Author: chris

Overview of IT Solution and Next Steps for UMUC Haircuts
For your Case Study Stage 1 assignment, you performed a Five Forces Analysis and justified Myra’s chosen generic strategy for competitive advantage and the business process that she would like to improve through the application of technology.
For your Stage 2 assignment, you identified the inputs, processing, and outputs of Myra’s selected business process. Those inputs, processing, and outputs form the functional (business) requirements for an IT system to improve the process.
In Stage 3, you identified the IT requirements by evaluating their applicability and importance in a new system to be implemented to improve the identified business process for UMUC Haircuts.
Following your analysis of the business environment and the business and IT requirements, Myra Morningstar has decided to move ahead and implement an IT solution. She has asked you to identify an IT solution and explain what the steps would be to implement it.
Since UMUC Haircuts is a small business, Myra should take advantage of a Software as a Service (SaaS), or a cloud-based system, that has already been developed and is maintained and operated by a vendor. You should do some research and find a vendor-provided solution that will support the process that is being improved. Refer to the process model and your Stage 2 inputs, processing, and outputs that define the business requirements; and refer to your Stage 3 IT requirements as you select an appropriate solution. Consider the cost of the solution as you make your choice, so that your recommended solution will be affordable for Myra.
For this assignment, you will prepare a short paper explaining your proposed IT solution and the next steps in the implementation of that solution. The next steps will include everything that Myra needs to do, from getting a subscription to the software (or otherwise arranging to use it), to purchasing hardware, to preparing employees and implementing the system. The specific steps and how they are accomplished will be different for different system solutions.
Assignment: UMUC Haircuts Stage 4: Write a short paper that includes:

Introduction: Introduce what is to come in your paper, and include the generic strategy for competitive advantage and the business process to be improved.

Proposed IT Solution: Identify the vendor and the system you selected to improve the process at UMUC Haircuts. Explain why you selected that system over others, including how it best meets the business requirements (see Stage 2) and IT requirements (see Stage 3) of UMUC Haircuts. Explain if/how cost was a factor in your selection.

Implementation Steps: Identify and explain the steps Myra will have to take to implement the system you have proposed. Include:

Vendor agreement – What does Myra need to do in order to be able to start using the system? How much will it cost to use the system?
Hardware and Telecommunications – What hardware will Myra need to install at UMUC Haircuts in order to implement the solutions? What kind of telecommunications will be needed for the solution, including local connectivity inside UMUC Haircuts and Internet access? How will she acquire the necessary hardware components and Internet access?
Configuration – What options does the vendor offer for configuring the system to UMUC Haircuts’ needs? How will the configuration be done, and by whom?
Testing – How will Myra test the system to see if it is working properly for her needs?
Employee preparation – What will Myra need to do to prepare her employees to use the new system?
Data Migration – How will the current employee work schedules be entered into the system to get started? How will the customer appointments that have already been made for future dates be entered?
System use – Who will use the system and for what purposes? When users have questions about how to use the system, how will they get answers?
Maintenance – Who will provide updates and corrections to the system?

Conclusion: Close your paper with a brief summary of the entire project and what benefits Myra can expect to gain from it.

References: Incorporate at least one external resource (NOTE: two or more external resources are required to receive all possible points) into your paper on an area of your choice. An external resource is a resource other than those provided in the class or textbook. Incorporate a properly formatted APA citation in the text of your document. Then, place an APA style list of references at the end of your paper.

Formatting:

Write a short, concise paper, about 3-4 pages in length.
Your paper should be double-spaced.
For academic writing, the writer is expected to write in the third person. In third person, the writer avoids the pronouns I, we, my, and our. The third person is used to make the writing more objective by taking the individual, the “self,” out of the writing. This method is very helpful for academic writing, a form in which facts, not opinion, drive the tone of the text. Writing in the third person allows the writer to come across as unbiased and thus more informed.
Use at least one external resource (two for full credit) with APA formatted citation and reference.
Include a title page and a reference page.
Compare your final work to the rubric to be sure you have met content and quality criteria.
Submit your paper as a Word document, or a document that can be read in Word.

hello ,

i need a research peaper about “smoking in the united state”

i have 2 Sources and i need you to found 3 more ( total 5 Sources)

notes:

1- i need it 6 pages

2- use simple words

3- i need it on time

Create a two- to four-page paper (excluding the title and reference pages) that:

1. Provides a narrative examining how you will evaluate your initiative to include the following points:
   • Your initial assessment – Appraise the “State of Now.”
   • Illustrate indicators of success – Describe what are you hoping to achieve in measurable, data-driven outcomes.
   • Illustrate how you will evaluate and report your outcomes – Identify how you will celebrate your successes.
2. Specifies your plan for growing and sustaining your initiative.

Your paper must be formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center, two- to four- pages in length, and cite at least three scholarly sources in addition to your textbook.

This assignment requires you to develop a simple digital animation using Adobe Flash.

In the Assignment 1 section of Moodle there is a zip file named “digital_animation.zip” that is available to download – when unzipped this will produce the following files:

 

• Ten (10) images of digits (0.jpg to 9.jpg). These images will be used for your student number in the animation specified below.
• An Ass1_Sample.swf file showing a sort of animation. However, please note that you need to note that the animation in the sample file is based on a very different specification; so, you are required to follow the specification given below.

 

The animation must incorporate the following images:

• An image of yourself – it can be whatever image you like (eg. You on holiday, at the beach, at university, etc), but must include yourself. This image will be used as a background image (in step a and b below).
• An image ofyour home town. This image will be used as a background image too (in stepsb, c, d and e below).
• The images of the digits provided to make up your student number (in step c below).
• An image (different to that used for steps a & b) of yourself that you can select your head (from neck up) and cut it out to create a new image. Your image must be neatly cut out from its original photo.When you cut yourself out and save the image, the background should be fully transparent. You will have to save it in a correct file format for it to be successfully shown against the background in Flash.(in step f below).

 

Before you begin, keep these requirements in mind:

• o The animation must be 800 pixels wide by 600 pixels high, with a blue background (#0000FF) for the stage, and run at 15 frames per second.
• o Each layer in your Flash file should be named appropriately.
• o Each event must be displayed for a minimum of 2 seconds and a maximum of 3 seconds. For example, entering an animating image into the stage and leaving should take between 2 and 3 seconds.
• o Each event should overlap with the previous event (Except for the first step (step a) where your own image fills the screen). Starting at step b, as one image leaves the screen, the next image should be entering the screensimultaneously.
• o The animated sequences for this assignment must be tweened using the techniques shown in the lab classes (motion, shape and guide). Frame-by-frame animation will not be accepted.
• o All number images used throughout this whole animation must fill the screen exactly with no overlap and perfectly fit the 800px by 600px stage area. Feel free to stretch and skew images to fit.
• o Make sure that your text is using a font that is easily readable and if it overlaps the self-image picture make sure that it is highly distinguishable against the image.

 

 

 

 

 

Sequence of the Animation:

1. The animation should start with the image of yourself (on-screen); it needs to be initiated from a locked width/height ratio (e.g. width of 50px) and scaling up to fill the entire window (800px by 600px) at the end of the first three seconds.
2. The image of yourself needs to be fading out and be replaced by fading in image of your hometown. This image needs to be static as the background for the point ‘c’ below.
3. According to the sequence of the digits in your student number, each image of the digits provided needs to enter the stage from a different corner or edge (i.e., top, bottom, left, right, top-left, top-right, bottom-left or bottom-right) while the other image leaves from another corner of edge (i.e., top, bottom, left, right, top-left, top-right, bottom-left or bottom-right). Make sure you use different variety of positions for entering and leaving the stage.
   • o In these animations, you need to incorporate each of the following features at least once (each animation should only do one of these):
     • Fading in,
     • Fading out,
     • Performing a double clockwise rotation to roll on the screen,
     • Performing a triple anti-clockwise rotation to roll off the screen, and
     • Tween easing.
     • Tranformations (skewings, shrinkings, enlargements etc).
   • o One of these above features must be incorporated for each digit. However, overall all of these features need to be demonstrated at least once in their animation.
4. After animating the last digit of your student number, you need to use a text based representation (not images) of the digits in your student number in sequence ‘bounce’ across a path on the background image ofyour home town screen. You must use motion guides, and clever positioning so that the digits appear to ‘interact’ with the background image (e.g. bouncing off & around objects). Be as inventive as you wish here but make sure that your numbers clearly show out opposed to the background image. Your numbers must be 50pt in size and can be of any readable font style.
5. Next, the image of your home town should shrink and change into a 5 sided pentagon shape before leaving the stage. This requirement of the assignment is worth 4 marks overall, so please spend some time on it. You must use a shape tween to achieve this effect. (hint: you can’t shape-tween a symbol!)
6. The animation should end with a screen showing the static cut-out photographic image of yourself in an appropriate position – on the left or right. This image must have been cut out neatly from the original photograph and only show yourself. You will have to use some form of transparency and save it in a correct file format for it to successfully show against the coloured background in Flash. This image must not occupy more than half of the screen.
   • o Finally, the roll of the credits! Have the following text entering  from an appropriate position (the opposite side to your photograph position) on the screen showing:
     • An acknowledgement of your lecturer & tutors.
     • Your student number;
     • Your name;
     • A motivational phrase (including an acknowledgement of the author).
   • o Image and credits should remain stationary on the screen for last 5 seconds

Students will complete a short case study of a business situation which can be found under week 6 content.  The case study is in this document. This assignment has two parts:

Part 1:
In week four we examined biases that occur in making decisions as individuals and the effect they can have upon the process. In week five, we focused on individuals making decisions within an organization and in week six group decision making within the organization.
In this part of the assignment you are asked to evaluate not only the decision that must be made but who is best suited to make the decision for the organization.  In order to do this you must isolate the decision that must be made – the nature or type of the decision. Then, evaluate the individuals (father and daughter) in terms of the material presented in weeks four and five.
What biases could they have in making the decision?
What decision making styles do they have?
What skill levels do they possess in making a decision?
How does the information from the previous three questions make them the best or worst candidate for making the decision?
Substantiate your conclusions with the class material and be specific in your analysis.
Part 2:
In part two, you are asked to look at the decision that needs to be made and determine if it should be made by a group or an individual.
Explain why a group would or would not work best based on potential bias to the issues, expertise level in making the decision, the need for change, and the stakeholder involved in the process.
Give your reasoning behind your conclusion with substantiation from the class material.
Then, regardless of your conclusion, assume that you conclude that a group is best.
Select how the group would best be formed.
Who would you include in the group?
Who would be leading the group?
How would the group operate (type of group structure)?
How would the company’s leaders (Father and Daughter) interface with the group and the process?
What degree of authority does the group have in making the decision?
Be sure to explain bias in your selection of people for the team.
Again, all your conclusions must be substantiated with the class material and/or outside resources.
Required Formatting of Paper:
This report should be double spaced, in narrative format, 12-point font, and 5-6 pages in length excluding the title page and reference page;
Title page with your name, the course name, the date, and instructor’s name;
Include a reference page;
Use headings to separate the different sections;
Write in the third person;”
Use APA formatting for in-text citations and reference page.  You are expected to paraphrase and not use direct quotes. Deductions will be taken when direct quotes are used and found to be unnecessary;
Submit the paper in the Assignment Folder.

The workplace can be an especially stressful environment. Personal conflicts between coworkers, fear of layoffs, and heavy workloads can be causes of negative stress. This stress can be carried to our homes and after-work activities, impacting personal health. Allowing these stressors to build and intensify will only further impair the work environment. For this assignment, you are required to review a scenario regarding a woman (Kate) who has experienced negative stress stemming from her work environment. Then, you will compare your own conflict management skills and experiences against Kate’s experiences. Follow the directions below to write an 8–10-page report on conflict management.

Review the following scenario:

Kate has been employed by a well-known manufacturing company for 12 years. She is the only female on her line and the fastest worker. She has been promoted several times through mergers and acquisitions, but has always been looked over for a senior management position. Kate believes she is qualified for advancement but thinks her manager has a problem with her personally. To top it off, Kate did not receive a semiannual or annual review, which would have resulted in a raise. Her coworkers (all males) have urged her to go to management and report what she believes to be discriminatory behavior from her immediate manager.

Now, complete the following tasks:

1. 1. Discuss a situation you have been in where you felt you were passed over for a promotion, made to feel indifferent, or were discriminated against. Compare and contrast your story with Kate’s.
   2. Compare the possible ethical breaches of Kate’s manager against your own manager’s behavior. Utilize scholarly research on leadership theory as justification.
   3. Compare the possible legal breaches of Kate’s manager against your own manager’s behavior. Utilize scholarly research on leadership theory as justification.
   4. Recommend an approach Kate could have used to manage the negative risk both personally and professionally.
   5. Evaluate the advice Kate received from her coworkers.
   6. Referring to the conflict resolution strategies taught in this course, determine which one is best suited to resolve Kate’s conflict. Justify your position.

Demonstrate understanding of new learning in the field of project management. It is mandatory to have research from the classroom text, as well as five sources from the internet or online library to support your views. It is recommended to use examples from your professional experience where possible, or build from your learning in the discussion boards. (Suggestion: use at least one project of which you have been either a team member or a project manager as an example to describe the topics below):

The following topics must be reviewed in order for the paper to be complete:

• Define project management and explain its importance to the business world.
• Explain project life-cycle management and the benefits of project management to an organization.
• Explain the concepts of planning in the project life-cycle and how research and critical thinking is mandatory in planning.
• Explain project organizations and the importance of leadership and sponsorship.
• Explain project team building, including techniques of successful team building.
• Explain how to create a work breakdown structure and how a project manager breaks down the overall project into packages.
• Explain the need for project management software in large integrated programs and the benefits to the overall project management organization.

Writing the Final Paper

The Final Paper:

• Must be six to eight double-spaced pages in length and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide.
• Must include a cover page that includes:
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Title of paper
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
• Must include an introductory paragraph with a succinct thesis statement.
• Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
• Must conclude with a restatement of the thesis and a conclusion paragraph.
• Must use APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide to document all sources.
• Must include, on the final page, a Reference Page that is completed according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide.

The goal is to learn about the unique problems of foster care children who have special education needs, such as, do they tend to receive less services overall, what percentage of special education litigation involves foster children (like slim to none), etc. I have noticed that because foster children are generally assigned special education surrogate parents who are either unpaid or the number of hours for which they are paid is capped quite low, there is nobody available to appeal special education decisions or litigate special education decisions for foster children, thereby placing foster children at a significant disadvantage (i.e., schools know that nobody will appeal or litigate a decision for a foster child, so they are less likely to approve of and provide expensive services). I am particularly interested in the state of Massachusetts, but if there is a lack of information on this state in particular, it can be more generalized to the entire U.S.

MANAGEMENT IN A GLOBALIZED ERA PROJECT

Conduct a country study that includes general reviews of country, culture, economy, government and religion with emphasis on how these areas impact the management of the human resource in that country. The project will contain approximately 35 pages plus bibliography. The project should include appropriate graphs, charts and pictures noting that the length of the paper may need to be extended if there is excessive use of graphic representations.

 

The country study should have 6 major sections

Brief history of the country.

1. Google earth review of major cities and landmarks.
2. Description of the economy and major influences in the commercial world.
3. Description of the culture using Hofstede’s paradigm.
4. Discussion of the implications of the culture, government and economy on Human Resource Management, (ie: Solicitation, Interview, Selection, Onboarding, Motivation, Training, Compensation and benefits, Termination, Work Week, Holidays etc.)
5. A summary and conclusion of the report.

THIS CASE REFERENCES THE PANERA BREAD COMPANY. THE INFORMATION NEEDS TO BE CURRENT AND

UP TO DATE. THE PAGE COUNT IS TYPICALLY OVER 25

The case project for this course is case #8 – Panera: C-162. Note: Read this case, begin the research by finding/reading the last four annual reports , and start working on this analysis ASAP.
Include the following in your case analysis:
Cover page.
One page abstract of the case.

Answer the following questions in full detail (minimum of 3 pages per question, i.e. question #1 must be a minimum of 3 pages, as is the same requirement for each question number–the final paper is typically 25+ pages) using the case as a base and updating all information through research: (Reminder the definition of minimum was established in the first assignment, i.e. minimum = Grade C.)

1. Discuss the distinguishing features (Market size, Market growth rate, Industry strength, etc.) of the industry.
2. Discuss the competition within the industry. Who are the main players? How intense is the rivalry? How attractive is the industry? What factors are critical to competing successfully in the industry? Porter’s Model of Competition must be used in this section

3. Discuss how the industry is changing?
4. What is this organization’s strategy to compete? Is the strategy working? Perform a complete SWOT (minimum of eight components for element of SWOT, along with the identification and justification of the UT).
5. Perform a financial analysis based on all current information available. Include in this analysis, a full comparison of Panera’s financials to their top three publically traded competitors.
6. Provide your recommendations (a minimum of eight) and a plan of action.
7. Note: The analysis for this case must be performed with current information; the case is simply background information. Current information that must be reviewed: Current Annual Report, Current News, Current Research (beyond simple “internet search”), etc…
8. Document all sources properly (APA style is required–this is not an option), failure to do so, results in a plagiarized paper, and the resulting grade is an F (zero points)–refer to the student dishonesty section of the syllabus. Make sure all sources are verified and acceptable—example: Wikipedia is not an acceptable source for this project (and all other similar sources are not acceptable as well).
9. The definition of minimum was established in the first assignment (minimum = C) and this definition applies to this case as well.
10. Note: This is a senior project, with senior expectations, and this project will be graded accordingly.

Additional Requirements
Other Requirements: Final class project for Business Policy & Strategic Planning class