Personal Application Assignment Essay Example for Free

Personal Application Assignment Essay A variety of texts and articles over the past few years have argued for the use of an alternative approach to teaching organizational behavior, one that emphasizes experiential learning. This approach emphasizes an existential, emergent view for learning organizational behavior (McMullen, 1979), where the role of the instructor is that of learning facilitator, responsible for designing experiences for students to base learning upon, rather than as teacher, responsible for lecturing on theory and concepts. While gaining wide acceptance, this approach has nevertheless created problems in the assessment of students performance. Significant learnings in this model of teaching occur not only from the development of concepts, but also from the experiences themselves. McMullen (as well as others) has proposed the use of a personal application assignment to help solve the problem of performance assessment. This assignment is based upon the experiential learning model formulated by Kolb (1971). This model is discussed in more detail in the text chapter on learning styles. Kolbs model argues that learning occurs through a process which might begin with a concrete experience, which leads to reflective observation about the experience. Abstract conceptualization follows in which models, paradigms, strategies, and metaphors are applied to the results of the experience. Active experimentation concludes the cycle as the concepts are then put into practice, thus generating new concrete experience. Figure 1 shows the model more clearly. In one sense, persons able to learn using all four modes of the model will be better able to take away learning from the variety of contexts in which they interact. We feel that the Personal Application Assignment is a useful tool for both evaluation of a students work in courses taught using an experiential approach; and further, that the Personal Application Assignment can serve as a way to help students learn to learn. The PAA is both an evaluation and a teaching technique. Our past history of teaching using this method has shown that the PAA, in order to be most useful, must include clear guidelines for the student. To that end we have undertaken to set forth the guidelines below to help students to understand the requirements for effective PAAs. Guidelines on Grading, Topic Selection, and Confidentiality First of all, we believe that a 20-point grading system simplifies understanding how each component of the paper is graded and weighted. There are five elements to the paper and each normally is weighted equally. These include the four elements in the learning style model and a fifth element that takes into account the introduction, integration, synthesis and general quality of writing in the PAA. The score given in each element depends upon how effectively the student has met all the criteria listed for that section of the paper. For the instructors part, we believe that instructors need to provide specific feedback as quickly as possible to students on why they were awarded points in each area and, more importantly, what they need to do to improve. To achieve these objectives the same summary sheet that guides the grading is provided to the student as feedback. This sheet is attached at the end of this handout. The above paragraph referred to the weighting as â€Å"normally† being equal for all parts of the paper. In cases where the quality of the student writing is clearly below acceptable standards for college- level courses, this component or the entire paper may be given a significantly lower grade. (Preparing a good quality initial draft to be reviewed by a peer will help eliminate this potential problem. An initial draft is not the same as a first draft or rough draft. It should be a version the student has already revised one or more times. Students should be responsible for seeking out help with their writing skills if necessary. Choosing a good topic is essential. Select an experience that relates to the assigned course topics. It should be an experience that you would like to understand better, (e.g., there was something about it that you do not totally understand, that intrigues you, that made you realize that you lacked certain managerial skills, or that was problematical or significant for you.) When students are excited about learning more about the incident, their papers are lively and interesting. The topic must be meaty enough to take it through the entire learning cycle. The incident does not have to be work related; an incident in any setting (sports, school, family, church, etc.) that relates to the course topics is acceptable. You should select a recent experience (not something that happened back in high school). The more recent the experience, the more likely it is that you could take actions that could improve your current interactions with a supervisor, group member, roommate, or other person with whom you have an ongoing relationship. You also may select an experience which is not ongoing if this is more salient to you. Two additional issues should be considered in choosing your topic. The first is confidentiality. Students sometime wish to write on a topic that is of a personal nature. They may be willing for the instructor to read their paper but not want this to be read by other students in the class. This is a reasonable request and confidentiality will be honored. Students who want their paper to be confidential should inform the instructor ahead of time and should write â€Å"confidential† at the top of the paper. There is one exception to the confidentiality rule. If a student describes conduct related to the University where significant University rules or State/Federal laws have been violated by other students or University staff, the instructor reserves the right to bring this issue to the attention of the appropriate administrator to ensure that the situation is remedied. Elements of the PAA 1. Concrete Experience In this part of the paper, students briefly describe what happens in the experience. A simple description of the events which occurred is not sufficient. The feelings experienced by the student as well as his or her thoughts and perceptions during the experience are relevant to this discussion. Another way of looking at the concrete experience would be to recognize that it possesses an objective and a subjective component. The objective part presents the facts of the experience, like a newspaper account, without an attempt to analyze the content. The subjective part is the here-and-now personal experience of the event. This experience is composed of feelings, perceptions and thoughts. Helpful hints: (1) It often helps students to replay the experience in their mind. After reviewing the experience, students should write a report of what they saw, heard, felt, thought, and heard and saw others doing. (2) Students should avoid presenting the detailed mechanics of the experience unless these are critical to the remainder of the paper. This section of the paper should be no longer than 1.5 pages long. (3) Students should avoid reporting the feelings and thoughts experienced after the experience being described. This retrospection is more appropriate in the reflective observation section. Example: We all sat at the table together. Not a sound came from any of us. Finally, after what felt like an hour to me, I simply had to say something. Why are all of you taking this course? I asked. One person, a small foreign looking man said, I needed this course to complete my MBA. Others laughed. Another person, a nicely dressed woman, said, Id like to get an easy A.' I thought to myself: What a bummer! I didnt want to be in a group with people who didnt take the subject matter seriously. When the meeting ended, my perceptions of the group had somehow changed. Maybe this was a good group to be in after all. Some of the members had similar interests to mine, and most of them were nice people that I could see getting along with. I felt somehow hopeful that this semester wouldnt be so bad after all. 2. Reflective Observation The student should ask him/herself: What did I observe in the experience and what possible meanings could these observations have? The key task here is to gather as many observations as possible by observing the experience from different points of view. The main skill to work on is perspective taking or what some people call re-framing. Try to look at this experience and describe it from different perspectives. For example, how did other participants view the situation and what did it mean to them? What would a neutral (objective) observer have seen and heard? If some time has passed since the experience, do you now see the situation differently? Look beneath the surface and try to explain why the people involved behaved the way they did. Reflect on these observations to discover the personal meaning that the situation had for you. Helpful hints: (1) If possible, discuss the experience with others who were involved to gain their views and clarify your perceptions. (2) Unhook yourself from the experience and meditate about it in a relaxed atmosphere. Mull over your observations until their personal meaning comes clear to you. Try to figure out why people, and you in particular, behaved as they did. What can you learn about yourself, looking back on the experience? If you write about a conflict or interaction, be sure to analyze both sides and put yourself in the shoes of the other people involved. Examples: In thinking back on the meeting, I began to see how the group might have taken my comments. My comments were, after all, somewhat aggressive. Some might even call them belligerent. Had I said these things before this class, or at work, I must confess that I would have surprised even myself. But it seemed there was more going on here than met my eye at the time. Sarah and Bob at first didnt seem to be the kind of people to combine forces on this job, so why was I arguing against them this time? Then it dawned on me: Their departments were about to be combined into the same division! Why hadnt I remembered that during the meeting? Many thoughts raced through my head. Was the cause of last nights high that we won the game? Was it the first time we had worked together as a group? Maybe the fact that member X wasnt there that night helped! But I still had a nagging hunch that my involvement, downplayed as it was from previous meetings, helped. 3. Abstract Conceptualization By relating assigned readings and lectures to what you experienced, you are demonstrating your ability to understand conceptually abstract material through your experiences. This process will help you refine your model of people and organizations. While some assigned readings and lectures will have varying degrees of relevance to your experience, it is important that you make several references and not limit your conceptualizing to just one source. Use at least two major concepts or theories from the course readings and cite them correctly e.g,, (Osland, Kolb Rubin, 2001, p. 31). By reviewing the assigned reading material, you should be able to identify several specific concepts or theories that relate to your experience. First, briefly define the concept or theory as you would for someone who was not familiar with it. What issue or problem does the theory examine? What variables are used to analyze the problem and how does the theory explain the link between causal variables and outcomes. What suggestions does the theory give as to effective management practices? Second, in a separate paragraph, apply the concept thoroughly to your experience. The tie-in should include the specific details of how the theory relates to and provides insight into your experience. Try to develop diagnostic questions based on the theory that help you to analyze your situation. Does the theory explain what causes certain behaviors or outcomes and were these causes present in your situation? Does the theory distinguish between effective and ineffective practices that help you to understand your situation? Does the experience support or refute parts of the theory? You are encouraged to suggest modifications to a theory to make it fit your particular situation better. Helpful hints: (1) It is sometimes useful to identify theoretical concepts that interest you first and then search out and elaborate on a personal experience that relates to these concepts. (2) An alternative approach is to select an experience you wish to understand better and then select concepts that apply to your experience. The example below shows how one concept was defined and applied in a student PAA. Abstract Conceptualization Example There are several organizational behavior concepts that help me understand this experience. One is the Thomas-Kilman theory of conflict (Osland, p. 284-285) which is based upon two axes, either the concern for ones own interests or the concern for the interests of the other party. The five styles reflect a low or high position on these two axes and are labeled competition, compromise, avoidance, accommodation, and collaboration. In the incident I described, my coach began with a collaborative style, high concern for both his own interests and the interests of the other party. He tried to work out a solution that would satisfy both of us but I neither saw nor heard his point of view. I just wanted to get my own way and practice in the same way I had on my previous team. I see now that the conflict style I used was the competitive style, high concern for my own interests and low concern for the interests of the other party. Looking back, this is the style I have used most often throughout my life; I usually got away with it before because I was such a good athlete. However, my experience with the coach supports the textbooks description (p. 285) of the losses that may result from using this style. I lost everything when I was kicked off the team and I certainly alienated the coach and the other players and discouraged them from wanting to work with me. 4. Active Experimentation This section of the paper should begin by summarizing what you learned about yourself as a result of writing the paper. What new personal insights and practical lessons did you learn about how to more effectively deal with these types of experiences. Make sure to focus on what you learned about yourself, rather than what you learned about someone else, general situations such as group behavior, or processes such as negotiation. This should be presented in a separate paragraph and not buried within your discussion of an action step. Next you should present four action steps that you will take to make you more effective in the future in these situations. (Future actions must be based on the experience reported in the Concrete Experience.) These actions can be stated in the form of guidelines as to how you would act differently or resolutions as to steps you could take to develop or practice particular skills. You should elaborate in detail how you see your action ideas being carried out. A given step might include several related activities to complete it. Sometimes students have a tendency to list an action step and then shift to explaining why they would take the action without sufficiently explaining the actual behavior they would modify. For example, the statement â€Å"I would strive to communicate better because people feel I don’t listen very well† does not tell a reader very much about what you would do to communicate better. Saying that â€Å"I will strive to communicate better by using active listening techniques where I will paraphrase the other’s viewpoint before presenting my own opinion† is a better indication of how you will carry out this action step. There should be a clear link between your action steps and the concepts presented in the abstract conceptualization section. If the theories you selected provide recommendations for improving management practices, you are encouraged to incorporate these ideas in formulating your action steps. Dont just repeat tips from the text. Try to include at least one action resolution that is based upon new knowledge that you have gained about yourself. If you were to re-live your experience, what would you do differently? What would you do to improve the situation? In past student PAA’s it is often difficult to sort out where one action step ends and another begins. Please provide a separate paragraph for each action step and number or otherwise demarcate the separate action steps. For example, â€Å"First, I would .. My second action step would be † This will help the reader differentiate between action steps and will ensure that you provide four distinct action steps as part of your plan. Explain why you would take these action steps. Why would the selected behaviors be likely to improve the situation? Helpful hints: (1) Project a future experience in which you envision the implementation of your ideas and then elaborate on that experience as a way of demonstrating how your actions will be carried out. (2) Where does this situation exist in your life (home, work, school)? Do you need a support system to make it happen? How will you obtain the cooperation of others to jointly improve the situation? (3) Try to imagine the final results of your experimentation. What will it be like if you accomplish what you want to do? Example of Action Steps: How then can I best utilize and improve my achievement motivation? First, I must arrange for some accomplishment feedback. This will be done by designing or perceiving tasks so that I succeed bit-by-bit, gaining a reward each time and thus strengthening my desire to achieve more. Second, I should look to models of achievement. If people around me succeed, it will further stimulate me. I will ask them how they go about setting realistic goals for themselves and observe how they get feedback from others regarding their performance. Third, I should modify my self-image to include my desire for personal challenges and responsibilities and my requirement of continual feedback. (As a first step, I imagine myself as a person who requires or must have success, responsibility, challenge and variety.) I will seek out situations that are more likely to provide these challenges in the future. Fourth, I must learn to control my reveries. Just beyond the borderline of awareness, many of us are constantly talking to ourselves. While it is fun to fantasize, I will try to make sure my aspirations are realistic given my current skills and time available to accomplish my various goals. I will spend time prioritizing my goals to ensure that I don’t try to do too much or too little. Finally, although I would never admit so, I agree that salary is a potential dissatisfier for me. Therefore, I must insist on what I perceive as a fair return for my performance. I will discuss my salary expectations with my supervisor to ensure I know what is expected and also to ensure that my boss knows my expectations. Wish me luck! Here is another example of a good action step, written by a student who wanted to stop being a passive follower and become more of a leader. I am going to take a more active role in team meetings. I will volunteer to be the team facilitator in at least one meeting during this semester. In all other meetings, I am going to make at least two process interventions to help the team function more effectively. To prepare myself, I am going to carefully observe other students who are excellent leaders, and I will read two articles on team leadership. I will also design an evaluation form on my team participation and ask my team to use it to evaluate me after the meeting I facilitate. Based on their feedback, I will continue working on possible weak areas during the rest of this course. 5. Integration and Writing The well written PAA has a focal issue and a story line with themes that are carried throughout each of the four sections. The idea of synergy applies here: The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. If integration is present, then the reader can attend to the content without distraction; if integration is absent, barriers prevent the reader from gaining a full appreciation of the content. Are the major themes that you have identified integrated throughout your paper? Make sure that the reflective observation takes into account the viewpoint of all the key people cited in the concrete experience. Do the concepts cited in abstract conceptualization fit well with these observations? Is there a clear link between the concepts or theories that you cite and the subsequent action steps that you formulate? Citing the theories is not just meant to be an academic exercise it should help guide the analysis of the situation and the planning of practical steps for improving future situations. Other barriers that prevent the reader from fully appreciating the papers content are spelling and grammatical errors, as well as the overall appearance of the final document. Since good writing skills are so important in the business world, there should be no errors in your paper. Use the spell check (and grammar check) on your computer before you hand it in. Sometimes reading a paper aloud will indicate where sections of a paper may need revision to simplify awkward or unclear sentences.

racismhf Free Huckleberry Finn Essays: Prejudice and Racism :: Adventures Huckleberry Huck Finn Essays

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:   Racism  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The twentieth century has come to an amazing finale.   Racism, ethnic prejudice and hate are on the decline.   Perhaps some of these changes can be attributed to the novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, in which Mark Twain addresses the issues of racism and slavery. He writes in a humorous, almost childish way, yet the themes are clear and poignant.   Twain utilizes Huck Finn and Jim as the ideal characters because they are the ones at the end of the novel who realize slavery is wrong.   Mark Twain establishes the ideals by portraying them through the protagonists, Huck and Jim and criticizes the failure to live up to them by portraying them through the antagonists, Miss Watson.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Prejudice can be observed throughout the novel by the way the other characters treat Huck.   Twain portrays Huck as an average boy of his time, mischievous, adventurous and funny.   The society Huck lives in labels him "uncivilized" because he has an abusive, drunk father.   "By and by pap got too handy with his hick'ry and I couldn't stand it.   I was all over with welts" (Twain page #).   Here the reader can observe the ultimate failure of an uncivilized person.   Pap is an alcoholic, a dead beat and a racist.   Nevertheless, society also considered Huck   "uncivilized" because he did not wear shoes did not always attend school and he smoked.   Society criticized Huck as uncivilized due to physical appearance when really Huck turned out to be more civilized than any other character in the novel because he learns how to respect Jim.   Through the ironic criticism of society trying to civilize Huck, Huck teaches us a lesson on bein g civilized.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the novel, Jim runs away from his slave owner, Miss Watson.   By doing a thing like that Jim could have been killed or beat.   The people of Jim’s society would not have even listened to him or even considered his reason.   "Well, you see, it 'uz dis way.   Ole missus-dat's Miss Watson- she pecks on me all de time, en treats me pooty rough, but she alwuz said she wouln' sell me down to Orleans. ... but she could git eight hund'd dollars for me" (Twain page #).   Twain wanted to show, through Jim, just how cruel people were and how those feelings were condoned by society.   Twain also shows the ideal of freedom through Jim and the failure to live up to that freedom when Miss Watson sells him.

Mercedes Benz Operations Management Essay

Executive Summary Daimler Mercedes-Benz is one of the most valuable companies around the world; it is ranked number ten out of 100 leading brands worldwide (Bestglobalbrands.com, 2014), Mercedes-Benz is part of Daimler AG which is one of the best leaders in automobiles brands. The Daimler AG brand aims to deliver services, value and premium quality to its customers. The company has 14 sub-companies that produce cars, vans, trucks, and financial services. It has more than 100 vehicle models in over 200 countries worldwide, offering high quality products is the company’s strategy and  goal. Daimler Mercedes-Benz cars have sold 1,565,563 million unit with revenues of over 64,307 million euros; with over 274,000 thousand employees in 2013, the company has also invested in plants and equipment worth over 3,751 billion euros (Daimler AG, 2013). This management report includes an in-depth study of the operations management inside the company, by covering the most important parts of the company such as manufacture, assembly line and warehouses management. The aim of this report is to study current issues as well as the status of the company and how changes in demand can be handled. At the end of this report, the conclusion and recommendations offer the company solutions to prevent any issues that they may face during the production life cycle. Part (A) A-I: Operations Management at Daimler Mercedes-Benz  Quality & Material Management Mercedes Benz’ manufacturers use a global quality management system to ensure that their automobile products meeting their standards, which in return increase customer loyalty to the brand. Producing high quality automobiles is the goal of Daimler- Mercedes’ strategy to meet the customer’s requirements, as well as opening a new road for new customers to experience Mercedes automobiles. Recently, the company has aimed to increase quality by adding extra environmentally friendly features to their products to help the global environment (Daimler AG, 2013). However, Mercedes Benz’ customer satisfaction can be damaged by quality worries. Alarms led the company to take the decision to recall over 250,000 cars from the year 2008 until late 2014 for mechanical and safety concerns at the assembly line. Mercedes recalled these vehicles to be serviced immediately for customer safety (Jensen, 2014). On the other hand, BMW had to recall fewer vehicles than Mercedes Benz, for immediate maintenance related to mechanical issues. Such issues could cause a crash due to a power fault in the engine (CBS Miami, 2014). Outsourcing outside Germany had increased this risk for Mercedes Benz, by decreasing the company quality and safety. The company recalled more than 55,000 vehicles that were produced in  China because of a faulty circuit made by the manufacturer (Wantchinatimes.com, 2014). These issues are related to the quality management of the company, and can decrease customer loyalty, which could lead them to consider changing to other brands. Quality and safety issues affect the company’s yearly ranking, which in return can increase or decrease their total revenues. Quality is one of the most important components for the company to keep ahead of the competition. Furthermore, according to (Miller and Lundegaard, 2002) Mercedes’ quality has to be bulletproof as the highest company priority, through closing any gaps that occurred through previous issues. The increasing numbers of sub-model cars can also affect the brand quality through increasing any risk issues once launched to the public. Furthermore, according to (Stephen, 2004) Mercedes customers have high expectations about the high quality promised by the company. In 2003, the company disappointed many customers when they sold over 2000 vehicles with an extra option for a navigation system, which were not ready to be delivered at the right time, also accompanied by other mechanical issues. On the other hand, the company made an announcement about its new high quality hydraulic breaking system, which increased its competitiveness in terms of safety and quality against other competitors in the industry. Our company should make sure that manufacturers deliver products with the highest design specification, in order to be order-winner quality conformance, by delivering products with no defects (Hill and Hill, 2012). Furthermore, improvements in quality lead to a decrease in cost for the company. According to (Evans, 1997) higher quality products lead to a decrease in costs for the company through higher productivity: ‘improvements in quality leads to lower cost because of less re-work, fewer mistakes, fewer delays and snags’ (Evans 1997, P.55). Speed According to (Hill and Hill, 2012), synchronising all supply chain activities through using the same data, and completing production at the scheduled time, coordinated between the manufacturer and suppliers, enables manufacturers to respond quickly to the demand changes. Therefore, synchronisation ensures that our manufacturers are able to deliver products faster and more flexibly to the customers. Furthermore, Daimler Mercedes-Benz understand what customers are looking for, therefore the company is expanding our dealers network to meet the customer requirements for vehicle availability. Our company’s relationship with the current suppliers is improving every day to minimise any risk of supplying defective vehicles (Automotivesupplychain.org, 2013). In addition, working closely with suppliers reflects positively on our brand’s customer service. In 2008, the company faced a problem with one of its suppliers, which caused a delay in one of our products models. The supplier was supposed to deliver special battery materials to the manufacturer’s warehouses (Ireson, 2008). However, the supplier refused to meet Mercedes-Benz’ requirements, which caused a delay in delivery and to use of low quality batteries which were defective. Our company is using the powerful application to manage our suppliers, this application is called SAP, it is making our supply chain management more efficient, flexible, and at the lowest cost. The SAP solves any gaps in the company’s capabilities by using the supply chain fingerprint system to scan all the parts and materials; these technologies is helping the company to reduce any extra cost (mSE Solutions, 2012). In addition, the SAP increases the flexibility of our manufacture as well as increasing the speed of delivery for the customers, through just in time (JIT). It does this by enabling many features for the dealer to calculate the vehicle price of the order during the order stage and at the same time getting an order-number to track the order. All these steps are integrated together into the supply chain management system, and are informed by each stage of the order (Infosys, 2005). This synchronises the information in real-time, reflecting on the company strategy to change with demand. Also, there are advantages in using the SAP application to manage our company warehouses where the company stores materials for vehicles. By sending orders for the warehouse to get ready to deliver an order to the assembly line, this can achieved by using the just in time (JIT) efficient method for manufacturing. In the meantime, this creates an extra space for new materials in the storage area at the  warehouse; the SAP system will already be sending a new order to fill and stack those storage areas for future orders from the system (Bayigen, 2012). All these measures combine to increase the speed, therefore reducing the cost of manufacture, and maintaining dependability in an efficient way. For our company dependability is an important factor of the company’s success, it reduces any ambiguity within the supply chain management (Slack et al., 2012). Dependability and Flexibility Our company had dependability issues in 2014. This dependability issue started after launching the new high quality CLA-Class model at an affordable price. Dealers of Mercedes-Benz could not deliver the new model on time, meaning customers had to wait at least two months until they are available in stock. Not keeping up with high demand could lead to loss of brand-loyal customers or interested buyers who are willing to trade in or paying cash immediately. This makes our company less flexible in terms of adapting to changes in customer demand (Flierl, 2014). Cost Our company differentiation strategy to produce high quality luxury cars is inspiring in itself, in terms of the creation of unique high quality vehicles that exceed our customers’ expectations. Our company charges a premium price for most of its models. This differentiation strategy helps the company to increase the brand image positively in our customers’ eyes, by including high-end technology and unique services (Tanwar, 2013). Also, our company provide different vehicles types with unique colours including high variety and volume to attract new costumers as well as reducing the unit cost from the supplier side. On the other hand, our company variation in demand is high due to the complexity of the production and the way that we keep in touch with the demand. A-II: Process Management at Daimler Mercedes-Benz Process management is a vital part of our company success. According to (Slack et al., 2012), operations and process management can break the whole business at any stage or place when they are managed in the wrong way. Furthermore, processes at Daimler Mercedes-Benz are internationally the same. Our processes include inputs, via a transformation stage, to create and deliver high quality outputs that meet the customer expectations and more. Customers’ orders are processed through the operations system as soon as they ask for a particular model. Types of Daimler Mercedes-Benz customers 1) Customers asking for a particular model through the dealer: Most of the time, Mercedes-Benz dealers have all the models in the showroom and ready to be sold. In the case of high demand for a model, dealers will have to order a new delivery from our company in order to manage the demand. 2) Customers asking for a particular model through the website: The company’s website gives customers details about car models. The website also allows customer to customise their desired car by adding extra features to the interior or exterior of the car model. Furthermore, when the customer is at the order-check out, it will automatically locate the nearest dealer to the customer to confirm the order. Once the dealer confirms the order, the order is entered into the SAP application and sent to the manufacturer. Where our company has already launched the new vehicle model, these models are produced using these processes: Advanced Design Process Daimler Mercedes-Benz’ models are designed by 440 designers from all over the world, from countries including the United States of America, Europe, and Asia. These designers are responsible for designing future cars using their creativity and imagination. Our company has invested millions of dollars into building high technology designing studios to meet the future of these  automobiles. Here, designers are involved in the development of each model through strategic management, to operation management of the vehicle design. Designers at Mercedes Benz control the design process as well as the model’s lifecycle, from the drawing stage to the stage where the interior and exterior meets the company’s quality standards. From here, the design is moved into a virtual digital design on computers, to add features and a superior look. The design process takes a long time, in some cases more than three years (Media.daimler.com, 2010). According to (Slack et al., 2012), designing process types depend on the complexity of the project. Mercedes-Benz vehicles tend to take too long to be designed, making their projects low volume as well as having a high variety of projects. The design process is sent to the board of management at our company with a planned schedule for the production life cycle. Approval is sought from the board of management: this stage of accepting or rejecting the new design impacts on the production process. The production process then involves the body shop and the assembly line. The Body and paint Shop (Raw Materials and Workers job commitment) High technology robots create the vehicle bodies including the metal shell. After the board of management have accepted the new vehicle design, the robots transform the design concept into reality by producing the body parts. Over 1200 robots are in daily operation at Mercedes Benz U.S. International, in order to increase the speed of production. These robots are used to guarantee quality and fast delivery. This means the workers can knows exactly when supplies are coming. This ensures that the line is not stacked with vehicle parts in order to make the process more flexible. Furthermore, the SAP application helps to reduce the chance of late delivery by ensuring that the parts are on time and by checking availability of the materials at the warehouses. Our company ensures that customer quality and safety standards are met by increasing the welding parts to more than 5000 welds on each vehicle. When the process is done, engineers have to check the quality of the vehicle as well as following the ‘just in time’ method in sending them on to the next process. Workers at the body shop are well  trained to meet standards such as safety and cleanliness of the work place (Mbusi.com, 2012). The Assembly Line Implementing innovation in the Mercedes-Benz assembly line is one of its drivers to success. An example of this is our assembly line at Mercedes Benz U.S. International which contains four lines. When parts are finished at the paint shop, our assembly line and its workers are ready to build up the final vehicle shape. Our strategy makes the assembly line moves while the workers are working, which decreases waste in terms of time. Suppliers respond to our strategy to be environmentally friendly by using re-usable plastic packages. At the end of the assembly line stage, there is a new stage of quality checks, including a rattle test, wheel alignment test, roll test, and shower test. These all ensure that the quality meets the company standards. After the quality check results are confirmed (Mbusi.com, 2012), the vehicles are made ready for worldwide shipping by transporting them to the marshalling yard, containing the transportation areas. Customer Service Strategy At Daimler Mercedes-Benz, customer service plays a big role in the brand image. It helps the company to ensure that customers are satisfied and their expectations are met. To satisfy customers, their perception of the product needs to match the delivered product (Johnston et al, 2012). Our company had created a new service called customer service assistant system CSA in order to provide customers with a broad range of services in each country. This customer service assistant system is available 24/7in order to assist owners of the vehicles, so they can be in contact with any issues that may occur. Furthermore, the company is also investing in research for future customer needs. Staff can speak many languages, making the service more efficient and more flexible. The CSA allows customers to complain about any issues relating to their vehicle. The CSA system studies and checks each issue, while also sending the customer to their nearest Mercedes-Benz dealer to resolve the issue as soon as possible. This strategy helps our company to  ensure that the functionality of the customer services meets and exceeds customers’ expectations (sustainability.daimler.com, 2012). The company’s current customer services include: Safe-Driving courses for the safety of the owners Rescue services booklet 24/7 emergency breakdown assistance Financial services After-sales services According to (Hill and Hill, 2012), quality is determined by how well a company’s services meet their customers’ requirements and expectations. Our company CSA system is meeting the customers’ expectations by contacting them after their purchase to ensure that they are happy with the service. Including customers by ask for recommendations. This strategy provides our company with extra information about areas that we should cover in the future, which increases the company sales revenue; and decreases vehicle defects, which saves time. Furthermore, accepting customers’ complaints helps our company to look again at how the manufacturer produces car models in the future. This ensures that our customers are satisfied by the services provided. The after-sales services should be prepared for any mistake in the manufacture, by informing customers one-by-one once any issues have been discovered. Inventory Management At Daimler Mercedes-Benz, each region has its own warehouse where the company stores all the parts of the car models. Each region has its own geographic areas where temperatures can range from below zero degrees to over 35 degrees. These parts are either sent to the manufacture or to the after-sales services. Furthermore, our company is the owner of the most warehouses across the world. Our company uses SAP to control these parts in each region. However, the company failed to ensure that the warehouses were ready to send vehicles for its new CLA model. This is an alarm for the company, warning it to look into the system in order to catch up with high demand. It also shows that there was a time-waste issue between delivering  the materials to the manufacturers and new orders for new materials to be stocked in the warehouses. This may cause issues in the future when it comes to high demand orders. There may be an increased risk of unavailable parts. Furthermore, when the inventory management fails to catch up with demand by putting customers in queues, this can make these customers unhappy, which can affect the company’s revenue in other ways (Slack et al., 2012). Purchasing and Supply Chain Management Our company is facing material shortages from the suppliers. These shortages notified our managers to focus more on research from around the world, in order to implement new ideas by finding solutions. At Mercedes-Benz’ our suppliers are local suppliers in each country, working under specific conditions and requirements. The aim in commissioning local suppliers is to reduce time, so materials can be delivered to the ware house ‘just in time’, further decreasing extra costs for the company (BayIgen, 2012). One of the issues that faced our company when a certain supplier was not able to deliver batteries on time was the resulting delay in the production process. This delay affected customer demand, causing customers to look at other products. Therefore, the company is now using the SAP application to manage their suppliers. The Process Chart A-III: Lean Management at Mercedes Benz At Mercedes-Benz, lean management has been in place for more than 15 years; lean management is a vital part of our operation management. This is achieved through using the Mercedes-Benz production system (MPS), which refers to: layout, standards, tools of the production, and the methods for operating our company plants worldwide. Furthermore, MPS is divided into two systems: one for training and the other for support. The MPS training centre ensures that our trained experts are working hard and are well motivated on the production line as well. It also ensures that improvements are made by managers, meeting the minimum company requirements and standards. The  process of training employees and managers at Mercedes-Benz takes more than six months. This involves the employees in the operation processes, in order to deliver the quality of services that our customer expects. MPS trainees receive one type of training that covers the theories and four types of training that put what they have learnt into practice. MPS aims to enhance communications between the plants, leading our company to ensure that lean synchronisation processes are well constructed, in order to eliminate waste. A significant approach to eliminating waste of time is used by our company. When the our workforce understands exactly how important high quality is to the company, each employee has the experience and is well enough equipped with the minimum tools to do the given job role. Then the employee can find the car set up, with the tools next to him and ready to be used (Daimler AG, 2012). A new strategy has been developed by the company to take a closer look at customer demand. This strategy is based on launching our products in public. At the same time the plant has started production of a new model to test and catch up with demand in each country, by applying the lean and just in time principles to reduce overproduction as well as producing what our customer needs at a given time, and delivering a high quality car model (Azok, 2014). This new strategy strengthens our company view on demand as well as producing high quality car models as soon as possible, meeting our customers’ expectations. Other plants around the world are, one by one, each month, preparing to start production. It is clear that the company is doing its best to forecast customer demand. Furthermore, according to (Slack et al., 2012), implementing lean synchronisation in a company operations means that they can produce at the lowest possible cost and the highest quality. This is achieved through delivering exactly what the customers expect from the company. Also, applying this method our plants in other countries, to produce cars at different times, enables our company to handle any mistakes or errors that may occur at the first plant by compensating and changing at other plants. Thus, it will decrease quality issues, since information can be shared between our plants ‘just in time’. In return, this will ensure that efficiency and improvement principles are in place, reducing costs as well as eliminating unnecessary steps. The ‘just in time’ (JIT) concept of Mercedes-Benz is similar to Toyota’s concept. The assembly line at Mercedes-Benz can handle producing new models, reducing the time needed to build a new assembly line and to commission new plants. This represents a cost incentive for the company. Since the assembly lines at our company are able to handle new models, this will decrease the setup time, which in return will reduce waste of resources. According to (Evans, 1997), setup time reduction will increase the flexibility of the production line by decreasing the production time as well as decreasing the inventory; furthermore, it increases company productivity. The similarities between Mercedes-Benz’ production system (MPS) and Toyota’s production system lie in their JIT, pull production and kanban systems. These enable both companies to produce any quantity of vehicles depending on demand. They help the company to use available materials depending on the demand level. At this point, our company is going to replace containers of used materials with new containers by asking our long-term suppliers to send a new order. This uses a high technology card that can be removed from the container and scanned using the MPS system. It then sends the new order to our supplier. In this way, MPS minimises the inventory as well as using minimum inputs to produce the highest outputs (Clarke, 2006). Our company has already received many awards for its lean production as well as for reducing the production of many models from 43 to 30 hours in 2015. This is enabled by our lean production system, which has reduced waste in terms of time (Hamprecht, 2012). Part (B) Capacity Management at Mercedes Benz Daimler Mercedes-Benz’ capacity management failed to chase the demand for our new CLA model. According to (Hill and Hill, 2012), capacity means serving customers by delivering products through matching the organisation’s resources to current demand. Our company could not cope with the high volume of requests for this model due to an inaccurate estimation of demand. The management team needs to be more efficient in chasing demand by tweaking the  output to match the current demand of this model. This would start with hiring more labour and asking workers if they are able to take overtime shifts in order to fulfil the high volume production. This could then decrease the number of customers who were dissatisfied by the delay, waiting for more than three months in the queue. Also, since that our company already has a long-term strategy for achieving high demand, the company should consider asking the nearest plants outside the country whether they have products ready to be dispatched directly. Weak cooperation between those countries could cause delays. The complexity of the operation process affected the delivery of the CLA model. The management team could have waited longer before launching the model to the public, by checking all the available resources. Nevertheless, our company manufacturers were not ready to deliver ready products on time to the customers. This led to a hard decision for managers to decide what is best for both the company and customers. The decision to make customers wait in queues for three months until this model is available is, in the customers’ eyes, harming our company’s image. Furthermore, the warning signs of being out of stock were not checked properly; from this it is clear that our staff should be more skilled. Also, asking for recalls for defective models due to manufacturing issues, affects the quality of the production inside the manufacturer as well as our customers will be unhappy. Quality is a high priority problem, which negatively affects our company relationship with the customers, leading to queues, as with the shortage of CLA models. Lack of dependability and flexibility can decrease our company sales revenue as well as increasing in costs, which in return reduces our lean synchronisation. The company was aware of these risks yet our company decided to launch the new CLA model. Our company is already scheduling our future growth by investing in expanding our capacity. This will lead our company being more flexible in the future, as well as better able to serve high customer demand. Our company has realised that there is a lack of space for expansions in many places, therefore our company is looking to find more locations to build up new assembly lines to enhance our production (Daimler.com, 2013). It is  important that the company should always attempt to catch up with demand to ensure that our customers are satisfied, as well as to increase our sales revenues. An automobile manufacturer should always match the existing material flow with production, and also ensure that the company record the capacity planning in order to get more details about our actual capacity. This will enable our company to control the demand properly. Also, when our company could not control the demand, this led the company to face many challenges relating to our supply chain management. When a company cannot meet customer demand, this makes it more difficult for the company to manage their capacity. This complexity is called the ‘bullwhip effect’, suppliers should expand their current capacity in order to be more flexible to catch up with the high demand on the materials (University Alliance, 2015). Capacity management has many levels. In the case of our company, the capacity level depends on demand, especially as most of the services that Mercedes-Benz offer are related to physical materials such as vehicles and service parts. This is considered to be a mixed long-term capacity which depends on demand. The demand forecast in our company is different from one year to another. Accurately forecasting the demand means that our company has the ability to evaluate uncertain risks that may occur. Also there is a value in operational terms, in knowing our company’s limits: knowing what we can and cannot do. On the other hand, our company already has experts who control our capacity. Controlling capacity means planning at an advanced level for companies to be well-prepared in terms of: responding to uncertain changes in terms of demand; and controlling the inventory and warehouses so that inputs are ready to be transformed into outputs. This will benefit companies and manufacturers in terms of increasing revenues, and through establishing an organisation where high demand places pressure on the parties inside the company (Slack et al., 2012). Part (C) Conclusion and Recommendations Dependability is an important factor that can help the supply chain to deal  with high demand. According to (Slack et al., 2012), focusing on dependability at an earlier point may reduce uncertainty about any risks that the manufacturer may face. This is especially important when it comes to dealing with quantities; our manufactures should focus more on delivering products on time. Dealers should be prepared for such an event and could be warned by the manufacture of high demand in order to be prepared to be flexible at an earlier stage in the order. Covering a high demand of orders from customers is important. In order to satisfy them, our company should be more flexible to reduce the impact of any events that may occur. The company should address quality issues at an earlier stage. The company already conducts high quality checks on each process and stage. It is highly recommended to report any concerns that may appear during the product life cycle. Reporting these at an earlier stage will give our company extra time to find proper solutions. In the case of covering the inventory management, our company failed with the new CLA model. The company should consider looking again at the whole warehouse system. It is recommended that the operations manager should focus on increasing the physical quantity stored in warehouses inside the company, in order to anticipate future demand as well as increasing the company’s value to its customers. Also, since that our company is the owner of most of the warehouses, it is a competitive advantage to never be out of stock, even when the demand is increasing. Furthermore, the warehouses at Daimler Mercedes-Benz should become more efficient through using the SAP application. The company should consider giving more opportunities for the employees to gain more skills and experiences. Since our company is investing in capacity, it is also a competitive advantage for us to always be ahead of demand; this will ensure that the company increases levels of customer satisfaction, whereby products meet customer demand. Being able to forecast the demand on a daily basis will help the company to decide whether they should invest more in capacity or reduce the number of suppliers. Mercedes-Benz should focus more on suppliers’ entry requirements and how a long-term or short-term arrangement can be an advantage or disadvantage for the company. Managing suppliers in an effective way will reduce any extra cost as well as making sure that our suppliers realise the company requirements in terms of JIT. In addition, our company should enhance its relationships with all suppliers. This will ensure that the suppliers are happy when they are dealing with our company and are not likely to provide the company with defective products. Reference List Automotivesupplychain.org (2013) Mercedes by any other name. [Online] Available from:http://www.automotivesupplychain.org/features/216/62/Mercedes-by-any-other-name/> Azok, D. (2014) Mercedes-Benz: Alabama production of the C-Class will cut U.S. wait times for the model [Online] Available at: Bayigen, M. (2012) How Mercedes-Benz turned research into reality – Global – CSCMP’s Supply Chain Quarterly [Online] Supplychainquarterly.com Available at: Bestglobalbrands.com, (2014) Mercedes-Benz – Best Global Brands – Interbrand [Online] Available at: Clarke, C. (2006) Automotive Production Systems and Standardisation: From Ford to the Case of Mercedes-Benz. In: Springer Science & Business Media pp.169-172 Daimler AG (2012) AMG behind the scenes [Online] Available at: Daimler AG, (2013) Annual report 2013 [Online] Available at: Daimler.com, (2013) Daimler plans expansion of Mercedes-Benz Cars production network [Online] Available at: Evans, J (1997) Product ion/operations management Minneapolis/St. Paul: West Pub. Co. Evans, J. (1997) Productions/operations management. Quality, Performance, and value 5th ed. New York: West Publishing Company, p.44-57 Flierl G, D. (2014) If you want a new 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory In The 21st Century Essay

Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory is often regarded as the most comprehensive personality theory and the first in its area of study to theorise human behaviour but through the ages Freud has raised numerous debates on whether his theory of human behaviour has been more controversial or influential. In this essay, I will argue that the Psychoanalytical Theory made a significant contribution to the field of psychology by critically evaluating how Freudian ideas influenced subsequent theorists. Furthermore I will discuss its relevance in the 21st century whilst not neglecting to highlight the reasons why Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory is criticised as a personality theory. In the Psychoanalytic Theory, Freud structured the personality into three levels of consciousness, namely the conscious, preconscious and the unconscious. Amongst these three Freud is commonly known for â€Å"discovering† the unconscious and it became the core element to Freud’s theory. Freud further defined the structural elements of the psyche (the id, the ego and the superego) (Meyer, Moore & Viljoen, 2008:52). These components of Freud’s theory remain important since they are still to some extent used to explain how the human psyche functions. It is evident that Freudian ideas of the unconscious laid the foundation for future personality theorists such as Carl Jung who’s Analytical Theory too focused on the unconscious mind (Meyer, et al., 2008:95). Another personality theorist Freud influenced is Erik Erikson who was an Ego Psychologist. Psychologists in this area of study elaborated on the ego which was originally theorised by Freud. Erikson’s theory is regarded as one of the most useful psychological theories and several concepts formulated by him such as psychosocial development, ego strength and identity crisis are part of our everyday vocabulary today (Meyer, et al., 2008:95). It is clear in my above examples that Freud did influence subsequent theorists whose theories are still relevant in the field of psychology today. Certain concepts of Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory are still relevant in the 21st century such as dream analysis, free association and defence mechanisms. These psychotherapy techniques are being used and expanded upon in modern day clinical psychology. According to Hurd (n.d.), Freud is the most popular dream theorist known today, and his ideas are still drawing water a century after he wrote his magnum opus: The Interpretation of Dreams. Freud stated that dreams are a result of our repressed desires and that they have more meaning  to them than we acknowledge. He believed that dreams were the portal to our unconscious and that through analysing a person’s dreams a therapist could effectively treat the patient’s illness. With Freudian thoughts on dreams in mind, several current neuroscientists are uncovering the possibility that dreams play a role in childhood learning (Hurd, n.d.). Furthermore, Freud’s relevance in the 21st century is that his concept of defence mechanisms is still seen in other theories of psychology today. This is supported by Cramer (2000) which states that developmental, personality and social psychologists have all found evidence for defence mechanisms. Freud saw defence mechanisms as a strategy with which a person could deal with their anxiety and unfulfilled desires. Some of the most common defence mechanisms which have integrated themselves into every day speech are terms such as regression, sublimation, denial and projection. Through the ages we have absorbed more of Freudian idea than we thought, but it is impossible to avoid Freud’s shortcomings. The most controversial aspect of his theory is based on the fact that he placed emphasise on the sex drive being the primary motivating source for human behaviour. Freud focused too exclusively on sexuality and not enough on interpersonal and social conditions. He was also criticised for his view on female development with regard to the Electra complex in the phallic stage. Furthermore the Psychoanalytic Theory was criticised since it was seen as vaguely defined and lacked any empirical research. In conclusion, despite his shortcomings Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory has made an important contribution to the field of psychology through being a catalyst to the thoughts of subsequent theorists. Freud’s most valuable contribution to society is his theory of the unconscious mind which is still being expanded on today. Furthermore his contribution to modern day clinical psychology psychotherapy approaches cannot be ignored. A testament to the validity of Freud’s theory is that it is even today being debated many years after his death and the debate is not close to being concluded. Therefore he is relevant in the 21st century since his ideas have percolated through generations and subsequent personality theories. References: Beystehner, K.M. (n.d.). Psychoanalysis: Freud’s Revolutionary Approach to Human Personality. Retrieved from http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/beystehner.html Cramer, P. (2000). Defence mechanisms in psychology today. Further processes for adaptation. American Psychologist, 55(6):637-46 DOI: 10.1037//0003-066X.55.6.637 Hurd, R. (n.d.). Contemporary Dream Theories Starting with Freud. Retrieved from http://dreamstudies.org/2009/11/19/freudian-dream-theory-explained/ McLeod, S. A. (2011). Bandura – Social Learning Theory. Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html Meyer, W.F., Moore, C., &Viljoen, H, G. (2011). Personology: From the individual to ecosystem. Sandton: Heineman Publishers.

How to Answer Behavioral Interview Questions

How to Answer Behavioral Interview Questions Behavioral interview questions (questions about how you’ve reacted to things in the past, or would react to hypothetical situations) are really popular with job interviewers. They can push job candidates out of their comfort zone, and give a glimpse of what the person is really like underneath the polished interview suit. They can also identify potential dealbreakers. That’s what makes it so dangerous for job seekers, who may only be prepared to talk about what’s on their resume and the job description. Once you learn the patterns and the â€Å"whys† behind these questions, you can prep for interviews in a meaningful way. Here are five strategies for dealing with behavioral interview questions.DON’T panic.Even if you get a curve ball you weren’t expecting (what do you mean, â€Å"what kind of cat would I be?), don’t show fear. (Interviewers and dogs can both smell fear.) If you need a second to gather your thoughts, do that, and then calmly answer the question to the best of your ability.DO come up with a general list of professional examples and anecdotes you can turn to.Focus on things like problem solving (what did you do at a challenging time) and teamwork, because many behavioral questions hinge on how you would react if things went wrong, or how you would interact with your colleagues. Also have in your pocket a story about a time that things went wrong, and how you resolved it/learned from it for next time. And definitely come up with (true) stories about times you showed leadership or negotiated a challenging time with team members.DON’T stay negative, even if the question is asking you to talk about a negative event.This would be questions like, â€Å"is there anything you’ve failed at doing in your career?† or â€Å"tell me about your weaknesses.† Those are textbook Interview Traps 101. It’s not a confessional, and you’re not obligated to tell them about every weakness you have. Instead, turn to that list of examples you haveDO tell a story.Short answers don’t help you here, because what the interviewer is looking for is process and context information. You want to be articulate and seem candid. Practice in the mirror ahead of the interview, but don’t memorize speeches so that it doesn’t feel like you’re giving canned answers.DON’T be afraid to talk about your challenges.No candidate (or employee) is perfect, and everyone has faced highly challenging times at some point in their careers. The important thing is that when you do mention challenges, emphasize how you worked through them, and how that has made you a stronger professional.The best way to prep for behavioral interview questions is to practice, practice, practice. If you have a friend or family member around who’s willing to ask sample questions and listen to your spiel, great! Even if you don’t, you can practice by yourself in th e mirror to make sure everything flows conversationally. As with anything else, a little advance thought goes a long way, and can make you seem like the suave A+ candidate you are when you walk into the interview, no matter what questions come your way.

Marie Sklodowska Curie - 1867 to 1934

Marie Sklodowska Curie - 1867 to 1934 Marie Curie is best known for discovering radium, yet she achieved many more accomplishments. Here is a brief biography of her claim to fame. Born November 7, 1867Warsaw, Poland Died July 4, 1934Sancellemoz, France Claim to Fame Radioactivity Research Notable Awards Nobel Prize in Physics (1903) [together with Henri Becquerel and her husband, Pierre Curie]Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1911) Summary of Accomplishments Marie Curie pioneered radioactivity research, She was the first two-time Nobel laureate and the only person to win the award in two different sciences (Linus Pauling won Chemistry and Peace). She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. Marie Curie was the first female professor at the Sorbonne. More About Maria Sklodowska-Curie or Marie Curie Maria Sklodowska was the daughter of Polish schoolteachers. She took work as a teacher after her father lost his savings through a bad investment. She also participated in the nationalist â€Å"free university,† in which she read in Polish to women workers. She worked as a governess in Poland to support her older sister in Paris and eventually joined them there. She met and married Pierre Curie while she was studying science at the Sorbonne. They studied radioactive materials, particularly the ore pitchblende. On December 26, 1898, the Curies announced the existence of an unknown radioactive substance found in pitchblende that was more radioactive than uranium. Over the course of several years, Marie and Pierre processed tons of pitchblende, progressively concentrating the radioactive substances and eventually isolating the chloride salts (radium chloride was isolated on April 20, 1902). They discovered two new chemical elements. Polonium was named for Curies native country, Poland, and radium was named for its intense radioactivity. In 1903, Pierre Curie, Marie Curie, and Henri Becquerel were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, in recognition of the extraordinary services they have rendered by their joint researches on the radiation phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel. This made Curie the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize. In 1911 Marie Curie was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, in recognition of her services to the advancement of chemistry by the discovery of the elements radium and polonium, by the isolation of radium and the study of the nature and compounds of this remarkable element. The Curies did not patent the radium isolation process, choosing to let the scientific community freely continue research. Marie Curie died from aplastic anemia, almost certainly from unshielded exposure to hard radiation.

Anthem case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Anthem - Case Study Example lth identification numbers, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, employment information and income data had been illegally accessed by an unauthorised party (Humer, 2015). This is a major crisis for the company as 78.8 million people including minors had their information compromised (Abelson & Goldstein, 2015). This therefore, exposed just how vulnerable the company is to cyber attacks, thus necessitating the strengthening of its IT system security. Being the among the largest health insurance companies in the United States, this situation received immense media attention. The media attention was also great as this is considered to be the worst cyber attack to have hit a health insurance company in the US. Different media companies such as the Forbes, Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, Reuters and NBC, among others highlighted this issue. The stakeholders of Anthem include its employees, current customers, past enrolees, suppliers, Independent Blue Cross, Blue Shield, shareholders, the public, the government and media. The fact that this company has many stakeholders implies that this data breach affected many parties. Strong growth in revenues: Over the years, Anthem has experienced an increase in its revenues. For instance, since 2000, it is estimated that the revenues of Anthem have grown at a compound rate of about 24.1%. In 2003, Anthem experienced an increase of $3,486.6 million in its revenue; and this was an increase of 26.8% as compared to 2002. Strong focus on technology: Anthem is highly focused on IT leading to a reduction in its processing time and saving on costs. Anthem reduced its cost of claim processing per claim from $2.50 to 14 cents. Additionally, Anthem collaborated with Accenture to develop a digital pen technology that would aid digital capturing and sending of medical claim information (Anthem Health Insurance, 2015). Strong brand association: Anthem is closely associated with