Age-Related Changes that Occur in the Cardiovascular System Essay

The title page introducing what subject I am planning on presenting to the residents of the independent living facility. It tells them who I am and what subject is being presented. The residents that I am going to be addressing are healthy, active and mentally alert senior who want to learn more about health conditions that are affecting their age group in general and are of major concern. Slide 2 Homeostasis is the equilibrium of the body. Homeostasis is maintained by the balance of our vital signs to keep us on an even keel. The definition of Homeostasis is, â€Å"Homeostasis is the compensation of the vital signs to regulate the hearts blood flow and maintain balance within the body† (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora 2010). The autonomic system and its branches keep the body moving and functioning. Like these teeter-totters the parasympathetic and the sympathetic move oppose of each other, but keep a slow steady rhythm and together they work as a whole. Slide 3 The fight or flight dilemma. The fight stance is pretty self-explanatory; these are noticeable effects like pupils dilated, neck and shoulders stiffen up or tense, chest pain or palpations, mouth can get very dry or cotton mouth, these are just some of the examples of signs and symptoms that an individual can experience. The flight stance is more hidden and not necessarily identified by the patient or doctor until the more noticeable symptoms are visible. Some of the hidden symptoms can be, but not limited to blood pressure can get higher to a dangerous level, more adrenalin is released into the individuals system, liver produces more glucose to give energy to the muscles, and the digestion system will slow or stop completely. Slide 4 Some of the side effects from medication or treatments can be uncomfortable and more severe than the symptoms of the condition that is being treated. Looking on the brighter side is that once the medication or treatments are manageable the medication is controlling the condition, than life can get back to normal except for some life style changes. Diet and exercise can be the most drastic changes, and the hardest to comply with. If an individual has never exercised much and has lived on fast food, eating healthy and increasing activity besides sitting in front of the television can be the most challenging. Slide 5 A hypertensive heart has thickened ventricular walls which make the heart work harder to pump the blood throughout the body. When the walls thicken, the elasticity is decreases and the heart and other systems need to work harder to pump oxygenated blood throughout the body. Any condition that affects the oxygenated blood from flowing through the heart can cause the ventricular walls to thicken. As we age our blood pressure increases, age, ethninticity, weight, and genetics can play a role in a hypertensive heart condition. Slide 6 Hypertension is sometimes call, â€Å"The Silent Killer† (www. medicinenet. com 2013). Hypertension usually does not have any symptoms and puts a lot of stress on other major organs which over time will start to deteriorate. Some side- affects that can impact quality of life are sexual dysfunction, stroke, heart disease, kidney disease, and neurological problems. Sexual dysfunction is usually more noticeable and bothersome to men. Heart disease can lead to other heart related problems, like heart attack (MCI), stroke (CVA), and congestive heart failure (CHF). Slide 7 After the diagnosis of hypertension, the physician and individual will work on a plan to manage the hypertension. Most of the time this includes medication, low fat, low sodium diet and exercise. This will include some changes in your family’s life to. Our society functions on fast food, and not enough education on the right foods to eat. Exercise can be as little as walking around the block or as much as working out at the gym several times a week. Blood pressure needs to be taken every time there is a doctor’s appointment and sometimes it should be Slide 8 Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) is caused from a waxy substance building up in the coronary arteries called plaque. Blood is slowed because of the plaque blocking the arteries and slowing the blood flow. Sometimes the plaque can disengage and cause a blood clot that if not detected and treated can cause a stroke or heart attack. The lack of oxygen-rich blood to the heart and major arteries over time will cause organ to deteriorate and healthy tissue and muscles will start to die. Acting quickly is the key in recovering from a heart attack or not surviving. Some symptoms can include chest pain or discomfort, shortness of breath, and dizziness. Men generally have classic signs of a heart attack; women can have other symptoms that are not classic symptoms, like lower back pain, and even neck pain. Slide 9 Heart attacks can be caused from medication (legal and illegal), stress, diet, generational, exposure to extreme cold weather, and cigarette smoking. Drugs and alcohol when taken in large quantities can be damaging to body when not prescribed for a treated condition. Narcotics, over-the-counter, cocaine, methamphetamine, methadone, alcohol, even medication for certain conditions if taken differently than prescribed can do harm to the heart and body. Slide 10 Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is the leading cause for hospitalization in individuals over the age of 65 years old. The heart needs to work harder to pump oxygen-rich blood through the body. The myocardium’s thickened walls make the heart work harder to pump blood. The heart may pump more freely to hold more blood or stiffen and harden as time goes on. Slide 11 Some of the symptoms of congestive heart failure is kidneys start retaining water and salt, edema in the legs, ankles, arms and feet. The lungs can start retaining fluid to. More weight from the excess of fluid puts stress on the heart, shortness of breath and more exertion on activity. Slide 12 Myocardial Infarction (MCI) is the medical term for heart attack. Some of the symptoms can include seizures, dizziness, fainting, fainting, chest pain or discomfort and extreme fatigue. The person may experience the heart racing really fast, like if they ran a marathon, but were sitting down and relaxing. If the individual has unexplained family deaths at an early age can put them in a higher-risk category. Slide 13 This slide is a picture depicting what might happen in a heart attack. A blood clot can dislodge and move through the blood stream until it blocks oxygen-rich blood from reaching the heart or major organ, or it completely blocks the pathway of blood flow. If not treated immediately, it can lead to tissue and muscles becoming damaged or dying all completely and then death. References Jenkins, Kemintz, Tortora (2010) Anatomy and Physiology. John Wiley and Sonc Inc. Kulik. (2013, April). www. medicinenet. com. Retrieved from Myocardial Infarction: www. medicinenet. com Ladwig, A. a. (2014). Nursing Diagnosis Handbook. Mosby by Elsevier Inc. National Stroke Association. (2012). After Stroke. Effects of Strokes, www. stroke. org. Potter, P. S. (2012). Fundamentals of Nursing. St. Louis: Mosby an imprint by Elsevier Inc .

Response Paper Gilgamesh Essay

The Epic of Gilgamesh is very complex, but it is also considered one of the greatest epics in the Western literature. In the story we can find several contradictions, from which I chose the friendship between Enkidu and Gilgamesh. The story of Gilgamesh starts off by the description of Gilgamesh, â€Å"the strongest one of all,the perfect,the terror† (Ferry 4). Initially, Gilgamesh appeared as someone who isn’t able to have feelings nor relationships. Although he fought with Enkidu, once Gilgamesh tested his opponents strength, he decided to let him into his world becoming best friends. Some people would say that Gilgamesh is using Enkidu for his journeys, which we can see when he allows the hunter to take his prostitute and bring him. He did this for nothing in return, where we can notice that he already had a plan for Enkidu. Whilst this is correct in some points there are other things involved that prove differently. In the beggining of the story, Enkidu was made by the goddess Arura in order to punish Gilgamesh with the same wild and stormy heart as Gilgamesh has. Having this into consideration, Enkidu owes life to Gilgamesh, or at least shall be thankful to Gilgamesh for his own existing. Also, the people shall be grateful for their city, because Gilgamesh is the one â€Å"who opened passes through mountains; and who dug deep wells on the mountainsides;† (Ferry 4). This indicates the strength of Gilgamesh and values he had in the city. Once friends, Enkidu has started living differently, not like the wild beast he used to be. Enkidu is lucky for the friendship he has gotten from Gilgamesh, but it has also costed him. Gilgamesh has always wanted immortality and fame in the city, and because of his wish Enkidu is the one who has suffered. Before going to Cedar Forest, Enkidu is the one who was discussing with the Elders about the dangers of the trip. One doesn’t notice anywhere in the text how Enkidu knew about dangers of the trip and the keeper of the Cedar Forest, the demon Huwawa. This is the privilege that Gilgamesh does not have. Furthermore, throughout the trip, Enkidu is the one who was communicating with the God of the sun, their protector, Shamash. Aditionally, the Elders are advicing Gilgamesh to  let Enkidu go first and † find the water to quench† (Ferry 19) his thirst and offers to the God. This is a big advantage/value for the Enkidu, since he is the one communicating with the Gods and able to know the road. Further in the story, their friendship becomes stronger, once they share their strenghts and weaknesses, courage and fear. The most intriguing thing in the whole story is the heroic side of Enkidu. The true friendship and loyalty to Gilgamesh are his biggest values. Once in fight with the demon Huwawa, Gilgamesh was scared of the speed Huwawa was possessing and, once Gilgamesh saw his face, he hid away, in some cases even weeped. In each time, despite the dangerous cicumstances, Enkidu had quick mind and knew what he had to do, which is show Gilgamesh he was not alone, â€Å"Two people, companions, they can prevail together against the terror† (Ferry 26). Going futher into the story we are finding out that, because of killing Humwawa and Bull of Heaven, the Gods have decided to punish Enkidu,although God of Sun Shamas tried to save him. He had the protection of the God, because he was compressed into this trip. Initially, the mother of Gilgamesh, Rimat-Ninsun, just before the trip has hit the biggest weakness of Enkidu, â€Å"Enkidu has neither father nor mother;† (Ferry 13). This proves the fact that he had no choice left because he was feeling worthless and there was no other solution but to go to this dangerous trip. Even at the end, when Enkidu knew he was destined for punishment, he did not have selfish heart, he accepted it and stayed loyal to Gilgamesh. This has me thinking, who is the real hero? By whose name should the book be named instead? By the great strenght and power Gilgamesh, or the loyal, great guide who turned into hero with his actions? Did Enkidu think he owed his life to Gilgamesh, or he did not want to go against the will of the Gods? Considering many tablets are not recovered, which made the text incomplete, there is complexity to this friendship and many questions that need to be answered. Here, after Enkidu dying, we also get the feeling of Gilgamesh being selfish, and not saving his friend. As soon as Enkidu has died, and Gilgamesh saw a worm falling out of his nose, he saw the reality where this can happen to him too. He was determined to find immortality. Although on a  new selfish quest, we can see his true grieving for a friend, a brother. Every individual Gilgamesh encounters with can see that he is full of sorrow. This is where the prevalent repetition happens. At first, I thought it was a literary element only. However, how the story grew, the significance of the repetition grew also. It became the emphasis of Gilgamesh’s sorrows. It keeps being repetead to keep our mind on the soft-hearted Gilgamesh, who truly grieves for Enkidu, who undoubtfely deserved it. It is engraved in our memory that he is truly lonely and has lost someone who was a big part of his life. But even so, that little part in the back of my mind is still set on Gilgamesh not urging for Enkidu’s sparing. In a conclusion, friendship between Enkidu and Gilgamesh is far more than important in this great epic. The contradictions are tempting to discuss, and because of the missing tablets, there will always be some questions. However, although Gilgamesh did not get his immortality, this prominent story, through many centuries, definitely has.

Website Credibility Evaluation

Evaluation of Website Credibility Evaluation of Website Credibility Familydoctor. org is a website that offers information on a health related topics and wellness. This website has a domain of . org which means it is operated by an organization. The main purpose of this website is to provide families with information on health related topics and offer wellness information that will benefit all members of the family. This website was chosen based on the fact that many people have families.Anyone who is interested in any health topics and/or wellness can find this site by searching in various search engines, such as Google or yahoo, by typing into the search bar family health or whatever health topic of interest. Evaluation of Credibility Authority This website provides information from family practice physicians, medical students and family practice residents. All of the information available on this site has been written and approved by physicians and educators who have expertise in family practice and patient education. The affiliates of familydoctor. rg are found on the website along with all of the doctors and educators responsible for the information found on the site. The information on the website goes through an editorial board that reviews the content, and then sends it to a physician of the specialty topic for final review before being placed on the web. Information This website is comprised of information that goes through a process of critiquing and evaluating before it is placed on the site. The information is written in a format that is understandable by all, regardless of the education. Objectivity The information provided on this site is not objective.The site has a partner and many sister sites that are listed. When health related information is to be displayed on the site by outside sources that information has to go through the same peer reviewing and critiquing that the information from the site itself goes through. As long as the criteria th at is set is met, then information can be posted on this site. Ease of Navigation Once on this site, there are headings labeled across the top that will aid in searching for what the site offers. For example, the diseases chosen are in alphabetical order and can be chosen using the first letter of the word.Another example is the headings are set for children, teens and elders. All of the information listed on this site can be printed and used as education or information. All advertisements on this site are clearly marked as advertisement and guidelines are set as to what the advertisements cannot contain. With all of this, browsing on this site is not difficult. Privacy and Security On this site is a simple explanation of the privacy policy with a link to a more extensive privacy policy from the organization that operates this website.It is clearly stated when, what and how personal information is collected and how it is used as well as how cookies are used. The American Academy of Family Physicians is clearly stated as the operator of this site with contact information and other pertinent information. Empirical Evidence Determining the credibility of a website starts with tools that can be used to evaluate the site. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) offers information defining how to evaluate websites credibility. Key factors such as; â€Å"Who runs and pays for the website, what the website’s purpose is, Where id the information on the site come from and how is the content selected,† (NLM, 2012). This writer went through the www. familydoctor. org website; it was determined to be credible by using the factors from NLM. Importance to Nursing This site can be used by nurses for many purposes. Some purposes are: a) education to patients and family about diagnosis and treatment, b) information on wellness and prevention c) information to assist families with caring for their elderly family member. Patients may receive conflicting health-relate d information from family, friends, and the media.Part of nurses’ role as teachers is to help patients access and evaluate information so that they can make appropriate decisions and facilitate self-care (Anderson & Klemm 2008). There are an endless number of uses for this website to the nursing profession. One can find this site to be easy to access and view. Conclusion Information found on the internet should not be the sole source of information, but can be used in adjunct to the education provided by the healthcare provider. Teaching the key factors to determine the credibility of a website is information that should be shared with patients and families.Although the Internet may be a source of empowerment for patients, it can overwhelm users because of the sheer amount of information that is available (Anderson & Klemm 2008). References Anderson, A. & Klemm, P. (2008) The Internet: Friend or foe when providing patient education? Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing. 12(1) 55-63. National Library of Medicine (2012). Evaluating internet health information. A tutorial from the National Library of Medicine. Retrieved from http://www. nlm. nih. gov/medlineplus/webeval/webeval. html

Phishing computer crimes Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Phishing computer crimes - Research Paper Example On the other hand the biggest pessimistic use of a computer is for crime purposes. As people make use of the computers they typically think that their activities are confidential and also their personal information are protected. For instance, web sites of business nature often gather details from many visitors; later on many web sites sell these personal details against the desires of the visitors (Turban, Rainer, & Potter, 2004; O'Leary & O'Leary, 2007). This is a kind of computer crime. There are many other kinds of a computer crime however this paper mainly focuses on phishing. In their book, (Laudon & Laudon 1999, p. 147) define â€Å"computer crime as the unlawful activities by making use of a computer or against a computer system. The Internet's user-friendliness and convenience have fashioned modern ways for computer crime, well-known forms of which is phishing.† Additionally, the computer crimes appear in a wide variety of ways and also cause a number of serious probl ems for different people. For instance, nowadays online frauds or frauds using the Internet are modern form of the online criminal activities in which an authorized person (normally acknowledged as a hacker) hacks some useful data and information and later on use it to conduct illegal and criminal tasks, such as cash related scandals. In this scenario, the basic intentions of criminals are to earn money, tease other or play games with others. In fact, the Internet is open for everyone which gives the opportunities to criminal people, to steal, new ways to steal them, and new techniques to harm others (Laudon & Laudon, 1999, p. 147). As discussed above, there are many kinds of a computer crime and criminals do it intentionally. For instance, sometimes a dissatisfied employee or terminated worker can be dangerous to an organization. In this scenario, these people want to damage business with their extensive criminal activities (Parker, 2002; O'Leary & O'Leary, 2007). Therefore, employ ers should properly scrutinize the background of persons being connected with critical computer related tasks. Some people falsify resume to get jobs. Also, the company should hire trustworthy personnel to minimize crimes related to computers (Parker, 2002; Worthington, 2003, pp. 621-623). In addition, Hacker and Cracker are most widely used terms in computer crimes. In this scenario, Hacker is an external person who can break through a computer system, typically with no illegal intention. On the other hand, a Cracker is a nasty hacker, who may perhaps produce a stern crisis for the organization (Turban, Rainer, & Potter, 2004). Moreover, Phishing is an emerging problem regarding online data security and information safety. There are a number of cases of identity theft and online frauds using Phishing and other hacking techniques. At the present, Phishing is normally carried out through E-mail or the instant messaging. In many cases its basic purpose is to direct online traffic to a particular website whose appearance or interface are approximately similar to the actual one. Even though server cannot differentiate between false and original web site so a hacker successfully passes through these security walls. Normally, Phishing techniques are aimed at making fool to the internet users, and making use of the attractive usability of present web expertise. In

Journal 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Journal 5 - Essay Example Politically, Roman Empire was based on Christianity values as Pope Leo II was involved in government affairs as he was crowned the Frankish King on Christian’s days as Roman Empire. This was different from the Classical Greece as there was no involvement of Christianity in the political systems of Classical Greece. In the Classical Greece, the Athenians were helped by the Spartan troops to overthrow their king known as Hippias. The same political war or fight for power was involved in Roman Empire at the period of trouble in the reign of commandos when Alexander Severus was assassinated. The Roman Empire troops were more powerful than the Classical Greece troops as the Athens were helped by Spartan troop to overthrow government (Mattingly 14). In respect to culture, Roman Empire upheld two ethnic group’s culture while the classical Greece culture composed of cultural practices from different western communities. Roman culture was from Latin and Greek while the classical Greece was from western civilization or western communities. In making the conclusion, I analyzed both classical Greece and Roman Empire culture, life style, social, political and economic life (Mattingly

EU Competition law and Cartels Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

EU Competition law and Cartels - Essay Example In the final outcome, Procter and Gamble and Unilever paid a reduced fine of EUR 315 200 000 while Henkel benefitted from immunity as the whistleblower. The Treaty of Lisbon prohibits anti-competitive practices under Article 101 (1) including any agreements relating to price-fixing. However, Article 103 (3) provides for exemptions if the market collusion is intended for technological innovation and distribution or when the agreement results to consumers’ a â€Å"fair share† of benefits or when the agreement does not risk elimination of competition in anyway1. Article 102 prohibits the dominant players from abusing their market power and strengths from exclusive dealing and discrimination in trade. The main purpose of cartels is to regulate the production, distributing and pricing of goods and services thus hindering free competition in the industry. Control of collusion and anti-competitive practices are governed by Article 101of the Treaty on the Functioning of the Eur opean Union (TFEU) while monopolies are regulated by Article 102 of the same Treaty2. Mergers, joint ventures and acquisitions are involving companies with substantial turnover in the EU are regulated by Council Regulation 139/2004 EC also refereed as the Merger Regulation. Any financial aid to companies provided by any Member State whether direct or indirect is governed by Article 107 of the TFEU. The conduct of the cartel infringed Article 101 of the TFEU and Article 53 of the EEA agreement. The conduct involved single and continuous infringement of the Heavy duty laundry detergent powder market in the above six member states3. The infringement was aimed at market position stabilization and coordination of the selling prices. The decision to investigate and inspect the premises of the above three companies was prompted by whistle blowing and subsequent application for immunity by Henkel in June 2008. Reduction under the leniency Notice (%) Reduction under the settlement notice Fin e (EUR) Henkel 100% N/A 0 Procter & Gamble 50% 10% 211 200 000 Unilever 25% 10% 104 000 000 Henkel received total immunity since it informed the European Commission of the existence of the Cartel. The settlement procedure is guided by the Antitrust Regulation 1/2003 that grants the commission to use simplified procedure in the settlement in order to avoid lengthy investigations. The leniency policy is aimed at abstaining from prosecuting firms that inform the Commission of the existence of the cartel. Settlement is an efficiency process while Leniency is intended at gathering evidence of the infringement. Commission Regulation 773/2004 deals with the powers of the commissions, the complaints, rights and access to file. The regulation deals with the Leniency Notice 2006, guidelines for fines and the notice for co-operation with authorities4. The settlement policy requires an admission of guilt from the companies involved and requires the parties to immediately desist from the anti-co mpetitive behaviour. The settlement procedure is only applicable to cartel cases. The settlement Notice rewards the parties for cooperation in the process. All parties benefit from a 10 percent reduction in fines since they contribute adequately to the settlement procedure5. In the above case, Henkel submitted immunity application in May 2008 and was granted conditional immunity in June 2008. According to Article 11 (6) of Regulation (EC) 1/2003, all the parties were invited to the bilateral settlement discussions in 2009. The parties were granted the files with evidence and an estimation of the possible fines during the discussions in June 2010. According to Article 10 (a) of Regulation (E

Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Process - Essay Example Picking the correct restaurant is the first step in a dining program in Korea. There are different speciality restaurants in Korea; all have different types of foods and serving habits. Check the restaurant’s name or advertisements before entering the restaurant. The selection of the hotel/restaurant must be taken only based on your eating habits. Most of the restaurants have their names indicating their speciality of foods serving there. It may be a difficult decision for you; but select the restaurant properly; otherwise you will not get the proper food which you are looking for and will be disappointed later. After selecting the hotel/restaurant, the second step is making sure that you order only one or two kinds of food. This is because of the fact that the Koreans serve wide variety of foods even if you order only one or two kinds of foods. Most of the single orders accompanied with more than ten kinds of appetizers to everyone; which means if you order more things, the varieties of foods you are getting will be more than what you can consume. This will result in lot of wastages in food items you purchased. Third, order only one meal less than what you actually require. This is because the size or volume of the food will be more that what you have anticipated. It is not possible for a single person to eat all the foods provided for a single order. So if your group consist of four members, order only for three which will be more than enough. If your group consist of eight members, order only for 6 members. Same way you can plan the number of foods based on the number of members in your group. You are not wasting any foods and at the same time you can save a substantial amount of money also by ordering less number of foods. To conclude, while taking foods in Korea, you have to select the proper restaurant first based on your choice of food; then order

Contemporary Issues in Organisational Behaviour Essay

Contemporary Issues in Organisational Behaviour - Essay Example In order to understand what information technology does to organisational behaviour, one should understand what information technology does in an organisation. Its main functions are information capture, information storage, information manipulation, and information distribution. It is found that computer system increased the amount of factual information, increased the involvement of employees in decision making especially related to computer issues, and increased the ability to check on activities in real time. As Bakan et al (n.d.) point out, with this increased presence of information technology, it has become possible for employees to feel that they get easy access to correct information and also that they can easily influence the decisions and behaviours of others. Though the above mentioned are the positive side, there are a large number of challenges for the organisational behaviour. ... In addition, more and more people lose their jobs as a result of this change. Thus, there is a feeling of insecurity and fear in employees around the world. This is one of the most important challenges for organisational behaviour to handle at present. Along with this comes the problem of lack of motivation. Admittedly, when communication takes place through modern communication devices, and when machines replace man, there is lack of direct interaction. Thus, increased insecurity along with decreased interaction leads to a drop in motivation levels. In other words, today’s organisations are spread across various geographical areas and are connected mainly using the advanced communication technology. However, this modern technology can, at times, function as hindrances for managers in knowing their employees of distant places personally. As studies have proved, it is vital to know the culture of people to motivate them. For example, there is the study by Sohrabi, Gholipour and Amiri (2011) which found the groups that are virtually linked show less job satisfaction, less job involvement, less job commitment, and less organisational citizenship. Handling globalisation and its various effects In the opinion of Chaneta (n.d), the second major challenge is the globalisation and its various impacts. Some important aspects of globalisation that affect businesses at present are the movement of valuable skills and investments, increasing cultural diversity, immigration, job migration, and multicultural workplaces. Admittedly, globalisation leads to the creation of cultural diversity within the society and organisation. These various cultures have various attitudes and ways of interaction. For example, while the Americans believe in

Identity and identity politics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Identity and identity politics - Essay Example owever, they never lost their identity and their feeling is that the country retains it as a â€Å"residual sovereignty.† Scots’ have a party of their own that did so well last year and proved its worth and potentiality of their identity. Mr. Salmond, Scots’ first minister and leader of Scottish National party, wants a referendum by 2014 to fulfil the promise, (Ascherson web). According to Ford, social identities are a product of politics. He claims that â€Å"social identities are inherently and irreducibly political† (Ford web). It is true that some identities are a product of politics. Scots after winning elections last year, Mr. Salmond is leading them towards a referendum, which will see them as an independent country. Calhoun argues that identity is seen in the relationship between essence and appearance and that it had to be achieved for development, (Calhoun 37). I feel that this need to identify Scotland as a country is triggered by the political success. The idea of a possible referendum is quickly gaining acceptance among the Scots and therefore, it is just a matter of time before the overwhelming power of identity takes place. I think the main reason for Scots desire to move and be independent is to develop themselves as an independent nation. Identity is a great need of all human beings and Scots is no exception. Ford, Thompson, Richard. â€Å"Political Identity as Identity Politics.† Unbound Harvard Journal of the Legal Left. 2009. 10 March 2012. Macintyre, James. â€Å"From Devolution to Independence.† The New York Times, 2012. Web 9 March 2012.

Farmers and Fishermen by Daniel Vickers Essay Example for Free

Farmers and Fishermen by Daniel Vickers Essay The author Daniel Vickers in his book â€Å"Farmers and Fishermen† describes, presents the data analyzes the changing strategies that were used by the colonists such as New England in order to develop the world and the amateur nations and introduce the world to the industrial era.   These colonists in the result of lack of the resources to purchase labor adapted the Labor System of Europe. Later on the economy was transformed by the changes occurred in the form of the development of the world. In this book Daniel Vickers has closely analyzed the history of farmers and fishermen of Massachusetts. He spotted that who worked for whom. He also described the terms and conditions under which these farmers and fishermen had worked. The book Farmers and fishermen is a book that clearly demonstrates Daniel Vickers’s leading command on the knowledgeable background of the general literature of Essex County, Massachusetts and the historical interpretations of the labor in the earliest centuries of European arrangement. The author has written the book in the most clearly and easy-to-understand manner that allows the reader to understand and gain knowledge of the preindustrial America and structure of the labor in the district’s farming and fishing communities (Vickers, 1994). Daniel Vickers has structured the existing literature regarding farmers and fishermen with conclusions brought out from the 16th years of recorded researches. His effort of bringing the literature and interpretation of the historians such as Massachusetts Tax Valuation list of 1771 and the substantial tables of data from the recorded data of account books and diaries has been considered as hard work according to great many authors. Daniel Vickers has creatively drawn conclusions and historical sequels of the farming and fishing professions throughout the history. Daniel Vickers has defined the history into three sections, the first section involves the first century of the settlement of farming and fishing. Later on in the second sections, author has described the period after the revolutionary war when the industrialization was leading in the region (Vickers, 1994). The author describes that the basic problem was that the people who wanted to use the English pattern of labor in the world and this was the conflict among the masses. This is defined in the two halves of the book. The study about the colonists, use of labor and the system designed by European is described in two halves of the book. The first half of the book inspects the lack of labor and capital within rural and maritime economics and the circumstances under which a number of systems were developed (Vickers, 1994, p. 6) . The second half of the book is a tour to the history and the development of the county’s socioeconomic maturation. This half of the book deals with the strategies which were employed in the New World and how these strategies served so well to the district (Vickers, 1994, p. 7). The book is actually describing the history in whole of so many fishermen and farmers from all around the world; this is why this study by Daniel Vickers is not complete. There are broad arguments but the research available is narrow to give a complete overview of the history and the development of the two most important occupations fishing and farming. The farming and fishing has been considered as the driving force of the colonialism and transformation of the old world into the new world. The most important feature of the book is that the researches and interpretations of the historians used in this book covers a long period though it is limited to some regions but it gives measures for the authors to understand about the productive relations and changes which occurred in the period of development. Daniel Vickers in this book describes and observed the history of farming and fishing carefully through the interpretations and research by the historians in the detailed and classified form such as addition of age, ethnicity, social origin, economic status etc. The flaw of the book is that the readers, who might expect to read and analyze the systematic data in this book by Daniel Vickers, won’t get the sequence because of the lack of the data present (Vickers, 1994). In the book Farmers and Fishermen, the author Daniel Vickers with extensive knowledge about the material of the related subject allows him to write amicably and become the arbiter among the historians. The author describes the century of early fishery i.e. COD covered the work by the farmer-fishermen rather than those who fished alone. In the later part of the book the author describes on the basis of historian interpretations that the market and the social approaches to the early American economy are entirely incorrect. The author has greatly considered the research conducted by Virginia De John and Christine Heyrman in the course of the book (Vickers, 1994). The author introduces the readers to the later part of the fishing business which was once the most dominant feature of the New England’s emerging market, started to dissolve. The reason behind this was the merchants and the accumulation of the capital into colonies. The fishermen were not being paid in advance for their catch of fishery which was essential for the outfit of their ships for the fishing. Instead of paying these fishermen, these merchants put their money in the purchase of their own larger ships. These merchants began to hire these fishermen as laborers on their ships for the purpose of the directing these merchants into deeper offshore waters (Vickers, 1994). This change brought distress to the families of these fishermen; the result was the sons of these families no longer worked as the fisherman. Instead of fishing they worked for the military service purpose away from home. If some of them worked as the fishermen, they worked in the neighbor as the laborer as well worked on their own ships for the catch. The author described these cause and effects with the knowledge of the documents and records which dealt the history of the 17th century. Later on the idea of owning land as the ancestors in the past did, held fast throughout this period (Vickers, 1994).   The author in the last chapter of the book tried to give evidence of the ways in which the social arrangements and the industrialization influenced the capitalist development. Daniel Vickers in his book described briefly the capitalist arrangement and the organizations of farming and fishing along with the systematic sequences of the industrialization in the region. While his representation of the rising trends of the merchant class which was another emerging occupation and the knowledge provided related to the American economy are sound. The details provided in the first half of the book which contains the pre-industrial period is not clear to the readers as the details mentioned in the first half are written in the vague overview of all the previous researches and the historian interpretations (Vickers, 1994). The book Farmer and Fishermen is the compiled version of all the sources related to the subject such as documents, historian interpretations and previous researches. The literature of the fishing and farming is presented in the most possible way to determine and make the readers understand the industrialization period of farming and fishing. Writing on a most brief topic with less existing data is a complicated task for the author, though there are some changes required for instance the method of presenting the data was chosen in the form of tables where it is not cleared from the text that where exactly these fishermen originated from. Throughout this book the author Daniel Vickers has tried to present the data in the form of relations. This book has been successful in examining the 19th century industrial revolution in New England (Vickers, 1994). Thus after reading the book Farmers and Fishermen by Daniel Vickers, the reader of the book can bring out the wide range of knowledge of the fishing and farming organizations along with the emerging period of the organization, the development and industrialization and the downfall of the organizations. In this book, one can read about the lives and the complications of the people in the fishing and farming industries. This book provides the better understanding of the events which concluded the goals of the author with the support of great historians such as Virginia De John and Christine Heyrman. References Vickers, D. (1994). Farmers and Fishermen: Two Centuries of Work in Essex County, Massachusetts, 1630-1850. Williamsburg: UNC Press.

Patient Satisfaction in Chamber Setting

Patient Satisfaction in Chamber Setting Patient Satisfaction in Chamber Setting in Bangladesh measured by Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9 Bangla) Abstract Background: Assessment of patient satisfaction is crucial but there is significant lagging in this sector. Patient satisfaction is an important indicator of health care quality as well as a predictor of treatment adherence. The Good patient-doctor relationship is considered as an integral part of the patient satisfaction. In Bangladesh, this domain is yet to be explored in a large scale. Aim: It was aimed to look into the patient satisfaction level in chamber setting in Bangladesh measured using the patient-doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9 Bangla). Methods: PDRQ-9 is a short yet excellent tool for assessing the patient-doctor relationship. The data collection was done in private chamber setting by the PDRQ-9 and analyzed. Results: Though the result was not completely in line with the existing literature, the PDRQ-9 was found to a useful and brief measurement tool in the context of the patient-doctor relationship. Conclusion: Large-scale research in this particular aspect of patient satisfaction in future may provide a more succinct result. Keywords: PDRQ-9 Bangla, Patient Satisfaction, Chamber Practice, Doctor-Patient, Bangladesh. Introduction Being as old as the civilization the field of medicine is evolving rapidly [1] but there is a significant lagging in the assessment of patient satisfaction which is considered as equally important as other health measures and a significant indicator of efficiency of health care delivery [2]. As stated by Lender et al. patient satisfaction may be defined as positive evaluations of distinct dimensions of health care [3]. A parallel interaction is present in between patient satisfaction, continuity of care, accessibility of treatment and physician, as patient prefer the availability and accessibility of the same physician. The measurement of patient satisfaction is thus useful is assessing the quality of care and also subsequent health-related behaviors and adherence to treatment, at the same time knowing the patient priorities would facilitate the improvement of patient experience [4,5]. Thus patient satisfaction might be considered as an indicator of institutional performance as well as patient`s wish to become more compliance and recommendation for others, which are all related to the socio-demographic condition, the health status of community and more over Patient-Doctor Relationship [6,7,8]. Patient-Doctor Relationship, a dynamic, vital yet complex interpersonal relationship which has been put under the microscope for quite a long over the century and this mutual relationship is intermingled with the idea of patient satisfaction, compliance with treatment and eventually driving the treatment outcome [9]. Over the time the concept of patient-doctor relationship has evolved a lot and currently, patient-centeredness is the most preferred by the patients hence the health care provider focuses of patient autonomy and more emphasis over patient satisfaction [10, 11, 12]. Despite being widely advocated, the practicality of patient-centered model is yet under consideration on the basis of time constraint in consultation as the physician has to perform the daunting task of providing comprehensive, coordinated yet satisfactory to the patient and above all make sure the accessibility of the care [13, 14]. Whether being psychiatric or non-psychiatric patient it is reported that succ essful and both way, a perfect relationship between patient and physician is crucial for the adherence and better outcome of treatment [15]. For assessing the patient-doctor relationship, a brief, concise yet having excellent psychometric characteristics scale has been developed and validated known as the 9-item patient -doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9) [14,15,16, 17,18] which essentially evaluates the therapeutic aspect of the patient-doctor relationship based on the perspective of the patient in the primary health care setting [14,15]. PDRQ-9 gives the opportunity to quantify the communication, level of satisfaction and availability in dealing with the physician in regard to patient`s point of view [18]. Initially validated by Van der Feltz-Cornelis et al. this is to be reported that there is internal consistency among the items of the scale [17] and later was to validated by multiple researchers [14,15,16,18]. Bangladesh, a developing country having about 160 million people and achieving the health-related goal of MDG but lacking significantly in regard to conceptual similarity in health services between physician and patients, hence there exists violence against the doctor and lack of compliance with treatment and eventually patient satisfaction [1,9,19-20]. But unfortunately, there is little to be found in terms of literature regarding the patient satisfaction and patient-doctor relationship. So the authors aimed to look into the patient satisfaction level in public hospital and private chamber setting in Bangladesh measured using the patient-doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9 Bangla). Methods Setting: The data collection procedure was carried out in 3 different hospitals by 3 different physicians. Instrument: The Bangla version of 9 item based Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9) was used as the tool for questioning patients which have 5 points Likert-type scale from 1: not at all appropriate, to 5: totally appropriate. Design and Subject: The study was carried out in the outpatient department of Dhaka Medical College and some private chambers in the city of Dhaka over the period of January 2016 to December 2016 from 214 patients with the Bangla version of Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9) with purposive sampling. The filling out of the questionnaire was totally voluntary and completed by the participant themselves and assistance weas provided to respondents who were not able to understand any question. Patients who were willing to participate and able to understand Bangla were included in the study and patients who were not willing were excluded. After proper collection of data, the analysis was done by SPSS 16 and Microsoft Excel 2010. Data Collection Method: Self-reporting PDRQ-9 Bangla questionnaire and providing assistance when the patient could not understand the questionnaire. Results Table 1 [VM1] Demographic Variables Age Completed years Percent Gender Gender Percent 14-25 29.3 Male 40.2 26-35 26.9 Female 59.8 36-45 20.7 Religion Religion Percent 46-55 10.7 Islam 93 56-65 11.7 Sanatan 7 Mean  ± SD (Range) 37 ± 9.92 Marital Situation Status Percent Residence Area Percent Unmarried 19.9 Urbane 57.8 Married 78.7 Suburban 14.3 Widow 0.5 Village 28 Divorced 0.5 Educational Qualification Status Percent Occupation Status Percent Below SSC 40.9 Student 32.2 SSC 16.2 Service Holder 16.4 HSC 18.8 Business 7.5 Graduation/ Equivalents 12.3 Housewife 23.8 Post graduation 11.7 Others 7.9 Monthly Family Income Taka Percent Family Family Type Percent 1.73 Nuclear 52.8 5000-10000 10.98 Joint Family 45.8 10000-15000 15.03 15000-20000 12.14 20000-25000 13.29 25000-30000 24.28 >30000 21.97 Demographic Picture of the Respondents. In this study, authors considered age, gender, religion, residence, educational qualification, monthly income, marital status, occupation and family type as demographic variables. Age of the respondents was found Mean  ± SD (Range): 37 ± 9.92 (14-65) years; 40.2 % respondents were male and 59.8% female; 57.8% resided in urban area where as 14.3% in suburb and 28 % in village; 78.7% were married and 19.9% were unmarried; 52.8% belonged to nuclear family and 45.8% were from joint family (Table 1). Table 2: Level of satisfaction in regards to item wise responses (n=214) Statistics Q-1 Q- 2 Q- 3 Q- 4 Q-5 Q- 6 Q- 7 Q- 8 Q-9 Mean 4.29 4.35 4.50 4.17 4.44 4.23 4.31 4.28 3.86 Median 5 5 5 4 4 4.5 5 5 4 Mode 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 Std. Deviation 0.99 0.99 0.85 0.97 3.53 0.91 1.02 1.06 1.17 Minimum 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Maximum 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 The level of satisfaction among the Respondents. Among the 9-items of the PDRQ-9, there was a general trend of the mean being about 4.17 to 4.50. The lowest mean was found in the 9th question I find my physician easily accessible which was 3.86. I trust my physician the 3rd item had the highest mean of 4.50. The Standard deviation for the items was around 0.99 to 3.53. 5th question My physician is dedicated to help me had the highest standard deviation of 3.53 (Table 2). Table 3: Distribution of responses of PDRQ-9 Bangla items not at all appropriate somewhat appropriate appropriate mostly appropriate totally appropriate Total Item F (%) F (%) F (%) F (%) F (%) F (%) Q 1 4 (1.87) 11 (5.14) 26 (12.15) 51 (23.83) 122 (57.01) 214 (100) Q 2 2 (.93) 16 (7.48) 20 (9.35) 43 (20.09) 133 (62.15) 214 (100) Q 3 3 (1.40) 3 (1.40) 24 (11.21) 37 (17.29) 147 (68.69) 214 (100) Q 4 4 (1.87) 10 (4.76) 30 (14.02) 71 (33.18) 99 (46.26) 214 (100) Q 5 2 (.93) 15 (7.01) 22 (10.28) 71 (33.18) 103 (48.13) 214 (100) Q 6 2 (.93) 6 (2.80) 40 (18.69) 59 (27.57) 107 (50) 214 (100) Q 7 3 (1.40) 17 (7.96) 19 (8.88) 47 (21.96) 128 (59.81) 214 (100) Q 8 6 (2.80) 14 (6.54) 20 (9.35) 49 (22.90) 125 (58.41) 214 (100) Q 9 8 (3.74) 19 (8.88) 58 (27.10) 39 (18.22) 90 (42.06) 214 (100) Distribution of responses. Among all the 9 items and 5 responses, there was an overall tendency of answering the 5th option totally appropriate by the respondents as evident by the frequency ranging from 42.06% to 68.69% which were the highest for all the 9-items. Not at all appropriate had the lowest frequency ranging around 0.93% to 3.74%. Other three options had all most equal distribution though a greater tendency for the mostly appropriate was observed (Table 3). Discussion Patient-Doctor Relationship is a strong indicator of patient satisfaction as well as the predictor of treatment adherence and quality of health care. Patient satisfaction, on the other hand, depends largely on the availability of care and caregiver. Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire-9 (PDRQ-9) is a brief and excellent tool for assessing the quality of patient-doctor relationship on the regards of patient`s experience and therefore a useful instrument for measuring patient satisfaction. Originally developed by Van Der Feltz-Cornelis et al. in 2004 it was based on Helping Alliance Questionnaire of Luborsky (HAQ), a scale that measures the therapeutic alliance in psychotherapy [17]. Later, numerous attempts were taken to validate PDRQ-9 in different languages. In Ad ´an et al. validated the Spanish version and Mergen et al. in 2012 validated the Turkish version, in 2014 Zenger et al. validated the German version of PDRQ-9 and in 2016 Arafat validated the Bangla version wh ich was the tool for this particular study [16, 17, 18, 21, 22]. On demographic basis Age of the respondents was found Mean  ± SD (Range): 37 ± 9.92 (14-65) years which was close enough to the Bangla validation study where Age of the respondents was found as mean  ± SD (range): 35.6  ± 10.71 and also with Nigerian version where mean age was 40.12 but not consistent with the German validation where Mean age was 50.58 for men and 50.87 for women and also in this particular study 52.8% respondents belonged to nuclear family and 45.8% were from joint family which also aligned with the Bangla validation study where 52% had nuclear family and 48% belonged to joint family environment [16, 18]. 40.2 % respondents were male and 59.8% female which was not in line with the Bangla version where 62% were male and 38% were female but was close to the Nigerian validation where male sex frequency was 47.6% and the female was 52.4%[15, 18].The origin of the respondents which in this study was 57.8% from an urban area where as 14.3% from suburb and 28 % from the village, but in the Bangla Validation version 64% lived in town, 16% in mini town, and 20% in the village [18]. On the 9-items the Mean was found 4.29, 4.35, 4.50, 4.17, 4.44, 4.23, 4.31, 4.28 and 3.86 respectively which were not consistence with either the original Dutch or later validated Spanish, Turkish, Nigerian or Bangla version [15,17, 18, 22] but the German Validation study showed means of the 9-items which were almost similar to this study[16]. It was seemed to be found that the respondents chose to answer mostly appropriate in this particular study. However, as observed by Arafat SMY most of the people in Bangladesh has the perception that, the role of the physicians here are motivated by financial gain only and thus not fully justified which often lead to violence against doctor as well as the health services providers which do not completely fit with the result of this particular study [9]. Also, the doctor leads a hectic life in this country and the overwhelming number of patients per physician also make it difficult to provide quality and patient-centered care [1]. The overall result of the study might not reflect the picture on basis of the currently available literature in this context. Limitations of the Study The majority of the data was collected from private chamber setting which might have been the cause of a result not in line with the other articles. Moreover, in some respondents assistance was provided to fill out the questionnaire. Conclusion The result from the analysis indicated a better level of satisfaction among the patients which was not quite in line with the premeditated concept of the authors as it did not fall in line with the available data. Despite this fact, the Bangla validated the version of PDRQ-9 was found as a very helpful as an instrument for assessing the relationship between patient and doctor in a very short time and both in public and private health care facility. As the scale bears only patients perspective it was very proficient for measuring patient satisfaction. In a developing country like Bangladesh, future large-scale studies to substantiate the findings of this particular study and further evaluate the patient satisfaction on the basis of patient-doctor relationship may provide a clearer picture. References 1. Andalib A, Arafat SMY. Practicing Pattern of Physicians in Bangladesh. International Journal of Perceptions in Public Health. 2016;1(1):9-13. 2. Linda .MS P, editor. PATIENT SATISFACTION SURVEYS FOR CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITALS. First ed. 1607 West Jefferson Street Boise, Idaho 82702: 2001. 3. Linder-Pelz S. Toward a theory of patient satisfaction. Social Science Medicine. 1982 Jan;16(5):577-82. 4. Raivio R, Jà ¤Ãƒ ¤skelà ¤inen J, Holmberg-Marttila D, Mattila KJ. Decreasing trends in patient satisfaction, accessibility and continuity of care in Finnish primary health care a 14-year follow-up questionnaire study. BMC Family Practice. 2014 May 15;15(1). 5. Paddison CAM, Abel GA, Roland MO, Elliott MN, Lyratzopoulos G, Campbell JL. Drivers of overall satisfaction with primary care: Evidence from the English general practice patient survey. Health Expectations. 2013 May 30;18(5):1081-92. 6. Konà © Pà ©foyo AJ, Wodchis WP. Organizational performance impacting patient satisfaction in Ontario hospitals: A multilevel analysis. BMC Research Notes. 2013;6(1):509. 7. Jackson JL, Chamberlin J, Kroenke K. Predictors of patient satisfaction. Social Science Medicine. 2001 Feb;52(4):609-20. 8. Rahmqvist M, Bara A. Patient characteristics and quality dimensions related to patient satisfaction. International Journal for Quality in Health Care. 2010 Feb 3;22(2):86-92. 9. Arafat SMY. Doctor Patient Relationship: an Untouched Issue in Bangladesh. International Journal of Psychiatry. 2016 Jul 16;1(1):2. 10. Kaba R, Sooriakumaran P. The evolution of the doctor-patient relationship. International Journal of Surgery. 2007 Feb;5(1):57-65. 11. Ridd M, Shaw A, Lewis G, Salisbury C. The patient-doctor relationship: A synthesis of the qualitative literature on patients perspectives. British Journal of General Practice. 2009 Apr 1;59(561):116-33. 12. Bensing JM, Tromp F, van Dulmen S, van den Brink-Muinen A, Verheul W, Schellevis FG. Shifts in doctor-patient communication between 1986 and 2002: A study of videotaped general practice consultations with hypertension patients. BMC Family Practice. 2006 Oct 25;7(1). 13. Little P, Everitt H, Williamson I, Warner G, Moore M, Gould C, Ferrier K, Payne S. Observational study of effect of patient centredness and positive approach on outcomes of general practice consultations. BMJ. 2001 Oct 20;323(7318):908-11. 14. Porcerelli JH, Murdoch W, Morris P, Fowler S. The Patient-Doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9) in primary care: A validity study. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings. 2014 Aug 9;21(3):291-6. 15. Aloba O, Esan O, Alimi T. Psychometric qualities of the 9 item patient doctor relationship questionnaire in stable Nigerian patients with schizophrenia. Journal of Behavioral Health. 2015;4(4):112. 16. Zenger M, Schaefert R, van der Feltz-Cornelis C, Brà ¤hler E, Hà ¤user W. Validation of the patient-doctor-relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9) in a representative cross-sectional German Population survey. PLoS ONE. 2014 Mar 17;9(3):e91964. 17. Van der Feltz-Cornelis CM, Van Oppen P, Van Marwijk HWJ, De Beurs E, Van Dyck R. A patient-doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-9) in primary care: Development and psychometric evaluation. General Hospital Psychiatry. 2004 Mar;26(2):115-20. 18. Arafat SMY. Psychometric validation of the Bangla version of the patient-doctor relationship questionnaire. Psychiatry Journal. 2016;2016:4. 19. Uddin MS, Ahmed MSR, Arafat SMY. Does mind exist in physicians mind? A brief phone survey in Bangladesh. International Journal of Neurorehabilitation. 2016;03(06):234 20. Arafat SMY, Uddin MS, Chowdhury EZ, Huq N, Chouudhury SR, Chowdhury MHR. Demography and Diagnosis of Patients Received Emergency Medical Service from Two Private Psychiatric Hospital in Dhaka City. Int J Neurorehabilitation. 2016;3(6):240. 21. Mergen H, Van der Feltz-Cornelis CM, KaraoÄÅ ¸lu N, Ongel K. Validity of the Turkish patient-doctor relationship questionnaire (PDRQ-Turkish) in comparison with the Europe instrument in a family medicine center. Healthmed. 2012 Feb;6(5):1763-70. 22. J. C. Mingote A, B. Moreno J, R. Rodrà ­guez C, M. Gà ¡lvez H, P. Ruiz L. Psychometric validation of the Spanish version of the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ). Actas Esp Psiquiatr. 2009;37(2):94-100. [VM1]Please enter the title of the Table 1. Also tables should be below the mentioned text. Copy the text of table 1 before the table. It goes for every table subsequently.

BP Angola Supplier Relationship Management

BP Angola Supplier Relationship Management Introduction The results of this study are based on a qualitative research conducted in BP Angola with Procurement and Supply Chain Management professionals, Suppliers Performance Leaders (SPL) from Operations Department and Suppliers. The selection of the interviewees was based primarily on their involvement in supplier management and their availability at the time when the researcher was gathering data. The researcher intended to interview at least nine people, three from each group (Procurement professionals, Suppliers Performance Leaders and Suppliers), since three people from each group had been deemed as an appropriate sample size. A period of two weeks was set for the completion of the interviews. Therefore, at the end of the two weeks period, only seven interviews, not nine, were completed. Three from Procurement department, two suppliers and two from BP Angola Operations Departments (end users of supplier services or Supplier Performance Leaders). The Researcher attempted to obtain confirmation for the interview with the third supplier, but for reasons unknown until today, this supplier never confirmed or rejected the invitation, although the constant follow up with telephone calls. The third interviewee from the End User group had to leave the country due to unplanned compassionate leave. Although the reduced number of interviewees, the Researcher decided to keep the sample size at seven, as the key stakeholders involved in supplier management in BP Angola were included in the interviewed population. As may be inferred from above, this chapter presents the results of the interviews conducted and also the internal BP Angola document reviewed. There are several purposes to doing so. The first is to examine the current methods and systems in place in BP Angola (Exploration and Production) for Supplier Relationship Management, second identify whether the current Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) process is adding value. Third is to determine whether or not, as earlier hypothesized, these methods and systems for supplier relationship management post contract award were effective and compare them with best known practice models. The fourth and final purpose is to evaluate the validity of the earlier stated hypothesis pertaining to the implementation of Supplier Management strategy. The main themes that emerged through the research are vastly consistent with the reviewed in the literature. These themes are definition, business drivers leading to supplier relationship management, value that can be derived from proper supplier relationship management, types of relationships, forms of implementation, benefits, challenges and improvements. However, the research shows that there are some differences between the literature and the case under study especially around the understanding of what supplier relationship management really is, modes of implementation, as well as the challenges. The key themes that emerged from the research and the identified differences will be discussed throughout this chapter. Supplier Relationship Management is a very broad topic and it was not possible to cover all aspects of this topic in this research, however, the Researcher tried to cover as much as possible the key elements pertaining BP Angola SRM, challenges and benefits that can be obtained through SRM. Supplier Relationship Management in BP Context The main objective of this research was to investigate and explore the effects of various dimensions of supplier relationship management (SRM) through effective contract management at BP Angola (Exploration and Production) in order to improve added value. More specifically, this study aimed at analyzing the perception of various internal stakeholders in BP Angola about the concept of Supplier Relationship Management, who should own it, interface between internal stakeholder in BP Angola with suppliers, type of relationships that BP Angola maintain with its suppliers and to examine the issues associated with the implementation of Supplier Relationship Management initiatives from Supply Chain Management perspective. Furthermore, the purpose was to increase the understanding of Supplier Relationship Management approach and its benefits. As may be inferred from above, this Chapter explores and explains the relationship between the contracting strategy used to establish the relationship between BP Angola and its Suppliers and what value can be derived from this approach. Before addressing this connection through the analysis of primary data, it is worth explaining the Supplier Relationship Management in BP context. Over the past several years, there has been a growing interest in BP to develop a strategy that helps to optimise the relationship with its key suppliers. In todays highly competitive environment, there is intense pressure to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of procurement activities. BP is implementing globally a segment defined practice for procurement, to drive effective management of suppliers and segmented spend across major categories of goods and services called Category Management. This approach is supported by key four pillars. The first pillar is Category Management Planning, which defines spend categories the business needs to focus on, defines an integrated plan to address the prioritised categories; the second pillar is Market Sector Strategy, which identify strategic levers to be pulled to maximize value from the supply markets and provides overall direction for a market sector. The third pillar and one of the most used by the Local Business Units is Strategic S ourcing, the same as the previous pillar identify the strategic levers to be pulled to maximize value from the supply markets, define approach to the supply market, negotiate and deliver contracts in line with the strategy. The last but not least is the Supplier Management, which rigorously manage supplier performance with realistic key performance indicators (KPIs), determines the appropriate management approach and structure so that supplier performance meets or exceeds BPs stated expectations and goals. This last pillar of the Category Management strategy was the focus of our primary data analysis, as it is where the Supplier Relationship Management takes place. However, BP Category Management approach seems to contradict with OBrien (2009). The four pillars that OBrien (2009) referred to support the Category Management strategy are: breakthrough thinking, customer focus, cross-functional teams, facts and data supported by three foundations like: strategic sourcing, managing the market and driving change. OBrien, 2009, argues that Supplier Relationship Management is big enough to be a concept entirely separate from Category Management. However, although these foundations and the pillars are different; the principles of Category Management are the same. According to OBrien, 2009 in his book Category Management in Purchasing, Category Management can deliver dramatic results to organizations in different economic and market conditions and can help to respond positively to a variety of different business needs and drivers. The former CEO of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing Supply, Ken James, stated that: Category Management when deployed effectively delivers many benefits to the organization through optimizing the value that can be derived from the supply chain. It gives a clear structured framework that can be applied across the organizations purchasing requirements. (OBrien, 2009) Although the academics and practitioners tend to agree on the benefits of Category Management, however the secret of the success reside in the implementation of that strategy. IntOpsR1 supports the view: We pick a strategy and we drive everyone towards execution of that strategy and then something will happen and adjust our strategy and make an intervention. Another strategy appears instead of developing existing strategy, we tend to go to one size fit all, we tend not to take into account the unique circumstances of the locations. The success of a strategy is not the type of strategy you choose, but it is mainly linked to how you implement it. BP Group in the interest of determining how to develop more effective relationship with its key suppliers has enlarged the focus from formal contracts to more behavioural and relational approach in the current Category Management approach. The Supplier Relationship Management approach and its implementation is discussed in greater in the section below. Supplier Relationship Management Approach and Implementation Most respondents declared that they are not familiar, even though aware, of an entirely separate Supplier Relationship Management initiatives being undertaken in other business units other than the Supplier Management approach under Category Management initiative which is being implemented globally in BP, and therefore did not provide insight into similarities or differences between the different business units. However, the review of answers to other questions, other documents, company data from global Category Management initiative implementation revealed that the initiatives are broadly similar in strategic intent in the sense that they respond to the strategic objectives of BP to establish an appropriate supplier relationship management approach and structure to ensure that the performance of the suppliers are meeting or exceeding BPs stated expectation and goals. However, the data also revealed that there is not a cohesive view of the baseline activities undertaken to achieve th is BP strategic objective stated in the Supplier Management. Before discussing this difference, we will look at the general approach adopted to implement Category Management and the principle that underlines the Supplier Relationship Management under supplier management in the Category Management. The primary data revealed that Supplier Management is implemented through four steps. The first step is validation of the appropriate type of relationship with the supplier. The aim is to ensure delivery of the value objectives identified in the Sourcing Strategy and to focus the resources on suppliers who have the greatest impact on BPs performance. Suppliers are prioritised based on spend and their criticality to the business. Suppliers are categorised into four levels of relationship types, which require increasing levels of BP effort and rigour to manage: Transactional, Managed, Core and Strategic. Transactional are those suppliers where performance has limited impact on day-to-day ope rations, low expenditure and minimal opportunities for Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). However, this is similar to what Kraljic, 1983 called in the Product Purchasing Matrix as Non-Critical Items (low profit, low supply risk). Managed are those suppliers with commodity services/materials, with moderate volume spend and with some opportunities to address TCO through improved supplier performance. In the Kraljic Model, this is similar to Leverage Items (high profit, low supply risk). Core are those suppliers with major impact on core processes, high spend, high risk, can provide competitive advantage and opportunities for TCO reduction, value creation and risk mitigation may exist. In Kraljic model this is similar to Bottleneck Items. Strategic suppliers are those which are critical to BPs core processes; can stop operations if issues arise, highest volume/highest expenditure or highest risk, can provide competitive advantage, significant Total Cost of Ownership reduction/value creatio n/risk mitigation opportunities may exist. In Kraljic model this is similar to Strategic Items (high profit impact, high supply risk). This, therefore, brings clarity on what suppliers BP needs to focus on. IntSCMR2 claims: if we keep using Category Management as a base, also helps to determine the strategic, core and managed suppliers and helps to determine what type of relationship are you going to have with them Dyer (1998) supports the view that with limited resources that firms has to focus on supplier relationship management, it is important that companies segments their suppliers based on criticality of the services or goods provided and impact on bottom line revenue. Gordon (2008) added, with so many suppliers companies cannot possibly manage performance plans for every single supplier of their supply base. Firms should concentrate on strategic suppliers who are integrated business partners as well as core suppliers, who require integration and development plus other suppliers that may supply a high-cost or high risk services, (Gordon, 2008). Gordon (2008) concluded that supplier segmentation process is a starting point for discussion among Procurement and other stakeholders about which suppliers may have the greatest impacts on the companys own performance, which suppliers harbour the greatest potential risks, and which suppliers need to be measured, monitored, or improved. Supplier segmentation also helps identify supplier relationships that should be targeted for termination (Gordon, 2008). The second step is establishment of Supplier Relationship Management governance structure. The aim of this step is to define the roles, responsibilities, accountabilities and decisions rights so that they are known and understood by all participants from PSCM, the End User and other Functions. This step reinforces the company standards defined under companys code of conduct and how each individual must behave individually or collectively. According to BP process and procedures for Category Management, the supplier management governance structure exists to ensure that suppliers comply with the contracted service levels and to provide assurance of the suppliers performance. The governance structure also ensures that appropriate management resources are being allocated in accordance with the importance of the supplier to BPs business. This also helps to establish an accepted structure for the management of risk and escalation of issues within BP and supplier organisation. IntSCMR3 claims: I think Category Management model is the way forward. It defines what everybody should be doing and what the relationship with supplier should be, which is fantastic. OBrien, 2009 supported this view when argues that Category Management helps to provide structure to supplier management and define roles and responsibilities for the supplier relationship management. The third step consists of developing and agreeing performance metrics based on value objectives. The targets for performance are reviewed annually to promote year-on-year improvement. Qualitative and quantitative data is collected, collated and reported through the communication channels established by governance structure. However, the legal contract between BP and supplier does not state BPs intent to implement Supplier Management through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on the scorecard in order to improve supplier performance year on year through improving safety, reliability and efficiency and thereby reducing Total Cost of Ownership. However, respondent IntSCMR2 contended that BP treats its suppliers equally regardless the distinction that BP Category Management process says. IntSCMR2 claims: We actually treat our strategic, core and managed suppliers pretty much the same, the only change we do is the number of meetings we have with them per year and actually the discussions are the same. However, IntSCMR2 argues that even the process of setting up the key performance indicators is not consistent with what is promised in the Category Management process. IntSCMR2 claims: I think even more fundamental than that, on my previous role, I have seen examples where a billion dollar contract we defined the KPIs and Metrics before the contract was agreed and actually the business did not understand the KPIs and the Metrics, you do not understand why they are there in the first place and do not understand how to measure them, the contractor does not understand them and does not know how to measure those KPIs Respondent IntSCMR2 arguments are in line with Cai et al. (2009), when he argues about supplier performance management scorecard. Cai et al. (2009), states that many companies pursue supplier performance management as the quest for the perfect supplier scorecard. Companies believe that if they get the right metrics on the scorecard, then supplier performance will improve. Cai, et al. (2009), added that supplier performance management involves more than supplier scorecards, which are only one element of the process. The success on supplier performance improvement through supplier management depends upon putting an effective business process in place (Cai, et al., 2009). The last step is to ensure consistent and rigorous management of performance to assure delivery against targets. The performance of supplier and the relationship is reviewed and tracked at set intervals against the stated objectives and goals. This step is intended to make interventions as required and performance is monitored against improvement plans and the lessons learned are fed back into the strategic sourcing process for the next contracting cycle. This step also defines the frequency of meetings depending on the relationship type defined at the first step. Strategic suppliers quarterly performance review meetings are required at business unit level, of which two performance review meetings have an additional strategic focus with executive level management in attendance (or can be separate executive relationship management meetings if required by specific business unit). For Core suppliers BP process aims for quarterly or semi-annual meetings and annual or ad hoc meetings. How ever, IntOpsR2 contended: .looking at Key Performance Indicators during the Performance Review Meetings is retrospective. The constructive way of doing this will be to look of what we need to do to get things better. It is looking forward and not backward Good supplier performance is a key driver in enabling companies to achieve performance excellence. But for the author, the question still remains, how BP Angola can effectively influence a good performance of its suppliers? Type of Supplier Relationships Wagner, 2002, argues that numerous internal and external factors have an impact on the type of relationship company maintains with its suppliers in the supply chain. The external factors are the environmental factors and characteristics of the industry. The internal factors that affect supplier relationships include interpersonal factors, disposition of the company, other company-internal factors and, in particular the type of service to be contracted (Wagner, 2002) Oil and Gas industry is a capital intensive with very high cost contracts, high risk and high technology where only few suppliers are specialized in certain strategic services. Most of these suppliers tend to dictate the rule in the relationship. This view has been evidenced during the research interview. IntSCMR3 argues that relationship with the larger suppliers who have very high technical services like Drilling Rig service providers, BP struggle to maintain a collaborative relationship, as those suppliers tend to govern the relationship and dictate the rule. IntSCMR3 claims: for example with tendering for Drilling Service for a new exploration block in 2010, we developed a scope of work which was very shiny, gold where only two suppliers could provide it. The supplier we selected to negotiate with had several barriers for negotiation and we were forced to pay these vast billions of dollars, which is a lot of money. We went through a number of negotiations with this supplier and we felt we were going to a point where we were achieving some degree of value and they turned around and said that is it. If you want this service, this is what will cost you. It was three or four times higher than our estimate. I think we tried to be collaborative with our suppliers, but I think because of the characteristic of the industry high technology, high risk, we could not develop a good type of relationship. Although all the seven interviewees knew what supplier relationship management was in term of concept and are all involved in active supplier/customer relationship management, however, the viewpoints are different around the type of relationship that BP Angola maintains with its key suppliers (strategic suppliers). While IntSCMR3 believes that BP Angola maintains collaborative relationship with its key suppliers and arms-length relationship with non-strategic suppliers, the two PSCM respondents do not agree with this view. IntSCMR2: I think it is difficult to generalise across the board, but in overall it is arms-length/transactional relationship BP Angola maintains with the strategic suppliers. Based on my experience and in what I have seen, particularly on project side it is definitely an arms-length/transactional relationship IntSCMR1 supports this view: The focus should be on strategic and collaborative approach but the reality shows otherwise. Key suppliers perception and behaviour is to look at BP as exploit. Because of the criticality of the service/ material they provide and high switch cost, BP will need to invest to change or equilibrate the power in the relationship. It is clear from the primary data collected from the review of the internal literature within the company and the data obtained through the interviews that BP Angola sees suppliers as a critical resource and as a source for competitive advantage. BP as global company seeks to structure its supplier portfolio and collaborate with its key suppliers in such way that they can take full advantage of the potential that these suppliers can offer (BP PSCMcp Handbook; Category Management 2010). While BP Leadership believes that the current Category Management approach can create more flexible, responsive relationships thereby improving BPs performance, however, the Supplier Management under the Category Management approach does not describe the model of relationship to have with different service providers. Apart from the numbers of meetings per year to have with strategic, managed and transactional suppliers, there is no difference in the approach in relationship with these suppliers. The type of relationship adopted for strategic or non-strategic suppliers is a subconscious approach rather than a defined strategy under BP relationship management approach. Interestingly one of the two suppliers interviewed argued that BP Angola maintain fantastic working relationship with his company, while the other believes that BP Angola relationship with his company vary from arms-length to collaborative. This view is supported by IntOpsR2: It ranges from Arms-length to collaborative. When we started the contract we were in position of conflict and moved to cooperation, where we build the trust in the relationship and we are now moving to more collaborative way of working. The important observation made at this stage was that when all factors and their weightings are taken into consideration, the supplier/customer relationship that results can be plotted along a continuum ranging from adversarial/arms-length relationship to long-term strategic partnerships (Dyer et al., 1998; Wagner and Boutellier, 2002.) Drivers and Benefits of Supplier Relationship Management All the respondents violently agreed on reasons and benefits for developing a good supplier relationship management with key suppliers. The reasons and benefits fall into two main categories. The first is commercial element. Most of the respondents believe that adopting the right approach for the right supplier, a good supplier relationship management leads, in long-term, to commercial benefits, of lower costs, quicker lead times, better quality, safer and reliable operations. IntSCMR2 claims: if you are actually leveraging your scale and providing a substantial volume of your work to those suppliers, you will be expecting to get lower rates while they will have a certain flow of demand Respondent IntSCMR3 agrees with above view and added that good supplier relationship in supply chains lead to reduced cost and safer operations and claims: . the only way you can understand the cost base of your suppliers is having a good relationship with them. We know that supplier will always build on some extra cost, because they want to make as much money as they can, to which with good relationship this extra cost can be minimized or reduced Respondent IntSCMR1 does not only believe on cost reduction at short run, but also argues that good supplier relationship gives a long term sustainable cost savings enabling tighter process integration. One of the supplier interviewed, strongly agrees that good supplier relationship can bring benefits to both supplier and customers. IntSupplierR2 claims: Working closer to resolve issues, shared risks and in turn benefits, transparency of activity where possible solutions can be made to cut costs to both client and supplier and in turn payments collected on time, and developments onto new contracts/facilities and areas. This in turn would reduce added costs and streamline the BP contracts globally However, respondent IntOpsR1 casts some doubt on the claim that supplier management delivers commercial benefits. This respondent state: I think it gives you a quicker response, you get a better chance to pull in the right people at the right time and they get comfortable and familiar with your expectations and your standards so we are not always reinventing the wheel because your changing your suppliers.. I guess to me is more operations efficiency than cost reduction Ambrose, et al., (2010) stated that as companies pursue a supplier relationship management approach, they do so in a sequential manner. Beginning internally, with efforts aimed at reducing costs, particularly through better sourcing strategies and then externally through Supplier Management. It can be argued that when a supplier relationship management reaches a level of maturity, the overall relationship focus expand beyond a specific contract and focus on the overall relationship with a supplier as whole (Ambrose, et al., 2010). The second category is the enhanced performance or operations efficiency through continuous improvement. Again some of the respondents believe that Supplier relationship management leads to enhanced performance or operations efficiency in long-term. Once the suppliers are selected the challenge quickly becomes ensuring that the promised value coming out of their selection actually finds its way into company. For the two suppliers interviewed, they believe that performance management is an important element in the supplier relationship management and contract management, when well implemented, make a huge difference but require discipline and rigour to implement. Respondent IntSupplierR2 claims: We believe supplier relationship management is one of the main strengths that collaborate to deliver successful contract outcomes and performance. Respondent IntSupplierR1 agrees with the above view and stated that good supplier relationship delivers enhanced value for both client and supplier and claims: working with same suppliers in a long term relationship provides stability, continuity of service, and enhanced value as the supplier has a better understanding of BPs values, goals and methods of doing business. From the suppliers perspective, the relationship provides opportunities for increased business, and an ability to deliver better results to the customer as the relationship progresses and the customers values, goals and methods are better established and understood However, respondent IntOpsR2 argues that supplier relationship management also includes working the people interface because it is the people that make decisions to support (or not) and execute the initiatives that supplier offer for a better performance. InOpsR2 claims: In term of Performance Review Meeting during supplier relationship management, it works well; there is a process and people. It allows flexibility to raise things that are important to us. The value in that is having constructive conversations. The constructive way of doing this will be look of what we need to do to get things better. All this is dependent to people behaviour BP Head of Procurement claims: The Supplier Management process helps to drive performance improvement year on year, through increased safety, reliability and efficiency, thereby reducing total cost of ownership of goods and services. This expectation is defined in the contract. However, Ambrose, et al., (2010), argues that some companies implement Supplier Relationship Management process because they have been told that it is the right thing to do. They are convinced that supplier performance will improve and the results will speak for themselves. Emiliani (2010), states that while supplier performance improvement is a distinctly possible outcome, a specific cost reduction based on that improvement cannot be guaranteed because different companies implement supplier relationship management with varying degree of proficiency. Emiliani (2010) argues that success will have a much higher probability when senior management understands the business drivers for Supplier Relationship Management and therefore truly gives it support. One of the biggest challenges, however, is that the business drivers for Supplier Relationship Management is not cut and dried. That is, it is hard to guarantee a precise return on investment for Supplier Relationship Management. Accountability for Developing and Maintaining Supplier Relationship Management It is recognised that supplier relationship management requires both top management and people at operational level commitment. Which the author believes mean that accountability for delivery of supplier relationship management needs to be established and roles defined. The respondents were asked if they knew who the Single Point of Accountability (SPA) was for Supplier Relationship Management in the Angola Business Unit. The answers vary, depending on the respondent background (Technical or PSCM). In general, for the technical respondents, the SPA for Supplier Relationship Management is definitely the End User (Technical), for PSCM is the combined role between PSCM, supplier and the Technical team. IntOpsR1 claims: To me I think [Supplier Relationship Management] still belongs to the Line, because the relationships with a supplier is owned and administrated and driven forward in terms of learning by the technical side of the equation. So if we want to manage a vendor at higher level across locations and assets, then I still think it should be owned by technical group that have ownership on it. If we try to drive all it from PSCM perspective, from a setting up contract perspective, then we kind of missing the trick. What we may get is a little bit more a cost effective solution, but you are not necessarily getting to a point of having good technical discussions. They are technical companies and they will run circles around you This view is supported by IntOpsR2: I think that the relationship should be owned by the Line (Technical), because we understand it, and we are also dealing with people who are in the technical team in supplier side. I think PSCM role is to support and to enable and help with that relationship The above answers seem to suggest that the driver for supplier relationship management is, in one hand, improving the supplier technical performance, and in the other, that relationship with supplier is limited to the serv

Angular Momentum Essays -- Physics

Angular momentum and its properties were devised over time by many of the great minds in physics. Newton and Kepler were probably the two biggest factors in the evolution of angular momentum. Angular momentum is the force which a moving body, following a curved path, has because of its mass and motion. Angular momentum is possessed by rotating objects. Understanding torque is the first step to understanding angular momentum.Torque is the angular "version" of force. The units for torque are in Newton-meters. Torque is observed when a force is exerted on a rigid object pivoted about an axis and. This results in the object rotating around that axis. "The torque ? due to a force F about an origin is an inertial frame defined to be ? ? r x F"1 where r is the vector position of the affected object and F is the force applied to the object.To understand angular momentum easier it is wise to compare it to the less complex linear momentum because they are similar in many ways. "Linear momentum is the product of an object's mass and its instantaneous velocity. The angular momentum of a rotating object is given by the product of its angular velocity and its moment of inertia. Just as a moving object's inertial mass is a measure of its resistance to linear acceleration, a rotating object's moment of inertia is a measure of its resistance to angular acceleration."2 Factors which effect a rotating object's moment of inertia are its mass and on the distribution of the objects mass about the axis of rotation. A small object with a mass concentrated very close to its axis of rotation will have a small moment of inertia and it will be fairly easy to spin it with a certain angular velocity. However if an object of equal mass, with its mass more spread out from the axis of rotation, will have a greater moment of inertia and will be harder to accelerate to the same angular velocity.3To calculate the moment of inertia of an object one can imagine that the object is divided into many small volume elements, each of mass ?m. "Using the definition (which is taken from a formula in rotational energy) I=?ri2?mi and take the sum as ?m?0 (where I is the moment of inertia and ri is the perpendicular distance of the infinitely small mass' distance from the axis of rotation). In this limit the sum becomes an integral over the whole object:I = lim ?ri2?mi = ? r2 dm. To evalua... ...ne to follow the transferal of rotational energy to and from linear or other forms of energy.Angular momentum is used to explain many things, and it is has many applications. Angular momentum is also essential to our very existence, without the conservation of angular momentum we might drift into the sun or away into space. Angular momentum is a very important part of physics and physics is a very important part of angular momentum.ENDNOTESRaymond A. Serway, Physics For Scientists and Engineers, (Toronto: Saunders College Publishing, 1996) p. 325.David G. Martindale, Fundamentals of Physics: A Senrior Course, (Canada: D.C. Heath Canada Ltd., 1986) p. 320.ibidRaymond A. Serway, Physics For Scientists and Engineers, (Toronto: Saunders College Publishing, 1996) p. 325. Bibliography Blott, J. Frank, Principles of Physics: Second Edition Publisher not given: 1986 David G. Martindale., Fundamentals of Physics, Canada: D.C. Heath Canada Ltd. 1986 Olenick, P. Richard, The Mechanical Universe: Introduction to Mechanics and Heat, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 1985 Serway A. Raymond, Physics For Scientists and Engineers, Toronto: Saunders College Publishing, 1996

Australian Consumer Law within the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (A

Australian Consumer Law is a uniform law nationally, meant to protect the consumer and help them have a fair trading environment. It has three general protections which are; specific bans on unconscionable conduct in some business transactions and consumer transactions, and a general ban on unconscionable conduct in commerce or trade, a general ban on deceptive or misleading conduct in commerce or trade, and a provision that nullifies unfair contract terms in consumer contracts . This paper is a discussion about Australian Consumer Law, focusing on what it is, how it is applied, the difference from the previous law, its sections; specifically section 18, the effect on State laws, and its limits considering the common law application. These are discussed under specific questions as given below. What is the application of the ACL in Australia? How was the introduction of new legislation important for the whole of Australia? Is the legislation state or Commonwealth legislation? The Australian Consumer law is single national law about fair trading and consumer protection. It is uniform in each State and Territory, as well as nationally. This law was implemented in January 2011, and provides the consumers with the same expectations and protections about business conduct in Australia. Businesses are also guided by this law about their obligation whenever they operate in Australia. The Australian Consumer Law is a replacement of 20 different national consumer laws and applies as the Commonwealth law of Australia. It clarifies understanding of the law for businesses as well as consumers . It is an agenda to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, and it is implemented by all Australian courts and tribunals including those of Territo... ...ational_reforms_to_consumer_laws.page---LX Queensland Government, 2013, Office of Fair Trading: Australian Consumer Law. Retrieved from: http://www.fairtrading.qld.gov.au/australian-consumer-law.htm---L2 The Law Hand Book, 2013, Australian consumer law. Retrieved from: http://www.lawhandbook.org.au/handbook/ch12s03s01.php---L6---L5 Toth, R., 2014,The Australian Consumer Law: 10 Key Changes for Australian Business. Retrieved from; http://www.wisewouldmahony.com.au/index.php?id=314---L4 Wadlow, C., 2011, The Law of Passing-off: Unfair Competition by Misrepresentation, London, Sweet & Maxwell.---L7 Vout, P., 2013, Unconscionability and good faith in business transactions, National Commercial Law Seminar Series. Retrieved from: http://www.law.monash.edu.au/centres/commercial-law-group/unconscionability-and-good-faith-in-business-transactions-paul-vout.pdf--K2

Recruitment and Selection Strategies Paper Essay

The objective of this paper is to assist Bradley with the recruitment of new employee and the selection process to benefit the startup of his company. An important factor to identify in the process is to have a plan of action with an outline direction with an outline of the time set aside for recruitment. The recruitment process should not delay the opening of the company and each description should include the location, demographics of the company dynamics, and develop position, responsibilities, duties, and salary. Position Description Recruiting strategy is to interest, engage, and attract potential employees. The position has to have responsibilities, qualification, and duties that suit the job and represent the company. Provide the value of the role with clarity to attract the best employee to advance retention and limit turnover. Identify performance training time line with detail duties in written form to limit confusion and provide preferred qualification as a benchmark. Identify risk associated with the performance of the duties, the equipment, and employee accountability. Position Purpose The statement in the position purpose includes the organizational goals as it relates to the company direction and employee functions. The position purpose is to clarity the need for the position with a summary of the management team, candidate function, and opportunity. The relation the position has to the company dynamics in operational functions and customer satisfaction. Detail marketing strategy and why it is important to attract a particular cliental to the business for longevity. Reduce time waste with the outline of the job profile to reach the most qualifying associates.  The objective is to set up a search engine that is cost affective the benefits the company making the site user friendly to all applicants. Outline qualification from the most important to the least important to help narrow the research of each candidate helping the startup time meet the goals set by the company. Develop Recruitment Plan The management team has to have a list to determine each position that is requiring running the company effectively and efficiently. The plan is a map of the company strategy plans for the applicant placement that starts with the HR department working with the management team to post prospective positions outlining the time for each posting and in the order to hire for each position. The plan has to include draw back that will allow for declining positions. The plan will help determine the number of applicants for each position with limits for the number of interviews. The plan has to include the determination for educational qualification, background checks, and experience. Determine the value of the qualifying factors to determine the postings placement. Recruitment plan helps to plan cost of advertisement resources, plan the type of advertisement that will best fit the company purpose, and legal obligation regulation in the location of the company. Each factor has to be outline in the recruitment plan to reduce confusion and delays to organizational placement. Identify the job target to assist with the cost of advertisement. Determine the location of advertisement and time frame each advertisement utilizing all methods to benefit the company. The utilization can include media, paper advertisement (flyers, billboards, and ads). The advertisement can delay process if to many methods are in use and to help with this issue it is important to determine the number of applicant target setting a cut off number. Applicant Review The purpose for the applicant review is important to ensure each applicant has equal attention and every applicant has to reviewed and consider. The methods of reviewing application has to be outline in the recruitment plan to ensure fair and equal opportunity laws and regulations are upheld. The organization could employ a committee to help with the process or a board to  review the qualifying candidates. The candidates must apply in the consideration time to be consider for the position with the committee can pull applicants that have the qualification, apply within the time frame set for applying, and set all application up for retainer for a period set up by the company. Once reviewing the applications it is important to respond to the candidates in respect to perspective decisions for the position or not considered for the position. The recruitment process has to have a time line for each process to ensure success and have a completion time. The review of applications should have an outline set up and follow each procedure outline by the HR department, utilize documentation to identify candidates that are set up for interview and individuals that are do not meet the qualification are entitle to communication in the form of telephone, corresponding letter, or email. Preparing for Interview Preparing for interview is just as important as reviewing applications. The process has to have a format to set the direction of the interview. The direction of the interview must be clear and to the point to obtain the information about the applicant without discrimination of age, disability, race, and sex. The interview format is to help decision process for the applicant the interview questions should be written to identify the position. Prepare a packet to take notes and file with the applicants personal information to review after the initial interview. The question should be specific to the job pertaining to the competencies, skills, and requirements describing the duties and responsibilities. The preparation has to include time for each applicant making it important to schedule and maintain the schedule to meet operational goals. The verification of information is the one of the most important phases during the interview process. It is important to be specific but allow interaction with communication to introduce the environment of the company but reserve the communication to the job details. The interview phase is to help with the hiring process but it is important to review information before offering the position and determinations can be reserve until all candidates are  interview. Interview and Selection Process The mechanics of interviewing has particulars that have to be set up in during the initial introduction to make the interviewee inviting and comfortable during the interview but maintain control of the interview. The sets have little but strong management attributes that introduce the company to the perspective candidate and communication is important for the interviewee because in many situations the interviewee will do the talking and the job of the interviewer is to listen to the communication and identify skills, qualifications, and opportunity. Interviewer can become frustrated seeking a quick fit and to limit the stressor the team can set up a committee to take some of the stress out of the interview process. The committee can help with the final process and selection of qualifying individual. The team can prepare a rate sheet to help with the process to identify strengthens, weaknesses, and opportunity. Conclusion The company has to have structure during the recruitment process to assist in the growth of the company. The reduce obstacles during the process it is important to formulate a plan of action and follow the plan during each step. The steps in the recruiting and selection process will help maintain a schedule that will assist in the recruitment phase. Set goals for the company during the process that details the qualifications, expectation of each applicant, and utilize the local community to advance the advertisement process. Clarity the positions, duties, and qualifications to ensure the right person applies for the job. Create interview format to help with the selection process and each applicant must have consideration for the position during the review process. Overall recruitment and selection process is an introduction to the company and the environment starts during the first introduction with a firm hand shack. References Guidelines on the Recruitment, Selection and Retention, (9/2009). Retrieved http://www.ashp.org/Doclibrary/BestPractice/HRGd/Recruit.aspx Human Resources: Recruitment & Selection Hiring Process, (2/2/2914). Retrieved http://hr.ucr.edu/recruitment/guidelines/process.html Recruiting and Selection Strategies Recommendation, (1/29/2014). Retrieved http://www.scribd.com/doc197716142/Recruiting-and-Selection-Strategies-for-Law-Enforcement-Agencies