Saturday, October 5, 2019
SESSION LONG PROJECT MODULE 5 TOTAL REWARDS (USAA INSURANCE COMPANY) Essay
SESSION LONG PROJECT MODULE 5 TOTAL REWARDS (USAA INSURANCE COMPANY) - Essay Example This method also helps attract the employees and their attention and help retaining the employees to a great extent. Here in most cases this method helps in improving the morale and levels of motivation and productivity of the employees, thereby being a major benefit for the company as well (Thompson). Using this technique in USAA will be very helpful due to the nature of the job. Here the company will be able integrate the organizational culture, business strategy and also the human resources strategy and draw them towards one main focus, i.e. the total rewards system which focuses on includes all aspects like the compensations, benefits, work life, recognition and performance of the employees and also the overall development and career opportunities. Together all of these are focused towards attracting and motivating people which in turn leads to better satisfaction and engagement of the employees. This concept is clearly one which will remain and become more common within companie s (Buchanan and Huczynski). This technique is here to stay and companies can benefit from the technique to a very great extent. The drawback of this technique, in the case of USAA, it proves to be very costly for a number of employees and also does not meet the needs of the employees.
Friday, October 4, 2019
Analyze the ways in which at least three supporting characters Essay
Analyze the ways in which at least three supporting characters contribute to the readers understanding and assessment of the cha - Essay Example Jay Gatsby - Analytical Elaboration Perhaps, the most important character of â€Å"The Great Gatsby†, for the purpose of aptly analyzing and understanding Jay Gatsby, is that of Daisy Buchanan. As a matter of fact, for all people reading this novel, it would be almost impossible to form the right opinion about Jay Gatsby without relating him to Daisy. When Jay Gatsby is viewed by separating him from all other chief characters of the novel, one would conclude that he is an out and out materialistic man with hardly any morals. But this contention is far from the truth. There are several positive facets of the central character, and which can be best understood only when they are viewed in relation to Daisy Buchanan. Before Gatsby leaves for participating in the Second World, Daisy gives him a commitment that she would await his return. But later, she broke her word and married Tom Buchanan, a wealthy man. This particular action of Daisy was in no way less than a devastating expe rience for Gatsby, who then decided to amass lot of wealth solely for the purpose of making sure that Daisy returns to him. In these materialistic pursuits, Gatsby indeed deviated from the accepted ethical norms. Had she (Daisy) chosen to sincerely wait for the return of Gatsby from the War, he would have been an entirely different man.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
Bletchley Park GCSE Coursework Essay Example for Free
Bletchley Park GCSE Coursework Essay Bletchley Park was unique in many different was. Located just outside Bletchley, in southern England in some ways it could have been said to be detached from the rest of Britain during World War 2, lost in a secret world. The organization at Bletchley Park was unique. The method of operations, the dedication, the secrets hidden away behind the walls and even the people working there. All were completely different to what had ever been seen before in terms of code cracking. Secrecy was a big part of life in Bletchley, and even in the beginning when the initial government representatives went to check it out for possible use during wartime, they acted as privately as possible and gave reason for their stay as a hunting trip. The private aspect of station X continued throughout the war with guards patrolling the perimeters of Bletchley day and night. The secrecy kept up after the war as well, with those who had worked at Bletchley Park not being officially allowed to talk about it publicly until 1976. This was likely to be due to Churchills mistake after World War 1; of letting the Germans know that the British had cracked their code. Station X was another method of keeping the enigma secret. It was code-name used, meaning the key station where all the messages were sent. There where several other station Ys, all of which recorded any messages the intercepted and passed them straight on to the larger workstation at Bletchley (station X). This was to keep Bletchley Park looking relatively normal and aerial-free, thus aiding with the bid for secrecy. The people working at station X came from a variety of different backgrounds and were often chosen explicitly for their social records and information, rather than any skills with code breaking they had. Whilst this did only apply to the minority at Bletchley, (many working there during the war had come straight out of universities such as Oxford or Cambridge with a Maths degree) it is still a key aspect of the organization. Some were recruited on their ability to see outside of the box meaning that they were hired to see gaps (or flaws) in what others could not. This resulted in many people with more eccentric personalities residing in Bletchley during the war. Such people included the marvelous Alan Turing, who came up with the idea for the Bombe, one of the first computers in the world. He was certainly one of the abnormal people at Bletchley Park, but also an example of an extremely intelligent one. The actual organization at Bletchley was divided into certain huts. It was within these huts that the duties revolving around code cracking were divided up. For example, hut 8 may have been cracking the naval codes of the enigma, whilst hut 4 was deciding if they were to be of any use. This not only increased efficiency, but as a side effect, seemed to raise morale as well. Rather than working as a larger body were small triumphs went completely unnoticed, through these huts a sense of recognition of others efforts was able to be established. Many of the people with Bletchley were incredibly dedicated and in some cases worked solidly for 24 hours just to make sure that one particular aspect of the code was broken. This of course accelerated to process in which the enigma was eventually broken. Originally, those working at Bletchley Park were not respected or given the appropriate amount of attention by the SIS. (The secret intelligence service) However, this changed after Bletchley accurately predicted the location of a German warship that was just about the attack the British. The SIS ignored the warning, and two British ships were sunk and 1,500 men died. This was a wake up call for the SIS, who then proceeded to give any messages received from Bletchley top priority. 2. Why was Bletchley Park able to break the German enigma? Those working at Bletchley Park were able to break the enigma for several different reasons. Most importantly, it was due to their great skills at code cracking, their powerful intellect and the amazing perseverance that many had to try and achieve the goal. Other reasons must be taken into account though. Such as the clumsy mistakes by the German operators and the help that was given to the British by other countries such as the extraordinary work done by Poland before the war. The British received a great deal of intelligence from other countries during the war. The poles had secretly been working on the enigma before and during the start of the war. Three mathematicians had been trying to decode messages and solve the random jumble of letters. As Germany invaded, polish officials met up with the British and gave them all they knew about the enigma. This not only opened the gates for the British as to what the Nazis were using to scramble to letters, but also gave them a solid head start in order to go about decoding them. Later on, a German who was willing to sell information about the enigma contacted the French. French intelligence later passed this information on to the rest of the allies, including the British. Both of these two events greatly helped Bletchley Park crack the code of the enigma initially, and throughout the rest of the war. Another factor that continued to help the people working at station X were the mistakes of the German operators. It is likely that if the Germans had used the enigma exactly as directed, it would have been a lot harder to crack, thus taking up much more time. Common mistakes were not replacing or changing the order in which the cog wheels were arranged, not arranging the two plugs in the correct formation and other more minor errors that were normally results from laziness. Another fault that was used to its maximum effect was that of the double helix. In many cases, the enigma was not anywhere near as random as the Germans had first hoped, and in a few cases the British were able to see clear patterns were letters were exactly the same within the code. Whilst this was not necessarily the Germans fault, it was still as mistake that they did not know about and failed to consider. These mistakes were exploited and picked apart by the British, giving them a further chance in forming patterns out the mess. Bletchley used certain methods to ease the task of finding the right combination out of 150,000,000,000,000,000 possibilities. Techniques such as laying out perforated sheets to see if any letters matched were popular and helped the efficiency of code cracking as a whole. Also, machines that were invented during the war (including one of the first computers in the world) were a great asset to those at Bletchley as well. The machines invented during the time in Bletchley were all upgraded versions of the same basic idea. The human operator would feed in a code that had usually been worked on previously by other people or was a calculated (likely to be true) estimate (nicknamed a crib by those a Bletchley). The operator would enter the code into the machine and then it would cycle through all the possible combinations, stopping when it reached the correct one. The final version, invented by Turing, could decipher the code, possible wheel locations and possible plug locations thousands of times faster than a human. This greatly helped the British with the speed of cracking codes and sending them off to those who needed them. However it did not decrease the difficulty of knowing what formulas to use within the machine in the first place, or even decoding the initial and forming calculated guesses to feed into the machine to start off with. Those working at Bletchley had to solve several things in order to gather the information needed to have a chance at cracking the code. These included: * The Cog order and wiring * The text settings * The Cross plugging * And language (including German military slang terms) This required great patience and dedication all skills that those working at Bletchley either had already, or managed to acquire. Cracking a code can be an incredibly frustrating experience said one worker, but in most cases the results are uplifting, rewarding [and] very satisfying. Through intertwining many different people into a close knit community, along with their skills, personalities and unique ideas, Bletchley Park managed to effectively the ultimate code-cracking machine. Finally, breakthroughs were also a key factor when it came to breaking the code. Strokes of luck such as recovering German navy code books off small weather vessels that were easily captured, or getting other such Nazi secrets of sinking U-boats or crashed vehicles greatly helped advance the enigma effort. Overall, there was no key reason why the British were able to crack the code of the enigma. No huge mistake was made by the Germans that completely gave the secrets away, no massive breakthrough was made by the British to unlock all the enigma codes in one go, the end result came from many different factors that when put together, gave Bletchley Park the key to the enigma code.
Knowledge and Perception of Cervical Cancer Research
Knowledge and Perception of Cervical Cancer Research METHODOLOGY Study design and setting A cross-sectional study was conducted from May to June, 2015 among regular undergraduate female Debre Berhan University students. The university is found in Debre Berhan town which is 130 kilometer from Addis Ababa. The university has approximately 20,000 students pursuing regular and extension undergraduate and graduate studies. Of them 10,560 are regular undergraduate students. Official university statistics show that 37.5% of the students are females and most of the undergraduate students living in university residential halls during the semester sessions. The University has two Institutes, eight colleges and 33 departments. Study variables The outcome variables were knowledge and perception of cervical cancer. Sociodemographic characteristics, reproductive history and sources of information were among the independent variables. Sampling size calculation The 584 sample size was calculated using single population proportion by open epi software considering the following assumptions; the number of female regular undergraduate students in the university =3,962, proportion of the university students who had knowledge on risk factors of cervical cancer=50.6% (14), 95% confidence interval, 5% reliability,1.5 design effect and 10% non-response rate. Sampling procedure Two stage cluster sampling technique was used for the study.in the first stage , of the twenty nine departments, nine departments were selected by using simple random sampling technique and the sample size was allocated proportionally to each selected departments, based on the number of students. In the second stage, the study participants were selected from each year of study and sections of the selected departments by simple random sampling technique using computer method proportionally to the number of students in each year of study and sections. A list of the students was obtained from each department. Data collection procedure A self-administered questionnaire containing open and closed ended questions was prepared initially in English after reviewing deferent literature then translated into Amharic by an expert and again retranslated to English. Before the actual data collection process, tool was pre tested on 27 female Public Health students of Debre Berhan University. Then necessary modifications were made according to the results of pretest study. Six data collectors were recruited to facilitate the data collection process and were trained for two days. During the data collection process, the data facilitators introduces themselves to the participants and handed over a letter from each college/department which asked for support of the data collection process and showed the ethical clearance. Measurement Participants knowledge about cervical cancer was assessed by using a 20 points scale questions about the etiology, mode of transmission, symptoms, risk factors and prevention methods. A knowledge score was calculated for each participant based on the number of questions correctly answered in the knowledge section. A score of 1 was assigned to every correct answer and a score of zero to incorrect responses. Knowledge questions was scored and pulled together and the mean score was computed to determine the overall knowledge of the participants. Participants scored above the mean were considered as having good knowledge and below average as having poor knowledge. Statistical analysis Data was entered into an Epi info 3.5.4 and imported to SPSS version 20 for analysis. Results were summarized using descriptive summary measures for continuous variables, frequency and percent for categorical variables. To identify the effect of independent variables on knowledge and perception of cervical cancer, both the bivariate method and the multivariate logistic regression techniques were used. Then variables with p value ≠¤ 0.2 in the bivariate analysis was included in the multiple logistic regressions. Odds ratio and 95% confidence interval was used to identify the presence and strength of association and level of significance at the 0.05.
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
When Armpit Hair Grows :: essays research papers
What happened to wanting to grow up? Where did all my sports and hobbies go? Why is it I have to take showers daily now? I woke up this morning and I was eighteen. I absolutely hate being eighteen. I am expected to be an adult now and forget about having fun. If this is the path of what growing up is going to be like, then I QUIT! Bring me back to twelve I want to be young again.      The irony, when I was twelve I could not wait to be eighteen. The thought of being able to do what ever you want seemed so appealing to me. Little did I realize that being eighteen has plenty of downfalls. I remember thinking eighteen year olds were so cool. They were able to buy the coolest things, cigarettes, scratch tickets, and porn. Now eighteen I don’t buy any of these items because; A) I don’t smoke; B) I never win on scratch tickets, and C) I now know I can get porn free on my computer. My idea of eighteen seemed much more glorious than what it is. Being eighteen went far past the ability to buy the coolest things. Someone must have forgot to tell me that I now need to work to live, that I need college to work, and that I need to grow up to go to college. Someone forgot to tell me it sucks being eighteen. I use to be an active kid. I was outside everyday, rain or shine. Nothing would stop me from doing what I loved to do. Everyday after school I would go out dirt biking, skateboarding, or bicycling. Some times you might have found me thirty feet up in a tree building a fort. I was always far from being board. My imagination was incredible. I would be able to play Ninjas with my buddies, holding paper towel rolls as swords. Now my imagination is consumed with ways to make money so I can pay bills on time. Now everyday after school you’ll find me working at a local package store in Leicester. Sometimes you might find me sleeping in bed, making up for the lack of sleep I don’t get throughout the week. The only time you’ll see me out side now is when I’m on my way to the car or walking to the mailbox.
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Most Significant Issues Facing Health Care Organizations Essay
Formed in 1998, the Managed Care Executive Group (MCEG) is a national organization of U.S. senior health executives who provide an open exchange of shared resources by discussing issues which are currently faced by health care organizations. In the fall of 2011, 61 organizations, which represented 90 responders, ranked the top ten strategic issues for 2012. Although the issues were ranked according to their priority, this report discusses the top three issues which I believe to be the most significant due to the need for competitive and inter-related products, quality care and cost containment. The Managed Care Executive Group (MCEG) The objective of the MCEG is to provide channels to exchange information between managed care/health plan information systems executives and to provide opportunity for personal networking. MCEG provides a forum to develop policy which relates to the use of information technology and healthcare. MCEG provides feedback to vendor sponsors and other vendors on the trends and types of technology needed to ensure that their products and strategies meet their customer’s present and future managed care needs. Additionally, their objective is to â€Å"educate executives on clinical and administrative trends in health care, new and emerging technologies, and other pertinent information to assist in achieving the key goals of cost containment, effective service and high quality health care.†(Why We Matter, 2011) Administrative Mandates (Compliance HIPAA 5010, ICDE-10) Administrative Mandates, including the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, ICD-10 and HIPAA 5010, are all part of administrative simplification and the need for systems optimiza... ...ntial in ACOs. Retrieved January 16, 2012 from http://www.healthmgttech.com/index.php/solutions/payers/eight-reasons-payer-interoperability-and-data-sharing-are-essential-in-acos.html Wise, N., & Taylor, F. (n.d.) Moving Forward With Reform: The Health Plan Pulse for 2012 and Beyond. Retrieved January 16, 2012 from http://www.htms.com/pdfs/MovingForwardWtihReform2012_HTMS_MCEG_Whitepaper.pdf Payer/Provider Inoperability. (2011). Retrieved January 13, 2012 from http://www.mceg.net/top-10/payer/ The Managed Care Executive Group. (2011). Retrieved January 13, 2012 from http://www.mceg.net/ Top 10 issues for health plans in 2011. (2011, April 5) Healthcare IT News. Retrieved January 13, 2011 from http://www.healthcareitnews.com/print/24881 Why We Matter. (2011). Retrieved January 13, 2012 from http://www.mceg.net/about-us/why-we-matter/
A Look At Eliyahu Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints Essay
Abstract            The Theory of Constraints was devised by Eli Goldratt. It states that in every organization there is a constraint that slows down its performance.            This paper will delve on the Theory of Constraints of Eli Goldratt.  A Look At Eliyahu Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints            The Theory of Constraint is a management philosophy originally developed by Eliyahu Goldratt and discussed in his book, The Goal. The basic concept behind the theory is that a chain will always have its weakest connection. In any organization or any complicated system for that matter, there will only be one component of that system that will restrict its capacity to attain its objectives. In order for such system to have any significant progress, the constraint must be located and the entire system must be manipulated with it in consideration (Thomas Group, n.d). Application of the Theory of Constraint            According to the Theory of Constraints, profit-oriented organizations should have at least one constraint that hinders the system from achieving improved performance in connection with its goal. The Theory of Constraints is founded on the premise that the rate of income generation is restricted by at least a single constraining process. Only by enhancing the throughput during bottleneck will the overall process be improved (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006).            In summary, the main components of the Theory of Constraints are: Complex systems should have at least one constraint otherwise it would be earning unlimited income. Constraint, therefore, is defined as anything that restricts the system from improving its performance compared to its goal (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). Constraints provide systems with an opportunity to develop and improve (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006) Theory of Constraint versus Lean Manufacturing            Lean manufacturing is a concept that is often compared with Goldratt’s Theory of Constraint. Lean manufacturing was derived from the successful method being used by Japanese car maker Toyota. The method received international acclaim through the Womack & Jones book The Machine That Changed The World. Lean manufacturing is focused on elimination of waste (Moore, 1998).            While TOC and Lean have varying principles, there are certain areas wherein the two philosophies have a commonality (Moore, 1998). In both lean and TOC, the perception of the customer as value is critical. In Lean manufacturing, it is the customer who determines value. In TOC, there is no throughput until the payment for a certain product has been cleared by the bank (Moore, 1998). Lean and TOC both acknowledge the fact that the ultimate goal of any organization is to convert inventory into throughput(Moore, 1998) TOC and lean underscores the importance of flow throughout the system. Both philosophies believes that the flow plays an important role in the system (Moore, 1998). For both TOC and lean manufacturing, the pull of the market dictates the needs for manufacturing. In lean marketing, manufacturing of goods or services will not take place unless there is a demand for it by the customer. In TOC, the pull is the driving force behind the Drum-Buffer-Rope method (Moore, 1998). Lean manufacturing and TOC drives the workers to aspire for perfection or improving their efforts. The role of the workers in the improvement of the system cannot be discounted (Moore, 1998). During the past 25 years, there were three TOC paradigms that were developed namely logistics, global performance measures, and thinking processes. Recently, Boyd and Gupta changed these paradigms into decision making, performance measurement, and organizational mindset (Moss, 2007). The Logistics Paradigm            The logistics paradigm was derived from the scheduling program called Optimized Production Technology (OPT) which has nine rules (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006): Flow should be balanced rather than capacity The utilization level of non-bottleneck resources is not dependent on its potential but on other constraints within the system Use and activation of a resource are not synonymous to each other One hour lost during the bottleneck translates to an hour lost for the entire system An hour lost at a non-bottleneck is just minor Bottlenecks determine throughput and inventory The transfer batch may not, and in most instances, should not be the same with the process batch. The process batch should vary, not constant Schedules should be determined without looking at all the constraints at the same time. Lead times are the outcomes of a schedule and cannot be determined in advance The Major Steps in the Logistics Paradigm Identifying the constraint. These may involve physical barriers such as physical or managerial (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). Exploiting the constraint by increasing utilization and efficiency. For instance, physical constraint can be utilized by making it as effective as possible (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). Subordinating all other processes to the constraint process. This implies that other aspects of the system must support the total effectiveness of the constraint. If the resources that are not causing the constraint are utilized beyond their productivity level, they will not increase the throughput but increase unwanted inventory (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006) Elevating the constraint. If the present constraints are the most crucial elements of the system, implementing rigorous improvement measures will enhance its performance. Improved performance leads to better realization of the potentials of the nonconstraint resources which would lead to an improvement in the overall performance of the system (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006) Rinse and repeat (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). The implementation of the logistical paradigm is best exemplified in the drum-buffer-rope methodology. There are three concepts worth explaining in this method. The drum refers to the pace at which the constraints operate. The rope establishes the communication between the critical control chains to ensure that they are synchronized. The buffer is the strategically positioned inventory to safeguard the output of the system from that differences that may take place within the system (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). The drum-buffer-rope technique is a simplified version of its predecessor the Optimized Production Technology (OPT) and the newer Advanced Planning and Scheduling Systems (APS), which are utilized in firms engaged in manufacturing and production (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). Using the Drum-Buffer-Rope method leads to the synchronization of resources as well as the utilization of materials in an organization. It is worth knowing that resources and materials are used only in a degree that would lead to the capacity of the organization to attain their throughput (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006).            Since random disruptions are likely in any organization, the drum-buffer-rope method will provide a tool for securing total throughput by using Time Buffers, which contains inventories and safeguards constraint schedules from the impact of disruption at non-constraint resources (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006).            The process of using time buffers as a mechanism for effective management and improvement of throughput is called buffer management. It provides details based on planned and actual performance and is utilized for checking the inventory of a protected resource as a comparison for actual and planned performance (Mahapatra & Sahu, 2006). Application of the Logistics Paradigm in Service Firms            The logistic paradigm or five step processes is applied to various processes and procedures of a service firm. The advantage of a service firm is that it is used to enhance service time, flow of information, as well as in re-engineering administrative functions (Moss, 2007).            In the military as well as in the medical field, the logistics paradigm is being utilized to generate more sales (Moss, 2007). Drum-Buffer-Rope Method Applied to Manufacturing and Service Firms            The drum-buffer-rope method of scheduling is applicable in both manufacturing and services sector. In the field of manufacturing, the drum-buffer-rope technique is useful in scheduling equipments. For the service sector, DBR is applicable in scheduling personnel within the organization, setting appointments with customers, and forecasting lead-times for customers (Moss, 2007).            According to Schragenheim and Ronen, DBR should be used in determining problems and flaws that will disrupt the flow of the system. There are suggestions that the drum-buffer-rope method should be used in the management of supply chains (Moss, 2007). Global Performance Measures            In the global performance measure of the Theory of Constraints, all company performance efforts are geared towards the objective of earning money now and in the future. In order to accomplish this, there are three things that should be done. First, increase the throughput. Second, reduce inventory. Third, minimize operation costs (Moss, 2007).            Throughput refers to the rate at which the system earns a profit through sales while inventory is the term used to denote the money which the system will invest in buying things which they plan to market and sell. Finally, operational expense which is the money spent by the system in converting inventory to throughput (Moss, 2007).            From these concepts, three global measures have been derived namely net profit, return of investment, and cash flow. Net profit is determined by deducting the operating cost from the throughput. Return of investment or ROI is obtained from the ratio of net profit and inventory. Cash flow, on the other hand, is used as a survival tool. As long as the company has money, they will survive (Moss, 2007).            Most companies prefer to have only a few operational measures since this will provide convenience to the company as far as the assessment of the effects of various decisions (Moss, 2007). The Thinking Process            When it comes to constraints existing in the company, Goldratt identified three important decisions: What to change? What to change to? How to effect the change? In order to provide solutions to these problems, Goldratt devised the thinking process. During the last 10 to 15 years, managerial processes have been at the helm of corporate constraints. This is the purpose of the thinking process (Moss, 2007).            One of the strengths of the Theory of Constraint is that it provides various tools and techniques to help companies solve a certain problem. Although each method can be used separately, they can likewise be integrated in order to better answer problems concerning Consensus and Focus, Construction of a Complete Solution, and Communication and Collaboration. For each process, there are different tools that can be used (Focused Performance, n.d). Consensus and Focus The Current Reality Tree (CRT) is a series of logical steps that describes present situations. The aim of CRT is to come up with a cause-effect relationship among unwanted symptoms as well as core conflicts that the company would like to remove (Focused Performance, n.d). Construction of a Complete Solution The Evaporating Cloud. The evaporating cloud or conflict resolution diagram is a logical tool which aims to determine aspects of conflict that generates non-compromise win-win solutions. While its validity is acknowledged, the purpose of the evaporating cloud is to unearth underlying assumptions which turns out to be invalid (Focused Performance, n.d). While the evaporating cloud is already useful by itself, this tool can be integrated with a CRT since the seemingly difficult problems pointed out in the CRT are often the results of underlying conflict (Focused Performance, n.d). Future Reality Tree. The FRT is an effect-cause-effect logic structure which aims to show how recommended changes would have an impact on reality particularly how and why these proposals are expected to create a positive result. It is a paper-based simulator that assesses the ability of the proposed change to produce the desired outcome. Likewise, it is used to test the propensity of the proposed change to generate new and unwanted outcomes (Focused Performance, n.d).  Communication and Collaboration Negative Branch Reservations.            There are instances when undesirable effects are treated as potential results of a proposal and are often detected by another individual other than the originator of the proposal (Focused Performance, n.d).            With Negative Branch Reservations (NBR), logical expressions are used to address certain reservations through additional actions that would complete the original proposal and cutting down the â€Å"negative branches†from the proposed FRT (Focused Performance, n.d). Prerequisite Tree.            The prerequisite tree or PRT is a logical structure that describes all the barriers to accomplishing a goal as well as the alternative courses of action. The PRT likewise depicts how certain actions when combined with current reality will achieve new and expected results and why these actions would achieve the required outcomes (Focused Performance, n.d).            Categories of Legitimate Reservation            The Categories of Legitimate Reservation is a group of tests used for verifying the cause-effect logic which is at the heart of the Thinking Process. CLRs serve the purpose of scrutinizing and modifying the logical trees (Focused Performance, n.d). The Thinking Process Applied to Manufacturing            The thinking process can be effectively applied to the manufacturing and service sector. For the service sector, the guiding management philosophy should center on improving process. The problem-solving tools of the thinking process provide most of the benefits to the service sector (Moss, 2007). Throughput Accounting            Throughput accounting, which is based on Eli Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints, plays a major role in management decision making. It changes an organization’s view of income recognition as well as costs and profitability. Thus, throughput accounting is responsible for refining the figures used for making decisions which potentially modifies Management Accounting (Goldratt, n.d). Advantages of Throughput Accounting            Using throughput accounting as a measurement and decision making tool, organizations can have the following advantages (Goldratt, n.d): Shift their sales efforts on products that will generate more income Make better decisions on which investment will generate more income Come up with decisions that are determined by real effects on the bottom line Develop a clear understanding of the role of sub-systems in the entire system Make realistic efforts regarding the effectiveness of the entire system relative to the goal of the company which is to gain a profit. Most of the distortions that are present in traditional management accounting can be corrected with throughput accounting. Distortions arise as a result of traditional management accounting using similar measures used in judging an entire system or organization as well as daily decisions by dividing the system into sub-systems and activities (Goldratt, n.d).            Throughput accounting is a substitute to cost accounting. It is not derived from standard costing or Activity-Based Costing. It is not concerned with costing or allocation of costs to products and services but rather as a strategy for maximizing profits. The main objective of throughput accounting is to hasten the velocity at which products are moved in a company by removing bottlenecks (Puthran, 2006).            Throughput accounting helps enhance a company’s profit performance through improved management decisions (Puthran, 2006).            Usually management decisions are based on assessing the impact of proposals on the throughput, investment, and operating expense. In a traditional management accounting, the cost of any proposal is commonly the initial and sometimes the only thing being considered, which results to poor decisions on the part of the management (Puthran, 2006). The Basis of Throughput Accounting            Throughput accounting is based on the fact that there are bottlenecks in organizations. Microsoft Encarta defines bottleneck â€Å"a delay in progress due to one part of the process or system being slower than the others which results to the delay in the overall process.†(Microsoft Encarta) What are the Factors used by throughput accounting in computing income and expenses? Throughput is the rate at which the process or system generate â€Å"goal units.†When the â€Å"goal units†involves money, the throughput is derived by deducting the price of raw materials with the income generated from the sale. However, throughput is only applicable to activities that involves selling products or services. Warehouse manufacturing is not included in throughput accounting (Puthran, 2006). Investment is the money associated with the process or system. It includes inventories, equipments, infrastructure or facilities, and other assets and liabilities (Puthran, 2006). Operating expenses refers to the money which the system uses in purchasing â€Å"goal units.†In the case of tangible products, the operating cost includes all the expenses with the exception of the price of raw materials. Operating expenses includes cost of maintenance, utilities, rental expenses, taxes, payroll, among others (Puthran, 2006).  Conclusion            Eli Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints states that in a complex organization, there will be instances when constraints will slow down the entire process. In order to for the system to achieve its overall performance, the constraint hindering the entire system should be removed from the equation. References Mahapatra, S.S., & Sahu, A (2006 July 27). Application of Theory of Constraints on Scheduling of Drum-Buffer-Rope System. The Apache Jakarta Project. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://dspace.nitrkl.ac.in:8080/ Moore, R (1998). Theory of Constraints and Lean Manufacturing: Friends or Foes? Chonnam National University. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://pm.chonnam.ac.kr Moss, H (2007 March 1). Improving Service Quality With The Theory of Constraints. All Business.com. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://www.allbusiness.com/company-activities-management/operations-customer/5508402-1.html Problem Solving with the TOC Thinking Processes – Consensus, Construction, Communication and Collaboration (n.d). Focused Performance. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://www.focusedperformance.com/toctp1.html Puthran, S (2006 December 17). Throughput Accounting. Management Accountant. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://managementaccountant.blogspot.com/2006/12/throughput-accounting.html Theory of Constraints (n.d). Thomas Group. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://www.thomasgroup.com/enterprise-solutions/tools/theory-of-constraints.aspx Throughput Accounting (n.d). Goldratt. Retrieved August 9 2008 from http://www.goldratt.co.uk/resources/throughput_accounting/index.html Â
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