A long walk home Essay

The whipping wind tossed and hurled the icy rain in countless directions, saturating the now shiny country cliffs. The tall huddles of trees were disrobed; leaving them exposed and stripped of their summer coats. Rays from the sun, were banished by the copious clouds that filled the once blue skies, and the raging storm antagonised the ocean until its fury could be heard from afar. Emerging from the evergreen woods, clinging vehemently to his school bag and protective coat, stood a young, well-mannered lad. This lad went by the name of Jack. Jack was a sprightly, yet gracious boy, tall, lean and of medium build, his skin was fresh and his eyes sparkled with a loveable mischief, which would captivate and sway any mother. Jack walked steadily against the elements, homeward bound. The wind bit at his flesh, like an adder bites its victims. He tugged at his hood, hiding himself from the driving unforgiving wind. And it was for this reason, this reason alone that Jack decided to take the short cut through the steep, sheltered cliffs. Read more:  Heavy School Bags Essay As the day closed in, Jack became ill at ease with his own redirected route. Oh! He had climbed the cliffs before, but never in these weather conditions, and certainly not this late in the evening, he knew oh so well, that if he didn’t make haste, the night would close before he reached the top. As luck would have it, the weather abated, the rain had eased to a mere drizzle, the wind to a light breeze. And so he made his way carefully and cautiously up the steep winding cliffs. He was nearing the top, when he suddenly realised he had taken a wrong turn, the path, such as it was, had petered out, leaving a very tricky way forward indeed; across slippery rocks and shingle; with a sheer drop either side. But, if he were to turn back now, it would be hours before he reached his destination; his parents would be gripped in the throws of panic. So, resolute and unrelenting, Jack continued along his arduous mission, until he reached a point from where he could no longer proceed, retreat offered no solution. Jacks dilemma seemed mountainous; there seemed no easy exit. The day’s light was diminishing rapidly. Jacks panic gripped him tightly; he needed to reach the top before the light faded. He scrutinized his location, scanning for any signs of help. Just then, a voice, a sweet friendly voice belonging to a girl, filled the air. â€Å"Are you alright there? You look as if you are in a bit of a pickle, would you like a hand?† Jacks anguished eyes searched for the source of these utterances, he saw nothing. Did his ears deceive him? Was it the wind playing tricks on him? â€Å"Hey! Don’t look so shocked and worried,† Came the sweet voice once more. â€Å"Who is that?† Spluttered Jack nervously, â€Å"where are you hiding?† â€Å"I’m here silly.† And there, in front of Jack, true enough, stood a girl about the age of himself, her wavy, blonde hair flowed to her waist, she was waif like, pale in complexion, slightly gaunt, but her piercing blue eyes sent out a radiation of warmth. She walked sure-footedly across the rocks towards Jack. † Follow me, I’ll show you the way,† whispered the girl, † that is, if you want to?† The girl offered her hand to Jack, Jack hesitated, she seemed friendly enough, but he really didn’t know her. â€Å"Honestly!† giggled the girl. † I wont bite you.† With that, they exchanged smiles, held hands and continued on their way, the girl obviously knowing the cliffs well, so assured did she place her feet. As they neared the top of the cliff, the boy asked. â€Å"Do you ever get scared, in case you fall?† â€Å"Oh no!† said the girl, â€Å"I fell once, I will never let that happen again†. â€Å"Were you hurt when you fell?† queried Jack sincerely. † It could have been very serious.† † What happened?† The girl sighed deeply, â€Å"I too got lost once. If it weren’t for this stranger, I surly would have died. He offered his helpful hand to me, but as I reached out, I lost my footing and slipped, I ending up clinging to the edge of the cliff.† † That must have been so scary!† exclaimed Jack. † It was, but scarier than that, was the fact that the stranger disappeared right after rescuing me.† † How odd! Maybe he was a ghost,† chuckled Jack. â€Å"Ghost? I don’t believe in ghosts,† said the girl, plainly amused by Jacks comments. † Neither do I,† said Jack defensively, in an attempt to mask his fears. Embarrassed at this, Jack thanked the girl profusely, bid her farewell, and continued his journey home. â€Å"Ghosts!† said the girl as she watched him leave. â€Å"What a peculiar notion.† Most close-knit neighbourhoods have strange ghost stories, as it happened, this community was not unusual in that fact. As this urban- legend would have it, the cliffs were inhabited by a ghost, a ghost who lead people to their deaths, an offering of a helping hand soon saw those who trusted it, plunged fatally off the treacherous cliffs. Was this just a legend to stop foolish children climbing the cliffs and hurting themselves? Or, was it something, far more supernatural? What do you think? Jack never saw the girl ever again.

Promotion of Colgate-Palmolive Essay

Promotion is a communication means the merits of the product and persuade customers to buy it . Promotion has following four distinct elements. Personal selling , Advertising , Sales Promotion,and Public relations which can be used as such or can be used in combination to promote the product . ADVERTISEMENT Colgate primarily used advertisements as its main promotion strategies. Its different products which are designed for different segments are targeted to the audience by highlighting its features. Its common tagline for all products is - ³No1 brand recommended by dentist. ´ SALES PROMOTION As such no promotion is done at retail level except the recommendation by the shopkeeper. But for rural market COLGATE uses VAN (van is a mobile promotion station having facilities for screen show, slide show and mike publicity. PUBLIC RELATIONS PR campaigns were undertaken extensively during the launch of the brand in leading newspapers and magazines, though they were focused more directly on enhancing the image of the parent company in the eyes of stakeholders like shareholders potential investors, etc.that in consumers. Oral Care Special Offers Strong teeth and secure future, with Colgate Your children are your tomorrow. Here’s your chance to ensure that they get the best higher education possible. Stand a chance to win scholarships of up to 1 lakh with the Colgate Scholarship Offer and secure your child’s future. All you have to do is give a missed call on the number printed at the back of the Colgate pack and be eligible for the lucky draw. Hurry! Over 200 scholarships up for grabs. Price of Colgate-Palmolive price is consists of tactical marketing tolls,blemded into an integrated marketing programme that actually delivers the intended value proposition to taeget customer such as : List price , Discount , Allowance , Paymeny period , Credit terms .

Introducing Customer Services Essay

Introduction In this assignment I will be writing about the importance of having good communication skills in customer service. I was assigned to a two week work placement at Superdrug where I had to deal with different types of customers and their needs and expectations. I also was instructed by the supervisor to give good customer care and service to customers. Task 3 Explanation of what a customer is Customers are people or businesses who pay for goods and services or benefit from a particular business. People such as: * The elderly * Teenagers * Disabled * Insurance companies * Banks * Cleaners Task 4 In this task I will be explaining the meaning of internal customers. I will also be giving examples of what an internal customer is. Internal customers Internal customers are those people and employees who might use a company’s services and products. Examples of internal customers are: Store Manager The store Manager is an internal customer because he/she benefits from the company when the company gets sales. They also may get a pay rise if the business does really well. The manger depends on the business to get sales, if the business does badly the manger is then at risk of losing money or getting sacked. Security guard The security guard is an internal customer, for his/her service of making sure goods are not thieved from the store he/she benefits from the business by getting a months salary and also may get discounts from the business. Cleaners The cleaner’s job is to make sure that everything in the shop is clean and presentable. The cleaner benefits from this by getting a monthly salary and may get a discount on the products he/she buys from the business. Task 5 In this task I will be explaining the meaning of external customers. I will also be giving examples of what an external customer is. External customers An external customer is an individual or business outside of the company who receives goods or services from that particular company. For example: Banks Banks are external customer because they benefit from the money that is given by companies. They benefit from this money because when the money is given to the bank the bank loans the money to other companies and make profits off of it e.g.(interest). Suppliers The suppliers are external customers because they provide the products for the businesses and the businesses therefore buy the products from them. The suppliers make a profit from that money used to pay for the product which enables the people who work with the supplier to get a salary. People People are external because they buy products from the business and in return they get good service and quality products. Task 6 Customers at Superdrug and their needs and expectations In this task I will be identifying 4 types of customers I came across while working at Superdrug and what their needs and expectations were. While on my work experience I came across a range of different customers such as: * The elderly * Disabled * Teenager I didn’t come across the external customers who are: * The cleaners * Bank * The manager * Insurance company Internal customer needs at Superdrug Store Manager The store Manager needs to come to the store and buy product in-order for him/her to get paid. The manager also needs employees to come to work early in-order for the store to open if no-one comes in to work the business will have to get closed down and the manager will lose his job. He/she also needs holiday entitlement Security guard The security guard needs to get paid for his/her services. Him/her also need to have at least one lunch break and needs to be useful e.g. (watching out for thieves). External customer needs at Superdrug Bank The bank needs Superdrug to put more money into it that they take out so the bank can make profits. The bank also needs the money to get into the bank on-time and always have some of that money in the bank. Insurance company The needs of the insurance company are for Superdrugs to pay them. Elderly To meet customer needs knowledge of the products are necessary. A lot of elderly customers come in to the store for the in-store pharmacy, the customers brings their prescription to the counter and or they may ask you for something you will have to understand what they need so that the customer can purchase the product. The customers are also like to be buying the product from a decent enough price and have good quality. Teenagers Superdrug attracts a lot of teenage customers because they like to buy a lot of hair products and perfumes. They need good value for money as they don’t work to get money themselves and quality products. Internal customer expectations at Superdrug Store Manager The store Manager expects employees to come in every day and give good customer service and expects a permanent job. He/she also expects the employees to be polite and pleasant to him/her, and expects the business to look after him/her e.g.(sick pay). Security guard The security expects to be treated with respect by all staff in the store, a lot of thieves come into the store everyday and if the security is to catch one of those thieves he/she expects to be praised and maybe get a pay rise for the hard work. For his/her service of making sure goods are not thieved from the store he/she expects to benefit from the business by getting a months salary and also may get discounts from the business. External customer expectations at Superdrug Bank The bank expects Superdrug to pay their money on time and use they right forms. They also expect the money to come in regularly. Insurance company The Insurance Company expect Superdrug to pay their money on time every month and not make untrue claims because this will make the insurance company lose out on money. They also expect Superdrug to fill the form out correctly when apply for that particular company. Elderly Elderly customers expect to be treated with respect and when asking for a prescription they expect staff to be polite and the prescription to be dealt with quickly and efficiently. Elderly customers also expect to have easy access around the store. Teenagers Teenagers expect good customer service from employees. They also expect the products to be of good quality and value for money. They also expect for the product that they want is always available. Task 7 Customer’s expectations at Superdrug are quiet high and are always increasing. While on my work experience I came across many different types of customer, below are just a few examples of customers I came across in the business and what their needs and expectation were. Task 8 Why you have to present yourself appropriately and prepare your work area before customers arrive in Superdrug. In this task I will be explaining why it is important that staff present themselves appropriately and prepare their work area before customers arrive. In Superdrug the majority of customers are members of the public, the appearance of both the staff and the premises are very important. It is important in a retail business that staff pays attention to their appearance because customers expect you to be smartly dressed, and also to be approachable this includes having good hygiene. It is important that I had a positive attitude towards customers so that they may feel welcome to return back to the store and buy products. Knowledge of products and services is also very important because customers won’t always know about the product so they would seek advice from staff. In Superdrug it is important that the work area is clean and tidy before customers arrive to provide a pleasant and sufficient environment to give the impression to the customers that the store is well looked after. It is important that equipment is easily accessible to those who need to use it. For example the tills would be turned on and appropriate amount of cash put in, and televisions advertising certain products so that customers can buy them. The work tops will also be cleaned before customers arrive. It is also important to keep store safe for customers at all times this can be done by making sure that the till area is always tidy and making sure the walking areas no obstructions such as boxes and plastic wrappers left from staff stacking items. There would also be security staff protecting the store. Task 9 How Superdrug staff prepare themselves and their work area for customer service In this task I will be describing how staff in Superdrug prepares themselves and their work area for customer service. Staff Positive attitude While on my work experience I had positive attitude when dealing with customers and was enthusiastic about the products I was selling. It is also important that I was polite and understood the customer’s needs so that the customer will be happy to buy the product I was describing to them. Personal presentation In Superdrug it was expected of me to be professionally presented. The customers will have certain expectations including being approached by staff that is clean, smartly dressed and has good personal hygiene. Dress code I was instructed by the manager to arrive at the Superdrug wearing a smart black blouse with smart black trouser and black shoes (no trainers). It is also expected of me to have clean hair and brushed teeth so my breath does not smell while talking to customers. Posture It was important that I had good posture which means standing up straight and looking confident so that you look approachable by customers. If I did not have a good posture for example slouching with my hands in my pocket customers may think I can’t be bothered and I don’t care about my job, therefore customers will not feel comfortable approaching me. Personal space It is important that when I was talking to a customer face to face that I was to stand at least arms length away from them. Standing closer than the recommended length is invading that customer’s personal space and they may feel uncomfortable. Standing further away from the customer may give them the impressions that you are either scared or you don’t have time for them. First impressions First impression of a business is very important. If a shop is first opening and the shop floor is dirty and staff looks scruffy, the customers may think the business is not run properly and may not get the chance to see the products. The customers will see the dirt and poor appearance of the staff and will expect the product to be poor quality. Knowledge of products and services Customers expect staff to know about the products and services that the retail outlet provides. It is important that staff familiarise themselves with the layout of the shop floor, this will enable staff to provide information regarding products (e.g. product whereabouts). While on my work experience at Superdrugs it was required of me to have knowledge of the section I was working in and also know other sections around the store, I was given a sheet of paper showing everything that was in the store and where they were. By the end of the day I knew where every thing was on the shop floor, when customers approached me asking where a particular item was, I was able to tell them straight away. It helped to have the section I was given to work in because I had a lot of knowledge of those products as I am always buying those products myself. Organisations guidelines and standards required for customer service It is essential that Superdrug have a customer service policy that states the required standard for customer service. This ensures that employees know what to do when they are dealing with customers and will help them provide a high standard of customer care. Teamwork It is important that staff are good at working as a team, this can improve your customer service skills as you would have to use the same skills in order to build a good relationship with your team workers. For example listening skills, negotiation skills and assertiveness. Teamwork involves sharing ideas and working together, for example in Superdrug on the pharmacy counter processing customers prescriptions is customer service staff working with each other the till staff send prescription info to a computer behind the scenes, the prescription is then processed and given to the customer. Work area Appropriate equipment In Superdrug it is important that the work area is clean and tidy before customers arrive to provide a pleasant and sufficient environment to give the impression to the customers that the store is well looked after. It is important that equipment is easily accessible to those who need to use it. For example the tills would be turned on and appropriate amount of cash put in, and televisions advertising certain products so that customers can buy them. Safe and tidy work area It is important in that Superdrug keep the work area clean and tidy. I did this by making sure that I cleaned up my rubbish after stacking the shelves. If the store is not kept safe and tidy it could cause hazards and may result in customers injuring themselves. It is also important that the workplace is kept tidy because staff may find it is easier to lose important documents. Efficient use of space It is important that in Superdrug there is enough space for all types of customers to walk about with. For example mothers with buggies and disabled people in wheelchairs. It is also important that items displayed on the shelves are easy reach by customers of average height. Remember high shelves can make it hard for shorter people to reach. Health and safety By law all employees/staff are required to take responsibility of their own health and safety and that of other e.g. (customers). It is also important that when staff use equipment they clean up after themselves or put the equipment in its rightful place. For example, when stacking out items on the shelves make sure the boxes or the products wrapping is not obstructing the aisles, this could cause a customer to trip and injure themselves. Fire safety It is important that staff follow the procedures of fire safety. All members of staff should know what to do in an event of fire and where the equipment is, for example marked fire exits, emergency evacuation procedures and fire extinguishers. While on my work experience on the first day I was shown all the nearest fire exits and it was explained to me what I should do in an event of fire. There was a practice fire alarm and it was my job to make sure that all customers were safe and evacuated the building immediately. Accident It is important that all staff in Superdrug no what to do in case of an accident to an employee or customer. If a customer or employee has been injured it is important that you notify an appropriate member of staff e.g. (manager, first aider). If the injury severe you should dial 999 and ask for an ambulance. Task10 Health and Safety risks in the workplace Task 11 In this task I will identifying four possible hazards found in Superdrug. Four possible hazards in Superdrug Poor maintenance Slips, trip and falls Fire exits Smoking Task 12 In this task I will be identifying the potential hazards and risk in Superdrug. I will also be explaining how the hazards and risks could harm employees and customers. Hazards Risks Poor Maintenance If shelves are broken and not repaired quickly. A customer might want an item which is on a high shelf not knowing that is broken they will pick up the item and the products could fall on the customer which may cause an injury. If shelves are broken and not repaired quickly. An employee can be stacking the shelves not knowing the shelf is broken they will stack items on there and the shelves will collapse onto the person causing an injury. Slips, Trips and Falls If the floor has just been cleaned and a hazard sign has not been put up. A customer could walk into the store not knowing the floor is wet, they would then walk in that wet area and slip and injure them self. If an employee has just finished their task of unpacking products and stacking them on the shelves and they leave the rubbish on the floor, another employee could walk by not knowing the rubbish is there, the could trip over rubbish and fall and injure themselves. Fire exits If the fire exits are not clearly labelled for customers in an event of fire customers could be a great danger. If employees leave their boxes and rubbish in front of the fire exits in an event of fire people won’t be able to get out of the building and will then result in a lot of staff and customers getting injured. Smoking It is important that customers do not smoke in the building because if they are to drop the cigarette on the floor without putting out, this could cause the building to set on fire and put a lot of lives in danger. If employees are to smoke in the building they at risk of injuring themselves and others around them, everyone around them will be breathing in second hand smoke which could damage their body severely. The employee is also at risk of causing a fire and getting sacked. Task 15 In this task I will be explaining the meaning of communication. The meaning of communication Communication is when people interact with each other and share information. For example, while on my work experience I listened to customer’s needs and what they had to say which is that they wanted to buy a 3 mobile, then I gave back the right information on products and services in order for them to buy the products they wanted. Task 16 Why it is important to have good communication skills It is important to have a good level of communication skills because in the retail industry a large proportion of the work is dealing with customers verbally. Customers expect retail staff to be helpful, polite and to be well presented. Retail staff are required to have a good level of spoken English in order to understand customer needs and to be able to clearly provide information on request. Throughout my work experience I think I had very good communication skills towards customers I feel that I showed that I was enthusiastic about what I was doing. And there for customers would not hesitate to approach me. In the end it is important that the customers get what they want, the business then makes money and customers will be happy to return to the store. Task 17 In this task I will be explaining 3 types of communication I came across when approaching staff in a business Verbal communication One example of verbal communication that I came across as a customer was that when I asked a member of staff for a particular item they explain very clearly where the item was and they were very welcoming and polite Non-verbal communication One example of non-verbal communication that I came across was that when I tried to approach a member of staff in a store they didn’t even make eye contact with me they just pointed to a section of the store. Body language One example of body language that I came across is that when I tried to ask a till cashier for some information they just shrugged their shoulders with an angry face like I done something wrong. Task 18 In this task I will be identifying six communication skills and why they are important Appropriate spoken English It is important to have appropriate spoken English in Superdrug. While on my work experience it was important that I was polite to customers and that my language was clear and straightforward so that customers would fell comfortable buying the products and to return back to the store. Level and tone of voice When speaking to customers it was important that I pay close attention to my level and tone of voice. For example, if my tone of voice is too loud the customer may think I am being angry towards them. The level of voice should be balanced, not too loud and not too quiet. Welcoming In Superdrug it is important to be welcoming and friendly. For example, I welcomed every customer that came into the store and ask if they needed any help finding anything. This encourage .customers to return to the store/ Listening In Superdrug it was important that I know how to listen to customers. I made sure that I listened to the customer’s needs and what they wanted. I showed that I understood the customers and didn’t interrupt them unnecessarily. Assisting It is important to offer and give help to customers. While on my work experience I made sure I did this. For example, opening doors for customers with lots of bags, this will encourage customers to come back to the store. I also offered to get products from high shelves and if the customer was looking for a product that my store didn’t sell I advised them on what others stores would sell the product. Questioning Questioning is very important in customer services in Superdrug. When customers first enter the store the first contact with them was in form of a question. For example, ‘how can I help you Sir/Miss?’ or ‘what are you looking for?’ Questioning helped me find out the needs of the customer. Which then gave me information on what they needed, to ask another question like, ‘what is your budget for this item?’. M3 How can I provide good customer care and services? In this task I will be describing how I can provide consistent customer care and services. Good customer care It is important in Superdrug that customers are satisfied with the way they have been treated; giving good customer care and loyalty will attract more customers to the store and keep Superdrug in business. Giving good customer care means being polite and helpful to customers. It is important that I listen carefully to customers and ask them questions so I get an understanding of what the customer wants so that I can get the right products for the customer. Having a positive attitude towards customers is mostly important because without a positive attitude customers will receive a negative vibe and therefore will not feel comfortable with me serving them. For example, while on my work experience customers asked for products that were no sold at the Superdrug store, instead of saying ‘we don’t have that’ I recommended them to a store that might have it. It is important when providing customers with information that I am clear and accurate about the product and that I confirm that the customer understands the information I have supplied. It is good to remember that when a customer enters the store, try and give customers more than they pay for. Good customer services When customers enter the store they should be assisted. In Superdrug every customer that entered the store was given information on the products that were sold there and the products features. It is important in Superdug to provide after sales care such as refund and guarantees. Communicating with customers is an essential part of customer service. This includes letting them know what services are available and making sure they are happy with the product I have sold to them. Good customer service in Superdrug attracts more customers and increases sales. It also improves the business reputation which means more customers just through recommendations. For example, two main factors that contribute to its business success are Superdrugs commitment to high standard of service and the expertise of its staff. To maintain these standards and keep staff up to date with new products Superdrug invests in training. D2 The importance of providing good customer care and services Importance of good Customer service Customer service is the provision of care to customers from pre-service to after sales service. It may be face-to-face, over the telephone, written or via new technology using e-mail and the Internet. Superdrug use customer care to create an overall impression of an organisation that puts the needs of the customer first, to ensure quality and increase sales over competititors. Increasingly, Superdrug have customer services departments or customer services desks whose job is to ensure the efficient process of delivering customer care, including provision for those customers with special needs. Superdrug produce literature, which outlines their Customer Care Policy or Charter; this may include their policy on refunds, warranties, after sales service and how to make a complaint. Customer service is very important part of any business organisation. Bibliography BTEC introduction business-published by Heinemann in 2005 Heinemann Educational Publishers Halley Court, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8EJ ISBN 978 0 435401 21 4 John Ruskin college intranet site Superdrug 452-456 Brixton Rd

Solo written report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Solo written report - Assignment Example I believe that I am well qualified academically and with experience for this position that offers good opportunities. The key strengths that make me the competitive candidate for this position include; the ability to network effectively, I have a desire to impact positively not only to the clients but also colleagues, I am also able to work in a team work environment. I also have a strong character and am always ready to learn new things. I am a person that customers will rely on because I am confident and well spoken person. I have wider experience is similar career environment hence you can place me in any place and am confident I will deliver. I am hoping that my education and experience will warrant a face-to-face meeting because am sure that I will deliver quality services that will add value to the organization. Yours Sincerely Alex CURRICULUM VITAE PERSONAL DATA: LAST NAME: (ALL CAPS) Name as it appears on your passport: First Name: Middle Name / Other Names: Physical Street A ddress for courier delivery (NOT A POSTAL BOX): Telephone Home: Telephone Mobile: Telephone Office: Email 1: alex@hotmail.com Email 2: Marital Status: Date of Birth: DAY/MONTH/YEAR Gender: Country of Origin: Present Nationality: Languages and Fluency Level: EDUCATION: Degree Earned, University of Toronto 2007 to 2011 Example: Bachelors of Commerce degree in Finance and Economics, University of Toronto, Toronto Canada WORK HISTORY: Assistant Financial advisor, XBA international, 40100-567 Toronto Canada, 2011 to 2012 July Start and End Date (Mo/Year), Name of Supervisor I was assistant financial advisor and I advised the organization on financial matters. Budget planning for the organization Oversee Internal auditing exercise Senior Financial Advisor XBA International 40100-567 Toronto Canada 2012 July up to date Advising the company on financial matters TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Course Name, CPA 1- K Institute of accounting Toronto Canada 20010- 2011 Introduction: With a soon-to-be completed Bachelors of Commerce degree in Finance and Economics, I wish to apply for the position of financial advisor as posted on November 18th in the website of www.monster.ca. I have the confidence that I am the most suitable person for this job, and I could perform these duties in the best interest of Investors Group. After an extensive research about your financial group, I am inspiring by applying to such a reputable financial services group. The following summary is the qualities and skills that I would like to provide to Investors Group. Investors Group’s history is counting over 80 years. In 1926 the fist Canadian office was established, and Theodore O. Peterson becomes the company’s first President in 1946. After four years in 1950 Investors Group launches the first mutual fund in Canada and international mutual fund after 12 years in 1962.In 1986, Power Financial Corporation becomes the parent company of Investors Group and the new corporate he ad office became reality on 1988 †One Canada Center† . Moreover, in 1997 Investors Group joins Great-West Life in the purchase of London Life and I.G Investment Management, Ltd. Opens

Figure from American History Ronald Reagan Scholarship Essay

Figure from American History Ronald Reagan - Scholarship Essay Example The paper says that security is key to the stability of the American economy. This had an overall effect of increased economic prosperity. However, with the recent trends of Arab uprising and American intervention, there arises a security concern directly linked to terrorism. The motive behind US intervention is unknown, but arming locals to topple governments after which the recovery of such weapons becomes impossible is a serious issue which calls for a decisive solution to the problem of terrorism. Global inflation is another issue with which I would want Reagan to give me his views upon. America plays an important role in its involvement in international affairs and a curious issue I would want to discuss with him is the increasing Chinese presence in developing countries and whether this issue undermines American interests abroad in any way and if so what policies would he have implemented to contain china’s increasing influence in those spheres. To sum up, I think Reagan is unique in that he is able to elaborate on the issue of security more amicably than anyone else. His policies would be much effective in solving the current global problems that the world is experiencing such as; inflation, global warming, terrorism and the proliferation of arms in the unstable Arab world. Security has always been on top of the priorities of America, thus it would be prudent to get involved in an intellectual discourse with someone well versed in security matters. That person would be Ronald Reagan!!!

Cyber Security in Business Organizations Case Study

Cyber Security in Business Organizations - Case Study Example Information security failures tip the balance and expose organizations to the aforementioned threats. Organizations are challenged by the trend to ‘go global’ which implies that security programs should encompass the entire global market of a firm. In effect, this means that each individual unit of the firm dispersed globally should take responsibility for the security risks that are encountered. Despite having a strong central security infrastructure in place, ownership is an important issue that drives information security forward, especially in situations where the business critical applications lie outside the infrastructure (Johnson and Goetz, 2007). Internal organizational factors are also critical to the information security challenge. Education and consultancy within the organization has become important to ensure that employees understand what they are asking for so that security professionals can better respond to the need of the situation. However, spreading awareness through consultancy is not an absolute solution. Many organizational members are resistant to change and change management is a subject executives are often concerned about. Facilitating a proactive work culture and involving line managers to take responsibility and auditors to enforce security can be pivotal. This can ensure compliance and help deal with information security issues by making internal employees accountable (Johnson and Goetz, 2007). Protecting data and information in the midst of mobile technology has become an even greater challenge. The new age of smart phones has built a collaborative environment where protecting information security and intellectual property has become a great concern. Permissions are granted through a strong identity management system to access the information. However, a lot of it has to do with policy making and the enforceability of such policies. Compliance with information security standards is another challenge for many

The class castle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The class castle - Essay Example The movie starts with seventeen-year old Michael who is homeless and living on the streets. Growing up, he had been moved from one foster home to another and now he had taken upon himself to live alone. Out of circumstances including Coach Burt Cotton’s belief that due to his imposing built Michael will prove to be an asset for the school football team, he is admitted into the private and exclusive Wingate Christian School despite his poor academic record. There, due to his childish personality and his inability to connect with people of his own age group he befriends the youngest Tuohy kid, S.J Tuohy (Jae Head). The story begins when Michael Oher is spotted on the street wearing nothing but shorts and T-shirt in the dead of winter by a devout Christian Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock).   Leigh Anne is a strong willed woman who is an established interior designer and the franchise owner of several Taco Bells. Upon learning that Michael is one of her daughter’s classmates she invites him into her house for the night. Next morning when Michael makes to leave, Leigh Anne insists that he spend the Thanksgiving weekend with her family. What started as a gesture of kindness on Leigh Anne’s part slowly turns into something more as Michael becomes a part of the Tuohy family despite the doubts expressed by Leigh Anne’s rich friends. One of them is even strongly rebuked for trying to tell Leigh Anne that her teenage daughter Collins (Lily Collins) is not safe around him. Leigh Anne and her easygoing husband Sean (Tim McGraw) provide Michael with all the support he needs to become a good player on the field. He has a shaky start due to his gentle nature. Leigh Anne on learning that Michael scored 98% in â€Å"protective instincts† in his career aptitude test advices the Coach to tap into his protective instincts. She makes Michael realize that the teammates are

The Human Resources Department of NL&C Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Human Resources Department of NL&C - Essay Example Given the recent issues of NL&C's human resource management, all effort must be made to comply with federal and state law while clearly defining the company's expectations for each position. Clearly, "the law allows the employer to establish the basic job requirements and work standards-as long as those criteria do not discriminate based on the protected classifications found in federal and state employment discrimination laws." (Fick 19) The job descriptions and employee manual will protect NL&C from any litigious misunderstandings with future employees. Second, the company needs to quantify its diversity goals. Given the need for bi-lingual employees in the call center, clear diversity recruitment goals will assist the department in maintaining a workforce representative of the varied cultures we serve. Further, articulated diversity objectives will be evidence that management is aware of the need to reflect community populations, include represented minorities in its labor force, and is proactively addressing any deficiencies. We know from research that our website will be a good source for recruitment because when "...diverse candidates hear about a position, the first thing they do, says Susan Oxford, AIRS senior director of training, research and development, is check out the company's Web site to see if it's diversity friendly" (Bennett 2). Therefore, we will instruct our web designer to immediately place a "Job Openings" section on the site and include text regarding our diversity policy. Online Job Posting One of our most effective approaches to obtaining the best candidates for the 50 positions we are filling will be online sources. In addition to our corporate website, we can make the "online world [our] recruiting partner" by using college student career centers, state workforce development programs, non-cost online job banks, and other sources (Heathfield). Once our recruitment ad is approved, we will disseminate this information to as many online sources as possible. Local media advertising The most obvious primary source for recruitment will be a classified ad in the regional and local newspapers. This will provide NL&C with a locally-based response so that potential employees may be interviewed and trained as quickly as possible. In addition to these primary sources, we will be focusing on two additional and specialized recruitment tools. Specialized Sources (Bi-lingual) In-house referrals We will immediately poll our current roster of Hispanic and minority employees to solicit applications from their associates. We know that: Employee referrals top every recruiter's list as the best way to get good new employees, but referrals are underutilized in diversity recruiting, says John Sullivan, head of the human-resource program at San Francisco State University. "Seek out your diverse employees," he says, "and encourage them to recruit from their relatives, diverse colleagues at other firms, professional associations, religious groups and social

Motivating High School Student Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Motivating High School Student - Essay Example The report further showed that over his/her lifetime, the cost to the economy for an average high school dropout is roughly $240,000 due to lower taxes, higher government aid program receipts, and higher crime rates. One important factor in high school students dropping out or completing their classes late is the lack of motivation in studying. A study conducted in 2006 showed that 7 out of 10 high school dropouts quit school because of lack of motivation (Bridgeland, Dijulio, & Morison, 2006). Therefore, it is important to keep the high school students motivated so that they complete their classes successfully and in time. This paper discusses about some of the best ways to motivate high schools students to complete their classes, with a sense of accomplishment and pride, and graduate with their peers. Before discussing on how to motivate high school students, it is important to understand the underlying reasons that make students unmotivated to complete their classes. A study (2006 ) conducted by questioning 467 dropouts from different ethnic backgrounds shows several factors that contribute to the lack of motivation of high school students eventually leading to their dropping out. ... 2) 43% said that they had missed too many classes and were not able to catch up. 38% said that they had too much freedom and not enough rules. It was too easy for them to skip classes. 3) 42% of the respondents said that spending time with other people not interested in school was the reason they dropped out of high school. 4) Pace of instructions at high school was also identified as another reason. When students needing extra attention do not receive it, they are likely to drop out. Poor pre-high school education was also identified as a major stumbling block as 45% said that their earlier schooling had poorly prepared them for high school and 35% said that failing in school was their reason for dropping out of high school. 5) 80% of dropouts said that they did one hour or less of homework each day in high school. Also, two-thirds of them claimed that had they been demanded to study harder, they would probably have completed high school. 6) Another important reason for dropping out was poor involvement of their parents. They said that their parents got involved in their schooling only for discipline reasons or only after they learnt that their child was on the verge of dropping out. Most parents were not aware of their child’s grades. Several of respondents also said that they had to leave school for personal reasons like having to get a job and making money (32%), becoming a parent (26%), and having a family to care for (22%). Having understood the reasons why high school students choose to dropout, we now focus on the best ways to motivate the high school students so that they can overcome these problems and complete their classes. Sass (1989) asked his students to give feedback on two recent classes, one where they felt they were highly motivated and

The main dangers of using mergers or acquisitions as a form of market Essay

The main dangers of using mergers or acquisitions as a form of market entry - Essay Example Mergers or acquisitions may be defined as an aspect of corporate finance or strategy and management that involves buying, selling and combination of various companies.The objective of combining is to finance or assist a company that is growing to grow fast without forming another business entity. The two terms have a slight difference, on one hand, acquisition may refer to a company taking over another and establishing itself as a new owner. On the other hand, merger occurs when two companies agree to operate as one new company. As suggested by Turner and Johnson (2010), in both cases, that is merger and acquisition the outcome is that one company swallows another and operates as one. For instance in 1999, Glaxo Wellcome merged with SmithKline Beecham creating GlaxoSmithKline as a new company. Practically, equal mergers do not often happen, in most cases a company purchases another and allows it claim that it was equal merger, despite the fact of it being technically acquisition. How ever merges or acquisitions are said to have several risks when used as the entry to the market. Mergers and acquisitions have the tendency of destroying continuity of leadership in the particular company’s management. This might happen for even over a decade since the starting of the deal. Studies have shown that the targeted companies may lose about twenty percent of their executives prior the acquisition. Mergers and acquisitions in most cases create problems in the brand. ... The issue different consumer preferences may also be endangered by M&A. This occurs when upcoming company chooses to change the products. Changes may also occur in terms of price of product. One of the motives of M&A is to make the prices higher hence maximizing profits. The risk involved is that the consumer may change their attitude and fall to consume the products. This in turn endangers the growth of the company. The resulting company is faced with the risk of operation after the transaction as suggested by Segal-Horn and Faulkner (2010). For instance the personnel management may become slow because it is either new employees are incorporated or the existing ones become overloaded. The personnel department usually takes long to adapt to the changes thus proofing a slow growth in the progress of the new business. The effect on personnel therefore makes market entry not to be effective. The management of information and risks is also dangerous factor in M&A. The previous ways of tr ansferring information may seem difficulty as a result of new workers or overload. The resulting company may become exposed to many risks due to the merger whilst the method of managing them may take long to devise. The cost of risk management may also be high at the time of market entry. This is dangerous because at this time the company is still trying to cope with the current situation. According to Deresky (2003), cultural differences and barriers proof to be dangerous to M&A in market entry. For instance, the lack of knowledge about the resulting market may be a danger to the resulting company or firm. The market may respond negatively to the merger thus result to poor sales. This will cost a lot to the new company as one of the merger

Analyzing the audeince Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Analyzing the audeince - Essay Example The process also adds undesired industrial activities into communities like clearing land and generating toxic waste that contribute to water and air pollution (Adam, 2005). These pollutions are devaluing land, hence turning community land into sacrificial zones. The state authorities are also involved because they want to maintain the regulatory mandate at state level, rather than surrender it to Federal regulations (Pyle, 2012). The investors and manufacturers are in it for the purpose of fighting against further regulations. Hydraulic fracturing avails to them affordable, domestic and reliable natural gas supplies. If a ban is not imposed, this supply has the potential to save them USD 11 billion annually for the next decade (Pyle, 2012). On top of the natural gas yielded by the process, the manufacturers also get extra products like ethane and butane. The citizens and environmental authorities will expect a research to confirm that hydraulic fracturing threatens the water they drink and air they breathe so that a complete ban may be imposed (Adam, 2005). State authorities will expect a research to confirm they are capable and better placed to regulate the natural gas industry instead of a Federal takeover. Finally the investors and manufacturers will expect the research to come up with no incriminating evidence against their activities, thus nullifying a

Cebu Pacific Essay Example for Free

Cebu Pacific Essay A. Economic Forces Generating billions in revenues and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. In recent years, the global aviation industry has been through many ups and downs. From skyrocketing fuel prices to pandemics to recent financial crisis, aviation industry has confronted a very rough weather in last ten years or so. Consolidation in mature markets, higher ticket prices, modernization of airports, policies to reduce emissions and tremendous growth prospects in emerging economies have been some of the trends during the decade. According to recent industry reports, the global aviation industry is on the path of recovery and future looks optimistic and would present ample opportunities for the stakeholders. The airline industry is inextricably tied to the overall economy – even minor recessions result in reduced demand and increased sensitivity to prices for leisure as well as business travellers. Changes in the economy have a big affect on the airline industry. The elasticity of demand, externalities, wage inequality, and monetary, fiscal, and federal policies all have an impact on this industry. The airline industry is constantly changing due to today’s market and today we will be looking at the reasons behind it. By successfully managing opportunity cost, and adapting to an ever changing economic environment, airline industries can have economic success.However, the well-being of the nation’s economy will have a direct impact on the level of success experienced in the airline industry. During economic shortfalls in the nation’s economy, travellers will have fewer resources available to travel for pleasure. Contributing to the negative economic influences in the airline industry, future and existing policies targeting the airline industry will continue to hinder the industry’s ability to recover losses in periods of economic hardships. The launch of low cost airlines in Philippines has provided a boost for the  industry. Airlines that have been part of this trend are Asian Spirit and Southeast Asian Air, offering affordable fares to local and even international destinations. The public seems to have embraced this, as the rate of flying passengers has increased. This increased not only accounts for new fliers but also regular flying passengers who were on a budget and now have a choice to choosing budget over luxury. There are quite a few negative externalities in the airline industry. Another thing that the economy is affecting the airline industry is the competing airlines. The bigger airlines can afford lower fares which make it hard for the smaller airlines to compete. Different airlines have plans to expand but will not be able to until the cost of fuel is under control. For the low fare carriers who allow advanced booking, they will need to work on a plan to avoid bankruptcy. This will make the airline industry continue to boost prices due to the fact that oil prices are expected to continue rising due to the supply. B. Political Forces In 1973, from the Letters of Instruction (151 and 151A) the airline industry in the Philippines was monopolized by Philippine Airlines (PAL). The monopoly lasted for more than twenty years until the Executive Order 19 in 1995 which liberalized the airline industry establishing the domestic and international civil aviation liberalization policy in the country. The E.O 219 stipulates the removal of restrictions on routes and flight frequencies, as well as government control on fares and charges. Following the liberalization, the industry attracted new entrants such as Cebu Pacific, Air Philippines, Grand Air, and Mindanao Express. Unfortunately, Grand Air and Mindanao Express were unsuccessful, and then SEAir and Asian Spirit come to birth. Today, airline industry in the Philippines is under the regulations of Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) under the civil aviation sector. The Civil Aviation sector is composed of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), Mactan Cebu International Airport  Authority (MCIAA), Philippine Aerospace Development Corporation (PADC), Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) (formerly known as ATO). The Department continuously upgrades and improves the international and domestic airport facilities to meet international standards and to provide better service to the commuters. On the other hand, our airline regulatory boards also recognize the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The ICAO has several regulations that the local boards are following. Last March 19, 2009, the ISO 9001:2000 Certificate for NAIA terminal 1 was awarded by Anglo Japanese American (AJA) Registrars, Inc. after passing the Phase 1 Audit of the Passenger Facilitation Processes. On May 21, 2009 MIAA was given the upgraded ISO 1991:2008 Certification making the Authority and the NAIA Terminal 1 one of the very few institutions in the country that have passed this upgraded level of certification. Today, airline industry in the Philippines is facing a big issue in international safety standard. Early this year, the European Union banned airlines from Angola and vowed to block carriers from Sudan and the Philippines from starting flights to the 27-country bloc. The European Transport Commissioner SiimKallas said that they cannot accept airlines fly into EU if they do not fully comply with international safety standards. The Philippine authorities and airlines mad efforts to resolve this issue but still Philippines would be banned from the EU precaution. C. Socio-Cultural Forces Obesity One controversy surrounds the issue of airline companies tightening their seat restrictions for obese passengers. Some companies have gone as far as to charge an overweight individual the cost of two seats because of their size. This has created a stir, as it brings up the question of discrimination. As indelicate as this issue is, airline companies contend that it simply costs more to fly those more portly passengers. According to Newsweek, â€Å"A study concluded that the 10 pounds Americans gained on average during the 1990s required an additional 350 million gallons of fuel a year.†Ã‚  So it would seem that this issue has less to do with discrimination and more to do with simple arithmetic. Security Airline companies have undergone a dramatic shift in the safety precautions they take, upping the ante in security measures due to recent terrorist attacks. And while the increase in security may, on some level, ease the mind of the pilots, passengers and their families, it also increases the anxiety and frustration with the amount of time and effort it takes to get from the airport ticket counter to the terminal gate. Because of the few successful breaches in security that have occurred over the past decade, airlines will never again have the luxury of being so lax in terms of their security. Ethnicity Perception is a major factor in how we view the world. It is also one of the oldest studies in psychology. How we perceive ethnicity, as it relates to air travel, has much to do with September 11, 2001. Since then the eyes of the world have grown increasingly sensitive to the ethnicity of passengers travelling on airplanes. It has created something of a negative perception for particular races and religions. Bloomberg Business week reports, â€Å"Airline experts and executives say it’s important not to exaggerate the effects of terrorism fears.† However, because airline companies have had to exercise increased security measures because of terrorism, and because passengers have grown increasingly aware of possible threats, those perceptions are not easily dismissed. D. Technological Forces Internet as a way to book flights, check in, and check flight status – Before, ticketing offices were often jam-packed by people who wants to book flights, and most of the time, they are becoming irritated of the situation. Now, with the dawn of the Internet and Cebu Pacific Air’s entry to the world wide web, customers can now book flights without going to a ticketing office, pay their billings securely using Credit/Debit card, they can even change their flight details without bothering to go personally to CEB office, and check flight status that will be a much-used during storm  seasons and other obstacles that might hinder the the flight. Always new and improved software for airlines Acquiring and continuously upgrading its software is a very big positive impact for the company. It is a way of telling your customers and prospective customers that your airline will not cause them any hassles and troubles in the near future. Aside from having it as an impression of promising greatness, generally, all will follow to the good lead. New technology for airline employees Airline employees should be introduced with new technologies to avoid having problems in the future. The airline had purchased new equipments, machines to shorten the queue, but if they have no idea of how it operates, you will not obtain your objective. So every employee must be knowledgeable of technologies for we are now in the 21st century. New pilot training courses Finishing a course to become a pilot is not enough. Even if you have become one of the airline’s pilot, you still have to go through series of training courses and seminars to keep on track. Learning does not stop. Therefore as Cebu Pacific Air’s vow to excellence and safety, they are launching several training courses to avoid a doubt, if there is, for a customer to think whether the pilot is competent enough. By this, passengers can seat safe and sound. New security technology Website hacking is like an infectious virus that was troubling many people nowadays. But with the new security technology, customers will not have any bad thinking about paying securely using their Credit/Debit card. Cebu Pacific Air’s paying system was verified by Visa, MasterCard and VeriSign. It is a big sign that the airline has a very strong security technology that no hackers can destroy. E. Environmental Forces Contrails short for â€Å"condensation trails† or vapour trails are artificial clouds that are the visible trails of condensed water vapour made by the  exhaust of aircraft engines. As the hot exhaust gases cool in the surrounding air they may precipitate a cloud of microscopic water droplets. If the air is cold enough, this trail will comprise tiny ice crystals. The wingtip vortices which trail from the wingtips and wing flaps of aircraft are sometimes partly visible due to condensation in the cores of the vortices. Each vortex is a mass of spinning air and the air pressure at the centre of the vortex is very low. These wingtip vortices are not the same as contrails. Depending on atmospheric conditions, contrails may be visible for only a few seconds or minutes, or may persist for many hours which may affect climate. The main by-products of hydrocarbon fuel combustion are carbon dioxide and water vapour. At high altitudes this water vapour emerges into a cold environment, and the local increase in water vapour can push the water content of the air past saturation point. The vapour then condenses into tiny water droplets and/or deposits into ice. These millions of tiny water droplets and/or ice crystals form the vapour trail or contrails. The vapour’s need to condense accounts for the contrail forming some way behind the aircraft’s engines. At high altitudes, super cooled water vapor requires a trigger to encourage deposition or condensation. The exhaust particles in the aircraft’s exhaust act as this trigger, causing the trapped vapour to rapidly turn to ice crystals. Exhaust vapour trails or contrails usually occur above 8000 metres (26,000 feet) and only if the temperature there is below −40  °C (−40  °F). Engine Emissions Over the years, increasing attention has been paid to the sustainable development of the aviation sector. It is now widely recognised that the costs of these externalities must be internalised and paid for by the aviation industry and its users. Of all the externalities generated from commercial flights, aircraft engine emissions have extensive impacts on human health, vegetation, materials, ecosystem and the climate. Currently, only around 10 airports have applied engine emissions surcharges, which are in Switzerland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. However, the impacts of aircraft engine emissions are a world-wide issue and have drawn significant attention in the global community. This research aims to evaluate the impacts of aircraft engine emissions  charges, based on the estimation of social costs, on airlines operating costs. The paper firstly presents the methods of assessing the social costs of aircraft engine emissions. The environmental impacts of aircraft engine emissions include both aircraft landing and take-off and the cruise stage. The social costs of aircraft emissions vary by engine type and aircraft category, depending on the damages caused by different engine pollutants on the human health, vegetation, materials, aquatic ecosystem and climate. Nine Asian airlines, covering both network full service carriers and low cost airlines, are selected for empirical analysis. The implications of aircraft engine emissions charges on the selected airlines and the corresponding effects on operating costs were measured, involving five existing intra-Asian flight routes. It was found that the aircraft engine emission charges would range from 3-12% of the airlines ¡Ã‚ ¦ operating costs, depending on the route distance, aircraft types and the nature of airline operating characteristics. Airport noise Aircraft noise is noise pollution produced by any aircraft or its components, during various phases of a flight: on the ground while parked such as auxiliary power units, while taxiing, on run-up from propeller and jet exhaust, during takeoff, underneath and lateral to departure and arrival paths, over-flying while en route, or during landing.Aerodynamic noise arises from the airflow around the aircraft fuselage and control surfaces. This type of noise increases with aircraft speed and also at low altitudes due to the density of the air. Jet-powered aircraft create intense noise from aerodynamics. Low-flying, high-speed military aircraft produce especially loud aerodynamic noise. The shape of the nose, windshield or canopy of an aircraft affects the sound produced. Much of the noise of a propeller aircraft is of aerodynamic origin due to the flow of air around the blades. The helicopter main and tail rotors also give rise to aerodynamic noise. This type of aerodynamic noise is mostly low frequency determined by the rotor speed. Much of the noise in propeller aircraft comes equally from the propellers and aerodynamics. Helicopter noise is aerodynamically induced noise from the main and tail rotors and mechanically induced noise from the main gearbox and various  transmission chains. The mechanical sources produce narrow band high intensity peaks relating to the rotational speed and movement of the moving parts. In computer modelling terms noise from a moving aircraft can be treated as a line source. Aircraft Gas Turbine engines (Jet Engines) are responsible for much of the aircraft noise during takeoff and climb. However, with advances in noise reduction technologies the airframe is typically noisier during landing. The majority of engine noise is due to Jet Noise although high bypass-ratio turbofans do have considerable Fan Noise. The high velocity jet leaving the back of the engine has inherent shear layer instability (if not thick enough) and rolls up into ring vortices. This of course later breaks down into turbulence. The SPL associated with engine noise is proportional to the jet speed (to a high power) therefore; even modest reductions in exhaust velocity will see a large reduction in Jet Noise.

Performance Measurement Of Financial And Non Financial Results Accounting Essay

Performance Measurement Of Financial And Non Financial Results Accounting Essay Every organisation strive for good performance. Performance improvement considers organisational change where management of the organisation puts in place some projects to help boost the current level of performance. In this respect the programmes may completely change the organisation behaviour and conducts to allow the changes to take effect. Management aims to increase the organisational effectiveness and efficiency in delivering its products and services. As the matter of fact performance requires performance measures to evaluate the financial and non financial results. Thereafter performance gaps and future improvement actions are planned considering ethical aspects. Most organisations use performance indicators which serve as powerful approach to monitor and improve performance. Organisations use different methods and techniques they have developed to process changes for improvement purposes. Most of people measure companys performance by looking at amount of money the company has just made. They consider profit, ROI, revenues to be the measure for performance. The main problem of considering only financial aspects of the business is that these measures report the past actions that the company may have no immediate control. Taking an example of customer aspects, they are not directly covered under financial aspects. Focusing only on financial aspects may in the long run jeopardise the companys relationship with the customers and may look for their needs with the competitor company. In view of the above a more comprehensive and clear approach is needed that put equal weight and emphasis to both financial and non financial aspects. An approach that not only considers lagging indicators but also looks forward and consider leading indicators. This prompted the researcher to consider using the Balanced scorecard framework in evaluating the performance of the Local Authorities Pensions Fund (LAPF) and to recommend actions to improve the current level of performance. The research topic explains by itself, and aims to find out the performance improvements that could be achieved when LAPF opts to implement the BSC approach. Thus the topic covers two aspects; performance improvement and the Balanced Scorecard. Balanced Scorecard ( BSC) Approach As it is mostly known, the BSC strikes the balance between the financial and non financial measures of performance. In short BSC is a framework used for evaluating business performance of a company. Kaplan and Norton consider BSC as Organisational performance management tool. As will be reviewed in Chapter two,( section 2.3) BSC involves defining company mission, strategy and measures. These should be clear and agreed upon by the interested stakeholders. After the BSC is set management should try to understand the factors that cause change and fluctuations of the BSC. These factors are very important as will lead the organisation to fully understand where and when to spend to cover the performance gaps. The following diagram ( figure 1.1) shows a simple balanced scorecard template.( adopted from Kaplan and Norton,1992.) Financial perspective Internal process perspective Vision strategy Customer perspective Learning growth perspective Figure 1.1 Balanced scorecard template For each of the four perspectives, strategic goals that link with the vision and strategy are established together with the relevant measures. For a beginner like LAPF this simple structure is recommended to maximise the chances for successful implementation. As the BSC is a continuous approach, management may later wish to adjust the objectives and measures to reflect the current operating and economic conditions. Performance improvement cycle Performance improvement is a continuous process. It can be thought of as a cycle. Consider the following diagram ( figure 2) with the explanations below. Figure 1. 2 Performance Improvement Cycle Explanations Plan: The organisation needs to know what should be accomplished and plans strategically. Plans should be integrated and aligned with the corporate strategy. Management also should set the objectives and goals to achieve the corporate strategy. The process also involves defining responsibilities and communication means, identifying talented personnel to lead the execution process. Execute: The process involves putting the plans into actions. This entails the execution of the planned activities to achieve the budgeted profit and loss account, forecasted balance sheet and cash flow statement. Normally the plans are for a short time period covering one financial year. In most cases it is done in operational level. In this study the performance will be evaluated considering 2009/10 plan budget. Check ( measure): The organisation then measures the performance using the indicators already established. This involves comparing the realised performance with the budgeted plans. Without measuring the performance ,the organisation does not know whether changes need be applied to reach the budgeted goals or to change the goals for the year. Act: At this stage ,the organisation should think and decide on new ways that may result in improvement. Here changes are important but should be carefully considered if when implemented the results will be improvements. Brain storming takes place at this stage. It is also from this stage where management should find out the root causes of bad or unsatisfactory performance and identifies hurdles to success. As will be explained in chapter three (section 2.5) implementing changes pose a challenge to many managers. It is therefore recommended that a clear and systematic process be adopted to make changes successful. Performance improvement needs changes. In another words, this is the improvement methodology stage where management can think of improvement approaches such as BSC, Six Sigma, TQM, etc. 1.2 SPONSOR COMPANY PROFILE- The Local Authorities Pensions Fund( LAPF) The Local Authorities Pensions Fund (LAPF) is a social security institution established under the LAPF Act No 9 of 2006. This Act repealed the Local Authorities Provident Act No.6 of 2000.The difference is that the former Act no 6 of 2000 was meant only for Defined Contribution Plan while the existing Act No.9 of 2006 is for Defined Benefit Plan. LAPF as one of the six social security institutions in Tanzania was established with the objective of providing social security cover to the employees of the local government authorities, agencies and Institution owned by Local Authorities. As per the Tanzanian government regulation each of these six schemes was established by different legislation and covers a defined category of people or sector. LAPF has more than 70,000 members each contributing (on a monthly basis) a total of 20% of members basic salary (an employees basic salary), of which the employers share is 15% and 5% is contributed by the employee (member). Apart from the Head Of fice (in Dodoma region) the Institution has five Zone Offices throughout the country covering 4 to 5 regions for each Zone. Vision, To become one of the best provider of social security cover in Tanzania (LAPF Act) Mission Statement, To provide social security benefits with related services to its members. (LAPF Act). In summary, the following are the main functions of the Fund: Pay benefits to insured person Improve benefits payable under the Act Register persons required by the law to contribute to the Fund Safeguard members contributions and other Funds resources Invest contributions in less risk and high returns yielding investments 1.3 PROBLEM DESCRIPTION For years now LAPF uses financial measures in evaluating the success of the Fund. As the competition in social security markets becomes an intense and rapid development in business, reliance on financial measures becomes questionable. This results to some of the financial measures to be ineffective and inefficient in evaluating the Funds performance from its operations, e.g. how to measure customer satisfaction. Through the performance measurement system any Organisation gets a comprehensive view of how it is performing. LAPF as a performance-driven and achievement-oriented in a competitive social security industry, needs to maintain an efficient performance measurement system. The system is used to track the changes in overall performance. Thus, the researcher aims to propose the use of BSC framework as the approach that will be applied in evaluating and improving the performance of the Fund. LAPF may wish to adopt the BSC system in measuring its performance to solve the problem of ineffective measures of performance recently adopted. Thus at this initial stage the aim of the study is not to implement the BSC approach. Balanced Scorecard involves both financial and non financial performance measures. In 1990, BSC was established by Robert Kaplan and David Norton to complement financial measures.The technique has recently become famous and widely adopted by some Organisations due to the benefits derived from its implementation. The application of only financial measures to evaluate performance may not give a real picture on how the Organisation performs. This prompted these Organisations to switch their strategies in assessing their performance applying critical measures (both financial and non financial) in each of the four BSC perspectives. Thus balance scorecard helps management to understand a comprehensive picture of the business operations grouped into these four categories i.e. Financial, Customers, learning and growth, and internal process. LAPF as the first time user of BSC will have to choose relevant performance measures for each of the above categories keeping in mind the nature of its business. The adoption of BSC as a set of measures will help management in formulating strategy to achieve the Funds objectives. It is believed that BSC will bring about management revolution and will provide real insight in the operations of the Fund as both financial and non financial performance measures will be employed in evaluating the success of its operations. 1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The main objective of the research is to find ways of improving LAPF performance. To achieve this, the researcher will adopt the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) framework to evaluate the performance of the Local Authorities Pensions Fund (LAPF) .The performance will be evaluated in each of the four BSC perspective i.e. financial, customers (members), internal process, and Learning growth. In this respect the researcher will compare the expected planned performance (as per the LAPF policy, budget etc) with the current performance as perceived by employees and management (resulted from questionnaires and interviews). It should be noted that the researcher DOES NOT aim or plan for BSC implementation. Other objectives are as outlined below: To assess the level of BSC understanding among employees To build positive image of BSC in the eyes of LAPF management and staff To persuade the Organisation to adopt the BSC approach To propose a BSC structure relevant to the LAPF needs, objectives and operations To find out whether the Fund has another alternative method for improving the performance besides using BSC approach Lay down foundations for further research on improving performance measurement system. 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.5.1 Main Research Question What can be the performance improvement by implementation of the Balanced Scorecard(BSC)?The case of Local Authorities Pensions Fund in Tanzania (LAPF) 1.5.2 Theoretical research questions What is Performance Measurement? How can it be improved? What is Balanced Scorecard? How widely is Balanced Scorecard used? What are the benefits of using Balanced Scorecard? What are the problems and /or challenges in implementing the BSC? How to reduce the chances of BSC failure? What are the metrics for measuring performance? Are there any other tools for improving performance measurement besides BSC? How do they differ from Balances Scorecard? 1.5.3 Empirical research questions How does LAPF measure its performance? What does LAPF understand about the BSC? Is the approach known? To what extent? Is the proposed BSC relevant to LAPF operating environment? Will the LAPF management accept changes? How does employees and management evaluate the current performance of the Fund? (As per the proposed BSC framework) What are the benefits expected to LAPF from the proposed approach? What are the challenges in the process of improving the Funds performance? What are the efforts being adopted to improve the Funds performance? Any other alternative besides the proposed approach? 1.6 PROPOSED BALANCED SCORECARD FOR LAPF Table 1 below is a proposed BSC framework for LAPF as designed by the researcher. This framework stands as the main research area as it was used to evaluate the Funds performance. The questionnaire and interview questions were based on this framework to find out what should be the level of performance ( as planned by management), what is the current level ,and what should be done to improve the current level of performance. It is expected that the contents of the BSC ( goals and measures) may be adjusted after accommodating comments from the LAPF management and staff .This research does not cover implementation of the BSC, the decision on whether to fully implement the BSC approach lies with the LAPF management ,where the Fund will have to study and plan for the implementation process. THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES PENSIONS FUND PROPOSED BALANCED SCORECARD VISION: To become the best and most preferred provider of social security in Tanzania 1 Financial Perspective Actions ( Critical Success factors) Measures Invest the contributions received in a highly and secure yield investment ( Accurate investment decision making) -Return on Investment (ROI) Survive -Increase in premium Growth -Percent increase in Cash Flows Profitability -Return on Assets Effective cost reduction -Percent reduction in cost Risk Mitigation -Percent reduction in risk occurrence -Percent of loss due to risk Budget accuracy -Percent error in forecasts 2 Members Perspective Actions ( Critical Success factors) Measures Increase membership base -Number of new members registered Members satisfaction -Frequency of members complaints -Members Survey rating -Complaints response time -Timeliness of service -Service accessibility Provide seminar and education to members -Number of seminars conducted -Market share Attract more members and retain members -Number of new members -Increase in premium -Retention rate Increase Benefits Packages -Number of new packages -Lead time (time taken to introduce new package) Marketing LAPF and its products and services -Market share 3 Internal process Perspective Actions ( Critical Success factors) Measures Process capabilities -Percent reduction in payment cycle time Provide benefit package on time -Claim processing time Service improvement -Number of customer problems reported over a period of time Quality -Percent reduction in rework -Industry quality rating Effective reporting/information system -Average time for circulation information -System availability Percent of late reports -Percent of errors in reports Maintain inter departmental team work -Number of days to communicate feedback -Information circulation time 4 Learning and Growth Perspective Actions ( Critical Success factors) Measures Training to employees -Training time per employee -Number of employees trained Employee satisfaction -Employee turnover rate -Chances for empowerment and promotions -Level of freedom of opinion and suggestions -Percent of employees suggestions and recommendations put in action -Percent of complains about salary and incentives -Response time to employees complaints Continuous innovations -New products /service Opportunity level to show creativity Team building and effectiveness -Percentage of empathy level -Percentage achievement of goals Table 1.1 LAPF proposed BSC 1.6 .1 Strategic Mapping Strategic map shows the cause-and-effect relationship. Applying the four BSC perspectives, we are able to draw a cause -and -effect logic flow to show the relationship between them. In simple words it depicts the link that exists between the perspectives. It therefore outlines what a company wants to accomplish (financially and to members) and how to accomplish it ( through effective and efficient internal processes ,supported by competent, motivated and creative employees). Figure 1.3 below shows an example of strategic map relevant to LAPF operations. Revenue (Contributions) Cash flowFinancial Operating Costs Contribution Arrears Members complaints Members satisfaction Members Claim reprocessing Payment cycle timeInternal process Employees suggestions Employees competenceLearning Employees moraleGrowth Figure 1.3 LAPF Strategic Map Explanations: If LAPF employees lack incentives to boost their morale to work, it negatively affects the time taken to process members claims. In turn this brings members complaints that cause delay in submitting contributions in time. The ultimate effect of it is insufficient cash to operate,invest and pay other beneficiaries. Incompetency employees make errors in processing the claims that necessitate reworking the claims. This increases the operating costs that reduce the cash flow status. High employees morale, shorter payment cycle time lead to members satisfaction. In turn increases contributions that boost the cash flow. Low morale, ignoring employees suggestions and incompetent employees all together result to employees dissatisfaction. This may in turn prolong the payment cycle time, which results to members dissatisfaction. Eventually this results to delay in contributions which at the end affect the Funds cash flow. Note: Figure 3 shows only some few measures as indicated in the balanced scorecard. More measures can be added and a link with a logic flow be established to show the cause and effect relationship between the BSC perspectives. 1.7 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS The research was conducted as per the LAPFs code of ethics. Participants were free, to control their own willingness to participate, contribute or even to withdrawal. Where confidentiality and anonymity was demanded the study adhered to this and make sure no harm, pain or discomfort is caused to any participant. Adherence of ethical issues in each stage of the research process from, data collection, analysis and reporting is my priority consideration. The Fund will be briefed of the research findings. 1.8 ROAD MAP This thesis comprises of five chapters. Chapter one: Consists of general introduction and the topic to be researched. It also contains brief explanations of the concepts found in the main research topic, i.e. Performance improvement and the balanced scorecard. Chapter two: Consists of all relevant literature concerning the balanced scorecard, performance improvement, and change management which is very important to consider before undertaking any programme to improve performance. I personally consider change management to be very critical and is influenced by several internal and external factors. From this chapter we will have an opportunity to understand stages that lead to successful changes. The common mistakes/errors done by the organisation when adopting changes ( which are the main causes of failure) as explained by John Kotter ,1996 are also found in this chapter. Moreover the chapter contains other performance management approaches beside the balanced scorecard and a review on how they relate or differ with the BSC. Chapter three: Comprises of methodological section. In short questionnaire and interview are the main sources of data collection for this research. In addition to this, it also includes sampling and respondents information. Chapter four: Includes the results and discussion thereof. It also includes analysis of data collected through questionnaire and interview. Chapter five: Explains the conclusions and recommendations based on the data collected. 1.9 LIMITATIONS This study has the following limitations; This research does not cover implementation of the BSC in LAPF. It is limited to the use of the proposed BSC framework to evaluate LAPF performance, where by the Funds objectives and their related measures are more specific. It is from the findings , conclusions and recommendations LAPF management may think and plan the implementation of this approach. The study is limited only to the Local Authorities Pensions Fund due to time and financial constraints. It does not cover any other firm in the social security industry in Tanzania, neither LAPF performance will be compared to preceding years performance The planned number of interviews to be conducted could not be reached as the targeted staff were out of the office for different reasons. In this regard the researcher decided to increase the number of questionnaires to be supplied from 30 to 40 in order to collect as many data as possible. The indicators and measurement tools in this study make use of secondary data in measuring performance. Secondary data may have inaccuracies. Inaccuracies in data could result in results which are unreliable and unsuitable for measuring performance and in achieving targets. Weights have not been placed on any particular dimension or goal area. LAPF priorities change with changing national Social Security needs and it may be necessary to accurately place additional weights on some dimensions to achieve the desired outcome.

Recruitment and Selection Process

Recruitment and Selection Process Introduction Employees are one of the most important resources of any business, and so it is important for organisations to have a thorough recruitment and selection process. This is to ensure that the best possible candidate is recruited to the post. There are many different aspects to consider during the recruitment and selection process, and this essay considers the issues that an organisation should consider as they search for candidates to recruit. The responsibility for recruitment and selection lies predominantly with a Human Resources (HR) department (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014, p.248), although in many organisations it is common for functional department heads to be involved in the process to ensure that technical considerations are assessed during recruitment and selection. Organisations also face the decision as to whether it is preferable to recruit internally or externally, and there are advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. There are also legal considerations associated with recruitment and selection which it is imperative that an organisation adheres to (Aylott, 2014 p.11). Accordingly, this essay presents a logical assessment of best practice in recruitment and selection on a life-cycle basis, beginning with job skills analysis and concluding with the final selection process. Best Practice in Recruitment and Selection Torrington et al., (2011, p.157) explain that the first steps in recruitment should be pragmatic and straightforward. It is important for the HR department to know how many people they need to recruit, and the skills and capabilities that they must possess. The easiest way to address this problem is to conduct a job skills analysis, carefully considering the content and requirement of job functions including an assessment of technical skills and also intangible or softer skills such as communication, innovation or sales ability. Ideally job skills analysis should be incorporated with a strategic assessment of HR requirements so that the organisation can be confident that they have the necessary skills contained within the human capital of the business to achieve long-term organisational objectives (Rivera, 2012b, p.75). Lievens and Sackett (2012, p.463) also recommend a job skills matrix to assess the future potential capability of job functions and to link this to future employee development opportunities. This is a matrix which lists the skills of employees against the skills the organisation requires or would like in the long term. Having assessed the functions of job roles it is then necessary to create a job description and also a person specification. These are two distinct documents although they are often prepared together (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014, p.250). The job description describes the technical functionality of the role, being as precise and detailed as possible. The person specification addresses the intangible aspects of job functionality to ensure that any potential recruit will fit comfortably within the organisation and has the skills and attributes which the organisation requires. Wilton (2013, p.158) emphasises that it is important for there to be a good fit between an employee and the organisation, so that the employee feels comfortable in their job role and performs to the best of their ability. Once the job description and person specification have been developed it is then possible to advertise the job role as the first stage in actual recruitment. At this point the organisation must decide whether they should recruit internally or externally. Phillips and Gully, (2009, p.18) explain that internal recruitment can be beneficial for a number of reasons. These include offering current employees opportunities for promotion or personal development, which is proven to motivate employees by demonstrating that there is an opportunity for career progression. Also, recruiting internally can be considered as a lower risk because the organisation is already familiar with the skills and capabilities of the employee. From a pragmatic perspective internal recruitment is also more cost-effective and quicker, so it is easier to fill the job role with less risk to the business. However, disadvantages to internal recruitment can include resentment on the part of employees who are not selected for the role (Phillips and Gully, 2009, p.20). Also, it may be the case that the organisation is looking for specific skills in order to expand the business, and no employees already in the firm have this necessary experience or skill. In these instances it is therefore necessary to recruit externally. External recruitment can be more challenging. In the first instance it is necessary to determine whether the organisation will use in-house procedures for external recruitment, or alternatively make use of external sources such as recruitment agencies or headhunters (CIPD, 2013, p.1). This decision is often based on a combination of financial considerations and organisational discretion. For example, if an organisation needs to recruit a large number of relatively junior roles then a recruitment agency may be the most appropriate approach. Recruitment agencies are likely to have a large number of potential candidates on their books, and they can undertake much of the necessary background checks and initial skills assessments. This can be a highly resource intensive process which organisations may not be able to manage effectively, hence paying recruitment agencies becomes preferable. Rivera (2012a, p.1000) notes that over time organisations can often establish relationships with preferred recruitment agencies so that the recruitment agencies become familiar with the job descriptions and person specifications, and this accelerates the process. Increasingly, organisations are also making use of online recruitment opportunities, and this is another way of reaching a wide group of potential candidates in a cost-effective manner (Girard and Fallery, cited in Boudarouk and Ruel, 2009, p.39). Alternatively, if it is a particularly high profile or specialist role organisations may wish to make use of headhunters. These are considerably more costly but can be appropriate if the role is senior or it is a new role which requires a particular skill set. Rivera (2012a, p.1001) explains that headhunters are more commonly used when there is a long lead time for more senior appointees and it is more important that they are a good cultural fit for the business. Furthermore, the more senior the role, the greater the potential risk to the business in terms of financial expenditure. Therefore it can be preferable to use external sources to find the most appropriate candidates. As noted previously there are also legal considerations as part of the recruitment process. These commence with the advertising of the job role, which under UK and EU legislation must be entirely non-discriminatory (Aylott, 2014, p.66). This includes wording of the advert for the role, and also the actual process of recruitment which must be entirely fair and transparent. This is another reason why headhunters and recruitment agencies can be beneficial, as they can help to ensure adherence to legislation and regulation in this area. It is also worth noting that there are changes in progress within the regulation in this area meaning that candidates shortlisted for more senior roles must demonstrate gender parity (Aylott, 2014, p.67). Hence, headhunters can be helpful for drawing up shortlists prior to the next stage of recruitment. Having drawn up a shortlist of potential candidates, either internally or externally, the next step in the process is to narrow down this shortlist. There are a number of possible means of doing this which can include interviews, psychometric testing and assessment centres (Breaugh, 2013, p.395). As might be imagined, each of these approaches has advantages and disadvantages, and it is also not uncommon to utilise these techniques in combination. The decision as to which type of recruitment method to adopt depends on the nature of the job role and the potential risks associated with the job function (Hall et al., 2013, p.358). In any event, it is absolutely imperative to ensure that there is complete fairness and transparency in the recruitment and selection process, not only because of the need to adhere to legislation and regulation, but also to ensure that each candidate has a fair experience. This is because this has implications for long-term recruitment and selection of high calibre candidates (CIPD, 2013, p.1). Guion (2011, p.9) explains that interviews remain as one of the most common forms of assessment when determining whether a candidate would be suitable for a job function. The length and intensity of the interview depends on the nature of the job function. As alluded to above, it is commonly the case that recruitment and selection is the responsibility of the HR department, although it is often the case that functional department heads are involved in the process to assess the technical competence and capability of the candidate. In any event the potential candidates should be assessed against the job description and person specification (as described above) and during the course of the interview it is sensible to take notes so that at a later stage the shortlisted candidates can be compared to one another (Chapman and Webster, 2003, p.117). For some more senior roles it may be the case that more than one interview is conducted with different members of the organisation. Kline (2013, p.25) acknowledges that although interviews are very popular, there can be concerns with unintended preference, a concept known as the golden halo effect. This occurs when the interviewers subconsciously prefer candidates who they considered would be a good cultural fit. This is why it is important to have complete transparency in the interview process. Psychometric testing and aptitude testing are also extremely popular techniques for assessing potential candidates during the selection process. Suff (2012, p.9) explains that aptitude testing is an assessment of the numerical, verbal, and general logical reasoning capability of an individual. Psychometric testing is more intensive and includes an assessment of personality traits. Psychometric testing is not an exact science, but over time a large body of empirical data has been gathered which helps to increase the reliability of such testing. Generally speaking psychometric tests are a useful indicator of underlying personality traits, and can be a good means of an organisation assessing whether an individual candidate would be a good fit for the business. Cushway (2014, p.26) explains that psychometric tests can be useful if an organisation is looking to recruit an individual with particular personality traits in order to help generate a cross functional team. In contrast, Suff (2012, p.10) suggests that psychometric testing is more valuable as a supporting indicator, along with other selection techniques such as interviews and assessment centres. Assessment centres are the most intensive form of employee selection. They typically comprise a number of small tests and presentations to simulate the likely working conditions and to assess how an individual performs under pressure and how they work in teams (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014, p.232). During the course of an assessment centre it is likely that the candidate will have to give a presentation, solve a problem with imperfect information (to simulate real-life), and also work in a team environment. Assessment centres are highly resource intensive but are considered to give the most accurate picture of how a candidate would be likely to perform if they were recruited to the organisation. The costs of running an assessment centre are high, so in the main they are reserved for more senior job functions, or for graduate recruitment schemes. They are also more commonly used by larger organisations that have the resources to maintain a talent management pipeline (McClean and Collins, 2011, p352). Stahl et al., (2012, p.35) believe that assessment centres can be somewhat artificial as all the candidates are aware that they are in competition for a defined number of job roles, and this may encourage them to distort their behaviour. Stahl et al., (2012, p.35) also believe that there is a greater risk of the golden halo effect during assessment centres as the assessors get to know candidates throughout the duration of the assessment centre. It is necessary to mention that references from previous employers or other respected individuals can play a small part in the recruitment and selection process. However, such is the nature of legislation relating to references, many organisations simply use them to verify that a candidate has been previously employed and that they do not have a tendency to high levels of sickness absence or any other obvious undesirable tendency, for example an extensive disciplinary record (Torrington et al., 2011, p.182). As references must be entirely factual, personal observations of the previous employers are generally not found in references in the UK. Some organisations may also wish for shortlisted candidates to undertake medical checks. This is likely to be more common in job functions where there is either a particular medical need for high levels of health and fitness because the job is particularly strenuous, or because the organisation has a long-term commitment to employee health and well-being. In either event organisations are only likely to take up references and ask for medical checks for candidates whom they believe they will offer the job post (Torrington et al., 2011, p.183). Once the organisation has decided who they will recruit, it is necessary to draw up a contract of employment, and to send a formal offer letter to the preferred candidate, setting out the terms and conditions of employment. Aylott (2014 p.112) observes that it is surprising how many organisations do not maintain good record-keeping in this regard, and it is imperative that if the candidate accepts the role they return a signed copy of the contract and terms and conditions. It is also good practice for an organisation to formally write to the unsuccessful candidates and briefly explain why they were not recruited for the post (CIPD, 2013, p.1). This helps to improve the overall candidate experience thus supporting the reputation of the organisation and wider marketplace. If job requirements change in the future, maintaining a good relationship with potential candidates makes it is much easier to offer them a job role in the future (Klotz et al, 2013, p.110). Finally, Aylott (2014, p.32) explains that under UK legislation, unsuccessful candidates may exercise the right to challenge why they were not recruited for the role. This is why it is important to maintain scrupulous records throughout the recruitment and selection process and demonstrate complete fairness and transparency. As it may be some time between acceptance of the job post and the candidate starting in the role, then this is a good opportunity for the organisation to prepare the new employees induction in advance. It is also best practice for an organisation to allow access to the employee handbook when recruiting an employee. A good induction is one where the new employees has the opportunity to meet their colleagues and receive basic training in aspects such as health and safety and organisational systems (Covert, 2011, p.9). This is entirely pragmatic as it is an opportunity for existing employees to meet their new colleague, and also to ensure that the new employee has a thorough grounding in the organisation so that they become rapidly embedded and are able to make a difference as soon as possible. This is often an issue for organisations as it can take time for new employees to become familiar with organisational culture. Therefore an induction is a good way of starting this process. Finally, the majority of new employees are likely to be operating under a probationary period in the first few months of employment. There are legal implications to this, meaning that it is important for an organisation to clearly set out their expectations for the new employee, and also to offer the employee as much help and support as possible in the early days of their employment (Cushway, 2014, p.34). It is in no partys interest for there to be a high turnover of staff. Not only because the recruitment and selection process is extremely costly and resource intensive, but also because it is also disruptive to an organisation and long-standing employees. Hence, it is preferable to invest the necessary level of resource, time and effort in recruiting the right employee in the first instance. Recommendations To summarise, the first steps in effective recruitment and selection are to establish the requirements of the job role, and also the preferred attributes of the individual who will eventually fulfil this role. It is important at this early stage to be as precise and as comprehensive as possible, and also to be aware of the need for transparency in the process. This is because the description and person specification not only form the foundation of the job advert, but also they become the benchmark against which potential candidates are assessed, and successful employees are measured (Guion, 2011, p.240). Although resource intensive, it is worthwhile to spend time and effort refining the job description and person specification. Once the shortlist of candidates has been prepared, either from internal or external sources, it is necessary to assess all potential candidates to determine their suitability for the role (Phillips and Gully, 2009, p.17). There are several alternative means of achieving this including interviews, testing and assessment centres. As elucidated above, there are advantages and disadvantages to all of these methods, and this is why it is often the case that more than one technique is used. It is important to reiterate the importance of transparency and fairness throughout the entire selection process. Having selected a suitable candidate the organisation should then formally write to the employee enclosing the employment contract and terms and conditions of employment (Aylott, 2014, p112). An organisation may also wish to take up references and ask the candidate to have a medical assessment. It is best practice to formally communicate non-selection to unsuccessful candidates, as this is not only helpful for maintaining organisational reputation, it may have future practical benefit. Throughout the entire process of recruitment and selection scrupulous record-keeping is strongly recommended. Once a candidate has accepted a position of employment, it is then good practice to offer an induction period. This helps the new employee to settle in, and helps to increase productivity and reduce employee turnover. Conclusions This essay has set out the current recommended best practice in respect of recruitment and selection. It has illustrated the complexity and resource intensive nature of the process, and also emphasised the importance of prior planning and preparation to ensure that the most suitable candidates are shortlisted for the role, and that they have the necessary skills and attributes. As has been discussed throughout the essay, there are a number of alternative methods for actually selecting a candidate for the job role, and the determination of which of these methods is used relies on the specifics of the job itself and also the long-term HR and human capital requirements of the organisation. In an ideal scenario, the recruitment and selection process is cross-functional in nature, involving both HR and department heads, and is also linked to the long-term strategic requirements of the business. Throughout the entire process it is imperative to maintain fairness and transparency, and to focus on recruiting the best possible candidate in order to reduce the possibility of subsequent employee turnover. References Armstrong, M., and Taylor, S., (2014) Armstrongs handbook of human resource management practice. (13th Ed) London: Kogan Page Publishers. Aylott, E., (2014) Employment law: HR fundamentals. London: Kogan page. Breaugh, J. A., (2013) Employee recruitment. Annual review of psychology, 64(4), 389-416. Chapman, D. S., and Webster, J., (2003) The use of technologies in the recruiting, screening, and selection processes for job candidates, International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 11(2/3), 113-120. 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