Fizzy Sherbet Powder Candy Recipe

Sherbet powder is a sweet powder that fizzes on the tongue. Its also called sherbet soda, kali, or keli. The usual way to eat it is to dip a finger, lollipop, or licorice whip into the powder. If you live in the right part of the world, you can purchase Dip Dab sherbet powder in a store or online. Its also super easy to make yourself, plus its an educational science project. Ingredients 6 teaspoons citric acid powder or crystals3 tablespoons sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)4 tablespoons (or more, adjust to taste) icing sugar or sweetened powdered drink mix (e.g., Kool-Aid) Substitutions: There are several possible ingredient substitutions that will produce fizzy carbon dioxide bubbles. You can mix-and-match citric acid, tartaric acid, or malic acid for the acidic ingredient.You can use sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), baking powder, sodium carbonate (washing soda), and/or magnesium carbonate as the basic ingredient.The sugar or flavoring is up to you, but its worth knowing most flavored drink mixes contain an acidic ingredient, so if you cant find any of the acids, you can simply combine a flavored drink mix that contains one of the acidic ingredients with any of the basic ingredients.  The ratio of the ingredients is not critical. You can adjust the recipe to add more sugar, a sugar substitute, or a different amount of acidic and basic ingredients. Some recipes call for a 1:1 mix of acidic and basic components, for example. Make Fizzy Sherbet If your citric acid comes as large crystals rather than as a powder, you may wish to crush it with a spoon.Mix together these ingredients.Store sherbet powder in a sealed plastic bag until youre ready to use it. Exposure to moisture starts the reaction between the dry ingredients, so if the powder gets damp before you eat it, it wont fizz.You can eat it as-is, dip a lollipop or licorice into it, or add the powder to water or lemonade to make it fizz. How Sherbet Powder Fizzes The reaction that makes sherbet powder fizz is a variation of the baking soda and vinegar chemical reaction used to make the classic chemical volcano. The fizzy lava in the baking soda volcano forms from the chemical reaction between sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and acetic acid (in vinegar). In fizzy sherbet, sodium bicarbonate reacts with a different weak acid -- citric acid. The reaction between the base and the acid produces carbon dioxide gas bubbles. These bubbles are the fizz in sherbet.   While the baking soda and citric acid react slightly in the powder from the natural humidity in the air, exposure to water in saliva allows the two chemicals to react much more easily, so much more carbon dioxide fizz is released when the powder gets damp.

Fizzy Sherbet Powder Candy Recipe

Sherbet powder is a sweet powder that fizzes on the tongue. Its also called sherbet soda, kali, or keli. The usual way to eat it is to dip a finger, lollipop, or licorice whip into the powder. If you live in the right part of the world, you can purchase Dip Dab sherbet powder in a store or online. Its also super easy to make yourself, plus its an educational science project. Ingredients 6 teaspoons citric acid powder or crystals3 tablespoons sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)4 tablespoons (or more, adjust to taste) icing sugar or sweetened powdered drink mix (e.g., Kool-Aid) Substitutions: There are several possible ingredient substitutions that will produce fizzy carbon dioxide bubbles. You can mix-and-match citric acid, tartaric acid, or malic acid for the acidic ingredient.You can use sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), baking powder, sodium carbonate (washing soda), and/or magnesium carbonate as the basic ingredient.The sugar or flavoring is up to you, but its worth knowing most flavored drink mixes contain an acidic ingredient, so if you cant find any of the acids, you can simply combine a flavored drink mix that contains one of the acidic ingredients with any of the basic ingredients.  The ratio of the ingredients is not critical. You can adjust the recipe to add more sugar, a sugar substitute, or a different amount of acidic and basic ingredients. Some recipes call for a 1:1 mix of acidic and basic components, for example. Make Fizzy Sherbet If your citric acid comes as large crystals rather than as a powder, you may wish to crush it with a spoon.Mix together these ingredients.Store sherbet powder in a sealed plastic bag until youre ready to use it. Exposure to moisture starts the reaction between the dry ingredients, so if the powder gets damp before you eat it, it wont fizz.You can eat it as-is, dip a lollipop or licorice into it, or add the powder to water or lemonade to make it fizz. How Sherbet Powder Fizzes The reaction that makes sherbet powder fizz is a variation of the baking soda and vinegar chemical reaction used to make the classic chemical volcano. The fizzy lava in the baking soda volcano forms from the chemical reaction between sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and acetic acid (in vinegar). In fizzy sherbet, sodium bicarbonate reacts with a different weak acid -- citric acid. The reaction between the base and the acid produces carbon dioxide gas bubbles. These bubbles are the fizz in sherbet.   While the baking soda and citric acid react slightly in the powder from the natural humidity in the air, exposure to water in saliva allows the two chemicals to react much more easily, so much more carbon dioxide fizz is released when the powder gets damp.

History Of Obedience And Conformity - 1729 Words

History of Obedience and Conformity With the utterance of â€Å"research in obedience,† Stanley Milgram is the epithet in social psychology. 56 years ago, Milgram tested the limits of a person s ability to commit deeds that would normally be directionally challenging to their moral compass when commanded to act by an authority figure. Just 15 years after the World War II Holocaust, the Milgram experiments was a social psychology response to a topic of â€Å"particular relevance† during that time (Milgram, 1963): Were Nazi officers following orders or can they be held accountable as accomplices (as cited by McLeod, 2007)? Milgram tested this theory by â€Å"ordering a naà ¯ve subject to administer [an] electric shock to a victim.†(Milgram, 1963). The†¦show more content†¦Elms describes his graduate work with Milgram at Yale Universtiy to be â€Å"extraordinary for [the] time,† yet due to ethical concerns have â€Å"in a sense [have] been frozen i n time† (Elms, 2009). If the research code of ethics locked down experiments such as Milgram’s, how then did Jerry Burger (2009) replicate Milgram without violating ethics standards? The very same question Elms (2009) has marveled in his critical review of Burger’s Replicating Milgram: Would people still obey today? Burger notes the crucial moment in Milgram’s procedure is â€Å"when the participant presses the 150-volt switch [and] the learner †¦demands to be released† (Burger, 2009) nearly all participants hesitate to show reluctance before continuing. Burger’s replication study stops the experiment at the moment that the participant decides to continue past 150-volts (2009). Burger also built in additional â€Å"safeguards† to ensure the protection of the participant s well-being including a two-part screening, three notifications that participants can stop anytime, a sample shock to the participant, immediate debrief and full disclosure of the experiments intentions. Burger’s results were similar to Milgram’s, with few intentional differences (2009). The two significant features of Milgram (1963) and Burger (2009), was forceful coercion of the authority figure to command obedienceShow MoreRelatedObedience and Conformity Essay508 Words   |  3 PagesObedience and Conformity Both obedience and conformity involve social pressure in obedience the pressure comes from behaving as you are instructed to do; whereas in conformity the pressure comes from group norms Behaviour in obedience is determined by social power, whereas in conformity it is influenced mostly by the need for acceptance. In nearly all societies, certain peopleRead MoreThe Science Of Social Psychology1329 Words   |  6 Pagesto decipher topics such as conformity, independence, and identity on a logical basis. We use it, to a degree, to study how every group has an impact on a singular entity, as well as how those impacts end up dictating the overall behavior of the entity. Hence, the apple analogy bears significant meaning: How do â€Å"good apples†, or normal, law abiding citizens, become â€Å"bad apples†, or the so called†scum of society†? Social dynamics affect elements such as conformity, obedience, and deindividualizationRead MoreEvaluation Of An Immersive Video Environment910 Words   |  4 Pagesparticipants were given questionnaires to scale their personality tendencies. In an immersive video environment, the participants who showed more immersion were also those who obeyed less. As a total, thirty-two percent of the participants showed full obedience, and went up to 450 volts. General result showed that participants obeyed more when the victim was hidden, regardless of the victim’s race. From the view of ethnicity, although there was no significant difference, participants reacted with less anxietyRead MoreThe Background on the Stanley Milgram Theory Essay1088 Words   |  5 Pagesfind out whether or not the Adolf Eichmann accomplice had the same intent and hate towards the Jewish people during the holocaust. Based on Solomon Asch’s past experiments on conformity, Milgram’s experiment was done to determine whether or not the power of the situation could cause average people to conform to obedience. The results of Milgram’s experiment were astounding. The research of Milgram’s experiment had such a major impact o n social psychology that we still use his findings to analyzeRead MoreDeception Is Not Based On Ethical Concerns1413 Words   |  6 Pagesour society’s shared intellectual legacy – that small body of historical incidents, biblical parables, and classic literature that serious thinkers feel free to draw on when they debate about human nature or contemplate human history† (Gilovich et al, 2012). Milgram Obedience Experiments Ethical and moral concerns often exist with the use of deception in psychological research and experiments. Bortolotti and Mameli (2006) argue that, with the satisfaction of some requirements, the possibility existRead MoreComparative Psychology : Zimbardo s Stanford Prison Study868 Words   |  4 Pagesthe most well known studies in the history of psychology: Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Study. While Reading 38 recounts a crucial study that demonstrated the power, conformity in determining behavior and 39 reveals a surprising phenomenon called the bystander effect. However, the fourth study is seen as another famous and surprising milestone in our understanding of the extremes people may resort to in powerful situations seen in Milgram’s study of blind obedience to authority. Nonetheless, startingRead MoreObedience, Disobedience And College1060 Words   |  5 PagesAdrian Nathaniel Soriano Prof. Saleem English 101A September 16, 2015 Obedience or Disobedience in College For a lot of people, especially those who have recently graduated from high school, college is completely different from the 4 whole years of high school. For many, it is a new chapter of life. Everything is different, from the experience itself, the environment, how students are treated in class, even punishments for breaking the rules is different in a way. Perhaps the most obvious differenceRead MoreConformity And Normative Social Psychology1538 Words   |  7 PagesSocial Psychology has always been a key element in our understanding of human behaviour. Conformity plays a big part in the history of social psychology; conformity (also known as Majority Influence) is a type of social influence that involves a person changing their thoughts and beliefs in order to fit into a group. An example of this is during WW2, in which Hitler used his dominating opinions and authority to influence the Nazis and obscure their views, which lead them to conform to the horrendousRead MoreMust Be O beyed ( P. 2801256 Words   |  6 Pagesplace under the dictatorship of Stalin? He was charismatic, promised the people that he could propel them forward to greatness, and exterminated anyone who stood in his way. Could it be possible that such a relationship between leadership, conformity, obedience, and social power could exist in a culture outside of the one that Stalin was a dictator of and would the people support it? The short answer is, yes. Even within the United States similar patterns happen among its leaders. As a reminderRead MoreHow Far Would Someone Go For Obey An Authority Figure?856 Words   |  4 PagesHow far would someone go to obey an authority figure? On too many occasions in our history, people have gone to great lengths to simply obey someone who shows some sort of power over us. A specific example in world history was the millions of people that were killed by the Nazis in Germany. The real question is, what made people obey Hitler? Germany was in a bad state after the depression and for some, Hitler provided stability. Many just wanted someone to give them direction. What is really scary

Bladerunner Frankenstien Free Essays

Inability to control/Knowledge: The aspect of man’s inability to control his creation is influenced by his quest for greater knowledge. In Shelley’s Frankenstein, biblical references and archaic language are used to heighten the severity of transcendental undertones; â€Å"thou hast made me more powerful than thyself†¦I will be mild and docile to my natural lord and king. † This alludes to Victor as the divine creator and questions his motives in his attempt to conceive life. We will write a custom essay sample on Bladerunner Frankenstien or any similar topic only for you Order Now Victor has lost power over his creation, which contradicts Christian dictum. This implies the unquestionable, all-knowing Creator should be superior to his creation.This is Victor’s failure, as he loses dominance over the Monster, suggesting the prophetic destruction of mankind. This is exemplified by the Monster’s command, â€Å"You are my creator, but I am your master- obey! † A similar notion can be seen in Scott’s ‘Blade Runner’ with the chess match between Tyrell and Sebastian. While Tyrell utilises the black pieces, the Replicants, Roy and Sebastian, are represented by the white. This is symbolic of the fight of good- against- evil while the recreation of a game during the nineteenth-century sees the Replicants surpass the humans.The loss of control from the maker in this chess game is a metaphor for life and is accentuated by a close-up shot of Tyrell with the chess pieces in the foreground, exposing his vulnerability at the hands of the Replicants. This also raises the ethical quandary of man playing God, and Ridley Scott questions man’s over-ambitious nature and arrogance to the consequences. Tyrell’s separation from his ‘off-spring’ is criticised by Roy, â€Å"It’s not an easy th ing to meet your maker†, heightened by an over-the-shoulder camera shot to further separate the â€Å"prodigal son† from his patriarch.The love from the father figure is the aspect that Roy and the Monster crave for; instead they are rejected by their makers. This is a catalyst for the destruction they cause, highlighting the creator’s irresponsibility in the quest for greater knowledge and scientific discovery. The quest for knowledge is underpinned by thoughts and experiences that determine one’s attitude to progress. A facet that highlights this is Tabula Rasa, in that an individual’s knowledge comes from experience and perception. In Frankenstein, the quality of nature and experience appeals to he five senses the Monster has yet to experience. Consequently, he struggles to understand his existence and the responder can feel the rawness of his being; â€Å"I felt light, and hunger, and thirst, and darkness†¦various scents saluted me. † The alliteration of ‘scents saluted’ and the repetition of ‘and’ heightens the profound discovery of the Monster’s human qualities. The senses underline the notion that he started his life without pre-determined mental content, indicating that experience is the key to his existence. This point is highlighted by Victor; â€Å"whose existence depended on the life of the creator† whereby he confirms the Monster’s need for consummation with a â€Å"creature of another sex, but as hideous as myself. † Linking statement- This is furthered in ‘Blade Runner’ with the off-world colony; â€Å"the chance to begin again in a golden land of opportunity and adventure. † This raises the fact that the humans have annihilated all hope of coexistence on Earth and so society must reform to exist. In converse fashion, Pris communicates what her existence is a result of; â€Å"I think Sebastian, therefore I am†.The use of Descartes quotation underpins the essence of existence; to seek the knowledge of their expiry date. This requires the ability to think and express emotions as a means of carving experiences. Ridley uses a close-up shot of Pris and Roy huddled together and to the side of the screen to highlight not only their vulnerabi lity, but their unity as a couple. The deference between the skin tones of Pris in the white makeup and Roy cast in the shadow proves that, although they are replicas of human beings, they are corporal beings capable of human instincts, thought and emotions; â€Å"We’re not computers Sebastian, we’re physical†.Religion: This notion can be furthered by analysing the allegorical relationship of the texts with Christianity. The scene with Roy and Sebastian in the elevator represents the ascent to heaven to face God; embodied by Tyrell. He is portrayed as a false god; a god of science, whereby this aspect defies the boundaries of moral Christian beliefs and so he is a deity in his own right. The strobe in the elevator as Roy is descending is chaotic, raising the aspect of his fall from heaven now that he has committed the ultimate sin.Zhora’s gunshot wounds are on both shoulder blades, a close up shot of her back associating her with a fallen angel whose wings have been cut off. It is only whe n Roy weeps over Pris that we see the emotional output that makes the responder pity him. This is later emphasised by Roy shoving the nail through his palm, a symbol of the sacrifice he made for losing Pris and rescuing Deckard; exemplified by an extreme close-up of his hand as he lifts him to safety. His final act is dying, releasing the dove into the sky and representing his soul ascending to the heavens.Scott reinforces religion in the film as its absence since the Enlightenment has left the world a hellish landscape with mass production and consumption. The influence of religion is similarly present in Frankenstein, however it is more of a rebellious nature against the ideals of Christianity, as the move into the Enlightenment Era signalled developments into science and free-thought. The notions of Christianity are still present however, as exemplified in the line; â€Å"Satan†¦fitter emblem of my condition†¦the bitter gall of envy rose within me. The Monster’s referral to himself as Satan is an upheaval from the classical ideals of early Christiani ty as he was able to form his own moral code judging from others, instead of morality being ‘inborn’ into him. He is a victim of post-Enlightenment pessimism as the cruel rejection by his natural fellows drives him to fury and revenge; â€Å"as recompense†¦I writhed under miserable pain. † The responder can attribute the cause of his malevolence to the creator; Frankenstein. He is represented by Adam who is ultimately banished from the Garden of Eden for sinning in the Old Testament.His sons, Cain and Abel, embody the split nature of the Monster. Like Cain he is shunned and cast off by humanity and like Abel he is the victim of desire; separation from God and the dangerous pursuit of knowledge. Nature vs. Science: 1- The concept of the sublime is present in terms of nature and the mechanics of recreating the human physiology. In Frankenstein, the Monster’s hideous being is juxtaposed against the magnificence of the wilderness; â€Å"Skirted by a deep and rapid river†¦trees bent their branches, now budding with the fresh spring. The assonance of the ‘s’ sound highlights the Monster’s profound connection with the location, emphasised by the alliteration of ‘rapid river’. This love for nature is crucial for the Monster in developing awareness of his surroundings and interpreting the extent of his physical being; â€Å"forgetting my solitude and deformity, dared to be happy. † Likewise, the camera zoom into the Tyrell Corporation building in ‘Blade Runner’ underlines the transcendent and magnificent nature of the pyramid, yet it ironically lacks in all natural qualities.The impressive spot lights on top symbolise the divine aspect of the building with the light reaching down from the heavens. The viewer’s eye is drawn to it by the vectors of using the line of lifts n the centre. 2- An aspect that resounds through both compositions is mankind’s inability to see the consequences of his actions. In Frankenstein, there is the recurring motif of the eyeballs; â€Å"my eyeballs were starting from their sockets† which exposes his dilemma: the more he immersed himself in his study, the less he could see the consequences. This is revealed when he reflects on the destruction he caused to himself, his friends and family; â€Å"my eyes were insensible to the charms of nature. † Correspondingly, an allusion to the Eye of Providence in ‘Blade Runner’ can be interpreted as an ironic metaphor for the blindness of mankind. An extreme close-up of an eye in the opening scene reflects the city-scape; the lights of high-rise and the flames of industry. This gives an insight into the way of the contextual issues of that society; immense population, corruption and the influence of mass globalization.The latter can be seen with the giant Coca-Cola and TDK signs representing the influence of corporatisation and its effect on global consumerism. An additional fact to be taken from it is the sense of the omniscient eye, an effect created to enhance the dystopian, Orwellian notion of Big Brother and its effect on the populace. The dystopian outlook is further enhanced in relation to eyes, with Wu and the eye shop and Tyrell’s owl’s eyes. Roy murdering Tyrell through the eyes is symbolic of the vengeance the created unleashes unto his maker. How to cite Bladerunner Frankenstien, Papers

Internal Information Systems Audit Quality â€Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Internal Information Systems Audit Quality? Answer: Introduction The ABC Learning was established in the year 1988 and the company had a dominating position with thirty outlets at the end of the year 2000. The company was obliged with its listing in the year 2001 and this caused it expand its dominating structure by setting up over 650 centers distributed over United Kingdom, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Such a dominating company did collapse dreadfully whose credit can be given to the high expectations of the management and the failure of the auditor to show them the reality. 2007 was the year of the emergence of an emergency debt which had to settle on with the bankers which were also a leading cause of the dreadful collapse. This type of negotiation failure had resulted in non-payment of some of the long-term liabilities. These liabilities took serious figures and started affecting the cash flows in a way so as to decrease its value. All this also resulted in the decrease in the share price of the company. All this can be collectively sum marized as a bunch of flaws that were prominent on the part of the management and the auditors which played the key role in the collapse (CPA, 2012). Despite inviting the best in a class auditing firm, these flaws were prominent and repeated excessively. If the auditing firm had taken correct and potentially strong steps to handle the above situations, the company would have been saved from the collapse could have been prevented. But the unethical means of the auditors started to fetch the company some small profit gains which absolutely hid the unauthorized steps of the auditors. It was not at all clear that what procedure did the company followed to lure such expansion so fast though being a childcare division (Kruger, 2015). The steps followed by them could be an example for the companies in the same field to dominate the market and to enhance ones business. The important issue to be considered while preparing the financial statements It was seen that the auditors of the ABC always made ill-equipped decisions from the date they came into action in 2003 for the companys audit. Any profits gathered by the company before the year 2007 were strictly analyzed and taken into serious attention by the audit firm of Ernest Young in the year 2007. It was also seen that the KPMG Company stood up along with the ABC learning as a third party for the settlement of the demarcations. Both the dominating auditing firms worked in away so as to detect the flaws of the management. Both the companies worked as an audit company for the ABC Learning and represented different conclusions and decisions which was a clear-cut symbol of the ill-equipped judgment of the auditors which lead to the collapse of the company (CPA, 2012). Thus, despite having such auditing giants involved in the companys affairs, the company fell down dreadfully in a way unrecoverable. Major instructions coming into movements The transactions going on within the parties are depicted in the financial statements that were not done and this was also a major reason for the collapse of the company. All this was done so as to as to represent a clear and respected picture of the company which would hide its financial conditions and would help in the borrowing of funds from other sources without hindrance (Matthew, 2015). Finally, all this led to the reduction in the securities of the company which opened the manipulative gate of the depiction of the general transactions of the company to be shown as the sale of the securities which are legally registered in nature (Geoffrey et. al, 2016). It was also seen that the auditors took a different way and helped the management in hiding the factors that would degrade their respect in the market. Sales Proceed of the Investment Securities was the manipulated term which was given to the borrowings of the company and this is the reason why it was never recorded in the book of accounts. Such procedures were followed so as to eliminate liabilities which are weak in nature (Ghandar Tsahuridu, 2013). The cleverness of the company was on the part to earn more and more profits and as fast as possible to eliminate the loopholes that were prominent in the company (Gilbert et. al, 2005). The company also paid a massive amount of $74 million to the other third-party companies which were involved in the operations of the companys affairs. It was also a trial from the company to sponsor the Brisbane Bullets Basketball Team. All these transactions didnt hold any place in the major affairs of the company but in actual reality, these were also playing a crucial role in the collapse of the company. It was as per the records of the company. All this was due to the unethical means followed by the management and the team of the auditors. Non-handling of the related party transaction with care surely led to a situation of disrespect in the market which also led to its collapse (Teen, 2012). It was thought by the investors and the general public that the means followed by the management was done so as to benefit them individually. But the actual case depicts that the inconvenient use of the corporate governance mechanism and the steps undertaken by the audit team led to this dis integration. In short, he concept of corporate governance was altogether neglected and the innocent investors were duped by the management of the company. The above situation explains that the financial conditions and other facts were not exposed in the financial statements and the sheet contained data in a limited amount which the company wanted to depict (Mock, et. al, 2013). Thus, it can be said that if the auditors were strict enough to follow the ethical laws of auditing and would have warned the company then the collapse could have been prevented. Even the presence of big two giants in the field of auditing failed to prevent the collapse of ABC learning. Concealment of facts was done in order to present the company as a profit-making one. It can also be thought that if the auditors commented on the risks prevailing in the company than with the help of the management, the collapse could have been prevented or would have been delayed to some extent. (Tepalagul Lin, 2015) ASA 707 that relates to the communication of major audit concerns in the independent audit report It is a very important set of rules set up for increasing the clarity and the potential of the annual financial reporting which was released in the year December 15. The most important work of the this set of rules is to track and record all the crucial affairs of the company and to see that it is as per the ethical and legal rules which have been set up and if any emergency occurs then without wasting any time report it to the chief auditors and to the headquarters. This set of rules is very much important and acts as a boon to the users of financial statements which rely on these statements to decide their investments (Heeler, 2009). This helps the shareholders to check the financial position and the internal conditions of the company so as to save them from the losses that would occur because of the misstatements of the concealed facts and figures. This is a very effective way to offer clarity to the financial statements. But in the case of ABC Learning, it was evident that many o f the facts and figures were hidden which could have prevented y the auditors of the company (Ruhnke Schmidt, 2014). If in the case of the ABC Learning the ASA rules would have existed then the auditors would have been bound to follow all the ethical rules and there would have been zero concealments of the facts about the financial position and the internal affairs of the company which totally led to its dreadful collapse. Auditing matter that swamps the disintegration of ABC Learning If the ASA 707 would have been taken into attention as in the case of the ABC Learning then many concealed facts and figures about the company could have been exposed to the public, which would not only depict the financial position of the company but also its survival in the future. It should be now clear that the absence of the ASA 707 way a dominating factor in the collapse of the ABC Learning which could have been prevented. Flaws of the management, unethical means of the regulatory system in that sensitive span of time led to the major collapse of the ABC Learning. All this acts as a boon to the users of the financial statements of the company in a better way. Hiding of misstated leverage ratio of the firm The departments and the individuals that have been responsible for the collapse of the ABC Learning can be the crucial one in depicting points that have led to the total dreadful collapse of the company. It is clear from the above explanation that if the ASA 701 existed and was applied successfully in the companys auditing then the company could have been saved because it would bound the auditors to drop all unethical means and carry on the works genuinely (Coram et. al, 2011). The loss of respect for the auditing firm could have also been prevented. Failure to disclose the evidence Going through the ACCC interpretation, it is noticeable that the ABC downfall was not due to cut-throat competition instead the collapse had occurred due to financial blunders such as large acquisitions and high debt. The main reason behind the downfall was due to inefficiency in the system displayed by the management. The company was subject to provide true information about sales proceeds with their transactions in a manner that can comply with the provisions in the law for the transfers. Owing to large borrowings and transactions the company comes across its failure (Hoffelder, 2012). Therefore, the fall of the entity can be associated due to the flaws that the financial information projected. In addition to that, the financial institutions also stopped leading to the entity for short-term borrowings against securities as collateral. This culminated in the failure to respond to the business obligations on part of ABC work culture and all these situations take place after the exist ence of massive debt and liabilities in the financial framework of the entity resulting in big complications in operating the business to the situation and ultimately the entity disintegrated at the end (Teen, 2012). The financial framework rested on a very weak ground and the same was ignored by the auditing firms that lead to the major issue. Non-disclosure of wrong transactions in notes to the financial statement and audit report The company on its part indulged in inappropriate transactions which are obligatory to be mentioned in the financial statement and audit report. Instead, the management has made arrangements to hide the same because it would be sensitive due to huge borrowings and other constraints (Messier, 2013). Apart from this, the unaltered leverage ratio would also bring to light in the eyes of the investors in the firm if they had not camouflaged the same. The auditors played a vital role in concealing the information in improper transactions done by the firm that would have caused major influence, ultimately decided to conceal the same in the audit report (Holland Lane, 2012). Approval of transactions in order to influence the financials The management had taken many compromises without concerning the auditors as the financials of the company were based on sticky grounds, leaving no scope for the auditors to identify the irregularities and continued with the same informations whereas many transactions were provided as investments in the financial report. It was the fundamental duty of the auditor to cautioned the management of the company about the same and the consequences that would arise out of this (Carcello, 2012). Moreover, the management of the company aspired to characterize its equities as collateral instead of fixed income securities so as to smoothly carry out related party transactions. Classification of inappropriate resources In the company, the bulk of short-term transactions were improper and accounting was not in accordance with the provisions. Moreover, the securities were interpreted as collateral and were later removed from the records (Jubb, 2012). To add to this, the company also undertaken the exercise to reduce its liabilities to reflect the image that the securities are being provided to the parties as compensation resulting in a decline in the leveraged portfolio. All the debt accomplished by the entity was also supposed to be reflected in the financial statement of the company until they are repaid (Christensen, 2011). Nonetheless, the transactions were illustrated as sales so that the securities sold could be deducted from the assets and there could be no liabilities reflected in the financial statements. Faulty transaction in the financial statements and approval provided The management and the auditors in the company were shrewdly illustrated the significant securities transactions as nominal alterations in the financial statements. The company also restores to emphasize that the repurchase of the securities was done at a nominal cost and the same was camouflaged under large-scale derivatives. Further, the management and the auditors of the company restored to reflect those transactions in the notes attached to the financial statement (Blay et. al, 2011). To sum up, the auditors are morally responsible to point out all irregularities done by the company to carry out the business and disclose the same in their audit report. Recommendation When it comes to the transparency of the company in terms of financial reporting, it is important that both the internal, as well as a statutory auditor should have a strong presence of mind and ensure that all the activities are directed in the correct direction. Hence, the auditors must act in the best interest of the company because it enhances the functioning of the company. Further, the auditors should ensure that the auditing process must be strong so that any misstatement can be easily reflected and the stakeholder interest can be safeguarded (Bedard et. al, 2014). Moreover, the auditor must ensure a compliance with the relevant accounting standard and this aid in presenting a better picture of the company. There must be strict control and supervision of the ethical system that will lay a foundation of strong governance and presentation. Conclusion To attain the best practices and to ensure better compliance it is essential that the organization must follow the accounting policies that have been laid down. The reporting and compliance should be done considering the impact of each and every financial procedure. It needs to be noted that the failure to adhere to the regulations will have a negative impact on the organization. The facts and figures of ABC learning is an apt example of the collective failure. Further, it projects that the status of the company is immaterial. However, the big might a company be, if the company fails to adhere to the regulations and the auditors are ineffective then the collapse is bound to happen. References Bedard, J. N, Gonthier, B, A. Schatt 2014. Costs and Benefits of Reporting Key. Harvard Press Blay, A. D., Geiger, M. A. North, D. S 2011. The Auditor's Going-Concern Opinion as a Communication of Risk. Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory, 30 (2), pp. 77- 102. Carcello, J 2012. What do investors want from the standard audit report? CPA Journal, 82 (1), 7. Christensen, J., 2011. Good analytical research. European Accounting Review, 20(1), pp. 41-51 Coram, P, Mock, T. J, Turner, J. Gray, G 2011. The communicative value of the auditors report. Australian Accounting Review 21(3), pp. 235-252. CPA 2012. ABC learning collapse case study. [online] Available at: https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/professional-resources/education/abc-learning-collapse-case-study [Accessed 14 September 2017] Geoffrey D. B,Joleen K,K. Kelli SDavid A. W 2016. Attracting Applicants for In-House and Outsourced Internal Audit Positions: Views from External Auditors. Accounting Horizons, 30(1), pp. 143-156. Ghandar, A Tsahuridu, E 2013. The Auditing Handbook 2013. Australia: Pearson. Gilbert, W. Joseph J Terry J. E., 2005. The Use of Control Self-Assessment by Independent Auditors. The CPA Journal, 3, pp. 66-92 Heeler, D., 2009. Audit Principles, Risk Assessment Effective Reporting. Pearson Press Hoffelder, K., 2012. New Audit Standard Encourages More Talking. Harvard Press. Holland, K. Lane, J 2012. Perceived auditor independence and audit firm fees. Accounting and Business Research. 42(2), pp. 115-141. Jubb, C 2012. Auditing: A Business Risk Approach. Australia: Cengage Kruger, P., 2015. Corporate goodness and shareholder wealth. Journal of Financial economics, pp. 304-329 Matthew S. E 2015. Does Internal Audit Function Quality Deter Management Misconduct?. The Accounting Review 90(2), pp. 495-527 Messier, F. W 2013. Auditing and Assurance Services - A systematic approach. Australia: McGraw Hill. Mock, T. J, Bdard, J, Coram, P., Davis, S, Espahbodi, R. Warne, R 2013. The audit reporting model: Current research synthesis and implications. Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, 32, pp. 323-351. Ruhnke, K Schmidt, M 2014. The audit expectation gap: existence, causes, and the impact of changes. Accounting and Business Research 44(5), pp. 572-601. Teen, M.Y., 2012. The ABC of a corporate collapse. [online] Available at: https://governanceforstakeholders.com/2012/12/28/the-abc-of-a-corporate-collapse/ [Accessed 16 September 2017] Tepalagul, N. Lin, L 2015. Auditor Independence and Audit Quality A Literature Review. Journal of Accounting, Auditing Finance, 30(1), pp. 101-121. Wright, M.K. Charles, J 2012. Auditor independence and internal information systems audit quality. Business Studies Journal 4(2), pp

the Hand That Signed the Paper Analysis free essay sample

†Autobiographical Essar Humans are not born knowing what is right and what is wrong, we learn these things through our experiences and our mistakes. Though these mistakes could be as simple as spilling a glass of milk, we still learn an important lesson; dont set the glass on the corner of the table. I myself have had many of these mishaps, but one seems to stand out from all the rest. I have these neighbors, they own a large piece of property that my friends and I enjoy spending time on, however, these neighbors are what you would call, Jerks. We had a few interactions and in the end we sort of trashed their property.. My friends are idiots, sometimes we get together and do stupid things, in this case though, we went a bit overboard. I was about 12 or 13 at the time and had taken a liking to forms of destructive behavior. We will write a custom essay sample on the Hand That Signed the Paper Analysis or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It Just happened to be trash day, and my dad had an abundance of tools such as sledgehammers and axes in the shed. My friends and I gathered up a large pile of garbage and constructed a huge mass of couches, chairs, desks, wood, and many other things in the woods on my neighbors property. We then proceded to smash everything in to bits and make a widespread mess of the area. As most kids would do, we ran, and didnt hear anything of it for days. It wasnt until after about a week that my doorbell rang. Who else could it be but the owners of that property come to speak with my parents. My mom and dad were furious, and i recieved no mercy in my punishment. I spent days, along with two of my friends, cleaning up the mess. I suspect we must have gathered three or four trashcans worth of garbage in the end. Weeks went by and i realized how disrespectful my actions were, I eventually ummoned up the courage to visit the home of my neighbors and apologize to them face to face. They graciously accepted my apology and we patred ways on friendly terms. Hearing them thank me for the cleanup Job and for having enough respect to say i was sorry was a great feeling that i wont forget. That experience led me to realize the importance of showing respect for others and their property, Its an example i am proud to share, of a lesson I learned through my personal mistakes, and I hope others too, have learned to show respect for others. he Hand That Signed the Paper Analysis By aJoycem The Hand That Signed the Paper consists of four stanzas that harshly mock the cold and unfriendliness present of politics and conflict. In my opinion this poem is about war, revealing the speakers disgust for political leaders overall. The poet makes audience feel as though the hand that signed the paper is worthless or despicable. These overpowering fgures with in the poem seem to be important and arrogant for putting themselves in a powerful, life or death situation. The first stanza is notifying he audience that a simple signing of this document sets off a tragic and irreversible outcome. Double the globe of dead and halved a country; These five kings did a king to death (Stanza 1, Line3-4) is referring to the decision to execute the king and to a country splitting up in the processes. The second stanza mocks the mighty hand (Stanza 2, Line 5) that is responsible for these terrible outcomes by using descriptive words, such as, sloping shoulder (Stanza 2, Line 5). Also, the poet is telling the audience that the man in the poem has arthritis when he says, The finger oints are crammed with chalk; (Stanza 2, Line 6). This information I find to be useless to the meaning of the poem, but when the speaker says, A gooses quill has put an end to murder I believe he is giving away what the documentation really is, a peace treaty. In the third stanza, the poet informs the audience that the peace treaty has not solved anything; times are extremely awful. With good intentions, the man signed the peace treaty to solve the suffering brought on by war, but instead it has caused more damage. And famine grew, and locusts came (Stanza 3, Line 10) is telling the readers that the country has an extreme amount of people suffering of hunger and disease. The last stanza compassionately informs the reader that politicians act very inhumane. Politicians like to think of themselves as God, maintaining absolute control over who are to live and who are to be destroyed. Dylan Thomas incorporated human body relations in his work. He accomplished this by using parts of the human body and certain characteristic features to make the reader elieve that the body parts are made to act as if they are making a conscious choices and decisions. An example of this is in the title of Thomass work, The Hand that Signed the Paper. This title is referring to the hand as if it would be acting freely of its owner. Other examples of this are, fingers taxed the breath (Stanza 1, Line 2), Great is the hand that holds dominion over Man by a scribbled name (Stanza 2, Line 11-12), and A hand that rules pity as a hand rules heaven (Stanza 4, Line 15). With in this poem there are relating words and repetition used as a poetic devices. Murder (Stanza 2, Line 3) and did a king to death (Stanza 2, Line 4) have identical meanings. Also within the poem, there are synonyms: paper (Stanza 1, Line 1) and treaty (Stanza 3, Line 9). I believe that Thomas used these relating words to put direct attention on them, indicating particular importance to the actual message of the poem. There is one example of foreshadowing consisting within the poem, The Hand That Signed the Paper, which is ultimately referring to the speakers actions that are going to take place with in the poem. The Hand that Signed the Paper has a rhyme scheme of: ABAB, and the first and third lines of each stanza are iambic pentameter, but with an eleventh, unstressed syllable. Near the end of the poem, in changes the rhyme scheme in the poem trying to accomplish a different pace, therefore making it more intriguing. In the end Dylan Thomas accomplished writing a very intriguing-meaningful poem. It is exciting reading between the lines of this poets work, and truly finding the real meaning of the poem: a powerful politician whom brought disaster to a country and its population.

monroe doctrine essays

monroe doctrine essays The nineteenth century was an exciting and vibrant era that not only dramatically altered the physical face of our nation due to the rapid development of large cities and manufacturing facilities, but also helped modify and shape the values that have come to define our American character. Unlike the relatively slow-paced lifestyle maintained during agrarian times, which required communal generosity and cooperation in order to weather difficult times, the Industrial Revolution dramatically altered the condition of society, in that qualities such as ambition, avarice, and unmitigated competitiveness came to be required to get ahead in a burgeoning business world. Similarly, an expansionistic desire to move out West gripped thousands of adventurous young Americans, whose pioneering spirit drove them to uproot entire Native American civilizations in the pursuit of their dreams of wealth and prosperity west of the Mississippi. As our nation became more and more intent upon increasing i ts level of financial, economic, and territorial wealth, the qualities that had affected our country domestically began to be incorporated into the way that it conducted global politics as well. American politicians soon gained a better appreciation for and recognition of the immense power and international prestige that the U.S. held and thus began asserting themselves in the realm of international relations, ultimately leading to the Monroe Doctrine, which propelled our nation on a path of global leadership and involvement that it still follows today. By examining the reasoning behind and historical applications of the Monroe Doctrine, it becomes apparent that many of the global conditions that have contributed to the success of this proclamation in the past no longer exist, and that because of the economically interdependent global society in which we now live, it is in the best interest of the United States and the many other countries of the world to...

Global Politics - 10 short answer questions - 150words each Essay

Global Politics - 10 short answer questions - 150words each - Essay Example by deregulation requirements, opening its markets to transnational corporations and other regulations imposed upon it by the World Trade Organization. Thus, sovereignty, to such an extent is eroded; the state compromises some of its powers; actors other than the state take center stage; additional security issues have to be taken into consideration like transnational crimes, international terrorism, refugees and the like . Ans.: Classical liberalism is liberalism that is centered on the individual and the capacity of that individual to make the right choices for his own self that eventually reflects and redound to the good and benefit of society in general. Both classical liberalism and neo-liberalism are founded on the basic tenets of freedom but while classical liberalism is individual-centered, neo-liberalism depends on the state to impose laws that promote free trade and market liberalism. The state does not leave it up to the individuals but takes the initiative to promote free trade where the individuals have as much as possible unfettered economic freedom and the state as little as possible role. Neo-liberalism, which was popularized sometime in the 1980s, is an offshoot of classical liberalism which is an older concept. Ans.: Yes, because the actions of states or state strategies are supposed to be primarily geared for the protection and promotion of the national interest. In this sense, it is therefore important to understand exactly what the national interest or interests are for the deeper understanding of the motivations of the actions of a particular state. Although the exact nature of national interest will depend largely on the time and period and sometimes from a subjective point of view, the concept of national interest almost always includes the following: the state’s jurisdiction, patrimony; assets and resources; national and cultural values, and; national goals and alliances. Ans.: There are several theories. the psychological theory

Sinusitis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Sinusitis - Essay Example Thus, there is the abnormal production of B and T cells, and IgG deficiency is triggered by a defect of B cells. IgG deficiency can occur in two forms that are selective and specific. In most cases, the B cells are low in selective antibody deficiency. Likewise, the T cells are also inadequate. The T cells help in B cell immunoglobulin synthesis. Thus, selective IgG deficiency is accompanied by isolated IgG deficiency with normal levels of IgA, IgM, IgD, and IgE. In specific IgG deficiency, there is evidence of inadequate levels of other immunoglobulin isotypes. Both types of IgG deficiency result to respiratory infections. For instance sinus, ear, pneumonia, and bronchitis infections. In this case the patient is diagnosed with a combined T and B cell immunodeficiency (Lang, 2009. This individual is suffering from IgG2 due to the developing illnesses sinus (Porth, 2011). In addition, the antibodies against polysaccharide antigens and carbohydrates belong to IgG2 category. On the othe r hand, antibodies against protein antigens are categorized in IgG1 and IgG3 groups. The IgG immunoglobulins are categorized in four groups founded on the function and structure. It is classified from IgG1 to IgG4. In most cases, about 70% fit in the IgG1 and 20% belong to IgG2 groups. Antibodies that are opposed to protein antigens fit in IgG1 and IgG3 groups. There is another class of antibodies that are opposed to polysaccharide and carbohydrates antigens that belong to IgG2 group. Patients with IgG2 deficiency are at high risk of suffering from pneumonia, otitis media, and sinusitis. These illnesses are triggered by microorganisms known as polysaccharide-encapsulated. The microorganisms include N. meningitides, H. influenza type b, and pneumonia. In some cases, the patients are healthy, and others are asymptomatic in presence of the IgG

3 levels of analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

3 levels of analysis - Essay Example Some homicide forms do not constitute acts that are criminal but murder is criminal homicide (Simon 2009). The circumstances that surround a killing are the determinants if it was criminal or not. In earlier days, homicide was divided into two categories; non-felonious and felonious. The latter was premeditated and deliberate killing and was therefore termed as murder. The former included excusable homicide, which was not classified as a crime, and justifiable homicide, which was a crime, but the offender was pardoned. The classification has since changed with the modern statutes. There are two categories namely manslaughter and murder. Murder is further classified into first degree that involves a killing intention that is premeditated and second degree whose intention to kill is not premeditated (Malmquist 2006). The most important elements in first-degree murder are intent and premeditation. Intentional crimes are committed purposely and knowingly. Crimes that are intentional are organized in advance. In the mentioned elements’ perspective, such homicide is neither an accident nor a moment’s incidence. Another form of first-degree murder is felony murder, since it applies in circumstances where a person dies as a felony is perpetrated. This is so even though the death was entirely unplanned or accidental. The difference between the first and second-degree is that, even though the guilty person kills intentionally, there is no prior plan and the crime is not given forethoughts, because acting is often on impulse (Simon 2009). Manslaughter involves unintentional killing, which results from criminal negligence of a person, or human life disregard that is reckless. Manslaughter is classified as voluntary and involuntary. The former is used in the designation of acts secondary to provocation or passion crimes. The killing is intended as much as there was adequate provocation encountered by the

MA as a Growth Strategy

MA as a Growth Strategy Introduction: Project Management (BS 6079, 1996) is the planning, monitoring and control of all aspects of a project and the motivation of all those involved in it to achieve the project objectives on time and to the specified cost, quality and performance. For any project to become a success, team work plays a major role. One of the most renowned and widely used practical and management team developments is the Belbin team roles. The argument from Belbin is that team composition plays a major factor in influencing the performance of the team (Water et al, 2008). The fundamental aspect of human existence is the working together as groups. The main purpose of this is to survive, adapt and thrive to different situations by using individuals intellect and co-operation (Riding and Rayner, 2001). The team roles are classified into organisational roles and the functional roles (Atkinson, 1999). A team role is a set of behaviours grouped in a cluster (Belbin, 1993). The main objective of this essay is to evaluate the teams performance based on the Belbin self perception theory discussing the teams roles, team life cycle and other aspects with respect to the project management exercise. Belbin Team Roles: Team roles are defined as a pattern of behaviour characteristic of the way in which one team member interacts with another (Belbin, 1981). Every individual will take preferred roles in the management exercises and the outcome purely depends on the balance in the team (Riding and Rayner, 2001). It is always a good team with a good balance of individuals will result in a good outcome and vice versa (Belbin, 1993). Belbin has differentiated nine team roles based on the behaviour of people and is classified by feeling, will power, thinking and decisiveness. In the Belbin later research, he added one more role called as SP (Specialist) which refers to single mindedness, acting always alone and dedicated to specialism. The main function of this role is that people will behave in a extremely silent, introvert and will not contribute other than their special interest areas. This is considered as the negligible contribution to the team (Atkinson, 1999). Belbin uses an instrument for quantifyi ng the team role preferences which is called as the Self Perception Inventory. This consists of 70 points by evaluating seven statements in each questions. For each question 10 statements are given and can be prioritised based on the individual behaviour in which 10 points can be distributed. In predicting the performance of the team Belbin succeeded based on the information from the role profiles of each member. In this view a team is balanced when each role appears in atleast one team members profile as high-scoring role (Atkinson, 1999). From the Henley workshops, Belbin was able to specify the composition of the team and arrived at conclusions. This was characterised by (Furnham, 1992): attributes of a leader are similar to chairman profile (CH) now called as Co-ordinator (CO) and the team should have a range of mental abilities which includes a person generating creative ideas and giving practical solutions to the problems encountered. The team should include one Completer Finisher (CF), Implementer (IM) and the members can suit the other team roles based on their personal characteristics and ultimately the team which can identify and improve on their competencies by doing mistakes is considered as the best team (Riding and Rayner, 2001). Teams Belbin profiles: For the project management exercise, the teams were divided based on the Belbin team roles. As said earlier, in a team it is must to have a Completer Finisher (CF) and Implementer (IM). The team were asked to choose from Team Workers (TW). Person having primary reference as Team Workers are few and so persons having secondary and tertiary references as Team Workers were called for choosing the team. Evaluating the team roles and functions: First, from the team balance sheet it is clear that the team has no primary references for SH, PL, RI, TW, CF and can be considered as scarce for the team. This team has three implementers (IM) which is good in terms of delivering the project fast. Having more implementers is not a problem in any team as they move towards implementing the project. But having more shapers is a problem because of their characteristics. Person 1 who is ME can act as a CF and TW because of his secondary and tertiary preferences. Person 1 shows major characteristics of ME because of the feasibility characteristics. In this exercise, person 1 is very much interested in calculating the Critical path, always analysing the situations, showing temperament and whenever anything goes out of plan again doing the critical path whether there is feasibility of completing the project on time. The main advantage with person 1 is that he maintains good temperament in all the situations even if it is good or bad. The disadvantages is that in some situations person 1 whose Belbin profile shows weakness as decision making is very true. Sometimes person 1 took some hasty decisions which have affected the teams profit (decision of choosing the manufacturing subcontractor). Always took more time in making next moves since the basic nature of ME is analysing situations. Sometimes person 1 also did the role of CF when it comes to planning the project. The project plan was for 140 days with 7 periods of 20 days. One of the persons in the team were modifying the plan for days and the person striked the number of resources and wrote the new allocation of resource. Person 1 thought that this can make confusions and he acted as a CF by rubbing of the resources and wrote the allocation as clear as possible so that everybody can understand. Person 2 who is CO acted as a RI and PL in the initial phase of the exercise. As depicted by Belbin, RI used to interact a lot with the external environment is very true. Person 2 whenever any problems are faced by the team, he used to interact more with the teacher understanding the problem and gives new ideas to solving the problem. Person 2 organises well with the resource facilities for the game with the flip charts, pens and other requirements for smooth functioning of the game. At only one stage person 2 acted as a CO in the decision of choosing suppliers. Person 2 behaves more as RI and PL in this exercise. Person 3 who is IM, SP and has two tertiary references as CO and ME has shown good characteristics of implementer role in this exercise. Sometimes person 3 behaves more as ME than CO which is good for the team, because one or more COs have different approaches for the project. Person 3 is always striving hard to implement the project on time and sometimes showed good character for team worker. Person 3 always strives hard to stick to the plan and whenever plan changes, organises well for implementing the plan. The disadvantage is that this person lacks flexibility sometimes when it comes to implementation. Person 4 who is IM, secondary is CF and tertiary is SH initially has shown SH characteristics by challenging and arguing the facts that were made by the team. Person 4 is always interested in results and sometimes behaved as CO by taking decisions. Person 1 and 4 since showed shaper characteristics sometimes had difference of opinion but were well managed by team members. Person 4 showed good implementer characteristics in the final stages of the exercise. Person 5 who is IM, ME as secondary and CF as tertiary initially were helping the team with PL characteristics, sometimes RI when CO has to take decisions by going to the external world and discussing with people. Very sincere, hard working when it comes to implementation. Main advantage is that very well organised in implementing things, interested in sticking to the plan and sometimes resources were provided by him. Person 5 showed a major of Team Worker in many aspects because of the fact that TW always want to harmony among the teams. The team Belbins profiles helped a lot in choosing a balanced team and are 60% accurate with respect to our team. For a project to become a success, it is always helpful with people taking new roles under a good leadership. Finally, good team work will always succeed and makes the project success. Persons took roles which are not their primary, secondary or tertiary references sometimes worked out well and made benefits to the team but many of the times it failed. The people showed majority of the characteristics as depicted by Belbin and is helpful in the teams success. One important learning with Belbin self perception theory is that having two or more shapers in a team is dangerous and will lead to poor project management. It is always helpful to have one PL and one CO as their primary reference. Team Life Cycle: The basic behaviour of any team is that they are dynamic. As an individual, they can perform effectively but as a team they can fail and vice versa. Attention and maintenance are always required for the teams. The first person to bring a chart for teams progression is Tuckman. He has identified four stages in a teams development which are forming, storming, norming and performing (Kakabadse et al, 2004). In the forming stage, team members got to know about each other and started establishing their relationships. The learnings are based on the organisations culture and standards. Project task behaviours and interpersonal relationships are very important in binding the team together. In the storming stage, a person starts expressing the views and there is a chance of difference in opinion. Leadership challenges occur and may lead to rivalry between people because of their behaviours. Because of these conflicts, the main objective of the organisation cannot be met which lead to separation of groups. In the norming stage, groups will start gelling towards one another and each strengths and weaknesses can be known. The teams will set their standards and roles can be clearly defined at this stage. In the performing stage, actual team working takes place and people starts performing their tasks together. If the team loses the energy or support, then a stage called restoring or declining stage may follow. Further in this stage, the strengths, weaknesses of the team is analysed with respect to the task is discussed and learnings are recorded for effective project management in future. Evaluating the teams life cycle: In the project management exercise, different sets of problems are encountered by the team and creative solutions are identified to solve these problems. Some of the solutions clicked and some lead to major failures for the team. The forming stage provided opportunities for the new team to understand each other and gave different settings. When first given the exercise, some team members easily understood the process and some found difficult to understand the process. In the initial stages it took more time for the team to decide the strategy for proceeding with the project. Person 1, 3 expressed their views which were not agreed by the team whereas person 2, 4 had expressed their concerns which again not accepted by the team members. Finally, a conclusion has been made with the project plan and the identification of first, second and third critical paths are identified. This stage is all about trusting and building confidence on other team members. The team lacks leadership in this phase. A leader is clearly needed in this phase to provide direction and guidance (Lee, 2008). The storming stage provides openness for feelings and the team discusses the issues very seriously even if the point is not valid. The existing plan with respect to the actual working is modified and refined well. Person 1, 4 had conflicts in choosing the suppliers whether to go for delivery or quality. Person 2, 3 and 5 also contributed but a single decision has to be taken by the team. The team debated on these issues and finally person 1 compromised person 4 for going to a quality supplier by explaining with the fact which will not affect the delivery of the product. The teams weaknesses are that for first three periods did good jobs but didnt celebrate any success. The other weaknesses are builds, integration points between team members, conflicts within the team and sometimes role conflicts. In the norming stage, the teams had fewer conflicts and started communicating more effectively with others. The team emerged with good practices; loop integration exists because of better communication, the person understands their balance and develops their required skills and role clarity is clearly defined. Person 1 decision will be treated as final since some of the decisions worked out well in the earlier periods and didnt analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the decision which lead to a disaster in period 4, 5. The team didnt properly review the operation in a regular basis which also leads to a failure (not delivering the product on time). The team didnt celebrate success in this stage also. In the performing stage, since person 1 decision went wrong it is important for the team members to chip in with leadership and person start taking responsibilities for leadership which is a very good sign for the team. This allows rotation of leadership and helps team members to grow their own skills. The team started to treat seriously the views from team members as well as outside members which is done for the betterment of the project work. Finally, the team made a little profit and starts celebrating the success which has to be done earlier. In this stage it is always good to have an outsider to comment on the teams performance which helps in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the team. In the last stage, the team learnt their mistakes and starts working on improving individual competencies and the advantages of team work. Every individual is important for a team and it is the individuals who are building the team. The project management exercise can be done more effectively if the same team is given one more chance based on their learnings. The output required from this phase is the prevention of failures for a future project. Decision making procedures: The teams success depends on the decision making and it is the key factor in project management. The working definition of decision making (Ullman, 2006) is that Decision making is a process that commits resources to resolving an issue. Making a decision is not an event; it is a process for arriving at the correct decisions based on uncertain, incomplete, incomplete, inconsistent and evolving information. It is important for the team to get the best out of these results. In practice, every decision the team trying to make must address two issues: Merit decision quantitative way of taking the decision based on merits Acceptance decision acceptance by the people by the decision taken by the team. A decision is a choice made from several alternatives (Lewis, 2004). The decision is going to be effective when merit and acceptance are considered. For any decision the important criteria is to understand the problem and issues are to be clarified. Then as a team alternatives are generated and criteria are developed for robust decision making. The next important step is the evaluation part which tells the importance of the criteria. This also generates value to the alternatives that are developed for the criteria. Fuse is the next step in decision making which generates decision measures by evaluating process. The last stage is what to do next which reduces consensus, uncertainty, criteria and further revising the alternatives. Hence, (Ullman, 2006)A robust decision is the best possible choice, one found by eliminating all the uncertainty possible within available resources and then choosing with known and acceptable levels of satisfaction and risk. Some of the problems that are encountered during the decision making are team members have different judgement and their outcomes may be different due to different knowledge level, preferences. In order to evaluate a decision, managers have to choose a proper method (Fan Fu-Rong et al, 2008). Consultative approach is the most widely used approach for decision making. For handling group decision, the rules are shown in the below table 2. Evaluating the decision making procedures: Decisions taken in project management exercise by the team sometimes based on merit and sometimes based on acceptance and sometimes a combination of both. A consultative approach is followed when taking a decision. Initially for the first two decisions, it took more time for the team to understand the problem and team is not clear in the issues. The project delivery time is 140 days and the CPM shows that there is 285 days for the product to come out. A project plan is made for getting the product on time and it is always difficult to stick to the plan. Team members initially found difficult to generate alternatives for the decision and initially the team followed a consensus with team members. The first decision is based on merit as to reduce the lead time from 285 to 140 days. The teams weaknesses in the understanding phase are took more time for taking a decision, no clarity on problems, no criteria developed for taking the decision. Also, initially since team members are of diffe rent competencies it took time for gelling together. Then after the decision the team started to develop criteria for the decisions. The team in evaluating phase started to understand the importance of criteria developed and started generating alternatives for the criteria. One important thing is that decisions are always subject to change and it is important to review the earlier decisions. In the exercise, the team decided to go for good quality suppliers which actually paid very well for the team. When it comes to manufacturing sub contractors, due to cost pressure some compromise has to be made by the team and went ahead with the cheap sub contractor. The team took a risk but didnt work out well. The teams decision is partially a combination of merit and acceptance. The teams weakness in this stage is that it never had a backup plan till the failure has happened. In this stage, the resources are shuffled inorder to deliver the product on time which is a good move based on earlier decisions. But in actual practice it is difficult to execute as per the plan and is important to review the decisions as a team by d iscussing the merits and demerits of the team. In Fuse stage, the result from the earlier decisions gives the team of measuring the decisions. In the initial stage, Person 1 took the decision of going ahead with the good quality suppliers and convinced the team members, since it clicked the team went ahead with that persons decision for the future also. Every time when a decision is taken it is important to discuss as a team by evaluating the results of the decision and have a backup plan if that decision went wrong. During the periods 4, 5, 6 the teams took decisions in a fast, accurate way by learning from the mistakes earlier. It is important to learn from mistakes as a team. Finally, in the decide stage, the team started looking at the future in what has to be done next by reducing the uncertainty, refining the interpersonal skills. In this stage, the team started to work on a consensus basis. Even a single member points are taken seriously and started discussing the merits and demerits with refining the criteria. The team started to work on the alternatives and focus more towards for addressing the next issues. The team weakness in this stage, it is important to document the deliberation so that these failures cannot happen in the future. The key learning from the decision making procedures are decisions are subject to change and have to be reviewed consistently. Consensus approach has to be followed inorder to make a decision which can be based on merit and acceptance. Conflict within the team: Many organisations have changed to project management structures because of their inability to resolve conflicts. In a project life cycle, conflicts are part and parcel of life and can happen at any levels of the organisation. The project manager is often described as a conflict manager (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). Conflicts generally happen because of misunderstanding between team members and have different interpretations of companys objective. Inorder to avoid that, projects have to be defined in a clear way so that it can be understood by all the team members. Some people use SMART criteria for defining the project which says; S- Specific M- Measurable A- Attainable R- Realistic or Relevant T- Tangible or time bound (Kerzner, 2009). Time management is crucial in any project and it is important to manage time by avoiding conflicts. Some conflicts are relevant and provide valuable results. Most common types of conflict involve in the allocations of manpower resources, using the equipments and facilities, expenditure on capitals, cost and technical opinions and trade offs (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). Moreover the seven potential sources of conflicts are shown in the Fig 4. Goal, Plan and Belief conflicts are the three types of conflicts (Jain et al, 2007). If a conflict happens in a project, there are five different ways of resolving the conflicts which are shown in fig 5 which are confrontation, compromise, smoothing, forcing and withdrawal. Evaluation of conflicts: The team initially had conflicts in allocating the man power resources like employing in design, assemblers and testers. The team had a conflict over schedules in attaining the project on time. The team members person 1, 2 and 4 had difference of opinions in schedules and the resolution mode of compromise is used to resolve that issue. Person 1, 3, 4 had conflicts in priorities in choosing the suppliers. Person 1 suggested a supplier part can be taken just before the assembly but the team members took a decision by smoothing mode. In case if anything fails the team need to reorder again this may take time. Inorder for the project manager to be effective an understanding of how to work with various employees who must interface with the project is necessary (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). The various members in the team include upper management, functional managers etc and it is important to understand the sub ordinate and functional conflicts. The relationship between conflict causes and sourc es is shown in the figure 6. The teams strength is that none of the members in the team had personality conflict which is very important for project success. When deciding the manufacturing sub contractor person 1 suggested for a reliable sub contractor, but all the other members in the team are cost conscious in which person 1 and other members had a conflict over cost. The teams choice of choosing a good quality supplier had a conflict with other members which is a functional conflict provides good benefits for the team in terms of quality, time and cost. During the period 3, 4 the team members had a conflict of allocating the inspectors which is the conflict over schedule and had a good result during the period. But during the period 5, the team had a conflict on schedule in resource allocation of assemblers but not with the inspectors. All the five resolution modes of conflicts are used for resolving conflicts in almost all the stages. The team weaknesses include conflicts have to happen and has to be resolv ed systematically. But as a team, conflicts at the initial stages of the project give good results and when it comes to final stages conflicts started coming down. The figure 7 shows the conflict intensity in the team during the project life cycle. The key learnings from the project management exercise are that time management is important and the conflicts have to be resolved within the time. Team members have to understand the sub ordinate and their opinions and have to be evaluated inorder to get a good result in the project. It is important to have a plan for resolving conflicts in the planning phase itself. Constant communication of the project objectives to the team members will help in minimising or even eliminating the conflicts. Sometimes direct contact with people will reduce the conflicts. In project management hierarchical issues are to be resolved and there shall not be any domination from the project manager or the functional mangers. Companywide policies can be adapted for resolving the conflict issues for smooth functioning of the project. Role clarities have to be clear which will reduce the conflicts. Team Leadership: Team leadership is one of the main aspects in the project success. In any projects, leadership becomes a problem because project management involves group of people who are frequently in interaction for a specific project. The following tasks are required for a leader to achieve the tasks; Tasks are defined and shall be achieved Team shall be build and can be properly co-ordinated Leader shall satisfy individual team members Task needs It is important for the leader to clearly define the objectives of the project and leadership shall aim at achieving these goals. Team needs The element of leadership shall hold the team together inorder to produce efficient results for the project. If the team have conflicts, then it is the leader who has to convince the team members effectively. Individual needs The performance and contributions of the project by every member of the team have to be understood by the leader and sometimes can reward for good work (Reiss, 1995). From the moment the leadership is taken it is important for the leader to ensure that the project is heading in correct direction (Heerkens, 2002). The biggest problem that a leader is facing in the project management is that managing the anxieties which were developed by the team members. Sometimes if it is not evaluated may lead to slow down the project and work output. The anticipation by the leaders when questioned by the team members are: Whats in it for me? What will be expected out of me? What will life on your team like? (Heerkens, 2002) Evaluation of team leadership: In the project management exercise, the team leadership was with no one and totally a team effort. But it is always important to have a leader for the team for the above reasons stated. Sometimes Person 1 took the leadership in choosing the suppliers, sub contractors, person 2 took the leadership in periods 4, 5 of the project. Person 4 took the leadership in the periods 6, 7 and person 3 during the period 2 of the project. The teams strength is that everybody in the team understands the leadership attitudes which are important for project success. The anxieties by the team members can be reduced by having conversations within the team. The team members frequently had meeting openly for achieving the following: Project objectives were reviewed (the true need for the project) and the justifications were explained as a team (benefits). Project planning and its proposal were reviewed (the solution) and the team leader took a decision for the preferred approach. Initially the team faced problems of leadership and all members expressed their views and constraints. Roles and responsibilities are not clarified clearly by functional categorisation which leads to some problems within the team. This is considered as one of the teams weaknesses. It is important to honestly characterise the style of leadership (free, open, trusting, reacting to situations) The leader has to explain the expectations that are required from the team members regarding the delivery by frequent conducting of meetings. Communication plays a major role in leadership and the leader has to explain the behaviour style. (Adopted from Heerkens, 2002 Modified for Project Management exercise). The team initially went ahead with no leader and later person characterised by Belbin as CO started taking leadership which was helpful for the team. The team had good mutual relationships with other members and used visual charts when sketching the plan, reviewing the plan. Professional ethics are maintained throughout the project which is the biggest advantage for the project success. Celebration of project milestones and its success are very important to improve the morale of the members is considered to be one of the team weaknesses. Any team before starting the project must have a leader and it is the leader who assigns the roles and responsibilities of the team members clearly. One of the main leadership qualities is the flexibility in their approach, style in adapting to the situations, communications with the team members. It is not always necessary that leader should have technical skills, but a little amount of knowledge in the particular field is sufficient for managing the project. Conclusion: Organisational behaviour is very important for project management and using Belbin profiles in dividing the organisation is helpful in achieving the objectives. Team work is important for the project to succeed and lies on every individual of the team. It is important for the leader to motivate the members and constantly encourage them for the effective functioning of project teams. Belbin team life cycle shows that evolution of teams and tells the effective functioning of teams. The decision making procedures are important for projects success and has to be reviewed consistently. Project planning is considered to be the important phase in project management and plan gives only the direction. It is important for the team to learn from mistakes. Introduction TVS Motors is the third largest two wheeler manufacturers in India and one among the top ten in the world with annual turnover of more than USD 1 billion 2008-2009 and is the flagship company of the USD 4 billion TVS group. The company has four plants located in Hosur and Mysore in South India, Himachel Pradesh in North India and one in Indonesia. The company has a production capacity of 2.5 million units per year. TVS strength lies in the design and development of new products. TVS delivers total customer satisfaction by anticipating customer needs and presenting quality vehicles at the right time and right price. The customer and his ever changing need is our continuous source of imspiration.TVS always stood for innovative, easy to handle, environment friendly products, backed by reliable customer service. TVS manufactures a wide range of products as shown below. Motorcycles Apache RTR, Flame DS 125, Flame, Jive, Star City, Sport Variomatic Scooters Wego, Scooty Streak, Pep+, Teenz Mopeds TVS XL Super, TVS XL Heavy Duty Step thrus TVS Neo, Rockz (TVS Motors, 2010). The main objective of this essay is to evaluate the project management of a sub system (Fit and Finish Engineering section part of RD) in the TVS Motors and suggesting improvement points for betterment of the project management. Organisation Structure Any organisation exists to achieve the objectives by maintaining good relationships with its customers and its employees. The main objective of organisation is profitability. TVS Motor Company Mission Statement We are committed to being a highly profitable, socially responsible, and leading manufacturer of high value for money, environment friendly, life time personal transportation products under the brand, for customers predominantly in Asian markets and to provide fulfilment and prosperity for employees, de MA as a Growth Strategy MA as a Growth Strategy Introduction: Project Management (BS 6079, 1996) is the planning, monitoring and control of all aspects of a project and the motivation of all those involved in it to achieve the project objectives on time and to the specified cost, quality and performance. For any project to become a success, team work plays a major role. One of the most renowned and widely used practical and management team developments is the Belbin team roles. The argument from Belbin is that team composition plays a major factor in influencing the performance of the team (Water et al, 2008). The fundamental aspect of human existence is the working together as groups. The main purpose of this is to survive, adapt and thrive to different situations by using individuals intellect and co-operation (Riding and Rayner, 2001). The team roles are classified into organisational roles and the functional roles (Atkinson, 1999). A team role is a set of behaviours grouped in a cluster (Belbin, 1993). The main objective of this essay is to evaluate the teams performance based on the Belbin self perception theory discussing the teams roles, team life cycle and other aspects with respect to the project management exercise. Belbin Team Roles: Team roles are defined as a pattern of behaviour characteristic of the way in which one team member interacts with another (Belbin, 1981). Every individual will take preferred roles in the management exercises and the outcome purely depends on the balance in the team (Riding and Rayner, 2001). It is always a good team with a good balance of individuals will result in a good outcome and vice versa (Belbin, 1993). Belbin has differentiated nine team roles based on the behaviour of people and is classified by feeling, will power, thinking and decisiveness. In the Belbin later research, he added one more role called as SP (Specialist) which refers to single mindedness, acting always alone and dedicated to specialism. The main function of this role is that people will behave in a extremely silent, introvert and will not contribute other than their special interest areas. This is considered as the negligible contribution to the team (Atkinson, 1999). Belbin uses an instrument for quantifyi ng the team role preferences which is called as the Self Perception Inventory. This consists of 70 points by evaluating seven statements in each questions. For each question 10 statements are given and can be prioritised based on the individual behaviour in which 10 points can be distributed. In predicting the performance of the team Belbin succeeded based on the information from the role profiles of each member. In this view a team is balanced when each role appears in atleast one team members profile as high-scoring role (Atkinson, 1999). From the Henley workshops, Belbin was able to specify the composition of the team and arrived at conclusions. This was characterised by (Furnham, 1992): attributes of a leader are similar to chairman profile (CH) now called as Co-ordinator (CO) and the team should have a range of mental abilities which includes a person generating creative ideas and giving practical solutions to the problems encountered. The team should include one Completer Finisher (CF), Implementer (IM) and the members can suit the other team roles based on their personal characteristics and ultimately the team which can identify and improve on their competencies by doing mistakes is considered as the best team (Riding and Rayner, 2001). Teams Belbin profiles: For the project management exercise, the teams were divided based on the Belbin team roles. As said earlier, in a team it is must to have a Completer Finisher (CF) and Implementer (IM). The team were asked to choose from Team Workers (TW). Person having primary reference as Team Workers are few and so persons having secondary and tertiary references as Team Workers were called for choosing the team. Evaluating the team roles and functions: First, from the team balance sheet it is clear that the team has no primary references for SH, PL, RI, TW, CF and can be considered as scarce for the team. This team has three implementers (IM) which is good in terms of delivering the project fast. Having more implementers is not a problem in any team as they move towards implementing the project. But having more shapers is a problem because of their characteristics. Person 1 who is ME can act as a CF and TW because of his secondary and tertiary preferences. Person 1 shows major characteristics of ME because of the feasibility characteristics. In this exercise, person 1 is very much interested in calculating the Critical path, always analysing the situations, showing temperament and whenever anything goes out of plan again doing the critical path whether there is feasibility of completing the project on time. The main advantage with person 1 is that he maintains good temperament in all the situations even if it is good or bad. The disadvantages is that in some situations person 1 whose Belbin profile shows weakness as decision making is very true. Sometimes person 1 took some hasty decisions which have affected the teams profit (decision of choosing the manufacturing subcontractor). Always took more time in making next moves since the basic nature of ME is analysing situations. Sometimes person 1 also did the role of CF when it comes to planning the project. The project plan was for 140 days with 7 periods of 20 days. One of the persons in the team were modifying the plan for days and the person striked the number of resources and wrote the new allocation of resource. Person 1 thought that this can make confusions and he acted as a CF by rubbing of the resources and wrote the allocation as clear as possible so that everybody can understand. Person 2 who is CO acted as a RI and PL in the initial phase of the exercise. As depicted by Belbin, RI used to interact a lot with the external environment is very true. Person 2 whenever any problems are faced by the team, he used to interact more with the teacher understanding the problem and gives new ideas to solving the problem. Person 2 organises well with the resource facilities for the game with the flip charts, pens and other requirements for smooth functioning of the game. At only one stage person 2 acted as a CO in the decision of choosing suppliers. Person 2 behaves more as RI and PL in this exercise. Person 3 who is IM, SP and has two tertiary references as CO and ME has shown good characteristics of implementer role in this exercise. Sometimes person 3 behaves more as ME than CO which is good for the team, because one or more COs have different approaches for the project. Person 3 is always striving hard to implement the project on time and sometimes showed good character for team worker. Person 3 always strives hard to stick to the plan and whenever plan changes, organises well for implementing the plan. The disadvantage is that this person lacks flexibility sometimes when it comes to implementation. Person 4 who is IM, secondary is CF and tertiary is SH initially has shown SH characteristics by challenging and arguing the facts that were made by the team. Person 4 is always interested in results and sometimes behaved as CO by taking decisions. Person 1 and 4 since showed shaper characteristics sometimes had difference of opinion but were well managed by team members. Person 4 showed good implementer characteristics in the final stages of the exercise. Person 5 who is IM, ME as secondary and CF as tertiary initially were helping the team with PL characteristics, sometimes RI when CO has to take decisions by going to the external world and discussing with people. Very sincere, hard working when it comes to implementation. Main advantage is that very well organised in implementing things, interested in sticking to the plan and sometimes resources were provided by him. Person 5 showed a major of Team Worker in many aspects because of the fact that TW always want to harmony among the teams. The team Belbins profiles helped a lot in choosing a balanced team and are 60% accurate with respect to our team. For a project to become a success, it is always helpful with people taking new roles under a good leadership. Finally, good team work will always succeed and makes the project success. Persons took roles which are not their primary, secondary or tertiary references sometimes worked out well and made benefits to the team but many of the times it failed. The people showed majority of the characteristics as depicted by Belbin and is helpful in the teams success. One important learning with Belbin self perception theory is that having two or more shapers in a team is dangerous and will lead to poor project management. It is always helpful to have one PL and one CO as their primary reference. Team Life Cycle: The basic behaviour of any team is that they are dynamic. As an individual, they can perform effectively but as a team they can fail and vice versa. Attention and maintenance are always required for the teams. The first person to bring a chart for teams progression is Tuckman. He has identified four stages in a teams development which are forming, storming, norming and performing (Kakabadse et al, 2004). In the forming stage, team members got to know about each other and started establishing their relationships. The learnings are based on the organisations culture and standards. Project task behaviours and interpersonal relationships are very important in binding the team together. In the storming stage, a person starts expressing the views and there is a chance of difference in opinion. Leadership challenges occur and may lead to rivalry between people because of their behaviours. Because of these conflicts, the main objective of the organisation cannot be met which lead to separation of groups. In the norming stage, groups will start gelling towards one another and each strengths and weaknesses can be known. The teams will set their standards and roles can be clearly defined at this stage. In the performing stage, actual team working takes place and people starts performing their tasks together. If the team loses the energy or support, then a stage called restoring or declining stage may follow. Further in this stage, the strengths, weaknesses of the team is analysed with respect to the task is discussed and learnings are recorded for effective project management in future. Evaluating the teams life cycle: In the project management exercise, different sets of problems are encountered by the team and creative solutions are identified to solve these problems. Some of the solutions clicked and some lead to major failures for the team. The forming stage provided opportunities for the new team to understand each other and gave different settings. When first given the exercise, some team members easily understood the process and some found difficult to understand the process. In the initial stages it took more time for the team to decide the strategy for proceeding with the project. Person 1, 3 expressed their views which were not agreed by the team whereas person 2, 4 had expressed their concerns which again not accepted by the team members. Finally, a conclusion has been made with the project plan and the identification of first, second and third critical paths are identified. This stage is all about trusting and building confidence on other team members. The team lacks leadership in this phase. A leader is clearly needed in this phase to provide direction and guidance (Lee, 2008). The storming stage provides openness for feelings and the team discusses the issues very seriously even if the point is not valid. The existing plan with respect to the actual working is modified and refined well. Person 1, 4 had conflicts in choosing the suppliers whether to go for delivery or quality. Person 2, 3 and 5 also contributed but a single decision has to be taken by the team. The team debated on these issues and finally person 1 compromised person 4 for going to a quality supplier by explaining with the fact which will not affect the delivery of the product. The teams weaknesses are that for first three periods did good jobs but didnt celebrate any success. The other weaknesses are builds, integration points between team members, conflicts within the team and sometimes role conflicts. In the norming stage, the teams had fewer conflicts and started communicating more effectively with others. The team emerged with good practices; loop integration exists because of better communication, the person understands their balance and develops their required skills and role clarity is clearly defined. Person 1 decision will be treated as final since some of the decisions worked out well in the earlier periods and didnt analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the decision which lead to a disaster in period 4, 5. The team didnt properly review the operation in a regular basis which also leads to a failure (not delivering the product on time). The team didnt celebrate success in this stage also. In the performing stage, since person 1 decision went wrong it is important for the team members to chip in with leadership and person start taking responsibilities for leadership which is a very good sign for the team. This allows rotation of leadership and helps team members to grow their own skills. The team started to treat seriously the views from team members as well as outside members which is done for the betterment of the project work. Finally, the team made a little profit and starts celebrating the success which has to be done earlier. In this stage it is always good to have an outsider to comment on the teams performance which helps in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the team. In the last stage, the team learnt their mistakes and starts working on improving individual competencies and the advantages of team work. Every individual is important for a team and it is the individuals who are building the team. The project management exercise can be done more effectively if the same team is given one more chance based on their learnings. The output required from this phase is the prevention of failures for a future project. Decision making procedures: The teams success depends on the decision making and it is the key factor in project management. The working definition of decision making (Ullman, 2006) is that Decision making is a process that commits resources to resolving an issue. Making a decision is not an event; it is a process for arriving at the correct decisions based on uncertain, incomplete, incomplete, inconsistent and evolving information. It is important for the team to get the best out of these results. In practice, every decision the team trying to make must address two issues: Merit decision quantitative way of taking the decision based on merits Acceptance decision acceptance by the people by the decision taken by the team. A decision is a choice made from several alternatives (Lewis, 2004). The decision is going to be effective when merit and acceptance are considered. For any decision the important criteria is to understand the problem and issues are to be clarified. Then as a team alternatives are generated and criteria are developed for robust decision making. The next important step is the evaluation part which tells the importance of the criteria. This also generates value to the alternatives that are developed for the criteria. Fuse is the next step in decision making which generates decision measures by evaluating process. The last stage is what to do next which reduces consensus, uncertainty, criteria and further revising the alternatives. Hence, (Ullman, 2006)A robust decision is the best possible choice, one found by eliminating all the uncertainty possible within available resources and then choosing with known and acceptable levels of satisfaction and risk. Some of the problems that are encountered during the decision making are team members have different judgement and their outcomes may be different due to different knowledge level, preferences. In order to evaluate a decision, managers have to choose a proper method (Fan Fu-Rong et al, 2008). Consultative approach is the most widely used approach for decision making. For handling group decision, the rules are shown in the below table 2. Evaluating the decision making procedures: Decisions taken in project management exercise by the team sometimes based on merit and sometimes based on acceptance and sometimes a combination of both. A consultative approach is followed when taking a decision. Initially for the first two decisions, it took more time for the team to understand the problem and team is not clear in the issues. The project delivery time is 140 days and the CPM shows that there is 285 days for the product to come out. A project plan is made for getting the product on time and it is always difficult to stick to the plan. Team members initially found difficult to generate alternatives for the decision and initially the team followed a consensus with team members. The first decision is based on merit as to reduce the lead time from 285 to 140 days. The teams weaknesses in the understanding phase are took more time for taking a decision, no clarity on problems, no criteria developed for taking the decision. Also, initially since team members are of diffe rent competencies it took time for gelling together. Then after the decision the team started to develop criteria for the decisions. The team in evaluating phase started to understand the importance of criteria developed and started generating alternatives for the criteria. One important thing is that decisions are always subject to change and it is important to review the earlier decisions. In the exercise, the team decided to go for good quality suppliers which actually paid very well for the team. When it comes to manufacturing sub contractors, due to cost pressure some compromise has to be made by the team and went ahead with the cheap sub contractor. The team took a risk but didnt work out well. The teams decision is partially a combination of merit and acceptance. The teams weakness in this stage is that it never had a backup plan till the failure has happened. In this stage, the resources are shuffled inorder to deliver the product on time which is a good move based on earlier decisions. But in actual practice it is difficult to execute as per the plan and is important to review the decisions as a team by d iscussing the merits and demerits of the team. In Fuse stage, the result from the earlier decisions gives the team of measuring the decisions. In the initial stage, Person 1 took the decision of going ahead with the good quality suppliers and convinced the team members, since it clicked the team went ahead with that persons decision for the future also. Every time when a decision is taken it is important to discuss as a team by evaluating the results of the decision and have a backup plan if that decision went wrong. During the periods 4, 5, 6 the teams took decisions in a fast, accurate way by learning from the mistakes earlier. It is important to learn from mistakes as a team. Finally, in the decide stage, the team started looking at the future in what has to be done next by reducing the uncertainty, refining the interpersonal skills. In this stage, the team started to work on a consensus basis. Even a single member points are taken seriously and started discussing the merits and demerits with refining the criteria. The team started to work on the alternatives and focus more towards for addressing the next issues. The team weakness in this stage, it is important to document the deliberation so that these failures cannot happen in the future. The key learning from the decision making procedures are decisions are subject to change and have to be reviewed consistently. Consensus approach has to be followed inorder to make a decision which can be based on merit and acceptance. Conflict within the team: Many organisations have changed to project management structures because of their inability to resolve conflicts. In a project life cycle, conflicts are part and parcel of life and can happen at any levels of the organisation. The project manager is often described as a conflict manager (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). Conflicts generally happen because of misunderstanding between team members and have different interpretations of companys objective. Inorder to avoid that, projects have to be defined in a clear way so that it can be understood by all the team members. Some people use SMART criteria for defining the project which says; S- Specific M- Measurable A- Attainable R- Realistic or Relevant T- Tangible or time bound (Kerzner, 2009). Time management is crucial in any project and it is important to manage time by avoiding conflicts. Some conflicts are relevant and provide valuable results. Most common types of conflict involve in the allocations of manpower resources, using the equipments and facilities, expenditure on capitals, cost and technical opinions and trade offs (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). Moreover the seven potential sources of conflicts are shown in the Fig 4. Goal, Plan and Belief conflicts are the three types of conflicts (Jain et al, 2007). If a conflict happens in a project, there are five different ways of resolving the conflicts which are shown in fig 5 which are confrontation, compromise, smoothing, forcing and withdrawal. Evaluation of conflicts: The team initially had conflicts in allocating the man power resources like employing in design, assemblers and testers. The team had a conflict over schedules in attaining the project on time. The team members person 1, 2 and 4 had difference of opinions in schedules and the resolution mode of compromise is used to resolve that issue. Person 1, 3, 4 had conflicts in priorities in choosing the suppliers. Person 1 suggested a supplier part can be taken just before the assembly but the team members took a decision by smoothing mode. In case if anything fails the team need to reorder again this may take time. Inorder for the project manager to be effective an understanding of how to work with various employees who must interface with the project is necessary (Kerzner, 2001, 2009). The various members in the team include upper management, functional managers etc and it is important to understand the sub ordinate and functional conflicts. The relationship between conflict causes and sourc es is shown in the figure 6. The teams strength is that none of the members in the team had personality conflict which is very important for project success. When deciding the manufacturing sub contractor person 1 suggested for a reliable sub contractor, but all the other members in the team are cost conscious in which person 1 and other members had a conflict over cost. The teams choice of choosing a good quality supplier had a conflict with other members which is a functional conflict provides good benefits for the team in terms of quality, time and cost. During the period 3, 4 the team members had a conflict of allocating the inspectors which is the conflict over schedule and had a good result during the period. But during the period 5, the team had a conflict on schedule in resource allocation of assemblers but not with the inspectors. All the five resolution modes of conflicts are used for resolving conflicts in almost all the stages. The team weaknesses include conflicts have to happen and has to be resolv ed systematically. But as a team, conflicts at the initial stages of the project give good results and when it comes to final stages conflicts started coming down. The figure 7 shows the conflict intensity in the team during the project life cycle. The key learnings from the project management exercise are that time management is important and the conflicts have to be resolved within the time. Team members have to understand the sub ordinate and their opinions and have to be evaluated inorder to get a good result in the project. It is important to have a plan for resolving conflicts in the planning phase itself. Constant communication of the project objectives to the team members will help in minimising or even eliminating the conflicts. Sometimes direct contact with people will reduce the conflicts. In project management hierarchical issues are to be resolved and there shall not be any domination from the project manager or the functional mangers. Companywide policies can be adapted for resolving the conflict issues for smooth functioning of the project. Role clarities have to be clear which will reduce the conflicts. Team Leadership: Team leadership is one of the main aspects in the project success. In any projects, leadership becomes a problem because project management involves group of people who are frequently in interaction for a specific project. The following tasks are required for a leader to achieve the tasks; Tasks are defined and shall be achieved Team shall be build and can be properly co-ordinated Leader shall satisfy individual team members Task needs It is important for the leader to clearly define the objectives of the project and leadership shall aim at achieving these goals. Team needs The element of leadership shall hold the team together inorder to produce efficient results for the project. If the team have conflicts, then it is the leader who has to convince the team members effectively. Individual needs The performance and contributions of the project by every member of the team have to be understood by the leader and sometimes can reward for good work (Reiss, 1995). From the moment the leadership is taken it is important for the leader to ensure that the project is heading in correct direction (Heerkens, 2002). The biggest problem that a leader is facing in the project management is that managing the anxieties which were developed by the team members. Sometimes if it is not evaluated may lead to slow down the project and work output. The anticipation by the leaders when questioned by the team members are: Whats in it for me? What will be expected out of me? What will life on your team like? (Heerkens, 2002) Evaluation of team leadership: In the project management exercise, the team leadership was with no one and totally a team effort. But it is always important to have a leader for the team for the above reasons stated. Sometimes Person 1 took the leadership in choosing the suppliers, sub contractors, person 2 took the leadership in periods 4, 5 of the project. Person 4 took the leadership in the periods 6, 7 and person 3 during the period 2 of the project. The teams strength is that everybody in the team understands the leadership attitudes which are important for project success. The anxieties by the team members can be reduced by having conversations within the team. The team members frequently had meeting openly for achieving the following: Project objectives were reviewed (the true need for the project) and the justifications were explained as a team (benefits). Project planning and its proposal were reviewed (the solution) and the team leader took a decision for the preferred approach. Initially the team faced problems of leadership and all members expressed their views and constraints. Roles and responsibilities are not clarified clearly by functional categorisation which leads to some problems within the team. This is considered as one of the teams weaknesses. It is important to honestly characterise the style of leadership (free, open, trusting, reacting to situations) The leader has to explain the expectations that are required from the team members regarding the delivery by frequent conducting of meetings. Communication plays a major role in leadership and the leader has to explain the behaviour style. (Adopted from Heerkens, 2002 Modified for Project Management exercise). The team initially went ahead with no leader and later person characterised by Belbin as CO started taking leadership which was helpful for the team. The team had good mutual relationships with other members and used visual charts when sketching the plan, reviewing the plan. Professional ethics are maintained throughout the project which is the biggest advantage for the project success. Celebration of project milestones and its success are very important to improve the morale of the members is considered to be one of the team weaknesses. Any team before starting the project must have a leader and it is the leader who assigns the roles and responsibilities of the team members clearly. One of the main leadership qualities is the flexibility in their approach, style in adapting to the situations, communications with the team members. It is not always necessary that leader should have technical skills, but a little amount of knowledge in the particular field is sufficient for managing the project. Conclusion: Organisational behaviour is very important for project management and using Belbin profiles in dividing the organisation is helpful in achieving the objectives. Team work is important for the project to succeed and lies on every individual of the team. It is important for the leader to motivate the members and constantly encourage them for the effective functioning of project teams. Belbin team life cycle shows that evolution of teams and tells the effective functioning of teams. The decision making procedures are important for projects success and has to be reviewed consistently. Project planning is considered to be the important phase in project management and plan gives only the direction. It is important for the team to learn from mistakes. Introduction TVS Motors is the third largest two wheeler manufacturers in India and one among the top ten in the world with annual turnover of more than USD 1 billion 2008-2009 and is the flagship company of the USD 4 billion TVS group. The company has four plants located in Hosur and Mysore in South India, Himachel Pradesh in North India and one in Indonesia. The company has a production capacity of 2.5 million units per year. TVS strength lies in the design and development of new products. TVS delivers total customer satisfaction by anticipating customer needs and presenting quality vehicles at the right time and right price. The customer and his ever changing need is our continuous source of imspiration.TVS always stood for innovative, easy to handle, environment friendly products, backed by reliable customer service. TVS manufactures a wide range of products as shown below. Motorcycles Apache RTR, Flame DS 125, Flame, Jive, Star City, Sport Variomatic Scooters Wego, Scooty Streak, Pep+, Teenz Mopeds TVS XL Super, TVS XL Heavy Duty Step thrus TVS Neo, Rockz (TVS Motors, 2010). The main objective of this essay is to evaluate the project management of a sub system (Fit and Finish Engineering section part of RD) in the TVS Motors and suggesting improvement points for betterment of the project management. Organisation Structure Any organisation exists to achieve the objectives by maintaining good relationships with its customers and its employees. The main objective of organisation is profitability. TVS Motor Company Mission Statement We are committed to being a highly profitable, socially responsible, and leading manufacturer of high value for money, environment friendly, life time personal transportation products under the brand, for customers predominantly in Asian markets and to provide fulfilment and prosperity for employees, de