Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management Essay

Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management - Essay Example It is the detailed report of how, when, where, who and why of a business. â€Å"In most cases, a business plan is created to explain and illustrate the vision you have for your business, and to persuade others to help you achieve that vision.† (Bellissim, 2003) Topfer (2011) states that starting a business without enough planning is like setting a journey without deciding on the destination. In most cases, small businesses simply ignore the process of business planning. Time is one of the main restricting factors that make them do so. But irrespective of the size of the business, it is always beneficial to have a clearly charted out plan. Business plans are required not only for planning the future of the business but also for the availing financing options. All financial institutions assist with the capital requirement of the company only after a careful study of the prospects of the business. Such an analysis is possible only with the help of a detailed business plan.  "The great thing about a  business  plan  is that it can provide a reference point for you to return to at any point during the project.† (Topfer, 2011) This paper will critically analyse the steps involved in a business plan. Each stage is critically analysed in terms of what should be included in each step. Also, the contribution of each step to the overall plan is dealt in detail. The intention of the assignment is to develop a clear understanding of the requirements for setting up and running a successful business venture. Charting out the plan may sound easier but it requires a proper understanding of the prospective business and the prevailing market conditions. Elements Idea Generation: Idea generation is the first and foremost step in a business plan. Idea generation can be defined as â€Å"the  process  of creating, developing, and communicating ideas  which are  abstract,  concrete, or visual. The process includes the process of constructing through the idea, innovating the  concept, developing the process, and bringing the concept to reality.† (Business Dictionary, 2011) Idea generation is in fact a raw process. The process involves generation of multiple ideas in the minds of the prospective entrepreneur. The person may screen and reach at a more favourable idea. Such ideas are generally in a raw format without much technical analysis being done on it. Idea generation is very important because idea is the stone that is being polished at the various stages of a business plan. An idea arises mostly from the personal interests of the entrepreneur. It will be something that is related to the behavioural and professional nature of the entrepreneur. For instance a medical professional might develop an idea for surgical equipment retailing, a good cook might think of opening a restaurant and the like. It is always better to carry out an idea that interests us most. It is as good as a business firm diversifying into a related product line. If we are familiar with the idea, it is easier for us to manage it. Therefore, the first question an aspiring entrepreneur should ask is what interests them most and is there an opportunity lying in the market for the same. This thought can give rise to more specific ideas. Strategic Objectives: Strategic objectives or just objectives refer to the purposes of carrying out the business. It is the major goals of the business. It is the focal point of all the activities of the business. The strategic objectives of a business are usually encompassed in the terms Vision and Mission. Vision is the purpose and Mission is the action to be taken to achieve the purpose. â€Å"Most of strategic objectives are directed toward generating greater profits and returns for the owners of the business, others are directed at customers

Historical Perspective Essay Essay Example for Free

Historical Perspective Essay Essay The method that nurses implement nursing care is influenced by research. Nursing theorist has influence to the practice of professional nursing and research. Many of the primitive theorists has help to develop the research from the previous to the current and will continue to the future to integrate research. Research has influence the action nurses consolidate and implement nursing care and process. One of the early primary nursing was Florence Nightingale. Florence Nightingale opened the doors for future researchers and theorist to model professional nursing. Florence Nightingale is the mother of contemporary nursing after coming back from the frontlines of Crimean War in 1856, and she renovated the fatality rate by attending the environment ( George, 2011, chapter 3). During the Crimean War Florence Nightingale offered to help with the nursing task, where she attended and took care of an ailing and injured soldiers. Florence Nightingale would tend to the sick soldiers at all times making sure that they were taken care of getting a clean environment, ventilation, hand washing, lighting and free of noise. Her concept to nursing is the environment. Environment could be modified to progress conditions so that natural ruling could allow healing. An environment model was established to glimpse the control of the physical environment as a major constituent of care ( George, 2011). Nightingale model progress to paradigm in nursing practice and contributes on nursing care and planned rendered to patients. Nurses maintain to practice their profession without attaining that their process and objective are based on Nightingales concept. The concept of environmental control serves as a foundation for many research analysis. Nursing theories related to Nightingales Environmental Model will continue to guide research and nursing profession. With her theory and concepts the nursing profession has implemented her methods for environmental cleanliness as a guide model in nursing practice to meet the needs of the patients.

Causes of Workplace Accidents

Causes of Workplace Accidents Workplace accidents are generally caused by the unsafe behaviour of employees and the unsafe state of objects (Shi Wenwen, et al., 2011). In the past, root causes of those accidents were reported mainly in terms technological malfunctions and the human element tended to be ignored (Gordon, 1998). Technology and systems have become more reliable and the frequency of technological failures has diminished, there is little uncertainty today that human errors contribute to the majority of safety incidents within high risk industries (Baysari, et al., 2009; Skalle, 2014). The current research on the workplace accidents document that human errors are the root cause of up to 80% of incidents in high risk industries (Liping, 2003; Cullen and Anderson, 2005; Garret and Teizer, 2009; Ganguly, 2011; Quanmin, et al., 2011). As Reason (1997) indicated in an earlier research, it is expected, because human decisions and actions are not only involved in accidents, but also in the design, construction, operation, maintenance and management of complex systems. The significance of human factors contribution to safety has been demonstrated over the past two decades by the often-quoted examples of the contribution of human failures to the major accidents within the process industry such as Bhopal, Piper Alpha, Texas City refinery explosion, Esso Longford gas explosion and Texaco Milford Haven explosion (Hughes and Kornowa-Weichel, 2004). Given this demonstration, it is astounding that the importance of human factors in the safety management has not yet been extensively acknowledged within the high risk industries in the Middle East. There are scarcely any literatures exist within the Middle East on the relevance of human factors in safety management. Some elements of human factors such as training and motivation had always been received attention within the oil and gas industry; however, they have been deliberately managed as part of an integrated safety management system or with the rigour that their contribution to the risk requires. The term ‘human error’ is defined in several literatures (Norman, 1981; Reason, 1990; Sanders and McCormick, 1993; Salmon, et al., 2005). Reason (1990, p.9) defined human error as â€Å"a generic term to encompass all those occasions in which a planned sequence of mental or physical activities fails to achieve its intended outcome, and when these failures cannot be attributed to the intervention of some chance agency.† Salmon, et al. (2005, p.5) defined human error as â€Å"any mental or physical activity, or failure to perform activity, that leads to either an undesired or unacceptable outcome.† Dhillon Liu (2006) and Shi Wenwen, et al. (2011) point out that the causes of human errors are complicated, and the basic reasons can be one’s own unsafe psychological activities, physiological factors, environmental factors, insufficient safety training, poor design factors and inadequate procedures. The term ‘human factor’ is often referred as the thread that runs through the safety management system, the organisation for safety and the culture of a site (Cullen and Anderson, 2005). Cacciabue (2004, p.12) defined human factors as â€Å"the technology concerned with the analysis and optimisation of the relationship between people and their activities, by the integration of human sciences and engineering in systematic applications, in consideration for cognitive aspects and socio-technical working contexts.† The United Kingdom, Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defined human factors as â€Å"environmental, organisational and job factors, and human and individual characteristics which influence behaviour at work in a way which can affect health and safety† (HSE, 2005, p.5; Ganguly, 2011, p.14). Hughes Kornowa-Weichel (2004) and Cullen Anderson (2005) highlight that it is important to integrate human factors from the early stages of process design and procedural development to reduce human failures. Hamilton, et al. (2013, p.5) state that â€Å"human factors integration is the principal method for applying human factors to the development of socio-technical systems across safety critical industries.† In this way, the integration helps to ensure that human factors methods and principles are applied appropriately and consistently during the system development in order to achieve a safe and effective design for end users. McLeod (2004) indicates that human factors maturity assessment of an organisation should be in terms of what action organisation takes to minimise the human contribution to incidents and the impact on the health of the workplace through the way it designs the equipment and implements its associated training and procedures. On the whole, the above discussed literatures put forward the claim that management systems, tools and equipment of an organisation to be designed with the potential capabilities and limitations of people in mind to run it safely and effectively as people are the integral and key features of the business systems. Therefore, the best practices of human failure prevention can only be attained when human factors are integrated into the procedural and system development phase rather than considering as a stand-alone activity. For this reason, the success rate of human failure prevention mostly depends on the level of human factors integration into the health and safety management system of that organisation. Background to the organisation Lamprell Energy Limited (LEL) is a leading provider of diversified engineering and contracting services to the onshore and offshore oil and gas and renewable energy industries. Based in the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E) and with the operations throughout the region, Lamprell has played a prominent role in the development of the energy industry within the Middle East for over 35 years. Lamprell has established a leading market position in the construction, commissioning and installation of rigs, process modules and top sides. The primary facilities of Lamprell are located in Hamariya, Sharjah and Jebel Ali all of which are located within the U.A.E. The facilities cover approximately 910,000 m2 with 2.2 km of quayside. The organisation employs approximately 2400 employees in the Jebel Ali facility where the research was conducted. Reason for the dissertation Health and safety is a core value within Lamprell businesses and a strong health and safety culture exist within the group. The health and safety management system is accredited by the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001:2007 standard. Surveillance audits are carried out by Bureau Veritas, a global leader in the management systems certification with a strong presence within the U.A.E. Kelvin Top Set root cause analysis tool and problem solving methodology is used within the organisation for the investigation of workplace incidents. This ensures that the root causes of all incidents reported within the organisation are systematically identified. An analysis carried out on all the lost time, restricted work, medical treatment accidents and root causes reported in the last 3 years within the Jebel Ali facility of Lamprell reveals that the accidents caused by the human failures are at an alarming rate. There were no fatalities reported during this period within the organisation. It was confirmed that accidents are classified based on the similar reporting criteria across all three years to ensure consistency of collected data. Figure 1. Total Accident Frequency Rate (AFR) and Human Failure Accident Frequency Rate from January 2011 to December 2013. Figure 2. The causes of human failure accidents from January 2011 to December 2013. As Figure 1 indicates, there was a rise in AFR in 2012 compared to 2011 and then dropped in 2013. Human failures contributed 76%, 82% and 83% to the total AFR in 2011, 2012 and 2013 respectively. The causes of these human failure accidents were retrieved from Lamprell’s Single Incident Reporting System (SIRS) and illustrated in Figure 2. The pie chart shows that over half the human failure accidents were due to the noncompliance of procedures, poor competency and environmental factors. The high human failure accident rate and the nature of the causes of these failures are self-explanatory for assessing the human factors integration into the health and safety management system of Lamprell.

We Must Fight Internet Hate Propaganda :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

We Must Fight Internet Hate Propaganda      Ã‚   This essay approaches the subject of the hostility to traditional American values presented by the internet. At a very deep level the world of the internet can sometimes seem indifferent and even hostile to morality. This is partly because internet culture is so deeply imbued with a typically postmodern sense that the only absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths or that, if there were, they would be inaccessible to human reason and therefore irrelevant(1).    Among the specific problems presented by the internet is the presence of hate sites devoted to defaming and attacking religious and ethnic groups. Some of these target churches. Like pornography and violence in the media, internet hate sites are reflections of the dark side of human nature. And while respect for free expression may require tolerating even voices of hatred up to a point, industry self-regulation-and, where required, intervention by public authority-should establish and enforce reasonable limits to what can be publicly said.    Church-related groups should be creatively present on the internet; and well-motivated, well-informed individuals and unofficial groups acting on their own initiative are entitled to be there as well. But it is confusing, to say the least, not to distinguish eccentric doctrinal interpretations, idiosyncratic devotional practices, and ideological advocacy bearing a specific church label, from the authentic positions of that Church.    There needs to be "the development of an anthropology and a theology of communication"(2) with specific reference to the internet. Christians, as concerned members of the larger Internet audience who also have legitimate particular interests of their own, wish to be part of the process that guides the future development of this new medium. It goes without saying that this will sometimes require them to adjust their own thinking and practice.    It is important, too, that all people use the Internet creatively to meet their responsibilities and help fulfill their mission in life. Hanging back timidly from fear of technology or for some other reason is not acceptable, in view of the very many positive possibilities of the Internet. Methods of facilitating communication and dialogue among people can strengthen the bonds of unity between them. Immediate access to information makes it possible to deepen dialogue with the contemporary world.    People in leadership positions in all sectors of society need to understand the internet, apply this understanding in formulating plans for social communications together with concrete policies and programs in this area, and make appropriate use of this media.

Milk and Cassava Cake

CASSAVA CAKE INGREDIENTS * 2 pounds Cassava root, grated * 1 can Coconut Cream * 1 can Coconut Milk * 3 Eggs, beaten * 1 cup Whole Milk * 1 stick or 1 cup Butter, melted * 2 cups Sugar * 1/2 teaspoon Salt * 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract * 1/2 cup grated Cheese (optional) Topping: * 1 can Condensed Milk * 1/3 cup Coconut Cream * 3 Egg yolks * 1/2 cup grated Cheese PREPARATION TIME : 15 minutes COOKING TIME : 60 minutes Pre-heat oven at 400  °F 1 Mix together all the cassava ingredients except the topping. Portion the mix into 2 separate baking pans (or one rectangular pan) and pop them in the oven. Bake for 35 – 40 mins or until the top is firm and set. 3 Mix together the topping and simmer for a minute. Set aside. 4 Pour the topping onto the cake and bake for another 15 minutes or until golden brown. Test for doneness – please see Cook's Tip below. 5 Let the Cassava Cake cool down for 30 minutes or longer before slicing and serving. BENG'S TIPS * The cassava cake cooks f aster if you portion the mix into 2 or 3 smaller pans than baking them all in one pan. The center of the cake gets cooked last so to test for doneness – the top should be golden brown, then insert a toothpick in the center and if comes out clean, it's done. * Substitution : for a creamier, tastier cake, use Half and Half, light cream or evaporated milk instead of whole milk. Also, you can use 6 egg yolks instead of 3 whole eggs. Read more: http://www. filipino-food-recipes. com/cassavarecipefilipino. html#ixzz2OUdbDbsQ Cassava Cake Cassava cake is another all-time favorite dessert in the Philippines.It is made from grated cassava which Filipinos call kamoteng kahoy or balanghoy. Desserts made from cassava are very popular because cassava is easily grown anywhere in the country. This is another kakanin (Filipino native sweet delicacies) that is so perfect for special occasions and even for regular snack or dessert. It is so easy to make —just mix all the ingredients and put it in the oven! The only hard part is waiting for it to bake! 🙂 Cassava cake is so popular that there are a lot of different versions available. Check out mine! I shared this on Miz Helen's Country Cottage's Full Plate Thursday, It's a Keeper Thursday, and Sweet Tooth Friday. Prep Time: 10 minutes   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cook Time: ~1 hour and 20 minutes   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Servings: 12-15 Ingredients: Cake: * 2 packs grated cassava (1 lb each) * 1 ? 14-oz. can condensed milk * 1 14-oz. can coconut cream * 1 12-oz. can evaporated milk * 3 eggs * ? cup sugar (If you want it sweeter, you can double the amount of sugar) Toppings: * ? can condensed milk * 1 egg Procedure: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. In a small bowl, mix ? can condensed milk and 1 egg. Set aside. 3.In a large bowl, mix all cake ingredients thoroughly. 4. Transfer to a lightly greased baking dish or pan. Bake for 1 hour. 5. Pour the condensed milk and egg mixture on top of the cassav a cake. Bake for 20 minutes more or until desired brown color is achieved. (I usually bake it for 25-30 minutes because my husband loves it with a little burnt sides. ) 6. Remove from oven and allow to cool down completely. (In the Philippines, it is usually topped with grated cheese, but my daughters don’t like it that way so I omitted that part. ) 7. Slice and serve for dessert or even for snack.

Self-Carving Exploding Jack o Lantern Demonstration

Self-Carving Exploding Jack o' Lantern Demonstration The self-carving pumpkin uses a chemical reaction to cause an explosion inside a pumpkin, forcing out the pumpkin pieces of a jack-o-lantern face (with an accompanying bang and fire). You can perform this popular chemistry Halloween demonstration yourself: Self-Carving Exploding Pumpkin Materials 50 ml hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)20 ml water~7 pea-sized chips of calcium carbide (CaC2)Â  cat food or tuna canoven mitt (to avoid getting burned)piezoelectric sparker Make a Self-Carving Pumpkin Carve a medium pumpkin with a simple face. Triangles, circles, squares and ovals are good choices. Re-insert the face pieces, making sure they can move easily out of the pumpkin. If the pumpkin has thick flesh, you may wish to cut away the back of the pieces so they are lighter/weaker.Poke or drill a small hole in the back of the pumpkin so you can insert the wire sparker. Insert the sparker and test it to make sure it works.Pour the peroxide in the pumpkin. (an optional step in some descriptions)Put the water in the cat food or tuna can and set the can in the pumpkin.Drop the calcium carbide chips into the water and replace the lid of the pumpkin. Allow about a minute for the acetylene to build up.Be sure the face of the pumpkin is facing away from you and that your audience is a safe distance from the demonstration. You may wish to wear ear protection. Goggles and a lab coat are recommended. While holding down the lid of the pumpkin (with an oven-mitted hand), spark the sparker. How the Self-Carving Pumpkin Works In 1862 Friedrich WÃ ¶hler discovered calcium carbide and water would react to form flammable acetylene gas and calcium hydroxide: CaC2 2 H2O → C2H2 Ca(OH)2 This reaction is used in the commercial manufacture of acetylene and for carbide lamps, which are used by miners in some areas. Safety Precautions This demonstration is best performed by a chemistry teacher or other adult experienced with chemicals or pyrotechnics. It is not a suitable project for kids to try. Youll likely need to order calcium carbide through a chemistry or educational supply store or else buy it online. Remote ignition of the acetylene is safer than holding the pumpkin and striking a sparker, though youll want to secure the lid of the jack-o-lantern so that it wont simply blow off, leaving your pumpkin uncarved. If the pieces of the face are not loose, either the pumpkin will explode or else the explosion will be contained and the pumpkin will be uncarved. Safe Self-Carving Pumpkin This is also a safe version of this project which uses carbon dioxide gas to blow out the jack-o-lantern face. Although carbon dioxide can be compressed to where it explodes, using a plastic bag to contain the gas provides enough pressure to produce the desired effect without the risk of injury.