Obstacles in the Facilitation of Critical Thinking in Nursing Students Dissertation

Obstacles in the Facilitation of Critical Thinking in Nursing Students in Jeddah - Dissertation Example Critical thinking has, therefore, been recommended as a professional practice for nursing profession. Nursing students need to be trained and exposed adequately to the critical thinking process as part of nursing syllabi and pedagogy. A literature review of the works in the area of critical thinking has thrown up many isssues.This paper examines: what Is critical thinking; critical thinking as needed in nursing profession; strategies to facilitate critical thinking; techniques that can be used by teachers to help the students identify and challenge their assumptions and barriers to critical thinking. This paper aso seeks to address the various obstacles to critical thinking process being faced by a population of nursing profession students at King Abul Aziz University in Jeddah. This is done by triangulation method deploying the quantitative analysis and qualitative analysis of the collected data. Quantitative data has been collected via a structured questionnaire administered to nur sing students and qualitative data is collected from smaller subgroups of both nursing students and faculty. The results of the analyses are used to form findings and recommendations. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS INTRODUCTION Enhancing critical thinking amongst student nurses is a common concern of nursing education. At least one previous study is known which ventured into probing the strategies to overcome obstacles in the facilitation of critical thinking in nursing education (Mangena & Chabeli, 2005). The findings of this study indicated that there is a need for nurse educators to model critical thinking in all aspects of nursing education. Recommendations suggested an entire paradigm shift in... As the report declares critical thinking has been variedly defined as a perceptive process involving reflective, disciplined, rigorous, sequenced and structured thinking which is based on well defined intellectual tenets and which differs from common thinking process. Critical thinking is structured collation of thoughts, ideas and patterns leading to sharper conclusions and analytical abilities. Nursing profession presents innumerable situations where substantial inputs of critical thinking can make substantial differences to the outcomes. The findings of this study indicated that there is a need for nurse educators to model critical thinking in all aspects of nursing education. Recommendations suggested an entire paradigm shift in nursing education from the traditional teacher-centered methods to a more learner-centered approach that will facilitate critical thinking of student nurses. Drawing from this study this research project would test the hypothesis that a paradigm shift in nursing education from the traditional teacher-centered methods to a more learner-centered approach would facilitate critical thinking of student nurses. This would be achieved by investigation and determination of the obstacles in the facilitation of critical thinking in fourth year nursing students in Jeddah by exploring the perceptions of nurse educators and nursing students. This study will benefit the nursing students, nurse educators, and the academic institution by raising their awareness of an important issue in nursing education tha t requires further recognition.

International Relations to East Asia Research Paper

International Relations to East Asia - Research Paper Example In the 19th century, Japan decided to adopt a developmentalism ideology as a defense mechanism in the then prevailing harsh and deep rooted competition from imperial states. Japan was determined to rise economically to enable it compete comfortably among the then well established states from the western region. The process of rapid development started before world war two. However, it stagnated greatly because the war interrupted the environment for Japan to develop. After the war, Japan set out to achieve its dream of being industrialized. The Japanese government concentrated on development policies in all its endeavors. The Japanese government was prepared to take any risk as long as that risk resulted to rapid economic expansion. Dent (2008) argues that some risks involved putting on hold all other policy agendas. At that time, it did not matter, whether the policy agendas ignored concerned the environment or nature. The opinion of the public did not count in the making of vital d ecisions, but rather the government was pragmatic and concentrated on the development goals. On the contrary, big businesses, politicians, and bureaucrats dominated the race to attaining industrialization. Japan’s primary target was to join organizations of the rich countries and therefore these three pillars worked tirelessly in implementing the policies set up by the government, to favor industrialization. In Asia, Japan got industrialized first through concentrating on development goals and preferably adopted this system because it was in a rush to join the global economy (Flath, 2005). The Japanese government formulated policies that favored the big corporations. In addition, these corporations received protection and support from the government. The bureaucrats had great potential to control government projects and therefore they ensured that these corporations thrived under all costs. In most cases, the government allowed the bureaucrat hierarchy to have more powers tha n the politicians. These bureaucrats formed a hierarchy in The Ministry of Finance and Ministry of International Trade and Industry. Members of the civil society did not participate in policymaking. Concentration on big corporations left out small and medium industries. The bureaucrats exerted great influence on the entire process of policymaking in Japan reaching a point whereby they acquired a dominant position. Despite Diet, the legislative body according the dominating power to cabinet, strategies from the bureaucrats overpowered the cabinet (Dent, 2008). It is through this system that the Japanese government rose to participate in the global economy. Japan gained entry into the Group 8 organization of rich countries (G8) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Since the Japanese government chose to ignore all other policy agendas as they rose to the level of global economy, the great economic achievement brought about increased environmental pollut ion. The public condemned the companies that contributed to the highest level of pollution. In the process of industrialization, the government ignored the voice of the public. The big corporations that the government supported were under no obligation to take moral responsibility in protection of the environment. The public suffered terrible effects of the pollution. There was increased emergence of unknown diseases in the society because of pollution. These were the worst risks the government

How leaders enlist and enable others to act

How leaders enlist and enable others to act Leadership is a relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who choose to follow (Kouzes et al., 2007). Leaders must master the dynamics of this relationship. They must learn how to mobilize others to want to struggle for shared aspirations. This means that leaders need to acquire the understanding, skills, and experience to collaborate successfully. Within this context, leaders move away from being the sole decision maker to involving others such as staff, and community members in the decision making process. I have looked deeply into the leader-constituent relationship. Through case analyses, books and journal articles, I have discovered that leaders at all levels follow rather similar paths as they guide others along pioneering journeys. By these studies, I was able to identify one of the most important practices common to most leadership achievements that is enabling others to act. This practice has stood the test of time, and it is available to anyone, in any organization or situation, who accepts the leadership challenge. This essay discusses the broader study that focused on collaboration in order to contextualize and highlight the findings related to the affective elements of collaborative leadership. The essay examines how the leader supports collaboration in their organisation to enlist and enable others to act and analyses the emotional competencies involved in. Finally, consideration is given to how leaders might be supported in the development and acquisition of the key skills required for affective leadership in their organisation. This essay also highlights the data related to how the leaders support collaboration. It specifically describes the perceptions that leaders and other stakeholders had regarding the role of the leader in fostering collaboration. The essay includes the description of behaviours exhibited by leaders and perceived by participants in the study as supporting collaboration. The purpose of the essay is to analyse these collaborative behaviours in terms of their emotional component. It is important to note that the goal of this study was not to examine emotional competencies of leadership. Data related to the affective domain of leaders work emerged as significant findings of the research question. Enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations Motivation is what drives individuals to work in the way they do to fulfill goals, needs or expectations. These are numerous, varied and changing. (Bush, T. et al, p237) People can imagine an exciting, highly attractive future for their organization. Leaders may be driven by their clear image of possibility and what their organization could become. In this case, leaders passionately believe that they can make a difference. They create the way that no one else has ever produced. They uplift peoples spirits with an ennobling perspective about why they should strive to be better than they are today. This means that to create an organised movement as well as significant change, leaders need to enlist others. They also must appeal a shared aspiration because people will not follow until the vision is accepted as their own. Leaders must speak others language to enlist them in a vision. Leaders not only understand peoples needs but also have their interests at heart when they are to sign up for journeys into the future. Leaders breathe life into visions through vivid language and an effective style. Their own enthusiasm and excitement are contagious and spread from the leader to constituents. Their belief in and enthusiasm for the vision are the sparks that ignite the flame of inspiration. (Kouzes et al. 2007, p. 16-18) Breath life into your vision and align your dream with the peoples dream According to Kouzes et al. (2007) and Hallinger et al. (2002), people desire to do something that can make a profound difference to the future of their families, friends, and communities and their life as well. Therefore, leaders not only show the directions and set the standards but also effectively communicate a vision. Visions are about our strong desire such as ideals, hopes, dreams and aspirations to achieve something great. In communicating shared visions, leaders need to make them meaningful by awakening dreams, breathing life into them, and arousing the belief that they can get extraordinary things done before bringing these visions into the conversation. In order to make their visions become true, leaders need to keep people focused and excited about the meaning and significance of their work. Leaders have to animate the vision and make manifest the purpose so that others can see it, hear it and feel it. It is not leaders dream alone but is the peoples vision. Hall (2002) shows that they need to show how their individual and collective efforts could make a positive difference and make sure that each team member could repeat the vision not just by rote but also from the heart. This would enable them to realize these aspirations and make all people have the power within themselves to accomplish whatever they desire. Expand your communication and expressiveness skills to animate the vision Kouzes et al. (2007), Shriberg et al. (2005), Green (2000) and Ginsberg et al. (2003) show that to enlist others and arouse them to go decisively forward, leaders not only appeal to their ideas, animate the vision and breathe life into it but also help them understand how their own interests and dreams are aligned with the vision. The constituents will become internally motivated to commit their individual energies to its realisation if leaders recognise that their enthusiasm and expressiveness are indispensable factors in their efforts to generate commitment in their constituents. People always desire to work more effectively and find out the fastest way to achieve their common goals but it will be very difficult if the visions are not images in their mind. Therefore, to enlist others and inspire a shared vision, leaders must be able to paint word pictures that best portray the meaning of their vision and that others get a natural mental image of what things will be like in the future. To find the ways of giving expression to their collective hopes for the future, leaders face some challenges. Firstly, extraordinary things are often very difficult to get for leaders and their constituents. They may be dispirited while facing these difficulties. In this situation, leaders must recognise that their constituents look for them to demonstrate an enthusiastic and genuine belief in their capacity and supply the means to achieve and express optimism for the future to remain passionate despite obstacles. These mean that their vital tasks are to foster team spirit, breed optimism, promote resilience as well as renew faith and confidence. Thus, leaders must look the situation at the bright side and keep hope alive. They must strengthen their constituents belief that lifes struggle will produce a more promising future. (Kouzes et al. 2007, p. 147) Secondly, in mobilizing people to struggle for shared aspirations, their intensive enthusiasm is required to generate. Consequently, leaders are responsible for the energy of authentic excitement in their organization. They need to add more emotion by using all means of verbal and nonverbal expression to their words and their behavior to communicate with their constituents because it really makes their messages to be more memorable. In addition, the prerequisite to enlisting others in a shared vision is genuineness. The first place to look before taking to others about the vision of the future is in your heart (Kouzes et al., 2007, p. 151). If the vision is not leaders or they do not believe in what they are saying, it will be very difficult for them to enlist the others. As Staler (2005) point out, people identified specific communicative behaviours that the leader demonstrates which can support collaboration in the organisation. However, they felt that listening and openness are particularly important in providing support. Inherently, such behaviour is emotional work. Openness is related to the honest sharing and disclosure of information, both personal and professional. Similarly, Kouzes and Posner (1999) indicate that in order to become fully trusted, we must be open. Furthermore, when the leader takes the risk of being open, others are more likely to take a similar risk, thereby building interpersonal trust. The ability of the leader to foster such a safe environment, to promote and exemplify such a learning model is, in part, an emotional capacity. Foster collaboration by building trust and facilitating relationships In todays virtual organisations, cooperation can not be restricted to a small group of loyalists. It must include peers, managers, customers and clients, supplies, citizens. All those have a stake in the vision. (Kouzes et al., 2007, p. 20). Leaders have to know that to produce the good results people must feel a sense of personal power and ownership. Instead of the command and the control techniques of traditional management, the new effective way to enable others to act is to make people feel strong, capable, and committed by giving the power away. Show trust to build trust Need for trust working together, as Mayer, R. C. (1995) said, often involves interdependence, and people must therefore depend on others in various ways to accomplish their personal and organisational goals. The development of mutual trust provides one mechanism for enabling employees to work together more effectively. The emergence of self-directed teams and a reliance on empowered workers greatly increase the importance of the concept of trust (Golembiewski McConkie, 1975; Larson LaFasto, 1989). In the use of self-directed teams, trust must take the place of supervision because direct observation of employees becomes impractical. Further, a clear understanding of trust and its causes can facilitate cohesion and collaboration between people by building trust through means other than interpersonal similarity. According to Kouzes et al. (2007) and Grint (2003), trust must be at the heart of collaboration. Leaders have to be trust others if they want others to trust them. They can not lead without trust. Therefore, to create a climate of trust, leaders need to be the first to trust by being the first to open up, to show vulnerability and to let go of control. Self-confident and self-disclosure are also required to build interpersonal trust. Moreover, Dinham (2007) point out that leaders must understand that besides sharing information and resources to foster collaboration they need to care for others needs and interests that play a key ingredient to build the team around common purpose and mutual respect. They understand that mutual respect is what sustains extraordinary efforts. If leadership is built on trust and confidence, people will take risks to make changes and movements alive. Leaders have the most significant impact on their organisation, promote cooperative goals and build trust by engaging in frequent conversation. It is impossible for leaders to take their people or their organisation to the next level without meaningful, frequent, and consistent communication. Huber (2002) reveal that a collaborative environment leads to greater satisfaction of individuals within the organisation, and therefore enhances their performance. Yet a collaborative environment does not just emerge because one declares there will now be collaboration. It takes a great deal of trust and respect for this type of synergy to occur. A leader builds this trust by asking and utilizing others input, considering alternative perspectives, allowing others to make decisions, and communicating, communicating, communicating. When employees feel that they are trusted, they will become trustworthy. On the contrary, when individuals feel that they are not trusted, they will exhibit behaviors creating a toxic environment. In the book the Leadership Challenge, Kouzes and Posner point out that trust is the most significant predictor of individuals satisfaction with their organisation. Highly effective leaders recognise that it is not important for them to be right, but rather to listen, take advice, lose arguments, and in some cases follow. Through these behaviors trust is built and performance is maximized. Get people interacting to facilitate relationship The most genuine way to demonstrate your care and interest in others is to engage them in conversation. Frequent conversations build trust while learning about anothers values, interests, concerns, and desires. People do not perform at their greatest levels when in isolation. Shribersg et al. (2005) argue that it is important that an organization provides opportunities to interact whether it is though social events, common meeting spaces, or regular staff meetings. Some leaders may see frequent social opportunities as wasteful or non-productive; the reality is an organization cannot develop shared priorities or reach common goals if there are not opportunities to interact both personally and professionally. In addition, Kouzes and Posner (2007) and Shriberg et al. (2005) showed that a sense of interdependent community in which everyone coordinate their efforts and need the others to be successful is one of the most crucial components to cooperation and collaboration. To bind others into cooperative efforts, a specific reason for being together must be provided by sharing and developing cooperative goals. It is also necessary for leaders to establish and keep the norms of reciprocity and fairness in their mind to improve relationship and decrease stress while working together. While people keeping the common goal in their mind, leaders need to help them to understand that they can not achieve the group outcomes unless they all play successfully their individual parts. People need to know that the long-term benefits of common group are more significant than the short-term benefits of working alone. There are many things that no one can gain on their own, but they can easily accomplish by working together. Moreover, Kouzes et al. (2007) pointed out that: group goals, reciprocity, and promoting joint efforts are all essential for collaboration to occur, but what is critical is positive face-to-face interaction. Nowadays, with the great help from technology people have many ways to connect with the others such as the emails, instant messages, and video conferences. However, the most effective interaction to build trust and promote teamwork is face-to-face conversation frequently. Durable and regular interactions between people make them always remember about how they have treated and have been treated by others. This helps them to have positive feelings on the rest of their group, which may be a solid foundation for success. Some people claim that face-to-face connection takes considerable amount of time, but despite this disadvantage, leaders need to make it one of their leadership imperatives because of the effectiveness it brings to them. Strengthen others by increasing self-determination and developing competence To allow people to feel more powerful and ultimately be more productive, it is critical to increase their ability to influence. This may be done through increasing their signature authority, reducing unnecessary approval steps, eliminating rules when possible, and assigning non-routine jobs. Unfortunately, in many organizations employees are charged with tremendous amounts of responsibility yet are not able to influence their environment to efficiently and effectively get the job done well. Employees must feel that they have the freedom to move around freely and maneuver resources necessary to accomplish an assigned task. (Jill Tomac) Creating a climate in which people are involved and feel important is at the heart of strengthening others. Leaders must make sure that everyone involve in all the group work. They need to listen to the opinions of others carefully and then help them to build up their capabilities as well as update their own information and perspective. When people are trusted and have more discretion, more authority, and more information, they are much more likely to use their energies to produce extraordinary results. (Kouzes et al., p. 21) Moreover, one key to success is that in order to gain respect leaders must also show respect for others. Jill Tomac shows that leaders are those individuals who are not widely known; they have very little interest in placing themselves in the forefront but are quite happy having their successors in the spotlight. In effect, these leaders create stars all around them, allowing others the glory. As a result, each member of the organization is performing at his/her maximum potential and bringing the organisation to new levels of achievement. Leaders recognise the importance of empowering others, through sharing information and assigning responsibility while enforcing accountability. A leaders ability to understand and appreciate others perspectives can be the critical distinguishing factor between a success and failure. Leaders who prefer to work by themselves and do not engage or believe in those around them have great difficulty achieving their goals. They have a tendency to share power and provide choice; allowing others the latitude to make choices and take responsibility. Of course, i t is valuable to provide the expectations, parameters, direction, and skill building needed to be successful. However, beyond that people must feel that they have the respect and trust of their superiors to get the job done. Effective leaders use their power in service to others through strengthening and supporting them. In effect, leaders turn subordinates into leaders themselves enabling people to consider variables, make choices, and act on their own initiative. As Kouzes and Posner state Leaders strengthen others when they give their power away, when they make it possible for constituents to exercise choice and discretion, when they develop competence to excel, when they assign critical tasks, and when they offer visible support. Increase individual accountability to enhance self-determination To help people increase accountability and then enhance self-determination, leaders need to act by following a scientific process. Firstly, as Riley et al. (2003) said, people can not finish their work as their group desire and can not make a difference if they have no freedom of choice about what they do as well as the way that they think fit. Thus, leaders need to help them to recognise their abilities and assign them to roles that they are comfortable by listening to their ideas and suggestions. By this way, every group member can bring value to the whole team and be responsible for their work Secondly, leaders must design work proactively to allow others discretion and choice. It means that people must have the latitude in decisions what they desire and believe should be done in their own creative and flexible ways. By this way, leaders can empower and strengthen others to do their best. Thirdly, personal accountability is a critical factor of collaboration. It seems to be a contradiction between cooperation and personal accountability as some peoples opinions. They argue that they will take less responsibility for their action while working collectively because others do their parts of work for them. Although they have a point in thinking that, their opinions are not true. This is because the team do not accept the slackers unless they increase their own responsibility. People are forced powerfully to do well by the expectations of the rest of their group. Therefore, by promoting collaboration, leaders simultaneously increase individual accountability. (Kouzes et al. 2007). Offer training support to develop competence Leithwood et al. (2003) indicate that when increasing the authority and influence a person has within the organization, it is critical for people to develop the needed skills and knowledge to perform effectively. It is foolish to ask people to begin making decisions or take actions that they have never been assigned before without preparing them to be successful. Through training, coaching, and mentoring staff, they will not only increase their abilities but also their interest and dedication to their work. (Jill Tomac) Valuing people means not only listening to what they have to say or contribute, but taking their input and using it to solve problems or make decisions. To value the contribution of other people, the leader supports the collaborative process by focusing on the interdependent nature of their work (Staler, 2005). However, as noted by Beatty (2000a), and the studies of Blase and Blase (2000), leaders may feel concerned about losing control while letting go of control. Therefore, they need to understand about shared responsibility. Advocacy for collaboration includes the promotion of beliefs, goals, and information about the value of collaboration. A principal advocates for collaboration by conveying the ongoing visible endorsement of, and participation, in collaborative activities (Leonard and Leonard 2001). As previously mentioned, when principals model collaboration they build credibility, because their actions are consistent with their words or they do what they say they will do. However, to set an example, principals need to be clear about their values and beliefs; they must know what they stand for. According to Kouzes and Posner (1999) thats the say part. Advocacy then might take the form of conveying information on the attributes and goals of collaboration or describing the decision making model for implementation. People say that the leaders advocacy for collaboration helps to support the process are in accordance with Gerbers view (1991: 48), that effective advocacy puts collaboration on the launching pad for take-off in the school. Goleman (1998) introduced the term emotional competency to describe learned, job-related capabilities or skills that individuals develop based upon their emotional intelligence. As Goleman (1995) identified, five domains of emotional intelligence are self-awareness, managing emotions, motivating oneself, empathy, and adeptness in relationships. People agreed that in collaboration, workplace skills related to emotional intelligence are required leadership competencies. Staler (2005) show that to understand others, leaders need to actively listen to their ideas and sympathise with their feelings, perspectives and concerns. In other word, the artful skill of understanding another persons perspective depends upon a communication skill such as emotional competencies. Emotional self-awareness that is also identified to relate to competencies is a crucial skills in collaboration. According to Goleman (1998), people who know their emotions engage in accurate self-assessment, and have a strong sense of their own self-worth. Having the courage to speak out is an emotional competency based on self-confidence. The development of self-awareness meant discovering their own voice and coming to their own sense of power. It also means that in a collaborative situation people need to recognise the strengths that they bring to the group (Slater, 2005). In addition, Options, latitude, and accountability fuel peoples sense of power and control over their lives. Yet as necessary as enhancing self-determination is, it is insufficient. Without the knowledge, skills, information, and resources to do a job expertly, without feeling competent to skillfully execute the choices that it requires, people feel overwhelmed and disable. (Kouzes et al. 2007). Without education, training and coaching to develop their skills, people may not know how to exercise their knowledge to operate their critical tasks because they are scared of making mistake. Therefore, leaders not only increase the latitude and discretion of their constituents but they also need to raise expenditures on training. This means that the group members need be understood and then to receive training in both basic and expert skills and problem-solving techniques. These investments will develop peoples competences and foster their confidence. They may be more qualified, more capable and more effective in taking their part of common work. Basing on understanding how the contextual factors of others jobs perform to designed their works to help them know what is expected of them is another important way that leaders can strengthen their constituents. Thus, leaders must to: provide sufficient training and technical support so that people can complete their assignments successfully. Enrich their responsibilities so that they experience variety in their task assignments and opportunities to make meaningful decisions about how their work gets accomplished. Create occasions for them to network with others in the organisation. Involve them in programmes, meetings, and decisions that have a direct impact on their job performance. (Kouzes et al. 2007, p. 264) Conduct coaching conversations to foster self-confidence As Kouzes et al. (2007) said, without adequate self-confident, people can not convince to take challenges. They will feel powerless to make choices and to face opposition because they do not believe in their skills as well as they are not sure to make decisions. The lack of self-confident also leads to the lack of self-determination. Therefore, fostering the confidence for people to accomplish their tasks is critical in the process of strengthening others. Similarly, Gold (1998) and Northouse (2010) point out that leaders must take a careful look at what people are doing and communicate to them that they can be successful if they persevere in their works. It is true that by helping people learn from their skills and experiences, leaders act as coaches. If coaching occurs regularly, people will become more capable because of being encouraged to broaden their skills and experiences. Jill Tomac indicates that to foster self-confidence, leaders create stars all around them. Rather than shine the spotlight on themselves, they sing the praises of others. Effective leaders need to find out what others doing well, then thank them for their contribution, and finally sharing it with others. CONCLUSION Evidences in this essay reveal the need for leaders to enlist and enable others to act in the process of collaboration. To this end, leaders need appropriate professional development of the fundamental abilities that are required in facilitating groups, reaching consensus as well as team building. In this way, leaders must develop new skills, behaviours, and essential knowledge. Firstly, to enlist others, leaders breathe life in to the shared vision that is meaningful to them. They make people feel proud to be a part of extraordinary common work. Secondly, to foster collaboration, leaders must create a climate of trust and facilitate effective relationship by getting people interacting. They must develop cooperative goals to make senses of collective purpose. Thirdly, to strengthen others, leaders have to extend power and responsibility to them. They develop others competence and confidence as well as enhance self- determination by offer training and coaching support. Accordingly, this essay has explored a crucial practice of leaders that is to enable others to act, in which collaboration is the central component. Understanding and managing the emotional aspects of the collaborative process is a challenge for leaders who wish to work in collaborative ways. The success of collaborative reform efforts and the improvement of organization performance rely on the leaders skilful implementation of the collaborative process. Consequently, further studies that examine the emotions of leadership would enhance our understanding of how leaders competencies in the affective domain can be used to build the capacity for leading in the modern time.

Cocos nucifera Essay -- Botany

Cocos nucifera Cocos nucifera is the scientific name of the common coconut. This very tall palm tree is always an inviting symbol of the tropics. The plant is one of the most valuable plants to man. It is a primary source of food, drink, and shelter. In Sanskrit the coconut palm is called "kalpa vriksha", which is defined as "the tree which provides all the necessities of life." Man can use every part of the coconut. The white nut-meat can be eaten raw or shredded and dried and used in most cooking recipes. A single coconut has as much protein as a quarter pound of beefsteak. Copra, the dried meat of the kernels, when crushed is the source of coconut oil. The husks, known as coir, is a short, coarse, elastic fibers used to make an excellent thatch roofing material for houses. This very diverse plant is also an excellent charcoal, which is produced from the shells, not only does it work as a cooking fuel, but also in the production of gas masks and air filters. The outer part of the trunk of the coconut palm furnishes, a construction lumber, known as porcupine wood for houses and furniture. The swollen base of the trunk, when hollowed, can be turned into a hula drum that the Hawaiians use for entertainment. These are just a few examples of how extraordinary the coconut palm can be utilized. The coconut was first mentioned in 545 AD by an Egyptian Monk named Cosmos Indicopleustes. He visited western India and Ceylon. In his "Topographia Christiana", Cosmos describes the coconut as the "great nut of India." The Mahavasma, an ancient chronological history of Ceylon, describes the planting of coconuts in that country in 589 AD. In 1280 Marco Polo, described coconut growing in Sumatra, as well as in Madras and Malabar... ...aried utilization of the coconut will always be important in the economic aspect. Raw Copra used to be the major export but as coconut oil is becoming more widely used its export is increasing. Another change is the export of coconuts in the shell to the exporting of desiccated coconut. Both of these changes have benefited the countries of origin by creating more employment in the tropics. The coconut has been a growing success since the time it was first discovered and to this day this very diverse plant is still showing great potential. REFERENCES Child, Reginald. "Coconuts". 2nd edition. Longman Group Ltd. 1974. Woodruff, Jasper Guy, Ph.D. "Coconuts: Production, Processing, Products." The Avi Publishing Co, Inc, 1970. Encyclopedia Americana. Vol. 7 1989. Collier's Encyclopedia. Vol. 6 1984. Dictionary of Archaeology "The facts of file."

Due Process vs Crime Control Essay

Abstract Although crime control and due process have some similarities, there are more contrasts between the two. Crime control emphasizes crime prevention, whereas due process emphasizes the protection of citizen’s rights from mistakes made by criminal justice agencies. The ethical dimensions of key issues confronting the criminal justice system and private security concerning to due process and crime control are citizen’s rights, proper legal representation, as well as physical force, when to use deadly force, and deceptions. The private security industry also faces key ethical issues regarding the lack of training, in addition to violations of rules and regulations. Due Process or Crime Control The ethical extent of key issues confronting the criminal justice system and private security regarding due process and crime control are many, such as not knowing what the right course of action is, difficulty doing what is considered right, or simply finding the wrong choice to be very tempting. Due process is a citizens’ right to proper legal representation, procedures, and justice of individuals, which decreases the power of government. The main goal of due process is to protect individuals from mistakes made by law enforcement agents and prosecutors. In contrast, crime control increases the power of the government in order to protect society, which diminishes an individual citizen’s rights (USLegal, Inc., 2001-2008). The main goal of crime control is crime suppression, which includes key issues of physical force, when to use deadly force, undercover work, deceptions, as well as many others in the criminal justice system. In the private security field, the key issues include the lack of training and violations of rules and regulations of the industry (Gould, 2008). Due Process According to Packer’s due process model, which consists of the following points of view, emphasizes the contrasts with the crime control model (Cliffnotes.com). 1. The most important function of criminal justice should be to provide due process or fundamental fairness under the law. 2. Criminal justice should concentrate on defendants’ rights, not victims’ rights, because the Bill of Rights expressly provides for the protection of defendants’ rights. 3. Police powers should be limited to prevent official oppression of the individual. 4. Constitutional rights are not mere technicalities; criminal justice authorities should be held accountable to rules, procedures, and guidelines to ensure fairness and consistency in the justice process. 5. The criminal justice process should look like an obstacle course, consisting of a series of impediments that take the form of procedural safeguards that serve as much to protect the factually innocent as to convict the fa ctually guilty. 6. The government should not hold a person guilty solely on the basis of the facts; a person should be found guilty only if the government follows legal procedures in its fact-finding. Crime Control The following contentions are the key concerns of the crime control, which points out the differences of due process. (Cliffnotes.com). 1. The repression of crime should be the most important function of criminal justice because order is a necessary condition for a free society. 2. Criminal justice should concentrate on vindicating victims’ rights rather than on protecting defendants’ rights. 3. Police powers should be expanded to make it easier to investigate, arrest, search, seize, and convict. 4. Legal technicalities that handcuff the police should be eliminated. 5. The criminal justice process should operate like an assembly-line conveyor belt, moving cases swiftly along toward their disposition. 6. If the police make an arrest and a prosecutor files criminal charges, the accused should be presumed guilty because the fact-finding of police and prosecutors is highly reliable. 7. The main objective of the criminal justice process should be to discover the truth or to establish the factual guilt of the accused. Similarities between Due Process and Crime Control Although the differences are many and well emphasized, there are a few similarities between due process and crime control. Both uphold laws and regulations that have been established throughout the many years of this country. The similarities are: 1.Accept constitutional values 2.Hold to ex post facto prohibition 3.Duty to enforce laws where violations have occurred Conclusion Due process and crime control propose to serve similar objectives, which are to reduce crime and protect the citizens of the United States. The ethical key issues that plague the due process and crime control models vary among the two, in how to deal with the many issues and the best way to deal with the issues are conflicting. The differences between the two on how to reach these objectives are many, yet the few similarities assist in keeping both processes abide by the laws established by the government of the United States. References USLegal, Inc. (2001-2008). US Legal Definitions. Retrieved on January 5, 2010 from http://definitions.uslegal.com/c/crime-control-model/ Gould, M. (2008). Business, Ethics & Society, (p. 1). Great Neck Publishing. Retrieved January 4, 2010, from Research Starters – Business database. CliffsNotes.com. (n.d.). Which Model? Crime Control or Due Process. Retrieved on January 4, 2010, from http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/CliffsReviewTopic/topicArticleId-10065,articleId-9911.html

Ritz Carlton Сase Study

The history of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. originates with The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. The standards of service, dining and facilities of this Boston landmark serve as a benchmark for all Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts worldwide. The legacy of The Ritz-Carlton, Boston begins with the celebrated hotelier Cesar Ritz, the â€Å"king of hoteliers and hotelier to kings.† His philosophy of service and innovations redefined the luxury hotel experience in Europe through his management of The Ritz Paris and The Carlton in London. The Ritz-Carlton, Boston revolutionized hospitality in America by creating luxury in a hotel setting: Private bath in each guest roomLighter fabrics in the guest room to allow for more thorough washing White tie and apron uniforms for the wait staff, black tie for the Maitre d’ and morning suits for all other staff, conducive to a formal, professional appearance Extensive fresh flowers throughout the public areasA la carte dining, providing ch oices for diners Gourmet cuisine, utilizing the genius and cooking methods of Auguste Escoffier Intimate, smaller lobbies for a more personalized guest experienceCesar Ritz died in 1918 but his wife Marie continued the expansion of hotels bearing his name. In the United States, Albert Keller bought and franchised the name and established The Ritz-Carlton Investing Company. In 1927 The Ritz-Carlton, Boston, opened and other hotels followed in New York (at Madison and 54th), Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlantic City and Boca Raton, followed by the Miami hotels including the south beach location. However, by 1940 none of the hotels were operating except The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. The hotel embodies the vision of Cesar Ritz, Yankee ingenuity and Boston social sensibilities.The Ritz-Carlton south beach resort was first created in 1953 with the acquisition and restoration of the Morris Lapidus-designed Di Lido Hotel in Miami's South Beach district. The new resort featured 375 rooms; a 16,000 -sq.-ft. spa located on the third level; and 20,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, including a 10,000-sq.-ft. ballroom capable of seating up to 1,000 guests. The historic restoration retains the exterior flavor of the Morris Lapidus design, characterized as Art Moderne or MiMO (for Miami Modern). A three-story addition on top of the existing eight-story hotel, along with the incorporation of other surrounding buildings into the new resort, brings the Ritz-Carlton to approximately 500,000 sq. ft. These futures along with the rich history of the building make this hotel resort one of a kind and a must see destination.II. Company ProfileThe Ritz-Carlton South Beach hotel lies on Miami’s most famous beach and is located just steps from Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road. This is a 10-block  pedestrian esplanade with the best shopping, dining, nightlife and people-watching South Beach Miami has to offer. This hotel caters to the most discerning hotel guests, dignitaries and celebrities and includes features that you may not find anywhere else. The hotel has 375 luxurious guest rooms, including two poolside lanai wings in the style of early Miami Beach. It also provides more than 20,000 total square feet of exceptional South Beach meeting and conference facilities and a 16,000-square-foot Ritz-Carlton spa.This resort is a prime location, within walking distance to Miami's Ocean Drive, Lincoln Road and South Beach nightlife. The hotel went through a complete restoration of the original 1953, Morris Lepidus-designed, landmark South Beach Miami hotel in order to provide their customers with the luxurious experience associated with the Ritz Carlton name. The hotel is rated as a triple a diamond tier 4 hotel, making it the recipient of the highest rating award for a luxury hotel. Guest Room Features & Amenities400-450 square feet Views of the Atlantic Ocean, pool, and South Beach Contemporary, warm furnishings inspired by South Beach’s vibrant ocean destination with the luxuries of home, accented with colors of blue, sea mist green, and coral Generously sized desks iPod docking stations, with AM/FM clock radios In-room laptop-compatible safe Computer and fax hookups Multi-line telephones with hold button Choice of one king or two double beds Goose down and non-allergenic foam pillows Luxurious 100% cotton linens Sumptuous marble baths Suit, skirt and padded hangers Fully stocked mini refreshment bar Rollaway beds available ($50 per day) All rooms in our South Beach hotel are non-smokingProperty Features & Amenities The Ritz-Carlton Spa The Signature Shop Two restaurants, including upscale dining and casually chic oceanfront lounge dining Elevated outdoor pool and private day beds overlook the Atlantic Ocean $2 million original art collection featuring established and emerging artists 24-hour room serviceValet parking available at our Miami hotel: Daily $27 / Overnight $36 Limousine services available upon request Personal shoppers available up on requestIII. Balance scorecardThe balanced scorecard is a strategic planning and management system that is used extensively in the hotel industry to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. The balanced scorecard has evolved from its early use as a simple performance measurement to a full strategic planning and management system. The â€Å"new† balanced scorecard transforms an organization’s strategic plan from an attractive but passive document into the â€Å"marching orders† for the organization on a daily basis.It provides a framework that not only provides performance measurements, but also helps planners identify what should be done and measured. It enables executives to truly execute their strategies. The Ritz Carlton uses this strategy and is comprised of some key basic concepts, which are Financial, Customer, lear ning and growth, and internal business processes. By adopting this crucial strategy, Ritz Carlton south beach will be able to create a consistent level of service and ensure a path of future growth.A. Service cultureWho We Are The Ritz Carlton separates itself from its competitors in the hospitality industry by offering experiences of exceptional quality. Our objective is to  be considered the best luxury hotel brand in the world with each and every location personifying that goal to our customers. We build properties that are designed to take you away to a dream of unlimited possibilities and while also creating a service culture that is the best in the industry. Doing so allows Ritz Carlton to satisfy the needs and tastes of our customers, and to maintain our position as the world's premier luxury hospitality company.What We Believe Our greatest asset is our team. We do not label our staff with the term â€Å"employee† or â€Å"worker† because it takes a true team effort to provide the type of experience that the Ritz Carlton is world renown. We believe that each team member exemplifies that notion and proudly instills the image of Ritz Carlton to our customers. Our success depends on the work of our team and we will always be known as having the best team members in the land.How We Succeed We succeed when all the core components of the BSC are achieved. We must focus on the needs and desires of our customers while also maintaining a safe and surplus level of revenues and profits while minimizing our expenditures. We must account for our outside competitive set and deliver a product to our customers that cannot be matched.How We Behave We demonstrate our behavior through hard work, compassion, and a true love for what we do. We pride ourselves on having the best code of conduct policy which adheres to all state and federal guidelines while ensuring the happiness of our guests and team members.B. Balance Scorecard table (exhibit 1) â€Å"A br oad look†(Exhibit 2) â€Å"a detailed look into BSC†Perspectives Objectives Measures Target Initiatives/Actions Financial 1.Increase Revenue 2.Increase RevPAR 3.Increase profit margin 4. Minimize expenses P&L statement STAR reports Department operations reports Operating budget -Maintain RevPAR Index Achieve higher ADR, RevPAR and OCC% than comp set 30-40% profit -secure market share from competitors. -Maintain optimal ADR by appropriate revenue management – Up sell high margin services Customer -Customer service – No guest dissonance -Happy guests-Customer Satisfaction Repeat customers Referred customers -Online surveys -100% customer satisfaction – Repeat business -Loyalty-Monitoring social media -Mystery shoppers -Score cards with incentives to give any feedback -Creating internal network for sharing customer ifo between associates Internal Business Processes – Adherence to brands standards for operations processes – Following stand ard operation and billing procedures in the catering department -Service errors -Failure rates -Maintenance and renovation of physical assets – Guest complaints – Bill disputes-3ÃŽ ´ level of quality for all business processes – Less than 1% bill disputes -Hiring an Operations control manager – standardized Training for all employees -operating inventory cycle monitoring Learning and Growth – Grooming and retaining the best associates. – Shorter work hours and rested more attentive employees in catering department. – Internal Promotion – Turnover rate – Associate retention – Employee overtime – Employee burnout – Service satisfaction ratings for F&B department -70% promotion from within -turnover below 40% hourly & 10% managerial -5-15% overtime for F&B employees maximum -Developing effective training programs-Quarterly reviews and evaluations – Incentives for employees staying in the company -promotion from withinThe BSC tables shown in exhibit 1 and 2 highlight the objectives considered important for the Ritz Carlton at south beach to succeed. Due to the fact that it is a luxury property, the objectives considered in this table are aligned with strategies targeting upscale travelers with unique demands and needs. In a luxury hotel, the top line revenues and profits depend on the level of guest satisfaction.It is assumed that wealthy travelers are willing to pay a premium if all their needs and demands are satisfied. Thus exquisite hotels such as The Ritz Carlton depend directly on the level of satisfaction of their guests as well as the public perception of their brand name and property when setting room rates and other pricing strategies. With all being said it makes sense that such an emphasis is put on the level of service in this second exhibit of BSC.The balanced scorecard approach allows a hotel to asses what its biggest area of opportunity is to succeed and buil d upon that to better serve its customers worldwide. Financial and business process measures are taken into account to assure that the company is running at optimal efficiency and that money is being made at an acceptable rate. Although these measures are important, they would mean nothing without the loyalty, retention, and happiness of your team members. In this case, the Ritz Carlton is a luxury hotel, so focusing on the retention and overall happiness of your team members is what will ultimately benefit you the most.Companies make it a priority in finding and retaining top team members, but it is very difficult. This is why managers must acknowledge the presence of such members on their staff and make an effort to keep them in the company. The retention and development of these members is key in the success of the hotel. You must also understand that not every person is suited for the luxury service culture, so finding the best mix and combinations of team members will bode help ful in the long run. Training courses and a structured system for development should also be put in place to ensure a consistent service culture.A huge retention meter would be to offer employees incentive for their performance. This can be money based, recognition based, or promotion based. Internal promotion is a practice adopted by upscale properties more than many other types of hotels because the team member is battle tested. They have been brought up from within he/she has learned the company culture along the way and already has the attitude and approach needed to be successful. Another benefit is the fact that this person is familiar with a large portion of the hotels operations, making the transition easy to any department or manager role when needed.Maintaining and exceeding financial goals and measures are important to the short-term operational success of the hotel; however, the purpose of the Balanced Scorecard is to emphasize the importance of non-financial measures fo r the success of the business. By following this objective, you will create team member satisfaction, which will cause the customers to experience the full luxury experience, and it will all trickle down to the bottom line, which is increased revenue, and high profits from all departments.C. Strategy mapThe Strategy Map below shows how the four perspectives of the BSC influence each other and how the objectives in the bottom affect the ones above them. This ultimately leads to superior workforce effectiveness. Not only does this show workforce effectiveness, but also the overall guidelines to superior financial performance.IV. Operating Budget(See attached Excel document)Market segmentsThe Ritz Carlton at south beach differentiates its potential guests into 2 main market segments – corporate (business travelers) and leisure (vacationers).Corporate Luxury hotels have traditionally focused on the business traveler because of the amount of money they make and spend, and the freq uency of their visits to the property. However, many of the luxury brands including the Ritz, have shifted their focus to other segments. Business travelers rarely use all the amenities available to them at the resort, and restrict their visit to a â€Å"professional† exposure.Even with that known, Corporate business during high season is still considerably high. Luxury brands do not discount as much as their lower end neighbors. During low season the hotel can try to attract some large corporation meetings to offset other lost opportunities.Leisure Just as stated above, the leisure segment is picking up popularity each and every year and many luxury properties have concentrated their efforts in attracting these leisure guests, whose main purpose is to utilize wide array of services and products offered, thus generating additional revenue through the alternative revenue sources. (Unlike the business traveler). There are multiple types of subgroups within the leisure segment s uch as transient, and group rates.The transient rates vary depending on the time of year or season. For luxury hotels such as the Ritz Carlton, the rates can skyrocket in season, and fall drastically off-season. Group rates are tailored to meet the needs of different companies, charities, and other organizations with better pricing for bulk deals. Rooms Department – a P&L evaluationThe sample data below was fabricated to reflect similar numbers that is shown their most recently available STR report. The data is an approximation, but will show key patterns in ADR, RevPAR, Occupancy percentage, and revenues.Jan Feb March April ADR $649 $729 1399$ $679 OCC% 80% 88% 95% 85% RevPAR $519.20 $641.52 $1329.05 $577.15 Revenue $5,841,000 $6,735,960 $15,450,021 $6,492,93730 28 31 30May June July August ADR $329 $379 $389 $299 OCC% 60% 52% 55% 41% RevPAR $197.40 $197.08 $213.95 $122.59 Revenue $2,294,750 $2,217,150 $2,487,168 $1,379,13731 30 31 30Sept October Nov Dec ADR $319 $379 $399 $ 529 OCC% 49% 65% 68% 75% RevPAR $156.31 $246.35 $271.32 $396.75 Revenue $1,817,103 $2,863,818 $3,052,350 $4,612,21831 31 30 31CATEGORY YTD AVERAGES ADR $539 OCC% 68% REVPAR $405.72 REVENUE 4,573,634 total = 54,883,612From the data above, we can get a clear picture of how the different times of year affects the hotels key measures. Average Occupancy Levels for this segment have been estimated at 68%, which was estimated from the charts above. Many luxury hotels, including the Ritz Carlton, keep a relatively high occupancy through the year because of brand recognition and popularity. The ADR rates were estimated through the research of other competing properties in the area.The RevPAR was then calculated by multiplying the OCC% by the ADR. The RevPAR indicates how well the Revenue managers did in optimizing the financial performance of the hotel. Luxury hotels such as the Ritz Carlton typically stay away from the â€Å"price war† tactic of attracting business, but on slower mon ths, doing this may actually increase your revenues and all the other key measures. Food and beverageThe DiLido Beach ClubThe only oceanfront restaurant and lounge on South Beach with a relaxed, chic ambiance perfect for people-watching Ocean-table cuisine features a selection of fresh local seafood, small plates, salads, sandwiches and a selection of homemade sangria Home to special events including the Down-home, Beachfront Crab boil or D.B.C and the Far East Summer Nights 1 Hours of Operation:Open seven days a week from 12- 8 p.m.Lobby Bar A chic, relaxed but vibrant gathering spot designed for socializing, sipping cocktails, enjoying light bites and people watching, located in the hotel's upper lobby Live entertainment at this South Beach restaurant Friday and Saturday from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Signature cocktails by master mixologist Ramsey PimentelBistro One LR Contemporary American bistro infused with Spanish flavors. Specializing in fresh, local seafood and exceptional st eaks. Miami’s leading Sunday Brunch featuring delicious cuisine, unlimited mimosas, champagne, Bloody Mary’s and live entertainment every Sunday from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. 1 Hours of Operation:2 Breakfast: 7 a.m. – 11 a.m./Saturday and Sunday until 11:30 a.m. 3 Lunch: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. 4 5 Dinner: 5 p.m. – 10 p.m.lapidus Lounge Lapidus Lounge, named after the famed architect Morris Lapidus – who designed the hotel when it was built in the 50s, serves specialty cocktails, light bites and sushi inside amongst the sophistication and poolside under the stars.CompetitionAlthough the Ritz Carlton has the name recognition and the luxurious fortitude to be the top dog in its competitive set, the hotel still has a few direct competitors in the south beach area of Miami. These hotels include:1. SLS hotel south beach 2. The W south beach 3. Bentley hotel south beach 4. Z ocean beach hotelThese hotels are direct competitors to the Ritz due to their similar p ricing strategy and their â€Å"suite style† rooms. These hotels do provide something that the Ritz cannot. Customized experiences. These hotels do not have the brand recognition and corporate structure so they can adapt to customer wants and needs on the fly. This is there main advantage in the marketplace. P & L overviewAfter careful review of the P&L statement, we can see that the rooms department generates the most total revenue for the hotel and food and beverage and Clubs and entertainment generate the rest of the revenue. Clubs and entertainment is very revenue driven, but lacks profit margin, so focusing on other areas is key for the Ritz. With the emergence of the Internet and mobile devices, it’s safe to say that telephone reservations are at an all time low, causing that department to bring in relatively low figures.The spa for the hotel is generally provided as a luxury for the guest but is not intended to be a moneymaking department for the hotel. Many tim es that service is deemed complimentary in which the hotel would incur a loss liter for that sale for the room. With fixed and overhead expenses being as high as they are, the key takeaway from this is to maximize the room revenue and profits by providing a luxurious experience through all of the other departments.