Resolving Ethical Business Challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Resolving Ethical Business Challenges - Essay Example In this situation, Marry is also facing an ethical problem that either she should care for the customers to lie or to speak the truth. On the other side, it is also important that if she lies to the building owner and the buyer then what would be the benefit of it. In the business world, the ethics program may also include the true and sincere involvement of the employees with their business and the business parties and stakeholders. If Mary lies to the building owner and hides the reality of her negotiation with the owner of the buyer then it also indicates that she is trying to fulfill her duty. However, she may face a little problem after the negotiation when both parties will come to know the truth. At least until that time, the building will be sold and this sale is actually beneficial for both parties. The building is not considered for many years and now the only customer who wants to own this building is here. Therefore, if Mary put her efforts to make this purchase possible then it will not be considered as unethical. However, it is quite possible that if Mary is successful in her efforts to convince Ted that the buyer is purchasing that building for a noble cause and he cannot arrange the required down payment because of the charity funds. Then it will not be a problem for the buyer and the seller that there is an issue with the agreement.

Case Study #4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case Study #4 - Essay Example Against this background, the major problem sought to be addressed by the case study is that of trying to assist both Mike and Dorothy on the best way they can adopt in order to be better positioned to cope with the disease. The other issue being addressed is that of trying to find out possible means of helping Mike to prevent the disease, foster independence as well improving the quality of life. It can also be noted that emphasis is put on the notion that this kind of ailment is not equivalent to mental disorder or madness but just something that can be associated with old age where one can manage to treat it or live with it without major repercussions. This can be treated as a normal development in elderly people where they can get proper medication to overcome this ailment and lead a normal life once again. In some cases, elderly people tend to lose track of events which can be a normal thing given that the brain, just like any other part of the body reaches a point of getting tired as result of age thereby cannot continue to function perfectly compared to the young and energetic adult people. The major concepts presented in the text include the issue of forgetfulness which can either be attributed to Alzheimer disease. Schaie & Willis (2002) suggest that the condition of forgetfulness of the mind can be attributed to old age and this is seen as a normal development in the life of the human beings as they rich older ages. Thomas (1996) also concurs that research has shown that about 25 million adults have what he calls Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). Some do not know it but in case of the adult people, it can ruin their relationships because of their forgetfulness, inability to be on time and in some cases leaving unfinished projects. In the case of Mike, it can be noted that he is beginning to forget even week days as well as the names of

Digital Intermediate Frequency in LTE Superheterodyne

Digital Intermediate Frequency in LTE Superheterodyne Research and implementation of the digital intermediate frequency in LTE superheterodyne transmitter Abstract: Digital IF (Intermediate Frequency) is an indispensable key technology in modern communication, among which digital up converter (DUC) and digital down converter (DDC) are important parts between baseband and IF. In this paper, we give a general method and solution of designing digital IF to meet the demands of practical application. Firstly, we analyze the theories and technologies of digital IF including filter bank and DUC. Secondly, we set about analyzing how to design filter bank in key part and implement a superheterodyne. Finally, we put forward a specific design plan of DUC and develop a digital IF suitable for TDD-LTE (Time Division Long Term Evolution) system. The results of simulation show that our design method of DUC can satisfy the requirements of relevant indicators. It has been implemented on FPGA platform in a practical LTE based transmitter. SECTION I. Introduction Nowadays, digital subscriber line (DSL) network far remains one of the most promising means of broadband communications. DSL communication is evolved from conventional discrete multitone (DMT) system to filtered architectures. The smooth evolution of filtered multitone, FMT, provides higher peak rate and higher spectrum efficiency as the widening of the limited frequency increases. As the frequency resources become increasingly scarce, research on subband coding in the field of high-speed DSL communication is of great significance. Adaptive subband estimate is the core of the FMT receiver. With the development of FMT technology, an orthogonal filter bank transmissions have become the focus of attention. As the key technology of recent multirate systems, filter banks technology is also the starting point to a breakthrough of frequency selective transmissions. For frequency selective channels, digital up-conversion must be completed firstly before filtering. Analysis filter bank structure mainly includes filtering, interpolating, mixing and resampling. Filter bank implementation involves the computation of an efficient spectral allocation and often estimates high complexities. It is very difficult to implement full corresponding spectral after sampling using the current DMT [2]. In application design, the common method is to use DMT in the time-domain to achieve digital up-conversion. In this paper, we mainly research the theoretical characteristics of the digital up-conversion in the frequency-domain, and design a set of digital up-conversion scheme suitable for FMT system. Finally, the design of subband transmissions is implemented. SECTION II. Design Requirements of DUC DUC usually needs spectrum shifting that modulate the baseband signal to band-pass signal. Because of the lower sampling rate of baseband signal, it cannot meet the needs of radio-frequency emission. The sampling rate conversion should be added. The method to implement DUC is as follows. At first, the signal is divided into two channels baseband signal (I, Q). Then the signal is transformed into a higher sampling rate through the filter interpolation. Finally the two-way signals are respectively modulated and thus the spectrum is moved to a specific point through the digital mixer. Up-converter module is realized using filter bank cascade and finally modulate it to realize the spectrum shift. The up-converter principle block diagram is shown in Fig. 1. Figure 1 Figure 1. The up-converter principle block diagram. View All Usually, the sampling rate can be improved through the filtering and interpolation [3]. We modulate the baseband signal to the NCO (Numerically Controlled Oscillator) intermediate frequency carrier. This paper designs a broadband wireless DUC which is operated based on the TDD-LTE standard and the bandwidth is 5MHz. The Third-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards specifies that the sampling rate of signal carrier 5MHz bandwidth TDD-LTE is 7.68Msps. In order to shift the spectrum to the intermediate frequency 21.4MHz, signal needs to use interpolation for 8 times to achieve the sampling rate up to 6I.44Msps. Then we make analog transformation in DAC according to the Nyquist sampling theorem. DUC provides the function of spectrum shaping and improving the sampling rate, with the premise of satisfying the requirements of 3GPP standards. In 3GPP TS 36.804, it puts forward the specific spectrum requirements to the front-end of digital transmitter. On the one hand, the suppressio n performance outside the band of filter needs to meet the regulation of the spectrum template [4], [5]. On the other hand, it needs to satisfy the requirement of the 5MHz broadband. In addition, the sampling rate should be increased 8 times. The specific indicators is shown in Table 1. Table I. Design requirements of DUC Table I. SECTION III. Detailed Design Scheme of DUC In this paper, the multi-stage interpolation is adopted in DUC part. The total design is shown as Fig. 2: Figure 2 Figure 2. Digital up converter design. View All We need 8 times interpolation, therefore the design uses two CIC filters of 2-fold interpolation. Because the interpolation factor is a power of 2 times, particularly suitable for Half-band filter, we cascade a Half-band filter to achieve interpolation filtering function. A. Interpolation Theory Interpolation [6] is an integer multiple insertion of the original sequence. We do I times interpolation by inserting (I-1) zeroes between the adjacent two sampling points. The relationship between original sequence x(n) and interpolated sequence xI(n) is shown as: xI(n)={x(nI), 0,nI is integerothers(1) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. Spectrum relationship is obtained as: XI(ejω)=X(ejωI)(2) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. The original sequence does I-fold interpolation in the time domain, which is I times compression for the original spectrum. General interpolation method is inserting zeros between the sampling sequences. However, the signal spectrum XI(ejω) after interpolation not only contains the fundamental frequency X(ejω), but also high frequency mirror, the frequency of which is greater than Ï€/I. In order to recover the original signal spectrum from XI(ejω) we need to put signal through a low-pass filter with bandwidth Ï€/I. After low pass filtering, the inserted zero point smoothly get into the accurate value of x(n). Figure 3 Figure 3. Signal and spectrum before and after interpolation. View All The maximum output frequency of interpolation can reach (I-1) times of which of original sequences. The frequency spectrum of the signal is consistent with the original spectrum but frequency shifts, as is shown in Fig. 3. When the sampling rate is transformed, the I times interpolation can be realized by using only single stage. But if we design a low pass filter with larger interpolation multiple factor using the same method of single stage, the order of the transfer function h(n) will be relatively high. Its difficult to implement on an embedded hardware for its large requirement of storage and calculation. So in order to implement easier and reduce calculation, this paper uses a method of multi-stage interpolation and cascaded together [7]. A simple two-stage interpolation method is shown as follow Fig. 4: Figure 4 Figure 4. Multi-level implementation of interpolation(i=i1*12). View All After processing by multi-stage method, the order of the interpolation filter is decreased obviously. B. CIC Filter Principle and Design CIC (Cascade Integrator Comb) filter, a kind of efficient extraction or interpolation filter, is been widely used in the multi-rate signal processing. The basic components of CIC filter include two parts: integral and comb filtering. Single-stage CIC decimation and interpolation filter is shown in Fig. 5. Where, M is latency state, D is extraction factor and L is interpolation factor. Figure 5 Figure 5. CIC decimation and interpolation filter structure. View All In single-stage decimation CIC filter, the integrator stages N=1, and the feedback coefficient is 1: The state equation is defined as: y(n)=y(n−1)+x(n)(3) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. From (3) we can obtain the Z transform as: HI(Z)=11−Z−1(4) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. The state equation of comb section is defined as: y(n)=x(n−1)−x(n−DM)(5) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. where M is state delay, its function of Z transform is as: HC(Z)=1−Z−DM(6) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. Transfer function of extraction CIC filter is defined as: H(z)=HI(Z)HC(Z)=11−Z−1(1−Z−DM)(7) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. From (7) we can obtain its frequency response as: H(ejω)=sin(ωDM/2)sin(ω/2)(8) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. The amplitude-frequency characteristics of single-stage CIC filter has a higher sidelobe, so we can use a multi-stage cascade CIC filter to reduce sidelobe and improve stop-band attenuation. The system function of CIC filter can be expressed as: H(z)=HNI(Z)HNI(Z)=(11−Z−1)N(1−Z−DM)N=[∑D−1K=0Z−k]N(9) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. When we set CIC filters order D to the multiple factor of interpolation I and do an equivalent transformation, the CIC interpolation filter cascading in practical applications will be shown as Fig. 6: Figure 6 Figure 6. Cascading structure of CIC interpolation filter. View All Considering the system requirements and debugging repeatedly by MATLAB, we set the design with stages N=2, sampling rate R=3 and delay M=1. Then we can get the frequency response of interpolation CIC filter with the parameters N=5,M=1,R=3, as shown in Fig. 7: Figure 7 Figure 7. Frequency response of CIC filter after 2x interpolation. View All C. CIC Compensation Filter Design CIC filter has good anti-imaging and anti-aliasing effects. In the design of the decimation/interpolation filter, it is indispensable to get a relatively flat pass-band and a relatively narrow transition band especially for broadband systems. Consequently, if the CIC is applied to the broadband systems, the pre-compensation and compensation filter which can significantly improve the performance of the filter is needed. The amplitude response of the compensation filter is the reciprocal of the CIC filter in ideal circumstances. When we use an equal-ripple FIR [8] filter with anti-sinc function as the CIC compensation filter, its spectrum after two filters cascade will be shown as Fig. 8. According to the requirements of 5MHz bandwidth of our special TDD-LTE system, we set the parameters of CIC filter as fellow: cutoff frequency of pass-band B=5MHz, interpolating multiple D=2 and input sample rate is 30.72MHz. Figure 8 Figure 8. CIC and CIC compensation filter cascade effect. View All The so-called compensation means cascading a compensation filter in front of the filter bank. After simulation cascade in MATLAB, the band ripple of CIC filter is shown in Fig. 8(b). As can be seen from the figure, the band ripple drops about 3dB. After compensation filter processing, we find the attenuation of pass-band ripple improves so significantly that it can meet the design requirements. D. Half-Band Filter Design Half-band filter is a pretty useful and special filter and it plays an important role in the high speed signal processing and multi-stage filter design. Half-band filter is also a kind of FIR filter, and its impulse response h(k) is even symmetry with respect to the coordinate axis with the character of h(k)=h(-k). h(k)={1,0,k=0k= ±2, ±4(10) View SourceRight-click on figure for MathML and additional features. According to the above formula, we learn that the impulse response of Half-band filter is not 0 except in the coordinate zero point but the rest of even position is 0. This feature is very suitable for achieving the decimation and interpolation of power of 2 times. When using Half-band filter for sample rate conversion, the system can save half amount of calculation. Therefore, Half-band filter cascade is widely used in high order filter design and high-speed processing. For Half-band filter, Stop-band bandwidth π−ωA is equal to pass bandwidth ωc, and the width of the transition zone is determined by the pass bandwidth and sample rate together by consensus. In addition, the pass-band and stop-band ripple is the same. As is shown in Fig. 9: Figure 9 Figure 9. Half-band filter. View All As we can see from above figure, the response of Half-band filter in Ï€/2−ωA interval is not zero. When making 2 times extraction, it does not satisfy the conditions of extraction without aliasing, which will result in signal aliasing distortion. But the spectral structure of signal (0∠¼Ãâ€°c) in the pass-band has not been damaged and it can still be recovered without aliasing, so we can still use Half-band filter to design 2-times sample rate conversion of pass-band signal. In DUC design of this paper, we cascade a Half-band filter to achieve 2-times interpolation. After completing the design of filter banks, we simulate the solution in MATLAB and the result is shown in Fig. 10: Figure 10 Figure 10. Frequency response of our filter bank. View All SECTION IV.Simulation Results A typical TDD-LTE signal with 5MHz bandwidth is shown in Fig. 11. The baseband signal at the zero frequency is moved to 21.4MHz after up-converter. Figure 11 Figure 11. Signal spectrum before and after up-converter. View All As can be seen from the figure above, the design of our program meets the design requirements. Specially, in Fig. 11(a) we add two noise signal outside the passband into input signal. After the designed filter banks, the additional noise signal is also normally filtered out and the indicators such as band attenuation and ripple all meet the requirements. It is shown in Fig. 11(b)-(c). SECTION V.Implementation on FPGA At the end of design, Xilinxs xc7a200t-3fbg676 chip is selected to implement the system using VHDL language [9]. Simulating and synthesizing processes run in Xilinx [10] ISE14.3 development environment. The specific implementation structure is shown in Fig. 12. There are mainly five parts: 1) DUC_pre_tx (stabilizing date rate of the up-converter input data to ensure a constant rate for the next module); 2) CIC _ compensation (compensation filter of CIC filter which has a certain filtering characteristic); 3) CIC filter (achieving the function of filtering and interpolation); 4) halfband (achieving the function of filtering and interpolation); 5) dds_modulate_tx (moving spectrum from zero frequency to IF 21.4MHz). Figure 12 Figure 12. Realization diagram of fpga. View All Fig. 13 shows the signal waveform after interpolation with CIC compensation module in simulation tool ModelSim. As can be seen from the figure, the input signal is filtered as expected. The original signal is mixed with high-frequency signal and the high-frequency part is filtered through CIC filter compensation. It indicates that our filter design has reached satisfactory results. The signal waveform processed by CIC and halfband filter is shown in Fig. 14. We can see from figure that the original input signal becomes smooth, which suggests that the signal processing is successful. The signal waveform processed by dds _ modulate _ tx module spectrum shifting is shown in Fig. 15. In the figure, we can see that the signal spectrum has been moved successfully from baseband to intermediate frequency. Figure 13 Figure 13. Waveform and spectrum before and after interpolation. View All Figure 14 Figure 14. Waveform after CIC and half-band filter. View All Figure 15 Figure 15. Waveform and spectrum after frequency shifting. View All SECTION VI. Conclusion This paper introduces a general design method for digital IF and analyzes the main parameters that affect its performance. According to the specific index of TDD-LTE, we calculate the values of various parameters that the system needs. In addition, we analyze the frequency spectrum, band-pass ripple and band-stop ripple to judge whether they meet the requirements. The designs of CIC filter and Half-band filter are analyzed respectively. After that we analyze and design a CIC filter compensation best with the purpose of achieving possible to meet the system design requirements. Finally, we verify the actual effect of the filter in Model and implement the design on FPGA platform. The result suggests that the design method is reasonable and feasible.

Dark Overtones And Their Contrasts In My Antonia :: essays research papers

Dark Overtones, and Their Contrasts in My Antonia   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In My Antonia by Willa Cather, there are many dark overtones that pervade the novel. It is through the use of symbolism and contrast these overtones are made real. The prairie is the predominant setting of the novel. It may be shaped, and it conforms to the desires of those working it. The prairie ¹s loneliness, shown by the wide open spaces, is a brilliant way of revealing internal conflict by using a setting. Also, it brings out the characters true meaning. Cather shows through the character of Lena Lengard that society ¹s next generation would not be as good, or quite as noble as that of Cather ¹s childhood. The primary inscription on the first page states that the best days are the first to flee. Cather contrasts these ideas with Antonia ¹s personality, which is always bright. This contributes to the dreariness of the novel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the novel the prairie is a metaphor for internal conflict. Cather brilliantly demonstrates the prairie as a representation for internal conflict being portrayed by a setting (Kelley, Sean). It symbolizes loneliness and depression. When Jim, one of the main characters, was young, the prairie was uncultivated and there were not as many settlers; it was a lonely place. Being isolated from society with little or no human contact could drive anyone insane. Despair, bad luck, greed, and self-absorbtion make one lose hope also, but it is mostly the lack, or the underuse of, imagination (Kelley, Sean). The prairie was a desolate strip of land that continued as far as could be seen. In the beginning of the novel, Jim Burden states about the land:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There seemed to be nothing to see, no fences, no creek or trees, no hills or fields. I   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  had the  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  feeling that the world was left behind, that we had gone over the edge of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  it.... If we never arrived anywhere, it did not matter. Between that earth, and that   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  sky, I felt erased, blotted out. (3 - 4) It seems that Jim tries to express that the prairie is forlorn, and deprived of life, making one aware of being alone. Because Jim has left behind all that is familiar, and started over his life, he has a clean slate, and that is what the prairie is. E. K. Brown, once wrote,  ³The impersonal vastness of the land is the freedom it represents.

First Year Writing Essay

The first year biology majors and accounting major of YU are all asking themselves the same question: â€Å"How is First Year Writing going to help me? † As an accounting major in the Syms School of Business, I was extremely troubled by the university requirement to take first year writing as well. â€Å"How will FYW help me with balance sheets? † I asked myself. How will this class get me an accounting internship this summer that I so desperately need to improve my resume? Seemingly, FYW will not assist me in realizing my professional aspirations. Furthermore, the requirements of a dual curriculum are taxing enough without the added labor an â€Å"extra,† unnecessary requirement. Having finished the course, I believe that First Year Writing should be mandatory for all students for three reasons: FYW raises students’ awareness of critical educational issues, it develops their writing skills, and cultivates intellectual independence. In my First Year Writing class, I was first exposed to articles that dealt with educational issues such as the promotion of online-education and the advancement of math and science at the expense of the Liberal Arts. My professor began a class discussion about the popularization of online education by assigning David Brook’s article â€Å"The Campus Tsunami. † Brooks documents the millions of dollars dedicated by elite colleges such as Harvard and M. I. T. to e-learning the year. Before reflecting upon and researching the issue, I thought of e-learning as a convenient, cheap and efficient form of education. Brooks’s article confirmed my initial feelings. However, in this FYW required readings like an â€Å"An Elite College Education, Online? (which were response letters to Brook’s article) and â€Å"Summa Cum Avaritia† by Nick Brommel that forced me to engage the alternative point of veiw. These two articles argue that online classes should not supplant the class experience because online classes â€Å"reconceive knowledge as information† (Brommel,73). Brommel distinguishes between knowledge and information and argues that online classes can convey only the latter. Students are delivered the facts but are not forced to synthesize the information with the rest of what they know. In the traditional classroom, professors introduce the students to omprehensive knowledge, not simply information. After reading these articles, I concluded that e-learning diminishes the quality of education. Simply put, online education cannot supplement the classroom experience. As a result of FYW’s student discussions and assigned readings, I reconsidered and, ultimately, shifted my view of e-learning. â€Å"But who cares that you changed your view of e-learning? † one might ask. But my view on e-learning has consequences. It might determine who I vote for (candidates disagree about online education) and, perhaps, the future choices I willmake regarding my children’s education. Although I do not have children, I hope to one day. ) In addition to raising my awareness of important educational issues, FYW gave me the opportunity to improve my writing skills. Before submitting my first essay, I went to the writing center for help. After I read over the essay to the professor at the writing center, he put a big X on the paper and recommended that I clearly outline my ideas before beginning the writing process. â€Å"Where is your thesis statement? Why does each one of your paragraphs have three different ideas? † he asked. Quickly realizing that I was a novice writer, the professor gave me some instructive tips. Now, before I start writing an essay, I outline what I want to say in each paragraph. And after much practice, I have a better understanding of how to formulate a clear thesis statement, simply my supporting paragraphs, and avoid general sweeping statements. In short, FYW has made myself and students like me better writers. Nevertheless, a science or business major might question whether writing is always a valuable skill. I maintain that the skill of writing assists is necessary for success as college student and professional, regardless of one’s major or career. In my first semester at YU, I was assigned a term paper in my management course, in which I was expected to clearly answer personal questions like â€Å"what is your vision for your career? † No amount of biology or accounting could provide me with the tools necessary to answer the above question. FYW enabled me to both reflect upon and clearly articulate my professional aspirations. In addition to helping one in the classroom, developed writing skills, assist one in the workplace as well. Again, in my first semester, I asked my accounting professor to push off the exam so that I could finish an essay due that day. As I offered my excuse, I began to ramble about the impracticality of writing for accountants. My professor sighed and then replied, â€Å"When are you kids going to learn that writing is important even in accounting? † He explained that writing skills are necessary in order to communicate financial statements in a coherent manner. Poorly written reports with grammatical errors will lack credibility. Conversely, a well drafted report will be readily understood. My professor’s example reflects Brent Staples’s description of writing as â€Å"a critical strategy [†¦ for] students to prepare them to succeed in the work place† (34). But as Mark Slouka’s article â€Å"Dehumanized† demonstrates, Staples and my accounting professor’s view of writing does not fully capture the importance of writing and the humanities. Most importantly, FYW has forced me to become intellectually independent. As a former soldier in the Israeli Defense forces, I struggled with the adjustment to Yeshiva University life. In the I. D. F. , I lived a life of obedience: I ate when told to eat, slept when told to sleep, and even showered was I was told to shower. Israeli soldiers live by the adage, â€Å"rosh bakir,† which roughly translates to â€Å"don’t think, just do. † In contrast to the IDF, my FYW course styled itself off of Mark Edmunson’s concept of â€Å"democratic thinking,† where each student is encouraged and, in fact, expected to offer his own thoughts. During my year and half long army service, my life choices were made for me. But upon entering YU, my FYW course required that I apply intellectual independence in evaluating the â€Å"Purpose of Liberal Arts,† a difficult task for a soldier whose bathroom breaks were previously timed. Initially, I viewed my professor as commander and myself as soldier. I relied on her exact directions about how to write the essay at hand. Quickly, my professor identified my dependency and challenged me to develop and articulate my own thoughts. But one need not serve in the army in order to fear independence. Like soldiers, students who simply who â€Å"go with the flow† depend heavily on things like social pressure and parental guidance. FYW forces students to exercise their intellectual independence in reflecting on big questions like â€Å"Purpose of Liberal Arts. Throughout this essay, I have argued that that First Year Writing should be mandatory for all students for three basic reasons. First, FYW raises awareness about critical life issues of which online education is but a single example. Second, even accounting majors who may not interested in the humanities can apply the writing skills they acquired from FYW when doing assignments for other classes and, eventually, when drafting financial statements. But most importantly, FYW should be mandatory because it forces students to exercise their intellectual independence.

What Do We Do with Howard

â€Å"What do we do with Howard? † Synopsis:Tad Pierson had recently been appointed as a project engineer. As project engineer for one of Agrigreen’s plants, he is responsible for the operation of the plant surveying group. For some time now Tad had been aware of some performance, safety, and conflicts with personnel within the group. These issues appear to be escalating in frequency and are causing Tad concern regarding the safety of the employees, the production schedules, and possible actions that he might need to take. Agrigreen, Inc. s a company that manufactures a verity of agricultural fertilizer. With plants located in the western United States and Canada, Agrigreen employs certified surveyors to ensure quality and safety of each project. Eighteen years ago, Agrigreen’s survey crew was composed of part-time drafting personnel or project engineers. Howard Lineberry, a lead surveyor had been employed with Agrigreen for eighteen years. Over his tenure he had been supervised by five different managers, and had three surveyor’s helpers. Howard’s work over the years has caused multiple safety and production issues.He has also had conflicts with the engineering staff, his managers, and almost everyone he worked with. Mel Cutler, a surveyor’s helper, after being employed by the company for only a few years was assigned to assist Howard. Five years into this assignment, Mel began to notice problems due to Howard’s note keeping method. These problems contributed to the production and safety issues with several projects. Later Mel began to notice that Howard was taking an excessive amount of snack breaks, coming to work late and leaving early.He also noticed Howard taking naps on the job. When the opportunity presented itself, Mel accepted a part-time assignment away from Howard. This reassignment resulted in a new surveyor’s helper being assigned, Vince Adam. Vince, an impressible young high school graduate, took on several of Howard’s inappropriate habits. Tad is concerned that the performance, safety, and personnel issues in the plant surveying group is getting out of control and is considering what action(s) that he should take, if any, at this point to intervene and correct the situations.Finding of Fact #1:One of the key issues of concern that Tad faces is the escalating quality of work being performed by Howard. Howard’s inefficient work processes in his note keeping and time management has caused issues in both production as well as safety violations on the job sites. These continual issues have cost Agrigreen in both extra man power to rebuild and delays in production. By examining Howard’s work process Tad can better understand what needs to be done and work toward eliminating these errors. Recommendation #1:Howard’s performance at work is a product of miss management and poor attitude.When Howard was first employed, his manager, Jerry Givens [now r etired], supervised with an iron hand. His management style can best be described as Theory X. Jerry took a command-and-control approach to management based on a negative view of Howard’s knowledge, skills, and ability. [ (Hellriegel & Slocum Jr. , 2008) ] He told Howard what to do and how to do it. Upon Jerry’s retirement, the next manager, Paul Jackson, used the Theory Y approach to management. He took on an empowering approach with Howard. This is where the problem truly began.Howard, with his new found freedom took it upon his self to improve the process by working directly with the project engineers. Howard’s efforts increased the pace of the work which called for a number of last minute requests and frequent changes in work schedules. By not having an establish plan of action in place, errors were made which cost the company time and money. Over the years, Howard’s performance issues escalated and upon several attempts by different managers, he refused to change. Tad has his work cut out for him.Regardless of how Howard may feel, Tad is still his boss and he is there to work for Agrigreen. Howard’s performance is not acceptable in any manner. While the failures of the previous managers to confront Howard about his performance problems have cost the company money it is now up to Tad to correct this issue. In doing so, there are a few things Tad should keep in mind. First, Tad should have a plan of action as to how he is going to confront this issue. With this plan of action, Tad should set define time as to the expected behaviors and outcomes expected in Howard’s performance.Next, Tad needs to meet with Howard and be specific in defining the poor performance that occurred in the past, and remind Howard when each error occurred. Tad also needs to be specific as to the plan of action and the established time frame to correct these errors as well as the consequences of non conformance. Tad needs to focus on the p erformance required for the job and make sure that he reiterates the guidelines that have been outlined for the workplace. Tad should consider Howard’s personality and how he handles feedback.Regardless of how Howard has been performing, Tad should always be clear and straightforward during his communication with Howard. He needs to focus on the performance which Howard has control. At the conclusion of this meeting, Tad should check Howard’s understanding to avoid any miss communications. After the meeting with Howard, Tad should document this meeting from his notes. He should document the issue and the action that has been taken to correct or eliminate the problems. After summarizing this meeting a copy of Tad’s report should be given to Howard and the original placed in Howard’s file.Finally, timely feedback should be given to Howard as Howard works on improving his performance. Should Tad note that Howard needs additional training, he should check wit h the human resource department for additional training classes, or set Howard with a mentor. Tad should realize that confronting Howard about his poor performance is not going to be easy. But once he has a plan of action in place, he will fine getting Howard back on track is far better for the company than having to replace him. [ (Busines & Legal Reports, 2006) ]The above action is how we handled an employee in our office who was a poor performer. I was set as her mentor, and working one-on-one with her I had to re-train her in our processes to ensure that she had a full understanding as to what was required in performing our job. After a brief three months, she is now producing high quality of work. As a reviewer, this young lady’s work is â€Å"spot on. † She is now off corrective action and is no longer in jeopardy of losing her job. Finding of Fact #2:The next issue Tad faces is Howard’s attendance.Over the years of Howards’ tenure, he had becom e complacent. He has been increasingly taking additional snack breaks, arriving to work late, leaving work early, as well as fall asleep on the job. For years, under the previous management, Howard’s actions have been over looked. Tad had witnessed several of these company violations, and has also noticed Vince; Howard’s assistant has been following the same pattern as Howard. Recommendation #2:Identifying attendance issues are not a simple process. There may be underlying issues which could be the driver of Howard’s absenteeism.Tad needs to first research the company’s policy and gain a full understanding of what he can and cannot do to resolve the issue. Tad also needs to consult with the human resource department as well as the legal department to understand and educate himself on the potential legal issues that also are involved. Once Tad had educated himself, he needs to approach Howard to determine if there are underline reasons for the continuing a ttendance issues. It depends on why the Howard is late, absent, or taking frequent breaks will drive the action that Tad needs to take.During Tad’s conversation with Howard, if it is determined that the reason for this attendance problem is caused by some type of stress issues, violence and or family problem Tad may need to refer Howard to the Employee Assistance program (EAP) for assistance. If the reason is medical, Tad may suggest Howard use the benefits allowed to him under the American’s with disability Act (ADA) or the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Should the outcome be something else, Tad may need to take a different approach. (Vikesland) ] A good approach is to counsel with Howard of the important of keeping time and punctuality while driving down the corporate policy and procedures. A â€Å"carrot-and-stick† approach is a time-tested method of dealing with attendance issues. Through this approach, Tad can use a combination of reward and punishmen t. As with the plan of action, Tad created for the production issue, he may wish to either add the attendance issue to the original plan, or write a separate plan of action. Also, Tad should use the same method of communication, documentation, and feedback with this issue as e does with the production issue. [ (Nayab, 2010) ] I work with a person who appears to have an attendance problem. This person comes in at various times during the day. I cannot a test to when she leaves as I’m already on my way home while she is still in the office. At times, I’ve noticed that she takes two sometimes two and a half hour smoke breaks. The issue here is we are exempted employees. Since this person sits next to me I talk with her a great deal, so I know her attendance problem is mostly stress related. I have told her about our EPA program, but she has opted not to take advantage of their services.Finding of Fact #3:The final issue may appear to be one of the hardest for Tad. This is the moral of the plant’s surveying group. For years, Howard’s continued errors and attendance has caused issues with the other employees. Mel Cutler was originally assigned to work with Howard as a surveyor’s helper. A few years ago Mel began working on other projects away from Howard. Now that the temporary assignment is reaching its conclusion, Mel had expressed his concerns with working with Howard. Tad appears to understand, since he has known the original surveyor’s helper Dan Richards and the same concerns were expressed than.There also appears to be concerns being expressed by the engineering crews. It appears that they do not trust the work that Howard produces, and takes additional time (which cost extra money) to verify Howard’s findings. As Howard’s new supervisor, Tad needs to get a clear view of the situation from different perspectives and act on them accordingly. Recommendation #3:The plant surveying group at Agrigreen works closely with the project engineers. For some time now, anxiety, frustration, and resentment has been building in reference to the growing problems with Howard.This appears to be the major cause of the low morale and high levels of employee dissatisfaction within the plant. If left unchecked this issue will only accelerate the problem and the company will lose key personal. When Tad was assigned the group, he knew that there was a continual conflict brewing. He needs to confront this issue head on. This can be accomplished by fostering interpersonal communication within the group. Tad needs to become an active listener by paying attention to the concerns of the group withhold holding judgment on those who chose to share their thoughts.He needs to develop open communication between this cross-functional team. He need to develop clear and specific goals for the team to work through their concerns. As Howard’s performance and attendance issues are protected by employment laws and regulations as well as corporate ethical policies, the solutions to those issues cannot be shared with the team. For this reason, the team must learn to work past these issues knowing that Tad is on top of those concerns. [ (Hellriegel & Slocum Jr. , 2008) ] Conflict at times can be a good thing.However this is not the case with the plant surveying group. Tad will have his work cut out. He not only has to resolve the conflict within his team, but he also need to understand his own personal issues with Howard. Tad needs to get his team together to work through these concerns. He needs to set the stage by working on an agreement within the team that the conflict is a mutual problem for all and that it can best be resolved through open communication rather than allowing the issues to fester. Next, Tad needs to get to the underlying issues and/or concerns of the team.He should ask each team member for their view points and respect their opinions and feelings. He also should express that he will need their cooperation in solving the problems. If the team cannot reach a common perception of the problem, than the team needs to try to see the problem from the other members view point. Sometimes brainstorming sessions are a great way of getting to the key factors of the conflict. This session if worked correctly, is a great tool at working through these conflicts and reaching a viable solution. (Conflict Resolution) ] As for Tad and his interpersonal conflict in reference to Howard, Tad needs to keep his concerns in check while on the job. Now that he is Howard’s boss, additional training may be needed to improve his interpersonal skills. This is what I believe my former manager should be doing. In working with her for the past two years, it has become apparent that she lacks interpersonal skills. Another lady I work with who trained the major of the staff when we first was awarded our contract has more than ten years of experience.When our former manager t alks with her, she comes across as demeaning and at time condescending. It is no wonder why she is no longer a manager. I personally feel that she needs to re-educate herself on how to deal with people.Works Cited Busines & Legal Reports, I. (2006, October 12). 8 Rules for Dealing with Poor Performers. Retrieved December 5, 2010, from HR. BLR. com: http://hr. blr. com/shitepapers/Performance-Termination/Performance-Employee-Appraisal/8-Rules-for-Dealing-with-Poor-Performers/ Conflict Resolution. (n. d. ). Retrieved December 5, 2010, from Mindtools. om: http://www. mindtools. com/pages/article/newLDR_81. htm Hellriegel, D. , & Slocum Jr. , J. W. (2008). MGMT 362: Organizational Behavior Columbia College. Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning. Nayab, N. (2010, October 10). Strategies for Dealing with Employee Time & Attendance Problems. Retrieved November 5, 2010, from brighthub. com: http://www. brighthub. com/office/human-resources/articles/90380. aspx Vikesland, G. (n. d. ). Ho w to Deal with Employee Absenteeism. Retrieved December 5, 2010, from Employer-Employee. com: http://www. employer-employee. com/absent. html