My Own Understanding Of Politics :: essays research papers

My Own Understanding of Politics   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"A means by which individuals and interest groups compete to shape government’s impact on society’s problems and goals.† Politics is easily defined. It is the concept behind the words that is more difficult to understand. Though politics is the primary method of communicating with government, this is not the only time politics are used. Immediate, individual interests, wants, and needs must be satisfied, as well as societal problems. The pursuit of interest is the purpose and initiation of political behavior.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The moment an individual actively pursues an interest or works toward the completion of a goal, it is projected outside him. For example, a person is shopping for a car. The situation is no longer individual because he cannot achieve his goal of obtaining a new car alone; another person or dealership must make the car available to him. Because the person selling the car also has a goal, there is interplay of interests, and the implications of politics.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Negotiation over a car, or anything of interest involves a distribution of attention from one side to another. Just as a car has a seller and a buyer, the government has different political parties, and each issue has a group for and against it. Gaining cooperation from the other side requires strategy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Tactics used range from peaceful, including persuasion and civil disobedience, to violent. But the expectation of reward and the actual probability of reward essentially dictate political action. Rewards are both individual and societal. Power and the ability to control motivate our political leaders. Desire for wealth fuels citizens and the economy. Skilled citizens are represented in the technologically advanced Japanese population. Enlightenment comes from an educated society. Health is invaluable to everyone, and to society when average life spans increase. And finally, respect, morality, and affection are the values that make up a person’s essence. Government is just as involved in the distribution of rewards and the claiming of values as individuals. Its leadership is the nucleus of society. The government allocates resources (money), deciding the fate of such programs as Medicare and welfare reform and the means, usually tax dollars, to pay for these programs. Government is the goal-attaining unit, and its decisions reflect those goals. The government is responsible for building a foundation now to prepare for the future. These decisions for the future are some of the most difficult ones to make.

Importance of leading teams to achieve organisational goals and objectives Essay

1. Evaluate the role of leadership in helping teams to achieve organisational goals and objectives What is it that leaders do to help their teams achieve organisational goals and objectives? Every organisation has goals and objectives which are essential for it to succeed in an ever changing environment. Ken Blanchard’s study of leadership identified two broad types of behaviour, directive and supportive, and the extent to which these are combined are demonstrated in Hersey and Blanchard’s situational leadership model. Among other things this model suggests that a leader needs to be adaptable to a given situation and aware of the social context in which they work. There are evidently numerous ways a leader helps their team to achieve goals and objectives and these are summarised in John Adair’s model of action centred leadership which defines three core management responsibilities: achieving the task, managing the team or group and managing individuals. To help their team achieve goals and objectives a leader must undertake certain functional responsibilities which include: defining objectives, briefing, planning, monitoring and evaluating, with these being continuous as new situations develop and objectives change. At the same time a leader needs to be able to recognise and encourage individual strengths, while being aware of and facilitating improvement in areas of weakness, an awareness of team and individual motivating factors is also crucial. Leaders must also be able to adapt their style of leadership taking into account the varying factors of the task such as time, complexity, resources and individual expertise. Why are these actions  important? The importance of the functional responsibilities are evident, to get the job done! For instance without planning a team has no direction, and no evaluation means that how well the plan is working is unknown and therefore pretty useless. Motivating a team is also a high priority as morale has a significant impact upon long term productivity and hence success. The ability to adapt ones leadership style is significant as situations are open to change, a simple task with little time to complete will require a different approach to one with opposing factors, and the success of each are highly dependent on the approach taken. Individual encouragement and improvement is also necessary as a person’s attitude to the goal or objective is largely influenced by their own feelings towards it and involvement in it. In the areas of task, team and individuals the importance lies in incorporating all three as neglect of one will affect the others. Assessment unit title ILM unit no. AMSPAR unit no Understand the importance of leading teams to achieve organisational goals and objectives M5.46/1 604/1 Assessment Criteria 2. Assess the effectiveness of own organisation in measuring team performance against organisational goals and objectives. How effective is the organisation in measuring team performance – is it â€Å"fit for purpose†? In many areas my own organisations performance measures are â€Å"fit for purpose†, there are some however that could be improved. What part of measuring for performance does the organisation do well? QOF achievement is measured using a data extraction system which automatically monitors our achievement in Vision in real time, and as it forms a large part of the practice income it is essential that we have access to it at any time. This allows us to measure data entry frequency and quality. Prescribing targets. We have an annual prescribing budget for the practice which is monitored on a monthly basis, overspend is highlighted and the GP’s have to work on reducing it. An audit of incoming telephone calls is carried out periodically which gives us a good idea of numbers of calls, waiting times and how many are abandoned which in turn enables us to measure the call handling performance. We aim to process script requests within 48hrs and an audit of this is used to measure the percentage of which are completed in this time. What does it not do so well? Staff appraisals – the current format is woefully lacking. There is a very limited form given to staff members to fill out before and the appraisal itself constitutes a friendly chat with no objectives set. 100% of team members when asked express the opinion that the process is currently a â€Å"waste of time†. This results in individual performance not being measured. There are currently no reception team meetings. These would serve as a measure of on-going performance as objectives and progress can be discussed. Instead there is a predominant reactionary attitude to problems that arise instead of planning to avoid them where possible. What are the implications of your findings? The organisation performs well when staffed with appropriately skilled people  but takes a long time to bring new staff up to the required level of competence. Communication is poor at times which results in low team spirit and this is further impacted by the negative appraisal experience. The current appraisal system also fails to develop individuals as objectives and goals are not set and hence provide little motivation or progression. Assessment unit title ILM unit no. AMSPAR unit no Be able to develop and lead teams M5.46/2 604/2 Assessment Criteria 1. Critically review your own ability to develop and lead teams to achieve organisational goals and objectives Assessment unit title ILM unit no. AMSPAR unit no Understand own ability to fulfil the leadership role M5.06/1 607/1 Assessment Criteria 1. Evaluate your ability to use a range of leadership styles, in different situations and with different types of people, to fulfil the leadership role Give three examples of the different personalities or situations you have in your team. 1. New starter who has been in the team for two weeks. Enthusiastic but lacking skills. 2. Senior team member who has been in the job for nineteen  years. Highly skilled but lacks motivation. 3. Team member been in job three years. Very capable but lacks confidence to work alone. How does this affect the way you manage them? If I class these individuals using Hersey and Blanchard’s development levels their differences influence the approach I try to take when dealing with them. Person 1 needs a high level of both direction and support, whereas persons 2 & 3 need high support but less direction. Think about each of the different styles you have chosen (e.g. Telling, Selling, Consulting & Delegating). For each style†¦ Style 1 (name this style and describe it in twenty words or less) Telling or Autocratic – Roles and goals are extensively clarified, the leader defines objectives and standards with performance being closely monitored. Give an example showing when you have used this style. Centralised computer system failure requiring emergency procedures to be put into place to maintain a safe level of patient care. Was it effective? Give yourself a score out of 10†¦ 10 Explain why you gave yourself that score: why was it the right (or the wrong!) thing to do? The nature of the problem meant that there was no time for discussion. Operable working practices needed to be adopted instantly with team members being assigned specific tasks. The problem was short term. Does applying this style come easily to you? Why or why not? Yes – my natural tendency leans heavily to a directive approach and I easily trust my judgement in situations which need immediate response. Style 2 (name this style and describe it in twenty words or less) Selling or Coaching – The leader provides direction with two-way communication used and support provided, allowing the team to buy into the process. Give an example showing when you have used this style. Explaining a new method of recording instances of pharmacies losing prescriptions and the benefit of having the subsequent data. Was it effective? Give yourself a score out of 10†¦ Explain why you gave yourself that score: why was it the right (or the wrong!) thing to do? Because retrospectively I wasn’t aware of all the factors which would affect the outcome or best working practice. Other team members were therefore the idea was very hard to sell as its failings were quickly apparent. The situation would have benefited from a more participative approach. Does applying this style come easily to you? Why or why not? No – I find it much easier to either tell people what I want to happen, or to open the process with input from everybody. I doubt my sole decision if I there is time to analyse it. Style 3 (name this style and describe it in twenty words or less) Consulting or Participative – Emphasis is on joint decision making, with team members allowed more freedom to take initiative and regular support maintained. Give an example showing when you have used this style. When considering changing the appointment system due to low patient satisfaction a meeting was held with the reception team. Was it effective? Give yourself a score out of 10†¦ Explain why you gave yourself that score: why was it the right (or the wrong!) thing to do? The reception team were the most knowledgeable about the day to day demands upon the current system and the most significant shortcomings. Their involvement in the decision making created a revised system which best addressed the current failings. Does applying this style come easily to you? Why or why not? Yes – despite scoring heavily towards a directive approach on questionnaires, I feel comfortable discussing problems within a group and value the input of others in an area where their expertise is greater than mine. Style 4 (name this style and describe it in twenty words or less) Delegating – The leader remains involved in decisions but passes responsibility for tasks and processes to the individual or group. Give an example showing when you have used this style. When requesting that a senior team member be responsible for producing the annual significant event report. Was it effective? Give yourself a score out of 10†¦ Explain why you gave yourself that score: why was it the right (or the wrong!) thing to do? The report needed updating periodically and completing by the end of the year. The team member in question had the required capability and could be trusted to fulfil the objective in a way that they saw fit. There was no specific format that the report had to take. Does applying this style come easily to you? Why or why not? No – I worry that people will have a negative response to being asked. Thinking about how easy (or difficult) you find it to apply each style†¦ What factors should you take into account before deciding which style to use? There are a number of factors that I would take into account: The ability of individuals or the team as a whole, the time available to complete the objective, the complexity of the issue and who has the most expertise, not always the person in charge! What score would you give yourself, out of ten, for your ability to apply different leadership styles? Explain that score here: 6 – Some styles come easier to me than others, on a situational leadership style scoring sheet my score was highly directive, suggesting that I subconsciously tend towards a more autocratic approach. Feedback from other team members has also shown this to be the case and coupled with my inexperience in a leading role results in me not always making the most appropriate choices. Assessment unit title ILM unit no. AMSPAR unit no Be able to develop and lead teams M5.46/2 604/2 Assessment Criteria 1. [Be able to] implement changes to your leadership style in order to more effectively develop and lead teams Change proposed (Specific, Measurable) How best to implement this (Achievable) Resources Schedule (Timed) Create new staff appraisal system for reception team, which will improve knowledge of individual strengths. Up to 75% of team members to answer on feedback forms that appraisal was of â€Å"some use† to them. Ask practice manager if I can attend upcoming seminar which includes section on appraisals. Practice manager to be consulted about possible budget for training and time available. Training completed by 30/09/13, one month before start of appraisals. Improve self -confidence. Do confidence scoring questionnaires now and in six weeks’ time. Complete daily visualisations from self-help book. Guided visualisation CD and questionnaires. Review with questionnaire six weeks. Create a more balanced leadership approach, currently heavily directive. Complete leadership style questionnaire now and in eight weeks’ time. Ask for anonymous feedback from team. Contact consensus training provider to clarify cost and duration. Set time aside to complete training. Practice manager to be consulted about possible budget for training and time available. Review with questionnaire and feedback in eight weeks. References Cherith Simmons Learning and Development 2013 Leadership, supervision and team building information pack. Mind Tools Ltd (2013) The Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory. Available at: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_44.htm. Date accessed 06/06/13 businessballs.com (2013) action centred leadership. Available at: http://businessballs.com/action.htm. Date accessed 06/06/13.

Analyse Different Ways in Which You Would Establish Ground Rules with Your Learners, Which Underpin Appropriate Behaviour and Respect for Others.

In my current role as a Trainer/Assessor, I work with Apprentices delivering theory and NVQ’s. To achieve respect and appropriate behaviour from learners, clear boundaries and rules are required within which we can work, and it is paramount that these are prepared early so everyone knows the limits. Ann Gravells (2008) defines: â€Å"All learners require boundaries and rules within which to work. Setting ground rules will help everyone know their limits†. As all students are different, consequently they will all have their own unique way of looking at life. Teachers need to manage their classes in order to accommodate everyone’s needs and expectations. The College will have policies regarding Health and Safety which will be non-negotiable. Some rules such as no smoking in the classroom will be accepted by everyone as this is backed up by legislation. Other rules such as no drinks in the classroom will not be so generally acceptable, especially to those who consider themselves as responsible adults who have rushed from work to get to college and need refreshments. There are numerous ways to determine ground rules with learners. When teaching I will prepare a timetable for the learners to receive beforehand with the place and time they will start and what they must bring with them. I arrive early so I can organise the room and set out resources. I will welcome learners and then go through some housekeeping (where the toilets and emergency exits are). I then establish ground rules that I feel appropriate, i. e. be punctual, mobile phones on silent and respect others. I next ask the learners what rules they want and this will give them ownership of these rules. I would also refer them to the College Learners Handbook, ‘The way we do things round here’ (see page 5) and the Teacher and Learner contract (copy attached). The resulting ground rules form the backbone of both respect and discipline and help the group and myself bond and start a healthy student/teacher relationship. If a ground rule is broken, it is the other students that will point it out and this enforces group discipline. Bibliography Gravells, A. (2008) Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector, 3rd Edition, Exeter, Learning Matters Ltd. p7.

Comparative Analysis of Advertisements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Comparative Analysis of Advertisements - Essay Example This essay reflects on the advertising strategies of these companies in terms of models and media employed, target audience, approaches to advertisements, consumers’ appeal, effectiveness of these strategies and congruent success in the market. The view of the essay is to employ a critical analysis approach in order to present a unique comparison and contrasting of the advertising approach of the two multinational companies. Additionally, the rhetorical presentation of the company’s products is analyzed within this paper in order to define the effectiveness of each of the company’s marketing communication images and messages. Both Pepsi and Coca-Cola present their brands in a very convincing manner. This is regardless of numerous differences in approach which are used by these two companies. More notable though is the rivalry and wars which evidently exist between these companies in their marketing and promotion projects, campaigns and advertisements (Behrooz 10) . The influence that the two companies impact on the market is based on the fact that they have laid large budgets for advertising their products. As a result, Pepsi and Coke adverts are common place. They frequently appear on television commercials, radio, billboards and at promotional events and campaigns such as sports sponsorship (Odell 1). Because of the approach that the companies have employed, their popularity has grown significantly within various markets and segments. Popularity of a company leads to a conviction within a customer or potential consumer that the company is authentic and as a result its products are superior and are of a high quality. It is arguable that both of these companies have attained this though at different levels. The advertisements of Coke and Pepsi have achieved different levels of influence on their target market. For example, Pepsi is leading within the youth market segment because of the youthful language, style, culture and images which it pr esents within its commercials (PR Newswire 1). On the other hand, Coke has attained more success in the market because of its strategy of targeting a wider market (Behrooz 5). The rhetoric that is expressed within the company’s marketing strategy is demonstrated by the fact that the companies placed insiders of each other’s advertising units to provide intelligence information for marketing strategy (Behrooz 12). Even though this approach reflects the height of market rivalry, it is evident that regardless of notable differences in marketing strategy, the commercials of these companies have been planned, designed and planned based on insider information that they steal from each other. The feelings and emotions that the consumers attain from the advertising strategies of these companies are very paramount even though it is achieved through different approaches. For example Pepsi initially relied upon celebrities, such as pop and film starts or cricket players, in its c ommercials (Behrooz 14). This was aimed at arousing feelings and emotions within the consumers especially those who were affiliated with film, pop music and sports. As a result Pepsi was able to connect the feelings of the consumers for stars and sports to the love for the Pepsi brand. This strategy is attributed to the increased performance of the company within the market. Coke also employs strategies of arousing feelings within

Lebanon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Lebanon - Essay Example Early settlement in Lebanon evidence was found in Byblos. In 5000 BC the city was occupied by people. Lebanon was the homeland of Canaanite descendants as it was part of Northern Canaan. The famous colonies of Lebanon rulers were Cadiz and Carthage which are currently known as Tunisia and Spain respectively. The country became one of the succeeding empires in recent times. The empires include Persian, Roman, Assyrian and Crusader among others (Harris 6). Music, literature and art in Lebanon are rooted in Levantine and Mediterranean norms. The art of Lebanon started after the civil war in 1991 in Beirut. The start of the art was marked by alternative Anita Toutikian artwork. Lebanon has more literature writers like Khalil Gibran who wrote the book called, â€Å"The Prophet†. Other local literature writers include Amin Maalouf and Elias Khoury among other. Lebanon mostly practice the traditional folk music. Currently, the society practices the modern music involving Arabic and Western styles and pop (Harris 35). Lebanon is favorable for tourism since it has many places to visit like Mim Museum, Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque and National Museum of Beirut among others. There are hotels for accommodation and they include Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and Sonesta Great Bay Beach among others (Harris 10). In conclusion, Lebanon is a country which has undergone many stages of development. The societies in Lebanon have interacted with different communities that participated in brining up the Lebanon culture. The country is a good place to tour since it is peaceful and has many tourism attraction features (Harris

Beer licenses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Beer licenses - Essay Example Any alcoholic beverages that exceed a five percent alcoholic content are not regulated by the cities or counties but instead are regulated by the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Any business that is involved in the distribution, manufacturing, sale or storage of beer are required to obtain permits from the city or county where the business is to be located. When building a business of this kind, my client has become aware of the necessary steps it takes to acquire such licenses that are needed in order to follow all of the rules and regulations to build a thriving business. In order to do so, it was necessary to research the laws in Davidson County to see what types of licenses or standards that my client must meet in order to sell beer in this establishment. Through research, I have found the licenses that are appropriate in order for my client to be able to sell beer to the public in Davidson County, Tennessee. One group that was able to help assist my client in learning more about obtaining a beer permit for selling alcohol on their premise is the Metropolitan Beer Board that actually helps to establish beer laws and determine rules and regulations for selling beer in the Nashville Metro area. Since this is not a dance hall or catering establishment, there are different applications that are to be filled out. One of the necessary documents is the Beer Permit Application. The Beer Permit Application is to be completed by my client in order to seek a permit to serve alcohol on the premises only or for off-premises only. The information required as set by the Beer Permit Application is the type of business that my client is running and it is up to the Beer Board staff of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee to determine whether or not the application will be approved. The Beer Board Application is a permit is designed for those who

Public Space Today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Public Space Today - Essay Example Hence as public spaces become familiar with more and more individuals as the 21st century progresses the perceptions of people occupying those public spaces are relevant. Regardless of how public spaces are described, or the condition they are in, it is certain that all urban spaces have large numbers of them. Certainly individuals who utilise these public spaces do not invest a lot of time talking about descriptions of the kinds of spaces they are occupying, neither do they discuss about the advantages offered by public spaces, instead they encounter the advantages and at times ignore these public spaces (Carmona et al. 2008). However, they do give importance to and ‘occupy’ such public spaces and utilise them as a component of their everyday existence. Therefore, these public spaces contribute significantly to the quality of life of a community and an individual in the urban environment.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     A summary of the interpretations of public spaces, an assumpti on of shared observations between a 19th century naturalist, a supporter of public parks, and a landscape architect, remains relevant today (Woolley, 2003):(1) Individuals need interaction with their immediate environment in order to be strong spiritually, emotionally, and physically;(2)   The growth of industrial urban areas has basically damaged the natural environment, at the expense of the people;(3) It is the purpose of public spaces to restore to the urban areas the advantages of the natural environment and to give every chance.... ummary of the interpretations of public spaces, an assumption of shared observations between a 19th century naturalist, a supporter of public parks, and a landscape architect, remains relevant today (Woolley, 2003): (1) Individuals need interaction with their immediate environment in order to be strong spiritually, emotionally, and physically; (2) The growth of industrial urban areas has basically damaged the natural environment, at the expense of the people; (3) It is the purpose of public spaces to restore to the urban areas the advantages of the natural environment and to give every individual the chance to experience a natural architecture; (4) The level to which an urban area gives these opportunities and the level to which it produces public spaces to meet the needs and demands of its people are means of determining the growth of democracy. In spite of their weaknesses these interpretations can contribute to the recognition of the fact that numerous of the advantages of public spaces have been embraced as realities historically. Public spaces are vital to everyone’s everyday activities. The opportunities and advantages that can be provided by various public spaces, whether they are civic, neighbourhood, or domestic, all over the urban foundation can offer a chance to improve the quality of life. According to some scholars, it is certain that a number of metropolises, like Sheffield, Bristol, and London, already have functioning informal and formal systems of public space (Madanipour 2003). The case studies included in this discussion evidently confirm the interpretation that numerous components of life for communities and people in urban areas can be enhanced by the presence of public spaces. It is demonstrated in the case studies on Venice and Siena that