Featured Post
Dispersal and Regrouping of Migrant Communities Essay
Dispersal and Regrouping of Migrant Communities - Essay Example Diasporas are only gatherings that vagrants structure based on a common c...
Monday, September 30, 2019
Am i next? Essay
I ran down the stairs like the speed of lighting with coffee in one hand and my briefcase in the other, and being the clumsy person I am I stumbled a couple of steps and split HOT piping coffee all over my new Ralph Lauren shirt that my wife had bought me for my 30th birthday. Limping on one foot I put down the coffee and walked out the house picking up my silver keys from the kitchen table and I slamed the door on the way out. I tore a rather large leaf off the crocked Cox apple tree that was growing in my front garden, it was so big the roots were lifting up the paved drive way. I tore that leaf off to clean the coffee stain of my shirt, but unfortunately it only made it worse. From the Swede brown colour my shirt originally was, the leaf managed to turn the small coffee patch stain into green slug slim colour. Like a hover bee hovering around, waiting to sting an innocent human I walked outside my drive to see the traffic from a far distance you could see within the heat waves that cars were producing, a long line of cars horning and you could hear the drivers screaming at each other. So I jumped into the car and backed out of my driveway. I was looking for a C.D to insert and play in my car but all I found was an old hanky, just like my shirt with coffee stains. I thought ââ¬Å"what the heck might as well make use of it and try and at least get rid of the stainâ⬠, but it didnââ¬â¢t seem to work. The hanky just made matters worse, my shirt looked worse then when I had coffee on it. So now, not only did I hit my foot against the stairs and stumble down them and then pour piping coffee on my designer shirt I also thought I would be clever and try get rid of the stain only to find that I had made a pigs ear out of it all. Could my day get any worse? I drove along the narrow roads of St Donââ¬â¢s street, passing friends on the pavement smiling and waving at them. I couldnââ¬â¢t belive how much traffic there was. It was 8:45, and I needed to be in the works car park by 8:55 to allow my self to find a suitable place to park by that time I would have been in work on time, dead on 9 oââ¬â¢clock. But was this even possible? What made matters worse was that Mr Norris, the street gossiper was in his 1960ââ¬â¢s banger talking to Mrs Norwich from his car window. He was blocking the dam road! I waited for two minutes to show that I had common courtesy and I had patience, but this was really pushing it. You see, I am the sort of man that does not really like time-wasters, not only do they give me a head ache they also blow my very short fuse in my head. I got out of my car and slammed the door, broke into their one-to-one conversations and I yelled. I yelled so loudly I could feel the coffee backing up on me. Mr Norris and Mrs Norwich soon got the message and drove off. By this time it was dead on 9 oââ¬â¢clock and I was still on St Donââ¬â¢s roads. Not only had I lost my time for finding a suitable parking space to park my pride and joy I was also extremely late for work. If I had one more late arrival at work my boss would either sack me or demote me. I soon came to the traffic lights which were at the end of St Donââ¬â¢s road and I was at the bend. The lights finally turned green, and as soon as I turned the bend going at 40mph the car beside me that had a drunken driver was speeding and he sped directly into a fruit stall. All you could see was apples ad plums splattered all over the floor. I didnââ¬â¢t bother to ask if the driver was alright or if the fruit seller was fine, I drove off not bothering to take any details or write an incident report. I finally arrived at work having to park my car at the far end of the car park. I then walked into work adjusting my tie and greeted the receptionist Gina and made my way across the lobby and opened my office door. As I was just about to step into my office a voice called out and said; ââ¬Å"Sean youââ¬â¢re half an hour late, whatââ¬â¢s wrong with you? Without you there is no job being done, but I am truly sorry without a job theirs is no future for you hereâ⬠My boss had just made it clear that I was no longer a staff member at the ââ¬ËTechnology softwareâ⬠company he also pointed at the brown cardboard box that was sitting on my desk, it looked like he had sorted my belongings out. He also told me and said
Sunday, September 29, 2019
Faith Statement
Faith Statement My faith has grown immensely over the years. Throughout my faith journey everyone at the church and in my family has influenced my life in faith. To me when you are baptized it means your parents are making you a child of God but when you get confirmed you are accepting your baptism and becoming a member of the church. Jesus is a big part of mine and everyoneââ¬â¢s life because he died on the cross to save our sins.We pretty much all take advantage of Jesusââ¬â¢s love. Everyone makes mistakes, some foolish, but still Jesus will always forgive us and love us. Also, even though I know I will be forgiven, church has taught me that we should all try to do our best at doing what God wants us to do and the right thing. Since Iââ¬â¢m a Christian, whenever I am about to do something that I think God wouldnââ¬â¢t want me to I think it over and try to make the best choice.I think that Holy Communion affects my life by making me feel clean and saved. Prayer is very v ital to me. Going to church has taught me that if I pray to God for help in something most of the time he delivers but when he doesnââ¬â¢t itââ¬â¢s not because he isnââ¬â¢t listening but simply because itââ¬â¢s not meant to be. Throughout the years, I have learned to help God and serve around the community. After I get confirmed I will still attend church and do service projects to help others.
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Discussion Forum #5 envm 510 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Discussion Forum #5 envm 510 - Essay Example Screening is usually taken to be a special form of secondary prevention, which has the aim of detecting diseases or health complications in pre-symptomatic individuals in order to administer effective treatment of the realized diseases and health complication (Hackshaw 2012). At the same time, it can also be a form of primary prevention, here, it is administered with the objective of identifying risk factors or carrier status in individuals. Despite the perceived benefits of screening, many people still fail to take up the exercise for various reasons. This has led to the continued problem of screeningities among other health problems that would otherwise have been detected and prevented. One of the reasons why many people are still hesitant in taking screening relates to the fact that the effectiveness of screening largely relies on the principle of self-disclosure. In this understanding, even the use of quality and reliable instruments administered under optimal circumstances can only produce information to the degree that the individual involved gives honest information. In this case, people feel that going for medical screening is not sufficient in detecting any medical complications in the body so that effective treatment and intervention mechanisms can be administered. Secondly, denial is often assumed to be an important characteristic of substance use denial, in this case, it is hard for individuals and families to comprehend effectively and acknowledge that their patterns of substance abuse is an actual representation of substance abuse or addiction. At the same time, some people do not prefer the option of screening unless information got from the process is part of a continuum that is designed for identifying, assessing and treating certain diseases and medical complications. Public health officials have
Friday, September 27, 2019
Discuss what is meant by job design and discuss what might contribute Essay
Discuss what is meant by job design and discuss what might contribute to its success in an organisation - Essay Example or rearrangement, the aim of which is to reduce or to resolve job dissatisfaction and to overcome employee alienation arising from repetitive and mechanistic tasksâ⬠(BusinessDictionary.com, n.d., n.p.). In other words, it is a process of improving working conditions or job environment for the sake of employeeââ¬â¢s motivation and productivity. Job design helps an organization to determine the tasks that should be done, how these tasks should be done, by whom and in what order and afterwards to organize the content of tasks with the maximum benefits to the organization and employees (Allsubjects4you.com, n.d). Based on the definition of job design it is possible to conclude that there can be many different designs due to the variety of jobs. However, despite the variety of job designs, there can be identified seven key performance objectives of job design (Slack, Chambers, & Johnston 2004). These objectives include the following: quality, speed, dependability, flexibility, cost, health and safety, quality of working life (Slack, Chambers, & Johnston 2004). Quality is one of the critical objectives in any work performed. Job design can affect the employeeââ¬â¢s ability to create or produce high-quality products and to offer high-quality services to the clients (Slack, Chambers, & Johnston 2004). Speed of work or response is also an important objective of job design as some jobs require prompt and quick reaction to certain situations. A great illustration of this factor in job design can be the jobs of emergency service personnel, where the sequence of activities in procedures, the range of tasks they are trained, etc all play critical role in terms of timing (Slack, Chambers, & Johnston 2004). Dependability is the objective of job design as it can be influenced by dependable supply of services and goods (Slack, Chambers, & Johnston 2004). Job design can also impact on the ability of employees to adjust to changes in the working arrangements, including the following
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Politics and media Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words
Politics and media - Research Paper Example For effective intersubjectivity, the producer of the message needs to adapt it according to receiversââ¬â¢ interpretive process. On the other hand in order to effectively understand the message, the receiver needs to interpret the message in accordance to its source. Key Challenges to Achieving Intersubjectivity in a Fractured Media Landscape The media landscape is changing. Presently people are shifting from traditional forms of media like newspaper and television to the web , blogs, RSS feeds and social media sites to obtain their news updates. Initially what had been a passive audience has now become active with the help of these non traditional media (Jisun. Et al, 2011). The users are now capable of filtering, sharing and commenting on news. Just like all walks of life, politics too has been greatly influenced by the new media. Since 2008, politicians would not think whether or not to use the new media, but how to incorporate it. President Obama is often cited as one of the k ey candidates who changed the face of political campaigning by utilizing networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. Some even claim that President Obamaââ¬â¢s success in Iowa had a great deal to do with his ability to mobilize young voters through the new media (Perlmutter, 2008, p.160). He was effectively able to achieve intersubjectivity through his campaign by truly understanding the needs of his listeners. The youth generally perceived politics are dirty and didnââ¬â¢t want to get involved, through his campaign President Obama attempted to make politics inspiring and interesting. He also chose the best mediaââ¬âthe social website to aggressively deliver the message. The use of SNS cannot be applied in all instance because according to a survey it was found that the greater the political involvement of a voter, the less likely they were to use SNS for political information. This suggests that although SNS is significant in the US as a political tool for furthering the same thoughts in politics or for campaigns and for acquiring support, other resources also need to be utilized to gain favor of politically active voters. According to the intersubjectivity groundwork set out by Hewes and Planalp, a similar concept was propagated by Hawkins and Daly who proposed that communication depends on knowledge. And in order to have effective communication cognition is mandatory. The producer of the message should be capable of relaying their intent and the receiver of the message must be able to attach cognitive meaning to them (Hawkins & Daly, 1988, p.222). In order to reach a consensual meaning of the message both the parties should have shared meaning and cognitive variables. Selective Reinforcing and Challenge Avoidance As we have established that cognition is vital to intersubjectivity, any lack thereof can result in failure to achieve intersubjectivity. Once the receiver or producer is engaging in selective reinforcement of the messages, they are alter ing the cognition. Through selective exposure, the receiver or producer picks the elements from the message that suits them and filters out the rest of the information. This selective exposure can enable them to intentionally focus their attention towards structural features or physiological characteristicsââ¬â
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
Protein structure and function Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words
Protein structure and function - Essay Example nce is responsible for the activities of the different subunits, for example, the exonuclease and excision activities in DNA polymerase I of prokaryotes (Gilbert 2000). The alpha helices in DNA polymerase organize themselves in the form of coiled coils, which are bundles of alpha helices that form superhelices. Hydrogen bonds and Van der Waal forces of attraction play a significant role in the tertiary structure of DNA polymerase. This gives a 3-D appearance of a clamp. For example in Gram-negative bacteria such as E. coli, DNA polymerases sustain nearness with nucleic acid templates by means of contact with sliding clamps, which enclose DNA thus connecting the polymerase and the substrate of the DNA (Argiriadi et al. 2006). DNA polymerase has several non-identical subunits depending on the type of organism in question. In eukaryotes, there are five different subunits namely alpha, beta, gamma, delta, and epsilon (Gilbert 2000). These subunits interact in the process of DNA replication with each subunit playing a distinct role. DNA polymerase also has several domains such as the zinc finger domain and the DNA binding domains. The zinc fingers comprise of interactions between sulphide, nitrogen and oxygen atoms of the neighbouring peptides with a zinc ion. These regions influence the function of DNA polymerase by enabling the binding of the enzyme to the template strand of DNA at the replication fork before the process of replication can commence (Styrer et al. 2002). Argiriadi, M. A., Goedken, E. R., Bruck, I., ODonnell, M., & Kuriyan, J 2006, ââ¬Å"Crystal structure of a DNA polymerase sliding clamp from a Gram-positive bacterium,â⬠BMC Structural Biology, vol.6 no. 2, pp.
Tuesday, September 24, 2019
The topic is forex risk management but i need to hand in the Literature review
The topic is forex risk management but i need to hand in the and backgroud chapter on monday - Literature review Example The market also does asset valuation, arbitrage, raise capital, commercial transactions and invest in bond, stock or money. Besides, all these, the market also does forex risk management (Levinson, 2005). Forex has four interdependent spot markets where currencies are traded. These are the spot market, futures market, option market and derivatives market. Most of the time, these markets are availed by key actors in direct and indirect investments, such as, exporters, importers, investors, speculators, and governments. Trading is often done at interbank markets and financial institutions although the most common currency traded is the US dollars. Exchange rates are managed either in fixed rate, semi-fixed systems, and floating rates. Forex Risk Management Forex risk management is basically protecting a foreign currency from losing value against the domestic (Levinson, 2005) ââ¬Å"currency before an export payment is received as well as enabling markets to attach price to risk, permit ting firms and individual to trade risks until theyââ¬â¢d hold to what they wanted to retainâ⬠(Russell, 2011). ... Investors, either individual or institutional, who are motivated to and to gain capital are assured of this marketââ¬â¢s system of resiliency in risk management (Russell, 2011). This is further supported by the institutionalization of formal markets where investors can immediately raise capital by selling shares at the stock exchange (Russell, 2011). The foreign exchange is a huge trading market that is geographically dispersed and exchanges could either be favorable or not depending on the measures of risk management employed otherwise it can be limiting ââ¬Å"trade lot size, hedging, trading only during certain hours or days, or knowing when to take lossesâ⬠(Milton, 2011). Forex trading may seem easy, but in all honesty so difficult, indeed. Traders would either experience sudden corrections in currency exchange rates; bewildering variations in exchange rates; susceptibility to marketââ¬â¢s rapid change for profit opportunities; lost payments; delay in the confirmation of receivables and fees; discrepancy of bank drafts received and the contract price â⬠(Milton, 2011). Tools for Forex Risk Management How should a trader control his loses? Expert in trading currency suggested that investors should think twice to set limits on potential ââ¬Å"pressure or drawdownâ⬠one is willing to stake in trading. They also advise make use of ââ¬Å"correct lot sizes and to start at lower amount depending on oneââ¬â¢s level of risk tolerance (Easy Forex, 2011). But for experts, the best rule is to utilize small account balance. They also advised tract ââ¬Å"overall exposureâ⬠to be abreast of the developments and correlation of currency pairs (Easy Forex, 2011). Gain complete risk control and define your opportunity when the right
Monday, September 23, 2019
Strategies for Control Dissent of Social Movements Essay
Strategies for Control Dissent of Social Movements - Essay Example This therefore means that, the social movements should devise sound strategies to deal with dissent. The section that follows, gives detailed information on the strategies used to fight dissent. Transforming Perceptions of the History This strategy works well during the early days of social movements. At this time, the target audience have little information of existence of problems in the past. In addition, the social movement at this stage is not very vibrant and bold in its approach to solving the existing problems (Charles 302). Moreover, the group lays a lot of hopes in future. Various institutions such as social and professional unions, religious organization, labor unions, and mass media help to complement the efforts of social movements. Other partners include schools, courts, and government. These institutions sensitize people to search for ways to fight the challenges at hand. At the same time, the institutions plead to society to bury the past and forge for better ways to deal with the situational demands. It is a workable strategy that aims to make the audiences to forget the past, and encourages them to challenge their current situations with a lot of zeal. This makes the audiences focus on the current situational demand. Transforming perception of history strategy strengthens the audience to resist boldly the forces of those who long for the past way of living. Such a group lives in the past and it will always think of how things could have been better at that time. This makes them to lose the grip with the current situation. They do little to challenge the present. Transforming the perception of history helps the audiences to stand strong to those who are afraid of changes. Some members of the society associate the current achievements with the past (Charles 302). They fear that, positive societal changes may be so much that their enemy takes them back to their old way of living. The strategy shifts the minds of audiences and they focus on the sa me direction; to fight unpleasing changes or call for changes. It seeks to unite different social movements through winning members and advocating for same grievances and solutions as a whole. Transforming the Perceptions of the Society Strategy This is a prudent strategy because it informs the audience of the importance of societal changes. This strategy endeavours to transform the perception of audience on the opposition forces. Some society members view that it is a waste of time and resources to wage an opposition on either government or those in authority. Charles (304) perceives that the role of this strategy is to revitalize the way movements should respond to opposing forces. This strategy seeks to make the audience and other social groups with different ideologies to see the sense of opposition groups. The social movements acknowledge that it is only through these eye-opening forums that the society knows what is afflicting their life. They also see the evident gaps that we re inconspicuous before. The overall effects of such interventions are strong social movements. It also makes the social movement gain recognition. The grievances of the members undoubtedly receive the right attention with a lasting solution. Moreover, the society realizes the value that the social movements possess. This helps social movements to gain confidence in their pursuit for meaningful changes that accommodate the needs of every member in the society. The audience realizes that they are human beings and it
Sunday, September 22, 2019
Performance of Stock Exchange of Thailand Essay
Performance of Stock Exchange of Thailand - Essay Example One of the most salient features of stock exchange is that it provides liquidity to investors who are often in need of trading their securities without loss of time and value. One of the most important functions of the stock market is that it can serve as a strong indicator of price discovery. Since securities held by shareholders represent claims against the real assets of a firm, their price indicates the return that their assets can fetch from the market, if they are realized. This important function of price discovery provides necessary impetus to the organizations to issue new stock and arrange relatively cheaper funds from external sources to fund the future expansion. The return from the shareholdings of an investor is the strong factor that keeps him/her to maintain investment with the same firm and inspire him to buy more of the same firm. However, the size of market return is not reliable as it is subject to variations over time owing to many factors, mostly beyond the control of an individual firm. The factors that determine and influence the return and/price of stocks are coined as the determinants of stock market return. ... However, these forces are decided by many factors, which include both internal and external variables that can influence the investment decision of investors. From another perspective, these factors may be categorized as systematic factors (economic, political or sociological changes) that are common to all securities and unsystematic factors (company specific factors), which are unique to certain industries or firms. This chapter is meant to document the studies and researches undertaken across different parts of the world on the subject matter of stock market return and its determinants. This literature review covers a wide spectrum of empirical as well as non-empirical studies conducted to study the economic as well as non-economic variables, which influence the market behavior and return individually and collectively. 2.0 Stock Market In today's investment arena stocks have been widely accepted as the most important investment avenue for individual as well as institutional investors. A stock is referred to as a financial claim against the real assets of a firm. It represents a valid legal claim in favor of its holder for the right to get periodical return and capital appreciation, if any. It not only represents the partial or pro-rata ownership of the investors in a firm but it also allows them to influence the decisions affecting the day to day affairs of the company. One of the most appealing features of the investment in stock is that it provides maximum protection and liquidity to the investors by allowing easy trading at stock exchange at agreeable prices. Even though stock represents ownership in a company, it does not mean that the shareholders are liable for the
Saturday, September 21, 2019
The madding crowd Essay Example for Free
The madding crowd Essay The sheep washing shows how Boldwood never gives up hope. Even later in the novel, when Bathsheba has turned him down several times, he asks for her hand in marriage on Christmas Day, so they can marry five years after the death of Troy, which would make it legal. He is positive that she will say that she will marry him and she, not wanting to hurt his feelings, feels obliged to agree. After the shooting however, it all comes out just how desperate he is. The murder is enough to show but he also has a ring, which he has had since the first time he asked her to marry him. Many presents are also found addressed to Bathsheba Boldwood and it is clear from them that Boldwood was a troubled man, slightly insane because of his love of Bathsheba. At the Corn Exchange, Boldwood, who was itching to ask Bathsheba if he would consider marrying him, discovers that he cannot ask her yet. She receives news that Troy has drowned and she is instantaneously gloomy. Boldwood knows straight away that now is not the right time. He does however realise now that he is free to ask her at any point, because Troy is gone. His face flushed with the suppressed excitement of an unutterable thought, which means that he is plotting to finally get the woman of his dreams. Troys entrance has an overwhelming effect on Boldwood at the engagement party. Hardy reminds the reader of Boldwoods prior loss of Bathsheba, when he describes Tory as being, the impersonator of heavens persistency towards him, who had once upon broken in upon bliss, scourged him and snatched his delight away. The usage of those strong, and rather violent words such as, broken, scourged, and snatched further highlights Boldwoods painful suffering and foreshadows the violent actions to come. Boldwood is shocked, as is everyone else, about the sudden reappearance of Troy. Everyone thought that he was dead, so no one can quite believe it. Troy then tries to get Bathsheba to come home with him. Bathsheba doesnt move and Troy tries to pull her up, which is when Boldwood loses it. In a flurry of movement, screaming a smoke, Boldwood shoots Troy, who falls on the floor dead. Everyone is greatly shocked. Hardy then describes how Boldwood crossed over to Bathsheba, kissed her hand and, put on his hat, opened the door, and went into the darkness, nobody thinking of preventing him. No one probably stops him because it is such a sudden shock. This shows how insane Boldwood has become. In this novel, Hardy details often on the pain of love, and demonstrates to everyone the fact that love is not simple, and is a complex rollercoaster of emotions and there is more often than not more than two people involved. The two men are very different, but similar in some ways. Both are, obviously, bowled over by Bathshebas beauty and they are both highly respected gentlemen. They both display their emotions in very different ways however. Sergeant Troy can keep his feelings well under wrap, not really letting on to many people how he truly feels. Boldwood however, cannot contain his emotions as well as Troy, so therefore, goes insane because of his love, or even lust, of Bathsheba, which appears much stronger than Troys, who really prefers Fanny. Bathsheba is more inclined to be with Troy because he is a young, dashing solider. She gives Boldwood the cold shoulder because he is an ageing, boring farmer, who cannot add the spice to life that she requires. By Michael J. Ritchie Michael Ritchie 1 Ms Farrell English Far From The Madding Crowd Coursework
Friday, September 20, 2019
Continuing Professional Development In HRM
Continuing Professional Development In HRM In this essay the author presents a critical evaluation of the four stages of the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) cycle as a tool to support her CPD in Human Resource Management (HRM). The CPD process can be carried out by undertaking step-by-step process (see, Figure 1). However, the basis for most training remains the traditional training process system (see Figure2). Thus, we will use the traditional training process system for our analysis. Defining the CPD poses an interesting problem although a number of eminent researchers and organisation have categorised the different approaches. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) define CPD as the need for individuals to keep up to date with rapidly changing knowledge (Website 1). Other organisations refer to structured processes to maintain, develop and enhance skills, knowledge and competence both professionally and personally in order to improve performance at work (Website 2). The Chartered Institute of Management (Website 3) states that Effective CPD is a commitment to professionalism it shows that you have taken personal responsibility for ensuring that you have the skills and knowledge necessary to meet the challenges of an ever changing world. The process should benefit the individual, and also the business as a whole. Evaluation of the four stages of the CPD cycle The traditional training process system (see Figure2) of CPD cycle comprises four main steps: 1) Identifying development needs, i.e., identifying training and learning needs; 2) devising a learning plan prioritizing needs and selecting appropriate activities; 3) undertaking development activities and; 4) recording and evaluating outcomes (Megginson Whitaker, 2007). Now, if we consider the contents of the MSc in HRM, in relation to the CPD cycle and the authors approach to achieving her goals, i.e., completing the MSc in HRM with at-least merit pass for most modules together with appropriate particle experiences. The first step is that identifying development needs. According to Inglis (1994) identifying development needs means developing an Extraordinary Realistic Self Image (ERSI), which should consist the elements of work it self, reflection by self, feedback from others, individual psychometric self -diagnostic measures, organizational metrics and professional metrics. Moreover in the case of individual identifying development needs includes, feedback from others, self-assignment, reflection, personal professional congruence and aspirations / dreams. In this case, the author as an individual, taking all the above factors into consideration she set up her development needs as follows; by studying MSc in HRM she wish to develop her ability to make an effective contribution at a strategic level in todays rapidly changing organizational contexts, internally or externally. She also wants to learn more about the effective management and utilization of human resources in organizations. By the end of this course, she hope to achieve more knowledge about strategic perspective and operational perspective, also she would like to gain more knowledge and skills to motivate and manage employees, and become a reflective practitioner in this specialist field, so-called human resources management, and develop a strategic understanding of HRM in relation to organizational processes. At present the author is only an affiliate member of the CIPD and by the end of the course she aims to gain graduate membership of the CIPD and in the long time her as pirations is to become a fellow of CIPD. Now, she needs some criterion for deciding which of these needs should be given priority. In relation to this Stephen Covey (1990) emphasized the need to focus on the areas that are important and non-urgent. Megginson (1994) created a framework called SPICE, which covers a range of areas and has a memorable acronym. SPICE involves setting goals in the areas of spirit, physical, intellect, career and emotion. Another model presented by Hawkins (1999), so-called BEST model suggests that we can set goals that get the best out of us if we look for goals that help us to: Broaden move us into new areas; Enjoy get us doing more of the things that we love; Stretch take us into new areas, doing more, facing bigger challenges; Think -challenge our understanding and mastery, demanding deeper insight. The next framework to take into account is the modes model discussed in Boydell and Leary (1996). Each mode has certain key characteristics and strengths, and the large movements of our life, wh en we notice that we are viewing the world from a radically different perspective are about moving from one mode to the next. Figure 3 briefly describes each of the modes, which may help to identify where we stand in our development. The model begins at the bottom and as we develop we work up through the modes over the years. The author is adopting the BEST (Broaden, Enjoy, Stretch, Think) model for prioritizing her needs and selecting appropriate activities, it is in her view that this model is more appropriate to her case. Because, undertaking the MSc in HRM she gains more knowledge and skills in the field of HRM. She is enjoying doing the course and doing more of the things she love. On the other hand the course is quite a challenging one due to the nature of the course contents and the mode of study (i.e., full time) also the time constrain is a big factor. Thus, she is stretching her self to balance the professional and personal life. However, her desire to think ahead and fulfill her ambitions allows her to face the challenges and demanding her to do more to get a deeper insight of the subjects. Now, moving on to undertaking development activities, these should be in the form of professional work-based activities (e.g. work project and new task), courses conferences (e.g. CIPD branch meetings), and self-directed informal learning (e.g. reading, action learning and reflective diary). In relation to this the author is engaged in professional work-based activities via work-placement, which allows her to use the theories into practices that she learned though formal lectures and further readings. Moreover her self-directed informal learning such as readings, allows her to use wider theoretical concepts into her assignments, exams, and practical activities. This allows optimizing her knowledge and skills, as well as achieving her goals with confidences. Recording and evaluating outcomes the process of writing helps us to distil experiences, recognize patterns and discern trends. It enables us to remember what has gone before and capture lessons for the future. It can also be kept for CIPD upgrading applications (Megginson Whitaker, 2007). The author has included an evidence of her own reflecting back Continuing Professional Development (CPD) record and moving forward plan, which spans the period of her MSc in HRM taught programme and plan for further development. She was very pleased about her overall performance so far, but it is in her own view that she could have done even better in one or two subjects, however due to time constrains and other factors which are beyond her control made it difficult to perform on a highest level for those two subjects. Thus, for the future tasks, she will prepare well by reading wide range of materials including lectures notes and gathering vital information from varies sources, for example, this is particularly very important for her dissertation that will be the immediate future task for her. Furthermore, better manage the time and plan ahead early as possible, and she believes that will leads to the better outcome. So far, the authors approach to formal educational CPD activities (MSc in HRM) explained generally with respect to CPD cycle. Now, she considers the whole CPD process by identifying further needs to journey through the CPD cycle again. With respect to MSc in HRM, assessing her current skills, she studied wide range of HRM functions, models and methods used in organisations. Through these studies she is now able to analyse and critically assess the function of the manager and organisation based management structures alongside the role of human resource management within a range of organisational settings. The authors able to demonstrate a critical understanding of a range of methods and models used in organisation and business analysis from the perspective of human resource management. She have an idea of how leadership developments and how learning development is functioning in an organization (e.g. coaching, and e-learning) and how is the annual pay review managed and application of Performance Related Payment (PRP) system worked; also an up-to date information about current legislations; the employee communications and how the people resourcing strategies managed. Thus, she has insight knowledge of wider area of Human Resource Management (HRM). Moreover the author is able to demonstrate a theoretical and critical understanding of the actors, context, mechanisms, processes, and procedures that regulate and shape the employment relationship, including an appreciation of the contrasting perspectives and interpretations within employment relations. Furthermore, she can demonstrate critical understanding and analytical awareness of how employment relations concepts, policies and practices are applied within organisations to contribute to the management of people and organisational performance. As she reflecting on the outcomes, it is her view that she need to apply the knowledge and skills gained over the year through her studies. However, it is important to note that the author developed her HR skills in the area of Employee Relations (ER) through the work placement; it has strengthened her ability through project management in real life situation. Recommendations As the CPD cycle continue throughout her professional life, for the authors immediate future practices the following activities are recommended. Firstly, drafting a realistic moving forward plan, this should contain the key areas of development, that has to be achieved in the next year or so, and a time scale for the review of professional development needs. Secondly, networking and improved communications with academic and industrial communities within the HRM field is greatly encouraged. This allows her to exchange ideas and other information for optimised performances for her self and the organisation. Finally, continuing work based training is recommended for long-term development of her career. Summary In this essay critical evaluation of the authors approach to the formal educational learning CPD activity (i.e. the MSc in HRM) with reference to the various stages of engagement with the CPD cycle is presented. Conducting this formal educational learning activity the author seeks to broaden and deepen her awareness of the topic of Human Resource management, knowledge and skills. The course covers theory as well as practical applications (i.e., through the work-placement), and lead to a qualification (MSc in HRM). Within the context of CPD process, the authors reflection on her own CPD from both a practical and a theoretical point of view are presented. Furthermore, the authors motivation, engagement and management activities related to the MSc in HRM scheme are described. Finally some recommendations are suggested for the authors future practice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)