Delivering Business Value with IT at Hefty Hardware Essay

The mini-case starts with â€Å"IT is a pain in the neck,† which is a wrong notion that most of the business managers have in an organization. The history of IT-business relationships in most of the organizations shows that there is a huge gap between both sides which is getting better over a period of time. Today, managers know the fact that it is the people, technology and information that realizes the value of a company and everytime IT cannot be blamed for everything. The days have gone when IT was looked at as the sole responsibility for a company’s growth or downfall. IT processes along with the ability of the organization to manage information and people’s faith and behavior decide the actual value. Shortcomings of business and IT The partnership between business and IT at Hefty hardware is not so good and each side thinks that the other side doesn’t really understand what their actual requirements and problems are. The business thinks that they are unnecessarily pouring millions of dollars into IT and not getting a real value for it. They think that the IT is so self-absorbed with their work and problems that they really don’t get what the business is trying to do. The VP, Cheryl O’Shea and the COO Glen Vogel believe that the IT doesn’t know the basic functions of business and as part of the higher-level management, they think that it’s their responsibility to take the IT folks onto the field to really make them understand the business operations at all the Hefty stores. The IT has a total different perspective on this. The CIO, Farzad Mohammed and chief architect, Sergei Grozny refer to this whole idea of going onto the field as ‘Boondoggle’ which shows they be lieve that this would bring no value to the work they do and consider it as a waste of time. They think that going to the field would not help them much in understanding the business. Instead, they are only focused on planning the strategic IT architecture for the Savvy stores initiative and other high priority projects. Also, they think that they can send the IT folks onto the field once they are done with the planning and budget cycle. But, little do they  understand here that it would be of no use sending the IT people after the planning as things to be changed as early as possible in a project life cycle. The more delay in the changes, the more complex and expensive the project would be. The IT folks couldn’t communicate properly with the business about their ideas and strategy that confused the business and made them reject the ideas that were actually worth trying. In the market today, business is showing growing interest to partner with IT to make sure they get the value for investing huge in technology. But, still there is a gap between the two departments and the IT folks think that they do not have enough support from the business to ensure the value is realized for the organization. A good example of deep integration of IT and business is the recent firing of the Apple maps chief. The ill-fated Apple maps was the failure of both the IT folks who couldn’t develop an efficient app for maps and also the business who couldn’t gather all the requirements and couldn’t manage the project to achieve the desired output. As a result, the Apple exec Richard Williamson was blamed and fired for the disastrous project and humiliation for the organization. In the past, a good amount was spent by companies in new technological deployments. During this time, there are no returns. Post-deployment, there would be some value realization due to the initial efficiencies but this would be only for around six months. But, after this due to the increase in use, complexities increase which increase the costs. This may lead to losing belief in the initiative but if the faith is carried on, value can be realized by applying people, information and technology more efficiently and simplifying business. Hence, the organization can achieve real long-term if they religiously follow this. Plan for IT and business collaboration for Savvy Store Success The business and IT, both are right in their place but wrong in the complete picture and both need to work on their shortcomings and start working together as a team to achieve the desired value. It should not be a â€Å"you-us† but â€Å"we† oriented efforts and there should be a blurred line between the two. As thought by Jenny, each hold the pieces of the future picture of business. From the business perspective, they need to really understand how to express and explain what it really wants from IT. Also, they need to link the IT value to the business model so that it becomes easy for the IT to really understand what is expected of them and where does their work fit in the  whole picture. The business should seek commitment to all the projects in IT which would increase the efficiency of the overall process. Also, the business needs to get the right people involved in the organization that not only have the technical skills but also can listen and understand the business perspective. So, T-shaped professionals who not only are experts in their own discipline but also can understand other disciplines are required. The IT strategies and budgets need to be reviewed more frequently and the business needs to revisit the business model at regular intervals and make the required changes instead of expecting overwhelming efforts from the IT that not only leads to poor quality of work but also can spoil the reputation of the company. From the IT perspective, they need to increase their knowledge on business and its functions. IT folks need to understand the overall organizational goals and objectives, business requirements, ideas and success factors. This would help them to work towards the organization success and avoid problems with business. From the scenario of not sending the top IT folks onto the field not only reflects the disinterest of IT to actually getting to know the real scenario but also reflects the bitter truth that there is a lack of resources and the associates are getting overloaded. Instead of adjusting with the number of resources and ignoring the important aspects of business, IT needs to express to the business that they need more resources to concentrate on all the areas of work. The IT staff needs to put tremendous effort on communication since that is one of the biggest hindrances between IT and business. They need to work more on their way of expression and simplify things to make the business understand how the initiatives serve the business purposes. They need to understand organizational dynamic and be more professional in what they do. The dedication of IT towards business should increase and it should serve as a trusted advisor to business. A prioritization rubric needs to be maintained by both the departments and needs to be revisited and updated frequently. The client and corporate values need to be incorporated in all the IT work. This gives a clear picture of what needs to be attended right away and what can be postponed. Also, there is a lack of governance structure to manage the overall strategies and identify the interdependencies between business and IT. The business and IT should trust each other and be clear at their expectations  and accountabilities in order to avoid conflicts in the future. References: McKeen, James D; Smith, Heather (2012). IT strategy: Issues and practices (2nd ed.). Boston: Prentice Hall. Kindle Edition.

My High School Experience Essay

My high school experience has been a success for me to get to college by taking all of the class I needed to get this far. I have came a long way during my high school career because I really thought I wouldn’t have made it this far due to struggling to keep my grades up but as I started it’s not hard at all to keep them up you just have to try hard and get the job done. Although being in Upward Bound has help me accomplish these goals to make it his far from ninth grade to twelfth grade. Due to being in Upward Bound I have learned a lot of things such as you have to do things own your own because nothings ever going to be handed to you. Now that I finally realize that I’m a senior in high school and that time has real passed by now I’m standing here with a diploma something I’ve been waiting for all my life. As I look back I’m not ready to leave high school yet because now I’m own my own in college and there’s no one there to t ell me what to do . As everyone would say â€Å"welcome to the real world.† Some people think of this as yes I’m finally out of the house with my mother and that their going to have fun and make new friends and party. I think of this as I want to go to college and be successful in life, get the job done, get my associate’s degree and move on up to the real world also I would love to be on the dean’s list every semester that would be a really great honor to me to let me know that I have did what I had to do in college and not just played the whole time .I know that I will miss it here being with friends and goofing around with others. But now it is for me to step on up to a new chapter in life by going to college and doing what I like to do working with children and their families. I hope that all of us will work hard to accomplish our dreams and do what we got to do to get what we want . It want be that hard I hope only if you just try and put your mind to it to do it. It want be as hard as you make it just do your best. I’m glad that all of us have made it to the end now that we can say that we â€Å"started from the bottom now were here.†Now that I have accomplished my task for today I would ask you to encourage me and others to always do their best in anything cause you never know what your going to get out of being the best that we can be and I hope you take this with you to remember the class of 2015.

The right to know Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

The right to know - Essay Example Ultimately, the right to know is essential for eliminating deception and the consequences that flow from the deceptive nature of erroneous information. This paper will examine the significance of the right to know, why information and portrayal of actuality can be deceptive and the consequences of deception. This examination will be conducted by reference to Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong by James Loewen, M. Butterfly: With an Afterword by the Playwright by David Hwang and The Forger’s Spell: A True Story of Vermeer, Nazis, and the Greatest Art Hoax of the Twentieth Century by Edward Dolnick. The right to know in the US originates out of repression of information during colonization under English rule and attempts to prohibit public disclosure of the royal government’s action (Forstel 1). The right to know the workings of the government was eventually aligned with natural rights by America’s founding fathers. The right to know was refined to be characterized as freedom of expression which entails, freedom of information. America’s founding fathers considered freedom of expression as a natural and inalienable right (Forstel 1-5). This right was included in America’s Declaration of independence in 1776 (Forstel 4). The struggle for transparency and frank and honest disclosure is significant for understanding the importance of the right to know. Recipients of information typically make decisions on the information imparted. When those imparting information control the information released, they are indirectly manipulating decisions more favorable to them rather than decisions made on the basis of truth. When the right to know is ignored so that information is deceptive, general mistrust is the inevitable result. Essentially what happens is, recipients have one of two choices. They can either ignore the information or

Social and Emotional Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social and Emotional Learning - Essay Example †¢ Social emotional learning in schools is best achieved when they are programmed. That is to say that the social emotional learning should be institutionalized to have a core and recognized place in the curriculum of the school. The process of coding the social emotional learning needs of students into the school’s curriculum is referred to as social emotional learning programming; and the specific activities that fall under the social emotional learning programming are known as social emotional learning programs. †¢ Roberts (2009) identifies some social emotional learning programs that could commonly be used in out schools and that are equally replicable in this particular school. But even before spelling out the specific social and emotional learning programs that can be implemented in schools, she cautions each of the programs should be able to â€Å"†provide some compensation, often working with parents and the local community† and that this should indeed be the sole basis for judging the viability of any named social and emotional learning program (p. 17). †¢ Based on the criteria given above, the following forms of social and emotional learning programs are identified and briefly outlined on how they function in the school system. The programs include citizenship education, Early Training Project, Penn Resiliency Programme (PRP), personal social and health education (PSHE), Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL), the Carolina Abecedarian Project, and the Milwaukee Projects (p. 17-25). These social and emotional learning programs are used in different parts of the world; particularly in the United States of America and in the United Kingdom. Depending on where these programs are found, they are implemented in different forms. In the cases of the Early Training Project, the Carolina Abecedarian Project and the Milwaukee Projects, a lot of the attention and focus is on children from poor socio-economic families. Indeed, these forms of social and emotional learning programs cannot be underestimated in anyway because given an y realistic international schools system; there is the likelihood that not all the children would be of equal socio-economic standing. Indeed, it is true to admit that in most cases, students from low-class socio-economic homes form the majority in most schools and thus adapting these programs for any model schools would be a step in the right direction. Research conducted on the viability and validity of the three programs namely the Early Training Project, the Carolina Abecedarian Project and the Milwaukee Projects found that even though the programs did not play significant roles in improving the intelligent quotients of the students involved, the students benefited greatly in terms of school and college attainment, social skills and behaviour. (p. 17). This is indeed an achievement that cannot be underestimated in any way. This is because the research further stated that coupled with motivation, the social and emotional learning programs did so well in ‘reducing the impact on crime and improve health and employment prospects† (p. 17). Other forms of social and emotional learning programs are equally viable. These are the personal social and health education (PSHE) and citizenship education. These two programs are common in England. These two progra

Company financial accounting and reporting is regulated by a variety Essay

Company financial accounting and reporting is regulated by a variety of sources - Essay Example All the listed companies were asked to follow these accounting standards for maintaining their accounting transaction and developing financial reports. These accounting standards were introduced to enhance credibility and reliability of the financial statement developed by the listed companies of a nation. These accounting standards assisted the accountants and auditors to resolve different controversies related to different accounting practices. Even the managers consider these accounting policies while developing various strategies and policies to be followed by the company. Like other developed nation, the accounting standards were formulated in UK in early 1980s. People identified the necessity of a well structured accounting standard that assures â€Å"relevance, reliability, comparability and understand-ability† in the financial report that is developed by the listed companies (Kirk, 2005, p.9). In UK, the accounting standards are popularly known as Financial Reporting Standards (FRS). These FRS were developed by Accounting Standards Boards (ASB) and all the listed companies are required to adhere to these standards so that a true and fair picture of the companies’ financial condition can be represented. Prior to 1990, the accounting standards were developed by Accounting Standards Committee (ASC) which was later replaced with Accounting Standards Boards (ASB). In the first meeting of ASB, it formally accepted all the accounting standards prevailing in UK GAAP. With time, this board introduced few new standards and modified many existing standards. In UK, the four main constituents responsible for development and maintenance of accounting standards are Financial Reporting council (FRC), The Accounting Standards Board (ASB), Urgent Issues Task Force (UITF) and The Financial Reporting Review Panel (FRRP). FRC is

Russian Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Russian Literature - Essay Example For example he talks about revolution in the words, ‘revolution is everywhere, in everything. It is infinite†¦some day an exact formula for the law of revolution will be established. And in this formula nations, classes, stars, books will be expressed as numerical quantities.’ (108). the reference to numerical quantities is the figurative reference to one social and political body. Zamyatin in his essay discusses the dependent existence of everything in this world. He states that not only a man’s present, past and future are interlinked but also an individual’s every wise decision or a mistake accounts for his future actions. Since making mistakes and then bearing the consequences or dealing with them is a very humane reaction and resultantly it is a sign of life. As mentioned in the text, ‘all truths are erroneous†¦today’s truths become errors tomorrow’ also it is stated ‘the dead-alive also write, walk, speak, and act. But they make no mistakes: only machines make no mistakes and they produce only dead things the alive-alive are constantly n error, in search, in question, in torment’ (110).

HG Wells, From the war of the worlds (1898) and All you zombies Essay

HG Wells, From the war of the worlds (1898) and All you zombies - Essay Example On the other hand, All you Zombies seems to revolve around the idea of time. Both the two stories are written in a rather journalistic style. As for the case of The war of the Worlds, the almost factual description of the invasion of the aliens helps to provide some logic to the story. Both the two stories have adopted the first person narration style with the narrators giving a firsthand account of most of the proceedings, a style that further enhances the provision of a fairly wide perspective of the unfolding of events. In the War of the worlds, the aliens first appear in the country in the form of space-going simulated cylinders which when opened they seemed to emit some octopus-like creatures which would also pull in some human beings (Wells, 1988). This leads to the commencement of a war between the army and the Martian’s three legged fighting machines referred to as the tripods that used a combination of a ray of heat and certain chemical components. However, the aliens prove to be more powerful than the army whom they defeat with ease before proceeding to attack the communities surrounding they crater where the cylinders first landed. Being a follower of a Darwinian supporter, Wells seems to display some element of support for the theory’s assumption of the existence of some natural forces of selection in the evolution of organisms. The illustration of the battle that ensues between the army and the aliens from mars can be pointed as a struggle that is almost similar to the theory of natural selection. The fittest in this context are the Martian aliens who are able to outdo the human race due to their development of far more superior intelligence exhibited by their ability to produce highly developed weapons than those of mankind. On the same note, the invasion by the aliens in the war of the worlds seems to explain the ever continuing process of evolution. The narrator depicts the Martian aliens as possessing rather overdeveloped brains c omplemented by a reduced ability to make use of their emotions. In the human context, this therefore implies that in just the same case, the human brain may develop to the extent that it surpasses the rate of overall body development. Thus, mankind will remain to be more of a thinking man rather than an action based creature that would therefore rely on other mechanical devices just as the Martian three legged creature. In All you Zombies, time travel paradoxes seem to be a persistent technique in the plot of the story. In such techniques, more often characters within the story can meet themselves in time or inadvertently change the course of history in such a manner that their trip back to their original time is almost impossible. The story takes place in an unspecified future where space travel is a fact of life and attitudes toward sex and prostitution are very different from what they are today. In the story, the central character is a member of a certain group of time policemen disguising himself as a bartender with the aim of gaining the services of a sob story writer. The customer incidentally reveals the story of his life to the bartender explaining that he was born a girl before later getting pregnant and while giving birth, the doctor asserts her that she was a hermaphrodite. Since there were some complications while giving birth, she had to be removed her female organs which therefore made her

Generation Y and leadership Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Generation Y and leadership - Assignment Example The challenges are also due to the fact that the earlier generation, the ‘x’ers are also in the office floor making it a management conundrum. The challenge of managing this mutigenerational workforce would be considered quaint when one considers the natural progression this situation leads to be an era where millennials will be called to lead other millennials. Aliases for this generation are not in short supply. They could also be referred to as the â€Å"entitlement kids† for the strong sense of expectation they posses. â€Å"†¦If there is one overriding perception of the millennial generation, it's that these young people have great -- and sometimes outlandish – expectations† (Aslop, 2008). What would leadership look when â€Å"entitlement kids† lead â€Å"entitlement kids†? Would it be a positive development or similar to the new tribal warfare we see in the world, outside the corporate curtain wall? One of the best ways to un derstand the millennials is to contrast them with the prior generation ‘x’. Those born in the 1960’s and 1970’s up to 1982 are referred to as the generation ‘x’. They are refereed to as a generation that â€Å"†¦ has always signified a group of young people, seemingly without identity, who face an uncertain, ill-defined (and perhaps hostile) future.†(Ulrich, 2003). ... Sociologists will point to this as a definitive belief in leadership principles by believing in being led. The underlying reasons for this according to Hershatter derived from groundbreaking research done in ‘The History of America's Future 1584 to 2069’ (Strauss et al. 1992) is that â€Å"A lot of the things that people perceived as problematic outcomes as the result of how Gen ‘X’ers were raised – latch key kids, lots of autonomy, lots of freedom, not a lot of attention to their care and well being – was completely reversed with the Millennials†. They were raised with positive reinforcement. Confident in them selves it was insufficient for them to know what had to be done? Brought up with Pokemon, Star Wars and The Lord of The Rings film trilogy they needed to know why it had to be done? Cell phones, Mp3’s, and game portals were their toys making them addicted to technology. Fostered by social media and keypad savvy they have ma naged to be more connected with their parents than generations before them as they were in control of that connectivity. Trust has been inbred them. Gaining knowledge is less of a priority than knowing the sources of knowledge. They have had to learn to trust sources of knowledge. Millennials have turned the perception that generation-to-generation youth culture self degrades. They are changing corporate culture by their liking for immediate feedback, the hunger for positive reinforcement, and the sensitivity to relationships. The above-mentioned factors will cause corporate structures to be flatter to facilitate the required speed of communication and generation ‘Y’ has the

Dophus Raymond Essay Example for Free

Dophus Raymond Essay In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the people of Maycomb are prejudice. According to them, the only way a white man would be able to like a black man more than a white man is if he was an alcoholic or had some type of dysfunction. This applies to the majority of the people in Maycomb. Dolphus Raymond, however, is not part of this stereotype. He doesn’t have a dysfunction and only pretends to be an alcoholic. Mr. Raymond is both caring and sly. When Dolphus Raymond sees Dill come out of the courthouse crying, he tries to comfort him and help him feel better. This shows that Dolphus Raymond is caring. Dolphus Raymond then calls Dill to come to him and says, â€Å"Here, offering Dill his paper sack with straws in it. Take a good sip, it’ll quieten you. †(Lee, 200) This shows he is caring because he gives Dill some of his Coca-Cola to help him. Mr. Raymond reaches out to Dill when he is crying to help him feel better. Then, after Scout asks why he pretends to be an alcoholic he says,† Wh-oh yes, you mean why do I pretend? †¦. Some folks don’t-like the way I live. Now I could just say to hell with ‘em, I don’t care if they don’t like it. I do say I don’t care if they don’t like it, right enough-but I don’t say the hell with ‘em see? †(Lee, 200) This shows that even though people don’t like the way he lives, he still pretends to be an alcoholic for people to latch on a reason why he lives the way he does. Also, even though it’s fake, he gives them a reason to understand why he lives a certain way.. Dolphus Raymond is sly as well. When Scout finds out whiskey isn’t in the sack she says,† You mean all you drink in that sack’s Coca-Cola? Just plain Coca-Cola? † â€Å"Yes ma’am, Mr. Raymond nodded. (Lee, 200) He pretends to drink whiskey to help people latch on a reason why he likes blacks more than whites. Dolphus Raymond pretends to drink whiskey, but everyone else is the town thinks it is whiskey. People don’t understand his ways, so they just blame it on his drinking because they don’t understand how he could like a black man more than a white one. He walks around pretending he is drunk. † When I came into town, which is seldom, if I weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can says Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutch of whiskey-that’s why he wont change his ways. (Lee, 200) People think he has poor judgment because he pretends to be drunk, so they believe he won’t be able to change his ways. He is also acting like an alcoholic and like a drunk, so people can have a reason to understand why he lives his life the way he does. Dolphus Raymond isn’t an alcoholic or a drunk. He shows how caring and sly he is when he talks to the kids outside the courthouse. The people of Maycomb just can’t understand his reasoning concerning blacks and whites. They expect him to live prejudice like them. He has to pretend to be disorderly, so people can have a reason for his actions and preferences.

Education Essay Example for Free

Education Essay As I reflect on the knowledge I have attained in this Educational Psychology course, I feel confident enough to say that I have learned an immense amount of information that I believe will be beneficial in my future classroom. In addition, some of the information that we have covered as a class was information that I had previously learned while at the University of Guam. I greatly appreciate the amount of knowledge I have attained in this course, and I would like to focus my reflection on three main topics: long-term memory; the cognitive process of attention, perception, encoding, and retrieval; and the four theories of motivation (behaviorist, cognitive and social cognitive, sociocultural, and humanistic). These are just three of many learning experiences that I believe will play an important role in my future career. I decided to focus on long-term memory because this type of memory plays an important role in each of our minds. According to Eggen and Kauchak (2010), long-term memory is the permanent information store in the model of human memory. What a child learns at a young age will most likely be kept in his or her long-term memory until further notice. In my experience while in this ED 300 class, several of the topics that we have discussed has brought up information from my long-term memory; thus I was able to further comprehend such topics. I was able to retrieve specific information based on what I had learned previously. Being able to retrieve information gives me an â€Å"aha!† moment in which I felt confident in answering questions and further discussing such topics with my peers. Retrieving information is just one of four steps in the cognitive process. Throughout the semester I have tried to focus on the four steps of the cognitive process (attention, perception, encoding, and retrieval) with my studies. As a college student, I have had my days where it was hard for me to even pay attention to the class lecture. However, after taking the time to reflect on what I have learned in this course, we practice the four steps of the cognitive process each day. The lecture is compatible to the first step of attention; perception is understanding the information; encoding is similar to memorizing the information; and retrieval is compatible to the reflections we each share at the end of the class. Finally, what I believe to be the most important topic that I have learned from this course are the different types of theories of motivation. As a human being there is more than one type of influence that motivate us to behave the way we do. From this Educational Psychology course, I have learned about the different theories of motivation, each of its meanings, and relating it to my own life. After learning about the different theories of motivation, I took into account my behaviors and where these behaviors originated from. Furthermore, I took into account the amount of motivation that it has given me. For example, as a Chamorro it is an old custom that women are to take care of the household. However, I was motivated by my mother to study hard and to make my dreams come true; and I believe that some outside influence had motivated her to break this old Chamorro custom. In conclusion, I believe that I have learned an immense amount of information throughout this semester. I have taken the time to reflect on the amount of knowledge we have shared in the classroom. I have taken into account the opinions of others; and I have reflected on the different types of motivations that have influenced me in my twenty-one years of life. I hope to one day be able to retrieve the information that I have learned in this course and apply such knowledge and theories in my future classroom.