Author: chris

• Give your opinion on whether being an effective critical thinker makes decision making easier or more challenging. Justify your response.
• Consider the following statement: “The major difference between a successful person and one that is not successful is that the successful person, over time, tends to make better decisions than the less successful person.” Discuss whether or not you believe this statement to be true. Explain the fundamental ways in which effectively applying critical thinking concepts has helped you to become more successful.
• Describe the significant ways in which you would be able to utilize critical thinking in your personal and professional life.

You are probably use to seeing starbucks coffee shops everywhere that you might not realize that the

company went from 11 stores in 1987 to 2,600 in the year of 2000. This incredibly rapid growth sprang form the company’s ability to create a unique experience for customers who wanted to buy this dietint brand of lattes and mochas where ever they found themselves. At Starbucks’ core, there was a culture of treating each customer as a valued guest who should feel comfortable relaxing and taking in the ambience . Whether you were in the company’s founding location in Seattle, Washington, or at the other end of the country in Miami, Flordia, you knew what to espect when you went to a Starbucks. This uniform culture was truly put to the test in the face of massive expansion, however, and by 2006 Starbucks chairman and former CEO Howard Schultz knew something had gone wrong.  He noted that  “As I visit hundreds of Starbucks store in the cities around the world, the enterpreneurial merchant in me sensed that something intrinsic to Starbucks’ brand was missing. An aura. A sprit. The stores were lacking a certain soul.” Starbucks’ performance has become lackluster, with hundreds of planned store opening being cnacled and hundreds more store being closed.

 

So, Schultz too the dramatic step of coming back as CEO and engaging ina companywide effort to change the corporate culture back to what it had been before its expansion. All 7,000 Starbucks store were closed for a single afternoon as part of training effort of 135,000 baristas. Quality control was a primany mission; baristas were instructed to pour every glass of espresso like honey from a spoon, to preserve the flavor. This emphasis on quality over speed ran counter to the principles of mass production, but it was just what the company needed to ensure ot could retain its culture. Espresso machines that obscured the customers’ view were replaced with lower profile machines that allowed baristas to look directly at the guest while making beverages. And ” assembly-line production,” like making several drinks at once, was discouraged in favor of slowly making each drink for each customer.

 

Schultz is convinced his efforts to take culture back to its roots as a neighborhood coffee shop-one embraced with the :romabce of coffee” and treating every customer as an old friend- has saved the company. Today, Starbucks earns more than $3.6 billion in quarterly revenue and operates more than 18,000 store in 60 countires around the globe.

 

1. What factors are most likely to change when a company grows very rapidly, as Starbucks did? How can these changes threaten the culture of an organization?

 

2. Why might this type of radical change process by easier for Starbucks to implement than it would be for other companies?

 

3. A great deal of the return to an orginal culture has been credited to Howard Schultz, who acted as an idea champion. Explain how Schultz’s efforts to change the Starbucks culture fit with our discus

Effective parent and community involvement in a school setting does not just happen—it requires effort on the part of the school staff to first establish good relationships with parents and the community and then requires additional effort to maintain and improve these relationships. This is a necessary task for schools to attend to. Good parent and community relations make for a better school experience for everyone connected to the school.

For your final assignment in this course, you will create a parent and community involvement plan. Your plan should be ten to twelve pages in length, not including the title page and reference page. Be sure to include a minimum of five scholarly sources (not including your textbook), cited and referenced in APA style, that support your ideas.

Your plan should address the following items:

1. Describe a philosophy of the plan. Why you are creating this involvement plan?
2. Describe aims of the plan. What you intend to do?
3. Describe goals of the plan. What you intend to accomplish?
4. Describe school resources to implement the plan. Include personnel, materials, and funding.
5. Explain the student role in the plan. What will they be doing?
6. Explain the parent role in the plan. What they will be doing?
7. Explain the role of other community members/organizations in the plan. What will they be doing?
8. Explain actions to gain support for the plan. How will you create and engage support?
9. Explain events to gain support for the plan; include events to gain parent participation and community attendance.
10. Explain how you will evaluate the plan and criteria for success.

You will need to develop two sets of skills to enhance your employability—hard skills and soft skills.

• Hard skills include career-specific techniques, knowledge, and experience related to the tasks you will perform on the job. For example, to become a psychologist, you would need to develop hard skills such as knowledge of counseling theories, the ability to administer psychological tests, and the ability to diagnose mental illnesses.
• Soft skills, on the other hand, are the skills you need to succeed interpersonally in any job. They are behaviors and attitudes that help you communicate effectively with others, either verbally or nonverbally. These have also been referred to as signs of emotional intelligence, people skills, or interpersonal skills.

In 2006, a consortium of four organizations conducted a survey of four hundred employers to determine which skills they most valued in recently hired employees. The employers listed soft skills as more desirable than hard skills. The employers listed the following skills as the most important (Conference Board et al., 2006): “professionalism/work ethic, oral and written communications, and teamwork/collaboration.” List of applied skills in attachments.

• To review the key skills ( http://www.p21.org/storage/documents/FINAL_REPORT_PDF09-29-06.pdf ) most valued by employers. Note the finding that most college graduates lacked many of these skills.

Complete the following:

• Describe the differences between hard and soft skills. Cite at least one academic source for this description.
• Analyze the possible reasons for the recent findings that fewer college graduates are employment ready. In other words, explain why they are lacking in hard and soft skills. Back up your ideas and opinions with information cited from this module’s required readings or other academic sources.
• Select at least three hard or soft skills you believe you have demonstrated well in school or at work and provide illustrative examples of situations in which you have demonstrated the skills.
• Select three hard or soft skills you believe you need to acquire or improve upon. Provide examples of situations in which you might have demonstrated a weakness in those areas. Provide specific details when describing each situation. Cover the following:
  • How do you think you can improve your skills in these three areas?
  • Are there any specific steps you can take to increase your aptitude in those particular areas?

Reference:

Conference Board, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, Corporate Voices for Working

Families, & Society for Human Resource Management. (2006). Are they

really ready to work? Employers’ perspectives on the basic knowledge and

applied skills of new entrants to the 21st century U.S. workforce. Retrieved

from http://www.p21.org/documents/FINAL_REPORT_PDF09-29-06.pdf

Submission Details:

• Write your initial response in a minimum of 300–400 words. Apply APA standards to cite sources

Case Study ” Data-Driven Schools”.

1) Identify and describe the problem discussed in the case.

2) How do business intelligence systems provide a solution to this problem? What are the inp

 

Assignment 1: Discussion Assignment

The discussion assignment provides a forum for discussing relevant topics for this week based on the course competencies covered.

For this assignment, make sure you post your initial response to the Discussion Area by Saturday, December 5, 2015.

To support your work, use your course and text readings and also use outside sources. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.

Start reviewing and responding to the postings of your classmates as early in the week as possible. Respond to at least two of your classmates. Participate in the discussion by asking a question, providing a statement of clarification, providing a point of view with a rationale, challenging an aspect of the discussion, or indicating a relationship between two or more lines of reasoning in the discussion. Complete your participation for this assignment by Wednesday, December 9, 2015.

Quality in Healthcare at the National Level

Quality is a serious initiative in healthcare at the national level. Hospitals, providers, insurance companies, and government-sponsored agencies are now faced with meeting quality initiatives. Compliance with these initiatives means more revenue and better patient quality and provider care.

Select any area in your city, community, county, or region, and assume the patient in this week’s case study is in this area. Using the South University Online Library or the Internet, research and answer the following:

• Does your community have the required medical resources to handle the patient’s problem?
• How would the patient’s care be handled in your community? Identify the nearest hospital to the area you have chosen that treats the problem. Trace the patient’s course to this hospital.
• List the healthcare professionals and facilities that would be encountered on the way.
• Compare any two insurance plans and choose the one that would offer the most to the patient.
• Discuss the essential quality-of-care issues involved in this case. What is the role of Telemedicine

An informational interview is a recommended tool for exploring career options. This assignment is designed to prepare you for an informational interview of a professional in the field of psychology. You will conduct this informational interview during Module 2. Here, in Module 1, you will create a script, design a list of questions, and identify the person you hope to interview. You also need to schedule the interview.

In M3 Assignment 2 LASA 1, you will submit a written account of the informational interview you conducted with the psychology professional.

You will ask the interviewee to describe the educational and training steps (the career paths) he or she took to reach the current position. You will also ask the interviewee to describe, in some detail, the job responsibilities associated with the position. The interview must be at least thirty minutes long. Ideally, it should be conducted in person. If that is not feasible, a phone interview is adequate.

For this assignment, do the following:

• Begin to prepare for this informational interview by identifying the professional you plan to interview. Ideally, the professional should be engaged in a career that you hope to pursue. (You may want to identify a second candidate in case your initial choice is unable to complete the interview with you.) This professional may work in your local area, but that is not necessary. If you cannot identify a professional easily, ask your friends and family if they know anyone who works in the field of psychology. You may also want to phone your local community mental health center or social services agency to ask for names and contact information of potential professionals you could interview. Contact your facilitator for guidance if you have difficulty in identifying someone.
• Provide the following identifying information about the individual you have selected:
  • The name
  • The job title (licensed psychologist, social worker, or case manager)
  • The level of education (a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree)
  • A description of job responsibilities or day-to-day tasks
  • The type of license, if applicable
  • The state of residence and practice
  • The e-mail address or phone number
• Develop a list of at least fifteen questions to ask in your informational interview. Research possible questions to include using the Argosy University online library resources and the Internet. Click here to download a copy of the “Job Resources” document and save it to your computer. Refer to the “Job Resources” document to do an Internet search using the search terms “informational interview questions” in order to find suggested questions. Be sure to put them into your own words for the purpose of this assignment and to give credit to your source by using in-text citations and a reference list in APA format.
• Ask the interviewee about his or her work, academic preparation, and advice. In addition, include the interviewee’s answers to questions on the following topics:
  • The experience, skills, and knowledge necessary for success in a career in psychology or in graduate school
  • Relevant professional organizations
  • His or her views on professional ethics and academic integrity
  • The role of psychological research in his or her work
  • His or her greatest challenges and rewards
  • His or her reasons for choosing the field
• Develop a script (word-for-word written statement) that you will use during the warm-up (meet-and-greet) portion of the interview. What will you say to the interviewee when you meet him or her? What will you do? For example, will you shake the person’s hand and introduce yourself? Include small talk of a professional nature that will serve as an introduction and explanation of the purpose of the interview. Demonstrate in your script your ability to interact professionally and effectively in a professional environment.
• This assignment is preparatory work for the interview to be conducted later in this course. Do not conduct the interview for this assignment.

Submission Details:

• Write a 1–2-page paper in Microsoft Word format. Apply APA standards to cite sources. Use the following file-naming convention:

Assignment 3 Grading Criteria	Maximum Points
Identified an appropriate professional who met the requirements for the interview.	12
Gave the necessary identifying information about the professional.	12
Created a list of at least fifteen questions relevant to the professional’s career and designed to gather the required information.	28
Created a professional script for the warm-up (meet-and-greet) portion of the interview.	24
Wrote in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrated ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and displayed accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.	24

 

Assignment 2: It May Not Work in Politics

 

Write a three to four (3-4) page paper in which the student addresses the following three (3) items using headers to separate each response:

1. Identify one (1) member of Congress who has ethically violated his position. Briefly discuss the reason for the ethical violation and provide two (2) reasons why you agree or disagree with the verdict and any penalties. Provide examples to support your answer. Note: Your response should consists of the first fully developed paragraph discussing the member of Congress and his/her ethical violations and the second fully developed paragraph discussing the reasons you agree or disagree. Consider how the verdict and penalties impacts your trust of the members of Congress.
2. Discuss two (2) political reasons why a third party candidate has never been successful in winning a presidential election. Provide examples to support the answer. Note: Your response should consists of two fully developed paragraphs discussing each political reason. Consider the political impact of the Republican and Democratic Party if a third party was successful.
3. Identify one (1) current judicial, domestic, or foreign issue facing the United States today. Briefly discuss the issue and discuss two (2) strategies on what the United States should to do resolve the issue. Provide examples to support your answer. Note: Your respond should consists of the first fully developed paragraph discussing the issue and the second fully developed paragraph discussing the strategies. Consider the impact the strategies will have on the American people.

In your research, you cannot use Wikipedia, online dictionaries, Sparknotes, Cliffnotes, or any other Website do that do not qualify as an academic resource.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are to:

• Identify informed opinions on issues and questions involving the U.S. government, national political processes, policy making, and the notion of democracy.
• Employ terminology used to study political science and American government.
• Develop reasoned written and spoken presentations on issues and questions involving the U.S. government and national political processes using information in the course.
• Describe the basic values of American political culture.
• Explain how the federal system of government works.
• Explore different perspectives on issues and questions about the U.S. government and national political processes.
• Describe the importance of an informed, effective citizenship for the national government and political processes.
• Use concepts from our study of U.S. national government and politics (such as models of democracy) to discuss government and politics in state, local, and international contexts.
• Examine the evolution of presidential power in military affairs.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in the field of U.S. government and politics.
• Write clearly and concisely about U.S. government and politics using proper writing mechanics.

An international law firm has asked you to engage in a risk and mitigation evaluation and plan for their organization. The details of their infrastructure follow.

The organization has offices in:

• United States: New York, New York, and Palo Alto, California (headquarters).
• England: London.
• Russia: Moscow.
• Mongolia: Ulaanbaatar.
• China: Hong Kong.
• Japan: Tokyo.

Each location is set up as a star topology with 40 PCs networked together, with the exception of the law firm’s headquarters in Palo Alto, California. The offices in New York are located on the 20th floor of a high rise. The remaining locations are all in commercial office centers with office space that shares a common wall with other businesses. All locations have a dedicated closet space that houses the networking equipment. Each location has IT support, and local users are managed locally with organization-wide replication of active directory changes that occur every 20 minutes.

Headquarters

The Palo Alto location has an additional 10 PCs and the following employees:

• Executives: Chief executive officer, chief financial officer, chief operating officer, chief information officer, and chief ethics officer, plus executive assistants (5).
• Accounting: Director, accounts payable clerk, and accounts receivable clerk.
• Human Resources: Director.
• Information Technology: Director and systems analyst.
• Legal: Attorneys (10), paralegals (10), legal assistants (10), and legal interpreters (2).
• Administration: Office administrator and office assistant.

Other Offices

Each of the other locations has 40 PCs and the following employees:

• Accounting: Director, accounts payable clerk, and accounts receivable clerk.
• Human Resources: Director.
• Information Technology: Director and systems analyst.
• Legal: Attorneys (10), paralegals (10), legal assistants (10), and legal interpreters (2).
• Administration: Office administrator and office assistant.

Further Details

Additional details about the project organization including the following:

• All executives, lawyers, paralegals, legal assistants, and legal interpreters have been issued an HP Pavilion dv7t Quad edition laptop with security provided by Zone Alarm’s security suite. No desktops are used by these employees. Docking stations are used at the office. When out of the office, each of these employees conducts business wirelessly using AT&T’s wireless card and Motorola’s Droid X.
• All other employees use HP’s Pavilion Elite HPE-570t series desktop.
• All laptops and desktops run the Windows XP operating system with WordPerfect, Office 2010 Professional, Windows Media, WebEx, and Adobe Reader 8 installed. The company uses Gmail as its e-mail provider. Droid X runs all of the above except for the XP operating system. Each runs the Android 2.2 OS.
• Each location uses an IBM BladeCenter HX5 server along with Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 (NOS).
• The switch for each location is Cisco’s Catalyst 2960-S series model number 2960S-48TS-S with Cisco TrustSec installed.
• All locations but the Mongolia office have been equipped with Cisco’s 3900 series Integrated Services Router Model 2951, with security provided by Cisco’s Network Analysis Module (NAM).
• The Mongolia office is equipped with Cisco’s Space Router due to Ulaanbaatar’s unreliable infrastructure.

Connecting the locations to each other is an IP WAN utilizing an integrated services digital network primary rate interface (ISDN-PRI) back up and fiber distributed data interface (FDDI).

Use the study materials, the enterprise description, and any additional research needed to fill in knowledge gaps. Write a 3 page paper that addresses the following:

• Evaluate the existing infrastructure as it currently exists.
• Identify significant vulnerabilities, risks, and points that exist within the network architecture of the organization.
• Recommend specific security technologies/methods that can be implemented to mitigate risks and points of vulnerability within the organization.
• Explore the benefits and challenges of implementing a cloud based solution for this organization.

Assignment Requirements

• Written communication: Written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• APA formatting: Resources and citations are formatted according to APA (sixth edition) style and formatting.
• Length of paper: 3 pages, excluding the references page.
• Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.

1. In a CRC for the Student class under the responsibility section, there is a responsibility named “RegisterStudent.” Across from that responsibility in the collaborator section is a class named “Registration.” Explain what all of this means.
2. There is a class named INVENTORY for a company that sells computers. List at least three attributes and at least two METHODS that would reside in INVENTORY. (Points : 11)

1. If object Z sends a message call to object T, where does the code of the method being executed reside? Explain your answer.

2. What if object X had a curved message call in a sequence diagram? What would that imply?
1.What is encapsulation? Why encapsulate in object oriented development?
2. Why create Packages? How do they further the development of an object oriented system?

Explain the object oriented code syntax for the statement below. Be as technical as possible, focusing on the mechanics of the syntax. In other words, break down the statement and explain what each part is doing from an object oriented point of view.
Pretend you are teaching someone object oriented code.

strOutputResults = aStudent.GetStudentData(StudentID)