ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Effects of excess reliance on one project screening method The problems identified in the ABC case study are not only limited to the discounted cash flow method, but also to the scoring method. The right selection of new projects is determined by the experience and judgement of all managers involved in the selection process. Just like the ABC Company, many organizations have limited experience on new projects. This implies that managers are likely to leave projects with important values when selecting new projects. Furthermore, the input in project screening and selection may not be reliable. This can lead to some projects overrunning budgets, mismatching with the current portfolio, or getting completed after the deadline. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is the second screening and selection model that can lead to problems, similar to the ones identified in the case study. This model addresses the technical and management problems that are inherent in the scoring model. It supports managers in the rational selection of the best project alternatives, basing on both qualitative and quantitative criteria. The criteria and sub-criteria are hierarchically structured and ranked in the order of scores. The AHP model helps in selecting the best alternatives and reducing new project risks. However, this model suffers from a number of drawbacks that can lead to problems, similar to the ones identified in the case study. First, a manager can end up selecting a strong project with a prohibitively high cost tag due to a bias in calculating the scores. Second, the AHP method requires full exposure of the criteria before the process begins. This implies that a potential company may prefer pursuing certain projects over others, basing on different agendas, rather than the projects’ viability or feasibility. New projects evaluation criteria The addition of new projects affects the project portfolio of a company. No universal criterion is used to evaluate these projects. However, the following criteria are critical for the ABC Company in adding new projects to its current portfolio. These criteria will help solve the current problems that the company is experiencing. The first criterion is to determine the relationship between the new project and the existing project portfolio. The portfolio Matrices, scoring, and AHP, are used to evaluate this relationship. Market penetration is the second criterion in developing new projects. These projects are evaluated, basing on their capability of attracting and maintaining customers. They can also be evaluated, basing on their increase in market penetration. In addition, the time to market the new projects or products is evaluated to measure its impact on the current marketing strategies. Technological feasibility is the third criterion of the new project development. It involves determining the technological capabilities of a company to sustain new projects. The company should possess or have access to technological skills required in innovating and designing new products. In addition, an organization should have technological resources to help it push the new products along wit
Introduction Strategic human resource practices refer to an approach of managing human resource activities in a way that is in line with the organization’s strategy. It ensures that human capital policies and practices are designed and implemented in away that they eventually contribute to the efforts of an organization of achieving its objectives (Baird & Meshoulam 1988). The concept of Fit refers to the congruence of HRM practices and business strategies as set up in an organization’s plan. It is divided in to two; horizontal fit which refers to the congruence and coordination between various HRM practices. Vertical Fit refers a situation whereby the HR practices chosen by a firm are in line with the corporate strategy (Wei, 2006). In order to examine the lack coherence and consistency in the design and implementation of strategic human resource practices, it’s important to focus on the various perspectives/ approaches of SHRM. Theoretical perspectives of SHRM First there is resource-based view which states that a firm can have firm should own resources that are not identical to what its competitors have, as a result it will be able to use those resources to attain its competitive advantage (Barney, 1991). Therefore the resources should have the following qualities; valuable, non-substitutable, rare and cannot be easily imitated. Some scholars have therefore argued that these resources are only met by human resources (Snell, Youndt & Wright 1996). Therefore employees that have those qualities are what the company should look for and not concentrate on pre-determined training. However some leading authors have argued that people is the only resource that is common to all organizations. (Barney & Wright, 1998) Therefore it is the firm that should have technical HR activities that it can use to select employees who have high values. After selection it can use its strategic HR activities which are aligned to the firm’s unique strategies to train employees, hence ending up with human resources that are imitable (Huselid, Jackson and Schuler, 1997) Secondly transaction cost perspective which assumes that there is lack of trust between the employee and the employer, particularly because every individual will always make decisions based on their self interest. Therefore in order to get performance of the employee to the organization, the employee and employer should enter in to a contract that brings in trust. In addition it assumes that through the contract the organization will have minimized costs that are associated with decision making (Schuler & Jackson, 1987). However the main challenge comes in determining ways of measuring performance as this is crucial in the signing of the contract. Particularly because, the management should be able to define performance in line with the firms strategy and in away that the employee can relate to. As a result they will be able to direct, monitor and motivate as well as refine perform
Management of rooms is an important sector in the overall management of hotels. It entails setting up the appropriate price, room provisions and services that in turn keep customers interested in an organization. The single most important consideration that determines pricing of rooms is demand. This concept is used to refer to the change in the need or want for rooms when the price changes. In a typical situation an increase in the demand is likely to lead to an increase in the prices of rooms and a decrease in demand automatically leads to a decrease in the pricing of rooms. In considering demand as a factor in the pricing of rooms, it is necessary to find out what happens to the total revenue in a hotel. This is in reference to the different seasons and changing economic conditions (Martin and Catherine, 2006). It is appropriate to note that it is not easy for an individual or an organization for that matter to determine the demand thus set prices that are sensitive to the changes that occur within a short duration of time. It is easier for the revenue department to determine the changes in demand as seen in the change of figures in the revenue department. In an effort to justify the importance of demand in setting up the prices of rooms it is necessary to look into a scenario whereby the cost of a room is set high yet the customers willing to utilize such a facility are few, it would drive the level of consumption low and a business enterprise will experience low levels of performance. An opposite situation is evident when the cost of a room is set high yet the number of people utilizing such a facility is quite low. This would drive consumers away from the facility. The cost structure within a business is a significant determinant of the pricing of rooms. This structure bears reference to the existing fixed and variable costs within the venture. An example of a fixed cost in such a circumstance is the salary accorded to personnel maintaining and managing rooms such as the rooms manager and other housekeepers. Variable cost on the other hand refers to cost that change in reference to the volume of sales that come about as a result of the existence of the rooms. An increase in the levels of fixed costs automatically necessitates an increase in the pricing of rooms in order to maintain profitability in such a venture (Rick and Openshaw, 2007). It also worth noting that a business with high levels of fixed costs in relation to variable costs is likely to experience higher levels of inconsistency in the levels of profitability, such a scenario therefore demands that the right prices are set for the market. In a short span of time any price determined that exceeds the variable cost eventually contributes to the fixed costs thus net income. The result is existence of a wide possibility of price choices. In an effort to justify that cost structure eventually determines the pricing accorded to rooms, a situation whereby a room’s manager together with his personnel highly salaried will in turn necessitate an increas
Introduction Merck & Company is a leading manufacturer of pharmaceutical drugs. Its products are very popular in the pharmaceutical industry. The company has announced that it is planning to purchase Medco containment Services. The cost of acquisition is estimated at $ 6.6 billion. Medco is a major prescription management corporation and vendor of mail-order medications in America. Being the CEO of Merck, I am required to come up with a recommendation about the acquisition of Medco containment Services. I will present my recommendations to the board of directors of my company. To come up with my recommendation, I have analyzed the commendations of three other associates and my own inquiry. After a thorough analysis of all the stakeholders’ recommendations, I recommend that Merck should initiate the acquisition of Medco Containment Services. Indicated below is how I arrived at my recommendation. Associates recommendation As such, the company’s chief operating officer’s main concern is the interaction and incorporation issues that will arise because of the acquisition of Medco. Merck is a research-oriented pharmaceutical company, whereas Medco is a prescription promotion corporation. In this regard, the chief operations officer believes that the structural values and operations of the two firms will be in conflict with one another. The vice-president of sales & marketing supports the idea of purchase. He postulates that through the acquisition, Merck will realize new marketing advantage opportunities. According to him, tapping into Medco’s promotion catalog result in market growth opportunities. The vice president suggests that the acquisition came in handy at a time of increased global competition. On the other hand, the chief financial officer is concerned about the viability of the acquisition. He wants to ascertain that our company recompenses a premium for Medco at $6.60 billion dollars. He postulates that the merger of the two firms will lead to a growth in earnings per share for the two companies. Although, he is still worried about the progress of the growth of the stock price of our
It is imperative to mention that many ideas and theories related to feminism have been developed over the years. Moreover, scholars had various perspectives on particular issues, and it has led to many disagreements. It would be beneficial to review several pieces and analyze quotes to have a better understanding of the perspectives of the authors and determine if similarities or contradictions are present. Lorber suggests that “when gender is a major component of structured inequality, the devalued genders have less power, prestige, and economic rewards than the valued genders” (61). In other words, the author believes that the lack of equal treatment is caused by the fact that this social construct has an enormous impact on all the areas. Moreover, devaluation of one of the genders leads to severe consequences because many factors are closely connected. One of the core aspects that should not be overlooked is that many jobs that are dominated by women are not viewed as prestigious, and salaries are also relatively small. The problem is that they require enormous skills and effort, but such work is frequently undervalued. This statement is incredibly important because the author draws attention to the possible implications of gender discrimination. Thompson states that “many issues that historically have been deemed “personal” – abortion, battery, unemployment, birth, death, and illness – are deeply political” (347). Differently put, it is suggested that the level of importance of many problems that women have to deal with is frequently undervalued. The problem is that some believe that feminists only fight for issues that may affect them directly. However, this argument is not reasonable because it is evident that a person is capable of understanding if something is problematic if she or he had to experience it in the past. The issue that needs to be addressed is that many individuals are not aware of the fact that such problems have an enormous impact on the lives of women and their ability to perform day-to-day activities. This quote is crucial because it is suggested that the experience of one female should not be disregarded because it may be problematic for everyone. Another factor that is worthy of a discussion is that some of the aspects of unequal treatment may be hard to identify because they are hidden and have become a part of modern life. Furthermore, the ideas and suggestions of women should be reviewed because they can be quite valuable for the movement. Hooks believes that “feminism as a movement to end sexist oppression directs our atten
Introduction The Red Cross has been in existence since 1981. The headquarters is in Washington, Dc. This is a humanitarian aid entity that provides education, Emergency relief, and emergency assistance to people across the world. The Red Cross is a volunteer based organization that provides assistance to needy people. The American national Red Cross operates in the United States of America. The American Red Cross also provides services in blood distribution, processing and collection, community services, educational services on safety, health and preparedness just to name a few. The Red Cross assists approximately 67,000 people every year and works hand in hand with 175 other relief agencies globally (McKenzie et al, 2011, p. 52). The experience of my sister with the Red Cross There was a fatal accident that claimed several lives on 26 th December last year. This incidence was along the Amsterdam Avenue in New York. The accident was a head on coalition between two public service vehicles. My sister was among the survivors and got admission at the New York Presbyterian hospital. She was in urgent need of blood because of excessive bleeding. Unfortunately, her blood group is O which is rare. The American Red Cross stepped in by providing the blood from their bank. This assistance from the Red Cross was vital in the survival of my only sister. I always remember the Red Cross society for their quick intervention in saving the life of my sister. Skills required for a Red Cross volunteer The Red Cross is a volunteer based organization. There are several skills that a person requires in order to work with the Red Cross society. These skills go hand in hand with the job description. The first skill that is vital for this volunteer job is communication. This is because the volunteer interacts with several needy people in the course of work. The volunteer should be able to communicate well verbally and non-verbally. The reason is that some needy people may be unable to express themselves. The volunteer should be able to understand sign language to help him serve this category of individuals. The ability to communicate effectively is vital for Red Cross employees (Baristain, 2006, p. 118). Another thing people in an emergency condition require is a person who can listen to them. They need someone to share with their experiences. The Red Cross volunteers should have excellent listening skills in order to serve the community better. Needy people require a person to share with their experiences. They tend to recover fast when they get a person who listens to them. The Red Cross volunteer should be acquainted with all the requirements of a good listener. The Red Cross serves people with diverse cultural backgrounds. The volunteer needs to understand all the behavioral styles. This helps him to come up with strategies of handling each behavior (Oxfam, 2000, p. 17). Comparison between Red Cross
The ongoing political and economic changes in the modern world cause the need to reform the government structure or business within the countries. The fall of 2015 can be characterized by the price decrease in oil production. The side effect can be rather dramatic for numerous countries that are dependent on this resource, and that is, the needed decisions should be made and actions taken to eliminate the negative impact of the significant changes in oil price. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) experienced the important economic improvement due to the discovering of the oil resources. The raw material supported the progress in the sphere of living standards and industry development. However, because of the climate peculiarities, the UAE consumes a lot of energy (air conditioning, water producing). The UAE took the dominant position on the global energy market as according to the OPEC reports, the country increased the oil production while other countries experienced the decline in oil extraction. The impressive economy of the UAE seeks the ways to influence the economic environment of the country. The discovering of the oil sources transformed the UAE to the economically powerful country; however, the other side of the problem is that oil and gas made the UAE dependent from the sources and can be used by other countries, as the major government revenue is the export of oil. The government of the UAE took certain decisions and actions to eliminate the dependence and reduced it from almost 85% in 1980 to less than 55% in 2005 (Fernandes & Karnik, 2009, p. 138). The decline in the dependence made it possible to improve the other sectors of the economy in the UAE. The following spheres received the priority, namely tourism, economy, IT technologies, and transportation. The primary purpose of the paper is to highlight the issue with the value-added-tax (VAT) in the UAE, stress the strength and weaknesses of such system, and to discover the alternatives of the VAT that can be implemented in the UAE. VAT in UAE VAT is a widespread phenomenon in the modern world. It should be stressed that every economic reform should be carefully examined and analyzed before the implementation as the consequences of the economic changes affect every resident (Ahmad, 2010, p. 229). It should be stressed that the tax-free economy in the UAE is one of the major attractive aspects for the tourists. According to the widespread opinion of the finance experts, the VAT implementation in the UAE possibly can lead to the fact that tourists will spend less while being on vacation. It can have a negative impact on the UAE economy. The government should develop different projects that will allow non-oil sectors to develop. Possible Effect of the VAT System in the UAE VAT is rather widespread in the modern worl
Research studies reveal that there exists a high level of healthcare disparities among the Latinx and the Euro-American communities. These results have been supported by the national health indices which indicate that Latinxs are healthier than their European counterparts (Showstack et al., 2019). While acknowledging the existing major health problems among the Latinxs, such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and cancers, enquiries continue to show that the Euro-Americans experience a high number of such conditions (Ruiz et al., 2016). According to the research results, the mortality rates among Latinxs have reduced drastically over the past years (Ruiz et al., 2016). The decreased population mortality trends have been reshaped by many factors, such as reduced rates of diseases, improved living standards, and social forces. The trend indicates that despite the health disparities that Latinx communities suffer from, they do better than Euro-Americans. This paper aims at exploring the healthcare disparity between Latinxs and Euro-Americans. The research will further analyze the factors responsible for the differences and provide the right recommendations on how to improve Euro-Americans’ health. There are several reasons why Latinx communities have continued to have better healthcare programs than Euro-Americans. First, based on the most recent studies, it has been noted with much concern that Latinxs have robust phenotypic variance compared to their counterparts. As an ethnic group, Latinxs have various subgroups such as Cubans, Mexicans, and Puerto Ricans, which possess significant genetic heterogeneity (Harkness et al., 2020). These factors provide members with a strong immune system that is capable of protecting them against the occurrence of many diseases. The genotypic variation is positively linked to disease susceptibility by making the Latinxs healthier people in society. The phenotypic factors are believed to be the strongest elements that have continued to help the Latinxs to prevent the attack of some of the most common conditions such as pneumonia. The second most crucial aspect which has continued to improve Latinx Americans’ health standards compared to the Euro-Americans is their behavior. Based on several research analyses, the number of Latinx Americans abusing various drugs, involved in violence, and other negative behaviors is relatively fewer than their Euro-American counterparts (Ruiz et al., 2016). Such studies reveal that most Latinx Americans are relatively disciplined hence less susceptible to unhealthy behavior. In most cases, Latinx Americans are not actively involved in promiscuous behaviors that ma