Employment

Fixed price contracts have a preset price that the vendor must adhere to in performing the work and in providing materials. There are different types of fixed price contracts. Explain them. [Explanation of various types of fixed price contracts] 2. Direct contracting is another procurement method that is used under a limited number of exceptional circumstances. Explain the conditions for adopting direct contracting, requirements and steps for direct contracting Conditions for adopting direct contracting Requirements for direct contracting and Steps for direct contracting] 3.

Write short notes on Cost Plus Fee Contracts. [Explanation of Cost Plus Fee Contracts Features Conditions for adopting Advantages and disadvantages] 4. The methods of selecting a consultant are designed to achieve the objectives of quality, efficiency, fairness and transparency in the selection process and to encourage competition. Discuss any 2 methods of selecting consultants. [Explanation of any 2 of the methods With Where it is appropriate Type of assignments for which this method of selection is adopted] 5.

The contract intro process commences right at the beginning stage of bid document preparation inviting contractors to bid, and proceeds through the contract negotiation, contractor selection, monitoring and controlling of the contractor’s work and terminating the contract. Explain the areas that need attention for effective control of the contracts in a project [Core competence of the project manager Requirements of the working system Use of Work Breakdown Structure Recognizing the limitations with flexibility] 6. Explain the need of Procurement law and what are its objectives? [Explain the need of Procurement law List the Objectives]

The Economic effect: clean air actBy:College:Course:Professor:Date:AbstractThis research will give a recap of the evolution of clean air act and the adverse effects it has had on our economy since its formulation. Throughout my undergraduate studies I have analyzed the growth rates and fluctuation trends of our economy, I scrutinized how the environmental laws favor or discriminate against giant companies and gave comprehensive conclusion.

I used previous environmental reports from researches carried out by federal environmental agencies and compared them to recent reports after president Donald Trump scrapped out some environmental laws that affected large petroleum and coal mining industries. I also designed questionnaires to the general public, professors, economics elites and workers that are employed in companies that are rated to produce health hazardous products like fertilizers.

Every set of people had a unique set of questions to answer. I picked these broad array of respondents so that I could have accurate information and hence a good analysis of the topic. The questionnaires relayed some very interesting statistics and I must acknowledge the participation of every respondent. I decided to dwell on this topic in a bid to sensitize people on the effects of the environmental laws and motivate them to speak out on the sensitive issue.

This was after the sad realization that the general public tends to ignore the broad environmental as they perceive it not to affect their daily lives. In my research I have recommendations for the federal environmental agencies, the lawmakers and the general public.

The economic effect: Clean Air Act influence on the dollar

Every law that is formulated usually has good or detrimental effects on the topic it touches; health laws cause a positive disruption on the health sector, criminal and marital laws have a bearing to the social aspect of humans and so do many other laws. Before the lawmakers pass laws they should first dissect the topic extensively as each law has to stand on another sphere and slightly if not adversely affect it eventually. Expert insights on the topics should be accommodated as experts usually have insights on different variables affecting a constant.

Public participation should be encouraged and their opinions on the matter should be prioritized before any other parties’ opinions; this is because all laws are usually formulated to shield the general public from certain adversities and discrimination.Failure to collect and include views of the general public to the clean air act was the first and most regrettable mistake the federal government ever did since it was tabled in 1963.

The date is not clearly marked as the act became a landmark later in 1970 then later on 1990 when the laws were further studded (starobin-1990). I admire the nobility of the pioneer law makers as they thought the laws will save humanity from early demise but I will show how the laws have rubbed a negative impact on the economy and less impact on the topic it was meant to benefit; health.

Over the years the years the federal government has been struggling to sustain if not grow its economy, the question they failed to ask themselves is; what economic impact does the clean air act have on our country? They would be having a precise answer to that eerie question if they would have accommodated views from economists.The clean air act does not stand on its own ground; it falls under environmental laws which encompass other laws like the clean water act.

The environmental protection agency (EPA) is the federal body mandated to analyze, implement and review the laws. Under it are numerous specialized agencies that were brought together to boost the efficiency of the whole environmental protection agency. In my report I will be using the common abbreviations to denote these agencies. In the broad umbrella we have the office of technology assessment (OTA) which a body that monitors the use of technology and how it affects the environmental laws.

The national acid precipitation assessment program (NAPAP) was created in 1989 to monitor the harmful substances in the rain and the effects it has on people, infrastructure and the agricultural sector. The maximum available control technology (MACT) is the agency under EPA umbrella that designs and assigns technologies to industries that produce harmful substances (e.g sulphuric and nitrogen air.

Later on the national ambient air quality standard was introduced to keenly monitor the trends of harmful standards in air (kopp-1989) To set up all these bodies required a lot of money, money which had to be coughed up in hard cash from the national coffers. In the body of paper I will give a brief history of the agencies and the exact funds that were used to set them up, to be relevant I will also tell you the timeline these bodies take to do research and the cost behind them.

Further, I will state the time they take to implement their recommendations then enumerate if the implantation has effects to the environment and the economy. For clarity, I will contrast the information with the findings of my research that largely depended on people views backed up financial data from business articles from reputable press companies. This report will give us a better understanding of the dynamics around the clean air act.The economic effectThe state averagely spills over $92 billion annually to ensure that all stakeholders comply to the environmental laws set.

The clean air act is serviced by more than more $28 billion and the clean water spends over $29 billion (. The number skyrockets when we talk of other bodies that deal with regulation of hard harmful substance like fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides as they spend over $32 billion annually in running of their functions. We discover that when setting up the institutions to implement the clean air act the federal government had to wait for 10 years for the bodies to make researches and draw conclusions.

Here the state spent over $500 million in setting up and equipping the bodies, a further recurrent expenditure of $426 million was used annually to keep the organizations functioning. From 1970 to 1990 a whopping $8.52 billion in setting up and maintenance of the clean air act alone. After the first set of 10 years of research, the clean air act was studded and to comply with regulations; affected companies had to part with $4 billion dollars in a bid to comply with the environmental laws. A research by private companies stated the figure hit over $20 billion annually (denny-1990).

The companies were supposed to reduce emission of sulphuric air by 10 million tons and nitrogen air by 2 million tons per year. In 1980 the government launched another program; the national acid precipitation assessment program (NAPAP) and gave it $500 million to carry out its research in a p of 10 years. The program was supposed to study the effects of acidic rain on land and water areas. The findings were good for the health topic but the money pumped in keeping the program running did not return profits.

The much awaited findings were; the quantity of harmful substances in rivers and lakes had risen but the rise could not be attributed to rain alone as there were other hard toxic substances in the water. The finding authenticated the claim that acidic rain degrades infrastructure but they said the rate of degrade was very slow and could be matched up by apt maintenance. Another astonishing finding was that acid rain had no effect on agricultural products and production.

Car manufacturing industries were also devastated by the laws as the cars had to be fitted with technological sieves to reduce carbon emission after fuel had been burned. This had to be done immediately as the state did not want to take more time as the research had taken more years. In effect the car manufacturing companies had to add an extra $120 to $450 per car depending on the type of fuel the car used and its customizations (. Truck and plane manufacturers were also slapped with the new regulations and they realize a slash in their annual profits.

When President George Bush administration came into office it had to oversee a further $3 billion annually being channeled into car, truck and plane manufacturers.Methods of researchAnalysis of credible economic articles from the internet 1963to 2017Analysis of the report written the environmental program agency Analysis of the annual national budget and its revenue streamQuestionnaires responded to by students, professors, workers and the general public.FindingsSince the clean act was passed the state has spent more than $40 trillion in establishing of the environmental bodies.

This money was used in assembling the infrastructure, buying the equipment and payment of workers.The target set by the numerous agencies since 1970 are still a long way to be met as the only 5 out of the 20 harmful substances in air have been managed.Most people are unaware of the laws existence and even after researching about it they claim that they feel the laws don’t improve the standard of their lives.Over 311 giant companies retrenched over a half of their workforce between 1980 and 1990, this indicates that 190,000 people were left jobless hence the state’s capital stock lost over $37 billion annually throughout the yearsQuality of air in urban areas increased to 98%.

The sulphur and nitrogen substance level in air has reduced drastically over time but other harmful elements like benzene are still in abundance (EPA-2000). This change was noticed in cities, I bet it is from the implantation of the gas fitters in cars that the change was noticed.When the maximum available technology control agency was formed, it oversaw companies part with $4 million each to fit the technology sieves on their chimnies.

Mortality rates remained stagnant and worsened to former workers of companies that went out of business when the environmental laws were passed.ConclusionsThe state should prioritize the economic part as it is through it that it will get funds to run all other vital activities, it is only by a strong financial background that other institutions can stand. Since the formulation of the laws a lot of money that would have been used in the building of economy has been spilled on the assembling of different agencies within the environmental program agency.

The money did not have any beneficial return as the findings that later came from numerous state funded research did not meet the expectations or prove the notions that; more regulations will lead to less emissions of harmful substances thus improve the quality and lower the mortality rate of humans.In a bid to enforce the laws more funds were used in aiding some companies abide by the rules but this did not save the companies from retrenching employees and later closure due to either non compliance or lack of profits. As years went by and the laws became less conducive, more companies shut down and with them more jobs.

As all this was happening the mortality rates remained high as the prevention policies barely worked or if they did the effect was insignificant. The state focused on creating the laws and did not work on technological or medicinal mechanisms to reverse the effect of health hazards on employees that worked in petroleum, fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides and insecticide companies. The more they died the more the laws looked inefficient.Years went by and the states spending on the regulations increased with no positive visible effects.

More companies went out of business and in extend the states revenue collection decreased. This meant that important projects stalled and people’s livelihoods were lowered if not completely shattered.RecommendationsThe state should consider inclusivity of all stake holders. Things would be a little better if the government had considered taking profession views from economic experts; our economy could much better. The situation can still be salvaged and the professionals be allowed to make their reviews.

Then it will be easier to amend the laws. Here I recommend the state to welcome economic experts on the round table and let their opinions matter. Company owners should also be left to add voice to the topic as the laws affect their enterprises directly; the more they are left out of the topic the more they will be kicked out of business. Non inclusivity leads to hostility and this will scare away investors. The general public should be allowed to cap the topic too as they are the direct beneficiaries of whatever the law dictates.

The review timeline should be lowered from 10 years to round 2 years, development can be hastened and reversed if the effects are devastating by shortening the p. This p should be capped by short term policies that are to be met in it. It may seem that the shorter the lifep, the more the expense because of the numerous activities; that is not the case the amount spent will be the same.

In a p of 10 years you will hire a large lot of experts to carry out the research but if you break it down to two years you will have small sustainable number of employees that will have gained experience hence bring on board accurate data.The clean air act should be made flexible depending on the geographical setting of the company is and the importance of products it produces.

If the laws on petroleum mining were not so stringent we could be having more oil to export and this will lower the unemployment rate in the state.Harmful substance research should be refined and be more specific. They should know the precise number of industries and population in a geographical area then deduce the effects. Most researches are carried out in urban areas but the laws that are passed from the specific researches are applied all over the country.

The researchers should accept that different geographical areas have different quantities of harmful substances. It is only by perfection in research that the laws can be made flexible.Insurance laws should be studded just like the clean air laws to keep the health hazard companies that hire people in check.

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They should state that upon discovery that the worker’s health has been negatively affected in the line of duty that the compensation should twice as high the estimated value of the effectReference;Numerous reports done in 1979, 1989 and 1999 by EPA,The environmental program agencyResearch done in 1989 by Krupnick and koppThey worked for OTA, office of technology assessment.Book; Social cost of environmental quality regulations by Michael Hazilla

One of the key responsibilities of a human resource management professional is the management of diversity and equal employment opportunities within the organisation. Equal employment opportunity refers to the situation in which every individual has access to employment and its benefits. Equal employment opportunity (EEO) refers to the outcomes of human resource management policies and practices and employee and management behaviour.

EEO is aimed at transforming an organisation; reviewing the processes associated with the creation and use of power by some groups; and implementation of new measures and policies which attempt to remove bias from procedures such as recruitment and promotion. Managing diversity accepts that the workforce consists of a diverse population of people, with visible and non-visible differences including sex, age, background, race, disability, personality, and work style. There has been a lot of debate recently about affirmative action (AA).

Affirmative action (also known as positive action) is where organisations take special initiatives to redress perceived gender or ethnic imbalances in the workforce. At first, affirmative action aimed to eliminate racial imbalance in hiring policies; later it was extended to protect people of color, women, older people and people with disabilities. Equal opportunity laws ban discrimination. Affirmative action goes further by requiring employers to take “affirmative” steps to achieve a balanced representation of workers. Affirmative action may take many forms. One example would be providing special training solely for women.

However, some people see affirmative action as an insult. Some people see affirmative action as assuming that they are not capable of success based on their own merits. This paper will examine whether affirmative action is an insult to women and any other member of an AA target group. The argument put forward for affirmative action is that it allows minority groups, who would otherwise be disadvantaged, to get to the starting line and to allow for a level ‘playing field”. Affirmative action is used as a tool to break the perceived injustice and discrimination of the past.

In Australia, the Affirmative Action (Equal Employment Opportunity for Women) Act 1986 requires the removal of direct and indirect discrimination through the application of the merit principle in employment policies. Contemporary writing puts forward the theory that managing diversity should be based on ‘no preferential treatment”. Although there is no specific quota system in the above Australian legislation , AA has in the past often been associated with the requirement to maintain certain quotas based on minority group representation.

A move to ‘no preferential treatment” means that individuals are not given preference for employment based on specific group membership. Giving preferential treatment to a minority group is sometimes referred to as the ‘remedial action” AA. This means that whereas some people are benefiting by virtue of their group membership, other individuals are excluded, even though their developmental need might be as great. Singling out individuals based on a minority quality (sex, religion etc) can be seen to be an insult to that individual.

This is particularly true if the individual has all the attributes and skills that would normally mean success. The impression given is not about fairness or equal opportunity, but rather about achieving numbers or targets. There is also ‘research that suggests that, as currently construed, affirmative action policy can thwart rather than promote workplace equity. The stigma associated with affirmative action can fuel rather than debunk stereotypical thinking and prejudiced attitudes”. Managing diversity should not focus on minority groups.

Managing diversity should focus on the problems of the individual. It should focus on identifying what the individual needs in terms of development. Actions ought to be targeted on any individual who has a particular development need and not restricted to those who are members of a particular group. However, all of the above is idealistic. There has often been a realism in the marketplace that contrasts the above. In some respects, affirmative action has been a necessary tool to ensure that minority groups have representation in theorganisation.

The goal has been not so much to achieve a quota or a target, but rather to force down the walls of discrimination that many organisations have had in the past. In this respect, affirmative action should not be seen as an insult to minority groups. For as some minorities may have all the skills necessary to gain a certain appointment or job, it is all but useless if the employer (or the person who makes the decision on who gets hired) has a bias against that person based on their minority attribute (whether that be sex, religion or what not). Women, in general, have been the main beneficiaries of affirmative action.

The number of women entering the professions, including medicine, law and accounting, has increased substantially in 30 years. Women of all races have increased their share of professional positions in corporations, and it is arguable that there would be no women police officers, fire fighters, bus drivers or construction workers without affirmative action. Affirmative action is not an insult to women (or other minority groups), but rather a method to ensure that the glass ceilings that have implicitly existed in the workforce in the past are destroyed.

Affirmative action does not mean that minority groups are employed simply based on minority attributes. Affirmative action means that employers make that extra effort to ensure that their organisation reflects the wider community. However, women have yet to achieve equality in the work place. There is still a large portion of the female workforce working in a narrow range of low-paying, low-status jobs. They are under-represented in many occupations. Up until the 1970s, there were few women in law schools; few opportunities to go outside of jobs traditionally reserved for women.

Many women face invisible employment barriers that block access to advancement opportunities into higher-paying jobs with increased responsibilities. Some women are stuck in low-wage jobs with little or no opportunity to advance into supervisory or managerial positions. When women do obtain managerial jobs, they often are confined to specific departments with less authority and outside the track to upper-level, senior management jobs. These ‘glass ceiling” barriers prematurely halt the progress of women in the workplace and prevent them from developing their full potential and talents as workers.

Affirmative action programs help to shatter the glass ceiling because they expand opportunities for qualified women and can lead to higher wages, more advancement opportunities, and improved financial security. One of the key responsibilities of a human resource management professional is the management of diversity and equal employment opportunities within the organisation. One method of ensuring equal opportunity within an organisation is by the use of affirmative action. Affirmative action is a policy to encourage equal opportunity and to level the playing field for groups of people who have been and are discriminated against.

Affirmative action has been considered essential to assuring that jobs are genuinely and equally accessible to qualified persons, without regard to their sex, racial, or ethnic characteristics. Affirmative action was not established to punish any particular group or place people into positions they are not qualified for. It was established to involve everybody; to have the opportunities for economic, academic and social success accessible to everybody. It should not be regarded as an insult to women or other minority groups. Affirmative action does not mean that minority groups are employed simply based on minority attributes.

Affirmative action means that employers make that extra effort to ensure that their organisation reflects the wider community. Affirmative action has been useful to society. Through equal opportunity programs, workplaces are much more diverse than several decades ago, because of the opportunities for seeing work and education have been expanded to include everyone. Affirmative action should not be regarded as an insult. It should be regarded as a tool and medium that ensures that suitably qualified people are provided with jobs, and not discriminated against based on a minority attribute.

To completely consider this as a sexual harassment case, Jane’s performance must be re-evaluated by other managers and she must prove that her performance reach the standards of the company. However, if such is not done, this will only fall as a personal conflict or problem that must not interfere in the business context. Having said all these, the fact, however, that Mike spread rumors to intimidate Jane can validate that his judgement might be unfair because of the personal grudge he had against her. This is then a clear case of sexual harassment.

Case 4: “The Risk of Knowledge”

1. Is this a case of sexual harassment? Why or why not? Janet Cronin cannot be considered as sexually harassed since what she experienced she only a form of gratitude from her immediate supervisor. Her hard work was rewarded by her boss with an expensive meal but somehow the gesture was misinterpreted. The actions committed by Mr. Albert can be considered as normal for a boss who would like to thank his subordinates, likewise, to promote motivation among his peers. Mr. Albert believes in providing incentives to ensure quick and accurate response from his subordinates.

On the other hand, Janet is equipped with all the company’s rules and regulations of the company and she capitalized on it as the basis of her complaint. However, her claim is weak and very immature for that matter. 2. What are the most important similarities and differences between this case and “Without Recourse” (the previous case)? The two cases both involve a supervisor-subordinate relationship which is often exposed to sexual harassment. Most of the time, it is the supervisor who takes advantage of his control and power over the career and employment of his subordinates.

In the first case, Mike, the boss, wants to establish a personal relationship with his staff, Jane while Mr. Albert, on the other hand, treats his subordinate, Janet, to dinner as an incentive for a job well done. Mike was rejected by Jane and he resorted to spreading rumors and unfair job evaluation for Jane. The intentions of Mike are malicious and derogatory while Mr. Albert simply wanted to reward his employee for his hard work and perseverance. His actions may misinterpreted but his intentions are clear. The similarities end there since the second case cannot be considered as sexually abusive due to lack of connotations of malicious and sexual advances.

Case 5: “Jesse Green”

1. Would either (or both) Alex or Leslie have a legitimate complaint about having been treated unfairly if they were fired once their work was done? Why or why not? Alex and Leslie have a legitimate complaint if they would be fired after they completed their work because it was stated in the company’s manual that it would hire people permanently or let go of them after a year.

Alex have already worked with the company for more than a year and this fact entitles her to a permanent position in the company. On the other hand, Leslie have worked with the company for almost a year now and if her work is done after a year of stay with the company, she is also entitled for a permanent position. The company must abide with its own rules and regulations, otherwise, complaints will be filled against it for unfair labor practice.

2. Have Alex and/or Leslie been harmed by the way Premier has treated them? Has their autonomy been respected?

Ethically speaking, Premier Jewelry have showed poor treatment for its temporary employees because it was not transparent on its rules and regulations regarding employment status. If Alex and Leslie were properly informed of their chances for a permanent position in the company, they would be more motivated and determined to work harder to ensure a permanent employment status. The company has deprived both Alex and Leslie their rights to information and the respect that they deserve as worker of the company.

Case 6: “She Snoops to Conquer”

Has the store invaded the privacy of its workers? Why or why not? Yes, definitely. The store has invaded the worker’s privacy by installing hidden cameras and phones without their knowledge. It is simply called spying and it is illegal. Each of us have the right for privacy and employers don’t have the right to snoop around their employees whereabouts even if their intention is to catch a thief. The end does not justify the means. 2. What, if anything, should Fanuchi and Katwalski do with the other information (the information unrelated to the thefts)?

The information that Fanuchi and Katwalski have gathered which are unrelated to the thefts cannot be used for legal purposes or whatsoever. Their means of gathering all these information is illegal and therefore, it can only cause legal troubles for the company and themselves as well. 3. How might the employees be expected to react if they learned of Fanuchi’s and Katwalski’s activities? If the employees learned about these hidden cameras and microphones, they will be devastated and they will feel abused. Privacy is very important for everyone and no one wants to be spied on. Moreover, some of the employees might consider to take legal actions against Fanuchi, Katwalski and the company.

Case 7: “Speaking Out about Malt”

1. Is Mary Davis correct in asserting that Whitewater was invading her right to freedom of speech? Why or why not? Whitewater is invading the freedom of speech of Mary Davis by prohibiting her from making any further comments regarding the beer and liquor industry. Moreover, an ultimatum was set and non-compliance would mean losing her job.

2. Was Davis acting disloyally? Although Mary Davis’ article was factual, she can still be regarded as disloyal to her company. As an employee for a beer and liquor company, it was unethical for her to publish an article that would cause bad press for the company. Her negative comments about the industry as a whole somehow contradict to her choice of employer. If she sincerely opposed the marketing of malt beer, then she should have shifted to another industry that would not contradict with her personal beliefs.

3. Would it be morally legitimate for Whitewater to fire Davis if she went ahead with her speaking engagement and condemned Malt Liquor? It would not be legal to dismiss the employment of Ms. Davis unless otherwise stipulated in the company’s rules and regulations and employment contract of the concerned individual. If it was not stipulated, it would be illegal to fire her because of her derogatory remarks about the industry.

Case 8: “Making Up Is Hard To Do

1. Does the new dress code discriminate against women? Why or why not? The dress code that was newly enforced by the company does not discriminate against women since the requirements do not violate any rights of women. It was only enforced to require women to wear business attires and make up which is not disrespectful or unmannerly at all. If the women were required to wear implicit and sexually-oriented outfits, then that can be considered as discriminating and disrespectful for the rights of women.

2. Does the dress code violates any other of Hannah’s rights? Ethically speaking, the dress code did not violate the human rights of Hannah. Wearing business suits and make up to work is not uncommon among women employees. The dress code was only intended for the change in the company’s image. However, if Hannah cannot abide with the current rules and regulations of the company, she can always resign and find another job that would suit her preferences for wardrobe and work attire. Although she has the right to choose, she also has the responsibility to abide with the company’s regulations as long as these are not illegal and

Currently, Wallace Group is undergoing some major changes in its sales and marketing focus. Attempting to move from a defense contractor to a non-defense supplier requires many changes. The current strategic plan includes acquiring competitive organizations that offer the goods and services needed by Wallace Group to produce its products and services, as well as focusing on external variables that affect performance. After interviewing many key people at Wallace Group, I have come to the conclusion that Wallace Group should focus on internal processes and organization.

I recommend the following steps be taken to enhance the economic outlook of the firm, both in defense and non-defense contracts.

1. Reorganize the entire organization into one Group rather than three separate Groups with a supportive corporate Group.
2. Turn functional areas into consultative units, with resource allocation being determined by need and scheduling.
3. Create a matrix reporting structure after restructuring.
4. Upper-level management would need more decision-making authority with more accountability to H. Wallace.
5. Cross-train employees for greater coverage and to utilize employees that will have outdated skills after new technology and equipment are brought in.

Evaluation of Current Objectives and Current Strategy

Current objectives for Wallace Group are to increase market share in defense and non-defense areas as well as to expand into other markets. H. Wallace’s strategy seems to be acquisition of the production groups necessary to manage all functions of existing processes. He is turning away from the strategy of tightening internal controls and maximizing profits and instead is focusing on expanding markets.

Current Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths

There has been an infusion of new ideas by the hiring of a new Vice President, Jason Matthews, of the Electronics Group.

• Wallace Group as a whole is showing a profit and growth over last year.
• Acquisition of the prototype contract could infuse the organization with much-needed capital.

Weaknesses:

• Only some functions within Wallace Group have been centralized.
• H. Wallace has settled all disputes himself between the corporate group and the separate Groups.

This has created an environment of autocratic control, instead of collaborative decision-making.  Each Group functions as an independent company, except for administrative functional areas.  Each group is at the mercy of the weaknesses of the other groups. For example, Electronics is required to purchase from Plastics and Chemicals when they may not be competitive with the market.  Acquisition of the prototype contract could create more personnel issues.

Analysis of Current Environmental Threats and Opportunities Threats: 50% of the organization is owned by outside shareholders. This could result in a hostile takeover.  Electronics and Plastics lack growth in markets and profits. Chemicals is still on the brink of bankruptcy. Opportunities:  Production equipment is on order that will greatly increase efficiency and will allow for cross-training of displaced workers.  A minimal alteration to existing production methods would result in the opening up of may end-use markets in non-defense areas. Stakeholder Analysis. Government agencies are greatly affected by Wallace’s actions now and in the future.

Most of Wallace Group’s business comes from government contracts, and their move to non-defense work could potentially remove them from the pool of contractors available. Also, any change in workflow and/or equipment may be affected by regulations regarding existing contracts as well as future contracts.  Labor unions are affected by future actions of Wallace Group. They are currently struggling with their “no layoff” policy from the union, as well as pay grades. Any reorganization of workers and pay structures is going to have to be approved by the labor union.

Competing organizations would be affected by Wallace Group’s move from defense to non-defense work. Defense competitors could potentially gain work, and non-defense competitors would now have to view Wallace Group as a viable competitor for market share.  Employees would be affected the most by Wallace Group’s reorganization of workflow and the influx of efficient equipment. Their job descriptions would change, as well as their chain-of-command.  Suppliers would likely be affected by an increase in demand for their products/services. The opposite could be true if H. Wallace follows his idea of acquiring the organizations that perform the services he needs.  Customers/clients would change as a result of Wallace Group focusing more on non-defense work. Breaking into a new field/industry often entails developing new relationships.  Civic groups may be more interested in the Wallace Group after a change from defense to non-defense work, as the products will be more widespread in the population.  Public interest groups may take a greater interest in Wallace Group in a similar manner to the civic groups.  Stockholders will most definitely be affected by any change in Wallace Group.

The move from defense to non-defense can open more doors, but it may also have a learning curve time that may result in lower profits, or even a loss, that would cause a lack of dividends. Identifying Current Problems • Vice President of the Plastics Group, Martin Hempton, was merely asked to maintain profits. No progress is expected, and no supervision is given to this new employee.  Very little accountability exists for upper-level management. • Scarce resources and low pay grades create competition among the Groups.  An overabundance of red tape and personal agendas cause lost opportunities.

Alternative Strategies

Wallace’s growth primarily centers on the idea of expansion into new markets. The recent acquisitions have only weakened the overall organization. Additional expansion could weaken it further. An alternative would be to strengthen each group’s position in existing markets, focusing on expanding market share and acquiring new contracts doing similar work. The focus here should be on Sales and Marketing targeted to acquisition of work that would benefit all Groups. This can best be accomplished by creating a centralized Marketing department in the corporate Group, with a representative for each production group.

An alternative to requiring each Group to purchase from the other Groups would be to price according to the market. If this means that Plastics and Chemicals have to sell to Electronics at cost, it will create a more accurate picture of interventions needed for those Groups and a more accurate picture of profits and losses for each Group. • The corporate Group’s functions centralize work, which results in fewer employees, but makes for frustrating and ineffective processes in the production groups.

An alternative strategy would be to create a matrix environment for the corporate Group, with one representative from each function working with the VP of their assigned production group and reporting to the VP of the corporate Group for consistency across all Groups. Recommendations My recommendation would be for The Wallace Group to become one group. Centralization of all the functions in a matrix environment would create better coordination between the production groups. Each functional area, such as Engineering, could then allocate their resources based upon need and production scheduling.

This would also enable the entire group to improve the skills of their existing employees through cross-training as well as pool their resources to hire a higher quality candidate for the pay scale expected in the market. Upper-level management would organize around functional units, allocating resources based on need and deadlines, creating a consultative environment. This centralization would give everyone the vision of Wallace Group being one organization, rather than factions competing for limited resources within an organization.

One advantage of on- job training is that, work is not compromised by the training. According to Ulrich (Ulrich, 1996), this is because the employees receive training as they work and hence their training does not take them away from their work. This type of training requires minimum investment in financial resources since a company does not incur expenses in transport and hiring of training facilities as it would be necessary in off- job training.

For instance, classroom lectures in off-job training may require a company to hire facilities away from the office. Because on- job training is done within the working environment, a company saves resources it would have used to facilitate training outside the office. According to an article (People and Organizations. Accessed on November 25, 2008), on- job training promotes easy application of what is learned because what is learned is immediately applied in the working environment.

One disadvantage of on- job training is that, training may fail to be effective if the employees concentrate highly on work rather than the training. Because both work and training are done simultaneously, employees may be tempted to loose focus from the training and instead concentrate on the work. This can be common in jobs where employees are paid on commission. For instance, sales and marketing jobs where employees are paid depending on their productivity may encourage the employees to concentrate more on their work rather than the training.

In on- job training, coaching and teaching requires specialist skills. If the trainer lacks the necessary knowledge and skills, then the training done may not be effective. If the trainers in the on- job training have bad practices and behaviors, the likelihood of passing over the bad behavior to the employees during the on- job training is high. Substandard training may occur in on- job training when the trainers lack adequate time to spend and teach the employees.

On- job training is beneficial to the employees as it creates more confidence in employees due to the supervision and guidance given during work. In addition, the assessment on the progress and improvement in employee training becomes easy for the supervisors and managers during on- job training. Off- job training involves the employees training where courses are taken away from the working environment. It is also referred to as “Formal training”.

Off- job training courses are conducted by external providers or a company’ training department. This method has several merits. One of the merits is that employees who undertake this kind of training have an opportunity to mix with employees from other companies if training involves the bringing together of employees from other companies. Another benefit of this training over the on- job training is that, employees are not distracted by their work and therefore are more able to focus on the training .

This view is supported by Van Buren et al (Van Buren and Erskine, . 2002). One of the demerits of the off- job training is that it increases the training costs incurred by companies during training. For instance, costs of transport, materials, accommodation, course fees and examination fees. In addition, when off- job training content is not directly relevant to the employees’ job, the training may be ineffective. As compared to on- job training, off- job training will require more motivation to learn.

Centrepoint is the leading charity that helps homeless and socially excluded young people rebuild their lives. The aim of this charity is to raise awareness of the causes and consequences of youth homelessness and social exclusion, this by conducting research and, examining policies and offering practical solutions with provision of a safe home, creating firm foundations by responding to young people in all spheres of their lives should it be practical, personal, social, educational and work; Centrepoint is the UK’s leading source of knowledge, command and policy improvement on youth homelessness.

As many companies, the organisation has a canteen facility (Tulip Refractory) that serves hot meals, snacks and refreshments during days of activity, as well as offering catering at some private functions week ends. Over the last five years, Tulip Refractory canteen, which does not charge its products at commercial rates, is encountering losses whereas its sister organisation, Cafi 88 is making profit over the years. The canteen has been unable make loan repayments over the last three years to the head office.

In order to carry on offering this facility, I have been asked to conduct a financial analysis that will help the Finance director to make decision while presenting the dossier to the main board. This analysis will come on the form of a report. B. What does this Report Aim for? The aim of this report is to conduct a financial analysis of Tulip Refractory canteen, based on financial statements (Profit and Loss Account), measuring the financial position of the business at the end of its financial year (August 2005).

This will also give an accurate interpretation of the financial performance (Balance Sheet statement) of Tulip Refacactory canteen, providing MDs with tools to make business decision on whether to carry on loans to boost the business or subcontracting to external organisation. This analysis will compare and contrast both the position and performance of Tulip Refractory (that is encountering losses over the last past year) against its sister canteen, Cafe 88 (that is continuing making profits over the years) based on another site.

How this financial analysis is conducted Financial investigation can be conducted in several ways, the most common is using the ratio analysis method which is “a technique for evaluating the financial performance of an entity, with a view to make comparisons with previous periods, other entities and industry averages over a period of time” (Collis ; Hussey. 2007). This technique will consist of comparing and contrasting Tulip’s performance to a sister canteen, cafi 88 which operates on a similar basis over the same period. “Ratios can be very helpful when comparing the financial health of different businesses” (Tyran, M. 1992:67).

Ratios are grouped in different categories, reflective of the financial performance or position of the business at a particular period of time. II. Findings Before conducting this thorough financial analysis of Tulip Refractory canteen, it is important to introduce the swot analysis theory of the restaurants in order to establish the pros and cons of having such service within the organisation, as well as understand if there are any opportunities that arise to better and improve the performance of the canteen and finally evaluate the possible threats surrounding the business and turn them to opportunities.