The Importance of Facilitation in Group Decision-making Essay -- Group

The need for a facilitator arises from the dynamics of group decision-making. In real and everyday life in business, management, politics, crisis conflict, education, etc. group meetings, each individual in the group does not think in the same way (divergent thinking) in real life, humans tend to go off on tangents, lose the original focus for the group meeting. Facilitators are needed to get ideas to converge in a way that reaches the decision point (Doyle and Kaner, 2007). A facilitator is a person who creates an environment which allows groups or organizations to be able to be more effective; to achieve their goals. Facilitators have to be essentially neutral in their stance and they must also not have any decision-making authority (Doyle and Kaner, 2007). The lecture addresses: a) The meaning of Facilitation b) Core Values of Facilitation c) Role of the Facilitator d) Key Facilitation Skills and Methods e) The Benefits of Facilitation A facilitator is not allowed to advocate for a specific view point during the process. The facilitator could be from within the organisation as well from outside the organisation (Schwarz, 2002), nevertheless the chosen facilitator needs to be accepted by all parties involved in the meeting. Literature also suggests that facilitators are only there to lead the process, where the process refers to the dynamics of group work like communication, making decisions, solving problems and handling conï ¬â€šict and that the facilitators do not contribute to the meeting in terms of substance. The literature also suggests that facilitators need to improve the structure of the setting in which they operate, where structure can be seen as the makeup of the group and group roles and this leads to an improve... ...e ground rules for conduct and behaviour and the group members agree to them before any meeting even begins. Effective facilitation requires a certain level of awareness or discernment of personalities during the program. REFERENCES Bono, E. (1999). Six Thinking Hats, Back Bay Books Publishers. Doyle, M., & Kaner, S. (2007). Facilitator's Guide to Participatory Decision, Jossey-Bass Publishers. Heron, J. (1999). The Complete Facilitator's Handbook, Kogan Page Publishers. Hogan, C. (2002). Understanding Facilitation: Theory and Principles, Kogan Page Publishers. Rees, F. (1998). The Facilitator Excellence Handbook: Helping People Work Creatively and Productively Together, Jossey-Bass Publishers. Schwarz, R. (2002). The Skilled Facilitator: A Comprehensive Resource for Consultants, Facilitators, Managers, Trainers, and Coaches, Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Problems Facing Leader in Multinational Organization Essay

Abstract This research suggests that there is a lack of congruence between the Iranian Institutes of Higher Education culture and the faculties desired culture. This conclusion is based on empirical data that indicate that faculties believe that they operate on a day-to day basis in a profession whose culture is characterized by an overarching desire for stability and control, formal rules and policies, coordination and efficiency, goal and results oriented, and harddriving competitiveness. Emphasizing this lack of cultural congruence, the respondents of this study also indicated that the faculties culture should be one that emphasizes flexibility, discretion, participation, human resource development, innovation, creativity, risk-taking, and a long-term emphasis on professional growth and the acquisition of new professional knowledge and skills, which is more aligned with the universities strategic external environment. One of the principal reasons for the popular interest in the study of organizational culture is to determine the linkage between it and organizational performance (Berrio, 2003). This study has reviewed a previously assumed but unverified connection between organizational culture and leadership styles. It has uncovered a lack of congruence between the dominant type of organizational culture and leadership styles. This observed lack of congruence may be inhibiting performance and unconsciously perpetuating a cycle of caution and an over reliance on stability and control. Key words: Organizational culture- Leadership styles-Higher education 1.Introduction An examination of the literature in the fields of organizational culture and leadership finds that the two areas have been independently linked to organizational performance. For example, researchers have examined the links between leadership styles and performance (see Bycio et al., 1995), and also  between organizational culture and performance (see Kotter and Heskett, 1992). Furthermore, numerous aspects of the organizational culture literature allude to the role of leaders in ‘creating’ and ‘maintaining’ particular types of culture (for example, Schein , 1992). Equally, the literature on leadership suggests that the ability to understand and work within a culture is a prerequisite to managerial effectiveness. However, despite the implicit and explicit linking of culture and leadership in many parts of organization theory, little critical research attention has been devoted to understanding the links between the two concepts and the impact that such an association might have on managerial effectiveness. The absence of critical literature exploring the effectiveness implications of the links between organizational culture and leadership is surprising given the numerous references to the importance of the two concepts in the functioning of organizations (see, Schein, 1992). The aim of this paper is to provide empirical evidence of the links between different types of organizational culture, a range of leadership styles and managerial effectiveness. This is achieved through the presentation of the results of a cross sectional survey of leadership style, organizational culture, and managerial effectiveness across nine universities in Iran. The paper begins with a brief review of the literature on organizational culture and leadership. This is followed by a discussion of the methodology adopted for the study and the presentation of the findings and analysis of responses to questionnaire exploring the links between the two concepts and managerial effectiveness. The evidence demonstrates t hat the relationship between leadership style and effectiveness is mediated by cultural congruence. In the final part of the paper, the conclusions and implications of the study are highlighted. As more and more universities enter into new arrangements in 21st century, the need to assess organisational cultures becomes more important .The term ‘organisational culture’ has proved difficult to define, but several of its important components are agreed on by most researchers. These include the norms, perspectives, values, assumptions and beliefs shared by organisational members. Due to the abstract nature of these elements, there is a considerable challenge for external researchers who want to assess organisational culture. It is even difficult for members of an organization to describe their own culture. Cameron and Freeman (1991, p.31) use the old  proverb â€Å"Fish discover water last† to illustrate the problem of assessing culture among those immersed in it. The aim of this study is to provide insight into the construct of culture and its relationship with leadership styles in the context of higher education institutions , and to discuss competing values framework as one of approaches to measurement of culture. The paper starts with a discussion on how the concept of organisational culture is understood in the setting of higher education institutions, and is followed by a brief introduction to the tradeoffs between qualitative and quantitative approaches to assess culture. Based on the basic psychometric requirements for measuring culture, this study concludes by identifying some of the implications of selecting or designing instruments for assess cultural differences in higher education institutions. 2.Organizational Culture and Leadership Styles Before attempting to describe the content of organizational culture, one should first know the concept of organisational culture. Organizational culture has been criticized as being conceptually weak, since it has been defined in many ways (Jelinek et al., 1983) and each definition emphasizes a particular focus or level. Since Schein (1992) published the book Organisational Culture and Leadership, more researchers have recognized culture as a multidimensional and multilevel concept. Schein describes three levels of culture. The first level consists of visible organisational structures and actions, such as dress code, facilities and procedures. This level of culture can be easily observed. The second level consists of espoused values manifested in the public images of organisations, such as strategies, goals, and philosophies. While not as visible as the artefacts present in the first level, these values can be ascertained by norms, the way things are done in the organisation. The third level consists of basic assumptions, or unconscious beliefs, perceptions, thoughts, and feelings. These determine both behaviour norms (the way people should behave) and organisational values (the things that are highly valued). According to Buono and Bowditch (1989, p.137-139), the visible elements created by an organization on the first level are treated as objective organizational culture, while the elements on the second and the third levels are concerned with subjective organizational culture. Most researchers agree that subjective culture is more important as a significant determinant of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours, and it thus provides a more distinctive basis for characterizing and interpreting similarities and differences among people in different organizations. On this understanding, university culture as a particular form of organisational culture can be defined â€Å"as the collective, mutually shaping patterns of norms, values, practices, beliefs, and assumptions that guide the behaviour of individuals and groups in an institute of higher education and provide a frame of reference within which to interpret the meaning of events and actions on and off campus† (Kuh & Whitt, 2000, p.1 62). While the term organisational culture is used as if an organisation has a monolithic culture, most organisations have more than one set of beliefs influencing the behaviour of their members (Morgan, 1986; Sathe, 1985). Cultural diversity appears to be more obvious in higher education institutions (Kuh & Whitt, 2000, p.161). The ‘small homogenous society’ analogues used in anthropological studies of culture is sorely strained when applied to many contemporary institutions of higher education. Large public, multipurpose universities are comprised of many different groups whose members may or may not share or abide by all of the institution’s norms, values, practices, beliefs, and meanings. Instead of viewing colleges and universities as monolithic entities, it is more realistic to analyze them as multicultural contexts that are host to numerous subgroups with different priorities, traditions, and values (Kuh & Whitt, 2000 p.161) . This study pays particular attention to academic staff and specifically those engaged at the departmental level. Therefore, from the perspective of this paper, the culture refers to values, beliefs, and assumptions developed within an academic department by academic staff and  those who manage academics through joint experiences over long periods of time. Nevertheless, disciplinary identity is not the sole source of the culture shared by academic staff members within an academic sub-unit. It is also subject to a variety of circumstances, such as national context, professional culture and organisational character (Austin, 1992; Clark, 1983, p.75; Và ¤limaa, 1998). 3.A Review of the CVF Model and the Study Methodology An Overview of the Competing Values Framework (CVF) Model The Competing Values Framework (CVF) evolved from the work of Quinn and Rohrbaugh (1981, 1983) as they attempted to circumscribe the elusive definition for a generally agreed upon theoretical framework of the concept of organizational effectiveness. This framework was chosen for this study because it was experimentally derived and found to have a high degree of face and empirical validity. Additionally, the CVF was identified as having a high level of reliability matching or exceeding that of other instruments commonly used in the social and organizational sciences (Cameron and Ettington, 1988; Cameron and Quinn, 2006; Berrio, 2003). The four quadrants of the framework, representing the four major cultural types: clan, adhocracy, market, hierarchy, provide a robust explanation of the differing orientations and competing values that characterize human behavior. The richness provided by the CVF is based on its ability to identify the basic assumptions, orientations, and values of each of the four cultural types. These three elements comprise the core of organizational culture. â€Å"The OCAI, therefore, is an instrument that allows you to diagnose the dominant orientation of your own organization based on these core culture types. It also assists you in diagnosing your organization’s cultural strength, cultural type, and cultural congruence† (Cameron and Quinn,2006, p. 33). In their research concerning organizational effectiveness, Quinn and Rohrbaugh (1981, 1983) statistically analyzed 39 indicators of organizational effectiveness as identified by Campbell, et al, (1974). Quinn and Rohrbaugh’s analysis resulted in the bifurcation of the 39 effectiveness criteria between two major dimensions. The first dimension, which is labeled the â€Å"Structure† dimension, differentiates the organizational effectiveness criteria between those that emphasize flexibility, discretion, and dynamism and those that  emphasize stability, order, and control. The second dimension, which is labeled the â€Å"Focus† dimension, differentiates the organizational effectiveness criteria between those that emphasize internal orientation, integration, and unity and those effectiveness criteria that emphasize an external orientation, differentiation, and rivalry (Quinn and Rohrbaugh, 1981 and 1983; Cameron and Quinn, 2006). Within each of these two dimensions there is also a third set of values, which produces an emphasis ranging from organizational processes, such as planning and goal setting at one end of the spectrum, to an emphasis on results, such as resource acquisition at the other end. Quinn and Rohrbaugh (1981) labeled this third set of values as the organizational â€Å"Means –Ends† continuum. The two primary dimensions differentiating between organizational values emphasizing â€Å"Structure† and â€Å"Focus† produce four clusters of effectiveness criteria as depicted in Figure 1. The â€Å"Structure† axis is represented 100 by the â€Å"Flexibility – Control† continuum, while the â€Å"Focus† axis is represented by the â€Å"People – Organization† continuum in Figure 1 . Within each of these four quadrants the relevant â€Å"Means – Ends† values are enumerated.

Why Does Billy Pilgrim Become Unstuck in Time in...

In the book Slaughterhouse-Five the character Billy Pilgrim is a reflection of the author Kurt Vonnegut. He is said to become unstuck in time. But what does the author really mean by â€Å"unstuck in time?† The story begins after the bombing of Dresden, which caused PTSD that is very common in many people after being at war. PTSD is a very common aftermath of war, or even during war. PSTD stands for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It is very common in deployed troops of all ages. It occurs after an event that is, basically, life changing. It can be triggered by many horrific accidents such as, road accidents, a deployment, a personal assault etc. When people have this disorder it can leave them feeling depressed, unattached to daily†¦show more content†¦A reason for Billy being so unattached would be PTSD. PTSD leaves people feeling alone and depressed. He is having flashbacks of parts of his life and at the end of the book he is reliving his moments during the war. Kurt Vonnegut, the narrator, creates Billy Pilgrim as himself. Mr. Vonnegut went through the war himself and is the main character of this story. However, he has named the main character as Billy Pilgrim simply to be able to write about the events he has been through easier than what it would be if he were writing it directly as him. It is a way of making the story like seem a little bit more of a story. The reality in this novel is about how real it is to Billy Pilgrim (Kurt Vonnegut). He is never really time travelling it is just a part of his stage in life that he keeps replaying. Due to the devastation he had to watch it is hard for him to live everyday as a normal person. And again this all relates to PTSD. It is not a given fact that Billy had PTSD, however as you read the novel you understand more about his life and why he is the way he is. The reason, behind the readers of Slaughterhouse-five, believing that Billy had become â€Å"unstuck in time† was simply the way he moved back and fourth in time. But as the reader reads on, Billy’s illusions become stranger. For example he believes that he is taken the night of his daughters wedding to a different planet with the Tralfamadorians. It all begins for this part of time travelling when he could notShow MoreRelatedSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut Essay1560 Words   |  7 Pagesenlisted into World War II. His experiences in World War II shaped his anti-war novel Slaughterhouse-Five. Slaughterhouse-Five was published â€Å"during the peak of protest against American involvement in the Vietnam war† (Notable Biographies). Slaughterhouse-Five appears to be semi autobiographical because it includes events that Vonnegut himself experienced, but is written instead about a character named Billy Pilgrim. Pilgrim, also a soldier in World War II, experiences the same firebombing of Dresden thatRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut1381 Words   |  6 Pagesportray the protagonist of Slaughterhouse-Five, Billy Pilgrim, much like himself, a war participant and truth seeker. In the novel Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut characterizes Billy Pilgrim as a war survivor with PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). In doing so, Vonnegut uses tone to reveal the extremely violent and unruly nature of war and flashbacks to show how war causes Pilgrim to lose touch with reality. Throughout the story, Pilgrim goes back and forth through time, giving the book a feelRead MoreKurt Vonnegut s Slaughterhouse Five1246 Words   |  5 PagesIn Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, Billy Pilgrim becomes â€Å"unstuck† in time. The question here is, why? The fact of the matter is that he does not actually begin to time-travel. Billy â€Å"becomes unstuck† as a coping mechanism to deal with his traumatic experiences during the war. Billy attempts to reorganize his life’s events and cope with a disorder known as post traumatic stress (PTSD). â€Å"Post traumatic stress disorder is a debilitating condition that follows a terrifying event† (Marilyn 8)Read MoreSlaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut1560 Words   |  7 Pages Slaughterhouse-five strives to remember the tragedy of the bombing of Dresden. Kurt Vonnegut constructs his novel around a main character who becomes â€Å"unstuck in time† (23). Billy Pilgrim’s life is told out of order, which gives him a different perspective than the rest of the world. Billy lives through his memories, and revisits events in his life at random times and without warning. Vonnegut introduces Billy Pilgrim to the Tralfamadorian way of thinking about memory and time so that he can copeRead MoreDeath and Time in Slaughterhouse-Five823 Words   |  4 PagesDeath and Time in Slaughterhouse-Five We all wish we could travel through time, going back to correct our stupid mistakes or zooming ahead to see the future. In Kurt Vonneguts novel Slaughterhouse-Five, however, time travel does not seem so helpful. Billy Pilgrim, Vonneguts main character, has come unstuck in time. He bounces back and forth between his past, present, and future lives in a roller coaster time trip that proves both senseless and numbing. Examining Billys time travelingRead MoreDeterminism in Slaughterhouse-Five by Billy Pilgrim Essay1460 Words   |  6 PagesDeterminism, particularly pre-determinism, states that the origin of creation controls when and why all events of the past, present, and future occur, which decisively contradicts the belief in free will of the majority of humans in today’s society. Slaughterhouse-Five follows the life of Billy Pilgrim, a young man who has become â€Å"unstuck† in time. The novel traces Billy’s experiences during the bombing of Dresden i n World War II, an encounter with extraterrestrials, called Tralfamadorians, and throughoutRead MorePoststructuralist Analysis Of Slaughterhouse-Five. Poststructuralism1603 Words   |  7 PagesPoststructuralist Analysis of Slaughterhouse-Five Poststructuralism is a form of psychoanalytic theory. It is the study of the natural development of the psyche to structure. In this critical analysis, Lacanianism will be the focus. â€Å" Lacan’s psychoanalytic work is often evoked to explain how power works, why the individual - the subject - is so extraordinarily susceptible to power† (Bertens, 161). What this form of poststructuralist psychoanalysis can do is explain someone’s behavior by deconstructingRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five, By Billy Pilgrim2024 Words   |  9 Pagesassumed that Billy Pilgrim relives his war-time experiences on a near daily basis. Another thing is that Billy avoids connections with people like his mother, and even his own fiancà ©. The conclusion of this analysis as a whole must therefore be that Billy Pilgrim became â€Å"unstuck† in time (in his own world) due to the events of which he witnessed and/or participated in during World War II. The horror of what was occurring around him, and due to the confusion he felt during the occurrence of theseRead MoreA Sardonic Novel, Kurt Vonnegut’s â€Å"Slaughterhouse Five736 Words   |  3 PagesKurt Vonnegut’s â€Å"Slaughterhouse Five† is a sardonic novel chronicling the experiences of Billy Pilgrim, a World War II veteran, survivor of the Dresden firebombing, and protagonist of the novel. Billy is a very unreliable narrator who has become â€Å"unstuck in time†. Billy is constantly journeying through time; at one moment he’s a flourishing optometrist and the next he’s a prisoner of war in Germany. Billy is forced to deal with an existential crisis presented forth by the great destruction he witnessesRead MoreTick To ck.. or Tock Tick? in Vonnegut ´s Slaughterhouse-Five804 Words   |  3 PagesTick-Tock.. or Tock-Tick? In Slaughterhouse-Five, Vonnegut’s message is, people are more worried about time, and have more of an obsession with chronological order, that they sometimes forget to embrace the highlights. The illusion of chronological time is a key theme in Vonnegut’s novel because it gives prime examples and scenarios where chronological time is important to the characters. Since the beginning, humans have worked with time. Humans have gradually become more and more â€Å"obsessed† with

Drug Addiction Is An Unpredictable Ailment - 1046 Words

In reality, drug addiction is an unpredictable ailment, and stopping takes more than great goals or an in number will. Truth be told, because drugs change the mind in ways that cultivate compulsive drug misuse, stopping is troublesome, notwithstanding for the individuals why should prepared do as such The dependence on medications is a troublesome thing for any person to bargain with. Often, habit prompts the decay of a man s prosperity, budgetary security, and health. Drug addicts experience serious difficulties an occupation, their families endure the results, and here and there the addicts get themselves either in a bad position with the law, or destitute on the road. The issue of treating medication abusers has been examined in incredible point of interest in our nation for decades. There are those that say we ought to lock in on medication clients and increment our illicit medication authorization to put each one of those medication utilizing hoodlums in a correctional facili ty. In any case, those that simply need to bolt up each medication junkie are disregarding the way that medication compulsion is an ailment, and without appropriate treatment, the client will end up back in the city utilizing medications once they are out of jail. EMOTION/STORY: SO THIOS IS A REAL STORY OF INDIA THERE WAS A MAN WHO WASN’T GOOD AT STUDIES SO PEOPLE STARTED MAKING HIS FUN SO BECAUSE OF THESE PROBLEMS AND HARASSMENT HE DECIDED TO SMOKE AND DRINK THEN LATER HE GOT A MISCONCEPTIONShow MoreRelatedThe Problem Of Drug Addiction1042 Words   |  5 PagesOPENING/ATTENTION: In reality, drug addiction is an unpredictable ailment, and stopping takes more than great goals or an in number will. Truth be told, because drugs change the mind in ways that cultivate compulsive drug misuse, stopping is troublesome, notwithstanding for the individuals why should prepared do as such The dependence on medications is a troublesome thing for any person to bargain with. Often, habit prompts the decay of a man s prosperity, budgetary security, and health. Drug addicts experienceRead More Legalization of Drugs Fails to Resolve Social Problems Essay1125 Words   |  5 Pagesthe war on drugs has been a success or a failure. Border police and the FBI continue to nab ever-increasing caches of illegal drugs, while our tough on crime policies haul thousands to jail on drug trafficking and possession charges. Yet, people young and old continue to purchase and consume large amounts of drugs for a variety of reasons, ranging from medicinal to escapism. nbsp; Even the most ardent drug enforcers have to admit that the current offensive against drugs has been a dismalRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?1311 Words   |  6 PagesCannabis, otherwise known as Marijuana, is illegal in most parts of the world including the United States. However, the drug is now gaining acceptance worldwide as evidenced by the number of countries that are reducing or lifting penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana. In the United States, there are a growing number of Americans demanding that marijuana be legalized medically. Although the federal government is presently opposed to legalizing marijuana, its legal status is changingRead MoreEssay about Outlaw Euthanasia and Assisted Suicides1472 Words   |  6 Pagesmany things that are not rights. Many of these are ones that would hurt the individual for whom you claim these rights. Yes, there are cases where society must protect people from themselves, whether from addiction to harmful drugs, compulsive gambling, or from a depression or other mental ailment that dictates that they destroy their own lives. Assisted suicides and euthanasia are two rights that people should not have, and I believe the right shouldn’t even be considered. If the idea of assistedRead MoreMedicinal Marijuana is Bad Idea Essay4487 Words   |  18 Pages Marijuana is a psychoactive drug made from the dried leaves and flowering parts of the hemp plant. It is one of the most strictly classified illegal drugs in the United States. Under the 1970 Controlled Substances Act, marijuana is listed as a Schedule I substance, which defines it as having a high potential for abuse; and no currently accepted medical use.; Marijuana is therefore classified more severely than cocaine and morphine, which as Schedule II drugs are also banned for general useRead MoreBook Report - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde4784 Words   |  20 Pagesof Dr. Jekyll. Eventually, Mr Hyde grows so strong that Dr Jekyll becomes reliant on the potion to remain he. 4. Dr. Henry Jekyll * He is a well-respected doctor. A good friend of Dr. Lanyon and Mr. Utterson.   He was the one who invented a drug or chemical formula that can turn a person into his alter ego. Dr. Jekyll uses his Hyde persona to live a secret life of depravity. He uses the chemical formula after inventing. Dr. Jekyll undergoes extreme changes in his behavior. Mr. Utterson isRead MoreBook Report - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde4772 Words   |  20 Pagesego of Dr. Jekyll. Eventually, Mr Hyde grows so strong that Dr Jekyll becomes reliant on the potion to remain he. 4. Dr. Henry Jekyll * He is a well-respected doctor. A good friend of Dr. Lanyon and Mr. Utterson.   He was the one who invented a drug or chemical formula that can turn a person into his alter ego. Dr. Jekyll uses his Hyde persona to live a secret life of depravity. He uses the chemical formula after inventing. Dr. Jekyll undergoes extreme changes in his behavior. Mr. Utterson isRead MoreTurning Ineffective Employees and Bosses into Performers: The New World Order13031 Words   |  53 Pagesdaily that we re heading - or perhaps careening - into the New Order where former approaches to organizing and getting work done are obsolete. No longer can organization use outdated strategies to manage employees. Because change is constant and unpredictable; markets are unstable; technological innovation is explosive and on a dramatically steep gradient; hierarchies change into networks, bosses into coaches, and jobs into ever changing bundles of shifting task assignments (Shapiro and Carr, 1991)Read MorePro ject on Stress Management9684 Words   |  39 Pagesulcers, insomnia, constipation, fatigue, colitis, kidney problems, etc. Behaviorally, they lead to absenteeism, alcoholism, use of drugs, marital disharmony and so on, which are both organizationally and socially, undesirable. Numerous common health problems are linked to stress: †¢ The leading six causes of death in worldwide: heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide originate from stress. †¢ Immune response and deficiency †¢ Memory lossRead MoreHemp Cultivation in China42289 Words   |  170 Pagessparse and seed yield is low compared to improved European varieties. Although some individuals elaborate resin glands, they apparently produce little if any of the primary psychoactive cannabinoid THC, and the local landrace cannot be considered a drug variety. There is no local tradition of its use as either medicine or inebriant. The physical characteristics of the seeds of the cultivated Cannabis of Journal of the International Hemp Association, Volume 2, Number 2, 1995 62 Several additional

Women as Bosses Still Face Bias Essay Example

Essays on Women as Bosses Still Face Bias Essay The paper "Women as Bosses Still Face Bias" is a brilliant example of an essay on gender and sexual studies. The issue under consideration was how female manages are still biased, despite achieving success in their areas of work. This paper identifies a female director, Ms. Mayer of Yahoo, and the tribulations she faced because of dismissing the head of operations. The man under consideration decided to use discriminative words against the female CEO. Another example is Lynn Tilton, who is the CEO of Patriarch Partners. An organization that is responsible for carrying out leverage buyout schemes. This has helped in ensuring that companies facing financial problems are able to get back into the business. She sacked an employee for fabricating his CV (Brescoll and Sonnenfeld, 2014). However, the employee began using gender-biased words against her, and all these were published in the media.   However, in handling these situations, the managers concerned appealed to the media, to stop using words that are discriminative against women. It is important to understand that Ms. Mayer and Ms. Tilton handled the situation calmly, and this is because they are aware of the gender sensitivity that surrounds the leadership of women in the corporate world. In fact, Ms. Tilton denoted that had female reporters covered positive attributes that faced women, then these problems of gender discrimination would end (Naber, 2012). However, if they were not aware of the gender issues under consideration, then chances are high that their reaction to the stories would be different. Their reaction to male chauvinism used in the example would most definitely lead to the condemnation of the behavior under consideration. This is because they are women, and leading some of the most profitable companies in the world. On the other hand, in handling the experience of the woman in gender discrimination, the two Ms. Mayer and Ms. Tilton would likely advise her to seek legal redress.

Daddy’s gunna get you! Free Essays

In Drama we made up a play about a girl Jo who becomes possessed by her friends late father, we got the idea from a story that Miss Risk read out to the class, the story was like a mystery story and contained clues to why this person called Jo was found at the waste ground, the clues where little like, her posters were torn off the walls and her mirror was smashed into pieces in which her mother saw and followed to find the girl at the site, we made sure we used the clues in our play as well as other ideas that we came up with such as, my friend Charlotte came up with the idea of using a ouiga board for the possession and another friend that I worked with called Nina came up with the idea of the destroyed, haunted house were the wasteland currently is. We all came up with many ideas, some which we could not use because we found them hard to do or they became confusing to the audience, one of these ideas was that we inserted flash backs and forwards, as if the audience was seeing what the girl went through to see where she is now but we got confused doing it so we figured if we were confused and we knew what was going on in the play, we realised that an audience who had never even seen the play before would have no idea what was going on so we had to cut those scenes out. In my play I worked in a small group, which consisted only of four people, those people were: Nina Elliott Charlotte Ireland Zoe Hammett And of course myself, the parts we played were significant and individual to the actress and character in the play. We will write a custom essay sample on Daddy’s gunna get you! or any similar topic only for you Order Now Charlotte played the part of Jo’s friend, Sophia; she is a shy girl she dresses very girly and acts sweet and innocent, Sophia is really a very nice girl she has just been bought into the wrong crowd of people. She lives with her Mum and her Step-Dad near Jo’s house. Sophia and her Mum have recently been falling out over the fact that Sophia wants to know her real father, her mother is too scared to tell her because Sophia might find out the secret of what really happened and she doesn’t know how her new husband (Sophia’s Step-Dad) will react, Sophia only wants to know a few things about him, she doesn’t see the problem she just wants too know, What he looked like, his name and most importantly weather or not he is still alive, She is a very curious character and is quite easily pushed into things, Sophia is almost a complete opposite of My character. The character I play is Jo, a girl with a few problems (although she doesn’t like to admit it) She dresses in a gothic style and doesn’t care what people think or say about her, she doesn’t care about other peoples feelings just as long as she gets what she wants and she would never do anything for anyone else if she doesn’t see what she can get out of it. She is definitely a character that most people would call a bully. The people she hangs around with are outcasts like herself, they have been disowned by their old friends because things like the way they look, act or their insecurity problems, all they really have friend wise now is each other. Although Jo tries to hide it she really loves the super natural but because of her gothic style she hides her emotions (Well except her sarcasm) My friend Nina played the part of Lavender another of Jo’s out-casted friends; she is more ‘down to earth’ and mellow, she dresses like a hippy but also like Jo loves the super natural but unlike Jo she does hide it; she studies it, she studies a lot of what she is into and is dying to know what has been covered up in the small village they live in (if anything at all) Lavender is the one who brings the ouiga board to school and catches Jo’s attention with it. Lavenders mother doesn’t mind at all about her looking and studing things like that as long as she doesn’t try them inside the house that is what brings it all to Jo’s house because no way would Sophia even touch the thing let alone let it into the house and that is one thing she was not going to be pushed into. Zoe played the part of police woman and the mother to all three girls, she didn’t want a main part and we did not give her one because she is away a lot of the time from lessons which is the only time we would get to rehearse it. I choose the people I did to work with because I know them well and they are my friends, I knew they would have very good ideas to contribute to the play and I know how very talented they are at acting I knew that whatever the part maybe that they would be capable of reaching out and helping me construct the play from every tiniest detail of reactions and facial expressions, the people I choose to work with encouraged me and each other when we need help, we helped with constructive criticism and by being not only actresses but directors as well. The play was about a young girl named Jo who was found at the wasteland near her home, we made up a play showing how she got to that stage and what happened afterwards, In the first scene Jo’s friend Sophia is arguing with her mother about the whereabouts of her real father, when the scene changes to school we see the first appearance of Jo and her friend Lavender, Lavender is reading a book and Jo is looking impatient, they talk about the whereabouts of Sophia until she turns up at which the subject is changed to ouiga boards and they all end up agreeing to meet up at 6 at Jo’s house. Then comes another scene between Sophia and her mother, her mother is about to tell her something but then her Step-Dad walks in the house and her mother stops. The scene changes to Jo’s room where they attempt the ouiga board only to conjure up a spirit which possess Jo to tear all her posters down smash her mirror and write on the wall in her own blood she then stumbles to the wa ste ground where the taunting screams of ghosts make her faint. The scene at school Jo comes in late her friends are scared of her by the way she acted and ask her why her mum let her to school where she explains she blamed it on them, Sophia refuses to use the board again while as Lavender is pushed into it, Lavender then goes on to ask her mother about what happened to her friend, her mum tells her that her friend has been possessed and Sophia mother finally tells her of her father, his name, his looks and the fact that he is no longer alive. Lavender and Jo are about to use the ouiga board again when Sophia walks in, the spirit in Jo awakens again and everyone figures out that the spirit is Sophia’s Father, Sophia shoots Jo in the arm causing her to collapse in pain, there is then scenes of the after effects. The scene where Jo is put into the â€Å"special care† unit the police take Sophia away, Lavender is put under a protection unit where she is given a new name address and identity, and then as a last scene they show Sophia w hat she has meant to have done to her friend where Jo is talking to herself and going crazy locked up in a padded cell. My character is quite lazy and doesn’t seem bothered by those around her, she slumps in her chair in the 1sst scene and in the second scene you see her she’s sitting on her bed grumpily, the expressions show that she tries to maintain a high authority, the voice and accent she speaks in is quite nasty but isn’t really an accent there and if there is id have to say it is a London accent. The way my character moves, when u do see her walking you can tell that she doesn’t really like what she is doing and she shuffles her feet, she is not a very active person and remains in a grumpy, sad mood through out the whole play except when she is possessed when she becomes psycho and angry and her expressions tell the other people in the play that she doesn’t like them and she gives them evils. As time went on while I was practising my piece I came more familiar with my character, I found out that the more she looked like she didn’t worry about anything the more she seemed it and the more she acted it, people commented that when I was in my part and dressed up as my character I seemed like I was actually gothic and the way I acted was as if a real gothic person would act and that the comments I made where really sarcastic, In my final performance we performed it quite well but not as well as it could have been, we made some changes at the end to try and make it better but it ended up because we didn’t have enough time to practise this part, it all went wrong. What we tried doing was too add a music scene at the end with all the end consequences mimed and only turning the music down at one point to hear what the police officers are saying to Lavender. The idea of our piece at first to me was to pass a drama exam but as time went on I realised that our play could be actually passing on a message to the audience, the message to me that was being passed onto the audience was that things are not always easy and that people need to work things out and that playing with ouiga boards is not a game but is a serious business that can have very serious effects. I think my character displayed an attitude of soloism amongst her friends I think the audience realised that she gained the respect and that all the events seemed to revolve around her house and that it was her friends that she dragged into it and that if it wasn’t for her none of the events would have happened. Overall I was happy with the play that we performed, I felt my character role was important to the piece and I felt that I played this role well, my friends in my group encouraged me when I needed it and gave me constructive criticism when I needed it, I felt like I have learnt a lot about how bad life can get from this play, I have learnt that even though peoples lives might look cheerful inside they might be hurting more then anyone else. I have also learnt more dramatic skills and feel that these will help me in the future for when I perform other roles. I have learnt that in a play the characters mood at the beginning is how the audience interprets them through out the entire play. I am really happy with the play e have produced and hope that my future performances will be just as good or better. How to cite Daddy’s gunna get you!, Papers

Service Level Agreement (SLA) Management Of Amazon Web Services

Question: 1. Discuss the requirements for remote administration, resource management and SLA management. It may be useful to consider Morad and Dalbhanjans operational checklists for DSIs OSDS. This section should be no more than two to three pages in length. 2. Discuss briefly how you will consider application resilience, backup and disaster recovery for your chosen provider in relation to OSDS. This section should be no more than two to three pages in length. 3. Use Erls SLA guidelines to assess the SLA for your chosen provider. This section should be no more than two to three pages in length. 4. Provide a covering one to two page executive summary of these two assessments to DSI Executive Management and summarise the major opportunities and risks that have been identified in your assessments. Answer: Executive Summary This paper is aimed at introducing and presenting the main drivers of resource administration, resource management, SLA management, application resilience, back-up and disaster discovery. Erls guideline to assessing SLA is discussed in reference to Amazon Web Services. This study captures a number of concepts. Methods of controlling computers controlling from a central location are discussed in details i.e. the remote administration. The structure of a remote administration is summarized in this study. It captures the necessary requirements to carry out remote administration effectively which included internet and connection. The common tasks for a remote administration are viewed in details capturing aspects such as modification and access of peripherals. A popular task for remote administration known as hacking is also viewed in details and how it can affect remote administration. Remote administration software that is currently used wireless devices such as palm devices and mobile phones are studied (Wireless Remote Administration). Resource Management and Service Level Agreement (SLA) Management requirements are tackled in the research. The structures of Resource Management and SLA Management are studied and an overview is provided. SLA is viewed as a contract between its service providers and the customers that are specified. The service providers are penalized if they cannot meet their committed goals. Resource management involves effective development of the resources of the organization when the need exists. The resources may include human skills, resources on finance, or IT. A summary of the applications of resilience, back-up and disaster discovery is given in this context. The study also uses Erls guidelines to assess SLA in reference to the given case study, Amazon Web Services. A summary is then provided on the opportunities and risks that have been identified in the study. SLA Assessment of Amazon Web Services Requirements for a Remote Administration Remote Administration is defined as a procedural or method of directing, controlling of computing devices from some remote location. This process always involves the use of some software that has been already developed to suit this process. Such software that allows control from some remote location are increasingly common in the modern world and it is often used globally when being near a system in order to use it physically is either impractical or difficult. Patel, P., Ranabahu, A. H., Sheth, 2009, p.123) However, it is also important to be noted that remote administration may be either legal or illegal e.g. hacking. Malicious computer programs such as the Trojan have been developed by hackers which actually leads the users of the true intent that they actually need to gain. Hackers have developed a hacking system known as owned, this actually originated from the early 1990s. Owned involves rooting or gaining administrative authority and control over another individuals computer (Patel, Ranabahu, Sheth, 2009, p.64). Hacking, therefore, is a serious problem to the remote administration that needs to be dealt with in order to experience the best remote administration. The various requirements for a remote administration include; Internet Connectivity For a computing device to be remotely controlled, an internet connection, either on Local Area Network (LAN) or TCP/IP is required. Both the systems that need to be remotely controlled must be connected to a source of internet and the IP address of the server system/host must be known in order to administer effectively. Server Software Remote administration is aimed at providing non-malicious administration. In order to provide this, users need to install or enable server software on the server or host system. This will enable the user to access the host system/server from another computer using the software installed. Requirements for Resource Management and SLA Management Resource management in organizational studies usually refers to the effective and efficient development of the resources when such organizations are in need of them. The organization may be in need of such resources as; inventory, IT, human skills, resources of financing or production resources (Liu, Ngu, Zeng, 2004, p.134). Some of the various requirements for a successful resource management may include; Resource Management Software These are instructions /tools that automate and assist in the process of resource allocation. This will clearly help the organization to clearly know and understand the number of employees with the skills that are required. This also helps the organization to ensure that the workforce is allocated on the various projects within the organization Resource Leveling This technique aims at reducing shortages and inventories that are in excess. It also helps to smooth resources that are at hand. The main aim of resource management is to ensure maximum utilization of both the resources and the workforce that are available within the organization. Service Level Agreement (SLA) refers to a contract that exists between a service provider and the end user (clients) that defines the standards and levels of service that the end user should expect from the service provider. They specifically define what the customer will receive from the service provider. SLA may either be from an external or internal provider. SLA provided by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) represents a basic example from an external provider (Buyya, Yeo, Venugopal, 2008, p.223). Application Resilience Generally, application resilience is defined as the vibrancy of an application to react to problems and challenges of its components and still remain the best service provider (Amazon, 2015, p.43). AWS will actually need resilient applications to rapidly continue with software implementation over multi-tier, multiple technology infrastructures. Multiple degrees of technology environments tend to have failures and security issues, its, therefore, important to test the resilience of an application. When the resilience is tested there will provision of ability to check the following; Security and Privacy Issues Amazon Web Service (AWS) requires continuous maintenance of its security systems in order to provide quality services. An application that is resilient will help it maintain security issues that may arise due to hacking and other malicious practices. Scalability This means the capacity fluctuation or responsiveness. Amazon Web Service needs a resilient application that is highly responsive to change that may be needed on the systems. The application should be able to cope with such changes as web maintenance or system maintenance without experiencing any breakdowns. Risk to business Amazon Web Service will need an application with the least risk to all organization when there is a failure of such applications may be when running updates. Application Backup and Disaster Recovery In IT, back-up simply means copying and archiving data to enable its usage to restore the original data after an event of losing such data. The prime purpose of back-up is to enable one to restore data after deletion or corruption (Terry, Prabhakaran, Kotla, Balakrishnan, Aguilera, Abu-Libdeh, 2013, p.113) Amazon Web Service tends to handle a lot of data within their systems. This data may be accidentally lost due to accidental deletion or corruption of the original files, it is, therefore, necessary for AWS to continuously backup their data so as to avoid loss of their material data. Disaster recovery in IT refers to procedural strategies and policies that have been set in place by an organization to enable recovery or existence of material information. It is, therefore, crucial for Amazon Web Services to actually, come up with strategies that will enable them to carry out disaster recovery (Zheng, Lyu, 2012, p.101). This together with application back-up will enable Amazon Web Service to minimize the risk of losing crucial information to the organization by hacking, deletion or corruption of files. IT disaster recovery control measures to be strategized by Amazon Web Service should be classified into corrective, preventive, and detective. Earls Guidelines Earls guidelines are simply the standards of Service Level Agreement that are acceptable globally and recommended. Some of these deployed in Amazon Web Service include; Neutrality to Technological changes. Cloud computing services are flexibility and extensibility for which neutralization of technology is essential. This simply means that an SLA needs to be flexible and be able to move to all extents of technological development. This is stipulated on the neutrality of technology. Amazon Web Service needs to implement SLAs that can easily neutralize with the changes in technology. AWS needs to provide SLAs that are flexible and non-rigid when a change in technology is essential. Applicability The guidelines outlines that the SLAs should not only be acceptable in one country or just or region but across the globe. Internet service is a channel where communication is always done globally; it is equally built on standards that are owed respect globally. The same way, cloud services have audience worldwide ranging from NGOs to small businesses. Amazon web Services tends to provide a cloud computing service that accounts for national and local legislations, policies and laws that everyone can benefit from all over the world. Conformance Earls guidelines stipulate that SLAs should be neutral when it comes to business model. Under this provision, the cloud SLAs are required not to mandate a specific approach for a given concept. The Cloud Service providers are, therefore, required to fully document their approach towards achieving Service Level Objectives (SLOs) for every concept that is listed in their cloud SLA based on the standard vocabulary and concept. Amazon Web Service clearly documents their SLA and their Service Level Objectives are listed in a standard vocabulary and methods of achieving every concept are given. Informative SLA Recommended standards provide it that the SLA of a cloud service provider should more of informative and not just provide its structure but instead, they should be illustrative and specific on concepts that need to be addressed. Material information on the SLA should be provided and not just its structure. (Younis, Kifayat, 2013, p.314) Amazon Web Service gives detailed information on SLA based on their provision of cloud service provision. Thus, they conform to the standards of giving an informative SLA. Summary A number of opportunities and risks have been observed in the operation of a cloud computing service. Operating a cloud computing service may be of help and at the same time, it may be associated with various risks. Some of these include; There is a high risk of loss of information due to hacking and other malicious practices. Frequent maintenance and surveillance is therefore, necessary in order to reduce the risk of losing information. There is an opportunity for operating at lower IT costs. Organizations can rent added server space rather than be maintaining servers without being worried of upgrading their resources when a new application version is available. Availability of information and success of the business is at risk. Business continuity is risked in the cloud computing environment since internet connectivity may frequently be lost. Reference Amazon, E. C. (2015). Amazon web services. Buyya, R., Yeo, C. S., Venugopal, S. (2008, September). Market-oriented cloud computing: Vision, hype, and reality for delivering it services as computing utilities. In High Performance Computing and Communications, 2008. HPCC'08. 10th IEEE International Conference on (pp. 5-13). Ieee. Casalicchio, E., Silvestri, L. (2013). Mechanisms for SLA provisioning in cloud-based service providers. Computer Networks, 57(3), 795-810. Liu, Y., Ngu, A. H., Zeng, L. Z. (2004, May). QoS computation and policing in dynamic web service selection. In Proceedings of the 13th international World Wide Web conference on Alternate track papers posters (pp. 66-73). ACM. Ercolani, G. (2013). Cloud Computing Services Potential Analysis. An integrated model for evaluating Software as a Service. Cloud Computing, 77-80. Patel, P., Ranabahu, A. H., Sheth, A. P. (2009). Service level agreement in cloud computing. Raimondi, F., Skene, J., Emmerich, W. (2008, November). Efficient online monitoring of web-service SLAs. In Proceedings of the 16th ACM SIGSOFT International Symposium on Foundations of software engineering (pp. 170-180). ACM. Subashini, S., Kavitha, V. (2011). A survey on security issues in service delivery models of cloud computing. Journal of network and computer applications, 34(1), 1-11. Terry, D. B., Prabhakaran, V., Kotla, R., Balakrishnan, M., Aguilera, M. K., Abu-Libdeh, H. (2013, November). Consistency-based service level agreements for cloud storage. In Proceedings of the Twenty-Fourth ACM Symposium on Operating Systems Principles (pp. 309-324). ACM. Younis, M. Y. A., Kifayat, K. (2013). Secure cloud computing for critical infrastructure: A survey. Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, Tech. Rep. Zhang, Q., Cheng, L., Boutaba, R. (2010). Cloud computing: state-of-the-art and research challenges. Journal of internet services and applications, 1(1), 7-18. Zheng, Z., Lyu, M. R. (2012). Optimal fault tolerance strategy selection for web services. Web Service Composition and New Frameworks in Designing Semantics: Innovations: Innovations, 218.