Obviously, it is extremely important to reduce bias and to reduce confounding for valid epidemiologic research. As a practicing epidemiologist, how would you work to reduce bias in your studies? Also, how would you work to control confounding in your studies? Provide some specific examples of strategies that you would employ.

PLEASE EXPLAIN WHETHER YOU AGREE WITH MY CLASSMATE RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE QUESTION AND WHY? (A MININUM OF 125 WORDS) 

                                                          

                                                          CLASSMATE’S POST

One of the best way researchers can avoid bias in their studies is to be objective. Being objective means being open to changes and events that may help further their research along. Researchers should stay focused on their research and never base their research on their own personal feelings. For example, if a research is researching lung cancer, then he or she should focus on lung cancer and all the aspects of such, void of how the researcher feels personally about lung cancer. Such personal feelings could alter the outcomes of the research. Another way a researcher can avoid bias concerns selection of subjects for the study. Researchers should not choose studies in which they already know the outcome. For example, choosing subjects for the study that are not randomly picked, but known subjects in whom the outcome of the study is known. To control confounding in a study, researchers should have a plan and get organized before the study, not while the study is in progress.   

Case Assignment

1   Look up the definition of counterterrorism (please, no Wikipedia or other nonprofessional sources). What is the definition?

2  Look up the definition of intelligence. What is the relationship of intelligence to counterterrorism? Explain with examples.

3  Relate counterterrorism and intelligence with the military

4  From the Background Information section, review your readings/audio/websites and: Explain how a specific counterterrorism team, unit, or partnership operates to counter a terrorist episode. Use a specific example and “walk it through” the process. 

 

 

Required Reading

Bjelopera, J. P. (2013). The Federal Bureau of Investigation and terrorism investigations. Congressional Research Service. Retrieved from: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/R41780.pdf

Implementing 9/11 Commission recommendations: Progress report 2011. DHS. Retrieved from: http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/implementing-9-11-commission-report-progress-2011.pdf [read passages pertaining to counterterrorism]

Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team (2013). National Counterterrorism Center. Retrieved from: http://www.nctc.gov/jcat.html

Required Websites

Counterterrorism and Criminal Exploitation Unit, ICE. http://www.ice.gov/counterterrorism-criminal-exploitation/

Counterterrorism Committees & Working Groups, DHS. http://www.dhs.gov/counterterrorism-committees-working-groups

Counterterrorism Laws & Regulations, DHS: http://www.dhs.gov/counterterrorism-laws-regulations#6

Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Program. Center for Strategic & International Studies. https://csis.org/program/homeland-security-program

National Counterterrorism Center. http://www.nctc.gov/

ITACG Intelligence guide for first responders (2nd ed.) (2011). NCTC. Retrieved from: http://www.nctc.gov/jcat/docs/ITACG_Guide_for_First_Responders_2011.pdf

 

1. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 offered what for victims of unintentional discrimination?

a. Race-norming

b. Monetary damages and jury trials

c. Affirmative action

d. Adverse impact

 

2. Which of the following is a distinctive feature of the U.S. system compared with other countries?

a. Exclusive representation

b. All agreements are of unlimited duration

c. Wages set by arbitration councils

d. Low union dues and small union staffs

 

3. A _____ occurs when parties are unable to move further toward settlement.

a. bargaining impasse

b. lockout

c. mediation

d. grievance

 

4. _____ proceeds from an oral warning to a written warning to a suspension to dismissal.

a. Procedural justice

b. Positive discipline

c. Progressive discipline

d. Due process

 

5. In _____, workers have been fired for refusing to quit smoking, for living with someone without being married, drinking a competitor’s product, motorcycling, and other legal activities outside of work.

a. constructive discharge

b. defamation

c. invasion of privacy

d. lifestyle discrimination

 

6. ________________ include everything in a work environment that enhances a worker’s sense of self respect and esteem by others.

a. Internal pay objectives

b. General business strategies

c. Social responsibilities

d. Nonfinancial rewards

 

7. Title VII of the _____________ states that top executives in companies receiving government support can retract bonuses, retention awards, or incentives paid to the top five senior executive officers or the next 20 most highly compensated employees based on corporate information that is later found to be inaccurate.

a. Equal Pay Act (1963)

b. Sarbanes–Oxley Act (2002)

c. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009)

d. Pay for Performance Act (2009)

 

 

8. ____________ is the biggest hurdle to overcome in a pay-for-performance plan.

a. Inflation

b. Merit-pay increases

c. Compensation equation

d. Salary cap performance level

 

9. Properly designed incentive programs work because they are based on two well-accepted psychological

principles: (1) increased motivation improves performance and (2)

a. the Scanlon plan

b. the Rucker plan

c. recognition is a major factor in motivation

d. control-based compensation

 

10. In determining the competitiveness of benefits, senior management tends to focus mainly on

a. cost

b. value

c. security

d. worth

 

11. This made extensive changes to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974 that governs employer-sponsored, qualified (for tax deferral) retirement-benefit plans.

a. The Pension Protection Act (PPA) of 2006

b. Short-Term Disability laws

c. Short-Term Severance Pay laws

d. Employer Cost Shifting laws

 

12. What is our country’s income maintenance program?

a. Social Security

b. ERISA (1974)

c. PPA (2006), 401(k)

d. COBRA (1985)

 

13. _____ implies that appraisal systems are easy for managers and employees to understand and use.

a. Reliability

b. Practicality

c. Sensitivity

d. Acceptability

 

14. If objective performance data are available, which of the following is the best strategy to use?

a. MBO

b. BARS

c. summated rating scales

d. work planning and review

 

 

15. To avoid legal difficulties related to performance appraisals and enhance credibility in court, employers should

a. have friends testify

b. present only the manager’s perspective

c. present only the employee’s perspective

d. document appraisal ratings and reason for termination

 

16. When conducting a performance feedback discussion, active listening requires

a. verbal communications only

b. interruptions to get your point across

c. summarizing your key points

d. summarizing what was said and what was agreed to

 

17. Employee demotions usually involve.

a. a decrease in status and privilege but no loss of opportunity or pay

b. a reduction in pay but no loss of opportunity, status, or privilege

c. an increase in pay and more responsibility

d. a cut in pay, status, privilege, or opportunity

 

18. For organizations, _________ is an indirect cost associated with downsizing.

a. severance pay

b. outplacement

c. administrative processing

d. an increase in the unemployment tax rate

 

19. _____ analysis is the level of analysis that focuses on employees specifically.

a. Operations

b. Environmental

c. Employee

d. Individual

 

20. Training that results in ______ is costly because of the cost of training (which proved to be useless) and the cost of hampered performance.

a. applicability of training

b. simulation of training

c. negative transfer of training

d. reinforcement of training

 

21. Mary arrives at her new job. Before she can begin actually doing the work, she must complete a series of activities including role playing and virtual reality interactions. What type of training method does Mary’s new employer use?

a. Organizational development

b. On-the-job training

c. Simulation

d. Information presentation

 

22. Which question should not be important in evaluating the value of training?

a. Did change occur?

b. Is the change due to training?

c. Is the change positive related to organizational goals?

d. Was the cost of training within the budget?

 

23. ___________ is the process where managers provide feedback to the employees regarding their past and present job performance proficiency, as well as a basis for improving performance in the future.

a. Performance management

b. Selection

c. Placement

d. Recruiting

 

24. Hard quotas

a. represent a mandate to hire or promote specific numbers or proportions of women or minority group members

b. systematically favor women and minorities in hiring and promotion decisions

c. are a concerted effort by the organization to actively expand the pool of applicants so that no one is excluded because of past or present discrimination

d. are a commitment to treat all races and sexes equally in all decisions about hiring, promotion, and pay

 

25. Organizations periodically turn to _________ to meet demands for talent brought about by business growth and a desire for fresh ideas, or to replace employees who leave.

a. their subsidiaries

b. entry-level employees

c. outside labor markets

d. former employees

 

26. Because practical considerations make job tryouts for all candidates infeasible, it is necessary to __________ the relative level of job performance for each candidate on the basis of available information.

a. assign

b. predict

c. abandon

d. accept

 

27. If employers fail to check closely enough on a prospective employee who then commits a crime in the course of performing his or her job duties, they can be held liable for

a. quid pro quo

b. negligent hiring

c. loss of consortium

d. hostile environment

28. When companies discover they can communicate better with their customers through employees who are similar to their customers, those companies then realize they have increased their _____

a. primary

b. secondary

c. internal

d. external

 

29. What can affirmative action assist organizations in achieving that diversity initiatives cannot?

a. Increased productivity

b. Maximizing creativity

c. Maximizing workforce commitment

d. Correcting specific problems of the past

 

30. Which is not a quality of Generation Y?

a. Inability to handle numerous projects

b. The constant need for stimulation/entertainment

c. A blurring of the lines between work and leisure time while on the job

d. Short attention spans

  15 slides, plus script (2-3 pages)

Managing a Crisis

Crisis management and crisis communications are specialized business disciplines. In times of crisis, companies can act in a number of ways; from ignoring the situation and hoping it passes in the next news cycle to aggressively defending itself after the fact. Smart companies have plans that can be used in any crisis situation.

Using the company developed in the Unit 4 Individual Project, select a crisis that negatively affects the business from a legal or image standpoint. Develop a series of scenario statements that you write ahead of time that you will present to the management and legal departments so that they may be used swiftly in a time of crisis. 

Presentation Script

Create a script to accompany the presentation. It should include background on the crisis, how the situation will be handled, and the rationale for the scenario statements. 

This part of the Individual Project should be at least 2–3 pages (single-spaced).

PowerPoint Presentation

Create a professional PowerPoint presentation. You will be assessed on the design of the presentation, including colors, backgrounds, professionalism, font, and graphics. Optional content includes sound, videos, and animation. 

This part of the Individual Project should be at least 15 slides. Two files that include the following will need to be uploaded:

• Script: Use the attached template. The template is a .docx file and will need to be uploaded as a self-executing ZIP file. See MKTG340_U5IP Script in the ZIP File. 
• PowerPoint presentation 

Please submit your assignment as a Word document in APA format using the attached TEMPLATE. Notice that the grading criteria components match up with the headings provided in the template. Do not change the font, page breaks, or margins. Using the template without deleting the headings ensures that you cover each segment of the assignment.

DUE TODAY 

I have attached the first part of the project which is what this project is a continuation from.

Part 1

Complete a WBS for your project. (Work Breakdown Structure ATTACHED)

This list of activities needs to contain enough detail so you can effectively plan and schedule your event.

Using the completed WBS as a reference, next complete a Gantt chart of your project using the template provided. If you discover in the process you overlooked activities make sure to include them in the WBS. (Gantt Chart ATTACHED)

In a paper that is a minimum of 2 pages long, identify the Critical Path for your project. Using the WBS and the Gantt chart you constructed for this project analyze how much longer you will need to start planning in advance of your event in order to complete the project? Your submission should follow the essentials of APA (i.e., cover page, double-spaced, 12 pt. font, reference section at the end, in-text citations, etc.).
 

Part 2

For this part of the Course Project, you will put together a Quality Plan.  In order to provide the highest quality experience possible, attendees  of the event were surveyed to determine what was most important to them  when attending such an event. The result of this survey is listed below:

– 90% of those completing the survey felt that having engaging and dynamic speakers is key to a successful event
– 90% felt that it was important that the accommodations were  physically located where the convention is being held; they didn’t want  to have to take a bus or a shuttle from their hotel to the convention.
– 85% stated the food provided should be wonderful and meet any dietary restrictions, such as vegetarian or gluten-free.

For your assignment, you will need to do the following:

–Complete a scope statement for your project (Use may use the templates for Project Scope and Business Objective Worksheet provided). Your project Scope should be at one page in length. (Project Scope and Business Objective Worksheet ATTACHED)

-Using the WBS for your project, identify which of the Work Activities listed could potentially impact those items identified by attendees as critical for the success of the project. 

–Complete a Failure Mode and Effects Analysis. Only include those activities that impact the four issues identified by your customers as critical to producing a quality event. For each of the activities listed:

– Based on your knowledge of the activity analyze the severity of the  impact on the project if the activity failed to produce a quality  result as Low, Medium, or High

– Also based on your knowledge of the activity analyze the probability  of the poor quality result occurring as Low, Medium, or High

– For the three activities that were evaluated as having the most  severe quality consequences AND having the highest impact generate an  action plan to reduce or eliminate these failures from occurring

–In a paper that is a minimum of 2 pages long, clearly and concisely summarize  the action items identified through the FMEA that will increase the  probability of your project being considered a success with your  customers. Your submission should follow the essentials of APA  (i.e., cover page, double-spaced, 12 pt. font, reference section at the  end, in-text citations, etc.).
 

Save Part 1 of your assignment as a Microsoft Excel document. And the paper as a Microsoft Word document. 

Save Part 2 of your assignment as a Microsoft Word document.