...Question 1 Many organizations frequently rely on the insight of consultants to assist them in identifying areas of opportunity, making highly impactful decisions, and gaining additional insights as to the forthcoming direction of their industry. Some of the largest and most reputable consulting firms, such as Booz Allen and McKinsey, work on a global scale with internal divisions that specialize in a number of varying industries. The concept of consultants has been of great debate for many years, as some believe that if there is good management in place, they should be able to lead their organization appropriately without the help of expensive teams from the outside. However, one must remember that a great deal of what makes the daunting price tag of consultants an easily justifiable expense is the extraordinary weight the opinion of outside consultants carries with key influential decision makers. A Forbes magazine article on the topic says, “It really is often about being able to say “XYZ Consultants Inc recommend we do this” as that carries more weight in the internal arguments than “I say we do this” (Worstall, 2012). As a manager at a life insurance company, there a a number of things I would be looking for in the business report I received from the consulting firm I hired before I deem their findings valid. I would first need to understand the intent of the research contained in the business research report. For instance, I would view the findings from one point of...
Words: 1212 - Pages: 5
...EMAIL: moneyruffian67@gmail.com Research Design and Methods for Advanced Nursing Practice Critique NAME: Professor: Institution: Course: Date: This research is based on the idea that mothers with low incomes have a high prevalence of depression and depressive symptoms which have a negative effect on their infants and toddlers. Poorer development in infants and toddlers has been directly linked to maternal depression. Furthermore, infants of mothers who have depressed mothers tend to talk less, they engage in little play and lag behind on standardized language and mental development scales (Campbell et al, 2004). The aim of this research was to test the interpersonal psychotherapy of parenting enhancement to reduce depression of low income mothers of infants and toddlers. This study used a two group repeated measures design which was randomized. Mothers who were given the IPT + PE plus EHS enrichment were compared with mothers getting attention control health education plus EHS enrichment. The IPT + PE and ACTAU conditions were delivered over a 20 week period. Data were collected at four points: at baseline before randomization (T1), partway through the intervention (T2: 14 weeks), after completion of the intervention and termination with the nurse (T3:22weeks), and 1 month after all intervention stopped (T4: 26 weeks). The sample involved 226 mothers with infants. They were enrolled in in one of six EHS programs in the northeastern and southeastern...
Words: 977 - Pages: 4
...EMAIL: moneyruffian67@gmail.com Research Design and Methods for Advanced Nursing Practice Critique NAME: Professor: Institution: Course: Date: This research is based on the idea that mothers with low incomes have a high prevalence of depression and depressive symptoms which have a negative effect on their infants and toddlers. Poorer development in infants and toddlers has been directly linked to maternal depression. Furthermore, infants of mothers who have depressed mothers tend to talk less, they engage in little play and lag behind on standardized language and mental development scales (Campbell et al, 2004). The aim of this research was to test the interpersonal psychotherapy of parenting enhancement to reduce depression of low income mothers of infants and toddlers. This study used a two group repeated measures design which was randomized. Mothers who were given the IPT + PE plus EHS enrichment were compared with mothers getting attention control health education plus EHS enrichment. The IPT + PE and ACTAU conditions were delivered over a 20 week period. Data were collected at four points: at baseline before randomization (T1), partway through the intervention (T2: 14 weeks), after completion of the intervention and termination with the nurse (T3:22weeks), and 1 month after all intervention stopped (T4: 26 weeks). The sample involved 226 mothers with infants. They were enrolled in in one of six EHS programs in the northeastern and southeastern...
Words: 977 - Pages: 4
...Abstract The objective of this paper is to explore the fundamental circumstances to sustain the validity of prosocial behavior using experimental methods. The focus is on psychological issue of prosocial behavior, and evaluated these concepts using a descriptive method design. In doing so; this paper describes the sample populations, the experimental methods, and provide a speculation on the expectation of the outcomes of prosocial behavior in these scenarios. In addition, this paper further discusses the established sequence of necessary conditions to support the validity of prosocial behavior in reference to bystander effect. In conclusion, relating the conditions of the survey for reliability and to evaluate whether or not the methods discussed measures and are confirmed through the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and support an inter-source agreement. Experimental Method Design The bystander effect is a psychological episode in social psychology that connects with incidents when individuals refuse to assist in an emergency situation when others are nearby. In the past, the probability of help as been believed to be involving oppositely affected variables comparable to the number of bystanders, for instance, the more bystanders, the least likely anyone will help. John M. Darley was the first social psychologist to make obvious the bystander effect. In this experience, an emergency situation is thespian, and the participants are alone...
Words: 1549 - Pages: 7
...Data Design Methods Introduction Many organizations and companies rely on databases to run their operations and achieve competitive advantage. Database design refers to the different parts of the design of an overall database system. It can be thought of as the logical data structures used to store data, and the forms and queries used as part of the overall database application within the database management system (Wikipedia.org). The paper focuses on database design methods and steps that can be taken to achieve a good design structure that avoids redundancy, duplicate data or the absence of required data. The need to understand database models Databases are important to the organizational setting. Databases allow organizations to share data across multiple applications and systems. Organizations build several databases each one sharing data with several information systems. This is because it is almost impractical to build one database to meet an entire organization’s needs. Therefore data design is critical to the consistency, integrity and accuracy of the data in a database. A database that is improperly designed will make it difficult to retrieve certain types of information. Besides, there is the risk that searches will produce inaccurate results or information that may have potential damaging effects on a company's bottom line. Inaccurate database may also affect the daily operations of a business and its future direction. A good database addresses the informational...
Words: 1407 - Pages: 6
...Seminar für Allgemeine BWL, Marketing und Marktforschung Prof. Dr. Marc Fischer Worksheet No. 1 – Solution Outline (Design of Market Research Projects, sampling fundamentals and sampling procedures) 1.) Since Blu-ray players have only recently been introduced in the German market, only few experiences on the purchase and usage behavior of consumers exist. The company SimSing wants to determine whether it is worthwhile for the company to enter the market for Blu-ray players. Therefore, it is interested in the customer needs and expectations with respect to Blu-ray players. As a marketing expert, you have been assigned to design an appropriate market research project. a) Identify and briefly explain the stages of a market research project. Illustrate the different stages with regard to the determination of customer needs and expectations for Blu-ray players. 1st Step: Problem definition (Manager has a management problem that has to be transformed into a market research problem; formulation of market research project aims): Formulation of project aim (e.g., determining customer demands with regard to Blu-ray players in order to open up new markets) Identification of responsible managers/departments (e.g., strategic marketing, R&D, engineering, management accounting) Definition of possible deliverables (e.g., catalog of requirements for Bluray players and weighting of requirements) Narrowing down the scope of analysis (e.g., narrowing down requirements like potential...
Words: 2205 - Pages: 9
...two distinct methods of software development. The Waterfall model can essentially be described as a linear model of software design. Like its name suggests, waterfall employs a sequential design process. Development flows sequentially from start point to end point, with several different stages: Conception, Initiation, Analysis, Design, Construction, Testing, Implementation, and Maintenance. The Agile method proposes an incremental and iterative approach to software design. It was essentially developed in response to the limitations of Waterfall, as a way to give designers more freedom. The design process is broken into individual models that designers work on. There is no pre-determined course of action or plan with the Agile method. Rather, designers are free to respond to changes in requirements as they arise and make changes as the project progresses. Agile is a pretty new player to the development game. However, it has made substantial gains in use and popularity in the last couple of years. Agile: The Pros Agile offers an incredibly flexible design model, promoting adaptive planning and evolutionary development. Agile might be described as freeform software design. Software developers work on small modules at a time. Agile can be especially beneficial in situations where the end-goals of projects are not clearly defined. For example, if you are working with a client whose needs and goals are a bit hazy, it is probably worthwhile to employ the Agile method. The client’s...
Words: 749 - Pages: 3
...DESIGN THINKING: CHARACTERISTICS AND PROMISES Arkin Efeoglu1, Charles Møller2, Michel Sérié3, Harry Boer2 1 2 SAP Germany Aalborg University, Denmark 3 SAP Germany arkin.efeoglu@sap.com ABSTRACT This paper analyses a variety of Design Thinking methods to identify a governable pattern that is required to roll out Design Thinking as mindset in a multi-national company. A comparative analysis is essential to unveil focal points that lead to this organizational mindset transformation. Hence, a thorough understanding of the method and its core values may avoid uncoordinated innovation capabilities. Ultimately innovation will not be an R&D topic in an organization anymore but become part for every employee’s job, irrespective of his or her position. Keywords: Design thinking methods and characteristics, Review 1. INTRODUCTION A number of new innovation methods have emerged during the past two decades with an increasing interdisciplinary collaboration between the engineering, economic and social sciences. In spite of this, it is still a challenge to develop and introduce new innovations. One approach that increasingly makes its way to businesses of all sizes is called Design Thinking. This approach seems to be more promising to operationalize the innovation capabilities of a company (Brenner and Witte, 2011). Design Thinking is a human-centered problem solving method that mostly leads to radical innovative solution in terms of the feasibility, desirability...
Words: 6262 - Pages: 26
...OPERATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS MULTI-CRITERIA ANALYSIS OF THE ARTICLE AT THE DESIGN STAGES Annotation. The multicriterion rapid assessment method of techno-economic parameters of new articles is developed. It avoids expensive engineering changes during the operational phases through the analysis of external and internal factors at an early stage in the design that affect the maintainability and manufacturability of the article. The expert selection of the initial multitude of indicators from the five enlarged criteria groups and their subsequent pair-wise comparison point to the complex criteria for compliance with the average and optimum values of operational effectiveness of the article design. Comparison provides an opportunity to decide on...
Words: 1023 - Pages: 5
...Company Overview Quality Web Design (QWD) is a company that specializes in Websites and Web Design content for any type of business. Their mission is to help other businesses increase their revenue by providing them with top quality websites for their customers. In addition, they own over 250,000 of proprietary images, and graphical designs. These designs are customized for every industry and demographic. Their business process is quite simple. They have a server at the Company Headquarters, where they store all of their proprietary data (including images, scripts, templates, etc). They utilize a Microsoft Visual Studio Team Foundation Service (TFS) server to manage their content and the progress of the project. “Team Foundation is a set of tools and technologies that enable a team to collaborate and coordinate their efforts on building a product or completing a project. Team Foundation enhances team communication, tracks work status, supports team roles, enacts the team process, and integrates team tools.” (Microsoft.com (2011) Team Foundation Overview) In addition to the Team Foundation, they also utilize Visual Studio to code, and build the websites. These resources are accesses through different methods. Those methods include WAN connection, VPN connection through a remote office, and through the corporate office via LAN. They also have other services such as Outlook Web Access for E-mail that is accessed via the methods mentioned above. They have also created...
Words: 927 - Pages: 4
...Proceedings of IFIP 17th World Computer Congress, Montreal, Canada, 25-30 August 2002, p133-148. Kluwer Academic Publishers. User requirements analysis A review of supporting methods Martin Maguire Research School in Ergonomics and Human Factors Loughborough University, UK m.c.maguire@lboro.ac.uk Nigel Bevan Serco Usability Services, UK nbevan@usability.serco.com Abstract: Understanding user requirements is an integral part of information systems design and is critical to the success of interactive systems. However specifying these requirements is not so simple to achieve. This paper describes general methods to support user requirements analysis that can be adapted to a range of situations. Some brief case studies are described to illustrate how these methods have been applied in practice. user requirements, user-centred design, usability methods Key words: 1. INTRODUCTION Understanding user requirements is an integral part of information systems design and is critical to the success of interactive systems. It is now widely understood that successful systems and products begin with an understanding of the needs and requirements of the users. As specified in the ISO 13407 standard (ISO, 1999), user-centred design begins with a thorough understanding of the needs and requirements of the users. The benefits can include increased productivity, enhanced quality of work, reductions in support and training costs, and improved user satisfaction. Requirements...
Words: 6266 - Pages: 26
...Assignment 2 Question: 2a) Explain the level of TQM adoption in detail with relevant examples. 2b) Explain the stages in design and development. Explain the features which could enhance the quality in product design at the conceptual stage. 1.0 Level of Total Quality Management Adoption The Six different levels of TQM implementation, this includes uncommitted, drifters, tool pushers’ improvers’ award winners and world class. According to them, these stages do not necessarily represent the stages through which organizations pass on their TQM journey. These levels are to help organization in identifying their weaknesses and proffering solutions to them through the use of continuous improvement. (Dale and Lightburn 1992) 1.1 Uncommitted This stage represents organizations that have not started a formal procedure of quality improvement. Organizations in this stage view quality improvement as an added cost and thus have no investment in quality improvement program such as training of employees. Organizations in this stage are termed uncommitted because they are not aware of the benefit of quality improvement and lack an appropriate quality improvement plan. The management of these organizations is characterized by an emphasis on return of sales and net asset employed. For example: non-attendance the meeting, failure to respond to requests the data, and not doing what they had agreed to do. Other common features of this level include: • A major concern for meeting...
Words: 2625 - Pages: 11
...dSoftware Design Document (SDD) Template Software design is a process by which the software requirements are translated into a representation of software components, interfaces, and data necessary for the implementation phase. The SDD shows how the software system will be structured to satisfy the requirements. It is the primary reference for code development and, therefore, it must contain all the information required by a programmer to write code. The SDD is performed in two stages. The first is a preliminary design in which the overall system architecture and data architecture is defined. In the second stage, i.e. the detailed design stage, more detailed data structures are defined and algorithms are developed for the defined architecture. This template is an annotated outline for a software design document adapted from the IEEE Recommended Practice for Software Design Descriptions. The IEEE Recommended Practice for Software Design Descriptions have been reduced in order to simplify this assignment while still retaining the main components and providing a general idea of a project definition report. For your 1 own information, please refer to IEEE Std 10161998 for the full IEEE Recommended Practice for Software Design Descriptions. 1 http://www.cs.concordia.ca/~ormandj/comp354/2003/Project/ieeeSDD.pdf (Team Name) (Project Title) ...
Words: 1105 - Pages: 5
...A system is a set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole or a set of elements and relationships which are different from relationships of the set or its elements to other elements or sets. The elements of a system are: * Input and output * Process * Control * Feedback * Environment * Boundaries and interface There are 4 System Development Approaches: 1. Prototyping Development 2. Rapid Application Development 3. Joint Application Design 4. Participatory Design 1. PROTOTYPING DEVELOPMENT: Software prototyping refers to the activity of creating prototypes of software applications, i.e., incomplete versions of the software program being developed. In this a prototype is made first and based on it final product is developed. A prototype is a model or a program which is not based on strict planning, but is an early approximation of the final product or software system. This type of System Development Method is employed when it is very difficult to obtain exact requirements from the customer. While making the model, user keeps giving feedbacks from time to time and based on it, a prototype is made. Completely built sample model is shown to user and based on his feedback; the SRS (System Requirements Specifications) document is prepared. After completion of this, a more accurate SRS is prepared. 2. RAPID APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT: Rapid application development (RAD) is a software development methodology that...
Words: 978 - Pages: 4
...www.elsevier.com/locate/apthermeng An axiomatic design approach in development of nanofluid coolants In Cheol Bang a,*, Gyunyoung Heo b b a Energy Sciences, Global Edge Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1-S6-13 O-okayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan Department of Nuclear Engineering, Kyung Hee University, 1 Seocheon-dong, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyunggi-do 446-701, Republic of Korea Received 4 September 2007; accepted 4 February 2008 Available online 12 February 2008 Abstract The experimental data for nanofluids in thermal-fluid systems have shown that the new fluids promise to become advanced heat transfer fluids in terms of thermal performance. While enhancing thermal characteristics, the solid–liquid mixtures present an unavoidable disadvantage in terms of pumping cost for economic operation of thermal-fluid systems. In addition, there is a lack of agreement between experimental data provided in the literature. The present work found that there would be no comprehensible design strategy in developing nanofluids. In this work, the Axiomatic Design (AD) theory is applied to systemize the design of nanofluids in order to bring its practical use forward. According to the Independence Axiom of the AD theory, the excessive couplings between the functional requirements and the parameters of a nanofluid system prevent from meeting the functional goals of the entire system. At a parametric level, the design of a nanofluid system is inherently coupled due to...
Words: 7984 - Pages: 32
