Critical Analysis of Project Management Plan

Question: Discuss about the Critical Analysis of Project Management Plan. Answer: Introduction The project report is prepared to perform the critical analysis of the chosen project management plan, using an example of a case study. For the critical analysis, Green ICT Project has been selected for the critical analysis. The project management plan for the Green ICT Project includes a detailed plan that covers multiple tasks and elements of the investigation and record of the data on the CO2e or Carbon Dioxide Footprint, at specific location, Australian National University. The project plan also includes identification of the ways to reduce the footprints of the carbon of ICT in the ANU. It involves collaborative tasks with stakeholders or identification of the trends of the industry to adopt Green IT Practices and evaluation of efficient technologies towards reducing and minimizing the ICT impact on the environment. The report is structured with a background of the project, where it has come from and what it comprises of. In the same section, the project context is also defined. The details of the sponsor or owner of the project are described in terms of what it does and many related things. Later, the audience of the project is explored and presented in the following section that include the details of what can they know, how they can use and what else information is needed for them. Alternatives to the structure of the PMP are then discussed. The context of the PMP is discussed. Finally, conclusion is added, followed by the references. Appendix is added at the end, for an actual project. Project Background In the project background section, the basic and primary details of the project are presented, such as the basis and motivation of the project and the objectives defined for the project. Every domestic and working place emits some part of the pollution or the greenhouse gases, in the form of CO2e or carbon dioxide footprint. The project is all about investing and exploring what is the greenhouse gas emitted by the Australia National University and also includes the solution to reduce the carbon emission. The sponsor organization is the Australia National University, which imparts knowledge to the aspiring students. The project is done to explore, how the educational institutions and workplaces share the part of the emission of the greenhouse gases. The university is located in Australia. The project involves investigation of content of CO2e emission, identifying and exploring various ways to reduce the carbon footprint, especially from ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in the ANU. And industry trends are discussed to adopt the practices of the green IT to evaluate the efficient technology to reduce the impact of emission. The good initiative also explores the possible government incentives that are available to strengthen the green IT initiative. The initiative also includes bringing increasing awareness about the Green ICT among the stakeholders. The target and objective set is measurable to 10% reduction of emission by specific duration. The overall project gives clear details of how the project of reducing the greenhouse gases can be initiated and implemented by the educational institutions and Universities sponsor the project and how it is made possible. The project also gives the details and statistics of the base and background details. PMP Audience and Structure This section is written for identifying and describing the audience for the project, like who get benefited from this project, by basic learning and the structure of the project is also detailed of how the structure of the Green ICT Project is discussed of how all the project management plan data is made available. The project management plan is an approved and formal document that is developed and used for guiding the execution of the project and control. It includes the assumptions and decisions in the document planning. The plan facilitates formal communication established among the stakeholders of the project, cost, schedule baselines and scope. Usually, the plan includes all the elements of the project either briefly summarised or detailed. A complete project management plan can make the job of the project manager in executing the tasks related to the project, even though variations occur during the implementation. Eventually, the audience for this report of project management plan is the project managers. The project manager does not need to be confined to the projects related to the information technology or other industries. Even a new University student, who has the intention and objective of earning the Graduation certificate, can be a project manager, as the cortication involves many tasks, of taking the syllabus, gathering the resources, listening to the lectures, understanding and presenting the reports and finally giving the examinations or assessment can very well be a project manager. In a nutshell, any event that has multiple tasks come under the project management and the event manager becomes the project manager. A project manager needs to know and explore many things associated with the project and relevant subject knowledge can always be an added advantage. They have the entire responsibility and accountability to the final objective of the project that includes majorly planning, procurement and execution of the project, especially, in the engineering domain. Since the project managers are SPOC (Single Point of Contact) or first point of contact, for the concerns, issues, complements or anything regarding to the project, they should be aware of the entire plan, the current tasks, future tasks, all discrepancies to the project, before the issues are escalated to the higher management or authorities. Since an individual cannot perform all the tasks, the project involves usually, multiple team members and the management of the tasks as well as the team members become the responsibility of the project managers. The manager should strive the best to directly participate in the tasks and activiti es, intensify with the mutual tasks and interaction with multiple parties, in the ways that reduce the overall failure risk, minimizing the costs and maximizing the benefits. To perform all the tasks related to the project, the project manager has to have and make an effective project plan. The project plan is used by the day to day reference and logical sequence of the tasks of the project. The project management plan is well defined and built by the project manager, along with the organization of the project. The project management plan is well defined by the project manager and majorly done long before initiating the project, as it becomes the reference for getting the approval from the higher authorities or the sponsor of the project. Elements of PMP This section covers the basic elements of the general project management plan, by considering various project management methodologies, such as PMBOK and PRINCE2, Agile, etc. The general framework that includes all the elements is covered and the best alternatives in the industry. Project management plan is a macro level planning that includes all associated tasks, without leaving a single one task. Since, a project implementation is usually dependent on many of the disciplines and professions to complete and bring a shape to the objectives. For formal project management plan to be complete, an industry standard is to be followed, such as PRINCE 2, PMBOK, etc. At macro level, the plan should describe project execution, management Control. This content is usually provided by other document reference, like, construction plan, procurement plan or it can be even a detailed project plan itself. The project Management Plan usually includes the topics in the execution system of the project and that cover the main aspects, as the following. Scope management Schedule management Quality management Procurement management Risk management Project change management Requirements management Financial management Resource management Communication management Stakeholders management It is always a good practice to cover all the above management aspects, especially, for larger professional and consulting project management firms, as it becomes the basis or formally agreed version for the approval during earlier project stages and later applied during the throughout life of the project. Project Management Plan - Alternatives Project management plan is the plan that can be defined and built uniquely by the project managers, based on their expertise and experience. However, the experience and expertise of the specialized project management professionals and bodies have defined certain theories and models for the design and building the plan. There are many more theories and models built with the project management plan. One of the models that is almost universally accepted model is designed by the PMBOK (Project Manager Body Of Knowledge) and there are many other models existing are PRINCE, AGILE, Waterfall Model, etc. As discussed above there are many bodies, which have designed and modelled many of the theories and structures for the project management plan. There are numerous alternate theories and models developed for the reference for the project managers. However, let us consider only the widely accepted and used models and theories. PMBOK Project Management Body of Knowledge is a widely and globally accepted standard guidance and terminology as a body of knowledge in the domain of project management, developed by PMI (Project Management Institute). It considers the works to be accomplished by means of processes. This approach is consistently used with CMMI of software engineering institute, ISO 9000 and other management standards. Processes interact and overlap in various phases and throughout the project. Usually, the processes are detailed with three terms: Input Techniques and tools Outputs The PMBOK includes 47 processes and all of them are categorized and covered under basic five groups of processes and 10 knowledge areas. Process Groups Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring and Controlling Closing Knowledge Areas Project Integration Management Project Time Management Project Scope Management Project Cost Management Project Human Resource Management Project Procurement Management Project Communications Management Project Stakeholders Management Project Risk Management Project Quality Management As each industry is unique in planning and implementing the projects, the PMBOK shows the extensions as the following. Construction Extension Software Extension Government Extension Prince Another theory and model that is existing is the PRINCE (Projects in Controlled Environments) has the following structure of the project management plan. SU - Starting up a Project IP Initiating a Project DU Directing a Project CU Controlling a Project MP Managing Product Delivery SB Managing Stage Boundaries CP Closing a Project When the patterns of these models and theories are observed, it is evident that all the processes or diversified tasks are logically sequenced based on the pre-requisites. Critical Analysis of PMP This section presents the critical analysis of the project considered as an example, The ICT Green Project and later, the most widely used project management methodology is addressed along with all its PMP elements. Though there are numerous theoretical frameworks designed and developed by many of the organizations and bodies, let us consider the widely or universally accepted standard, PMBOK for the purpose of the critical analysis. The ICT Green Project does address the basic plan elements in a very detailed ways along with the necessary tools, tables and figures needed. It does a very clear idea about what the project is about and what all the processes and tasks involved along with the associated elements in the project. The structure of the plan is crystal clear of what is done and how is done. As there is always scope and room for betterment and so this project management plan. As the project does not clearly specify the cost of the project and its necessary elements involved in it, financial or cost management is necessary. The report also does not include detailed change management and requirement management, unless some part of is covered in the procurement management plan. However, the overall structure is good enough to give close to complete understanding of the project and project elements. PMBOK addresses all the sections involved in the project management plan, in basically ten knowledge areas. Project Integration Management It includes all the activities and processes required for defining, identifying, unifying, combining and coordinating several processes and activities related to the project management within the process groups of the project management. Project Scope Management The scope management includes all the processes required for ensuring of what the project includes for only the works required and all the work required for successful completion of the project. Project Quality Management The quality management is considerably a complex managerial task as it includes all the activities and processes to determine policies, based on the quality standards of the organizations and also to perform those pre-defined qualities, responsibilities and objectives. It is complex managerial task, however, it ensures not only achievement of the objects, in terms of quantity, but also achievements to be followed and fulfilled by the standards of the quality defined by the organization. So, it ensures quality product. Project Time Management It includes all the processes needed for managing and completing the tasks timely within the project. It is also termed as a schedule management, because schedule is developed and maintained from the schedule management. It is one of the key components of the project management as it becomes the reference to the success of the project, along with the budget and scope of the project. When the schedule is well managed, the project is expected to be completed and object is achieved within the time frame or time limit, specified for the project. Project Human Resource Management Human resource management is a key process and key knowledge area for any project to be implemented. in simple terms, when the human resources are managed effectively and potentially, all the tasks associated to them will be achieved within the time frame and satisfying all the standards set to them. Managing human resources is a key knowledge area, as it can define and determine the overall success and quality product of the project. Project Procurement Management Procurement management includes all the processes and tasks that are necessary to acquire the services, products, purchases or results expected from the team external to the project. This knowledge area includes many processes like, procurement planning, solicitation, solicitation, contact administration, source selection and contract closeout. It is a critical knowledge area for the project manager, as the manager has to deal with many of the stakeholders, external to the organization, but play a fair role in the success of the project. Project Communications Management Communication is the blood of any relationship and the relationships are quite important and significant to be maintained as the human sources play the roles to perform the tasks and activities. In order to perform these tasks and activities communication becomes a vital tool and process. so, the communication management in the project management plan includes various processes that are performed to ensure appropriate and timely planning collection distribution, creation, retrieval, storage, control, monitoring, management and ultimately, information disposition for the project. Without the communication, there are not tasks and activities do not move even an inch. At the same time, an effective communication can enable to deliver quality outputs or products at the end of each and every task. Project Stakeholders Management Though stakeholder management looks to be similar to the human resource management, it is different in many aspects. For example, human resources have common objective, similar to the objective of the organization. However it may not be with the stakeholders, as the stakeholders are from both internal and external to the organization and each of the stakeholder has certain needs, values and expectations from the project. Bringing all the stakeholders at a common ground, neutralizing all their needs and values, would need enormous and potential people management skills to the project manager. Once the stakeholder management is performed successfully and potentially, there would be lesser number of risks and issues associated with the project. Stakeholder management includes the processes that are needed to identify all the stakeholders within or external to the organizations, which get impact by the project and also the processes that analyse the expectations of the stakeholders, project impact, developing the appropriate strategies of management to engage the stakeholders effectively in the project towards making decisions and execution of the project. Project Risk Management Risk management is recently developed managerial task that included in the project management plan. Risk management plan is necessary for all kinds of projects, starting from the small scale to large scale. Though the risk management does not prevent the risks to the project, they make the project manager and project team to be prepared with all the mitigation plans and contingency plans to apply immediately, without any delays. It includes various processes, like conducting risk identification, risk response planning, risk management planning and controlling on risks possibly occurred for the project. Project Cost Management It is another key management aspect for the project management plan, apart from the scope and time of the project, which determine the success of the project. Usually, it is less focussed and considered as a secondary managerial aspect by the project manager, it is not the situation or condition as such. Cost management is vital to keep the project and complete within the budget set before the initiation of the project, without deviation of the quality. All these ten knowledge areas consist of the processes that have to be achieved and accomplished within the standard disciplines to achieve the final product of the project management. All the processes covered in these knowledge areas become the part of the PMBOKs five process groups. All these processes can create a structure of the matrix relating one process group and one knowledge area. Conclusions From the project management plan theories and models, it can be perceived that the project management plan becomes complete, only when all the aspects and all the key disciplines associated with the project are well covered. The plan ideally, should be performed both in macro level and micro level. And the plan should be developed with the begin with the end in mind as well as the journey and requisites for the tasks. A complete template has to be considered and each of the elements in the template has to be taken and should be customized to develop the project management plan. Customization is to be done effectively, as it would be close to impossible to develop a project management plan that would be compatible for all sized and all industries in all the disciplines. The way the project is customized depends on the primary objective and final product of the project. The Green ICT project is considered as an example for reference that gives basic understanding of what is the domain and what is the industry that the project sponsors and the project objective belongs to. The theory and model observed and discussed in the topic is the PMBOK and its knowledge areas and processes. The PMBOK project management plan model includes all the processes necessary to develop the project management plan. The model is strengthen in terms of inclusion of all the areas of knowledge and processes, however suffers from the weakness that the project time management is ineffective compared to the other models. Recommendations This section covers the basic elements covered in The ICT Green Project and elements that have missed are addressed and recommended to add. The ICT Green Project has been reported with wider project management elements covered. It covers project integration management, where the idea conception and motivation are addressed. Schedule management is also clearly presented with the tool, Gantt chart. It included scope management, human resource management, communication management and procurement management widely. However, the plan needs to include stakeholder management, detailed financial management and change management majorly, which are also important parts of the analysis. The project management plan developed and proposed by the PMBOK is quite compatible for many of the diverse projects globally, as it includes wider and most of the knowledge areas and also relative processes that can be applicable to wide range of unique projects. The model can be effective and more scientific and when adapted, it is expected to make the plan close to complete. However, considering all the areas of knowledge and all the processes would be a lengthier and a bit tedious process. However, it is still easier than exploring all the tasks and knowledge areas from scratch and it is considered as a professional and scientific approach that can be best utilized by the project managers. There is a weakness associated with the time management knowledge area of PMBOK and it is recommended to consider another project management plan approach, by either PRINCE or Agile to make it completely effective, as time management or schedule management is a key factor in the success of the project, in terms of optimizing the time, which is a very important resource that can minimize the expenditure of the other resources. The project sequence of the Green ICT Project is good enough, covering most of the knowledge areas, except the cost management as it is completed in a very simple manner, without getting into details of the costs, budgets and analysis of the same. The overall project plan is good enough and it is obvious that there is always a room for an improvement for any event or project. References A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, copyright page, edition 2 PMI 2012A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, 5th Ed. Reid, Amy 2013"Capita acquires majority stake in ITIL and PRINCE2".Association for project management. International project management association OGC (Office of Government Commerce) 2009.Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2(2009 ed.). TSO (The Stationery Office). N/a, 2007, The Definitive Guide to Project Management. Nokes, Sebastian. 2nd Ed.n. (Financial Times / Prentice Hall), London Paul C. Dinsmore et al 2005 The right projects done right!John Wiley and Sons. Cattani, G., Ferriani, S., Frederiksen, L. and Florian, T. 2011 Project-Based Organizing and Strategic Management, Advances in Strategic Management, Vol 28, Emerald 2003, "Project Management Guide".VA Office of Information and Technology. Joseph Phillips 2003,PMP Project Management Professional Study Guide. McGraw-Hill Professional. Peter Nathan, Gerald Everett Jones, 2003,PMP certification for dummies. PMI, 2010, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge Harold Kerzner,2003,.Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling(8th ed.). Wiley Dennis Lock, 2007, Project Management(9th ed.) Gower Publishing, Ltd. James P. Lewis, 2000, The project manager's desk reference:: a comprehensive guide to project planning, scheduling, evaluation, and systems Young-Hoon Kwak, 2005, "A brief History of Project Management". In:The story of managing projects. Elias G. Carayannis et al. (9 eds), Greenwood Publishing Group. Jrg Becker, Martin Kugeler, Michael Rosemann, 2003, Process management: a guide for the design of business processes. David I. Cleland, Roland Gareis, 2006,Global Project Management Handbook. "Chapter 1: "The evolution of project management". McGraw-Hill Professional. Martin Stevens, 2002.Project Management Pathways. Association for Project Management. APM Publishing Limited. Josef E. Riedl, 1990, Projekt Controlling in Forschung und Entwicklung Edward R. Marsh, 1975, "The Harmonogram of Karol Adamiecki". In:The Academy of Management Journal. Vol. 18, No. 2 (Jun., 1975) Steinle, Bruch, Lawa, 1995, Projektmanagement. FAZ Verlagsbereich Wirtschaftsbcher Cynthia Snyder, Frank Parth, 2006,Introduction to IT Project Management. Morgen Witzel, 2003, Fifty key figures in management. Routledge Ralph Stauber, H. M. Douty, Willard Fazar, Richard H. Jordan, William Weinfeld and Allen D. Manvel.Federal Statistical Activities. The American Statisticia 2006, Body of Knowledge 5th edition, Association for Project Management. Bjarne Kousholt 2007,.Project Management . Theory and practice.. Nyt Teknisk Forlag. Tom Kendrick. 2013, The Project Management Tool Kit: 100 Tips and Techniques for Getting the Job Done Right, Third Edition. AMACOM Books, Implementing Six Sigma. Forrest W Breyfogle 3, Smarter Solutions Using Statistical Methods The Black Belt Memory Jogger, A pocket guide for Six Sigma success L. Harrison, Dennis Lock, 2004, Advanced project management: a structured approach. Gower Publishing, Ltd.

Prostitution Should It Be Legal Essays - Sex Industry,

Prostitution: Should It Be Legal? Prostitution: Should it be legal? Prostitution is known as the oldest profession in the world, however, many states in the U.S. outlaw it. The textbook definition of prostitution is the act or practice of engaging in sexual acts for money (Prostitution, Macmillan 805). Nevada is the first state in the United States to legalize prostitution. Although the long-term effects of legalized prostitution are uncertain, the short-term effects have been economically beneficial. Prostitution should be legalized because not only could it financially benefit the country, but it could also reduce crime. There are many reasons why prostitution is illegal in 49 U.S. states today. First, and foremost, many people feel that prostitution should stay illegal in order to preserve morality. Parents do not want their children to grow up thinking that prostitution is acceptable. Worse yet, parents do not want to hear their children say, When I grow up, I want to be a prostitute. Christianity also looks down upon prostitution because according to their beliefs, the act of sex is only to be done when a man and a woman are in love and married. Monogamy is to be practiced in the marriage, and any violation of this is considered a sin. Another reason why the preservation of morality is so important is that people's morals shape the future of our nation. Many people feel that if prostitution is legalized, then its long term effects would be detrimental to the United States. The divorce rate in the United States peaked at an all time high in 1980 (Marriage 56). By the legalization of prostitution, t his would allow room for husbands and wives to commit adultery. Thus, leading the marriage to a divorce. The divorce rate has really increased over the centuries. In the U.S. today, the divorce rate is fifty percent of the U.S. itself (Holland 86). Second, prostitution is a great health risk to the U.S. because of the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). A major concern about STDs is the spread of AIDS, which is currently a deadly STD because a cure has not yet been found for the disease. The transmission of STDs is already on the rise due to many uneducated teenagers having unprotected sex. In addition, most of theses teens are not going to a physician to be screened for them. Because of this, many curable STDs are going untreated and being spread throughout a community. Prostitution only adds to this problem because prostitutes have sexual contact on a daily basis, and rarely have themselves screened for STDs. Most of the time, prostitutes will not go to a doctor because they cannot afford it, they are too afraid, and/or they just do not want to deal with it. Unfortunately, simply ignoring the problem does not make it go away. Some taxpayers feel that this problem will only increase the cost of health care. In some cases prostitutes become pregnant and are left to raise a child on their own. For these women, their futures are uncertain because now they have a child to care for. This is another concern for taxpayers because the majority of these women will seek government assistance. With prostitution being illegal, many violent crimes against prostitutes go unreported every year. Prostitutes are often too frightened to report the crime to police. Most of the time, the crime's perpetuator is a pimp or a client. Several of the crimes committed against prostitutes include robbery, kidnapping, rape, battery, and/or homicide. Prostitutes, however, are not the only victims. Sometimes the client is also the victim. A street prostitute is already a lawbreaker, which may encourage other crimes, such as rolling' clients (drugging them and stealing their money) (Street Cleaning 25). As a result, crimes associated with illegal prostitution often go unreported and without punishment. Although enforcement of illegal prostitution exhausts a great amount of time, some citizens feel that the time is well spent. Many residents complain that street prostitution brings noise, declining property values, a bad environment for children, and a health threat. Residents feel that street prostitution detracts from the innocence of their children's childhood; and no price is too high to prevent this from happening. One tactic that is being

Writing an APA Style Outline For Literature Essay

Writing an APA Style Outline For Literature EssayIt is possible to get a sample APA style outline for literature essay, which will help you in creating your own. However, you should be aware that different colleges will have different guidelines for APA outlines and it is best to always seek advice from someone who knows what they are doing when writing these outlines.While researching samples of APA outlines for literature essays, you will be surprised by the different sizes of the outline and the templates used for each one. You should also consider that the structure that is used may not be appropriate for your topic. So, it is important to get a sample of the right structure that is suitable for your subject matter.The best way to get a sample of the best style for writing an APA outline for literature essay is to find someone who has written it. Of course, that will be the more experienced writers in the field, but there are many newer writers out there who can help you. By gett ing a sample outline for literature essay, you will be able to use it in place of the sample outline for literature essay that you would normally use.The best way to find samples of sample APA style outlines for literature essay is to search the internet. When you do, you will be amazed at how many different sample outlines there are. There are sample outlines that use different genres as examples, but most of them can be adapted to fit any topic that you may choose.Another advantage of using a sample outline for literature essay is that it will give you a good idea of how much time and effort you will need to spend to write a good outline. You should try to find someone who has already written an outline for literature essay and ask him or her to give you some ideas as to how they would have done it.However, there are many disadvantages to using a sample outline for literature essay. For example, you will probably not be familiar with the material that is contained in the outline a nd if you try to adapt the template for another subject matter, it will probably not work.Using a sample APA style outline for literature essay is better than trying to adapt a template that you don't understand and it may be easier for you to write one yourself because you know the type of outline you are looking for. Also, if you try to make the outline more personal and unique by adding the author's name or writing about the writer's personality, you might find that the style is not appropriate for your topic.Finally, some authors will be pleased to offer you a sample APA style outline for literature essay because they want to see that their work will be accepted by other students. In addition, they will also be able to see how the outline fits their own writing style and can apply it to other writers.

As Loonie Falls, Economic Outlook Remains Hopeful For Business Says

As Loonie Falls, Economic Outlook Remains Hopeful For Business Says As Loonie Falls, Economic Outlook Remains Hopeful For Business Says Bank Of Canada – Article Example Opinion Business entrepreneurs and investors have long been waiting for a falling loonie in Canada, and the report suggests that it is about time they meet their expectations. However, the merits and demerits associated with the falling loonie depend upon the place of a sector in the economy. Major winners include exporters, hospitality and tourism, manufacturers, and exporters that have lost market share in the past years in the world. On the other hand, life of the consumers, importers, and travelers is made more expensive by a weaker dollar because of its tendency to stoke inflation. Overall, falling loonie can be perceived as a positive thing since this would increase the competitiveness of the Canadian goods and services. Weakening of the dollar is a good news for economy’s large swaths that have, for the past few years, been struggling to overcome the effect of the recession. They mostly include the manufacturers that at least have an opportunity of making some profits. A lower Canadian dollar has the tendency to produce more money for investment, increase in the number of staff, and higher profits since significant number of sales take place in the US dollars. Investors see it as a return to normalcy after years of trouble. Although economic growth of the US has a huge impact on the business and economy of Canada, yet it would be prudent of Canada to not entirely depend upon the US for its businesses; Canada should also take other measures to strengthen its economy, one of which could be accelerating the sanction of the free trade agreement with Europe.

Autism 3

Autism 3 Essay Many years ago, I watched a young boy rock back and forth as he worked a crossword puzzle. I tried to distract him from working the puzzle to ride bikes with me. I continuously asked him to play with me, but he kept staring at the puzzle while I attempted to look in his eyes. He took the puzzle apart and flipped the pieces in the air, one at a time. He did not speak, but he made crying noises. The more I asked questions or talked to him, the louder his cries became. As his frustration grew, he balled his fists up, punched his eyes, and kicked his feet. I was curious about his activity. I was later told the boy my brother} was autistic, says Tamara Robinson in an interview. Autism is a syndrome of childhood characterized by a lack of social relationship, a lack of communication abilities, persistent compulsive, rituals, and resistance to change (Paluszny 1). For centuries, medical professionals have tried to understand autism and its origin. The above example shows only a few examples of autistic behavior. The history of autism extends, as far back as the late sixteenth century; however, during that time it was not identified as this illness. Here is a statement from before the discovery of the illness: In 1799, a boy about eleven years of age was found naked in the woods of Averyron, France. He was dirty, covered with sores, mute, and behaved like A wild animal. Jean Itard, the physician of the new institution for deaf-mutes, Was given charge of the abandoned child. From Itards description, Victor Showed many features of autismhe did not look at people and never Played with the toys, but showed remarkable memory in recalling the position Of objects in his room and resisted any change of these objects. (Paluszny 2) In attempt to educate Victor, Itard used a glass of water as a form of encouragement, but he continued to remain silent and never spoke any words. It was not until 1943 that the label autism was used by a child psychiatrist, named Leo Kanner to describe the symptoms. The term autism derives from auto, the Greek word for self, (Hamblin 137). Kanner used this term when he studied eleven children who had a unique form of schizophrenia (Hamblin 136). Although, it was later determined that even though some of the characteristics of schizophrenia and autism are not the same, Kanner did open new doors for an intensive study of a confusing syndrome. The causes of autism are unknown. In most cases, the pregnancies of mothers of autistic children were normal. Occasionally, there were cases of maternal bleeding, prematurity, or maternal rubella, but these situations do not appear consistently. One possibility that scientists have researched is genetics. Chromosomal studies have been attempted to detect if autism is a result of too many chromosomes, because autism is more dominant in males than females, (Ritvo 169). The frequency in males is approximately 3/5,000 (Ritvo 169). Since females have two X-chromosomes and males have an X and Y chromosome, than the Y chromosome can be considered in current research activities. Another possibility is the malfunctioning of the brain. According to Adler, neurobiological researchers have localized several regions of the brain that are responsible for social interaction skills (248). Frith says, a biological defect causes autism, the symptoms which include a lack of communication, socialization and imagination. Scientists are continually searching for answers. During the stages of infancy, the autistic baby seems normal. Then, a period of time before the age of three, the child experiences regression. In some cases, the first signs are at the age of three. There is no exact determination of when the signs appear. When autistic parents were told to think back in time before the third year, some parents said that they could not pinpoint exactly what the difference was, but they described a vague feeling that something was wrong from infancy (Paluszny 4). In normal development of children, Paluszny says that one of the first milestones is the social smile (4). Babies smile and respond to the faces and voices of adults. The autistic infant does not bring about a social smile; rather the child will only respond to sounds and sights that .

International Business Strategy for Ford Case Study Essay

International Business Strategy for Ford Case Study - Essay Example Ford also started to build electric cars. The political forces facing this industry are getting more and more severe. There are many groups in the society which are demanding stricter environmental norms for the automobile industry (Hoffman, 2012, p. 211). Ford has so far done a good job in maintaining the image as a worker’s truck. Ford has attracted the attention of other social and economic groups which have high-class luxury vehicles. Ford operates in many international countries such as Australia, Japan, UK and America where the business operations are conducive. In 1975, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy took effect, and Ford was able to abide by the regulations. Non-compliance with these laws caused heavy fines, which would prove costly to the company. This made Ford manufacturer one of the most fuel efficient and environmentally friendly cars. The Government also discourages Ford to fully automate its operation which would otherwise result in increase of the unemploym ent rate. Economic forces The leading manufacturers of the vehicles were mainly companies from United States, Western European and Japanese companies. Ford used to produce more vehicles outside their home country than within their own country. The auto industry remained fragmented. In 2010, there were a total of 18 manufacturers with their annual output being more than 1 million vehicles. 3-firm concentration ratio which is measured by the units of production was around 31.5 percent. There were many mergers and acquisitions in the auto industry; still they faced new competition from other countries especially India and China. Figure 1: Mergers & Acquisitions among the major automobile manufacturers. (Source: Ledderhos, 2003, p.68) (Source: Ledderhos, 2003, p.67) Strong competition from the companies forced Ford to go for cost reduction through economies of scope, economies of scale, worldwide outsourcing, off-shoring, just-in-time scheduling and collaboration. In spite of the many c ost reduction techniques, the major automakers were still unable to rival the low cost automakers from India, China and elsewhere. The euro zone crisis further exasperated the problem of Ford (Ireland, Hoskisson and Hitt, 2010, p. 75). Social Factors The social factors which affect Ford are the changes in the social classes in the world market. With increasing globalisation the car market is witnessing increase in spending from the middle and upper middle income families all across the world. The lines between the social strata are diminishing. Hence companies all around the world are now targeting the middle income group to increase their volume sales. This helps the motor company in expanding their market across the world. This results in more manufacturers coming out with products which cater to the middle income people and results in rise in competition (Stead, Stead and Starik, 2004, p. 89). The consumers are now demanding better quality, safer vehicles at lower prices which ha ve forced Ford Company to produce cars at cheaper ways like outsourcing the parts of their production in outside countries. Hence the company needs to adopt new processes and methods of creating attractive, unique automobiles

A Comparison of world religions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

A Comparison of world religions - Essay Example The Hindus do not eat meat. Shinto does not look at the emperor in the face. Native American people fear handling the dead (Hall et al., 2006). In Islam, pork is forbidden. The act of eating anything in Islam is a form of worship. It is this reason that makes Muslims selective in food. Muslims do not eat pork because the Quran prohibits them from doing so. They also do not drink alcohol because they say it intoxicates the brain as stipulated in the holy Quran. Intoxicating the body by eating ‘unlawful’ food is a sin (Naik, n.d). In Hindu, eating beef is taboo. The Hindus do not eat beef because they associate cows with God’s creation. In the past, Hindus used to sacrifice bulls for religious purposes. The beef would then be eaten. Things later changed among these religious groups. Individuals would be holier by avoiding beef. Nowadays a cow, to a Hindu, is a source of life. The cow is a sacred creature that must not be eaten. Consuming other products like milk, however, is accepted (Nigosian, 2007). They believe that there are severe consequences that come as a result of breaking a taboo. One would be jealousy of others, angry, anxious, and fearful of death. Hindus believe that if they inflict pain on others, including cows, the same pain will rebound on them (Hall et al., 2006). In Christianity, the taboos regarding the choices of food are different among the Protestants, Orthodox and Roman Catholics. Roman Catholics do not eat meat on Fridays during lent time. They fast during lent because they believe it improves spiritual discipline. Fasting is also believed to enable a Catholic overcome the physical world’s sensations and focus on spiritual growth. The Catholics believe that sacrifices are offerings to God. God, therefore, deserves to receive the best form of sacrifice. The Catholics choose meat because it is always associated with celebrations. Eating meat on Fridays is,