Grassroots Computing Essay Example for Free

Grassroots Computing Essay The article â€Å"Changing the corporate IT development model: Tapping the power of Grassroots† defines that the IT world in the 21st century corporate world is evolving. No longer are there programmers and users. Many times the users become ad hoc programmers. In some corporate structures the lines between the two worlds are disappearing. The plus side to this ad hoc programming is the ability for the end user to develop the tool needed to accomplish the task at hand. Many of the programs available to the business communities are generic in nature and the business will adapt to the program available. In some companies the grassroots computing types are adapting or improving the programming to meet the needs of the organization. The negative side to the grassroots computing model growing in the corporate world is the barriers and silos often built around the IT environment. These barriers need to be taken down for the full growth of the computer industry to be realized for all users and developers. The current license agreements around programing usage and modification will have to be adapted to the changes taking place in the enterprise. The article specifically identifies that the IT genre must – in addition to other needed steps â€Å"Actively cultivate an entrepreneurial atmosphere and Provide tools and services to enable workers to automate their own work environments. † (Cherbakov Et Al). With this changing idealism around IT and end user – corporate policy and culture needs to also evolve. The organization that will realize the full potential of the programing resources available – not only in the IT department – but across all boundaries in the organization – will establish a culture that will bring down established silos. There still needs to be licensing agreements and non disclosure agreements in place for proprietary rights. These licenses and agreements should not be drawn up in a way to quell the entrepreneurial spirit needed in any growing organization. Each member of the entire team needs to be able to contribute to realization of organizational objectives. Not seeking to be detrimental in any skill set in the organization – but creating a team culture that opens doors for the IT professionals and the professionals on the floor who use the IT tools. Bibliography Cherbakov Et Al. (2007). Changing the corporate IT development model: Tapping the power of grassroots computing. IBM Systems Journal, 46(4), 1-20.

Using Bicycles As An Alternative To Automobiles Essay -- essays resear

Using Bicycles As An Alternative To Automobiles Abstract: This paper basically shows the reasons to use the bicycle as an alternative   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  mode of transportation. It will points out the benefits of the use of a   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  bicycle. It will also show what is being done to get rid of the negative   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  aspects of using a bicycle for transportation. Bicycling is one of the fastest growing forms of recreation. People are drawn to it for many reasons, being out in the fresh air, the thrill of speed, the physical challenge, along with many other things. But there can be many more uses for the bicycle. The use that this paper will focus on is transportation. The use of bicycles can greatly improve the economy of a nation. A comparison between the efficiency of the transportation systems of the United Stated and Japan points this out. In 1990 Americans spent 17.9 percent of the GNP on transportation, whereas the Japanese spent only 10.79 percent on transportation. This difference of nearly 7 percent, gives the Japanese economy much more money for investing in their future. Our Economy is not the only thing we should worry about, and it is also not the only thing that can be improved by the use of bicycles. There are several major problems that could be drastically reduced by the increased use of bicycles. Traffic would be a lot lighter due to the extremely small size of bicycles. It would also greatly reduce the wear and tear on our roads and highways, and therefore reduce government expenditure. But one of the most serious problems it would reduce is that of pollution and smog in out larger cities. There are more benefits to biking, though. There are benefits that come at a more personal level. Biking greatly improves ones health. It can be a way to exercise without taking much times out of ones schedule. The time one would spend biking to work serves two important purposes. One, getting to work, but also as a great form of exercise. Improved mobility in crowded situations. In downtown areas, biking to work may actually save time. Cars crawl through congested traffic, while bicyclists ride around it. The time it takes to park a car... ...(Washington: Transportation Research Board, 1987) 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  United States, Actions Needed To Increase Bicycle/Moped Use In The Federal Community (Washington: U.S. General Accounting Office, 1981) 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mike Hudson, Bicycle Planning (The Architectural Press: London, 1982) 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  National Research Council. Transportation Research Board. Pedestrian Behavior and Bicycle Traffic (Washington: National Academy of Sciences, 1980) 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  National Research Council. Transportation Research Board. Nonmotorized Transportation Around The World (Washington: National Academy Press, 1994) 7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  National Research Council. Transportation Research Board. Nonmotorized Transportation Research, Issues, and Use (Washington: National Academy Press, 1995) 8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  John T. Doolittle, Integration of Bicycles and Transit (Washington: National Academy Press, 1994) 9.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.tnrcc.state.tx.us/air/ms/vexercis.htm 10.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.nd.edu/~ktrembat/www-bike/BCY/TryBikeCommute.html

Leadership Imperatives in the Arab-American University Essay

Leadership in a school of higher and advanced learning such as the Arab-American University requires collaborative and confrontational challenges with a number of issues, typical but not limited to that of any educational institution. Such issues as cultural diversity, inclusivity, intellectual activities such as research and instruction, social involvements such as community extension services, students affairs, finance, marketing, strategic business models, organizational theories, profitability and shareholder value, political and social congruencies and differences, among others, often create deep chasms to and between the various school sectors that are ironically bound by a common purpose – quality education. This is made more demanding when Arab and American views are integrated in a single community. What unique leadership and management model therefore would apply under such a sensitive configuration? What risk management intervention would constantly prevail? What residual risks or synergy, if any, would be evident? Leadership and management in an educational institution are perhaps among the most formal, sensitive and confrontational roles a professional can assume. Business organizations established for profit are far easier managed and led as there is that environment and mandate of compliance required of every employee based on employment contracts and agreements. This compliance system gives the manager the elbow room to adopt an organizational approach under a theory x or y scenario. Admittedly, discipline under an entrepreneurial undertaking is demanded primarily to meet shareholder value targets and for survival secondarily. Universities are considered more complex than most organizational systems as they demand the most professional processes than any other institution. Schools are assumed to be the fount and cradle of learning, hence a strong exemplary modeling of instructors and administrators are always the subject of intensive scrutiny among other sectors. Would this university therefore require a business-like management style or an organization leadership mix that is as fluid as the socio-cultural and political dimensions? . In an age where socio-cultural and political diversities are characterized with the widest spectra and extremes, the establishment of an Arab-American intellectual Mecca can be expected to require the most intense professional and socio-cultural leadership anywhere. This study would be interested in identifying areas of collaboration while addressing confrontational issues and risks along the process. Similarly, the relevance of this study along multicultural settings in complex and diverse forms and in highly professional environment would transcend, even revolutionize all assumptions, hypothesis and even all forms of propositions about multicultural biases. Brief history of the Arab-American University The Arab-American University (AAU) was established in 1973 as non-sectarian, non-profit and non-government institution of higher learning. Its primary purpose is to address the educational needs of Arab-Americans starting from preschool to basic, secondary, higher education, to graduate and post-graduate levels. Among its goals and objectives include providing full scholarships to families of indigent but intellectually capable members of the Arab-American community in a specific area with a relatively high density of Arab-American families. While the university accepts Muslim students, it also caters to students from other religious and cultural denominations and groups.. The university is primarily a combination of a business college strongly oriented towards information technology and engineering courses, both technical and baccalaureate degrees. The university is composed of seven schools: the Schools of Business Management, Hospitality Management, Accountancy, Nursing and Midwifery, Medicine, Arts, Political and the Social Sciences, Polytechnic Institute composed of the Departments of Architecture, Computer Science, Electronic Communications Engineering, Civil and Mechanical Engineering and Fine Arts, its flagship programs includes Accountancy where it ranks among the top 50 business schools in the United States, Electronics Communications Engineering, Nursing, Hospitality Management and Mechanical Engineering. All seven schools are verticalized with their respective graduate schools. As of the year 2008, the university boasted a population of 30,000 highly selected students and scholars from 25 states and 15 countries mostly from the Middle East and Asian countries. Its student population increases by an average of 15 per cent and expected to hit 50,000 by 2012. Presently, it maintains two campuses – the Chicago and Urbana Campuses, each with its own charter and separate sets of faculty. All courses are offered in both campuses. For the last three years, AAU has garnered a number of academic awards, including twelve top researches awards in Accountancy, Computer Sciences, Nursing, Electronic Communications Engineering Awards. As of December 31, 2008, the school started to become consistent in its passing rate for the Accountancy, Nursing and Engineering courses all averaging about 80 per cent against the national norm of 40 per cent. For nursing, AAU has started to register a 100 per cent passing rate in the Nursing Board Examinations. All colleges and schools in the university are headed by a Dean of the College and are assisted by a Vice Dean with a pool of Academic Chairs for each of the courses or majors within the college. A Faculty secretary is the administrative officer of each college or school and must be a holder of a doctor’s degree in any of the courses in the college where he or she is assigned. The faculty secretary is the point person of every college but maintains a built-in six units of academic load in addition to his full-time administrative work. The university boasts of complete state of the art facilities for all of its laboratory classes including its basic education department. Its library is one of the most complete, up-to-date libraries in the world with the most comprehensive collection of traditional and electronic materials. During the last five years, the university has been the recipient of awards for excellence in community involvement and extension services. Its research center laboratory enjoys an endowment fund from where it trains and maintains its pool of researchers from the ranks of the faculty. Leadership Efficiency and Effectiveness and the primary key concepts adopted in the university Just like any school of advanced learning, the university is a complex organization that adheres to the mission, vision, goals and objectives it has demanded from itself and its academic and non-academic employees the highest standards of professionalism, responsiveness, community involvement, strong, visible and dynamic research-orientations and the disciplinary but compassionate relationship maintained with the students of all levels. To be effective and efficient, the university periodically asserted its need to formalize and communicate its strategic, tactical and operational plan in the same other successful organizations do. (Robbins, 2003). Looking ahead and beyond the current situations in the industry, (in this case the education sector) brings uncertainties and risks into the open and allows the organization a clear means of managing, confronting and even avoiding those uncertainties and risks. (Shaw,2003). The university makes sure that it conducts its strategic planning session annually before the onset of the succeeding year in time for translating the strategic level into the tactical component as well as operationalizing the tactical level. (Anthony & Govindarajan, 2001). Similarly, AAU never fails to conduct an evaluation and assessment of its preset plans as means of determining where it is and what constraining and enabling factors it is experiencing. (Atkinson et al, 2003). This evaluation additionally renders the university an effective means of addressing change (Koller as cited by Robbins, 2003). These planning and change management processes articulates AAUs assertion of leadership under inherent socio-cultural complexities through clear visioning and communication initiatives to all its stakeholders that for many years, have been encouraged to actively participate in the planning sessions. This has greatly contributed to the overwhelming atmosphere of professionalism in the university. The senior administrators of AAU may not have formal training on complexity management, but their organizational leadership styles enable the attainment of an enviable cohesiveness as a team with a common purpose of being; that of addressing ignorance and mediocrity where they are needed. AAU’s uniqueness stems from its capability to harness its management with the leadership character to instill regulatory and policy compliance without having to assert authority and power in between (House cited by Robbins, 2003). It is surprising that even under intense pressure to compete and manage the scarce resources provided endowment; the AAU is able to integrate the sensitive and complex balance scorecard approach in its strategic decision making. (Kaplan & Norton, 2004). The university attributes this success factor on its priority for choosing its leaders under the trait theory that focuses on the personal qualities along charisma, exemplary modeling, attitude, enthusiasm and even personal traits common to both cultures as courage and determination. (Robbins,2003). Despite rigorous studies on identifying leadership traits for its management, supervisory and staff positions, the university correlates traits such as drive and ambition, integrity which includes honesty and sincerity, competence along knowledge and skills and even sense of sacrifice. (Robbins,2003). The university however, continues to experience a dearth of this type of managers with the leadership dimension due to the expansion and establishment of similar institutions outside of the United States. Thus, aware of this constraint, AAU emphasizes its executive and management development training programs to prepare the transition of its key people towards the great demand for exemplary modeling (DelaTorre, 2006); that is, managers and leaders who took initiatives to address the personal needs of the employees as means of making them more productive in the process. (Robbins, 2003). The university seldom experiences the risks of the groupthink factor (Shafritz & Ott on Janis,1992) as it respects the need for all decision makers to be extremely knowledgeable and skilled in the decision making processes. Being a part of its strategic objectives, the annual development programs encourage AAU employees to be continuously motivated, through the behavioral theory approach, effectively deciding as a team in addressing organizational objectives. This motivational drive expands the employees horizons and capabilities towards job satisfaction and sustainable learning and growth of its human capital (Kaplan & Norton, 2003). As a result, AAU has achieved in just 25 years what other universities tried to accomplish in a century and under the most challenging multicultural scenarios. On one hand, the leadership and management mix being adopted in the university guarantees and assure empowerment of units and people towards autonomy and self-regulation. This is granted after intensive training on decision making and university processes that includes appreciation and utilization of marketing researches and theories in support of policy formulation and implementation. The immense authorities and power given especially to the respective heads of offices, primarily the Deans of Colleges and Schools, are always tempered with management control systems to guide all decisions towards achievement of goals every inch of the way. The resultant good governance, control and transparency outcomes of this empowerment initiatives unburdens the senior management with operational concerns, thus allowing this level a clear focus on the strategic direction of the university and strengthening its social and political influence through good governance and risk management processes (Shaw,2003) On the other hand, the administrative efficiency has been excellently adopted through specialization and responsibility accounting that enables units to address issues at every level strengthening the span of control while focusing tasks towards a specific class of clients, concerns and even the university campus designated purposely for the educational services. (Shafrits & Ott on Simon, 1992). The leadership styles and practices exercised by the AAU stakeholder group are creating new levels of efficiency and effectiveness in the hierarchy and creating precedents as well as new theories to emerge in the realm of university value-based (Koller, 1994) management and organizational leadership. These new learning and growth perspectives have revolutionized the balanced scorecard (Horngren et al, 2000) and stakeholder principles (DelaTorre, 2006) with an exemplary mix of leadership innovations. Despite the control risks that mix might be spawned by the staff turnovers experienced during the last few years, the university has maintained a loyalty index of more than ten years among its people. This is a sustainability plus factor in human resource management of the school. Other key principles and concepts adopted In the area of instruction, research and extension services for example, excellence in the classroom is primarily driven by a strongly motivated select members of the faculty pool whose training and development focus is based on aligning the needs of the teachers with the needs of the university. This congruency theory in objectives (DelaTorre, 2006) allows for mutual and beneficial relationship between faculty providers and students. The intervention theory (Shafrits & Ott on Argyris, 1992) in organizations demands a strong psychotherapy approach (Rogers & Roethlisberger, 2000) to communications. The theory presupposes the presence of a special relationship between people to enable openness and transparency among constituents. Teachers display this practice in terms of open and complementary student advising and counseling sessions not only as part of the intervention process but a critical part of the formation process in education. Students need and demand attention in the form of interventions especially in difficult and complex scenarios they find themselves in the process of earning a degree. Thus this psychotherapy theory helps in providing a strong motivational environment in the classroom opens avenues for students to be creative and enthusiastic about their career plans. Secondarily, this special attention given to student clientele becomes a strong promotional and marketing tool for the university in attracting students even from those school already established. The need for any intensive advertising and marketing efforts to project the identity of the schools are addressed by the students themselves who become informal marketing and testimonial proofs of quality education. This has expanded the market of the university even to those non-Arab-Americans who appreciate the philosophy that the school articulates and manifests through its graduates. Managing and leading a university in the current socio-economic environment becomes problematic even under the various principles of organization (Shafritz and Ott on Cohen and March, 1992). These anarchic ambiguities of purpose, power, experience and success can render even the most competent university president to fail in some circumstances in due time. Thus the management and organizational leadership mix is both critical and mandatory. This allows the president to grab the appropriate management and leadership tool at a given situation and scenario and exert and even allow certain precedent-setting decisions to effect changes with the least minimum resistance or optimum cooperation. Thus, inability along this line runs the risk of getting confused with his leadership character or manager authority or some hybrid in between. For AAU, the consultation process with the constituents and stakeholders becomes the medium by which decision critical to every office head’s functions are articulated. This explores the best idea possible while addressing and dissipating potential resistance to any innovations and measures not easily understood or appreciated.

Biography of Canadian Civil Rights Icon Viola Desmond

She’s long been compared to Rosa Parks, and  now late civil rights pioneer Viola Desmond will appear on Canada’s $10 banknote. Known for refusing to sit in the segregated section of a movie theater, Desmond will grace  the note, starting in 2018. She will replace Canada’s first prime minister, John A. Macdonald, who will be featured on a higher-value bill instead. Desmond was chosen to appear on the currency after the Bank of Canada  requested submissions for iconic Canadian women to be featured on the bill. News that she was selected came several months after the announcement  that slave-turned-abolitionist Harriet Tubman would appear on the $20 bill in the United States. â€Å"Today is about recognizing the incalculable contribution that all women have had and continue to have in shaping Canada’s story,† Canadian Minister of Finance Bill Morneau said of Desmond’s selection in December 2016. â€Å"Viola Desmond’s own story reminds all of us that big change can start with moments of dignity and bravery. She represents courage, strength and determination—qualities we should all aspire to every day.† It was a long road to get Desmond on the bill. The Bank of Canada received 26,000 nominations and eventually cut that number down to just five finalists. Desmond edged out Mohawk poet E. Pauline Johnson, engineer Elizabeth MacGill, runner Fanny Rosenfeld and suffragette Idola Saint-Jean. But Americans and Canadians alike have admitted they knew little about the race relations pioneer before the landmark decision to feature her on Canadian currency. When Desmond beat out the competition, however, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called her selection a â€Å"fantastic choice.† He described Desmond as a â€Å"businesswoman, community leader, and courageous fighter against racism.† So, why were her contributions to society so important that she will be immortalized on the nation’s currency? Get acquainted with Desmond with this biography. A Pioneer Who Gave Back Desmond was born Viola Irene Davis on July 6, 1914, in Halifax,  Nova Scotia. She grew up middle class, and her parents, James Albert and Gwendolin Irene Davis, were highly involved in Halifax’s black community.   When she came of age, Desmond initially pursued a teaching career. But as a child, Desmond developed an interest in cosmetology due to the dearth of black haircare products available in her area. The fact that her father worked as a barber must have inspired her as well.   Halifax’s beauty schools were off limits to black women, so Desmond traveled to Montreal to attend the  Field Beauty Culture School, one of the rare institutions that accepted black students. She also traveled  to  the United States to get the expertise she sought. She even trained with Madam  C.J. Walker, who became a millionaire for pioneering beauty treatments and products for African Americans. Desmond’s tenacity paid off when she received a diploma from Apex College of Beauty Culture and Hairdressing in Atlantic City, N.J. When Desmond received the training she needed, she opened a salon of her own, Vi’s Studio of Beauty Culture in Halifax, in 1937. She also opened up a beauty school, Desmond School of Beauty Culture, because she didn’t want other black women to have to endure the hurdles she had to receive training. Roughly 15 women graduated from her school each year, and they left equipped with the know-how to open their own salons and provide work for black women in their communities, as Desmond’s students came from throughout Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Quebec. Like Desmond had, these women had been rejected from all-white beauty schools. Following in the footsteps of Madam  C.J. Walker, Desmond also launched a beauty line called Vis Beauty Products. Desmond’s love life overlapped with her professional aspirations. She and her husband, Jack Desmond, launched a hybrid barbershop and beauty salon together.   Taking a Stand Nine years before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Ala., bus to a white man, Desmond refused to sit in the black section of a movie theater in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. She took the stand that would make her a hero in the black community after her car broke down on Nov. 8, 1946, during a trip she took to sell beauty products. Informed that fixing her car would take a day because the parts to do so weren’t readily available, Desmond decided to see a film called â€Å"The Dark Mirror† at New Glasgow’s Roseland Film Theatre. She purchased a ticket at the box office, but when she entered the theater, the usher told her that she had a balcony ticket, not a ticket for the main floor. So, Desmond, who was nearsighted and needed to sit downstairs to see,  went back to the ticket booth to correct the situation. There, the cashier said she wasnt allowed to sell downstairs tickets to blacks. The black businesswoman refused to sit in the balcony and returned to the main floor. There, she was roughly forced out of her seat, arrested and held overnight in jail. Because it cost 1 cent more for a main floor ticket than for a balcony ticket, Desmond was charged with tax evasion. For the offense, she paid a $20 fine and $6 in court fees to be released from custody.   When she arrived home, her husband advised her to drop the matter, but the leaders at her place of worship, Cornwallis Street Baptist Church, urged her to fight for her rights. The Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People offered its support as well, and Desmond hired a lawyer, Frederick Bissett, to represent her in court. The lawsuit he filed against Roseland Theatre proved unsuccessful  because Bissett argued his client was wrongfully accused of tax evasion instead of pointing out that she was discriminated against based on race. Unlike the United States, Jim Crow wasn’t the law of the land in Canada. So, Bissett may have triumphed had he pointed out that this private movie theater attempted to enforce segregated seating. But just because Canada lacked  Jim Crow didn’t mean blacks there eluded racism, which is why Afua Cooper, black Canadian studies professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, told Al Jazeera that Desmond’s case should be viewed through a Canadian lens. â€Å"I think its about time Canada recognizes its black citizens, people who have suffered,† Cooper said. Canada has its own homegrown racism, anti-black racism, and anti-African racism that it has to deal with without comparing it to the US. We live here. We don’t live in America. Desmond lived in Canada.   The court case marked the first known legal challenge to segregation presented by a black woman in Canada, according to the Bank of Canada. Although Desmond lost, her efforts inspired black Nova Scotians to demand equal treatment and put a spotlight on racial injustice in Canada. Justice Delayed Desmond didn’t see justice in her lifetime. For fighting racial discrimination, she received a great deal of negative attention. This likely put a strain on her marriage, which ended in divorce.  Desmond eventually relocated to Montreal to attend business school. She later moved to New York, where she died alone of a gastrointestinal hemorrhage on Feb. 7, 1965, at age 50. This courageous woman wasn’t vindicated until April 14, 2010, when the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia issued an official pardon. The pardon recognized that the conviction was wrongful, and Nova Scotia government officials apologized for Desmond’s treatment. Two years later, Desmond was featured on a  Canadian Post stamp. The beauty entrepreneur’s sister, Wanda Robson, has been a consistent advocate for her  and even wrote a book about Desmond called â€Å"Sister to Courage.† When Desmond was chosen to grace Canada’s $10 bill, Robson said, â€Å"It’s a big day to have a woman on a banknote, but it’s an especially big day to have your big sister on a banknote. Our family is extremely proud and honored.† In addition to Robson’s book, Desmond has been featured in the childrens book â€Å"Viola Desmond Wont Be Budged.† Also, Faith Nolan recorded a song about her. But Davis is not the only civil rights pioneer to be the subject of a recording. Stevie Wonder and rap group Outkast have recorded songs about Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, respectively. A documentary about Desmonds life, â€Å"Journey to Justice,† debuted in 2000. Fifteen years later,  the government recognized the inaugural Nova Scotia Heritage Day in Desmonds  honor. In 2016, the businesswoman was  featured in a Historica Canada Heritage Minute, a quick dramatized look  at key events in Canadian history. Actress  Kandyse McClure starred as Desmond.