Saturday, November 30, 2019

Research Paper Emails Effect On The Postal Service Essays

Research Paper: Emails Effect On The Postal Service Fred is just like any other normal American In the United States, he has kids, a family, and, before yesterday, a job to support them. According to an article by Stephen Barr that appeared in the Washington Post, this sort of thing will be happening to over 9,000 American postal employees this year due to layoffs(Barr n. pag.). Many people believe that E-mail is a godsend but this is what is responsible for the continuous changes that the postal service is having to make to stay in business. To stop the postal service from going out of business during the next five years they have started many new programs such as Time Stamp, E-Bill, their own special E-mail service, and even increasing the price of the stamp. Currently the postal service has been working like crazy to keep up with the 17 billion dollar lose of the 65 billion dollars that they were expected to receive this year to stop them from going redline(Stephen n. pag.).This is a huge task for people like Carolyn Monnerat, the budget and finance manager at the Saint Paul Post Office who says that she is, just not sure what will happen to the approximately eight hundred thousand employees if our company dose go out of business. It is a big enough task right now just having to keep on having to rearrange the budget we have to work with as we continually come up short on money. I just have to pray that some of our new programs such as Time Stamp will do something to help dig us out of this hole we are in that just keeps getting continually deeper(Monnerat n. pag.). This failure made the postal service rethink about new programs they could create to stay in business. This eventually brought around the idea of the postal service's E-Bill program. According to Postmaster General, William J. Henderson, their new Time Stamp program will work on the basis of providing customers the option of sending sensitive E-mail over the net with an encrypted code of the time and date and where the E-mail originated from. If this code was not found on the E-mail that you then receive you would be able to know that someone else had intercepted your E-mail and possibly even changed the information that is written in it. According to an Arlington Morning News article written by Michael Hines, this program is expected to bring in over three million dollars this year. But since it costs over forty cents per E-mail it is expected to only be used by major companies such as banks and credit card companies that can absorb this exorbitant price(Hines n. pag.). This is why the postal service has decided to expand their E-commerce programs. The newest tactic that the Postal Service has just started up to aid in their struggle to stay in business is called E-Bill. The new E-Bill service will be a fast and simple new program [that] lets consumers send and receive bills electronically through the Postal Service web site. If a company or person will not accept electronic payments the Postal Service will simply print out and mail them a check. Many people believe that this new service will help save many procrastinators by in away offering them their own accountant to worry about their bills(Barr n. pag.). This service has an estimated setup cost of over 3.6 billion dollars to heir the help and buy the equipment that will be needed to run it. Many height ranking postal officials such as Dan Luther, Post Master of Ohio, have argued that it is nice that people are trying to save the company from the wrath of E-mail but at the cost of this new E-Bill program we will just lower our budget even more(Hines n. pag.). Along with thi s major attempt to keep on fighting the effects of E-mail they have also thought about giving up traditional mail delivery and become a company based on the sending of E-mails. The new E-mail world of the Postal Service would ?(give) people a E-mail address that would match their street address. If some one did not have access

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Two Party Monopoly in Us Government essays

Two Party Monopoly in Us Government essays The Southern Captivity of the GOP ND Breaking the Two-Party Monopoly Through reading these two articles, I have been shown a side of politics that I havent quite seen before. Growing up only exposed to the Republican and Democratic parties, it isnt realized that our governmental system could be so drastically different than how it is setup now. These two topics of Southern governmental ideas and the uncommon view on our party system were unheard of to me. Never learning about the Fuhrman Effect or Finkelstein Box made this even more interesting. Seeing the research that has been done clearly shows how voters feel and how candidates are presenting themselves. It wasnt that surprising than many conservatives are being pusher away because many Southerners are imposing their opinions and beliefs on them. Many people are content with feeling a certain way about different issues, but when hen they feel they are being threatened, pushed towards one side, or force to be labeled by which party they recognize themselves as, they tend to back away. The statement that democrats are no longer a liberal party-or at least they are far less liberal than the Republicans are too conservative. Whereas 58% of Republicans identify themselves as conservative, only a third of Democrats identify themselves as liberals was surprising to me for two reasons. This makes it seem as though people are not identifying themselves with label anymore, yet that contradicts the whole idea of being involved in a party. And secondly it seems as though both parties are becoming weaker in their convictions, as though there is not that major a difference between the two parties. Showing that the Republicans have become too conservative and too liberal at the same time is very thought-provoking for they are seen as two opposites in politics, yet makes sense due to Republicans view that others opinions are incorrect and liberal becaus...

Friday, November 22, 2019

Shorten The Learning Curve For Onboarding Your Team To CoSchedule

Shorten The Learning Curve For Onboarding Your Team To Have you ever heard the epic story of Hernn Cortà ©s? He was the Spanish explorer who brought about six hundred soldiers with him to conquer a mysterious new world. As legend has it, when their ships touched ground, he gave a surprising order: Burn the ships! The explorer made it clear, their only option was to move forward.  In his journal, Cortà ©s explained,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Were all in and theres no turning back.† While historians have a quibble with the nitty-gritty details- everyone agrees that their ships were scuttled and they forfeited their way home. The lesson for us marketers definitely isnt to strike out on a conquest but it is something radical. When your team is switching to , ensure there is no path back to the status quo. The old way of doing things. In this post, Im going to share three ways to shorten the learning curve for onboarding your team to . Because, lets face it, the faster your team gets rolling with , the faster your results go up, your time spent on trivial details goes down, and you look like a marketing genius while it happens. So, youre going to learn to: Be ultra-specific with what this new world of will look like. Create a desire in your team for accomplishing more (fueled by ). Remove friction between your team and adoption. To help you do this, I have a couple amazing things just for you: A free, 1-on-1 marketing demo of for you and your team, A bundle of specific resources to help you onboard your team with ease. ⠏ °Ã‚  Pick a time for your marketing demo. ðŸâ€"‚  Grab your resources. ðŸ˜Æ'  Now lets get to onboarding! in oneplace. Save 20 hrs this week alone and every weekafter. If youve ever kicked the tires on , nows the time to see what its reallylike. Schedule Your Demo Success! Your download should start shortly. Clean up the chaos with your editorial calendar! With , youll Save time with blogging, social, and email think HOURS every week Schedule your social posts in batches and increase your posting frequency super easily Get your sht together and hold yourself accountable to publishing like the boss you are! Now’s the perfect time to start your 14-day free trial to see for yourself! Start Your Free Trial

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Healthcare Marketing Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Healthcare Marketing Analysis - Research Paper Example The four Ps in this organization are well strategized to ensure that patients get the best products from the hospital. London Medical Diabetic Health Clinic offers the following products to diabetic patients. The initial product is a superior care for patients with diabetes through the utilization of glucose sensors and pumps. This ensures that patients get a standard check for their glucose levels with striking accuracy, which does not leave any room for error. The second product is the educational courses, which are offered to staffs and patients to provide them with current information and findings about diabetes (Acton, 2011). For instance, there are open days for education to the hospital fraternity, and courses that focus on stress reduction to both patients and staff. Further, there are courses like Continuous Glucose Monitoring Information and Advanced Carbohydrate Counting and Insulin Dose Adjusting. Further, there is a pharmacy within the site of the hospital, which has the entire medication and books that diabetic patients require. Furthermore, the hospital installed a facility of teleconsultation, which enables patients to access consulting services from professionals without having to go to London (Leathard, 2000). Other products include diabetes care on a regular basis, expertise on pediatric diabetes and assessment of risks for heart disease, as well as vascular checks. The prices for the services offered at this hospital are fair and affordable to patients from a wide range of economic backgrounds. The prices are also competitive, with reference to other medical facilities that are in the same locale as the London Medical Diabetic health Clinic. The consultation fees are as low as $450, and... As mentioned earlier in the text, London Medical Diabetic Health Clinic provides a comprehensive approach to ensure that patients with diabetes live normal lives, which are fulfilling. The four Ps in this organization are well strategized to ensure that patients get the best products from the hospital. London Medical Diabetic Health Clinic offers the following products to diabetic patients. The initial product is a superior care for patients with diabetes through the utilization of glucose sensors and pumps. This ensures that patients get a standard check for their glucose levels with striking accuracy, which does not leave any room for error. The second product is the educational courses, which are offered to staffs and patients to provide them with current information and findings about diabetes (Acton, 2011). For instance, there are open days for education to the hospital fraternity, and courses that focus on stress reduction to both patients and staff.Further, there are courses l ike Continuous Glucose Monitoring Information and Advanced Carbohydrate Counting and Insulin Dose Adjusting. Further, there is a pharmacy within the site of the hospital, which has the entire medication and books that diabetic patients require. Furthermore, the hospital installed a facility of teleconsultation, which enables patients to access consulting services from professionals without having to go to London (Leathard, 2000). The consultation fees are as low as $450, and this can be adjusted depending on the patient.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Primary Research on an Advertisement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Primary Research on an Advertisement - Essay Example Not only was the advertisement hilarious but it also generated positive applause from the millions of football fans, especially in Africa. Clearly, the creators of this advertisement were innovative enough to acknowledge that football can be used to create attractive appeals to consumers through relating it with refreshing moments. While millions of viewers were united by football, the Coca-Cola Company identified this as a perfect opportunity to establish long lasting appeals of its Coke product to the football fans. This paper seeks to analyze the different ways in which Coca-Cola Company presented its intended appeals on football viewers, specifically the youth age group (between 18 and 30 years.) The advertisement is divided into five-screen sections of different settings: the old timer, the worrier, the show off, the admirers, and the die-hards. The advertisement begins with screens of football fans in different locations who are watching football matches. Some of the viewers are refreshing their throats with a Coke soda in the different locations. The next screen focuses on an old man who cannot sit down due to the excitement arousal caused by drinking Coke. Although he has poor vision to follow up the football match, he is keen enough to notice and celebrate a goal. The advertisement then shifts to a football fan who has actively chewed his football gloves due to the anxiety caused by watching a game filled with suspense. A woman appears, and hands him two bottles of Coke, which seem to offer him a sense of relaxation. Another screenshot appears where a girl seems to be celebrating that her team won, only to be informed by a man drinking Coke that the match is at half tim e. The next screen focuses on three chefs in the kitchen who are keenly concentrating on a football match while drinking coke. They seem to have forgotten about their occupational responsibilities; food seems to be burning in the background and

Saturday, November 16, 2019

European Influence on Japan & China Essay Example for Free

European Influence on Japan China Essay The European arrival had an effect on both China and Japan. China and Japan had some similar and different reactions to the arrival of the Europeans. In China and Japan, the European arrival affected the technologies and economies of both societies similarly, whereas the reason of isolation differed in these societies. The technology of the Europeans following their arrival penetrated both the Japanese and Chinese societies. In China, in order to gain the elites interest in the Christian religion, the Jesuit missionaries introduced the technology of cannons and clocks. In Japan during the 1950s, the Portuguese technology of clock and gun making, influenced society strongly. The Japanese and Chinese both openly accepted the new European technologies because they felt they needed to accept the technologies to keep up with the Europeans, who seemed more technologically advanced. In both China and Japan, people were being converted to Christianity. They were being converted from top to bottom. Once a year, China and Japan, were able to trade with the Europeans. They isolated themselves and traded with each other. Japan and China also had some different reactions to the European arrival. They had different reasons for isolating. After Zheng He died, the Chinese government decided to close the ports, except two. The Chinese and the Europeans exchanged goods once a year for the next 400 years. China agreed with the isolation because the scholar gentry saw the voyages as a waste of resources. They rather spend the money on defending China. Japan grew doubts with the European intentions, that both merchants and missionaries might subvert the existing social order. This led to official measures to restrict foreign activities in Japan. Under Ieyasu and his successors, the persecution of the Christians increased to isolate Japan from outside influences. In the 1630s, all the Japanese ships were forbidden to trade or even sail overseas. By the mid-17th century, Japan’s retreat into almost total isolation was complete. A major difference was after Japan isolated themselves, an elite group still remained interested in the Europeans. Unlike the Chinese who looked down on the Europeans and ignored what they had to offer and stay isolated with them. The Chinese and Japanese had similar and different reactions to the arrival of the Europeans. Both of these societies had a technology advancement. Also, they both isolated themselves from the Europeans and instead they traded with each other. They had different reasons for isolating. Also, an important difference was that in Japan, a group remained interested in the Europeans. This differed from the Chinese because after they isolated, they didn’t want anything to do with the Europeans.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

judahs Triumph :: essays research papers

Judah’s Triumph   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  William Wyler is the director of the 1959 award-winning version of Ben-Hur. The film is an adaptation of General Lew Wallace’s novel. Karl Tunberg is credited with the actual screenplay. Sam Zimbalist was the original producer of Ben-Hur, but he died before the completion of filming. The two main characters are Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) and Messala (Stephen Boyd). Another important person involved in this film is Miklos Rozsa. He composed the award-winning musical score in a total of eight weeks. Ben-Hur was released in New York City on November 18, 1959, and in Los Angeles on November 24, 1959. It was re-released in the USA in 1969. This film has grossed $70 million in the United States alone. As for location, this film was shot in entirely in Italy. Ben-Hur is one of two films to win eleven Academy Awards, the other movie being Titanic. The awards include best leading and supporting actors, best cinematography, best director, best music, best sound, and more. This film has some interesting behind the scenes trivia, most of which is in connection to the stadium or the chariot racing. According to The Internet Movie Database the design of the stadium was a controversy. â€Å"MGM asked an archaeologist what the stadium in Jerusalem had looked like. ‘Roman,’ came the reply. A second archaeologist was asked. ‘It was in a Phoenician style,’ he said. A third archaeologist was consulted, who said: ‘Stadium? I was not aware that Jerusalem had one!’ MGM engineers eventually sat down and carefully studied Ben-Hur (1926), and based their design on that.† Another intriguing fact is during the chariot race Charlton Heston’s stunt double was flipped out of the chariot. The stunt man hung on to the reigns and climbed back into the chariot. That blooper was left in the film to add more action. Marketing for this film was almost as big as the movie itself. Hundreds of toys were created, as well as Ã¢â‚¬Ë œBen-his’ and ‘Ben-hers’ bathroom towels. The Internet Movie Database also points out another big goof in editing. â€Å"Nine chariots start the chariot race. After the first crash, there appear still to be nine chariots in the race. After the third crash, six are shown, but as Ben Hur passes to catch up, clearly there [are] a total of seven in the race. After five have crashed, five are left. Messala is the sixth chariot to crash, but Ben Hur and three others finish the race.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Comparing the Electoral and Party Systems of China and Russia Essay

The collapse of the international socialist network changed the world at the turn of the century. The failure of the many socialist regimes ended the confrontation between East and West and provided an opportunity to restructure the international order. The individual states of East Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, China and the former Soviet Union took differing paths and chose differing restructuring strategies, which themselves led to different courses of transformation. The former hard-line socialist regimes of Russia and China had to face the challenges brought by the new world order specifically on altering its political structures. This paper would compare the government and politics of China and Russia focusing on the electoral laws and their impacts on the party system. Moreover, this would try to recommend some possible measures to ensure the development of democracy for both countries and to address some of their problems. Russia is a vast country with an imperial and authoritarian past. By area, Russia is the largest country in the world, almost twice the size of the United States. The population includes numerous minorities, with 36 national groups containing more than 100,000 people, Russia’s rulers have in the past been autocratic empire builders, basing their imperial expansion on control of the serf society and a rural community. Russia’s experience in communism represented a culmination of a authoritarianism. The Union Soviet Socialist Republics encompassing 15 European and Asian Republics, formed the former Russian Empire. The politics of Russia take place in a framework of a federal presidential republic. According to the Constitution of Russia, the President of Russia is head of state, and of a multi-party system with executive power exercised by the government, headed by the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the President by the parliament’s approbation. Legislative power is vested in the two chambers of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, while the President and the government issue numerous legally binding by-laws. Although Russia has traditionally been ruled by absolute monarchs and dictators, it currently has a democratic system of government. Since gaining its independence with the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991, Russia has faced serious challenges in its efforts to forge a political system to follow nearly seventy-five years of Soviet rule. With a new constitution and a new parliament representing diverse parties and factions, Russia’s political structure subsequently showed signs of stabilization. As the transition period extended into the mid-1990s, the power of the national government continued to wane as Russia’s regions gained political and economic concessions from Moscow. Although the struggle between executive and legislative branches was partially resolved by the new constitution, the two branches continued to represent fundamentally opposing visions of Russia’s future. One of the world’s oldest civilization consisting states and cultures dating back thousands of years ago is China. It is a cultural region, ancient civilization, and nation in East Asia. The deadlock of the last Chinese Civil War has resulted in two political entities using the name China: the People’s Republic of China (PRC), administering mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau; and the Republic of China (ROC), administering Taiwan and its surrounding islands. It has the world’s longest continuously used written language system, and the source of some of the world’s great inventions including paper, compass, gunpowder, and printing. The People’s Republic of China is working within the framework of a single-party socialist republic. The will of Chinese citizens is expressed through the legislative bodies of the People’s Congress system. People’s Congress members at the county level are elected by voters. These county level People’s Congresses have the responsibility of oversight of local government, and elect members to the Provincial People’s Congress. The provincial People’s Congress in turn elects members to the National People’s Congress that meets each year in March in Beijing. Current political concerns in China include lessening the growing gap between rich and poor, and fighting corruption within the government leadership. The support that the Communist Party of China has among the Chinese population in general is unclear because national elections are mostly CPC dominated, as there are no opposition political parties and independent candidates elected into office are too scattered and disorganized to challenge CPC rule. According to Hague and Harrop, â€Å"Party systems are the interaction between the significant political parties. In a democracy, parties respond to each other’s initiatives in a competitive interplay. The party system also reflects legal regulation applying to all parties. In China, a dominant party system is in place wherein one party is a constant component of the executive, governing either alone or in coalition. The dominant party system was more common in the twentieth century than it is today and China is one rare example. The dominant party of the PRC is the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The leadership of the CCP is enshrined in the PRC Constitution. State power within the PRC is exercised through the CCP, the Central People’s Government and their provincial and local counterparts. Under the dual leadership system, each local bureau or office is under the theoretically co-equal authority of the local leader and the leader of the corresponding office, bureau or ministry at the next higher level. The ruling Communist Party committee at each level plays a large role in the selection of appropriate candidates for election to the local congress and to the next higher level. China is a country that accepts involvement from multiple political parties. Apart from the CPC, the ruling party, there are eight political parties. They are China Revolutionary Committee of the Kuomintang, China Democratic League, China Democratic National Construction Association, China Association for the Promotion of Democracy, Chinese Peasants’ and Workers’ Democratic Party, China Zhi Gong Dang, Jiusan Society, and the Taiwan Democratic Self-government League. Most of them were founded during the anti-Japanese war and the national liberation war. They support the political leadership of the CPC, which has become their historical choice during the long years of cooperation with the CPC and through common struggles. Although there are other political parties present in China, these parties are not opposition parties, but parties participating in the discussion and administration of State affairs. Moreover, these parties serve to endorse CCP’s policies. Meanwhile, Russia is working on a multi-party system wherein the legislature comprises several minority parties, resulting in coalitions or minority government by the leading party. The multi-party system in Russia resulted to the rise of not just one political party unlike the case of China. Although, United Russia occupies the majority seats of the Duma, the seats obtained by the Russian Communist Party, as well as other parties, are significant in producing checks and balances to the Russian Assembly. Electoral systems were made to answer the question of how to convert votes into seats. In elections to the legislature, the main questions is whether an electoral system ensures that the seats obtained by a party are directly proportional to the votes received (Hague and Harrop 146). In China, the people do not directly elect delegates for the National People’s Congress (NPC). China practices democratic centralism wherein direct democracy is only practiced at the local levels and the elected delegates in the local people’s congresses in turn elect their representative at the NPC. Delegates for the local people’s congresses are elected using the first-past-the-post system (FPTP). FPTP is a type of non-proportional system wherein parties are not rewarded in proportion to the share of the votes obtained. Specifically, FPTP takes the plurality form of non-proportional representation where a candidate only needs a plurality of votes to win a seat and a majority of votes is not required. In Russia, seats in the Duma were formerly elected half by proportional representation (with at least 5% of the vote to qualify for seats) and half by single member districts. However, President Putin passed a decree that all seats are to be elected by proportional representation (with at least 7% of the vote to qualify for seats) to take effect in the December 2007 elections. Particularly, Russia is adapting the list system to confer delegates for the Duma. The list system is the most common method of proportional representation in which parties submit a list of their candidates and then the votes they obtain determines the percent of seats they get. In proportional representation, the goal is to represent parties rather than territories. For China, the adoption of the list system is recommended to develop a genuine opposition party. For many decades now, the rule of the CCP did not face any significant challenger in China. There have also been secessionist movements due to some ethnic and cultural cleavages such as the Tibetans who are lobbying from independence from China. The adoption of the list system would allow the voice of the minority to be heard in the NPC thus ensuring the democratic rights of the people. It will also make China less prone to violence, just like what happened in the Tiananmen Massacre were students on protest were open fired by Chinese military, since grievances can be acknowledge in government institutions such as the NPC. It is necessary to abolish democratic centralism since government processes are easily manipulated by local bureaucrats to advance their own selfish gains. Political reform in China is a matter of opening the ‘nominally open’ elections to other political parties. For Russia, the current electoral system is well on its way to democratize the Russian political system. However, the recent decree of Putin would make it difficult for smaller parties to obtain a seat in the Duma. Seven percent is such a high threshold and may cause the marginalization of the smaller parties and the domination of the more established ones. A lower threshold is hereby recommended and that Putin’s decree for the December 2007 elections should be repealed because it is a hindrance for the continuous democratization of Russia. These formerly hard-line socialist regimes have adopted measures to cope up with the new international order. However, not both were able to give way to democratization due to the electoral and party systems that they adapted.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Creative Thinking Techniques

IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques Creative Thinking Techniques Derrick Brown, Director Jan Kusiak, General Manager IRM Training Pty Ltd ABN 56 007 219 589 Suite 209, 620 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne, Vic. 3004, Australia 03 9533 2300 [email  protected] com. au jan. [email  protected] com. au Introduction This extract from IRM’s training material looks at how systematic, creative thinking techniques can be used to design practical solutions to business problems. Successful designs don’t just happen.Whilst we can sometimes get ‘flashes of brilliance’, successful designs are more likely to occur as part of a systematic process. Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together. Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890) The first step in developing a solution is to identify and define the problem – see the IRM paper Problem Analysis Techniques. Using the problem definition as a starting point we can appl y a number of creative thinking techniques to identify potential solutions, then further analyse and refine these to give us an optimum solution for the problem at hand.This paper discusses some of the successful creative thinking techniques used by business analysts and describes a generic model which can be used to guide the process. ________________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents 1. 0 2. 0 2. 1 2. 2 3. 0 3. 1 3. 2 4. 0 4. 1 4. 2 4. 3 4. 4 5. 0 6. 0 7. 0 Successful design strategies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 2 Design methods †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Vertical thinking †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 3 Creative thinking †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 4 The brain †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 4 Left and right brain functions †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Blocks to creativity †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 6 Creative thinking techniques †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 Brainstorming †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 A bridge – process flow analogy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ The six thinking hats †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 8 Business process re-engineering: 20 questions †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 9 Validation †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 10 Creative thinking – generic process model †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 1 Balance †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 12  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 1 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 1. 0 Successful design strategies The design strategies that we choose are crucial to a project’s success – a strategy that initially looks good but that proves to be difficult to implement is not a good strategy. Many projects fail because the strategy proves to be too ambitious and breeches the agreed constraints.Consider the 80/20 rule – often we can solve 80% of the problem with only 20% of the resources, the other 80% of the resources being needed to cater for what may be considered inconsequential factors. This initial consideration may influence all subsequent thinking. Characteristics of succe ssful designs†¦ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ meet the agreed objective(s) solve the defined problem(s) are technically feasible are developed (and operate) within constraints are capable of implementation can absorb medium term business growth are acceptable to the user community Great system. Well done! Thanks†¦ 2. 0Design methods Design is an iterative process and first designs are often thrown away. An outline design is required first, then the details should emerge progressively. Any system design method must: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ force partitioning of the problem progress from the most abstract to the more detailed concentrate on logical design first and physical design last produce a specification that can be understood by its readers There’s nothing wrong in copying ideas that are in general circulation from other businesses. Quite often an idea can be transferred across industry boundaries with great results.People make the difference. The best design teams usually have mixed backgrounds – they bring different experiences and different approaches to the problem. A team of people with IT backgrounds are likely to tackle a problem in the same way, whilst say a customer service representative may have an entirely different outlook – and this is what we need. Don’t rush through problem analysis – good problem analysis will give you a clear understanding and definition of the problem. This definition is critical when communicating potential solutions to stakeholders.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. rm. com. au 2 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques Danger !! IT staff (and others) frequently get swamped far to quickly in the detail of technical design. Much time is then wasted when the outline changes, rendering the details irrelevant. It is an important principle to focus on the major issues first. Leave the detail until later – get t he outline design (the concepts) approved first. A good example of this is found with screen and report designs. Many analysts, designers and users can be quickly sucked into endless discussion on the best-looking, most appropriate design.Much of this discussion will focus on the physical aspects – which are irrelevant to the major issue. This is all detail and is best left to the technical design phase. If system output is the focus of the design discussion then agreement should be sought only on the output data itself, not on the method or format of output. 2. 1 Vertical thinking This tends to be easier for many of us – it is more detailed and physical. It is where many of us feel most comfortable. Vertical thinking†¦ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ is logical results in unique or few solutions is convergent is more natural for ost of us Many of our clients will also be happiest at this level – discussing the screen or report details, for example. However , be aware that we should not get into these details until we have decided in principle what design strategy to adopt. Otherwise much time and effort will be wasted in detailed discussions – only to find out later that none of it is relevant. JAD (Joint Application Development) groups often get focussed on these details – and can soak up much time in doing so. P R O B L E M S SOLUTION Vertical thinking – applicable to detailed, technical design 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 3 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 2. 2 Creative thinking Most of us are not natural creative thinkers. Telling oneself and the team ‘to be creative’ does not usually yield results. Some special techniques are required to help us use our brains in a different way – to change our usual thinking process. The issue with creative thinking is that almost by definition any idea that has not already been examined is going to sound crazy. But a good solution will probably sound crazy – at first.Unfortunately, that’s why we often won’t put it forward. Creative thinking†¦ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ is imaginative generates many possible solutions is divergent is lateral S O L U T I O N S Applicable to – major company problems – business systems design – overall flow of information 3. 0 The brain In order to find ways of being consciously creative, we must first understand how the brain works. Experimentation on the brain has proved to be very difficult and it is only in the last few years, with advanced scanning technology, that science has discovered much of what we now know.Put simply, the brain consists of two hemispheres joined by a bridge of nervous tissue called the Corpus Callosum. In unusual cases, some people have been born with a split corpus callosum where the two halves of the brain are not connected. Split brain patients are excellent subjects for studying how functions are localised and in which part of the brain they are performed. This has shown that anatomical features in one half of the body are controlled by the opposite half of the brain – the brain is crossed.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 4 IRM Training – White PaperCreative Thinking Techniques In one experiment, a split brain subject is shown the words ‘Hat Band’. Each eye sees the whole visual field. The right visual field is processed by the left side of the brain, and the left visual field is processed by the right side of the brain. When the subject is asked what has been read, they reply ‘band’. When asked what sort of band, the subject must guess – Rubber band? Jazz band? The subject has no idea what kind of band. The conclusion is that the left side of the brain is the word processing side and of course, it is this side which reads the word ‘Band’.The right side has received t he impression of the word ‘Hat’, but, because of the cut corpus callosum, this is not transmitted to the left brain. Since the subject cannot say that they have received the impression of the word ‘Hat’, we can deduce that the right brain is not capable of word processing. This and similar experiments allow a model of the brain to be drawn showing the localisation of functions between the two halves. This model is true for right-handed people. There is less specialisation of the two halves when the subject is lefthanded. 3. Left and right brain functions It is found that in right-handed people, the left brain deals with the senses and movement of the right of the body, together with speech, reading, mathematics and analytical (logical) thinking. The right brain deals with the senses and movement of the left side of the body together with creativity, the interpretation of shape and the relationship of objects in space. This is, of course, an oversimplificati on. For example, when a person is brain damaged and loses say movement of one side of the body, the other side of the brain can often be trained to take over the missing brain functions.We can see that the left brain is the text processor and the right brain is the picture processor. Further research tells us that the logical left brain analyses new ideas generated by the creative right brain – and turns these ideas into words. Unfortunately, the left brain is found to be dominant and tends to filter out many ideas because they appear to be crazy. The reason behind this dominance of the left brain is probably rooted in our evolutionary past. Primitive man had few left brain functions and relied on right brain functions for survival.An intruder’s intentions were judged as hostile or friendly by stance and facial expression. When the left brain functions evolved, the left brain suppressed the ‘suspicious’ mistrusting right. Modern man needs to find a way of suppressing left brain activity to allow the right to express itself via the generation of ideas – even, and most importantly, the ‘crazy’ ones.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 5 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 3. 2 Blocks to creativityWe may fear†¦ †¢ making mistakes †¢ looking foolish †¢ being criticised †¢ being alone †¢ being outcast †¢ disturbing tradition †¢ being associated with taboos We may also suffer from†¦ †¢ left brain dominance †¢ incompatible objectives †¢ hostility For these reasons we find that subconsciously we are hindered from coming up with new ideas. If asked at a meeting for ideas to solve a particular problem, most of us are unlikely to do so. We are simply afraid of looking foolish. And our logical left brains prevent the examination of the ideas, seemingly rejecting them before we consciously recognise them!We must take specia l steps to try to prevent this from happening. One way to inhibit the left brain from its dominance is to give it something to do. A right body physical movement will do nicely – like playing with a piece of blu-tack, or doodling. Perhaps you’ve found yourself doodling while listening – it may be something that you’ve found helps you to focus on ideas. Test this for yourself – read a passage from a book aloud, with an observer. Now repeat the exercise, but this time do something with your right hand, say, toss a coin repeatedly. Your reading will suffer!Your left brain has to multi-task and the word-flow is more disjointed.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 6 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 4. 0 Creative thinking techniques Many techniques exists to stimulate creative thinking and whilst the following list is not exhaustive, the examples below can work well when solving business problems. No specia l tools are needed. 4. 1 Brainstorming The process†¦ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Organise the team, materials and scribe Appoint a chairperson State the problems we are trying to solve Restate the problem a number of times: – How to reduce time to †¦ How to speed up †¦ Inhibit the left brain Have a warm up session e. g. – Other uses for: – A gumboot – A torch – A paper clip Brainstorm the restated problems and record the ideas When the session slows down, invite the ‘wildest idea’ At the end of the session, classify all ideas then evaluate do not eliminate ideas too quickly Request assistance from management on matters of policy, don’t speculate †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ To be successful, brainstorming sessions need a good chairperson.It is vital that no discussions are allowed on any idea during the session, the idea is just recorded. The chairperson’s role is to keep the ideas coming, often fast and furious, with people striking sparks off each other. The evaluation is the hard part, but don’t strike out the crazy ones too quickly – they might just be the key to a good solution. Evaluate ideas against a checklist such as the one below: Idea 1 Does it meet the objectives Does it solve the problem Does it introduce new problems Will it fit in with current systems Can it accommodate growth Idea 2 Idea 3 Idea†¦nTry not to make the checklist too comprehensive at this stage. We want to eliminate the ideas that are clearly unworkable but retain all that are worth further consideration.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 7 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 4. 2 A bridge – process flow analogy Solutions to bottleneck or flow problems.. A congested road bridge makes a good theme for a brainstorming session. There are many conceptual similarities between traffic and process flows.Many so lutions fall into one of the following classes: †¢ Speed up the flow †¢ Reduce the flow †¢ Divert the flow These generic solutions apply to many systems, whether traffic, production lines or information flows. We are mainly concerned with information flows and the bridge analogy often helps. Thinking about road traffic problems should also remind us to consider social, political, environmental and economic factors when creating our solutions. 4. 3 The six thinking hats Design options can generate much discussion during the evaluation process. This needs to be controlled if we are to make good use of our time.It is easy to take sides, to defend our own ideas and to attack what we may see as opposing ideas. This may not be constructive. An approach that helps to avoid confrontation and which channels our critical analysis is the ‘Six Thinking Hats’ approach (Dr Edward de Bono). Using this technique a group can evaluate an idea and can argue both the pros an d cons whilst remaining as objective as possible. A chairperson should formally facilitate the process. An individual may ‘wear’ a hat to produce a comment without any possible attached stigma – ‘wearing the black hat for a moment I don’t think that this will work†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢.The person who is always critical without being constructive has to become constructive (or lose face) when asked by the chair – ‘now let us wear the yellow hat and see what good things may result from this idea’. Caution!!! The process does need to be facilitated. Like any of these methods, it may not be useful and may even be counter-productive unless managed correctly. The hats†¦ 1. White hat – neutral – (think of white paper) Information – What do we know? What information do we want? What do we need? 2. Red hat – fire, warmth Feelings, emotion, intuition, hunches 3. Black hat – caution Legality, judgement, moral ity 4.Yellow hat – sunshine Positive, optimism, benefits 5. Green hat – growth New ideas, new slants, options, opportunities 6. Blue hat – sky Overview, control of the process, agenda, next step, action plans, conclusions  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 8 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 4. 4 Business process re-engineering: 20 questions This process works well as a design tool (and also as a problem analysis tool – see the IRM paper: Problem Analysis Techniques). The last question of each group (†¦should†¦? ) makes us consider the broader design options. The last group of questions (How†¦? encourages us to focus on the method. It’s important that the What group of questions is asked first, and the How group of questions is asked last. 1. What? †¢ †¢ †¢ What is being done? (what is being achieved) Why is it necessary? What else could be done? What else should be done? Where is it being done? Why there? Where else could it be done? Where else should it be done? When is it done? Why then? When else could it be done? When else should it be done? Who does it? Why this person/group? Who else could do it? Who else should do it? How is it done? Why this way? How else could it be done? How else should it be done? 2.Where? †¢ †¢ †¢ 3. When? †¢ †¢ †¢ 4. Who? †¢ †¢ †¢ 5. How? †¢ †¢ †¢ Use the ideas generated from the brainstorming sessions, apply the BPR 20 questions technique and re-visit the most promising.  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 9 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 5. 0 Validation Prior to commencing detailed specification, the analyst should appraise the outline design using the following checklist: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ have the objectives been met? have the problems been solved? what new problems have been introduce d? (there are always some) is the design vulnerable to change in the working environment? ill the design cater for reasonable growth? Characteristics of good ideas.. †¢ †¢ †¢ solve, or partially solve, more than one identified problem can be implemented quickly. Your client will often be attracted to a partial solution that relieves the problem, while you continue to work on the complete solution can be implemented independently. In IT we often put forward complex solutions that depend upon the successful implementation of other systems. When a problem occurs with one system there is often a domino effect of delays mesh well with overall business strategies. These will always find favour with management. an be implemented step-by-step, incremental implementation. Implement a basic solution, then implement more sophistication. In this way you offer a faster solution delivery – albeit not a complete solution – at first. Management may well be willing to wa it for the full solution, especially if the business concepts are new †¢ †¢  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 10 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 6. 0 Creative thinking – generic process model Problem Identification Problem Analysis Problem Definition Brainstorm Bridge Six Hats BPR Solution DesignsValidation Solution Hints and tips†¦ †¢ †¢ Modelling the current system (logical & physical) can aid problem understanding Chose creative techniques applicable to the problem and your team. Not all problems lend themselves to all techniques. Be flexible and willing to try a different technique or a combination of some or all of them Be open to new information – for example, facts uncovered during a brainstorming session may require you to revisit your understanding of the problem Essential modelling techniques help give an uncluttered view of the proposed solution Don’t disregard a solution just ecause it doesn’t solve the whole problem. Your final solution may be built from several ideas, each relevant to a different part of the problem †¢ †¢ †¢  © 2005-2007 IRM Training Pty Ltd www. irm. com. au 11 IRM Training – White Paper Creative Thinking Techniques 7. 0 Balance Time Time Budget All solutions are compromises. We may need to balance how many functions we automate against the time and money required to achieve this. We may weigh the merits of automating a process against the frequency (and therefore inconvenience) of doing it manually.Before these decisions can be made, we must establish the basic facts as far as is reasonable (estimating where necessary). Wherever a system design option exists, weigh up the facts, consult the client or your colleagues as appropriate and recommend or make a decision. Never be afraid to think outside the square and to seek alternative solutions, or to re-define the problem. There’s always another wa y of doing it. The important thing is not to stop questioning. Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955)

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Essay on Are People Selfish

Essay on Are People Selfish Essay on Are People Selfish? Essay on Are People Selfish?As a matter of fact, scientists wonder whether selfishness or altruism drive human evolution and give arguments in favor and against it. Evolutionary theorists concentrated mainly on competition, natural selection and selfishness, but couldn’t deny one evident fact that humans would not be able to survive in nature without social reciprocity, communication and cooperation.Recent research proves that evolution favors cooperation, while selfishness never brings long-term success, it requires cooperation. The recent discovery conflicts with the Zero-Dominant theory that provides selfish players a guaranteed way to beat cooperative ones. Zero-Dominant theory offers advantages to the selfish when they are against the cooperative players. Otherwise, it won’t work. In Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged we read that human nature is fundamentally selfish and every one exists only for his own sake. Modern studies show, however, that humans and anim als are unable to evolve in cooperative environment by being selfish, that challenges a previous theory justifying selfish behavior. It has been estimated that children have innate desire for equity and are less selfish than often considered. Experiments show that toddlers will help adults without being asked to do so. It also contradicts with Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection that presents individuals as selfish, on the one hand, and on the other hand, UK scholar considers that Darwin himself was puzzled with cooperation he observed in nature, especially by social insects. Natural disasters like earthquakes or tsunami are a vivid example of heroism, altruism and sharing of resources. Human stress systems are designed to connect to others, while even short-term isolation may be destructive. US researchers who worked out a model of the well-known prisoner’s dilemma game demonstrated the reasonability of cooperation that we observe in the animal kingdom, micro bial world and in humans. That is communication is the key reason of cooperation, only doing so people will eventually be more successful. Studying social distance and other-regarding behavior scholars worked with dictator and ultimatum games and noticed that in history everything was commonly shared and distributed equally between members of a community.   Thus, they claim society follows the principle of reciprocal altruism, sharing traditions in terms of private costs that reinforce reciprocal actions. They suppose that individuals bring their personal life experiences into the experiment and as the anonymity or social isolation decreases the offer distributions also diminish. Social distance importance is evident and people appear to value social interaction with others when making decisions. Thus, not all act in their self-interest. Only in complete isolation researchers trace strictly self-interest behavior. They consider that dictator an ultimatum games should be modeled in terms of implicit and explicit expectations. Other-regarding preferences are found to have a social, what-do-others-know component. So, the presence of the experimenter reduces the incidence of self-regarding behavior. Behavior is considerably determined with what others may think, thus can be called a form of social exchange.Though, people are said to be inherently selfish since it has always been their defense mechanism, for today’s society selfishness does no good. So, people being social creatures group together in families, tribes, nations and social traits are considered to be best rational policies. Only having learned to work as a team they will be able to communicate more effectively, that will in its turn bring us long-term results and make the world a better place to live in.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Motivation, Stress, and Communication Research Paper - 1

Motivation, Stress, and Communication - Research Paper Example Job responsibilities To manage the creation and execution of the marketing strategies and at the same time implement the tactical plans that meet the expectation of the company. Designing strategies for implementation of business development. Hiring and recruiting the sales force and the training and induction programs are to be managed by the VP. Evaluation and development in the business strategies. Managing the multimillion-dollar budget. Responsible for overall sales, pricing policies and business development of the products and services in the company. Work closely with the product development team, merchandise sales and other senior executives in order to create demand and brand recognition for the Company (Thuraya, 2012). Skills and Specification Excellent team player and leadership skills so as to motivate the employees and bring the best possible talent out of them. Strong verbal as well as written communication kills along with interpersonal skills. Must possess an analytic al bent of mind and be good at building strong connections. Education and Qualification MBA with Marketing or Sales as specialization 10 years of marketing experience Motivate Performance via Goal Setting Theory Goal setting often plays an important role in the motivational programs and it would help the manager to get motivated to achieve a specific goal. Specific goals tend to lead to higher performance as compared to the generalized goals (DuBrin, 2011, p.400). Thus, the VP of Limited Brands would set specific goal in order to get motivated and work for the betterment of the organization. An increase in performance is directly proportionate to goal difficulty. The VP would set harder goals as the harder the goal is, the more it gets accomplished. Goals set will be used to evaluate and monitor the performance of the VP, as it increases the impact of goals set. The VP would relate its goal-setting objective to feedbacks from the senior members of the Limited Brands. Feedback is a m otivational principle within oneself. Positive feedback would encourage the VP to repeat the same positive behavior and work. In a way, it can be said that building feedback is to set an achievable short-term goals. The accomplishment of goals gets measured at a regular interval. Thus, short-term goals also tend to increase the motivational level of both the employers and employees. The VP would also set a specific team goal in order to increase the productivity. The Vice President of Limited Brands is a huge responsibility. He needs to look after the marketing and sales and at the same time enhances the brand value, thus in the process he needs to be motivated so that all the responsibilities are performed effectively. Analysis Managing Stress Stresses are part and parcel of life especially in the work place. Job stress naturally occurs while dealing with various activities and objectives of the company. As Vice President of Limited Brands, huge responsibility overheads the VP and he is expected to carry out the responsibility in an effective manner. However, it is important to handle the stress in an

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Over 30 Workers Trapped After Chilean Copper Mine Collapse Essay

Over 30 Workers Trapped After Chilean Copper Mine Collapse - Essay Example Information is powerful. It can have devastating effects if it is not handled with the necessary caution. In the case of the collapsed Chilean mine, the people involved had diversity, (O’Rourke, 2010). They happened to come from different backgrounds, beliefs and culture. This means they receive information differently. Some can become extremely frightened the mere thought that their loved ones, friends and relatives might die (BBC news, 2010). The company had to bear a lot with this disaster that took place. This involved keeping the families of the miners calm and fully assured that their interests are going to be taken care of. This had to be a message of hope and patience against a precise enthusiastic mainstream media which presented raw information to the audience. The employees too were totally scared of losing their colleagues. They were expecting an exceptionally strong assurance from the mining company, as well. This left the copper mining company with the responsibility of knowing how to regulate the release of communication and how much information to release to both the relatives and the employees. The company needed to establish communication between families and the employees. The families needed to know whether their relatives handled enough food and other resources. They needed someone to assure them that enough was being done to rescue them, (BBC news, and 2010). At the same time, they wanted commitment b y the company that all of their relatives would be rescued alive. The company needed to sound more convincing that the mainstream media. This is because the media did was doing sensational reporting without paying much attention to the plight of families and employees. The media were also looking for whom to blame which deed little to address the need of the families. The company needed to communicate with the relatives of the tapped employees, detailing how it was going to meet the needs of the trapped copper