Food Production: Using Lean Manufacturing Principles

Food Production: Using Lean Manufacturing Principles The main objective of the factories was to achieve high economic growth. The improvement in productivity has become need of food industry to take the competitive advantage of global market. The big problem or challenge to food industry is identifying the wastes and meet the market price by maintaining a good profit. The only solution is to reduce total production cost. Lean manufacturing is systematic approach to identify and eliminate the waste through continues improvements. This paper discusses how the production principles of lean manufacturing can be applied in food production to increased production efficiency and improvement productivity and quality. This paper first presents the lean concept and presents the implementation of lean manufacturing system on some organization. Three main factors that food production factories fear, poor and tacky quality, increase of production cost, increase in lead time. Production improvements should be based on the improvements of processes as well as operation. Problems can appear in any of the basic elements that constitute the production area. (Materials, workers, machines and tools, energy, methods, product). So I focus on lean manufacturing the program can help to improve in this area. Problem Statement Why and how companies should implement lean manufacturing in food production ? 1.3 Importance of the study The main aim of the study is to present the main idea of the Lean manufacturing system, and the benefit of applying it in the field of food production, and identifying the kinds of wastes in production process, and the effect of the Lean manufacturing on food production and presenting some examples of successful companies that implemented the Lean manufacturing. 1.4 Research Questions When organizations implement lean manufacturing, it is more likely to make positive on food production? 1.5 Research Approach The data collected in this research was stemmed from previous published articles. And present a successful example from companies will be achieved good results after implement lean manufacturing program. The main target of this paper is to be applied as guideline to food production companies in Egypt. II. Literature Review: 2.1 History of Lean Manufacturing. Many of the concepts in LM or lean production originate from the Toyota Production System (TPS) and have been implemented progressively throughout Toyotas operations starting in the 1950s. In 1980s Toyota had increasingly become famous for the efficiency with which it had implemented Just-In-Time (JIT) manufacturing systems. Now, Toyota is often considered one of the most efficacious and influential manufacturing companies in the world and the company that put the standard for best practices in LM. LM has increasingly been applied by leading manufacturing companies throughout the world, lead by the major automobile manufactures and their equipment suppliers. Lean Manufacturing is becoming an increasingly significant topic for manufacturing companies in developed countries as they try to find procedure to compete more effectively versus competition from Asia. 2.2 Lean Manufacturing. Lean Manufacturing is a set of tools and methodologies that aims for the continuous elimination of all waste in the production process. The main benefits of this are lower production costs; increased output and minimum production lead times. Some of the goals include: Utilization of equipment and area Use equipment and manufacturing area more efficiently by eradicating bottlenecks and maximizing the rate of production though existing equipment, while reducing machine downtime. Defects and wastes Reduce defects and unnecessary physical wastage, including surplus use of raw material inputs, preventable defects, and costs associated with reprocessing defective items and dispensable product characteristics which are not required by customers. Flexibility Have the ability to produce a more elastic range of products with minimum changeover costs and changeover time. Labor productivity Improve labor productivity, both by reducing the inactive time of workers and ensuring that when workers are working, they are using their effort as productively as possible Output Insofar as reduced cycle times, increased labor productivity and removal of bottlenecks and machine downtime can be completed, companies can generally significantly increase output from their existing facilities. Inventory levels Minimize inventory levels at all steps of production, particularly works-in-progress between production steps. Lower inventories also mean lower working capital requirements. Cycle Times Reduce manufacturing lead times and production cycle times by reducing waiting times between processing stages, as well as process preparation times and product. Most of these benefits lead to lower unit production costs for example, more effective use of equipment and space leads to lower depreciation costs per unit produced, more effective use of labor results in lower labor costs per unit produced and lower defects lead to lower cost of goods sold. 2.3 The Five Lean Principles The critical beginning point when changing a traditional production line into a Lean process is the determination of value from the customers points of view, which is significant as the goal of the Lean process is a line where every activity adds a specified customer value to the product. Having identified the value of products, the second step is to identify and map the value stream in the production line. Value stream mapping refers to the mapping of a products route and is explained in more detail further. The third principle is the connection of value creating activities in a continuous flow process. Every dilemma or batch and queue process must be avoided to obtain an uninterrupted flow throughout the production. The ideal production Flow is drawn on a map, and existing procedures changed and equipment relocated to reflect this. The fourth principle is not to produce anything upstream unless it is needed downstream. The principle is in contrast to batch and queue procedures, as seen in mass production, and aims to reduce the amount of resources locked up in inventories. It implies that production must be just-in-time, both internally between processes and externally when delivering products to the End-user. The fifth principle is about pursuing perfection through a continuous improvement. This is not only about creating a product that the customer requires with a minimum of defects, but also includes the perfection of every action in connection with the production process. It involves all employees as they know procedures the most and are closest to make suggestions for improvement. The involvement of everyone in the continuous improvement is what makes Lean a philosophy improving working processes is integrated in job routines. (Womack Jones 2003; Bicheno 2004). 2.5 The kind of waste in food production: Overproduction Producing elements for which there are no client requirements. The Lean principle is to use a pull system, or producing goods just as clients order them. Service organizations operate this way by their very nature. Industrialization organizations, furthermore, have historically operated by a Push System, building products to stock, without firm customer orders. Anything produced beyond the customer demand (safety stocks, work-in-process inventories, etc.) ties up valuable labor and material resources and hence is a waste. Waiting Time during production (service) when no value is added to product (service). This includes waiting for material, information, equipment, tools, stock-outs, lot processing delays, equipment downtime, capacity bottlenecks, etc. The Lean principle is to use a just-in-time (JIT) system- not too soon, not too late. Transportation Unnecessary moving and handling of parts. This includes transporting work-in-process long distances, trucking to and from an off-site storage facility. Lean demands that the material be shipped directly from the vendor to the location in the assembly line where it will be used. Material should be delivered to its point of use. Over-Processing Unnecessary processing or procedures than necessary to meet customer demand. Common examples multiple inspecting. Statistical process control techniques can be used to eliminate or minimize the amount of inspection required. Value Stream Mapping is another lean tool that can be used for this purpose also. This tool is frequently used to help identify non-valued-added steps in the process (for both manufacturers and service organizations). Excess Inventory Excess raw material, or finished goods. Inventory beyond that needed to meet customer demands negatively impacts cash flow and uses valuable floor space. Defects Scrap, rework, replacement production, and inspection. Production defects and service errors waste resources in four ways. First, materials are consumed. Second, the labor used to produce the part (or provide the service) the first time cannot be recovered. Third, labor is required to rework the product (or redo the service). Fourth, labor is required to address any forthcoming customer complaints. Total Quality Management (TQM) is one of the lean tools that can be used to for reducing defects. Excess Motion Unnecessary motion of people or equipment that adds to value to product (service). This is caused by poor workflow, poor layout, housekeeping, and inconsistent or undocumented work methods. Value Stream Mapping is also used to identify this type of waste. Tools like 5S, comfortable workspace design can be used to eliminate this waste. Underutilized People Underutilization of mental, creative, and physical skills and abilities of employees of the organization. Some of the more common causes for this waste include organizational culture, inadequate hiring practices, poor or non-existent training, and high employee turnover. 2.6 The Policy to reduce the waste Policy to reduce waste consists of several systems 1- Reduced Set up Time It reduced the time required to adjust the machines to produce a different product. A long time in the control of the machine means the need to produce large quantities of the same product and thus prevents us from reducing the size of the order, which in turn prevents us from inventory reduction and prevents us from the production process of withdrawing. Permission must be reduced machine set time dramatically. 2- Small Lot size Which is the size of the order per batch per production? If the size of each run command (order) significant meaning that we will store a lot of semi-finished materials, which do not want to do because we want to reduce inventory in general 3- Reduced Work in Process An inventory of the materials or parts that have passed the initial stage of production and did not pass to the latter. Reduce inventory this is essential in the philosophy of the policy of reducing losses because of its impact on the coverage of production problems and because it is a money investor. 4- Policy pull Production it means that production on the basis of need for the next stage of production and not on the basis of a specific production plan. The first production engineering stage not only produces and need permission from the production stage next and so on until the end of the production line. There is stacked production between stages. This is also known as Kanban card or card. 5- Quality Control Circles It is a work teams of operators and technicians are studying and solving quality problems and operation and maintenance. These rings are necessary to study the problems and uprooted from their roots and to involve all levels of work in solving problems. Quality control loops is a continuous development of methods Continuous Improvement, which is one of the basics of the Toyota system. 6- Total Productive Maintenance They maintenance system leads to increased availability of equipment and reduce breakdowns. This system is necessary to be able to reduce inventory of semi-finished materials and the implementation of the policy to withdraw production. Must be reduced dramatically sudden failure to implement these policies. 7- Group Technology It is a method designed to manufacture similar products in one place to reduce the transport time and wait in what is known as the cell manufacturing Cells. This method helps to reduce transfer times material from one place to another and make each group of operators responsible for different stages of the production for the same product that they have a kind of full responsibility for the product. 8- Multi Task Employees Meaning that the worker trained to do several tasks instead of one task. This method gives the flexibility to change the functions of working when needed. Note that this system is designed to reach the speed of response to customer requirements and thus there must be flexibility in employment as well so that you can change the functions of Group according to the requirements of the market. This method has a lot to do with technology group, where can one player that is running several machines. 9- Production leveling: Toyota system is designed to reduce the variables and produce small amounts of each product every day, so there is no need to produce large quantities of a product in one day. Reduce the change helps us not to maintain a large stock and makes the production process is running smoothly and regularity without significant changes. 10- Just In Time Purchasing it means of access to raw materials and production supplies when you need them quickly. This procurement policy is needed to reduce inventory and production development and reduce defects in products. To reach that there is a lot of things are applied, such as reducing the number of suppliers and to cooperate with them and compel them specific things in the style of their work. 11- Maintain a work environment 5S: It means arrange and organize and clean workplace and work tools so that you have access to the tools and information is accessible, fast and the site is a good place to work and safe at the same time. This method is called 5S relative to the Japanese words that mean organize and arrange and clean workplace. 12- Total Quality Control: There is a correlation between policies to reduce waste and total quality management both supports the other. To reach to pull production policy has to be to reach high levels of quality. Therefore, Toyota and Japanese companies have applied TQM or total quality control of the most important has been applied is the technical checks parts produced by himself in the sense that the product is scanned during each stage production by the operators themselves. It is the powers of the workers off the production line in the event of a quality problem. 2.6.1 The Benefits of reducing the waste Improved performance indicators such as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ reduce losses to a great extent à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ high product quality (in terms of compliance with specifications) any low percentage of defective products à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Reduced time progress (which is the time to meet manufacturing orders) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ high inventory turnover rate à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ very high flexibility to change production from one product to another à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ lower the sudden failure of equipment à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ low additional cost Overhead cost à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ increase production capacity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ high accuracy to meet the supply orders on time for supply à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ the speed of response to changing market à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ improvement of financial indicators in the long term, including the profitability à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Improved morale of workers 2.7Quality in Lean Manufacturing 2.7.1. Reducing the Defect-Detection Time Gap The most important improvement that is made by a move from final inspections to successive checks to self checks is in the reduction of the time gap between creation of a defect and its detection. Figure 1 show how this time gap shrinks as one progresses towards self inspection Grinder Drill Lathe Mill Figure 1: the time lag includes all operations that happen In Figure 1, the time lag includes all operations that happen to the part after the defect Has been made and before the defect will be detected (more defective parts can be made During this time if the defect is due to a broken machine tool, improper machining method, Or other problems that do not create simply one isolated defect). Lathe Mill Figure 2: the time gap shrinks In Figure 2 the time gap shrinks to the length of time before the operator of the next Machine handles the part. In a job shop, this may be a significant quantity of time and if Parts are produced in batches; often the entire batch may have the same defect. However, In cellular manufacturing this time lag is small, since the queue is only one unit. Lathe Mill Figure 3: the time lag has shrunk down In Figure 3 the time lag has shrunk down to the amount of time that the operator spends On the given operation before he or she checks the part. Self-inspection produces visibility of the problem after the first defective part is made (if it is detectable). Catching defective parts prevents adding more value to parts that will be scrapped or reworked later. Clearly this reduction in time lag can lead to: quicker and easier detection of what the problem is that is causing the defect, reduction in wasted time in the form of value added to scrapped parts, and wasted time spent assembling a part that will have to be disassembled and then reassembled. Overall, quicker elimination of defect causing problems will result in a reduction of the number and cost of bad quality parts. 2.8 Productivity in lean manufacturing 2.8.1 Introduction The lean manufacturing focus on 20 keys I will present only key number 6 method improvement (Productivity) Figure 4 Relationship Diagram20 Keys 2.8.2 Definition Productivity is about how well resources are used. The other area of general consensus is that productivity is about the relation between output and input in any process producing goods or services. Productivity can be calculated as output divided by input P = O/I Where P = Productivity , O = Output and I = Input Output can be measured in different way tones, Kilograms or even output defined as standard minutes or hours 2.8.3 The components of productivity Productivity basically has two components: Efficiency Utilizations Utilization is about whether the resources available are actually used in producing the product or service. That is a machine might be available but if no product is scheduled to be produced then it is not utilized , or if product is scheduled to be produced for only 85% of the available time then utilization is 85% Efficiency . On the other hand, is about how well the resources are used while it is being utilized. The formula for productivity is then: Productivity = Efficiency X Utilization This formula can be expanded: Productivity = Output / Available hours, that is how much did we produce during the time that the resources were available Efficiency = Output / Hours worked, that is how much did we produce during the time that the resources were actually operating. Utilization = Hours worked / Hours available, that is for what percentage of time did we actually utilize the resources. 2.8.4 People. Plant- and process related issues impacting on productivity It is important to understand what issues typically impact on productivity as you can then look for the causes to why productivity is not at the level it should be. If productivity is not at the target level it can be explained in terms of the two components of efficiency and utilization that it can be either an efficiency loss or none utilizes time. This can be because of people, plant or process related issues. The following summary show typical examples of issues impaction on productivity. Efficiency loss: People Work method Work rate Effort ( motivation issues ) Skills Quality of work Plant / Process Speed ,idling ,minor stoppages Quality of product Non Utilized time People Plant / process Market demand Work rate Downtime Changeovers Table 2 issues impaction on productivity 2.8.5 Productivity Improvement an Integrated Approach Productivity improvement cannot be achieved by only implementing Kaizen operation. Figure 5 Productivity Improvement: An Integrated Approach Productivity increase and excellent quality can be achieved at the same time. 2.8.6 Implementing key 6 Implementing kaizen of operation requires the effective use of the CAPDo cycle. The CAPDo cycle is a simple management system for continuous improvement. One a plane for implementation has been drawn up, the actual training needs must be scheduled it is important to check regularly whether training targets have been met, and if not, the reason for this must be analyzed. Problem identified can then become actions for the next CAPDo cycle. Figure 6 CAPDo Cycle Check Company and every department against the map. Benchmark the company using key 6 map Check current productivity performance Analyze Identify process for improvement. The benchmark score. Productivity performance to identify priority processes to focus on. Plan Use the five steps methodology for process improvement. Put goals for all process Use the five steps methodology for process improvement. Plan the improvement using 20 keys plan. Do Implementing the plan Regular feedback from goals on progress Implement the plan for achieving the target. Check Restart the cycle through Reviewing the results of the plan on monthly basis Reviewing key progress with the map at least every six months Update skills matrix Continue Cycle of CAPDo improvement and celebrate success. 2.9 Actual Cases 2.9.1 Meal production in Glostrup Hospitals main kitchen, Denmark. The main hypothesis of this paper is that where any implement LM it is more likely to make positive on food production so I present lean principles can applied in meal production to increase the efficiency without reducing the quality of meal prepared. All lean principles and tools may not be equally applicable in food production, but it is important to consider this aspect when discussing the implementation of lean in meal production. Glostrup Hospital is situated in the greater Copenhagen area in Denmark. The central Kitchen is situated inside the Hospital grounds in a separate building, and every day, meals for approximately 1000 patients are produced and distributed from the kitchen. In 2005, the hospitals management took the decision that all services should be Lean, and to cut the costs of meal production, the kitchen was forced to replace cook-serve with cook-chill production and reduce the number of foodservice employees from 71 to 54. This brought about a need to review and optimize the production procedures to maintain both output quantity and quality. The change of production system to cook-chill also had an impact on the end-product quality as recipes and production procedures needed adjustments. Therefore, the systematic evaluation and improvement of product quality was given a high priority in the kitchen. The internal working environment in the kitchen was important to the manager as she insisted on maintaining this as a high priority during and after the rationalization process, and that increased efficiency of production processes was obtained by the optimization of procedures and not by making the staff work faster. Because of these reservations, the implementation of Lean was expected to result in both increased efficiency of processes and improved product quality while ensuring a pleasant working environment for the remaining employees. The implementation of Lean in the kitchen began shortly after the change to cook-chill processing and befo re procedures became routine. The kitchen produces most components of the meals themselves including breads, soups and processed vegetables. Previously with cook-serve production, there were separate production lines for hot meal components, vegetables, baked products, desserts and cold products for these meals, all items were prepared, processed and kept warm until service. Initially, when changing to cook-chill production, the separation of production according to meal was maintained with processed meal components being assembled into meals, packed and stored for up to 3 days before final distribution to hospital wards. The packaging was standardised in two, five or seven portions per pack, and the wards received the portion sizes equal to or the closest number above their actual orders. This practice of standardizing packaging was accepted by the management as a pragmatic practice of cook-chill production. The implementation of cook-chill production procedures called for a system atic evaluation of product quality. A graph on display in the production facility showing the daily number of comments on food quality was chosen as an expression of customer satisfaction with product quality. The number of complaints for each meal component, based on feedback received from wards and patients, was totaled and each day marked on the chart. This procedure was chosen as a way to ensure communication of customer product satisfaction to all employees. An internal quality control system was developed to reflect the need for adjusting recipes to improve meal quality after the change from cook serve to cook-chill production. It consisted of a three-color gradation of product acceptability where red refers to not acceptable; yellow, acceptable; and green, good. The testing of product quality was performed internally in the kitchen, and the products had to obtain a yellow to pass. This system was developed to visualize the progress of adjusting existing procedures to cook-chi ll production. As a result of the implementation the hospital realized some quick financial wins. Revenue increased 19%, eliminate wastes meals from 10% to 5% (England al.2009). 2.9.2 Implementing 20 keys in modern bakeries company (Rich Bake), Egypt. In 2008 modern bakeries company management took the decision that some production process should be lean. The company decided implement 10 keys from 20 keys Key1 cleaning organizing to make work easy. Key 2 Rationalizing the system / goal Alignment. Key 3 Small Group Activities. Key 5 Quick Changeover Technology. Key 6 Kaizen of operation. Key 9 Maintaining Machines Equipment. Key 10 Workplace Discipline. Key 11 Quality Assurance. Key 15 Skill Versatility and cross Training. Key 19 Conserving Energy and Materials. Table 3 present the 20key, s evaluation before and after implementing lean on modern bakeries company through 2 years. Key Base Line Level 2008 2010 1 1.8 2 2 1.5 2 3 0.8 1.2 5 1.5 1.8 6 1.5 1.8 9 1 1.3 10 1.5 2.3 11 2 2.5 15 1.5 1.7 19 1.5 1.5 Table 3: 20 keys evaluation Eliminate wastes from 3% to 1.8%. Increase productivity from 16KG Man / Hour to 18.5 Kg Man /Hour. 2.12 The enormous obstacles for food production in terms of adopting LM approaches to improvement. There is some problems face the food production companies to implementing lean manufacturing, generally as follows. Lack of a clear vision of the future Lack of patience and follow. Lack of persistent and challenge in leadership. Failure to link the processes in key 6 kaizen operation with normal work. Failure to perceive that lean is a viable strategy to help achieve competitive advantage. Lack of constant visibility by management. Failure of management to take a whole systems view of business and to see the connections between all processes. Persistent focus only on demanding results without a balance focus improving the processes that achieve the results. III- Research Methodology 3.1 Research Objectives The main aim of the study is to present the main idea of the Lean manufacturing system, and the benefit of applying it in the field of food production, and identifying the kinds of wastes in production process, and the effect of the Lean manufacturing on food production and presenting some examples of successful companies that implemented the Lean manufacturing. 3.2 Conceptual Framework Figure 7: LM Conceptual Framework 3.3 Research Question and Hypotheses 3.3.1 Research Questions Why and how companies should implement lean manufacturing in food production? 3.3.2 Research Hypotheses When organizations implement lean manufacturing, it is more likely to make positive on food production? 3.3.3 Independent Cost reduction, waste rate, revenue gains 3.3.4 Dependent Return on investment, profit in organization. IV Conclusion and Recommendation Conclusion Through the study found that there is a potential for the application of lean manufacturing system in food production and that explained by viewing experience hospital central kitchen in Denmark and experience modern bakeries company in Egypt, where the application of lean manufacturing system to gain increased efficiency ,quality, and productivity through the application of tools for lean manufacturing . . Easy to implementing lean manufacturing in big company that have systems for examples ISO9001, 2200, HACCP Easy to implementing lean manufacturing in small company but focus only 3 or 4 principles in the first stage . 4.2 Recommen

Management Is an Integral Part of the Work of Everyone

Human resource management is an integral part of the work of everyone in a managerial post and therefore line managers are the key drivers of Human Resource Management practices and systems BMAM702: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Executive Summary HRM may have many good thing to offer and line manager and perform many of it’s duties. Some line manager thing they are doing lot of HR duties and they are don’t mind doing it. However, other agrees that they don’t have enough knowledge and experience to carry put some of the action. Also they see these actions as waste of their time.Table of Content Introduction1 Who is line manager? 1 The role of line managers in implementing HR processes2 Relationship between HR and the line2 Devolving responsibility down the line2 Impact of line manager behaviour3 Managing line managers4 Recommendation:5 Conclusion5 Reference5 Introduction This report will look at the how HRM can be incorporated to HRM. The involvement of line manager i n HRM has been noted in literature from early 80’s. this report will try to show the role of line manager in implementing the role of HR and possible obstacle they may face due to this.Who is line manager? Front Line manager usually promoted from normal employees. As a result, they are experienced and know the general employee well, while they may not have any formal management education. CIPD have given a typical role of a front line manager, which may include the followings: * Day-to-day people management * Managing operational costs * Providing technical expertise * Organisation of work allocation and rotas * Monitoring work processes * Checking quality * Dealing with customers/clients Measuring operational performance. Increasingly, line managers are taking new responsibilities such as undertake performance appraisals, handle disciplinary activity also provide coaching and guidance. Moreover, in many companies line manager carry out responsibility such as recruitment and selection along side with HR. To answer the question why line managers are important? Sisson (1994, pp. 7-8) have given four principles of HRM, which includes beliefs and assumptions, managerial role, organisation design and personal policy.Sisson also defines the role of top-manager, where it was stated that top-managers should establish organisation’s mission and values, and shearing their future vision and success with other employee and provide transformational leadership. Where as when describing the role of middle manager Sisson states that they should be able to â€Å"inspire, encourage, enable and facilitate change by harnessing commitment and co-operation of (the organization’s) employees; they also see the development of employees as a primary role† (Sisson, 1994, p. 8).Hence, it can be said that Sisson trying to say every layers of management has important part to play in implementing the HRM approach in an organisation. The role of line managers in i mplementing HR processes Relationship between HR and the line Research has shown front line managers play more central role in implementing people management policies, because they have influence in employee’s attitude and behaviours. Which, in turn affects the performance of an organisation (Hutchinson and Purcell, 2003). Although line manager have some input in this area but many HR directors have shown concern about the ffectiveness of line manager in implementing people management policies (Hutchinso, 2008). When a line manager was asked about their role â€Å"one manager interviewed remarked ‘you are the piggy in the middle’ – on the one hand expected to be the voice of management and yet on the other the champion of the team’s interests† (Hutchinso, 2008). Storey (1992) have made the role of line manager clear and cleared the idea that HRM is not another alternative title for Personal Management; rather it is very unique approach. Store y has identified 3 elements that connects HRM and line manager.The first element is to agree that HR of a company is the ones that â€Å"make the differences†. Connected to the first, the second element is as a result HR needs to be managed in a strategic way. Therefore, Storey states â€Å"people-management decisions ought not to be treated as incidental operational matters or be sidelined into the hands of personnel officers† (Storey, 1992: p. 26). Connecting first and second element, Storey stated his third element, which requires line managers to be aware of HR and Strategic direction of an organisation as stated by top-level managers.Thus, the management of people have to be done accordingly by the line managers. Devolving responsibility down the line In late 80’s and early 90’s the use of the term human resource management (HRM) gave rise to pool of literature to be written in order to establish the definition and differences of HRM compare to Perso nal Management (PM). Among many others Armstrong (1987) was saying â€Å"The game was changing and it was useful to have a new name and a new language to encapsulate what was taking place in the world of work. Even though, there were lot of disagreement about HRM and PM, however many have agreed that the new proposed HRM system increased the role of line manager. Hence, numerous articles and reports have been written on the involvement of Line manager in HRM. Currie and Procter (2001) presented in their report that, recently line manager is playing more central role to HRM because of the fact that some HR works is ‘devolved’ to the line manager. The researches carried out by CIPD have shown that, there are positive feelings amongst the employee when the line manages plays significant role in implementing some of the HR policies themselves.As a result, employees have higher level of commitment and satisfaction in their job, which gives higher performance. Cunningham et. el (1999) have stated that devolution of responsibility between line manager and HR consultants, enables release of HR professional â€Å"from the burdensome toil of conducting routine techniques†. As a result they can focus more on strategic business decision (Whittaker, and Marchington, 2003). Impact of line manager behaviour Line managers have significant effects on employees. Their behaviour and practice will affect the level and focus of employee commitment.The goal of HRM is to achieve employees’ commitment to the organization, with the aim of making these employees â€Å"more satisfied, more productive and more adaptable† (Guest, 1987, p. 513). That is only possible with having a strong line manager who can recognise, and appreciate the work of employees. Research shown that generally line managers are relatively happy in completing some HR work, one of the managers said, â€Å"If there wasn’t any personnel [function] I’d need to do person nel work anyway, because it’s my job (Power Business, Utility Co. †. However, same time they agree that they are on their own inadequacies in HRM. Another manager have made remark such as: â€Å"Look at sickness absence, there are those line managers that will do that without being reminded, there are those that will do that because they care, and there are line managers that just will not do it unless they are actually pushed into doing it. I think the more HR that we push down to the line managers, the more uncontrolled it will become (Generation Business, Utility Co. )† (Renwick, 2003).Renwick (2003) have done extensive research on line manager involvement in HRM, and listed many positive and negative of HRM perctices withing line managers. Some of these are listed below (1) Positives: * The line are taking on responsibility and accountability in HR work. * Flexibility is forthcoming from the line to do HR work. * The line are keen to take part on doing HR wor k. * The line are managing large numbers of employees. * The line take a professional and serious attitude to doing HR work. * Line managers are relatively happy doing some HR work. The line are considerate of employee needs and wishes. * The line see HR as positive helpers in HR work. * The line see career bene? ts for them in doing HR work. (2) Negatives: * The line have many duties, and lack time to do HR work well. * The line do not see themselves as experts in HRM. * Doing HR work dilutes the line’s generalist managerial focus. * Signi? cant line inadequacies in handling HR work. * Tensions between line and HR over transfer and completion of HR duties. * The line need to re? ect and be critical of their performance in HR work. The line are reliant on HR to do HR work properly. * Differing line commitment and discipline levels to doing HRM. * The line have responsibility and accountability in HRM, but little authority. * Little appreciation of line ? exibility in doing HR tasks from ? rms. After the research Renwick summarised it with saying line managers â€Å"acknowledge that they shared the completion of HR work with HR. † However, although line are doing well in some HRM practices, but still they lucks the expertise, knowledge and experience to carry out full HRM duties.Moreover, many aspects of HRM line dislike doing. Redman’s (2001) finding shows that some line will complete employee performance appraisal over phone call. Managing line managers To get best performance from the line manager they have to be managed in right way. The relationship line manager enjoys with from their manager will reflect on how line manager conducts themselves with others. The graph below shows how senior management felt about HRM and effect it will have on value added activities.The trends shows that the move towards strategic HRM mean that an ef? cient and professional service will be delivered within agreed time-scales with an ensured consistency o f approach, (Sisson, 1994). Fig 1. The road to achieving a value-added function (Sisson, 1994). The figure and the report have show that line managers are happen to carry out some of the duties, however, they do feel long and bureaucratic process of HRM is waste of their time. Recommendation: I feel line manager should perform some HRM actions.Such as , undertaking performance appraisal. This process will enable them to learn more about the employee, hence they will be able to relate to the employee and show consideration for them. Since, line manager is the first level of contact with employee they should take the responsibility to overlook the employee‘s training and couching. Moreover, line manager should be the role model and shows how to balance work-life. Conclusion Although HRM practices show benefit to an organisation, however there are still many areas need more clarity.Although line manager understand the importance of HR work but they still require training and unde rstanding some of the practices of HRM. Line manager have the most influence, performance and commitment of employee greatly depends on how line manager conduct themselves with employees. Reference Armstrong, M. (1987. Human resource management: a case of the emperor’s new clothes?. Personnel Management, Vol. 19 No. 8, pp. 30-5. Cunningham, I. and Hyman, J. (1999), â€Å"Devolving HR responsibilities to the line – beginning of the end or a new beginning for personnel? †, Personnel Review, Vol. 8 No. 1-2, pp. 9-27. Currie, G. and Procter, S. (2001). Exploring the relationship between HR and middle managers. Human Resource Management Journal, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 53-69. Hutchinson, S. (2008). The role of front line managers in bringing policies to life. Bristol Business School. Hutchinson, S. and Purcell, J. (2003). Bringing Policies to Life: The vital role of front line managers. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Renwick, D, (2003) â€Å"Li ne manager involvement in HRM: an inside view†, Employee Relations, Vol. 25 Iss: 3, pp. 262 – 280 Richbell, S. 2001), â€Å"Trends and emerging values in human resource management: The UK scene†, International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 22 No. 3, pp. 261-8. Sisson, K. (1994), â€Å"Personnel management: paradigms, practice and prospects†, in Sisson, K. (Ed. ), Personnel Management – A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice in Britain, 2nd ed. , Blackwell, Oxford. Storey, J. (1992), Development in the Management of Human Resources, Blackwell, Oxford. Whittaker, S. Marchington, M. (2003) â€Å"Devolving HR responsibility to the line: Threat, opportunity or partnership? â€Å", Employee Relations, Vol. 25 Iss: 3, pp. 245 – 261

The Correlation Between Cancer And Prostate Cancer

The finding led to the belief that the solution lied in the saturation, where the maximal growth of the prostate cancer was achieved at a low level of testosterone. This model was produced by Fowler and Whitmore, who concluded â€Å"normal endogenous testosterone levels may be sufficient to cause near maximal stimulation of prostatic tumors.† There final conclusion was that â€Å"there is not today—nor has there ever been—a scientific basis for the contention that a higher T concentration causes pCA growth, acutely or long-term.† This was a pivotal discovery because many other research labs began to do work on this same theory. Even though the other labs were doing the same research, they all came to similar results to of Huggins and Hodges, and†¦show more content†¦Nevertheless, like humans, the animal samples showed that androgens alone are sufficient to the induction of prostate carcinogenesis. In this study, the mean age of the patients who w ere sample was about 63 years of age and the median time that it took to diagnose those patients was almost three years. Testosterone, in this study, was moderately correlated with SHBG, but weakly correlated with estradilol. This is when Black et al used the ratio of estradilol: testosterone because they found an decrease between the ratio and the risk of acquiring prostate cancer. The overall conclusion was acquired from the data was found what that in men 70 years of age or greater a higher ratio of estradilol: testosterone was strongly associated with a reduced risk, and the control of the ratio would reduce the risk of acquiring prostate cancer. The risk of having prostate cancer was observed as higher with a ratio of 2:16ÃŽ ±-hydroxyestrone. Even though it was found that there is low risk of getting prostate cancer, they did consider the balance is important in how aggressive the prostate cancer is, or may become. [4] A study that was done by Chen et al observed that androgens like testosterone were vital in the growth and maintenance of prostate cancer. Subsequently, they gave large doses of these androgens to rodents. The other observations included the incidence of prostate cancer was very low in men who were castrated, and androgens stimulate the in vitro

Top Intermediate French Mistakes

After learning French for a while, whether in a class or on your own, youve probably found that there are some things you just cant figure out how to say, or that people are always correcting you on. These may be issues that you havent been taught yet  or concepts that youve studied but just dont get. As an intermediate French speaker, there is still plenty of time to fix these mistakes before they fossilize in your mind. Here are ten of the most common intermediate-level French mistakes with links to lessons. French Mistake 1: Y and En Y and en are known as adverbial pronouns — they replace the preposition à   or de plus a noun, respectively. They consistently cause problems for intermediate French speakers, though Im not sure whether this is because they are not adequately taught in French classes, or simply because they are difficult to master. Regardless of the reason for the difficulties, the fact is that both y and en are extremely important in French, so be sure to study this lesson. French Mistake 2: Manquer The French verb manquer (to miss) is a tough one because the word order is the opposite of what you probably expect. For example, I miss you translates not as je te manque but rather tu me manques (literally, you are missing to me.) Once you understand the proper French word order, youll never miss this one again. French Mistake 3: Le Passà © French past tenses are definitely tricky. The passà © composà © vs imparfait issue is a constant struggle until students truly understand each of these tenses and the differences between them. Theres also the matter of the passà © simple, which needs to be understood but not used. Get past this confusion with these lessons. French Mistake 4: Agreement Agreement of adjectives and à ªtre verbs may seem pointless and aggravating, but its part of the French language and needs to be learned. There are several kinds of agreement; the ones intermediate students really need to watch out for are agreement of adjectives with the nouns they modify, and agreement of the past participle of à ªtre verbs with their subjects in the passà © composà © and other compound tenses. French Mistake 5: Faux Amis There are thousands of French words that look a lot like English words, and while many of them are true cognates (i.e., mean the same thing in both languages), a lot of them are false cognates. If you look at the word actuellement and think Aha! Thats the French translation of actually, youre going to make a mistake because it actually means currently. Actuellement and hundreds of other faux amis are explained on my site, so take the time to learn the most common ones and thus avoid common pitfalls. French Mistake 6: Relative Pronouns The French relative pronouns are  qui,  que,  lequel,  dont, and  oà ¹, and depending on context can mean  who,  whom,  that,  which,  whose,  where, or  when. They are difficult for various reasons, including not having standard English equivalents and being required in French but often optional in English. The  pronoun  dont  in particular  causes major problems for French students, so be sure to learn about French relative pronouns. French Mistake 7: Temporal Prepositions Temporal prepositions introduce an amount of time, and the French ones are often confused. There is a correct time to use each of the prepositions  Ãƒ  ,  en,  dans,  depuis,  pendant  and  pour, so take the time to learn the difference. French Mistake 8: Depuis and Il y a Depuis  and  il y a  are both used to describe  time  in the past, but  depuis  means since or for while  il y a  means ago. If you had studied this lesson one year ago (il y a un an), you would have already known how to use these expressions correctly for a year (depuis  un an). Its not too late —  allez-y! French Mistake 9: Ce  Homme French adjectives usually have to agree with the nouns they modify in gender and number, but there are several that have a special form used when they precede a word that begins with a vowel or mute H. For example, to say this man, you might be tempted to say  ce  homme  because  ce  is the masculine demonstrative article. But because French likes to maintain euphony,  ce  changes to  cet  in front of a vowel or mute H:  cet  homme. French Mistake 10: Pronominal Verbs and Reflexive Pronouns Pronominal verbs (including reflexive verbs) cause lots of problems, especially when they are used in the infinitive. You probably know that Im getting up is  je  me là ¨ve, but what about I have to get up or Im going to get up? Should you say  je  dois/vais  me  lever  or  je  dois/vais  se  lever? Look at this lesson for the answer to that question as well as all kinds of other good info about pronominal verbs. High-Intermediate Mistakes High-intermediate means your French is pretty good — you excel in everyday situations, and can even hold your own in long discussions, but there are still some issues that you cant seem to get the hang of, or that you simply dont remember five minutes after looking them up. Reading several explanations of the same issue can help cement understanding of these sticky issues, so here are ten of the most common high-intermediate French mistakes with links to my lessons - maybe this time it will finally make sense. High Intermediate Mistake 1: Se and Soi Se  and  soi  are two of the most commonly misused French pronouns.  Se  is a reflexive pronoun while  soi  is a stressed pronoun, but they are very often mixed up with  le  and  lui, respectively. These lessons will help you understand the difference in order to avoid any confusion.High Intermediate Mistake 2: Encore vs Toujours Because  encore  and  toujours  can both mean yet and still (though they both have several other meanings as well), they are very often confused with one another. Learn how and when to use each of them. High Intermediate Mistake 3: What Trying to figure out how to say what in French can be tricky — should it be  que  or  quoi, or what about  quel? All of these terms have specific uses in French, so the only way to know which one to use when is to understand exactly what each one means. High Intermediate Mistake 4: Ce que, ce qui, ce dont, ce à   quoi Indefinite relative pronouns link relative clauses to  a main  clause when there is no specific antecedent... huh? In other words, when you have a sentence like this is what I want or thats what he told me, the what that links the two clauses has an unknown (indefinite) meaning. French indefinite relative pronouns often — though not always translate as what, so take a look at this lesson for detailed explanations and examples. High Intermediate Mistake 5: Si Clauses Si clauses, also known as conditionals or conditional sentences, have an if clause and a then (result) clause, such as If I have time, (then) I will help you. There are three types of si clauses, and each requires a certain sequence of verb tenses in French, which can cause confusion. The rules, however, are quite simple once you take the time to learn them. High Intermediate Mistake 6: Final Letters French pronunciation is tricky when it comes to final letters. Many words end in silent consonants, but some of those normally silent consonants are pronounced when followed by a word that begins with a vowel or mute H. This is often difficult for French learners, but with study and practice you really can master it, and these lessons are the place to start. High Intermediate Mistake 7: Subjunctive A high-intermediate French speaker is certainly aware of the subjunctive and knows to use it after things like  il  faut  que  and  je  veux  que, but there are probably still some expressions or verbs that youre not sure about. Do you use the subjunctive after  espà ©rer, and what about  il est possible/probable? Take a look at these pages for help with all of your subjunctive questions. High Intermediate Mistake 8: Negation   Obviously, a high-intermediate speaker knows how to use  ne...  pas  and many other negative forms, but there might be a few issues you still find tricky, like  ne  pas  in front of an infinitive,  ne  without  pas, and  pas  without  ne. Whatever your question about negation, youll find answers in these lessons. High Intermediate Mistake 9: Two or More Verbs There are several different types of French verb constructions with two or more verbs: compound moods/tenses (e.g.,  jai  mangà ©), dual verbs (je  veux  manger),  modals  (je  dois  manger), passive voice (il est mangà ©), and the causative construction (je  fais  manger). Many of these do not translate literally from English and thus can be difficult for French students. Your best bet is to review the lesson on each structure to make sure you understand, and then practice whenever you can to remember it. High Intermediate Mistake 10: Word Order Last but not least, word order can be a problem, especially when dealing with negation, various pronouns, and more than one verb all in the same sentence. This is another area where practice makes perfect — review the lessons and then put them to work. Position of object pronouns  Position of adverbs