The Toyota Production System Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Toyota Production System - Article Example This paper will review the article â€Å"The Toyota Production System† by the Public Affairs Division of the Toyota Motor Corporation (2003). The main issue then is that Toyota needed to become more competitive in producing global cars, but in a more organized manner. This section proceeds to the background of the issue. The manufacturing industry is a highly competitive sector that thrives in constant innovation. Toyota discovered that quality management is one of the keys to global competitiveness, and that its management can formulate the TP, which will be its driver of global strengths. TPS relies on years of trial and error, until it has been perfected and applied by Toyota worldwide. The trial and error system means that the company learned from actual mistakes of the system and developed realistic solutions. The TPS is the brainchild of Taiichi Ohno. The main manufacturing system then was the push system, where manufacturers made whatever they thought was in demand. Thi s created a great deal of waste and inventory, however, because real demand tends to fluctuate. Ohno, through repeated trial and error, changed the push to a "pull" system that disabled the factory from making unnecessary items. The pull system consisted of tools, including the kanban (information card), andon (display board), and poka yoke (error prevention). Minoura asserted that only when these "loose collection of techniques" were consolidated into a fully-fledged system that the company was able to deploy TPS across its manufacturing plants. The major points of the article are that the TPS can identify wastes in the production process and optimize the scheduling process, training people are fundamental to achieving quality products and processes, and good supplier-manufacturer relations are critical to an efficient production system. The article highlights the importance of just-in-time production that begins with cutting the lead-time for making things. Minoura argued that it is important to cut processes that do not add value. He noted that many delays come from transferring one part to another and so if it is possible to eradicate transfers, this greatly reduced lead-time. The TPS is also about developing people. The article argues the value of human development to TPS, because people are the ones making products. It asserts the importance of training people to following rules and regulations of kaizen so that Toyota's monozukuri (making things) can be attained. Minoura also underscores that localization or genchika is important. It is about promoting the attitude of TPS ingrained into the local employees of the company. Finally, suppliers are called to think like car manufacturers, so that they can also cut costs and customize their products. Toyota maintains good supplier relations to attain cost advantages and preserve trust, which is critical to the just-in-time system. Hence, TPS is truly a comprehensive approach to manufacturing, as it merges peo ple, technology, management, and systems thinking under one umbrella of total quality management. In conclusion, this article suggested the use of lean manufacturing in reducing lead time and generating a climate for developing a learning organization. I believe that lean manufacturing will truly have an impact on lead time, because its diverse tools and practices are crucial in identifying wasteful processes. These tools also stress the value of correcting mistakes as they occur and incorporating thinking when solving problems at individual work levels. Furthermore, TPS is not only a technological system with information system dimensions, but also a people management system dimension. The

What people-management tools can be applied to enhance levels of Essay

What people-management tools can be applied to enhance levels of service quality exhibited by low-budget flight attendants You need to justify your recommendations on theoretical and empirical evidence - Essay Example The productivity of human resources depends on the way human resource managers manage them during their working hours on the job. If human resources are managed effectively, the result is always an increase in their motivation and drive to do work. The work of these managers is therefore to look for ways to enhance their motivation and all other things will fall into place. Managers who are ineffective in their performance sometimes face opposition and rejection by workers, they may face sabotage for those decision and strategies that are implemented in the hope of ensuring increased performance in the organization. The Flight Industry is one of the sectors that are associated with a lot of prestige by many people. Employees joining the industry are always beaming with huge expectations of better pay and flight adventure in destinations across the world. The fact is that like other industries, there are companies that offer low cost flight services to the clients, this means that, flight attendants have to be prepared to cope in such an industry in order to enjoy their work responsibilities and grow their careers. In the flight industry, emotions are a normal part of life; this is the case in any service industry. Workers are expected to keep smiling and showing their clients a happy face even when the flight attendants are experiencing work stress (Suvanto, 1989, p. 23). New employees who are brought on board as flight attendants must learn how to adapt to the demanding work circumstances; they have to understand that smiling is an important thing that has to be maintained. In general, emotions play an important role in any work environment, they tell the kind of experiences that one is passing through, positive emotions elicit increased motivations that increase work performance. Emotional management is one of the most important responsibilities of human

Music history term paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Music history - Term Paper Example The technical aspect of rock music is not without social consequences. The intricacies of rock music are predominantly considered as genre for the male, and this has been reflected in the practice of rock music with the electric guitar in stage and studio. According to studies conducted by the music industry, even women who are adept at using computers and musical instruments are not skilled in using music software. Use of particular kinds of musical instruments in rock music has always been a subject of controversy. While on the one hand the instrument reflects a musician’s concept of self-expression, on the other hand it causes doubt in the minds of the listeners regarding the authenticity of music. However, since the origin of rock music, electric guitar has been inseparable part of this genre of music in terms of its sound and the loud body performances of rock performers (Frith et al., 13). Rock music is a popular genre of light music that has its origin in America in the 1950s. Today, rock music is known for its variations in styles, lyrics and soul. One of the most well-known figure in rock music is Bob Dylan who was born on May 24, 1941. He played a big role in popularizing rock music for more than five decades. In his long career, if there is one thing that has remained constant then that is change. Indeed, it is said that Bob Dylan gets into his car as one person and emerges from the car as another person. His life and style almost reflect the lyrics of his song â€Å"I’m not here, I’m gone†. It is the ability of Bob Dylan to maintain a constant change in his career is what makes him most adorable among his fans. When one visits his concert, it is likely that Bob will meet the expectations of the audience by playing fifteen songs and two or three encores, but there is also high possibility that the audience will be treated with one or two new songs (Yaffe, 18). Highway 61 Revisited is Bob Dylan’s sixth album that

What people-management tools can be applied to enhance levels of Essay

What people-management tools can be applied to enhance levels of service quality exhibited by low-budget flight attendants You need to justify your recommendations on theoretical and empirical evidence - Essay Example The productivity of human resources depends on the way human resource managers manage them during their working hours on the job. If human resources are managed effectively, the result is always an increase in their motivation and drive to do work. The work of these managers is therefore to look for ways to enhance their motivation and all other things will fall into place. Managers who are ineffective in their performance sometimes face opposition and rejection by workers, they may face sabotage for those decision and strategies that are implemented in the hope of ensuring increased performance in the organization. The Flight Industry is one of the sectors that are associated with a lot of prestige by many people. Employees joining the industry are always beaming with huge expectations of better pay and flight adventure in destinations across the world. The fact is that like other industries, there are companies that offer low cost flight services to the clients, this means that, flight attendants have to be prepared to cope in such an industry in order to enjoy their work responsibilities and grow their careers. In the flight industry, emotions are a normal part of life; this is the case in any service industry. Workers are expected to keep smiling and showing their clients a happy face even when the flight attendants are experiencing work stress (Suvanto, 1989, p. 23). New employees who are brought on board as flight attendants must learn how to adapt to the demanding work circumstances; they have to understand that smiling is an important thing that has to be maintained. In general, emotions play an important role in any work environment, they tell the kind of experiences that one is passing through, positive emotions elicit increased motivations that increase work performance. Emotional management is one of the most important responsibilities of human

English Church Schools Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

English Church Schools - Essay Example This change had been taking place, not only in Britain, but also in other European countries. As minorities got stronger, they started voicing their demands and insecurities. Government slowly realised that education for the children had been stagnant without taking into consideration the need to alter it. It also decided in the last three decades education had not been modernised. In Britain, as Henry VIII rebelled against the authority of the Pope, monarchs become the Head of the Religious faith. Britain, after Henry VIII incident, had its own Church and other connected institutions. After the Second World War, Britain had evolved into a multi-lingual and multi-cultural society, with many voices, demands, languages, cultures and religions. People from erstwhile colonies have made Britain their home, along with other asylum seekers and quite naturally, they all have become part of Britain now. Government had to protect their needs and requirements too. This led to a more coherent government policy and church schools have been asked to accommodate students of other faiths, a nd with effective guidance from cultural leaders, they have to reduce their Christian outlook to a large extent and teach children about other cultures. They have realised that they have to modernise their outlooks with the changes brought by the changing times. They are neither vehement about Christianity, nor reluctant to change. Till recently, we can say that nothing much has been done in this direction, even though this is a very important element of a welfare state. "One important target of active states is the school institution and its influence over how children are socialized. Since the Reformation, civic leaders have made grand claims about the magical effects of mass schooling and the secular state's power to expand it. But only in the past decade has research matured on both the causes and economic consequences of school expansion," (Fuller and Rubinson, 1992, p.1). Church schools might not sound and look like the best places to accommodate alien cultures. The stereotype and traditional church schools of olden days would never have taught anything other than Christianity. Fortunately, today, religious institutions are changing according to the time and requirements. Hence, most of these schools are accommodating the multi-cultural and multi-faith demands of British society. Even though they are still being called as 'Church Schools', run by the societies and funds belonging to the Church of England mainly, their function and focus has enormously shifted in recent years. Even Churches have accepted that Christianity is not the only religion in United Kingdom. They are not only providing multi-culture based education today, but also they are welcoming students from other cultures to join the schools without any discrimination in admission. They are also trying to know more about diverse cultures, so that they could be right in their approach. "It is also important to recognize the extent to which changes in education policy are influenced by larger social and economic developments. The analysis draws us back clearly to political questions as lying at the heart of education policy, which is, after all, about the choices that governments made," (Levin, 2001, p.18). Church schools, which were considered to be stuffy at one point of time, have changed so much in their approach, that it is not at all difficult for them to provide

Community Assessment and Analysis Essay Example for Free

Community Assessment and Analysis Essay Yuma Community Of all the problems faced by Yuma community, along with the state ranking for teen births, the community also takes third place. (County Health Rankings, 2012). Programs that will help to educate teens on the importance of using birth control in order to stop undesirable pregnancies are a rising need within the community. Additional health problems for this community include obesity in the adolescent population; in 2005, the Yuma community had approximately thirty six percent of its adolescent in obese category, comparing to twenty nine percent in the entire state. (Centers for Disease Control, 2005). In the state The Steps program steered by the Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care Centers, targeted five communities and over 2,200 children mostly decreasing sugary drinks, cumulative fiber intake and wholegrain foods. The state of Arizona as a whole is facing another larger issue in the Vaccination rate. World Health Organization mandates 95% of vaccination rate for the entire population. The rate of vaccination set by the state is 90% and the current rate of the State is 70%, which far below the target goal and is alarming. (Arizona Department of Health Service, 2011). Arizona Republic magazine reports that, I the upper and middle class one of the reason for non-compliance with immunization is fear of causing Autism. If given opportunity, the lower class families seem to show better compliance with immunization when cost factor is elicited (Alitucker, 2011). Location and climate play an important role in the health issues of this community. Mexico and California are the two borders of Yuma community. The economy and budget gets divided among law enforcement and Border patrol. The increasing crime rate requires the state to contribute a major part of its budget towards law enforcement and protection of its citizens, which takes a down toll on the availability of the public health res ources initiation. A health initiative, to utilize funding ,such as to ensure free water supply to all the community could benefit to elicit problems related to Dehydration in this desert climate. Educational status is another concern of this community. Hispanic population accounts for sixty percent. High rate of drop outs from school is considered to be related to language barrier. Education can play a vital role in enabling the community to critically to acknowledge problems and to find remedies to stay healthy as a community. Yuma Community can benefit from added funding to support and to maintain programs to stay healthy as a community. With the limited funding, community is able to assist with citizens with housing, health insurance including dental coverage in the community (Need Help Paying Bills, 2011). Yuma community cannot be considered totally poor, because the community consists of one main acute care hospital and two smaller hospitals inside a sixty mile distance. But the lack of Medical specialty such as Cardiac surgeries or those require high skilled treatments are not easily available within the community. The nearest specialty hospitals for children and adults are in Phoenix. Fatal accidents accounts as first reason for the higher death rate in the community. In 2007, the total death rate for the city of Yuma is higher than the state average in total, directing to fatal accidents as the source (Yuma, AZ, 2012). The functional health assessment of Yuma community, we have learned that there are many problems that can be considered in the County. Some of the key problems prominent are high rates of obesity, alcoholism, drug addiction, and teen pregnancy. Though the total obesity rates are close to national average, the statistics show that County has a much higher rate of adults that do not exercise. In order to care for the mental health needs of the community, the County has six addiction treatment centers. The suicide rate remains high even with the availability of mental health service within the community. There are two military bases to serve the community. The increased poverty rate is believed to be the reason for higher addiction rate. Yuma is the eleventh largest city in the state, but they have the third highest rate of teen births. There are several facilities in the county to assist socially with issues related to parenting; poverty, and employment, addition of more funding and facilities can be helpful to the community, to rebuild a healthier community. Even with all of these problems, several people are proud to call Yuma County their home. The friendship felt within the communities such as a military social function, the local bar, at the river, or out on the ridges leads many people to find a pleasant and happy life here. There are plenty of resources to help the population discover the services they require, and to enjoy a cleaner and healthier environment. With an added focus on the health issues, Yuma community can stay healthy and happy. Sleep and rest. The sleep habit of the people in Yuma is mostly uninterrupted. Most of them are sleeping 6-8 hrs at night. Going to bed At 10 pm and waking at 0600.There are full time workers with 12 hour and 8 hour schedules. Some of the members are doing the part time work, some are doing voluntary work. Some of the older population states that very seldom they use sleeping pills to promote sleep. Few of the ladies have the habit of drinking, hot milk before going to bed, limited number of ladies have the habit of drinking wine before sleep. Some of the adult populations have sleep apnea problems. Sound sleep indicates sound health of mind and body. Cognitive/Perceptual The primary language for this community is English. Increasing numbers of older adults have access to and are knowledgeable about computers. They are well educated and most of them are well employed. No communication barriers noted among this group. Libraries and internet facilities are available in the community for the members use. Most of the older people using glasses for the visual impairment and few of them were using hearing aid for the auditory impairment. The people go to the community college for short term career goals. It was interesting to note that some of the older people are continuing education. Self-Perception/Self-Concept Yuma city population consist of 29.6% under the age of 18, 11.9% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. Agriculture is a major industry in Yuma, topping Arizona counties in agricultural sales. In addition, Yuma County also houses the US Marine Corps Air Station and US Army Yuma Proving Grounds are located near Yuma City. Yuma County is thus characterized by large transient populations, as it is a temporary place of residence for agricultural migrant workers, winter residents and military personnel. With the beginning of the winter growing season in October, the county has a large influx of migrant farm workers and winter residents. In 2008, Yuma County was a temporary home to 41,314 migrant and agricultural workers and to 12,600 winter residents (Yuma Special Area Statistical Profile-2008). Hunting is a popular sport, as the county offers a variety of different types of game. Fun, Friendship, Freedom and fulfillment are the mission of Yuma County. The members are bound together by these missions. Some of the major attractions in Yuma County are the historical Territorial Prison, the Yuma Crossing Historic Park. Other great places to visit are the Kofa Mountain Range and Wildlife Refuge, and Martinez and Mittry Lakes. Sexuality/Reproductive The people in Yuma County believe that teen pregnancy and/or STDs are a major health issue in Yuma County. Youth and teens are most affected along with Hispanics and Native Americans. Compared to the 2010 health targets, however, Yuma County falls short in reducing teen pregnancy among 15-17 year olds, prenatal care, low birth weight, and fetal/infant death. The family environment was mentioned as a factor contributing to negative health outcomes stemming from the breakdown of the family. One interview respondent felt that â€Å"children do not have a sense of self-worth or self-esteem and are no longer being nourished; only sustained.† Interview respondents felt that parents do not have time for their children and there is a lack of communication between parents and children. Further, they felt parents are not involved or are not educated on how to take care of their children’s health. Most of the members are having annual physical checkup with mammogram and Pap smear. Community awareness program including the transmission and prevention of STD/ HIV / AIDS are being held in the community. Coping/Stress An important aspect of healthy ageing is the ability to cope with and adapt to life conditions and transitions. Participation in social activity helps the Yuma county people to cope with transitory, acute and chronic stressors in their lives. The accumulation of chronic health conditions can negatively affect psychological wellbeing and quality of life. In addition to health-related stressors, the death of a spouse is often a challenging loss for older population. Related to this, social isolation, loneliness and loss of social support systems may be additional stressors in older people’s lives that affect psychological wellbeing. There is evidence that both personal attributes and social resources influence the perceived severity of a stressor, and also the types of coping strategies that older women use to manage these stressors. The Yuma county members managing stress with multiple ways. Reference Best Places. (2012). People in Yuma County, Arizona. Retrieved November 29, 2012, from http://www.bestplaces.net/people/county/arizona/Yuma Centers for Disease Control. (2005). Teen obesity statistics. Retrieved November 27, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov Child, youth, and school services. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.yumamwr.com/cys.html City of Yuma. (2012). Parks and recreations. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from http://www.ci.yuma.az.us/1357.htm County Health Rankings. (2012). Yuma, Arizona teen birth rates. Retrieved from http://m.countyhealthrankings.org/node/246/14

Three ways that stress is conceptualised by psychologists

Three ways that stress is conceptualised by psychologists Researchers define stress as a physical, mental, or emotional response to events that cause bodily or mental tension. Therefore, stress is a disruptive condition that occurs in response to internal or external environments and affects the body or mind. Depending on the stressors and the types of events being dealt with, stress can manifest itself physically, emotionally or mentally. Physical stress occurs when the body starts to suffer resulting from stressful situation and symptoms show in a range of ways and vary in their seriousness. Emotional stress is a response by the mind when affected by things like anxiety, anger, depression, irritability, frustration or over-reaction to everyday problems. Psychological stress result when an individual is exposed to long-term stress and the symptoms may include withdrawal from society, phobias, compulsive behaviours, eating disorders and night terrors. The concept of stress has been viewed in different ways: An internal body response nonspecific response of the body to any demand made upon it. This is a state of psychological and physical tension produced when there is a mismatch between the perceived demands of a situation and an individuals perceived ability to cope. This leads to either adaptive or maladaptive state of tension. An external stimuli This is an event that triggers the stress response as it throws the body out of balance and forces it to respond. It can be a life event or a set of circumstances that arouses physiologic reactions that may increase an individuals vulnerability to illness. A transaction includes a set of cognitive, affective and adaptive (coping) responses that arise out of person environment transaction. People perceive threats to their well-being which they may be unable to meet. There are several ways in which the term stress is conceptualised by psychologists: The general adaptation syndrome (GAS) Hans Selye (1936, 1950) conducted a research on stress. He reported that the rats that he was experimenting on showed physiological changes that were directly related to the injections they received during the experiments, but what was actually being injected was less important than the fact that they were being injected. The rats were then exposed to harmful agents like cold, surgical injury, excessive exercise, severing the spinal cord or doses of drugs. A typical syndrome appeared and the same symptoms appeared in response to all of the stimuli including (over time), development of stomach ulcers. He argued that stress can be adaptive in the short term because it enables one to cope with environment demands (fight or flight) but long term stress can be damaging. This led him to make the statement that stress is the non-specific response of the body to any demand. Selye noticed that rats and hospital patients all seemed to show a similar pattern of bodily response which he called General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS), because it represented the bodys attempt to cope in an adaptive way with stress. He argued that GAS consisted of three stages; alarm reaction, resistance and exhaustion. After alarm reaction, the individual adapts and returns to normal functioning but after prolonged stress exhaustion occurs which can lead to development of stress-related illnesses. Alarm reaction stage: This stage deals with acute stressors and involves part of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The activity in sympathetic adrenal medullary system (SAM) and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis (HPA) increases. This is controlled by electrical impulses through nerves. Selye however emphasized the role of HPA in his account and argued that the alarm reaction develops 6-48 hours after stress and includes muscular tone loss, drop in body temperature and decrease in liver and spleen size. Resistance stage: In this stage the body adapts to the demands of the environment. As it proceeds however, the parasympathetic nervous system requires more careful use of body resources in order to cope. This stage is initially marked by an increase in the size of the adrenal glands and a decrease in some pituitary activity like the production of growth hormone. If the stress is not too much then the body returns to a near-normal state. Exhaustion stage: If the stress is prolonged, the physiological systems used in alarm reaction and resistance stage become ineffective and the initial symptoms like increased heart rate, and sweating re-appear. In extreme cases, the damaged adrenal cortex leads to failure of the parasympathetic system and collapse of the bodys immune system leading to likelihood of stress related diseases like high blood pressure, asthma and heart disease. Selyes research identified major components of stress response and he alerted medicine to the importance of stress and disease. Previous researchers had not properly appreciated the damaging effects of prolonged exposure to stress. There are limitations with this research however, as Selye did not pay much attention to SAM system, and he did not understand fully the relationship between HPA and SAM systems. He also exaggerated when he stated that stress always produces the same physiological pattern. Selye has been criticised for using animals to support his research on human responses to stress. He also assumed that people respond in a passive way to stress but Mason (1975) argued that there is an active process of psychological appraisal when people confront a stressor. Workplace stress Marmot et al.s (1997) study aimed to investigate the negative correlation between job control and stress-related illness in male and female civil servants. It was assumed that job control is negatively correlated with stress-related illnesses. 10,308 civil servants between 35 and 55 years were investigated over three years and job control was measured through self-report survey and independent assessment by personnel managers. Job control was assessed on two occasions, three years apart and records of stress related illnesses kept and then a correlational analysis carried out. It was found out that those with low jobs control were four times likely to die of heart attack than those with high job control. They were also more likely to suffer from other stress-related disorders. On both occasions that job control was measured, the findings were consistent and there was a considerable association even after other factors like job demands, social support employment grade and risk factors for coronary heart disease had been accounted for. As indicated by the number of stress-related illnesses, it shows that low job control is associated with high stress. As the job control decreases, the illness increases, that is, there is an opposite social gradient in stress-related illness (negatively correlated). This however does not fully support the job-strain model because it does not show that high demand is linked to illness and the jobs performed by those high and low in job control also differed in several ways other than simply control. The self-report method is vulnerable to investigator effects and participant reactivity bias and also weaknesses of the correlational method mean that there is no control over job control as a variable and this makes interpretation difficult as the cause and effect cannot be inferred. Personality factors, including Type A behaviour Friedman and Rosemans (1974) carried out a study to test if there was any association between Type A behaviour and Coronary heart disease (CHD). They wanted to test their observations as cardiologists that their patients displayed a common behaviour pattern consisting of impatience, competitiveness and hostility. Around 3200 healthy men of 39-59 years from California were selected and assessed over 8 Â ½ years. They were interviewed, observed and personality type and current health status assessed. There was a follow-up 8 years later when CHD was recorded and a correlation analysis was carried out. 257 participants of the original sample of 3200 had developed CHD during the 8 Â ½ years 70% of whom had been classified as type A, nearly twice as many as Type Bs. This remained the same even when other factors associated with heart disease like smoking, obesity and blood pressure were taken into account. This research shows that the Type A behaviour pattern is linked to CHD and they concluded that this pattern increases the individuals experience of stress which increases physiological reactivity hence high vulnerability to CHD. The high levels of stress hormones indicate that Type A person experience more stress than Type B. The evidence has successfully been applied for example Friedman, Tordoff and Ramirez (1986) reported on the Recurrent Coronary Prevention project which aimed to modify type A behaviour and so reduce CHD in participants who had experienced a heart attack. This study has a limitation however, in that it was an experimental study and so the cause and effect cannot be established; other studies have failed to show the link between Type A and CHD. It has also proved fairly difficult to repeat the findings of Friedman and Rosenman (1974). All the above three areas show that there is a direct link between stress and illness. Stress affects people through cognitive and behavioural which lead to physiology of stress in the body hence weakened immune system and likelihood of illnesses.