Training and development 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Training and development 1 - Essay Example Good customer service entails maintaining communications with both internal customers and attracting external customers. Good customer service will improve customer retention and loyalty to the organizational products and services. Good customer service will improve the sales revenues and profitability of the organization through repeat sales. Good customer service will ensure market share retention thus the organization will reduce the advertising and promotional costs that are incurred in attracting new customers. Good customer service will also reduce the number of customer complains thus improving the reputation and corporate image in the society. Some of the essential customer service skills that employees should be trained include building customer trust, customer courtesy, maintaining positive relationships, controlling customer conversations, calming upset customers, business etiquette, problem solving skills, customer service attitude, listening skills, managing customer exp ectations and dealing with difficult customers. Other customer service skills that need training include the customer service charter, handling customer complains and customer follow-ups in order to create future selling opportunities. Question two Competency modeling has some similarities and differences with traditional needs assessment technique. Competency modeling entails determining the specific competencies that will lead to high performance and success in an organization. Competencies include the knowledge, skills and behaviors and also some attributes that are required for successful performance of a particular job. Other competencies include the personality, traits, social roles and motives that are essential for the job. On the other hand, traditional needs assessment consists of organizational analysis, task analysis and individual analysis in order to identify the skills gap in the organization. The organizational needs analysis will consider the impacts of changes in t echnology and changes in the workforce which can impact on the attainment of organizational objectives. Traditional needs assessment will consider the current skills and knowledge of the employees. Competency modeling and traditional needs assessment have certain similarities since the two training needs assessment techniques aim at identifying the skills which are essential in attaining successful work performance. The two methods aim at meeting the staffing needs of the organization through identifying the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are needed in each job position. The two methods aim at motivating employees through new skills training and developing than improving the overall organizational performance. One of the significant differences between competency modeling and traditional needs assessment is that competency modeling extends beyond the boundaries of the job to include organizational vision, mission and strategic objectives in formulating the training needs. Comp etency modeling utilizes more organizational resources since the models must be validated and the targeted training population is usually large enough to justify the resource expenditure. Competency modeling takes in to account successful exemplars in the job position and competencies that they displayed in the job unlike training needs analysis which focuses on the skills needed to successfully perform the job. Traditional need

Assessing Brilliance in Innovation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Assessing Brilliance in Innovation - Case Study Example It would be within the next year that Enron would begin to go through some major financial difficulties. It will be argued here that the basic tenets of a successful company require three key aspects: profit; sustainability of innovation; and good leadership. First, one should begin with a short history of Enron. In the case of the Houston-based Enron Corporation, a multi-billion dollar institution encountered a crisis situation. The denial of top corporate executives Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling led to Enron making excuses such as blaming Arthur Andersen, its accounting firm, for its failure. An integral part of understanding Enron's demise comes from learning a little bit about the company and how it grew over the years to its existing status. Houston Natural Gas merged with InterNorth, in July 1985, to form the Enron Corporation. Over the next fifteen years, Enron expanded rapidly, establishing many new businesses worldwide. The first sign of an innovative corporation is that it shows a profit. In about fifteen years, Enron grew from nothing to being America's seventh largest company. Enron employed over 21,000 individuals in more than forty countries. Enron's executives transformed this company, without actually building a company that made significant business profits. By doing this, Enron executives could exaggerate the company's cash flow. To create these profits, Enron's executives also used many accounting procedures that seemed to confuse watchdogs-and, to make themselves look better, they blindsided everyone who thought that Enron was on top of the world, by creating hundreds of fake companies. To prevent anyone from seeing any loss from Enron, they would transfer their debt to the fake companies. By doing this, Enron's debt would seem a lot smaller than they actually were. Like many large companies, Enron had its good and its bad side. In 2002 Enron's bad side was exposed to the nation. So the question is raised, what did Enron make' Enron didn't really make anything. Enron acted as the "middleman" in large natural gas and electricity deals. Enron always admitted it was hard to define their "business" in one sentence, but they finally came up with an explanation that they make commodity markets so that they could deliver physical commodities to their customers at a predictable price. Enron seemed to have trapped employees that worked with the company. The employees were forced to put their pension money into the Enron stock, which was overvalued. The employees at Enron were just doing their jobs, and in fact should not be held to blame. "Such high turnover [at the top of corporations such as Enron] suggests that the real problem isn't a lack of innovation-it's sustained innovation."1 Although many of the future business people attend curriculums that require business law classes, the Enron scandal has proven that corporate corruption is alive and well. Also, the company proved that it could not sustain its innovation over time, because its biggest innovation, mark-to-marketing accounting, was a fraudulent innovation. It was brilliant, in the sense that profits could be estimated and then banked upon, but it was also an illegal practice to put profits on the books that were not truly there. In addition, Enron

Corporate Strategy Analyis paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Corporate Strategy Analyis paper - Essay Example However, Jobs cannot be labeled as the easiest individual to deal with. In fact, it has been reported that he can often be quite difficult. His style is temperamental overall, and this can have an effect on the business overall. If the person everyone in the company looks to is often changing moods and demanding certain items, it can create a lot of overall stress in the workplace and in the company itself. This is not necessarily the best management model to enforce when wanting to get things done. However, it does appear to be the strategy most often used by Jobs. Some have claimed that Steve Jobs learned this aggressive and dominant type of management from his adoptive father, Paul Jobs. Paul Jobs has also been labeled as a dominant type of person. For instance, he worked for a finance company and collected on auto loans, sometimes using his own force to do so. He had been a large man, and he was also aggressive, so he had the right characteristics for this type of job. Steve Jobs, however, has had a very good overall vision for his company. He has wanted Apple’s products to be the leaders in the new technology age. He has had success doing this; for instance, with the introduction of the ipod and the iphone. He certainly has a strong focus on innovative technology, and this management style has ensured success in his company. However, whether or not the way he approaches â€Å"getting things done† is the best way to handle his employees is still up for some questioning and analysis. Another problem Jobs has had to face is his battle with pancreatic cancer. This affected him in 2004 when he underwent surgery, and it also appears to be coming back to haunt him once again. His health has been a primary concern in the Apple industry. Since Jobs has had many innovative ideas and has done a lot for the company, the concern for his health is apparent. However,

Contract Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Contract Law - Essay Example It becomes sufficient incorporation if the other party knows the existence of the clause Wishart (2005, p. 78). The exclusion should also conform to the relevant statutes that are the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulation 1999. Legislation The legislations that govern the limitation clauses are Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulation 1999 and the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977. Exclusion clause 1. Urban Farm Products Limited does not restrict liability for damage, loss, death, or injury caused by its negligence. 2. URBAN FARM PRODUCTS LIMITED SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO VISITORS FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE OF PERSONAL BELONGINGS AND INJURY DUE TO THE VISITORS NEGLIGENCE DURING THE VISIT. Explanatory notes Clause 1 limits the ambition of the exclusion clause which is essential to ensure that the exclusion of liability clause does not fail or is rendered unenforceable by operation of section 2(1) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977. Section two (1) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act provides that exclusion of liability in negligence cannot be restricted in the course of business for personal injury or death by a provision in the contract. It becomes unreasonable to restrict the liability in negligence of Urban Farm Products Limited, clause 1 deals with this element. The liability of Urban Farm Products Limited cannot be restricted. ... The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 at section 11 provides for the prerequisites of reasonableness; it provides that for a term to be included, it should be a fair and a reasonable one in relation to the circumstances known or ought to be known. Subsection two goes ahead to clarify the guidelines applied in the determination of reasonableness. Subsection (4) provides that where the provision seeks to exclude liability but seeks to limit the liability, the court should look at it from two points: the extent of insurance cover for the party to relying on the exclusion clause and the resources available to meet the liability. Subsection (5) states it is up to the party wants to rely on the clause, to prove sufficient notice of the existence of the clause. The party intending to rely on the exclusion clause should make sure they did enough to draw attention to that clause: (1) There should be proper and sufficient notice where the contract has an exclusion clause incorporate into it. If t he exclusion clause sits at the back of the document, a note to that effect should be in front of the document. (2) The other must be aware of the exclusion clause before entering into the contract. (3) The notice provided should be reasonably sufficient. Reasonableness and sufficiency depend on the parties' situation and the circumstances. In its decisions on matters of exclusion clauses, the courts have held that attention be brought to the existence of these clauses by clear words on the contract. Clause 2 is the proper exclusion clause and aims at limiting the scope of Urban Farm Products Limited liability by the exclusion of aspects of loss or damage. Section 2 (2) provides that liability for negligence can be

More Efficient Software System for the University Research Proposal - 1

More Efficient Software System for the University - Research Proposal Example Apart from direct cost implications, the current system forces the University personnel to work overtime in an effort to clear up work baggage. This unfolding is not only inconveniencing to the staff but also results in additional costs of labor for the overtime work. In line with the above challenges facing the current computer system used in the University, I have opted to present a proposal of that, if implemented, will see the entire system replaced with a more efficient software system. The new system targets to improve efficiency in all University departments by minimizing on the cost of maintenance, enhance the rate and quality of service delivery and minimize the instances that University staff is forced to work overtime (Miner, J. T., and Miner, L. E., 2008). The Problems Related to the Previous System The University has in recent years seen an unprecedented rise in the number of students enrolled for various programs. According to the records from the admissions department, the total number of in-session students at any moment is estimated to stand at 10,000. In relation to the system used to serve these students, it is undeniable that its capacity is by far being outstretched. The current system was installed when the university was starting implying it was meant to serve just but a few numbers of the students in the University at the time. As such, the current system has become exceedingly slow thanks to the high number of records it has to keep. This has resulted in unnecessary and frequent delays in most of the departments. The consequence is that both the students and staff end up wasting their precious time which could otherwise be utilized in some constructive businesses. Secondly, it is not unusual for a student to visit the finance department only to be informed that the system has either crushed or developed delays and, therefore, they should come sometime later. The cumulative impact of these cases results in excessive commotion when the ex am period approaches as students scramble to get clearance from the accounts department. It is also at such moments when errors are magnified and the system could end up breaking completely. Suggested Solutions To resolve the almost perennial challenges experienced in most of the University departments, it is imperative for the University to totally overhaul the entire computer and software system and replace it with a more efficient system. Therefore, I propose that the University considers replacing the current computer system with new hardware as well as software. I further propose that the new computerized system is purchased from Systemic Company. Systemic Company is one of the renowned and dealers in computer hardware and software. If the system is installed, the University would be guaranteed of better returns with minimum cases of hiccups. To facilitate stable operational activities and processes in the University Finance department, an efficient and trust worth the computer system needs to be implemented. Such a system could be in form of application software that permits the management, tracking, and reporting of all processes that takes places in the department. Systemic Software is designed to achieve this purpose.

Safety issues wtih glaucoma and macular degeneration Essay

Safety issues wtih glaucoma and macular degeneration - Essay Example known physical symptoms of macular degeneration include: blurred eyes, vision coldness, reduced central section, vision complications, blind spots, and advanced loss in macular function. Other symptoms may also include: straight lines bent in the eye, swelling in macula as well as problem in the identification of size and color. The universally known symptoms of glaucoma entail: increased eye pressure and immediate pain in the eye, red eye, holes in the eye, especially around bright lights, vomiting, headache, and blood circulation complications. Macular degeneration and glaucoma health conditions are the leading causes of blindness in the world. The most upsetting fact about the disease is that, macular degeneration and glaucoma affects regions of the patients’ sight-zone. It is imperative to understand the main causes of the disorder and come up with the most effective measures to counter the problem. A part from age and heredity, there are other life aspects that can be actively modified to minimize the effect of macular degeneration and glaucoma. Some of these life aspects include: maintaining good health to reduce obesity and high blood pressure, avoiding smoking, seeking early treatment, as well as medical testing and retesting on the

Gaining Power and Influence in the Workplace Essay

Gaining Power and Influence in the Workplace - Essay Example From this study it is clear that  power is the aptitude to control people. Authority is the privilege to influence, control, and transform other people. To elucidate how the reporter gains power and influence in the work place, it is important to describe French and Raven model of power and influence. These two individuals postulated an all inclusive form of collective and shared authority. In doing so, they proposed and recommended various categories of authority. These categories include intimidation, incentive, valid, specialist, referent, as well as informational. People in positions of leadership can achieve power and influence through corporeal and oral intimidations. Power through intimidation can either be applied to a single entity or a group of people.This paper highlights that  achieving power and influence through incentives is practiced in many organizations all over the world. Individuals who are involved in making decisions regarding incentives have all the power a nd influence in the workplace. Valid power and influence is achieved on the basis of how the individual in management position is expected to behave by the public. In referent power, people are known to respect and recognize the authority of individuals that they are capable of forming relationships or associations with. Informational power depends on the status of an individual as some individuals are considered to be more knowledgeable than others.