As a practitioner-researcher, you will seek to apply knowledge to real-world situations: in this case, a well-known global business organization.
Choose a well-known global business organization. Focusing on one of its main business units, research the global macro-processes relating to its total supply chain using the resources provided and the Internet. Applying what you have learned from your reading and personal research, address the following.
Describe a key supply chain process success or failure experienced by the business you have selected and discuss the contributing factors. In light of this success or failure, evaluate the importance of supply chain decisions for securing competitive advantage.
Resources
• Mentzer, J. T., Myers, M. B., & Stank, T. P. (Eds.). (2007). Handbook of global supply chain management. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
o Chapter 1, “Why Global Supply Chain Management?”
This chapter covers global supply chain management (GSCM), including an analysis of the functional areas that must adapt to a GSCM perspective, a discussion of the need to link functional activity management to strategic resource allocation, and a brief overview on how to implement GSCM strategy.
o Chapter 2, “Global Supply Chain Management Strategy”
This chapter provides a review of the research on GSCM strategy (GSCMS), drawing on literature from logistics, operations management, purchasing, and marketing.
Chapter 3, “Assessing the Global Environment”
This chapter discusses the environmental conditions that influence global supply chain decisions, paying particular attention to cross-cultural impacts and increasingly volatile environmental conditions.
Articles
Mentzer, J. T., DeWitt, W., Keebler, J. S., Min, S., et al. (2001). Defining supply chain management. Journal of Business Logistics, 22(2). Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global database.
This article provides a good review of the main definitions, concepts, issues, and academic literature on the theme of supply chain management.
•Petersen, K. J., Ragatz, G. L., & Monczka, R. M. (2005). An examination of collaborative planning effectiveness and supply chain performance. The Journal of Supply Chain Management, 41(2). Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global database.
This study analyzes the impact that effective collaborative planning with suppliers can have on a firm’s financial performance. The results confirm that there are real benefits to be gained from integrating suppliers into business planning processes.
Barnes, D. (2006, November 8). FT.com site: Personal View: Competing Supply Chains Are the Future. FT.com, 1. Retrieved April 9, 2010 from ABI/INFORM Global database.
This article written by the CIO of UPS discusses the strategic.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Supply Chain Elements and Strategy
Many companies have identified the importance of leveraging their companies and gaining competitive advantage through supply chain management (SCM) practices. This paper describes the success of supply chain process of Coca cola Company, one of the global companies dealing in soft drinks.
Coca-Cola is a multinational company that operates in many countries across the world (CSC, 2014). The company has taken leadership in this sector of beverages for many years as a result of its swift and strategic supply chain management practices. Coca-Cola has managed to expand into various parts of the world through partnership with other companies. The company for instance has partnered with Coco cola Enterprises (CCE) that is in charge of the Western Europe territory to supply its products to the customers (CSC, 2014). This company is world leading market and distributor of Coca-cola products. It buys concentrate from the coco-cola company and then combines with other ingredients of popular beverages in Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands and other countries such a Norway and Sweden. CCE has as well developed a uniform IT program across it various business units that are critical for expansion of the company in Europe and across the globe (CSC, 2014). These factors therefore have played a key role in the success of the company. Through such partnerships, it has made it easier for the company products to reach many consumers in various locations (Mentzer, Myers & Stank, 2007). The company has as well adapted to many strategies that have seen it emerge as the top most company in this sector. One is that it has identified and stuck to its core competencies and outsources non-core competencies. The company holds the rights of its products which it collaborates with other companies to distribute to the customers. The company as well has appropriate mechanisms that it has put in place to coordinate its functions across supply chain partners. In every country it operates, it has set up its regional offices that ensure that the products are supplied and meet the thresholds or the quality standards. This has s as well made it easier for the company to remain competitive in the markets as it ensures that it provides the right products that meet the expectation of its customers. Furthermore, the company has a range of products that it offers to its clients. This strategy has enabled the company to meet the tastes and preferences of its customers.
Supply chain decisions are important for securing competitive advantage in any company. If these decisions are not good then the company is likely to fail to achieve its goals and objectives. To remain competitive, supply chain decisions of the company must be strategic and well thought out (Petersen, Ragatz & Monczka, 2005). A number of considerations are required to ensure that a company remains competitive with its supply chain practices. The company must understand the customers; who are they, their level of income, their tastes and preference among other aspects. It is important to understand the modalities to reach them and the ways to reach competitive advantage with the customers. Understanding what the customers values allows the company to concentrate on those products and services to meet their expectation. Furthermore, knowing the location of the customers makes it easier to understand the best avenues to reach them at lower cost (Menzter, 2007). Coco Cola Company has managed to achieve its goals and become the best global distributor of soft drinks because it undertakes market research and survey to understand their customers and their distribution, preferences and locations. The company as well values their customers and ensures that it distributes its products to the customers.
Petersen, K. J., Ragatz, G. L., & Monczka, R. M. (2005). An examination of collaborative planning effectiveness and supply chain performance. The Journal of Supply Chain Management, 41(2). Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global database.
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Assignment 4: Negotiating a Contract with the Navy
Due Week 8 and worth 150 points
Based on the same scenario as in Assignments 1, 2, and 3, you are now considering additional factors needed for your proposal based on RFP #123456789, dated 07/14/2014, where another local competitor intends to submit a proposal.
Additional factors to consider are:
1. Although you have always built in a profit margin of ten percent (10%) for commercial flooring jobs, you are willing to consider a lesser profit margin in this case in order to win the contract.
2. The Navy’s Contract Administration Officer is known to be a smart, tough negotiator.
Write a two to three (2-3) page paper in which you:
1. Determine two (2) potential profit objectives that you will consider for accepting a less than normal profit margin if you win the contract. Provide a rationale for your response.
2. Determine two to three (2-3) negotiation strategies or tactics that you feel would be effective for winning the contract. Provide a rationale for your response.
3. Use at least three (3) quality references Note: Wikipedia and other related websites do not qualify as academic resources.
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; citations and 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 assignment page length.
The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
Explain the government acquisition process using sealed bidding, negotiations, and alternative contracting methods.
Outline and explain the process for developing competitive proposals and source selection.
Use technology and information resources to research issues in federal acquisition and contract management.
· Write clearly and concisely about federal acquisition and contract management using proper writing mechanics.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Negotiating a Contract with Navy
Introduction
Negotiating and getting government contracts, especially from a Navy’s Contract Administration Officer is normally a hectic process. The problem persists because even after acquiring the contract, competitors will also do their best to send their proposals to win the contract next time. Therefore, when a company is given a contract, a rival company will do its best to ensure it maintains its trust to the government up to another time when it will be awarded another contract based on the trust built between the two parties (Smotrova-Taylor, 2012). The following discussion, therefore, will engage in discussing some of the profit objectives a company will consider for accepting a lower than normal profit margin after winning a contract. The discussion will also address some of the negotiation strategies that a company would use to win the contract.
Discussion
There are certain profit objectives a company would consider for accepting a lower than normal profit margin to win a contract. One of these profit objectives is elimination of competition. Rival companies will themselves be motivated to outdo the others in terms of competition on a specific item the Navy is requiring or wanting to sell. Therefore, in order to have future acquisitions, a specific firm who wishes to win the contract will be in a dominant position in winning the contract (Smotrova-Taylor, 2012). In this case, companies will be seeing themselves giving the government favorable processes and costs at their own expense just to win the contract before the other firms get it. In this type of scenario, the organization is more likely to accept reduced profit margins in the short term so that the firm or the bidder could realize extreme profits in the future.
Another profit objective that a company would employ to win the contract is survivability. According to Rumbaugh (2010), a company is said to be alive if there is cash from sales flowing through it. The normal assets of a company are usually reduced if sales are not made to make enable the company to survive and adapt in the short run. For instance, a reduction in labor force is the first phase of production that is seen after lack of sales. The negative effects are reflected in the company’s assets, recruitment and hiring, morale, and overall capabilities (Rumbaugh, 2010). Therefore, the bidder is forced to perform under these given contacts at negative profits in order for them to get and maintain cash flow. Working under this constraint makes the company to survive up to the near team maintaining that it is preparing itself for more sales in the near future. The company will also go into debts for a short period in order to cater for the continuing operations before it stabilizes first on the awarded contract.
There are various negotiation strategies or tactics that a company may deem effective for winning the contract. All of these negotiation strategies are what are referred in business terms to as win/win negotiation styles. Under this win/win negotiation style, as Roberts, Michael and Amir (2009) argue, both parties strive for the merits of the situation to get satisfactory results. Therefore, in order for a company to win the contact under a win/win strategy, the bidder is supposed to concentrate on positive tactics to resolve differences especially during the negotiations. These strategies should focus on the long-term benefits rather than on the short-term benefits (Roberts, Michael & Amir, 2009). This is where the pricing strategy comes in. The contract will be given to the company that affirms that it will provide the highest price for the government goods. A company should ensure that the price quoted should be equal to the highest fair and reasonable price.
Another negotiation tactic that a bidder might use to win a contract is cost strategy. The contract will award a contract to a bidder who shows that there will be a reduction of cost once a contract is awarded. This is mainly due to the government stand on maximizing profits. This type of negotiation tactic, in other words, is known as cooperative negotiation. This is because, both the government contractor and bidders engage in creating a good correlation between them than could be created in competitive negotiations. A company in cooperative negotiation using cost strategy aims at getting the most they can get for the organization (Osborne, 2011). The government will find itself changing its rules upon the contract after finding that the cost of production has changed drastically after the contract has been awarded. Offering the low cost incurring scenario will cajole the government to award the contract to the company that exhibit that it will be able to sustain that cost.
Summary
In conclusion, companies do their best to win government contracts. In case the competition is intense, companies will be forced to use price objectives to win the contract. On top of winning the contract, the companies will engage in negotiation tactics that see the company enticing the government to award them the contract.
References
Osborne, S. R. (2011). Winning government business: Gaining the competitive advantage with effective proposals. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.
Roberts, K., Michael, R., & Amir, S. (2009). Renegotiation of financial contracts: Evidence from private credit agreements. Journal of Financial Economics 93(2):159-84.
Rumbaugh, M. G. (2010). Understanding government contract source selection. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.
Based on the same scenario as in Assignments 1 and 2, you are ready to begin considering the factors needed for your proposal based on RFP #123456789, dated 07/14/2014. Remember that another local competitor intends to submit a proposal as well.
Both your company and your competitor’s company will qualify under the HUBZone Act
(FAR 19.5).
Based upon the scope of work required, your initial estimates for the contract will exceed $150,000. Therefore, you are willing to offer incentives to the Navy.
Your competitor intends to submit a proposal for a one (1) year contract.
Write a six to eight (6-8) page paper in which you:
Examine two (2) reasons why your business would qualify under the basic concepts of the HUBZone Set-Aside Procedures. Provide a rationale for your response.
Analyze the primary way(s) in which a multiyear contract would benefit both the Navy and your business.
Determine whether your bid proposal should be based on a fixed-price, a cost-reimbursement, or a time-and-materials type of contract. Provide a rationale for your response.
Determine the category of incentives that you are willing to offer (i.e., cost, schedule, or performance). Provide a rationale for your response.
Determine whether your bid proposal should be a technical, management, or cost proposal. Provide a rationale for your response.
Speculate on five (5) potential risk factors that you will need to consider if your company is awarded the contract. Provide a rationale for your response.
Use at least three (3) quality references Note: Wikipedia and other related websites do not qualify as academic resources.
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; citations and 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 assignment page length.
The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
· Interpret the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) as it relates to small-business programs.
Describe the various types of contracts and considerations for their use.
Outline and explain the process for developing competitive proposals and source selection.
Use technology and information resources to research issues in federal acquisition and contract management.
Write clearly and concisely about federal acquisition and contract management using proper writing mechanics.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Assignment 3: Acquiring a Contract with the Navy
Some provisions in the FAR such as Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) Program (FAR 19.5) require that certain contracts are set aside for small businesses. This is a government initiative to help foster economic development in these companies. In this scenario, a local competitor has submitted a proposal for the same contract and therefore both my company and that of competitors will qualify for the contract under HUBZone Act (FAR 19.5). Based on my company scope of work, my initial estimates for the contract will exceed $150,000 hence I will offer incentives to the Navy. Competitors wish to provide a proposal for the contract for 1 year. The paper delineates on various aspects that relate to acquisition of a contract in the Navy in reference to the RFP#123456789, dated 07/14/2014.
Various reasons explain why my small business will qualify under the concept of HUBZone set-aside procedures. One of the reasons is that the contracting officer is certain that my company and my competitors are going to tender their proposal for the contract (Navy Air, 2015). The business belongs to the category of small businesses and therefore it has higher chances of qualifying. The second reason why my company would qualify under the concepts of HUBZone set-aside procedures is that the award is expected to be made at a fair market price and that this award will be restricted for competition amongst small businesses (Acquisition. gov. 2015). My company is considered small and will help increase employment opportunities among the population. It will also help increase investments and trigger economic development in my location as it is located in underutilized business zones (HHS. Gov. 2015).
Multiyear contracts have benefits to both the Navy and my business. In a multiyear contract, the contractor acquires a more than one year tender to render certain services to the contracting party under a single contract award without necessarily having to exercise an option for every program year in year out (Gao. Gov. (2015). Therefore, under this arrangement, the contractor can contract for more than 2 years even though funding will still be appropriated on an annual basis. One of the primary ways multiyear contracts benefit the contractor and the Navy is that it helps in saving the costs and it ensures that there is improvement when it comes to use of the contractors resources. Through these contracts, unit cost is expected to be lower compared to annual contracts through various ways. One of the ways that these unit costs reduce is through purchase of parts and materials in economic order quantities, improved efficacy and production processes, limited changes in the designs and stability in designs, better utility of the facilities and cost avoidance as the burden of placing and administering annual contracts diminishes (Gao. Gov. (2015). Administration challenges reduce with decreased paperwork. The Navy and the company will not have many renewals when rolling out over the contract every year and this is expected. Multiyear contracts as well help in stabilizing the services and contractor relationships. The company is in a better position to ensure that they render quality services in long term to meet the performance expectations. The company will have an ability to focus on long term programs through planning to ensure that better quality services are provided. Contractor relationships are also developed and improved through multiyear contracts. The contractor and the Navy will get to know each other through these relationships. They can develop good communication that is a roadmap to achieving success in the future. Multiyear contracts as well help to improve management as it is easy to achieve a timely initial data as it requires the authority of the contracting officer’s signature to renew the contract. A multiyear contract is also beneficial as it encourages a shift to more flexible contracts and budget terms between the company and the Navy. Furthermore, the long and stable time horizons provide an opportunity for the contractor and the Navy to plan, ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of services.
Contracts are classified into various groups such as fixed price, time and materials, and cost-reimbursement. Selecting the appropriate type of contract is important and requires in depth evaluation of the contractor situation. In this bid, the most appropriate type of contract that my company will select is a fixed price contract. This is because this contract type has various options that I can select to suit me. The fixed price types of contracts usually provide the contractor with a fixed cost and in other occasions, the price may be adjusted. The fixed price contract that provides an opportunity to adjust price is the preferred one and it includes a target price and ceiling price or even both. Under this arrangement, the target and ceiling price are subjected to a revision or adjustment under the circumstances stated. Even though firm fixed prices provide a price not adjustable, the contractor bears maximum risk, it is the best as it is possible to understand the projection of the profit (John, 2010). Furthermore, because of the experience my company has had in contracting, firm fixed price is the best. Firm fixed price is also appropriate because my company will be able to minimize on the costs to accrue huge profits. The company can manage costs by ensuring that the project begins earlier and the time for completing the contract is minimized.
Various types of incentives are available to contractors. Some of these incentives are the cost, performance and cost incentives. For the sake of this project, I will use cost incentives. These are the most common form of incentive contracts. They allow an estimation of the target fee or profit when the contract starts (Acquisition. gov. (2015). The full profit or fees is usually paid when the actual cost meets the target cost. This form of incentives as well motivates the contractor to manage the costs effectively and this will ensure that the contract costs are minimized for the contractor to accrue some profits. Furthermore, using this incentive provides an opportunity for the contractor to provide other incentives without necessarily having to provide a constraint (Randall & Lynn, 2007). Furthermore, using cost incentives is flexible as it can be adjusted within constraints of price ceiling or maximum or minimum fees. The contractor is deemed to accrue target profits or fees when the actual cost meets the target. When the actual cost is below the target, the contractor will enjoy upward adjustment of the target profit or fee hence beneficial to the contractor. Therefore, using cost incentives will enable the contractor to deliver efficient services at reduced cost hence accruing more profit.
Proposals can either be technical, cost or management depending on the way the contractor deems appropriate. My proposal will be technical to be able to compete favorably with the rest. The rationale of using a technical proposal is to ensure that my chances of getting the contract are higher. With a technical proposal, the focus is not only on the price but it ensures that all the important aspects are captured to attract the attention and to persuade the contracting officer to award the contract to me. Nowadays, the government contracts entities that have the capability to deliver the services effectively and efficiently. Therefore, the only way that I can emerge victorious and win the contract is by ensuring that the contract is clear and precise as well as detailed. The proposal must provide the best value and therefore it will focus on technical aspects such as proficiency, manpower, clarity of approach, past performance, and though leadership. The process should also highlight on the management approach and quality control approaches that I will be able to use to ensure that the project is successful. The proposal will be able to show the plan to follow to conduct the project to be in a position to meet the requirements set in the solicitation. By illustrating that I do understand the work statement in the proposal, this will give me an upper hand and will increase the chances of winning over the contract. By also providing information on my past performance, I will be able to reflect my business performance risks by telling the Navy about my experience and how well I did previous works (Rumbaugh, 2010). Looking at my past performance information will increase my level of rating especially if my track record has been good. This will as well give me an upper hand in this bid. I will also include a section on my management approach to illustrate to the contracting officer my clear undersigning of the project deliverables and tasks (Smotrova-Taylor, 2012). This will allow me to provide information on the project teams that will deliver the services, how the project will be managed, executed, monitored and controlled. The strategies that the project will adopt to ensure that the project is completed successfully will also surface at this juncture. This information provides the contracting officer an opportunity to acknowledge and experience my management skills and my competence in managing contracts. A technical proposal will as well enable me to showcase my level of understanding about the quality control approach, something that will also increase my chances of being selected. I will be able to identify the procedures, processes and metrics likely to predict successful costs and schedule outcomes. This opportunity will also give me a chance to show that I have put in place quality control metrics for gathering reliable data to show how the project is running (Osborne, 2011). One of the tools that will assist in measuring quality is Plan Do Check Act (PDCA) a four stage cycle that will help to move from problem faced to problem solved as the company still focuses on continuous improvement. Therefore, among these proposal types, a technical proposal is the best as it detailed but precise. This proposal allows me to furnish all the information in depth which will increase my chances of winning the bid and getting the contract. The Navy will require enough proof of my capabilities to render high quality services and this can only be proved through this proposal.
Contractors are exposed to different kinds of risks and it is important that they put in place a risk mitigation plan to manage the risks. Risks if not well managed well can deter achievement of the goals and objectives of a contractor. Therefore, ensuring that appropriate plans to contain or prevent the risk are in place will go a greater magnitude to help control these risks (Smith, 2003). Therefore, in case my company is awarded the contract, the potential risk factors that I will consider include cost related risks, time related risks, quality related risks, environment related risks and safety related risks. Costs related risks may lead to increased costs reducing my profit margin and therefore, it will be noble to ensure that they are mitigated (Ward & Chapman, 1995). Some of these cost-related risks that I will face will include variations in designs, occurrence of disputes when work is on progress, price inflations on the construction materials, many or excessive or lengthy procedures in approving the projects, incomplete or inaccurate cost estimate and inadequate program scheduling among others (Schuyler, 2001). Some of the risks are intolerable but can be minimized. Time-related risks include, tight project schedule, bureaucracy in government that may delay the start of the project, incomplete approval of other documents among many others (Patrick et al., 2007). Quality-related risks that I will encounter may include, tight project schedules that may compromise on the quality of work, inaccurate cost estimates, high performance or quality expectations that may not be realistic, variations in designs, and lack of coordination between project participants (Baker & Reid, 2005). The environmental related risks that I will be exposed to may include, serious noise pollution caused by the work underway, air pollution caused by chemical mixtures, and lack of sufficient professionals and managers (Nerija & Audrius, 2010). Safety related risks that the company is likely to be exposed include low management competency of the subcontractors, lack of fire extinguishers, general safety accident occurrence, poor or low quality of materials, and lack of coordination between the project participants. These potential risks are very important to the success of the contract and they should be well managed to ensure that the project does not stall.
In conclusion, contracting is a process that requires consideration of various issues. The interested parties must submit their proposal for consideration. They must demonstrate their capability to provide the services required as well. To ensure that small businesses and people from historically excluded areas get the opportunity to grow and invest, various legislation such as HUBZone set-aside procedures are very instrumental. Qualifying under this concept requires the bidder to demonstrate that they have the capability to execute the contract and that they are in the category of small business. The contractor may opt to get a contract for one year or for various years. Multiyear contracts have various benefits compared to one year contracts. This proposal as well is based on fixed price and the category of incentive offered was cost. The proposal selected was technical because it gives more opportunity for the bid to be selected. In contracts, it is as well very important to consider various potential risks. These risks may hamper achievement of the goals and mission of the contracts. The risks include quality, cost, environmental, safety and time related.
References
Acquisition. gov. (2015). Subpart 19.5—Set-Asides for Small Business
Assignment 1: Small-Business Opportunities with the Navy
Due Week 3 and worth 150 points
Imagine that you are the owner of a small floor refinishing business that provides a specialty coating product for ceramic tile and marble floors. There is no other local flooring business that provides this service. Having recently received a patent on your product, you are ready to expand your business by competing for Navy contracts at the local base, which is located a few miles away. The service you want to sell is the specialty coating, the application of the coating, and a regular maintenance schedule. Your company consists of you, one office assistant, and two production employees.
Note: You will be referencing this business throughout all five assignments for this course. Please use “First Name, Last Name, Inc.” as the name of your company throughout these assignments.
Write a two to three (2-3) page paper in which you:
Develop your company’s acquisition and planning strategy for obtaining a contract.
Analyze the manner in which utilizing SmartPay or a similar program in electronic contracting will assist your company and the Navy. Provide a rationale for your response.
Use at least three (3) quality references Note: Wikipedia and other related websites do not qualify as academic resources.
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; citations and 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 assignment page length.
The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
· Describe the nature of government contracting, including authority, responsibilities, and legal considerations.
· Explain the government acquisition process using sealed bidding, negotiations, and alternative contracting methods.
· Use technology and information resources to research issues in federal acquisition and contract management.
· Write clearly and concisely about federal acquisition and contract management using proper writing mechanics.
See the rubric attached
SAMPLE ANSWER
Assignment 1: Small-Business Opportunities with the Navy
Ben Rose Inc., is a small business dealing in small floor refinishing and provides specialty-coating products for marble floors and ceramic tile. The company strives to expand and therefore, competes for Navy contracts at the local base. The company wants to sell specialty coating, the application of the coating and regular maintenance schedule service to the Naval. This paper provides the acquisition and planning strategy to obtain the contract and provide analysis on how utilizing Smart Pay will assist the company and the Navy.
Acquisition planning is very important at it will allow the company to come up with appropriate documentations that will enable the company to compete favorably. It is a process where concerned personnel coordinate comprehensively to meet the agency need in a timely manner and at reasonable cost (Acquisition. Gov. 2014). This process as well includes development of overall strategy for managing the acquisition.
The moment Navy identifies the need of these services, planning shall commence. I will inform the team that will be responsible for various aspects of the acquisition. Since we are only four individuals’ one-office assistant, two production employees, and I. Everyone will be assigned with their duties (Acquisition. Gov. 2014). I will handle contracting responsibilities myself while technical duties will be assigned to the office assistant. I will therefore reveiew previous plans for similar acquisitions and discuss them with the key personnel in charge of the acquisitions. At this stage, some revisions may be made to ensure that the right and relevant information is provided. I will then consult with the logistics personals to determine the type, quality and quantity and delivery requirements (Mueller, 2012). I will then coordinate with the contracting officer and secure his concurrence in all the acquisition planning. Having collected this information, I will them write an acquisition plan by providing all the required information. The plan shall address all the technical, business management and other important consideration that will control the acquisition. In this plan, specific contents will vary depending on the nature, circumstances and the stage of the acquisition process. Applicable instructors that are in tandem with the Naval implementing procedure will be followed to the later. This acquisition plan since it is for services contract, strategies for implementing performance based contracting methods will be described or if not used, then rationale will be provided (Acquisition. Gov. 2014). Once this acquisition plan if filled, it will then be presented to the contracting officer of the Naval. The process must be in line with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 7 that requires any agency to carry out acquisition planning as well as market research for all the acquisitions (Energy. Gov. 2011). This is aimed at promoting and providing acquisition of some items as well as to obtain full and open competition whenever possible. Therefore, once the acquisition template is filled, I will wait to receive feedback from the contracting officer from the Naval on whether I qualified or not.
SmartPay is one of the new ways of making payment in this age of electronic contracting. SmartPay is a lease to own payment plan that individuals and companies use (SmartPay, 2014). The payment system allows the customers to get the products they want and are allowed to make payment over a given period as agreed. This program will assist my company and the Navy in various ways (SmartPay, 2014). This electronic form of contracting will help my company to offer its services at competitive prices hence this will benefit the company from high accrued fees. The method is as well convenient as the company will be assured of getting its payment. It is as well secure way of making payment. The company that is the naval that is buying the services will benefit because it will have some period to make payment. This therefore enable the company to prepare in advance and make the payment. The company can as well request our services as per the contract agreements and make their payments automatically with the debit card. This therefore, avoids time wastage and heavy paperwork and transactions are made easily. The company as well takes over the ownership of the value of the services provided once they make the payment in their lease plan. In overall, using SmartPay is beneficial to both the contracting party and the agencies and in this case the Naval because it is secure and safe and it is also convenient form of making payments.
In conclusion, it is very important to take time to go through contract requirements to acquaint with the requirements. This is why acquisition and planning stages are very critical. These stages provide an opportunity to understand the contract and its requirements. Therefore as one of the parties interested in this contract, I have opportunity to be granted if I will be able to meet the requirements and meet the laws pertaining to contracts. Embracing SmartPay programs is essential, as it will increase my chances of winning this contract. Smart Pay has numerous advantages to both the company and me.
Abbreviated Qualitative Research Plan for increasing concerns on health disparities
Order Instructions:
Submit Draft of an Abbreviated Qualitative Research Plan for (Health disparities are a growing concern in the U.S. There are also a significant proportion of people with limited or no health insurance which may prevent them from receiving adequate health care, medication, and the use preventative measures such as exercise and diet. How would you address this issue?)
You will apply qualitative research methods this week when you develop a qualitative research plan that seeks to answer your research problem and research question.
To prepare for this Application, first focus on the following instructions:
Draft an introduction for your abbreviated research plan.
Next, ask yourself the following questions:
What are your research questions?
To what extent can you test them?
How would you justify the viability of your questions?
Why would this design be the most appropriate for answering the research questions?
Conversely, why would quantitative and mixed methods not be appropriate?
What approach would you select for this study (ethnography, grounded theory, case study, phenomenology, narrative)?
Why is that approach the most appropriate one for answering the research questions?
What theoretical framework or perspective would you use?
What would be your role as the researcher?
What is your target population?
How would you identify and recruit participants?
What factors would contribute to determining appropriate sample size? You will not need to calculate sample size for this assignment.
If appropriate for your plan, what instruments might you need?
What data collection procedures might you use? Why would those be the most appropriate methods to use?
How would that data help to answer your research question(s)?
How would you ensure quality and reliability of data?
What are threats to validity? How might you mitigate them?
How might you analyze the data?
What are the ethical considerations related to the plan?
The assignment:
Craft a 2- to 3-page paper in which you
Provide an introduction.
Provide a purpose statement.
Provide viable research questions.
Generate a written research plan that addresses the above questions.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Abbreviated Qualitative Research Plan
Abbreviated Qualitative Research Plan for increasing concerns on health disparities
Introduction
Many constitutionals across the world and US included require that citizen’s access to healthcare because it is their right. However, in many times million of people are unable to access to quality healthcare because of various reasons one of them being lack of income and resources at their disposal. This is challenges that require immediate address by the concerned parties. Many people have no insurance covers; have no accessibility to health diet and exercises that negatively impact on their healthcare. This research study focuses on the under privilege population that have no capability to access to healthcare.
Purpose statement
Healthcare remains as one of the key sectors in any country. A population that is health impacts on all other sectors of the economy and propels the country towards achievement of its goals. Countries that face healthcare challenges experienced many problems that deter them from leading better lives. Many people cannot access to quality healthcare because they have no money and resources. It is not their desire to get better medication like anyone else but are limited by the circumstances. The government has a responsibility to facilitate accessibility of healthcare and reduce the ever-increasing gap between those that can access to healthcare and those that cannot (Kreuter et al., 2014). Reducing the gap will guarantee better living as many will be able to access to better healthcare. Government initiatives such as passage of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 promises to bring relief to millions of people that had no capability to access to better healthcare (Kreuter et al., 2014). The insurance covers will increase the number of people that will be able to access to good medication, and healthcare. This will as well help to end the stalemate, as many will access to healthcare. Nevertheless, with such measures, a lot needs to be done.
Research questions
Do you approval existence of health disparities
How beneficial is it to have an insurance cover?
How can the problem of health disparity be managed?
Research plan that addresses the above questions
The three questions will be addressed using qualitative research. This study will allow in depth understanding of the disparities in healthcare through the responses from the responses (Creswell, 2003). The questions require the responded to provide their observation and views that can be captured and understood through description. The questions are valid as they are testable and focus on the topic of study. In the study, the researcher will adopt phenomenology approach, as this will help to answer the questions in-depth. It is as well provides an opportunity to have more insights on the topic of study.
The research will as well have a theoretical framework on health accessibility and disparities to help enhance understanding of the study. The role of the researcher in the study is to ensure that appropriate instruments are available and that the study is carried out well by adhering to all the requirements . The target population the study is the members of the public that are eligible and qualified to have an insurance cover. The target population will be identified through correspondents and will be randomly selected. The type of the research will determine sample size. Since this is qualitative research, sample size will be small to impact on the results. Sample size will be calculated as well
Instruments that I may use include consent form, telephone and others. Other instrument to use is interview to collect data from the participants. I will have to make a schedule where I will visit the participants and ask them questions relating to the study to get information from them. Data reliability and quality will be achieved by using credible sources and using the best methods to analyze the information. I will as well ensure that the data is not tempered by any one.
Threats to validity may include false information from the participants and failure to take or keep good records of the interview proceedings. Data analyzing will be done through interpretation. The data will be coded and then inferences made. Ethics should as well be upheld. Some of the ethical concerns relating to the plans are selection of the participants and data analysis procedures.
References
Creswell, J. W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Submit Draft of Abbreviated Quantitative Research Plan on (Health disparities are a growing concern in the U.S. There are also a significant proportion of people with limited or no health insurance which may prevent them from receiving adequate health care, medication, and the use preventative measures such as exercise and diet. How would you address this issue?)
You will apply quantitative research methods when you develop an abbreviated quantitative research plan that seeks to answer your research problem and research questions/hypotheses.
To prepare for this Application, first focus on the following instructions:
Review Chapter 8 in the course text, Research Design, the “Threats to Internal Validity” handout, and the “Quantitative Methods: Examples” med
Based on your discipline’s research problem scenario, create a problem statement.
Draft an introduction for your abbreviated research plan.
Next, ask yourself the following questions:
What are your research questions? To what extent can you test them? How would you justify the viability of your questions?
What are your hypotheses? How would you test them?
Why would this design be the most appropriate for answering the research questions? Conversely, why would qualitative and mixed methods designs not be appropriate?
What quantitative approach would you select for this study? Why is that approach the most appropriate one for answering the research questions?
What theoretical framework or perspective would you use?
What is your target population? How would you identify and recruit participants? What factors would contribute to determining appropriate sample size? You will not need to calculate sample size for this assignment.
What are the independent and dependent variables?
If appropriate for your plan, what instruments might you need?
What data collection procedures might you use? Why would those be the most appropriate methods to use?
How would that data help to answer your research question(s)/hypotheses?
What are threats to validity? How might you mitigate them?
How might you analyze the data?
What are the ethical considerations related to the plan?
The assignment:
Craft a 2- to 3-page paper in which you do the following:
Provide an introduction.
Provide a purpose statement.
Provide viable research questions and hypotheses.
Generate a written research plan that addresses the above questions.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Improving the U.S. Healthcare Needs
Introduction
The present health disparities being witnessed in the U.S. is worrisome. This is coupled with the fact that majority of U.S. nationals do not adequately enjoy health covers, meant to be provided by established health insurance companies. Contrary to what it is expected, the usage of preventive measures including diet and exercise has been limited, thus putting the progress of health among people to question. It calls for the government and key agencies to safeguard the health of their dear citizens by ensuring that there is comprehensive medical cover being provided by insurance companies; that everyone exercises proper diet, and that every citizen accesses quality health care by virtue of being informed of everything concerning their health.
Research Question
This proposal seeks to determine the appropriate medical interventions required for ensuring comprehensive health care, medical covers, and role being played by health insurance companies to safeguard the health of Americans. The proposal shall seek to answer the below question:
What are the appropriate medical care and insurance cover that should be enjoyed by all U.S citizens to protect and foster their health?
Research Methodology
The research methodology used affects the results of any research. Research methodology affects data collection methods (Reswell 2003, p31). Quantitative data requires the measuring of variables and testing of existing hypothesis. Quantitative research methodology involves verification of numerical data. Qualitative research methodology involves theoretical data. It involves evaluation of existing theories, beliefs, and hypothesis in order to either approve or disapprove them. Research methodology and research in general involves finding a solution to a problem. This research uses qualitative research methods to gather information from relevant bodies and people who will inform of the methods that should be used for safeguarding the health of U.S. citizens, by providing the with the required medical care and ensuring their health vitality and enjoyment. The aim of the research is to trigger necessary verifiable actions to be taken with immediate effect to salvage the problem. This proposal uses only quantitative data in its analysis. It also employs various data collection methods such as surveys, interviews, as well as observation in order to answer the research question.
Research Design
According to Kumar (2010, p93), research design entails both the research methodology as well as the procedures used. This proposal applies descriptive research design that involves case studies, surveys, and observation methods. The research design allows the collection of data at the least possible cost, time, and effort. The research design enables the answering of the research problem by outlining the below objective of the study:
To establish the appropriate healthcare practices that can be adopted by the U.S. Government, together with relevant agencies and health insurance bodies to safeguard the health of the citizens.
The project will use both primary and secondary data sources on sourcing information about health insurance covers. The method of data collection used includes conducting of surveys, interviews, as well as collection of data from secondary sources. This research will collect information from relevant bodies and health insurance companies as well. The research will use random sampling in choosing relevant bodies and health insurance companies to obtain information. This research will also conduct interviews of citizens who have been denied proper medical care by seeking to find out their fears, the needs, and the suffering they undergo for failing to access proper health care. The research tools used prevents this research from digressing away from the research objectives. This is by ensuring accurate collection of data. The research tools determine the methods of data collection used.
Rational for using quantitative approach
This research uses quantitative approach as opposed to qualitative approach. This is because data on the research is mostly quantitative. This data exists only in terms of words and not numerically. The type of data collected determines the kind of research therefore; this research uses quantitative approach due to the use of quantitative data.
Research sampling methods
This research uses small size samples in order to achieve accurate results. This research uses probability sampling in choosing the samples interviewed. This is where every health care agencies, health care insurance companies, and citizens have equal chance of selection. The research uses cluster sampling where the researcher organizes the samples into groups to have equal chances of selection.
Data collection
This research uses interview method to collect information from health care agencies on the best approach to use in providing for adequate health care to citizens. This research adheres to ethical issues in data collection such as privacy of information. The research does not reveal the names of the citizens interviewed as a way of maintaining confidentiality. This research also sought the consent of the interviewees before using their information in data analysis (Willkes, 2012). Apart from conducting interviews, the research collected information through conducting surveys on the best healthcare practices on all citizens. The research also applies observation method to collect data. Observing the citizens reactions to what is lacking in health care platforms enabled in developing conclusions of the research.
Application of results to improve healthcare
The research recommends that key health care agencies and insurance companies should embark on transforming the situation presently in the U.S. The research proposes that everyone should be insured against health risks, and that any losses of lives as well as injuries.
Conclusion
It is therefore necessary that nurses and other hospital workers adopt safety mechanism of alleviating this situation. This research proposes the adopting of proper health measures that if well implemented, can significantly reduce the recent health care trends in America.
In this assignment, you will consider how workforce issues impact on patient safety.
Discussion Question 1
Using the an Online Library, research workforce issues and patient safety.
Based on your research, complete the following tasks:
•Identify and describe the research problems, purpose, objectives, and hypothesis of the research.
•Evaluate the credibility and validity of the study.
Discussion Question 2
Read the following titles of research studies from an Online Library. Identify the type of research used in each study (qualitative or quantitative). Provide a rationale for your selection.
•A study of the effects of cardiac rehabilitation exercise program on the morale and motivation of persons recovering from recent heart attacks.
•An exploratory ethno-botanical study of medicinal plants used by the Turks in the treatment of eye disorders.
•A study of the impact of different dietary patterns on breast cancer patients.
•The effectiveness of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) Drug Assistance Program (ADAP).
•A study of the effects of different types of music on sleeping patterns of elderly insomnia patients.
•A study of the impact of political and social trends on the direction of nursing research.
Suggested References:
Shisana, O., Rice, K., Zungu, N., & Zuma, K. (2010). Gender and poverty in South Africa in the era of HIV/AIDS: A quantitative study. Journal of Women’s
Health (15409996), 19(1), 39–46.
Ko, E., Nelson-Becker, H., Park, Y., & Shin, M. (2013). End-of-Life decision making in older Korean adults: Concerns, preferences, and expectations. Educational
Gerontology, 39(2), 71–81.
Witzke, J., Rhone, R., Backhaus, D., & Shaver, N. (2008). How sweet the sound: Research evidence for the use of music in Alzheimer’s dementia. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 34(10), 45–52.
Sandvik, A., Melender, H., Jonsén, E., Jönsson, G., Salmu, M., & Hilli, Y. (2012).
Nursing students’ experiences of the first clinical education: A nordic quantitative study. Nordic Journal of Nursing Research & Clinical Studies /Vård I Norden, 32(3), 20–25.
Cooper, C., Taft, L., & Thelen, M. (2004). Examining the role of technology in learning: An evaluation of online clinical conferencing. Journal of Professional Nursing, 20(3), 160–166.
Roulston, A., Bickerstaff, D., Haynes, T., Rutherford, L., & Jones, L. (2012). A pilot study to evaluate an outpatient service for people with advanced lung cancer. International Journal of Palliative Nursing, 18(5), 225–233.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Workforce Issues on Patient Safety
Discussion question 1
Patient safety in many health institutions faced challenges that relates to workforce issues. Various studies demonstrate that in deed measures are required to make some improvements in the workforce to enhance the level of patient safety. In the study, “The effects of workforce issues on patient safety” by Gelinas and David (2004) it is clear that there are number of issues that relates to the workforce that affects the safety of patients in the health centers.
The research problem in this study is lack of focus to relevant workforce issues hence leading to injuries and poor patient safety. The purpose of the study was to provide an insight on the failures in the health facilities such as staff retention, competency development and orientation and training issues that compromise on the patient safety. The objectives of the study were to provide amicable solutions to the problems that face workforce in health care. Other objective is to ensure that there is good leadership in the hospitals to provide motivation to the workforce. Cultural aspects as well require a redress to enhance transformation in health facilities to enhance patient safety. The study hypothesis is inferred and is to promote positive values among workforce and motivate them to reduce patient injury.
Validity and credibility of a study matters a lot credibility of the study compels people to adopt the study as they have confidence in it. The study is credible as it incorporates credible sources of reference. It is well supported with statistic from other studies that makes it credible. Professionals as well carried out the study. The study as well incorporated evidences from various public reports, which makes it credible (Gelinas & David, 2004). The study validity is as well evident with the use of authoritative information and models. Information is well researched and proved. The fact the study was approved to be included in the database, is a clear indication that it meet the threshold of validity and credibility.
Discussion Question 2
Researchers decide to adopt to different research designs either qualitative and quantitative or mixed depending on the nature of the study. Some of the topics of study can be well understood through any of these study designs (Rofail, Maguire, Kissner, Colligs & Abetz-Webb, 2014). The topics of these studies as well can provide some insights to the research study adopted. Studies in relation to effects of cardiac rehabilitation exercise program on the morale and motivation of persons recovering from recent heart attacks uses qualitative research designs. The reason for adoption of this design is that it generates information through interviews that can be explained and described to enhance understanding (Mayberry & Kent, 1983). Researcher can observe the patients as well as interrogate them to determine whether they are motivated or their morale has increased after exposure to rehabilitative exercise. Other studies that adopt qualitative design include, A study of the effects of different types of music on sleeping patterns of elderly insomnia patients and A study of the impact of political and social trends on the direction of nursing research. These studies do not require reliance of statistics or to present the findings using statistics.
On the other hand, some studies require adoption of quantitative study designs for the findings to be of great value and assistance. Examples of these studies may includes an exploratory ethno-botanical study of medicinal plants used by the Turks in the treatment of eye disorders, a study of the impact of different dietary patterns on breast cancer patients and The effectiveness of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). These studies require presentation of data using numerical statistics to enhance their understanding.
Digital Dashboard for tuberculosis.
This portion of your Scholar-Practitioner Project (Digital dash board for tuberculosis) requires that you put to use the informatics display techniques.create a mock-up screen of a “digital dashboard” for tuberculosis disease surveillance system. Include a framework for the display of data based on the algorithm using appropriate graphics, symbols, and words., and words. You may use PowerPoint, Word, Prezi, or a program of your choosing to create the screen. Additionally, you may choose to annotate the mock-up as appropriate.
Please save the mock-up in one of the following formats:
PowerPoint file: Use “.ppt” extension
Word file: Use “.doc” extension
Prezi file: Use “.pez” extension
PDF file: Use “.pdf” extension
Image file: Use “.jpg” or “.gif” extension
Rich text file: Use “.rtf” extension
Your written assignments must follow APA guidelines. Be sure to support your work with specific citations from this week’s Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources as appropriate. Refer to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association to ensure your in-text citations and reference list are correct.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Digital Dashboard for Tuberculosis
Week 5 information: Tuberculosis disease surveillance system
TB disease surveillance system is essential in ensuring closer monitoring and management of the disease. The system must function appropriately to have tangible benefits to the users. Quality assurance is very critical part of any surveillance system that operates successful. Quality assurance ensures that the system is continuously monitored evaluated and data is improved.
In US, national tuberculosis Surveillance System (NTSS) is located at the division of tuberculosis Elimination (DTBE) and functions as the national repository of TB disease surveillance data. Center for Diseases control and prevention receive information/data from the various jurisdictions reports through a standardized data collection from known as RVCT) Report of Verified of Case OF Tuberculosis (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2014).
The RVCT is usually revised on period basis to take into consideration the new changes in the disease epidemiology. The latest implementation was done in the year 2009 and it incorporated more recent development such as web-based systems. There is still a lot that have been done to ensure that data is collected and reported well to ensure that adequate information is available. Various teams form partnerships with public health officials and other local professionals to develop and in launching of national training programs on the new RVCT (WHO, 2014). These initiatives are undertake to foster or enhance quality of data collected. In management of TB, it is critical to have enough data or information about the prevalence of the diseases. This information on the areas the disease is prevalence as well helps to come up with appropriate strategies to manage the disease.
Five factors require consideration to ensure quality assurance of the tuberculosis surveillance systems. These components includes, case detection, data accuracy, data completeness, data timeliness and data security and confidentiality (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2014). Case detection is the first aspect. Once an instance of specific diseases or even exposure such as TB is done, a health care worker reports it. This information as well is collected from laboratory work or from a medical or a vetenary care. The observation or such incidence should be diagnosed and verified.
Data accuracy is another important component of quality assurance. The submitted data need to match with the patient record at the location or point of care (Arkansas Department of Health, 2014). The data recorded in the surveillance system need to remain consistent with the activities that happened in the clinical encounter if they were not clinically appropriate or if they were clinically appropriate.
The third component is data completeness. This measure helps to ascertain whether information submitted has complete set of data items or not (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2014). This is very important as it ensures that any information stored in the system is complete and therefore can be relied in the future. This requires verification of such information to ensure that it is complete and meets the threshold set for data completeness.
Data is also required to factor in the aspect of timeliness. It is important that prompt reporting of surveillance data is done to the health authorities. Once the information is accessed, it is very important that this information is reported immediately to provide an appropriate mechanisms responding to the same and instituting to preventive mechanism.
The last component is data security and confidentiality. Security of data entails measures in place geared at protecting data of public health and information systems from accessibility by unauthorized release (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2014). It also involves measures concerning information identification, loss of information and damage of the systems. Data confidentiality aims to protect personal information gathered by public health organizations. Personal information should not be released to third parties without the consent of the owner of the information or the patients.
Quality Assurance components of TB surveillance system
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (CDC). (2014). Tuberculosis Information Management System (TIMS) Replacements. Retrieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/tb/programs/tims/NEDSS.
Decision Making
The task
Taking a decision you have been involved in with regard to the care and/or treatment of a client/patient, critically analyse that decision making process paying particular attention to team working, leadership, legal, ethical and professional issues. You may choose which of the last three concepts you relate to the scenario but must follow and use the headings given below.
Essay headings (you must use these)
1/ Introduction
Generally and briefly set the scene for the essay. Include a brief referenced statement of confidentiality as this must be maintained throughout the assignment.
2/ Scenario
Describe to the reader the key points of the scenario to be analysed. This section should not be overly long, but it must clarify key parts of the scenario in preparation for the analysis that follows.
3/ The decision making process
Using appropriate decision making theory critically analyse the decision making process as it occurred within the scenario. This section must be supported with appropriate theory and literature.
4/ Team working and leadership
Critically analyse the management of the scenario, using appropriate team working and leadership theory and literature.
5/ Legal, ethical and professional issues
You can choose which of these three concepts to link to the scenario and do not have to use all three. Explain this in your introduction. Once you have decided which of the three concepts are relevant, critically analyse the scenario using appropriate theory, literature and professional guidelines, where relevant.
6/ Evaluation
Draw your analysis together and give a balanced view on the strengths and areas for improvement of the decision making process analysed above. Also, draw out the most important elements of care improvement in relation to team working and leadership, and finish by identifying, in the final paragraph, key learning for you from this process. This should be worded to reflect how your future practice will be influenced by the analysis given above.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Taking a decision to pursue medical health nursing was a wonderful choice in my life. Despite knowing the challenges that come with handling mental health patients, I took the bold step and decided to pursue a career in mental health nursing focusing on mental health patients in the community, acute units, care homes and rehabilitation.
Introduction
Quality health care delivery and confidentiality for patients has always been my goal as a mental health nurse. I value working with mental health patients and would never compromise their privacy for anything. Conduct for nurses according to the nursing profession stipulate that nurses should treat patient information with utmost confidentiality and privacy. This is in conjunction to the national privacy principles guidelines of 2001 supporting the privacy act of 1998. Many jurisdictions have legislation and policies regarding nursing and privacy of patient’s health especially when dealing with mental health patients. The conditions of mental health patients are not only serious but very private as well. The societies stigmatize mental health patients and the last thing that a patient wants needs is having her private health information made public.
Scenarios to be analyzed
The key points to be analyzed in this essay are why I ventured into mental health nursing and how the I have succeeded in my decision through the support of my members, leaders and following the nursing code of conduct. The journey to my nursing career started many years after watching my aunt die from mental health related complications. It was a sad experience for me especially because we grew up close and she was my not only my best but also only aunt. Losing her to a mental related condition was a great loss for our family and me. The children she left behind were young and could not understand why their mother used to act the way she used to. When she died, relatives adopted the children. My aunt mental condition was schizophrenia, which she had lived with on and off episodes for almost three years before finally succumbing to it. Her experience was a revelation of how critical mental health can be and why nurses need to take care of mental health patients effectively. Despite being so young, my interest to take care of mentally ill patients and assist them started growing from here. As I graduated from high school into college, I had fully decided that mental health nursing was the professional field I wanted to pursue.
The decision making process
The nursing profession is a demanding and dynamic field that requires care and patience especially when dealing with mentally challenged patients. Nursing practice should be flexible enough to respond to the patient’s immediate needs and give them utmost care. My decision to pursue this profession was directed by several theories.
Naturalistic decision-making
Turpin and Marais (2004) argue that naturalistic decision-making is concerned with making a decision in the natural context. The decision to pursue mental health nursing was from seeing a close relative go through the medical condition and succumb to it. It was thus not hard for me to imagine what could have happened. The experience came in a natural context significantly improving my ability to decide. Theorists argue that the naturalistic model of decision-making differs from other descriptive model as a situation similar to one’s previous experience. To come up with the decision effectively one has to establish appropriate goals, important cues and know what to expect. Making the decision to pursue mental health nursing profession came easily but having visited my aunt in the hospital made me appreciate that caring for a mentally ill patient is a great challenge. As I decided to go into that career, I prepared my mind and emotions to embrace any challenge that would come my way. I knew that there would be instance where I would be less motivated but the desire to see patients recover would always be my goal. To make this decision, I took actions needed to succeed. The naturalistic decision making theory argues that the key aspects of good decision-making is having prior experience. I have always found this view to be true in my profession and I am certain that if I had not experienced what it feels like to live with a mentally ill person, I would have never pursued the mental health-nursing career.
Multiple perspective approach
Multiple perspective approach is a decision making process that involves sweeping in decisions. Based on the unbounded systems thinking concept, this theory assumes that a problem is like any other challenge. Multiple perspective approach classifies perspectives as technical, organizational or personal in nature. Attempts of collecting information to help one understand the problem can be termed as technical perspectives while coming up with different projects and technical views can be termed as organizational. Individual perspectives include role players and individual decisions that people make. Each of these perspectives relate and interconnect to one another as a way of coming up with the right decision. Considering how effective a decision should be based on the individual mostly although the technical and organizational perspectives will come in at some point (Turpin and Marais, 2004,p.147).
Rational comprehensive model
In this theory, reasoning is a major element as it assumes that the decision maker can identify the problem, their goals, values and objectives according to their rank of priorities and importance. Once they have identified those factors, alternative ways of approaching the issues can be done to maximize attainment of their goals and objectives or values. Though problems are not always defined, an individual has the ability to make the choice they feel will be appropriate for them. As one decides, they should be aware of the future consequences that underlie in the decisions they make and be willing to deal with conflicting values. The rational model is almost similar to the naturalistic model of decision-making, as the individual making decisions remains a target for decision-making. Both theories assume that only one unitary decision-maker exists to benefit others. A nurse for example decides to pursue her nursing career alone, but ends up helping patients, hospitals, homes and health centers.
Incremental theory
This theory attempts to correct the rational theory arguing that decision making is not individual focused but intertwined through various factors. Incremental approach gives alternatives to decision makers who chose from existing policies. It thus can be described as non-individual.
Besides those decision making theories, the scope of nursing practice decision making has been directing me to make many decisions with mental patients. Below is a chart of how i decide
Define the activity/ task (mental health care)
Review if the activity is permitted by the nursing practice act No STOP
Unsure
Review if the task is precluded in any other law/policy No STOP
No
See if the activity is consistent with national nursing standards
Yes
Nurse competed special education needed
Yes
Document evidence and competency skills
Yes
Doing the act as a reasonable and prudent nurse
Yes
Nurse prepared to accept consequences of action
Yes
Nurse allowed performing tasks according to acceptable and prevailing nursing safety and care (ASBN, p.16)
Team working leadership
The nursing profession cannot be successful without working with a team and under a strong leadership. Teamwork and commitment to leadership are crucial aspects for nursing to be effective. Teamwork and leadership influence nursing actions especially in mental health greatly. Nursing profession in a health team greatly define what roles/practices are carried out daily in a health institution and the theoretical benchmark that underlies the model of mental healthcare. Nurses need each other for their practice to be complete. Working as a team is critical to effective management within nursing and making the workload easier for nurses. Nursing is a complex role that cannot be managed alone. A nurse needs the help of another to carry out medical examinations, record the patient’s history and offer quality health care to patients generally. When dealing with mental health, nurses need each other to deliver quality healthcare. Mental health patients unlike other patients suffering from physical ailments require special attention to come up with appropriate treatment. They need to receive proper medical attention. Severely ill mental patients require more than one nurse to sedate them and make them feel better. Working as a team makes the workload easier and motivates people to function effectively. According to NMC, nurses must work together as a team. They work together towards common goals thus creating a sense of unity in their job.
Nursing is a humanistic approach for nurses that require achieving full competency for the best health care. Nursing practice can only achieve its five stages through working as a team. Those five main stages are assessing, planning, diagnosing and intervention, which are crucial for ensuring that nurses function as a team. During the collection of information from patients, it is important that the nursing staff work in unison to correctly record the information gathered. Nurses working in unison do the process of recording the information and writing or storing patient data. This way patients are cared for in an effective way and have their needs met adequately and in a fast way. If nurses fail to cooperate and work together in unity, the process of mental health care cannot be complete. For instance, no records would mean that nurses have no information on the patient and thus cannot treat the patient effectively. Recording patient information ensures that nurses record and store patient information safely thus facilitating the treatment procedure. Assessment is another procedure that requires multidisciplinary teamwork. Assessment involves consultation with teams and is important for quality assessment to take place. During patient assessment, various skills are distributed to team members with regard to their proficiency. Some nurses perform the roles in their area of specialty as others use particular skills to come up with diagnosis for certain conditions. Mental health nursing for example is a field that requires knowledge in diverse fields. While some nurses specialize in depression, others specialize in schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Each nurse specifies in their field and can perform exceptionally well in their assessment role. For assessment to be successful nurses, must be willing to share information obtained and give feedback on their patients condition as an essential part of assessment phase. Sharing that information ensures that the team is accountable for nursing care that patients receive and has a chance to suggest another suitable method of management that they had not thought of.
Understanding is key element in nursing and teamwork. The leaders should understand their team members and work towards supporting them attain their goals while team members ought to understand each other for proper communication to take place in health care. Mental health care nursing requires strong leadership for quality delivery of services. Leaders act as role models for other nurses. They make quick decisions and responses to ensure that patients are treated and do not lack anything. Their effective leadership roles are reflected on nurses and teams that they lead. Good leaders make great followers and teams. According to the trait theory, good leaders are assertive, value honesty and integrity, are SMART, good decision makers, have empathy, have knowledge and prowess in their field of medicine, have self-confidence, and have emotional control. Leadership in mental health is crucial for the team members and patients. With good leadership teams can improve their work performance and improve mental health care for mentally ill patients.
Communication is another crucial aspect for leadership and team members. Leaders and team members in mental health care should be able to communicate with each other for effective health care delivery. Through communication, leaders and team members are able to develop good listening skills, talk to each other, and participate in dialogue and clear misunderstandings. Communications helps in the achievement of similar goals as team members can let each other know what is expected of them. Lack of communication makes things wrong and creates many misunderstandings in the delivery of health care. Effective delivery of health relies on the team members and prowess of leadership in the healthcare.
Legal and ethical professional issues
Legal implications of nursing are tied to state and federal law licenses given by the state. The scope of practice for nurses and public expectation should adhere to professional standards. A nurse who wishes to pursue the field of medical health nursing should have qualified nursing education, licenses and use nursing standards that provide a framework by which nurses practice nursing, When a nurse’ s qualifications falls below the acceptable nursing standards they become exposed to litigation. The basis for litigation is similar to negligence, poor health care delivery, nursing malpractice, and professional negligence and neglect for professional roles (NCCHC, 2015). Nurses are expected to uphold high standards for quality treatment of patients especially when dealing with mental health care. Failing to follow the nursing code and acts can lead to serious legal challenges for the nurse. Ethical concerns for nurses are in six ethical principles namely (autonomy and being self determined) respect for persons
Doing good (Benevolence)
Non-maleficence (avoid harm)
Fairness, truthfulness and equitability (Just0
Veracity and integrity (being truthful)
Fidelity (faithfulness to commitment) NCCHC (2015)
The above principles guide ethical decision making for nurses. Ethical concerns for nurses handling special patients or patients in a custody environment must maintain attitude and compassion at the same time.
Evaluation
Mental illness accounts for thousands of deaths every year. National alliance on mental health reported that every year mental illness affects 61.5 million of Americans. One in every 17 people lives with the mental illness like bipolar disorder, depression and schizophrenia, which leads to death if not treated. 20% of teenagers from 13-18 experience serious mental disorders while 1.1% of American adults live with schizophrenia (about 2.4million people) (National alliance on mental illness). The impact of mental health in the world is hospitalization for youths and adults thus leading to great health costs. Patients living with mental ailments are also more vulnerable to other chronic and physical conditions. Mental patients are estimated to die two decades earlier than other people and have extremely higher suicide rates. Canada mental health association (2014) reported that suicide is committed every forty seconds. Suicide is a result of severe depression, which is one of the major mental health diseases. The young generation is vulnerable to suicides and death related to mental ailments as compared to people aged above 50 years. The loss of young lives is a deprivation of the productive years of a country and a terrible setback for growth. As a result, taking care of mentally ill patients is a role that nurses should play actively to reduce the number of deaths and help mental patients recover.
Now that you have given some initial critical thought to the notion of aligning HRM with business strategy. Be sure to discuss ways in which your experiences and differing perspectives can help you understand what you have read and, in turn, how your readings can help you expand your thinking about strategic HRM within an organisation.
Exploring similarities and differences in your perspectives on the potential for alignment between business strategy and HRM practices
Sharing alternative perspectives on the notion of ‘best practice’ vs. ‘best fit’ as a means to alignment
Deepening your understanding of what it means to take a critical stance on management practice, particularly strategic HRM
Asking insightful questions about the experiences of your colleagues and about their interpretations of ideas from the Learning Resources
Extending the discussion into new but relevant areas
In your essay, bring in examples of how traditional aspects of the HR function, such as recruitment, selection, succession planning, performance management, reward management, talent development, and disciplinary practices, might become better aligned with business strategy, and how this might benefit or present challenges to an organisation.
The following conditions must meet in the essay:
1) I want a typical and a quality answer which should have about 1100 words.
2) The answer must raise appropriate critical questions.
3) The answer must include examples from experience or the web with references from relevant examples from real companies.
4) Do include all your references, as per the Harvard Referencing System,
5) Please don’t use Wikipedia web site.
6) I need examples from peer reviewed articles or researches.
Appreciate each single moment you spend in writing my paper
Best regards
SAMPLE ANSWER
Aligning HRM with business strategy
Introduction
The term strategy refers to the general or specific elements of a business’ plan which have been formulated to ensure it achieves a certain goal in the near or distant future. The employees of an organization play an important role in ensuring that it meets its commercial objectives to the market which demands products as well as to its investors who demand profits and growth. Business strategy therefore has a lot to do with the achievement of these objectives with special attention being given to a specific set of parameters such as monetary value, volumes moved, market share realized among others. The work force of the organization should therefore be appropriately aligned to these goals as this plays a critical role in the achievement of corporate strategy for the business organization. A good understanding of the dynamics that exist between Human Resource Management strategies and the achievement of these objectives (Martin and Fellenz, 2010).
Similarities between Strategic HRM practices
In this exercise, strategic HRM practices that will be analyzed include the manner in which strategic HRM is applied in the processes of recruitment, selection, succession planning and also performance management (Allen et al, 2010). In Strategic HRM the differences and similarities of these activities need to be carefully considered as this knowledge will help in the planning process. These will be briefly illustrated below.
Similarities in the Strategic Human Resource Management Processes
The main similarity that strategic HRM processes have is the fact that almost all of the decisions made are based on a reverse analysis of the objectives whereby a path is drawn from the end result towards the initial action. This is done in with the aim of ensuring that plans being formulated will lead towards a desired result rather than going for an experimental approach. This is very much in line with the strategy component of this process (Armstrong, 2002). If an organization will for instance want to develop a new type of housing for its market they first have to be in possession of a relatively solid idea of all the defining characteristics of these houses such as the materials, the costing and the sizes. Based on this definition, the human resource manager can work backwards by analyzing the number of workers needed, the possible time-frame, the available budget, the skill level required, how to best inform prospective employees about the opportunity and other factors (Baker et al, 2014). After this is done the process of recruitment will take place in such a manner that will attract a caliber of employees whose attributes are aligned to those of this firm.
Another similarity of strategic HRM is the fact that the procedures that are laid out are geared at ensuring the employee is continually progressing in terms of his or her skills and responsibilities in the organization. The degree of progress will obviously vary but it is important to note that there is no single stage where the employee is considered to be stagnant. Following the recruitment phase, the employees begin to go through a series of trainings and probation to find out if they are capable of adding value to the employing organization (Chen et al, 2014). Those who pass the probation are given more responsibilities and during this period it is expected that their skills and output will improve over time. The HRM department also organizes for seminars and trainings that are designed to ensure the employees are aligned with the strategic plan of the organization. Many organizations also offer to sponsor their employees to courses that help in upgrading their skills such as masters programs. There are several motivation strategies that are put in place to ensure the progression of these improvements.
Differences
One key difference in the application of SHRM strategies is the type of focus applied to the human resource of the organization (Torrington et al, 2011). There are two main approaches namely the shotgun approach and the rifle approach and these are used to differentiate between widespread application of strategy and subjective focus of strategy. During the stages of recruitment as well as team building the strategy is applied subjectively across the entire population of prospective workers and employees respectively. This approach is employed when the desired result is a uniform action by the group being targeted. This could be for them to fill out applications for a vacancy or for them to improve their communication for prospective employees and current employees respectively. This takes places at the pace set by the organization.
The rifle approach refers to a scenario where a SHRM strategy is applied to an individual based on attributes he or she has been found to have (Downs and Swailes, 2013). This may be charisma or creativity which is much needed in improving the performance of the marketing department of an organization. The HRM department may sponsor such an individual for a given course that will better define his or her skills. Such a person may also be given more responsibilities and challenges with the aim of preparing them for a given management position. Apprenticeship is a rudimentary form of subjective application of SHRM policies in an organization. The pace of such initiatives is often dependent on the rate at which the target employee is gaining skills. It is often hoped that such an individual will play a leadership role in furthering the strategic plan of an organization (Wei et al, 2014).
Critical Question: Are today’s Human Resource Managers able to distinguish the relevance of these two approaches to strategy?
Best Practices and Best Fit
Best practices are strategies that have been proven to be effective in the achievement of Strategic Human resource Management. They key strength which also makes them attractive is the fact that they are applied by industry leaders whose products are used as benchmarks in the different industries. It is believed that this approach promises benefits for any firm that incorporates them into its day to day operations. The Best fit approach on the other hand advocates for the implementation of HRM policies that have been formulated to correspond with parameters pertaining to a specific organization. This makes it significantly more subjective than the best practices approach.
The key advantage of the best practices approach is the fact that it is a ready-made strategy that can be applied as soon as it is acquired. The main advantage of best fit on the other hand is the fact that it can be easily adjusted to unique aspects of a business strategy.
The main disadvantage of the best practices approach is the fact that it is limited to strategies that are generic within a given industry and offers no real help in product differentiation. The challenge of the best fit method is that it takes a lot of resources to develop and this does not guarantee its working as it may still not function.
Evidence from the field indicates that many HRM professionals employ both of these strategies with best practices being used for generic aspects of management and best fit being applied to the differentiation strategies. Best fit method has a more profound impact in the alignment strategies since they are more flexible.
Critical Question: Is it possible for an organization to rely purely on Best Fit or Best Practice exclusively in its HRM alignment strategy?
References
Allen, D. G., Bryant, P. C., & Vardaman, J. M. (2010). Retaining talent: Replacing misconceptions with evidence-based strategies. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 24(2), 48-64.
Armstrong, M., & Baron, A. (2002). Strategic HRM: The key to improved business performance. CIPD Publishing.
Baker, T. (2014) Attracting and Retaining Talent: Becoming an Employer of Choice. Palgrave Macmillan.
Chen, S., Han, M., & Zheng, Y. (2014). The Talent Training Model Construction and Implementation Strategy of Collaborative Innovation. Education Research Frontier, 4(3).
Downs, Y., & Swailes, S. (2013). A capability approach to organizational talent management. Human Resource Development International, 16(3), 267-281.
Martin, J and Fellenz, M (2010) Organizational Behaviour and Management, 4th ed.
Torrington, D., Hall, L. and Taylor, S. (2011) Human Resources Management. Eighth Edition. Prentice Hall.
