Products and services of the organization Essay Example for Free

Products and services of the organization Essay Talent Acquisition Integrated Project Solutions Upon winning a tender our recruitment team in the region is given a list of requirements from the client which they then have to fill within a given time frame. It is also done through recruitment campaigns is one specific nationality is needed for a project. Global Mobility This is a service that we provide for all placed candidates who are travelling abroad for an assignment which involved on and off boarding support, visa, flights and housing arrangements Identification of Main Customers There are two types of customers that the company serves, those who are looking for workforce (the companies) and those who are looking for employment (the individuals). It is not possible to distinguish the percentage of who the company is more focused on as it varies on the region. What differentiates them is that the Clients that looking for workforce either request our company to be used as the resource through a recommendation or through a tendering process. On the other hand the individuals that approach our business while looking for new opportunities mostly use the website as a platform for searching and applying for employment which is then saved on our data base for future reference and use. 3. The companies’ mission and vision is as follows: The above describe the companies’ overall goal that all its branches are working towards on an annual basis. Those vary depending on the region due to different obstacles, structures or legislation surrounding it. Within the Middle East the main short to medium term objectives is to ensure that the existing relationships that have been established over the years remain undisturbed by this such as low quality of work and untimely delivery of work gained through tenders. This is achieved by employing the right people on the right positions to ensure that what has been built overtime won’t be damaged through wrong communication channels. Moreover the company needs to explore possibly needed adjustments in its operations to be able to work  with companies that work on smaller projects besides those which are government driven or large privately run entities. Finally, the company needs to explore and establish whether it is worth expanding into different. Industries within the region due to the growth within Rail and Construction sectors, considering a lot of competition from abroad this needs extensive analysis and research. 4. An analysis of minimum 4 external factors and their impact on the business activities of the organization. Political This factor within the ME Region is very influential. Due to ongoing conflicts in Iraq our consultants have to go through extensive training in case of emergencies such as wars which not only includes very high rotational/ demobilization costs but also involves a number of measures that the company had to incorporate and take into account while setting up the entity in high risk location which are: a separate emergency phone line, a 24/7 emergency contact, amendments to existing employee contacts which do not consider political conflicts; safe transportation, security guards and special camp accommodation which comes at a very high price The economy in the middle east is very good, however it is only accessible to those who have the right contacts and relationships. Also it is very strongly affected by politics. Western Companies have to go through a very lengthy process of registration which requires wasta not only at the beginning but also for certain regular activities which slows down a lot of processes which in h West wouldn’t be an issue. Arab culture is very strong and rules the legislation and all processes and procedures within workplaces in the Region. Introducing the process of nationalisation has had a great influence on all companies operating in the region as a quota on nationals has to be employed by every company which meant that current employees had to be replaced with locals who unfortunately often aren’t keen to work, which creates a lot of issues in the workplace. While expanding in the ME Region the company had tapped into the Caspian Region a few years ago and set up 3 offices in Kazakhstan. However business development and tenders were a struggle due to very common bribery and corruption methods in doing business in this region. AS this is against the companies’ Code of Business Conduct the Board is now considering to sell the business within that region, as it is impossible to develop without breaking the company codes. 5. Structure of the organization The company structure within the ME region is Functional due to the business need. Each of the departments and all employees have a specific role and function that contributes towards the entire region functioning properly Activity B 12 Organizational Strategy The companies’ overall Regional Strategy is focused on growth and development in existing and new locations. This means that all delivery managers are focused on bringing in numbers and new business to ensure high profits which equals meeting their KPIs. This relays to all other departments which like recruiters are pressured to provide the highest level of service and ensure the business’s regular growth. The HR department is there to: Ensure that all incoming business which requires new staff or increased workload for existing staff is worth the effort – preparing PL Reports Ensuring that all departments are equally rewarded, not just the recruiters that are given regular bonuses for placements made. Initiatives for the finance and GM department have been developed. Policies and procedures have been developed to ensure that all employees who join or are currently working for the company adhere to the same standards and are treated equally. All of the above mentioned directly or indirectly ensure staff retention. Supporting manager and staff contribution to the overall success of the business Conflict and Dispute solving -When a conflict arises HR is there to be the mediator and the person that is objective towards both sides. The HR helps to solve the problem without involvement of personal opinions of either of the sides. Conflicts often grow to an extent where other departments get involved and it becomes a personal issue rather than a small work issues that absorbs everyone. This is very unhealthy as it absorbs time and energy of the entire team or within an office where it could be used for positive actions and development. HR is there to ensure that misunderstandings do not grow on such scale and help the teams refocus on their goals as well s the common aim of the office or the region that every employee is working towards. This is crucial to the business because a team that doesn’t work well together will never produce results which will mirro their full potential. Performance Management – HR Provides the platform, tools and expertise to ensure that each employee is assessed on a regular basis and has a chance to express and discuss any problems or issues that they might be facing. It also provides written proof for the managers when it comes to promotions and pay rises at the end of the year. It also provides a source of analysis for training needs and employee development plans which are used during budget setting time. Appraisals, even though for many managers seem like a chore are a very important part of the businesses success. Even when a team doesn’t meet on a regular basis to discuss any issues, the assessment time is when real performers and those who clearly underperform are identified. Having detailed written reviews help to distinguish whether a staff member is worth investing in and having his employment continued or whether he should be let go of at early stages – within the first 3 months when the probation period is over. Without the HR department prompting the managers to complete those above described assessments, the managers often do not realize the lack of someone’s potential until crucial, often costly mistakes are made. Guidance in terms of employee legislation As the legislation in the region changes on a regular basis, it is important that HR has the information and relays it to all employees, and also acts as  the person that is informed of any immigration or legal changes. It is crucial to the business that all laws are followed to avoid any issues not only with employees in case of disputes but also with governmental bodies such as immigration or the Municipality. Following those rules in any country can be a deciding factor during an internal or external audit and ensure that the business can continue trading rather than being fined or even closed down for not adhering to the rules and regulations. Fair treatment of employees To ensure fair treatment of employees and to avoid favouritism, policies procedures and guidelines are developed. All employees are bound by the same rules which create guidelines for their day to day behaviours and actions which if broken and referred to during disciplinary or performance assessment meetings. Having rules in place is crucial to the business as it avoids unnecessary conflicts and issues as well as helps employees to understand and follow the company culture which is reflected within its rules.

Online Recruitment: Advantages and Disadvantages

Online Recruitment: Advantages and Disadvantages Online recruitment uses internet to find people to jobs. Fundamentally, it is advertising vacancies on the job sites or corporate websites. At this basic level it is particularly effective at getting a greater level of response. While it may generate lots of applications than traditional print advertising, simply attracting more candidates is only the part of the job. The current state is that truly effective online recruitment can be as low as 10 percent of the top blue-chip corporate companies. The original strength power of online recruitment is when it is done properly, lie in controlling internet technology to not just attract the candidates but to deal with them also. In this sense it is also about streamlining the recruitment process, so busy human resource departments can give a good recruitment service to their colleagues in finance, marketing, sales and manufacturing and moreover it frees up more of their time for other potential tasks. A specialized software provider such as Human Resource Portal can develop bespoke application programmes for recruiters that will save their time, effort and financial resorces. They can automatically perform the pre-selection process by setting killer questions (that only top candidates could answer correctly), profiling and scoring, psychometric tests and automatic CV scans to look for key areas such as qualifications and experience What some companies and what u think of e rec-current thinking Those companies that use online job application systems, instead of traditional recruitment methods can get a greater number of applicants aged over thirties and premium quality candidates overall, according to new research. The research done by academics in Ireland and by Eastern Kentucky University in the U.S was presented a week ago at a conference of British Psychological Society.The study mainly focused at concerns that the huge rise in the use of e-recruitment practices over recent years had decreased the number of applications from older female candidates.Studies conducted over the past 4 years, the research of more 3,000 people applying for administrative posts in Irish Civil Service compared the type of population applying when the application process was was done through e-recruitment and paper based method.The survey found that the number of elder applicants (aged 30 60 years) increased with the practice of the internet selection systemThere was no change on the number of females applying for various posts but the overall quality of candidates was have improved.Number of candidates on selection tests were higher for online applicants than pre-online applicants.Results also proved that the n ew media could widen the diversity of people attracted to it, and brought into, organisations, said the BPS.The societys conference heard researchproving that employees perform better at work if they have better psychological health and if their department heads show them good commitment.The study was conducted by Professor Cary Cooper, of Lancaster University Management School and the director of Manchester-based consultancy Robertson Cooper, and included 16,000 employees aged between 16 and 60 across 15 different firms.Participants filled a questionnaire created to assess their levels of stress at workplace, rating their perceptions of work stressors, organizational commitment their health. Professor Cooper told: We found that the employees who rated their performance mostly had a better psychological health and rated their organizations for showing greater commitment to them. This shows that employers investment in the well-being of their employees is not just a moral obligation; it also pays dividends in context of productivity and profitability.The conference also heard research showing that the employees who feel strong emotional bond to the organization are most likely to be willing to recommend the organization to others and help the operation succeed.Other research, by an occupational psychologist David Sharpley, was based on a survey of more than thousand people working in a local government.Main aspects of the management behaviour, along with the perception that the organization supported employees development, were found to have been critical in creating a strong emotional bond sense of engagement.Employees who felt that they were performing meaningful work, and who were clear about the role they were fulfilling were most likely to be higjly motivated.Employee engagement has a direct effect on the productivity, so it is important for the managers to understand the factors that help us to build engagement the barriers that stifle it, said Sharpley.This study conveys that how important it is that people should know what they are doing, why they are doing it should feel that their personal development is supported by their management, he added. PRACTICE OF E-RECRUITMENT. There has been a huge increase in e-recruitment as compared to as before. Since middle of 2006 in the UK, E-recruitment have increased more than 40% from the previous year. While the trend for online recruitment has been expanding. Over half of the respondents agree that the quality of online applications is very hit and miss. (26.1%) disagree with this statement, which suggest that online recruitment is a better strategy for omly certain roles. Although there is a trend in favour of online recruitment, the results show that there is still a high level of constrains with regard to the ability of online recruitment to attract high quality and diverse candidates. Most of the organizations clearly have a long way to go in developing an online recruitment strategy. While there has certainly been a shift in recruitment and assessment being done online,ourresults suggest that online is only a single aspect of resourcing strategy and a mixed strategy with a mix of media is still proving mos t effective. Current state of Online Recruitment System The numbers of e-recruitment sites seem to multiplying day by day as it is facilitating the recruitment process in more than one ways. Initially, it was observed that this process was embraced by big IT firms but now, it is becoming the part of every organization in business world. The advantages and disadvantages of online recruitment The advantages of online recruitment Cost effective Pasting a job vacancy on your own company website does not cost you anything, while putting on a job board usually costs a couple of hundred pounds . When you consider that a recruitment consultant fee for a candidate could be anything up to 20% of the first years salary, and that advertising in a national newspaper can cost thousands, you can immediately see the cost savings with online recruitment. Online recruitment is quick A job vacancy can be put on a job site in the morning, the first applications arrive by lunchtime, and a candidate is interviewed by end of the day. Of course It isnt often like this. But the fact that such things happen quickly gives us an indication of just how quick E-recruitment can be. Online recruitment gives you a better chance of success Traditional print advertising whether national, local or trade press faces limitations: the success of a vacancy advertisement depends on people looking upon the ad on a particular page and in a particular issue. Online recruitment is completely different. A job vacancy advertisement on a website is there 24 X 7 ,for as long as you desire. Candidates can come back to it again and again. From office administrator to Financial Director: they are all online. Online recruitment gives you a bigger audience Many people who are new to online recruitment think that using job sites is only effective if you are looking for young net-savvy Facebook-type people. This simply isnt the case. Research consistently shows that the average age of candidates using job sites is around 35 years old.Online recruitment is now a standard part of most peoples job hunting regardless of the age. Online recruitment is easy Posting a job on your own site is easy enough. Most of the job sites and CV databases are very user-friendly and you dont need to have vast knowledge of IT to post a vacancy advertisement. Usually, all you need is your job description, a bit of time and a credit card. And, if you have any problems the job board sales team to help you.   The disadvantages of online recruitment Too many candidates It is a fact that dealing with irrelevant and bad candidates is the main problem of a HR manager. Spam candidates can waste lot of time. However, with a bit of thought about what job site you use, how you write your job description and using candidate screening and filtering tools on job boards, it is possible to reduce the number of irrelevant applicants. It wont always work Online recruitment doesnt work every time. Every job vacancy cannot be posted or filled online. There will always be difficult-to-fill jobs that can only be filled  by recruitment consultants, headhunters or in other ways. However, most companies tend to hire for pretty standard job roles so this is seldom an issue. And with more and more job seekers choosing the internet to look for jobs, and more and more job sites and job boards specializing in ever more diverse areas, those difficult-to-fill jobs are becoming less day by day.

Changes to the Role of a Quantity Surveyor

Changes to the Role of a Quantity Surveyor When trying to gather information on the origins of the quantity surveying profession it is not simple, several different authors have different theories on where the occupation arose from. Some feel that it is a 19th century creation, were others seem to think that the birth of quantity surveying stretches all the way back to ancient Egypt. However to attempt to obtain knowledge about quantity surveyings past I must assess all the theories to distinguish which seems the most viable. The Kenyan branch of the RICS opens the website speaking of quantity surveying being used in ancient Egypt, and also references a quote from the bible which was mentioned in Chapter 1; Suppose one of you wants to build a tower, will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it. (Luke, 14:28). Seeing this as the start of the quantity surveying profession I feel is inaccurate but it can be seen as a basis from which it could have rose from. The act of planning ou t all you need has always been used in construction as well as other lines of work, for example a baker would not start baking until he has all the ingredients he needs. Nevertheless it may have been in such a case as the pyramids that some one person may have been assigned to ensure all materials where present and that every that was needed to construct them was there. If this were the case then it may very well have been the first use of quantity surveyors (QSs). The authors who have written about the subject of quantity surveying give little mention of this as their professions origin and choose to focus on more recent history to find their career roots rather than to early empires grand construction projects. Allan Ashworth and Keith Hogg are two well respected authors on the subject of quantity surveying and value in construction, so much so that they have taken over the mantle of writing the new versions of Williss Practice and Procedure for the Quantity Surveyor, a book seen as one of the best in quantity surveying circles. In the 2000 book Added Value in Design and Construction Ashworth and Hogg speak of the possible beginnings of quantity surveying: According to Thompson (1968), the roots of quantity surveying go back to the seventeenth century and to the Great Fire of London. There is evidence to suggest that firms of QSs were in existence at the end of the eighteenth century. According to Seeley (1988), the earliest records of a quantity surveying firm were in Reading, Berkshire, in 1785. There is little doubt that other firms were also in existence at the same time. In 1802, a number of Scottish quantity surveying firms gathered to produce the first method of measurement of buildings. In St Lukes Gospel (14:28) a story is recorded of the importance of counting the cost before you build implying that some form of these practices existed even in biblical times! (P 12-13) These authors seem to have no direct opinion on the matter but they do offer up the opinion of others as well as the aforementioned biblical quote. Thompsons belief was that that after the Great Fire of London in 1666, there was such a vast amount of work needed done and that the usual way of paying tradesmen by daily rates was unfeasible due to the amount of labour used. So it was deemed that a measure and value system would be best to allocate payment. This job was entrusted to architects but since they were so busy designing all the new buildings they employed other men to do the job; these men became known as measurers. Seeley and Winfield (1999) state that this method of measure and value surveying was common practice up to the middle 19th century but vaguely describe the aftermath that resulted in the creation of bills of quantities and competitive tendering. The origins of quantity surveying and indeed all surveying are detailed heavily in F.M.L Thompsons 1968 book, Chartered Surveyors, the growth of a profession. The opinion shared by Thompson (1968) and Seeley and Winfield (1999) is a popular one among authors however this opinion is not shared by Colin Dent in his book Quantity Surveying a Fully Metricated Text. In his eyes the birth of quantity surveying came in coincidence with that of the bill of quantities. Dent puts it that the bill of quantities arose from costly nature that was involved in pricing jobs in the 19th century. General contractors in this era where becoming aggravated with spending money measuring, pricing and preparing a tender for a job only not to get and have to incur the costs of an unsuccessful bid. It then left the contractor having to price in the cost of unsuccessful bids into his successful ones; this did not sit well with clients who were disgruntled that they had to pay for a contractors previous losing bid. It was heavily thought at this time that the lowest bid was the best, but it was often the case that the lowest bid came from an omission in the contracto rs own bill of quantities. This would leave the contractor the task of attempting to make the money up from somewhere else in the project. Again clients were displeased with this so it was decided around 1850 that a universal bill of quantities would be made from the client and sent to the contractors to price. Ferry, Brandon Ferry, 2006, see it differently; they believe that it was contractors who first used surveyors to draw up bills of quantities for them to price. A group of contractors would perhaps employ one surveyor with the winning bid then paying his fee. Architects suspected foul play in these bids with excessive wastage allowed and the possibility that contractors would fix so that one bid would win before all would get a pay out from the contract sum. The architect then took over employing surveyors to draw up one bill of quantities for all to price. Either way the bill of quantities system was seen as fair competition between contractors and gained recognition by 1880, and after it was used in the building of the Houses of Parliament and was successful it was then accepted as the most efficient and economical way of building. It is probably most likely from this point of the evolution of the bill of quantities that surveyors shook off the term off measurers and gained the term QSs as their job title. Another contrasting view is that of Duncan Cartlidge the author of New Aspects of Quantity Surveying Practice 2nd edition. The basis of his opinion also comes from the 19th century and the formation of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 1834. This move was made by architects to further them surveyors/contractors and their obnoxious commercial interest in construction. In his view the greater responsibility for the business side construction now given to surveyors/contractors created the need to have someone in charge of the managing of capital and quantities, thus the QS was born (Cartlidge, 2006). There are several views regarding the origin of the quantity surveying profession as I mentioned above. However when all views are looked at; an almost direct line events can be seen to occur where every stage seems to be a step in the evolution of quantity surveying. In this readers opinion the act of assessing material amounts for building and also the cost goes back to early civilisation. But it was not until after the Great Fire in 1666 that a full time job was created for someone to measure and value work done. Client and contractor dissatisfaction with payment of the final account and a fair method of tendering led to the birth of bills of quantities and it is the basis of measuring and value and the drawing up of bills of quantities that produced the traditional QS, which still exists today. This form of quantity surveying worked well in the late 19th century and early years of the 20th century, so much so that in 1909 the RIBA incorporated the bills of quantities into its standard building contract, thus making it a legally binding document (Dent, 1970)(Ashworth Hogg, 2000). In 1922 the first edition of the British Standard Method of Measurement of Building Works (or SMM) was adopted into the contract as a means for which works were measured. Its introduction was to alleviate confusion about which quantities were measurable (Ashworth, 1981). The practice of quantity surveying remained very much unchanged for many years; in fact it was not until after that Second World War that the traditional techniques came into question. The government began its task of rebuilding the country after the war and gave heavy public spending during the 1950s and 1960s for rebuilding of houses, schools, hospitals, roads, etc. (Ashworth, 2004). This in turn saw work for QSs rise as the government had spend huge sums of money on the war and had incurred large international debt, so keeping buildings cost low was a top priority (Thompson, 1968). In order to plan this spending properly and achieve value for money in the various projects, something additional needed to be done other than simply to measure and value the works as was the traditional method. The then Ministry of Public Buildings and Works and the RICS began to develop systems of financial control and evaluation for new buildings. This laid the foundation for further exploration into cost control techniques (Ashworth, 2004). In 1957 the Ministry of Education issued a bulletin that was a milestone in the practice as it introduced new methods of working and new principles of cost analysis and cost planning (Building Bulletin No.4 Cost Study). The bulletin initiated the idea of cost planning which set about to compare the cost of different design solutions and also designing within an overall cost framework. This meant that QSs would for the first time have to manage costs all the way through a construction project, whereas a previously they simply a drew up quantities from architect drawings at the start and helped settle accounts at the end. QSs would now have to compare different designs and different elements of buildings in an attempt to obtain cost efficiency, and then manage the expenditure throughout to ensure that the project was not over budget. This was the first use of elemental cost planning or designing to a cost and formally introduced the QS into the design team (Ashworth Hogg, 2000). The 1970s saw a huge increase in the amount of universities offering quantity surveying as an undergraduate course, in 1970 alone 30 polytechnics formed (Willis, 1987). Not only were there more quantity surveying students but there were more quantity surveying lectures, this meant that more research was being done on the profession, finding more and more ways to better itself (Ashworth Hogg, 2000). It was in this research that the holes began to be exposed in the traditional procurement method. Studies showed that clients wee not always obtaining value for money in the procurement of their buildings (Ashworth, 2004). In 1970 -1974 the UK seen a property boom so developers were anxious to get building, this forced fast track methods of procurement to develop as the traditional method was seen as too slow. Management contracting and forms of design and build were introduced. These methods did not require a bill of quantities so QS involvement was left to cost plan and try and keep the budget. These were unchartered water for QSs and there was a lack of cost certainty but it was tolerated as property values were rising so quickly (Cartlidge, 2009). The 70s also seen the introduction of computers something which many believed over time would end QSs. Sir John Egan, author of the wide reaching report Rethinking Construction, once told a group of graduates in 1999 that the construction industry will no longer be needing them to count the cost of a project computer technology would be doing it instead (Carvill, 1999). Adrian .J Smith, author of Computers and the QS, puts it that: The QS and the computer have been partners in an intense love hate relationship for over 30 years; indeed, it would be difficult to find any other profession in which the relationship between man and machine has generated, by turns, so much discussion; hope and optimism; disappointment and disillusion, (Smith, 1989) Of course they were not very well advanced in this era however they did give insight into how projects may be calculated and determined and began to challenge the perceived wisdom of the traditional methods (Ashworth, 2004) During the 1980s the quantity surveying profession started to witness radical changes to their traditional ways of working, and much of the change stemming from new procurement methods which seemed to spell the end for the bills of quantities. Procurement, a term not used until the 1980s, became an important area of activity, largely because of the increasing array of options available (Ashworth Hogg, 2006). These options came about as clients became dissatisfied with amount of time taken to procure through traditional tendering methods (i.e. bills of quantities). So new forms of procurement arose to try and meet client requirements, the main forms that were on the increase were Design and Build (D B), Management Procurement. Clients seen these methods as more beneficial for time and also because it handed more risk to the contractor in D B and to a management contractor in management procurement (Cartlidge, 2009). (The benefits of these types of procurements are discussed for lat er in this chapter). Some quantity surveying companies were very respondent to the change that management procurement brought about and began to adapt their practices, as D B hadnt much use for professional QSs. However it did create an opening on the contractors side for more cost control as they needed to manage their own construction costs. The practice of cost modelling which was introduced in the previous decade had been studied further. While the profession was looking for new ways of estimating away from the bill of quantities, the cost modelling method was, and still is, seen as too radical and requiring too much practice from the security of a reasonably reliable yet imperfect system of the bill of quantities (Ashworth Hogg, 2000). The emphasis of building costs was high on the agenda and it was also during this time that attention shifted from initial construction costs alone to a more comprehensive overall view of the costs over the entire life cycle of the project. Who le life costing takes into consideration the initial procurement, design and construction costs as well as fees and charges. It also takes into account the operational costs such as maintenance, repairs and energy expenses, and the cost of disposal and recycling of the building is also included (Cartlidge 2009). Eventually all of these aspects would be considered within the emerging practice of facilities management. These considerations provided yet another shift towards adding value to the industry and its clients. This recognised that to examine the initial costs of construction within the context of whole costs that it might yield an overall better financial situation for the client (Ashworth Hogg, 2000). Two other new aspects of costing that came about in the 1980s were value management and facilities management. Value management or value engineering arrived in the UK in the 1980s but in some sense it already existed, as mentioned earlier the government wanted cheaper building s after the war, so cost planning in this era focused on acceptable products for the least cost which in essence is what value can be defined as (Kelly, Morledge, Wilkinson, 2002). Facilities management was also introduced as from of project management that went much further than just managing the construction. Aspects of the building such as its infrastructure, its environmental impact, its maintenance and its communication links all came under the role of a facilities manager (Ashworth 2004). Basically it was not just managing the buildings construction but managing the building as a whole. Value management was a natural progression for QSs as they were the experts on buildings product costs so they were able to inform the client on all options and help provide the selection which bore the most value. The RICS recognised this change when it published its report of a study of Value Engineering and Quantity Surveying Practice in 1987. Facilities management was further away from the traditional QSs way of working and closer to a profession which specialised in project management, however with many believing at this time that QSs were heading down that route this line of work was seen as a future possibility for QSs. During the 1990s several key reports were produced that assisted in the new directions of the QS profession, they helped to formulate a future direction and strategy, emphasising the changing nature of society in general and the construction industry and the profession within it (Ashworth Hogg, 2000). The first in 1991 was made by Davis, Langdon Everest, one of the largest QS firms in the world at present, wrote the report QS2000: The Future Role of the Quantity Surveyor which focused on the changes in the construction industry and how it was affecting the profession. The important point stressed in this report was that QSs needed to learn to manage more effectively the time and quality as well as the cost in an attempt to add value into a clients business and construction project. The report also identified widening markets and diversification for the quantity surveyor, suggesting three key areas of future activity: value management, procurement management, and facilities manageme nt. The idea of more research and development into better QS practices was promoted as it was as another way of adding value for the client (Davis, Langdon, Everest, 1991). The RICS The core skills and knowledge base of the quantity surveyor report released in 1992 affirmed a lot of the points raised in the 1991 Davis, Langdon and Everest report. It also raised point that QS may need to change the way they address clients and professionals to try and make clear to clients the services they offer (RICS, 1992). Constructing the team was a report written by Sir Michael Latham in 1994 which had far reaching consequences on the construction industry and those employed in it, including quantity surveyors. The report called for more standardisation of design and construction by establishing more functional and efficient supply chains. More transparency in costing between the professionals and clients was seen to be needed; this was of particular interest to QSs as target of reducing cost by 30% was set by the report. The report also encouraged more teamwork in all construction teams to produce a product that all, including the client, could be justifiably happy with. This point also highlighted QSs as they did at this time have a reputation as difficult to deal with professionals for the client (Cartlidge 2006). Sir John Egan, a keen advocate of Sir Michael Lathams report and known to be a person to be a person convinced of the need of change in the industry was appointed as head of the Construction Task Force (Cartlidge, 2006). It was Egans opinion; that while some of the construction industry learned from the Latham report, not enough was done to meet the targets set out within it. In 1998 Sir John Egan published his own report titled Rethinking Construction. This report was seen as the blueprint for the modernisation of the systems used in the construction industry to procure work. The Egan report revealed in a survey of major UK property clients that many still dissatisfied with the services performances offered by both contractors and consultants. These clients revealed that: More that a third of them thought that consultants were lacking in providing a speedy and reliable service They felt they were not receiving good value for money insofar as construction projects did not met their functional needs and had high whole life costs They felt that the design and construction should be integrated in order to deliver added value There was a failure to keep within agreed budgets and the completion schedules. (Rethinking Construction, Sir John Egan, 1998) These points were damaging to consultants and in particular quantity surveyors who a lot believe were one of the guiltiest of these failings in the industry. Responding to this report, in 1999 Building magazine published the article The QS: a profession on the brink. The magazine conducted its own survey of over 12,000 QSs and the overwhelming feeling was one of anxiety about their future. The survey shows that QSs are concerned about the rapid erosion of their traditional role, their inability to persuade clients that they can significantly contribute to their projects, and the threat posed by acquisitive rivals and by other professionals such as management consultants and accounts 75% of QSs asked believed at this stage that new software packages were replacing their traditional cost modelling role; in fact a senior partner of Davis, Langdon Everest is quoted as saying that traditional quantity surveying, especially the calculation of BoQs, is on the way out. Many senior QSs in large firms such as Cyril Sweet and Bucknall Austin believed the profession was heading into management consultancy that specialise in construction. The latter in fact now referring to themselves as construction economists. This article seemed to spell the end for the QS as it was followed by more articles that sang from the same hymn sheet (Building, 1999). Adapt or Die (2000) called on QSs to find a new niche in the industry as their traditional role of measuring and drawing up BoQS was fading fast. It referred to QSs as an endangered species and that it was a case of survival of the fittest, the fittest being the surveyor who adapts and diversifies to a changing industry. Many practices have already evolved, reinventing themselves as cost consultants or construction cost advisors, or diversifying to become project managers, construction managers or total service providers offering professional management services to the industry not a word about cost in there at all. (Building, 2000) A year later (2001) a further article entitled What is the use of QSs stated through a survey that the general public had little or no idea of what a QS does. The author suggesting that construction law was an appropriate landing spot for diversifying QSs citing that their cost expertise could be a valuable tool in dispute resolution. The article also followed the theme of others implying that the traditional role was dying (Building, 2001). A lot of the articles around this time were in response to the 1999 survey carried out by Building magazine, so in that respect their fear inducing titles seemed to be on the mark. But five years on the same magazine was speaking quite differently. From forecasting that the QS profession may be on the brink, they were now stating that not only were QSs in high demand, but that their services were on the rise all over the world. The 2004 article Rocking All Over the World tells of how some of the UKs largest QS firms were expanding into foreign markets such as the Middle East, China, North America, Europe and other Commonwealth Nations. Richard Steer, senior partner of Gleeds a large QS firm, commented Just as were trying to lose the name quantity surveyor we are getting requests for QS services. It should be highlighted from the article that while there was an increase in QS demand, it was not for the traditional QS services. The industry was interested in professionals with expertis e in sustainable construction, dispute resolution and adjudication, cost control techniques, procurement advice and also the need for an independent voice in the construction process (Building, 2004). It is not surprising that QSs were in high demand in this era. The world was on the forefront of building boom as property around the world went up at a dizzying pace in places like Dubai and Beijing (for the 2008 Olympic games) for example. What should be noted form this was the services they were offering. Williss Practice and Procedure for the Quantity Surveyor 12th ed (2007) depicts how the role of a QS had evolved from the traditional in 1960 into the present (see Fig. 1.1) Single rate approximate estimates Cost planning Procurement advice Measurement and quantification Document preparation, especially bills of quantities Cost control during construction Interim valuations and payments Financial statements Final account preparation and agreement Settlement of contractual claims Fig. 1.1 Traditional quantity surveying activities 1960 Investment appraisal Advice on cost limits and budgets Whole life costing Value management Risk analysis Insolvency services Cost engineering services Subcontract administration Environmental services measurement and costing Technical auditing Planning and supervision Valuation for insurance purposes Project management Facilities management Administering maintenance programs Advice on contractual disputes Planning supervisor Employers agent N.B. some of traditional activities may still be part of a present day QSs role such as procurement advisor or cost planning. (Ashworth Hogg 2007) Williss book also gave insight into what the future may bring for the QS, all of which are spoken about today and are considered to be the most recent QS responsibilities to have developed. Activities such as: Environmental and sustainability analysis Supply chain management Facilities management Legal services Quality management Automated measurement and quantification Taxation and investment advice relating to projects (Ashworth Hogg, 2007) (Cartlidge, 2009) When looking at the list of traditional of activities for quantity surveyors compared to the present day role which the practice, it shows up a profession that has vastly evolved in the amount of services that it has the potential to offer to the construction industry. Yet still today QSs are challenging themselves to take on more as to stop other professions poaching their business. Stuart Earl of the RICS in this article in the Construction Journal speaks of the need to adapt to stop outside intrusion. His article New tools for the trade covers the topic of the rules of measurement issued by the RICS. The new rules of measurement: order of cost estimating and elemental cost planning is set of comprehensive rules for calculating the cost of the whole project, not just the building works which the Standard Method of Measurement (SMM) currently does. This initiative is a bid by the RICS to incorporate whole life costing into the framework of the QS role and to promote value for money thinking. Stuart Earl describes the rule as: our professions statement of the minimum technical standard required to carry out measurement at all stages in the life of a building. If we do not rise to the challenge, others may do it for us, or worse, we may find ourselves losing out to accountants. (RICS Construction Journal, Aug, 2009) Michael Sullivan, the chairman of the QS Construction Professional Group of the RICS, details a similar problem for QSs. His article from the Construction Journal, The vital link, he tells of QSs need to embrace sustainability in the industry so that it becomes a part of the quantity surveying framework for the future professionals to adopt rather than another profession. the next generation of QSs will want to know what you are doing about sustainability, expecting you to understand it more than others, like management consultants (RICS Construction Journal, Dec, 2009) Ever since quantity surveyings traditional practices were questioned in the wake of the Second World War, QSs have been faced with the challenge of diversifying and justifying their profession. Although on the small to medium scale the traditional practices are still alive (with some modern innovation, e.g. Information technology advancement), the large scale projects and firms are very much different (Cartlidge, 2009). And it is no surprise that the companies that have done the best are those that have adopted the Egan ethos of value for money and became more client focussed thus changed and added to the QS services they offer. It seems possibly that to succeed the QS industry hinges on the amount of services you can provide to fulfil a wide variety of client needs.

The Role of Advertising in Business Essay -- Role of Market Communicat

1. INTRODUCTION 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 3. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE 4. SOURCES OF DATA 5. RESEARCH DESIGN 6. CONCLUSIONS 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. INTRODUCTION Advertising in business is a type of marketing communication used to encourage, persuade, or manipulate a customer to take or continue to take some action. The desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering. The primary role of advertising is to inform potential customers of the products and services in the market and convince them to make a purchase. Through advertisements customers are informed of new products, their role, their benefit and the prices at which they are being made available to the customer. It is a technique used to influence people's minds and encourage more sales. The main purpose of advertising is to deliver the proper message to customers and prospective customers. The purpose of advertising is to convince customers that a company's services or products are the best, to enhance the image of the company, point out and create a need for their products or services, demonstrate new uses for the established ones, announce new products and programs, reinforce the individual messages of the sales people, draw customers to the business, and to hold existing customers. Advertising lies in the Promotion part of Marketing Mix, but it applies to all the other P's as well. Promoting one’s business is the key ingredient to making one’s business successful. Promotion, along with a great product, key placement, and a reasonable price, will help a marketer work his way to the top. Promoting does not mean leaving his advertising up to the word of mouth of his current customer. â€Æ' 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 1. Brand Equity & ... ...n their advertising strategies as on their products and services †¢ Consumers’ attitude towards advertisements varies greatly †¢ Advertising is considered necessary for growth and success of big companies these days †¢ A product that is not advertised is lost on the customer. †¢ Advertising is the backbone of today’s sales industry. â€Æ' 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY †¢ DA Aaker, AL Biel- 1993- books.google.com †¢ T Meenaghan - Journal of Product & Brand Management, 1995 - emeraldinsight.com †¢ FM Scherer, D Ross - University of Illinois †¢ WF Mueller, RT Rogers - The Review of Economics and Statistics, 1980 – JSTOR †¢ M Sutherland, J Galloway - Journal of Advertising Research, 1981 - sutherlandsurvey.com †¢ VA Zeithaml, MJ Bitner - 1996 - lavoisier.fr †¢ business-finance.blurtit.com †¢ smallbusiness.chron.com †º Advertising & Marketing †º Advertising †¢ www.advertising.nsw.gov.au

Televisions Effect on Self Image Essay -- Beauty Media

New mirrors are in the market and many homes have been remodeled with these mirrors. These new mirror are like snow whites mirror, they tell you who the most beautiful one of all is. A little girl is looking at her new mirror that tells her she has to wear makeup and look a certain way in order to be beautiful. This new mirror is the TV and the voice that is telling her is the media. The media portrays the beauty of women a certain way that is distorting beauty. The media distorts image so much that women start to see an unrealistic beauty and think that all women should actually look that way. An experiment done by Mahler Beckerley and Vogel (2010) demonstrate that women’s attitudes about certain looks reflect on how they view the models. There were two groups of women and some saw photos of models that were tanned and the other saw models that were not tanned. The participants then were told to describe their attitude about tanning. The group of women that viewed models that had a tan had a more positive attitude toward tans and the group of women that viewed models with out a tan had a negative attitude towards tanning. This research demonstrates that the media has a big influence in the decision women make on their appearance. So what is beauty? Is beauty the perfect supermodel on a magazine? Is it the stunning actress on television? Do you have to be thin and tall? According to Dictionary.com Unabridged, beauty is â€Å"the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations (as shape, color, sound, etc.), a meaningful design or pattern, or something else (as a personality in which high spiritual qualities are manifest)†. However, the m... ...:10.1080/14680770903068266 Mahler, H. M., Beckerley, S. E., & Vogel, M. T. (2010). Effects of Media Images on Attitudes Toward Tanning. Basic & Applied Social Psychology, 32(2), 118-127. Slater, A., Tiggemann, M., Firth, B., & Hawkins, K. (2012). Reality Check: An Experimental Investigation of the Addition of Warning Labels to Fashion Magazine Images on Women's Mood and Body Dissatisfaction. Journal Of Social & Clinical Psychology, 31(2), 105-122. Solomon, M. R., Ashmore, R. D., & Basil G., E. (1994). Beauty before the Eyes of Beholders: The Cultural Encoding of Beauty Types in Magazine Advertising and Music Television. Journal Of Advertising, 23(2), 49-64. Bates, C. (2012, January 05). Mail online. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2082500/A-quarter-children-10-diet-think-overweight-face-bullying-taunts-shocking-survey-finds.html

First Aid and Buttercups Cc Pin

Name: Kirsty Beale Nursery: Buttercups CC PIN: MU2. 4 Contribute to Children and Young People’s Health and Safety 3. 1 Identify non medical incidents and emergencies that may occur in the work setting * Fires * Flooding * Loss of property * Lack or loss of electricity,gas,water and heat * Data loss * Breach of confidentiality * Legal issues * Personal relationships * Bad management * Bad planning . 1 Identify the signs and symptoms which may indicate that a child or young person in injured or unwell. * Temperature over 37. 5c * Unresponsive * Lethargic * Nausea * Vomiting * Dizziness * Difficulty breathing * Rash * Diarrhoea * Chronic Headaches * Stomach pains 4. 2 Identify circumstances where children or young people may need urgent medical attention. * Broken bones * Unconscious/unresponsive * Shallow Breathing Asthma attack * Temperature over 80c * In severe pain * Dislocation * Confusion * Allergies * Chocking 4. 3 Outline own role and responsibilities in the event of a ch ild or young person requiring urgent medical attention. If I found a child showing any of the above symptoms I would evaluate what the symptoms are to the treatment needed if non-emergency I would immediately alert the appointed first aider so the child’s care can proceed. Related reading: Situations That Require Urgent Medical AttentionIf the child needs more substantial medical care an ambulance will be called and the parent/carer of the child will be informed what is wrong and where the child will be, when the situation is under control the settings medical forms will be filled out for legal purposes. 6. 2 Describe Personal Protective Clothing that is used to protect spread of infection. * Disposable gloves * Disposable aprons * Wounds to be dressed properly * Appropriate clothing and footwear to be worn * Body piercing’s covered or removed * Offensive tattoo’s covered or removed * Hair tied back

Durkheim and weber

We link Durkheim with social fact, and Weber withVerstehen. Durkheim's writings led to functionalism while Weber's writing led to symbolic interactionism. Both were â€Å"Fathers† of sociology, and wrote mainly in the late nineteenth century. Both called for applying the scientific method to the study of society, and both wanted sociologists to be objective (although they had different ideas about objectivity). Both contributed to the sociological perspective. Both criticised Marx, but in different ways.The main difference between them was that Durkheim coined the term â€Å"social fact† o indicate that there were forces beyond the individual that affected their behaviour, while Weber said we needed to understand the meanings people put on their behaviour to understand society. The approach by Weber has developed into modern perspective of sociology called symbolic interactionism. Durkheim's study of suicide to show how rates of suicide differed between groups with diff erent social characteristics, although we do not have enough information to predict which individuals would commit suicide.Suicide rates are quite predictable, when based on specific social characteristics. Durkheim used this to explain â€Å"social fact. † The idea of seeing social facts as external to the individual was Durkheim's contribution. See â€Å"Inside or Outside? † In contrast, we see Weber'sverstehen as a â€Å"deeper understanding† (which is why we use the German term rather than the weaker English equivalent) of the society which we all carry within us. Although we might at first see these differences as mutually exclusive and un- reconcilable, Weber's â€Å"internal† approach and Durkheim's â€Å"external† approach, we must integrate these two perspectives.Modern sociology requires that you see them both as valid and operating simultaneously. Weber made other important contributions, eg to the study ot bureaucracy and to the factor of religious beliefs and values in social change. Similarly, Durkheim made many other contributions, such as differentiating between organic and mechanical solidarity, and explaining anomie. Weber's study of the rise of capitalism, and his thesis that it was caused by the rise of the Protestant ethic, can be used to contrast him with Marx.