International Obesity Health Risks and Policies

International Obesity Health Risks and Policies Anja Bialas Jà ¶rn Janssen Alice Temitope Olude Table of content 1 Obesity as the major health risk for the population of the Republic of Nauru –Causes and Impact †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 3 2 Possibilities and constraints of health protection policies in Nauru †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 4 2.1 Assessment of the requirements of adequate health policies in Nauru †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 4 2.2 Discussion of Financing Options of Social Health Protection in the Case of Nauru †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 6 3 Conclusions and Recommendation †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 8 1 Obesity as the major health risk for the population of the Republic of Nauru – Causes and Impact The world’s smallest independent Republic Nauru, which is located in the South Pacific Ocean, set a distressing record of being one of the countries with the highest obesity rates. About 71.1 % adult of the population are considered to be obese (CIA 2014). Due to the WHO (2014), obesity is defined as â€Å"abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health†. The most important direct results or epiphenomena are cardiovascular diseases (e.g. stroke), which are mentioned by the WHO as the leading cause of death in 2012. Other ailments are diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders (e.g. osteoarthritis) some sort of cancer as well as mental disorders (WHO 2014). Nowadays, obesity at Nauru may result from the lack of access to a healthy environment, especially lack of access to fresh and healthy food and lack of physical activity. Besides that, other reasons from previous periods have to be discussed shortly, which may also be responsible for the present situation. After independence in 1968, Nauru used to be one of the richest countries in the world with high rates of GDP per capita due to its rich phosphate deposits. Due to bad governance, for instance the mismanagement of funds, lack of structural, economic and environmental policies, Nauru went bankrupt finally. Today, the republic is a low-income country and can be characterized by the following attributes: Lack of established industries Deteriorating capital plants High unemployment rate of 90% due to estimations by the CIA of 2005 (CIA 2014) Destroyed landscape (90% of the land are deteriorated due to intensive phosphate mining) (CIA 2014) High dependency on imports of almost all goods (food and other consumer goods) High dependency from aid, especially from the donor Australia In spite of all these health problems, Nauru lacks a good health care system and it cannot afford to create one because of its weak economic and social state. Now, Nauru lacks the capacities to deal with the most important health risk obesity on the one hand, which affects the majority of the country. On the other hand it can be estimated, that Nauru will not be able to create an environment for the community to prevent further progress of overweight and obesity within the next years. For that reason it can be stated, that the country will not be able to deal with the problem in a proper way in the short and in the intermediate term. In the light of this, the paper would examine the present situations of Nauru healthcare and why the standard financing options won ´t work while also falsifying already tested hypotheses about the effectiveness of standard financing options. 2 Possibilities and constraints of health protection policies in Nauru 2.1 Assessment of the requirements of adequate health policies in Nauru What are the requirements for an adequate health policy, and how might the situation in Nauru look like, in detail? In the following, this chapter is going to answer the stated questions. Therefore, it uses six basic indicators of good health policies; the focus on lifestyle and needs of population, consideration of other sectors relevant for health, participation of the population, use of locally available resources, integration and coordination of preventive, promotional, curative and rehabilitative measures, and decentralization of services. With this, the subject of the following chapter is to create an understanding of Nauru ´s situation today, while simultaneously trying to present the major problems. Focus on lifestyle and needs of population Beginning with lifestyle, we address directly one of the major problems. Before the country became rich, due to phosphate exportation, the population provided themselves through farming, fishing and hunting (20min 2011). The natural food and the gently cooking preparation, through boiling, supported the inhabitants with healthy, organic and substantial food. But with the growing income the eating habits changed towards imported, fat and durable food from the West, especially, meat and chips found their way in the supermarkets and so into stomachs of the population. Together with a low amount of working people, Nauruan grew fatter and unhealthier. Another problem is that only processed or canned food finds its way on the island, until today, because the transportation of vegetables or fruits would take too long and would be too expensive. Even with an active government, the imported goods are still a problem (20min 2011). The lifestyle of the population changed over the last decades. Today ´s government focuses on the problem and is trying to support the population. Information on measures and programs are discussed in several media but are not published via official channels. Therefore it remains questionable, if the government ´s efforts are sufficient and suitable to address the problems. Use of locally available resources – considering their scarcity The considerations of the government lead to daily walks of the president, anti-obesity campaigns, with signs and banners, and a support campaign for natural and healthy foods, which seemed to have some success. Especially the small trend towards more healthy food, developed with the growing poverty. Imported food is often more expensive than rural food. Therefore, the people do not have much of a choice and it is hardly to count as a success. Participation of the population in search for solutions The participation of the population seems rather small. Even though the average lifespan of a male Nauruan dropped under the age of 50, the support of the population is limited (WHO Nauru 2012). A few people profit from the working benefits, only the youngest go to school or college. The problem, the 95% obese people, are whether neither young nor working. Most of them are out of school and not working. Therefore, they do not see the necessity for change (Nauru Government 2014). Due to this, they are hard to motivate and engage. Participation of the population is critical for the success of all measures to reduce the health risks. It can be stated, that participation is rather low. It should be a major concern of the government to focus on that issue. Consideration of other sectors relevant for health With the acceptance and notion of the problem obesity, the government tried to support the population through single activities; additional focus on sport activities in the education system, free aerobic classes, the creation of sport tournaments, the provision of more sport areas and the support of those areas with the needed equipment and a guaranteed time for employees to do fitness. Naturally, because only a few people work, only a few benefit from the walking regulation, which does not support a change efficiently. Additionally, they started an anti-diabetes campaign and inform children in schools about the difficulties coming from an unhealthy lifestyle early on. As a result of this, the president walks every day, visible for everyone, on the landing zone of the airport, to motivate the population (20min 2011). Integration and coordination of preventive, promotional, curative and rehabilitative measures The government of Nauru agreed that they could only support the older population through high medicine standards, sufficient medication in case of diabetes, free athletic classes, obesity warnings and specialized medicine treatments (20min 2011). The young generation gets additional education about unhealthy living styles, is supported with more opportunities and motivation to do sports and. The focus of the government therefore lays on trying to change the development of the future generations and alleviation of the present problems for the older generations. Extravagant measures, like the daily walk of the president are one of the things, which were implemented to raise awareness. Decentralization of services The decentralization is not relevant because of the very small size of the country. 2.2 Discussion of Financing Options of Social Health Protection in the Case of Nauru There are various ways that a social health insurance could be financed. This section of the paper will be explaining the various financing options, the various features of each of the options, how they work and then assess its feasibility in financing social health insurance policies in Nauru. The various financing options the paper would examine are as follows: User fees, Prepayment scheme, Government budget and Private insurance. Besides that Social insurance and Micro-insurance are further options of financing, which will not be focused in the following discussion. User Fees This involves an â€Å"out-of-pocket† financing of health services. In other words, the people would have to pay out of their pocket and it is usually on an immediate basis. It has been argued overtime whether this form of financing is effective or not, and also whether it promotes the use of social health insurance. While some argued that it provides a measure to check over utilization of health services, some argued that it doesn’t encourage the poor (who are the most vulnerable to health risks) to use health services as it is usually too expensive for them to manage. Also, it doesn’t really protect people from risks as there is no insurance element. With all the above mentioned, it is quite clear why this form of financing cannot be used in Nauru. In a country with 90% unemployment according to CIA fact book and with its citizens having no source of income, it will be impossible for them to pay for health services out of their pockets much less immediately. Prepayment Scheme Prepayment scheme as the name implies is the payment for a service in advance. This involves a payment of premium before the occurrence of the hazard. It has same features like the user fees except that it has an insurance element in that the users pay ahead of the occurrence of the hazard. This also cannot work for the citizens of Nauru as most of them are unemployed so there is no way of making payments in installments. Also, most of the employed are working in the informal sector, which makes it even more difficult for pooling of funds. Government Budget (Taxes) The government can also get to finance health care policies. This is usually done by allocating a percentage of government budget to the health care sector. Also, it could be done through payment of tax by citizens to government but usually with subsidies. This form of financing acts as a balance between the rich getting health coverage and the poor getting coverage as well. This is so because it is cheaper, provides universal access with low administration costs and most importantly, more coverage at little or no costs. The Nauru government has an annual budget of $AUD 35.6 million as reported by the UNICEF in 2002, as well as a total expenditure of $AUD 79 million, which brings its deficit to $AUD 49 million. With this huge deficit and 90% of her revenue coming from aid, the health sector remains under funded still even though a higher percentage of her budget goes to providing health services. Making it also almost impossible to singlehandedly provide good health services based on government funding. Private Insurance Private health insurance is a form of voluntary insurance taken out by users themselves for various reasons. It has been argued that private health insurance helps cater to needs of the rich which allows the government to focus on catering better to the needs of the poor with limited resources. Also, it helps to provide more choices to the consumers and acts as a catalyst to reforms and efficiency in public health insurance. Despite all of these advantages, it is still really expensive and even widens gap between the rich and poor. Moreover, it is a bit difficult to administrate. Presently, there is no form of private health insurance in Nauru. This is no surprise as private health insurers usually invest where the profits are higher and also insure people with lowest vulnerability to risks. In Nauru, most of its people suffer from obesity and diabetes; thus, if there were to be any coverage by insurance, these two diseases have to be a main focus but private insurers won’t want to insure them as the probability of the risk occurring is really high. 3 Conclusions and Recommendation The paper focused mainly on two pillars, which are assessment of the requirements of adequate health policies and financing options. Within the chapters 2.1 and 2.2., we could give evidence for a number of problems, of which inhabitants of Nauru suffers today. Those can be summarized by the following characteristics: 1. Country specific obstacles like the small size, small number of inhabitants, high number of unemployed people, as well as the high number of diseased people and mismanagement in the past. 2. Lack of self-responsibility 3. High dependency burdens 4. Budget constraints These problems affect the health conditions of the country to large extend and worsen the situation of people who suffer from obesity but also support a large number of obesity incidence. We must come to the conclusion that for the same reasons / problems, Nauru will not be able to deal with the problem in a proper way in the short and in the intermediate term. Also, it can be estimated, that Nauru will not be able to formulate adequate policies and strategies to address the needs of those people who already suffer from obesity as well as those who are in danger to come down with obesity. Furthermore it is critical to find sufficient and sustainable sources how to finance the budget and especially a budget for health policies. Even if the authorities are aware of the problem and have been implementing single strategies to fight against obesity, it lacks of a broad and sustainable implementation of concrete measures to address the problem. Due to the requirements of adequate health policies, it can be stated, that Nauru is not able to improve the situation remarkably. At the moment, the awareness concerning a responsibility and especially self-responsibility of the Nauruan authorities to address the needs of a healthy population is not obvious. The major argument here is, that there is no transparency because of lack of adequate information. In terms of financing options, Nauru has to look for other, maybe unconventional financing options e.g. selling the right for an arts project (film, book) because of the countries unique past or Nauru could initiate a crowd funding campaign, which offers adventure vacation for money. Besides that, Nauru should focus on financing options, which makes the country independent from single donor states like Australia, e.g. credit at the World Bank. Bibliography Central Intelligence Agency, 2014. The World Factbook. Washington D. C.: CIA -The World Factbook. Available from: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-worldfactbook/rankorder/2228rank.html?countryname=Naurucountrycode=nrregionCode=ausrank=2#nr (Accessed 14th August 2014, 21st September 2014) 20min, 2011. Das dickste Volk der Welt. Available from: http://www.20min.ch/wissen/gesundheit/story/Das-dickste-Volk-der-Welt-25052451 (Accessed 20.09.2014) Nauru Government, 2014. Health, online platform. Available from http://www.naurugov.nr/health (Accessed 21.09.2014) World Health Organization, 2014. WHO Media centre – Obesity and overweight; Fact sheet N ° 311. Geneva: WHO Media centre. Available from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/ (Accessed 14 August 2014) World Health Organization, 2012. Nauru: health profile. Available from: http://www.who.int/gho/countries/nru.pdf?ua=1. (Accessed 22.09.2014) United Nations, 2012. Nauru: health profile. Available from: https://data.un.org/CountryProfile.aspx?crName=Nauru (Accessed 22.09.2014)

Free Narrative Essays - Why Cant We All Just Get Along?

I recall an incident back in my elementary school days, when I was on the playground during an afternoon recess. My friends and I were intensely involved in a emotional game of basketball. I had been playing miserably, so after my fourth brick, I spiked the ball, super bowl touchdown style against the solid pavement. It began a long process of ricocheting off the walls of the coverd area and amidst it's air born flight it somehow managed to collide with the jawbone of a rather thuggish looking 5th grader. At this time, an ominous dark cloud of rage began spouting from the disgruntled upperclassmen's nostrils. A large crowd began chanting, "fight! fight! fight!" that was slowly forming around us like vultures circling to pick at the bones of the unfortunate loser. Realizing that the odds of me emerging alive from this mess weren't very good, I began to think of a strategy that would enable all my major organs to remain intact. I decided to use humor to defeat this barbaric beast. I must have ridiculed and made fun of myself over 200 times. I told him that even if he passed out, in a full body cast , and suffered from leprosy, he still could wipe the floor with my feeble body. I told him if he didn't disfigure me, that I would offer to be his own personal reusable toothpick for as long as he wished. Violence and nonviolence are two very effective ways to solve problems, but for people like me whose brains are stronger than their fists, nonviolence seems much more practic... ...y major origans. After the crowd began laughing at my foolish self- directed jokes, the enraged 5th grader quickly switched from steaming in anger to chuckling along with the rest of the observers. Eventually he lost interest and went along his way, just in time for me to sharpen my basketball skills before the bell rang. Much like the example of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, I too had the choice of taking one of two roads. I knew that taking a violent stand would only lead to a dead end. I chose the road in which many of the most memorable leaders have taken, a road that has been traveled by few. The nonviolent road. There are many ways to solve a problem. As a wise man once said, "A coward strikes with his fist, a warrior strikes with his mind."

Introduction to People, Organization Andmanagement Essay

1. Key Information Module title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Leader: Hermione McIntosh Chelmsford/Michael Ashcroft Building/ Room MAB 301 Every module has a Module Definition Form (MDF) which is the officially validated record of the module. You can access the MDF for this module in three ways: * the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) * the My. Anglia Module Catalogue at www. anglia. ac. uk/modulecatalogue * Anglia Ruskin’s module search engine facility at www. anglia. ac. uk/modules All modules delivered by Anglia Ruskin University at its main campuses in the UK and at partner institutions throughout the UK and overseas are governed by the Academic Regulations. You can view these at www. anglia. ac. uk/academicregs. A printed extract of the Academic Regulations, known as the Assessment Regulations, is available for every student from your Faculty Office (all new students will have received a copy as part of their welcome pack). In the unlikely event of any discrepancy between the Academic Regulations and any other publication, including this module guide, the Academic Regulations, as the definitive document, take precedence over all other publications and will be applied in all cases. 2. Introduction to the Module This 30 credit module covers four key areas. The organisational context: This module allows students to explore the organisational context and will furnish students with tools to analyse the organisational environment and the degree of dynamism and complexity in which organisations operate. Students will be encouraged to examine organisational responses to environmental turbulence. The development and impact of organisational culture will also be assessed. Organisation structures and approaches to management: Students will analyse the changes to organisational structure and architecture and the evolution from self-contained structures to boundaryless organisations. Approaches to management from scientific management to postmodern organisations will be evaluated and the way groups and teams are formed and structured. Motivation will also be examined as a motivated workforce can be a sign of a successful organisation and students will be encouraged to reflect critically on theories of motivation and apply them to real life situations and case study scenarios. Management processes: Intensified competition, technological innovation and increased knowledge intensity has resulted in a pattern of ‘repeat change’. The results of change programmes are often disappointing and students will examine the triggers for change, why change is resisted and organisations’ approaches to change management. This module will also investigate the difference between leadership and management and critically evaluate classical and contemporary approaches to leadership theory and the role power and politics play in organisational life. Individuals in the organisation: This part of the module focuses on individual differences. The ability to learn, and to continue learning, for individuals and organisations, is crucial in the 21st century. Students will be introduced to a number of learning theories which affect management practices and will have an overview of the learning organisation. Students will examine the role that personality and perception play in shaping and directing our own and other people’s behaviour. The role of communication will also be investigated as communication affects organisation performance and also individual career prospects. Students will therefore be equipped with a robust intellectual framework for analysing and understanding the past, present and future influences on their own thinking, attitudes, values and behaviours and to reflect on how these might impact their effectiveness and performance in practice. Please also refer to Sections 6a and 6b of the MDF. 3. Intended Learning Outcomes. Anglia Ruskin modules are taught on the basis of intended learning outcomes and on successful completion of this module, you will be expected to be able to demonstrate that you have met these outcomes. On successful completion you will be able to: 1. Understand and critically evaluate the underlying principles and concepts of the nature of organisations. 2. Understand and appreciate the contribution of effective people management to the success of organisations. 3. Explore a range of theories developed to aid the understanding of learning and human behaviour, reflecting on their learning experiences and career development. 4. Examine the application of theories in real world organisational settings. 5. Apply a range of theories and concepts on organisational design, structure and management in the analysis of managing employees with specific reference to leadership, power, motivation and teamwork. 6. Use simple psychometric and related instruments for self-analysis and learning tools for goal-setting, problem-solving and personal reflective practice within a framework for personal and career development. 4. Outline Delivery. Wk| Lecture A – People| Lecture B – Organisation Management| Reading (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2010)| 1| Introduction to Part A of the module. Individual behaviour and personality| Introduction to Part B of the module. What is an organisation? Introduction to organisational behaviour. Orientation to work and the work ethic.. | Chapters 1 and 6| 2| Personality theories in the workplace. | The organisation’s environment. Business ethics and corporate social responsibility. | Chapters 2, 3 and 6| 3| Perception. | Organisational culture and socialisation. | Chapters 4 and 8| 4| Attitudes and values. | Organisational structure and architecture. | Chapters 15 and 17; Brooks Chapter 3| 5| Learning as a process. The Behaviourist and Cognitive approaches. | Approaches to organisations and management. (1)| Chapters 5, 14 and16| 6| Learning in practice and the Learning Organisation| Approaches to organisations and management (2)| Chapters 5, 14 and 16,| 7| Motivation: content theories| Groups and teams at work. | Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12, 13| 8|. Motivation: process theories| Organisational change| Chapters 9 and 18| 9| Communication| Leadership (part 1)| Chapters 7 and 19| 10| Career management and choices| Leadership (part 2)| Chapter 19| 11| Reflective practice and managing self. | Power in organisations| Chapter 22| 12| Module review. | Module review| | 4. 1 Attendance Requirements Attending all your classes is very important and one of the best ways to help you succeed in this module. In accordance with the Student Charter, you are expected to arrive on time and take an active part in all your timetabled classes. If you are unable to attend a class for a valid reason (eg: illness), please contact your Module Tutors. Anglia Ruskin will closely monitor the attendance of all students and will contact you by e-mail if you have been absent without notice for two weeks. Continued absence can result in the termination of your registration as you will be considered to have withdrawn from your studies. International students who are non-EEA nationals and in possession of entry clearance/leave to remain as a student (student visa) are required to be in regular attendance at Anglia Ruskin. Failure to do so is considered to be a breach of national immigration regulations. Anglia Ruskin, like all British Universities, is statutorily obliged to inform the Border and Immigration Agency of the Home Office of significant unauthorised absences by any student visa holders. 5. Assessment This module will be assessed through two pieces of coursework which will allow you to evidence the demands of this module and meet the learning outcomes (see sections 7 and 9 of the MDF). Both pieces of coursework have a word limit of 3,000 words and have a 50% weighting. The assignment hand-in date is Tuesday, 8 May, 2012. All coursework assignments and other forms of assessment must be submitted by the published deadline which is detailed above. It is your responsibility to know when work is due to be submitted – ignorance of the deadline date will not be accepted as a reason for late or non-submission. All student work which contributes to the eventual outcome of the module (ie: if it determines whether you will pass or fail the module and counts towards the mark you achieve for the module) is submitted via the iCentre using the formal submission sheet . Academic staff CANNOT accept work directly from you. If you decide to submit your work to the iCentre by post, it must arrive by midday on the due date. If you elect to post your work, you do so at your own risk and you must ensure that sufficient time is provided for your work to arrive at the iCentre. Posting your work the day before a deadline, albeit by first class post, is extremely risky and not advised. Any late work (submitted in person or by post) will NOT be accepted and a mark of zero will be awarded for the assessment task in question. You are requested to keep a copy of your work. Feedback. You are entitled to written feedback on your performance for all your assessed work. For all assessment tasks which are not examinations, this is provided by a member of academic staff completing the assignment coversheet on which your mark and feedback will relate to the achievement of the module’s intended learning outcomes and the assessment criteria you were given for the task when it was first issued. Examination scripts are retained by Anglia Ruskin and are not returned to students. However, you are entitled to feedback on your performance in an examination and may request a meeting with the Module Leader or Tutor to see  your examination script and to discuss your performance. Anglia Ruskin is committed to providing you with feedback on all assessed work within 20 working days of the submission deadline or the date of an examination. This is extended to 30 days for feedback for a Major Project module (please note that working days excludes those days when Anglia Ruskin University is officially closed; eg: between Christmas and New Year). Personal tutors will offer to read feedback from several modules and help you to address any common themes that may be emerging. At the main Anglia Ruskin University campuses, each Faculty will publish details of the arrangement for the return of your assessed work (eg: a marked essay or case study etc. ). Any work which is not collected by you from the Faculty within this timeframe is returned to the iCentres from where you can subsequently collect it. The iCentres retain student work for a specified period prior to its disposal. To assure ourselves that our marking processes are comparable with other universities in the UK, Anglia Ruskin provides samples of student assessed work to external examiners as a routine part of our marking processes. External examiners are experienced academic staff from other universities who scrutinise your work and provide Anglia Ruskin academic staff with feedback and advice. Many of Anglia Ruskin’s staff act as external examiners at other universities. On occasion, you will receive feedback and marks for pieces of work that you completed in the earlier stages of the module. We provide you with this feedback as part of the learning experience and to help you prepare for other assessment tasks that you have still to complete. It is important to note that, in these cases, the marks for these pieces of work are unconfirmed as the processes described above for the use of external examiners will not have been completed. This means that, potentially, marks can change, in either direction! Marks for modules and individual pieces of work become confirmed on the Dates for the Official Publication of Results which can be checked at www. anglia. ac. uk/results. ASSIGNMENT ONE Module Title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Code:BB130020SLevel: 1 Academic Year: 2011/12Semester: Two Module Leader:Hermione McIntosh. Instructions:See below Word Limit: 3000 words % Weighting:50% Written assignments must not exceed the specified maximum number of words. Assignments will not be accepted without a word count on the cover sheet. Submission Date:Tuesday, May 8, 2012 Work submitted after this date will receive a mark of 0 unless an extension has been approved in advance of this deadline. Requests for short-term extensions will only be considered in the case of illness or other cause considered valid by the Student Adviser. These must normally be received and agreed by Student Adviser in writing at least twenty four hours prior to the deadline. Please refer to the Academic Regulations or your Student Handbook for full details. Further details:This assignment must be completed individually. This assignment must be attached to a completed University Assignment Cover Sheet and accompanied by a completed University Assignment Receipt before submission. Any attachments (such as computer discs) must be marked with your SID number(s) and securely attached to your assignment before submission. Do not submit your work in a plastic sleeve. TASK Read the two organisational case studies attached and provide a critical comparative analysis of them in academic report format. You should consider how the two organisations differ in the way they operate and in the way they are managed. In particular, you should focus on the following areas: * Organisational design and structure * Teams and teamworking * Approach to leadership and management * Organisational culture Your analysis must be supported by relevant theories and concepts that have been covered in the module and you must demonstrate that you have read widely around the subject area and used this reading to support the arguments you are making. Do not rely solely on the key text but use a range of academic texts and journal articles. Refer to the reading list in your module guide for further guidance. It is essential that you use the Harvard Referencing System and it is recommended that you download the University’s Guide to the Harvard Referencing System from the library website. Assessment weighting for written assignment The following assessment weighting is provided for guidance: Introduction| 10%| Analysis of issues including use of the literature to support arguments| 60%| Conclusion and recommendations| 20%| Presentation and structure of the report including written expression and referencing| 10%| Case Study One Case study 1: Biogenta plc. Biogenta is a world-leading business, producing crop-protection products (herbicides, fungicides and insecticides). It currently employs 15,000 employees in over 80 countries and has manufacturing facilities in 10 countries. It is organised into four major functional areas: Research and Development, Manufacturing, Sales and Marketing and, finally, Support (covering financial services, human resources and legal services). Jane Morgan, the Chief Executive Officer of Biogenta, is a strong role model for her staff and has developed a mission and a set of values based on extensive consultation with Biogenta’s stakeholders. Biogenta’s mission is to be the most trusted provider of crop-protection products in the world and their values include: Be adventurous, creative and open-minded Pursue growth and learning Be passionate and determined Build open and honest relationships Create fun These values have been embedded in the culture of the organisation. Jane is deeply respected and many of her staff have even called her inspirational. She is very motivational and communicates high expectations of all staff. Her aim has always been to empower her staff and to stimulate staff to be  creative and innovation so that they try novel approaches and develop ground-breaking new products. Biogenta is committed to innovation and sees this as a major strength. It has a strong focus on recruiting extremely able and highly motivated employees. It is also committed to investing heavily in their development. As well as recruiting highly educated staff, many of whom are educated to doctorate level, the company offers numerous in-house training courses covering both technical and personal development issues. As a global organisation Biogenta wants to recruit the brightest and the best from all over the world. In Cambridge, alone, one of its four research and development ‘hubs’, it employs people of 20 different nationalities. It offers generous support to employees who want to further their education and training by paying fees and giving time off to attend courses. It also offers generous perks, such as opportunities for sabbaticals or gap years and subsidising gym membership. Office environments and even factories are designed to be light, pleasant places to work, with the company sponsoring a large amount of art work and landscaping to enhance the environment. It is also a major sponsor of a number of exhibitions and museums around the world with a ‘biological science’ theme. Staff are encouraged to contribute to community work, and the company sponsors a number of projects working with schools in a number of countries on biological science projects. Although Biogenta has a traditional structure, as would be expected of an organisation of this size, Jane believes that structures, job titles and power can put barriers up between people and inhibit innovation and performance. She believes it is far more effective to put her faith in people and in teamwork and there is minimal hierarchy. Although almost all employees work in one of the four functional areas mentioned above, the organisation also promotes cross-functional working in project teams, some of which are virtual teams. Project working is seen as essential to achieving constant product improvement and innovation. These teams can be large or small, short term or fairly long in duration. It recognizes that getting people from different functions to work effectively together can be a challenge and it has a number of ways of trying to minimise these, including the use of technology. Many of the support staff have at least undergraduate degrees in science subjects. For example Jacqueline Baryomunsi works in the marketing team but she has a degree in Biology, although she was later sponsored by Biogenta to do an MBA. Although originally based in Cambridge, she was recently posted to a nine month international assignment in South Africa where she worked on a project to develop a new herbicide, working with a team of four others. This included Jonathan Etherington, who has a PhD in chemistry from the USA and has been working on production in one of Biogenta’s manufacturing bases in Italy until recently. The other team members included two people from Biogenta’s research and development function (both based in South Africa) and the team was led by Kathryn Tate, originally from Australia, who has a PhD in molecular biology and is based within Biogenta’s support function as an IT specialist. This project involved long working hours but Kathryn Tate also made sure the team had time for some fun: team members spent quite a lot of time together outside work, even, on one occasion managing to go shark-fishing as well as regularly sampling the night life of Durban. (This is a fictional case study.) Case Study Two OUTBACK INC. Setting Tourism is a strong contributor to Australia’s economy, with over a half million people employed in the sector, and tourism spending reaching over $85 billion a year. The country promotes its beautiful landscapes, Aboriginal art and cultures, coastal lifestyles and the outback as the main attractions for visitors. Australia’s top five international tourism markets are New Zealand, the UK, Japan, the USA and China. Visitor numbers from China and India have grown strongly, while the number of Japanese and Korean tourists has declined in the last few years. China is now Australia’s fifth largest international tourism market, brining it into second place with New Zealand, and this is set to grow over the next decade. However, Australia’s share of global tourism continues to drop, with a decrease of 14 per cent between 1995 and 2008. Since its peak in 2001, it has also declined as a proportion of Australia’s gross domestic product. The Australian tourism industry continues to struggle from the effects of a series of crises, starting with a pilot strikes in 1989 and the worldwide economic outfalls of the Iraq War and the SARS outbreak. More recently, after four strike free years at Qantas, there has been a bitter pay dispute which closed the airline down in October this year. Qantas passengers could face further delays and cancellations after one of the unions locked in a wage dispute threatened more strikes and legal action if the airline did not improve its pay offer. Skilled staff shortages are also contributing to Australia’s tourism industry troubles, with an estimated 42,000 employees needed by 2015. Outback Inc Established in the early 1990s, Outback is an adventure-based tour company located in Sydney, Australia. The company offers a variety of services, including guided tours, accommodation and meals, to those wishing to visit remote and regional areas of Australia. Outback’s comprehensive packages of services have traditionally appealed to travellers from all over the world, particularly visitors from Japan, who typically make up over 80 per cent of their client base, but its product offering has not been updated for a number of years. Profitability has now been on a downward trend for some time and there is no clear vision or detailed strategy to move the company forward. Despite increased marketing efforts aimed at the general Asian market, the company has seen a decrease in bookings from its traditionally reliable Japanese sector. The poor exchange rate has negatively affected tourist numbers from the U. K. and Outback has yet to attract new clients from China or other Asian countries experiencing more favourable economic conditions. Although Outback grew from a small, family-owned business in the early 1990s to a moderately sized company with sales of several million dollars a year, it still retains its original functional organisational structure. Its Chief Executive Officer is a son of the original founder and his autocratic style of leadership, although dressed up in paternalism, has meant that he is not prepared to listen to staff members, particularly those at the lower end of the hierarchy. Outback’s managers, typically members of the company’s founding family, head up the various departments, which are structured around traditional functions such as marketing, finance and human resources. In order to satisfy the needs of family members, there are a number of hierarchical levels within the organisation which often negatively affects the organisation. There is limited teamwork and virtually no cross-functional working with each of the functions operating in a silo. At times this has resulted in a poor service to clients where their expectations have not been met, and the company has recently received some bad press in the Asian tourist magazines and newspapers. Although this is an adventure-based tour company, it is not a fun place to work and the culture and leadership style stifle creativity. As with most organisations in the hospitality field, the Outback management uses a traditional leadership style, with decisions made at the top levels of management and communicated downwards. The majority of Outback’s employees are young, highly motivated and eager for learning opportunities, but the company struggles to regain them, facing a turnover rate higher than even what is expected in an industry with a notorious turnover culture. Although the company does have its own website, management has been hesitant to move away from using standard travel agencies for their client booking purposes, which is relatively costly. Many of the younger staff have ideas on how to improve the product range, the service offered to clients and how to target the all important Asian market, but have given up voicing their ideas as these have not been listened to in the past and they are concerned about being blamed for the rise in client complaints. (This is a fictional case study which has been adapted from Bratton et al. , 2010) Specific assessment criteria for assignment one 70% + Extensive knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. A deep level of critical analysis has been provided throughout with coherent and convincing arguments made. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated convincingly. Analysis is supported by extensive reading (academic texts and journal articles). Conclusion is convincing, relevant and holistic. Written expression and referencing are excellent resulting in a credible assignment which is well-structured, concise and demonstrates clarity of thought. 60 – 69% Good knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. A good level of critical analysis is demonstrated and arguments are clear and structured. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated well. Analysis is supported by significant background reading (academic texts and journals). Conclusion summarises the key issues convincingly. Good referencing with consistent citation and listing. Written expression is good resulting in an assignment which is well-structured, clear and concise. 50 – 59% Sound knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. Generally good analysis is demonstrated and arguments are clear and structured. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated. Analysis is supported by background reading (academic texts). A satisfactory conclusion is included. An appropriate structure is used and style of writing is satisfactory. Referencing is to satisfactory standard. 40 – 49% Some knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. The assignment is more descriptive than analytical, but arguments are sufficiently identifiable and free of obvious contradiction. Limited integration of theory and practice (case studies). Limited background reading from academic sources to support the work. Conclusion is drawn, but not all key issues are included. The assignment is adequately referenced with an appropriate structure. Written expression is satisfactory, but there are weaknesses in the presentation. Fail – 39% and below Very limited knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. The assignment is very descriptive with poor application of relevant theories, concepts and models. Minimal evidence of further reading. No or limited conclusion. The report is weakly referenced and the structure is inadequate. Written expression is poor resulting in an assignment which lacks clarity. Overall the task is poorly presented and argued and does not achieve an adequate standard. ASSIGNMENT TWO Module Title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Code:BB130020SLevel: 1 Academic Year: 2011/12Semester: Two Module Leader:Hermione McIntosh Instructions:Answer all four questions Word Limit: 3000 words % Weighting:50% Written assignments must not exceed the specified maximum number of words. Assignments will not be accepted without a word count on the cover sheet. Submission Date:Tuesday, May 8, 2012 Work submitted after this date will receive a mark of 0 unless an extension has been approved in advance of this deadline. Requests for short-term extensions will only be considered in the case of illness or other cause considered valid by the Student Adviser. These must normally be received and agreed by Student Adviser in writing at least twenty four hours prior to the deadline. Please refer to the Academic Regulations or your Student Handbook for full details. Further details:This assignment must be completed individually. This assignment must be attached to a completed University Assignment Cover Sheet and accompanied by a completed University Assignment Receipt before submission. Any attachments (such as computer discs) must be marked with your SID number(s) and securely attached to your assignment before submission. Do not submit your work in a plastic sleeve. Complete ALL four of the following tasks. 1. What is personality? And what relevance has this concept to understanding behaviour in the workplace? 2. â€Å"Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge through experience which leads to an enduring change in behaviour. † (Huczynski & Buchanan, 2010, p. 732) Explain this statement, showing how it relates to a learning theory that you have studied on this module and to your own approach to learning. 3. One way to understand different motivation theories is to interview your peers on what is important to them when choosing a job. Form a diverse study group, and discuss the following: How important is pay in choosing a job when you graduate? Is personal autonomy important in your work motivation? Explain your findings and discuss them in relation to appropriate motivation theory. 4. Choose FOUR barriers to communication and suggest, as a manager, how you might overcome such barriers. Within the 3,000 overall word limit, you should allocate words equally to each of the 4 tasks above. You should also illustrate your answer by referring to relevant literature, theory and experience. Each question is equally weighted in terms of the assessment marking. Specific Assessment Criteria for these written tasks: 70% + Extensive knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. A considerable depth of application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. A high level of insight and thought is evident throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by extensive reading. Written expression and referencing are excellent; ideas are well structured, balanced, and succinct and demonstrate clarity of thought. 60-69% A good grasp of knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. A very good depth of application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. A significant level of insight and thought is evident throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by good background reading. Written expression is of a very good standard and referencing is strong with consistent citation and listing. The ideas are well structured, balanced, and clear and concise 50-59% Sound knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. Generally good application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. There is evidence of insight and thought throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by background reading. Written expression and referencing is of a satisfactory standard. The ideas are fairly well structured, and clear and concise. 40-49% Some knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. Generally the work is more descriptive than applied. Limited evidence of insight and thought throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is limited, and not all the key issues are addressed. Written expression and referencing is of a satisfactory standard, but there are weaknesses in the presentation. Fail – 30-39% Very limited knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. The work is very descriptive with poor application of relevant theories and concepts. Minimal evidence of insight, thought and analysis. Written expression is poor resulting in writing which lacks clarity. Poor presentation overall, and does not achieve an adequate standard. 6. Assessment Criteria and Marking Standards ANGLIA RUSKIN UNIVERSITY GENERIC ASSESSMENT CRITERIA AND MARKING STANDARDS LEVEL 1 GenericLearning Outcomes(Academic Regulations, Section 2)| Assessment criteria by level| Marking standards (by mark band)| | | 70%+| 60-69%| 50-59%| 40-49%| 30-39%| 1-29%|. | Characteristics of student achievement per mark band >| Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study | Achieves a marginal pass in the module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Fails marginally to achieve module outcome/s related to this GLO. MDF may permit compensation | Fails to achieve module outcome/s related to this GLO and is not eligible for compensation | Knowledge and Understanding | Level 1 (FHEQ level 4) intr.

Age Discrimination At The Workplace Essay - 1574 Words

Mrs. Jeanie Gay Lewis Age Discrimination in the Workplace Human Resource Management Dr. Melissa Mann 9-20-2016 1 Introduction An all encompassing definition for age discrimination in the workplace is the practice of excluding applicants for hire or promotion based on the age of the individual. Related to the factor of age, age discrimination is an approach that does not focus on skill levels and job competency, and places emphasis on the calendar age of the individual.(Fundamentals of Human Resource Management, 2016) In today’s workplace, employers have to be attentive in staying compliant with an immense number of laws and regulations. Reducing employment and regulatory risk can be the difference between success and failure in today’s competitive marketplace. Over the past decade there has been a rise of complaints concerning age discrimination in the workplace. 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