Managing and developing people Essay

Executive Summary: Procter and Gamble (P&G) is a business idea developed by William Procter and James Gamble. The company was established in the year 1837. Initially the company, engaged in making candles and soaps. However, later the company started producing consumer goods such as beauty care, health care, baby products, food and beverages etc. The company suffered with several organizational and cultural issues between 1999 and 2000. The case study on P&G, suggests that the period of 1999 and 2000 has been headed by two different CEOs i.e. Durk Jager and Alan Lafley. Both of them managed the company in their own style and presented a good example of leadership skills. Therefore, the aim objective of this report is to highlight the challenges faced by P&G. The organizational challenges under this report will be evaluated on the basis of strategic development, HR practices and leadership styles under the two different CEOs. Although, each of the CEOs had there own individual personality, management st yle, leadership style and functioning but both of them evidently contributed towards the success of P&G. Additionally, strategic recommendations will be provided in the form of 5 year strategic plan which will be helpful in improving the HR performance, organizational culture and the overall financial performance of the organization. Introduction: This report is solely positioned on the assessment of the organizational issues. These issues are present in Procter and Gamble under the leadership of two different individuals, Durk Jager who headed the organization in July 1999 and under the regime of Alan Lafley who ruled in June 2000. Both the styles of leadership and actions taken will be critically evaluated with reference to strategic development, leadership skills and HR practices. During mid- late 1990s, Durk Jager launched the organizational restructuring exercise, which included refurbishment of P&G’s organizational culture, retrenchment of employees along with reduction in hierarchies. Strategic development basically involves the changes and plans that were initiated within the organization by each of the leaders separately.  Further, this report will be evaluating the consequences of these changes on the performance of the company. Secondly, Leadership styles will be explained on the basis of leading methods of both the CEOs and these methods will be analyzed using the transactional and transformational theories of leadership. Additionally, this report will analyze how employees overall performs due to different leadership styles. Thirdly, HR operations will determine the practices and rules that supervise personnel management, organizational behavior and employee relations. However, all these activities will be seen under both leader’s authority. Finally, this report will demonstrate behavioral aspects of employees and their individual needs. In the last, the report will consist of strategic recommendations in regards to all the issues described. This wi ll be carried out through a SWOT analysis on the existing HR rules and policies. Moreover, the plan in the report will address both best-fit and best practice concepts. Strategic Development: Durk Jager Vs Lafley: It may be defined as strategy that is adopted by the business to grow its business (CIPD 2012). However, Durk Jager at his time of presidency introduced various changes. He used Information Technology (IT) as catalyst for change, his vision was to influence innovative approach. According to Jager, the only way to increase the growth, sale , volume and earning is to remain constant throughout. Along with these changes, reorganization of company’s corporate structure was done; P&G increased its business unit from four to five under Jager’s supervision. Jager believed that his step would help to speed up decision-making power within the organization and additionally it helps in eradicating bureaucracy (Bryson 1988). The strategic development has various benefits such as it helps organization to think strategically, helps in clarifying future directions clearly, improves performance of both employees and organizations and most importantly it effectively deals with the speed ily changing conditions. However, Jager did not predicted hassle this brought to the employees of the organization by increasing the gap in the communication. For example line manager of one country is liable to report to the line manager in another country. Moreover, employees did not seem to be happy about the acquired changes  (Bradutan and Sarbu nd). Employee of the P&G were not satisfied and suggested that the system have a loophole. The culture of the organization went through many other changes like they discarded old dressing code, the employees were given opportunity to decide their own dress. While some of the things changed for bad, the others were good too. For instance, due to new changes all employees were treated equally by serving coffee in the same cups. Hence, after these changes the organization is aligned on common goals, high level of team collaboration, leaders were able to take up more challenging tasks. Therefore as a result of implemented change, Jager’s measures to change were not successful. The changes faced several problems, consequently the net profit declined to 18%. Whereas, again in the history of P&G another president named Lafley made various efforts to improve the declining conditions of the organization. He made the initial change by transferring 15 seniors most officers and gave all the high level of job roles to women. According to him this effort will help in promoting competition in the top-level hierarchies amongst the organization (Reid, Flin and Mearns 2008). Furthermore, Herzberg’s two-factor model also suggest that nature of work, recognition, job satisfaction level also helps in increasing motivation of the employees. Therefore, Lafley suggested that people on the top level management tends to be motivated by the suggested factors by Herzberg (Hyun 2009). Just like Jager, Lafley too emphasized on IT however, his action plan was mainly focused on customers. This is however a good point because it adds on a competitive advantage other competitors. While Jager practiced inflexible, inward and constant approach. On the opposite hand, Lafley wanted P&G to more open to challenges, flexible and outwardly. Leadership : Durk Jager Vs Lafley : The two leaders Jager and Lafley both demonstrated two different kinds of leadership skills namely, transformational leaders and transactional leaders. However, both depict different personality; the transactional leader addresses the worldly necessity of the employee whereas, the transformational leader focuses on the individual-concept of the employee and the employee’s consciousness of self-worth. The transformational leader  motivates the follower to habitus a self-concept that identifies with the leader’s self-idea and mission. To endeavor for consistency, the follower is motivated to apply extra effort to match the follower’s personal self-concept and operation with the leader and thereby increases his or her own sense of self-quality as a result. In 1978 Burnes, explained that transformational leadership represents a leadership style that is signified by shared vision and charisma between followers and the leaders. The potential of transformational leade rs comes from their power to impact and animate others to originate exceptional piece of work. In comparison, transactional leadership explains more of a â€Å"give and take†on the job relationship – close relationship between leader and follower is constituted through transaction, such as a remuneration system for achieving any particular target or goal (Lai 2011). According to this case study, Jager tried implementing too many changes in a short interval of time therefore he represents an autocratic leadership quality. Whereas, Lafley demonstrated democratic leadership skills and style, hence represents a democratic leader, who tries to convince all his employees (Bakhtari 1995). Jager’s leadership style was conservative, and very methodical whereas, Lafley took more pragmatic approach and a gradual approach. Lafley was considered to be transformational leader. Bass in 1985 suggested. Transformational leaders widen and promote the interests of masses, create awareness and acceptance among the people of the purposes and operation of the group and propel followers to go on the far side of their self-interests for the benefit of others (Hartog, Van Muijen and Koopman 1997). Therefore, demonstrating the transformational leadership skills, Lafley deeply inspired their employees. He always inspired his subordinates to perform beyond the expectation. As a transformational leader, Lafley gently communicated to employees stating the need to cultural change. Whereas, Jager do not believe in communicat ing the change process to its employees. Role of communication is really vital in the process of change. Postmes in 2001, suggests that employees will be actively committed if they attain adequate information to execute their task, and this message was presented to them via formal official channels rather than casual channels. Social communication with peer group and direct superiors foreseen commitment less than communication with more superior management did, and communication with a social emotional content was little  predictive of loyalty than formal communication (Elving 2006). Human Resource (HR) Practice: Human Resource is the most crucial asset for any organization and it is the root of achieving competitive advantage. Managing human resources is very difficult as compared to managing technology or capital and for its effectual management, administration requires effective HRM scheme. HRM system should always be backed up by safe HRM practices. HRM practices refer to business activities oriented at managing the reserve of human resources and ensuring that the resources are employed towards the satisfaction of organizational goals. Procter and Gamble (P&G) always treated employees of the organization as its own family members. The vision of the organization is to focus on the company’s principles, core values and purpose. The organization gives pay off on Saturday of every week. The organization offered a sickness, life insurance plan, and disability benefits. They moreover, granted forty-eight weeks of employment to the employees in a year. P&G’s recruitment process is comprehensive in manner, the HR department scans resume for the most promising candidate. The company selects its candidates on the basis of applicant’s aptitude test for problem solving and leadership skills. P&G’s HR policies focused on delegating responsibility and accountability to the new recruits in order to develop and build the long lasting careers with in the company. The unique feature of P&G is amongst the best features, i.e. the new recruits are supposed to spend the first year of their employment in the P&G’s college. In this college different types of courses are taught so that the new comer can gain a deep insight as to what to expect and how to deal with the situation that might erupt in future during the time of employment. However, P&G followed several code of conducts for the benefits of the employees and to encourage dedicate working environment. For instance; employees were reminded not to disturb other workers or to visit other sector or de partment, except in case of extreme urgency. All these rules and regulation changed slightly during the regime of two different leaders. Jager: Due to its transactional leadership nature, P&G was popularly known for its narrow – minded, and conservative image. Therefore, the HR policies under  Jager’s regime were not people- centered. This Change, from people – centric to target – centric came as a surprise to the employees. This shock created an outrage within the employees. This outrage further leads to resistance to change. The literature suggests that resistance occurs in situation when the goal, ideas, reason and targets of change is unclear and not wisely communicated to the employees. The employee resistance towards change, also occurred due to uncertainty, threat to skills and inconvenience etc. Schein in 1999 proposed, that the culture of organization is very difficult to change (Maurer 2006). In the very starting Jager, introduced an extended goal plans and therefore resulted in setting up the unrealistic targets for the employees. However on analyzing the situation, it seemed to be a good move, as it will help in uplifting those employees who are not performing or who are under performing. Whereas on the other hand, unachievable targets can also demotivate employees and further the employees may become unproductive in terms of work. From the situation, it can be analyzed that Locke’s goal setting theory is not used in this organization, under the regime of Jager. According to the theory of Locke, goals should always be specific, must be attainable in nature, must be accepted by the organizational members and most importantly the leader should provide feedback on the goal attained. All these are necessary to keep people motivated and aligned towards attaining the goal (Lunenburg 2011). In contrast with this theory, Jager proposed all things in contrast du to which employee’s resisted change. Secondly, he introduced a new remuneration system that was meant for only those employees that contributed extraordinary. This is both good and bad for employees, it is considered to be good because it gave recognition to the employees who performed well. While in a team-based achievement, rewarding an individual seems biased decision. This may further lead to different perception, employees will believe that re ward will be given to only those who perform extraordinary rather than to those who completes the job on time. This outcome can be related to Adam’s equity theory, wherein people compare themselves with others on the basis of time, efforts, sacrifices and outputs received (Al- Zawahreh and Al- Madi nd). The environment became informal under the regime of Jager that created equality amongst each other within the organization. Lastly, Jager made significant amount of job cuts while doing restructuring  of the organization. This came as a huge shock to the employees as all these actions were taken without their consent. Lafley: Lafley’s approach was more flexible and outwardly. He believed that the targets are unachievable and not realistic therefore, he decided that conservative goal plan would be a good option. Lafley joined P&G at the time when the organization was in loss hence, he wanted to save cost. In order to save cost he started cost- cutting. For this purpose, he disallowed employees of every department to work from home. This method definitely saved a of cost for the company. Recommendations and Conclusion: This report widely examined the organizational issues that were present in P&G under the leadership of Jager and Lafley. Both Jager and Lafley, undergone through changes in the context of leadership, HR practice and strategic development. It is therefore clear that both the leaders had very different styles of leadership and way of operating things. Moreover, throughout the case study it is evident that their different style of doing the job has affected the organization both negatively and positively. However, the next section will focus on the plan of action that P&G needs. Additionally, the report will have a five year plan and the main objective is to improvise its HR practices and culture of the organization. In order to craft this plan a SWOT analysis will be done on P&G’s existing HR rules and processors. SWOT of existing HR activities: SWOT Analysis is the most famous means for audit and analysis to know the total strategic position of the commercial enterprise and its environment. Its central aim is to determine the strategies that will create a firm constricted business model that will best adjust an organization’s resources and the environment in which the business functions (Johnson and Scholes 2010). Strengths: Under SWOT analysis strength deals with what benefit does your organization have over the rivals? What do you do better than anyone else in the same field? What specific or lowest-cost resources can you show upon that others can’t? What do people in your industry see as your strengths?. The core strength of P&G is their Policy that focuses entirely on the people. The organization’s policy is lined up according to the needs  of the employees. Therefore, P&G is often called as People Company. Another strength consists of its effective and efficient global processes such as training, recruitment, training and highly motivated staff. Procter and Gamble also have sustainable competitive advantage. Weaknesses: SWOT analyses under this determine things like what could you amend? What should you avert? What are masses in your market likely to perceive as weaknesses? What factors lose you gross revenue?. In the case of Procter and Gamble it can be analyzed that the company definitely lacked direction. It is evident that both leaders at there time had excellent aspirations for the organization but was poorly implemented. The second and the real weaknesses was that employees were not fully convinced with the idea of change, this could have been due to lack of communication within the organization. Lack of product offering was amongst other weaknesses. Opportunities: In this questions such as what good opportunities can you spot? What interesting trends are you aware of? . There were several opportunities open to P&G such as innovation of their products and brands. P&G would have tried exploring new market through expanding its business in other parts of the world. They need to be risk takers therefore should think of adopting growth and diversification Strategies. Threats: Under threats questions like what hurdles do you face? What are your rivals doing? Are quality specifications for your job, products or services dynamic?. Some of the threats affects P&G as a whole. For instance, intense competition changes in demographics and customer power. Another threat for this organization is economic downturn and global recession. Strategic Recommendations: This section will be based on the SWOT analysis that is done above, the following recommendations will be helpful in improving its HR performance, the profit of the organization and the culture of the organization. The foremost recommendation for P&G is to formulate an effective talent management. The process Involved in the talent management include workforce planning, development, retention, talent review and evaluation (Lewis and Heckman 2006). Talent management plays an important role in the HR department and the strategy should focus on business as a whole. The process  of talent management must be unified within the business strategies of the P&G. The organization needs to realize that to survive in the market it has to match the pace of the changing environment. Talent Planning: The HR professional employed in this field ensures that the organization is able to determine and pull in key people with the ability to create competitive advantage and that it actively manages an proper scale of resource to meet dynamic needs, fulfilling the brief and long-term ambitions of the administration strategy (CIPD 2013). P&G should encourage recruitment and selection of individuals who have the ability to add competitive value to its organization. This needs to be done across all the levels within the organization. Moreover, P&G must try to engage all the hired staff in training and Development as it will be good for people to enhance the right skills. Additionally, employees must be taught about cultural change so that they do not resist change. Learning and Development for employees: Employees along with rest of the staff need to enhance and develop the skills and capabilities required to stand out on the job with the help of organizational and individual training programs. This process will help in encouraging employee retention. The process of learning and development includes 3 main steps i.e. 1. Plan; where training need is gathered. 2. Do; in this step plan is implemented 3. Review; the last step, learning and development activities are monitored and evaluated. Performance Management in the organization: Performance Management is a process for setting up a common understanding about what is to be attained and how it is to be attained. It is a technique of managing people that expand the chance of achieving success (CIPD 2013). This generally deals with appraisals, performance etc. P&G as an organization needs to select the quality oriented view of the performance management that is related to the enhancing strong performance, regular improvement and coaching of workers by senior level of managers that helps to improve motivation of the job. Reward Management in Procter and Gamble: Reward management may merely defined as the joint actions an employer may take to stipulate at what levels worker wages will be offered, based on what standard and data, how the substance will be ordered over time, and how both the deliberate links between organizational goals and belief should be interpreted and acted on by the parties to the occupation kinship (Parkins and White 2011). It is amongst one of the ways when P&G can keep employee retention. This should cover pay structures, grade, and contingent pay and employee benefits as well. This overall suggests those employees efforts are accepted and this motivates workers to work better, hence ensures retention. Conclusion Concluding this report by suggesting the strategic plan for P&G to improve its HR practices. This plan is focused for five years that will include the strategies they have to adopt and they people who will implement the strategies for the people who will be affected by these strategies. Talent Planning is a strategy that will be implemented by the Chief Executive Officer and other senior executives for all the employees of P&G. The duration for this strategy is 2 years. The Learning and Development will be executed by the senior level managers for the mid and entry lever employees and this will take 3 years. Performance management will be perform by the senior executive and CEO that will be effective for all employees of P&G and its will be executed quarterly. CEO will do reward management strategy for all the employees of the company and it will be for 1 year. List of References Bradutan, S. and Sarbu, A. (ND) ‘ Advantages and Disadvantages of the Strategic Management in the Current Economic Context ‘. Journal of Management [online] 1-4. Available from [1 June 2013] Bryson, M.J. (1988) ‘A Strategic Planning Process for Public and Non-profit organizations’. The Journal Of Long Range Planning [online] 21 (1), 73-81. Available from [28 May 2013] CIPD (2012) ‘Development strategy’ [online] available from [1 June 2013] CIPD (2013) ‘ Performance Management: an overview’ [Online] available from [2 June 2013] Dr. Zawahreh, A.A and Dr. Madi, A.F (ND) ‘The Utility of Equity Theory in Enhancing Organizational Effectiveness ‘. European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences [online] 1-31. Available from [31 May 2013] Hartog, D.N.D. , Muijen, V.J.J. and Koopman, L.P. (1997) ‘Transactional Versus Transformational Leadership: An Analysis of the MLQ’. Journal of occupational and organizational Psychology [online] 70, 19-34. Available from [4 June 2013] Hyun, S. (2009) ‘ Re-examination of Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory of Motivation’. Available from [5 June 2013] Jones, B.B. and Brazzel, M. (2006) Handbook of Organization Development and Change Principles, Practices and Perspectives San Francisco: Pfeiffer Lai, A. (2011) ‘Transformational-Transaction Leadership Theory’. Journal of Leadership Theory [online] 1-34. Available from [2 June 2013] Lewis, E.R. and Heckman, J.R. (2006) ‘Talent Management: A Critical Review’. Journal of Human Resource Management Review [online] 16, 139-154. Available from [28 May 2013] Lumenburg, C.F. (2011) ‘Goal Setting Theory of Motivation’. International Journal of Management, Business and Administration [online] 15 (1), 1-6. Available from [30 May 2013] Perkins, J.S and White, G. (2011) ‘ Introducing the Reward Management System’ (2 edition), UK; CIPD

Workplace Safety

Workplace Safety Andrew J. Burns CIS 111 Section 043 University of Kentucky Bad things happen to millions of people every single day. It could be physical, emotional, financial, psychological; sometimes permanent damage is done, sometimes the damage can be fixed. Sadly, millions of people are permanently wounded at their work yearly in the United States, and thousands of those people will die because of that incident. Imagine how your loved ones would feel if they received word that you had been killed on the job.Imagine being permanently injured from your work because someone didn’t care enough to test and make sure your position was safe, and losing your ability to hear, see, or move properly, or if one of these things happened to one of your own loved ones. You might think this is unlikely, but it happens quite regularly, and to a great number of people. As I said before, tons of people everywhere are affected by work related safety issues, and it is a big deal. Surveys are taken every year to calculate how many injuries and deaths occur in the United States due to safety problems at the workplace.The survey taken in 2011 revealed that 4609 work related fatalities occurred that year (U. S. Department of Labor). Hilda Solis, the United States Secretary of Labor, stated that â€Å"Every day in America, 13 people go to work and never come home. Every year in America, nearly 4 million people suffer a work place injury from which some may never recover. † Those are huge numbers, and should definitely not go unnoticed by the public. I witnessed first-hand the unsafe environment of working in a factory for a few months.While I was working there, there were tons of forklifts always driving around the factory at pretty fast speeds, and if you weren’t paying attention, you could easily get hit by one. They also put out a large amount of emissions. As soon as you walked into the factory, you could instantly smell their emissions, and there’s no way they were good for the lungs, especially if you have to work there year round like the regular employees. Complicated, unguarded machines were another major hazard. There were many machines at the factory making plastic and styrofoam that could easily burn you if you just barely touched it.One of the guys I worked with accidentally brushed his arm up against one of the ovens melting plastic and he was burned really badly. His skin bubbled up right after and it later left a nasty scar on his arm. Also, with the factory being in a closed space, the sound waves that the machines produced would have no efficient way of leaving the building, rendering you very vulnerable to permanent hearing loss. According to the Department of Health, â€Å"Excessive noise levels over a long period of time will gradually and painlessly permanently damage your hearing. It was for sure as loud, if not louder than heavy traffic in there. I’m convinced I lost a little of my hearing from just working there in the summer. I find myself saying â€Å"what? † a lot more to people now. Also, don’t count yourself out just because you think you work in a safe are behind a desk all day. Unnoticeable things like loud A/C units and certain emissions from various materials in the room can still cause significant health problems if exposed to them over enough time. A perfect example of this would be the infamous asbestos issue.Asbestos is a mineral that was used in making insulation, ceiling tiles, drywall, and things of that nature. Before it was banned in 1980, businesses and builders used it heavily in the materials they used (Garcia). Little did people know that fibers would break off of the asbestos and would eventually be inhaled by the people working in the building. Eventually, this would lead to be a major cause of lung cancer across the nation. Asbestos was not rigorously inspected and tested enough before it was put in use. Consider the common things we use nowadays that we think are completely harmless.These things could be messing our bodies up pretty badly without us even knowing it, only to discover decades later that is was a significant factor in putting us on our death beds. These problems given to people caused by the workplace affect everyone around them, too, not only them. You may have not been close to the injured or killed worker, but they impact the entire society as a whole. â€Å"What happens to the coal miner or construction or steel worker is very much in the public’s interest. When a worker is hurt or killed, all of us all of us end up paying part of the bill through higher product prices and increased taxes.More importantly, we lose because society fails to receive a full return on its investment in the lives of people it has schooled and prepared for work† (Kinney 46) . The entire public ends up paying the raised taxes that have resulted from inflating workers’ compensation. All of that money could be going to so many other things that could be helping our economy, but instead we are paying a large price for the lazy safety inspectors and regulation writers in the United States. People’s safety should be highly regarded, especially when they’re working for that company.It seems like a lot could be done to increase the safety of workplaces. It’s obvious that job safety regulations aren’t being enforced, and many bad accidents could be easily avoided with just a few adjustments. Despite the statistics and dangers, I did come out in one piece. However, I did witness many other people get hurt around me, and I could’ve just as easily been in their position. Something needs to be done to better protect the hard workers of the United States. References Garcia, A. III. (2009, October 15). End Date for Asbestos. Constructiondeal. com.Retrieved February 11, 2013 from http://www. constructiondeal. com/blogs/is-1980-an-appropriate- end-date-for-as bestos-use. 258. Kinney, J. A. (1991, May 21). Why should we Care about Job Safety? USA Today. Social Sciences Premium Collection. Retrieved February 11, 2013 from http://search. proquest. com/docview/214620137. OSHA. (2011). Commonly Used Statistics. US Department of Labor. Retrieved February 12, 2013 from http://www. osha. gov/oshstats/commonstats. html. US Dept. of Health. (November, 2011). Workplace Safety – Noise Pollution. US Department of Health.Retrieved February 11, 2013 from http://www. betterhealth. vic. gov. au/bhcv2/bhcarticles. nsf/pages/Workplace_safety_noise_ pollution. Annotated Bibliography Annual Statistical Supplement. (2011). Workers' Compensation Program and Legislative History. United States Social Security Administration. Retrieved February 13, 2013 from http://www. ssa. gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2011/workerscomp. html. I checked out this site to see what kind of damage had been done to our economy from workers’ compensation. It turns out that in 2009 124. million employees were claimed injured on the job and were covered by workers’ compensation. The overall wages it took to cover these workers was 5. 7 trillion dollars. Kinney, J. A. (1991, May 21). Why should we Care about Job Safety? USA Today. Social Sciences Premium Collection. Retrieved February 11, 2013 from http://search. proquest. com/docview/214620137. Even though this article was old, it still made a lot of sense with how society works and what happens when an employee is killed on the job. He goes in detail about how the economy pays greatly when an employee is lost.I thought it was interesting where he talks about how the biggest issue when losing an employee was that society fails to receive a refund. Tidwell, A. (2003, July 12). Ethics, Safety and Managers. Business and Professional Ethics Journal. Retrieved February 11, 2013 from http://www. jstor. org/stable/27801233? seq=5. Tidwell goes into depth on how to solve the problem of workplac e deaths and accidents. He created a list of simple and cost-free objectives a company could follow to greatly reduce accidents. Since money is the main concern when increasing the safety of something, these guidelines could be incredibly usefulWatson, G. W. (2005, May 2). Dimensions of Interpersonal Relationships and Safety in the Steel Industry. Journal of Business and Psychology. Retrieved February 10, 2013 from http://www. jstor. org/stable/25092904. Watson writes about how work related accidents are a growing issue with newer, more dangerous technologies. He also notes that the greatest danger to employees are the employees themselves. He says that employees aren’t being trained the way they should, and are creating a very unsafe environment for themselves and their co-workers. Widjaya, I. (November 22, 2012).Most Common Work Related Accidents. Global Legal Resources. Retrieved February 9, 2013 from http://bx. businessweek. com/workplace- safety/view? url=http%3A%2F%2Fww w. noobpreneur. com%2F2012%2F11%2F22%2Fto p-ten-work-related-accidents%2F In this article, the most common work related accidents are described. The first few are actually just accidents caused by the employees themselves, like overexertion. Then the later ones seem to be more equipment and machine related. Both can definitely be prevented by better job training and more thorough equipment inspections though.

Nvq Level 2

How to make an individual aware of the effects of poor hygiene on others Personal hygiene is a topic often brought up during the pre-teen and teen years when a youngster's body is developing. However, there are times when adults need to be reminded about personal care as well. When subtle hints about showering or using deodorant have no effect, a conversation is the next step. This conversation can be uncomfortable for us and the resident but it doesn't need to be.With some preparation and a few helpful props, we can talk to someone about personal hygiene and help him implement improvements. Step 1 Begin the conversation with a compliment, such as making note that the individual's hair looked very clean the previous day. Continue the conversation by stating the poor hygiene that we have noticed. Will use words like, â€Å"I have noticed† instead of â€Å"You don't. † Simply identify the problem area for the individual, whether that is showering, oral hygiene or somethin g else.Step 2 Continue the conversation by discussing the personal care steps the individual seems to be skipping. If this appears to be a shower, will ask the individual when she/he showers regularly or if she/he had time to shower that day. Step 3 Evaluate the individual's response as to why the hygiene step has been skipped. If it wasn't skipped, then the next step would be to discuss how to do it correctly. Will provide a demonstration if possible or offer the correct hygiene products to fulfil the task.Step 4 State our concern over the individual's hygiene. Phrase the concern carefully and use caring words. Step 5 Will offer the individual the personal care item she/he may be lacking, such as deodorant or mouth wash. Step 6 Will end the conversation by affirming the person. This can be done by stating how much we care for him/her, assuring that this hygiene issue doesn't change our relationship or helping him/her devise a personal care plan. Step 7 Will ask if the individual ha s any questions.

Reflection Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 17

Reflection Paper - Essay Example As per the release of the movie, most evident aspect of the happening is the music. The music is an evolvement from the past and tends to grow over time. There is the Broadway sound that the film creates that goes by the name of Tin Pan Alley. The term represents the structure of music that was the result of talented singers and composers such as Richard Rodgers. Besides, there are other notable types of songs that also appear in the film that are also remarkable. The other aspect of the film is the lyrics. The instance relates to the words that create the music. The words tend to graduate from the position of songs to more of works of poetry. The evidence to the fact is that the works of some of the song composers such as Cole porter’s lyrics that are quotations in many works of poetry anthologies around the globe. The songs tend to catch all the catchphrases, the sentiments, the words, as well as the stanzas. The music is also patriotic in some instances, rhapsodic in other cases, witty and risquà © in other instances. The time of production of the material in the film relates to a time when there was a need for the songs to be catchy and also provide service for the comedians and the dancers. However, by the 1930s, the role of the music was shifting towards greater significance that suits their lyrics. The music in turn took a different structure that would accomplish a more serious role. The primary structure would constitute a narrative that would form the backbone of the particular piece. The term that would describe the structure was libretto. As a result, the music had a great influence on the artistic field and the cultural practices. The film illustrates the importance of the music at to appoint where there is the need of a music director. The primary task of the director was to give shape to the production of quality music, and the also design the whole concept that each song reflects. Moreover, the director’s work is to

Victimless Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Victimless - Essay Example The new skills required for this method includes working with local residents as partners in working out problems, making presentations to community groups, and involving other public and nonprofit organizations in community development efforts. Rohe, Adams and Arcury (1) stated that Community Oriented Policing â€Å"promises lower crime rates, reduced fear of crime, better coordination with other city and county agencies, and improved police/community relations.† As such, this method of organizational policing can also be applied for victimless crimes. Hess and Wrobleski, the authors of â€Å"Police Operations†, maintained that the role of the law should be limited particularly in dealing with victimless crimes since the category of the said crimes is a misnomer. This paper aims to identify and discuss the notion of victimless crimes and evaluate the behavior in terms of wrongfulness and the proper role for the law related to Community Oriented Policing. The reasons behind the creation of Community Oriented Policing were the rising crime rate and the ineptitude of conservative police methods during the late 1960’s such as concerns about racial conflicts, riots, civil right demonstrations and other crimes. According to Mirsky (1), â€Å"The design of community policing is to entail a more open relationship between the police and the public which gives the police a more proactive role in the community.† This new policing approach allows the neighborhoods to strengthen its capacity in helping by sharing the accountability for crime prevention and crime trepidation with the police. Meier and Geis (42) also maintain that building the competence of social institutions is essential in order to empower citizens to engage in and guard their own communities. Hence, community justice deduces that all communities have a liability to exercise social control to its residents. Among

Close reading On Bullshit by Harry Frankfurt Essay

Close reading On Bullshit by Harry Frankfurt - Essay Example Still, we don’t know the real reason for his curiosity in the word. It is only in the last pages of the essay he says that people craft their bullshit according to their targets needs. He mentions things such as market research and opinion polls, which help bullshitters manufacture their bullshit and serve it efficiently. The real reason behind the essay can be his disgust towards the bullshit that he finds around him. There are politicians, economist and psychologists who claim to know everything in their chosen field. But the results of their actions don’t seem to be helping the societies or countries. He might be having a feeling that everyone is groping in the dark or in other words, just bullshitting. The essay then investigates into the real meaning of the word bullshit. No research can be conducted independent of previous researches. It is for this reason that Harry dissects the definition of the word ‘Humbug’. He says that bullshit and humbug are to o close words differing only in the manner of their deliverance and not content. Then he divides the definition of humbug provided by Max Black into following sets of words – 1- Deceptive misrepresentation. 2- Short of lying 3- Especially by pretentious word or deed. 4- Misrepresentation of†¦. somebody’s own thoughts, feelings and attitudes. ... To this Wittgenstien replies that Pascal doesn’t know how a dog feels after its run over by something. The point the writer makes is that people are careless towards organizing facts and so they bullshit their way through. These people are not honest, neither are they liars, they are just bullshitters. The essay argues that liars are less harmful than bullshitters because liars can be held accountable for their lies. But no such thing exists for bulshit. The essay is very successful in shedding light on the phenomenon of bullshit. It makes a clear distinction between lying and bullshitting. It is very successful in emphasizing the problem of bullshit. Bullshitters are unreliable and more dangerous than dishonest people. The essay argues that liars know what truth is and are at the opposite end of the spectrum of honesty with truthful people at the other end. But bullshitters lie somewhere in between and what makes them so dangerous is that they ‘don’t care’ to know the truth. They just assume things, make up stories and also repeat what they hear somewhere else. The article understands the meaning and the functioning of the phenomenon of bullshit. It explains that people bullshit in order to achieve some objective. But there are a few things which are lacking in the analysis. Since so much is known about bullshit, a framework should have been made for comparing bullshitters with liars. That framework can have many features such as different category and scenario of bullshit. The article also makes some statements which are in conflict with the very basic etiquettes of human civilization. If lack of knowledge and features such as repetition make

Is independence consistent with Scotland keeping the pound Essay

Is independence consistent with Scotland keeping the pound - Essay Example de â€Å"The Euro†, â€Å"A new Scottish currency† and â€Å"keeping Pound as a part of a formal sterling currency union.† The UK government argued in this regard that after independence, the economies of Scotland and rest of the UK might start to vary due to certain imperative factors encompassing the formulation along with the execution of the above-discussed policies, fluctuating interest rates and incessantly transforming financial conditions among others (Webb 2-15). It would be vital to mention that the aforementioned factors eventually erupts the question concerning whether independence is consistent with Scotland keeping the Pound. Scottish independence is not simply a subject matter of constitutional sovereignty. It can be apparently observed in this similar concern that there are certain states, particularly in Europe, which are legally sovereign but possess minimal scope towards administering themselves. In this regard, the social arrangement of Scotland represents that the political behaviour of the state has become quite converged in recent days, as compared to the earlier years. Notably, Scotland, among other European states, experienced massive deindustrialisation, owing to which the economy of the state became excessively reliant on consumer spending and on an exaggerated housing market as well. Thus, the sovereignty of Scotland emphasised augmenting public finances and endeavouring towards enhancing the ability of affording a liberal welfare state and most vitally, enriching the public services. It has been argued by the nationalists in this similar concern that Scotland, with its sovereign power, wou ld be able to manage as well as utilise the accessible resources efficiently with the incorporation of various activities that may comprise balancing revenues with international trade, coping with the fluctuations concerning interest rates and contributing extensively towards raising wealth funds (Keating 1-16). It has often been argued that Scotland is

Why Business Law is significant and how it impacts our lives Essay

Why Business Law is significant and how it impacts our lives - Essay Example Laws are mainly formulated by the governments and also as a result of court decisions. That is, when a particular form of human activity is carried out by a group of people, there will be inconsistencies as well as violations, which could negatively affect the group themselves as well as other stakeholders including other groups or individuals. To prevent those issues, governments has come up with certain standard rules and regulations in the form of laws on how to carry out the human activity positively without negative impacts on the people. This is quite applicable to the key human activity of businesses because its survival and success mainly depends on how it treats or manages or entices its consumer. So, business laws relating to consumer care are the main laws, which maximally impact our lives. Each business law will stipulate the organizations on how to manufacture the products, on how to pack it, on how to market it or sell it, etc, etc. Although, each organization will have unique and different manufacturing processes, the basic point, is they need to follow certain laws as well as standards stipulated by the laws to ensure that the manufactured goods or offered service is of optimum quality and without any risks to the consumer. However, if there are any faults in the product or service after it reaches the consumer, due to faults or deficiency in any aspect of the organizational functioning, then also those business laws can be used by the affected consumer in the court of law. The laws can be used to get a simple apology to getting apt replacement for the deficient product or even financial compensation. Thus, it is clear that business laws maximally impacts our lives in a positive and helpful manner. Actually, the governments and other authorities will come up with laws including business laws based on common good, and it will be available to us all the time.

Evaluating the Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Evaluating the Business Environment - Essay Example This essay stresses that the airline industry has been seen to make less and less revenue as the market forces and the business environment becomes harsh on it. However, Ryanair has seen its revenues grow and in most cases exceed the industry average. The airline has been capitalising on its uniqueness as a low cost airline to remain afloat and this is after analysing its Porter’s five forces. This report makes a conclusion that Ryanair has put in place, it becomes clear that the company has tried in coming up as the low-cost airline of choice for many in Europe. The company also established cost reduction measures based on reducing the impact of its threats in the industry as well as improving on its weaknesses. In overall the Ryanair has made huge strides in making sure that it emerges at the top despite the challenges faced. With all this progress the airline needs to change a few approaches to the market in order to gain more and to ensure a sustainable business. The management need to be more careful with their advertisements as they have seen them airline lose a great deal of finances in legal fees after being sued by competitors. Their website needs to carry information that is not misleading to the customers in regards to fares as the case has been in the past. The airline needs to diversify and move further into other continents so as to become a global airline wi th a wider market base thereby more revenue generation. However, this latter move needs good strategies as competition is stiffer on a global scale and the cost of operation will increase dramatically.

Banking Law Confidentiality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Banking Law Confidentiality - Essay Example This rule was primarily established to protect customers' right to privacy and enhance their security. It should be noted, however, that the banker's duty of confidentiality is not absolute or impenetrable. In the English Common Law, safeguards, thru the Tournier principles, are provided in order to ensure that obstruction of justice is forestalled. Based on the case of Tournier v National Provincial and Union Bank of England (1924), a bank can legally disclose information about its customer, conditions of which are as follows ("The banker's duty of confidentiality to the customer"): Many argue that client confidentiality has many loopholes and impedes investigation conducted by the police and other public bodies since the right of these administrative agencies to order disclosure is limited. This duty is also criticized for acting as a "cloak" for criminal activities (Cranston). Overriding client confidentiality without court order can only be obtained for the purpose of detection of crime or the apprehension or prosecution of offenders. The standard procedure for obtaining information under this directive is through a letter addressed to the bank's Controller of Information. Should the Controller of Information deem that the grounds mentioned are unsatisfactory then the bank is not obligated to disclose information about its customer ("Legal Update"). However, this does not provide a strong justification as to how the duty of confidentiality as a form of interference in pursuing administrative tasks. This is because a court order may be obtained for the required disclosure. Provided that the local court, in view of the balance of probabilities, deems that a criminal offence has been committed, then a court order is issued for the release of bank information (Cotterill). This procedure is also a form of check on the potential abuses of power by police, investigators, regulatory agencies and other government officials. This has happened previously in Switzerland during the Nazi regime. Nazi agents bribed bank employees to violate the confidentiality of bank clients. When the identities of depositors were revealed, the agents demanded their assets under duress. The agents threatened that the depositors' relatives in Germany would be reprehended (Cranston). To prevent this and other forms of abuse of power and corrupt practices from affecting the banking system and compromise the security and rights of clients, consent from the judiciary through the release of court orders is required. Furthermore, the English Common Law recognizes that disclosure of client information, where the Tournier principles do not apply, may result in serious losses specifically if the customer is running a business. This is because business information is deemed to be commercially sensitive based on its market value (Cranston). It may also cause distress, embarrassment or inconvenience of customers. In such

Work Based Practice Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Work Based Practice Project - Essay Example vascular dementia, medical conditions such as pick’s disease substance induced dementia must be first ruled out in order to com to this diagnosis. The accurate assessment of DAT is done through extensive testing Psycho – motor testing and neuroimaging as well as standard lab work to mention but a few deficits are found in the following areas. This study is based largely on experience gained through the ongoing with Care Company who wish to develop a training capability in Dementia care. This research will be involved working intensively in an Elderly Mentally Infirm registered residential home. The purpose of this research is to outline ways in which training can be use to help staff develop into reflective practitioners. This study concerns a case study examination of Care Company from which permission has been obtained. It is hoped that this research will contribute to the company’s development and implementation of health sector goals and objectives. Studies done have indicated the major signs of dementia are forgetfulness. A condition called mild cognitive impairment is observed first. This is the stage that describes the situation where one develops normal forgetfulness that is due to old age and the commencement of dementia. People that find themselves as victims of this MCI generally experience problems that are related with memory and thinking capacity. This however does not interfere with their daily undertaking. Several studies have been done to develop the major causes and symptoms that are associated with dementia. According to Biernacki (2007) the major cause attributed to Dementia is the damaged brain cells. Damage to the brain cells causes breakdown of communication making it impossible to translate the different undertakings of the body for instance thinking and behaviour. This can be explained by the through looking at the composition of the brain. From the studies done, the brain is made up of several distinct regions. Each region

The Grapes of Wrath and California History Essay Example for Free

The Grapes of Wrath and California History Essay I. The Joad Family is the main character in the novel of John Steinbeck entitled The Grapes of Wrath. The said novel was published in the spring of 1939 during the Great Depression. The Joads in the novel portrayed the migrants of California. From Collins and Steinbeck point of view, the migrants of California can be compared to â€Å"Jeffersonian yeomen† who aspire to gain their respective small farms. Jeffersonian Yeomen, historically, however, did not succeed in their goal. It was the farms owned and mange by the businessmen of San Francisco that ruled the rural economy of the state. Its big agricultural output was favored by the â€Å"goldrush† which permitted the growing of â€Å"cash crops† in the urban markets and the mining camps of San Francisco (David Igler Davis, 2002). It was in 1935 and 1939 when the great depression happened in California. The migrants came from Missouri, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma; the lower Plain states of the southwest. The number of migrants by that time was about 300,000. They were caked â€Å"Okies†. In the Grapes of Wrath, it was the Joads who migrated to California. The thirteen members of the family rode in one vehicle which includes even the grandparents and their grandchildren. Along the way the grandparents as well as the in-laws and uncles died. It was the fifty-year old Ma Joad who was left to lead the group in their journey. Tom Joad, son of Ma Joad and an ex-convict also played a significant role in the story. They join the thousands other migrants in their quest for better opportunities in California. II. In The Grapes of Wrath, the Joads migrated to California to seek for employment. They left the almost â€Å"perfect† and â€Å"peaceful† Weedpatch Camp because of the misfortunes that happened in their homeland. Dust storms occurred in Oklahoma and they had suffered financial crisis. Based on California history, the migration can be explained by several factors. The farms in Oklahoma and other states affected by the depression became unprofitable due to drought that happened in their land. There was low economic activity and widespread unemployment by that time. Tenant farmers were evicted by the landowners as a consequence of the New Deal Agricultural Adjustment (AAA). These programs had forbidden farmers to plant grain or cotton in exchange of cash. New Deal Programs inevitably had effects that went beyond the farm economy, through the recovery of the agricultural sector was the administration’s primary aim. Some agencies attempted to reorient the rural social structure, making it possible for laborers and tenants to live with dignity and even become landowners. Relief agencies operating in rural America improved public buildings and transportation facilities, hired unemployed people, maintained institutions, and enriched lives. And the New Deal undertook a revolutionary-and successful- effort to electrify the countryside. More federal activities were undertaken in response to the Dust Bowl, an ecological crisis that beset the Great Plains with especial severity. Government agencies promoted conservation, retired highly erodible acres from farming, resettled some victims on more viable lands, and provided sustenance for others (Danbom, 2006). The use of machinery which produces greater efficiency also contributed to the said eviction. Moreover, a big percentage of farmlands was destroyed by the great dust storms that occurred in the mid-1930s. Since then, poverty stroked Oklahoma. The Okies decided to move to California to be able to survive. They were encouraged by the â€Å"word-of-mouth campaign† by their friends and relatives. They were inspired by the information from other people that they could earn high salary in California by simply picking cotton and fruits. Moreover, transportation from Oklahoma to California was not a problem by that time (Orsi, 2001). III. The migrants moved to California because they believe that they will be able to find a brighter future there. Aside from the effect of the Great Depression in the life of the Okies, the mass migration was also brought by false advertising. In October 1929, the stock market of the United States fell and California was affected. This incident had caused California to suffer acutely because California oil shares which are the most active sectors in the 1920s had collapsed and many investors suffered. The depression also hit California but the economy recovered in the year 1934 and 1937 (Eymann 2004). It was then when California needed many laborers in the cotton fields. Indeed California offered high salary during those times when the number of cotton plantation in California was multiplied. A need for thousands of harvesters of crops had commenced especially in San Joaquin Valley. They had a problem of labor shortage not unemployment that is why high salary was offered to those Okies who were employed to pack meat, cement clay, railroad and even ice manufacturers. The salary that California offered was twenty to fifty percent higher than the salary of Okies in their homeland. Due to the nature of their work, the migrants had chosen to settle in one place with their children. IV. In the novel and in historical reality the migrants are hoping to find a better life in the fertile fields of California. They are expecting that when they reached â€Å"the promised land† they will be employed and earn high wages. They had believed that when they reach their destination, life will become easier. They will â€Å"simply† work in the cotton fields and harvest fruits and earn a big amount of money. They will raise their children there and all of them will not starve and will be able to gain bright future in California. They hoped to revitalize their wealth and recover their source of revenue on the land V. When they had reached their destination, they found themselves as victims there. Work was inadequate, salaries were small, and they were disliked, refuse to be accepted and suppressed by the residents. Their endeavors to upgrade their lives were branded as Communism, a system much disliked and feared by many Americans of the time. (John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath By Lee Cusick) Agricultural workers were not covered by Social Security, unemployment insurance, the minimum wage and the National Labor Relations Act. The New Deal was primarily a political response to the Depression, and unlike farm owners, the migrants had little political influence. While California Growers obtained federal price supports for some products, legally enforced marketing orders for others, and massive government expenditures for irrigation projects, migrant laborers received a small, poorly funded camp program that never got beyond the â€Å"demonstration† stage (Harvest of Gypsies). Grower satisfaction with the Okies was short-lived. The flood of migrants in 1937 had created an embarrassing oversupply of labor, and the squalor of their camps refelected on the industry. In 1938 it became apparent that the Okies were politically embarrassing as well. They were democrats, supported Culbert Olson, and displayed firm loyalty to the New Deal. They also disrupted the strong Republican hold on rural communities, a fact that led to the formation of the California Citizen’s association (CCA), which, like the Associated Farmers, fronted for banking, oil, railroad, real estate, and insurance interess allied with the agribusiness community. The CCA, detrmined to attack the New Deal and Olson through the migrants, launched a publicity campaign that, as Walter Stein has pointed out, went a long way toward creating a popular view of the Okie in California as â€Å"degenerate, degraded loser in the American struggle for survival. † Like migrants of the 1920s, nearly half settled in metropolitan areas, primarily Los Angeles, the Okies were quickly absorbed. The rest, however, turned north to the San Joaquin Valley where they sought work in the complex, industrialized agricultural system. Ineligible for relief for a year because they were new to the state, they accepted the low wages that the Mexican work force would not, and in a short time almost completely displaced the Mexicans as California’s harvest laborers. When the Okies became eligible for unemployment relief, the state relief administration under Gov. Meriam cut off relief payments if work was available in an agricultural harvest, forcing them into the old relief, harvest labor, relief cycle that essentially subsidized low farm wages. Important distinctions between the Okies and traditional harvest labor were not only that the migrants were white Anglo-Saxon Protestants but also that they sought permanence. They settled in Central Valley towns, sent their children to the local schools, and registered to vote. Their poverty could not be ignored. Living in shocking conditions in tent camps along irrigation ditches, they exposed the exploitation of farm labor in California’s peculiar agricultural system and became a highly visible burden in local communities, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley (The Great depression Chapter 21). A year later, the labor surplus of the Depression had been transformed into an extraordinary wartime shortage of workers. Migrants who were not subject to military service found well-paying jobs in California’s booming shipyards, aircraft factories and other defense plants. The Joads and their fellow Okies ultimately found economic salvation, not on the small farms they dreamed of owning, but in urban industry fueled by billion of federal defense dollars (Steinbeck, 1988). VI. The story of the migrants fit California History due to the efforts of Steinbeck and Collins who â€Å"actually lived† at California gathering information to capture â€Å"true scenarios† in California. Steinbeck stayed at Weedpatch Camp for several days, talking to residents, attending camp committee meetings and dances, and watching Collins tactfully promote his concept of limited and guided elf-government. Steinbeck and Collins travelled in the old bakery truck to nearby farms and ditch-side migrant settlements, and the author read the manager’s regular reports to the Resettlement Administration’s regional office in San Francisco. The reports, which included social and cultural observations on migrant life and individual anecdotes sometimes told in Okie dialect, were extraordinary documents. The News had already published excerpts from them, and Steinbeck eventually mined them for the material for The Grapes of Wrath. In 1936 he used them to get beneath the surface of migrant life, to understand the deep despair and hopelessness that poverty and homelessness had created (David Igler Davis, 2002). References: Danbom, D. B. (2006). Born in the Country: A History of Rural America Johns Hopkins University Press. David Igler, C. , Davis. (2002). The Human Tradition in California: Rowman Littlefield. Eymann, M. , , C. W. (2004). Whats Going On? : California and the Vietnam Era: University of California Press. Orsi, R. R. W. B. a. R. (2001). The Elusive Eden McGraw-Hill. Steinbeck, J. (1988). The Harvest Gypsies: On the Road to the Grapes of Wrath Heyday Books.

South Africa World Cup 2010 Project Leadership

South Africa World Cup 2010 Project Leadership Executive Summary This paper analyses the project of the Soccer World Cup held in South Africa in 2010 on behalf of FIFA. An introduction to the project at hand is laid out to explain the situation in which the project took place. A critical evaluation of the project is made, determining the facets that the Government and organising committee had to effectively deal with, what type of leadership styles were implemented, how team building progressed, the project life cycle and the external factors influencing this project. Improvements are recommended for some aspects of this project that could have made the Soccer World Cup more successful than what it was deemed to have been. Some of these recommendations include; better team building, more effective planning, budgetary concerns and public relation issues. The World Cup Opening Ceremony was a major success, followed by the first goal of the World Cup in the first game between South Africa and Mexico. When Siphiwe Tshabalala, of South Africa, scored the first goal, South Africans deemed the project a success. Introduction to Case Study FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) has taken it upon themselves to be the guardian of the game all over the world, in every shape or form. According to FIFA World Cupà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ (2010), their mission statement is, Develop the game, touch the world, build a better future. They do not merely focus on playing the game but rather they have to focus on every aspect that may affect the game and all that the game stands for. Rules, laws, players, developing the game and using this sport to bring hope to people all over the world, especially those less privileged than others. FIFA World Cupà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢(2010) states that the World Cup started in 1930 in Uruguay and this inaugural World Cup was won by the host team. There have only been two times since the inauguration that the World Cup was not hosted and that was during World War II. South Africa recently hosted the FIFA Soccer World Cup. This is the project that will be used as a case study as I am a South African citizen and am currently residing in the country. Information that has been referred to on this project has been experienced firsthand. This was the first time that the FIFA World Cup that was hosted by an African Country. The Soccer World Cup was hosted in South Africa from June 11th 2010 to July 11th 2010. 32 teams participated in the World Cup with the final game being played between Spain and Netherlands. Spain reigned victorious. It was a major project for South Africa, as although the country had previously hosted the cricket and rugby World Cups, it was the first time that this type of World Cup was hosted in the country and the event was made up of many projects. Many project defining aspects needed to be started from scratch. The project management was run by the Government who recruited a number of different resources, companies, personnel and task teams with the hope of making the project a success. Most importantly they assigned the role of project coordinator to Danny Jordaan. The areas that needed to be addressed included, amongst others, stadium construction and improvements, airport construction and refurbishment, infrastructure and logistics, transportation, accommodation, policing and justice, immigration, finance and health. Each of these projects needed to be successful in order for the event to be a success. This project consisted not only of these internal projects but was also influenced by external factors such as the countrys image to the world, opinions of South Africa by other countries and contractual agreements with FIFA. Therefore media and marketing were also part of the project. The success or failure of the project would impact on the economy and general well-being of the country for many years to come even after the event had taken place. The project management team needed to ensure that the projects that were undertaken would have a positive outcome on the countrys operations even after the event had taken place and concluded. Transportation and the creation of jobs could be highlighted as the most crucial aspects of the World Cup. These components are highlighted as crucial as their impact would be felt most notably once the event concluded on July 11th 2010. The construction of the stadiums was crucial as although many rugby and cricket stadiums already existed in South Africa a lack of soccer stadiums was obvious. Transportation also needed to be improved as although the government felt that roads were acceptable pre-World Cup with the influx of people from all over the world, roads and transportation systems needed to be improved. Highways were expanded and refurbished, additional buses were bought and coincidentally the construction of another transportation project, the Gau-train, would be fast-tracked to be used for the World Cup. The benefit that South Africa did have was that the country was also selected to host the Confederations Soccer Cup during June 2009. The country was able to use this event as a type of a trial run for the World Cup. The rapid bus transfer system was tested in Pretoria and errors or faults that occurred were able to be rectified before the World Cup the following year. The projects success will be analysed in order to determine the factors of project management that were used, the elements of team building that are available and how the leadership aspects, styles or type of management could be changed to make improvements to the project. Critical Evaluation According to Kerzner (2009) project management and in turn project success can be defined as completing a project within the allocated time frame, within budget, meeting a specified performance level, with as few changes to the scope as possible. Project management and team building go hand in hand when dealing with any type or any form of a project. This is because almost all projects, even when operating in a virtual environment, have people involved. When dealing with a project such as the Soccer World Cup, a third aspect fits into project management and team building just as critically. This aspect is public relations. According to the Independent institute of education (2010) although public relations can be seen as its own concept away from project management, the people involved in the project need to be aware of the standings with regards to public relations. With the World Cup being such a worldwide event, with sold out stadiums and an estimation of over a billion people wat ching, what the media says, or what the world thinks will be of critical importance to determine whether the project was gauged as a successful or failure. The main problems or areas of improvement that the South African World Cup organizers had to deal with were construction, ticket sales, transportation and crime. According to Cooke Tate (2005) project management can be defined as a culmination of knowledge, skills, expertise, systems and programs that ensure that the work that is being done, by a team of people, is in fact working towards accomplishing the strategic goals of the organization or fulfilling the aims of the project to which they have been assigned. Project management will need to bring together different areas of an organization, or that of a number of different organizations such as finance, administration, human resources, marketing or operations to work in unison to achieve the aims or goals. Project management has been developed so that a single department or person working on a project has control and visibility over all the other departments to ensure that the project runs smoothly, for the Soccer World Cup 2010 that person was Danny Jordaan. The project manager will oversee all departments and actions to try and produce a successful outcome. Project management is made up of many sections and sub headings that need to be considered. The following subjects need to be addressed when developing a project and have been summarized from Shtub Globerson , 2005. Communication guidelines and the hierarchy of leadership need to be established. Lifecycle planning needs to take place to ascertain which model would be best suited to your project. Implementation and monitoring is the next area that needs to be addressed. When and how the project will be implemented and how this will be monitored to establish control. Then cost estimates and budgeting need to be developed and contingencies need to be established as to where the cost can exceed budgeted amounts and where cut backs could be implemented if needed. Variance is an aspect that all projects need to be aware of as nothing in life is certain, external environments are constantly changing and a project needs to know where it can change and where there is no room to adjust. The project needs to have prepared for any expected changes that may affect their plans or any unexpected changes that could drastically impact the outcome of the project. An important and final aspect that many projects o ften forget to include is the closeout. In the case of the soccer World Cup in South Africa, the closeout will happen in varied stages but need to be included in the planning. The initial closeout occurs when FIFA approves the set out requirements, other close outs occur at the closing ceremony, and then when projects that were included in the World Cup preparations are complete, this may be months or even years after the final whistle had blown on the final game. All projects have a project life cycle and they can vary in length. A project lifecycle is typically made up of the following 5 stages, (Gray and Larson, 2006); Project Management can be divided into five parts: Project charter development Request for Proposal Development and Process Planning Design Project team creations, Project kick-off Planning (Work Breakdown Schedule), Budget Implementation/monitoring/control Project termination, hand-off to operations management. In the case of the soccer World Cup the project life cycle would have been spread out over a number of years, even before the World Cup was awarded to South Africa. The government had to tender a proposal to FIFA against other competing countries to be allowed to host the World Cup. Therefore the project life cycle would have started pre-2004. As different projects were started and came to an end, each would have had their own life cycle as well. Each project had to go through a tender process as well. An example of a tender used for Green Point stadium has been attached in Appendix A. Different projects will also take on different life-cycle formations or models. The most commonly accepted of these models are the waterfall project lifecycle model, the agile project lifecycle model, the iterative model and the spiral project life cycle model. Each model has different strengths and weaknesses and therefore some models are better suited to different working environments. Each sub-project, underneath the main World Cup South Africa project, would have made use of different life-cycles. The World Cup would have to have implemented the Spiral project lifecycle model as Mall (2009) explains; this model combines elements of design and prototyping-in-stages, in an effort to combine advantages of top down and bottom up concepts. This model can also be referred to as the spiral development model; it is a systems development method. This model of development combines the features of the prototyping model and the waterfall model .The spiral model is intended for large, expensive and complicated projects. The World Cup was expensive, intricate, and took place all over South Africa. The stages of the project also overlapped and did not have to wait for the completion of one project to start the next. For example the building of the airports and stadiums were not contingent on the completion of the roads or other transport projects. The project was awarded to South Africa on the 15th of May 2004 and the start of the project began soon after however some parts of the project are still busy being completed, even after the World Cup. Although the highways and roads were open to be used at full capacity during the World Cup, the construction of these roads and highways are still taking place today. In comparison to standard projects that organizations will take on, and the case study at hand, the soccer World Cup in South Africa, certain aspects of normal operations will differ quite substantially from this type of project. The teams that worked on the World Cup in South Africa were not working in a normal business environment. Their end product was not intending to gain a competitive advantage over other competitors in the same market. The products they were producing were not to be resold yet a profit needed to be made. The product could not become obsolete, however there was a deadline date, that of the opening ceremony. The deadline date however was not that of the opening ceremony because South Africa was dealing with FIFA, FIFA required that all stadiums or any structures or projects relating to the World Cup were completed a number of months in advance. As South Africa was in control of hosting the World Cup, they were also responsible of reporting to FIFA to ensure that the FIFA World Cup was a success. Stephen Blatter, the president of FIFA, was heavily involved in the operations taking place in South Africa and Danny Jordaan was the project coordinator for the Soccer World Cup. With regards to leadership styles, two main types of leadership styles generally exist, autocratic or exclusive and democratic or inclusive. A democratic leader takes other individuals opinions and ideas into consideration before making the final decision. Danny Jordaans style of management can be seen to be democratic. His involvement with the World Cup showed that he had South Africas best interests at heart. He took into consideration other leaders opinions and advice and worked in close unison with Thabo Mbeki and Nelson Mandela when securing the tender bid to host the World Cup. Reports needed to be presented on weekly and monthly basis and he was the spokesman for interaction with the media in relation to World Cup activities. FIFA however are deemed to be autocratic. FIFA can be seen to be a franchise. Every four years a different country is elected to host the World Cup. FIFA has certain contractual requirements that each country needs to meet in order to be granted the privi lege of hosting such a prestigious event. Although South Africa could decide what the stadiums would like and how the upgrades would take place, FIFA required a certain number of stadiums to be erected or improved, for certain activities to take place and other similar requirements. The project management team needed to be compiled of a number of individuals with different areas of expertise. Although the project had a start and end date (11th June and 11th July), a budget and a scope as most projects do, the areas that this project needed to delve into were vast. The South African government had tendered to organise the World Cup. In order to successfully accomplish this, a number of facets needed to be improved, developed or started from scratch. These areas include, (Media Report, 2010), amongst others; Infrastructure stadiums needed to be built and renovated. Health Although no pandemics were forecast, they needed to be prepared. Transportation the highways needed to be improved, as well as public transport. Finance- a developing country would need to analyze budgets with high scrutiny. Technology- new fibre optic cables for televising the games worldwide. Electricity- Eskom had guaranteed power for all games, through the use of generators. Safety and Security Xenophobic attacks sent shocks throughout the world, this needed to be stepped up. Immigration- a new type of visa was created to allow access to more foreigners. Hooligans were banned. Accommodation availability and standards were a worry. Media and marketing- people needed to feel safe coming to South Africa. The South African Government identified the dramatic changes to transport logistics in South Africa as the legacy that would remain for years to come. The issues identified above are just a few examples of the projects that the overall project manager or project coordinator, Danny Jordaan, would need to have expertise on, and it would seem highly unlikely that one person would have this type of knowledge; however general management could appoint a number of sub-project managers to oversee each department and report back to one project manager. Danny Jordaan might not have had the expertise in each sub-section of the project however he was able to employ other team members to take control of those areas. Information taken from the Background Information on Government Preparations for the 2010 FIFA WORLD CUPà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ (2010) shows a breakdown of each element that the government was dealing with. The government had weekly and monthly report sessions for each area of development. In order for a project to be successful the team that works on the project needs to be selected in a certain manner. Dr. Meredith Belbin defined a team role as: A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way. He spent a number of years working on the theory about teams. Dr. Meredith Belbin has written a number of books and one of his fundamental theories is based on team roles. The roles that individuals will fill when placed in a certain situation when trying to achieve a certain goal. Individuals have different personalities and different strengths and weaknesses. Belbin initially believed that the success or failure of a project would rely on the intellectual levels of the team members. According to Belbin associates, (2010), he ran a simulation test at a university for over ten years to determine the grounds of his theory. The theory is that a teams success or failure is not reliant on intellect but rather on the balance of roles that each individual will assume when in a certain environment. This team roles can be divided into three sub-sections and then into 9 individual team roles. The three main sections are Action-oriented, People oriented and Thought oriented. Action-Oriented roles include Shaper, Implementer and Complete-Finishers. People Oriented Roles include Coordinator, Team Worker and Resource Investigator. Thought oriented roles include Plant, Monitor Evaluator and Specialist. Advantages and disadvantages that make up each team role need to be discussed and understood in order to create the most effective team for the project at work. According to Belbin Associates (2010) and Belbin himself, (1993) the different roles have different pros and cons. The shapers advantages include the drive to challenge team members to improve, they are dynamic people, who are extroverted and who stimulate others. They also avoid complacency by introducing new attributes. Negative characteristics include that they are argumentative and are not sensitive to other peoples feelings. The implementer is characterized by people that get things done, those who take ideas and turn them into actions. They are conservative, disciplined and work systematically. The disadvantages however are that they show inflexibility and resist any kind of change. Complete finishers have the advantageous characteristics that ensure that a project is completed with all the small details completed. They are focused on deadlines and can be seen as perfectionists. These characteristics lend themselves to worry unnecessarily and these individuals find it difficult to delegate tasks to others for the fear of losing control of the task at hand. Belbin also identifies advantages and disadvantages for the other roles too. The coordinator leads the team to achieve the goals and objectives that they perceive as realistic. They are excellent listeners, calm, good natured and are able to delegate tasks, however sometimes the coordinator delegates away too much authority and may be seen to be manipulative. The team workers provide support to the team and ensure that all the team workers are able to work together effectively. They are able to be flexible, diplomatic and perceptive. Their disadvantages have been identified as having tendency to be indecisive and do not commit to any major decisions. The resource investigators are innovative and curious. They explore other options available to them and handle negotiations. These team members may however be overly optimistic and lose their enthusiasm for the team and their own roles rather quickly. The final three roles also each have advantages and disadvantages. The plant role is cr eative, flourishes on praise and invents new ideas or advances. The disadvantages however are that this team member finds criticism very hard to handle or accept, they are introverted and prefer to work alone. Their communication skills are poor and often ignore restrictions or restraints that they are given. The monitor evaluators strengths include that they are ideal at analysing and evaluating other team members ideas, they are successfully able to weigh up pros and cons of different possible investments, and are critical thinkers. Their drawbacks are that they can be detached and unemotional; they are poor motivators for their team members and wait to react to events rather than instigate them. Finally the ninth role, the specialist, that was added on later by Belbin include advantages of that they pride themselves on their skills and abilities, they are focused on their professional status and are an expert in a certain area of knowledge. Their disadvantages include that they m ay limit their contribution purely to what they consider themselves to be expert in and may lead the team to become pre-occupied with technicalities and small detail rather than the overall plan. In relation to the World Cup information on which techniques were used for team building are not readily available, however it has been assumed that Belbins theory was used when selecting the teams that were brought together for this project. Each team involved with the project would need a careful balance of the team members in order to be successful. A key element of team building is the stages of team development as developed by Tuckman (1977); Forming, Norming, Storming, Performing and finally Adjourning. Each individual team that is part of the World Cup development project needed time to adjust to each stage to team development. It is clear that the construction teams on site had not properly adjusted to team development as they coordinators of these projects had to deal with strikes and unrest at many of the stadiums. The projects where the majority of teams were based, transport and infrastructure is what the world watched most with regards to development projects, it is here where nation branding took place. The way in which South Africa wanted to portray itself was largely reliant on what was reported in the media and in the news. Strikes, delays and xenophobic attacks were in the news for a large majority of the time leading up to the world cup. Due to this the branding of the country was portrayed in negative lighting for a lot of the time that should in fact have been used for positive and encouraging reporting. The influx of foreign tourists to South Africa missed the original goal by a large number. Due to many of these factors the income to the country was much less than the expenditure and much less than what was expected. According to an article in the Telegraph, South Africa made a return of just  £323m on the  £3bn it spent. In conclusion to the critical reflection; the sustainability that FIFA brought to South Africa for the World Cup was not incorporated into the countries national strategy and therefore many of the strides that the country made during the World Cup were quickly eliminated when the final whistle was blown. Recommendations The specific details of the areas of which project management, project leadership or team building activities used during the World Cup were not readily accessible. Therefore the overall outcomes of the world cup and which practices should have been more heavily included can be deduced. Although information about the World Cup as a whole was available the smaller projects techniques and tools were not made available to the public. In critical review of the World Cup one of the most unsuccessful areas of the project was the budget or cost aspect of the iron triangle. To illustrate the point, (Pedroncelli, 2010), Soccer City Stadium, which hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the World Cup was completed at R1 billion over budget. Strikes at other stadiums such as Green Point, forced organisers to bring in negotiators for increases in salaries, and the lost time then forced the Government to enforce additional shifts at higher costs to finish on time as the completion deadlines were non-negotiable. Imports of construction materials ran over budget as the rand lost strength to other currencies and prices escalated higher than what the budget had predicted. Therefore although the scope and time were met, the cost was extraordinarily higher than predicted. This could be due to two reasons, either the budget was not well planned out and the estimates and actual costs were not realistic and not well researched or revised, or the variance of aspects discovered in the project was vast. It seems that the variance was the reason to blame for some of the over spending on the project. Poor planning could be blamed for this. Elements such as strikes or increases in costs of materials could have been realised beforehand and more concisely included in the budgetary stage of planning. A recommendation for future projects is to research and predict more accurately about future fluctuations, or to buy materials in bulk at a known price so that variances do not occur at a later stage. A number of projects were not completed on time which can be viewed as contrasting as other projects managed to finish ahead of schedule. A recommendation for future projects of this nature is to learn from other projects which developed similar end products and were produced under similar circumstances. Green Point Stadium organizers could look at the development techniques used by the project co-ordinators of the Soccer City Stadium. Work breakdown schedules and organisational breakdown schedules should have been more precise and shared amongst projects with similar outlines. Managers in control of stadiums or projects that ran over budget or over time should take note of the way in which projects were executed which ended on time, on budget and had no scope creep. It is clear that as the sub-projects of the World Cup were each significant in their own right therefore each project was governed by different managers or by different planning committees. Some stadiums were handed over to FIFA ahead of schedule and other projects such as the construction and refurbishment of highways are still being completed after the event has ended. It is a recommendation that the tenders for the construction or refurbishments should have been sent out earlier. The tender, as attached in Appendix A, shows that although a very thorough and positive process was followed, it was only started in 2006, 2 years after the World Cup project was given to South Africa. If more time had been given to the constructors and those parties, the costs involved may have escalated less. The teams may have had more time to form The leadership style of FIFA cannot be changed. They are a corporate body that acts as a franchise in relation to the World Cup. They have a formula that works and they expect participating nations to follow this plan. This autocratic style is suitable to the environment in which FIFA operates. Danny Jordaans leadership style and approach to the World Cup was successful. Nelson Mandela said, when South Africa was awarded the privilege of hosting the World Cup that, South Africans should treat this decision with humility and without arrogance because we are, after all, equal. Danny Jordaan focused on bringing South Africans together. From the construction workers on the roads and in the stadiums to fans to corporate CEOs funding different projects, all parties felt part of the World Cup, because the country felt proud to host the World Cup as one nation not separate races. The final recommendations that would be made however include; Better planning for variance conditions. These conditions include: working environments and severance, stability of the Rand against currencies or then bulk buying. Earlier tender dates for highway construction. Improved communication with the media for a positive reflection of the host nation. Incorporating FIFA changes into the national strategy in order to retain the positives. Increased time for team development on different projects. If projects were tendered and started earlier, strikes and delays may have been less severe. Ensuring the project coordinator is democratic or inclusive when dealing with a force as strong as FIFA in its autocratic behaviour or tendencies. Conclusion In conclusion the Soccer World Cup hosted by South Africa, on behalf of FIFA, in 2010 was a successful project. As indicated in the recommendations a number of improvements could be put forth that could have eliminated some of the problems that the Government and other parties experienced. A focus on public relations should have been highlighted. The xenophobic attacks prior to the World Cup should have been better handled by the Government to reduce the negative image that is portrayed of the country. Communications between the sub-projects could have been better established so that problems experienced on one site could be avoided on another. The leadership styles executed by the parties involved were well executed and appropriate. FIFA is a corporate organization that operates as a franchise when dealing with the World Cup. Their style therefore needs to be autocratic. They need the country which is hosting the World Cup to fulfill certain goals and expectations. Danny Jordaan, the project coordinator, executed a democratic or inclusive style of management which worked well in the environment in which he was operating. He was able to successfully execute the project, although over budget, by incorporating all South Africans into the buildup of the World Cup. Budgetary problems experienced by the organizing committee could have been overcome through better planning and better time management. Tenders and start dates of the projects could have been brought forward to an early date, relieving the tensions of deadlines and fluctuating prices. If the start dates had also been brought forward it may have allowed teams more time to go through the development stages of forming, norming, storming and performing. The construction of the highways may also have been completed to a better schedule. To summarise one moment of the World Cup that truly showed the success of such a tournament being hosted in Africa for the first time was when South Africas striker, Siphiwe Tshabalala, scored the first goal of the tournament. The country celebrated as one, and brought the African spirit alive.

Amateur radio

Amateur radio   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If regular communications were knocked out, Amateur Radio would be there to step in! Amateur Radio connects people in times of need during emergencies.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To start ones adventure into Amateur Radio, one needs to obtain a license. There is a test required by the FCC in order to obtain a license which one needs to operate an Amateur Radio (H10). Only licensed amateurs can operate an Amateur Radio station (BARTLETT). Amateurs have to go through the different levels of licenses, which go from technician to general then to extra (HARING). With each step, they get more privilages and frequencies. Past exam questions included equipment, regulations, and morse code, all of which were dropped (HAMILTON). Now Amateur Radio is growing at a rate of 10% a year (HAMILTON). Amateur radio is growing with the new generation as well. Amateur Radio not just meant for old folks. The Amateur Community want to see a new generation of men and women try Amateur Radio, said Don Montgomery (CONRAD). Test and study materials add up to usually $40 (H11).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Amateur Radio is getting more and more in-sync with new technology and computers. Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) uses Global Positioning System with Amateur Radio to remotely track Amateurs movements and reports them to the APRS website (H11). All one needs to use APRS is a GPS and an Amateur Radio (H11). Anyone can go online to the APRS website to see where amateurs are at, anytime of the day. Amateurs also use APRS for use with Geocaching (H11). Geocaching is a scavenger hunt where people use a GPS unit to find treasures outside (H11). Echolink can be used as an alternative to equipment. Echolink is a software program, which hams can use to listen to and transmit audio over the Internet (H10). Echolink works by using a computer and Internet connection with a radio to listen to the repeater, and to constantly transmit audio over the Internet via Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) technology to the end-user (H12). The same happens in reverse, when an end-user transmits they use VOIP technology to get to the computer, and the computer transmits audio to the radio, which the radio transmits audio to the repeater. With Echolink, licensed operators can get on other repeaters and listen and transmit on them as well (H12). There are conferences which are groups that can handle large amounts of users. These are server-based groups that are basically a middle-man or main group which people, links, repeaters, or other conferences can connect to (H12). Internet Radio Link Project (IRLP) is almost exactly like Echolink, except that it is made mainly for connecting only repeaters to repeaters via VOIP, and not for desktop clients (H10). Logging ones contacts for a record is important as well. There also is logging software which can log stations that amateurs have made contact with (H10). Mostly logging is used with High Frequencies (HF) because of contesting. It is an easy way to keep track of ones data to send QSLs to (H10). Amateurs may also use an online log book, called Log Book of the World (LBW). This is useful for contacts that are in other countries (H10). If an amateur were to send QSL postcards to everyone whom they have had contact with in other countries, it would get really expensive, really fast (H10).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Amateurs really need equipment to take their licenses to the maximum possible level. The equipment that amateurs use can be put into two main categories: basic and advanced (LINDSAY). A basic station includes a transceiver, power supply, antenna, and coax. An advanced station includes transceiver(s), power supply(s) or generator, state-of-the-art antenna(s), amp(s), tower(s), and computer(s) (LINDSAY). Past radios used tubes, while todays radios use electronics (BARTLETT). Amateurs can choose from buying pre-made kits or choose to buy do-it-yourself kits, which they can solder the connections (HARING). Usually advanced hams have High Frequency radios, while basic hams have 2 meter and 440 radios (LINDSAY).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Disadvantages of Amateur Radio are very few. The number one disadvantage of Amateur Radio is that transmissions arent secure, and can be picked up by anyone who has a radio including their enemies (H10)(BARTLETT). There really isnt much that amateurs can change in the sense of encrypting their transmissions, because it is very regulated by the FCC.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The advantages of Amateur Radio out-number the disadvantages. Amateur Radios are more reliable and still work when other forms of communication are down (telephone and internet) (H10). They are very simple to use (CONRAD). Amateurs can get communications up and into a disaster area faster, and easier than other communications and electricity companies (H10). All they need to do is install a repeater running on generators, while other communications and electricity companies need to fix or even re-build their whole entire infrastructure (H10). People get so tied into cellphones. They dont understand how the telecommunications infrastructure evolved. Sometimes the latest and greatest technology isnt the most reliable, said Shanda Rice (DYNES).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hams help out in natural disasters and emergencies. They help the USGS, NOAA, and NWS with reporting tsunamis, hurricanes, tornados, forest fires, earthquakes, and floods through SkyWarn (CONRAD). SkyWarn is a volunteer organization that is organized by the National Weather Service who spots severe weather and reports back to NWS. They help out federal, state, county, and local government agencies and organizations (CONRAD). Amateurs connect fire departments, hospitals, and EMAs when regular links of communication are down (CONRAD). Hams connect communities, police, search and rescue, explorers and scientists in remote areas (HAMILTON). Phone patches come in handy when hams need to make a long distance contact with one who is not an amateur operator (HAMILTON). A distressed sailor and Amateur Radio operator used his radio to call for help. Bert Wilson, a sailor, was badly burned by a faulty stove on his vessel at sea (HAMILTON). He turned on his ham radio and turned it to the regularly monitored Canadian frequency. Someone 3,000 KM away heard Wilson call for help (HAMILTON). He put Wilson in contact with a US Air Force Base, who put him in contact with a US freighter near him. They flew Wilson from the freighter to a hospital (HAMILTON). Most Amateurs are already prepared and ready to go for the next future emergency. Good hams are prepared twenty-four-seven (HARING). Hams help out when cell towers, internet servers, phones, and electricity are knocked out of service (CONRAD). Amateurs fall to their ham radios and transmissions to repeaters to communicate in times of need (CONRAD). Hams helped out during the 87 Edmonto tornado to register people left homeless by the tornado, keeping track of where they were to reunite families (HAMILTON). Also during the 87 tornado, Alberta government employee ham ops helped police patrol the area with ham talkies (HTs) to make sure there was no looting and let in only residents (HAMILTON). There are groups that amateurs can join if they are interested in helping in emergencies like Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) or ARES (HARING) (H10). Hams can get yearly practice for the BIG CALL by helping with public service such as parade and event communications (HARING). An emer gency without communication quickly becomes a disaster, said Don Montgomery (CONRAD). Amateur Radio operators come from all walks of life. They are movie stars, politicians, students, doctors, missionaries, truck drivers, and more (H11)! In fact, licensed amateurs can even talk to astronauts on the International Space Station (NASA)! There are more than one-million Amateur Radio operators (HAMILTON). The only restriction is that operators can only talk to other operators, only if the other country has an agreement with the US (H10). Amateurs talk on radio many different radio frequencies allocated by the FCC. Hams have 26 total bands that consist of many frequencies 1.8 Megahertz through 275 Gigahertz (H11). The high-frequency (HF) bands are 160 Meters (1.8-2 Megahertz), 80 Meters (3.5-4 Megahertz), 40 Meters (7-7.3 Megahertz), 30 Meters (10.1-10.15 Megahertz), 20 Meters (14-14.35 Megahertz), 17 Meters (18.068-18.168 Megahertz), 15 Meters (21-21.45 Megahertz), 12 Meters (24.89-24.99 Megahertz), and 10 Meters (28-29.7 Megahertz) (H10). The most commonly used bands (and bands with repeaters on them) are 2 Meters (144-148 Megahertz), and 70 Centimeters, hams also call 440, (420-450 Megahertz). Amateurs can also broadcast slow-scan television (SSTV) on 1.25 Meters (222-225 Megahertz) (H10). Hams shortened words down for ease of communication. Some common acryonms that amateurs use are a QTH, which is ones home, and a XYL, which is ones wife (HARING). DX-ing is long distance contesting, and amateurs send QSL postcards to their contacts as acknowledgement of contact (HARING) (HAMILTON). Amateurs sign off with a 73, which means goodbye (HAMILTON).