The concept of 'personalised medicine' is hard implement. Discuss this Essay - 1

The concept of 'personalised medicine' is hard implement. Discuss this statement - Essay Example It therefore helps to easily predict the kind of medical treatment that is safe or not for a particular patient. As much as personalised medicine may be seen as an extension of the traditional systems of treatment, the two systems are different. However they are both geared towards understanding and successful treatment of a patient in question. Rang and Dale (2007) assert that the personalised medicine concept is heavily associated with state of the art tools and equipment. These particular tools are in tandem with the current level of technological advancement. The physicians operating under this type of system have the capability are known to choose treatment and therapy protocols that are specific to the patients genotype (Rang & Dale, 2007). It helps to lower opportunistic side effects in addition to ensuring a successful treatment process when the molecular profile of a patient is considered. This approach offers a chance to save on costs. The traditional system is based on trial and error meaning that a number of treatment measures might be considered before the most effective one is found. This clearly means that healthcare costs will be incurred in the process. Furthermore, the traditional system is a rather general method of addressing the condition of a patient. Traditional healthcare methods mainly focus on signs and symptoms, laboratory results, imaging evaluation and medical and family history to treat a patient. This kind of treatment approach can be referred to as reactive. This is because treatment begins upon establishment of signs and symptoms of a disease. Edgecoe (2004) reveals that the impact of personalised medicine has already been realized across the globe. Quite a number of diseases including breast cancer, HIV/AIDS and cardiovascular diseases are now being managed by the system. Another advantage of personalised medicine

Leadership and Team Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Leadership and Team Building - Essay Example This is popularly known as teamwork. As such, this paper seeks to evaluate the measures that can be taken by a newly appointed person in the organization towards building a cohesive team. The paper starts by explaining the meaning of leadership and teams. The main part of the paper will discuss the theoretical framework of various components of leadership and teams and how they can be effectively implemented in order to improve the overall performance of the organization as a whole. Leadership is often confused as management but a closer analysis of the two shows that they are somehow different. Basically, leadership is about â€Å"Envisioning change, that is â€Å"articulating a compelling vision, mission and strategy†, which â€Å"connects employees, shareholders, suppliers and customers† (Kets de Vries, Vrignaud, & Florent-Treacy, 2004, p. 479 as cited in Ekmekci, 2009, p. 42). On the other hand, it can be observed that management is mainly concerned with solving problems as well as monitoring progress in the organization (Almos et al. 2007). Focus is on leadership in this paper since management is also a component of leadership. The leaders in the organization drive change and they should articulate this change to their followers so that their efforts can be directed towards the same direction in the firm. This entails that teamwork is necessary in order for the new leader of the organization to achieve this feat. On the other hand, a team is described as â€Å"a collection of individuals who are dependent on their tasks, who share responsibility of outcomes†¦who manage their relationships across organizational boundaries,† (Cohen & Baily, 1997, p. 241). Essentially, the main idea behind teamwork is synergy of individual efforts towards the attainment of the desired goals in the organization. Thus, effective leaders in the organization should foster team building and development since these help to improve the overall

Validity of Main Intelligence Tests

Validity of Main Intelligence Tests Nowadays, it is getting more and more people comparing self to others in order to define their standards among the other. Besides of comparing achievements and richness, intelligence is one of the most popular items to be compared. Based on the intelligence scores, people get to prejudge and define others; this may cause people with low intelligence scores withdraw from socializing and other psychological problems. Intelligence is the ability to solve problems, or to create products, that are valued within one or more cultural settings (Gardner, 1993, p. 33). The purpose of this paper is to study whether the main intelligence tests are valid measures of peoples ability to perform intelligently. According to the past researches, it is found that the main intelligence tests such as Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices, Standard-Binet Intelligence Scale, and Wechslers tests are valid to predict peoples academic achievements (Freberg, Vandiver, Watkins, Canivez, 2008; Hale, Fiorello, Ka vanagh, Hoeppner, Gaither, 2001; Pind, Gunnarsdottir, Johannesson, 2003; Rushton, Skuy, Bons, 2004; Smith, Martin, Lyon, 1989). One of the studies which found that Wechslers tests are valid measures in predicting peoples academic achievements was done by Freberg et al. (2008). The aim of the study was to examine the validity of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Third Edition Full Scale IQ scores in measuring future academic achievement based on the significant difference among the WISC-III four factor scores: Freedom from Distractibility, Perceptual Organization, Verbal Comprehension, and Processing Speed (Freberg et al., 2008, p. 135). The study was participated by 202 students who were assessed twice over three years for special education qualifications. Participants age ranged from 6 to 13 years. Participants were divided into two groups according to the absence or presence of a significant variability between the WISC III four factor scores, and then the WISC III four factor scores were matched across groups on Full Scale IQ scores, sex, age, ethnicity and disability such as specific learning di sability, serious emotional disturbance, and mental retardation. In the study done by Freberg et al. (2008), the results were analysed by using hierarchical multiple regression showed that the WISC III Full Scale IQ was a valid measure of reading achievement (r = .65) and math achievement (r = .75) in the occurrence of significant factor score discrepancy. The results of this study support present argument because Freberg et al. (2008) found that WISC III Full Scale IQ could be a powerful and valid predictor of future academic achievement, where the higher the IQ score, the better it is in reading achievement and math achievement. However, the sample size in this study was too small to generalize the result to every aspect, so it is recommended that future research should be done with larger sample sizes. Besides, this study focused solely on the WISC III, which could be replaced by WISC IV, due to this limitation, it is suggested that this study should be replicate by using WISC IV or different kind of cognitive ability test to examine the g eneralizability of this study. Besides of the study done by Freberg et al. (2008), there is another study done by Hale et al. (2001) also found that Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Third Edition is a valid measure to predict childrens academic achievement. There were 174 children who age ranged from 6 to 16 years participated in this study. In order to be involved in this study, they needed to complete the 12 subtests to analyse factor scores and WISC III Full Scale IQ. Other than that, they needed to have Full Scale IQ between 80 and 120, and to have a significant discrepancy between logical or rational functioning and no less than one academic achievement area. Children were not included if they had a record of epilepsy, brain injury or any other medical condition that would affect psychological functioning. Archival data of 6-year period were collected to examine the presence and absence of medical histories. According to the results in the study done by Hale et al. (2001), it showed that Full Scale IQ was positively correlated with all the academic achievements Verbal Comprehension (r = .68), Reading Comprehension (r = .33), Reading Decoding (r = .33), Spelling (r = .39), Written Language (r = .33), and Math Computation (r = .44). The results of this study support present argument Hale et al. (2001) also found Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Third Edition as a valid measure to predict academic achievements such as verbal comprehension, reading comprehension, and math computation. It means when the children score higher in Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Third Edition, it is predicted that the children can also score higher in academic achievements as mentioned above. This study used a clinic-referred sample of children with learning disabilities, so the results in this study may not be generalized to school-based samples of children with learning disabilities or norm al children. Thus, future studies could look at whether the same performance patterns present for different group of populations. Apart from Wechsler Intelligence Scale, Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices is also one of the main intelligence tests. A study done by Pind et al. (2003) found that Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices is a valid measure to predict childrens academic achievement. In the study, participants that were actually assessed were 665 children who age ranged 6 to 16 years, but it ended up only 550 children were chosen to the actual standardised sample. The tests were run as group tests in a group of 10 children. Administrator was in the classroom to describe and to guide the children throughout the tests. To make sure coding of the answers accurately, every test form was keyed into computer twice. According to the results, Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices had higher positive correlation with mathematics as compared with the positive correlation of Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices and language subjects. Besides, Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices also had remarkable positive correl ations with the Icelandic National Examinations in fourth grade (r = .38), seventh grade (r = .64), and tenth grade (r = .53). The results of this study support my argument because it testified the usefulness of Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices to measure intelligence and to predict students academic achievements in Icelandic National Examinations, where the higher score the students got in Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices, the higher they could score in Icelandic National Examinations. Not only Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices is a valid measure to predict academic achievement, Rushton et al. (2004) found that Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices is also a valid measure in predicting academic achievement. There were actually 392 students from University of the Witwatersrand took the Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices, but it was cut down to 306 students by not including those without biographical data, high-school grades, or examination scores, or those who listed their age that over 23, or those who were in a small sample sizes. One hundred and seventy seven of them were Africans while another 129 were non-Africans, their age ranged from 17 to 23 years. Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices and other academic tests were administered by authors and his colleagues during regular class period. Students received 50 rand each as reward when they passed up the answer sheets. Based on the results in the study done by Rushton et al. (2004), for the Africans, results indicated that Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices correlated positively with English Test (r = .29), Similarities Test (r = .14), and High-school Grade Point Average (r = .22). While for the non-Africans, Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices also correlated positively with English Test (r = .25), Similarities Test (r = .26), and High-school Grade Point Average (r = .16). Contrary to expectation, Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices was not correlated with University Grades either for Africans or non-Africans. The results of this study support present argument because Rushton et al. (2004) examined the validity of Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices which indicated that it is a valid measure to predict academic achievement although it failed to predict University Grades. It was mentioned that Africans were not Smith et al. (1989) did a Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition validation study on predicting academic performance. This study compared and assessed the performance of students with learning disabilities on the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition. The sample included 18 students with learning disabilities who ranged in age from 8 to 11 years. Every student was diagnosed before as having learning disability by taking intelligence test individually. Every student was arranged to take the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children test and Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition test in counterbalance sequence by psychologists in school. The time spent between tests was 5 to 22 days, with an average of 12 days. Results in the study done by Smith et al. (1989) showed that the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Childrens Mental Processing Composite was positively correlated with Sequential Processing (r = .77), Simultaneous Processing (r = .92), and Achievement (r = .48), while Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Editions Test Composite was also positively correlated with Verbal Reasoning (r = .96), Abstract or Visual Reasoning (r = .89), and Quantitative Reasoning (r = .78). These results indicated that Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children and Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition are valid measures of students with learning disability to perform intelligently. The results of this study support present argument because Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children and Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition also found to be valid to predict academic achievement positively. The limitation of this study was the sample of participants. As relationship between intelligence s cales and academic achievements were examined in this study, participants were needed to do certain solving problems, reading, spelling, or writing questions, thus, students with learning disabilities might not be able to solve or answer some of the questions which would affect the results. Therefore, future researches are needed to examine the generalizability of the results for different samples of students with learning disabilities. As a conclusion, main intelligence tests such as Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices, Standard-Binet Intelligence Scale, and Wechslers tests are found to be valid to predict peoples academic achievements (Freberg et al., 2008; Hale et al., 2001; Pind et al., 2003; Rushton et al., 2004; Smith et al., 1989). According to the scores from intelligence scales, academic achievement might be able to be predicted; however, it does not mean people can get the good result without paying certain amount of efforts on getting impressive results. Therefore, intelligence scales can be good measures or tool to predict how well is the people able to achievement, but it cannot assure the prediction if the person does not pay any effort.

Nursing Diagnosis Essay -- Clinical Reasoning Cycle

J.P., a 58 year old female, presents to the Emergency Room on March 18th. She has a past medical history of cervical cancer, atheroembolism of the left lower extremity, fistula of the vagina, peripheral vascular disease, neuropathy, glaucoma, GERD, depression, hypertension, chronic kidney disease, and sickle cell anemia. She complains of right lower extremity pain accompanied by fatigue, a decreased appetite, increased work of breathing, burning on urination, and decreased urine output for three days. On admission, a complete physical assessment was performed along with a blood and metabolic panel. The assessment revealed many positive and negative findings. J.P. was positive for dyspnea and a productive cough. She also was positive for dysuria and hematuria, but negative for flank pain. After close examination of her integumentary and musculoskeletal system, the examiner discovered a shiny firm shin on the right lower extremity with +2 edema complemented by severe pain. A set of baseline vitals were also performed revealing a blood pressure of 124/80, pulse of 87 beats per minute, oxygen saturation of 99%, temperature of 97.3 degrees Fahrenheit, and respiration of 12 breaths per minute. The blood and metabolic panel exposed several abnormal labs. A red blood cell count of 3.99, white blood cell count of 22.5, hemoglobin of 10.9, hematocrit of 33.7%, sodium level of 13, potassium level of 3.1, carbon dioxide level of 10, creatinine level of 3.24, glucose level of 200, and a BUN l evel of 33 were the abnormal labs. After a thorough examination, J.P. was diagnosed with a deep vein thrombosis (DVT). â€Å"DVT develops most often in the legs but can occur also in the upper arms†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Ignatavicius & Workman, 2013). Due t... ...diagnoses that cause physical pain, but also problems that can cause emotional, spiritual, and psychosocial trauma. After the implementation of the stated interventions, the patient made physical and emotional progress towards the aforementioned goals. The above goals were not only met, but exceeded expectations of the patient and the nurses who provided care. Works Cited Ackley, B. & Ladwig, G. (2010) Nursing diagnosis handbook:an evidence based guide to planning care. Maryland Heights, MO: Mosbey. Ignatavicius, D. D., & Workman, M. L. (2013). Care of Intraoperative Patients. Medical-surgical nursing: patient-centered collaborative care (7th ed.). St. Louis: Elsevier. Taylor, C. (2011). Introduction to Nursing. Fundamentals of nursing: the art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Education and Transformation Essay Essay

Transformative learning is the process of â€Å"using a prior interpretation to construe a new or revised interpretation of the meaning of one’s experience in order to guide future action† (Mezirow, 2003). It is also a process where â€Å"an education that is transformative redirects and reenergizes those who pause to reflect on what their lives have been and take on new purposes and perspectives† (Will McWhinney et al. , 2003). Jack Mezirow’s central idea is the process â€Å"to make meaning from our experiences through reflection, critical reflection and critical self-reflection â€Å" (Dirkx et al.,2006), Mezirow named this process perspective transformation. According to John M. Dirkx (2006) transformative learning is emotionally driven and focuses more on a deeper learning, his view suggests a more â€Å"integrated and holistic understanding of subjectivity, one that reflects the intellectual, emotional, moral and spiritual dimensions of our being in the world† (Dirkx et al. ,2006). Transformative learning is a process most individuals have experienced once in their lifetime and it is a process that I can closely relate to. My personal experience of transformative learning is closely relevant to  John M Dirkx emotional approach to the process and Mezirow’s Subjective Reframing (self-reflective) (Dirkx et al. ,2006). To demonstrate my personal transformative learning experience, I have included my story in this essay. Education has always been an important factor in my life; unlike some of my peers I enjoy studying and learning. In high school, in year 10 I had to choose my year eleven and twelve subjects. Business studies in secondary school seemed very interesting, hence why I chose it as a year eleven and twelve subject. Throughout my entire education life, I have always had a  great interest in history whether it was ancient or modern so I also chose to study modern history. For me both subjects were very important as they made a lot of difference to my 1 1 ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank). However with the two subjects I had two completely different experiences, which is related to transformative learning. Firstly, with business studies I had a teacher who lacked discipline and she was a â€Å"vessel full of knowledge and information† and we were her bank account, where she would pour her wisdom and knowledge to us students; this method is called the banking method (personal  communication, 5 August, 2013). Her teaching method included reading information from the textbook and not explaining in detail what certain terms mean and how they relate to our learning. Personally, I would walk out of the classroom as an empty ‘vessel’ and feel like I wasted fifty minutes of my learning time. Each lesson it got harder and harder to concentrate because I did not understand anything that I was supposedly learning, so my other peers easily distracted me. Unfortunately for me, my teacher kept thinking that I was the main source of distraction. Until today I still do not know why she strongly believed that I  distracted everyone else, maybe it was because I did not interact with classroom topics – I did not learn anything and that is why I could not participate in class discussions. Each lesson, I had to sit in the front row by myself or next to a student that was not my friend; some lessons I would not even speak a word but my teacher would still pick on me for turning my head to the direction of the noise a student was making. By the end of year eleven, I absolutely hated my teacher but I never argued with her, I just tried my best to stay focused and teach myself. My parents have always told me to respect my teachers but to also stand up for myself in cases where I felt isolated and disadvantaged. Three months before the HSC (Higher School Certificate), I finally had enough and stood up for myself. It was a Monday morning, I had double period of Business studies and as always I had to sit in the front row and not speak a word. Towards the end of the lesson, I quietly asked the girl next to me about a word I did not understand, before I even had a chance to hear the answer my teacher started to scream at me and that is when I broke down in tears. I tried to explain what I was doing however she 2 2 refused to listen to me so I started to argue with her, I raised my voice at her and told her to stop screaming at me. She instantly sent me to the head teacher of business studies however it backfired on her. I told the head teacher everything that had happened within a year and a half, I showed her my workbook and explained how she lacked teaching skills. Fortunately for me, one of my peers supported me and told her that the teacher kept picking on me. The next day in class we had a new seating arrangement, my teachers attitude had changed  dramatically, she seemed more focus and more serious about teaching. However, I decided to drop business studies as I felt that I could not do well in the final exam and also I could not cope with my teacher. In hindsight I am glad that I dropped that subject and stood up for myself. In comparison, modern history was my favourite subject. My passion and interest for history had a large contribution to my high grades and achievements but my teacher, she is the one who helped me receive the marks I wanted in the HSC. She applied the ‘factory learning’ (personal communication, 5 August, 2013) theory to us, at the end of each lesson we would  have to stand up and explain the key points we had learnt that lesson. Additionally, in every single class we would receive worksheets and a summary of all the important information and she would go through it, with us. If we did not understand something, she was more than happy to take time out of her lunch and carefully explain that topic to us. For two years, every single lesson was fun and interesting, she never raised her voice at us, and instead she would just say ‘shhh’ or just tap us on the shoulder if we were talking over her. In hindsight, I now realise how much my attitude and perspective has changed towards  learning. Both subjects made me realise that I have the knowledge and wisdom to achieve what I want and it also directed me to choose what I want to study in University, which is teaching. Mezirow’s states his perspective on transformative learning by describing it as an 3 3 adult learning that modifies their assumptions and clarifies them. Mezirow calls this the ‘meaning perspective’, which â€Å"selectively shapes and delimits perception, cognition, feelings and disposition† by inclining our motives, goals and expectations (Dirkx et al. ,2006). Personally, my transformational learning experience is linked with Mezirow’s meaning  perspective theory; I made meaning out of my experiences by defining and reflecting on my journey. Many people may not associate a negative and positive experience with transitional learning and meaning perspective but for me those two diverse experiences have transformed my views. I now not only study to become a teacher but I also try my best to practice becoming a helpful, disciplined, understanding and caring teacher, so my students can enjoy my classes and endure positive learning. My personal experience is described as transformative learning as I have changed and learnt  about my learning environment and even more importantly about my strengths and weaknesses. My experience closely relates to both Mezirow’s and Dirkx’s theories. Mezirow’s idea of subjective reframing and meaning perspective and also Dirkx’s emotional approach to the being in the world (Dirkx et al. ,2006). John Dirkx’s approach to transitional learning focuses more on the inner self and inner world. Dirkx’s first point is that we as adults keep our â€Å"personal and private thoughts, beliefs and values† close to our chest and â€Å"only allow a few, if any, others to know†, he further concentrates on our inner voices, the ones that  Ã¢â‚¬Å"lend a felt presence† (Dirkx et al. ,2006). According to Dirkx, these inner voices are not alone, he highlights that our consciousness joins our inner voices, which eventually lead to individual’s thinking why they think of how others perceive them as (Dirkx et al. ,2006). Joining Dirkx on his idea is Willis Harman who states that human consciousness should be given full recognition â€Å"to the primacy of inner conscious awareness†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (O’Sullivan et al. , 2004). Both Dirkx and Harman’s ideas links back to my experience as a high school student. 4 4 Looking back, I kept my true thoughts private and I allowed my inner voices to get the better  of me. Similarly to what Harman suggests, I soon started to recognise my consciousness after I stood up for myself and critically assessed myself for not taking actions earlier. In contemporary society, now, if something similar was to happen I would use my brain and consciousness rather than concentrate on my inner voice. However, Mezirow challenges Dirkx’s idea by highlighting that transitional learning occurs within ones awareness and that the outcome must involve a â€Å"rational process of critically assessing one’s epistemic assumptions†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dirkx et al. ,2006). Mezirow further adds to his critique, that the reason why  transitional learning is stopped from being reduced to a â€Å"faith, prejudice, vision or desire† is because; he believes that it happens within awareness and consciousness (Dirkx et al. ,2006). Furthermore, my transformational learning experience allowed me to have a better understanding of myself, I was able to self reframe (self reflect) on my journey and observe the situation that I endured and finally recognise the main reason that factored to having a transformative experience. Hence, why I believe that both Dirkx and Mezirow’s theories relate to my personal experience. In addition to Mezirow, Dirkx and Harman’s ideas, Roslyn Arnold argues that in order for effective learning to take place an effective teacher should be put in place (Arnold, 2005)John Hattie who studied ‘America’s very best teachers’ highlights that the key ingredient for the most effective teaching is not reducing class sizes or introducing new technology or asking for parent help or tutoring or concentrating on certain students, it is finding a classroom teacher that has an impact on children. He further adds that our focus should be shifted to higher quality teaching rather than seek for other solutions (Arnold, 2005). Arnold puts forward the idea that although teaching and learning is vital in schools, teachers should also recognise that students well-being are just as important as their learning. Arnold also recognises the fact that it is not only â€Å"what we learn, but it is also about how we feel about 5 5 what we learn† (Arnold, 2005). Personally I can relate to both Arnold and John Hattie’s ideas with regards to my modern history teacher. As previously stated, my modern history teacher cared for our well-being along with our learning, she did this by having group conversations  with us about what we did on the weekend or on some days when we finished our class work early we would show her funny pictures we found on Facebook. Most of all, she would show great interest in our studying and grades so she would ask us to tell her the best way we learn and how else she could make the HSC year a little less stressful for us. It was also the way I felt about the subject, I absolutely enjoyed every single minute of modern history, I would look forward to each lesson and I would always participate in-group discussions. In comparison with my business studies teacher I could not even ask questions that were  relevant to the topic, she did not care for my well-being, she would intentionally make jokes that would hurt other students or make rude comments. Of course no one made a complaint about it because they enjoyed wasting quality-learning time and distracting her from teaching. Both Arnold and John Hattie’s theories are extremely important, they not only suggest that learning is part of our environment and consciousness but they also look for other elements that impact students education and my experience with both teachers significantly show that their ideas are right. In conclusion, the reason why I selected to discuss both of my personal experiences is because I can relate to Jake Mezirow, John Dirkx, Willis Harman, Roslyn Arnold and John Hattie’s concepts and ideas significantly relate to my transition. Recognising and self-assessing your experience is essential to individuals like myself, if I did not recognise and self reframe myself, I could not have move forward or transform. Although Mezirow argues that transition happens in awareness and Dirkx argues that it happens when we are unaware, I personally believe that it is both as individuals can listen to their inner voice but 6 6  also be conscious while transforming. Arnold and John Hattie both argue strong and important points, high quality teaching will always have a positive impact on students and if teachers care for their well being then problems such as mine will not happen. Personally, I am glad that I experienced both a negative and positive learning environment as it allowed me to change the way I think and express my thoughts and values without having to worry about being yelled at. It was also a good experience because when I do become a teacher I will always keep in mind my experiences and never treat my students the way my business  studies teacher treated me. Some individual’s experiences include environmental factors, family, friends and work that allow them to transform. My personal experience included enduring two diverse learning experiences that made me transform to the young teacher I will be, who will always put her students well being first. 7 7 REFERENCE LIST Arnold, R. , (2005). Empathic intelligence. Dean of education at the University of Tasmania (UNSW Press). Dirkx, M, J. , Mezirow, J, & Cranton, P. (2006). Musings and reflections on the meaning, context, and process of Transformative Learning a dialogue between John M. Dirkx, Jack Mezirow and Patricia Cranton. Journal of Transformative Education; 4; 123, doi: 10. 1177/1541344606287503 McWhinney, W, & Markos, L. (2003). Transformative education: across the threshold. Journal of Transformative Education; 1; 16, doi: 10. 1177/1541344603252098 Mezirow, J. (2003). Epistemology of transformative learning. Unpublished manuscript. O’Sullivan, E. V. , & Taylor, M. M. (2004). Glimpses of an ecological consciousness. In Learning toward an ecological consciousness: Selected transformative practices (pp. 5-24). New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. 8 8 BIBLIOGRAPHY Cooper, S. (n. d). Transformational learning. Theories of learning in educational psychology. Retrieved from http://www. lifecircles-inc. com/Learningtheories/humanist/mezirow. html (accessed 5 September 2013) 9 9 View as multi-pages TOPICS IN THIS DOCUMENT Consciousness, Education, Learning, Learning curve, Meaning of life, Teacher RELATED DOCUMENTS Education Philosophy †¦ formal logical techniques to philosophical problems. My educational philosophy is based on personal experience, and from daily observations. 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Core Business Skills

1. 0 INTRODUCTION This particular assignment's aim is to discuss the application of the strategic management process in a retail industry. I have chosen Starbucks Coffee as my food and beverage industry to research on, and to thoroughly explain the strategic management process implied by them. Starbucks Coffee Company was founded by English teacher Jerry Baldwin, history teacher Zev Siegl, and writer Gordon Bowker back in year 1971 Seattle, Washington. Starbucks Coffee Company is known as the world's leading coffee retailer, roaster and last but not least brand of specialty coffee.Apart from providing only coffee, Starbucks Coffee also cater light snacks like sandwiches, delicious pastries, healthy salads and etc. Since Starbucks Coffee is the world's leading brand in coffee, they serve up to 35 million customers from all over the world weekly. Because of their great reputation, they have successfully opened up to 17,000 stores worldwide. The company's mission statement is to ‘ inspire and nurture human spirit'. Firstly, Starbucks Coffee focus to provide a ‘great work environment' to their members so that they are treated with ‘respect and dignity'.Secondly, Starbucks Coffee also believes that conducting business ethically is the main key to be successful in a business. As a worldwide and leading-brand company, Starbucks Coffee insists strongly on upholding a culture where diversities are well valued and respected. These diversities include ‘inclusion: human connection and engagement', ‘equity: fairness and justice', ‘accessibility: ease of use and barrier free' so that employees with diverse background are fairly treated and respected to ensure a comfortable and enjoyable workplace (www. starbucks. com 2011). . 0 Strategic Analysis 2. 1 Internal Analysis 2. 1. 1 Strength: One of the main strength possesses by Starbucks Coffee is the strong brand image they have. In terms of the coffee industry, they are considered to be most reputable compared to Coffee Beans, Gloria Jeans, and other competitors among the industry. Starbucks Coffee manage to prove themselves as a highly resorted brand by getting rated as the top 100 most seeked after brand. Apart from having a high brand value, Starbucks Coffee has managed to globalise their target market in to all parts of the world.This opens up the opportunity for Starbucks themselves to monopolise the foreign market as well. 2. 1. 2 Weaknesses: No matter what industry a firm is in, they will face certain weaknesses that they have to always try to improve on. As for Starbucks Coffee, one of their main weaknesses is the product price. In many countries, Starbucks Coffee is considered as a premium product where the prices of their products are higher compared to other coffee shops (Lee S, 2007). Another weakness that Starbucks Coffee has is that they are too focused in their domestic market which is the United Stated of America.This will lead Starbucks Coffee into a vu lnerable position where it is hard for them to predict unforeseen changes in the industry's market at other countries. 2. 2 Stakeholders in Starbucks Coffee: Stakeholders in Starbucks Coffee includes all the workers which are known as partners. This is because Starbucks Coffee wants to create an environment where all their employees would feel comfortable and relaxed (Kembell B, 2002). The second stakeholders for Starbucks Coffee Company would be their highly valued customers. These customers play an important role in Starbucks Coffee because they are the ones who visit the coffeehouse almost everyday.In order to feel connected to Starbucks Coffee, customers can easily hear and engaged with the employees and products of Starbucks anytime, anywhere (Hanft A, 2005). The other crucial stakeholder in Starbucks Coffee will be their coffee farmers. These coffee farmers are actually the backbone to Starbucks Coffee because Starbucks rely mainly on coffee products. In order to uphold the so cial and economic well-being of their coffee farmers, they have decided to pay a premium price for high quality coffee beans from them (Robertson H, 2006). 2. 3 Core Competencies:As we all know, core competencies in any industry is actually their comparative advantage. As for Starbucks Coffee, one of their core competency is human resource. Firstly, Starbucks Coffee is a company that values their employees greatly. Starbucks shows their appreciation to their employees by giving them the opportunity to receive full healthcare benefits, stock options/discounted stock purchase plans (Weber G, 2005). Starbucks Coffee's tangible resources will be their high-quality coffee beans called the Narino Supremo Beans. The Narino Supremo Beans have the highest quality and is the largest bean in Columbia (www. melita. om, 2011). In a recent report, it is said that the president of the Columbia;s National Federation of Coffee Growers have confirmed the purchase of 6 to 7 percent of Starbucks shares (Castaneda S, 2009). This shows that Starbucks Coffee has sole ownership over the high quality beans which is an advantage for them. Starbucks Coffee has a good reputation and is well accepted throughout the world. This reflects on their intangible resources to attract customers. Having a good brand name, friendly employees and high quality coffee beans are the main traits possessed by Starbucks Coffee. 2. 4. 0 External Analysis 2. 4. 1 OpportunitiesStarbucks has always use their opportunities to expand their business in to a whole new level. Firstly, Starbucks has created an opportunity for themselves to expand their brand name to foreign countries. It is reported that Starbucks are planning to open up to 15,000 new stores across the world in the years to come (Datamonitor, 2005). Apart from that, Starbuck's technological advancements has given them a good opportunity to conveniently distribute products to customers through the internet. Starbucks has also equipped all their loung es with WiFi services to accommodate their valued-customers to boot (Elgan M, 2008). . 4. 2 Threats One of the threats that will be faced by Starbucks coffee is the price fluctuation of diary and coffee products. The price of theese products can also be affected by the income levels of customers in upcoming or developing country as goods over there are highly inflated (Pinkasovitch A, 2011). In every industry that we are in, there will always be competitors trying to penetrate the market . Competitors for Starbucks Coffee would be other coffehouses that sells coffee. Coffeebean, San Francisco Coffee, and Gloria Jeans are direct competitors for Starbucks. 2. 5 PEST Analysis 2. 5. 1 Political Factor:One of the political factors that posses as a major issue for Starbucks is the unstability of political issues that would directly affect the growth rate of Starbucks Coffee. From a recent report, it says that up to five Arab states have decided to boycott American goods with their primary target being Starbucks Coffee shops (Antievil, 2008) 2. 5. 2 Economic Factor: Apart from that, Economic factor is also a very important matter to look into when executing a strategic analysis. One of the economical problems that affected Starbucks was the recession in Switzerland, Japan and Germany in the early 2000s.In a more recent report, the Company had revealed a 70% drop in their quarterly profits to only $64. 3m. Apart from that, they are also planning to close down up to 300 stores (Clark A, 2009). 2. 5. 3 Social Factor: Starbucks has always prioritise on their social issues and responsibilities. Starbucks always participated in upholding the importance of the environment. A move by Starbucks to create a partnership with the Conservation International, mainly to put their attention on environmental protection such as waste reduction and energy and water saving programs (David, 2009).A move like this proves that Starbucks are cautious about the social responsibilities. 2. 5. 4 Technology: In terms of technology, Starbucks has always been up to date. All of Starbuck's outlets are fitted with Wi-Fi services. Another move to be technologically involved will be the creation of music CDs that will suit the specific moods of customers. They are available for purchase at any Starbucks outlet (Lodi K, 2006). 2. 5 Porter's Five Forces Framework: The Porter's Five Forces framework is applied to go in to a more in depth analysis of an industry.The five forces usually includes industry competitors, new entrants, suppliers, customers, and substitutes. In all industries, companies will have to face strong competitors in order to dominate the markets. For Starbucks, their main rivalries would be Coffee Bean, San Francisco Coffee, and other coffee lounges that falls into Starbuck's category. They do not only compete domestically, but also internationally. Sometimes, rivalry from other industries can also be a threat. For example, McDonalds could pose as a threat to St arbucks because they are a fast-food chain yet they still provide coffee in their menu.They could be one of the strongest competitors for Starbucks to face (Gregory S, 2009). Another forces that Starbucks faces is the emergence of substitute products. Because Starbucks is a premium product, therefore their prouct prices are usually very high. During a recession, there is a high possibility that customers from Starbucks look for a substition to lower down their expenditure. Products like Coca-cola or Pepsi-cola could be one of the substitues for high quality coffee beans. However there is a big difference in the taste and smell when it is being consumed. Therefore the main substitute for Starbucks will be basic coffee.This will be a threat to Starbucks because they are an organisation that caters to high-income earners. One other factor that might affect an industry will be the customer's buying power. However, this depends on the organisation itself. If they are an attractive organi sation then the bargaining power of buyers will be low and poses no threat to the company. For Starbucks, the bargaining power of its buyers are low. Althought prices of Starbucks are high, customers still buy it because of its differentiated and outstanding products. The other forces that will directly affect an industry is the supplier's bargaining power.The supplier's bargaining power will rise when there is a rise in demand of the product that they supply. Starbucks could be facing this threat because they rely on central american to produce the coffee traded. Since there are more demand in high-quality beans, main suppliers will naturally have a stronger bargaining power. â€Å"An over-crowded market will give the coffee suppliers bargaining power. There are no substitute products for the coffee beans Starbucks must buy. This is a potential threat to the company,† (Hanft A, 2005). 3. 0 Strategy Formulation 3. 1 BusinessLevel StrategyFor all the industries, they have to c hose a business strategy that can successfully dominate the market. The formulation of this strategy is very crucial in a busines because it helps to find customers. One of the tools that can be used to formulate an industry's business level strategies is the porter's generic strategies. Starbucks uses the focused differentiated strategy derived by Michael Porter to run their business. As we all know, Starbucks is known as a food and beverage company. But to be specific, Starbucks is a food and beverage company that focuses on coffee brewing.They are well known for their high-quality beans and comfortable lounges. Starbucks chooses a segment to market their products to. This includes coffee fanatics and people who are looking for a place to relax. However, Starbucks caters their products to mostly high-income earners because their products are expensive. This shows that the focused differentiation strategy is used to seek their competitive advantage in the market through uniqueness of their products (Campling J, 2007). The advantage of Starbucks' focus on a single market can give them the chance to handle all managerial, financial, technological, and capabilities in one business.Starbucks has always been trying to come out with more creative and innovative products to be differentiated among their competitors. This has certainly made them the biggest winner in the coffee based industry (Guarriello T, 2008). Although the prices are high in Starbucks, they are very differentiated in terms of the coffee beans they use and they way the serve. This shows that the focus differentiation startegy that Starbucks uses is an effective way to attract customers since they are the world leading brand in its industry. Another way to formulate a business-level strategy in an industry is to apply the product life cycle method.The first stage of a product life cycle is introduction, followed by growth, maturity, and decline (Campling J, 2007). 3. 2 Corporate-level Strategy The corporate strategies are used by industries to direct their organisations towards a sustainable competitive advantage (Campling J, 2007). The main purpose for the use of this strategy is to set a target and control resources allocation for an enterprise. The first approach to formulate a corporate strategy is the portfolio planning approach. The portfolio planning approach are designed to help managers to decide on investing scare organisational resources among competing business opportunity.This straregy is very useful for multibusiness enterprises like Starbucks. Growth strategy can be used as one of the corporate level strategy to effectively expand and increase the size of a company's operations, through store expansion and global market penetration. In order for Starbucks to successfully expand their stores, it is required for them to have full concentration on their products (Campling J, 2007). Starbucks has been very aggressive in store expansion, this includes them opening u p to a dozen of stores in China in year 2007 (Yan Z, 2008).In addition to that, Starbucks has also put their main focus on diversifying their growth to other products. 4. 0 Strategy Implementation 4. 1 Organisation Structure: An enterprise's organisation structure is the mixture of task and reporting relationships that allows the company to control its lines of authority and communication at the same time allocating rights and duties. There are three types of organisational structures, the divisional structure, matrix organisation and hybrid structure. Starbucks has adopted the matrix organisation structure to focus on.All the employees in this firm would report to both a functional and divisional manager and lastly to a project manager. Failures of strategic planning happens most of the time. The most common strategic planning failures are failures of substance and failures of process. Failure of substance happens because there is inadequate attention being paid to major strategic planning elements. Failures of process will be caused by poor handling of strategy implentation like lack of participation error and goal displacement error. Therefore, the organisational structure in a company is very important to avoid unwanted uprising problems. . 2 Corporate Governance: The corporate governace is the system of control and performance monitoring of top management (Campling J, 2007). This task is usually done by the boards of directors, and other major stakeholder in the company. For Starbucks Coffee, they currently have 9 directors including the CEO of Starbucks Howard Schultz. These directors of Starbucks are responsible for ensuring goals and objectives in the company are met. The directors are well aware of their responsibility to provide a stable managing process so that the company's goalds are met (www. starbucks. com). 4. Strategic Leadership Strategic management is a leadership responsibility. Whereas strategic leadership is the capability to prepare othe rs with the ever-changing strategies in the market. Michael Porter says that the strategic leader of an enterprise has to be the CEO of an organisation (Campling J, 2007). One of the most crucial task for a strategic leader is to be a guardian of trade-offs. Countless commitment and disipline has to be put in by a strategic leader in order for the business the be successful. Another trait that a strategic leader must posses is the ability to create a sense of urgency.By having a sense of urgency, the strategic leader is able to give out a strong message to its organisation and their members that the need for consistent improvementwill always persist. A strategic-chief will also have to ensure that everyone related to the organistion understands the strategy that they are using. Leaders in an organisations will have to keep their members updated with their latest business strategy. Furthermore, the task of a strategic leader also includes being a teacher and a good communicator. 5. 0 Conclusion 5. 1 Importance of Strategic Management In conclusion, strategic management involves many processes.This includes identifying the mision, objectives and strategies of an industry. Strategic management is very important for a business as it is used to derive the main strategy for your business. With good strategic manangement skills, leaders are able to adopt to the sudden change in the market and they can also prepare themselves to the different needs and wants of their customers. An industry with a good strategy will always be succesful. Strategic management can also be applied to analyse the internal and external environment of an industry which can give leaders of an industry a better understanding of the market.