Appendix A: Barclay’s employees Essay

Barclay’s Bank Organizational Strategy and Employee Morale September 15, 2007? Contents Barclays Bank 3 Roadmap-Thesis 5 Interview Results 5 Academic Research Recommendations for Improvement 7 Conclusion 10 References 12 Appendix A: Barclay’s Employees 14 Appendix B Employee Interviews 15 Appendix C: Framework For Improvement 19 ? Barclays Bank Barclays is the third largest bank in the United Kingdom. The bank can trace its roots back to 1690 in London. The name â€Å"Barclay† first arose in 1736. Today the bank is a global financial service provider operating in the UK, Europe, United States, and Africa. The bank’s headquarters are at One Churchill Place in Canary Wharf, in London’s Docklands, having moved there in May 2005 from Lombard Street in the City of London. Barclay’s US headquarters are in Wilmington, Delaware where it acquired the former Juniper Bank (Answers Barclays Bank 2006). Barclays is a UK-based financial services group, with a very large international presence in Europe, the USA, Africa and Asia. It is engaged primarily in banking, investment banking and investment management. In terms of market capitalisation, Barclays is one of the largest financial services companies in the world (Barclays Newsroom 2006). Barclays has been involved in banking for over 300 years and operates in over 60 countries with more than 113,000 permanent employees (including 33,500 at Absa). For the year ended 31st December 2005, the group achieved a pre-tax profit of ? 5,280 million, up fifteen per cent on 2004. In 2005 Barclays paid approximately ? 3 billion in taxes (Barclays Newsroom 2006). Customers are served through a variety of channels comprising: the branch network, cash machines, telephone banking, online banking and relationship managers. It is managed through two business areas, UK Retail Banking and UK Business Banking. In UK Retail Banking there are 14 million retail customers, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, and general insurance (Barclays Newsroom 2006). Local Business provides banking services to 592,000 customers; UK Premier provides banking, investment products and advice to 286,000 affluent customers (Barclays Newsroom 2006). UK Business Banking provides relationship banking to larger and medium-sized businesses. 183, 000 customers are served by a network of relationship and industry sector specialist managers (Barclays Newsroom 2006). Barclay’s strategic objective is to â€Å"To deliver top quartile total shareholder return relative to our peers, consistently over time† (Barclays p 2 2004). The company focuses directly on increasing shareholder value rather than employee retention and morale. Barclay’s does not have a directly available mission and values statement that is visible to the external environment. The internal environment at Barclay’s is one of traditional top-down management. The corporate culture at Barclay’s maintains a hierarchy of experience and education, where the management team places a large amount of focus on meeting the shareholder strategy. According to Barclay’s â€Å"In recent months, we have taken a number of steps to enhance further our corporate governance practices. We have expanded the remit of the Remuneration Committee to cover strategic human resource issues† (Barclay’s 2004 p 3). These strategic changes included: â€Å"continued and upgraded our investment in established; programs for the community, equality and diversity, and the environment; built on our reputation as a pioneer and leader in the field of financial inclusion; excellent terms and conditions for colleagues impacted by offshore outsourcing; developed a clear statement on human rights, and continued our participation in the Business Leaders Initiative on Human Rights; and made good progress in adapting our branches and offices to be fully accessible to customers with disabilities (Barclays p 12 2004). Barclay’s did not, however, remunerate a corporate strategy or mission to address its near 20% turnover rate which has been continuous and barely changing for the past three years, an indication that Barclay’s focus is on stakeholder value and not developing or addressing employee morale. However, Barclays does have a large focus on community service, receiving the â€Å"2004 National Business Award for Corporate Social Responsibility† (Barclays p 12 2004). (Barclays p 47 2005) ? Appendix B Employee Interviews Employee 1 What is your job and role at Barclay’s? I am a telephone operator and sales advisor, working both the phone lines and desk. Sales advisors are front-line employees performing work at the transaction level. We are dedicated to customer satisfaction and providing great service. We want to provide great service but recognize the challenges in improving the work processes. What are your beliefs about Barclay’s strategic objective? Our philosophy is client centred. I believe the clients have ultimate knowledge of themselves and that the banker’s job is to draw out this information and insight, help clients organize it, and stimulate clients to use their funds better. What are these challenges in improving the work process? Office politics at all levels, particularly where reports of motivation and such are concerned, there is sometimes when they call out the good, and embarrassingly the bad also. Sometimes leadership is motivational but not always. So, if you have a good idea and you don’t hobnob with the management, you are not going to be listened to. The same is true if you are having a problem, or a customer is being overly abrasive towards you. It can be a little insane. Can you explain the leadership strategy in motivation? They focus on certain people and not the whole department or team. Favoritism is the â€Å"coin of the realm† in my department. The â€Å"code of silence† dictates that discipline must be administered when broken and rewarded with favor when adhered to, in contrast to a system where one is encouraged to excel. My department operates more on the prison model of behavior control. What are your beliefs about Barclay’s strategic objective? Our philosophy is client centred. I believe the clients have ultimate knowledge of themselves and that the banker’s job is to draw out this information and insight, help clients organize it, and stimulate clients to use their funds better. What do Barclay’s mission and value statements mean to you? Value of an open, thoughtful and complementary approach to quality informed customers and developing customer loyalty. a planned and systematic approach to quality including ensuring that the results of monitoring and evaluation are fed back in order to effect improvement. How does Barclay’s leadership ensure proper monitoring and evaluation? Use of internal performance/service benchmarks is not enough although several recognized performance indicators are used by managers, but customer satisfaction information should be requested for each purchasing transaction. There is a lack of cooperative work processes and supporting information systems which negatively impact customer service. What kind of customer service do you try to perform? I believe in being responsive to what the customer wants as opposed to what she ought to have. With service, you also always tell the truth as you see it. I put a lot of emphasis on contracting-what can I do for her that will be of value to her in that time frame. Does leadership help you want to provide good customer service? Leadership has not helped me want to provide customer service. Not everyone is a decent human being. Not all are treated with respect. Someone seriously rude in the office and nothing is done as it is not viewed as wrong. Employee 2: What is your job and role at Barclay’s? I provide telephone customer service. What are your beliefs about Barclay’s strategic objective? There is an emphasis on customer service as a driver of business performance. What does customer service entail? I have to have an in-depth understanding of various components including stock option and restricted share award processes; eligibility requirements; and knowledge of plan design, alternative practices and business needs/issues and I use this to help the customer build their best banking services. I have to be able to track and monitor customer accounts and customer service. Does Barclays give you frequent training and all the materials you need to do your job? No. I wish I had access to more ongoing training program for customer service as what I do is quite complex and precision is very important so the customer’s bank accounts are all correct. Some managers are really willing to help you out. Others talk to you like you are an idiot for asking for help. It is a half and half shot at getting training or help with something, unless it comes from corporate management. How does corporate management get information or motivation to you? I don’t think corporate has motivated anyone. They send training videos or PowerPoint presentations explaining the importance of customer service, but what I really want is more technical training so I can give better customer service. I’m already polite and courteous. How do your direct leaders motivate you to give good customer service? Management appears to want to make this an issue and an expectation that everyone should jump on board. If someone becomes ostracized or somehow made less because they don’t buy into the hubbub, it seems we’ve just created a worse problem. It’s almost a Catch-22, I’m not engaged all the way because they don’t give me what I really need and I get treated like I’m a moron, but they expect me to always smile and be happy, even when the manager is quite literally rolling her eyes at me. It’s a terrible, rude atmosphere at least half of the time. What about the other half of the time? How do you feel about ‘engaging’ with your job? I am not sure how to respond. I talk to customers and do what they ask as quickly as possible and sometimes I make recommendations for better banking, but I don’t know how this engages the customer one way or the other. ? Appendix C: Framework For Improvement.

Monet’s Waterlilies Essay

For as long as I can remember, water lilies have always been a sign of peacefulness to me. This is one of the reasons I have always been drawn to Claude Monet’s Bridge over the Water-lily Pond (1905). The green hues in this piece bring me a feeling of happiness. The Bridge over the Water-lily Pond has a sense of calmness and tranquility. There exists such expression and emotions from the impasto in this piece as well. The foreground is filled with beautiful water lilies floating atop a peaceful pond. In the middle ground is the famous Japanese bridge with some green shrubbery. In the background there are tall droopy trees somewhat like willows. Monet uses color to create his tranquil mood throughout the painting. He uses cool colors such as green and purple. He also uses black, brown, white, yellow, and pink. There utilizes his limitless color range. Monet’s choice of colors is expressive and symbolic for the mood. For example, the green emphasizes peacefulness and the yellow adds the warm calm feeling. Texture is a significant element used in this piece. The piece shows the rough, thickness of the paint. Monet uses the effect of actual texture so, for example, if you were to go up and touch the painting you would be able to feel the impasto. Another important element used in this piece is value/light within the atmosphere. There are highlights present on the pond, using white and yellow, where the light is shining. Also, there are shadows, using black and brown, where the trees are blocking the light. It is apparent where the emphasis in this piece is centered. The bridge is the only one focal point in this painting. The lines from the trees and shrubbery lead your eye toward the center where the bridge is centered. These lines are imperative to create movement toward the focal point. Unity is the principle that holds this piece together. The color in this artwork has the cohesion needed to make everything similar. Also, the  texture helps to bring unity into the piece by giving everything another similarity along with the color. In addition, unity allows the piece to be aesthetically pleasing. Monet uses oil on canvas for the bridge over the Water-lily Pond. Due to the fact that Monet used oil paint, he had the ability to create a thickness of paint, layering it on the canvas. Monet used the technique of impasto, which also gives the painting that rough looking quality on the canvas. If Monet had chosen a different type of medium he would not have been able to create the layered look as he did in this piece. It is that rough, layered, impasto look which assists in the emotion and feeling of this painting. This piece would not be the same without the expressionism created from that particular medium. Monet’s piece is displayed in the West Pavilion Impressionist Gallery at The Getty Center in Los Angeles. It is in an extravagant, gold color frame covered in intricate designs and the walls are of a dark, earthy brown color. The color of the walls gives the gallery a warm sense. There is a skylight overhead, which has a cover that automatically changes with the lighting outside of the gallery. Also, there is overhead spotlighting at the top of the ceiling, around the skylight, which is pointed toward each piece. The painting on the left is ‘The Rue Mosnier’ with Flags by Edouard Manet. It is oil on canvas and it was done in 1878. The painting on the right is After the Bath by Edgar Degas. It is oil on canvas as well and was done approximately 1895. I believe these pieces detract from The Bridge over the Water-lily Pond due to the fact that many people tend to walk right by landscapes and atmospheric pieces. They go straight towards pieces with humans as the focal point because we as humans relate better to those pieces. However, I myself love Monet so I was drawn to his piece. Claude Monet’s Bridge over the Water-lily Pond (1905) gives you a place where you would want to be alone. It gives you the calmness that you perhaps might be looking for in your life. It is not just any ordinary landscape it is a sanctuary; it is a place of safety. This piece holds so much emotion just in its color and expressionism. No one should just casually walk past this  piece, but should look deep within the emotion and see the tranquility of the pond and how still the water lilies are resting. They should see peace as if they were looking at it through Monet’s eyes.

Prodigal Summer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Prodigal Summer - Essay Example Since, there is no clear answer to love many would wonder why one would choose estrangement over love, and empathy. Many psychologists, sociologists, and psychiatrists think that love, and empathy are two different things. Many psychologists, sociologist, and psychiatrists think that love developed from empathy (Allot, 1). Because love developed from empathy many think that empathy developed from the mother, and child bond. When there is no empathy as an infant, and young child as the child grows older than the child will develop an estrangement to love (Allot, 1). When one develops an estrangement in life as an adult it is not necessarily then because there was no empathy at all between mother, and child. However, the mother may have developed problems in the mother’s own life. The mother may have developed a drug, or alcohol addiction (Allot, 1). Oftentimes when a mother tries to love the child, and the child is in an environment and there is a drug, or alcohol addiction the child may begin to resist the love from the mother. The child may begin to grow old, and begin to do follow-up a false sense of what love is. When children grow up and develop a false sense of what love is the child may become addicted to drugs, alcohol, or even sex. Since, children learn love from the mother, the father, and other important figures in the child’s life than estrangement, cannot be it a choice. When estrangement is not necessarily a choice the child, who grew into an adult and became estranged from life should it receive empathy from those around. However, someone like this who has an estrangement from life would not necessarily receive empathy from those around. When the child grows into young adulthood and develops a estrangement from life the child may develop in addiction of alcohol, drugs, or sex. Many young adults, and adults who have an estrangement will develop an addiction to alcohol, drug, or sex addiction because the addiction is a replacement for the empathy, and love this is child has never received. The young adult who develops an addiction to sex is sometimes associates sex as a form of love, instead of associating sex as part of a loving, and meaningful relationship. Studies have found that love can be very positive for a person. When a person finds love a person will develop a deeper understanding of those around the person. Developing a deeper understanding of those around is part of a deeper understanding of empathy. When a person has no empathy, and love in life the person cannot understand the emotions of anyone else. Many psychologists, sociologists, and psychiatrists in the past want to know about love and if love is just something that merely happens. Many who study love want to know if love is just a mistake, and if those who do find love were nearly in the right place, at the right time. However, after studying animals in the wild, and seeing how animals react to their own young has given psychologists, sociolo gists, and psychiatrists a deeper understanding of why some people find love, and others do not. Animals in the wild give their young empathy. So in conclusion of studying animals many psychiatrists, sociologist, and psychologists have come to the conclusion that love is not something that just happens. Love is not just something that happens because love is something one learns. Love is taught in infancy. Just like the animals with their young who the young animals

The Fall of The Roman Empire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Fall of The Roman Empire - Essay Example However the major reasons for the Roman Empire could be stated as: antagonist behavior among Emperor and senate, derogatory moral and ethical principles, political corruption, the Empire’s vast expansion, the barbarian nature of Roman military and their heavy spending and natural disasters. One of the major cause o f declines of Roman Empire was the Agnostic style of rule by Roman rulers as they had legal power in military, civil and religious areas of Rome. The decisions of life and death were in hands of Roman rulers. The Roman rulers who were rich and immoral, practiced law in a wrongful manner led to their downfall. As per (Heather 102) â€Å"Roman public life was stripped of its moral fiber with the destruction of Carthage, its major rival, in 146 BC†. Decline in moral and ethical values was a prime reason for the destabilizing of the Roman Empire. The reckless behavior of wealthy upper class Romans had an adverse impact on Roman citizens. The malpractices like promiscuous sexual activates forgery, adultery and arrogance led to their fall gradually. The widespread emergence of brothels, gambling activities and excessive consumption of alcohol led Romans to a failure as rulers. Another main reason for the downfall of Roman Empire was the prevalence of political corruption among soldiers .The political corruption was practiced mainly by the elite soldiers who were Emperor’s body guards. They gained such a power because they could solely decide whether to retain the emperor or overthrew him from the position. The Praetorian guards even held the authority to auction the royal position to the person who bid the highest. According to (Grisham) â€Å"Political corruption was rife in Roman society. Even choosing a new Emperor was difficult and uncertain. The army and Praetorian Guard (the Emperors elite bodyguards) fought over succession†. The speed of expansion of the geographical area of the Roman Empire also resulted in its loss of power. The Roman rulers

Executive management in Law Enforcement motivation theory Essay

Executive management in Law Enforcement motivation theory - Essay Example This was the time in 1994 when law enforcement was becoming increasingly complex and dangerous because many criminals had access to greater firepower and were more disposed to use it than the police forces. Upon identifying the main reasons behind employee turnover rate, when in 1994, the Clinton administration developed a program to help fight crime by putting 100,000 new police officers on the street, the concept of the "thin blue line" enabled communities to commit extra police resources in areas, such as community oriented policing, that previously had been neglected (Schwabe, 1999, p. 1). There was another challenge waiting for law enforcement agencies to test and implement their enforcement strategies so as to detect the offensive behaviour of crime and criminality. That was only possible in circumstances where criminal motivation was understood by FBI and other law enforcement agencies. (Journal of Power and Ethics, 2001) On the other hand motivation was also required by the agency officers and other managerial staff in order to conduct various operations against crime. (Stuart, 2005) When it comes to managing law enforcement, the contribution of technology driven human resource cannot be ignored. So, if technology can improve public safety and be an efficient use of resources, what about human resource Of course it is the man power that uses technology as a means to fight crime thereby diffusing security and safety issues among the public. Now, the thing that bridges the gap between technological resources and utilization is human resource, and the persuasion behind human resource is that of 'Motivation Theory' we would discuss later. The law enforcement management characterises the behaviour of offenders as purposive. Why it is so Because it is the behaviour of the offender that purports the law enforcement management to understand the purpose behind the crime, in other words to help the management understand the motivation for that behaviour. According to Wortley (2002) in context with the offender, it is the decision of the offender to engage in a particular behaviour that creates four cost-benefit dimensions: the perceived effort involved that indicates how difficult is the behaviour to perform, the perceived risks involved in detecting and punishment, the anticipated rewards and the anticipated feelings of guilt or shame (Wortley, 2002, p. 33). Law enforcement management is incomplete without 'technology', from latest computerized equipments helpful in analyzing DNA of the culprit to the integrated data systems, human resource is the basic tool which works behind various law enforcement agencies and National Crime Information Centre (NCIC). Either in the form of field officer or an advocate, there is one single factor responsible for making them work effectively and efficiently: 'Motivation'. What is 'Motivation' in Management Motivation refers to those levels of satisfaction within an individual that are fulfilled by the direction and performance of that individual with respect to acquiring a positive or a negative outcome called as a 'reward'. This reward may be 'extrinsic' - a tribute given by another person or 'intrinsic' - a tribute that occurs within a person. It is this motivation that makes

Training and Development of Hiring Practices Case Study

Training and Development of Hiring Practices - Case Study Example A competent staff is indispensable to gain and maintain the competitive advantage. A JA process is rigorous and as such, it needs an important trigger. Triggers such as a change in the organization’s value proposition are some of the aspects that could call for a JA (Watkins, Meiers, & Visser, 2012). As earlier discussed, Training Needs Analysis determines the particular range of the needs that are manageable through training. Nevertheless, it is vital to note that not all needs may prompt the need for training in fixing the perceived issue. A three-tiered approach to analyzing needs exists (Bowman, & Wilson, 2008). The organizational analysis allows the manager to view the performance of the organization and highlights the performance problems in particular departments within the firm (Narasimhan, & Ramanarayanan, 2012). The level of analysis pertains examining the internal environment of the organization. It also extends to possible influences on employee performance and constructing its fit in line with the objective of the organization (Watkins, Meiers, & Visser, 2012). To conduct an organizational analysis, information can stem from channels such as the goals of the organization, its mission statement, and strategies. At the operational level of analysis, focus shifts to knowledge, skills and capabilities necessary for the execution of specific tasks. Termed the task analysis, it calls for an extensive examination of a task to ease the identification of the abilities needed for the exemplary execution of the task (Lubke, 2011). As Shah, & Gopal, (2012) claim, job descriptions, and performance standards are among the most effective sources of information for the task analysis framework. A manager could ask â€Å"highlight the specific tasks you are to accomplish during the workshop,† or† â€Å"provide an overview of the tasks scheduled for tomorrow in order of priority?†Ã‚  Ã‚  

Breast Cancer Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Breast Cancer - Lab Report Example Acccording to studies,it is known that glycosylation is more pronounced in the breast cancer cells (Hakomori 1985). The reason for this is because of the increase in tne oligosaccharide structures (Hudis 2007).Such alterations might be identified through lectins which are the carbohydrate-binding proteins   an they have a very high specificity for the saccharides(Brooks and harris 2006).The lectins normally function as   the data mediators in the biological systems.In this case they interact with the glycoproteins glycolipids as well as the oligosaccharides(Nilsson 2007).They also bind specifically to the carbohydrate epitopes(Staffieri et al. 2012).The immunofluorescence method as well as the direct lectins cytochemistry   with the use of the   FITC-labeled lectins enables the visualization of the glycosylation’s impact on the therapies which targets the surface of the cells that bind to theHER2 receptors (Gabius 2009.The results from the histograms above (fig 1), ind icates the reason why the glycosylation’s intensity is higher in the sixth cell line when compared to that of the fifth cell line because of the different blocking agents used. In summary, further study needs to be done to clearly understand why there was a difference in the intensity of this two cell lines. It could be due to the above three mentioned reasons. Unfortunately, this study could not ascertain this.The reasons that could have resulted to the difference in the intesity could be due; firstly,the BSA could be a better blocking agent.