Information technology essay free essay sample

Communications is defined as the process of sending and receiving information from one person to another. Communications Technology is all the systems we use when we communicate, this technology helps us to communicate without the need to be face – to – face with each other. This includes telephone, radio, television, computers and mobile phones. Mobile phones and telephones can be defined as the process when two people are making a conversation over a phone away from each other, this method has become very popular nowadays, for example the new iPhone. Computers help us to communicate online, we use internet to socialise with our friends. Television is able to broadcast different programs and shows that we can watch. Radio keeps us up to date with everything happening around us, we can hear news through radio. My chosen topic of communications technology is computers. Computer is a device which is able to store, retrieve, process and change data and it is also widely used to go online. We will write a custom essay sample on Information technology essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page For a computer to work properly it needs hardware, software and input. A computer hardware includes all the physical features your computer has, in the inside or the outside of a computer. A software is anything that you install on your computer, it can be your internet explorer or your operating system. A computer cannot work on its own, this is when we provide data on the computer, this creates input, and then the computer provides us with output. There are five generations of computers, these have changed dramatically over time because of new technology invented. First generation computers were founded in 1940 and ended in 1956. These computers used vacuum tubes to run. They could fill the whole room and needed a lot of electricity, this created problems as these computers would heat up very easily. An example is ENIAC computer founded by John Presper Eckert and John W. Mauchly. Second generation computers (1956 1963) saw the introduction of transistors. Computers run faster because a transistor is a device that controls the heat in the computer. In 1964 Computers used integrated circuits that could hold thousands of transistors. Fourth generation computers started in 1971 are the ones we use today. Microprocessors were invented to store all the functions of a computer in a single chip. Also laptops were introduced which changed the way we use computers today. Fifth generation computers are still in development. We can already see some of  the fifth generation computer features, like voice recognition and cloud sharing. Some of the advantages of using a computer are: Saves money – Computers allowed us to communicate over a distance, as we don’t need to travel long distances just to make a conversation with someone. Another great way of communicating over a distance is using Skype, it lets you make calls anywhere in the world from your computer. Internet – You can access the World Wide Web via the internet. This allows you to keep up with your friends online through social networking sites like Facebook. Through internet you can also advertise online, this helps you create a new business idea or helps your existing business to develop more. Education Students have an advantage when using a computer, as they can easily type an essay, and make necessary changes without spoiling the essay. Microsoft Word has helped develop writing skills for students. Online courses are also available when using a computer. Disadvantages of using a computer: Addiction – People who tend to use computer too much have a risk of becoming addicted to it. This is mainly because people have access to Internet and they get exposed to different websites. There is an increased number of people getting addicted to social networking. Online games also are becoming very addictive, especially among children. Security – A computer can easily get a virus from any untrusted website or a hacker can get access to your personal information. Every computer should have an antivirus installed for protection against viruses. There are also a lot of security features installed already on our computer, like Firewall. Health problems – A big disadvantage is that your health worsens if you spend too much time on the computer. More and more people have computer vision syndrome, which makes your vision blurry. Your nervous system is also affected, and this results in brain not functioning properly. Communication Technology has a huge impact on both out personal, business and social life. Socialising with friends is made easier because of the technology invented. You can access any website online. Also technology has a big impact on our relationships, this has created a lot of problems because some people don’t realise how much they use a computer, this results in computer addiction and we no longer have time to meet our friends. We spend more time on Facebook than  actually talking to someone face to face. At work we use technology all the time, this helps us to get everything done on time, but there is also more stress due to increases work load when using a computer. There are a lot of new job opportunities available because of technology, we are able to make international business calls and advertise our products online. The downside for technology at work is that we become more distracted. Imagine if you are having a conversation with your boss and suddenly your phone is ringing. There is also legislation related to communications technology, Data Protection Act 1988 states that you have a right to store, change or access any personal data stored on the computer. This information should be kept private. This law also states that any information you give out to someone should be correct, you cannot provide false information about yourself. Another important legislation relating to communications technology is health and safety at work. Every business should ensure that everyone has a safe area to work at. Technology needs to be updated to make sure that accidents don’t happen, for example if your computer is connected to a faulty electricity it can cause your computer to blow up. Copyright Act 2000 was introduced to help protect your information. When you are copying someone else’s work and passing it on as your own you are committing plagiarism. You are exposed to copyright when you publish something online as a lot of people may have access to this information.

Balkans essays

Balkans essays The conflict in the Balkans is interesting because for years, reporters and politicians have touted it as being the result of ancient ethnic hatred but that isnt the case. This class has taught me, if nothing else, that the people of this region lived together peacefully for centuries and any conflicts that have arose among people were based not on ethnic origin but other things like class, ruling party, and so on. In fact, any problems that have arose in the former Yugoslavia have more to do with the issues raised by nationalism that developed during World War II and not centuries of three different peoples living together. Additionally, I am going to pause every so often to show that at each of the three distinct points of the conflict, the international community and the United States had it within their power to stop the violence. The three distinct phases are Kosovo, secession, and Bosnia and at each point, the lack of action or overreaction of the international community failed to solve the problems that these institutions had within their power to resolve. The first phase of Yugoslavian disintegration can be attributed to the conditions of the people living in Kosovo, an autonomous province of Yugoslavia. In 1981, the socioeconomic conditions in Kosovo were far worse than those in the other republics of Yugoslavia. Poverty was rampant and unemployment was around twenty percent as compared to about two percent in Slovenia that same year. The standard of living in Kosovo was deplorable and whatever aid that was given to the province by the federal government was mismanaged (Samary, 65). Another significant problem with this particular province was that while the Serbs claimed the province as the Cradle of Serbian Empire because of a legendary battle and defeat that happened at Kosovo in 1389, the Albanians constituted approximately eighty percent of the population of Kosovo. In reality, Kosovo cou...

Free sample - Intangible Resources and Management Authority in Organizations. translation missing

Intangible Resources and Management Authority in Organizations. Intangible Resources and Management Authority in OrganizationsThe sphere of business is very diverse and every company tries to do its best in order to be the fist in the completive market and preserve its positions. Good presentation and work of the company depends upon its management that performs different functions. The main function of the management is organizing process of work correctly, using the resources of the company in the best possible way. From the one hand it sounds very easy to do, but on the other hand this task is not so easy to do. So, the main obligation of the management of every company is a rational utilization of the company’s assets and resources, tangible as well as intangible. There is a mistaken idea that intangible assets are not very important as they do not play such important role in the successful existence of the company. It is a common mistake of many managerial teams that do not pay enough attention to the intangible resources. According t o Berkeley-Thomas (2003, p. 25), the companies have to genuinely consider a significance of identical or greater effect of such factors as consumer satisfaction, process effectiveness and improvement when coming to a realizing of performance realities. These factors will be additional to an organization’s realizing of financial figures, helping to better understand the significance of otherwise potentially misleading or unfortunate numbers. Most companies do not pay enough attention to the intangible assets that is why the general performance of the company suffers. In this case, experienced market leaders insist on considering the intangible assets greatly, as they are half of a company’s success (Grey, 2009, p. 43). In the findings, the investigation demonstrated that intangible assets, comprising consumer list, brand name,   reputation of the company, and its location are considerably chief elements; in the meantime, the   size of the organization is taken into account, but not that significant. In general, the essence of the intangible resources is quite broad, as it comprises many notions. Intangible assets can also include patents, copyrights, franchise and government licenses, goodwill, and other issues that lack physical matter but give long-standing advantages to the company. Companies should pay attention to the intangible assets as much as they do it on depreciable and natural resources. The charge of intangible resources is methodically allocated to the costs during the asset's helpful life or legal life, whichever is shorter, and this life is never permitted to exceed forty years. The procedure of allocating the value of intangible resources to expense is called amortization, and organizations almost always use the straight-line way to amortize their intangible resources. In order to understand more completely the essence intangible resources that management can draw upon, it is necessary to describe briefly some of them to see how useful they can be for the management of the company to evaluate the level of its performance and success.   One of the first and the most important intangible resources is the brand name. Needless to say, that brand name and recognition is very important for every company as it is the first step for the company’s success. Brand name should be as recognizable as possible in order to make the company well known. Brand recognition is, probably, main form of intangibles. Think about the many name brand organizations and it will quickly be realized the power of intangible assets. Software programs used by the organizations in order to produce or plan their product are one more brilliant example of intangible resources. Reputation of the company is rightfully regarded as another very important intangible resource. It is understood that every company strives for having excellent reputation and be second to none in the market. The question of reputation is necessary to draw upon by the management. For instance, the company, having good reputation as a reliable partner and manufacturer of the qualitative products will likely have more customers as the company, having lower reputation even if its production is as qualitative. So, evaluating the performance criteria of the company and speaking about the work of its management, we can say that reputation of the company is very significant anyway. One more intangible asset considered as important one is goodwill. Goodwill equals the quantity paid to obtain a company in excess of its net assets at reasonable market value. The excess payment may be consequence from the price of the organization’s reputation, setting, consumer list and management team. Goodwill can be recorded only after the purchase of the organization takes as such a transaction provides a purpose measure of goodwill as recognized by the customer. The worth of goodwill is considered by first subtracting the purchased liabilities of the organization from the fair market price of its assets and then subtracting this consequence from the purchase price of the organization. So, goodwill can not be seen at once, it can be evaluated only when the company starts working. Unfortunately, members of the management team and the business board room in a great number of companies all over the world nowadays fail to understand the effect and importance of their intang ibles on the bottom line as the intangible resources are not reflected on a balance sheet. People are in habit to believe stable and proved facts that can be seen visually on the paper and from different documents, that is why, intangible assets are not so popular management strategy because they are not provided in writing.   In conditions of modern current economy a lot of companies can make sure their survivability and sustainability into the post depression era if they are able learn to ruin the brick and mortar attitude that has tainted corporate America. According to the statistics, seventy-five percent of value of any company can be traced to intangible resources (Ramu, 2000, p. 15). One main cause for mistake is a lack of understanding and the incapability of upper management to think outside the frames. The representatives of the management within a company having no ability to think outside the frames have the complexity in demonstrating new ideas to upper management in the usage of intangible resources influence. So why intangible resources are so significant for the company are so important to legitimize management authority? First of all, strong brands effect on consumers’ decision-making processes, as well as making sure that premium prices may be charged. This is mainly true in many businesses connected with consumers. At their best, they symbolize an assurance of excellence and quality and sometimes, when it deals with luxury brands, customers even gain social status from the brand. It can also maintain the fast development of new successful markets. For instance, Tesco, one of the UK’s primary retailers, succeed in penetrating financial services. Surely, the financial benefit of the company arises from intangible resources such as brands and consumer relationships. Intangible resources, therefore, provide with a potential competitive benefit, but being the resources they obviously require specialist management and excellent communication skills. Management’s capabil ity to bring its strategy is extremely dependent on its consumer relationships, brands and performance of main employees – all of which are also intangible resources for accounting purposes. The significance of these factors is obviously very important to a company’s productivity and to the sustainability of future performance of the company. So it will be more correctly to ask how it is possible to improve the management of these resources, rather than ask why it is so important. One more question of the paper that should be discussed is in what way the companies manage their intangible resources in modern market? Important management is concentrated on the brands to guarantee that the brand is exemplified in every sphere of the company’s outside and interior behaviors (Kaplan and Norton, 2004, p. 24). Brands are continually adapted and revitalized to act in response with variable consumer trends and to be in front of the competition, thus increasing their importance and value. But it is often hard to see financial information about the brand being examined and managed. For instance, the amount of money invested in a brand development is not constantly available.   Consumer relationships comprise one more critical intangible resource for a great number of companies. And, just as in the case with brands, there is a shortage of information about main consumers – including the duration of the relationship, the limits and the charge of supporting main relationships. This is particularly relevant to retailers and the production of customer loyalty card schemes points out the significance these organizations attach to this resource. In the modern market retailers now have better understanding of the desires and needs of their consumers. This information can be further translated into charge which could then be monitored and managed on the continuing basis. The financial result of changes to the way in which consumers are managed could then be frequently reported to the board and eventually to external parties. Everything mentioned above proves once again that intangible resources are extremely necessary to pay attention to and draw upon by the management. Although there is a widespread opinion that intangible resources are very significant to the future prosperity of any company, still there is a dilemma concerning their ongoing management as well as communicating their value. The fact that it can be rather hard to get the information required to administer and enhance the intangible resources, together with the understanding of this information, has held a lot of companies back. Nevertheless, investors, analysts and stakeholders insist on the importance of intangible resources, from the point of view of their usage and investigating (Grey and Willmott, 2005, p. 45). They come to realize, that there is a significant information gap concerning rational usage and studying of the intangible resources. That is why, the companies should move towards enhanced intangible asset management and improve systems of their usage.   Intangible resources are important for every company despite its size and sphere of business. Not only is there a co nvincing financial motive for more careful intangible resources management process, the tax and accounting systems are requiring that numbers are billed to intangible resources as part of accounting for attainments. The value of intangible resources is compulsory to be monitored on the constant basis, as it will help the company to improve its performance. Every company has its own intangible resources needed to pay attention to and it is the task of the management to see what asset requires attention and how it van be used to give maximum profits. Reference List Berkeley-Thomas A. (2003) Controversies in Management. London: Routledge. Grey C. (2009) Studying Organizations. ( 2nd ed.) London: Sage. Grey C. and Willmott H. (eds) (2005) Critical Management Studies: A Reader. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Kaplan, R. and Norton, K. ( 2004) Strategy Maps: Converting Intangible Assets into Tangible Outcomes. New York: Harvard Business Press Ramu, S. (2000) International Licensing: Managing Intangible Resources (Response Books). London: Sage Publications Pvt. Ltd

Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Policy - Essay Example Hence, the department has decided to come up with a program whose main aim is to educate members of the public on the importance of food safety. This program fits in the mission of my department in a number of ways. The main goal of my department is to protect all consumers who purchase fresh of processed farm produce in various outlets in the country. Hence, providing them with all relevant information on what they are supposed to do or check while making their purchases is very important. Furthermore, my department ensures that all products in the market are inspected and labeled before being offered for sale (Lancet 1). In relation to this, food borne illnesses cases have greatly increased in this 21st century (Food Drug and Administration 1). Therefore, my department has come up with various policies that aim at combating this threat. Firstly, it is the role of the agriculture department to ensure that consumers of both fresh and processed farm produce are protected. This is the reason why my department ensures that all products are inspected and labeled. Secondly, the department is also supposed to play the role of educating all consumers on the importance of food safety in their households. From a recent study, most households are affected by food borne illness. Most of them are not ignorant, but they lack they required information on what they are supposed to do or check when making their purchases. Hence, creating awareness on this issue will help to combat this threat. This new program aims at creating awareness in all states on issues related to food safety. The department plays it role by ensuring that all products offered for sale are inspected and labeled properly. However, most consumers lack information on issues that come up with issues of food poisoning. Therefore, my department wants to enhance public education as well as outreach

Marketing Plan First Draft Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing Plan First Draft - Essay Example It is also helpful to have a clear idea of who the potential competitors might be and what types of products they might be offering currently or be introducing in the near future. The discovery of these elements is the purpose of this marketing report for a new mud-pie making machine called the Monster Mud Machine. The Monster Mud Machine is the latest technology in backyard warfare for young and old alike. Forget about spending hours in preparation attempting to get just the right combination of dirt and water to make the ultimate in mud bombs. This machine will do all the work from the safety of the home bunker or backyard. Just add the type of dirt immediately available, set the dial, add water and wait for the mud bombs to emerge. The mud machine will work with loose sand, standard dirt and even ready-made mud in case the ground has already been saturated due to earlier mud or water wars. Should things become bogged down, the machine can be helped along with the aid of a fancy crank which provides a more integrated appeal to the process. The machine itself is not designed to be carried about as a form of hand to hand combat material, but is instead intended to be available for the creation of ‘weaponry’ from the individual home base of the backyard warrior. From the outside, the unit looks very much like an elaborate unevenly divided box. On the smaller side is an enclosed container with a spout on the top to be used as a water reservoir. The larger side has a funnel-shaped opening leading to the interior intended to assist with the loading of dirt, sand, or mud into the container. Gravity is the primary driver of the machine as the mud and water are naturally pulled to the bottom of the tanks where it is funneled into a constricted tube the roundness of the finished mud bombs. A hand-crank at one side of the dirt container can be used to stir the materials and keep them moving and provides the user with a sense of involvement – ‘like the

Importance of Human Resource Development

Importance of Human Resource Development Importance of HRD Companies derive competitive advantage from training and development. Training and development programmes, as was pointed out earlier, help remove performance deficiencies in employee. This is particularly true when (1) the deficiency is caused by a lack of ability rather than a lack of motivation to perform, (2) the individual(s) involved have the aptitude and motivation need to learn to do the job better, and (3) supervisors and peers are supportive of the desired behaviors There is greater stability, flexibility, and capacity for growth in an organization. Training contributes to employee stability in at least two ways. Employees become efficient after undergoing training. Efficient employees contribute to the growth of the organization. Growth renders stability to the workforce. Further, trained employees tend to stay with the organization. They seldom leave the company. Training makes the employees versatile in operations. All rounders can be transferred to any job. Flexibility is therefore ensured. Growth indicates prosperity, which is reflected in increased profits from year to year. Who else but well-trained employees can contribute to the prosperity of an enterprise? Accidents, scrap and damage to machinery and equipment can be avoided or minimized through training. Even dissatisfaction, complaints, absenteeism, and turnover can be reduced if employees are trained well. Future needs of employees will be met through training and development programmes. Organizations take fresh diploma holders or graduates as apprentices or management trainees. They are absorbed after course completion. Training serves as an effective source of recruitment. Training is an investment in HR with a promise of better returns in future. A companys training and development pays dividends to the employee and the organization. Though no single training programme yields all the benefits, the organization which devotes itself to training and development enhances its HR capabilities and strengthens its competitive edge. At the same time, the employees personal and career goals are furthered, generally adding to his or her abilities and value to the employer. Ultimately, the objectives of the HR department are also furthered. Reasons for managers having poor views of training There are many impediments which can make a training programme ineffective. Following are the major hindrances: Management Commitment is Lacking and Uneven Most companies do not spend money on training. Those that do, tend to concentrate on managers, technicians and professionals. The rank-and-file workers are ignored. This must change, for, as a result of rapid technological change, combined with new approaches to organizational design and production management, workers are required to learn three types of new skills: (i) the ability to use technology, (ii) the ability to maintain it, and (ill) the ability to diagnose system problems. In an increasingly competitive environment, the ability to implement rapid changes in products and technologies is often essential for economic viability Aggregate Spending on Training is Inadequate Companies spend minuscule proportions of their revenues on training. Worse still, budget allocation to training is the first item to be cut when a company faces a financial crunch. Educational Institutions Award Degrees but Graduates Lack Skills This is the reason why business must spend vast sums of money to train workers in basic skills. Organizations also need to train employees in multiple skills. Managers, particularly at the middle level, need to be retrained in team-playing skills, entrepreneurship skills, leadership skills and customer-orientation skills. Large-scale Poaching of Trained Workers Trained workforce is in great demand. Unlike Germany, where local business groups pressure companies not to poach on another companys employees, there is no such system in our country. Companies in our country, however, insist on employees to sign bonds of tenure before sending them for training, particularly before deputing them to undergo training in foreign countries. Such bonds are not effective as the employees or the poachers are prepared to pay the stipulated amounts as compensation when the bonds are breached. No Help to Workers Displaced because of Downsizing Organizations are downsizing and de-layering in order to trim their workforces. The government should set apart certain fund from the National Renewal Fund for the purpose of retraining and rehabilitating displaced workers. Recommendations The last stage in the training and development process is the evaluation of results. Since huge sums of money are spent on training and development, how far the programme has been useful must be judged/determined. Evaluation helps determine the results of the training and development programme. In practice, however, organizations either overlook or lack facilities for evaluation. Need for Evaluation: The main objective of evaluating the training programmes is to determine if they are accomplishing specific training objectives that are, correcting performance deficiencies. A second reason for evaluation is to ensure that any changes in trainee capabilities are due to the training programme and not due to any other conditions. Training programmes should be evaluated to determine their cost effectiveness. Evaluation is useful to explain programme failure, should finally, credibility of training and development is greatly enhanced when it is proved that the organization has benefited tangibly from it. Principles of Evaluation: Evaluation of the training programme must be based on the principles: Evaluation specialist must be clear about the goals and purposes of evaluation. Evaluation must be continuous. Evaluation must be specific. Evaluation must provide the means and focus for trainers to be able to appraise themselves, their practices, and their products. Evaluation must be based on objective methods and standards. Realistic target dates must be set for each phase of the evaluation process. A sense of urgency must be developed, but deadlines that are unreasonably high will result in poor evaluation Criteria for Evaluation: The last column in Fig. 9.1 contains a number of potential goals Training validity: Did the trainees learn during training? Transfer validity: What has been learnt in training, has it been transferred on the job enhanced performance in the work organization? Intra-organizational validity: Is performance of the new group of trainees, for which the training programme was developed, consistent with the performance of the original training group? Inter-organizational validity: Can a training programme validated in one organization be used successfully in another organization? These questions often result in different evaluation techniques. Techniques of Evaluation: Several techniques of evaluation are being used in organization may be stated that the usefulness of the methods is inversely proportional to the ease with which evaluation can be done. One approach towards evaluation is to use experimental and control groups. Each group is randomly selected, one to receive training (experimental) and the other not to receive training (control). The random selection helps to assure the formation of groups quite similar to each other. Measures are taken of the relevant indicators of success (e.g. words typed per minute, quality pieces produced per hour, wires attached per minute) before and after training for both groups. If the gains demonstrated by the experimental groups are better than those by the control group, the training programme is labeled as successful. Another method of training evaluation involves longitudinal or time-series analysis. Measures are taken before the programme begins and are continued during and after the programme is completed. These results are plotted on a graph to determine whether changes have occurred and remain as a result of the training effort. To further validate that change has occurred as a result of training and not due to some other variable, a control group may be included. One simple method of evaluation is to send a questionnaire to the trainees after the completion the programme to obtain their opinions about the programmes worth. Their opinions could through interviews. A variation of this method is to measure the knowledge and/or skills that employee possess at the commencement and completion of a training. If the measurement reveals that the results after training are satisfactory, then the training may be taken as successful.

Eymp 4 1.1

1. 1: Health and Safety Factors. Factors; Within early years settings, there are various factors to consider for both indoor and outdoor activities. Things that need to be considered with indoor activities are; Safety: Safety gates are needed within any setting with children to keep them safe and secure. The safety gates are used prevent children causing any harm to themselves. Also, safety equipment is needed such as safety scissors to prevent the children randomly cutting themselves. High tables and chairs cannot be used within any setting where there are children.Low tables are needed as it prevents children running into them and causing themselves harm and prevents them giving themselves concussion. Low chairs are used because they can’t cause any harm to the child whereas if they were high chairs, the children could reach for something and fall off the chair. High door handles are very often used early years settings as it prevents the children from attempting to open the door and often there are two handles, a low and a high one so even if the children opened the low door handle, they’d need the high one open to be able to leave.Risk assessments are also needed for anyone Security: Early years settings can have a mass amount of security such as buzzers and identity cards. Buzzers are used so only the staff members can leave and enter the setting at any time they can and need to. This also prevents strangers wandering into the setting. Staff members should also have ID cards, CRB checks all that they are fully qualified to work within that setting.Also, if any other person is to collect a child from the nursery, the parents would need to ring up in advance to alert the staff otherwise if the carer comes into the setting to collect a child, the receptionist would need to ring the parents first to see if it was okay for that person to collect the child, otherwise the parent would normally have to collect that child. Health: Within the early yea rs setting, the children’s health is a big thing. To keep them healthy, they’d need to maintain a balanced diet and have regular exercise.For the child to keep regular exercise, the setting usually has both indoor and outdoor play areas that help to stimulate the children’s learning environment. An outdoor activity gives the child the freedom they need and also gives them more room to move around. The children tend to exercise without acknowledging it. Various activities such as bikes and running around generally helps keep them in a healthy form and active. The cafeteria provides a balanced diet so the child can get all the nutrients they need.