Quality Management System (Quality in the work environment) Case Study Essay

Quality Management System (Quality in the work environment) Case Study - Essay Example Another reason for introduction of quality management system was the vertical integration of the oil industry. In the present world, with the increasing workload and decreasing resources, standardisation has become a major concern of the world’s oil and natural gas companies and their suppliers. It is the industry which relies highly on API standards in order to get the job done in the right way. Standardisation helps companies to move forward in the right direction besides allowing them to operate safely and reliably anywhere in the world. The standardisation efforts help to assure compliance with government equipment interchangeability to meet the needs of the global industry. (The oil and natural gas industrie’s most valuable resource 2004). Quality management system can be discerned as a series of practices that are constantly being reconsidered and to conform to the international standard. It aims at achieving first class customer service to be derived and at the least costs, and prove to the customers that the supplier in question has an organized and disciplined approach to the achieving that end. ( Fravennec, Trambouze & Baker, p.540). There are three elements of quality management systems that apply to refineries these are: Matter of culture, service to the customer as the quasi religion, implemented by a wide spread network of customer/supplier relationships as possible, based on the contractual approach and monitors by using quantified measures of satisfaction or nonsatisfaction. Technology, that aims continuous improvement which includes a system of correction and prevention of non-quality practices that are reviews by a process of regular audit and a system for continuous improvement to achieve enhancement of quality. Prescriptive, a formal system of procedures to codify, attempts to see that the incident resulting from a

Economic Analysis Project Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Economic Analysis Project - Research Paper Example The overall national income of United States of America is being decreased. Highest concern has been raised about the job or labor market of the country. There are number of people who are looking for suitable jobs and are not able to find one. On the other hand the average take home wages have been decreasing considerably (Pear, 2011). This all results in further increasing the issues and problems for the economists and policy makers, who are in search of different ways to come out of the after affects of the economic recession. Government of United States of America along with other policy makers are busy in devising such a policy or strategy which facilitates them in the process of recovering. Different policies and initiatives are being taken by the officials and policy makers, but despite of this there has been continuous decrease in the overall income and output level of the economy. It has been reported that the national income of United States of America decreased by almost 9 .8 percent after the recession till June this year. According to different economics analysts, this is one of the largest decline in past few decades (Pear, 2011). Despite of the little improvement in overall unemployment rate, the average wage rate is reporting constant decline (Pear, 2011). This issue is not only of high importance for the job seekers, but also for job providers and the government of United States of America. As it has direct link with the overall economic condition of the country. And there is a high need of coming up with some effective strategy in order to overcome this problem. In order to solve this issue or problem, it is necessary to first identify the reasons and causes behind it. This is possible only through a proper and thorough applied economic analysis. APPLIED ECONOMIC ANALYSIS FOR IDENTIFYING MAIN REASONS BEHIND THE ISSUE AND COMING UP WITH EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES: In order to better understand the overall situation it is important to have a look at th e basic elements and factors which are directly related to the issue. First step in this regard is to identify and explore the reasons and factors behind the constant decrease in the wage rates and also in the overall national income of the country (Pear, 2011). Different analysts have presented several elements which are responsible for this. One of the main factor for this declining wage rate is high unemployment rate. There are several people who are in search of job, who are also ready to work at nominal hourly rates. Along with this, employees cannot demand high salary because of the increasing unemployment. It will be easy to understand these factors by applying the concept of supply and demand. In a normal market prices and level of output are decided by the forces of supply and demand. Similarly, in labor market wage rates are decided by the supply and demand of the labor. The concept of Marginal Productivity, tried to explain the relationship between the wage rate and deman d of the labor. According to this concept the wage rates are directly related to the demand of the labor. If there is more demand of labor the average wage rates will also increase. Whereas the there is an inverse relationship between the supply of labor and wage rates. If the supply of labor exceeds the demand of labor, then there is a significant decrease in th

Types of Conflict Essay Example for Free

Types of Conflict Essay Conflict in business meetings usually falls into two categories: 1. Real professional differences – Conflict can arise from very real differences in professional opinions. In many cases, these differences dont develop into open conflict. But conflict is more likely when the outcome is extremely important, when the decision being made is irreversible, or when the impact of making the wrong decision will reflect badly on those involved. When this type of conflict is left unresolved, it can rapidly spoil relationships. 2. Power struggles and personality issues – Conflict can arise when individuals or groups dislike one-another, or feel that their positions are being threatened. This type of conflict tends to be more about peoples personalities than about facts or decisions being made. The techniques well discuss below still apply, but you may also need to resolve the underlying problem. For more on this, see our articles on Conflict Resolution (in particular, Thomas and Kilmanns conflict styles) and on Resolving Team Conflict. Reducing the Opportunity for Conflict The best defenses against conflict often involve preparing thoroughly before the meeting, and chairing strongly during the meeting. If you develop a reputation for running tightly structured meetings, theres less chance that individuals who attend those meetings will try to pursue their own agendas. See Running Effective Meetings for practical tips on how to do this. Send out the agenda in advance, and when the meeting begins, ask the group to agree to it. Then follow your agenda closely, but dont be overly rigid. If a conflict arises, a good agenda makes it easier to recognize that the group is going off course. If people agree to the meetings goals, interruptions that lead to conflict arent as likely to occur. You should also be alert for meetings where the atmosphere and dynamics of the people involved make it more likely for conflict to arise. These include gatherings where known troublemakers – individuals or groups with a history of causing conflict – are present. They also include meetings of new teams that have reached the storming stage of their team development – when individuals begin to struggle for influence, but the team hasnt yet established effective ways of working. Read more about this in Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing. In these situations, state the meeting rules in advance. For example, meeting rules might be as follows: †¢ Individuals will be allowed to speak after raising their hands – and only one person may speak at a time. †¢ The chair may summarize what has been said to make sure everyone understands. †¢ Everyone will be invited to contribute, so that one person cannot take over the discussion. As chair, you must be firm about managing and enforcing these rules! If the team needs to make decisions, you may also want to establish the decision making process, and ask all participants to agree to this. Gaining Benefits from Conflict Have you ever attended a meeting in which a conflict – probably the real professional disagreement type – was successfully resolved? If so, you can appreciate the benefits of working through your differences to a satisfactory conclusion. Conflict is not, therefore, something you need to avoid at all costs. In fact, conflict can sometimes be the quickest and best way to make creative progress. You certainly dont want everyone automatically to say yes to everything without proper discussion! Spotting Potential Conflicts Early One key to spotting the first signs of conflict is watching body language. If the conflict is mostly due to professional differences, rather than personality differences, the sooner you allow people to make their points, the better. Make sure that people have the opportunity to express disagreement as soon a possible, so that issues can be resolved and the discussion can proceed on a correct basis. How do you know if someone is frustrated? Look for these signs: †¢ Making facial expressions of amazement or disagreement, such as shaking the head or rolling the eyes. The person may also fidget, or move around in a restless or nervous manner. †¢ Looking at other people to see if anyone elses body language or facial expressions reveal their disagreement with the speaker. †¢ Whispering or writing notes to another person. This may indicate that the frustrated person is checking on his or her position or trying to gather support for a confrontation. This can apply to both types of conflict. †¢ Staring, possibly in an intimidating way, at the speaker or potential target of confrontation. When you spot the signs of conflict brewing, use the resolution approaches set out in the next section proactively rather than reactively. And nipping the problem in the bud is usually better, because then no one will have to live with the memory of what was said at THAT meeting. Resolving Conflict So, what if you follow these suggestions, and an unexpected conflict still occurs? What do you do then? Here are some approaches and techniques you can use. Depersonalization This involves wording issues so that they focus on what one party doesnt like rather than the person who is proposing the unpalatable option. How does this work in practice? Lets going back to our earlier example: Well, I can see your arguments for appointing Alison. But I just think James would be better, and youre not going to convince me otherwise. As a leader, you need to pick this up and rephrase the statement: So what youre saying is that while Alison clearly has strengths, James strengths may well be more important. From here, you can move the discussion into an objective analysis of the relative importance of different qualities. Questioning Another approach is to switch your teams focus from conflict to research. Encourage people to provide information, rather than state that theyre angry or disagree with something. To achieve this, use some carefully phrased questions. Dont just ask yes-or-no questions – try to clarify what people are thinking. Ask for specific examples, and perhaps suggestions for how the disagreeable idea would need to be changed to make it acceptable to them. In some cases, the alterations they want may be quite small. When a conflict arises in a meeting, you, as the chair need to take control. Dont let others start wading in to the conflict by interrupting you or the speakers. Remove or Reduce the Perceived Threat A key cause of anger or conflict is that people may perceive that they, or things they hold dear, are threatened. Perhaps they feel that something being discussed threatens their reputation, judgment, chances of leading a successful project, or chances of getting a bonus. Or perhaps they perceive a threat to a project theyve worked hard to promote, or believe in strongly. There are two parts to this: the perception of threat, and the threat itself. This is where you need to explore the issue and fully understand what it is. Its possible that the perception may be wrong – perhaps based on faulty or incomplete information. Here you need to supply the correct information. Or it may be that the perception is correct, and the person is right to feel threatened. Here you need to address the situation. Another thing you can do is make sure that you clear up unknowns, because the unknown is often treated as a threat. Going back again to our example of the Alison vs James hiring decision, you might ask the supporters of each to talk about what benefits their non-preferred candidate would bring to the team, and what areas for development theyd need to work on. Take Things Off Line There are times when you cant resolve a situation in a meeting: this is particularly the case where problems involve sensitive personal issues, which shouldnt be discussed in public. In this case, youll need to acknowledge the disagreement, and arrange a specific meeting to address the issue later on.

Scandals :: essays research papers fc

Imagine a boardroom of these corporate executives, along with their lawyers, accountants, and investment bankers, plotting and planning to take over a public company. The date is set; an announcement is only weeks away. Once the meeting is over, several phone their brokers and instruct them to purchase tons of stock of the Target Company. When the buyout is announced, the share price zooms up and the investors drop these stock shares for millions of dollars in profits. Insider trading is perfectly legal. The officers and directors who owe a duty to stockholders have the same right to trade and purchase the security as the next person does. The primary difference between legal and illegal insider trading lies in the motive. What I plan to explain in this paper is investigating the illegal aspects of insider trading and the scandal of it. What is insider trading? According to Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, it is "any manipulative or deceptive device in connection with the purchase or sale of any security." This ruling served as a deterrent for the early part of this century before the stock market became such a vital part of our lives. But as the 1960"s arrived and illegal insider activity to be a lot, courts were chained by the vague definition. So members of the judicial system were now forced to interpret "on the fly" since Congress failed to resource them with a concrete definition. This resulted in two theories of insider trading liability that have evolved over the past three decades through judicial and administrative interpretation. The classic and the misappropriation theory, is the classic concept is the type of illegal activity one usually thinks of when the words "insider trading" are said. This theory started from the 1961 SEC administrative case o f Cady Roberts. This was the Sec’s first time to regulate these security trading’s by corporate insiders. The ruling basiacally brought about the way that we define insider trading - "trading of a firms stock or derivatives assets by its officers, directors and other key employees on the basis of information not available to the public." The Supreme Court officially recognized the classical theory in the 1980 case U.S. v. Chiarella. U.S. v. Chiarella was the first criminal case of insider trading. Vincent Chiarella was a printer who put together the coded packets used by companies preparing to launch a tender offer for other firms.

Analytical Essay About Leaders Essay

What is a leader? A leader is a person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country. There are many types of leaders. A leader can be a laissez-faire leader that lacks direct supervision and fails to provide regular feedback to those they lead, an autocrat that possesses total authority and take decisions upon their own will without consulting those who are following or even a participative leader who has the responsibility of making the final decision but greatly includes the opinions, ideas and feedback of those they lead. Leaders can also be transactional leaders who receive certain tasks to conduct and give rewards or punishments to those under them based on their performance or transformational leaders who motivate followers and increase productivity using communicative techniques and involvement in the tasks they set. Not only that, a leader also has to have some traits that correspond to their types of leadership. For example, transformational leaders have to be patient with their followers otherwise relationships can break down and the whole idea of efficiency is destroyed. Leaders need to be persuasive as well to motivate and convince their followers to believe in an idea or their ability to do a task which they hesitate to do or think they are unable to. As seen in history and many novels, leaders lead differently than other leaders as ideas, methods and perceptions of perfection differ between them. For example, the ideas and methods used by Queen Elizabeth the First differed from those used by Sampath Chawla from the novel entitled ‘Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard’ written by Kiran Desai as well as Mark Antony from the play entitled ‘The tragedy of Julius Caesar’ written by the famous William Shakespeare. The three of them all differed in how they led their followers and using which ideas to do so. Despite differing in many aspects, they all shared some common traits that are the bases of leadership. In ‘The Tragedy of Julius Caesar’, some conspirators had killed the almost roman emperor, Julius Caesar. They did so, giving the false reason that they wanted to rid him of the fear or worry of death. Mark Antony, using persuasive techniques, managed to change the mindsets of the public who believed in the conspirators’ reason into believing that Caesar was a good man and had no bad intentions, which is what the conspirators’ thought. Mark Antony uses persuasive techniques like repetition, false intentions and sophistry. He uses these in his speech at Caesar’s burial to convince the crowd into believing his ideas by first commending Brutus on how honorable he is but then repeating how honorable he is to make the crowd question their faith in Brutus. He also says that he did not arrive to praise Caesar but to bury him which is exactly the opposite of what he wanted to do. Another false intention was that he did not want to disprove Brutus which is exactly what he did by using appropriate facts. Lastly, his speech was sophisticated and so led the crowd to believing that he was superior to Brutus which cemented his gaining the crowd’s support. In ‘Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard’, the main character, Sampath, is a leader later on in the novel after losing his job at the post office where he reads every letter that passes him. He becomes a sort of spiritual leader as he passes on some of the knowledge, both useful and downright senseless, to those who believe he is one. He manages to convince the people who come to him for advice, as he seemingly has an answer that seems meaningful and wise, using persuasive techniques that include loaded language and glittering generalities. An example of the responses he gives to people is when someone asked him if anyone could comprehend all there is to know about god to which Sampath replied ‘‘ Once you have broken the bottle you can no longer distinguish the air inside from the air outside’’ This represents the colorful and loaded language Sampath represents as well as his ability to confuse and manipulate people into thinking meaningless sentences like these have greater meaning and that is the reason they cannot understand. He is also a leader because he represents a symbol of knowledge and religious importance and this gives people something to look forward to, believe in and rely upon. Queen Elizabeth the First was a leader as well when she ruled over England in 1588. She was brave, intelligent, caring and because of this, loved by the people. At this time, England was about to go to war with Spain. The units in concern were the naval fleets of both nations that were about to engage in combat. The Spanish fleet, nicknamed the Spanish Armada, were in comparison to the English fleet, bigger, stronger and heavily armored and this caused the soldiers to doubt their own ability to win and caused large bouts of cowardice. Despite this, the English fleet came out victorious. Queen Elizabeth, on the eve of the Spanish Armada, gave a powerful speech that motivated her soldiers and showed her love and respect for the country. She used persuasive techniques like bandwagon appeal to bring out the desire to belong in the soldiers, rewards that gave incentive to the soldiers to fight, win and return, loaded language to appeal to her audience, a tone of self-assurance to show that she knows the position of power she is in and how she is not threatened by anything on the outside and lastly, the most powerful technique she used was to keep using the word ‘we’ to show how they are all united and how she was willing to give up everything for the nation. This inspired the confidence needed to win the battle. A leader is a person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country. This is what all three leaders have shown, the ability to lead. They have shown this in their own ways and with their own ideas. They all share this common trait as well as being persuasive and adapting intelligently to fit the situation. That is the basic leadership trait that all successful leaders throughout history have shown and that is all that is needed in order to be a successful leader.

The North Inn Bar Was A Sleepy Little Place - 1059 Words

The North Inn bar was a sleepy little place, the kind of shabby pub that locals liked to congregate in to trade gossip and visit with one another without having to fight scores of inebriated preppies for a table. Memorial Day meant that summer had officially arrived, and even if the town was obscure and unknown, the seasonal swell of tourists to the East End brought a good number of visitors who found themselves within the city limits, and several new establishments had begun to cater to this crowd. But not the North Inn. The well drinks were strong and cheap, and other than a decent view of the water, that was pretty much all it had going for it. How things had changed. It was still a local place but it was no longer quiet or hushed.†¦show more content†¦The Brits: The Sex Pistols. The Clash. The 70s rock-opera - stylists: Queen. Yes. Early Genesis (this was crucial - Peter Gabriel - led Genesis, not the earsore it became under Phil Collins). Metal: Led Zeppelin. Deep Purple. Metallica. Party Rock: AC/DC. Def Leppard. Motley Crà ¼e if she was feeling a tad ironic. Since she d arrived at the North Inn, the place was always blasting with the screech of guitars and the fist-pumping dance-floor anthems that drove the crowd to its feet. But next to the slashers she hunted, the music was almost irrelevant. However, a week after her arrival in town, the bar, like Cassie, was a bit subdued. While the music was still loud and strong, it had an underlying mournful echo. The Rolling Stones sang Waiting on a Friend: I m not waiting on a lady, I m just waiting on a friend . . . , the cocktails were limp and sweet, the gin fizz didn t fizz, the champagne was flat, the beer turned lukewarm after only a few minutes. It was just like the hunt, but worse. She was glad Vlad wasn t around to notice; she didn t want him being any more suspicious than he already was. What happened on the hunt that evening had been an impulsive act, but it was over now and everything would be all right. There was no need to panic. So what if all she could dream about that night? So what if it had invaded her consciousness, had become the subject of her every waking thought? When she closed her eyes, she could still see that beautiful face,

Essay Upton Sinclairs The Jungle as Socialist Propaganda

The Jungle as Socialist Propaganda nbsp; In the world of economic competition that we live in today, many thrive and many are left to dig through trashcans. It has been a constant struggle throughout the modern history of society. One widely prescribed example of this struggle is Upton Sinclairs groundbreaking novel, The Jungle. The Jungle takes the reader along on a journey with a group of recent Lithuanian immigrants to America. As well as a physical journey, this is a journey into a new world for them. They have come to America, where in the early twentieth century it was said that any man willing to work an honest day would make a living and could support his family. It is an ideal that all Americans are familiar†¦show more content†¦Some believe that Capitalism is the cause for much of the poverty in the nation today, but any hardcore capitalist will tell you that capitalism inherited poverty, and far from being a cause of poverty, it is the only solution. nbsp; However, believers in socialism would completely disagree with this ideal. Socialism is the economic system in which the workers, instead of a rich minority of entrepreneurs, own all industry. Workers receive the full fruits of their labors instead of being given miniscule compensation for backbreaking labor. Since the people are paid well for their work, work becomes a cooperative entity where people come to rely on one another and people actually are more inclined to do their fair share to help the advancement of society as a whole. nbsp; In order to discuss these issues as they are pertinent to this story, a general summary of the story must first be given. The story revolves around the life and family of Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant who comes to America with his wife Ona, their children, and a few members of their extended family. They have heard the stories of other Lithuanian immigrants coming to America and making a fortune in the free economic system of America. They are bright-eyed looking ahead into their futures. They are moved into a section of Chicago known as Packingtown, a slum full of run-down housing and largeShow MoreRelatedA Blatant Agenda1280 Words   |  6 Pagestheir cause. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair is a prominent example of this phenomena. Hailing from the early 20th century, The Jungle addresses the poor working conditions in which the emigrant workers of the time would labor, working up to what equates to a socialist rant at the end of the novel. Upton Sinclairs political bia ses in The Jungle are in no way cleverly tied into the story, in fact, Sinclair egregiously abused the plot of the novel as a tool to mercilessly drive the socialist agenda into theRead MoreUpton Sinclair and His Influence on Society Essay1552 Words   |  7 PagesUpton Sinclair, the famous American author, wanted to be a great influence on society. He was born in 1878 in Baltimore, Maryland, from a family of Southern aristocracy. His father was an alcoholic and his mother came from a wealthy family. When Sinclair was ten, the family moved to New York. His father sold hats and spent his evenings in bars coming home drunk every night. As a child, Sinclair was an excellent reader and scholar. By the age of fourteen, he began writing in his spare time. Read MoreEssay on The American Dream in The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, Jr.967 Words   |  4 Pagescorruption, scandal, or the like, especially in politics† (dictionary.com). Upton Sinclair gained fame in the early 1900†™s from his muckraking novel, The Jungle, describing the life of a young Lithuanian immigrant, Jurgis, living in Chicago in pursuit of the American dream. Jurgis found out that America isn’t as good as it appeared; with higher wages came more expensive goods, and with cheaper houses came higher interest rates. The Jungle, a fictional novel, tells of the real horrors of working in a ChicagoRead MoreEssay on An Analysis of the Jungle by Upton Sinclair1396 Words   |  6 Pagesimmigrant workers in the meat packing industry was explored by Upton Sinclairs novel The Jungle. Originally published in 1904 as a serial piece in the socialist newspaper Appeal to Reason, Sinclairs novel was initially found too graphic and shocking by publishing firms and therefore was not published in its complete form until 1906. In this paper, I will focus on the challenges faced by a newly immigrated worker and on what I feel Sinclairs purpose was for this novel. In the early 1900s a newlyRead MoreEssay An Analysis Of The Jungle By Upton Sinclair1416 Words   |  6 Pagesimmigrant workers in the meat packing industry was explored by Upton Sinclairs novel The Jungle. Originally published in 1904 as a serial piece in the socialist newspaper Appeal to Reason, Sinclairs novel was initially found too graphic and shocking by publishing firms and therefore was not published in its complete form until 1906. In this paper, I will focus on the challenges faced by a newly immigrated worker and on what I feel Sinclairs purpose was for this novel. In the early 1900s a newlyRead MoreThe Various Sources of Evils in Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, by Chelsea Franks1155 Words   |  5 Pages The title, â€Å"The Jungle† (Upton Sinclair. The Jungle. New York: Barnes and Noble Classics, 2005), when dissected after having read it, denotes Upton Sinclair’s view of the time period, where Capitalism was the corrupted script for people’s lives rather than Socialism. Throughout the course of the book Upton Sinclair explores, in depth, the evils levied upon stockyard workers, as a result of Capitalism, to include family and immigration, while narrowly serving his own agenda of pushing the conceptRead MoreThe Jungle by Upton Sinclair: Fame for the Wrong Reason Essay2798 Words   |  12 Pagesliving in Packingtown, the meatpacking district of Chicago. Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle portrays life through the eyes of a poor workingman struggling to survive in this cruel, tumultuous environment, where the desire for profit among the capitalist meatpacking bosses and the criminals makes the lives of the working class a nearly unendurable struggle for surviva l. The novel The Jungle is a hybrid of history, literature, and propaganda. Sinclair, a muckraking journalist of the early 1900s exposedRead More Exploring The Jungle: The True Impact of a Literary Masterpiece2062 Words   |  9 Pagesthe power to profoundly impact society. One such novel is Upton Sinclair’s 1906 expose of the American immigrant, infamously titled The Jungle. The story is of the trials and tribulations of a Lithuanian family struggling to earn a living in the slaughterhouses of Chicago. The issues faced by this family are some of the most disturbing fictional depictions of the lower class, and some of the most well-read in the past century. The Jungle, now hailed as a literary masterpiece, is credited with beingRead MoreUpton Sinclair s The Jungle2164 Words   |  9 Pagesexpense of those left with nothing at the bottom. The book’s author, Upton Sinclair, sought to show America the cost of its capitalist system. Born into a poor family with wealth y relatives, Sinclair was aware of social and economic disparity in America from a young age (The Jungle v). The Jungle is the result of Upton Sinclair working undercover for seven weeks in Chicago’s meatpacking industry in 1904, as well as the socialist sentiments which he had developed over the past few years of his lifeRead More Slaughterhouses and the packing companies Essay2794 Words   |  12 Pagesaimed at the public’s heart, and by accident hit it in the stomach† (Bloom). With the publication of a single book, Upton Sinclair found himself as a worldwide phenomenon overnight. He received worldwide response to his novel and invitations to lectures all over the world including one to the White House by President Roosevelt. In late 1904, the editor of the Appeal to Reason, a socialist magazine sent Sinclair to Chicago to tell the story of the poor common workingmen and women unfairly enslaved by