Business Strategy of Barclays Bank Kenya

Business Strategy of Barclays Bank Kenya Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Rationale The research will be looking at some of the core business processes within Barclays Bank Kenya and discussions on how automation has been achieved vis-Ã  -vis the hardware and software tools used to drive automation within these processes. The research will also outline the criteria for the selection of automation tools used, how these tools work together to drive automation and how process automation could be made more efficient in the future. Singh et al. (2002) observed that, the need for banks to recurrently remain relevant in a very competitive industry and to satisfy ever growing customer demands, triggered the need for an e-banking solution whose transformaton goes as far back as the 1970s. The deployment of advanced Information Technology helped reduce cost by mostly eliminating the need to build new brick and mortar structures. It also helped to ensure that customers could perform transactions such as cash withdrawal and account balance checking without necessarily stepping into a banking hall. While (Arebeyen, 2011)stated that the high level of competition in the banking sector and a need to remain competitive and relevant together with customer demands for more efficient 24hour banking services led to a need for banks to re-engineer their business processes mostly with the introduction of electronic services. He also concludes by stating how the re-engineering process, through the application of Information Syste ms significantly improved the profitability performance of the banks. Oluwatolani, Joshua and Philip (2011) reported on the impact Information Technology has had on the banking sector. How it has become a transformational tool in making the national economy for competitive and produced a new domain of economic and social partnerships. Laudon and Laudon (1991) also argue that it is impossible for managers to ignore Information Technology as they play a fundamental role in modern day organizations. They pointed out how the worlds top 500 companies have now been linked with Information Technology and how Information Technology has increasingly changed the way banks organized their corporate structures to enhance the efficiency and speed of service delivery. Banks opt for tools that are used to automate business process for various reasons. These tools enable banks to have smaller operational units that result to value-adding tasks that include complex processes like deal origination as well as activities requiring human interventions. Automating processes helps in reducing the use of paper, supporting decision making and digitizing work flow. By embracing fully the use of these tools, banks often create a substantial improvement in customer service and in productivity. In other words, these tools are cost effective and more efficient because they offer solutions that rescue back-office procedures from unnecessary errors and expenses. Therefore the objective of this research is an attempt to fill that gap in knowledge. To conduct a study and gain insight into the tools (hardware and software) that have tremendously improved the banking services within Barclays Bank Kenya, which will be used as a case study for this research. 1.2 Problem Statement The problem this research aims to solve is the inadequate availability of studies on the hardware and software tools that drive process automation within the Kenyan banking sector. This problem has led to a gap in knowledge between the need/analysis of Information Systems in the Kenyan banking sector and the impact Information Systems have had on the sector over the years. This study therefore seeks to bridge that gap by conducting a research on the tools (hardware and software) used to drive automation within Barclays Bank Kenya, the criteria for the selection of tools used, how these tools combine to form a cohesive and effective workflow of processes and how process automation could be made more efficient in the future. 1.3 Justification New generation of modern technology tools enable organizations to resolve the paradox of having to standardize their operations and business processes as a means of achieving operational excellence as well as cost leadership. They help the organizations to achieve significant goals as well as changing their operational models so that they achieve efficiency and innovations. The use of technological tools in running business processes is significant more so because the priorities of organizations are sifting and at the top of the list, most organizations are considering productivity and cost control as most crucial. The technology has helped many organizations to be more effective in their services and products delivery. Business process management utilizes digital tools as a means of creating models that lead to optimization of key business processes. Within the banking system, there are four core business processes that include; production, ad-hoc, administrative and collaborative. The core business within the banking systems are implemented to meet various business requirements such as: acquisitions or mergers by a bank, the need for more flexibility within an ever increasing competitive market as well as the regulatory changes that are inadequately handled through legacy systems. Administrative work flows entail processes that are repetitive and predictable and involves simple task coordination rules like travel request and routing an expense report via an authorization process. Ad-Hoc workflows deals with human coordination, co-decision, collaboration and mostly appear in office processes including sales proposal and product documentation. On the other hand, collaborative workflows involve several iterations of a similar step up to the time an agreement is reached and may also involve getting back to a previous stage. Lastly production workflows encompass predictable and repetitive business processes that are usually critical in nature and may include loan application. Production workflow refers to a process of information that involves access to several or one information system. Production and administrative business processes are the bureaucratic procedures that comprises of well-defined steps that are controlled through defined rules. These two processes can be described with a lot of ease by conventional modelling tools. They are automated by the use of a Workflow Management Systems. Ad-hoc processes are quite similar to administrative processes but differ in that they deal with loosely defined or unique conditions. These conditions cannot be modelled easily nor can they be supported by current Workflow Management Systems effectively. On the other hand, collaborative processes are characterized by the number of those participating as well as by the synchronization required. Collaborative processes are adequately handled by the use of groupware technology. There are various tools used to automate various processes. Theres no question about the impact Information Technology has had on banking operations and still continues to have. It is therefore important to not only study these impacts but also to look at some of the tools that have helped automate the operations of the banking sector. This research will help fill that gap in knowledge by exposing readers to how various hardware and software tools are being used to automate some of the business operations within the banking sector. 1.4 Aims and Objectives 1.4.1 Aims The aim of this research is to provide insight into the hardware and software tools that are used to drive banking process automation within Barclays Bank Kenya. 1.4.2 Objectives The specific objectives of this research are: To identify and analyze the various computing tools used to automate the operational processes of Barclays Bank Kenya. To determine the criteria used by Barclays Bank Kenya in selecting the tools used in automation. To identify the synergy between the various operational tools and interactivity. To identify possible upgrades to the automation system that could increase efficiency. To write a report on the research findings 1.4.3 Research Questions What is the operational workflow of the banking process? What are the hardware and software tools used to automate the banking process? What are the criteria for the selection of hardware and software tools used in the automation of the process? How does the process integrate with other processes? How can the process be made more efficient vis-Ã  -vis the tools used? 1.5 Scope This research is concerned with the hardware and software tools that have been used to achieve banking process automation within the Barclays Bank Kenya. The bank was selected due to its wide coverage branch network and its heavy reliance on Information Technology in carrying out its banking operations. The research also looks into the criteria used in selecting the tools used for automation. It describes the synergy between the various tools and how they interact. And finally it identifies possible upgrades to the tools that could increase the overall efficiency of the automation process. 1.6 Ethical and Professional Issues 1.6.1 Ethical Issues Informed Approval The subject of the case study must fully understand the scope and depth of the research before the researcher can start the study. Impropriety in Research Forgery and distortion in conducting and analyzing research must be avoided and if present should be reported to the supervisor of the research as every academic community has the responsibility of tackling research misconduct. 1.6.2 Professional Issues Citing Sources It is important for the researcher to cite the works of other authors that have been included in his/her research in other to avoid plagiarism. The use of citations is professional as it gives credibility to the researchers own work. Confidentiality It is important that the confidentiality of the source(s) always be maintained by the researcher unless where the source(s) has given explicit permission for their name(s) to be mentioned in the research. This increases the level of rapport between the researcher and their source, making the source willing to provide vital information to the research without fear of their identity being disclosed. 1.7 Schedule The project schedule is shown below with the aid of a Gantt chart. Research Define Research Questions List the cases and choose analysis tools Arrange to collect data Collect data analyze the data Write a report Jan. 2017 Feb. 2017 March. 2017 April. 2017 May. 2017 April 2016 Figure 1.0: A Gnatt Chart Showing the Research Schedule 1.8 Budget TABLE 1.0: Breakdown of Proposed Estimate for Conducting this Research S/NO BUDGET ITEM AMOUNT (KSH) 1 Phone Calls 2,000 2 Internet Data 2,000 3 Printing 1,500 4 Transportation 1,500 TOTAL 7,000

The Scarlet Letter :: English Literature

The Scarlet Letter In most books, readers see events and happenings in their own personal way, which differs slightly from other readers' interpretations of the same book. In The Scarlet Letter, however, a radical new theory has developed on the death of Arthur Dimmesdale. Originally, it was generally accepted that Chillingworth's part in the death of Dimmesdale was purely psychological, but perhaps he played a greater role than thought before. In the book, Chillingworth is a physician who had been captured by Native Americans sometime ago and subsequently released by them into Boston, Massachusetts, who was strictly a Puritan settlement at the time. In the years of his imprisonment by the Indians, he was taught many native herbs and plants of the New World, and their uses on the human body. Through this, he entered Boston as a physician, known to have "gathered herbs, and the blossoms of wild-flowers, and dug up roots, and plucked off twigs from the forest-trees, like one acquainted with hidden virtues in what was valueless to common eyes." ( The Scarlet Letter , p. 120). Chillingworth had the knowledge of a particular drug, Atropine, which caused a sickness that closely resembled the condition of Dimmesdale. Chillingworth's motive for retribution to Dimmesdale for his adultery was very clear throughout the book, "There is a sympathy that will make me conscious of him. I shall see him tremble. I shall feel myself shudder, suddenly and unawares. Sooner or later, he must needs be mine." (p. 80). Chillingworth's vengeful nature consumed his life and his only goal in life became the torment of Hester's adulterous husband, Dimmesdale. He was already showing signs of sickness, assumed by the reader to be attributed to his guilty conscience, and these were only amplified by the poisoning Chillingworth had inflicted upon him. Dimmesdale's physical state and reactions also gave the reader clues to Chillingworth's role in Dimmesdale's demise. Upon Chillingworth's arrival to Boston, Dimmesdale immediately showed symptoms of atropine poisoning, or, to the reader at the time, signs of his guilt and adultery. As the doctor-patient relationship between Chillingworth and Dimmesdale grew, Dimmesdale's health faded. "His form grew emaciated; his voice, though still rich and sweet, had a certain melancholy prophecy of decay in it; he was often observed, on any slight alarm or other sudden accident, to put his hand over his heart with first a flush and then a paleness, indicative of pain." (p. 119). Also, as time progressed, Dimmesdale's symptoms became more severe and resembled like those attributed to atropine poisoning.

FMC Green River Essay

FMC Green River, one of the plants of FMC Corporation presently experiences dilemma regarding the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire plant with respect to other plants of FMC Corporation specifically FMC Aberdeen. Despite of the many year of FMC Green River in operation, it has been overtaken by a much younger company-FMC Aberdeen in terms of profitability and operating cost reduction rate. FMC Green River and FMC Aberdeen have different management orientations and plant operations. But despite of these differences, FMC Green River still faces the problem of having inefficient plant operations relative to FMC Aberdeen. In this regard, Ken Daily, FMC Green River manager, decided to study the possibility of using some of the management principles that FMC Aberdeen has been using for the past years of its operations. Organizational and Behavioral Analysis After a critical analysis of the case, Bob Lancaster and his â€Å"unorthodox† way of managing people would be the primary reason why FMC Aberdeen has been experiencing high productivity and efficiency since its establishment. The extensive recruitment process of FMC Aberdeen secured the said plant with dedicated yet skilled workers and has passion over taking initiatives in making the entire plant more productive. On the other hand, FMC Green River has a very opposite orientation than of FMC Aberdeen. There is no sense of group effort and teamwork on the floors of FMC Green River plus having more workers on a job area even if a few numbers of workers can finish the same job at the same quality level. Furthermore, wages of FMC Green River is relatively higher relative to other FMC Corporation’s plants all over the United States. Combining this fact with the information that job areas in FMC Green River can be performed by less number of people seems to be the reason behind they are performing inefficiently. They said plant pays workers that are really not contributing to the entire company. Worker-management and worker-worker relationship is also of low level since working stations of every worker are located far from one another thereby causing a less interaction between every employee. Ken Daily, though he encourages interaction between the management and the employees, still, given the fact that the working stations of every worker are located far from one another would only make his management style of being interactive and open fail. It has been identified that the structure of the plants of FMC Green River is already old and must be renovated and structured in such a way that every workers can interact with each in order for the management style of Daily and FMC Aberdeen to work in FMC Green River. The lax recruitment process of FMC Green River also contributed for the low productivity of their production floors since not all of the workers of FMC Green River are skilled enough to assume responsibilities in the said plant. Alternatives One of the possible alternatives that Daily must implement would be to renovate the structure of FMC Green River’s plants in such a way that the workers will have enough chances of interacting with one another thereby creating an avenue towards the development of sense of teamwork and group effort to attain higher quality output for the company (Binkley, 2007). Another possible alternative that FMC Green River could implement would be to review the performances of every employee and provide sanctions to those that have negative performances. Even though these employees are being protected by the labor union, still, with the basis of not conforming to the standards of FMC Green River, the management can right away fire those employees with low performance and productivity. On the other hand, FMC Green River management must provide incentives to those employees that able to surpass the expectations of the management. This will motivate every employees of the said plant to perform productively. FMC Green River must provide a new set of schedules for the entire work force of the plant in such a way that there will be no worker that will be laid off and only the optimal number of workers will only report on a specific day depending on the urgency of the production line. Daily must reach out to his workers and employees to organizing company outings, picnics per department in order to establish a good working relation with the workers and at the same time earning their trust (Weber, 2007). A manager that approaches an ordinary worker will be appreciated by the latter and will boost the morale of every employees of the plant. The last but not the least alternative would be the provision of trainings and seminars for FMC Green River’s workers that would enhance not only their skills but also their outlook on performing their responsibilities in the company. With this, Ken Daily will be able to increase the productivity as well as the flexibility of his workers in performing their responsibilities to the company. Recommendation Among the above identified alternatives above, the most effective alternative would be the restructuring of FMC Green River’s plants in such a way that every workers will have a chance to interact with each other creating enough room for the development of teamwork and cooperation on every workers of FMC Green River. This will increase the productivity of the workers and at the same time the productivity of the plants. If this will become successful, it would be now easy for Daily to approach his workers and make bond as well as to earn their trust and this solution will also boost the morale of every workers of FMC Green River (Levit, 2002). Implementation and Contingency Plan The renovation of various plants will take one at a time in order not to affect the operation of the entire company. After this, Daily is expected to launch some activities, as a â€Å"mood starter†, of the interactions of every worker on their new working stations after the renovation process. A few months after this, Daily can now launch activities that would enhance the interaction of employees from various departments and then from various plant to widen the range of interaction in FMC Green River. If this solution will not work, then the restructuring of workers schedule in such a way that all of the workers will still remain in the company yet the optimal number of workers are the ones that will report on a given day in order to minimize their operational cost and increase the productivity of the entire company.

Racial Discrimination The And Wearing The Zoot Suit

Throughout the complex and contradictory history of the United States, minorities always had to stand out and fight for their human rights, because there were no rights for the minorities and they were always treated differently than the White people, and these situations can be described as racial discriminations. In 1930s and 1940s, there were some historical events took place in Los Angeles that affected the relationship between different ethnic groups and the transformation of different ethnic groups in social position. The development of Olvera Street and wearing the zoot-suit are definitely some ways for Mexicans and other minorities to â€Å"negotiate† their identities when they were facing serious racial discrimination. The racism toward Mexican people and other minorities during that period is obvious to see from the idea of White supremacy. The Mexican and African Americans were often called â€Å"Subaltern subjects†, because during that period they had low social status, they did not have any political power, and they did not even have any civil rights. Yet the environment they built and their physical appearances definitely helped themselves to figure out who they are in the United States even when they had to face such a big change in that period. In 1930s, there were a huge population of Mexicans living in Los Angeles, and the huge deportation was essentially the beginning of the battle between the Anglos and the Mexicans. Olvera Street is a place that helps Mexicans toShow MoreRelatedZoot Suits Riot Film1107 Words   |  5 PagesIn effect, they tried to disassociate themselves from this faction. Young Latino men referred to themselves as pachucos and sported oversize suits known as zoot suits. In the film Zoot Suit Riots, Joseph Tovares remarkably portrayed the difficult lives of Mexican Americans in the 1940s. 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