Author: chris

Write an essay consisting of at least 500 words addressing all of the following topics (a through f):

a. With regards to the U.S. EPA, describe the differences between formal, informal, and hybrid rule-making.

b. The textbook describes problems associated with rulemaking on pages 85-86 of our textbook. Do you think rules that the U.S. EPA makes should take into account how U.S. companies might be negatively financially impacted by pollution control rules? Or, do you feel that a clean environment is more important than industry’s cost concerns? Explain.

c. Have you ever called the U.S. EPA’s safe drinking water hotline at 1-800-426-4791 (p. 90)? Conduct an Internet search on the phone number and provide a summary of your findings. Though we do not necessarily want everyone in the class to call the number, call it if you would like and describe your experiences with the phone call.

d. Do you think that the head of the U.S. EPA should be appointed by the President, and thus, be a political appointee? Explain the pros and cons.

e. Present the history of the U.S. EPA.

f. How many EPA regions exist? Which region (if you live in the U.S.) do you live in? Do you think the regional approach is reasonable? Are there enough regions or too many regions?

You are required to use at least your textbook as source material for your response. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations.

Assignment 1:  Communication Process

Find a Web site that has an “About Us” section or a “Press Release” section.

Write a three to four (3-4) page paper addressing the following:

• Identify the Web site, the sender, and perceived receiver.
• Analyze the integrated business communication.
• Assess the media richness of the section.
• Describe how the message is framed.
• Identify opinion leaders.
• Make recommendations for improving word choice.

The format of the paper is to be as follows:

• Typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font (size 12), one-inch margins on all sides, APA format. Microsoft Word document.
• Use headers for each of the subjects being covered, followed by your response.
• In addition to the three to four (3-4) pages required, a title page is to be included. The title page is to contain the title of the assignment, your name, the instructor’s name, the course

Assignment 1:  Communication Process

Find a Web site that has an “About Us” section or a “Press Release” section.

Write a three to four (3-4) page paper addressing the following:

• Identify the Web site, the sender, and perceived receiver.
• Analyze the integrated business communication.
• Assess the media richness of the section.
• Describe how the message is framed.
• Identify opinion leaders.
• Make recommendations for improving word choice.

The format of the paper is to be as follows:

• Typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font (size 12), one-inch margins on all sides, APA format. Microsoft Word document.
• Use headers for each of the subjects being covered, followed by your response.
• In addition to the three to four (3-4) pages required, a title page is to be included. The title page is to contain the title of the assignment, your name, the instructor’s name, the course

Some topical areas that previous HSM543 students have used successfully for this Course Project include the following.

Accounts receivable cycles Operating budget processes Capital budget processes Hospital strategic planning Board of directors reporting Cash flow management Managing hospital investments Healthcare variance reporting Hospital wage and benefit management Personnel recruitment and retention Funding of a construction project Fundraising for a healthcare facility Avenues for grant funding in healthcare Regardless of your topic, you will be identifying and clearly stating a particular problem or management issue in which an element of the identified problem or situation is not meeting expectations. A few examples follow.

Cash flow to the hospital is inadequate. The CFO does not have enough cash on hand to pay operating bills in a timely manner. How will you improve cash flow? Hospital investments are currently in CDs, which are earning very low interest rates. A higher return on investment is needed. What are better options for your specific type of healthcare facility, and what is the risk associated with each type of investment recommended? The clinic cannot recruit and retain enough nurses to keep up with its growing patient population. How will you find more qualified nurses, and how will you keep them once you have hired them? The hospital facility itself needs to be replaced. How will you determine the capital needs for the project, and how will the funds be raised to accomplish this? Remember that what appears to be the problem may actually be just a symptom of a bigger problem, so dig deep to be sure you’ve identified the real problem. If there appears to be more than one problem or issue, decide if they are separate or related issues. You will be stating the problem in the form of a question.

The greatest value in any course comes from applying the concepts, theories, and principles explored during class to real-life situations and issues. This term project gives you an opportunity to select an aspect of healthcare with which you are familiar, and identify an issue in which there is an element that is not meeting expectations. Then, drawing on the concepts and principles from readings, exercises, current events, and class discussions, write a term paper of 8 to 10 pages in which you:

introduce the issue; define the problem; analyze the problem; evaluate possible solutions; develop an implementation plan; and justify why and how your solution will solve the identified problem. Your paper must include, but is not limited to, the following sections.

BACKGROUND: Describe the problem, organization, or situation you selected, identify the specific issues of interest or controversy, and present background and facts of the problem, organization, or situation that will enable the reader to clearly understand the issue. For example, most health insurance in the United States is tied to employment. Because of employers without benefits and unemployment, there are approximately 47 million uninsured. DEFINE THE PROBLEM: Identify and clearly state the problem or management issue in which an element of the identified problem or situation is not meeting expectations. Remember that what appears to be the problem may actually be just a symptom of a bigger problem. Dig deep to be sure you’ve identified the real problems. If there appears to be more than one problem or issue, decide if they are separate or related issues. State the problem in the form of a question. For example, if a work group is not performing sufficiently, an effective problem statement might be, “How can the staff shortage be improved,” rather than simply, “Short staff problems.” For the issue of uninsured people, this could be, “How can universal coverage be initiated?” SUGGESTION: Begin your literature survey by accessing Keller’s online library located in Student Resources under Course Home. PROBLEM ANALYSIS: This section should provide a detailed analysis of the causes of the problem(s) or issue(s) you identified in Section II. A major objective is to clearly illustrate how you are using the healthcare course concepts, as well as your professional experiences and the results of your research, to better understand the causes of the problem(s) or issue(s). Show that you are applying course material! Approach the topic from a financial angle, because this is a finance course. (Note: Use subheadings to identify each factor you address.) POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS: Explore solutions that could be appropriate ways to solve the identified problem or issue, and document what you feel is the best alternative. Be sure that these solutions are logical based on your analysis and that they each would effectively treat the problem, not the symptoms. Also, discuss the anticipated outcomes (both positive and negative) of implementing each of the possible solutions you identified. Again, to use universal coverage as an example, how would it be funded? Just saying we need universal coverage may be an accurate statement, but programs need money. What taxes would you raise or what services would you cut to provide the funding? How much is it going to cost, and how will it affect hospitals and other providers? SOLUTION IMPLEMENTATION: State your solution clearly and specifically. Describe exactly what should be done and how it should be done, including by whom, with whom, and in what sequence. Here are some points to keep in mind as you write this section: Have I indicated an awareness of the problem of implementation (the how aspect)? Have I been specific enough? For example, a general solution might state: “The healthcare manager needs to realize that his or her style should match the situation.” A specific solution would state what style is most appropriate for the situation, and how you will attempt to have the manager realize the appropriate style. What aspects of the problem remain unresolved by my solution? Does my recommended solution and implementation plan address the problem or issues and causes identified in the previous sections? Does my solution consider and resolve the identified pros and cons? How will I evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented recommended solution? What process checks or procedures will I put into place to institutionalize the improvement? Could my solution cause other problems or issues? What risks are inherent in the solution you recommend? What contingency plans do you recommend? Assess the realism of your proposed action plan. For example, is there adequate time, money, or other resources for your solution? In addition, does your solution place too much reliance on other people being reasonable (i.e., on what YOU think is reasonable)? JUSTIFICATION: Justify why your recommended solution and its implementation will solve the identified problem or issue in the organization or unit you selected. An important element of this section is to show very clearly how you applied course concepts to arrive at a workable solution and a successful implementation. Apply appropriate course material. Support your conclusions with appropriately referenced facts, quotes, and readings. Be sure your justification addresses identified pros and cons. REFERENCES: All citations in the paper must appear in the reference list, and all references must be cited in the text of the paper. Choose references judiciously and cite them accurately. To use the ideas or words of another without crediting the source is plagiarism. Plagiarism in its purest form involves the copying of entire passages either verbatim or nearly verbatim with no direct acknowledgment of the source. The most common (and unconscious) form of plagiarism is when a direct quotation is simply paraphrased. Paraphrasing does not relieve you of the obligation to provide proper identification of source data. The best way to avoid plagiarism is to make sure all quotes, ideas, or conclusions not your own are given proper acknowledgment in your text.

Assignment 2: Required Assignment 2—Career Development Plan

In this assignment, you will recommend the components of a career development planning program and explain how the plan will integrate the organization’s mission and value statements.

Consider the following scenario:

You work in the HR Department of an electric power company in the southwestern region of the U.S. The company was founded in 1940 and has an excellent reputation as a provider of electricity. It is also considered to be an outstanding corporate citizen and known to be an excellent place to work. It has been ranked among the top three employers in the community for several years.

Its mission is to serve customer’s needs for electric power in ways that provide exceptional value to all stakeholders including customers, shareholders, employees, and the communities in which it operates.

Its values include providing a safe work environment; fairness and respect for customers, employees, shareholders, and partners; honoring commitments to use resources wisely; providing a high quality of work life for its employees; and striving for excellence and having fun.

Given its long history, many of its current employees are children or grandchildren of former employees so there are close family ties to the company as well as a sense of loyalty.

However, technological advancements in the power generation business over the years have resulted in jobs being either redesigned or eliminated. For example, in the past, the company had many employees who read meters, which showed the amount of electricity used by households. Meter readers traveled from house to house each month to log the information for billing purposes. Now meters are read automatically and data is transferred to the billing department via computer. This technological advancement eliminated the need for many employees who were required to resign, be laid off, or be retrained for other positions in the company.

The company faces a challenge as it strives to maintain its reputation as an excellent employer in the community, and, yet leverage advances in technology, which help it increase efficiency and remain competitive.

As a member of the HR team, you have been tasked with the responsibility of drafting a plan for a career development program for the company which will help managers effectively guide their staff in developing individual career development plans that are integrated with and support the company’s mission and values. Your report will be reviewed by senior HR managers as well as executive directors.

The HR department will have conducted a needs assessment as part of its strategic planning process to determine how the company will achieve its goals and objectives over the next 5–10 years. This assessment identifies areas where employees with new skill-sets will be required as well as areas where current employees with skill-sets may need to be either maintained or reduced (laid off).

As part of their annual performance appraisal, all employees will draft a personal and professional development plan on their own which will then be discussed with their manager. This plan should cover a five-year period and be reviewed and adjusted annually. It should include both formal training programs and individual initiatives to support personal and professional development interests.

By combining information about the company’s needs from the needs assessment and employees’ interests from the personal and professional development plans, it will be possible to develop a career planning program for the company that identifies the overlap between the company’s needs and employees’ interests and also detects gaps which could become opportunities for growth in the future. Overlapping areas indicate where the company needs skill-sets and the employees want to develop them while gaps indicate where the company needs skill-sets and there are no current employee interests in that area.

This process should help the company achieve a greater return on investment (ROI) from its training budget thus improving the bottom line. It should also result in lower employee turnover since employees will see that their personal and professional growth and the company’s needs are in alignment so they will be able to stay with the company and meet their personal and professional development goals.

Instructions:

1. Develop a six-to-eight-page document in Word format detailing how you would approach and organize a program to address needs for development of the company as well as individual employees. Be sure to clearly explain how you would create the plan, but do not create the plan itself. Use the following file naming convention: LastnameFirstInitial_M5_A2.doc.

Address the following in the plan:

1. Identify the information needed to develop a template that will be used to complete the individual employee’s learning plan.
2. Identify the information needed in order to develop the company’s needs assessment.
3. Explain how you would coordinate both the individual employee’s plan and the company’s needs assessment into a comprehensive development plan. Be sure to identify overlaps or gaps.
4. Explain how you would use this information to create a roadmap for development of a career development program for the company.
5. Identify other factors that should be considered in this program’s development.
6. Explain how the proposed plan would help managers effectively guide their staff in developing individual career development plans that are integrated with and support the company’s mission and values.

The assignment is to read the course textbook: CHINA ROAD: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power, Rob Gilford, Random House, 2007, and write a book report (5 pages, double-spaced). The report should include:

*        Your overall reflection on the book

*        Explaining three views/points you agree or disagree with the author and why you agree or disagree

*        Three things in the book that your feel helpful for your trip preparation and how they are helpful

This is a continuation a previous assignment and must be completed using the attached project plan and template.  The company to use is Adeptus Health, the template is filled in with example details currently that can be deleted.  This weeks grade criteria is attached and the assignment directions are below.