directly from Madrid, Spain from 1821 until the end of the Spanish–American War in 1898, except for a brief period of British rule from 1762 to 1764. During the Spanish period, numerous towns were founded, infrastructures built, new crops and livestock introduced. The Chinese, British, Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, and indigenous traders, complained that the Spanish reduced trade by attempting to enforce a Spanish monopoly. Spanish missionaries attempted to convert the population to Christianity and were eventually generally successful in the northern and central lowlands. They founded schools, a university, and some hospitals, principally in Manila and the largest Spanish fort settlements. Universal education was made free for all Filipino subjects in 1863 and remained so until the end of the Spanish colonial era. This measure was at the vanguard of contemporary Asian countries, and led to an important class of educated natives, like Jose Rizal. Ironically, it was during the initial years of American occupation in the early 20th century, that Spanish literature and press flourished. The Philippine Revolution against Spain began in August 1896, culminating two years later with a proclamation of independence and the establishment of the First Philippine Republic. However, the Treaty of Paris, at the end of the Spanish–American War, transferred control of the Philippines to the United States. This agreement was not recognized by the insurgent First Philippine Republic Government which, on June 2, 1899, proclaimed a Declaration of War against the United States. 10] The Philippine–American War which ensued resulted in massive casualties. [11] Philippine president Emilio Aguinaldo was captured in 1901 and the U. S. government declared the conflict officially over in 1902. The Filipino leaders, for the most part, accepted that the Americans had won, but hostilities continued and only began to decline in 1913, leaving a total number of casualties on the Filipino side of more than one million dead, many of them civilians. [12][13] The U. S. had established a military government in the Philippines on August 14, 1898, following the capture of Manila. 14] Civil government was inaugurated on July 1, 1901. [15] An elected Philippine Assembly was convened in 1907 as the lower house of a bicameral legislature. [15] Commonwealth status was granted in 1935, preparatory to a planned full independence from the United States in 1946. [16] Preparation for a fully sovereign state was interrupted by the Japanese occupation of the islands during World War II. [17] After the end of the war, the Treaty of Manila established the Philippine Republic as an independent nation. 18] With a promising economy in the 1950s and 1960s, the Philippines in the late 1960s and early 1970s saw a rise of student activism and civil unrest against President Ferdinand Marcos who declared martial law in 1972. [citation needed] The peaceful and bloodless People Power Revolution of 1986, however, brought about the ousting of Marcos and a return to democracy for the country. The period since then, however, has been marked by political instability and hampered economic productivity.