Literature Review of Cultural Leadership Essay

Cultural leadership is a diverse subject to touch upon. This aspect of leadership is constantly growing and changing. People should not look into cultural leadership with biased opinions. Dividing cultural leadership into sub groups just gives people an opinion on how to look at people differently. Cultural leadership should be looked at as a whole, as we are one, working together, with the same goal – to be successful. Cultural leadership profiles are used to classify what followers expect from leaders in ten cultures – cluster groups comprising of sixty-two countries. Six different leadership behavior classifications are used to show what profile is dominant in varying strengths in each region. A successful leader involves more than just planning, coordinate, managing and supervising. A successful leader also has the ability to deal with all genres of people. Whether in involves ethnicity, sexual orientation or people with different cultures. The success of an organization is highly impacted by its culture, which is part of a strategic planning of an organization. What is culture? Culture is defined as the universally shared beliefs, values, and norms of a group of people. Two factors that can hinder cultural awareness are ethnocentrism and prejudice. It is challenging for leaders because it averts them from fully understanding the world of others. Prejudice has a negative impression because it is self-orientated and restrains leaders from seeing the many sides and qualities of others. Whatever makes them unique is their culture. Having a clear understanding of one’s culture, communicating with each other will be much more efficient. Culture has been the attention of many findings across a variety of principles. In the past 30 years a significant number of studies have focused on specifically on ways to recognize and categorize the various dimensions of culture. Determining the rudimentary dimensions or charismas of different cultures is the first step in being able to recognize the relationships between them. Ever since World War II, globalization has been progressing throughout the world. Globalization is the increased interdependence (economic, social, technical, and political) between nations. People are becoming more interconnected. There is an increasingly significant amount of international trade, cultural exchange, and use of worldwide telecommunication systems. In the past ten years, our schools, organizations, and communities have become a lot more global. Increased globalization has created many challenges as well, for example the need to design effective multinational organizations, to identify and select appropriate leaders, and to manage organizations with culturally distinctly different employees. Globalization has also fashioned a need to understand how cultural differences affect the leadership performances. Globalization also created the requirement for leaders to become knowledgeable in cross-cultural awareness and practice. First, leaders need to understand business, political, and cultural settings worldwide. Second, they should learn the perspectives, tastes, trends, and technologies of multiple cultures. Third, they basically need to be able to work concurrently with people from many cultures. Fourth, leaders must be able to familiarize to living and communicating in other cultures. Fifth, they need to acquire to relate to people from other cultures from a position of equivalence rather than cultural supremacy. Anthropologists, sociologists, and many others have questioned the meaning of the word culture. Because it is a theoretical term, it is hard to define, and many different people often define it in unrelated ways. Here, culture is defined as the learned beliefs, values, rules, norms, symbols, and traditions that are common to a group of people. It is these shared qualities of a group that make them matchless. In summary, culture is the way of life, different customs, and script of a group of peoples. Related to culture, are the expressions of multicultural and diversity. Multicultural indicates an approach or classification that takes more than one culture into interpretation. It mentions to the existence of multiple cultures such an African, American, Asian, European, and Middle Eastern. Multicultural can also denote to a set of subcultures defined by race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or age. Diversity signifies to the subsistence of different cultures or ethnicities within a group or organization. Ethnocentrism is the inclination for beings to place their own group (ethnic, racial, cultural) at the center of their interpretations of others and the world. People tend to give importance and value to their own beliefs, attitudes, and values, over and above other groups. Ethnocentrism is the sensitivity that one’s own culture is better or more expected than the culture of others. Ethnocentrism is a worldwide tendency, and each and every one of us is ethnocentric to some degree. Ethnocentrism can be a major impediment to effective leadership because it averts people from fully understanding and/or respecting the perspectives of others. The more ethnocentric we are, the less open or accepting we are of other people’s cultural customs and practices. Prejudice is a general continual attitude, belief, or emotion believed by an individual about another individual or group that is based on defective or unproven statistics. It refers to assumptions about others based on previous decisions or occurrences. Prejudice involves obstinate generalizations that are impervious or change or evidence to the opposing. Prejudice is often thought in the framework of race. In addition to combating their own prejudice, leaders also face the experiment of dealing with the prejudice of followers. These prejudices can be toward the manager or the leader’s culture. Additionally, it is not infrequent for the leader to face followers who symbolize several culturally different groups, and these groups have their own prejudgments toward each other. A experienced leader needs to find ways to negotiate with followers from numerous cultural backgrounds. Training programs about culture and diversity have been admired for many years. At the center of these programs, people are educated about the degrees and characteristics of different cultures, and how to be perceptive to people in other countries and cultures. Considerate about issues about culture is useful in several ways. The discoveries about culture can help leaders recognize their own cultural biases and inclinations. Tolerant of their own preferences is the first step in accepting that people in other cultures might have different predilections Additionally, the findings help leaders to apprehend what it means to be a noble leader. Different cultures have different ideas about what they desire from their leaders. These verdicts help our leaders adapt their style to be more operative in different cultural settings. Third, the findings help leaders correspond more effectively across cultural and geographic boundaries. By considering cultural differences, leaders can become more empathic and precise in their communication with others. Information on culture and leadership has also been applied in very concrete ways. It has been used to construct culturally perceptive Web sites, design new employee orientation programs, organizing programs in relocation training, advance global team effectiveness, and expedite multinational merger implementation. These illustrations clearly specify the wide range of applications for research on culture and leadership in the workplace. GLOBE researchers allocated the data from the 62 countries they studied into regional masses. These masses provided a expedient way to investigate the similarities and differences between cultural groups, and to make significant generalizations about culture and leadership. In sum, these regional masses exemplified a valid and dependable way to differentiate countries of the world into 10 distinct groups. The GLOBE studies compromise the greatest body of findings to date on culture and leadership. GLOBE researchers studied how 17,000 managers from 62 different countries perceived leadership. They evaluated the similarities and differences between regional clusters of cultural groups by grouping countries into 10 distinct clusters; the outcome was a list of leadership attributes that were universally recognized as positive and negative. The representation of an ineffective leader is someone who is asocial, malicious, self-focused, and autocratic. The conceptualization of leadership used by GLOBE researchers was consequential in part from the work of Lord and Maher on implicit leadership theory. Concurring to implicit leadership theory, individuals have implicit beliefs and opinions about the qualities and theories that differentiate leaders from non-leaders and effective leaders from ineffective leaders. â€Å"Leadership is in the eye of the beholder.† Leadership refers to what people see in others when they are demonstrating leadership behaviors. To depict how different cultures view leadership behaviors in others, GLOBE researchers identified six global leadership behaviors: * Charismatic/Value-Based Leadership: Reflects the ability to inspire, to motivate, and to expect high performance from others based on strongly held core values. This kind of leadership includes being visionary, inspirational, self-sacrificing, trustworthy, decisive, and performance oriented. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Team-Orientated Leadership: Emphasizes team building and a common purpose among team members. This kind of leadership includes being collaborative, integrative, diplomatic, non-malevolent, and administratively competent. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Participative Leadership: Reflects the degree to which leaders involve others in making and implementing decisions. It includes being participative and non-autocratic. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Humane-Oriented Leadership: Emphasizes being supportive, considerate, compassionate, and generous. This type of leadership includes modesty and sensitivity to other people. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Autonomous Leadership: Refers to independent and individualistic leadership, which includes being autonomous and unique. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Self-Protective Leadership: Reflects behaviors that ensure the safety and security of the leader and the group. It includes leadership that is self-centered, status conscious, conflict inducing, face saving, and procedural. (Peter Northouse 2012). Cultural Leadership in organizations always seems to miss the discussion of how leadership keeps culture in organizations stable. Charisma is where it all begins. Therefore having multiple cultural leaders helps to resolve this issue. Most leaders do and say different things, but in the end, everyone just wants success. Whether that success is culture, coordination, or a profitable business, or all of those things, many people learn to cope with differences by experience. Experience is the best form of knowing, therefore, to be a great leader; you have to start somewhere. The leader, the followers, and the situation, all have to do with leadership. As well as playing a significant role in cultural leadership. Or any type of leadership for that matter. Personal qualities, perceived situation, vision and mission, followers’ and attributes, leader behaviors, performance, administrative actions, use of cultural forms, and the use of tradition all are key elements to a successful leader, their followers, the business, and the outcome of the business, organization, company. Multicultural is increasing all over the world. Even though America is known as the melting pot, everywhere across the world have cultural behaviors within their organization. Ethics affects leadership, as well as tradition. But studies complied on cross-cultural leadership have been attained, and this helps us to understand the differences between different cultures from our own. Decaregorization is a cultural leadership style for employees to become more aquinted with one another. This style helps companies get to know onw another and interact in a positive manner doing something else besides work. The leader would old a funraiser, etc. Therefore, rather than group-based interactions, this approach will focus on individuality. The following quotes are crucial to cultural leadership, and accepting differences among others. â€Å"Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts.† – Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics (350 BCE). â€Å"Lead them with culture and regulate them by the rules of propriety, and they will have a sense of shame and, moreover, set themselves right.† – Confucius (5110479 BCE). The results of ethical leadership came up with six main themes from the responses of all six societies. Accountability, consideration and respect for others, fairness and non-discriminatory treatment, character, collective orientation – organization and social, openness and flexibility. Each society is unique, and to understand the differences, you must experience it firsthand. Reading and learning will only give your insight. Aforementioned cultural leadership must be learned in person, by the leader and its followers, for they are working towards a common goal. Leadership profiles are used to describe how cultures view leadership behaviors. There are six leadership behaviors identified by Globe researchers, they are: charismatic/value based, team-oriented, participative, humane- oriented, autonomous, and self-protective.( House & Javidan, 2004) Charismatic/value based leadership is being visionary, inspirational, with the ability to motivate high performance from others based on strongly held core values. Team-oriented leadership is instilling a common purpose among team members to encourage a team effort by being collaborative, diplomatic, and administrative competent. Participative leadership involves making others in the decision making process and includes being non-autocratic and participative. Autonomous leadership is being unique, independent, and a individualistic leader. Humane-oriented leadership is being modest and sensitive to other people, being supportive, compassionate, and generous. Self-protective is self-centered, face saving, status conscious, ensuring the safety and security of the leader and group. There are ten distinct groups to differentiate countries of the world into regional clusters ( e. g. Ronen & Shenkar, 1985) Middle East, made up of Qatar, Morocco, Egypt, Kuwait, and Turkey. Nordic Europe which includes Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. Latin Europe comprising Israel, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, and Switzerland. Latin America made up of Ecuador, El Salvador, Columbia, Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, Argentina, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Mexico. Southern Asia which includes The Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Thailand, and Iran. Sub-Saharan Africa consisting of Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia, Nigeria, and South Africa. ( Black caucus) Anglo consists of Canada, the United States, Australia, Ireland, England, South Africa( white caucus) and New Zealand. Confucian Asia includes Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, South Korea, and Japan. Eastern Europe is Greece, Hungary, Albania, Slovenia, Poland, Russia, Georgia, and Kazakhstan. Germanic Europe includes Austria, The Ne therlands, Sweden, and Germany. Middle Eastern culture and leadership perceived to be effective in this region of the world are the interrelationships among societal culture, organizational culture and leadership methodologies. Data collected from four Middle Eastern nations (Iran, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar) provide an insight into the framework of societal and organizational values and management practices in Arab countries. The great majority of the population in Iran, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar are muslins. Turkey has a formal state ideology; the state is independent of religious rules and is run by secular rules mostly adapted from the west. Iran, Kuwait, and Qatar are not secular, but religious laws dominate. Also differences in the Islamic sects, Iran being predominately â€Å"shiite†, Kuwait, Turkey, Qatar people largely â€Å"sunni†. Language may account for part of the differences in Middle East region, while Islamic religion seems to be a common attribute. In making plans and forecasts all four nations are below average and very close to each other, which involves the concept of fate embodied in Islamic beliefs. Effective leadership attributes in Middle Eastern societies have universalistic characteristics and some culture-specific attributes with participation having a different meaning compared to western societies, being centered on satisfaction of egos rather than to improve quality of a decision. Organizational leaders tend to be more sensitive to local cultures and traditions and more future-orientated practices, plus promote change.( Introduction to the special issues on Leadership and Culture in the Middle East, Hayat Kabasakal and Ali Dastmalchian) Face saving and status are important characteristics of effective leadership, and deemphasizes charismatic/value based and team- oriented leadership. Looking after one’s job and security is of the upmost priority for most leaders in this group category. Diversity of management systems exist across contemporary Europe, and societal culture diversity remains unquestionable and frequently preserved as much as possible. The formation of the European Union has opened up all borders, increasing diversity if cultures, all intermingling, changing cultural clustering, and cultural divide between eastern and western Europe. Prior studies of cultural distinctions, cross-cultural studies between east-west and north-south European distinctions are changing from prior data and may need further studies. Managers in Germanic countries make more participative decision-making behavior, central Europe makes more autocratic decisions. West European (Nordic, Anglo, Latin) empathize more â€Å"Equality â€Å"or egalitarian commitment. East and near East countries lean more toward hierarchy or conservatism. North Europe has shown to favor equality and participation, while managers from Southern Europe prefer more hierarchy. A coaching leader is preferred in North Europe, while preference is for a directing leader in South Europe. While self centered and malevolence are seen as impeding leadership in all clusters. Eastern Europe leader would be independent while maintaining strong interest in protecting their position as leader. Nordic Europe want leaders who are inspiring and involve others in decision making, not concerned with status and other self-centered attributes. Anglo Europe want leader to be exceedingly motivating and visionary, considerate of others, team orientated and autonom ous and not autocratic. Latin America leader is charismatic/value based but somewhat self serving, collaborative and inspiring. Confucian Asia leader works and cares about others but uses status and position to make independent decisions without input of others. Sub-Saharan Africa sees effective leadership as caring, should be inspirational, collaborative, and not excessively self centered. A portrait of a leader who is high in integrity, is charismatic/value based, and has interpersonal skills is one whom almost everyone would see as exceptional. (Dorman et al. 2004) After major corporate failures and financial failures of banks and other high impact institutions, being honest and trustworthy could be a high priority for leadership positions in all culture groups. Other personal traits or learned skills would be useful and desirable attributes but lower on the priority scale. Being positive and intelligent definitely would be useful as a leader of any type of venture or business. There are a lot of other positive attributes that would be desirable for leadership; among them is one that plans ahead, having foresight to accurately see what is coming up in near and long range time predictions. Being a team builder, instilling confidence in others encouraging them with a just and dependable example. Personal traits such as being administrative skilled, decisive, and motivating people to be excellence oriented would be very beneficial to any leader and followers. Leaders should be aware and knowledgeable of the many undesirable attributes that can be obstacles in being an effective leader. Being a loner and anti-social would be very negative in showing followers your concern for them and gaining their confidence. The most visible and destructive undesirable attribute in recent events is that of being ruthless, as you would think of people in financial leadership of banks and wall street that caused the massive collapse of the world economies. Being dictatorial and egocentric is very bad for keeping a positive relationship with followers. Personal traits like being irritable and non-cooperative would be hard to understand by followers. There are many strengths associated with classifications of culture groups into clusters that can be easily be utilized for leadership profiles so as to provide a data base of reference for managers of international corporations. Providing valuable asset for training more efficient leaders is one of the strength, it also provides a good understanding of how different cultures have an impact upon leading a workforce into better cohesion and productive atmosphere in the workplace. What followers expect from leaders is a signal to upper management as to what type of person would be more effective with a certain culture group. A second strength could be that this provides useful information/guidelines about what is accepted as good and bad leadership, a yardstick for managers/leaders to measure how do I measure up? Leadership and culture are two separate studies, but inseparable in effective leadership programs. There are some criticisms on culture and leadership classification studies in that a lot of findings about perceptions of leadership in different cultures do not provide a clear set of assumptions and propositions that can be used to provide a single theory about the way culture influences the leadership process. Another one would be in that some of the terms used are hard to understand without any education about the diversity of world culture. The meanings of some terms are very vague. The conceptualizations in these studies of culture and leadership integration has had varying reception from people on that it being a process of being perceived by others as being a leader. Also the way a provocative list of universally endorsed desirable and undesirable leadership attributes are presented. Different cultures have different ideas about what they want from their leaders. Understanding the diversity of cultures in the workplace today can be very positive for leaders and followers in their pursuits. While there are many studies on culture leadership and the GLOBE Study, there is also a model that helps leaders in achieving effective cultural leadership. In that it helps them understand the difference that exits among national cultures. The model was developed by Geert Hotstede. In his research he outlines the variation of national culture into five dimensions. They are as follow: individualistic/collectivistic, high power distance/low power distance; high and low uncertainty avoidance, achievement/nurturing; and long-term/short-term orientation. Familiarity with the GLOBE Study and the Hofstede model, leadership culture is made easy and will increase organizational effectiveness. This will also create better relationship among nations. This will benefit the common good of all through respect and better communication. Individualistic people; according to Hofsede, worry about themselves and that of those who are close to them or who are like them. They tend not to trust outsiders. In contrast, collectivistic work in groups, much like team players. The second dimension of Hofsede’s study is power distance. Some cultures have accepted high power distance and others low power distance. High power distance cultures display great respect for those in authority or power holders. This model is seen based on the difference between leaders and their followers. It is obvious in pay scale, benefits and promotions. Though lower power distance: power is distributed more equally among group members; there is much lateral communication line between subordinates and leaders. Third dimension is high uncertainty avoidance. This dimension is concerned with the impact of societal norms, ritual and what is being done in avoiding uncertainty. Organizations want to be able to predict the future based the rules of cultures are used. They live under constant stress because of fear of the future. In contrast; low uncertainty avoidance is comfortable with risks, they do not impose or create friction over differences in behaviors and or others opinions. Those cultures in the low uncertainty avoidance tend to be more tolerant of others. The next dimension is achievement; those belonging to this group tend to be more aggressive. They are assertive, they are confrontational, there is a lot of greed for money and they lack humility. They encourage competitiveness among them and others. Whereas the opposite of that is nurturing, they value relationship and are genuinely concern about the wellbeing of others. The last set of dimension of natural culture is long-term orientation. They are optimistic of the future and they are persistent. Though short-term orientation, they stay in the past, they place high importance on values of the past. In addition to the Five Dimensions of National Culture as described by Hofsete, there is for additional dimensions that affect cultural leadership. They are as follows, and I quote as listed in Northouse (2010): * Institutional Collectivism: An organization or sociality encourages institutional or societal collective action. (Peter Northouse 2012). * In-Group Collectivism: People express pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness in their organizations or families. In-group collectivism is concerned with the extent to which people are devoted to their organizations or families. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Gender Egalitarianism: An organization or society minimizes gender role differences and promotes gender equality. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Assertiveness: People in a culture are determined, assertive, confrontational, and aggressive in their special relationships. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Future Orientation: People engage in future-oriented behaviors such as planning, investing in the future, and delaying gratification. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Performance Orientation: An organization or society encourages and rewards group members for improved performance and excellence. (Peter Northouse 2012). * Humane Orientation: A culture encourages and rewards people for being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind to others. (Peter Northouse 2012). Through all of the studies it has been concluded that there is exact correlation between the culture of an organization and its effectiveness. And it also shows that a lot of those dimensions have a negative impact on the organization. In conclusion, cultural leadership is one of the major principles every organization, company, person needs to fully grasp. For decades, many researchers have been prophesying that globalization, increased technology, civil rights legislation, and changing demographics will generate new encounters for leaders who administer a diverse organization. All of these elements place a considerably improved probability that workers from both genders, diverse nationalities, ethnic backgrounds, numerous races, and a mixture of religious will be essential to work jointly. This in sum, employees must work together to create a positive environment. This is what naturally will happen, and this is an international effort. References Leadership Theory and Practice Fifth Edition Peter G. Northouse Introduction to the Special Issue on Leadership and Culture in the Middle East(2001) Hayat Kabasakal Ali Dastmalchian Cultural Variations Across European Countries(2000) Felix C. Brodbeck Michael Frese THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY SOCIAL SCIENCES (http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a2b5ee8b-a9d2-4bae-a8ed-16919582d9c5%40sessionmgr115&vid=4&hid=14) Chrobot-Mason, Donna, Ruderman, Marian N. Weber, Todd J, Oholott, Patricia J, Dalton, Maxine A. (Nov 2007) Illuminating a Cross-Cultural Leadership Challenge: When Identify Groups Collide. Volume 18 (11) 2011 (26). Retrieved From http://discover.linccweb.org/primo_library/libweb/action/display.do

Defects of Education in India

EDUCATION in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Education as a science cannot be separated from the educational traditions that existed before. Adults trained the young of their society in the knowledge and skills they would need to master and eventually pass on. In pre-literate societies this was achieved orally and through imitation and story-telling etc . Oral language developed into written symbols and letters. Schooling in this sense was already in place in Egypt between 3000 and 500BC The gurukula system was the ancient system of education. A gurukula is a type of school in India, residential in nature, with shishyas living in proximity to the guru, often within the same house. In a gurukul, shishyas reside together as equals, irrespective of their social standing, learn from the guru and help the guru in his day-to-day life. They did not accept fees ONLY ASMALL GURUDAKSHINA WHICH MAY NOT BE MONETARY. INDIA S ANCIENT GURUKUL SYSTEM IS WORTH EMULATING BY ALL INTERESTED IN IMPARTING EDUCATION. THE GURUKUL SYSTEMBRINGS A SENSE OF RESPECT AND COMMITMENT FROM THE TEACHERS AND THE STUDENTS Nalanda and Takshishila universities were the oldest university-system of education in the world. Indian education suffered a huge blow as Western education became ingrained into Indian society with the establishment of the British empire. the British so cleverly played their cards that even after fifty years of independence we still continue to exist in a state of stupor, unable unwilling to extricate ourselves from one of the greatest hypnoses woven over a whole nation. Indian curriculum is criticized for being based on rote learning. Our present day education system gives no chance to creativity. It is marks , grades and competition all the way . It should inculcate good values in the minds of students. Emphasis should also be given on physical and vocational training. Teaching of ethics should be incorporated in the curriculum right from kindergarden through high school. Children should be allowed to choose their own subjects acc. to their interests. They must be made to interact with each other in groups and express their views on various topics. Instead of taking notes from voluminous books , teachers etc they must be made to get information by themselves and share it with the class. This will help them to develop good analytical skills and reading habits . Children must have practical experience . They can be taken on trips to museums, labs, etc where they can learn by interacting with experienced people. Education is to gain and share knowledge. Sharing without communication is impossible. English should not be banned at the primary level as it remains the global language. Learning hindi, the national language and the state language helps in internal communication. The system of Education in India should focus on learning and not exams. Unfortunately Education has become a lucrative business destroying the real purpose of itself. The bad quality of education in govt schools have given a thrust to the the rise of commercial coaching classes all over India. Students today hardly think of being a teacher due to less perk†¦ many who are hardly passionate about engineering and medicine are studying just for the sake of getting a fat salary and package along with it. Middle class parents pay what is demanded by the coaching classes, this has alarmingly turned out to b an industry in our nation. Statistically 25% of the Indian population is illiterate, only 7% of the population that goes to school manage to graduate and 15% manage to make it to high school. 80% of schools are managed by the Govt. , private schools are expensive and out of reach for the poor Another reason for poor quality of education is the poor quality of teachers in government schools . Government schools are unable to attract good quality teachers due to inadequate teaching facilities and low salaries. To improve the quality of education , the government needs to spend more money from its coffers on education. The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient in government schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention. Conclusion School teachers SHOULD BE PAID high SALARIES and, every care is to be taken that these teachers keep on upgrading. The government should realize that these are the people who shape their future generations. All over India the syllabus must be same, because partiality occurs between students. . Frankly it would be foolhardy to believe that a syllabus consisting a bit of maths bit of science, arts and literature is a foolproof way to educate whole of India. Our present day system of education can be revamped and changes incorporated by getting a group of experienced teachers from various parts of our country. The task is best done by them and not by a bunch of politicians who do not have any training in education. Hope to see the Indian system of education reach its zenith like it did in ancient times!

Financial Reporting Fraud Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Financial Reporting Fraud - Essay Example There are four constraints stipulated in the GAAP. The objective principle which states that the information provided by an account in the financial statements should be based on tangible evidence. There is the materiality principle which says that an item should be reported in the financial statements on if it is capable of affecting decision making of the user of the statements . The consistency principle requires a company to use the same accounting principles, guidelines and methods in the preparation of the financial statements from each period to another.   However, fraudulent company employees and executives with the intention to swindle the company some funds or for personal gain consciously circumvent the aforementioned assumptions, principles and constraints. The methods involved are very complex and usually involves overstatement of revenue, understatement of expenses, misuse or misdirection of funds, misreporting of the assets and liabilities of the company. This is wha t is referred to as financial reporting fraud.  To obtain additional funds from a financing institution such as a bank, to report unrealistic profits and hide losses so as to evade accountability by the top executive of the company, attract customers and investors by making the company to appear more successful than it is, to achieve a performance related bonus or incentive by the employees and to conceal theft either by the employees or the company executive. An example of a major accounting scandal in the United States is the Enron Scandal.

A detailed study or formal essay on The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo

A detailed study or formal on The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy - Essay Example This paper will analyze Tolstoy’s story focusing on the theme of isolation and the Russian way of life by studying the kind of life that the main character lived in the story as told by the narrator, as well as his thoughts, perspectives, and the way he dealt with his family and the entire Russian society as a whole. The story is plotted starting from the announcement of the death of Ilych, by his friend Peter Ivanovich, to a group of judges in the court room. Instead of grieving sincerely, they were merely thankful that they were not the ones who died which means they will have longer service in court and a bonus consolation that Ilych’s death will open to promotions at work (Tolstoy 7). On the other hand, Praskovya, Ilych’s wife, wanted to do something more about her husband’s pension from the government to make sure she gets more than what she expects. Meanwhile, Gerasim, the nurse who took care of Ilych on his death bed, has anticipated death and thought that it must not be feared for it comes to everyone in due time (Tolstoy 15). As the story progresses, the early life of Ilych is narrated. During his teens, he studied law at a school where he observed and adopted a high social status in life. He then worked seriously in line with his degree (Tolstoy 26). Eventually, he got married to Praskovya with the thought that men with high social standards in Russia must marry, buy properties, and start a family (Tolstoy 45). While Praskovya had a very hassling pregnancy, Ilych began to drown in work and, eventually, he built a fence between him and his family. He treated them as if they were some colleagues at work or some business partners. When he was offered an opportunity for a higher position, with a higher salary, initiated by a friend in the Ministry of Justice at St. Petersburg, he bought and furnished a new house where his family

International Affairs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

International Affairs - Essay Example She graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., with degrees in mass communication and French and with dreams of being an international correspondent. She said that her goal as Miss North Dakota was to encourage people to appreciate cultural differences. When she received her Miss North Dakota title, Ms Saberi said that her aim was to encourage other people to appreciate cultural differences - an ambition that eventually led her into a career in journalism. TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran convicted an American journalist of spying for the United States and sentenced her to eight years in prison, her lawyer said Saturday, complicating the Obama administrations efforts to break a 30-year-old diplomatic deadlock with Tehran. The White House said President Barack Obama was "deeply disappointed" by the conviction, while the journalists father told a radio station his daughter was tricked into making incriminating statements by officials who told her they would free her if she did. Roxana Saberi, a 31-year-old dual American-Iranian citizen, was arrested in late January and initially accused of working without press credentials. But earlier this month, an Iranian judge leveled a far more serious allegation, charging her with spying for the United States. The Fargo, North Dakota native had been living in Iran for six years and had worked as a freelance reporter for several news organizations including National Public Radio and the British Broadcasting Corp. The journalists Iranian-born father, Reza Saberi, told NPR that his daughter was convicted Wednesday, two days after she appeared before an Iranian court in an unusually swift one-day closed-door trial. The court waited until Saturday to announce its decision to the lawyers, he said. Saberis father is in Iran but was not allowed into the courtroom to see his daughter, who he described as "quite depressed." He said she denied the incriminating

Tradition and Culture in the Third World Countries Essay

Tradition and Culture in the Third World Countries - Essay Example The Islamic influence helped to boost the peoples fighting skills and the greater strength of the empire. Owing to this, the Ottoman Empire expanded through conquering their neighbors with their well-advanced fighting skills. In addition, all these successes came due to the knowledge of their culture in advance (McCarthy 56).  Third world countries do not have the capacity to create advanced technology enjoyed by the first world countries. Due to this, they have to borrow it from them and establish it to their capacity. Therefore, to have command of the technology, they need to learn the previous and present philosophies that led to their creation. This would give a guideline on how to develop other advanced technologies. Acquiring tradition directly from others may not be beneficial to all third world countries. Some kind of traditions does not fit in the lifestyle of the third world countries. Traditions were part of the motives that led to the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The emp ire had the tradition of inheriting the seat of a sultan. The struggle for the control of the empire led to its sudden decline. Therefore, the third world countries should only choose beneficial ideas leading to the growth of the respective countries (McCarthy 289).         

How the respective elements of Hospitality, Cultures and People are Essay

How the respective elements of Hospitality, Cultures and People are enacted in the organisation - Essay Example The hotel offers luxurious accommodation to its clients. The organizational structure comprises of two divisions including the Hongkong mainland hotels and those in the Asia Pacific and Dubai. This paper will explore the enactment of various elements of the organization, which include hospitality, culture & people. It also highlights issues that the organisation faces in relation to these elements. The paper also provides recommendations as regards improvement on delivery and management of these elements by the organization. Hospitality organizations are usually focused on maintaining a competitive advantage in the industry through maintaining strong relations with their clients. It is important to understand while engaging in the hospitality industry that consumers will always make a rational choice, mainly to go for the alternative that will give them maximum satisfaction (Paula et al. 2008). In other words, they are free to seek services from the provider whom they feel is most pleasing. Competition in the hospitality industry has increased due to Liberalization of trade whereby investors are free to establish business beyond political boundaries. Large multinational companies are competing with local companies and hence each company in the hospitality industry has to develop strategies to enable it to maintain competitiveness. Effectiveness depends on the organization’s ability to market its products and maintain reputation in the market. To the customers in the hospitality industry, competit ion among service providers is to their advantage. This is because competitors improve their services in a bid to attract more consumers (Hatch and Cunliffe, 2006). Hofsted defines culture as a tool that the mind applies to guide a person’s day to day activities and interactions with others. He believes that culture is a collective aspect of a population that has occupied a particular social environment where individuals learn

Some important innovative practices in recruitment Essay

Some important innovative practices in recruitment - Essay Example According to the research findings the hiring scenario has gone through dramatic changes in the past decade with organizations, consequent increasing talent crunch. The use of internet is an innovative approach in this hiring scenario. While sources such as campus recruiting, head hunters, and lot of executive search processes plays their own role, organizations develop strong internet recruiting capabilities to enable recruitment processes efficiently. â€Å"There is no doubt that the use of the Internet and social networking sites to recruit candidates and screen applicants is on the rise†. Internet Helps in Three Areas of the Recruitment Process: †¢ Identifying large number of candidates which is not possible through other sources †¢ Screening process automation †¢ Advertisement to potential targets Internet provides considerable appeal to college graduates, young talents, workers and executives. The acceleration resumes capture, and processing are done by the web, and it helps to remove most of the steps in the old processes. It also gives faster information review and standardized applicant data, and ultimately provides productivity and effectiveness. The trend however is towards reaping the benefits of online social networking. To this trend, there are websites like Linkedlin, and job portals such as www.naukari.com. Technology based training method is one of the best practices used to train staff, which include computer based training, electronic performance support system, distance and internet based training and audiovisual based training. â€Å"The growing adoption of technology based training in organizations has been fueled largely by the potential practical benefits offered by these systems† (Bell & Kozlowski 31). Computer based training usually involves teaching the trainees to do the job using a system, computerized simulations and multimedia including videotapes. The computer screen shows the applicants employment application and information of the job. In other training methods the trainees have to go or manage time for training, but in this case trainee can do it at their own pace. â€Å"Within a self-paced instructional program, an employee may review specific topics on which he/she needs clarification† (Chappell). People normally cannot recollect all the things they learnt, and it is the same in the case of training too, so computer based support systems provide the employee with the knowledge and information about the organization regarding systems, workprocesses, culture etc. Electronic perf ormance supportive systems can be referred to as a job aiding mechanism these days. It is a set of displays and computerized tools that executes training, phone support, documentation, and integrates all applications, which are faster, cheaper and more effective than any other traditional methods. Now firms are using various methods of distance learning tools for training, which includes teletraining, video conferencing, and internet based classes. The benefits in tele training are that the trainer in a central location can teaches groups of employees in a remote area. If the employees are geographically separated they use videoconferencing. Some organizations facilitate internal intranet training to their employees, or they can take online training

Case Study Module 3 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Module 3 - Case Study Example Dr. MacIntyre finds that the drug Valium in the Avery Clinic was unaccounted. Despite this, her outdated records management system is unable to affirm if the drugs were physically missing. The next problem is the increasing absenteeism of her associate Stephen Saltzman. With Mr. Saltzman not working full time, the sales figures at the Avery clinic are negatively impacted. He is also not available as often as he is expected to be thus disappointing many clients. Mr. Saltzman also seems to have a poor work ethic. Dr.MacIntyre by analyzing the amount spent on tests at the Avery clinic concludes that he may not be taking the time to diagnose properly. These issues point to a bigger problem which is the poor monitoring of the Avery clinic. It is evident from the case that Dr. MacIntyre is closely involved with the Johnsonville clinic where she puts up but not so with the Avery clinic. A new branch or venture always needs close attention to be paid. (Kishel & Kishel, 2005) Leaving the Avery clinic to its own devices seems to cause of all the problems the business is facing. A cause of immediate concern is the few hours been put in Avery and poor work ethic by Mr. Saltzman at Avery. This is because the two directly influence income and customer satisfaction. The hours Mr. Saltzman is not attending to clients are all hours not spent billing. Not taking enough time to diagnose animals is poor service delivery and leads to unhappy clients. Neglecting client’s needs ruins the reputation of the business. (Scott, 1991) As a result of the problems mentioned above, other areas of the business suffer. Profitability has gone down in the Avery clinic because as a direct result of the absenteeism of Stephen Saltzman. It has gone down in Johnsonville as Dr. MacIntyre had to reduce her hours of working to travel to and from Avery to assist with the workload there. Strategic direction for the company also suffers as the lack of sufficient

Vark learning style Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Vark learning style - Research Paper Example Nilson (2010) said that the VARK (visual, aural, read/write, and kinesthetic) learning style assessment emphasizes on learning styles that utilize an individual’s senses (sight, touch, hearing). Fleming and Mills (1992) were the ones who came up with these classifications that mirror their students’ knowledge, involvement, and encounter when it comes to learning. According to Fleming (2011), individuals’ learning preferences are respectively assessed in the VARK Learning Style Questionnaire. Information being portrayed in symbols, colors, and other means like pie charts and fish diagrams can be readily absorbed by a student with a high visual preference. Those who score high in the aural mode can better recognize information via verbal means or other forms of audible media. For them, their sense of hearing is quite utilized in understanding data. Learners who received high results in their reading and writing category may pick up facts best when these are express ed in written words. As its category suggests, a person in this mode may prefer reading texts a lot as well as writing them. In the kinesthetic learning preference, a person’s experience is crucial in indicating his learning progress. Students in this mode would like to move and practice the concepts so they can better grasp the ideas being presented to them. For this group, experience is indeed the best mentor. The results in this questionnaire can reveal a person’s potential in learning.... Nowadays, almost anything can be accomplished with just a lift of a finger or a push of a button. Information that could be communicated in an hour through lecture can be depicted through multimedia in just 5 minutes. This kind of scenario is invading homes and minds of people. When individuals enter the classroom, many of them get uninterested especially when the teacher merely employs a single mode of instruction. Many students may get perked up when there is an involvement of power point presentations with relevant videos or pictures. Other learners feel that they can actually learn more when experience is incorporated into the discussion. Each student may have his own unique way of learning. As an example, there is a student who gained a percentage of 13 in visual, kinesthetic, as well as reading and writing. He got a percentage of 8 in the aural category. Using VARK, stability may be acquired by encouraging an educator to utilize different kinds of strategies and materials to ad dress the varied preferences of young minds. The student in this situation may help himself by incorporating techniques in his studying lifestyle. Since this person is noticeably multimodal, he may prefer understanding the lesson with the use of pictures and other figures, word games and mnemonics, including different kinds of movement. For instance, he can draw symbols on the side of his notes to give him a clue regarding the topic’s essence. He can also come up with acronyms to help him enumerate certain processes. Walking while memorizing or practicing a speech may also be beneficial. Analysis People do not need to be bothered for a long time with this kind of assessment. Since this type of questionnaire just employs a few items, it can be quickly answered.

Geometry in Everyday Life Essay Example for Free

Geometry in Everyday Life Essay A solar water heater is the most competitive alternative to conventional water heating methods such as electric geysers and fuel-fed boilers. It makes an attractive and sustainable option, with its global distribution, pollution free nature, virtually inexhaustible supply and near-zero operational cost. Solar water heaters run on a free fuel (i. e. sunshine), thus saving on energy costs that help recover its initial cost in just 2-4 years. Hot water throughout the year: the system works all year round, though youll need to heat the water further with a boiler or immersion heater during the winter months. Cut your bills: sunlight is free, so once youve paid for the initial installation your hot water costs will be reduced. Cut your carbon footprint: solar hot water is a green, renewable heating system and can reduce your carbon dioxide emissions. Solar water heating systems use solar panels, called collectors, fitted to your roof. These collect heat from the sun and use it to heat up water which is stored in a hot water cylinder. A boiler or immersion heater can be used as a back up to heat the water further to reach the temperature you want. There are two types of solar water heating panels: evacuated tubes (as in the picture above) flat plate collectors, which can be fixed on the roof tiles or integrated into the roof. Larger solar panels can also be arranged to provide some contribution to heating your home as well. However, the amount of heat provided is generally very small and it is not normally considered worth while. Maintenance costs for solar water heating systems are generally very low. Most solar water heating systems come with a five-year or ten-year warranty and require little maintenance. Once fitted your installer should leave written details of any maintenance checks that you can carry out from time to time, ensuring everything is working properly. Perhaps the most important thing you can check for yourself from time to time is whether there are any leaks. If there are any leaks of anti-freeze (even if you can’t see any liquid) this will have a strong smell. If you notice this you should contact your installer. In general you should keep an eye on your system to check that it is doing what it has been designed to do. If you are not getting hot water or the solar pipework is cold (when the pump is running) on warm, sunny days then again you should contact your installer. For peace of mind some installation companies offer an annual service check. You should have your system checked more thoroughly by an accredited installer every 3-7 years, or as specified by your installer. It is likely that after this period of time the anti-freeze that is used to protect your system in the winter months will need to topped up or be replaced as it breaks down over time reducing the performance of your system. Anti-freeze lasts better if the solar water system is used throughout the year and not left unused during the warmest weeks of the year. This cost of replacing the anti-freezer is usually around ? 100. The other thing that your installer should check is the pump. In a well maintained system, pumps can last for ten years plus and usually cost around ? 90 to replace. Solar water heating systems can achieve savings on your energy bills. Based on the results of our recent field trial, typical savings from a well-installed and properly used system are ? 60 per year when replacing gas heating and ? 5 per year when replacing electric immersion heating; however, savings will vary from user to user. Typical carbon savings are around 230kgCO2/year when replacing gas and 500kgCO2/year when replacing electric immersion heating. Spherical reflector type cooker Spherical mirrors are the simplest type of concentrator and are easy to build and use. It is easy to focus sun rays, and if one opts for a moving vessel to meet the focus, cooking can also be done very easily. Such a design was suggested for the first time in the year 1961 by Stam (1961). He suggested a large reflector of 4. m diameter made of local material which could even include mud, and the reflector surface suitably smoothed with fine mud/cement and coated with aluminized polyester. An appropriate technology handbook describes a simple method of construction of the spherical mirror in the ground (a tall tripod with a long string to which a stone is attached at the tip, will act as a guide for excavating a hollow in the ground) and after finishing and stabilizing the interior, the reflector material could be stuck to make it into a spherical mirror. Such a mirror, of about 2. m in diameter, would do useful work for at least five to six hours a day. The cooking vessel could be hung from the tripod or a suitable stand and positioned to meet the focus. Dan Halacy (1974) suggests a similar design. He uses two full and several half cardboard ribs to fabricate the base and attaches mylar film as a reflector. This device was meant mainly for campers. Bamboo and/or other locally available materials could be used to fabricate such hemispherical baskets. Recently Prof. Quintone of the United Kingdom has taken up this design and is trying to popularize it in places likePeru. In his beautifully designed and illustrated site he presents detailed instructions on fabricating the design and using it. The cooker below is a simple steel bowl used for carrying sand, is coated with a reflector foil and a blackened cooking vessel is put in it. The entire assembly is covered over by a flat sheet glass. The design is very similar toSuryakund cited by Kuhnke et al in their book Solar Cookers in the third world. In Suryakund, the vessels are kept in a inverted glass jar. Like Suryakund, this cooker too would suffer from limitation of size. Unfortunately, this simple design has not attracted much attention, but on a very big scale, like in power generation (as in Marseilles, France), such a hemispherical mirror is being used (Jet Propulsion Laboratory 1981). Scientists ofAustralia (Anon. 1979) have presented a similar design. Margaret Koshoni developed the Cone Cooker to suit the needs of Nigerian women. Most people live in flats with balconies; the structure of the balconies will shade the CooKit and make a shadow. The Cone Cooker being placed on a stand has the advantage of elevation and the stand can be moved about without disturbing the cooking. Medved et al. , propose an interesting design (1996) called a SOLAR BALL. It is an inflatable plastic ball with lower part of reflective material. The cooking vessel is kept at the base. It is an interesting variation but there appears to be some serious limitations with reference to size of the ball as well as size and handling of the cooking vessel. Recently, the spherical geometry seems to have made a come back, and we see that at Auroville in India a 15 meter diameter mirror cooks food for over 1500 persons. A similar large solar bowl was built at the University of Mexico. photovoltaic solar cells PV cells are made from layers of semi-conducting material, usually silicon. When light shines on the cell it creates an electric field across the layers. The stronger the sunshine, the more electricity is produced. Groups of cells are mounted together in panels or modules that can be mounted on your roof. The power of a PV cell is measured in kilowatts peak (kWp). Thats the rate at which it generates energy at peak performance in full direct sunlight during the summer. PV cells come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Most PV systems are made up of panels that fit on top of an existing roof, but you can also fit solar tiles. Solar tiles and slates Solar tiles are designed to be used in place of ordinary roof tiles. A system made up of solar tiles will typically cost around twice as much as an equivalent panel system, although you will save the money you would have spent on roof tiles or slates. Solar tile systems are not normally as cost-effective as panel systems, and are usually only considered where panels are not considered appropriate for aesthetic or planning reasons. Solar PV needs little maintenance – youll just need to keep the panels relatively clean and make sure trees dont begin to overshadow them. In the UK panels that are tilted at 15Â ° or more have the additional benefit of being cleaned by rainfall to ensure optimal performance. Debris is more likely to accumulate if you have ground mounted panels. If dust, debris, snow or bird droppings are a problem they should be removed with warm water (and perhaps some washing-up liquid or something similar – your installer can advise) and a brush or a high pressure hose (or telescopic cleaning pole) if the panels are difficult to reach. Always be careful if you are working above the ground or near the top of a ladder. Alternatively, there are a number of specialist window cleaning companies who will clean solar PV panels for you at a cost (of around ? 30 based on our research in March 2012) depending on the size of your array and location. Many of these companies use a water fed pole system which does away with the need for a ladder. Once fitted, your installer should leave written details of any maintenance checks that you should carry out from time to time to ensure everything is working properly. This should include details of the main inverter fault signals and key trouble-shooting guidance. Ideally your installer should demonstrate this to you at the point of handover. Keeping a close eye on your system and the amount of electricity it’s generating (alongside the weather conditions) will familiarise you with what to expect and alert you to when something might be wrong. The panels should last 25 years or more, but the inverter is likely to need replacing some time during this period, at a current cost of around ? 1,000. Consult with your installer for exact maintenance requirements before you commit to installing a solar PV system. Photovoltaics is the direct conversion of light into electricity at the atomic level. Some materials exhibit a property known as the photoelectric effect that causes them to absorb photons of light and release electrons. When these free electrons are captured, an electric current results that can be used as electricity. The photoelectric effect was first noted by a French physicist, Edmund Bequerel, in 1839, who found that certain materials would produce small amounts of electric current when exposed to light. In 1905, Albert Einstein described the nature of light and the photoelectric effect on which photovoltaic technology is based, for which he later won a Nobel prize in physics. The first photovoltaic module was built by Bell Laboratories in 1954. It was billed as a solar battery and was mostly just a curiosity as it was too expensive to gain widespread use. In the 1960s, the space industry began to make the first serious use of the technology to provide power aboard spacecraft. Through the space programs, the technology advanced, its reliability was established, and the cost began to decline. During the energy crisis in the 1970s, photovoltaic technology gained recognition as a source of power for non-space applications. A number of solar cells electrically connected to each other and mounted in a support structure or frame is called a photovoltaic module. Modules are designed to supply electricity at a certain voltage, such as a common 12 volts system. The current produced is directly dependent on how much light strikes the module. Photovoltaic solar plants work like this: As light hits the solar panels, the solar radiation is converted into direct current electricity (DC). The direct current flows from the panels and is converted into alternating current (AC) used by local electric utilities. Finally, the electricity travels through transformers, and the voltage is boosted for delivery onto the transmission lines so local electric utilities can distribute the electricity to homes and businesses. Solar-Thermal plants work like this: Solar collectors capture and concentrate sunlight to heat a synthetic oil called therminol, which then heats water to create steam. The steam is piped to an onsite turbine-generator to produce electricity, which is then transmitted over power lines. On cloudy days, the plant has a supplementary natural gas boiler. The plant can burn natural gas to heat the water, creating steam to generate electricity. Solar power plants use the suns rays to produce electricity. Photovoltaic plants and solar thermal systems are the most commonly used solar technologies today. ` Solar cells such as these are used in photovoltaic solar technology There are two types of solar power plants. They are differentiated depending on how the energy from the sun is converted into electricity either via photovoltaic or solar cells, or via solar thermal power plants. Photovoltaic plants A photovoltaic cell, commonly called a solar cell or PV, is a technology used to convert solar energy directly into electricity. A photovoltaic cell is usually made from silicon alloys. Particles of solar energy, known as photons, strike the surface of a photovoltaic cell between two semiconductors. These semiconductors exhibit a property known as the photoelectric effect, which causes them to absorb the photons and release electrons. The electrons are captured in the form of an electric current in other words, electricity. Solar thermal power plants A solar thermal plant generates heat and electricity by concentrating the suns energy. That in turn builds steam that helps to feed a turbine and generator to produce electricity. There are three types of solar thermal power plants: 1) Parabolic troughs This is the most common type of solar thermal plant. A solar field usually contains many parallel rows of solar parabolic trough collectors. They use parabola-shaped reflectors to focus the sun at 30 to 100 times its normal intensity. The method is used to heat a special type of fluid, which is then collected at a central location to generate high-pressure, superheated steam. 2) Solar power tower This system uses hundreds to thousands of flat sun-tracking mirrors called heliostats to reflect and concentrate the suns energy onto a central receiver tower. The energy can be concentrated as much as 1,500 times that of the energy coming in from the sun. A test solar power tower exists in Juelich in the western German state of North-Rhine Westphalia. It is spread over 18,000 square meters (194,000 square feet) and uses more than 2,000 sun-tracking mirrors to reflect and concentrate the suns energy onto a 60-meter-high (200 foot high) central receiver tower. The concentrated solar energy is used to heat the air in the tower to up to 700 degrees Celsius (1,300 degrees Fahrenheit). The heat is captured in a boiler and is used to produce electricity with the help of a steam turbine. Solar thermal energy collectors work well even in adverse weather conditions. Theyre used in the Mojave Desert in California and have withstood hailstorms and sandstorms. 3) Solar pond This is a pool of saltwater which collects and stores solar thermal energy. It uses so-called salinity-gradient technology. Basically, the bottom layer of the pond is extremely hot up to 85 degrees Celsius and acts as a transparent insulator, permitting sunlight to be trapped from which heat may be withdrawn or stored for later use.

Soft And Hard Human Resource Management

Soft And Hard Human Resource Management HRM is an essential and vital function for organizational success. Areas within HRM like Manpower planning, Job analysis, Selection and Recruitment, Compensation and Benefits, Performance evaluations, Contract negotiations and Labor legislations are parts of hard HRM whereas functions like Organizational development, conflict management, human resource education, leadership development, organizational culture, and relationship building are components of soft HRM. The hard HRM can be categorized as the basic functions and soft HRM as advanced functions. In todays knowledge economy, where human capital determines the growth and success of an organization, both hard and soft HRM are sig. Hard HRM:- a very instrumental, practical approach, people seen as a passive resources to be used, deployed and if necessary disposed of HR planning is seen as a factor of production incompatible with trade unions-may necessitate confrontation to implement concepts. Soft HRM: sometimes known as development humanism stresses human side entails trust, collaboration, skill development place for unions in this model where unions are marginalized and by passed on many issues or alternative forms of employee representation are initiated above all, about commitment and partnership. Hard HR Management Soft HR Management Treats employees simply as a resource of the business (like machinery buildings) Strong link with corporate business planning what resources do we need, how do we get them and how much will they cost Treats employees as the most important resource in the business and a source of competitive advantage Employees are treated as individuals and their needs are planned accordingly Focus of HRM: identify workforce needs of the business and recruit manage accordingly (hiring, moving and firing) Focus of HRM: concentrate on the needs of employees their roles, rewards, motivation etc. Key features Key features Short-term changes in employee numbers (recruitment, redundancy) Strategic focus on longer-term workforce planning Minimal communication, from the top down Strong and regular two-way communication Pay enough to recruit and retain enough staff (e.g. minimum wage) Competitive pay structure, with suitable performance-related rewards (e.g. profit share, share options) Little empowerment or delegation Employees are empowered and encouraged to seek delegation and take responsibility Appraisal systems focused on making judgments (good and bad) about staff Appraisal systems focused on identifying and addressing training and other employee development needs Taller organizational structures Flatter organizational structures Suits autocratic leadership style Suits democratic leadership style As analyzing this, the hard approach to HR might be expected to result in a more cost-effective workforce where decision-making is quicker and focused on senior managers. However, such an approach pays relatively little attention to the needs of employees and a business adopting a genuinely hard approach might expect to suffer from higher absenteeism and staff turnover and less successful recruitment but the soft approach will certainly appeal to the touchy-feely among it who like to see people being treated nicely. And it can also make a good business case for an approach which rewards employee performance and motivates staff more effectively. However, the danger of taking too soft an approach is that when all the employee benefits are added up, the cost of the workforce leaves a business at a competitive disadvantage. HMR and Personal/ IR Practices with Compared to 27 Dimensions of Storys Definitions Storys model gives a clear idea about the difference between personal and industrial human resource management, According to storys model of human resource management: Human Resource Management has to be implemented into the organization strategy and has to be considered in the higher level of the organization. Human Resource Management needs to be included to management functions and creates an impact on the organizations ability to achieve their goals. Human Resource Managements main key function is to encourage commitment from the employees in the organization but not complaints. Humans ability, capability and commitment is what differentiate each organization has. Points of difference between personnel and IR practices and HRM practices Dimensions Personnel/IR HRM Beliefs Assumptions Contract Careful delineation of written contracts Aim to go beyond contract Guide to management action Procedures Business need Behavior referent Norms Values Managerial task via a vise labor Monitoring Nurturing Strategic Aspect Key relations Labor management Customer Corporate plan Marginal to Central to Speed of decision Slow Fast Line Management Management role Transactional Transformational leadership Communication Indirect Direct Standardization High Low Key Levelers Selection Separate, marginal task Integrated, key task Pay Job evaluation Performance related Conditions Separately negotiated Harmonization Labor management Collective bargaining contracts Towards individual contracts Role of the Line Managers and employees in the organization. The areas where front line managers and employees make a significant difference to people management practices are: Performance Appraisal Training, coaching and guidance Involvement and communication Openness how easy is it for employees to discuss matters with their front line manager Work-life balance Recognition the extent to which employees feel their contribution is recognized. These are all areas where, although the process may be designed by HR, it cannot be delivered by HR. The front line manager role is crucial in a number of respects In enabling the HR policies and practices, or bringing them to life. in acting upon advice or guidance from HR in controlling the work flow by directing and guiding the work of others To do this successfully, this part of the front line managers role must be given at least as much recognition as other operational areas and they must be allocated time within their work schedule to carry out the people management side of the job. The qualities and skills needed from front line managers. The Bath research found that front line managers exercise a strong influence over the level of discretion that an individual has over how they do their job. Some managers can permit and encourage people to be responsible for their own jobs whereas others can stifle initiative through controlling or autocratic behavior. To encourage the kind of discretionary behavior from employees associated with higher performance, front line managers need to: Build a good working relationship with their staff. They need to lead, listen, ask, communicate, be fair, respond to suggestions and deal with problems. Help and support employees to take more responsibility for how they do their jobs by coaching and guidance. Build effective teams. Many of the qualities and skills which are associated with higher quality front line management are around the behaviors of front line managers. It is not enough to educate front line managers in the behaviors required; organizations must also ensure they are developing the environment and culture in which front line managers are actively encouraged and permitted to exhibit the behaviors above. The Bath research found that organizations which had a strong shared culture with guiding principles for behavior which were embedded into practice over time were more successful Attribution: http://www.citehr.com/15998-role-front-line-managers-hr.html#ixzz21Teh5Dml Section B There are potential benefits for both the individual and the organization from using a proper performance management A good performance management system works towards the improvement of the overall organizational performance by managing the performances of terms and individuals for ensuring the achievement of the overall organizational ambitions and goals. An effective performance management system can play a very crucial role in managing the performance in an organization by: Improved business profits The bottom line of an organization improves significantly by increasing employee productivity and quality of work. Increase employee responsibility Communicating realistic but challenging job expectations and making employee accountable for their decisions and actions result in noticeable improvements in employee tardiness, absences and organizational commitment. Equitable treatment of employees All employees are treated fairly by implementing standardized procedures that promote consistency throughout an organization. Enhanced quality of work life Employees experience greater job satisfaction because they become more successful As a HR manager, you need to manage different human resource practices in the workplace Yes I do agree with the statement. Approaching the nature of HRM from a slightly different perspective, (Bowen and Ostroff, 2004) have argued that what they term a strong HR system is more likely to have an impact. Where more high performance practices are in place, and all helping to elicit the same kind of attitudes and behavior from employees, the cumulative impact is likely to be greater. In this context, the specific sets of practices that might be associated with competence, motivation or contribution become rather less important. Another reason why specific bundles of practices might be less significant and difficult to link to performance is that some practices might contribute to several HR outcomes. For example, job design or goal setting might affect both motivation and opportunity to contribute. This leads to two possibilities. On the one hand it may be most appropriate to follow the Bowen and Ostroff line and count the number of practices in place; on the other, it may b e sensible to explore whether specific practices are consistently associated with superior performance. There is an impact of globalization on issues such as human resource planning Yes I do agree with the statement. The interest in strategic human resource management (HRM) has spawned a number of empirical research studies that investigated the impact of HRM practices on organizational performance. However, very little attention has been paid to address the impact of HRM practices on operations management and to generalize the findings across countries and industries. Success of some business decisions. Globalization and The Changing Face of Human Resource Management The pressures on traditional IR models are not all due to globalization, as we shall see, but many of the changes taking place can be traced to globalization. It is not always easy to disentangle the causes and effects of globalization. However it would probably be true to say that globalization is represented by the opening up of markets due, in large measure to foreign direct investment consequent upon the lowering of investment barriers in practically all countries by the liberalization of trade and by the deregulation of financial markets in consequence of which governments increasingly have little control over the flow of capital across borders. All this implies the dominance of the market system, facilitated by the collapse of alternative economic systems. Introduction of new technology Pushing for a more deregulated and flexible labor market More emphasis on productivity and quality Greater employee involvement in the design and execution of work Shifting the focus of collective bargaining from the industry level to the enterprise level. Employers are of the view that issues relevant to the employment relationship such as work re-organization, flexible working hours and contractual arrangements, and pay for performance and skills, are increasingly workplace-related, and should therefore be addressed at the enterprise level. Downsizing the workforce. One important response has been the introduction of flexibility in the employment relationship to increase the capacity of enterprises to adapt rapidly to market changes. This has involved measures such as: flexible working hours, part-time work different types of employment contracts to the standard ones familiar to collective IR flexibility in functions, so that employees who are multi-skilled are not confined to the performance of only one task. They can cover up for absenteeism, and make some jobs redundant. Globalization has, through technology diffusion, substantially increased the introduction of new technology. This, as well as the need for flexible adaptation to market changes, has led to the re-organization of production systems and methods of work, such as the following: Reduction of narrow job classifications and demarcation lines between managers and workers, accompanied by skills enhancement needed to perform jobs with a broader range of tasks. The competition generated by globalization and rapid technological changes accompanied by shorter product life have, while destroying countless jobs in industrialized countries, created opportunities for multi-skilled and easily trainable workers, and for the most significant group of emerging employees the knowledge worker. Knowledge and skills have become the most important determinants of investment, employment opportunities, productivity and quality and of flexibility. Different national cultures and practices make an influence for making a culturally diverse workforce Difference national cultures and practices make an influence for making a culturally diverse workforce. The workforce of the twenty first century is increasingly diverse and multicultural. To effectively manage and lead in this environment, HR must be knowledgeable about cross cultural factors on both the domestic and global fronts in human resource management. By promoting education in cross cultural competencies throughout the organization HR can better serve the company to successfully achieve its mission and goals. As a concept and as a reality, culture is broad and multifaceted. On a daily basis culture influences who we are as individuals, families, communities, professions, industries, organizations and nations and how we interact with each other within and across regional and national borders. Defined as a set of values and beliefs with learned behaviors shared within a particular society, culture provides a sense of identity and belonging. From language, communication styles, history and religion to norms, values, symbolism and ways of being, culture is everywhere. In domestic and global workplace settings people in organizations reflect their respective cultures. As shifting demographics bring together people of many cultural backgrounds, human resource management must be thoughtfully examined and sometimes altered to support organizational goals. Special Expertise Panel members point out that for sustainability, organizational leaders must expand their perspectives from a local to a worldly view. HR professionals experienced in workplace diversity and cross cultural communication are well positioned to develop and implement culturally appropriate HRM strategies, policies and practices. While not exhaustive this Research Quarterly focuses on selected cross cultural factors in HRM in todays workplace and provides insights for HR to better serve the needs of the organization. Business Case for Cross Cultural HRM With the advent of globalization, research on cross cultural organizational behavior has become a pathway to understand the dynamics of multicultural domestic and international workplaces. In fact successful organizations of the 21st century require leaders who understand culturally diverse work environments and can work effectively with different cultures that have varying work ethics, norms and business protocols. Yet diverse cultures create HRM challenges. Gaining cross cultural competence takes time, education, experience, openness and sensitivity. When people lack intercultural skills miscommunications can damage business relationships deadlines can be missed projects may fail and talented people will go to the competition. Key HR responsibilities are to understand how cross cultural factors interact with HR, be the conduit for organizational learning for cross cultural intelligence and foster cross cultural communication throughout the organization. Cultural Value Dimensions Cross cultural intelligence is the ability to switch ethnic or national contexts and quickly learn new patterns of social interaction with appropriate behavioral responses. This competence is essential to work effectively in multicultural environments. Thus linking future career paths and global business success with cultural competence is important for HR to emphasize, with the goal that managers are motivated to acquire new behaviors and skills and understand the benefits of learning from different cultures. Task 02 Section A- Case Study Explain the Audit Firms model of flexibility. The concept of a flexible firm recognizes that organizations will requires enhanced flexibility to meet ever evolving market and competitive pressures. The flexible firm model suggests that we can design our workforces to proactively meet our business needs through flexible staffing arrangements. In other words it is a concept of simply integrating flexible conditions into the administration an organizations functional operations, in order o meet the demands of a highly competitive market and attain its strategic aims and goals. Flexibility is a calculated risk utilized by organization to survive and gain strategic competitive advantage. Therefor this case study, shows how they has developed and implemented flexible work practices improve its services and meet the changing needs of its staff. According to the contracts help the Audit commission to cope with all of its changing needs. They also help it to be flexible. There are three main types of flexibility they practice. Numerical Flexibility Functional Flexibility Place- of- work flexibility The Audit Commission is constantly face with peaks and troughs in the workload that cannot be met simply by having its employees on full time contracts. There are situations where they need either more staff or fewer staff. By increasing or reduce staff in their situation the Audit Commission has developed numerical flexibility. The Audit Commission has also developed flexibility through developing the skills of its employees to deal with a wider variety of work. This means that when the nature and type of work changes, employees are comfortable undertaking different tasks. This is known as functional flexibility. Homeworking is an example of place-of-work flexibility. The Audit Commission uses this way to respond to the challenges within their business environment. This method of working has helped it to meet more closely the needs of its staff. As part of its flexible working arrangements, homeworking has helped to transform the ways in which many people work and improve their work-life-balance. Briefly explain the need for flexibility. According to this firm do you believe that they are implementing the correct types of flexibility? Explain your answer. Employers have always wanted workers to be as flexible as possible. In the past this has mean paying overtime for extra hours worked, or higher rates for shift work. Faced with competition, businesses attempt to use their existing employees more effectively. Sometimes this could benefit employee. Working flexible hours could mean an employee may take time off for personal reasons and still work their required number of hours a week. The need for flexibility is increasing due to demographic and social changes the number of people in the paid work force with caring responsibilities is set to increase. In turn this will increase the demand for flexibility in the workplace. Moreover, increasing competition has placed emphasis on quality, innovation and reducing the unit cost of production: job design and the organization of work must both mobilize employees energies for quality innovation and reliable productivity. In addition to this Technological change, particularly in the automation and computerization of work process and information flows, has eroded traditional demarcation boundaries between jobs: job design and the organization of work must fit the new technology in order to secure its benefits for efficiency. Increasing market uncertainty means that organizations need to be more adaptable to changes in demand: able to vary the size and deployment of their workforces to meet demand as effectively and efficien tly as possible. Yes I do believe that they are practicing the correct types of flexibility. The benefits they are getting form those types are more and it will lead to build effective flexible working system. Flexibility is not about integration of the different spheres of life to reduce conflict or to harmonizing paid work with other parts of life; rather flexibility is about how self-managing employees constitute synthesis of work life and home life as distinct parts of one and the same life. If Audit Commission is very much concerned about their flexibility in the work place those types they are currently practicing is totally suitable. By regular homeworking helps an organization to develop family-friendly policies that improve the work-life balance of its staff. For the organization, homeworking assists in recruiting individuals who are attracted to this style of working and this enables the Audit Commission to retain a diverse workforce. Evaluate the advantages and dis advantages of flexible working practices from both of the employee and employer perspective relate with this firm. For Employee Advantages It reduces the transport cost for the employee and by reducing the transportation it is good for environment. Regular homeworking helps an organization to develop family-friendly policies that improve the work-life balance of its staff especially in Audit Commission. Employers have great freedom to organize their work to finish on time. By implementing flexible working system employers can improve morale and reducing absence and lateness. A better work/life balance being able to meet both work and personal commitments Increased sense of control leading to increased sense of well-being With the greater job satisfaction employees can make better working environment with a happier person all around. Being able to remain in the workforce longer with greater loyalty, trust and respect towards employers Disadvantages Lower salary if you work fewer hours. Possible sense of isolation from colleagues. Loneliness. Need for a dedicated work space. Difficulty in judging performance. Need to be self-disciplined and highly organized. Possible obstacle to promotion. A sense that you have been forced into it by circumstances not of your choosing. For Employer Advantages Happy and satisfied employees, who have a greater sense of trust and loyalty, create many business benefits: Attracting skilled and motivated employees Particularly those who wouldnt normally apply. For example mature aged workers those who have Auditing experience, those with family/care responsibilities and those seeking greater balance between work and personal interests. Keeping skilled and motivated employees Effective flexibility can reduce unwanted staff losses by up to 25%. A huge cost saving in terms of retaining knowledge, maintaining Agent relationships and in re-training, creating awareness and administration costs. Motivating and energizing staff Resulting in increased productivity and greater profits, as employees focus more on business success, are more flexible to meet its needs and driven to work harder specially service organization like Audit commission. Increasing employee satisfaction creating a happier workplace, with greater teamwork, collaboration and sharing of knowledge. Lower staff absences employees are less stressed about meeting their job and outside/family commitments and have a greater sense of well-being, reducing unplanned absences. Increasing skills and creativity of your managers Managers are challenged to look outside the square, develop leadership skills and manage a more diverse workforce Improving customer service and retention More committed employees, greater employee retention and a better match between peaks and troughs in workflows and staffing will allow you to more closely meet customers needs Becoming an Employer of Choice which expands the pool of talented workers that an advertisement will attract. Disadvantages Finding qualified employees who want to be part of a flexible workforce can be challenging, because people generally prefer jobs that provide a reliable and predictable income stream. It can be difficult to retain employees in a flexible workforce. Thats because during times when business is slow and members of a flexible workforce arent working, theyre likely to spend their time looking for other work. If Audit Commission is opened in non-working working hours as a result it will lead to increase the unwanted costs like electricity and heating and so on. Section B Essay Equal opportunities with in the workplace The term equal opportunities is a broadly used phrase which promotes the idea that everyone within an organization should have an equal chance to apply and be selected for posts, to be trained or promoted and to have their employment terminated equally. Providing equal opportunity and treating employers without prejudice is vital to achieve organizational objectives. Over the past 30 years, the workplace has changed dramatically. Women have become more empowered giving them the opportunity to seek career progression which had previously been denied to them. Disabled people who can work are being helped back to work and offered the same opportunities as able-bodied people and economic globalization of business has meant that managers must be aware of cultural and race issues. There should be no discrimination on the grounds of gender, homosexuality, age, racial origin, religious affiliation, disability or marital status. Employers can only discriminate on the grounds of ability, poten tial and all employment decisions taken on an individuals ability to do a particular job. There are two main forms of discrimination. First of all direct discrimination involves treating an individual within the workforce less favorably than others on sexual, marital, racial or disabled grounds. It occurs when interested group is treated less favorably than another. (Except for exempted cases) For example, Management decision is not to select or promote a woman because she is pregnant or because of her nationality. One act of discrimination is sufficient and must be directed at an individual for action to be taken. Second type of discrimination is indirect discrimination. Indirect discrimination describes a term or condition applicable to both sexes but where one sex has considerably less of an ability to comply with it than the other. It occurs when, an employer applies a provision, criterion practice to men and women equally, but it has the effect of putting one sex at a particular disadvantage without justification. For example, change the shift patterns to include an early morning to start, as a woman is more likely to be responsible for childcare or a condition that a candidate for a job must be of a minimum certain height. It is unlawful to discriminate in employment on the grounds of color, race, nationality, gender, gender reassignment, marital status, and disability for all staff, regardless of their hours, or patterns of work. Within the work environment the majority of discrimination claims Centre around the recruitment and selection process. Several pieces of employment legislation exist in order to provide a framework for implementing equal opportunities within the workplace. The main legislation is Equal Pay Act, Sex Discrimination Act, Race Relations Act, Human Rights Act, Race Relations, Employment Equality in Religion or Belief and Gender Recognition Act. In developed countries there are migrants and even students who work for lesser wages than the minimum wages. The wages that they are paid is less than the national wages that is allowed by the government and not only the payment is less but there could be situations where they work for longer hours than they can in a weeks time. In countri es such as Sri Lanka there are many places and organizations where framework is not followed and are broken with many discrimination such as sex, pay and also race but due to the fear of the influence and also the fact that they need the money to work the employees do not take necessary actions. Organizations consist of many individuals working together to achieve organizational success. These individuals collectively bring different attitudes, perceptions and learning experiences to the workplace, as well as ethnic, gender and personality differences. When the Equal Opportunities Commission was set up, it was to tackle the issue of Gender Discrimination predominantly and to offer women the same working rights as their male complements. However, in modern day society, equal opportunities has been broadened and backed up by law to provide the same level of protection to other minority groups in the workforce. Mainly there are three types of discrimination. First type of discrimination is age discrimination. Age discrimination involves treating employee less favorably because of his age. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act only forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older. It does not protect workers under the age of 40, although some states do have l aws that protect younger workers from age discrimination. It is not illegal for an employer or other covered entity to favor an older worker over a younger one even if both workers are age 40 or older (The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006, 2006). Second type of discrimination is sex discrimination. Sex

Empowering Patients in Occupational Therapy

Empowering Patients in Occupational Therapy Disability Issues for Healthcare professionals Assignment Introduction Empowerment is a process of helping people to assert control over the factors which affect their lives. It involves a transfer of power from the professional to the patient health care professionals need to give up their power and help their clients gain power (Gibson, 1991). The aim of empowerment is to transform the individual’s lifestyle so that employment, housing, leisure, health and other institutions support empowerment. In a nutshell, Empowerment is a process through which individuals and social groups become able to express their needs and present their concerns. They will also gain power within themselves to make their own decisions, devise strategies for involvement and attain social, political and cultural action to meet those demands. Through such a process people see a closer relationship between their goals in life and a sense of how to achieve them, and a correspondence between their efforts and life outcomes. Empowerment as the main goal of Health Care Professionals For health care professionals, empowerment is as an educational process designed to help clients develop the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and self-awareness required to effectively assume responsibility for their health-related decisions. Client empowerment is an approach that aims to establish the clients independence and self-control. Most of the time, the clients are seen as passive receivers of care, with health care providers being considered the experts. Modernisation has brought with it the ideology of client empowerment in which the client should become an expert in his or her own health care. The empowerment approach allows clients to gain skills and knowledge for improving their overall health status. They change from being passive to being actively involved in their personal health care process, and as a result, they feel more independent and experience increased autonomy and participation in decision-making. Self-efficacy is important in rehabilitation. A belief in oneself and the confidence to take charge and make decisions relating to personal care can directly affect the efficacy of treatment and the successful use of the available health care services and equipment. Some approaches that can be used to promote active participation, which increase motivation, include individual interviews, group discussions, posters, handouts, and videos, organizing various rehabilitation activities, including meetings with health care professionals, goal-setting, treatment negotiation and choice, decision-making and explanations of the consequences of noncompliance. Empowerment can be based on the â€Å"five As†: acceptance, affect, autonomy, alliance and active participation according to the Empowerment approach called the ‘patient empowerment model’ by Anderson et al. Acceptance is a key characteristic and refers to the amount of respectfulness shown by health care professional (HCP) towards the client. Regardless of the degree of disability, lifestyle, appearance or attitude of the client, the HCP must accept and take into consideration the goals the individual wants to set. This is because no matter what objectives the HCP wants to set, if they do not meet the clients values, he/she will not improve. Affect refers to the emotional aspect of the empowering therapy sessions. Emotional aspect of the problems and barriers the client has in the managing of his/her disability has many effects. Exploring the emotional aspects and barriers strengthens the client’s motivation to address the problem and methods of behavioura l change. In addition, it gives the HCP an opportunity to support the clients to improve their way of living and help their emotional health. Autonomy means how much the client is involved and participates in the decision making of his/her own life and health choices. The client should be responsible for choosing the issues he/she wishes to target and make all non-diagnostic decisions. The HCP should ensure that these decisions are accurate and evidence-based. During the consultation, the HCP should work as a team, but independently, with clients to help them make informed choices about their disability, lifestyle changes and treatment. The HCP should provide clients with the equipment and resources that they cannot obtain for themselves. The last key feature in an empowering consultation is the active participation of everyone involved in the rehabilitation process. Despite the fact that the client should be the main decision maker, this doesn’t mean that the HCP should be a passive participant. The consultation should be able to help the clients identify the issues they want to address and change, how they feel about it, find the different options of change, and find out with the help of the HCP the barriers of change. The role of the HCP is to actively guide the client throughout the process by listening to the client actively, and gently guiding the client from one stage to another. How is Occupational Therapy empowering for the client Overview to Occupational Therapy People experience life to the fullest through meaningful occupations the day to day skills, activities, interactions and experiences that engage us with our environment, our community and the people around us. Our ability to participate in occupations that are important to us promotes health and well-being. The goal of occupational therapy is to positively influence people’s health by enabling occupation. The primary goal of Occupational therapy is rehabilitation and facilitation of health and wellness in the community of the individual’s choice, rather than to manage symptoms. Occupational therapists work with people in a manner that helps to foster hope, motivation and empowerment, as well as lifestyle changes were necessary. These therapists are educated in the scientific understanding of neurophysiology, psychosocial development, activity and environmental analysis, and group dynamics, occupational therapists work to empower each individual to fully participate and be successful and satisfied in his/her self-selected occupations. Occupational Therapists help with situations such as; Difficulties affecting ones ability to care for oneself or others Returning to work after prolonged illness or injury Learning difficulties in the classroom Mobility problems that impair function in the home/workplace/community Difficulties socializing or enjoy leisure time because of functional changes Home or workplace modifications when accessibility is an issue Where do Occupational therapists work? Hospitals Mental health hospitals / services Rehabilitation centres Private practice Long term care facilities Children’s treatment centres Occupational Engagement Occupational engagement describes how a person has to have a balance of activity and rest, a variety and range of meaningful occupations and routines, and the ability to move around in society and interact socially, implying that occupational engagement occurs over a period of time. Moreover, occupational engagement involves interpretation and comprehension emanating from experience, the process that forms the basis for ongoing occupational engagement and a cyclical means of maintaining a sense of self and well-being. Quality of life is an important indicator of community adjustment, and measurements of quality of life are intended to reflect and capture the current life situation of persons with disabilities. Many clients want to be able to feel empowered in things such as satisfaction with work, leisure, finances, living situation, safety, family relations, social relations, and religion. Within occupational therapy, increased occupational engagement is viewed as a goal toward enhanced quality of life. The role of an occupational therapist often is to offer and provide the conditions necessary for satisfactory quality of life to the person. Client-centred practice Client-centred practice is defined as; â€Å"an approach to service which embraces a philosophy of respect for and partnership with, people receiving services† (Law, et al 1995 p253). Client-centred practice is non-directive and focuses on concerns as expressed by the client. People receiving services are capable of playing an active role in defining and solving problems, with the therapist serving as a facilitator to help solve their problems enabling understanding and proposing solutions. The development of client-centred practice reflected Carl Rogers’ key humanitarian principles of self-actualisation, personal growth and the importance of the environment which are all closely linked specifically in the philosophical framework of occupational therapy. Occupational Therapy is a client-centred health profession concerned with promoting health and well-being through occupation† (WFOT 2010 p4) Client- centred occupational therapy is a partnership between the client and the therapist which empowers the client to engage in functional performance to fulfil his /her occupational roles in a variety of environments. The client participates actively in negotiating goals which are given priority and are at the centre of assessment, intervention and evaluation. Throughout the process the therapist listens to and respects the client’s values, adapts the interventions to meet the client’s needs and enables the client to make informed decisions. Therapists are also required to treat service users with respect and dignity at all times working in partnership with them and their carer, putting them at the centre of practice whilst upholding the service users’ right to make choices over the care they receive and the plans they wish to make. Client-centred practice is now the exclusive domain of occupational therapy and other professions, such as nursing and medicine. These have also endorsed the principles of the client centred approach to encourage working closer with service users. Disability and Occupational Therapy Occupational therapists work in rehabilitation in response to the problem of impairment. Traditional rehabilitation services translated the understanding of disability into strategies that aimed to facilitate or minimize the impact of impairments and their consequences while encouraging the person with impairments to be as independent and normal as possible. Disabled persons typically encounter rehabilitation either at a critical phase after the onset of a disability and/or over a long period of time. Consequently, rehabilitation can dramatically influence how disabled persons come to understand their impairment and the appropriate response to it. Rehabilitation helps disabled persons to work toward the elimination or reduction of their impairments’ and toward conformity with functional or social norms can convey an implicit message that disability is a bad thing that needs to be eliminated or masked from view. Disabled persons consistently report that discrimination and attitudinal barriers negatively impact their self-sufficiency and participation in society. The help mentioned above helps to empower the persons with disability issues to continue enjoying and living their life as independent as they can. Occupational Therapy and Mental Health Occupational therapists also helps people who experience mental health illnesses (depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar mood disorder, concurrent disorders, or another condition) to live full, active and more hopeful lives. Occupational therapists work collaboratively with people of all ages; empowering them to determine their goals, lead their care, and work towards recovery. The following are examples of how the knowledge and skill base of OT is used in the process of empowering individuals in all phases of mental health recovery; Help to identify and implement healthy habits, rituals and routines to support a healthy lifestyle. Teach and support the active use of coping strategies to help manage the effect of symptoms of illness on one’s life, including being more organized and able to engage in activities of choice. Support the creation and use of a wellness recovery action plan in group or individual sessions. Provide information to increase awareness of community-based resources, such as peer-facilitated groups and other support options. Barriers that Health Care Professionals face in empowering people with disabilities Health care professionals face various barriers to the successful implementation of empowerment. These can range from practical and physical issues to the complexities of working in a team and the underlying biology of the disability itself. In a clinical situation there is not enough time to be as flexible as you want, some clients would benefit from more work but there is a certain limit of resources such as staff, time and finances. Lack of appropriate equipment, may cause professionals to omit, or not recommend procedures or functional aids for people with disabilities that would otherwise be very helpful to the client. These practical barriers restrict the health care professional from giving the best possible therapy to his/her clients. Another type of barrier that health care professionals might face is the physical barrier of dealing with people with hearing/visual/speech/cognitive impairments as there will be a communication barrier and health care professionals are not always trained to communicate with these kinds of clients. Therapy might not be as empowering to these clients as it will be sort of a passive process because the therapist cannot fully initiate with the client or vice versa. Environmental barriers are also very effective as Health care professionals promote active participation with their clients, however when the person goes in the outside world, he/she might find it difficult to maintain those positive, empowering strategies that he/she was taught. Despite progress in universal design, principles and policies, people with disabilities continue to face an enormous amount of barriers to participating in society. Structures such as parks, fitness facilities, grocery stores, transportation and other recreational facilities are often inaccessible to people with disabilities. Many people with disabilities might show some degree of stress during their rehabilitation process. Stress manifests in various ways that affect health—lowered bodily resistance to disease being one example. Socially, stress can affect the clients immediate surroundings, making it difficult to take positive action. Stress can reduce the efficacy of treatment, therefore health care professionals should assist clients in gaining confidence and improving their outlook. It would also be beneficial if there were health promotion efforts targeted to people with disabilities, this can have a huge impact on improving lifestyle behaviours, increasing quality of life and reducing medical costs. Health professionals and people in the community need to be aware of the growing need to assist people with disabilities in self- managing their own health by creating disability-friendly communities that eliminate the physical, programmatic, and attitudinal barriers that often prevent or limit their participation in many community based health promotion programs. Conclusion References Blanck, P., Martinis, J. (2015). ‘The Right to Make Choices;: The National Resource Center for Supported Decision Making. 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