Category: Essays

Responses due by Sunday Feb. 14, 2016 11:00am

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Respond to at least two of your colleagues’ posts (Note: 2 of my colleague’s responses are copied below, I need one response for each person) in at least one of the following ways:

· Offering additional examples of leadership that relate to your colleague’s post.

· Suggesting additional resources about leadership that relate to your colleague’s post.

· Identifying additional stakeholders and explaining why they are important.

· Proposing additional questions to learn more about the problem.

· Explaining why certain questions are especially relevant to particular stakeholders.

Samantha’s Post:

A true leader must possess great communication and problem solving skills that convey a clear commitment to a purpose, inspires people to achieve a common goal as well as promote people to preserve through adversity. These characteristics are what truly makes a leader effective. I have personally witness these characteristics in action with my current administrative leaders within the past three years. Within their first year of leading our school, our school climate and culture changed dramatically amongst the students, but more importantly our staff. Prior to their leadership, our staff exhibit behaviors of chronic absences and tardiness, negative attitudes and no sense of pride in the idea that our students are worth the hard work. Just on this principle alone, before physical change can take place that will impact student behavior and achievement, leaders have to be able to change and mold mindsets into knowing that are agents of change that have direct impact on the recipients. Ultimately, effective leaders have to be understanding and relish in the balance of knowing when to give orders and when to take orders when necessary.

Problem Statement:

To what extent has the Total Management Quality structure has been an effective tool to use in school reformations that have positively impact student achievement as well as a school’s culture and climate?

The permission of the school district, building principal, teachers, parents and students are necessary in order to fully explore and seek possible solutions to the problem statement. These stakeholders are crucial to this problem because each group make up the school organization that in some way, shape or form play an intricate part in student achievement.

Questions:

What progress monitoring tool is being used to track continuous improvement at the various levels (students, teachers and leaders)?

What assessment have been used to identify problematic areas of the school organizations and what plans have been put in place to mitigate those issues?

What is the universal responsibility of the school organization (mission and vision statement) and what indicators have been clearly outlined to help assist with meeting the expectation?

What preventive measures have been indicated to ensure the school’s organization and what are the reactionary measures to take when certain adversities are unable to be prevented?

Explanation

These four questions are necessary because in order to truly identify and address issues, we have to understand the cause and effect relationship that can negatively and positively impact an organization.

Reference

Hooijberg, R. & Choi, J. 2001. The impact of organizational characteristics on leadership effectiveness models: An examination of leadership in a private and a public sector organization. Administration & Society, 33 (4): 403-431.

Latasha’s Post:

PART 1:

a. post a description of the characteristics of an effective leader of change by providing specific examples from your own experience with leaders.

A great characteristic of a change leader is having the ability to see past where things currently are and having the capacity to cultivate that level of vision in others. I participated in a college preparation program at an Ivy League college in grades 8-12. The first week of that program the director shared with us that standing on the shoreline at the beach you can only see 2.9 miles out. From there you see the horizon and it appears that this is where the ocean ends. However, the reality is that the ocean continues for thousands of miles past where you can see. He instructed that group of eighth graders to always have vision past what you can see. I have never forgotten this message. Additionally, change leaders should be able to create and share knowledge and manage the change process.

a. Explain why leaders need to have these particular characteristics to effectively initiate change.

Cast the vision

Most leaders have vision and goals. But a leader cannot succeed alone. He hast to have the ability to cast his vision in a way that causes others to grab hold to that vision and support its growth with their individual abilities and actions.

Create and share knowledge

I have encountered leaders who seemed intimidated by those who may know more than they may. He spent a lot of time trying to discredit others, than working with others toward common goals. An effective leader of change in education needs to be able to create and share knowledge to demonstrate the need for continuous improvement and development and to cultivate a culture of collaboration within the organization (Fullan, 2002).

a. Be sure to include a reference to the scholarly resource you identified on change leadership, and explain how the reference relates to your post. I specifically searched for an article on educational change leadership. The article listed 11 areas that effective educational change leaders posses. Those areas are: leading a culture of change, moral purpose, understanding change, improving relationships, knowledge creation and sharing, coherence making, learning and sustainability, developing the social environment, cultivating leaders at all levels enhancing and teacher proficiency

Fullan, M. (2002). The Change Leader. Beyond Instructional Leadership, 59(8), 16-21. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may02/vol59/num08/The-Change-Leader.aspx

Shamus, K. (2015). College ready? Critical thinking, curiosity matter. Lansing State Journal. Retrieved 10 February 2016, from http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2015/11/15/college-ready-critical-thinking-curiosity-matter/75735354/

PART 2: Can entrepreneurship improve critical thinking skills of middle school students?

a. post the key stakeholders related to your selected problem statement

Parents, Teachers, School Administration and Local Industry

b. Post an explanation as to why these stakeholders are relevant to the problem.

Parents, Teachers and School administration – Learning to think critically is a huge component of being career and college ready (Shamus, 2015). If we can provide problem based learning opportunities that are connected to real life experiences we could measure the impact on student perception, grades and critical thinking. Local industry could benefit in the long run my cultivating local talent equipped to meet workforce needs.

c. identify at least four questions about the problem that you would like stakeholders to respond. As a parent, what skills sets and abilities does a student need to be college and career ready? To teachers and administrators . . .Do you think a traditional approach to education produces innovation and creativity in students? To industry experts….How can your organization get involved in local education? To all: What happens if we are unable to produce a qualified or skilled workforce in the next generation?

d. explain why the responses may be important in order to understand and address the problem. Many organizations are stakeholders in education at the local level and are unaware. By asking how can you get involved, you are asking someone to buy in through partnership. Also, many parents are unaware of what is really needed for college and career readiness. Good grades are not an immediate indication of academic proficiency.

Using the regression results and the other computations from Assignment 1, determine the market structure in which the low-calorie frozen, microwavable food company operates.

Use the Internet to research two (2) of the leading competitors in the low-calorie frozen, microwavable food industry, and take note of their pricing strategies, profitability, and their relationships within the industry (worldwide).

Write a six to eight (6-8) page paper in which you:

Outline a plan that will assess the effectiveness of the market structure for the company’s operations. Note: In Assignment 1, the assumption was that the market structure [or selling environment] was perfectly competitive and that the equilibrium price was to be determined by setting QD equal to QS. You are now aware of recent changes in the selling environment that suggest an imperfectly competitive market where your firm now has substantial market power in setting its own “optimal” price.
Given that business operations have changed from the market structure specified in the original scenario in Assignment 1, determine two (2) likely factors that might have caused the change. Predict the primary manner in which this change would likely impact business operations in the new market environment.
Analyze the major short run and long cost functions for the low-calorie, frozen microwaveable food company given the cost functions below. Suggest substantive ways in which the low-calorie food company may use this information in order to make decisions in both the short-run and the long-run.

TC = 160,000,000 + 100Q + 0.0063212Q2

VC = 100Q + 0.0063212Q2

MC= 100 + 0.0126424Q

Determine the possible circumstances under which the company should discontinue operations. Suggest key actions that management should take in order to confront these circumstances. Provide a rationale for your response. (Hint: Your firm’s price must cover average variable costs in the short run and average total costs in the long run to continue operations.)
Suggest one (1) pricing policy that will enable your low-calorie, frozen microwavable food company to maximize profits. Provide a rationale for your suggestion.

(Hints:

In Assignment 1, you determined your firm’s market demand equation. Now you need to find the inverse demand equation. Having found that, find the Total Revenue function for your firm (TR is P x Q). From your firm’s Total Revenue function, then find your Marginal Revenue (MR) function.
Use the profit maximization rule MR = MC to determine your optimal price and optimal output level now that you have market power. Compare these values with the values you generated in Assignment 1. Determine whether your price higher is or lower.)

Outline a plan, based on the information provided in the scenario, which the company could use in order to evaluate its financial performance. Consider all the key drivers of performance, such as company profit or loss for both the short term and long term, and the fundamental manner in which each factor influences managerial decisions.

(Hints:

Calculate profit in the short run by using the price and output levels you generated in part 5. Optional: You may want to compare this to what profit would have been in Assignment 1 using the cost function provided here.
Calculate profit in the long run by using the output level you generated in part 5 and cost data in part 3 and assuming that the selling environment will likely be very competitive. Determine why this would be a valid assumption.)

Recommend two (2) actions that the company could take in order to improve its profitability and deliver more value to its stakeholders. Outline, in brief, a plan to implement your recommendations.
Use at least five (5) quality academic resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia does not qualify as an academic resource.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. Th

Ben Davis had just completed an intensive course in Statistical Thinking for Business Improvement, which was offered to all employees of a large health maintenance organization. There was no time to celebrate, however, because he was already under a lot of pressure. Ben works as a pharmacist’s assistant in the HMO’s pharmacy, and his manager, Juan de Pacotilla, was about to be fired. Juan’s dismissal appeared to be imminent due to numerous complaints and even a few lawsuits over inaccurate prescriptions. Juan now was asking Ben for his assistance in trying to resolve the problem, preferably yesterday!

“Ben, I really need your help! If I can’t show some major improvement or at least a solid plan by next month, I’m history.”

“I’ll be glad to help, Juan, but what can I do? I’m just a pharmacist’s assistant.”

“I don’t care what your job title is; I think you’re just the person who can get this done. I realize I’ve been too far removed from day-to-day operations in the pharmacy, but you work there every day. You’re in a much better position to find out how to fix the problem. Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

“But what about the statistical consultant you hired to analyze the data on inaccurate prescriptions?”

“Ben, to be honest, I’m really disappointed with that guy. He has spent two weeks trying to come up with a new modeling approach to predict weekly inaccurate prescriptions. I tried to explain to him that I don’t want to predict the mistakes, I want to eliminate them! I don’t think I got through, however, because he said we need a month of additional data to verify the model, and then he can apply a new method he just read about in a journal to identify ‘change points in the time series,’ whatever that means. But get this, he will only identify the change points and send me a list; he says it’s my job to figure out what they mean and how to respond. I don’t know much about statistics — the only thing I remember from my course in college is that it was the worst course I ever took– but I’m becoming convinced that it actually doesn’t have much to offer in solving real problems. You’ve just gone through this statistical thinking course, though, so maybe you can see something I can’t. To me, statistical thinking sounds like an oxymoron. I realize it’s a long shot, but I was hoping you could use this as the project you need to officially complete the course.”

“I see your point, Juan. I felt the same way, too. This course was interesting, though, because it didn’t focus on crunching numbers. I have some ideas about how we can approach making improvements in prescription accuracy, and I think this would be a great project. We may not be able to solve it ourselves, however. As you know, there is a lot of finger-pointing going on; the pharmacists blame sloppy handwriting and incomplete instructions from doctors for the problem; doctors blame pharmacy assistants like me who actually do most of the computer entry of the prescriptions, claiming that we are incompetent; and the assistants tend to blame the pharmacists for assuming too much about our knowledge of medical terminology, brand names, known drug interactions, and so on.”

“It sounds like there’s no hope, Ben!”

“I wouldn’t say that at all, Juan. It’s just that there may be no quick fix we can do by ourselves in the pharmacy. Let me explain how I’m thinking about this and how I would propose attacking the problem using what I just learned in the statistical thinking course.”

Source: G. C. Britz, D. W. Emerling, L. B. Hare, R. W. Hoerl, & J. E. Shade. “How to Teach Others to Apply Statistical Thinking.” Quality Progress (June 1997): 67–80.

Assuming the role of Ben Davis, write a three to four (3-4) page paper in which you apply the approach discussed in the textbook to this problem. You’ll have to make some assumptions about the processes used by the HMO pharmacy. Also, please use the Internet and / or Strayer LRC to research articles on common problems or errors that pharmacies face. Your paper should address the following points:

Develop a process map about the prescription filling process for HMO’s pharmacy, in which you specify the key problems that the HMO’s pharmacy might be experiencing. Next, use the supplier, input, process steps, output, and customer (SIPOC) model to analyze the HMO pharmacy’s business process.
Analyze the process map and SIPOC model to identify possible main root causes of the problems. Next, categorize whether the main root causes of the problem are special causes or common causes. Provide a rationale for your response.
Suggest the main tools that you would use and the data that you would collect in order to analyze the business process and correct the problem. Justify your response.
Propose one (1) solution to the HMO pharmacy’s on-going problem(s) and propose one (1) strategy to measure the aforementioned solution. Provide a rationale for your response.
Use at least two (2) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

Describe how organizations use statistical thinking to be more competitive.
Apply the basic principles of statistical thinking to business processes.
Apply the SIPOC model to identify OFIs in business processes.
Use technology and information resources to research issues in business process improvement.
Write clearly and concisely about business process improvement using proper writing mechanics

APPLICATION QUESTIONS 1) Identify possible target markets and Discuss the variables of the marketing mix (product with pictures, price, promotion, and distribution) for the following products: a. Jonson & Jonson Baby…

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APPLICATION QUESTIONS

1) Identify possible target markets and Discuss the variables of the marketing mix (product with pictures, price, promotion, and distribution) for the following products:
a. Jonson & Jonson Baby Oil
b. Zara (Women & Children section)

*use simle language
* do not copy from the enternet , use your own words

Diversity in the workplace focuses on similarities and differences all employees bring to the organization. Diversity such as education, cultural, gender, geographical location, and ethnic background should be encouraged and valued. Employees should consider how work policies, communication, and practices have a different impact on their colleagues.

Using the South University Online Library, search the article, “All of Us: Embracing Diversity in Healthcare.”

Based on your research, summarize your thoughts and provide answers or comments to the following questions:

Discuss diversity in healthcare with examples and support from your research.
Summarize any cited special characteristics and problems in the workplace regarding diversity.

Now, let’s read the following scenario.

You are just promoted to a health administration management position. Your organization currently manages a home health unit where you are responsible for seven RNs, three dieticians, two billing and coding staff members, one physical therapist, one social worker, one accountant, and one health administrator overseeing the administrative duties of the organization.

The community is culturally diverse consisting of Hispanic, Arab Americans, and American Indian populations. Additionally, your staff is diverse consisting of one male RN, several RNs near retirement age, two newly graduated dieticians, and a few staff members representing several cultures. You find the staff does not seem to work well together and there appears to be several groups who do not include others at the lunch table. You have a vision to develop the team to promote unity, increase motivation, and share the same vision for a successful collaborative effort. You think how you will gather information so you can further develop your plan of action to turn the unit from one where there appears to be miscommunication and misinformation to a well-functioning team unit.

Based on the above scenario, answer the following questions:

As you begin to develop your plan of action, what important considerations will you address to improve the communication and collaborative effort among the group?
What perceived or real barriers do you anticipate based on the wide diversity of the staff and patients? For example, do seasoned and newly graduated staff members develop team cohesiveness immediately? How can language barriers between the team impede proper communication across department lines?
What potential conflicts can arise when you do not understand or accept cultural, gender, ethnic, or age diversity?
Develop four important steps for how you will implement your plan to improve communication and acceptance of various cultures and diverse workers for each of the perceived or real barriers for staff and patients.

Reference:

Birk, S. (2012). All of us: Embracing diversity in healthcare. Healthcare

Executive, 27(4), 30–32, 34–36, 38

This is a team assignment, I only require the following:

As the director of security for an international corporation, you are responsible for detailing response plans to address a variety of threats.

Venue: A major financial institution.

Scenario: An employee who engages in a threatening confrontation with a manager or coworker.

Write 400-500 words describing response procedures and interagency coordination necessary for dealing with the chosen scenario.

My portion: Initial response to the confrontation

Follow on procedures/protocols thereafter

Create 3-4 powerpoint slides with detailed speaker notes to reflect the paper.

Format in accordance with APA guidelines

Less than 10% plagiarism

Provide atleast two scholarly references, I.e. not wiki, college times, etc

The components of this assignment include a research question,  a purpose and design statement. It must contain at least eight sources, at least six of which must be peer-reviewed. The specific research question should be of depth and breadth required for a major project. Also to come up with a the purpose statement in regards to CyberTerrorism: “What methods can be employed to reduce the threat to the nation’s cyber systems?” 2pp

Looking for a long term relationship, I have total of 10 quizzes for this class. $15/ each quiz (please don’t negotiated), about 20 questions.

International Finance Quiz 1 Questions including:

Chapter 2: 1. Different components of Current and Capital Account a. Understand the definitions of different BOP accounts b. Some examples of international transactions would be given and you should be able to categorize them into different accounts 2. Effect of BOP surplus and deficit on future exchange rate movements a. How BOP surplus affects exchange rate appreciation or depreciation b. How BOP deficit affects exchange rate appreciation or depreciation 3. Implications of the J-Curve Effect 4. How different factors affect International Trade Flows Chapter 3: 1. Suppose Bid and Ask Rates (for example, in the form $/£ or £/$) are given, calculate: a. How many $ a firm would receive by selling certain amount of £ b. How many £ firm would receive by selling certain amount of $ c. How many $ a firm needs to pay to buy certain amount of £ d. How many £ a firm needs to pay to buy certain amount of $ e. Compute the Bid-Ask Spread 2. Pricing of ADR Chapter 4: 1. If old and new exchange rates (for example, in the form $/£ or £/$) are given, calculate a. Appreciation/Depreciation in $. (Practice Problem #1a; Quantitative Problem 1) b. Appreciation/Depreciation in £. (Practice Problem #1b; Quantitative Problem 1) 2. Lending and Borrowing rates for two currencies are given; Also, current spot rate and expected spot rate are given (Practice Problem #4; Quantitative Problem 20 and 21) a. In which currency a bank should borrow for speculation? b. In which currency a bank should lend for speculation? c. What the total interest a bank would pay on its borrowing? d. What is the total interest a bank would earn on its investment? e. What is the speculative gain

Explain why the manner in which the technical or business problem is managed is a critical area of inquiry in action-oriented data collection. Provide at least two examples of how technical or business problems are managed.
You are asked to review a new organization’s management team to determine how effective the current work processes have been in achieving the organizational goals. Taking a whole-systems approach, determine what your first steps would be and how you might state the problem(s).

What are the five key assumptions that are necessary for the H-W Theorem to be valid?

3. Write the Hardy-Weinberg equation:

4. Dominant allele “R” has a frequency (p) of 0.45 in a particular gene pool. Calculate the following showing all your work and using the proper variables for each value (e.g. p, q, p2, q2, 2pg).

a. The frequency of allele “r” in that same gene pool?

b. The proportion of the population that has the genotype RR.

c. The proportion of the population that has the genotype Rr.

d. The proportion of the population that has the genotype rr.

5. If 17% of a population displays the recessive trait for Disease B, what are the frequencies of the recessive allele “b” and the dominant allele “B” in the gene pool?

6. You perform an experiment where you allow a large population of fruit flies to mate randomly. The parental generation had 30% homozygous recessive genotypes. The F1 generation consisted of 100 flies, 40 of which displayed the recessive trait. Calculate the expected values for each phenotype assuming Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, then fill in the table below and use the Chi-Square test instructions document (posted online) to compare your calculated X2 value with the tabulated X2 value for a P-value of 0.05.

# of dominant phenotype individuals

# of recessive phenotype individuals

Observed value (o)

Expected value (e)

Deviation (o – e) = d

d2

d2/e

Calculated Chi-square (X2) = Σd2/e

Degrees of Freedom

Tabulated X2 value at P=0.05

(from X2 instructions document)

a. According to your analysis above, are the observed proportion of genotypes in the F1 generation the same, or significantly different, than those expected according to the H-W theorem?

b. If you allowed your F1 generation to mate, what would you expect the frequency of the recessive allele (q) to be in the F2 generation, assuming the H-W theorem applies?