Tuesday, January 28, 2020

The Mission Statement of British Telecommunication

The Mission Statement of British Telecommunication BT Group plc is formerly known as British Telecom. It is also the privatized UK state telecommunications operator. It is the leading fixed line telecommunications and broadband Internet provider in the United Kingdom. BT operates in more than 170 countries and almost a third of its revenue now comes from its Global Services division. BT Group is the largest communications service provider in the United Kingdom. It is also one of the largest communication companies in the world (British Telecommunication, 2007). The Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange. At the present time, BT has become a multifaceted organisation offering general consumer goods and services through new sophisticated technologies but alongside this has created a commercial offering with consultancy and business solutions in order to ensure expansion and a long life secure for the company through differing markets. BT is very devoted in the acknowledgment of the primary source of its customer base within commercial outlets therefore the focus for the business falls within this function. However the domestic market retains a sizeable share of the total revenue generated thus the sector is carefully managed and invested in which enables the security of this sector. In this report we will examine the mission statements of BT, key objectives, internal and external environmental factors and information systems with the levels of management. The Mission Statement of British Telecommunication Mission statement is unique purpose that differentiates an organisation from the other companies of the same type. A mission statement needs to communicate the essence of its organisation to its stakeholders and to the public. There are two kinds of mission statements: General objectives In general it indicates how they do rather than where they would be. In other words journey rather than destination. They are always long term objectives. Usually, there are no closing stages on this kind of mission statement but it is always measured by its goals. For example: reduce output of waste or strengthen the loyalty of the constituents and so on. BT chief executive Ben Verwaayen states the general objective of BT as follows: Our central purpose is to provide world-class telecommunications and information products and services, and to develop and exploit our networks, at home and overseas, so that we can: Meet the requirements of our customers, Sustain growth in the earnings of the group on behalf of our shareholders, and Make a fitting contribution to the community in which we conduct our business. ( The Guardian, Wednesday 9 April 2008 ) Specific objectives They are irrefutable mission statements that contain principles and time periods in which all work should be achieved. Mission statements should be answered following Druckers four questions: (E H Edersheim, P F Drucker (2007) What is our business? Who is the customer? What is the value to the customer? What should our business be/ what will our business be? What business is the company in? BT is doing this by stating that it provides world-class telecommunications and informational products and services to its customers. This really shows the involvement that BT is not in the mobile telecommunication service by at home and overseas. But it also states that they offer landlines in abroad as well for instance in Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea etc. Thus, the consumers would be the people who are using the BT landlines By developing and exploiting their network and meeting the requirements of customers, they mentioned increasing the value of the network. By telecommunication at home indicates their business where they are now and provide world-class telecommunication service in overseas indicates where their business will be. Lately mission statements are not about their customers and products and services, but shareholders. In last sentence they also mentioned what they will be doing in the future with the collaborated companies . BTs strategy and key objectives BT strategy and key objectives can be stated today as followed: the speed to the market, customer experience and cost transformation. BT has a future-proof, flexible, intelligent network to enable the company to deliver communications services that will meet their customers requirements in the coming decades. They have a very clear vision of where they want to be and they are now taking specific steps towards that goal. Their transformation program has three key objectives: to enhance the customer experience to accelerate product to market times to reduce BTs cost base And they are seeking to achieve these all at the same time. Therefore new means were set up in order to increase and improve their performances such as 21CN 21CN is designed to deliver a world class customer experience from end-to-end. It will drive a radical simplification of BTs operations, increasing efficiency and the ability to launch new services to market faster than we can today. It will empower the customer with control, choice and flexibility like never before. BT claimed that 21CN will deliver both enormous cost-savings and the most advanced network in the world for new services. They point to consolidation of equipment, the simplification resulting from the removal of numerous legacy networks, and the flexibility and degree of automation enabled by 21CN. Its new network will make it more efficient, quicker to respond to market demand and more flexible. It claims it will be much easier to launch multimedia, converged services and that customers will have more control over their account management and greater flexibility in the way they interact with BT and its network. ( Financial Times June/15/2005 08:44 ) PEST ANALYSIS OF BT With the economic globalization and the widespread application of information technology, enterprises are faced with dynamic and complex external environment which is increasingly important for survival and development of enterprises. With regard to political factor, BT was the vanguard of the reform of the telecommunication industry in Europe and the United States, and the success of the reform was owned much to the British government telecommunication policy, especial for the right choice for control policies. Economic factor refers to the macroeconomic situation, world economic situation and economic status of industries. For example, the current economic crisis leaded to the incline of BTs economic benefits. Due to the economic pressure, BT was planning layoffs which showed that BT had dropped at the companys lowest situation since the privatization in 1984. The social factor refers to the general factors which have indirect and potential impact such as population, income or purc hasing power, national culture and national education level. Ecological factor essentially means that increasing depletion of natural resources and ecological environment forced the enterprises to adapt environmental protection policy. For example, BTs goal is to reduce its carbon emission by 80 percent in 2020, at the same time, BT has also introduced a new model to measure and trace carbon emission, Carbon Disclosure Project (BT, 2008). Technological factor refers to the industry-related science and technology and the trend of development. As a veteran operator in Europe, BT had won the attracting results through introducing the 21st century network based on NGN technology, and adapting the industry-leading technologies and strategies to carry out the entire business operation SWOT ANALYSIS OF BT SWOT analysis is the analysis of organizations strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in order to identify a strategic niche that the organization can exploit G Lancaster (2002). Strength: BT is the worlds oldest communication company which was established in 1846 and still serves over 20 million business and residential customers with more than 29 million exchange lines. It has a good reputation of being part of the European leading telecommunication service provider. For instance, it extends its market in other countries, it is a global company and Over 60% of Fortune Global 500 companies and over 65% of FTSE 100 companies are part of the BT customer database. It makes BT has a strong brand image and until now BT is still the only UK telecom operator to have a universal service obligation (USO). Its strong base of long term customers makes BT financially successful due to its innovative and flexible organization and its competitive price. Weakness: The weakness of BT is inflexible. BT is a big company, so it should work by step and step, it cannot change quickly when meat the problem. But however today, BTs reputation is going down because its internet service usually crashed for long hours and therefore takes a great deal of time to reconnect. BT Home Hub WI-FI security easy to crack (Router manufacturers use algorithm to generate WEP (wired equivalent privacy) and WPA (WI-FI protected access) default keys. BT Home Hub ships with default encryption keys to encrypt wireless network traffic using either WEP or WPA. But the algorithm is predictable and only creates a limited number of easily-hacked keys). It is also obvious that BTs own success makes it difficult to recruit and train staff quickly enough. Opportunity Experts predict great potential for future growth in next 10 years. And the current recession is favorable as people more specifically the customers and businesses are more cost-conscious. It is also important to note that lots of threat to new entries to the market which gives opportunity to grow even bigger nationally and internationally. BTs well known in Europe can bring new co-operating companies all over the world. Internet user growing quickly, it means BT have opportunity to get more market share. In 1994 only $1billion market for BT and MCI but now it grows unbelievable. Global telecommunication market is grow 20% in 2008 compared to 12% in 2003 which will have a good chance for BT to create a new record. With the technology of internet, BT also can develop new product, for example: it can increase the speed of cell phone to use internet Threat BT was established in 1846, at that time it was the only telecommunication company in Britain until 1982 Mercury communications entries this market. It means BT should competitive with Mercury communications and BT market share decreased. It leads to BT cannot make price easily; it should compare with other company price and then make a competitive price. BT also should improve their products, make it have more competitive, because BT should keep their old customers and create some new customers or take customers from Mercury communications, but it should cost more. In addition, BT starts to lose the customers trust and the introduction of mobile phones decreases the usage of landlines. The treats get worse as big brands enter the market with new technology and low prices. The internet coverage of areas that do not need landlines and new companies such as Virgin affect badly BTs expansion. Critical success factors Since the invention of the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell, new era of communication has started. In United Kingdom General Post Offices Postal Telegraph department which became BT group was providing telephone services. BT group is the largest communication service provider in United Kingdom. Throughout history BT had numerous advantages which influenced its success. BT had a monopoly in the industry till the duopoly sharer Mercury came out. These two telecommunication operators had an exclusive right to provide telecom services. This duopoly ended in 1990s, and market was open to be shared. But BT had already reached an attitude which is much stronger and unbeatable by competitors. Many of BTs customers are based in the UK. BT Global Services deliver solutions inmore than 170different countries, connecting installations, communities and value chains that are essential to organizations. Currently BT is responsible for approximately 28 million telephone lines. Furthermore the company is the only UK telecommunications operator obliged to deliver fixed telephone line to any UK address. In addition BT operates most public telephone boxes all-over the UK. With high technology BT delivers significantly good service of telephone, internet and cable TV. Current BTs most dominant product on the market is BT Home Hub which includes telephone internet broadband and cable TV. Furthermore BT has launched many more successful products throughout decades. INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR BT Operational Control The operation control is the stage that shows and determines how the performing of specific tasks that are set by strategic and middle management decision makers. Usually, most of the tasks in operational level are structured. Knowledge level This stage evaluates new ideas for products and services, the ways to communicate new knowledge in other words the interaction, and finally the ways to distribute information. Management Control-tactical level The management control tactical level monitors effective or efficient ways of resources and performance of operational units. Most of the tasks in that level are semi-structured. Strategic Decision Making It determines long-term objectives, resources and policies. In general, a good number of the tasks in strategic level are unstructured. Major types of System The major types of system we can notice today are the Executive Support System (ESS), the Decision Support System (DSS), the Management Information System (MIS), the Knowledge Work System (KWS), and the Transaction Processing System (TPS). Executive Support systems Chief Managers use executive support systems (ESS) to make strategic planning about sales forecasting, budget, profit and personal planning. ESS serves the strategic level of the organizations. They address non-routine decisions requiring judgment, evaluation, and insight because there is no agreed-on procedure for arriving at solutions. ESS create a generalised computing and communication environment rather than providing any fixed application or specific capability. Furthermore, they are designed to incorporate data about external events such as new tax laws or competitors. They employ the most advanced graphics software and can deliver graphs and data from many sources immediately to a senior executive office or to a boardroom. Unlike the other types of informational systems, ESS is not designed primarily to solve specific problems. Instead, ESS provides a generalized computing and communications capacity that can be applied to a changing array of problems. J F. Rockart (1988). At this stage such matters like the business aims and competitors influences are indeed revised carefully. Therefore, senior managers are trying to maintain a good relationship with partners and existing customers. However to gain high reputation, they must be concerned about the role of customer social responsibility and have to create a flexible strategy planning that suits to the charges of economical factors. Decision support systems The decision support systems (DSS) help managers in making decisions that are unique, rapidly changing, and not easily specified in advance. They provide both problem-solving information and a communication capability for solving semi-structured problems. DSS have more analytical power than the other systems. They are built explicitly with variety of models to analyze data, or they condense large amounts of data into a form where they can be analyzed by decision makers. DSS are also designed so that users can with them directly; these systems explicitly include user-friendly software. F Buytendijk (2008). Relating to British telecom, the DSS study generally the options of maximisation profit and determine whether prices are suitable in the marketplace. Managerial Information Systems. Management information systems (MIS) are used mostly in management level system, management need information in different sectors like sale management control, annual budgeting, about investment analysis. On average, they are oriented almost exclusively to internal, not environmental or external, events. MIS mainly serve the functions of planning, controlling, and decision making at the management level. MIS review and report on the companys basic operations. The basic transaction data from TPS are compressed and are usually presented in long reports that are produced on a regular schedule. MIS usually serve managers interested in weekly, monthly, and yearly results-not day-to-day activities. MIS generally provide answers to routine questions that have been specified an advance and have a predefined procedure for answering them. Most MIS use simple routines such as summaries and comparisons, as opposed to sophisticated mathematical models or statistical techniques. Ross Malaga, (2003). Knowledge Work and Office Systems Knowledge Work System ( KWS) is very important because BT has different workstations like engineering workstations ,graphics workstations and managerial workstations ,on the other hand Office systems do in BT different work like word processor , document imaging , design for the company , electronic calendars. This system can involve a combination of work practices, information, structures, people, and technologies organized to accomplish objectives in an organisation. BT use information system in different level of management, there are a relationship between systems. Mostly, BT uses three information systems: management system, information system, and computer system. Transaction Processing Systems Transaction processing systems are the basic business systems that monitor the operational level of companies. A transaction processing system is a computerized system that performs and records daily routine transactions necessary to the conduct of the business. For example its like special force in the army, any operation need to be check and secure for example: machine control, securities trading, material movement, and cash control management. They also study the decision to grant credit to a customer for instance, this is made by lower level supervisor according to predefined criteria. All that must be determined is whether the customer meets the criteria. The master file is composed of discrete pieces of information (such as name, address or employee number) called data elements. Data are keyed into the system, updating the data and elements. The elements on master file are combined in different ways to make a report of interest to management and government agencies and to send paychecks to employees. These TPS can generate other report combinations of existing data elements. J Gray, A Reuter (1993) REFERENCES Modern Public Information Technology Systems: Issues and Challenges by G. David Garson, 2007 BT, (2008), BT press Release, retrieved on 17th April, 2009, from: http://pr.euractiv.com/node/3269 Information Systems Technology by Ross Malaga, 2003 Executive Support Systems: The Emergence of Top Management Computer Use by John F. Rockart 1988 Eco-Economy: Building an Economy for the Earth Page 163 by Lester R. Brown, Earth Policy Institute 2003 352 pages Annual Review of Communications: Volume 59 Page 243 by International Engineering Consortium 2007 750 pages Performance Leadership: The Next Practices to Motivate Your People, Align Page 207 by Frank Buytendijk 2008 300 pages Management of Organizational Change: Leveraging Transformation Page 63 by K. Harigopal 2006 367 pages The Guardian, Wednesday 9 April 2008 The Definitive Drucker: The Final Word from the Father of Modern Management Page 48 by Elizabeth Haas Edersheim, Peter Ferdinand Drucker 2007 289 pages Financial Times June/15/2005 08:44 Transaction Processing: Concepts and Techniques Page 3 by Jim Gray, Andreas Reuter 1993 1070 pages BIBLIOGRAPHY Strategic Planning for Information Systems by John. L. Ward and Joe Peppard, 2002 Ethics and Information Technology by James Anderson and Kenneth Goodman Introduction to Business Information Systems by Peter Mertens, Rolf. T. Wigand, 2003 Business Dynamics in Information Technology by Peter Gottschalk, 2007 www.bt.co.uk

Monday, January 20, 2020

Italian Women of the Renaissance Essays -- Arts, Gentileschi, Anguisso

Across Europe, between 1400 and 1650, there were women present in all major styles of time. They worked along side of great artists and were developing new techniques and styles. Women also played a very important role in the Renaissance. Although not as well documented as their male counterparts, women worked along with the other great masters, were just as innovating, and were key in developing new techniques. Artemisia Gentileschi (1593 – 1652), daughter of a well-known Roman artist, was one of the first women to become recognized in her time for her work.. She was noted for being a genius in the world of art. But because she was displaying a talent thought to be exclusively for men, she was frowned upon. However by the time she turned seventeen she had created one of her best works. One of her more famous paintings was her stunning interpretation of Susanna and the Elders. This was all because of her father. He was an artist himself and he had trained her and introduced her to working artists of Rome, including Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. 1. In an era when women artists were limited to painting portraits, she was the first to paint major historical and religious scenes. After her death, people seemed to forget about her. Her works of art were often mistaken for those of her fathers. An art historian on Artemisia, Mary D. Garrard notes that Artemisia â€Å"has suffered a s cholarly neglect that is unthinkable for an artist of her caliber.† Renewed and long overdue interest in Artemisia recently has helped to recognize her as a talented renaissance painter and one of the world’s greatest female artists. She played a very important role in the renaissance. (http://www.artemisia-gentileschi.com/index.shtml) Another... ...n for her spontaneity which came from her passionate and stubborn temperament. In her Rime, she writes poems relating to her love of a man named Collaltino. Her poems are filled with ecstasy and sorrow, with the remembering of happy moments but also with jealousy and anxiety between the two. In 1553, her health took a turn for the worse. She caught a high fever which killed her in a few days. The same year, her sister had her Rime published. It was not very successful in her century. It had to wait two centuries before being published again. She is now hailed as one of the greatest Italian poets. Stampa’s Rime is one of the largest collection of Canzonieri in the Italian literature. There are 311 poems in all, arranged in chronological order. Gaspara freed herself from her obsessive love by transferring her pain into some of the greatest poetry in Italian history.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Achieving Greatness

Achieving Greatness Greatness is something achieved by going above and beyond the norms of being great. Grandpa, Benjamin Slater, has achieved greatness through his hard work, generosity, and loving personality. Ben was always doing things to help others, including his children, grandchildren, and neighbors. He was the person other people would come to if they ever needed anything. Even if it was to fix a leaking sink, or they needed some advice.Benjamin hard work was shown through his actions at Good-Year Tire and Rubber Company making tires and running dangerous machinery. He worked there most of his life until he retired at the age of 62. He also had some under the table jobs fixing houses, cars, or anything that needed fixed. He had a garden in his back yard, when he would get home from work he would go straight back to his shed and start gardening. He was also on a Tuesday night bowling league every week.Every day Ben would get up early, go to the diner just down the street from his house, and have a cup or two of coffee. He would always bring back cinnamon rolls for his family. While my parents were going through a divorce, my grandpa gave my father a place to stay. He provided for two extra people, and did not make my father pay rent. Ben has shown plenty of generosity to his family and others. He attended church every Sunday at Kansas Avenue united Methodist Church in Topeka, Kansas. He would put a check in the offering every time.Ben's loving personality was shown when he was in the garden, playing with his dog, Duke, or watching his grandchildren. Ben never wanted to see a frown on anyone's face. He would do anything and everything just to see someone smile. He took all of his grandchildren out for ice cream when we were at family events. Ben's loving personality really showed when he was tit his children. The love he had for his children was doubled due to the loss of their mother, his wife Marilyn Slater in 1995.Benjamin took on a very hard role, of loving and taking care of five children. In June of 2005, Benjamin Slater left behind a name that others would be proud of. He showed bravery and strength in the hard times, love and compassion when his family needed it, and kind and generous hands in times of helping. In addition, was willing to do anything just to keep someone happy. In conclusion, Benjamin has achieved greatness through his actions towards his family and others.

Friday, January 3, 2020

A Focus Upon Nature in Wuthering Heights - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1142 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/05/03 Category Literature Essay Level High school Tags: Wuthering Heights Essay Did you like this example? Perhaps one of the most prevalent themes in literature and creative written works in general is a focus upon nature and the natural world that surrounds us. It could be said that writers can easily draw inspiration from an aspect of our world that is so captivating, yet wildly unpredictable. In the rapidly advancing urban settings that dominated the Victorian era, it may have been easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle of daily life. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "A Focus Upon Nature in Wuthering Heights" essay for you Create order However, writers managed to find solace by writing works inspired by the environment surrounding them. Two Victorian era writers, poet William Wordsworth and author Emily Bronte, both express these thoughts in their works Ode: Intimations of Immortality, and Wuthering Heights, respectively. While Wordsworths poem and Heights differ dramatically in style, syntax, and format, they both make similar, explicit statements about the way nature influences the individual. Despite the harsh depiction of weather and nature in Wuthering Heights, weather and nature is ultimately what brings Heathcliff and Catherine together, similarly to how Wordsworth finds strength and solace within himself through his experiences in nature. A common, strongly held theme in Wuthering Heights is the idea that nature and weather plays a largely negative role throughout the novel. While this is often true, there is a deeper connection that Heathcliff and Catherine find through their environment which connects them on a more profound level than other characters throughout the novel. Often overlooked is that fact that both characters were fond of the outdoors and have memorable experiences together at the moors. Much like Wordsworths Ode, they can find solace in their shared love of nature, despite growing jaded and hardened to a seemingly unforgiving world and the negativity surrounding them. When analyzing Wuthering Heights through the lens of Wordsworth, it is important to get a feel for Wordsworths perception of nature. Victorian-era views of nature were largely positive and became a significant ideal of the society as a whole. Wordsworth was perhaps most well-known at this time for his nature-based poems which held flora and fauna nearly to the point of godliness. For Wordsworth, nature was an important part of the life of the Victorian individual and felt that it was good for the soul to spend time outdoors. For example, in his poem Ode: Intimations of Immortality, Wordsworth paints a picture of ameadow, grove, and stream, / The earth, and every common sight, / To me did seem / Apparlld in celestial light (Wordsworth 1-4). He even goes as far as to say that he feels his heart and soul are one with the nature that surrounds him when he describes his heart is at your festival (Wordsworth 149), the your referring to nature. Perhaps the most important portion from this p oem is when Wordsworth describes his uneasiness for how he feels he has become too knowing and jaded by the world around him. Despite these feelings, he reflects on the memories he has held as a from when he was a young boy who was more excited and less hardened by the world. He describes his ability to reflect on these memories as a primal sympathy (Wordsworth 157). It is clear that nature is remarkably important to Wordsworth with the implication that he quite literally may not be able to live a happy life without it. These ideas presented by Wordsworth are central to Emily Brontes depiction of Heathcliff and Catherine. Despite the harsh environment they are forced to live in, and the way Wuthering Heights manipulates their character, they both are able to find their primal sympathy in their environments, primarily the moors. Severe weather and an unforgiving environment, though not incredibly blatant, do prevail as major themes in Wuthering Heights that manipulate the characters into becoming who they are and make the decisions they choose to make. Weather and nature in literature can tend to be overlooked as a few sentences that establish setting. Bronte, however, chooses to let nature-related themes be one of the driving factors to the plot. The two houses in Wuthering Heights, chaotic dreary Wuthering Heights and serene affluent Thrushcross Grange, sit in between a harsh land referred to as the moors. The moors are described as the valley of Gimmerton, with a long line of mist winding nearly to its top (Bronte 74). There is a certain mystery and ambiguity surrounding the moors: a dark and lonely environment, far from any city life, with essentially no flora and fauna. This only compliments the strange, unexplained occurrences in the Wuthering Heights house. Thus far, the moors do not appear to be an environment that Wordsworth would speak so fondly of in a poem. However, the moors play a key role in establishing and developing the romantic relationship between characters Heathcliff and Catherine. Catherine and Heathcliff find themselves to be incredibly similar in character. Heathcliff has had a rough go at life ever since his less-than-perfect childhood; Catherine is prone to changing moods quickly and has a short fuse. The home they live in does not help their situations, as they are consistently affected by the negativity that is always within the house. In a different sense, they are also both deeply connected to nature and the moors. It is no coincidence that Catherine uses nature-related imagery to describe her love for Heathcliff; at one point, she confesses to Nelly that her love for Heathcliff is like the eternal rocks beneath (Bronte 64). Therefore, despite the harshness and mystery of the moors, they become a safe-haven for both characters to express their love for one another and truly release from the harsh realities of their respective worlds and roles, much like Wordsworth does in his escape. Bronte writes the characters from a very Wordsworth-ian perspective in having the characters still find the beauty in the nature they are presented with, despite it not being picture-perfect like Wordsworths. The two houses and the moors are specifically located in the middle of nowhere because it represents the idea that they are a place where the characters can escape without the pressure from the worries and requirements that are forced upon them in everyday life. While Bronte describes the moors as being a rough and unforgiving place, there is also a mild sense of wonder in what lies within the moors and Catherine and Heathcliff have bonded over this wonder, which also explains why they feel themselves as being so close to one another. They may also feel a strong connection to the moors because they both played there together as children a theme strikingly similar to Wordsworths ability to rethink on memories of nature as a child in order to enjoy it in the present. As mentioned in the previous quote, Catherine perceives her love for Heathcliff as being as eternal as the rocks beneath her, meaning, like their shared love of the moors, their love will last forever.