Risk Management Business Contingency Plan Essay Example for Free

Risk Management Business Contingency Plan Essay The qualitative risk analysis performed in a previous report identified eight notable risks associated with setting up a call-center presence in Quà ©bec, Canada. As those risks are successfully managed, the call center will commence operation and start handling telephonic insurance requests from mostly French-speaking customers. (Only one-quarter of employees at this center will handle English-speaking calls from Canadian customers.) Because there will be a sole call center in Canada handling 100 percent of the French-speaking calls and one-quarter of English-speaking calls, it will be imperative to establish a business contingency plan, or BCP. Because of the aforementioned propensity for natural disasters in Canada, this plan will address continuity of business in the event of a natural disaster, such as a tornado. The specific areas of business continuity to be treated are 1. Pre-incident adjustments, 2. Ethical use and protection of sensitive data, 3. Ethical use and protection of customer data, 4. Communication plan, and 5. Post-incident continuity. The goal of this plan is to reduce pandemonium associated with natural disasters’ effects on normative business operations. Pre-Incident Adjustments It is important to understand the principal components that contribute to the locomotion of a well-functioning call center. These components include: 1. A functioning telephone-delivery system, also known as a PSTN 2. A functioning networking system for data sharing 3. A functional group of computers for customer processing 4. A functioning electrical system There are other less-crucial components that contribute to a normative operational environment, such as fax capabilities and office equipment. The focus, however, will be on major components. It is obvious that a call center requires the ability to manage inbound and outbound calls. A tornado of any strength has a high likelihood of disrupting this call management ability. (Please review the risk register and attendant risk report for more information on the level of severity and likelihood.) Public Switch Telephone Network The call center is dependent on a public switch telephone network, or PSTN. This is an array of externally managed networks employed to deliver calls throughout the world; this network uses coaxial cables, fiber optics, land lines, and satellite communication to support communication. A natural disaster can physically affect this aspect of the communication network, which effectively prevents the delivery of calls to the call center’s own internal automatic call-delivery system, or ACD. This is an obvious impediment to the nature of a call center. Networking System In order for call-center employees to make and receive calls, the PSTN must deliver the calls to the call center’s networking system, which comprises the business telephone system, or PABX, and high-speed data delivery lines, such as ISDN. If a tornado affects the PSTN, the call center’s networking system for call delivery would be useless, and no calls would be delivered or could be made. If the tornado damaged the call-center structure, the networking system would also fail, not only preventing the handling of calls but the appropriate transmission of data. If there are onsite servers or mainframes, they may also be damaged. Functioning Computers Computers are required in every aspect of call-center operation. Front-line employees cannot process calls or customer requests without access to a computer. Information-technology workers cannot support the existing call-center network without a computer to interface with the network. A direct impact of a tornado would most likely destroy a significant number of workstations, causing elevated levels of inefficiency and the inability to meet customer needs. Functioning computers and network lines are also important for what is referred to as the Intra-Day Management Team. This team is responsible for 1) the proper routing of calls to call-center representatives based on their skill set—referred to skill-set gating—and 2) managing the call-center employees’ phone and off-the-phone schedules—referred to adherence and conformance. Damage to telephone lines, networking structures, and computers prevents the proper support of the call-center employees, which results in missed commitments with telephonic customers. Functioning Electrical System The electrical system is managed by the public-utilities company of the local area. If a tornado sufficiently damaged this entity to prevent the consistent delivery of electricity to the call center, there may be a disruption to the ability to make and receive calls as well as process data. The call center employs backup power generators in such an instance, but these generators provide eight hours of power. In natural disasters, it is not unlikely that utilities companies will be able to restore service within weeks. For each of the communications components listed above, State Farm should establish a call-routing process to handle inbound and outbound calls in exigent situations. Call routing simply means that a national Intra-Day Management Team, a team that manages the overall statistics generated from all State Farm’s call centers and that supersedes the authority of local intra-day management teams, would direct calls from the Canadian center to any number of call centers in the United States. In theory, this concept is simple: Calls are routed to a random call center for processing. In reality, the execution of this process is complicated. State Farm’s call centers house representatives with specific skill sets, with some call centers sharing overall skill-set attributes with others. For example, State Farm’s call center in Jacksonville, Florida, shares the same skill set as its Tempe, Arizona, location. However, four other call centers house representatives that, internal to each call center, are multi-skilled and, external to other call centers, do not share the same skill set. For example, the Phoenix call center houses customer-service representatives and claims representatives—two mutually exclusive skill sets within one call center. The Utah call center houses Spanish-speaking risk-management representatives and non-polyglot underwriting professionals. The call centers are dissimilar in the skill attributes and overall functioning. Depending on the call volume handled by the damaged Canadian call center and based on the distinctions in the antecedent paragraph, routing Canadian customers to American centers can 1. Be tedious to find the appropriate representatives in the call centers to handle the calls 2. Be a negative influence on the call center’s existing metrics it is required to meet. The latter difficulty is notable, since each call center is required to meet specific service-level agreements set forth by operations managers at the national level. These service-level agreements comprise call statistics, such as average speed of answer, average hold time for calls answered, abandon rate (number of calls that disconnect before being answered), etc. These agreements do not account for natural disasters, so with the introduction of, for example, 400 calls to a particular call center, that call center’s ability to meet its own service-level agreements will most  likely be constrained. Considering the nature of service-level agreements is to ensure that telephonic customers are responded to within a reasonable time frame, the customer experience will decline, which will result in lower customer-satisfaction results. This reality correlates with lower profit-maximization opportunities; customers who must wait what they deem to be an interminable amount of time to have a request processed will be more likely to choose a competitor, such as All State, for their insurance needs. Another notable concern is that the Canadian call center answers mostly French-speaking calls. There are currently no other centers nationwide that have French-speaking representatives. At present, customers routed to other customer-service call centers would speak with customer-service representatives who would use a language vendor State Farm employs, ATT Language Line. With the assistance of a language professional from the vendor’s company, the State Farm representative can successfully handle the call. However, statistics demonstrate that these calls are extensively longer and negatively influence the customer experience. It is recommended, therefore, that State Farm seek to employ bilingual representatives throughout its call centers. Human resources would be responsible for managing this proactive initiative. Ethical Use and Protection of Data State Farm houses a staggering amount of proprietary sensitive data. This data must be ethically used and protected. Some examples of this sensitive data is call-center statistics that can expose the employee identification numbers of the Canadian call-center employees; human-resources information systems, or HRIS, containing employee records; and financial records of all payments made to vendors. The call-center statistics are stored onsite on a server. The reason for the onsite storage is the ready access to read and write to this information. Call-center statistics change constantly. For example, the average speed of answer will vary daily, depending on the call volume. The HRIS is also stored onsite on the same server that houses the call-center statistics. The reason that this data is resident on the same server as the call-center statistics is that they are interdependent. The HRIS will contain information on the results of previous-years’ performance evaluation; however, this performance-review data cannot be properly curated without input from call-center statistics. As an example, State Farm can justifiably offer a 10-percent salary increase to an employee because that employee met the calls-handled-per-hour metric, which is culled from call-center statistics. Technically, this data can be discretely stored, but an attention to efficiency demands otherwise. Pulling data sets from one location is more efficient than doing so from discrete locations. The call center has many vendor relationships, all of which require payment to sustain the contractual relationships. For example, all office equipment, excluding computers, is leased through Ricoh International. The call center makes quarterly lease payments for the use of this equipment. This is a financial relationship that requires each element be tracked and stored for tax-reporting purposes. This data is housed in a separate server onsite. The reason for onsite storage is ready access to reading and writing to this data. Similar to call-center statistics, this data constantly changes, so onsite storage offers an efficient way of handling this data. In the event of a natural disaster, the call center must adopt a data-redundancy mindset. Specifically, State Farm must house this data at a separate location, preferably in a different country. Doing so ensures that if a natural disaster were to affect all of Canada, this data, which is stored in Salt Lake City, would still maintain its integrity and can be readily accessed by American call centers that would temporarily manage the calls. Also, when housed offsite, the data should be maintained in the same fashion as it is onsite. Call-center statistics and HRIS data should be housed together due to their interdependence, and financial data should be housed  separately. Ethical Use and Protection of Customer Data Just as company data is important, the maintenance and protection of the integrity of customer data is imperative. Examples of State Farm customer data include customer name, Social Security number, insurance-policy identification number, mailing address, vehicle identification number, and credit-card information. As has been demonstrated with well-publicized data breaches in the past, there is a causal relationship between identity theft and dilatory security processes. Thus, State Farm should not take a languid attitude toward customer security. The abstractions from the customer profile are grouped in two: 1. Demographics: name, address, Social Security number, and license-plate information 2. Financial data: credit-card name and number, banking information, invoices, receipts, and tax documents Each categorization is housed on separate onsite servers, but the categories are connected by a primary key, that is, a record in each group that connects in order to create a complete customer profile. The primary key is name—the name field in the demographic group abstraction and credit-card-name field in the financial-data group abstraction. (This primary key is necessary in order for each representative to access a complete customer profile upon processing a customer request during a call.) In preparation for a natural disaster, this data must be stored offsite on discrete servers but still connected by a primary key. These servers must also be in another country, though they both can be offsite in the same country. When a natural disaster causes the Canadian call center to shutter temporarily, American call centers will still have access to complete customer profiles to add insurance riders or to make payments, since they will not have been affected by the natural disaster. It should also be clearly noted that this data must be stored, whether onsite or off, using the highest encryption, which is presently 256 bit. This encryption level is especially imperative for offsite storage. It mitigates against unauthorized access or breach of this customer data, which would surely lead to expensive and unnecessary lawsuits. Communication Plan A communication plan is a strategy, normally a project-management function, that details the process of effective communication during exigent situations, such as when a call center is damaged due to a natural disaster and is unable to function normally. To avoid chaotic discourse or managers leading at cross purposes, the communication plan offers structure and, thus, efficiency. Ultimately, it is a planning document. (Please note that the goal is always to ensure the customer’s needs are met; this can only happen when the company proceeds in a structured, well-planned fashion.) An effective communication plan has the following attributes: * Objectives * Stakeholder identification * Communication strategy Objectives are set forth in a scope statement. A scope statement is a sentence or series of sentences that define the parameters of the communication plan, that is, what the plan will manage, and what is out of its purview. Setting these boundaries is necessary in order to promote efficiency and structure. The objective of the State Farm Canadian call-center communication plan is to keep all shareholders updated on the drive to normative call-center functioning for the Canadian location. Stakeholder identification is also important, since doing so identifies the key individuals who will benefit from the communication plan. This is also  referred to as a stakeholder analysis. The reason to know the beneficiaries of the plan is so the plan can be crafted to meet their needs. State Farm’s communication plan for a natural-disaster event identifies external customers, shareholders, management, and even line-level employees as stakeholders. Each of these entities will gain a benefit from the successful execution of the plan. Communication strategy sets forth the details of how communication is to occur. For example, when the network fails due to damage from a natural disaster, the communication plan will explicitly designate the entities responsible for communicating and receiving the communication of this event. The communication strategy can be reduced to several components. First, a routine communication strategy must be set. This strategy identifies quotidian communication behaviors, for example, meetings that are held, issues that are identified, and the communication of status updates. Second, financial communication should be set. This aspect is important to internal stakeholders, since recovery from a natural disaster places a burden on limited company finances and, as a result, on their ability to earn profit. Questions that this portion of the communication plan addresses are 1. Is the cost of transferring calls to different American call centers aligned with expectations? 2. What are the current costs for repairing the Canadian call center? 3. What is the downtime cost for every day that the Canadian call center cannot take a call? This is not an all-inclusive list of queries. Third, this communication plan should provide updates on risks and issues that are identified during recovery from the natural disaster. This portion of the communication plan is dependent on prior risk registers and reports that were generated. When additional risks are identified or if additional  issues are noted, this portion of the plan identifies the entity that should be notified and updated. Two risks associated are delays in re-building permits and follow-up natural disasters that thwart rebuilding progress. Post-Incident Continuity The goal of this BCP is to ensure that the call center returns to the level of function prior to the natural disaster. To ensure continuity of the business after the natural disaster, the following must take place: 1. Collaboration with external entities to resolve any communication-line issues 2. Restoration of any communication lines managed by the call center 3. Possible repurchasing of office equipment, inclusive of computers 4. Reinstatement of laid-off employees 5. Rehousing of company data onsite 6. Rehousing of customer data onsite 7. Rehousing of financial data onsite 8. Redirection of routed calls back to the Canadian call center Depending on the severity level of the natural disaster, adjustments will have to be made to the Canadian call center’s service-level agreements. The average-speed-of-answer requirement is 95 percent, that is, 95 percent of all incoming calls must be answered within 30 seconds. This level would have to be upwardly adjusted to allot time for call-center homeostasis. Also, depending on the call center’s downtime, there may be an extenuating time period in which there are no statistics to generate. Such a scenario would have an overall negative influence on the achievement of yearly service-level agreements. It may also be conceivable to start to reroute calls back to the Canadian call center in a gradated fashion. For example, if the call center returns to mostly normal functioning in August, it may be helpful to route only 20 percent of normally handled calls back. Doing so allows the target call center to adjust sufficiently to avoid short-circuiting processes designed  for restoration that are already underway. With each successive month, rerouting can increase by 20 percent. Within five months, the call center would handle all the calls it originally handled, and it would do so within the service-level agreement. State Farm previously developed a risk register and attendant risk report to account for such natural disasters. After normative functions have been restored, call-center management, along with any other entities involved in the execution of the restoration project, should hold a lessons-learned session. The purpose of this session is to determine which executions of the restoration project, based on the risks identified before the natural disaster, were successful and which were areas of opportunities. This is a continuous-improvement aim. Adjustments may have to be made to various aspect of the restoration project to better respond to future natural disasters affecting the Canadian call center.

John Lewis partnership

John Lewis partnership What is John Lewis partnership? John Lewis partnership is a visionary and successful way of doing business, boldly putting the happiness of partners at the centre of everything they do. The outcome of nearly a century of endeavour to create a different sort of company, owned by partners dedicated to serving customers with elegance and fairness. All 71,196 staff are partners who own 28 John Lewis department stores, 213 Waitrose supermarkets, an online and with catalogue business, (John Lewis direct-john Lewis.com), a direct services company (Greenbee), three production units, and a farm with a turnover of nearly  £6 billion last year. Partners share in the benefits and profits of a business that puts them first and the partnership follows its seven business principles purpose, power, profit, members, customers, business and relationships. Mission statement Mission statement addresses the question where does it belong to in the business. The John Lewis Partnerships reputation is founded on the uniqueness of its ownership structure and commercial success. Its purpose is the happiness of all our members, through their worthwhile, satisfying employment in a successful business, with success measured on its ability to sustain and enhance the position both as an outstanding retailer and as a thriving example of employee ownership. Partnership Strategy Partnership strategy is based on three interdependent objectives partners, customers, profit which together will make its successful business. Partners should gain personal satisfaction by being members of a co-owned enterprise in which they have worthwhile, secure and fulfilling employment and confidence in the way the partnership conducts its business. The partnership should recruit and retain loyal customers through their continued trust and confidence in our reputation for value, choice, service and honesty. The partnership should make sufficient profit to sustain our commercial vitality and distinctive character, allow continued development and distribute a share of profits each year consistent with partners reasonable expectations. Environmental Factors As ROBSON(1997) conveys environment analysis takes an important part towards increasing the quality of strategic decisions considering relevant features well before making an irrevocable decision. Social Fairtrade, certifies producers against internationally recognised trading standards. Fairtrade items generate a guaranteed price to cover production plus a social premium to be reinvested in suppliers businesses or local communities. Recruitment, retention and training- Partnership aims to attract and retain the best people who share the values. Traceability- Having full traceability of products, and their ingredients or components, is critical to success and to consumer confidence. Product safety- Ensure the integrity of products and the application of the best standards in safety, quality environment and animal welfare. Animal welfare- Waitrose is committed to providing the best conditions for animals at all stages of the supply chain and to combating cruel practices. Environmental Energy and emissions- committed to tackling the issue of Climate Change and have set a public target of reducing CO2 emissions by 10% by 2010 Packaging and waste- The Partnerships longstanding objective is to reduce waste wherever possible, and to reuse or recycle more of what they produce. Economic As a business based solely in the UK, the Partnership is particularly exposed to any economic downturn which could affect consumer spending, most notably in the Department Store business. Political The Partnership remains sensitive to the regulatory environment in which it trades in order to ensure ongoing compliance with key regulatory requirements around planning, trading, tax and competition. SWOT Analysis The importance of performing a SWOT analysis is that, no business should take a high risk strategy if there are any significant weaknesses foreseen. Performing a SWOT analysis may consider in, What are the weak/strong products, divisions, attitudes etc.? Are there any gaps/opportunities? Are there any dangers/threats needs to be protected? Are we strong in the right way to exploit the opportunity? Considering the above facts a SWOT analysis has taken place to mark the right opportunity. Strengths Weaknesses The Partnership has many strengths such as committed and experienced Partners; the ability to trade well even when conditions were difficult. It had also come through a very difficult period with its integrity and the trust of customers intact. However, it had not been plain sailing as profits has been hit hard particularly in John Lewis. Sales in Waitrose have been more resilient but the division has fought hard by turning up the volume on price and the cost of that investment. As Partnership Chairman Charlie Mayfield reports, Profits could be down this year but their financial position remained strong. Their financial strategy is conservative as borrowings and mortgages are low comparing to competitors. This is due to the fact that they have planned and were able to cope with difficult economic periods. They also have good relationships with banks, but it has to be maintained to ensure their continued support in the future. However, plans for growth cost money and the business needs to consider how much more it could afford to invest when operating profits on under pressure. Opportunities Threats Clearly sales have been under threat during recession periods and there were risks around the operational side of the business. A biggest threat seen was the collapse of banking sector. John Lewis partnership didnt seem to be affected by it but still since it has not ended yet there is a caution of lending money from banks. Apart from it, implementing new products and multi-channelling occupied the ongoing of business. Organisational Structure Its Decision Levels Partnership council Partnership has a clear and streamlined management structure which means decisions could be taken very quickly. The Partnership Council symbolizes its democratic structure and represents the strategic level governing authority. Signifying Partners as a whole,  most of its members  are elected by  Partners. Its main role is to hold its management to account, to influence policy and to make key governance decisions. Partnership Board has ultimate responsibility for issues of major policy and for allocating the financial and other resources of the business. To a large extent its role is keeping the Partnership true to its principles both in terms of the vitality of its commercial progress and its distinctive co-ownership objectives. The Council should retain its three vital decision-making powers: to elect the Trustees of the Constitution and five directors to the Board to change the Constitution, with the Chairmans agreement to dismiss the Chairman. Managing the business This starts with the two divisional Management Boards, who have clear responsibility for developing a strategy for the ongoing development of our John Lewis and Waitrose businesses and then for seeing through its implementation in accordance with an approved business plan. Said two divisions share the Partnerships principles in the managerial level and a common approach to doing business, but they are substantial businesses in their own right. The establishment of the Management Boards clarified the responsibility they carry for the trading operations of the business. They are accountable to the Chairman for their performance, and they derive their authority from the Partnership Boards approval of their business plans. Waitrose Management Board The Waitrose Management Board is accountable to the Chairman for its performance and it derives its authority from the Partnership Boards approval of its business plan. John Lewis Management Board The John Lewis Management Board is accountable to the Chairman for its performance and it derives its authority from the Partnership Boards approval of its business plan. Partnership Services Partnership Services represents the knowledge level and designed to meet the Business plan and Partner needs with simple, efficient services, enabling a growing and successful Partnership. Partner Being a partner with a shared responsibility for the partnership and a drive to put its success first is a different aspect compared to operational levels in other organisations. Further partnervoice is the local avenue for Partner opinion and is the means by which Partners can provide feedback, question management on branch, raise their own issues and be consulted. Types of Decisions Made at Various Levels Multi-Channel Retailer Level Type of decision Type of IS Benefits to organisation Link to the mission Strategic level Build multi channel retail ESS- sales forecast for 3 years. Improvement of profit margins and expanding the organisation. Partners could be stretched and develop their career. Management level Budgeting Cost analysis MIS- Annual budgeting on channels DSS- analysing cost in implementing and maintaining channels Knowing the spending In finding the best possible way to suit the business To build a successful business Knowledge level Designing modern trends KWS- designing channel workstations Best possible way to suit the business Sustain as an outstanding retailer Operational level Schedule employees TPS- Training and development Processes daily activities smoothly To sustain as a business IS Recommendations Strategic level management of performance as a whole where how it could meet the expectations of organisation Management level performance report against the spending. Knowledge level design performance indicators Operational level pay reviews. International Expansion Level Type of decision Type of IS Benefits to organisation Link to the mission Strategic level International expansion ESS-prepare 5 year forecast in sales Growth in the partnership internationally Partner satisfaction Management level Budgeting Pricing analysis MIS- annual budgeting on expenditures DSS- determine prices Keep track on expenditures of the company. Towards the company profit margin. Success of the business Knowledge level Market analysis KWS-analysing retail market Acquire the best opportunities. Sustain in the business Operational level Process orders TPS-processing and tracking of orders. Process routines Success of the business IS Recommendations Strategic level franchise internationally Management level franchise budgeting forecast reports Knowledge level analysing markets for franchise Operational level keep up the standards as a franchiser. Increase Marketing Level Type of decision Type of IS Benefits to organisation Link to the mission Strategic level Increase Marketing ESS- 3 year sales forecast Increase of sales Sustain of the business Management level Marketing budget Cost analysis MIS-issuing marketing budget DSS-analysing costs towards marketing Manage marketing budget Find best possible for the company Enhance the position in the market Knowledge level Design marketing trends KWS-market analysis Attract customers to drive sales Success of the company Operational level Display marketing adverts TPS-point of sale To drive more sales More sales more bonus IS Recommendations Strategic level economic trends of a countrys condition in a given time period Management level sales analysis and sales reports. Knowledge level design products to suit the economic trend. e.g. to suit economic crisis Operational level production order of the new designed product. Expansion In UK Level Type of decision Type of IS Benefits to organisation Link to the mission Strategic level Expansion in UK ESS-prepare 3 year operating plan Bring more sales, profits Enhance the partnership Management level New budgets for new stores Costs in expansion MIS-spending budgets for annum DSS-contract cost analysis Make most of it towards the future Keep within budgets Sustain of business Knowledge level Design KWS-engineering workstations Keep up standards Towards success of the company Operational level Enter, process orders TPS-order process Make sales More sales more profit, bonus IS Recommendations Strategic level profit forecasts, sales trend forecast Management level sales management, sales analysis Knowledge level market analysis Operational level training development Ethical Issues Climate change Reduced overall CO2 emissions by 16% Waitrose are investing  £55 million over five years to replace refrigeration equipment and improve efficiency Improved shop energy efficiency by 15% in John Lewis, 19% in Waitrose Investigated alternative, lower carbon fuels for vehicles Founder member of the Environmental IT Leadership Team, a cross industry user group aiming to develop more sustainable IT strategies Packaging, waste recycling In 2007-08, John Lewis recycled 4,490 tonnes of waste (39%) and Waitrose 21,500 tonnes (49%) Waitrose reduced carrier bag usage by 30% this year John Lewis have introduced a number of carrier bag initiatives Waitrose are committed to reducing packaging and are introducing recycled recyclable materials. In John Lewis, all new paper and card packaging uses either recycled or FSC-certified material. Waitroses anaerobic digestion generates green energy from food waste from 5 stores Building and operating sustainable shops- Signed up to the BCSC Sustainability Charter Each building project now starts with a Sustainability Action Plan Working to identify ways to improve the sustainability impacts of the design and construction of interior fixtures and fitting Over 90% building waste was recycled during the fit-out of John Lewis Leicester All new Waitrose in-store graphics are made from paper or card, making them fully recyclable, and signage equipment is fully deconstructable so it can be recycled at the end of its life. Supplier relationships The Partnership have provided suppliers with a Responsible Sourcing Supplier Workbook to give suppliers a better insight into our Responsible Sourcing Code of Practice. Through day-to-day contact, John Lewis highly trained buyers give suppliers a helping hand in meeting the terms of our Responsible Sourcing Code of Practice Sustainable products- 78% of the garden furniture FSC certified John Lewis We Can Make a Difference promotion covered more than 600 biodegradable, organic, energy-efficient, Fairtrade, recycled and sustainable products Waitrose stock 180 Fairtrade lines and Fairtrade sales rose by 76% in 2007 Waitrose are the only UK retailer to insist all British fruit and vegetable growers adopt the LEAF certification standard Waitrose local and regional sourcing sales increased by 58% to  £21 million in 2007-08 Improving the customer experience Ranked first for service in the Verdict customer satisfaction index for 2007 Focusing on reporting and sharing details of any customer complaints, so that we can learn from such feedback All new John Lewis Partners currently receive an induction and lots of on-the-job training. This year, we are investing more in training Partners Chairman Charlie Mayfield appointed to the UK Commission on Employment and Skills (UKCES). Health nutrition Over 1,000 products now carry the Food Standards Agency (FSA) multiple traffic light labelling on their packaging, and all recipe cards and publications carry key nutritional information per serving. Waitrose Education invests approximately  £400,000 a year educating young people about nutrition and food. The online Nutrition Advice Service provides customers and health. professionals with help and advice on a wide range of food issues Supporting our communities- Partnerships contribution to charities and communities in 2007-08 was  £6.2 million. All Waitrose shops support local charities and community groups nominated by customers through its new Community Matters scheme. Partners have raised  £138,000 for Wallace and Gromits Childrens Foundation, this years John Lewis Charity of the Year. Waitrose Partners donated 4,221 hours and John Lewis Partners 22,500 through the Golden Jubilee Trust scheme.

The Influence of an Interior Space on the Human Psyche

The Influence of an Interior Space on the Human Psyche Introduction: In the research document below research will be done on how designers are influenced by Biophilic interior design concepts, the influence interior designers have on relevant target markets and ones need for particular interior design influences in order to reach self-actualisation, furthermore research will be done on the concept of Rene Descartes’s â€Å"I think therefore I am† theory but applied to the interior design world of â€Å"I design therefore I am†. In conclusion the author will summarise the influences interior design has on the human psyche and the benefits one can obtain from interior design. The aim and objectives of this research paper is to establish that all interior spaces which surrounds us as individuals are designed with a particular purpose in mind, whether it be mechanical, functional, practical or purely aesthetic and that it does have an effect on us not only physically and emotionally but also mentally. Some interior designers cater for the niche target with the goal in mind to satisfy qualitative needs, such as custom designs that are designed to order and produced exclusively for that particular client’s needs of owning an exclusively designed custom interior space, generally relating to one’s social status. The niche target market is the top one percent of the economies income bracket, in other words the wealthiest individuals within the particular economy. The average income target market, is the market where designers aim to satisfy the quantitative needs of the target market, designs are generally less exclusive and produced in bulk so tha t they are accessible by a larger demographic, thus designs are rendered as more affordable. Interior Design can improve one’s quality of life as it is †the environment around us affecting our mood, productivity, energy levels, aptitude and attitude†. Creating a beautiful interior is about creating a space where you feel relaxed, comfortable, organized and at peace, the idea of the space is to be thought of as therapeutic.† (Jess Douray, 2014). Well known sociologist Jean Baudrillard reasons that all objects chosen to fill an interior space is subconsciously placed within the space to tell a story as they are the manifestation of one’s character and desires. He suggests that us as individuals unconsciously judge interiors on four separate value criteria’s, in addition to how the rooms look at face value. He further explains the questions of each value criteria as follows: â€Å"Function: Will this item fit your needs? Is the kitchen table big enough to seat your whole family? Will this flooring cover the entire area of the room? Exchange: Is this item worth the price? Would you rather have this singular high-end couch for R15, 000 or a whole bedroom suite for the same price? Symbolic: Does this item have an emotional attachment? Did you choose a collection of family photos for your dà ©cor or a print of a painting? Sign: Does this item have a particular status symbol? Is it a name brand or a generic?† (Jean Baudrillard, 2007). Interior design is about much more than designing for aesthetic appearance. It has to consider communication and the key user experience: how spaces work; how they deliver a message and how individuals respond to this when conducting their daily lives; and even how people move around space and interact with objects or people. When within popular design culture, people consider the look of architecture; the true meaning of spaces and places is developed by interior specialists. These are people with the ability to combine engineering, construction, art and psychology in creating spaces; they must consider the basic provision of spatial design. Interior design requires knowledge of appropriate building regulations, health and safety legislation, project planning and technical specifications, all applied in a creative fashion to generate an environment, all of the above needs to be taken into consideration when creating successful designs. PROJECT BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION The authors ultimate goal of the below research document is to establish the value of interior designers and the impact they make in the environments we as individuals reside in. AIM AND OBJECTIVES The aim of the following research paper is to establish the influence of an interior space on the human psyche, the importance of interior designers, the processes of interior design and the outcomes of a well-designed interior. STUDY DEFINED This research document will be based on research done digitally, journals, published articles and books, encapsulating relevant information to that of the topic illustrated above, examples will be provided substantiating statement given along with illustrations and appendices. RESEARCH STATEMENT The importance of interior design and the effect it has on the human psyche along with how interior design influences an individual to the point of reaching self-actualisation. RESEARCH SCOPE, LIMITATIONS AND CONSTRAINTS Interior design has been around for centuries and has played a vital role in displaying social status, a sense of comfort and a individuals identity, it is however evident in research done thus far that the importance interior design has on an individual’s mental well-being and vitality, has not been defined in great detail. A general lack of information on the benefits interior design possesses and the impact it has in an individual’s daily lives has become apparent. DESIGN SCOPE, LIMITATIONS AND CONSTRAINTS The author has found within the research done that an individual’s surrounding interior does not only affect their productivity and mood but their thinking processes and even their physical well-being and health. The lighter and more open the space, the more easily one can become focused, the darker more congested the space the more one can feel overwhelmed or even trapped. â€Å"Biophilic design can reduce stress, enhance creativity and clarity of thought, improve our well-being and promote healing; as the world population continues to urbanize, these qualities are ever more important. Theorists, research scientists, and design practitioners have been working for decades to define aspects of nature that most impact our satisfaction with the built environment† The (Terrapin bright green, 2014). The study of biophilic design will be further explored throughout the research paper. DEFINITION OF TERMS Interior design- the art or job of planning how the rooms of a building should be furnished and decorated Biophilic Design- is an innovative way of designing the places where we live, work, and learn. We need nature in a deep and fundamental fashion, but we have often designed our cities and suburbs in ways that both degrade the environment and alienate us from nature. BIBLIOGRAPHY Dictionary. 2015. Interior design Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interior%20design. [Accessed 19 March 2015]. 2015. An interior designer has a direct influence on the places and spaces we occupy Magazines Student The Independent . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/student/magazines/an-interior-designer-has-a-direct-influence-on-the-places-and-spaces-we-occupy-760044.html. [Accessed 19 March 2015]. 2015. what is biophilic design? Google Search. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.google.co.za/search?q=what+is+biophilic+design%3Fie=utf-8oe=utf-8aq=trls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficialclient=firefoxchannel=ntsgfe_rd=crei=BPEKVeS8BIiP7AbIq4G4BA#rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficialchannel=ntsq=biophilic+design. [Accessed 19 March 2015]. 2015. Interior design Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interior%20design. [Accessed 19 March 2015]. APPENDIX Chapter 1: Literature review Chapter 2: Research theory Chapter 3: Findings supported by relevant research Chapter 4: Designs conceptual development CONCLUSION

Free YGB Essay: Historical and Biographical Impact of Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown :: Young Goodman Brown YGB

Young Goodman Brown: Historical and Biographical Impact So much for textual matters, paraphrasable content, and genre. What kind of historical or biographical information do we need in order to get the full impact of this story aesthetically and intellectually? Obviously, some knowledge of Puritan New England is necessary. We can place the story in time easily, because Hawthorne mentions that it takes place in the days of King William (that is, William III, who reigned from 1688 to 1702). Other evidences of the time of the story are the references to persecution of the Quakers by Brown's grandfather (the 1660s) and King Philip's War [primarily a massacre of Indians by colonists [1675-1676]), in which Brown's father participated. Specific locales like Salem, Boston, Connecticut, and Rhode Island are mentioned, as are terms used in Puritan ecclesiasticism and government, such as ministers, elders, meetinghouses, communion tables, saints fin the Protestant sense of any Christian), selectmen, and lecture days. But it is not enough for us to visualize a sort of "First Thanksgiving" picture of Pilgrims with steeple-crowned hats, Bibles, and blunderbusses. For one thing, we need to know something of Puritan religion and theology. This means at least a slight knowledge of Calvinism, a main source of Puritan religious doctrine. A theology as extensive and complex as Calvinism and one that has been the subject of so many misconceptions cannot be described adequately in a handbook of this type. But at the risk of perpetuating some of these misconceptions, let us mention three or four tenets of Calvinism that will illuminate to some degree the story of Goodman Brown. Calvinism stresses the sovereignty of God --- in goodness, power, and knowledge. Correspondingly, it emphasizes the helplessness and sinfulness of man. Man has been, since the Fall of Adam, innately and totally depraved. His only hope is in the grace of God, for God alone is powerful enough (sovereign enough) to save him. And the most notorious, if not the chief, doctrine is predestination, which includes the belief that God has, before their creation, selected certain people for eternal salvation, others for eternal damnation. Appearances are therefore misleading; an outwardly godly man might not be one of the elect. Thus it is paradoxical that Goodman Brown is so shocked to learn that there is evil among the apparently righteous for this was one of the most strongly implied teachings of his church.

ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) assay and other methods for the evaluation of antioxidants :: essays research papers

1. Introduction Most people know about antioxidants and belive in them as preventers against cell damage, which in the most severe case can cause cancer. Almost all nutritions contain a certain amount of antioxidant – both chemical and/or biological. To measure the activity and amount of the antioxidants present in a sample, some distinctive but easy assays have been established. This paper will give a short overview of the ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance cacpacity) assay and compare it with other antioxidant assays. Besides that, the paper introduces some preliminary results on antioxidant activity of the plant Apocynum venetum conducted by the author. Fig. 1 on cover page from [9] Table of Contents 1. Introduction  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2 2. The ORAC assay – a brief introduction  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4 3. Biochemical background of antioxidant activity  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6 4. Comparison of ORAC with other antioxidant activity assays  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7 5. Results in current research  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8 6. Discussion and conclusions  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9 References  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10 2. The ORAC assay – a brief introduction 2.1 Theoretical background The oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay is a method for measuring the total antioxidant activity in a biological sample. Biological samples include body fluids of animals and humans (serum, plasma, urine, saliva), plant extracts, agricultural and food products, and pharmaceutical products.[6] The advantage of the ORAC assay is the wide range of applications as it can be used for both lipophilic and hydrophilic samples and compounds. Besides measuring the total antioxidant capacity, the assay can also qualitatively measure the amount of fast versus slow acting antioxidants in a sample. The principle of the ORAC is based on the following scheme: Fig. 2: Principal order of the ORAC assay[10] The sample contains a certain amount of compounds with an antioxidant activity. In water soluble samples, fluorescein is used as the probe which is protected by the antioxidants.[3] After adding a certain amount of a free radical, the loss in fluorescence over time is measured until the whole fluorescence is eliminated and the scavenging activity of the antioxidant is vanished. By integrating the area under the kinetic curve relative to the blank, the concentration of all antioxidants present in the sample can be calculated. Trolox, a water soluble tocopherol derivative, is used as a standard to calculate the antioxidant activity of the sample in trolox equivalents (μmol TE/g). 2.2 Fluorescein reaction Fluorescein belongs to the group of triphenylmethane dyes with a xanthene structure. Its fluorescence is based on the oxygen withdrawing groups and the intermittend double bounds shifting the wavelength towards the visible light range. Radicals can distubr this structure and erase the fluorescence by destructing one aromatic ring structure as seen in the reaction scheme.

What Is the Future of Social Media

What is the future of social media? In research for this discussion, I came up with a few insights on what I foresee coming up next in the world of social media. †¢ The physical and digital worlds will be more highly connected than ever before – already today we are able to run in the park and track our progress online while sharing it with our friends or track our weight loss, or even our ovulation (well, some of us, that is) with iPhone apps that connect to our Facebook and twitter profiles and enable us to keep track of our progress as well as share the data with our friends. Facebook, Twitter and other major social networks will become increasingly what Fred Wilson coins â€Å"Social Dashboards†. In essence, Facebook and Twitter are social channels on which other companies can grow and develop their own technologies and businesses. Both Facebook and Twitter have created economies far larger than many nations. †¢ Until now, brands have been very concerned w ith bringing as many people as possible to their pages. Consumer brands can now finally reap the fruits and build social commerce stores where Facebook users (all 700 Million of them) can purchase products on their favorite social network without needing to go to any destination site. Facebook will become one of the major channels of future online shopping. †¢ Companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon are currently collecting information about each and every one of us: Our likes and dislikes, our interests and disdains. Soon in an age of Web 3. 0, an age of Semantic Web, we will no longer need to search for information on the Web as information will find us based on all this data which companies are collecting. The right information will be served to the right people at the right time, saving us all a lot of time, effort and energy. †¢ Mobile technology will become more dominant and NFC technology will be developed further enabling it to offer us special promotions, coupons and ips based on our geographical location and the interest graph. †¢ Human Relationships will no longer be as physically dependent and we will befriend and hang out with people from all over the world and all walks of life, all ethnicities and all beliefs, creating a worldwide melting pot. †¢ We will no longer be passive media consumers. Media will interact with us in dynamic ways on all platforms. Just like gamers playing WOW today, we will all become a part of a virtual world unknown to us yet where we will all be avatars in the game of life. †¢ As the Web is overloaded with more information, the content that we are exposed to will become more and more customized to our needs as companies will large sums of money to companies like Facebook and Google, making sure that the information we are exposed to is highly targeted to our interests. Rather than experiencing information overload, we will actually experience the opposite effect. †¢ Companies will understand better how to measure the ROI of social media and realize that social media is not about the number of people brands have in their communities but rather the amount of engagement that they see on their page and the overall online sentiment they faced this month as opposed to the last. †¢ Services will become increasingly crowd sourced. Whether it be the way that we get from point A to point B (Waze), the way that we find answers to our questions (Quora), the manner in which we test our Websites (uTest), the way that we get things done (Fiverr) or the way that we share information (Wikipedia). Source: www. http://thenextweb. com http://blog. hubspot. com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/7850/What-Is-the-Future-of-Social- Media-Marketing-Marketing-Cast. aspx http://www. slideshare. net/derickson/the-future-of-social-media-marketing http://irclay. hubpages. com/hub/The-Future-of-Social-Media-for-Hotel-Marketing-Travel-and-Tourism

Business Case Essay

This business case outlines how the e-Saman project will address current business concerns, the benefits of the project, and alternative of the project. The business case also discusses detailed project goals, project’s MOV and alternative options. 1 Problem or Opportunity Currently, when students are summoned by the auxiliary police, they need to come to auxiliary police headquarters to check the status and pay their summons. If students do not know that they are being summoned, the summons would deferred and students must pay before graduate in order to get the certificate. In order to effectively manage summons in auxiliary police headquarters and reduce time consuming, auxiliary police headquarters must move to a web-based application as outlined in this business case for the e-Saman project. By doing so, it will easier to students to check and pay their summons and auxiliary police can manage all summons payment efficiently. 2 Organization’s Goal and Strategy Auxiliary police UiTM ‘s goals are: 1. Security policy makers in all UiTM campus. 2. Implementing security controls in a systematic and continuous. 3. Enforce laws and regulations on the safety of the university community in a prudent and proactive. 4. Providing security services affairs in an efficient and effectively 5. Manage the auxiliary police headquarters to be the professional security, integrity and accountability 1.3. Project’s Measurable Organizational Value 1. To inform the student about the summons that they got. 2. Student can pay online without have to go to the auxiliary police station. 3. To increase the efficiency in managing payment of the summons. 4. To inform the student about the latest news or announcement for example discount rate offer. 1.4. Option or Alternative Analyzed To develop an online system where: i. Students can check whether they got a summon or not. ii. Students can pay the summon through online using this system. iii. Students can get the information about the UiTM rules. iv. Students can get the latest news from UiTM. v. The e-Saman system is also provides an announcement. vi. The e-Saman system contains the rules and guidelines for students. vii. Students can know who the officer on due. 1.5. Alternative Explanation Recommended alternative is to develop an online system where student can check and pay bill online because: i. The only place that student can check the summons is at the police station. ii. Technology evolvement. In the new technology era, people nowadays cannot leave without using the internet. Therefore it is practical to use online system especially to student. iii. Time consuming for student to go pay manually. 2. Introduction 2.1. Background Organization The history of Security Department was initially started in 1974 when MARA University of Technology was fully established. Before that, the security control for the MARA University of Technology was entirely handled by the SafeGuard Security Company at the Jalan Othman, Petaling Jaya. The main purpose of the development of this department is to obtain some responsibility that concerning of the security, peaceful threatening and matters that relating to the Institute and the name of institute. The duties of this department are to enforce rules and regulations for UiTM is one of the â€Å"Executive Function† and status are given for ensuring UiTM image as a whole and the efficiency and effectiveness of towards campus society do not affecting at all. Generally, function of this unit are been divided into several group according form of tasks such as logistic and administration division, operation, special tasks and discipline. These forms of tasks are including:- †¢ Security Control †¢ Traffic Control †¢ Controlling the staffs and students discipline †¢ To avoid fire fighting †¢ Investigation †¢ Logistic and Administration †¢ Training Security Department was upgraded to UiTM Auxiliary Police on 18 April 2011. In the early years of the establishment of UiTM Auxiliary Police, it’s have been known as UiTM Help Security Unit later upgraded to the Security Department. Administrative structure varies according to the current development of universities either placed under the supervision of the Office of the Director, Office of the Registrar and the Office of the Chancellery. Beginning August 1, 2011, the Administration of Auxiliary Police is put under the Vice-Chancellor and known by the name of UiTM Auxiliary Police Headquarters. For state campuses, they were placed under the administration of the Campus Rector and known as the Office of Auxiliary Police. Function and role of Auxiliary Police still the same but the scope of duties and jurisdiction has been expanded to have police powers. System e-Saman is a system of integrated programs designed to make it easier for a user to discover information in a convenient way and become a vital to our life rather than Manual System. For these proposed, the development of e-Saman for Security Department of UiTM is being build up to determine the staff acceptance level of the e-Saman system and also to develop a solution replacing the existing conventional system with a web-based computerized system. Mainly, this project proposed to make information management more organized and effectives. The e-Saman is the new concept of system management where the entire organized summons will be supervised by on-line system. This new concept of system management will helped the Security Department of UiTM to control the students summon so that it will be more effective and efficient. Employees of Security Department of UiTM can easily updating and checking students summons. Besides that, they can storing and retrieve the summons’s records. For the students, they can pay online without have to go to the auxiliary police station. 2.2. Current Situation The current situation that happens in UiTM Auxiliary Police is the organization is still using the manual system in handling the student’s summons. The students have to go to the Office of UiTM Auxiliary Police to pay for the summons. Besides that, their staffs also need to find the summons’s records by manually that spend a lot of time. 2.3. Description of Problem or Opportunity UiTM Auxiliary Police is currently using the manual system in handling the student’s summons. Thus, the usage of the current system is less effectives where the employee in the department has to recheck the students summons manually. According to Security Officer of UiTM Auxiliary Police, their staffs have to spend a lot of time to recheck thousands of students’ summonses. This situation, involves high costs in paying staffs’ overtime-working hours. Besides that, it creates difficulties to the staff during the university’s convocation season. Almost thousands of summonses need to be rechecking and after that, they have to send notices to student directly to their permanent address. Because of that reason, this project is proposed to ensure all the problems relating to students summon can be solved and indirectly can help the UiTM by gearing its processes to the computerized system. 2.4. Project’s Measurable Organizational Value (zie buat ni salah, tapi hok betol tu jat try tengok dalam buku, dia bagi instruction untuk buat yang ni) The development of this system gives a lot of benefits both for the Security Department UiTM itself and the students. They are: †¢ The Security Department itself can increase the effectiveness of storing and retrieve data. †¢ All students in the Faculty of Information Technology and Quantitative Science can easily to check their summons without having to come to Security Centre. †¢ Reduce time to get the student summons status. †¢ Students are easy to access through the Internet. Students are able to interactively search for information and checking their summons. †¢ Employees of Security Department can easily updating and checking students summons. †¢ The entire students’ summonses are stored at the vulnerable place. Its more secure if compare to conventional system. 2.5. Project’s Measurable Organizational Value Supporting Details (ini pon samo) Reach for a higher measure of success, an information technology project can be on time and within budget, but that doesn’t mean it will be successful. The real measure of success is the value that the project delivers to the organization. A project MOV must be agreed upon. All project stakeholders should agree upon the MOV of a project before the project starts. This requirement includes making business stakeholders as well as technology stakeholders, such as analysts and developers; agree to the MOV before a project begins as a later measurement of project success. This is a difficult task as it is in one group of stakeholders’ interest to make the MOV high while it is in the interest of the technology stakeholders to make it low. This is especially difficult as it benefits the business side to trick or take advantage of the lack of business acumen from the technology side and requires the technologist to allow them to be judges of something that they neither understand nor ultimately control. Verifiability of the MOV is the key. Since the project’s MOV is measurable by definition it must then be verifiable. After the project has been completed the MOV is to be verified to determine if the project was successful or if it was not. 2.6. Objectives of Business Case †¢ Why a project should be undertaken? †¢ Identifying a problem to be solved or an opportunity to be pursued †¢ Providing recommend solutions and plans of action and the benefits of performing them. †¢ Adequately and competently request resources and explain why they are needed in order to succeed, as well as describe the likely benefits, primarily in increased revenue or reduced losses.