Change Management And Systems Implementation

Change Management And Systems Implementation Introduction This essay is about the importance of change management in information systems development and discusses about the issues that will be the result of change in an organization and also the relationship between change management and system implementation. This essay will explain the theories with related examples that were the implications of change in an organization and will critically evaluate and discusses some ideas from my personal point of view. This essay will reflect upon my understanding of change management that I have learned from this module. Change and Change Management Change management is important in any kind of organisations and especially in information system development. It is a structured way to manage change. According to Disraeli as quoted in (Gilley, 2005) Change is constant. Change is present everywhere. The change can be in an individual, in a group or in an organization. When an individual is motivated to do something different, the change that happens in an individual is the main reason for the whole word to change. Since the individual is associated with groups, and groups are related to other groups to form an organisation, the important process in part of change depends on all individuals, groups or teams, and organisations and leaders also have an important responsibility in the process of change. (Cameron Green, 2009). Technology, globalization, society and evolving legislation forces many organisations to change constantly. The organisations ability to effectively implement change decides the success of the change process which completely depends of the person involved in managing the change. Change is necessary for an organisation nowadays because of competetive pressures and to meet the current customer needs. According to (Gilley, 2005), every four or five years, organisations findings planning to undertake major organisational changes and atleast once a year to undertake moderate organisational change. So change management is inevitable in every organisations to successfully manage the process of change. The induction of this module started with the justification for the need of IT professionals to know change management. Most of the projects related to Information Technology failed due to various reasons in which one would be due to poor change management. According to (Burnes, 2009) Brindle study states that UK government had to admit the failure of its 170 million pounds programme to change the old computer systems that holds the whole countrys National insurance records was a chaos that collapsed the system and leaving the social security number into agitation. According to (Burnes,2009) Done and Willman stated that the main reason for the BAs Terminal 5 debacle was the failure of its cutting-edge computerized baggage handling system. According to (CMSI Lectures, 2010, Week 1, Slide 11), the role of the IT professionals would be working in a team with other professionals, designing the system which other people will use, expecting how they will use the system and explaining the u sers how to use the system to their maximum potential. A change management process involves all the above mentioned roles of an IT professional. These points provided me a complete justification and understanding of the need of change management for a person like me who is an IT professional. The following week I learned about different type of systems and different types of implementations involved in an IT project, other considerations for an implementation, the reason for the implementation and the process of implementation. The different kinds of systems are software such as applications and desktop, hardware system and infrastructure systems such as buildings and network. The facts that should be consider while implementing a system are the level of knowledge in the system, technology, the level of importance with the system and people, whether it is in sourced/outsourced and using the maturity models. According to (Okrent Vokurka, 2004), there are three types of implementation 1) Pilot implementation in which the prioritized functional area which gives the most benefits is implemented first 2) Parallel implementation in which the change is tested in both old and new systems parallel and 3) Big bang implementation in which the data is migrated from old system to the new system all at once which is the most risky implementation. The big bang implementation is considered as most risky implementation since most of the projects implemented this way fails. For example, Heathrow Terminal 5 project was implemented using Big bang implementation. The cutting-edge computerized baggage handler system was considered to be one of the hardest-working IT systems as said by BAA and British Airways(BA) before its launch of the system and it didnt work when it was to work. (Swabey, 2008). There are different types of change such as reactive and proactive change, incremental and All at once change, planned and emergent change. According to (Orlikowski Hofman, 1997) the different types of change are planned(anticipated), emergent and opportunity-based change. Planned change is the change that is well planned and it happenes as we planned. Emergent change is the change which occurs spontaneously out of some experimentation which is not planned. The opportunity-based change is the change that is not planned but introduced purposefully to meet the opportunities that were not expected. Some various issues and aspects of change management can be illustrated with a case study: GK Printers Limited Background: GK Printers Limited is a small printing business established after the Second World War.It is a family business in which the current managing directors father established the business. The company was involved in printing jobs along with producing publicity catlogues for local companies, business cards and stationeries. The business went down due to various reasons such as recession, no computerised printing techniques and no graphics designed printing. This made the managing director to form some strategy along with the printing manager in which the first phase was to subcontract the printing works with graphical design instead of investing more money in new equipments. The company grew very well and they had a good profit and bought new equipments. In 1989, due to its growth in business, it was complicated to manage printing, designing and managing the subcontracting activities all together. The second phase of planned change was to manage companys costing system, controlling paper work and production scheduling. After many discussion, the company planned to install Computer Based System(CBS) and it took two years completely to install the working system after purchasing hardwares and refining the softwares according to the companys requirement. Training were provided to the users and also some managers to use the system effectively. The company had a growth again with their successful installation of CBS and they managed the changes that happened in their organisation. All the changes were in organisation and there were no change in the managerial behaviour of the organisation. The problem again aroused since the customers wants the company to reduce the cost of printing due to recession and they were giving smaller orders. This made GK to think about their survival. Since they were getting only smaller orders, their production cost remained the same and if they want to reduce the price to retain the customers, they will not have any profits. To find a soluti on, the managing director approached the marketing and design manager to come up with the problems and solutions. The manager came up with the problems and suggested to increase the design business by employing more design staffs. The senior staffs didnt agree and there were no decisions taken after the meeting. This made the managing director to consider and he approached a team builder to organise the teams inside the company. The team builder came up with a report that all the managers in the company are working and fully committed for the companys success and the negative point was the way the managing director approach for solutions. He made decisions himself or to consult only with one manager to make up with the decisions. The managing director was upset with this shock and he said he always wanted a team work in the company and henceforth all the decisions will be taken by consulting everyone in the management. This made the managers happy and they were asked to come up with solutions, and after six months, GK met all their customer requirements with the solutions the team came up with and there was a considerable growth in the business. The company also developed the business of designing and developing the websites for its customers in which this business was an accidental development and the managing director created a separate department for this business which become the most profitable and fastest growing part of GK. (Burnes, 2009:383-395) According to my personal point of view on the above discussed case study, the organisation had three phase of change which means this is a phased implementation. Even though the strategies were not planned and it emerged due to the problems, the approach to the change was planned rather than emergent approach. In the first two phase of changes, the company had changes in the organisation but not in the behavioural which led to some failures such as poor coordination and cooperation between the teams and managers and also the fighting for the position between managers. These led the company for the third phase of change which was the behavioural change in which all the members of the organisation understood and cooperated to work together and also the managin director decided to take decisions after discussing with the appropiate teams. The human implications of the change process can be noted in the above case study. When GK want to change their manual system to computerized system, the workers themselves suggested some companies to GK to discuss about the CBS system. The managing director gave the responsiblities of CBS system to the group of people who were the students analysing GKs requirements to install the systems and write softwares for the system. All the organisation changes that were made in the first two phases and the behavioural change that were made in the third phase were accepted by the individuals in the organisation. According to (Burnes, 2004) Lewin was interested to analyze the origins for change and he wants to understand why people dislike change. Lewins theories includes about the planned change embarked by the organization and unintended change that happens suddenly due to some contingencies, the three stage model (Unfreeze-movement-refreeze) and models of changes. But in this case study, t he organisation has no individuals who resisted change. According to (CMSI Lectures, 2010, Week 4, Slide 16) Mintzbergs definition of strategy as five P s can be applied on this case study as a prescriptive stream since the strategy preceds change and implementation flows from the strategic plan. Some of the plans involved in the GKs strategy was to make the manual systems computerized, meet the customer requirements and build a good team in the organisation. Some of the ploys involved were to provide customers with graphical design service and to satisfy all kind of customer needs.The position of GKs place in the market is high and they are one of the best among in providing creative website development for the customers. In contrast to the planned approach, the example of Volvos approach which is one the leading Swedish motor vehicle manufacturer to reorganising vehicle production from the traditional methods of car assembly can be taken as an approach to change as emergent. The decisions are based from the workers of the company and it is completely based on the group work in which Volvos approach to change is unique in its way in which it considers human-centered approach to work. A consultant is a person who is having skills that are different or unique and they have different perspective on an issue. The reasons for using this consultancy approach includes requirement of extra staff resources, on a temporary basis, need for expert help and knowledge to deal some situations, look differently about a particular situation and for outside opinion and disinterested information. (Nachimuthu, 23 November 2010). In the above case study, since no one in the organisation were aware of the changes to be brought, the managing director approached a lecturer at a polytechnic who is the friend of printing manager, in which the lecture suggested one of his student studying business can act as a consultant for the companys improvements. The student worked as a consultant, studied the company for two months and produced a report of the organisationss finding to the managing director and the printing manager which was the basis for the change in the organisation. Management involves doing things right whereas leadership involves doing the right things. Management is about maintaining stability and leadership is about bringing the change. Management processes focus on the present and leadership processes focus on the future. Management processes involves implementing policies and procedures whereas leadership processes involves creating a culture based on shared values. Management processes uses the power of their position and leadership processes uses the personal power. Leadership roles get strengths with different personality types. (CMSI Lectures, 2010, Week 7, Slide 21). For example, the case study that I was using in the seminar about the Shell Company fostering its new level of individual power can be taken. The leadership skills and personality types of Chris Knight were discussed. The case study explains the strategies followed by Knight. Chris knight was a good leader with skills such as motivation, knowledge of the business and abil ity to manage the change and system implementations that turn around the growth of Shell. (CMSI Seminars, 2010, Week 7) Whether if it is planned or emergent approach to change, if it is at individual, group or organisation level change, or incremental or continuos change, there should be one person to manage the change and take responsibility of the change. Change agent is the one who takes that responsibility who can be a managers, internal or external consultants or it can be a team. (Burnes, 2004) states that Expect the unexpected might be the motto of most change agents since the change agents should be capable of dealing with the unexpected.If I was an agent of change in the Heathrow Terminal 5 project, I would have tested the computerized baggage system with more load and would have given training to all staffs in how to get to the parking area and especially how to handle the baggage system. I would have not compromised on testing as the chief executive of BA did on the Terminal 5 project. (Massey, 2008). Conclusion It can be concluded from the above discussion on various issues of change, its implication on human as an individual and groups within an organisation, the different types of approaches to change, the need of consultants and importance of leadership that the knowledge of change management is inevitable in any organisation for a successful system implementation in which the GK case study is an example. The need of change management, its relationship with systems implementation and its importance in Information Technology is justified from the above discussions. [Word Count: 2508]

Geographic Information Sytems :: Significant Elements of GIS

Significant Elements of GIS GIS unites graphical representation of characteristic items (e.g. trees, houses, wells, streets, and so forth.), properties of items and apparatuses to oversee conduct of the guide objects. This makes, GIS goes far past the administration of ―backgroundâ€â€" mapping as it gives genuine positional mindfulness in backing of leading examination crosswise over various wellsprings of data. Incorporating ERP and GIS The test is that organizations actualize different requisitions for a reason; every is intended to help the needs of a specific client assemble in performing their particular assignments. Geological data frameworks (GIS) have the capacity of putting away, controlling, examining and imagining the geospatial data through maps. Frequently, picturing the information on maps is more applicable than taking a gander at the plain information, which is the reason GIS has started to be incorporated in key business requisitions additionally. The collaboration between GIS and ERP data frameworks, offers focal points to any endeavor in both store network administration and advertising ranges. Logistic firms oblige shorter request cycle, more dependable conveyances, better warehouse administration and they must hold their transportation fetches under control. With a specific end goal to accomplish these objectives, the reconciliation of GIS, GPS and ERP innovations was proposed by researchers and by business programming sellers. In the promoting region, ERP/GIS incorporation might be helpful in all showcasing blend segments: item (fragment clients by lifestyle and item advancements and classification), value (usage of estimating strategy relying upon area), spot (site choice and conveyance directing) and advancement (create target geocode clients, comprehend client using). With a coordinated framework, a client can do a cluster of capacities that could affect corporate running cost by fulfilling the accompanying: Enhance asset usage, examination, wellbeing and stake trustworthiness through a capacity to speak to work requests and warnings at their accurate area on a GIS map. Enhance operational proficiency (e.g. wellbeing, dispatching) by speaking to work exercises that effect a zone as polygons on the guide and ID of briefest courses. Enhance workforce gainfulness by giving more extensive program based access to ERP and GIS based possessions, upkeep, and client data. Lessen administration sets back the ol' finances by stretching an on-line organization toward oneself entrance with fundamental business forms (e.g. report flawed gear). Hoist client administration and choice making with stretched access to ERP information from the GIS map. Associations that incorporate GIS with ERP fit in with

Blood Brothers Essay

   Her gestures towards Eddy were quite fidgety, she was always fretting over him- making sure his clothes and hair was neat so he looked respectful. This constant need to make Eddy look neat would be so the Lyons family kept up their reputation and Mrs. Lyons may have also been trying to cover up any likeness between Mickey and Eddy, so she was constantly fidgeting over him. This attitude was also reflected in the atmosphere she generated, as she was always quite nervous and twitchy, because she was always worried that the public or her husband would find out that Eddy wasn’t her child and that he was the offspring of a working class family. You can see this nervous attitude from her facial expression as she always carried a worried look, and also from her body language as her hands always flustered nervously. Mrs. Lyons’ relationship with Mrs. Johnstone got more impersonal as the play went on. They stood further apart from one another and they spoke in raised voices. Mrs. Lyons was very protective of Eddy so she walked and sat very close to him all the time and didn’t like feeling that she has no control over him. Narrator – Phillip Stewart: I think that the narrator was the character that had the highest status on stage. He didn’t emotionally relate to any of the characters. You could see this reflection of impersonality towards the characters when he was face to face with a distraught Mrs. Johnstone or an excited Mickey his facial expression didn’t alter, showing he had no understanding of the characters emotions. The fact that the narrator didn’t relate to any of the characters, means that they fear the narrator and are intimidated by him. Further more, the fact that the characters were actually aware of the narrator is unusual as most narrators are kept separate from the characters. This may be because the narrator acted as something more spiritual, like he was a figure of destiny or life who is moving the actors around like chess pieces. He would creep up on people, or pull them away as he had the power to do this. He stood tall, had a domineering presence and was the person with the most authority. His accent, like his costume, was neutral, his tone was quite deep and the volume of his voice was load throughout the whole of the play. Mickey Johnstone – Stephen Palfreman: Mickey was brought up in the Johnstone family so he had the same accent as his mother- Liverpudlian. 7-8yrs: He was amazingly energetic and he completely took over the stage when he came on. He shouted, ran around madly, spoke in a high-pitched voice, muddled up his word and so reflected a seven year old boy in a physical and intellectual state. When he first came on stage he was banging on his door and sat down like this: He started picking his nose e. t. c. He fidgeted constantly, scratching himself, and typically stretching his jumper over his legs. To reflect his age he spent a lot of time on the floor, as it was an adult playing a seven year old this made him look shorter. He was very over powering, so when he was talking to the other characters there was about an inch between them-nearly nose to nose, so obviously like any seven year old he had no sense of personal boundaries. 12-14yrs: At this age he was desperately trying to impress Linda so he was doing typical ‘guy poses’ and walking with a skip in his step to try and look ‘cool’. He also talked to her in a deep, what he thought to be, manly voice. He really wanted to impress Linda but he was also very nervous especially in Act two, Scene 1 when Linda asks Mickey to help him over the gate and as he approaches her she screams ‘be gentle, be gentle†¦ ‘ Which puts him off completely! 18+: Now he seemed a lot more serious because as he’s on his own. When he’s in prison you could see him slowly going mad. The carefree attitude he used to have had now disappeared. He was always very edgy, and he barely moved. In prison he was edgy but he felt safe, once he was out of prison he got even worse. He got angry with Linda when he didn’t get his tablets and he was constantly sweating. His relationship towards Linda was reflected in his body language, as he seemed to stop showing affection towards her and never liked standing to close to any one. This distance was in contrast to the seven year old Mickey. Eddy Lyons -Mark Hutchinson: Eddy took after his mother in his accent as his was also quite posh. The tone of his voice was quite feminine and it was like this through all ages. 7-8yrs: Unlike Mickey, Eddy’s voice was quieter and his movements were timid but once he was with Mickey and wasn’t being over shadowed by his mother he could ‘let go’. A typical example of this would be when Eddy, Mickey and Linda get caught by the police throwing stones through windows, and the policeman asks him: â€Å"What’s your name? † And Eddy replies: â€Å"Adolph Hitler†! So you can see that Eddy could be brave, even more so than Mickey and Linda, he just needed to be let out of his shell. Eddy’s lexis was a lot different to Mickey’s as he used words like ‘smashing’ and ‘goodness’; whereas most of Mickey’s lexis consisted of swear words. Eddy didn’t seem to change that much from the age of 7-18 years old. He still has quite a feminine voice he just sounded matured. As he grew up Eddy spent less time on the floor so he was taller, Mickey also used this tactic. Also, Mickey didn’t influence him quite as much. Eddy’s relationship with the characters was reflected in his distance between them and his body language. When Mrs. Lyons was fidgeting over him he tried to stop her. At first the distance between him and Mrs. Johnstone was far but as the play went on they got closer showing that their relationship was growing closer. Linda – Louise Clayton: Linda 7-8yrs: She had come from the same class as Mickey so she had a Liverpudlian accent too. Her voice was quite high pitched she was also very energetic. Her gestures and the distance between her and the other characters reflected her affectionate personality and like Mickey she had no sense of personal boundaries but she was a little more gentile than Mickey was! 12-14yrs: Now she was very confident especially towards Mickey. She was constantly telling Mickey that she loved him in public even though he didn’t really like it that much. Her gestures were quite sexy towards Mickey as was her movement-swaying her hips as she walked was one example. 18+: Her tone was now a lot more mature and so were her clothes. When she went to go and visit Mickey in prison she always put on a happy face. As she was older she had more responsibilities so she wasn’t as energetic and happy as she used to be. Marriage seemed to have trapped Linda and all she wanted to do was to go back to her old carefree life. This was probably why she kissed Eddy because it was like starting again but you could always see that she still really cared for Mickey. Once Mickey was out of jail Linda tried to get close to him and to understand him but he just turned her away. The fact that she stayed with him showed just how much she cared for him. Her body language and gestures towards him weren’t as confident as they were when she was fourteen. It was Mickey who had the most comical value out of all the characters. When he first made his appearance in Act 1, Scene 2 as a seven year old, fidgeting madly and pulling his jumper over his knees it was really funny. When he was a teenager and he was trying to impress Linda he spoke in a deep voice, which made the whole audience laugh out load! When sadder moments in the play came the lights were usually blue. The final scene of the play was a mixture of passion, fear, tension and sadness. When you were sitting on the edge of your seat wondering who was going to shoot whom, you could sense the tension in the auditorium. You could see the passion between Mickey and Eddy as they found out they were brothers from just looking at their faces and the fear from Mrs. Johnstone and Mrs. , Lyons as they feared that Mickey was going to kill Eddy. I thought that the play was very thought provoking as it made you think about the social injustice of our society today. This social injustice was the plays main theme along with superstition as the narrator frequently quoted superstitions like-‘new shoes on the table’. Social Injustice is the basis of many other plays like ‘Teechers’ by John Godber. This play sends the message through the ideal of school, and the social injustice at the school. I really enjoyed the play and I would definitely go and see it again. I thought that all of the actors performed their characters brilliantly and showed absolute commitment to their role throughout the whole of the play. They seemed to have got into their characters and know them of by heart.

Kinesiology †Emotional Stress Relief †Physical Fitness (300 Level Course)

Kinesiology – Emotional Stress Relief – Physical Fitness (300 Level Course) Free Online Research Papers Kinesiology Emotional Stress Relief Physical Fitness (300 Level Course) Good health enables individuals to lead productive and fulfilling lives (Report on the health of Canadians, 1) but in today’s society, technological advancements, lack of motivation and lack of nutritional education are causing youth to become more unfit than ever before. Webster’s dictionary defines fitness as being of good health and good physical condition. This definition rarely applies to youth these days. A recent study shows that 33 percent of Canadian boys were overweight in 1996, and the number of overweight girls was 27 percent, which is also a very high percentage. (Demont, 22) Obesity is also becoming a serious problem for children. Obesity is generally defined as being at least twenty percent above the ideal body weight. Since 1981, the percentage of obese children has multiplied by five. Ten percent of boys and nine percent of girls are now considered obese. (Demont, 22) On average, the children and youth of today are unfit and unhealthy, leading to the unfit adults of tomorrow. It starts when you are a child. If you don’t get the motivation that you need to keep fit, then it is likely that the same attitude towards exercise will remain with you throughout adulthood. For an adult, it is hard to get out of long-term lifestyle patterns and into a regular exercise routine. Adults tend to have many excuses for not getting enough exercise. A few of which may be that they are too tired and stressed after a long day at work, or that they don’t have enough time because they have to cook dinner, do housework, or take care of the kids. But here is where the motivation steps in. If you’ve got to take care of the kids then why not incorporate some physical activity? Take them for a walk or go to the play ground with them. Inline skating or biking is also a great way to stay fit with your children. Parents should know what motivates their children and use that information in any way to keep their children healthy and fit. Kids need motivation to stay active just as much as adults do. It has been shown that children are more likely to want to be physically active if their parents are active. Children’s physical activity patterns tend to revolve around what they learn at home. (Pivarnik, James M., N/D) For example, if a parent is always at wor k and the child watches television and eats junk food all day, then that child is likely to develop a negative or lazy attitude, not to mention a very bad habit with regards to exercise, that will likely remain with them through adulthood. Getting a child involved in organized sports is the perfect way to keep them active and healthy. But the problem with this, sometimes, is that the family budget doesn’t allow it. Social class plays a major role in weather or not a child stays active. Children with a lower class status rarely get the same opportunities as the children of higher-class families. Availability of facilities, equipment and coaching for most programs costs a lot. (Shephard, 235) Even after school programs and community recreation centers ask for a sufficient amount of money. A lot of families simply cannot afford to put their child in such programs. Especially lower class families with multiple children. Another problem when trying to get a child into an organized sport may be their friends. Generally, children don’t want to get into a program where he or she will not know anyone. If there is no one familiar in the group, then the child is likely to take a negative attitude towards the program and in turn will not enjoy it, and possibly even quit. For a parent to motivate a young child to get into such a program, they should first consider who the child will know and weather or not they will enjoy the program. As a child grows to like a sport, gender may also cause some problems. Take a young boy in figure skating, dancing or even gymnastics for example. Society seems to shape children at an early age to think that these are â€Å"girls† sports. The same may go for a young girl in a hockey or baseball program. Unfortunately, this affects a lot of children, and even if they enjoy the sport, they may feel pressured by friends or acquaintances to quit. It gets harder to motivate someone later on in the adolescent stage because so many factors come into play. Teenagers â€Å"don’t have time† for physical activity. Social time and even study time take away from going for a walk or a bike ride. This, however, is not necessarily true for all teenagers. The ones who were motivated to start playing sports and enjoyed their time outside at an early age will always find time for physical activity. The negative attitude starts and an early age and unfortunately, it is especially hard to break a teenager from bad habits and patterns such as this. Drugs and alcohol also start to influence physical activity during the teenage years. If a teen starts to smoke, drink or do drugs, then physical fitness becomes one of the least important matters to them. They won’t have enough energy, and even breathing may be a serious problem for smokers when it comes to physical activities. This is when schools and teachers should get involved. Hopefully, by this age, children have been positively influenced by their schools, but teachers need to take an extra step when they see that a child has gotten involved with drugs and/or alcohol. Students spend the majority of their time in school, so they need positive reinforcement and role models within the system. After school programs, nutrition and health classes, and programs that educate the students about how important it is to stay fit and healthy are great ways to incorporate fitness into the school system. Most, if not all schools from junior high onward, have school sports teams. But what about the children who are not particularly good at sports? There are very few schools that have programs for students to get exercise without having to try out for a team. Physical education classes seem to be satisfactory for those students, but in a study about physical education classes in Michigan, the average P.E class keeps children active for less than twenty minutes. (Pivarnik, James M., N/D) Another study also showed that in 1998, only 10 percent of Canadian schools offered gym classes daily, and a tenth of school kids had no gym class at all. (Demont, 24) Also, durin g physical education classes, the trend seems to be that the more â€Å"athletic† students play the sports and the games, while the students who don’t particularly enjoy sports, barely participate. There should be programs available for these students. For example, an after school walking club would be particularly beneficial to students who do not enjoy sports or even for the students with health problems such as asthma. Staying fit doesn’t mean that you have to be on a team and children, especially, need to know this. A good way for a teacher to motivate their students would be to get involved in the activity. Being a good role model could include taking a group of students on an afternoon hike or casual bike ride once a week. In order to incorporate these ideas into the school system, the teachers also need to be educated about health and fitness. This, not only would help the students understand the importance, but the teacher as well would have a better understanding. The last major source of motivation comes from the community. Organized sports, recreation centers and even summer programs all help children get the physical activity that they need to stay fit. Most of the programs for younger children are very good at incorporating a lot for fun games for them to play. This is the key in keeping small children active. These activities have to be fun to keep their interest. There are great new ideas being brought up in recreation centers to keep children interested in the programs. Once a child is introduced to a sport or a program that they really enjoy, then generally, that attitude towards sports and fitness will stay with them. Activities such as swimming are almost always open to the public, so there really is no excuse as to why someone doesn’t go regularly for a swim or even a walk or run. There is rarely anything stopping someone from going. The facilities are provided, so all that is needed is the motivation. Nutrition can also play an immense role in defining fit and unfit. Poor food choices, along with lack of exercise can yield fat, unfit children (Daugherty, 2002), and even adults. Poor eating habits can lead to obesity, which can cause harmful diseases that may last an entire lifetime. There are many vast reasons that can be blamed for the increase in weight gain, and there are also plenty of techniques that can be used to increase physical activity, therefore decreasing weight gain. There are some factors that may cause people to become overweight, or obese such as genetic factors, lack of physical activity and unhealthy eating. They can all contribute to overweight children. Obesity is rarely caused by medical conditions even though many people may think this. Even if a child is brought up in a family with a weight problem does not necessarily mean that they themselves will become overweight. They very well could be at a high risk, but that could be linked to the family’s eating habits and exercise habits. Unfortunately obesity has increased in children more than 50% in the past 30 years (Daugherty, 2002), and one in every five children in the U.S. are overweight (Grayson, 2002). The reason for this drastic increase is lack of physical activity and poor food choices. There are many health risks that can be caused by obesity. High cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, early heart disease, bone problems, and skin conditions are only some of t he more serious issues that can arise. When kids realize that they are overweight, often times it’s too late and they can become discouraged and never try to improve their physical condition. To be more specific of the factors that can cause overweight and obese children, can be linked to society. Our environment has turned to high-fat, high-calorie, high-sugar, and high-salt snack foods (Daugherty, 2002). Children would much rather have a bag of chips at recess instead a little baggie of raw vegetables. In the twenty years between 1975 and 1995, visits to fast food restaurants in Canada sky rocketed by two hundred percent! (Demont, 23) Super Sized value meals at fast food restaurants are encouraged for just an extra fifty cents. For that extra fifty cents, you are not just getting more food, but hundreds of extra-unneeded calories. So, in a way, when people blame fast food restaurants for themselves and other being overweight, they may have a case. Another major factor for the weight problem for today’s kids is vending machines and soda pop machines (Boyles, 2001). Can you ever go to a school without seeing a vending and a pop machine in numerous spots all over the school? Not usually. They are in every hallway. Children consume most of their calories from pop and other sugary drinks like fruit juices. The average kid consumes thousands of calories a week in pop and fruit juices alone (Boyles, 2001). Just imagine if a child drank one can of pop every day, in the run of a week that’s approximately 2500 calories, on liquids alone. If children wish to have their pop, chips, and chocolate bars, they must do some sort of physical activity to burn most of the calories. Schools need to reinstate effective physical education programs and try to establish an active lifestyle that will continue throughout their youth and adult years. Society can also make people become more aware of health problems through campaigns and presentations to schools, work places and even hospitals. A child’s total diet and activity level can determine a child’s weight (Grayson, 2002). The eating habits children pick up at a young age will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as adults, and even though children have fewer weight-related health and medical problems than adults, overweight children have a high risk of becoming overweight adolescents and adults (Grayson, 2002). Typically, overweight youth become overweight adults (Westcott, n.d.). Even though adults have a better knowledge of a healthy lifestyle, there are still one in four adults that are obese, and three in every four adults that are overweight (Westcott, n.d.). That leaves only half the population defined to be â€Å"fit.† Parents can have a major role in their children’s eating habits and physical activity level. Let them be involved in picking out healthy choices at the grocery store and let them help prepare meals. Parents can also discourage their children from snacking all of the time, especially in front of the television. While kids watch television, they don’t realize if they are full or not, but just continuing to eat. Plan children’s snacks and prepare a healthy lunch for school hours. Television, video games, movies and computers do not help children stay active. If anything, the more time kids spend on these activities, the less time they have for physical activity. The majority of kids choose these indoor activities to playing tennis, or soccer, or even playing tag outside with their friends. On average for children, 23 hours a week is spent in front of the television, and ten hours a week is spent playing video games (Boyles, 2001). There is a constant increase of intake of calories, and unfortunately a decrease in the burning of calories, thanks to television and computers. Technology has made people lazy. How many kids still go out to play with their friends after they have eaten? Most stay home and watch television as much as they eat. And they don’t even have to get up to change the channel because we have remotes that do it for us. And on television, kids see sports figures and movie stars advertising fast food and junk foods. But not only watching television is a big influence on increasing obesity in children. Also computers, video games, and the Internet are related factors of the serious and growing issue of child and adolescent obesity. The average Canadian child watches excessive amounts of television (Bernard-Bonnin et al. 1991). The AC Nielson Company’s report on television found out that the average Canadian child watches 23 hours of television each week, and with some children watching up to five hours daily and the average adolescent watches over 20 hours of television per week. That is a lot of time spent sitting and glaring at a television and if you think about these numbers, by the time a child reaches high school, it will have spent more time watching television than in the classroom. Television is the biggest technological negative factor of child obesity as it contributes to the increased incidence of childhood and adolescent obesity (Dietz WH Jr., 1985). Watching television is an effective way of advertising products to children of various ages (Stasburger VC, 1986). So while our children watch television, they will see more than 20,000 commercials each year (Children, adolescents, and advertising, 1995). But what does a car or a financial branch commercial have to do with child obesity? The answer to that is easy. More than 60% of commercials promote sugared cereals, candy, fatty foods, and toys (Children, adolescents, and advertising, 1995) where the fat content of these advertised products exceed the current average Canadian diet and nutritional recommendations. Not only are these items high in fat, sugar, and salt, but also low in overall nutritional value and fiber (Hill Radimer, 1997). Commercials for healthy foods make up only 4% of the food adve rtisements shown during children’s viewing time. Therefore television viewing makes a substantial contribution to obesity because prime time commercials promote unhealthy dietary practices (Ostbye T et al., 1993). Not only does watching television increase the dietary energy intake in response to food advertising, but also during viewing the programs. Children who watch a lot of television are less physically fit and tend to snack more regularly. The number of hours of television viewing also corresponds with an increased relative risk of higher cholesterol levels in children (Dietz WH Beliizi MC, 1999). Eating meals while watching television should be discouraged because it may lead to poor eating habits. Television also takes away from play and exercise activities. This means the energy expenditure from displacement of physical activity is reduced. It limits children’s time to develop vital activities such as playing outside, spending time with peers and parents, participating in regular exercise, and developing other not only physical, but also mental and social skills. This chart shows that watching television has the highest percentage compared to other influences of child and adolescent obesity. Though it is not the only one. Other media, such as magazines, radio, and the Internet also have the potential to influence children’s eating, exercise and buying habits and its mental health. Even though some video games may help the development of fine motor skills and coordination, most video games have the same negative effect as watching television. The amounts spent watching television and sitting in front of the computer can also affect a child’s postural development (Salter RB, 1983), which is an important development for many physical activities. 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Free Essays on Bobbsey Twins And Magic Tree House

in there speech like â€Å"gay† and the father who’s name was Richard was referred to as â€Å"Dick†. Those types of things are just not in the books written today. The first book in the Magic Tree House series titled, Dinosaurs Before Dark is about two kids, Jack and Annie. Jack and Annie are brother and sister. They find a tree house in the woods by their house and decide to go up and investigate it. When they get up to the tree house the two children find it filled with books. W... Free Essays on Bobbsey Twins And Magic Tree House Free Essays on Bobbsey Twins And Magic Tree House Bobbsey Twins and Magic Tree House After Reading book one of the Bobbsey Twins series, The Bobbsey Twins of Lakeport, and The Magic Tree House series book one, Dinosaurs Before Dinner it became obvious to me that the time periods they were written were very different. The Bobbsey Twins of Lakeport took an immediate trip back in time. The language it was written in and also the story idea seemed very dated. In the Magic Tree House the characters and also the writing was extremely modernized. It was interesting to compare two very different times in which the books were written. When reading the Bobbsey Twins book there were many things that stuck out in my mind. The book was published in 1961 and so much of it was very dated, it reminded me of 1950's TV shows. The family had a mother and a father who played a big part in the book. The family also had a older couple named Dihah and Sam Johnson that lived upstairs in the family’s very large house. Dinah would help Mrs. Bobbsey clean the house and cook for the large family while Sam would drive a truck for Mr. Bobbsey’s lumber company. The Bobbsey family had two sets of twins, Nan and Bert and Freddie and Flossie. The children went on many adventures throughout the book. They were on the hunt for missing treasure in an old house by the school. The children got the key for the house from the principal of their school, something that would never happened in today’s books. The children also used words in there speech like â€Å"gay† and the father who’s name was Richard was re ferred to as â€Å"Dick†. Those types of things are just not in the books written today. The first book in the Magic Tree House series titled, Dinosaurs Before Dark is about two kids, Jack and Annie. Jack and Annie are brother and sister. They find a tree house in the woods by their house and decide to go up and investigate it. When they get up to the tree house the two children find it filled with books. W...

Morality of Abortion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Morality of Abortion - Essay Example Therefore, the debate between the two groups continues endlessly. Since either party fails to shake off the context-specificity of abortion, the groups on either side of abortion makes them vulnerable to each other’s critiques (Marquis 183-187). Personhood, right to life, and ethics are several recurring keywords in both the pro and contra abortion debate. Often these themes serve as the grand principles of the attempts to validate the arguments of either party on the issue of abortion. But unfortunately, these themes themselves have been contaminated by the context-specificity. In his article, â€Å"A Defense of Abortion†, though Jarvis Thompson attempts to deal with the permissibility of general abortion, he mostly hovers around some specific contexts of abortion that may draw the readers’ emotional support, and then rational, to his stance on the issue of abortion. Indeed Thompson’s approach is to establish a person’s or a woman’s right to abortion from a pure ethical point of view. He argues that since an unexpected conception of a baby in its mother’s womb due to a rape or other cases is in direct conflict with its mother’s right to choose, the mother’s choice to abortion may proved to be mean and selfish according to the existing morals of a society, but she has the right to abort the baby. Thompson’s success lies in drawing a clear dichotomy between morals and ethics on the issue of the abortion. According to him, a mother’s right to choose to deprive her unborn baby from its right to life through abortion should be based on ethics, whereas her choice to allow the baby to live in her womb is a question of her and her society’s morality. Thompson’s propounded ethics asserts that if one’s right to choice does not come into direct conflict with another’s right to life, he or she cannot be held responsible for the violation of

Business Personnel and Human Resource Management Essay

Business Personnel and Human Resource Management - Essay Example Human resource management is the management that helps in the recruitment, selection, training and development of workers in an organization to get members who can work towards achieving the goal of the organization (Aswathappa, 2005:5). Although personnel management and human resource management may seem to be the same, the difference is that personnel management deals entirely with the workforce while human resource management deals with the resources (Pangarkar, 2008:17). The organizational purpose of a company depends majorly on the human resource management. An organization that lacks good and organized human resource cannot achieve its goal. Human resource management is important because it is the management that deals with the recruitment of the workers, without which the purpose of the company cannot be achieved. If there is lack of the workforce, then the organization would not achieve its goal. It is the human resource management that deals with the selection of the newly r ecruited workers, to ensure the workers work in the fields that they can deliver their duties well. The human resource management also organizes for training to the workers to ensure they gain knowledge. The processes of recruiting selection and training of workers, all which lie under human resource management work towards accomplishing the goal of an organization; thus, human resource management have an important impact on the purpose of an organization (Weber, 2008.:51). B. Access the role and responsibilities of a line manager in the Google Company The Google Company is a company formed with the aim of making it easy for people to search for anything from the web. It is a site that understands everything that anyone searches and gives back exactly what people need. Google, being a company like any other has its organizational structure which helps in its daily operation. A line manager is the manager who is closer to the workers, who deals with the issues brought to them by empl oyees or teams and is responsible for a higher level of management for the employees (CIPD, 2013). Line managers are responsible for daily management of workers and issues affecting them. The line manager in this company is the one who manages the operational costs of the company through accessing the company’s operational expenses. Line managers should also provide technical training to the workers. They induce the workers to the job through organizing for trainings in the various job fields in the company. A line manager has the responsibility if allocating the work to different workers to ensure that the right person attends the right duty. It is also their duty to supervise the progress of the work in the company, to check for any failures in delivery of duty by the workers. They also monitor the quality of the work done to ensure that the company meets and maintains its standards. Customers in a given field of business have their needs and desires that need to be address ed. Responsibly, the line manager responds to the needs and complaints of the clients effectively to aid in realization of organizational golas. All these duties of the line manager focus on ensuring a successful progress on the company; thus it is the duty of the line manager to measure the performance of all the operations (Weber, 2008:73). C. Examine the organizational environment that impacts the HRM function in your organization, outlining the impacts of legal and