Contract Formation and Performance

Introduction

A contract is a legally binding agreement that governs the rights and duties of the involved parties to the agreement. The formation of a contract requires an offer, acceptance, consideration and a contractual capacity to come together and each party should be in a position to enter that contract. Contract performance is the act of doing that which is required by a contract.

Individuals should not be held to agreements if they did not know about them. This is because a valid contract that is enforceable under the state and the federal laws should have an offer and an acceptance (Miller & Jentz 2008). This is whereby one party makes an offer for example selling goods or services at a certain price. The other party accepts the terms and conditions of the offer and acceptance is often done by providing a signature or making a payment. A valid contract requires consideration. This means that any promises that are made by the parties have to be supported by a gain or something that is of value for consideration.

A contract should have a contractual capacity. Both parties getting into the contract according to the law must possess characteristics that make them qualified to be competent parties (Miller & Jentz 2008). This means that the involved should have a complete knowledge of the nature and impact of the contract. In terms of legality, the purpose of the contract should be to achieve an objective that is legal and one that is not against the general guidelines. The subject matter of the contract should not be illegal.

Conclusion

A contract is an agreement that involves two parties and if one party is not involved then it becomes invalid.  It typically involves the exchange of money, goods, services or promises. In order for it to be valid, the parties have to follow the contract formation and performance guidelines. Each party has to know the kind of agreements they are getting into and their impacts. Contracts should have goals that are legal.

Reference

Miller, R. L. R., & Jentz, G. A. (2008). Business law today: The essentials: text & summarized cases--e-commerce, legal, ethical, and international environment. Australia: Thomson/South-Western West.

Strengthening the customer information process at Great Western Railway

Introduction

            Rail transport has more advantages than other modes of transport in terms of effects on society and ecology. It is undergoing a transformation to respond to rising market demand leading to increased market share and continued growth than other modes. The increase in demand, however, has led to issues such as the rapid degradation of the railway tracks. Great Western Railway (GWR) manages over 197 locations and its trains serve over 270 stations. It mainly runs long-distance journeys and also offers commuter and outer suburban services.

            The mainline is undergoing extensive improvement to realize and sustain substantial passenger benefits and specifically offer more amenities and fresh connections. Electrification of routes, modernizing signaling and infrastructure, and enabling fleet upgrade will benefit passengers in all the routes. In 2019 the company introduced a new timetable together with the modernized fleet. Customers are experiencing benefits such as comfortable journeys, more services, more seats, faster journeys, and more connections.

            The improvements are as a result of increased investment, support from the customers, skilled train and freight operators, supportive line side residents, and other businesses. The company is enabling higher frequency, long-distance services, metro frequency services, and new connections through its improved services. The result: is a safer railway that enables the customer to reach their destinations safely, improved passenger and workforce safety, and reduced risk at railway crossings.

                                                            Methodology

            The methodology chosen to strengthen the customer information process at the company is a failure prevention analysis. It is a proactive tool, technique, and quality method, which enables one to identify and prevent problems before they manifest. The potential problems that could arise are prioritized according to the potential seriousness of the consequences, frequency, and early detectability. The approach recommends taking action on highest-priority issues first. With the Great Western Railway currently undertaking a revamp of its railway tracks and acquiring a new fleet, failure prevention analysis will be a useful tool. The procedure to identify potential failures included assembling a cross-functional team of diverse knowledge, identifying the scope, and filling the identified information in a chart according to priority the management should adopt.

            The Western rail covers the Thames valley to Oxford, the Cotswolds, Worcestershire, and wales. It connects some of Britain’s busiest towns. The company: operates over 2,200 trains a day, has an annual footfall of 65 million in its stations, 2,600 employees, makes over 92 million journeys a year, maintains over 2,974 kilometers of tracks, and approximately 650 level crossings. Currently, it requires about £7.5 billion investment to electrify its lines and £2.1 billion to operate, renew, and maintain existing railways.

                                                            Problems Identified

            The highest priority problem identified is safety. The company places safety at top of its priorities and endeavors to be the safest in Europe. It is devoted: to continually improve for workplace well-being through effective design and transport, refining trackside operations, manual handling, minimizing slips, trips, and falls, and focusing on expert driving. Funding for the route workforce, safety, and health optimization initiatives are also a priority for the company. The focus is on reducing fatigue among signalers and generally improving the health and safety of its entire workforce.

             Another problem identified in the process is improving customer service. The company aims to delight its customers by asset dependability, quality in operations, robust timetables, and collective working with all stakeholders. Customer feedback is important to ensure the punctuality of trains at all recorded train stations. Serving over 20,000 customers a day from the world's busiest airport Heathrow while supporting over 114,000 local jobs, the company strives to ensure services to the airport are optimal through the Heathrow Express and MTR Crossrail. In 2016, the company established a partnership with GWR for improvement in operations, human resources, commercial development, and safety and communications.

            The third problem identified is maintaining a good working relationship and safety of the train and freight operating partners. The Western Route is the second-busiest line into the city of London in the United Kingdom. It contributes approximately £30 billion to the GDP of the country annually. Therefore, it is a crucial component to support vital industries in the port of Bristol, Swindon, Oxford, Somerset, and Berkshire. It is crucial to cut the time of the journeys with the New Elizabeth line expected to do so by sustaining longer Class 345 trains, direct links, and resulting in journeys from Paddington to Liverpool Street in 10 minutes. Another core issue identified is making their services affordable and efficient. Refurbishing and preserving the railway is a priority to ensure it is safe, dependable, and inexpensive. Some of the lines were built during Victorian times meaning repair and renewal is a priority. The process has to cause minimal disturbances to operators and passengers to improve reliability and make it more affordable to passengers.

            Another priority identified is continuing to support jobs, housing, and growth. The western route offers rail and freight services to essential, vibrant, and developing economies. It is important to the housing and overall growth in the Thames valley and the South West. Another problem identified is maintaining a great workforce with a great culture. The workforce is a valued asset and the company must continue to invest in their development to enable them to achieve optimal potential possible. Finally, is investing in the future of the Great Western rail franchise. The Department for Transport is currently reviewing the rail franchise. Supporting the initiative is important to the future of the Western Rail Franchise. Preparing accordingly and implementing decisions made by the government will determine the future and service levels secure the future of the Great Western franchise.

                                                Ideas for improvement

             Efficient and timely communications within any organization is one of the factors that have been realized to increase productivity between each team. The reason for that is because it increases the morale of the workers and that of the customers that they serve. The channels used and the type of communication also has the propensity of improving working relations. The Department of Transport is mandated to come up with better industry programs. The significance of such programs is the one that can aid in the modernization of the Great Western Route. Within that route, the integration of the trains, operator license, and infrastructure program are perceived to enable the industry to offer considerable benefits to all passengers (Sathiakumar et al., 2014, p.170).

             Conversely, the mechanisms that are used for delivering critical information to colleagues and customers should be based on the recommended protocols.  Following that will ensure that all workers are committed to improving the services that they offer. The dependence of bespoke information will also be easier in delivering the required information to customer locations. Regardless of the means of communication that is being utilized by the organization, it is important to take into consideration the responses that customers have regarding the services that do receive. By considering that, it means that the management authority of the company will have the propensity of responding to customers' complaints on time (Bissell & Dolan, 2011, p.50). The information is to be dispatched to each potential customer should have to be based on individual requirements. What this implies is the fact that the management authority should ensure that each employee has complied with the requirements that were laid upon i9n making the organization to prosper. In this case, there should be a balance between the responses being given and how each customer responds to them.  This paramount because it will enable the company to recognize any issue that might evolve soon (Sathiakumar et al., 2014, p.170).

             As a means of modernizing the perspective of the company, it is paramount for the organization of the Great Western Railway to provide the means for servicing those customers who could have been dissatisfied with their services. Some of the government-funded programs should also be aimed at supporting the dissemination of customer complainants to the organization. For the essence of a satisfactory conclusion, the focus of the transpiration industry should embrace the need and the significance of offering various reliable websites to customers that can improve the service that they offer to them. Equally, instead of depending on automated announcements, manual dissemination of critical information should also be considered.

            The same should be based on the essence of ensuring that front-line staff members have been provided with updated information that they can later relay to customers. Furthermore, the management authority of the company needs to ensure that all its operators have maintained transparency and honesty with the information that they will be relaying to the esteemed customers (Bissell & Dolan, 2011, p.50). Because of that, it will be easier for their customers to understand the reason for transpiration or train booking delays. This is what will enable the customers that have trust with the company to make informed choices when disruptions or delays do occur.

            Conversely, throughout the world, it has been realized that the railway organization has been making significant efforts in ensuring that customer information has been disseminated as required. Therefore, with the case of the Great Western railway, it is important to facilitate the use of the available channels in enhancing the growth of the organization. Public communication the enterprise and the use of modern social networks have the likelihood of improving the safety and the reliability of the information being sent to them. For the delaying of passengers, it is important for the operators to ensure that they have provided timely information on their recommended websites (Peng, 2011, p.146). The reason for that is because is the one that can enable them to adjust their traveling time as required.

                        Significance of the tool used: A failure prevention analysis

             The use of the failure analysis is important because it provides the methodologies for determining what is required to rectify or prevent the failure of the organization. As a result of that, it was possible to project some of the liabilities of the company and the workers in improving the transportation services being provided.  Ideally, the use of this indicates that it offers the propensity of enabling the researcher to come up with better prevention measures. With those measures, it means that it was possible to identify some of the available issues within the company that will have to be resolved (Mcevily, 2002, p.2). For instance, it was easier to recognize the fact that the enterprise needs to provide automated compensation information to all customers who could have received transportation delays.   The compensation that is being made should be based on the effectiveness of the information that is to be sent by the organization as well as the provision of approved claim forms.

References

BISSELL, GAVIN, & DOLAN, PETER. (2011). Organisational Behaviour for Social Work. Policy Pr. Bissell, Gavin.; Dolan, Peter

MCEVILY, A. J. (2002). Metal failures: mechanisms, analysis, prevention. New York, Wiley. http://www.aspresolver.com/aspresolver.asp?ENGV;2109927.

PENG, G. (2011). Inter-organizational information exchange, supply chain compliance and performance. Wageningen, Wageningen Academic Publ.

SATHIAKUMAR, S., AWASTHI, L. K., MASILLAMANI, M. R., & SRIDHAR, S. S. (2014). Proceedings of International Conference on Internet Computing and Information Communications: ICICIC Global 2012. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-1299-7.

American Postal Workers Union

Representation of the Union

The American postal workers union is union (APWU) is tasked with the mandate of fighting for respect and dignity of postal workers in the postal industry (Quinnell, 2018). Members of the union are marketing postal clerks, mailing processors and sorters, structure as well as equipment upkeep, supervisory workers, truck drivers and mechanics, data technology workers and nurses. The union has a total of 222,000 members, assets worth seventy two million dollars, and 240 employees as of now (Quinnell, 2018). The primary industry which the union fights for is the transportation and warehousing.

History of the Union

The union was founded on July 1, 1971, after five postal unions amalgamated after the great postal strike in the year 1970 (APWU, 2020). The merger involved two largest unions which were the United Federation of Postal Clerks (UFPC) and National Postal Union (NPU) (APWU, 2020). The UFPC Clerks main aim was the representation of employees organised and managed mails. On the other hand, the NPU epitomised postal workers in different skills. In addition, three other unions The National Association of Post Office and General Service Maintenance Employees, the National Federation of Vehicle Employees as well as National Association of Special Delivery Messengers later on merged with APWU (APWU, 2020).  The Great Postal Strike led to the adoption of collective bargaining agreement, which had not been the case before, owing to the fact that early postal unions relied on the impulses of the Congress for wage increase. This consequently led to the underpayment of postal workers whose salary could not sustain their needs. The Great Postal Strike was as a result of the Congress’ laxity when it came to matters employees salary increment. The strike led to a standstill in mail services across the country hence bringing postal workers grievances to public attention. The strike ended after the Congress approved wage increase as well other benefits by 6% for postal workers (APWU, 2020). The strike encouraged the enactment of postal acts which allowed the union rights to negotiate over their salaries and working surroundings with the management.

Mission/goals of the Union

After the first contract in the year1970, which has lasted for more than 50 years, APWU has continued to fight for self-respect and respect on jobs for its members as well as good salaries, benefits and finally proper and safe working conditions (Quinnell, 2018). This move has consequently enabled the union to achieve tremendous job security requirements.  For that reason, postal workers have worked peacefully according to the requirements of the act. Besides the union also works in accordance with its mission which is fighting for a proper pay for its employees, defending the rights of the people to the public postal service and in harmony with all personnel both at home and abroad (Perlmutter, 2016). The union does not however achieve this on its own, but with the aid of the combined bargaining agreement, statutory action and deployment of its members and the general public. In so doing, the union seeks to reach the following goals, preparing local workers appropriately to partake in the ergonomic menace reduction process and finding tasks and situations where musculoskeletal disorders incidents are likely to occur and develop as well as implement proper control measures to reduce such incidences.

Recent Actions the Union has been involved In

Currently APWU has partnered with A Grand Alliance to Save Our Public Postal Service whose main aim is to aid in the prevention of dismantling of United States Postal Service (USPS) (Quinnell, 2018). Likewise, APWU currently has multiple campaigns whose aim is to safeguard workers and clients of USPS, which include fighting in contradiction of privation, for an impartial and decent agreement shielding their whole negotiating unit, against closure of post office, and to endorse harmless postal jobs. Through the help of the commonality movement, APWU was able to lead a fruitful fight in contradiction of the denationalization of postal marketing services. In addition, APWU is also advocating for postal banking, in a bid to enlarge rudimentary financial services to those whose requirements are not met by the commercial dominated monetary sector (Perlmutter, 2016).

Benefits Provided by the Union

On the other hand, the union has also been linked to multiple community efforts such as the provision of insurance and disbursement of benefits to postal employees as well as their relatives in the event of unintentional death or infirmity, through the American Postal Workers Accident benefit Association. Furthermore, the union also provides scholarship programs for APWU member’s children in order to undertake industrialised, trade, mechanical, and job-related occupations (Quinnell, 2018). Similarly, the Union also has a relief fund for its employees, whose objective is to help employees together with their families to recuperate from natural calamities and disasters which may include house fires (Perlmutter, 2016). Lastly the union also encourages strong associations and common connections between employment and civil rights societies. In so doing, the union is able to not only advocate for employees’ salary increment, but to also cushion them from other factors which may negatively impact their lives. Henceforth, members of the union together with their can live happily without the fear of losing their jobs, or being affected by disasters.

Reference

Quinnell, K. (2018). Get to Know AFL-CIO’s Affiliates: American Postal Workers Union. AFL-CIO America’s Unions. Retrieved from: https://aflcio.org/2019/4/8/get-know-afl-cios-affiliates-american-postal-workers-union

Perlmutter, M. (2016). THE IMPORTANCE OF ALIGNING THE U.S. POST OFFICE CLOSURE PROCESS WITH GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT IDEALS. Public Contract Law Journal, 45(4), 695-714. doi:10.2307/26504278

APWU. (2020). APWU History. American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO. Retrieved from: https://www.apwu.org/apwu-history

 Management information system

Introduction

              I have the essential knowledge about management information systems, and with this knowledge, I can manage the company's information system effectively.  A management information system is my chosen career because industries have implemented digital technologies to increase growth and drive a competitive edge. Many industries are using information technology (IT), and they are taking advantage of technology in managing the information.  I always wanted to study information management systems, and after my study, I have realized that demand for professionals of management information system is high.  I have the necessary knowledge and skills to position me for the management information systems careers.  In particular, I want to be a system analyst because I am suited for the job.  First, I want to analyze the organization needs, and utilize the IT in making things function efficiently.  My skills and aptitudes, such as critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and interpersonal communication, will enable to solve business problems.  Generally, management information system career is the right for me because I like the safe working environment, higher wages, more employment, advancement, and flexibility.

Skills, aptitude

 Management is a managerial function which entails planning, organizing people and activities, controlling, and directing.  Information is the data needed by the organization decision-makers for planning and control. The system is the combination of elements that forms the interconnecting network and work together for a common purpose.  The management information system is a system that provides information to the organization to aid in decision making, operations, and management (Cheney et al.1990).  In recent times, all organizations store data information and manage people using information technology.   People may think that businesses consider money, people, and equipment as the most important resources in the organization. However, it is important to note that in today's business environment, information is considered as an important resource to achieve a competitive advantage (Cheney et al.1990).  

Another important point is that technology has increased the global economy, and every organization must understand the information system to understand economic changes as a result of global competition. As a business professional, I believe that in the organization I will work in, I will be expected to provide information to the organization concerning the changes in technology, global competition, product life cycle, and other functional areas.  To fit in this job, I have technology skills, analytical skills, and managerial skills (IDES, n.d). The technological skills will help provide information system solution, and apply the innovative technique to help the organization work effectively.  Analytical skills will aid in analyzing business process and complex issues.  Managerial skills will aid in gathering data from different functional areas and evaluate the needed changes (IDES, n.d).  Altogether, I understand that modern industries need a diverse skill set, and luckily, I will be able to work in management information systems career because I have the critical skills required.

Job market

 The job market is another factor that motivated me to choose management information system as my future career.  Focusing on the job outlook, demand for professionals in a management information system is very high. This is because businesses cannot ignore technology, and this indicates that managers who can manage information are needed.  The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the demand for manages for information system will increase by 7% by 2026. Rising demand is the major reason that made me consider management information systems as a lucrative job (Yew, 2008).  My focus is not only on a lucrative job, but I am also interested in opportunities. My degree in management information systems will give an in-depth look into other areas such as IT governance, IT project management, and more.  It is important to note that I decided to study management information systems since I was aware that students could transfer the knowledge in different functional areas. In other words, I can enter the industry and interpret business problems and offer technical solutions in different areas (Yew, 2008).  Even though I look forward to being a systems analyst, I can also my knowledge and skills in other areas such as computer systems administrators, database administrators, app developer, software engineer, and other roles (Yew, 2008).  I have also analyzed the market demand and found that there is the offshoring of IT tasks, or in other words, jobs such as detailed design, system maintenance and support, and others will move offshore.

Working hours, working environment and level of happiness

Another factors that made me believe that Management information system will help me lead a satisfying life are working hours and working environment. First, I will achieve my overall happiness as a result of social interactions.  Management information systems is a career that forms an interconnecting network of technicians and programmers who work together toward a common goal.  In other words, people work as a group and through communicating and interaction they create interpersonal relationships (CareerProfiles.info, 2020).  Focusing on physical work conditions, professionals in information systems work indoors. I like the indoor positioning system because I do not want to achieve job satisfying through salary alone, but I also look forward to a controlled work environment.  I will be safe from hot sunshine,  I will learn more about time management,  I will be punctual and discipline, I will improve my interpersonal skills,  I will maintain excellent relations with colleagues, and above all, I will enjoy privacy. On working hours, I will spend a minimum of 40 hours per week.  This time will be enough in resolving disputes and creating technical goals, and even achieving work and life balance.

Earnings, budget and lifestyle, and cost of living

 The annual salary for technical managers from 2019 is $145,600.  This salary will contribute to my overall well-being in terms of wealth, comfort, and quality of life.  I will afford housing, electricity, health insurance, good education for my children, and I will meet all my basic needs (Allergretto, 2005).  In general, the salary will provide economic stability.  I will break my budget into housing (decent and structurally safe house), food (adequate nutritional diet), transportation, child care, health care, and other necessities such as personal care expenses.

Conclusion

 The management information systems will fit me. After conducting research, I am satisfied with the job opportunities, work environment, salary, job outlook, interpersonal relations, work conditions, and working hours. The management information system will be suitable for me, and I look forward to applying the technology to benefit the companies. With my technical knowledge, I look forward to exceptional job opportunities.

References

Allergretto Sylvia. (2005). Basic family budgets.  Economic Policy Institute.  Retrieved from: https://www.epi.org/publication/bp165/

CareerProfiles.info. (2020).  Computer and Information System Manager. Retrieved from: https://www.careerprofiles.info/computer-manager-career.html

 Cheney, P. H., Hale, D. P., & Kasper, G. M. (1990). Knowledge, skills and abilities of information systems

professionals: past, present, and future. Information & Management, 19(4), 237-247.

  Employment Development Department. (2020). Computer and Information Systems in Alameda County.  Retrieved from:  https://www.labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/OccGuides/Detail.aspx?Soccode=113021&geography=0604000001

Illinois Department of Employment Security. (IDES).  Computer and Information systems managers.  Retrieved from:  https://apps.il-work-net.com/cis/clusters/OccupationDetails/100043?parentId=110400&section=skills&sectionTitle=Skills%20and%20Abilities

Yew, B. K. (2008). A perspective on a management information systems (MIS) program review. Journal of

Information Technology Education: Research, 7(1), 299-314.

Impact of HR on employee motivation

Introduction

Organizations greatly rely on the relationships that exist between their employees and customers. Various human, financial, physical and human resources are employed together to help accomplish the target objectives. Since employees bear the responsibility of ensuring the goals set are achieved, businesses must come up with ways to ensure that employees are enthusiastic and that they remain motivated enough to perform their duties to the best of their capabilities. The importance of employees is also evident in businesses operating in the same industry where they have similar materials, resources, products and services because the employees act as the differentiation factor. In such an environment, an organization can set itself apart by training its employees to perform better and outdo other organizations. the human resource should therefore ensure that the employee needs are satisfied accordingly. Depending on how it is implemented, human resource management can have both a positive and negative impact on how an organization influences employee motivation.

            The major goal for human resource management is to increase organizational performance and ensure that objectives are met in the stipulated time frame. There is however insufficient research on the impact that human resource management has on employee motivation. Human resource management refers to practices and policies that are implemented within an organization with the aim to improve organizational performance as well as enhance employee satisfaction with the organization and their overall well-being (Chelniciuc, 2014). There is therefore the need for the management to develop a better understanding of what employees expect from the organization and how best to deliver it. Other than focusing on how to satisfy customer needs and wants, organizations must also identify the employees needs and find a way to satisfy them.

Positive and negative impacts of HR

The best approach to use to better understand employees is through the goal setting theory. The theory is based on the premise that employees consider their goals and that of the organization as the determining factor for how much effort they put into performing tasks and the kind of attitude developed when performing duties (Hadziahmetovic & Ozlen, 2013). When the goals are kept specific, employees tend to be more enthusiastic when performing them and strive to produce the best results. Accomplishing goals also acts as the bar that employees use to gauge their performance and rising above it brings more satisfaction and commitment towards satisfying future goals (Chelniciuc, 2014). The theory further suggests that people have positive attitudes towards their management and the entire organization in general when there is exchange of information and communication channels that allow for constructive feedback.

            There are however occurrences where policies and practices dictated by the human resource fail to motivate employees. Organizations often have to balance its needs, the needs of its employees and those from the customers. The challenge arises as a result of people’s shifting needs and preferences (Sarker, 2016). It is therefore crucial to ensure that the employees are involved in the policy making process as this ensures that the decisions reached by the HR are influenced by the contributions given by the employees as well as input from the human resource manager.

One approach that an organization could take to ensure that its human resource has a positive impact on employees is through training. Most organizations regard training as a priority because it is the best way to equip employees with the skills and knowledge, they need to become better at performing duties (Sarker, 2016). It also helps to bridge the gap between employees and top management as it creates an environment where employees from different departments can interact. In order to positively influence employees, the organization should seek to make sure that the employees’ goals are in line with the organizational goals (Hadziahmetovic & Ozlen, 2013). When the organizational goals are in line with those of the employees, satisfying any goal gives the employees a sense of fulfilment and satisfaction. They are therefore more likely to commit to satisfying goals set by the organizations as they are motivated by the fact that it will have a positive impact on their personal goals.

Although training is conducted to improve employee performance, the approach taken by human resource management could have a negative impact on employee performance. An example of this is the case where the training becomes another responsibility for the employee to bear (Bako, 2018). Employees often have a busy workload performing their duties. The introduction of training can be seen as an added responsibility that the employee has to bear. When viewed as an added chore, employees are more likely to become demoralized and this could negatively affect their overall performance.

Human resource can however come up with measures to ensure that employees do not develop positive attitudes towards the training. Informing employees early in advance could help motivate them as thy will have ample time to prepare their schedules such that they work around the new changes introduced (Lackmaker et al, 2015). Another approach would be to use in job training rather than waiting till an employee’s shift is over. Training through in job has a lower chance of adding employee responsibilities because the employees works for the same hours as they would on a normal day (Lackmaker et al, 2015). In job training has an added advantage in that the training is through real life scenarios that occur in the employees’ line of work. It therefore helps employees to achieve their personal goals by making them better at performing their jobs and this can be highly motivational.

Human resource management can also incorporate the use of equity theory to come up with ways to ensure that they positively influence employee. The theory argues that employees have the tendency to develop a mental ledger of their daily activities. The mental ledger is used to weigh the employee contributions to the organization compared to the different ways the organization rewards the employee for their exceptional work (Bach & Edwards, 2012). When the output is more than the reward, employees are likely to develop a negative attitude and become demoralized. Lack of reward communicates to the employee that any extra effort will not be rewarded. Such a working environment discourages employees from exceeding their abilities and only perform their average best (Frederickson & Stazyk, 2018). The lack of motivation could affect performance especially in organizations that rely on employee innovations and ideas. When the rewards are in plenty however, employees are highly motivated and are likely to try and do more than is expected of them (Hadziahmetovic & Ozlen, 2013). Human resource management can therefore rely on rewards to communicate to employees that their effort is noted and appreciated; and also align the organization’s interests with those for the employees.

Motivating employees can help boost performance and should therefore use human resource management to identify internal and external factors that can be manipulated to increase job performance. In order to yield positive results, HR could focus on motivational forces such as employee self-efficacy to help boost employee confidence (Smerek, 2017). The level of confidence that employees possesses when performing their duties greatly influences performance. Confident employees are more likely to be innovative and tend to be better at performing duties at the workplace. Confidence enables employees to seek out better ways to reach the objectives set and in so doing, become innovative and promote organizational development.

The management should however ensure that the approaches used under human resource management do not create a competitive environment. Self-efficacy can create aggressive competition which could discourage teamwork. The innovative approaches that employees take on by themselves could also lead the organization away from the set objectives if left unchecked (Stone, 2017). Management should therefore use HR to ensure that constructive feedback is provided and that employees have guideline to follow even when being innovative.

Motivation can also be achieved through team building activities aimed at improving performance. Often times, employees are restricted to working within their departments and rarely interact with one another. Interaction is therefore limited and this discourages teamwork between departments (Stone, 2017). Through human resource management, department heads can come up with activities that help employees to intermingle and get to know one another. Team building activities also help improve communication as they create an environment ideal for interacting with people from different departments. To management get to interact with junior staff and this makes it easier to exchange ideas even in the workplace.

On the positive side, team building takes employees from their usual routine and allows for interaction on a less formal setting. It also helps to break workplace monotony as employees are exposed to new experiences other than their job requirement. Team building further promotes innovation as it gets people with different opinions together and encourages them to brainstorm on ideas that will be beneficial for both the employees and the organization in general (Aswathappa, 2005). The exposure promotes personal growth and this is highly motivational as employees are assisted in fulfilling their personal goals as a result. Helping employees to achieve their personal goals his motivational as it is seen as a reflection of the organization’s commitment to help its employees become better not just at their jobs but in life.

            There is however the risk that team building activities could affect the nature of relationships that exist between employees and the management. The interaction between top management and junior staff could reduce professionalism especially when team building drifts too much from the organizational objectives. In most organizations, the professionalism and respect reserved for top management makes it easier to maintain order (Hadziahmetovic & Ozlen, 2013). When the line between top management and other employees is blurred, the interactions could affect the management structure used. Hierarchies could be broken down as a result and employees may become difficult to manage in the event they lose respect for the top management. It is recommended that organizations find a way to strike a balance between team building and professionalism. Leaders must therefore maintain their influence over employees without affecting the managerial hierarchies used to govern the organization.

            Human resource management can also be used as a motivational tool by encouraging teamwork. The environment that an organization operates in is subject to change from time to time. the change is caused by internal factors that the organization may or may not have control over. In order to remain competitive, organizations can structure their human resource policy to foster teamwork within the organization (Smerek, 2017). When working in teams, employees can share ideas on how to approach a specific objective and how to be more innovative. Rather than having an individual or one department assigned to a specific task, HR can create an environment where employees consult with one another regarding some aspects of the business and work together to accomplish the set objectives. When employees work as a team, they are more likely to be motivated especially if the teams have a positive impact on their job performance (Stone, 2017). Difficult tasks are easily undertaken when teamwork is employed because members of the team brainstorm on the various approaches that can be used to resolve the issue. Although not all ideas generated from teams are implemented, exposure to such an environment trains employee to take on different approaches when tasked with a duty and not limit their approach to only what they know.

Teamwork can however demoralize employees especially in cases where some members of the team do not play their part. Since most teams are assessed as a unit and not on the contributions from each member of the team, some employees may neglect their responsibility and force other teammates to bear the burden (Smerek, 2017). Such an environment can have a negative impact on employee morale and some may lose the motivation to perform beyond what is expected of them. Human Resource management policies should strive to ensure that each employee allocated in teams play their part so as to avoid placing others at a disadvantage.

Conclusion

            Organizations exist to satisfy their goals and objectives and the responsibility usually falls to the employees. While the sole purpose of employees is to ensure that the organization meets its goals in the given time frame, personal goals are held in the same regard and satisfying them is what motivates employees to keep working. In order to remain operational organizations must find a way to align their interests with those of the employees. This will make the employees feel part of the organization and in so doing, make its interests their own. When employees are part of the organization, any form of progress or growth is seen as a reflection of the employees’ growth. The Human resource department should therefore ensure that employee interests are addressed with the same urgency as organizational interests as this will motivate employees to work towards promoting organizational growth.

References

Aswathappa, K. (2005). Human resource and personnel management: Text and cases. New         Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

Bach, S., & Edwards, M. R. (2012). Managing human resources: Human resource            management in transition. West Sussex, UK. John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Bako A, (2018) “The positive and negative effects of job satisfaction on employees’         performance in an organization” Australian Journal of Commerce Study, retrieved      from,             https://www.academia.edu/9617953/The_Positive_and_Negative_Effects_of_Job_Sat            isfaction_on_Employee_s_Performance_in_an_Organization

Chelnicius A, (2014) “What is more effective for motivating the employees: Positive or    negative motivation?” The KPI Institute, retrieved from,         https://www.performancemagazine.org/what-is-more-effective-in-motivating-the-    employees-positive-or-negative-motivation/

Hadziahmetovic N and Ozlen K, (2013) “The role of Human Resource Management in     employee motivation” ResearchGate, retrieved from,             https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270904630_The_Role_of_Human_Resourc            e_Management_in_Employee_Motivation

Nielsen, K., Lackmaker, J., Saari, E., Isaksson, K., & Nielsen, M. B. (2015). Resource: A literature review on the relationship between resources, employees well-being and         performance with specific attention to Nordic issues. Copenhagen K: Nordic Council          of Ministers.

Sarker F, (2016) “The impact of motivation on the performance of employees” GRIN,      retrieved from, https://www.grin.com/document/376007

Smerek, L. (June 07, 2017). Changing the Corporate Culture Towards the Human Resources             Development. Mura, Ladislav

Stazyk, E. C., and Frederickson, H. G. (2018). Handbook of American public administration.       Cheltenham, UK. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd

Stone, R. J. (2017). Human resource management. Milton, Qld. Wiley

Decentralization

Decentralization denotes a specified form of an association’s structure where executive responsibilities are delegated to the employees by the management of the company. Henceforth allowing the management of the company to focus on critical matters. In so doing, the business promotes maximum participation from the employees thus increasing profits. Similarly, decentralization encourages team work, which is responsible for maximum work output from the employees. As such, this form of governance has aided most companies in dealing with obstacles, through comping up with new ideas of dealing with the challenges they face. On the other hand, decentralization also has its own drawbacks for instance, some employees may joyride on the effort of others. This consequently brings up the issue of underperformance from some employees within the company. For that reason, this paper will basically focus on the benefits as well as problems associated with decentralization.

Decentralization is significant particularly in a company whose leader is a dictator, simply because it reduces the chances of making mistakes. This is so because solutions generated by more than one person are better as compared to those generated by a single person. A group of people working together to solve a common problem are very effective as opposed to one person. A single person may have limited remedies to the problem, whereas a group of people will have multiple solutions to the problems. This in turn helps in improving customer service and the quality of products or goods being sold by the company.

Secondly, decentralization, leads to the delegation of power, from the top level to the lower level of the company’s management. This brings about the distribution of tasks from the manager to the employees, thereby giving them the authority to come up with different ideas of improving performance. The director of the company, is then allowed to deal with critical issues facing the company, such as competition from other companies, raising essential finance, and starting new businesses. Delegation of tasks boosts the morale of the employee, which encourages maximum cooperation from the employees. In addition, this improves employee supervision, since all the employees will be busy with the tasks assigned to them, thus allowing the company to run smoothly.  

In case of an emergency, in the event that the owner of the business is far from the office, the employees can come up with a common idea of handling the situation. Employees in a decentralized company are well adapted to decision making thus they may not rely wait for orders from their manager. This consequently enables the company to tackle issues of urgent concern within the shortest time possible, hence wasting limited time in handling disasters. The manager’s absentia may not therefore affect day to day running of activities in the company. The productivity of the company may not be compromised under any circumstance.

Time management in a company is critical, as it enables the company to achieve its goals. Delegating tasks to the employees enables the management of the company to manage time, through allowing them to focus on key issues facing the company. For instance, the employees may focus on improving customer services, thereby coming up with multiple solutions, since they deal with clients directly. As a matter of fact, the issue of customer satisfaction will be dealt with on a single day, in that way the company improves the delivery of services, which leads to increased profits. The management of the company is also able to point out the challenges facing different departments in the company, through analyzing the performance of each teams.

In as much as decentralization may be advantageous to the performance of a company, it has a significant number of drawbacks, which include the following.  Among the drawbacks associated with decentralization is horizontal dilemma (Sanford, 2). Horizontal dilemma, is whereby decision making is delegated from the manager right to the lowest department in the company. As was the case wit Sears and Roebuck, the store managers ended up making decisions which negatively impacted the future of the company. In a bid to show the management of the company how effective they were, the store managers would advertise a product at a cheaper price. Afterwards, they would stock limited amounts of the products, hence selling out in the morning hours. Clients would then arrive at the store only to find the products sold out, and they would then opt to purchase expensive products.

Horizontal dilemma consequently depicted the desperation of the store managers, since they were tasked with the mandate of producing great results. This move was however not beneficial to the company, as it led to a bad reputation. In addition, this displayed incompetence from the managers, since they did not take part in the implementation of such decisions, which eventually led to huge losses. Similarly, this may lead to conflicts within the company, due to divisions between heads of different teams. Managers in different teams within the company may come up with decisions which may undermine the decisions of their counterparts, hence negatively impacting the general performance of the company.

Decentralization leads to the replication of staff effort, consequently each team must be independent, with its own purchasing and marketing staffs. This increases costs within the company, since the company will be required to pay more employees. Furthermore, the cost of running employees’ teams may also be high, thus interfering with the with the company’s budget. In order to run such teams highly paid managers should also be appointed, a process which makes it costly for the company. In addition, this leads to problems with hierarchy whereby managers on the lower level may abuse their powers. Employee-employee relationship may consequently be at risk, since some employees may feel superior to others a move which leads to underperformance.

The company may also experience poor coordination since even procedures may not be followed. Low level managers tend to come up with their own rules and guidelines, which may conflict with those of top-level managers. The flow of information from the manager to different departments within the company may therefore be affected, a process which eventually affects work output. Finally, in situations where the market changes rapidly, it is difficult to adapt decentralization. This is so for the reason that tactical decisions can only be made by the top-level manager. Henceforth decentralization of power within a company, requires a careful consideration of factors which matter the most within the company, in order to protect it from incurring unwanted costs. In general, employees in different teams may not have a common goal which may eventually affect the flow of ideas in the teams.      

Homeownership

Introduction

Housing is a basic necessity and decisions on renting or property ownership are influenced by social, psychological, and macroeconomic factors. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, people need health, clothing, and shelter and once they meet these physiological needs, they shift to the next needs such as safety, love, and more. Due to technological development, people are so busy to an extent they consider rental property. For example in Sri Lanka, renting is considered significant since the country has many factories and educational institutions. Supporters of renting argue that renting is better in that renters meet their requirements and personal preferences such as location, neighborhood, space, kitchen facilities, among other features.  However, it would a big mistake to ignore the intangible benefits of houseownership. Today, policymakers and housing experts have realized that American families are building wealth through homeownership. This is because, homeownership provides financial prosperity, residential stability, property values, social capital, housing security, and other variety of benefits. While renting a house may seem to be the best decision due to access to amenities and more flexibility, it is important to consider homeownership and enjoy the economic, financial, and social benefits.

 House is a fundamental need and therefore a good housing should provide adequate protection, security, good health, and privacy.  Today, economists have increased or supported the rent dwellings on the basis that renting properties are unique with different prices, and different attributes such as toilets, water supply, swimming pools, electricity, neighborhoods, open space, recreational park, and other physical attributes (Wickramaarachchi, 2015).  Tenants believe that when they rent, they do not worry about the maintenance, or think about things that need to be modernized.  Unlike homeowners who think about adding value to the house, tenants will not have such thoughts and there is no cost of property taxes, insurance, and other extra costs. There is another benefit of flexibility which means that if the tenants feel like changing the personal life, it is easier to move without being involved in endless processes (Wickramaarachchi, 2015).  Besides, people opt to rent by looking at economic aspects such as home deprecation, and mortgage stress. For example, when the level of unemployment is high, homeowners rely on mortgage payments. During an economic decline, homeowners may be unable to keep their houses in good quality and also reduce the sense of security and control. In general, proponents of renting are aware of these negative homeownership experiences and they are aware that the benefits of homeownership may change (Wickramaarachchi, 2015). They argue on the basis that the recession (unemployment and loss of home equity) may contribute to loss of estate values which then leads to psychological stress.

While proponents of renting believe that renting is a better choice, it is important to note that beyond the benefits of renting such as maximization of tax, amenities, accessibility, and optionality, houseownership is justified on the grounds of social benefits.  Forget about the amenities such as pools, laundry facilities, dryer, playground, and focus on the shared community amenities such as security and social connections. I believe that houseownership should be encouraged because of the social capital.  From a socioeconomic perspective, social capital is the root cause of social support, social cohesion, and societal wellbeing. These benefits are experienced at the individual level in that when the homeowners join hands in improving the living condition, and security, individuals develops a higher life satisfaction. The government should realize these absolute benefits and make homeownership a key policy. In other words. The Department of Housing should support homeownership and make it a social norm.  Note that low-income families will meet the unexpected benefit of good family functioning.  The family becomes more stable and as a result of stability, children will attend good schools and increase performance. In general, families will gain well-being and happiness as a result of a sense of control. Another important point is that even the community will benefit from the social capital in that as homeownership rate increases, there will be a reduction in crime rates, vandalism, litter, and more. What will happen is that homeowners will focus on increasing on neighborhood revitalization, renovation, and redevelopment.  Generally, homeownership should be encouraged to promote wealth creation which then leads to higher life satisfaction, quality health care, and civic engagement.  Also, it is important to realize benefits such as residential stability, quality housing, amenities, and a sense of control.

 Today, a large percentage of people strongly agree that homeownership is associated with financial, political, and economic gain.  For example, a survey conducted in 2011 found that 81% said that homeownership is associated with long-term investment.  Another survey done from June 2010 to October 20111 found that 87% said that homeownership creates a financial sense. On political benefits, it is important to note that people create community groups that encourage each individual to participate in voting, local election, among other processes. Homeowners also enjoy economic benefits and financial security through wealth generation.  For example, homeowners have a high net worth than renters. The net worth is received from mortgage payments and this means that the owners can live a higher standard of living and they can access other services such as quality health.  It is also important to understand the benefits that homeowners enjoy at old age. Note that when they get old or when they experience unanticipated changes, they benefit from a generous welfare state and financial security.  In general, homeownership will remain to be the source of wealth accumulation.  The government should intervene in encouraging homeownership especially to the low-income earners and help them enjoy the economic and financial benefits. Note that in the past, low-income earners could not get qualify for a loan. However, low-income borrowers qualify for a loan and own a home.

Conclusion

 The government should come up with housing policy interventions that encourage homeownership.  I understand that homeownership is more than social ideology and this means that the government should apply economic ideologies to ensure that future generations have access to homeownership. Although tenants enjoy flexibility, and low upfront costs, owning a home is the best decision. Anyone looking for long-term investment, federal tax benefits, privacy, and stability will opt for a home. The government should encourage homeownership to allow people to enjoy economic and social benefits, and a stable financial system. It is important to realize the positive externalities that occur as a result of homeownership. The government should initiate a campaign and programs to encourage people to own home to enjoy housing security, financial security, and social benefits.

References

Wickramaarachchi, N. (2015). Determinants of rental value for residential properties; A land

owner’s perspective for boarding homes. ResearchGate

Retsinas, N. P., & Belsky, E. S. (2002). Low-income homeownership: Examining the

unexamined goal. Cambridge, Mass: Joint Center for Housing Studies.

Bottom of Form

Pawson, H., Milligan, V., & Yates, J. (2020). Housing Policy in Australia: A Case for System

Reform. Singapore: Palgrave Macmillan.

Question One

I believe the issue of whether employees should be allowed to use their work computers and internet access to complete personal tasks has no definite answer, since allowing them will show that the company trusts their employees and also allowing them could cause a decrease in employee’s productivity.  If it is alright to perform personal tasks at work, no amount of time can be set, however, it is advisable to ensure that the time is compensated.  In my opinion, college student’s internet usage should not be monitored; however, institutions should keep records of computer and internet usage.

Question Two

 I believe the double standards implemented with a focus on monitoring employees' internet activity is fair, what employees do with personal gadgets is private and cannot be subject to monitoring. Monitoring employees’ internet activity and computer usage are legally allowed. This can be conducted under circumstances to include when the employer wants to reduce the misuse of electronic media which can put the organization at risk of breaching data security.  When monitoring employees’ internet and computer usage the employer should respect the privacy of the employee.

Supply Chain Management in Telecommunication Industry

 Introduction 

 Supply chain management is the strategy, tactics, and operations used by organizations to coordinate the business functions within the supply chain and ensure the effective and efficient flow of goods and services to customers. The telecommunication industry uses supply chain management as the industry's strategy to achieve qualitative and quantitative benefits. The inevitable changes in the economy such as globalization, increasing competition, and change in customer demand have forced the industry to design the supply chain to ensure that it is managed accordingly. It is important to note that a supply chain is made up of many entities such as manufacturers, distributors, and customers. The entities ensure the production of the right products, quality products, and the production of goods at the right time. Therefore, in supply chain management, there must be planning and control of management activities. Additionally, the parties involved in a supply chain such as manufacturers, inbound logistics, suppliers, warehouses, customers, and more must coordinate to satisfy customer requirements.  In general, it is important to note that a variety of initiatives are needed for an effective supply chain.  Under the various initiatives, the major role of the telecommunication industry is to focus on all business processes. This will help them eradicate non-value added steps and promote an efficient transformation process. There are many ways a company can use to survive in a competitive environment.  In most cases, companies focus on globalization and technological advances.  Focusing on the Telecommunication industry, the industry's supply chain setting or supply chain management is considered as significant and therefore, to manage the supply chain, or in other words, to manage the manufacturing, distribution, procurement, and other processes, the industry has realized the value of information systems, distribution network configuration, distribution strategy, investor management, and cash-flow-all aimed at promoting strategic agility.

 Today, there are fundamental changes in the telecommunication industry influenced by technological innovation and the increasing competition. To control this inevitable change, telecommunication is focusing on the supply chain since it is the main area in which competition edge can be achieved. The telecommunication industry very well knows that by improving the supply chain or in other words by managing the supply chain effectively, the industry will survive and grow despite the changes in the business environment (Gattorna & Jones, 1998).  It is also important to note that in the U.S, the competitive landscape in the telecommunication industry is changing since the telecommunication Act of 1996 allowed the new entrants such as the Bell Atlantic-NYNEX to enter the market and compete with the existing markets. Other countries such as Japan and Europe have shifted to an open market approach so that the telecommunication industry can increase the worldwide telecommunications revenue.  Apart from an open market approach, technology has also influenced the growth of the global communications marketplace. Today, customers are enjoying the innovation services such as video conferencing, Internet, video, and more (Gattorna & Jones, 1998). This means that companies should look for new ways or strategies to retain customers or to prevent them from switching to other products. In general, companies need to implement decisive management techniques for them to be able to compete in the business environment. The telecommunication has realized that the only way the companies can reduce the operating expenses, maximize the value of the product, retain customers, and keep the competitive advantage is through supply chain management.  It is important to understand that supply chain entails different operations such as procurement of materials, using the materials to create finished goods, and ensuring that customers get the finished good (Gattorna & Jones, 1998). Traditional, the supply chain functions such as planning, manufacturing, and more operated independently, but today integration is encouraged in the telecommunication industry for effective management.

  Before understanding how the telecommunication industry manages its supply chain, it is important to note that supply chain management does not only control the movement of goods but it also controls or manages the data concerning the products such as status information, ownership titles and other information.  In general, the main function of supply chain management is to reduce inventory, provide real-time data exchange, and meet customer demand, and hence increase revenue (Gattorna & Jones, 1998).  Eventually, as a result of inventory management, demand management, and sharing of order data or real-time information, the telecommunication industry enjoys benefits such as competitive advantage, increase visibility, provide quality services to the customers, improve operational efficiency, and becomes reliable and flexible.

 Supply chain management

 Inventory management

            The telecommunications industry manages the inventories or the flow of goods such as raw materials, and finished goods. The purpose of inventory management is to reduce supply chain costs, reduce obsolescence risk, and ensure flexibility. The telecommunications industry manages inventory by tracking both tangible and intangible assists. The industry views data on network plans, customer service records, and other critical details about assets (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008).  After reviewing the details, the management platforms allow the appropriate business unit to provide the clients with results. To ensure effective inventory management, the industry uses the information technology to communicate about the finished goods, it uses the internet to share the information to reduce inventory cost, use Quick Response, among other strategies.

  Source of supply management

 Factors such as specialization, globalization, and outsourcing have forced the telecommunication industry to manage the sources of supply. Its main goal is to have suppliers who will add value to the product and help the industry identify the new technologies and ideas, and more important to share risks. The industry is also interested in working with suppliers who will help the industry in positing supply activities on the electronic platform (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008). This will lower procurement costs, reduce unauthorized buying, promote tighter integration, manage the key data, promote better risk management, and enhance control and performance. The telecommunication industry can identify the source of supply through ensuring close collaboration with collaborators, selecting quality suppliers, ensuring trust and mutual well-being with suppliers, sharing information with suppliers, among other strategies.

 Demand planning and forecasting

 In supply chain management, the telecommunication industry understands the requirements of distribution networks, as well as the requirements of the end-users.  The marketing and sales departments in the industry consider the demand of the customers and assist the industry with pricing, and other special deals (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008).  The industry can plan for demand by sharing demand information, improving customer collaboration, improving supplier collaboration, improving collaboration with key trading partners, and identifying factors that influence demand.

 Distribution network management

 The management of the distribution network is one of the important aspects in the management of supply chain management. The telecommunication industry ensures an effective logistical network to ensure that the finished goods are distributed to the end-users on time.  Distribution management not only saves costs but it also creates customers' value and helps the industry gain a competitive advantage, and improves efficiency, effectiveness, and profitability (Bhandari, 2014). On logistic and distribution management, it is important to note that the telecommunication industry can meet its effective management through emerging new technologies.   Bhandari (2014) emphasizes the use of technology and says that- it is important to use the right technology that will enable the industry to understand the management policies, organizational infrastructure, and more.  For example, the telecommunication industry uses automatic identification technology to track the truck carrying finished goods to the customers.

 Product and process flexibility

 For the telecommunication industry to compete in the marketplace, it focuses on managing the foreseen and unforeseen changes.  Its major goal in managing change is to gain flexibility so that in times of change, the customers can have confidence in the industry. Golovatchev & Budde (2010) assert that the telecommunication industry experience complexity in product, processes and IT.  However, the industry employs a holistic approach known as the PLM approach (product lifecycle management). This strategy has enabled the industry to align the products with market demands,   the industry can promote collaboration process and come up with efficiency goal, and it also the industry to understand the product's constraints and rules, and the industry can use the best IT components for IT-to-process fit.

Design for quality/ quality management

 The telecommunication industry acknowledges that the best weapon for competitive advantage is quality practices. Therefore, it concentrates on a total quality process or quality management principles in terms of quality customer services, focuses on objective analysis, focuses on prevention, focuses on process,  and ensures continuous improvement.  Fish (2011) assert that since supply chain management is an integrated framework made up of manufacturers, distributors, and retails, quality should come from these parties by ensuring production and instruction of the right product in terms quantity and quality.  Manager in the supply chain departments or levels should integrate their goals to achieve quality (Fish, 2011).  The telecommunication industry manages the supply chain by also ensuring quality management.   Quality management means that the industry ensures a reduction in process variation, effective product designs, and on-time delivery.

Capacity, sales, and production planning

 The telecommunication industry manages the production of goods, capacity, and sales. This means that the industry focuses on increasing efficiency by meeting market demand.  It tracks the sales performance, determines how much sales are needed, measured predictable performance, and increase visibility (Rokonuzzaman, 2018). Today, companies focus on creating trust and relationships with their customers and this is achieved by making efficient supply-demand decisions. The telecommunication industry collaborates with key partners in the supply chain to learn more about sales and production planning.  This promotes stable production,   reduces inventory cost, improves higher forecast accuracy, and leads to high-quality products, on-time delivery, and customer satisfaction (Rokonuzzaman, 2018).  Understanding the production, capacity and sales also allow the telecommunication industry to deploy strategies on financial planning and marketing-winning strategy.

 Another important point to note is that the above supply chain management enables the telecommunications industry to achieve;

 Supply chain visibility

 This means that through effective management of the supply chain,  the industry will avoid the 'bullwhip effect'  between supply chain which then leads to excessive inventory investment, lost revenue, ineffective transportations, and other tremendous inefficiencies (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008).  However, through effective management, the industry will understand demand and supply as a result of increased visibility.  Effective management will allow suppliers and other dealers to share information about capacity plans.

 Collaboration

 Effective management of the supply chain helps the industry create effective partnerships with supply chain entities such as joint ventures, merges, and other structures. The partnerships allow the entities to share strategic goals, and more importantly, increase accuracy, and visibility.

 Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

  Supply chain allows the industry to use ICT effectively as a result of effective flow of information, hence it strengthens coordination, and information flows, operational efficiency, and reduced costs (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008). By using IT platforms such as radio frequency identification, analytical information technologies, and web-based technologies, the supply chain stakeholders can speed up activities, make quality decisions, deal with changes, and hence achieve competitive advantage.

 Process and product innovation

 This means that better supply chain management enables the industry to enjoy significant growth as a result of new product introduction. When the supply chain is effective mangers, manufactures can design products using minimal cost while striving to meet the customers' needs and wants.

 Global operations

  Lastly, better supply chain management allows the industry to develop production lines in other countries where they get support operations, software design, and highly skilled workers.  The global operations or globalization has increased telecommunication serve competition which in turn leads to competitive advantage (Tummala & Schoenherr, 2008). Note that without effective management of the supply chain, the industry won't be able to create an international presence. However, effective supply chain has enabled the industry to use telecommunication technologies to gain a competitive advantage as a result of expanding globally.

Conclusion

 Supply chain management in the telecommunication industry entails the production and delivery of goods and on-time services to the users.  Even though companies consider various factors to achieve a competitive advantage,  the telecommunication industry invests heavily on the supply chain in that they good supply management reduces cost and hence increase product availability, increase product customization, affect the customer choice, and information sharing in a positive way.  Among the many strategies that the company employs, the telecommunication industry employs a supply chain as a strategy that enables the industry to increase revenue, and more importantly, to gain the capabilities of competition. The telecommunication industry has recognized that the supply chain is the main source of competitive advantage and for this reason, it ensures the industry has a powerful supply chain. By managing distribution networks, distribution strategy, and information systems, the telecommunications industry has enjoyed business growth, market share, and revenues and profits. The industry continues to realize that customer needs value and the only way a company can achieve customer value delivery is through the supply chain system. This is because the supply chain does not only ensure the provision of product and service but it goes further to promote inter-organization collaboration or total integrated marketing. The latter enables the industry to deliver what the customer wants.  Generally, the research paper shows that supply chain management has impacted the telecommunication industry positively in terms of a competitive advantage which is brought by supply chain advantage and brand advantage. The supply chain management in the telecommunication industry has introduced an important lesson that it is important for marketing and production units to have a close relationship to improve business performance and enhance customer satisfaction.

References

 Bhandari, R. (2014). Impact of technology on logistics and supply chain management. IOSR Journal of

Business and Management, 2, 17.

Golovatchev, J., Budde, O., Hong, C. G., Holmeckis, S., & Brinkmann, F. (2010). Next generation Telco

product lifecycle management. How to overcome complexity in product management by

implementing best-practice PLM. Published by Detecon, Bonn.

Fish, L. A. (2011). Supply chain quality management. Supply chain Management-Pathways for research

and practice, 25-42.

Tummala, V. M., & Schoenherr, T. (2008). Best practices for the implementation of Supply Chain

Management initiatives. Tummala, VM Rao, and Tobias Schoenherr.“Best Practices for the

Implementation of Supply Chain Management Initiatives,” International Journal of

Logistics Systems and Management, 4(4), 391-410.

Rokonuzzaman, M. (2018). The Integration of Extended Supply Chain with Sales and Operation

Planning: A Conceptual Framework. Logistics, 2(2), 8.

Gattorna, J., & Jones, T. (Eds.). (1998). Strategic supply chain alignment: best practice in supply chain

management. Gower Publishing, Ltd..

 Personality Behaviors in the Workplace

What is the author’s main point? Who is the author’s intended audience?

The main point in the article is knowing and understanding people’s different personalities and knowing how to work around each one of them. According to Navarra (2019), knowing the way different personalities process information and make decisions helps to improve cooperation in the workplace. The tendency in which people take in information, process it, and make conclusions and how they use their energy defines the pattern of behavior of a person. The article is intended for managers, employees, and everyone in the workplace to learn how to handle people and their personalities. This helps to understand their behavior, decisions and responses and that of others too.

Do the author’s arguments support his or her main point?

The author’s explanation from the article focuses on the types of personalities and how each type is effective in the workplace. It explains how information is received, processed and the decisions and conclusions given by each type of personality. The writer argues that it is important to recognize that individuals view things from different perspectives according to their personalities. Navarra (2019) states that accepting people and knowing how to deal with their personalities makes it easy to handle projects and teamwork.

Explain different personality types or behaviors and how to apply the suggested tactics for properly handling of each type

Types of personalities include extraversion and introversion. Navarra (2019) states that extraversion is when a person is social, outgoing and enjoys being with people. Extroverts take charge of situations and have good leadership qualities. Introversion refers to the quality of a person who is quiet and prefers spending time alone. They prefer individual activity rather than interacting with large groups. Knowing if a person likes to be engaged, interact with other people or love their alone time makes you know how to treat them. If a person needs space they should be understood and not made to change.

Navarra (2019) states that sensing and intuition personalities illustrate how individuals take in information. Sensors are practical, realistic and confident. They pay attention to what they can see, hear or touch and work well with details. Intuitive people pay attention to their instincts and are good at reading between the lines. They are imaginative and tend to worry about the future. They are inspired by new ideas and tend to focus on the theory than the practice. Allowing each participant to process information according to their personalities and giving them enough time to do so creates harmony.

 Thinking and feeling personalities describe how people come to conclusions and make decisions. According to Navarra (2019), thinkers make decisions based on facts and reasons when solving problems and making decisions. They are motivated by accomplishing certain tasks and do not dwell on emotional problems. Feelers make decisions based on their considerations. They consider the feelings of others and their morals to know what is right and what is wrong. Their motivation is sought from the desire of understanding, supporting and helping people. They are warm-hearted, sympathetic and harmonious and interacting with them tends to be personal. Allowing and accepting different opinions of people will involve and consider everyone's opinions and come up with the same decision. Emotional considerations when dealing with different personalities is very essential.

According to Navarra (2019), judging and perceiving personalities describes how an individual interacts with the outer world. Judgers approach life in an organized manner and thrive in schedules. They are self- disciplined and take their responsibilities very seriously. They like things to be planned to avoid last-minute rushes and stress. Perceivers are flexible and their energy is derived from last-minute pressures and decisions. They are adjustable and relaxed, they only make decisions and choices when it is mandatory for them. Different approaches should be used to engage and solve problems in the workplace to include the two personalities.

What evidence supports the main point? What is your opinion of the article? (Do not simply summarize the article.)

According to Navarra (2019), developing a culture that acknowledges different personalities in the workplace works towards minimizing misunderstanding among each other. In my opinion, the article paints a picture of working together, understanding and accepting each other and knowing that each opinion is important. It is important to learn the different personality types and know how to work with each type.

What evidence, either from the textbook or additional sources, supports your opinion?

            Pasche (2014), states that in the workplace you have to engage with different types of people and each of them needs to be dealt with differently. Knowing how to deal with different personality types is important. According to Nystrom (2018), every personality type views its point from a different direction. Figuring out each other’s personality helps to work together and benefit everyone. It improves decision making and reduces conflicts in the workplace.

References

Navarra K. (2019). Understanding Personalities in the Workplace: https://equimanagement.com

Naystrom M. (2018). The Four personality Types in the Workplace: https://blog.o2 employment services.com

Pasche M. (2014). Dealing with Different Personality Types in the workplace: https://today-magazine.com

According to Reichheld [1]qualities that inspire loyalty are important and help in making a great leader, in my quest to show my subordinate how to be loyal, I will give trust and respect freely. To inspire loyalty from those I lead I will be authentic as much as possible since a greater value has been placed on authenticity. As an authentic leader I can be counted upon by the people I lead, I will be true to my word and deliver upon every promise I make.  To inspire real loyalty, I will motivate and improve the lives of those I lead. I will be an available team leader and member as well as help those I lead to pursue and fulfill their own goals and dreams. Inspiring loyalty drives the financial success of the company especially in today’s economy that is defined by stiff competition. Loyalty stands as a two-way trust between two parties, and in this case leaders and their subordinates.  As a leader I have to make myself vulnerable by giving loyalty firsts without concern for return loyalty, this inspires subordinates to do the same.

As a leader, I must be committed to ethical professionalism[2]. I must pose loyalty to the company’s vision and mission and loyalty to those who are superior to me.  To inspire genuine loyalty which is very fundamental to my leadership philosophy I must help those under me to develop professionally. For a leader to inspire genuine loyalty they must be willing to be mentors. The leadership philosophy of loyalty is based on trust and sharing values and beliefs. Trusting those I lead will be important in driving loyalty.

Cultivating and maintaining strong and mutually beneficial relationships with employees is a fundamental principle of my leadership philosophy[3]. These relationships are based on strong trust that develops from consistent actions that show that employees are reliable and committed to the success and to fulfilling the mission and objectives of the organization. Honesty is also another important aspect of establishing stable working relationships with employees. In my quest to work within my moral principle I will remain honest with my employees on both the negative and positive aspects of the business and in return, the employees will be honest with me concerning management issues. I will involve employees in all activities and operations that focus on achieving the company’s goals.  This will help me to successfully build the modern leadership philosophy that will help in creating and fostering the culture of commitment in an organization.

As a leader in an era defined by complex work environmental problems, I hope to fulfill the duty of building an environment that helps employees thrive and achieve organizational goals[4]. A leader’s philosophy has a direct impact on the organization’s culture. The creation of a pleasant work environment increases the productivity of employees. As a leader who is determined to base my leadership philosophy on the principle of creating a conducive work environment, I will encourage the creation of a culture of support. The work environment is defined by workplace culture and is created by the organization’s top leaders[5]. To create a safe work culture and environment I will encourage every employee to discuss important subjects that make them uncomfortable and subsequently their individual and team concerns will be worked upon.

I will empower employees to embrace the responsibility of positively influencing their work environments with a focus on promoting growth. I will focus on creating a “Want to” environment instead of a” Have to” work environment. The creation of a “Have to” environment makes employees bitter and disengaged[6]. Contrariwise in a “Want to” environment employees do more than what is required of them and they appreciate opportunities given to them. In a “Have to” environment employees will perform poorly and do minimum work and will resent having to do their tasks, such an environment lowers the productivity of the organization. To create a “Want to” environment which is a core part of my leadership philosophy I will be a caring leader, employees are motivated when leaders care about their wellbeing and in return, the employees will increase their productivity as a way of appreciating their leaders.

Philosophies of leadership emphasize that the attribute of trust is essential to create a bond between the leaders and the employees of an organization.  Trust acts as the glue that binds the leaders to his/ her followers and provides opportunities for success. The foundation of trust in a workplace environment is based on organizational credibility, respect and fairness according to the Dimension of a Great Work Place model[7]. Credibility is about being open and allowing accessible communication, respects includes supporting the professional and personals development of employees, Fairness is created by ensuring a balance in how a leader treats their employees in terms of rewards. With the absence of favoritism in an organization, a fair environment will be created. Building trust takes time, it is not established immediately[8].  The trust that I will place on my employees as a leader will allow the organization to excel. When using trust to lay a foundation for my leadership philosophy I will bear in mind that in a functional relationship the essence of trust is in its bond.

Motivation is a factor that pushes one towards achieving their goal, as an organizational leader I must motivate my subordinates to increase their performance. I bear in mind that to be an effective leader I should focus on first being self-motivated. To effectively motivate employees, I will schedule and give my employees more time and finding out what motivates them.  Ensuring a constant supply of resources, they need will go a long way in motivating the employees.  Effective listening is a guiding principle towards being an effective leader[9]. As a leader, I must effectively listen to my employees by ensuring that I eliminate all elements of prejudice and formulate an effective response for every concern raised by employees. Lastly, my leadership philosophy is based on drawing the red line, that will ensure that boundaries are respected and that everyone behaves and professionally presents themselves.

Inconclusion, I will build a leadership philosophy that is based on loyalty that is guided by ethical professionalism. I will work towards building trust and establishing a “Want to” work environment that increases the productivity of the employees. Motivation and drawing the red line will be important aspects that will also define my leadership philosophy.

Bibliography

Akiyama, Tomohiro, Kyoungjin J. An, Hiroaki Furumai, and Hiroyuki Katayama. "The concept of environmental leader." In Environmental Leadership Capacity Building in Higher             Education, pp. 19-40. Springer, Tok 2013.

Finnie, William, and Robert M. Randall. "Loyalty as a philosophy and strategy: an interview        with Frederick F. Reichheld." Strategy & Leadership (2002).

Kolzow, David R. "Leading from within: Building organizational leadership capacity." (2014).

Mineo, David L. "The Importance of Trust in Leadership." Research Management Review 20,     no. 1 (2014): n1.

Norenberg, Dan. 2020. Executive ownershift creating highly effective leadership teams. Cham:    Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35828-0.

[1] Finnie, William, and Robert M. Randall. "Loyalty as a philosophy and strategy, P, 27

[2] Ibid, P 28

[3] Kolzow, David R. Leading from within, P, 47

[4] Akiyama, et al., "The concept of environmental leader." P, 21

[5] Ibid, P. 23

[6] Ibid, P, 26

[7] Mineo, David L “The Importance of Trust in Leadership”, P, 2.

[8]Ibid, P, 3

[9] Kolzow, David R. Leading from within, P, 11

Change and innovation in an organization

 According to Aravopoulou (2016), the three examples of change are, strategic, planned and transformational. The strategic change is the process where an organization moves from its current state to a future state. It is also the process of recreating an organization’s business and marketing plan to achieve an objective. The strategic change will help the organization to find new structures that will be more suitable for the organization. Planned change in an organization is the process of preparing an organization for new objectives and a new direction. This is an effective change because it is intentional and focuses on the challenges of the organization and how to make them better. It ensures that the organization can meet the demands of the internal and external environment. Transformational change which is people and process-oriented is a complete change that involves redefining the organization’s strategies, structure, and culture. In response to the crisis of the organization, transformational change will be effective to maintain their successful performance.

  Top-down, bottom-up, and integrated are the three approaches to change leadership. According to Jabri (2017), the top-down approach is where the involvement of organization members is very minimal. Using the approach means making rapid change without involving people which might cause a lack of cooperation from the employees and other members in the organization since the change is initiated by the senior managers. The top-bottom approach is where members of the organization are involved and allowed to participate in the changes. This enables the employees and the recipients to contribute to the changes and here, the employee needs are considered. The integrated approach is a combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches. This approach is the most suitable to use because there is a representation of all the approaches. In this approach, the CEO will structure the plan for the change and to make everyone’s need to be met, he will involve them in the change. This will be effective since every member of the organization will participate in the change process.

According to Bradutanu (2015), employee resistance is a major reason that leads to the failure of change in an organization. The reason for resistance from the employees is the lack of being involved in the change plan of the organization. When employees are left out and not allowed to participate, share their views and needs, they feel left out and not part of the organization. Employee resistance should not be eliminated rather it should be viewed as a positive situation that will favor the change process. Knowing the reason why the employees are resisting will give more ideas on what to do during the change process hence encouraging the generation of new ideas from the employees.

Two approaches that change leaders could use to manage employee resistance are communication, participation, and involvement. Bradutanu (2015) states that for the communication approach, conversations between the resisting employees and the change managers can lead to improvements in the change process. This is because the change managers get to listen to the employee’s ideas and views on how they would want the change implemented. Participation and involvement approach, when the change managers allow employees to be involved to participate in the process, they feel valued and their needs are taken care of. Their opinions are taken into consideration and some are even used in the process.

Lack of motivation is one of the restraining forces from Lewin’s Force Field Analysis model. Lack of proper drives, needs and desire make a change to become difficult to accomplish. For a certain objective to be accomplished, lack of motivation leads to low productivity and a lack of cooperation. Another restraining force is the lack of training. Training is important when a change process is taking place to aid in following the right procedures. Lack of training leads to a failed change process because there is not enough knowledge to run the process. This leads to stagnation of the process and eventually fails. According to Singh (2015), driving forces include competition. This leads an organization to make changes so that it can get to the level of competition with other organizations. Competition motivates an organization to enhance its quality and quantity of their product. Another driving force is information technology which improves communication, and decision making processes. Through information technology, the change managers get more knowledge on ways to develop the change process.

According to Singh (2015), unfreezing is a process that will be used to make sure that everyone is aware of the necessity for change. This process helps to avoid and discourage employee resistance. It will help people to open up and be ready to accommodate the new changes. Changing is the process of moving from an organizational old way of doing things to a new way. This process will include reorganizing the organization and implementing change. The change managers will begin making changes in the different tasks, technology, and people and anything that will change the activities that currently exist in the organization. The refreezing process is where the change made will be stabilized and the long term conditions developed. In this process, the change is made permanent and normalized in the organization. In this process, people will internalize new working ways and accept them as part of their life onwards.

To create a new strategic vision, Wheeler & Holmes (2017) state that it will include having a clear understanding of the things that need to change and the reason as to why they need it. I will need to know how many people need the change and how useful it will be to them. I will set a time limit for the change process and work on a budget. To create a new strategic vision, I will need to know if the customers will be satisfied with the change. To effectively communicate vision, the change managers will have to communicate to develop an understanding of the required change. The vision will be communicated regularly about the relevant topics of change to give the needed information and make sure it is understood. This communication will be done through workgroups, and organization meetings.

Sales Key Performance Indicators and Metrics (2020) state that it is important to use KPIs in the organization because they are financial and non-financial measures that will be used to determine their success in accomplishing long term goals. Measuring what is working and what is not will determine the progress, reduce costs, and make the organization maintain its competition in the market. Manufacturing KPI measure is the volume of production and the target is to improve the efficiency of production. Monitoring the production costs to know how much production of product costs and how much it represents for a finished product. This will be done from the beginning of production to the end. Sales KPI is the measurement of performance used to track sales activities and how effective they are in an organization. It is used by sales teams and the top managers. It will measure the number of new contracts signed over a certain period, and how much you expect to earn from each of the new contracts. The source will be from the time spent on the sales follow up and this will determine the net sales done monthly. For financial KPI its measure is the sales that will lead to growth in revenue. The data source will be the profit and loss account which will be done monthly.

According to Anderson R. N., Potočnik K. & Zhou J. (2014), creativity is built on knowledge. Knowledge includes having facts, information, skills, and understanding which is acquired through experience and education. Having the ability to think and develop new ideas and put them in action makes the founder creative and becomes capable of complete a task or process. High self-esteem enables creative people to believe in themselves and thrive in making changes. Self-esteem enables a person to face their fears, make communication with the relevant people effective and eventually succeed. It makes people believe in you and your ideas and this makes it easy to implement a process.

According to Sammut (2015), hyper-competition will shorten the product life cycle because the objective will be to generate short term goals. Because a company has to react fast to gain their competitive advantage, the life cycle of a product is shortened due to its quick sale. The product design cycle will be shortened because of the little time it has on the market and the company focused on profits and competition. In hyper-competition, the company’s norms of operation are not followed and this causes a shortened design life cycle.

Encouraging teamwork and employee diversity in the company would develop more creativity. Anderson R. N., Potočnik K. & Zhou J. (2014) state that teamwork will require workers to contribute and work together towards a certain task. This will enhance creativity in the company because each one of them will bring forth their knowledge and ideas, and put them together as one. Employee diversity will help the company to come up with different ideas and information from diverse people. Employees from diverse backgrounds will enhance creativity by bringing ideas from their diversities. This sometimes causes disagreements which positively encourage creativity because of the mix of ideas.

Technological innovation is important in an organization. Anderson R. N., Potočnik K. & Zhou J. (2014) explain the importance of the internet and social media which helps in developing and distributing ideas and information. This could be encouraged by installing internet connections in the company so that everyone could have access to technology. This could be encouraged by creating employee and management groups that will enable employees and the management to share information. Creating a company’s website could enable more people to know about the organization and what it entails. Social media and the internet act as a marketing tool for the company and therefore should be highly encouraged. Through this, everyone gets an opportunity to air their views even the ones who do not like to give their opinions in normal meetings.

Imagining in innovation would have been done by generating ideas. Mariello (2007) states that this comes about by the pressure to finish and succeed and have the freedom of exploring. Getting all the facts right and visualizing the end product and its effect should be considered in this step. After generating the ideas, a second opinion is sought for to make sure if it will progress. The designing step is where the advantages and disadvantages of the idea are weighed. The weighing process should be direct and standardized so that it considers every aspect. The experimenting step tests how sustainable the ideas will be at a particular time and in a specific environment.it is at this stage that the customer target is determined and the reason for the innovation to them. The assessing step is where the company focuses on its customers to be sure that innovation satisfies their needs. Analysis of the costs is done at this step and the benefits of the innovation are determined.

References

Anderson R. N., Potočnik K. & Zhou J. (2014). Innovation and Creativity in Organizations: A

State-of-the-Science Review, Prospective Commentary, and Guiding Framework. Journal of Management. 40. 10.

Aravopoulou E. (2016). Organisational change: A conceptual and theoretical review. Modern

Management Systems. 10. 19-32.

Bradutanu D.  (2015). resistance to change - a new perspective: A textbook for managers who

plan to implement a change. Place of publication not identified: lulu com.

 Sales Key Performance Indicators and Metrics (2020).https://www.datapine.com

Jabri, M. (2017). Managing Organizational Change: Process, Social Construction and

Dialogue. London: Palgrave Macmillan,

Mariello (2007). The five stages of successful innovation: Defining an innovation process increases companies’ future value. https://sloanreview.mit.edu

Singh, K. (2015). Organizational behaviour: Text and cases. New Dehi, India: Vikas Pub.

House.

Sammut B. T. (2015). Hyper competition: Strategic management, 12.1