How to bond with your employees without compromising your authorityÂÂ

Step by step instructions to bond with your workers without trading off your authorityâ Authority and force are mind boggling issues that accompany the assignment of being a chief. In the work environment, the capacity to recruit, fire, and give raises sets the force dynamic among representatives and supervisors. Be that as it may, while force and authority are plainly connected, authority is somewhat murkier to characterize it depends on the set up connection among workers and their managers and can be worked over years and lost in a moment. Holding with your representatives and anticipating authority are not fundamentally unrelated. Actually, the two things are a lot nearer than one may think.Here are a couple of ways you may create both administration traits.Establish an air of shared respectAuthority doesn’t come naturally with work title. It is earned when chiefs are obviously learned and able, and when they get results. In any case, you can’t get those outcomes without collaboration and your cooperation with workers assumes a fundamental job in setti ng up power. So as to really lead a group, you have to procure trust and set up an air of shared regard with workers. In the event that you end up beating around your work area and taking part in terrorizing strategies, odds are you are attempting to declare authority as opposed to acquire it. In any case, on the off chance that you construct a base of shared regard, at that point holding with representatives will develop your power instead of reduce it.Take an enthusiasm for your employeesYou don’t need to welcome every day talk meetings or become a source of genuine sympathy, yet being receptive to workers and truly listening can help encourage your position. Straightforward things like knowing where your representatives headed off to college, or the names of their relatives, or their own advantages and diversions, can assist you with understanding their inspirations and activities at work and help set up fundamental regard. This kind of holding additionally cultivates a wo rking relationship that can open the channels of correspondence with the goal that when your representatives have a smart thought, they can connect. Along these lines you can be the supervisor representatives need to tune in to and will trust to follow.Be a genuine personSo, would you be able to drink a lager with your workers and simply be a standard individual? Sure. In any case, you can’t drink excessively or share an excess of individual data. Letting representatives see that you’re a genuine individual with your own life and interests outside of work doesn't bargain your position, however is a piece of that two-path road of building shared regard. Social settings like the workplace gathering can assist you with holding while at the same time keeping it professional.hbspt.cta.load(2785852, '9e52c197-5b5b-45e6-af34-d56403f973c5', {});Set boundariesAfter you unwind with representatives at an office gathering or talk up your golf match-up, you should be clear when ità ¢â‚¬â„¢s time to concentrate back on work. The evening progress meeting isn't the spot to chat casually, so take care to set up the air you need with a straightforward, firm-yet-kind affirmation of when it’s time to return to business.Head off issue employeesOccasionally there will be the worker who can’t separate the inviting supervisor from the companion and change gears back to work-mode. On the off chance that you discover a representative getting excessively natural, excessively kidding, or rude, this is the place your position needs to lay down the law. Stopped an issue from the beginning is ideal, and opening the channels of correspondence with the individual worker can turn the circumstance around.Bonding with your representatives, when done the correct way, can really assist you with picking up power. It can take a very long time to develop yet to a great extent comes from you defining fitting limits and keeping up certified enthusiasm for your representatives as individuals. So ask yourself: would you say you are receptive, or threatening? Also, which improve results?

Free Essays on Enron

The article on Enron states that there was not one fundamental motivation behind why Enron fell; anyway it was a corporate culture of double dealing that lead to the downfall of this organization. Enron had numerous credits on their books that they masked as resources for make them look more grounded and increasingly gainful. They worked in reverse by making sense of what they needed their organization to resemble monetarily, and afterward made changes in the books to make it bid to them. Since the specialists were not utilizing governing rules to ensure misrepresentation was not occurring, it would have been simple for Enron to make it appear as though specific divisions were doing more awful then they really were, so they didn't need to pay their representatives so much. It was additionally simple for Enron to deceive their bookkeepers since they didn't check what the supervisors let them know was truth. The reviewers didn't check the accountant’s books for botches either. T here were such a significant number of missteps in such huge numbers of various zones of this organization that its difficult to pinpoint a certain something. The article on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act sums up the new enactment that has been instituted to help guard against another money related debacle, for example, Enron and WorldCom. Under this law, lawyers are capable to report any unlawful demonstrations to a directorate. On the off chance that the top managerial staff that the lawyer reports to doesn't give this data to legitimate power, they will be compelled to leave. At the point when the SAS 99 got viable, it significantly changed the connection among organizations and examiners in such a case that the CPA doesn't observe the SAS 99 guidelines and it goes to the consideration of the AICPA, they will lose their CPA and be indicted. The SAS 99 combined with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act ought to do a lot to shield against outrages in the business world.... Free Essays on Enron Free Essays on Enron The article on Enron states that there was not one primary motivation behind why Enron fell; anyway it was a corporate culture of double dealing that lead to the downfall of this organization. Enron had numerous advances on their books that they camouflaged as resources for make them look more grounded and increasingly beneficial. They worked in reverse by making sense of what they needed their organization to resemble monetarily, and afterward made changes in the books to make it offer to them. Since the specialists were not utilizing governing rules to ensure extortion was not occurring, it would have been simple for Enron to make it seem as though specific divisions were doing more awful then they really were, so they didn't need to pay their representatives so much. It was additionally simple for Enron to mislead their bookkeepers since they didn't check what the supervisors let them know was truth. The evaluators didn't check the accountant’s books for botches either. The re were such a significant number of mix-ups in such a large number of various territories of this organization that its difficult to pinpoint a certain something. The article on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act sums up the new enactment that has been instituted to help guard against another budgetary calamity, for example, Enron and WorldCom. Under this law, lawyers are capable to report any illicit demonstrations to a top managerial staff. On the off chance that the top managerial staff that the lawyer reports to doesn't give this data to appropriate position, they will be compelled to leave. At the point when the SAS 99 got viable, it significantly changed the connection among organizations and reviewers in such a case that the CPA doesn't observe the SAS 99 principles and it goes to the consideration of the AICPA, they will lose their CPA and be arraigned. The SAS 99 combined with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act ought to do a lot to defend against embarrassments in the business world.... Free Essays on Enron Enron a Post Mortem - Enron was proclaimed as America’s most imaginative organization for a long time by Fortune magazine. What was the deal? What lead to Enron’s destruction? The breakdown of Enron is one of the century ’ s generally notorious, with resonations being looked about the world. Craig Donaldson talks with Enron ’ s break CEO Stephen Cooper about his way to deal with individuals the executives amidst this generally uncommon of working conditions Enron was one of America’s driving organizations preceding its astounding breakdown in 2001. It was every now and again named as one of America’s top 10 most appreciated organizations and best work environments, and its board was acclaimed one of the US’ best five, as indicated by Fortune magazine. As America’s seventh biggest organization, Enron experienced dangerous development through the 1990s. It had incomes of US$139 ($184) billion, US$62 ($82) billion in resources and utilized in excess of 30,000 individuals across 20 nations. While Enron was viewed as a marvel in its prime, a profoundly decentralized dynamic and budgetary control structure made it for all intents and purposes difficult to get a reasonable and rational comprehension of the enterprise, as per between time CEO and head rebuilding official, Stephen Cooper. â€Å"In the space of 30 days, Enron went from American symbol to Chapter 11,† he says. The breakdown brought a colossal measure of shock from the company’s partners, while the scale and multifaceted nature of Enron’s chapter 11 has brought about 12 separate examinations by the US Congress.... Free Essays on Enron THE COLLAPSE OF ENRON In mid, 2001, Enron Corporation was named most creative organization in America for the 6th year straight by Fortune Magazine. Before long enough things had turned and by December 2001, Enron sought financial protection. Enron was the debut exchanging organization of the world, recorded as the world’s most noteworthy vitality organization and now in 2001 endured the most exceedingly terrible business disappointment in U.S. history. The U. S. was crushed by this and it truly hurt the entirety of the representatives inside Enron. A large number of workers lost their positions, reserve funds, 401 (K) retirements designs for all intents and purposes for the time being. One retiree was accounted for to have lost $1.3 billion in reserve funds and investors speculators lost about $70 billion in showcase esteem. Nobody had even an inkling that any of this would occur, much the same as that they were gone occupations with no cash. Individuals with families and kids had nothing any longer, it was a crime. The workers who had contributed such a large amount of their stock and reserve funds in Enron’s plans endured the most structure this unexpected ruin. They don't had anything left to appear for the entirety of the difficult work that had placed into the organization for such a significant number of years. The were so solid a year sooner in 200, representatives were up to 19,000 individuals they even made $100 billion in incomes a year. Their arrangement was basically â€Å"becoming the world’s most prominent company† which was expressed by the present CEO and CEO at Enron, Kenneth Lay. When Kenneth states this I don’t think he puts a moral audit on this, considering the way that he let go of such a significant number of people’s occupations and the entirety of their cash. He would effectively get this organization to the top, regardless of whether it was cheating, taking, controlling individuals. He is a covetous individual and put himself before his workers and the remainder of the organization. From my perspective that is ludicrous yet that’s the sort of individuals we have in our present reality, as long as they are carrying on with a decent life they aren’t stress over ot... Free Essays on Enron Kenneth Lay, the ex-CEO of Enron took a little flammable gas organization, and made a money related powerhouse. In only barely 15 years, Enron developed into one of the US’s biggest organizations. It grasped new advancements, built up new techniques for exchanging vitality and appeared to be a brilliant illustration of effective corporate America. Kenneth Lay himself was granted a spot in the Texas Business Hall of Fame for his accomplishment of carrying the little organization to where it stood. Numerous reviews demonstrated Kenneth Lay as one of the top supervisors for the country. His experience of scholastic and government positions sponsored his situation as a devoted pioneer. Catastrophe at that point struck the organizations achievement was all purposeful misdirection made by falsely expanded benefits, questionable bookkeeping practices, and misrepresentation. The organization unwound and came slamming down, bringing about a large number of individuals loosing their occupations and life reserve funds that they put resources into to the organization. Enron was conceived in July of 1985 with a merger of Houston Natural and Omaha-based InterNorth. Kenneth Lay was chosen as the director and CEO of the organization. Around a similar time Washington started to lift the powers over who created vitality and how it was appropriated. Kenneth Lay saw an opportunity to cause the little organization to flourish and held onto it. Enron ensured its clients stable costs during the vitality guideline changes. The reaction to the steady vitality costs that Enron was offering was immense. Everybody needed future gas at the fixed costs of today. In a couple of years Enron was answerable for more than one fourth of the gas business for the United States. Kenneth Lay at that point concluded that it is productive to grow its business into different fields by exchanging different wares, for example, coal and steel. Right off the bat in the year 2000 Enron was cresting its financial achievement and started to put into broadband Internet systems seeing the dot.com economy extend with benefits. The organization boa... Free Essays on Enron Enron Corp. is one of the world's biggest vitality, items and administrations organization. Before its Chapter 11 insolvency recording, it advertised power and petroleum gas, conveyed vitality and other physical items, and gave budgetary and hazard the executives administrations to clients around the world. Situated in Houston, Texas, Enron was shaped in July 1985 by the merger of Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth of Omaha, Nebraska. At first a gaseous petrol pipeline organization, Enron quickly advanced from conveying vitality to expediting vitality fates as vitality markets were deregulated. The organization started advertising power in 1994 and entered the

Paper Making :: essays research papers

I once observed a modern film about a young lady who finds a book, â€Å"a genuine book,† she pants, â€Å"made out of paper.† later on universe of this film, the sum total of what books had been appropriated from homes and libraries and were changed over into electronic documents. The books could at present be perused, however not held. To me, this was to a greater extent a blood and gore flick than sci-fi! Some portion of my affection for books originates from feeling the paper and hearing the stir of the pages as they are turned. With the expanding utilization of the Internet and discusses a â€Å"paperless society,† maybe paper will some time or another become a relic of past times. So for the time being, I will value each bit of paper that I can get my hands on, and trust that it won’t just become a page, er, record ever. As per history books, the most punctual paper utilized in books created in the United States was carefully assembled and imported from Europe, for the most part England. Despite the fact that the principal American paper factory was worked around 1690 in Germantown, Pennsylvania, a large portion of the paper utilized in the U.S. was as yet imported from Europe until the American Revolution. A year after the Stamp Act of 1765 was passed, wire papermaking molds were first made, and paper-production in this nation at long last got its â€Å"official† start. The high quality paper utilized in the seventeenth and eighteenth hundreds of years can be recognized from paper that was made later by holding the paper up to a light and searching for "chain-lines" which are left from the wires in the paper form. With this technique, less strands gather legitimately on the wire, so the paper is somewhat more slender and increasingly straightforward to light. This example is typically obvious and shows up as lines that run about an inch separated, with a few even short lines associating the long wire lines. Some cutting edge paper has misleadingly applied chain lines, and is generally alluded to as "laid" paper, which is the name given to handcrafted chain-line paper. The high quality chain-line paper was made of cotton as well as cloth clothes, which were absorbed fluid until the filaments separated into bits.

Advantages Of Scripting Language Computer Science Essay

Focal points Of Scripting Language Computer Science Essay A scripting language is a type of programming language that is utilized to make contents or bits of code. Scripting dialects are regularly composed to encourage upgraded highlights of sites, these highlights are handled on the server yet the content of a particular page runs on the clients program. The beginning of the term was like its significance in a film content guides on-screen characters: a scripting language controlled the activity of a typically intelligent program, giving it a grouping of work to do across the board bunch. For example, one could place a progression of altering orders in a record, and advise an editorial manager to run that content as though those orders had been composed intelligently. Preferences of scripting language Its simple to learn and utilize Least programming information or experience required Permits complex errands to be acted in generally hardly any means Permits straightforward creation and altering in an assortment of errand editors Permits the expansion of dynamic and intelligent activties to site pages The altering and running code is quick Detriments of scripting language Can be more slow to run since they are deciphered and not accumulated into machine code. Can be more earnestly to troubleshoot since no improvement condition is accessible of course. Since they are content based it is simple for others to adjust and along these lines break it. Why present day website pages use javascript? Program support-To get to streak content you have to introduce streak module into your program. Be that as it may, to utilize Javascript you dont need to introduce a module for it, becuase all internet browsers have acknowledged javascript as a scripting language for them and offers help for it. With the utilization of javascript you can include different highlights like client confirmation, approval and so on Javascript effectively peruses and composes HTML components and can be installed into a HTML without any problem. You can utilize Javascript to stack the page as indicated by the necessity of the program It is the most light programming language which can be handily stacked on moderate web. An activity occasion can be made with the utilization of javascript, when a client clicks a catch, different occasions which is beyond the realm of imagination through HTML: Javascript can respond on it. Clarify the accompanying highlights of JavaScript, giving a case of each: Articles Javascript has worked in objects, some of them are string, date and exhibit. Occasions A JavaScript can be executed when an occasion happens, similar to when a client taps on a HTML component. These occasions can happen when a client taps the mouse, when a website page has stacked and when a picture has been stacked. Strategies There are a great deal of javascript techniques, some of them are grapple, apply, join in, large and visually impaired. Every one of these techniques are extraordinary, for instance a stay strategy puts a HTML grapple that has a NAME characteristic around content, an apply technique applied a strategy for an article subbing another item for the present article. Circles Javascript circles frequently runs with clusters these circles are utilized to run a similar code again and again, each time with an alternate worth. For instance in javascript for is a circle that circles through a square of code various occasions, while circle, circles through a square of code while a predefined condition is valid. Capacities Javascripts has numerous capacities some of them are abs, acos and asin. Every one of these strategies are unique. Abs work restores the supreme estimation of a number, an acos work restores the arccosine of a number. JavaScript is an article orientated language. Depict what this implies. Is JavaScript object-situated? It has objects which can contain information and strategies that follow up on that information. Items can contain different articles. It doesn't have classes, however it has constructors which do what classes do, including going about as holders for class factors and strategies. It doesn't have class-arranged legacy, yet it has model situated legacy. The two primary methods of working up object frameworks are by legacy (is-an) and by conglomeration (has-a). JavaScript does both, yet its dynamic nature permits it to exceed expectations at collection. JavaScript isn't genuinely object arranged in light of the fact that it doesn't give legacy. In any case, things being what they are, JavaScript underpins old style legacy, however other code reuse designs also. Undertaking 2 M2 Clarify in detail how scripting dialects can be utilized to improve the usefulness of website pages. Scripting dialects, which can be installed inside HTML, ordinarily are utilized to add usefulness to a Web page, for example, unique menu styles or realistic showcases or to serve dynamic ads. These kinds of dialects are customer side scripting dialects, influencing the information that the end client finds in a program window. Why use Scripting Languages? Frequently we wish to robotize a straightforward assignment running a few projects straight, introducing programs, in any event, composing a basic content or GUI to run a program that needs numerous parameters. Scripting dialects permit us to compose something like this rapidly, and run it with no aggregation. They likewise have great help for propelling procedures and controlling them, parsing content documents, and so on. With a content, theres never the subject of where is the source? or on the other hand did I re-arrange it after I fixed that bug? the content _is_ the source. Customer side and Server side Customer side In Client side the scripting does all the estimations on the clients PC. The internet browser or a particular module peruses the content and changes over it into a visual site page. Front end setting utilizes scripting through a UI. There are numerous ways a UI utilizes scripting one is that it resizes portions of the website page to make everything fit properly.It likewise resizes boxes. The greater part of the data that the client goes into the site remains in the customer side and once in a while sent back to the server. Javascript can get outside records and pictures. It at that point misuses the entirety of this utilizing web explanatory projects, the server can recover all the data from these. The contrast between customer side à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢ Ã£ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢ Ã£ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢ Ã£ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢ Ã£ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢ and server side The thing that matters is genuinely straightforward customer side code is prepared by the customer (the program to be increasingly explicit) while the server code is handled by the server . A run of the mill page most definitely comprises of some of HTML executed by CSS, or Javascript. Server side code, then again is never observed by the program. The program isn't and ought to never should know about server side contents, for example, PHP. Server side code is program free which implies that if the page you make appears to be unique in web wayfarer than it does in drama. Customer Side focal points Take into account greater intuitiveness by promptly reacting to clients activities May improve the convenience of sites for clients whos programs bolster contents Can give engineers more power over the look and conduct of their web gadgets Secure as it is ensured which implies it is beyond the realm of imagination to expect to peruse by clients, keeps it from being taken Customer Side impediments Not all programs bolster contents thusly clients may encounter mistakes if no choices are given Various programs and program forms bolster contents diversely along these lines greater quality testing is required Greater advancement time and exertion may be required Server side points of interest Complex procedures become progressively effective Doesn't have to depend on explicit programs or modules You can make a webside dynamic, PHP a server side scripting language have highlights, for example, you can to include a username and secret phrase Server side weaknesses Less quick Can hinder your site For example AJAX, openness, alarms, affirming decisions, inciting the client, diverting the client, program identification, making rollovers, checking/approving information, taking care of structures, looking after treats Assignment 3 P5 (b) Plan intelligent contents utilizing scripting dialects (JavaScript) that can be implanted onto the site made in task 1. Select 2 of the accompanying (you may pick your own on the off chance that you wish) that you should incorporate into at least two website pages: JavaScript slideshow Irregular picture generator Program rendition/type discovery Programming module discovery Criticism structure utilizing JavaScript approval For every one of your picked contents produce: Structure: A stream diagram or Pseudo code Usage: Explained screen shots of the contents in real life on the site pages. Right structure of HTML code which incorporates right space of the code and very much remarked. M3 (b) Printouts of the contents Testing: P6 (b) A test table containing the factors being tried, test information, anticipated outcomes and genuine outcomes. Errand 4: D1 Examine and produce a report (least 1 page) that clarifies in any event three instances of how website pages utilizing contents are actualized contrastingly in two unique programs, for instance, Internet Explorer and Firefox. Program capacity Programs have shifting degrees of consistence with Style Sheets. This implies some Style Sheet highlights are upheld and some arent. To befuddle things progressively, some program producers choose to think of their own exclusive labels. Luckily, program similarity is getting less of an issue as the most recent program forms are significantly more measures agreeable than their prior partners. Program ability is a cerebral pain for Javascript coders around the globe. There are two different ways to permit conditions inside your content, for example, Javascript to take various ways relying upon capacity These two different ways are: 1. Program discovery 2. Article identification Program discovery Program discovery checks with the program legitimately to see which make and model it is. This permits you to pick which code to run on your program. Program discovery is fit for working out the program and form being utilized. This permits the site page to utilize the correct code which is to outwardly show. Program recognition coding work thisBrowserIs(

IT Literature Review - Free Essay Example

CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter -literature review- will consider many view points from the wide range of information and literature available regarding change management models, theories and approaches relevant to the generic business perspective and also those that have direct reference to the implementation of IT outsourcing process. Throughout this section, the research centres on change management, the different types of change models and theories, and the key change management factors affecting the outcome of an IT outsourcing implementation. Following the objectives introduced in chapter 1, the literature critically reviewed in this chapter will be used as a basis to compile the necessary questions to be able to analyse how the various components, such as top management support, user involvement, open communication with employee and Human Resources aspects (i.e., employee resistance, job insecurity, kill moral, lack of trust and turnover) that affects the outcome. Therefore, this literature review will begin with a short brief of historical overview on IT outsourcing, which will answers the three comprehensive and basic questions that an organization need to answer when outsourcing IT functions; those being Why, What and How. Consequently, answering the first question an organisation which is thinking of outsourcing its IT should ask is why, this likely to raise other questions marks of outsourcing aspects which are, what is the aim and goal of the outsourcing arrangement and which are the benefits(i.e. financial, strategic and technical factors)and risks(i.e. relationships, transition, strategic and vendor/technical risks )involved. Followed by discussing the crucial capabilities involved when using IT outsourcing. Then, will begin with a short exploration into the development of change management before moving onto analysing the use of change models, identifying their effectiveness within IT outsourcing implementation. 2.1 IT Outsourcing IT Outsourcing as a phenomenon is not a new occurrence. Actually it entered the IS/computer industry when it was still in an early stage. For example, the company Electronic Data Systems handled the data processing services for other businesses as early as 1963 (Lacity Hirschheim, 1994). In this early stage of outsourcing, computer service companies were mainly used to run programs within areas of financial and operational support, for example payroll and administration (McFarlan et al., 1995). The concept of IT outsourcing got its real breakthrough when Eastman Kodak in 1989 signed under to outsource its total IT operations to the three outsourcing vendors; IBM, DEC and Businessland. (McFarlan et al., 1995; Lacity Hirschheim 1993:1994) Until this point, outsourcing for medium to big companies had primarily been a sideshow and most common amongst smaller companies with problematic IT departments (McFarlan et al., 1995). Never before had such a big and well-known organizatio n, with IT as part of the strategic weapon, outsourced its IT operations. This became an outsourcing success and was the start of a tremendous interest and growth in the business. The Kodak deal sent the message that IT had matured into a commodity and therefore suitable to be managed by an external vendor. Company executives from all industries open their eyes for the outsourcing possibility and a bandwagon effect could be observed, and many big organizations like Xerox, Sears, British Aerospace, Continental bank followed. (Lacity et al., 1998; Lacity Hirschheim 1994) Explaining the enormous interest in IT outsourcing could, according to Lacity Willcocks (2000), be seen as a consequence of a shift in overall business strategy. During the 1990s many companies changed directions and abandon their diversification strategy to instead focus on their core capabilities. Many business leaders came to the conclusion that the only sustainable competitive advantage a company could hav e was to concentrate on what it does best. As a result of this new focus on core competence, the internal IT function became questioned as a competitive tool and was regarded as a commodity, thereby becoming a subject for outsourcing. IT outsourcing can in many cases be a strategy in itself and seen as a reactive move, part of bigger and more long-term changes of the organisation and its management (Willcocks Lacity, 1998). The last driver explaining the growth of the IT outsourcing market is the uncertainty of the value delivered by IT. The term money sink explains how many managers viewed and still view IT, experiencing problems with seeing the immediate benefits and not being able to measure e.g. increased revenue from IT investments. The desire to get rid of a troublesome IT function that is hard to asses and has problems with demonstrating its business value made the IT function and its services a hot target for cost reduction initiatives, often leading to outsourcing. ( Lacity Willcocks, 2000) Todays IT outsourcing industry has come a long way from the start in the early 60s. Some of the main differences are: 1. The size of the companies that are outsourcing today large companies outsource to a greater extent. 2. The industry has matured, now offering a wide range of services and in great number of alternative ways. 3. Outsourcing vendors are generally accepting to take on more of the risk and responsibility of the arrangement. 4. The relationship between the client and the vendor is increasingly seen as a partnership. 5. The complexity and technological intensity has increased, giving more companies the option of outsourcing in a competitive provider market. (Lacity Willcocks, 1998) 2.2 Why should organisations outsource? The first question an organisation which is thinking about outsourcing its IT should ask is why. Answering this question is likely to raise other question marks; what is the aim and goal of the outsourcing arrangement and which are the benefits and risks involved? 2.2.1 The aim and goal with the outsourcing To ensure a positive end result it is important in an early stage to manifest clear goals with the outsourcing arrangement and a well-defined objective. This is necessary to give the organisation guidelines to work with during the outsourcing process. The goal and aim of the IT outsourcing arrangement should be aligned with the overall business strategic requirements to get the best results (Capgemini European CIO survey, 2006) 2.2.2 Benefits Behind an outsourcing decision there can (as discussed in the previous chapter) be numerous incentives and factors. In general, IT outsourcing arrangements can be said to deliver one or more of the three following capabilities: infrastructure services and data centre operations, application development and maintenance, and business processes. Extensive research has been conducted on the subject of the benefits of IT outsourcing, presenting a number of potential benefits for organisations that let external vendors provide some or all of the IT related capabilities needed. (McFarlan Nolan, 1995; Ross Westerman, 2004) When evaluating the option to outsource different stakeholders perceptions and interests tend to bring a mix of financial, strategic and technical factors into play (Willcocks Lacity, 1998). In the section below some of the most important benefits are presented. These are not ranked in any particular order and the reader should keep in mind that the relative import ance of the benefits will vary for each organisation and are dependent on its specific situation. 2.2.2.1 Financial factors Cost reductions have for a long time, and still is, the most important driver for outsourcing. (Lacity Hirschheim, 94; Capgemini European CIO survey, 2006) An external vendor can primarily save money to its client by its ability to control economics of scale but also, since frequently managing similar projects, provide the scope to manage it effectively. Substantial cost savings can especially be made by offshore IT vendors, using low cost labor found in for example India. (McFarlan et al., 1995; Ross Westerman, 2004) Another financial aspect, motivating the use of outsourcing is increased control over the IT costs. Since IT costs are split with a rough allocation key in many organizations it is hard to get a clear overview of the cost drivers, which consequences can be excessive demand and consumption. Hence, the transaction costs theory (TCT) aroused by (Lacity and Hirschheim, 1993) to assume that organizations make outsourcing decisions based on an economic rationale. TCT is o bviously relevant as IT specifically addresses outsourcing decisions in regards to producing a good or service internally or externally (Williamson, 1975) and as proposed by Williamson that managers need to consider both production and transaction co-ordination costs. By using an external vendor organizations can also increase the financial flexibility by replacing the fixed IT costs with a price model that allows costs to vary with usage, thus containing costs and increasing control by having a system that more directly link costs to usage. (Lacity Hirschheim, 1994). TCT logic and conclusion rest on the assumption that efficiency is the dominant criterion for organizational success (Amundson, 1998). = = = article no.1 /p 3 2.2.2.2 Strategic factors Since the 1990s there has been a general trend towards specialization in most of the business world. Companies have abandoned the once so popular diversification strategy in order to focus on the business core competences (Lacity Hirschheim, 1994). By outsourcing IT processes that falls outside the core business vendors can free up resources in the organization to focus on more value adding activities within its core competencies (Ross Westerman, 2004; Erber Sayed-Ahmed, 2005). Moreover, Core competencies theory suggests activities should be performed either in house of by suppliers. Activities, which are not core competences, should be considered for outsourcing with best-in-the-world suppliers. Some non-core activities may have to be retained in house as they are part of a defensive posture to protect competitive advantage. (Gottschalk Solli-Sather, 2005). Due to extreme competition, organizations are forced to reconsider their resources to where they make the greatest positi ve impact, i.e. the organizations core functions. Thus, the complexity of IT, and its core nature, may make the contracting out of IT a particularly challenging exercise. In addition to the above, other strategy issues which encourage the consideration of outsourcing are restructuring, rapid organisational growth, changing technology, and the need for greater flexibility to manage demand swings (Eisele, 1994; Iyer and Kusnierz, 1996) = = article 2 /p 3. However, outsourcing of non-core competencies will continue to be important, as such arrangements place responsibilities, e.g. for IT, logistics or production functions, in the hands of the constituent most capable of performing these successfully. (Chandra and Kumar, 2000). 2.2.2.3 Technical factors Since outsourcing vendors, unlike their clients, have IT as their core competence they can build and leverage best practice in IT management. So by using the expertise provided by an outsourcing vendor it does not only enable the client to focus on its special core activities but also allows the firm to get access to cutting edge technology. By taking advantage of the experience the vendor has collected by managing several similar projects, the external vendor can provide technical skills which are hard to build and manage in-house and can thereby help the organization to create important business advantages. (Lacity Hirschheim, 1993) In some cases the main reasons for outsourcing can be to find crucial competencies that are lacking within the internal IT organization. The organization may feel that it is too expensive to build these internally, both time- and money wise (Willcocks Lacity, 1998). Technical considerations are captured by resource-based theory, such theory are more concerned with internal analysis of a firm in terms of resources and capabilities (Barney, 1991) = = article 1 /p5. Follows, in order to generate sustainable competitive advantage, the resource-based theory of the firm must provide economic value and must be presently scarce, difficult to emulate and non-substitutable. (Priem and Butler, 2001) = = Article 3/p3 According to Pettus (2001) = = article 3/p2 , outsourcing for this specific purpose, demands careful considerations when choosing the vendor. For the arrangement to be efficient it is important to realize that the external supplier not only has the required expertise but also a compatible company culture. 2.2.3 Risks When an organisation is evaluating whether to outsource or not, it is important not to forget the risks associated with outsourcing arrangements. When outsourcing IT services or capabilities the company will hand over a substantial part of its control. Ross and Westerman (2004) divide the risks with outsourcing into four major types: relationships risks, transition risks, strategic risks and finally vendor/technical risks. 2.2.3.1 Relationship risks Going into an outsourcing relationship with an external vendor both parties should realize that the situation for the client today could be quite different in the end of the contractual period, and not only when dealing with long term contracts. As the market changes and new technologies create new opportunities and challenges for the client, the needs can also change dramatically. Since these changes and their impact are very hard to foresee the client always takes a risk when signing a contract with a vendor that later might not meet future needs. This risk should be taken seriously, particularly when signing long time contracts. (Ross Westerman, 2004; Lacity et al., 1995) 2.2.3.2 Transition risks All IT outsourcing arrangements includes a transition phase where the organisation, the processes and the staff need to adjust to the new situation. This phase often involves great technical challenges; e.g. linking outsourced applications together with internal applications or transferring technical staff to the vendor. Other challenges are related to dealing with organisational changes, which are likely to appear as the vendor makes changes to the old IT processes. (Ross Westerman, 2004) It is important not to underestimated the time and money needed during the transition phase. If not calculated correctly these additional costs can easily turn the positive margin of the outsourcing deal into negative. According to the Ross and Westerman (2004) it can particularly become an issue when handling new technologies since the vendor are probably selling undeveloped competencies. Dealing with new technologies can hence be particularly hard for the parties involved. 2.2.3.3 Strategic risks As concluded earlier, organisations in general want to outsource what they consider to be non-strategic activities (Ross Westerman, 2004). But using this approach only when deciding upon which part of the IT-function to outsource can lead to problems. The risk lies in simplifying the complexity of IT and the uncertainties surrounding it. Since IT often is a highly integrated part of the business it can be hard to identify so called nonstrategic activities. The rapid technical advances in this area together with the complexity and unpredictability of the global market make it possible for the commodity of today turn into a strategic advantage tomorrow. (Lacity et al., 1995) 2.2.3.4 Vendor Client risks When signing an outsourcing contract the client loses some of its control over the IT function and processes, becoming dependent on the external vendor for delivering the capability needed in the way and the quality agreed upon in the contract. Therefore, the client should always be aware of the risk that the supplier goes out of business or for other reasons not be able to deliver the agreed upon service level. (Ross Westerman, 2004) Thus it is important to choose the vendor with care in order to minimize the risk of this occurring. Another issue concerning the vendor selection is the occurrence of a so called bidding war over attractive outsourcing contracts between different vendors. This situation, which at first can seem positive, will in worst case result in vendors making unrealistic bid offers. Sometimes the vendor already knows or discovers by hand that they are unable to recover their business results and operational costs for the near future. This situation is called the Winners curse and can lead to additional costs, poor service or considerable switching costs for the client. (Kern et al., 2002) It can particularly become an issue when handling new technologies since the vendor are selling capabilities they may not be fully developed. When dealing with new technology it is hard for both parties to weigh the potential benefits against the technical and organisational difficulties that might arise. (Ross Westerman, 2004) 2.3 What should organisations outsource? One question all managers need to answer when structuring the IT function of the organization is what parts should be performed internally and what should be managed by an external vendor? (Willcocks Lacity, 1998) Since every organisation looks different and faces different challenges it is impossible to give a simple answer. IT is today a highly important and integrated part of most businesses and can therefore be said to affect and shape most processes within an organisation. This contributes to making IT outsourcing far more complex than most other forms of outsourcing. (Kern Willcocks, 2002) In a study by Lacity and Hirschheim (1994) it was concluded that the activities that require extensive knowledge of business needs, IT planning and strategy, IT architecture are unwise to outsource. In an article published by Jane Linder (2004) a change in attitude was reported when looking at areas to be considered for outsourcing. Instead of outsourcing IT processes regarded as nonco re, the author believe that outsourcing is increasingly becoming a mean to address more fundamental needs, for example addition of new capabilities and facilitate strategic and structural changes. This emerging outsourcing practice will introduce the Centralization vs. Decentralization Model within companies that have outsourced parts of their IT function were, several decisions are pushed outside the company. At the same time, many of the decisions in this situation will be taken on a central level. 2.3.1 Outsourcing effects on centralization vs. decentralization: Earl et al. (1996) state that outsourcing of operations and development may lead to downsizing of the IT function but it does not necessarily alter the centralization versus decentralization axis. Thus, the internal IT function has the option and also the responsibility to define where the decisions are to be taken, centrally or decentralized as stated below: 2.3.1.1 Small vs. large IT functions: The very size of the IT function will also affect how it is set up and operates. Taking two extremes, in large IT functions (e.g. more than 800 employees) it is possible to have dedicated resources to strategic functions, e.g. strategic planning, company architecture, technology research and vendor management. In small IT functions (e.g. less than 60 employees) these roles will typically be shared or even not required and the IT function will focus more on day-to-day activities. In the first situation there is risk that the IT function will be forced into complex structures and also become more bureaucratic and isolated from their clients. Realizing expected synergies can then be tough. Although, having dedicated resources means that the IT function can apply more sophisticated management techniques and also influence the companys management team to a great extent. In the latter example the advantage is that small IT functions could change direction and respond to customers needs m uch easier. The disadvantage is that the IT manager will have to manage more and lead less since managers below the CIO is less mature than within larger IT functions. (Forrester, 2005: b) 2.3.1.2 Capabilities crucial when using outsourcing In the view of Feeny et al. (1995), companies, after decided upon what parts of their services they should outsource will need to appoint a team to function as contract administrators and system/service integrators. The main tasks for the members of this group should be to; ensure that vendors provide the agreed upon services, that the users (reasonable) needs are being satisfied, address disputes over contractual issues and asses penalties. This team should also decide when the service level is too low but also when its too high. For example do many users not take advantage of the agreed upon training or companies insist on extraordinary service levels, which can become extremely costly. To have a successful contract-management team require people with extensive knowledge of the vendors, the users and different contracts. Therefore these teams call for a mix of competencies; contract management skills, technical skills of what is required from the IT-service, a systems integrator for the externally provided systems and those already in-house. Feeny et al. (1995) believes that these three different roles should be found in-house for the best result to be achieved. Companies who outsource but who lack these competencies are likely to run into system gaps which makes the information sharing in the organization difficult. This can in turn lead to a negative attitude toward the outsourcing situation (and the vendor), which often leads to building on own solutions in parallel, creating a mess of ad hoc systems. The result can be increased costs which is often the opposite of the aim with the initiative. 2.3.1.3 IT function key stakeholders IT involves many stakeholders, which all have different kind of demands depending on the companys specific situation. If the management is to ensure that the exploitation of IT meets its needs, the stakeholders must be managed. (Earl, 1989; Rau, 2004) Increasingly as IT is used as a strategic weapon, businesses are linked up with their suppliers by networking. A supplier could in this case also be interpreted as a service provider or a vendor, executing parts of the organizations value chain and processes. The demands on the IT function have increased a lot during past decades and systems delivery now also includes procurement and integration (Rockart et al., 1996). Firms are increasingly recognizing that they do not have the time, money and expertise to develop large integrated systems. They are instead purchasing software and sub-contracting development to third parties who have access to the latest tools and techniques. (Ibid) Other important stakeholders are business and manage ment, which have to have good communication with the IT people in order to ensure that both business and technology perspectives are involved in understanding business opportunities. Employees are another stakeholder as they are the users of the technology and they need to be involved when designing systems and changing work routines. (Earl, 1989) 2.3.1.4 Business capabilities According to Rockart et al. (1996) IT leaders often find that their staff is lacking in business knowledge and skills. If the necessary relation between the business and IT are to be built, the IT personnels competence will need to change. Funding of internal education programs and creating partnerships with outside companies are example of initiatives to meet this demand. Outsourcing some IT responsibilities to computing services firms can compensate for skill shortages. However, making outsourcing work is a different proposition than deciding to outsource. The IT managers must be informed buyers, good negotiators and as skilled as the vendor in each area. 2.3.1.5 IT capabilities Willcocks et al. (1997) suggests that to determine what the core of IT is you should answer the question; which IT capabilities are core to the businesss future capacity to exploit IT successfully. Following this line of thought, the authors divide the core of IT capability into four different categories; Understanding of IT capability Business and IT vision Delivery of IT services Design of IT architecture The challenge of understanding IT capability is not just about keeping track of different technologies. Their usage is defined by the consumer rather than the producers. Therefore it has more to do with understanding the functional characteristics of the applications and how they are being deployed. The second category, business and IT vision, concerns the alignment of business and IT strategy where the systems should meet the business demands, and, as we have discussed earlier, IT may enable new and superior business strategies. The third capability mentioned was the challenge of delivering IT services, with low-cost and high quality. This area is transforming as the market for external providers of competence has grown vastly during past decades. The effect of this change is that sourcing skills have become more important for the IT managers. The last capability needed has to do with designing the IT architecture. The capability required in this case is twofold, partly a deep technical knowledge concerning systems, standards and technical trends, but also an understanding of the business and its needs. (Willcocks et al., 1997). 2.4 How should organizations outsource? After answering the questions why and what, the organisation must find a way to realise their goals and anticipation with the IT outsourcing. Outsourcing of IT can vary a great deal, both in form and degree of outsourcing. As the industry has grown so have the different options available. Today there are numerous of different outsourcing models to choose from, designed to suit a ray of different organisations and all with various benefits and risks. In this section we will start of by explaining different IT outsourcing alternatives based on two criteria; the amount of an organisations IT function that is outsourced and under what forms. The degree of outsourcing is a quantitative measure of categorizing different outsourcing options. Lacity et al (1997) present an outsourcing model where the different types are separated in terms of their shares of the total IT resources Total outsourcing: Meaning that at least 80 % of the IT budget is outsourced. Total in-sourcing: At least 80% of IT budget is kept in-house after outsourcing alternatives has been evaluated. Selective outsourcing: A mix of outsourced and in-sourced functions, neither reaching 80 % of IT total budget. De facto in-sourcing: The internal IT department is used without any evaluation of external alternatives. In general, large scaled outsourcing deals (total outsourcing) is often a part of a bigger and more lasting change involving the way in which the organization need to be structured, focused and managed. (Willcocks Lacity, 1998) Applying total outsourcing while using one or a few vendors can put the client at risk since it tends to increase costs and decrease flexibility over time. An alternative to total outsourcing is to use selective outsourcing. This approach assigns specific functions or services to the different vendors best suited for the job. According to Lacity et al. (1997) selective outsourcing can be a successful form of outsourcing since it incorporates the fact that the information technology span includes a variety of activities different in terms of business contribution, integration with existing processes and level of technical maturity. Typically there is no one supplier or internal IT department that possesses the experience and economies of scale to perform all IT activities effectively. By using selective outsourcing the organisation should be able to increase its flexibility and control and also minimize risks by spreading it onto different vendors and time horizons. This approach also takes into consideration that IT activities, depending on their characteristics, require different amount of management attention, security and consideration to be successful IT outsourcing objects (Lacity Willcocks, 2000). The authors also stress that selective sourcing works most effectively within the context of business strategic concerns and an overall IT-sourcing strategy that retains both flexibility and control. From this point, the implementation of an IT outsourcing involves often structural as well as cultural changes in a company. Significant change, however, is a disruption in our expectations of the future which is viewed as a loss of control (Marshall Conner, 1996). People are not likely to change the way they have been (successfully) working, especially when it is not clear what the goal of the whole operation is and who will benefit from the changes (Doppler and Lauterburg, 2000). Fear of the unknown and uncertainty is often the source of resistance and reduce productivity (Stark, 1999). Therefore, changing a culture, structures and processes is risky and can even produce negative results which is proved by many studies. Moreover, if change has been carefully planned and the change process is managed and overviewed properly a positive result will be achieved. In the next section, the importance of change management in the implementation of IT outsourcing is introduced. 2.5 Change Management: 2.5.1 What is Change Management? Smith (2004) describes change as interventions ranging from small staged improvements to major changes resulting in extreme restructuring of the organisation. Moreover, the roots of Change Management found in soft science of psychology where Change Management is applied to help people deal with hurtful emotional issues like death in the family or knowledge of ones own impending death (anon., 1996). In addition, organisational Change Management has proved as a useful tool to facilitate successful cultural transformations by helping people dealing with unknown territory and Mitchell (2000) put it, the neutral zone to ensure that the outcome of the change initiative is positive. There are many models and theories that can be generically termed change management although there is not one strategy that will suit every situation. The approach chosen to manage the change process should be the most appropriate for the particular change being implemented (Markus and Benjamin, 1996). Some experts propose that the key is to concentrate on components such as information dissemination, employee involvement (Baronas and Louis, 1988), while others focus on the role that the change manager plays and the competencies required (Kotter, 1996; Markus and Benjamin, 1996; Miller, 2002). In contrast, some reflect on the social psychology aspects to change management (Kanter, 1996). One common fact is that change at some stages will inevitably be a needed. Whether it is a case of responding to changes in the macro or micro environment or within the organisations market niche, striving for competitive advantage or responding to government legislation, organisations often have to respond by implementing either new working practices or more often than not, new technologies. One thing is for sure that no sooner one change initiative is complete the organisation tends to be forced to move to another. The beginnings of change management, and therefore the development of models an d theories, could arguable be attributed to Kurt Lewin. Lewin is most noted for models such as the three-step approach of unfreeze-change-refreeze, which emerged during the 1950s, and later the action research model. It is evident that the early development of change management focused on a rather mechanistic approach to the analysis and implementation stages of change although it has now become apparent that the human relation aspect are now clearly adopted within all theories. Many organisations accurately predict the changes the organisation needs to make, however, they often get the management of the change process wrong. Organisations waste vast amounts of resources and time and in extreme cases go bust due to their failure in the management of the change process. There are some staggering statistics relating to change initiatives that many contribute to poor change management skills. 2.5.2 Approaches of Change Management? Through the vast quantity of literature available on the subject of change management a common subject that has surfaced is that there are two approaches to the theory; the planned approach and the emergent approach. Although, all these are internally focused, and they attempt to provide solutions to help management obtain commitment to change and improve productivity with lease resistance. In the next sections the approaches to change management will be discussed; the planned and emergent approaches as well as their importance to IT Outsourcing Process. 2.5.2.1 Planned approaches to Change Management: The planned approach focuses on change that the organisation decides to implement. It considers taking the organisation, or the change subject, from one fixed state to the next state using a series of pre planned stages which are analysed with various tools. Although many theories and models could be attributed to operate within this type of context the most notable are those developed by Kurt Lewin, which emerged during the 1950s, such as the three-step model of unfreeze-change-refreeze, and the Organizational Development (OD) model. To provide a basic overview of Lewins three step model, the first stage is unfreezing the existing situation; unlearning the old system and way of doing things. The change is then introduced and the new behaviours are enforced by the third stage of refreezing. Then, the unfreezing stage involves gaining the peoples buy-in, or support, of the change initiative that differs from simply informing them of the reason and focuses on what would make pe ople want to change. The issue of safety is also key as people affected are more likely to be receptive of the change if they perceive safety. Once the people are in the desired conducive stage the change is implemented and the new behaviour is adopted by refreezing the new situation (Schein, 1996). Lewins planned approach has been further developed and utilised by advocates of organisation development (OD). The concept of OD is increasingly popular as organisations become more adaptable and responsive to change and attempt to develop structures and systems that nurture innovation (Peters and Waterman, 1982; Kanter, 1989; Senge, 1990). By many practitioners the OD model is defined as planned approach, medium to long term change strategy with the aim of improving the effectiveness of the organisation and its workforce by means of systematic change programmes, often inter-related, based on behavioural sciences of psychology, sociology and politics. Central to the OD process is t he use of a change agent as an expert who facilitates and guides the change process. Although this person can be internal to the organisation more often than not they are external consultants. (French and Bell, 1995; Burke, 2000; Cummings and Worley, 1997). Although opinions on where OD should start varies from top-down, middle-out, bottom up, the consensus seems to be that OD should begin at the top and filter down to lower the levels of the organisation (French and Bell, 1990; Cummings et al, 1997; Burges, 2000), which clearly places it in the camp of the planned approach. Both the earlier models of the planned approach, the three-step and the more recent evolution of organisational development are human relations approaches to change management based in social psychology, where they clearly focus on the individuals involved rather than solely the outcomes desired. However, these models, and the planned approach in general, do have their critics. Major criticisms are that th e planned approach, which assumes the organisation operates in a stable state, has a one-dimensional approach that is only likely to generate short-term outcomes and in fact is more likely to increase instability than reduce it (Dawson, 1994). It is further criticised as it is considered to ignore organisational power and politics (Burnes, 2004) and tends to lend itself to change being forced onto employees by senior management due to the nature of the top down approach (Clarke, 1994). 2.5.2.2 Emergent approaches to Change Management: As the environments in which organisations currently operate in can no longer be considered stable there has become a constant need for the organisations to scan the environment in order to adapt which as a result the planned approach is not best suited but instead the relatively new emergent approach is deemed more applicable. The emergent approach can be described as a bottom-up approach to change which claims to achieve a broader understanding of the complexity issues involved in the change process. The reasoning behind the bottom-up approach is that as the pace of change is often so rapid it is not possible for senior management to plan and develop every action but instead, as the name implies, it simply self emerges (Kanter, 1992). It is best suited to small incremental changes, which over time can lead to major restructuring of the organisation. The role of the manager is not to plan or implement the change but rather to create a suitable structure and culture that it i s more likely to be receptive to the desired change, which is achieved through the encouragement of learning, innovation, and experimentation. Unlike the planned approach it does not overlook the fact that change is often a political process where individuals, and often groups, operate as resistors to change in order to protect their interests (Kanter, 1992; Dawson, 1994, Burnes et al, 2000). The change manager needs to be aware of a number of key factors that either promote or obstruct the change success; structures, cultures, organisational learning, management leadership behaviour, plus power and politics (Burnes et al 2000). The culture of an organisation, or group, can often be one of the main inhibitors to the change process. If change is to be successful it needs to be embedded into the culture of the organisation (Kotter and Schlesinger, 1979). The literature suggests that it can not be overestimated how important leadership, and management behaviour, is to the suc cess of any change management initiative (Kotter Schlesinger, 1979; Kanter 1983; Kotter 1996; Clarke, 1994; Kanter 1998). Kotter (1996) explains that effective leadership is important to the change process because it can define and effectively communicate how the organisation will appear after the change inspiring personnel to make it happen. Power and politics, and the power struggles produced when change is inevitable, can often be closely linked the outcome of a change implementation (Wilson, 1992; Kanter, 1995). In order to deal with resistance the change manager will often need to work politically to build support amongst employees at all levels; the change recipients, fellow managers, and senior executives. In summary therefore, those organisations that are able to respond best to change will remain successful and in many instance will be market leaders. Those organisation which are inflexible, unable to adapt to change quickly will stagnate, will lose their market shar e and will quite often go out of business. Therefore the importance of change and the change process is essential for survival in todays global economy where competition is fierce. It is also important that organisations develop a capacity to change without disrupting their ongoing business operations. 2.6 Employee Resistance in an IT outsourcing change process: Any change process will undoubtedly experience problems along the way; some over run their planned timescale, some kill morale, some cost a great deal of management time therefore it is important to concentrate on reasons behind employee resistance and ways of dealing with it as it is encountered (Kotter and Schlesinger, 1979; Bocij et al, 2003; Johnson et al, 2005). Baron and Louis (1988) state that resistance can often arise from the stress of the implementation where this feeling can produce such reactions as unwillingness of individuals to learn the new system, often reverting back to old systems of working. Some may resist change through sabotage, many feel that the computer will take away their decision making responsibilities, while some feel insecure and are therefore resistant due to their fear power or job loss (Markus, 1979; Ainsworth 1977; Argyris 1971: Dickson et al., 1967, cited in Baronas Louis, 1988). Kotter and Schlesinger (1979) propose four most common rea sons why employees resist change; firstly, A desire not to lose something of value, for example, their power, their job etc., which often produces political behaviour resulting from the individual placing their personal interests and goals before those of the organisation (Kotter and Schlesinger, 1979). Secondly, Misunderstanding and lack of trust between employees and their managers often lead to misunderstandings occurring which unless quickly rectified can result in resistance. Thirdly, Different assessments are another cause of resistance where individuals interpret the costs and benefits of the change implementation differently. Lastly, tolerance to change differs between individuals as all human beings are limited in their ability to change. Resistance can occur even if they know the change to be beneficial. This can result from the persons perception that they are unable to develop necessary skills to cope or even from peer pressure not to comply. However, the change ag ent needs to be aware that participation is time consuming and therefore may not be available when the change is required immediately. As participation and communication have been discussed as being key to reduce resistance for the proposed change implementation, it is also apparent that communication and involvement needs to continue right up to implementation and beyond to which many experts recommend devising an appropriate training programme. Although, rather than simply attributing success to the use of an appropriate program, through their studies, Markus and Benjamin (1996) expand upon this by stating that to increase the probability of success, training must be carried out in-house by the Facility Management (FM) department. 2.7 Chapter II Summary: In the prior theory sections we have aimed at providing two different aspects of our field of research. Concerning the theories around outsourcing you can conclude that it is and has been an evolving topic, influenced not only by heavy research and studies, but also by large macro economic factors and trends. In sum, the theories underline the many reasons for outsourcing and the many risks connected to such initiatives. In every given business situation the rational manager will try to reduce the risk as much as possible while maintaining the benefits. Based on the theory, this is also an approach that could be valid when deciding on the scale and number of vendors to use. Using many different vendors will imply more access to expertise and specialist, and using one or a few vendors will imply higher volume and hence larger scale effects that both parties benefit from. Thus there is a balance between cost and competence in this aspect which needs to be assessed against the risk un dertaken. The section also brings up the questions of what to actually outsource. Since IT today is an integrated part of most businesses there is a challenge in choosing the right processes to outsource so that the rest of the business avoids negative impact. The challenge lies in defining and isolating the processes, and in many times the people, which can be moved to an outside vendor. The IT functions mission is to execute the IT strategy in such a way that the overall business strategy is supported. In this sense, the usage of outsourcing should be an act in line with the IT and business strategy. The high level effect of outsourcing on the IT function is that some parts of the supply chain is taken over by an outside player, who then delivers services/value to the companys chain of value adding activities. The organizations structure, its principles of governance, capabilities and stakeholders are dimensions of the IT function which could be affected when using outsourcing. Coming back to the alignment of IT strategy and business strategy, the IT manager (or CIO) needs to secure that these dimensions will continue to support the overall target in situations when outsourcing is introduced and implemented in the operating model.

Homeless Issue In The United States - Free Essay Example

Issue in the United States There is a various amount of people in the United States that are homeless and there is nothing the people can do about it. Statistics show that there are more two-parent families in the West and Southwest than in New York and other large Eastern cities (Homelessness).This happens because they move together to try and make a living and end up not finding a job and get stuck there not being able to afford anything, therefore they become homeless. In the United States, one of the main reasons people become homeless is because there is less job opportunities due to their mental state or personal status. There are some places that will provided for the homeless only if they are in desire need. Only those programs that reduce poverty or increase the supply of affordable housing will be effective in decreasing the total number of homeless families in the United States (McChesney). This shows that the United States does have some kind of shelter for the homeless but not for all. These shelters are there for them if they are hurt or being abused only. The shelters will also let you in if you have any kind of health issues or disabilities. The United States is trying to do as much as they can to make the homeless lives better so they feel like there is hope in their future. They try to make getting jobs easier so we will have less homeless people in the world, but there are still rules and regulations that they have to pass. The unsheltered still have to try and put forth the effort so they can have a job to maybe make enough money to support their family and or life. Governmental Solutions to the Problem The government has passed many laws to help the homeless but they have not necessarily done there best job at keeping up with it and providing for them. It was said that Fire, Flood, or natural disaster could render people homeless by destroying their dwelling (Helping). The government has not done anything to try and fix this problem. There are laws for the special needs and the ones that are in desire need of care but when it comes to natural disaster, they do not realize that not all people could afford insurance and are barely making it by to even pay the bills on their houses. Many homeless people will start with a home but have to end up living on the streets because either the family will reject them or they are in so much debt, they cannot afford a home. The homeless need shelters but it is not always easy to get in. The government makes it hard for them to find places to live because they want them to show a stable working job and or know that they are only homeless because they are special and no one wanted them. Due to the hardships of shelters, it leaves many on the streets in the dangers of the world. The United states came up with a definition of homelessness which says The official definition is meant to hep providers determine who to serve, and to help planners calculate levels of service to provide. (Helping). This meaning that the government whats the homeless to put in the work to receive the good. If they work and have a steady job, they will allow then to stay in these shelters. This has been proven to work because so many are desperate to just sleep with a blanket and in a bed. The government has done so much to help the homeless. Emergency shelter grants were awarded on a formula basis to government agencies in most communities eligible for Community Development Block Grants (Helpi ng). This grant is to help the homeless stay in a safe place and have somewhere to go to at night when they have nowhere else to go. The government has tried to get places for them but they can only do so much. The homeless still have to be able to show that they are dedicated to a life and trying to live a better one. All the government wants is to help but they also want them to put forth the effort into showing them they are trying to live a better life. OFlaherty, (1996), researched that increasing income inequality is behind the increased homelessness (DSouza). He shows that by raising the price on your income, the higher the rates go up on living. Therefore, it is hard for the homeless to afford to live because they are working minimum wage jobs but the rent on apartments is extremely high so they still cannot afford to live on their own. The government has also put laws in the school system that will provide them places to live it is called The No Child Left Behind Act, requires that school districts designate a homeless liaison to coordinate services and provide transportation to allow such students to stay in their original schools (Street). This states that kids with no home should be allowed to stay in school and be provided shelter especially as a minor just trying to get an education. This was passed so that the kids may continue to go to school to get an education and be able to possible go to college that way they could get a degree and hopefully make money to later on in life afford a house and no longer be homeless. The government wants kids to get and education no matter how you live or what you do because they wan t all people to be successful in life. Many acts have been passed within the years to help the homeless out as much as possible. They may not be the best but it is a start. Many people think that they do nothing for them but that is because they do it all behind the scenes. The government has done alot for these people so that they could live their lives just like the rest of the people in this world. Personal Solution In todays society there seem to be a greater accumulation of homeless people due to the fact there are fewer free homeless shelters. Homeless shelters are no longer a free site where people without homes can recover and rest from the heat or from a day of work. Most people without a place to live did not choose to be in the position they are in. For example, homelessness is caused by the need to move into a large city for a job but without a high income job it is difficult to live in cities because of the price of living is extremely high. Another possible solution is to have more easily acquired high paying job that would allow people to stay in their homes while working to support possible families. Federal housing should include the special needs individuals that work for a living instead of asking people to be sorry for them without having a job. Hard working people that just simply cannot afford housing in certain areas should not be punished for the inability to afford housing along with everything else that every American has to pay for. With this mentality permanent supportive housing would be a sensible solution for helping the hard working poverty of the world. Having permanent assisted living for the homeless workforce would benefit those without homes immensely in order to have a normal life. This enables people to work for a living without having to think about being kicked out of their homes and onto the street without being able to afford another place to live. Another permanent solution is to teach kids in school to be smarter with their money so they will not spend their money irresponsibly to get to the point where they have no money where they cannot afford a place to live. With these classes they could learn how to save and have better money managemet. Works Cited Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs. Google Books McChesney, Kay Young. Family Homelessness: A Systemic Problem. Journal of Social Issues, Wiley/Blackwell (10.1111), 14 Apr. 2010 Helping Americas Homeless. Google Books Editorial Board. Endocrinology, vol. 156, no. 5, 2015, doi:10.1210/endo.2015.156.issue-5.edboard. Street Paving. Scientific American, vol. 5, no. 32, 1850, pp. 253253., doi:10.1038/scientificamerican04271850-253d.

Medieval Poetry - 3509 Words

Medieval literature is a very diverse subject. The term covers the literature of Europe during the period between the fall of the Roman Empire and the beginnings of the Renaissance in the 15th century, spanning a period of roughly 1,000 years. As a result, it is difficult to make generalizations about medieval literature. It is, nonetheless, possible to identify a few general trends. Allegory and symbolism are common in medieval literature, perhaps more so than in modern writing. Religious and philosophical messages were often conveyed through the use of figures, such as the panther, an animal which represented Christ. Old Norse and Irish poetry often contains figures of baffling complexity which allowed listeners who puzzled them out to†¦show more content†¦Along the way, this knight encounters mysterious hermits, confronts evil blackguards and brigands, slays monsters and dragons, competes anonymously in tournaments, and suffers from wounds, starvation, deprivation, and exposure in the wilderness. He may incidentally save a few extra villages and pretty maidens along the way before finishing his primary task. (This is why scholars say romances are episodic--the plot can be stretched or contracted so the author can insert or remove any number of small, short adventures along the heros way to the larger quest.) Medieval romances often focus on the supernatural. In the classical epic, supernatural events originate in the will and actions of the gods. However, in secular medieval romance, the supernatural originates in magic, spells, enchantments, and fairy trickery. Divine miracles are less frequent, but are always Christian in origin when they do occur, involving relics and angelic visitations. A secondary concern is courtly love and the proprieties of aristocratic courtship--especially the consequences of arranged marriage and adultery. Scholars usually divide medieval romances into four loose categories based on subject-matter: (1) The Matter of Rome: stories based on the history and legends of Greco-Roman origin such as the Trojan War, Thebes, mythological figures, and the exploits of Alexander the Great. The medieval poet usuallyShow MoreRelatedMedieval Literature and Poetry Illuminated Manuscripts983 Words   |  4 PagesMedieval Literature and Poetry/ Illuminated Manuscripts The Middle Ages was a period of about one thousand years, between the collapse of the Roman Empire during the fifth century AD and the revival of classical art and learning known as the Renaissance around the fifteenth century. During this dark and chaotic period small groups of devout Christians could live with security and pursue a religious life. These people were doing something that almost no one else could do at the time- readingRead MoreMedieval English Poetry : The Foundations Of Anglo-Saxon Poetry1701 Words   |  7 Pagesmost prominent cultures in Britain (â€Å"Anglo-Saxons: A Brief History). Anglo-Saxon poetry â€Å"sheds light on the nature of medieval English culture, especially on its ability to integrate pagan Germanic history within the framework of the Christian Middle Ages†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (a work from an anthology 1230). Their literature was seldom ever written down, but it was spread orally and usually intended for performance (â€Å"Anglo-Saxon Poetry.†). Since their literature was used for performance, it had to be extremely rhythmicalRead More The Greatest Literary Emblem of the Middle Ages Essay2067 Words   |  9 Pagesthey flourished and developed, which was the Medieval Era. The Middle Ages is the period of European history that goes from the collapse of the Roman civilization to the beginning of the Renaissance, and it extends from about 500 to 1500 ca. (â€Å"Middle Ages†). This period is called the â€Å"Dark Ages† since it is regarded by the Renaissance scholars as a long interval of superstition, ignorance, barbarism, and social oppression due to the fact that the Medieval era was a fight to establish a new societyRead MoreMedieval Music And England During The Time Of 1066-15001866 Words   |  8 PagesMedieval Music in England from 1066-1500s What significant developments or achievements from Medieval Music in England during the time of 1066-1500 CE has had an impact on today’s music and how? The Medieval Times had a lot of trading and invasions of new lands. Countries exchanged ideas to other countries, introducing new discoveries and inventions. During Medieval England, music was a current and changing development, with composers changing their music all the way to the growth and decisions ofRead MoreAnalysis Of The Miller s Tale And It A Whole New Spin 1533 Words   |  7 Pagesdoes not take place in a medieval time period. Brinkman’s version of â€Å"The Miller’s Tale† has no set city, town, or any kind of location. Readers would assume that it would be set in some medieval time period since Chaucer’s was, but Brinkman uses several words that suggest otherwise. In line seven of his rap he states â€Å"Cost of living; without a dollar he lived as an Astrologist,† the word â€Å"dollar† rules out the assumption that it is set in a medieval time period. During medieval times in England, theRead More The Book of the Duchess, t he Parliament of Fowls, and the House of Fame1628 Words   |  7 PagesThe Book of the Duchess, the Parliament of Fowls, and the House of Fame The Parliament of Fowls and the House of Fame are closely related to each other and to the Book of the Duchess, as all three of the poetry share several similar themes. Written between 1368 and 1380 they are some of Chaucer’s earliest works in which aspects of some of the great writers of his time are evident. There are three major themes intertwined within the three works, which Chaucer has added to the Dream Vision genreRead MoreRoles and Lifestyles of Aristocrats and Peasants During Medieval European Civilization2511 Words   |  11 PagesTownspeople 11 Conclusion 12 References 13 Introduction Figure 1.0: Timeline of major events during Medieval European civilization. Trade increased during Medieval European civilization which subsequently contributed to the surge demand of gold, silver and silk. Figure 2.0: Trade routes of Medieval European civilization During the period of Medieval European civilization, there were three groups of people who played very important roles, namely aristocrats, townspeople andRead More Narrative Frames and Interpretive Models in Troilus and Criseyde1990 Words   |  8 Pages  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Emphasis is placed on the process of telling the tale, rather than its eventual outcome. Synthesis of tradition and innovation is the key. The narrator wants to pay homage to the legacy of ancient Greek and Roman literature by pushing his poetry to attain that level of artistic achievement.   He instructs his litel book to kis the steppes where thow seest pace Virgile, Ovide, Omer, Lucan, Stace (V, 1792). This is not a matter of imitation or mere mimickry, however. Lollius, as an intermediaryRead MoreMedieval Vs. Renaissance Literature1323 Words   |  6 PagesMedieval and Renaissance Literature The medieval literature is a clear depiction of the Christian’s changed perception in relation to Christ’s second coming. Initially, the majority of the readings focused entirely on three aspects that resonate around Jesus’ second coming, an anticipated resurrection for the faithful and the ultimate judgment. Judgment in this case was beyond human comprehension and it was regarded as God’s preserve. With the ‘second coming’ becoming extremely remote, middleRead MoreMusic from All over the World Presents a Range of Musical Theories. Some of These Are Documented in Writing Whilst Others Are Transmitted Orally. Discuss and Give Examples with Reference to Both Western and Non-Western Music.3032 Words   |  13 Pagesof octave, which are combinations of the two species aforementioned. These octave species were termed as follows: Mixolydian (B-b), Lydian (c –c’), Phrygian (d-d’), Dorian (e-e’), Hypolydian (f-f’), Hypophrygian (g-g’), and Hypodorian (a-a’). Some medieval theorists later adopted these names for their church modes, but the latter differ from Cleonides’ octave species as they lack a principal note on which a melody is expected to end, which thus defines a mode. Fragments of ancient Greek music – about