Death Penalty Essay -- essays research papers fc

One of the most controversial topics in America today is the death penalty. Four thousands of years the death penalty has been used all over the world. In the earlier centuries the townsmen would hang people if they were accused as being a witch, but they were not witches at all. They merely knew a little more information than the next person. They were wrongly accused, and that is why I see the death penalty as immoral, unethical and just wrong! People were put to death for no reason; they were accused because there wasn't enough evidence to prove their innocence. Here in America you are innocent until proven guilty. That is not the way it is, you are guilty until proven innocent is the right way to look at the society today. In this essay I will show statistics, pros, cons, moral issues, etc about the death penalty. The word "capitol"; in"capital punishment"; refers to a person's head. In the past, people were often executed by severing their head from their body. The United States is one of the very few industrialized countries in the world that executes criminals. It is one of the few countries in the world that executes mentally ill persons, persons with very low IQ, and child murders (i.e. persons who were under 18 at the time of their crime).On August 22, 2000, "Virginia and Texas each executed two men who committed their crimes when they were under 18"(Sara Rimer and Raymond Bonner).Which in my personal opinion is just wrong. As of October 19, 2000, during the last decade of the 20th century, 547 prisoners were executed in the United States --one third of them in Texas. Another 3,500 wait on death rows. When asked whether people prefer to keep or abolish the death penalty, about 60 to 80% of American adults say that they want to keep capital punishment. Numbers vary depending upon the exact wording of the question asked by the pollsters. When asked whether they would like to see executions continue or have them replaced with a system that guaranteed life imprisonments with no hope for parole, ever; that the inmate would work in the prison to earn money; that the money would be directed to helping the family of the person(s) that they killed. Capital punishment has been a cause for debate for many years, and people continue to ... ... the race of the defendant or of the victim in deciding whether to impose the death penalty".(Bonner). From the facts that I stated above i think death penalty is very much racist. In conclusion, the death penalty may seem to be the best course of action but in reality I believe that it is not. As I have said, it is the best deterrent America employs against murder, it saves our country money, and most importantly, it guarantees that a murderer will not have the chance to kill again. But America goes against its own law and joins the society in this wrong doing. An innocent life may be at stake and no one will ever know. Bibliography: 1. Bonner, Raymond, "Push Is on for Larger Jury in Military Capital Cases <NYT-Military.html>," New York Times, September 3, 2001 2. Bonner, Raymond and Rimer, Sara, "Mentally Retarded Man Facing Texas Execution Draws Wide Attention <NYT-Penry.html>," New York Times, November 12, 2000 3. Cohen, Richard "Hangman, Be Gone <WPost-Hangman.html>" The Washington Post , September 26, 2000 (op-ed) 4. Expert documentation: executions /http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/

National Bank of Pakistan

PRINCIPLE OF MANAGEMENT SEMESTER FALL ‘10 FINAL REPORT RESEARCH LOCATION: NATIONAL BANK OF PAKISTAN – HEADOFFICE TOPIC: MANAGEMENT PREPARED BY: Nash Jinia – 4456 Sarosh Ejaz – 5050 Irfan Ali – 5129 Jehanzaib – 4591 SUBMITTED TO: MAM AMBER RAZA COURSE ID: 10108 DATED: 14th NOVEMBER,2010 TABLE OF CONTENTS S. NO| PARTICULARS| PAGE NO. | 1| Acknowledgments| 2| 2| An Introduction – NBP| 3| 3| Vision and Mission| 4| 4| Management and Strategic Values| 5| 5| NBP Organizational Structure & Leadership| 7| 6| SWOT Analysis| 10| 7| Questions and Answers| 12| 8| Our Findings| 17| 9| Why work at NBP? | 24| 0| Conclusion| 25| ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We start with the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful. We thank Him for giving us the strength and resources to complete this task as He gives all. We would like to thank Mr. Jamil Akhtar (AVP Logistics Wing) who kindly referred us to different departments. We would also like to thank all the s taff members of the National Bank of Pakistan (Head office), who gave us some of their valuable time to answer all the questions we had regarding their job and working of the HR department and also for providing us with such accurate knowledge of their system especially Mr.Mohib-ur-Rehman (Manager Employee Communication). We would also like to thank our teacher and guide, Mam Amber Raza for giving us the research topics as our final term report, which gave us the opportunity to move forward and explore the real world scenarios and the working of the system in the public sector which benefitted us all the more; us being BBA students, and, with whose guidance we were able to put together all the information necessary in forming this report.AN INTRODUCTION – NBP National Bank of Pakistan is the largest commercial bank operating in Pakistan. Its balance sheet size surpasses that of any of the other banks functioning locally. It has redefined its role and has moved from a public s ector organization into a modern commercial bank. The Bank's services are available to individuals, corporate entities and government.While it continues to act as trustee of public funds and as the agent to the State Bank of Pakistan (in places where SBP does not have a presence) it has diversified its business portfolio and is today a major lead player in the debt equity market, corporate investment banking, retail and consumer banking, agricultural financing, treasury services and is showing growing interest in promoting and developing the country's small and medium enterprises and at the same time fulfilling its social responsibilities, as corporate citizen. In today's competitive business environment, NBP needed to redefine its role and shed the public sector bank image, for a modern commercial bank. It is now listed in the Karachi Stock Exchange. National Bank of Pakistan is today a progressive, efficient, and customer focused institution. It has developed a wide range of consu mer products, to enhance business and cater to the different segments of society. Some schemes have been specifically designed for the low to middle income segments of the population.These include NBP Karobar, NBP Advance Salary, NBP Saiban, NBP Kisan Dost, NBP Cash n Gold. A number of initiatives have been taken, in terms of institutional restructuring, changes in the field structure, in policies and procedures, in internal control systems with special emphasis on corporate governance, adoption of Capital Adequacy Standards under Basel II framework, in the up gradation of the IT infrastructure and developing the human resources.National Bank of Pakistan has built an extensive branch network with 1250 branches in Pakistan and operates in major business centre abroad. National Bank has earned recognition and numerous awards internationally. It has been the recipient of The Bank of the Year 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2005 Award by The Banker Magazine, the Best Foreign Exchange Bank – – Pakistan for 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Global Finance, Best Emerging Market Bank from Pakistan for the year 2005, Global Finance, Kissan Time Awards – 2005 for NBP's services in the agriculture field.It is listed amongst the Region's largest banks and also amongst the largest banks in South Asia 2005, The Asian Banker. It has also been presented a Recognition Award –– 2004 for having a Gender Sensitive Management by WEBCOP AASHA besides other awards. Year 2007 has yet been another outstanding year with the bank recording the highest profit in its history. NBP’s wide range of product offerings, large branch network and committed workforce are some of our fundamental strengths that enabled NBP to achieve exceptional results in a very competitive market. VISION AND MISSIONTo be recognized as a leader and a brand synonymous with trust, highest standards of service quality, international best practices and social responsibility. NBP will aspire to th e values that make NBP truly the Nation’s Bank by: †¢ Institutionalizing a merit and performance culture †¢ Creating a distinctive brand identity by providing the highest standards of services †¢ Adopting the best international management practices †¢ Maximizing stakeholders value †¢ Discharging our responsibility as a good corporate citizen of Pakistan and in countries where we operate. MANAGEMENT AND STRATEGIC VALUES As told by Dr. Mirza Abrar Baig, Senior Executive Vice President ; Group Chief, HR ; Administration) The management team as a whole, and each member of it, has clearly defined responsibilities and the necessary authority to manage the insurer in a manner consistent with the strategic direction approved by the supervisory board. All members of the management team are required to perform their duties with due care and diligence, and for the purpose of maintaining the insurer’s capacity to meet its obligations to all counterparties and constituencies at all times.Members are free of material conflicts of interest that could unduly influence their judgment. Where management is constituted as a management board, no non-executives should be part of the management board. The NBP team found that the management teams of the insurance companies are professional, with clearly defined responsibilities and adequate authorities to fulfill their duties. Boards of directors (i. e. the management boards) consisted only of executives. Management have sufficient skills and experience in relation to insurance, finance and other disciplines relevant to the management of an insurer.All members of the management team have access to sufficient resources and receive sufficient training to assist them in the performance of their roles. The management of the major NBP bank appears to be highly professional and demonstrates sufficient skills to fulfill their duties. The NBP team did not review the management of the small locally-owned banks that are not members of the banking association. NBP is continuously transforming its image and customer perception as a modern bank through branch renovation and relocation to more convenient and accessible sites.The team at Operations Group commits itself to change the face of the Bank by way of improving its physical outlook, effective implementation of its systems ; controls and the quality of service provided to its customers. Improving operational efficiency is getting more focus given the challenges being faced by the industry. With opening of customer facilitation centers for the collection of utility bills and making payments to pensioners, the bank expects to reduce its counter traffic at branches thereby focusing more on its customer’s business needs.Customer care is a key area of the bank and various training programs have been conducted for employees to improve customer handling and interaction. Special Assets Management Group is primarily responsible for monitoring and settlement of non performing loans (NPLs) portfolio. With NPL coverage of more than 76% we believe that non performing loans can contribute substantially in the bank’s profitability through recoveries and settlements. Rising non-performing loans has been an industry wide phenomenon and due to adverse economic factors, NPLs increased by 26% or Rs. 4. 5 billion. We believe that most of the NPLs are the result of business cycle / circumstantial defaults and with the economy picking up and reduction in interest rates; the quantum of non-performing loans is expected to decline. We are keeping our staunch focus on recovery and reduction in non performing loans is the area of greatest attention. The bank truly values its staff and the vital role they play in successful organizations. The bank gives special attention to attracting, developing and retaining good quality human resource.Our new hiring of top class MBAs as Management Trainees Officers (MTOs) and search for talent within the Bank have helped in preparing second and third tier leadership lines. ‘Female Empowerment’ was launched to empower female employees and impact communities by championing the cause of women’s empowerment in the society. Today, NBP is determined in pursuing the policy of placing females on responsible and challenging position as Branch Managers, Branch Operations Managers and Customer Facilitation Officers. A number of female MTOs have been selected, trained and posted as branch managers.Currently, 60 branches are being headed by females. HR initiatives and strategy is amid at competitive employee compensation, training need assessment and succession planning. NBP is striving to become an employer of choice through improved HR policies and competitive remuneration. NBP ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Organization Structure of the National Bank of Pakistan Main Offices Main Offices of the National Bank of Pakistan are of three types : * Head Office * Reg ional Offices * Branch Office Head Office Head office of the National Bank of Pakistan is located in Karachi.Head office controls and monitors all the activities of the bank. The President of the National Bank of Pakistan seats the head office. A secretariat is established to assist the president in the head office. The head office is divided into twelve Departments. A Group Chief controls a Group. President All Groups/Departments are headed by Group/Department Chiefs. President is the head of all Group Chiefs. All strategic matters are discussed and approved by the president and Group Chiefs. In Head Office following are the Group/Department Chiefs: * Operations Group Chief * Corporate ; Invest.Group Chief * Special Assets ; Remedial Mgt. Group Chief * Strategic Planning ; Economic Research Group Chief * Treasury Mgt Group Chief * Risk Mgt. Group Chief * Commercial ; Retail Banking Group Chief * Audit ; Inspection Group Chief * I. T. Planning Dept. ; Implementation Group Chief * HR M Dept. Chief * Org. Development ; Training Dept Chief * Over-seas Operations Chief NBP HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT â€Å"To provide more talented human resource in relation to competition in all NBP functional areas, creating a motivating environment and maintain industrial harmony†.As evidenced from the Mission Statement, key element of strengthening the HR base of the bank includes the following: * Provision of talented human resource * Employee motivation * Industrial harmony Additionally, all the HR initiative implemented at NBP is in line with the above objectives. VALUES They believe that; * People make the organization * People collectively yield results * People have ambitions and aspirations to be distinguished and rewarded * People form the human capital to be developed and invested in.LEADING POLICIES OF NBP Basically lending policies are governed by SBP lending policies; however, NBP has some discounter powers in respect of lending policies. The advances made by th e NBP have increased so much and are involved in creating a great amount of return for the bank. Deposits and the Advances are the two important functions of any bank. NBP takes deposits from the customers and lend them to the others for earning a profit. The difference between the deposit rate and the lending rate will be the benefit of the bank.Civil line branch of NBP is playing the most important role in this category because it has a separate department to deal with the peoples those who want to have money. Civil line branch is dealing with the corporate sector as well. Working Capital and Short Term Loans: NBP specializes in providing Project Finance – Export Refinance to exporters – Pre-shipment and Post-shipment financing to exporters – Running finance – Cash Finance – Small Finance – Discounting ; Bills Purchased – Export Bills Purchased / Pre-shipment / Post Shipment Agricultural Production Loans Medium term loans and Capita l Expenditure Financing:NBP provides financing for its clients’ capital expenditure and other long-term investment needs. By sharing the risk associated with such long-term investments, NBP expedites clients’ attempt to upgrade and expand their operation thereby making possible the fulfillment of our clients’ vision. This type of long term financing proves the bank’s belief in its client's capabilities, and its commitment to the country. Loan Structuring and Syndication: National Bank’s leadership in loan syndicating stems from ability to forge strong relationships not only with borrowers but also with bank investors.Because we understand our syndicate partners’ asset criteria, we help borrowers meet substantial financing needs by enabling them to reach the banks most interested in lending to their particular industry, geographic location and structure through syndicated debt offerings. Our syndication capabilities are complemented by our ow n capital strength and by industry teams, who bring specialized knowledge to the structure of a transaction. Cash Management Services:With National Bank’s Cash Management Services (in process of being set up), the customer’s sales collection will be channeled through vast network of NBP branched spread across the country. This will enable the customer to manage their company’s total financial position right from your desktop computer. They will also be able to take advantage of our outstanding range of payment, ejection, liquidity and investment services. In fact, with NBP, you’ll be provided everything, which takes to manage your cash flow more accurately. Generally Leading Policies Include: * Clean Credit Report. * Compliance with maximum exposure by the bank. Compliance with maximum exposure that can be allowed to a single party. * Funded = 4 times of equity of the firm. * Non-Funded = 10 times of equity of the firm. SWOT ANALYSIS A SWOT analysis is an effective tool, which can be used to examine the issue that will directly affect the success of alternative delivery mechanism. The emerging banking environment is becoming more competitive with the advancement of new technology. The banks are striving to provide their customers with prominent and efficient services at lower cost in order to get the competitive advantage upon other banks.During the internship program a SWOT analysis was also conducted which is as follow: Strengths * Deposit security that is guaranteed by Government of Pakistan. * Largest contribution toward Government & semi-Government requirements. * Agent to the SBP for handling Treasury/ Currency Chest Functions. * Collaboration with Federal/ Provincial Government organizations for receipts of taxes & other revenues. * Largest network of domestic & overseas branches. * More secured jobs of employees as compared to other commercial banks (Job Security). Sale & Purchase of prize bonds, NIT units, National Defense Saving Certificates (NDSCs) and other government securities. * Heavy project financing, Agriculture, Industrial as well as small loans. * Key role in country’s economic development. * Easy and shortened documented procedure. * Guidance and help of experienced people. Weaknesses * Under utilization of the new technology equipment & procedures of banking. * More formal organizational setup. * Bureaucratic style prevails in the National Bank of Pakistan. Lack of highly skilled, trained and professional personnel. * Fixed deposit rates not compatible with the competitors. * Foreign currency accounts governing rules more restricted & not customer oriented. * Bank staff not highly cooperative among themselves as well as with the customers. * Overall employees’ poor attitude towards work. Opportunities * The ability to obtain a larger customer base. * Global expansion. This is an enormous market, which will be a great opportunity in the future. * The ability to take advantage of the growing popularity of internet banking. Providing Information Technology loans to the students and educational institutions in order to foster the Computer and Management studies. * Providing the personalized services to the customers. * Offering high deposit rates and cutting down the high lending rates. * Financing the educational institutions and general public welfare projects in order to create a good image in general public. Threats * Continual changing technology. * Uncertainty of the banking industry. * Competition from â€Å"lower price† operations. * Possible failure of product due to non-acceptance of customer. General competitiveness of the banking industry. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS In addition to all the theoretical evidences we found which includes many conversations with people involved at NBP as listed in our findings, we luckily got the opportunity to meet the two senior executives in the HR department who gave accurate answers to our several questions. Th e HR function that we were most interested to find about was â€Å"RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION† but we also met with the personnel division head and found out about how HR at NBP handles grievances and compensates its employees.Being students of business administration and on our way to graduation getting into the most eligible organizations remains top priority and of course†¦National Bank of Pakistan remains top of the list. Obviously getting the group chief of HR, Dr. Mirza Abrar Baig, to talk to us still remains a big deal so we remained short of meeting him; instead we got an interview with Mohib-ur-Rehman Khan who is the manager-employee communication of Human resource management and administration group and, we might add, sits right ext to the Group chief who also told us as mentioned earlier what the group chief had to say regarding our research. Here are mentioned some of the questions we asked and his answers. Q: Sir, please tell us what type of hiring takes plac e at NBP? A: Certainly. NBP hires in two different ways. One is Contractual hiring and the other is hiring of the main management trainees. Contractual hiring is when we employ someone for three years and then when the contract is about to end we reconsider and sign a new contract. Main management trainees comprise 50% of the attraction for our pool of candidates.These are the employees to receive proper management training for higher posts. Q: Your external and internal sources for recruiting? A: Currently we don’t consider rehiring but we do focus on employee referrals and if the person who is retiring is valuable to us and no equal has been found out yet to take that place then we often stop the retiree†¦other than this, as I said earlier, reemployment on contract does take place of that person is hired on contract initially. If and when internal candidates are recruited they are applied to the position of MTOs for future top posts.External sources include media adver tising but not through internet. We advertise in the â€Å"National† and â€Å"Daily† newspaper once or twice. But we do college recruiting and have been done so quite successfully in the past. Q: So what is the actual recruitment and selection process? A: It is very simple but often tedious and costly. We publish our criteria in the newspaper. Through various sources of which are mentioned above, applicants fill out application forms and submit it to us. Once the applications are accepted there are written tests which are held by IBP (Institute of Bankers Pakistan).These written tests are both a mix of personality, aptitude and skill tests based on the person’s analytical and communication skills. These are based on the GMAT/GRE format. After the applicants are selected through these tests they are passed through group discussions and panel interviews. These interviews are structured and judged on equal basis. For both types of hiring, first interview consists of a panel of 3 IBP and 1 NBP member and then for the second interview a panel of 2 IBP and 2 NBP members sits. Q: What is NBP’s educational criterion for hiring?A: NBP requires an MBA degree (Masters in Business Administration) with a minimum 3. 0 CGPA. Q: What do you look for when recruiting personnel? A: We like to hire applicants who are team players with excellent interpersonal skills, have knowledge and use of information technology, have strong analytical and problem solving skills and have excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. So when they tell you in graduation school to emphasize on English, they are not wrong. Q: What happens after selection? A: After selection on-the-job training starts.These include simulations and video simulated training. They have 27 weeks training with IBP, then 27 weeks training with NBP staff colleagues, then 54 weeks training on job and then they are on their own aboard. All the while during training they are paid t heir salary. After this they are designated to posts in small cities and sent there for a period of three years and then if a proper appraisal comes in welcomed to work at the head-office. Once they get out of training groups of executives and officers are decided according to their skills and achievement of objectives.Thus NBP follows competency based job analysis. Q: What about EEO laws? A: We follow all rules. Equal employment opportunity is not violated by NBP. We have set the hiring quota for the disabled up to 2%. Recently we hired a blind lady in the telecommunication department. We do hire blind, deaf or applicants who are ill due to polio. Q: What can you tell us about negligent hiring? What does the bank do if it comes across a person who has had, let’s say, a bad record? A: As I said, NBP follows all the rules.As the recruitment and selection is both costly and time consuming we don’t want negligent hiring on our hands. Thus we make sure proper guidelines ar e followed. All the background checks regarding certificates and other educational documents and reference calls are handled by the IBP. Once the salary pay check comes in, first rounds are made and police report is requested from the police department while on the other hand the person for whom verification is being performed is notified of it all. After the police verification report comes in then only the salary is paid.If there is someone who is identified with a criminal background or false referrals he is told so and asked to withdraw. His information is kept secret (need for privacy). Targeted firing has not been started yet or else the employees go to court. Q: How is appraisal linked with recruitment? A: When appraisal comes in, promotions happen. Seats are vacated and we get the number to employ. This was all we discussed here from Mr. Mohib. While wandering about and reading the HR mission statement and vision we tried to look on into other departments but with little suc cess.At around late after lunch we got some little time blessed upon us and ultimately met the AVP/Head of Personnel Administration, Mr. S. Hasan Akber Zaidi, of the Personnel and Industrial Relations Division. We grabbed the opportunity to ask some questions about how the HR at NBP handles the various grievances that come in. Q: Sir, please tell us what actually does the personnel department do? A: We basically look into promotions, leave and absences, whether any mishap occurs and also keep record that all due liabilities of the employees are cleared. Q: Promotions would mean that you also look into appraisal reports (ACRs)?A: We basically have a policy department that makes all the policies for promoting and appraisals and also a separate department who handles appraisals but, yes, we do look into appraisals to know whose being promoted to what extent and how much an increase in salary takes place and how the others would be affected by it. In 1984, when I got hired there was no such thing as a union but now there is and so we keep check as to whether no biasness occurs. Q: Tell us something about the Industrial Relation Department? A: They are the people concerned with the laws of the union.They make sure that no mishap occurs and in the case of employees going to court they keep check that all lawful procedures are followed in. Q: what about the compensation procedures? A: compensations are handled by the compensation committee. There is no concept of overtime here. We tend to provide a whole lot of facilities according to the posts the employees have and that can include medical, logistics other membership facilities. We also provide loans on land and property as well as other technological things but keep a proper balance of these liabilities.Q: What happens if an employee fails for some reason in paying his liabilities or disappears? A: All employees have accounts. In situations like these, or when a fraud occurs, we seize and freeze the accounts of th ose employees. The matter comes into our hand then and until and unless the reasons will be cleared we don’t let any kind of transaction occur. Q: What happens when you catch some one doing a fraud or someone disappears? What if they do not notify you of the absences? A: There is no concept of rehiring. We decide at the time we catch the fraud what to do with the person and he is notified of our intentions.Most of the time frauds are not tolerated because NBP has a lot on its hands to protect itself from. But there are exceptional cases where we have had some dilemmas and looking into the matter deep has often resulted in a better solution. For example there was a case at Gujranwala where decision making was not easy. An employee of ours didn’t notify us that he was going to take leave, didn’t approve it and stopped coming to work. He was arrested by the police and the bank faced the problem as to let him back or not. The unauthorized absence and an FIR was a da ngerous match. But the personnel department looked into it.Since the police arrest was made on the basis of a family quarrel and had nothing to do with any criminal offence, the bank allowed him back on the job. Such decisions require our foresight and logical reasoning. Again sometimes, retaining an employee is difficult and his grievances have to be handled in a different way and at other times a golden handshake has to be offered in order to let other people take someone else’s place. Q: What about promotions? A: There is a continuous planning going on. Aren’t we all looking for the same things? A raise in salary†¦a better position. It’s a mad race that we are running.Constantly we keep an eye on whose going to replace whom and with how much. Sometimes it’s just not the work that lets you through. It’s the connections as well but then these things happen. The important part is that you have to keep an eye open and know everyone. If your col leagues like you†¦then you are the head of the list. Q: How efficiently does HR keep all these records? A: We have been upgrading and are still in the process of doing so. Everything will become computerized. In all total three hubs will be performed. Q: Are any HR events held? A: Yes a lot of them actually†¦We have conferences and female empowerment workshops.Also many dialogue sessions and quiz programs. With many thanks to the two executives who gave us much to think about we left their departments and headed towards the refreshments. OUR FINDINGS The bank has taken a number of HR initiatives to develop its workforce. Today banks have to survive in a highly competitive environment, where the demand for banking services is highly diversified and growing and changing rapidly. To meet the competitive challenges, NBP felt that it had to enhance the knowledge and skill level of its employees so as to gain a sustainable edge over other banks.Importance is being placed on upgr ading the quality of human resource for higher and better performance and to meet the demand of growing competition. Not only are the employees being provided with the job related training to develop a talented human resource base at the bank, but qualified management trainees have been inducted, professionals have been hired to fill the skill gap, a talent pool has been created by identifying talented employees from within the bank throughout the country and placing them in important positions in all functional areas of the bank.All this was done with one purpose – to develop a talented human resource base at the bank. In addition, the bank has gone a step further and has made concerted efforts to reduce the gender gap. The last four to five years, a change has been witnessed in the employment pattern, where more women have been employed at more responsible managerial positions, like those of female branch managers and female operation managers. While recruiting and selectin g Management Trainee Officers, the bank management ensures that young and qualified females are offered equal employment opportunity. * TALENT MANAGEMENTThe highest emphasis was laid on talent management as it is now globally recognized that talent is the critical driver of corporate performance and that an organization’s ability to attract, develop, motivate and retain talent results in a major competitive advantage. Organizations that do better job for attracting, developing, motivating and retaining their talent boost their performance dramatically. * MANAGEMENT TRAINEE SCHEME Recruitment in the permanent cadre of the bank was kept in abeyance since 1995 and there was induction in the bank for nearly a decade in this category.To fill the skill gap the bank management obtained special permission from GOP for restricted recruitment in the permanent cadre on an annual basis till 2010. About 700 management trainees have been inducted till end 2007 from the start in year 2003. After a vigorous scholastic and on job training the management trainee officers were placed at responsible in high value branches all over the country. Their contributions in furtherance of culture change, infusion of contemporary work practices and overall growth in bank’s performance is noteworthy.The Management Trainee Officers have been placed in the fields of General Banking, HR, Compliance, Risk Management, Treasury, IT and Audit. The Management Trainee Scheme of the bank has thus, proved highly successful and is being emulated by other financial institutions in the country. * TALENT POOL SCHEME There was realization by the bank’s management that there are many existing employees within the bank who had the necessary qualification, experience, skill and talent but due to one reason or the other; their career growth had become stunted.Such employees were dispersed throughout the country and were required to be identified for proper placement. In line with the glob al corporate strategy of leading Fortune 500 Companies that the best people should be placed in responsible and key positions, the implementation of the NBP Talent Pool Scheme has proved to be pioneering efforts in this direction in the Pakistan banking industry. Consequently, the first place over 200 employees were identified on merit through written test and interview and interview for selection in the NBP Talent Pool Scheme and posted in positions of higher responsibility.The implementation of the second phrase is in process and it is envisaged that other batch of about 300 existing bank employees will be available under the scheme for placement in high value branches of the bank. * FEMALE BRANCH MANAGERS The demographics of Pakistan are slightly skewed reflecting a higher female population which to a great extent is underutilized and their contribution to the economic sectors of the country in thus less than optimum level.Currently there is very high scope of including this fema le population in economic activities as many of them are academically qualified to take up challenging job opportunities. In line with the Government’s policy and vision of the bank’s President, NBP implemented a plan to empower the existing female employees of the bank and post them as managers in 10% of the bank’s branches. Around 30 female branch managers were selected from the existing female workforce of the bank while 30 others were recruited for external source.These 60 female managers have been posted at branches after intensive training and initial performance results indicate that they have shown remarkable performance. NBP employees excelling in banking examination of the Institution of Bankers, Pakistan: About four years ago the performance of NBP employees in banking examinations was quite dismal and it was the lowest in the banking sector. On account of the creation if an enabling environment with the management’s encouragement and support f or such academic pursuits besides various incentives, NBP employees today obtain the No. position in the country when compared to any other financial institution in terms of maximum number of NBP employees qualifying in such examination. * AGRICULTURE FIELD OFFICERS The agricultural sector of Pakistan contributes the highest to the GDP of the country. National bank of Pakistan enjoys the greatest strength in term of branch network which is concentrated in the rural areas of the country. The bank was therefore adequately poised to provide a full range of specialized financial services at the doorstep of the farmer.In line with the government policy to boost the agricultural sector with its large untapped potential for growth, NBP the initiative of the of developing adequate HR base in the agriculture dominated regions of the country consequently, 100 agriculture officers were appointed having necessary agriculture based qualifications to guide, facilitate and provide financial access to the farmer for enhancing their agricultural produce. * CASH OFFICERS Counter service to the costumers has been given top priority by the bank in order to improve the promptness in delivery of basic banking service.To improve customer services, 300 cash officers have been posted through internal sources by promoting staff of clerical cadre. This also provided for employee empowerment and motivation; in the past; promotions in clerical cadre took over 10 years. Upon encouraging results of such initiative, we have, once again internally advertised the position to induct another batch of cash officers which is going to be finalized shortly. * HIRING OF PROFESSIONALS Counter service to the costumers has been given top priority by the bank in order to improve the promptness in delivery of basic banking service.To improve customer services, 300 cash officers have been posted through internal sources by promoting staff of clerical cadre. This also provided for employee empowerment and m otivation; in the past; promotions in clerical cadre took over 10 years. Upon encouraging results of such initiative, they have, once again internally advertised the position to induct another batch of cash officers which is going to be finalized shortly. * EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION Human motives are based on conscious and subconscious need filled in individualistic, hierarchical order.Generally, motivation includes the entire class of drives, desire, needs and wishes, all of which are different for different individuals and further differ in their importance at various times for the same individual. Managing employee motivation is always an extremely complex task. To continuously enhance the level of performance of the employees and attain the optimum level for ensuring the growth of the organization, it is the primary responsibility of all HR practitioners to continuously maintain employee satisfaction and high motivation levels.NBP utilized all HRM tools for enhancing employees’ motivation thereby, contributing to the bank’s record growth. Promotion and Career Progression: During the last five years, 98% of the bank have been promoted at least once while, 45% of this total strength have received two promotions. This is a major step towards ensuring employee motivation and high morale. Promotions of employee who perform well are made strictly on merit basis and in the most transparent manner. Such promotions have been made a regular feature so that high performing employees are rewarded and their efforts in the growth of the bank are recognized.Employee Compensation: Pay Packages 2004, 2006 and 2008 were negotiated and implemented to the complete satisfaction of the employees and n the best interest of the bank. This was a major accomplishment in view of the highly charged intra-union and inter-union rivalries compounded by the transaction of HR responsibilities. During last five years increase in pay was a 100% for almost all NBP employees. The ensu re compensation levels of bank employees in relation to the market, salary surveys have been conducted and salary adjustments are being made wherever required. THE BANK’S INTERNAL CUSTOMER In order to provide maximum satisfaction to internal customers, which is vital for motivation and innovation each employee of HR has been given specific responsibility with the agreed upon standard time for each activity. The performance of the individual in then continuously monitored for the actual time taken for each activity against the set standard, to measure the HR performance. This quantification and measurement of each HR activity has resulted in substantial improvement in internal efficiency thereby, contributing to employee satisfaction and motivation. ACHIEVEMENT AND SPOT AWARDS A merit based culture has been established in the bank through implementation of achievement and spot awards for individual employees showing exemplary performance during the year or in an assigned task. The achievement award policy of the bank is a transparent system for rewarding high performing employees through achievement awards to 10% of the total employee strength every year. The policy of spot award is basically for recognizing individual employees their one-off excellent performance.Performance appraisal system has been revised to replace the traditional subjective ACR to provide more objectively in evaluation and recognizing merit. This system has been implemented with effect from January 2007 for all executives and contractual employees. Further; PAS will also be applicable to over 9000 regular officers w. e. f. 01. 01. 2009. Based on the evaluation of individual employees as per their performance appraisal, a system of pay for performance is being implemented to properly compensate relatively high performing employees thereby, strengthening the merit based culture. * EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATIONCommunication channels within an organization play a very important role in involv ing the employees’ participation in the implementation of policies. Through involvement in the implementation process, employees feel motivated to perform and establish their contribution in the overall growth of the organization. The 1st phase of ECP has been completed by 20 regions and about 8000 employees are already covered under the program. With a view to establish top-down and bottom-up communication, dialogue sessions with field functionaries of high value branches with the President have been held and constructive suggestion incorporated.Further to make the employee communication more effective regular bi-monthly publication of NBP Newsline and monthly publication of the Management Brief have also been introduced. * LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT After the reorganization of the bank’s field structure and decentralization of power, Regional Management Teams (RMT) were formed at all 29 Regional Offices. These leadership positions were filled through a systematic selecti on of RMT Member on merit, in the most transparent manner and after qualifying through a rigorous selection process involving written tests, group discussions and interviews.The empowerment of Regional Management Teams and managers of branches through enhanced discretionary powers for prompts decision making and assumption of higher responsibilities has motivated them to ensure high performance levels. Further, the bank intends to launch a â€Å"NBP Management & Leadership Development Scheme† for internal skilled and qualified employees of the bank for placement in middle and higher management level position in the future. * INDUSTRIAL HARMONYThe implementation of all HR policies depends to a great extent, on continuously maintaining industrial harmony within the organization. This has to be ensured through developing a mutual respect between the management and employee representatives. Mutual respect between the management and the CBAs as well as Officers representatives at NBP has been strengthened through trust building measure. These trust building measures included maintaining a continuous dialogue process with CBAs and Officers representatives.Industrial Relations Conferences were held to build better understanding of IROs and management policies, to ensure a ongoing harmonious environment. Industrial Relations Conferences are planned at Karachi & Islamabad for 2008. Additionally, the Employees Communication Program involving meeting at regional offices for staff are planned to create better awareness of management policies and the bank’s tradition of employee care. WHY WORK AT NBP? * NBP maintains its position as Pakistan’s Premier Bank with a huge network abroad as well. The Bank currently has an employee has of over 15,000 employees worldwide. The various departments include: Consumer Banking – Corporate Finance – Investment Banking – Agricultural Banking – Transactional Banking – Operations â₠¬â€œ Software Development and Automation – Financial Control – Treasury – Internal Audit – Risk Management & Credit – Economic & Business research – Training & Development – Strategic Planning – Human Resources * NBP has started several new programs to train its employees further to be prepared for the dynamic aspect of their job and to meet the challenges ahead. Besides a competitive financial package, NBP offers excellent working conditions, job satisfaction, superior leadership, and a conducive environment for growth. CONCLUSION It seemed impressive with the new HR department at NBP – a major public sector bank, decked out in wood and glass, with people in and out trying to devise plans of how to boost up the morale of each and every working person there and how to recruit the best ones out of a whole lot. The steps taken for the strengthening of the HR base in NBP have been instrumental in achieving record performanc e. This has been empirically proved through KPIs received from the field.Nevertheless, to remain competitive they cannot be complacent and should adequately prepare their human resource for meeting the challenge of competition in the future. A goal setting meeting was held in December 3 and 4, 2007 and a complete road map has been prepared for the year 2008. The goals and objective for the year 2008 were firmed up with a view to identifying the right kind of people socializing them in the right direction, training them; assigning tasks and roles that bring out their best, motivating them to put extra effort and creating conditions whereby the employees have a sense of fulfillment.This highly motivated effort will serve to retain NBP’s positions as the â€Å"Employer of Choice†. In recent times ,under the leadership of president Syed Ali Raza ,the banking has become conscious in promoting empowerment of women within the organization which not only requires a significant change in attitude but also immense modification in working culture. In view of this realization, national bank has accepted the abilities of women as component workers, and has started making the most of these potentials by assigning them managerial responsibilities.Currently, 63 branches are being headed by the females. The management under its female empowerment programme is committed to have 10 percent of NBP branches to be headed by the females. The management also considered the request for transfer of married and unmarried female employees to their desired place of posting which is close to their parents and spouse. The bank management envisaged that a strong human resource injection is essential for the success on a sustained basis .The management trainee's scheme was introduced management for attracting talent from all over the country having professional qualification particularly in the field of business management and commerce having proficiency in computer operation. T he first batch of management trainees joined NBP in July 2003 to translate the idea. Up till now a total of eight batches have been inducted and of them have been posted to region and groups. In view of all these improvements that have been done we still remain controversial on the subject of getting employment in NBP.It is true that all gender biasness has been removed and extensive training has been organized keeping in view that talent needs to be recognized and appreciated. We also remain highly appreciative of the fact that since the development of the HR department and its focus on the issues of recruitment, selection, gender biasness, appraisals, compensation, EEO compliance, grievances and training, the fact that we would not have been able to gain so much cooperation of the people we interviewed at the bank without our own personal source speaks for itself for the kind of resources that still work in the public sectors.HR needs to finish it or maybe it is on its way. We may gather from the data we received that many positive changes have come and are yet to come but are not negligent of the fact how and where what kind of biasness and sincerity is at work. While sitting in any organization you learn to come out of the theoretical meaning of appraisals and learn in real terms. We all saw the positive changes and the zealous way in which the department was at work in NBP and know that strategically it’s trying to achieve the better part of the system, competing against the system in its own way.For the bank itself, the need of HR is being fulfilled which keeps its employees more focused and well looked after. Here are some tips for being better employees than others that during our case study we have gathered: Educate yourself Many people promoted to new, senior position think that they can learn on the job, without any need for education in the new tasks. Yet, if you wanted to indulge in a new hobby, for example if you want to learn how to play a guitar, you would expect to take classes.The same principle applies to taking up a new position or moving to new company. Your natural ability needs reinforcement by learning both general and specifics ways, how to do the work. Many companies fail to insist on this reinforcement. If the employer will not provide the learning, take steps to get it yourself. Master computers However you obtain access to computing power, it is an indispensable extension of your own brain and capabilities. You must quickly master a word processing programme, email and a spreadsheet.Productivity aids like desk diaries and personal databases. Computer in many organizations now provide access to company files, colleges, message, customer, suppliers, collaborative, working and the internet. Strive for excellence The pursuit of the highest possible standards automatically points you towards achieving excellence. It you have achieve perfection in any activity, you must be the best, which is the proper objec tive in any context. In practice, aiming to improve skills means performing significantly better than your present standards, which are always imperfect.Remember that refusal to tolerate imperfection is a powerful force for success. Raise your standards However good you are at something, you can always improve. Similarly, however high the standards you have set for yourself and others, they can always higher. Apply to the total quality principle of continuous improvement to everything that you do. In a new position you may feel daunted by new demands and doubt your ability to tackle the tasks successfully. However, after the few weeks in the new role you will be performing well without difficulty.People tend to underestimate their power, which achieves the opposite of maximizing potential. It is better to overshoot and miss than never to try for the best of which you are capable. Learn a language Mastering other language makes a difference in negotiations and business relationships. It is also a valuable exercise for the mind. Cassettes and videos are effective learning tools but the best learning is interactive. You can sign up for the classes or use interactive media. Then take every chance to improve your skill.It will impress everybody, including your foreign business contacts. Share your knowledge Make sure that any courses you plan to attend are relevant to your work. Then do all you can to apply what you have learnt. Do not be deterred by less enlightened colleagues who may pour scorn on what you have been taught. You can only discover whether those lessons have real value by putting them into practice in your day-to-day work. Pass on your new knowledge to colleagues, and make them your allies. Be the bestJust like runners, managers and organizations needs opponents, or at least pace-setters, to produce their best performance. The process known as benchmarking measure comparable performance to set targets that they seek to exceed. The defect in this app roach is that the benchmarks may themselves be too low. You want to be the best at what you do. That means looking at the performance of the others to see not just what they do well. Being the best means setting new ways, this drive for reform can be very demanding, but also highly rewarding.

Islam A Threat Of America And The Western World

Islam: A Threat to America and the Western World This paper discusses the threat that Islam poses to America and the western world. Islam is a very large religion that has increasingly widespread influence on the world. Countries that are ruled by theocracies of Islam are some of the weakest and violent countries on Earth. Countries who are enveloped by Islam tend to have the highest percentage of extremists as well. This paper also discusses the history of Islam, its founding, what it it teaches, and how the religion has affected the world since its origin. The paper goes on to show incompatibilities that Islam has with the western world, whether that may be democracy or individual rights. Further, the dangers of Islamic immigration to†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"These revelations were subsequently collected and codified as the Quran, the Muslim holy book.† â€Å"As the source of Muslim faith and practice, the Quran describes the relationship between an almighty and all-knowing God and his creations. . . all individuals are responsible for their actions for which they will be judged by God† (Yalman). In the period of time after Muhammad died, the Islamic faith spread through practice and force. The Byzantine Emperor from 1391-1425, Manuel II Palaeologus, has been quoted as saying,† ...show me just what Mohammed (sic) brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached† (Ibrahim). The Arabs took their conquests to Syria, Palestine, and the Byzantine empire, imposing the Islamic faith on to all peoples conquered (Yalman). 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Childhood Obesity A Growing Problem in Our Society Essay

Overweight and obese children significantly affect the United States today, becoming a further pronounced issue. The amount of overweight adolescents and younger children sky rocketed in the past few years, and more than tripled since the 1970s. Developing overweight habits while young inhibits an individual’s chances of a healthy lifestyle later in life. In order to prevent the obesity epidemic in our country, the major causes and root problems of obesity must be explored and abolished. Obviously, overeating and a lacking of physical activity both contribute immensely to obesity. The one most unaware to the public eye is the overwhelming availability of cheap food and how that affects social classes. Childhood obesity, an issue slowly†¦show more content†¦This causes kids to eat more without really even realizing it. (Snyder, 2). Not only meal sizes have grown, but salty snacks and even soft drinks have upped their portion sizes. 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The Uses Of Dn Dna Fingerprinting - 1486 Words

Jennifer Tran Mr. Tucker AP Biology 26 August 2015 The Uses of DNA: DNA Fingerprinting Sir Alec Jeffreys’ 1984 discovery of DNA fingerprinting in England has revolutionized the criminal justice system by enabling legal entities to determine innocence or guilt of a suspect to a much higher level of accuracy(Butler). This discovery has also provided the ability to identify victims of natural disasters or catastrophes like 911(Lippincott). Additionally, DNA testing or profiling, has helped doctors and researchers to identify medical conditions and illnesses, determine pre-existing conditions and prevent them sometimes before they actually occur(Roewer). Also, DNA could be separated from different individuals in mixed stains like, when two or†¦show more content†¦It has greatly made an impact on crime cases, especially in forensic investigations because it not only helped find suspects, but it also improves the accuracy of who the suspect is and up until now, DNA fingerprinting is still continuing to grow and flourish itself for greater use in the future. Four years have passed since the discovery of DNA fingerprinting. During those four years people have learned that the four probes known to allow DNA fingerprinting in the human (M13, Jeffreys’ core sequence, the human ÃŽ ± globin hypervariable region [HVR]) were checked for their ability to reveal â€Å"genetic barcodes† in animals(Georges et al.). Jeffreys’ core sequence, and the Per probe uses the four different probes(Lippincott). Depending on the particular probe-species combination, the fingerprints are polymorphic enough to be used efficiently in animal identification, paternity testing, and as a source of genetic markers for linkage analysis(Butler). These markers should substantially accelerate the mapping of genes affecting economically important traits(Roewer). If this revealed â€Å"genetic barcodes† in animals then the same could also be done for humans and it could possibly help out with the Human Genome Project that was started in 1990(Frie dland). James D. Watson constructed the Human Genome Project was for further biological study to discover all the estimated 20,000-25,000 human genes to make it accessible(Friedland). Another

Steel and Continuous Improvement Free Essays

Continuous improvement as a business strategy Introduction The steel manufacturing company Corus focuses on meeting the needs of its worldwide customers and providing innovative solutions. It manufactures, processes and distributes steel and aluminium products worldwide. Corus is a subsidiary of Tata Steel, part of the giant Indian conglomerate. We will write a custom essay sample on Steel and Continuous Improvement or any similar topic only for you Order Now Tata Group includes businesses in many industries – for example, chemicals, automotive, telecommunications, leisure and consumer goods (such as Tetley Tea). Tata Steel acquired Corus in 2007 as part of a strategy of international expansion. Steel is everywhere in our homes and all around us. Corus Construction Industrial (CCI), a business unit of Corus, has steel manufacturing facilities in Scunthorpe, Teesside, Scotland and France. The key markets for CCI include construction, energy and renewables, engineering and machinery, mining and earthmoving equipment, shipbuilding, fastenings and rail. The principle manufacturing site at Scunthorpe covers 2,000 acres and employs 5,500 people. The site consumes 6. 5 million tonnes of iron ore and 2 million tonnes of coal each year to produce 4. 3 million tonnes of steel products. CCI products go into a range of leading edge developments: Rail Steel Sections Main supplier to Network Rail, SNCF (French railways) and Metronet (London Underground) Wide ranging construction projects – e. g. warehousing, shopping centres, hospitals, tower blocks (Canary Wharf), bridge components, stadia, machinery (bulldozer track shoes, fork lift trucks) Everything from paperclips to bolts, to bed springs, bridge wire (for suspension bridges), tyre cord (to strengthen vehicles tyres) Ships, construction and mining machinery, wind towers, oil rigs, bridges, (e. g. the Humber Bridge), major construction projects, tanks and pressure vessels. Steel plate is also used in harnessing renewable energy such as in wind turbine towers. CURRICULUM TOPICS †¢ Continuous improvement †¢ Empowerment †¢ Target setting †¢ Changing culture GLOSSARY Subsidiary: an organisation that is part of a larger company. Sections: H or I cross-section steel beams and columns in various lengths and thicknesses. Rods: long lengths of generally round (typically 5-15mm diameter) cross-section steel supplied in coils. Plates: large area flat steel. A typical ordered size is 10m long x 2. 5m wider. Thicknesses range from 6mm to 80mm. Plant: buildings or machines used in industry. Differentiate: to distinguish a business from its competitors. Steel Rods Steel Plates Modern steel production is a large scale operation dealing in huge quantities of materials and products. The process of steel plate production has several stages: †¢ receipt of pre-cut steel slabs from the steel plant †¢ reheating of slabs †¢ rolling to achieve required dimension and mechanical properties †¢ initial inspection for surface or quality defects †¢ cutting to order size †¢ marking with unique identities †¢ cold levelling to agreed flatness standard †¢ final inspection †¢ loading and despatch to customer. Producing large volumes helps to drive down the costs of running huge and expensive steel plant. Overall, this results in steel being a relatively inexpensive product, typically around 50 pence per kilogram, about the same as a kilogram of potatoes. In a major building project, such as a shopping complex, the cost of the steel can be as little as 5% of the overall cost of the project. Because of these issues, CCI needs to differentiate its business from its competitors in order to continue to grow. 57 CORUS www. thetimes100. co. uk GLOSSARY Greenfield site: land not yet built on or buildings on land that has not been used for building before. Continuous Improvement (CI): continuous incremental improvements in manufacturing and other processes. Inventory: a stockpile of goods. Lean production: an approach to production that looks to minimise waste and inefficiency. Scheduling: planning activities showing the times or dates when they are intended to happen. Takt time: the maximum time allowed to produce a product to meet demand. Taken from German ‘taktzeit’ – ‘clock cycle’. Culture: the typical pattern of doing things in an organisation. Facilitate: make possible or easier. Engagement: people being committed and involved with ideas or activities. CCI’s business strategy is to produce quality steel to satisfy customer requirements, focusing on delivering products at the right time in order to secure profitable business. A key challenge is to meet the increasing demands for more steel, at increasing levels of quality and to comply with more demanding delivery requirements. It would be straightforward to meet these challenges using brand-new facilities. However, a new ‘greenfield site’ steel mill could cost more than ? 300 million to build. CCI therefore needs to make process efficiencies and quality and delivery improvements with its existing manufacturing plant. This presents challenges when older facilities are not well structured to use modern manufacturing techniques and processes. This case study focuses on the process of Continuous Improvement (CI) at the CCI steel plate manufacturing mill at Scunthorpe. It will show how Corus is finding new ways of achieving its objectives from existing resources. Continuous Improvement Continuous Improvement is often referred to by the Japanese word ‘Kaizen’. Kaizen means ‘change for the better’ and covers all processes in an organisation. These include engineering, IT, financial, commercial and customer service processes, as well as manufacturing. CI involves making continual small improvements to a process rather than big changes at irregular intervals. This requires close monitoring and control, changes to the uses of manpower, machinery, methods, materials and money to improve business efficiency. Continuous Improvement starts with management and under their leadership works down through the organisation. The underlying theme is that everyone is responsible and has a part to play in making improvements. All employees must work together to identify the steps needed to improve working practices. Planning meetings help teams to focus on satisfying customer needs. Visual management techniques, such as flow charts and wall charts make clear what resources are necessary and who is responsible for each part in the process. Everyone has the opportunity to eliminate waste. This is any activity or process that does not add value. A key question to define waste is ‘would a customer pay for that process? ’ There are seven main areas of waste for any business: †¢ transportation – moving materials or products about †¢ inventory – keeping too much or the wrong stock †¢ motion – people moving or travelling excessively †¢ waiting times – allowing products to wait for processing †¢ overproduction – making too much †¢ over processing – doing too many processes during manufacture †¢ defects – errors or flaws in the product causing rework or needing to be scrapped. Production processes that minimise waste are referred to as ‘lean production’. In these processes, the aim is to use less of everything, for example, space, materials or time. CCI in Scunthorpe is looking to reduce waste in its plate manufacturing process. It has adopted the concept of ‘flow’. This means that the products are ‘pulled’ through the process according to customer demand. All parts of the production process, from the supply of raw steel (slab) to the finished steel plate, are carefully planned. Scheduling for each element of the process ensures that bottlenecks are kept to a minimum. Each process is paced (known as ‘takt’ time) to control the amount of product in each stage of the process. This ensures that processes operate smoothly without overload or delay and keep the desired output and quality. Tonnage was the traditional key measure of productivity for CCI. For employees to work to a smooth paced process needed a significant culture change. Implementing a Continuous Improvement culture CI needs team work. In Scunthorpe, a CI manager coordinates the process. 0 CI Coaches chosen from the workforce received training to facilitate improvements. CCI has put together a ‘toolbox’ of techniques which the coaches use with managers, employees and operators. These help everyone understand where and how they can improve their work. A CI culture means that everyone can put forward ideas and have a say in how processes can change for the better. This is kn own as engagement. 58 An organisation needs to know where it is going in order to be able to put in place the resources it needs to achieve its plans. This is set out in a vision. Scunthorpe plate mill has set out a 5-year vision improvement plan which will help in the process of developing a CI culture for the business. Everyone in the organisation has to understand and actively support the plan. Workshops for all employees have taken place to explain the vision and why the change is necessary if CCI is to remain competitive. www. thetimes100. co. uk GLOSSARY Vision: a concise summary in words, setting out what an organisation is striving to achieve. Stock rotation: keeping goods moving in order. Feedstock: material supplied into the start of the process, eg steel slab prepared for subsequent rolling to steel plate. Empowered: authorised to take decisions. Helped by the CI Coaches, workers have drawn maps of their processes. These show the links between the stages of manufacturing as well what information flow is needed. The maps show: †¢ details of tonnages †¢ number of products †¢ rework cycles †¢ inspection points †¢ stocks †¢ delays †¢ costs. The first part of this process is a ‘current state value stream map’. This shows what the systems and processes are like now. The next stage considers what the ‘future state map’ would look like. This highlights what CCI needs to do to achieve this state, for example, investing in new processes, equipment or additional staffing. Scunthorpe plate mill has 16 system maps. These link to each other to give an overview of the whole process. For each of the 16 systems, a number of rules about stock levels and stock rotation have been set up: †¢ Stock rotation ensures that the plates for one customer do not become buried beneath others and therefore delayed. The required amount of slab steel (‘feedstock’) must be in front of the mill by the Tuesday of the week in which the material is to be rolled. †¢ By rolling plates in the planned week, the mill is properly paced and all ‘downstream’ processes (such as cutting, levelling and inspection) can be scheduled accordingly. Using the value stream maps has helped CCI to improve process flows and the working environment. I t has also reduced unnecessary motion, transport and processing. By taking these small steps and involving everyone in the vision, the delivery of product has increased from 70% of plates on time to 92% on time. Target setting CI working requires everyone to think differently about the way they work. It was recognised that people might be resistant and cling on to old ways of working. The key was getting all workers to see change as their responsibility. The CI coaches support the teams and individuals and promote or ‘champion’ new ways of working. Over time, the team and individuals are empowered to take responsibility and make decisions for themselves. To help workers accept the changes, the 5-year plan established a timeline for the programme of introducing change. Year Nature of attitudes to change within the organisation Expertise and responsibility for CI 2007 Resistant (workers resist change) 2008 Adaptive (workers begin to adjust to new ideas) Champions and change managers 2009 Accepting (workers start to apply new methods) Manufacturing and process managers 2010 Embracing (workers recognise the benefits of change) Team leaders 2011 Performing (new ideas are fully adopted by the workers) The team CORUS CI coaches 59 An important part of the Continuous Improvement programme was the creation of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Previously, measures at Corus were largely based on tonnes of steel rolled. This did not show whether it met customers’ needs or whether the steel needed rework because it didn’t meet customer requirements. www. thetimes100. co. uk Corus has set new KPIs which focus on meeting customer deadlines, such as: †¢ a zero backlog of customer orders – this means customers always get their deliveries on time †¢ meeting targets for rolling steel plate in its allotted week. Corus monitors and measures how its operations compare with other producers and competitors in the steel industry. This process of benchmarking means that Corus is continually reviewing its activities to achieve best practice. Corus shares relevant information both within and across Corus to drive improvement. It also spreads appropriate technical knowledge and information across the steel industry through international groups such as the International Iron and Steel Institute. GLOSSARY Key performance indicators: criteria against which the success of an individual or organisation is measured. Benchmarking: using an index, standard or point of reference to measure or judge a quality or value. Best practice: the development of performance standards based upon the most efficient practices within an organisation. Lead time: the time taken from receipt of order details from the customer to receipt of the ordered goods at the customer. The benefits of Continuous Improvement There are significant costs involved in setting up a Continuous Improvement programme, including: †¢ allocating employee time to participate in group work †¢ training coaches †¢ setting up a manual of tools and techniques. However, Corus is already seeing the benefits of CI with: †¢ reduced waste through lean production †¢ improved product quality †¢ reduced rework time †¢ faster response times, giving more customers their orders on time †¢ becoming more competitive by driving down costs †¢ retaining/gaining customers through innovative products and services. KPIs show that the Scunthorpe mill is achieving its targets for rolling steel in planned weeks and is delivering almost 100% of customers’ orders complete and on time. Scunthorpe Plate Mill aims to have all orders complete and on time by March 2009, while at the same time reducing lead time. The principles of team working help to create a more flexible workforce. This gives Corus the capacity to increase or change production when necessary. In addition, Corus employees are more likely to be satisfied and motivated when they feel that they are making a contribution. They can see their expertise helps to create a more effective company. By empowering its workers, Corus gains a more committed workforce which helps to drive further improvement. The Times Newspaper Limited and  ©MBA Publishing Ltd 2008. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of information, neither the publisher nor the client can be held responsible for errors of omission or commission. Conclusion Corus is transforming production at its Scunthorpe plate mill through Continuous Improvement. This way of working encourages all employees to behave as team members to identify and support work improvement opportunities. Increasingly employees at every level are making improvement their responsibility, which provides employee job satisfaction. Continuous Improvement helps Corus to provide quality products and services for customers with on time delivery. CI supports Corus’ aim to achieve satisfied customers and secure repeat sales and longer term orders. It is part of a long term strategy based on service to develop the business. It aims to improve operational demands to fulfil customer expectations and out-perform competitors. Questions 1. What is Continuous Improvement? Who would be involved in this process and what would they be doing to enable improvements? 2. Describe the type of culture Corus is developing. How will the vision plan help to develop this culture? 3. Analyse how achieving its KPIs will help Corus to give its customers satisfaction. 4. Evaluate the key benefits of CI in helping Corus to become a more innovative and customer focused organisation. www. corusgroup. com 60 How to cite Steel and Continuous Improvement, Papers

Brave New World And 1984 Essay Example For Students

Brave New World And 1984 Essay George Orwell has been a major contributor to anticommunist literature around the World War II period. Orwell lived in England during World War II, a time when the Totalitarianism State, Nazi Germany, was at war with England and destroyed the city of London. (DISC) I know that building said Winston finally. Its a ruin now. Its in the middle of the street outside the Palace of Justice. Thats right. Outside the Law Courts. It was bombed in-oh many years ago.' (Orwell 83). The main characters being reflects Orwells own life experiences as a citizen in war torn England and how he uses this in 1984. George Orwell is famous for two major novels, which attack totalitarianism. The first is Animal Farm a satire describing the leaders of the Soviet Union as animals on an animal farm. The second novel is 1984 a story of dictators who are in complete control of a large part of the world after the Allies lost in World War II. The government in this novel gives no! freedoms to its citizens. They l ive in fear because they are afraid of having bad thoughts about the government of Oceania, a crime punishable by death. By employing literary devices such as diction, foreshadowing, and symbolism, Orwell composes a novel 1984 which proves to be a gem in Orwells collection of novels against totalitarianism. Orwell wrote 1984 as a political statement against totalitarianism. Orwells word choice drives the plot of the story in that they introduce a new dimension, a world where everything takes place in a modern controlled society. The phrase Newspeak was created by Orwell to describe a derivation of the English language, which this new world uses to communicate, and to represent of authoritative dialogue which takes place throughout the novel. (Meckier) Another phrase chosen by Orwell to illustrate the new controlled society is double-think, a word which is part of the Newspeak language.. He chooses to use another made up expression to further enhance the atmosphere which does not all ow for an individual to think twice about what the government expresses. It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. (Orwell 5) Orwell carefully selects the words for this sentence and chooses to introduce the story in the past tense, as though all things have already occurred. This suggests that the narrator has already l! ived through the actions that take place in this book and is only describing his memory. (Lawrimore) If Orwell had written this book in present tense, the opportunity to foreshadow to such an extent would have been dramatically cut down. In Orwells above sentence, the word thirteen is used as an alternative to one to describe the time. By choosing to use the word thirteen Orwell portrays the society to be one which is altered and possibly of military control. I wanted to rape you and then murder you afterwards. Two weeks ago I thought seriously of smashing your head in with a cobblestone. If you really want to know, I imagined that you had something to do with the Thought Police (Orwell 101). The choice of words here is so very descriptive that you, the reader, can actually feel the atmosphere, which the characters dwell in. This exercises the belief that Orwell does indeed realize the power of language and words, which should never be underestimated. (Lawrimo! re) The way something is stated can affect the connotation of the whole passage, and it is quite possible that sometime, somewhere, it will be a bright, cold day in April and the clocks will be striking thirteen. (Lawrimore) Each statement Orwell makes in this novel symbolizes a great deal more than what its face value suggests for the purpose of exhibiting his deeper, personal beliefs on totalitarianism. It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. (Orwell 5) 1984 begins with a powerful first sentence, which provides many hints about a demented society. This first sentence allows for the reader to make his / her opinions w ithout further reading any additional words. Orwell chooses to use the word thirteen opposed to one to possibly suggest a military like society or even a world that is changing from old to new. (Lawrimore) A world with old traditions, ideas, and thinking are slowly being replaced by new. (Lawrimore) Another symbol found in this sentence is bright, cold day in April. It is quite unusual to have a cold bright, or crisp, day in April. Most often April is considered to be a warm, wet month. Orwell implies that the seasons are mixed u! p or the worlds climate is being controlled, possibly by computer or other means. (Lawrimore) This is yet another reference to the totalitarinistic military society. Throughout 1984, Orwell portrays this society as being controlled by a greater power, Big Brother. It was in the middle of the morning, and Winston had left his cubicle to go to the lavatory. (Orwell 88) left his cubicle symbolizes that the person is controlled much like a rat, where the victi m has no say in how to live or what life really is. The individual is disallowed to think for themselves and must obey or be destroyed. Orwell believes so strongly against the totalitarianistic, utopian, perfect society where each and every mind thinks and acts alike. The characters of 1984 never gain the knowledge of what is better in life since the supreme authority never allows for one to excel. Orwell uses symbols to represent his own experiences and beliefs regarding a controlling government. Katharines white body, frozen forever by the hypnotic power of the Party Why could he not have a woman of his own instead of these filthy scuffles at intervals of years? But a real love affair was an almost unthinkable event. The woman of the Party where all alike. Chasity was so deeply ingrained in them as Party loyalty. Orwell uses relationships to represent another element of the ordinary life which the totalitarinistic government, The Party, takes away. For a woman to make love to a ma n was punishable by death. The act of sexual intercourse was seen merely as a physical action that was necessary at given intervals. Orwell infers that sex, part of everyday life, is controlled and pleasure, desire, along with feelings are eliminated in this utopian civilization. It is true this allegorical story has an interesting surface tale, it is necessary to look deeper! into this work to thoroughly understand the authors purpose. (Sedlak) What Orwell writes in words have a deeper meaning within which can be seen in the year 1997. In conjunction with the use of symbolism Orwell uses foreshadowing to hint at what the character will experience in the future. As the first sentence of 1984: It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. (Orwell 5) George Orwell foreshadows a book about a world that differs greatly from that which we currently know. (Lawrimore) Big Brother is watching you, the caption beneath it ran. (Orwell 5) Orwell frequently uses thi s excerpt to build suspense and make the reader aware of life in totalitarinistic society. Orwell hints at someone or something that oversees, later identified as the Thought Police. Obviously the kind of encounter that had happened this morning could not be repeated. (Orwell 92) Orwell foreshadows that the meeting that occurred may take place again bringing confusion and chaos into the plot. Again, Orwell suggests that the totalitarinistic society disallow an action that took place. The whole climate of thought ! will be different. In fact there will be no thought. (Orwell 47) Orwell exhibits his view, which is that the individual of a controlled society can and will not think for themselves. He foreshadows that the concept of thought is diminishing and will soon be eliminated. For an individual to think for themself under control of The Party would be breaking the law. George Orwell had deep resentment against totalitarianism and what it stood for. He saw the problem of totalitari anism in his existing world. He also understood how the problem could fester and become larger due to instability in Europes economy after World War II. He purposely makes the story, 1984, unrealistic and blown out of proportion to capture peoples attention and make them think maybe it wouldnt be unrealistic in the near future. With his deep resentment toward totalitarianism it became the focal point of his novels. George Orwells, novels were directed toward against totalitarianism and for Socialism and what it stood for. (DISC) If Christopher Columbus Returned To The ?New World EssayThe entire society is conditioned to shrink away from intense emotion, engage in casual sex, and take their pacifying Soma. In 1984, a first-person book partly narrated by the main characters internal dialogue, the great party leader is Big Brother, a fictional character who is somewhat more imposing than Ford, of Huxleys book, named after the industrialist Henry Ford Astrachan. The main character Superczynski 3 Winston fears Big Brother and is much more aware of his situation than any of the characters in A Brave New World who are constantly pacified by soma. In A Brave New World history is ignored completely whereas in 1984 it is literally rewritten in order to suit the present. The role of science in both books is extensive and complicated. 1984s telescreens cannot be turned off, as A Brave New World has feelies, an advancement on talkies which added sound, feelies add tactile senses to a movie as well. Science and human progress is not acknowledged in A Brave New World Smith excepting when it increases consumption, whereas it is twisted with ironic titles in 1984, They were homes of the four Ministries between which the entire apparatus of government was divided: the Ministry of Truth, which concerned itself with news, entertainment, education, and the fine arts; the Ministry of Peace, which concerned itself with war; the Ministry of Love, which maintained law and order; and the Ministry of Plenty, which was responsible for economic affairs. Their names in Newspeak: Minitrue, Minipax, Miniluv, and Miniplenty. Orwell 8 The God Ford of A Brave New World encourages production and consumption of shallow objects to complement the shallow minds of its citizens. 1984 was written as a warning against the results of having a totalitarian state. Winston bears the blunt of his mistakes, the crime of individuality and dissention. A Brave New World is as much a satire on the reality of today the reality of Huxleys day as it is a novel about the future. ANeil Postman rned Awhen a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is defined a s a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby talk, a people become an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; cultural death is a clear possibility. Kruk Huxley seems to feel that society is progressing toward a materialistic and superficial end, in which all things of real value, includi ng the relationships which make people human, will be quashed. The two works vary greatly, A Brave New World is the Huxleys expression of fear that mankind will create a utopia by way of foregoing all that makes life worthwhile. Orwells work rings more sharply of secret police paranoia. Indeed, Winston is taken to room 101, while Superczynski 4 Bernard is merely transferred to an uncomfortable location. The hypocrisy is much more evident within A Brave New World as well, owing to the controllers having had a son. Both books forewarn of a day when humankind might fall slave to its own concept of how others should act. The two books ask not whether societies with stability, pacification, and uniformity can be created, but whether or not they are worth creating. It is so often that one wants something and in wanting romanticizes it, thus bringing disappointment when the end is finally obtained. They serve as a reminder that it is necessary to have pain to compare with joy, defeat to compare with victory, and problems in order to have solutions. Both books end on negative notes; Bernard is exiled to work in Iceland and Winston is subjected to psychological treatment.