Monday, January 27, 2020

UK Higher Education: A Shift to the Alternative Providers

UK Higher Education: A Shift to the Alternative Providers For more than two hundred years now (1800s 2015), educational landscape has been constantly changing and continues to change into the future. Private institutions such as London School of Management Education (LSME) are riding with the wave of change to meet the demands of technological economy in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world. Higher education has evolved considerably in the United Kingdom since the 1800. The enactment of Further and Higher Education act 1992 gave way to the Fair access and Widening Participation (Office for Fair access (OFFA) of the disadvantaged groups to participate in higher education which was the privilege of few. It all began in the 19th century with a Royal (university) Charter which removed the divide between the universities, the polytechnics and the Scottish central Institutions. The reform in the 1960s bridged the gap between the ancient universities and redbrick universities. The reforms over the years have been to meet the growing demand for education and to meet the demands of ever changing technological economy. Private education such as LSME has been at every corner of educational reform. In the United Kingdom, education is valued highly and this began in the city of Oxford in 1096, followed by the establishment of Cambridge University in 1209. All parts of the United Kingdom experienced growth in educational demand. By 15th century, there was rise in the establishment of higher education in Scotland with the establishment of St. Andrews, Glasgow University, Aberdeen University, and the Edinburgh University, established by the Royal Charter in 1583. The emergence of Redbrick universities (the amalgamation of medical, science and engineering colleges in England), especially in the late 19th and 20th century saw the establishments and merger of institutions in almost all cities of England and Wales. 1956 saw the emergence of colleges of advanced technology in different cities of the United Kingdom. The advancement of education to meet the growing demands for technological economy enabled to government of United Kingdom to award university status to most of the city colleges in 1966. Some of these universities include Aston, Brunel and surrey, to mention but a few. These higher educational developments continued expansion till 1992, though with little consideration to ever-growing divide of equality in the UK. The widening gap, inequality and the income disparity of the British people resulted to the underprivileged to miss out on higher education. To meet the demands as mentioned above, the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 wa s pass by the act of parliament. This Act provided room for the Office of Fair Access (OFFA) to accommodate the underprivileged peoples of United Kingdom. According to the British Council Institute, by the enactment of Further and Higher Education Act 1992, thirty five (35) former polytechnics and further and higher institutions gained university status. From 2001 to 2013, thirty one (31) universities were created. There were one hundred and sixty six (166) institutions in the UK with Degree Awarding Powers. By 2011, there was an expansion of institutions both community and private. It is estimated by the British Council Institute that by 2011, there was establishment of one thousand six hundred (1,600) institutions, including two hundred and fifty (250) other further education colleges and the alternative (private) providers of higher education. In this expansion, London School of Management Education (LSME) is one of them. The alternative providers, known as private colleges offered opportunities for peoples of disadvantaged background to gain access into higher education. The increasing number of private colleges was not enough to c reate opportunities for the underprivileged groups due to the high cost of education in the. The 2010 reform of higher education system by the government offered the opportunity for students of alternative (private) Higher Education providers to gain access to the student loan through the Student Loans Company. This reform provided an opportunity for the underprivileged peoples of England and Wales to access tuition fee through student loan of up six thousand ( £6,000) pounds per year. Colleges such as London School of Management Education embarked on providing Higher National Diploma (HND) through Pearson BTEC. Higher National Diploma is a work-related vocational higher education qualification that enables holders to be employable at the job market. The design and delivery of HND is focused on the skills required by UK employers to meet all the skill shortages in the economy of the United Kingdom. The Further and Higher Education Act 1992 and the 2010 Higher Education Reform enabled 3.2% increase in full time higher education by the underprivileged, the underrepresented and the youth. By 2012-13 academic year, there was a decrease of part time education by 10.8%. Between 2010-11 and 2013-14, there was a 27% increase in UK and EU domiciled undergraduate entrants. It is noteworthy that during this period there was a decrease of 55% of demand for university education. It is important to know that there was an explosion of demand for higher education through the alternative providers such as London School of Management Education (LSME). Between the quoted period as above, there was an increase of 259% demand for higher education with the alternative providers such as LSME. This is as a result of removing the barriers to education for the benefits of the underprivileged and the good working practice of the private colleges, who centred the design and delivery of higher education on their students. Most of these students have been out of school for many years and cannot cope with the university style of education which is not person-centred. The private colleges, like what is obtainable at London School of Management Education focused the design and delivery of their programme with students involvement. The college understands the need of their students, knowing fully well that student-provider relationship is vital. It provides a conducive environment for learning. Learning is not all about reading books and presenting lecture slides to students, it includes mental development and empathy. At London School of Management Education, there is partnership with employers to enable students engagement for work experience. It is important to note that most of the underprivileged were black and ethnic minority groups. It is estimated by the UK National Student Survey that from 2007 to 2013 academic year, there was an increase demand for higher education of 74% (13,792) Blacks, 34% (11,584) Asians, 54% (7,860) mixed and other ethnic background, and 18% (50,000) white. This increase of student number which was enabled by the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, and the 2010 Higher education Reform offered opportunities for alternative providers of higher education to compete for students in the education industry. London School of Management Education chose to offer HND in Business and Health and Social Care through Pearson BTEC. As demand for teachers grow, and also to offer opportunities to the disadvantaged groups, LSME offers Diploma in Education and Teaching (DET). This educational reform offered opportunities for ethnic minorities to be employable in education industry. The NSS report shows that students are happy. London School of Management Education works hard in meeting all the quality assurance framework as set by Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) and the stringent scrutiny of Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). To meet the complaint system, London School of Management Education complies with all the rules and regulations of The Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) to ensure that students complaints are investigated and resolved to their satisfaction. This is to ensure that students receive value for money of their investment in education. LSME also complies with the authorities of Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) to supply details of students who have graduated from their college after one year. London School of Management Education is a fast growing college that thrives on student satisfaction. It is subsc ribed to the rules and regulations of Competition and Market Authority (CMA). The new Fit for Purpose Regulatory Framework for the Higher Education Sector 2012 protects students interest, promotes diversity and choice, and supports high quality provision. There is huge opportunity in the education industry for alternative providers such as London School of Management Education to share in the  £30billion industry. It was revealed by the British Council Institute that universities and colleges received the sum of  £29.1 billion in the 2012-13 academic year. The reform in education is focused on partnership with employers to tailor courses to meet the growing sophistication of the technological world and the demand for quality. This enables the universities and colleges to form partnership with the Professional and Statutory Regulation Bodies (PSRBs) to share ideas and experiences, and to discuss areas of mutual interest with QAA for sharing good practice for the development of UK s economy and professionalism. For the development of good practice and quality delivery of higher education, London School of Management Education complies with all the requirements of the governing bodies in education industry. This approach has earned it recognition with the industry which led to the good turnouts of dignitaries from all walks of life for their Convocation Ceremony on the 6th of October 2016.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Customer value proposition Essay

Customer value proposition† has become one of the most widely used terms in business markets in recent years. Yet our management-practice research reveals that there is no agreement as to what constitutes a customer value proposition—or what makes one persuasive. Moreover, we find that most value propositions make claims of savings and benefits to the customer without backing them up. An offering may actually provide superior value—but if the supplier doesn’t demonstrate and document that claim, a customer manager will likely dismiss it as marketing puffery. Customer managers, increasingly held accountable for reducing costs, don’t have the luxury of simply believing suppliers’ assertions. Customer managers, increasingly held accountable for reducing costs, don’t have the luxury of simply believing suppliers’ assertions. Take the case of a company that makes integrated circuits (ICs). It hoped to supply 5 million units to an electronic device manufacturer for its next-generation product. In the course of negotiations, the supplier’s salesperson learned that he was competing against a company whose price was 10 cents lower per unit. The customer asked each salesperson why his company’s offering was superior. This salesperson based his value proposition on the service that he, personally, would provide. Unbeknownst to the salesperson, the customer had built a customer value model, which found that the company’s offering, though 10 cents higher in price per IC, was actually worth 15.9 cents more. The electronics engineer who was leading the development project had recommended that the purchasing manager buy those ICs, even at the higher price. The service was, indeed, worth something in the model—but just 0.2 cents! Unfortunately, the salesperson had overlooked the two elements of his company’s IC offering that were most valuable to the customer, evidently unaware how much they were worth to that customer and, objectively, how superior they made his company’s offering to that of the competitor. Not surprisingly, when push came to shove, perhaps suspecting that his service was not worth the difference in price, the salesperson offered a 10-cent price concession to win the business—consequently leaving at least a half million dollars on the table. Some managers view the customer value proposition as a form of spin their marketing departments develop for advertising and promotional copy. This shortsighted view neglects the very real contribution of value propositions to superior business performance. Properly constructed, they force companies to rigorously focus on what their offerings are really worth to their customers. Once companies become disciplined about understanding customers, they can make smarter choices about where to allocate scarce company resources in developing new offerings. We conducted management-practice research over the past two years in Europe and the United States to understand what constitutes a customer value proposition and what makes one persuasive to customers. One striking discovery is that it is exceptionally difficult to find examples of value propositions that resonate with customers. Here, drawing on the best practices of a handful of suppliers in business markets, we present a systematic approach for developing value propositions that are meaningful to target customers and that focus suppliers’ efforts on creating superior value. Three Kinds of Value Propositions We have classified the ways that suppliers use the term â€Å"value proposition† into three types: all benefits, favorable points of difference, and resonating focus. (See the exhibit â€Å"Which Alternative Conveys Value to Customers?†) Which Alternative Conveys Value to Customers? Suppliers use the term â€Å"value proposition† three different ways. Most managers simply list all the benefits they believe that their offering might deliver to target customers. The more they can think of, the better. Some managers do recognize that the customer has an alternative, but they often make the mistake of assuming that favorable points of difference must be valuable for the customer. Best-practice suppliers base their value proposition on the few elements that matter most to target customers, demonstrate the value of this superior performance, and communicate it in a way that conveys a sophisticated understanding of the customer’s business priorities. All benefits. Our research indicates that most managers, when asked to construct a customer value proposition, simply list all the benefits they believe that their offering might deliver to target customers. The more they can think of, the better. This approach requires the least knowledge about customers and competitors and, thus, the least amount of work to construct. However, its relative simplicity has a major potential drawback: benefit assertion. Managers may claim advantages for features that actually provide no benefit to target customers. Such was the case with a company that sold high-performance gas chromatographs to R&D laboratories in large companies, universities, and government agencies in the Benelux countries. One feature of a particular chromatograph allowed R&D lab customers to maintain a high degree of sample integrity. Seeking growth, the company began to market the most basic model of this chromatograph to a new segment: commercial laboratories. In initial meetings with prospective customers, the firm’s salespeople touted the benefits of maintaining sample integrity. Their prospects scoffed at this benefit assertion, stating that they routinely tested soil and water samples, for which maintaining sample integrity was not a concern. The supplier was taken aback and forced to rethink its value proposition.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Curiosity †Did God create the universe? Essay

The movie, â€Å"Curiosity – Did God create the universe?† really caught my attention. For the reason that the title speaks for the question that has been going on debate for ages itself. It is also well verse about how scientists cope up with this result, with this theory, and with this conclusion and on how they overcome various challenges and obstacles they have encountered by getting the answers to their questions. It also talks about how Steven Hawking unfolds his personal, compelling vision about this question which he referred as of the greatest mystery which science could once prove. I really found the movie quite intriguing because the argument between the church and to those of science hasn’t been cease though it has been going since I’ve far remembered. It is also very informative because I have learned many things about the persons behind this greatest discovery, lurking behind their shadows while knowing on what they did do to arrive with this theory. I am also amuse with this movie, it is not because I consider some people in the movie ignorant but because it is somewhat like a timeline; seeing and watching those proud scientist working and striving hard just to reach their goal. At the first part of the movie it talks about the Vikings, telling us a little knowledge of their mythology. On how do they consider the natural phenomena by which the moon comes between the earth and the sun, thus casting its shadows to the earth while covering the face of the sun? They thought that it was because one of their gods, Skuld, which who devours the sun. So they make some noise somewhat like a ritual to drove away Skuld’s anger and to let the sun appear again which we eventually know that it doesn’t makes sense. Later on, they introduce a philosopher who dated back ago around 300 B.C who came upon a realization that the earth was not the center of the solar system and concluded that it was the sun and it was only the planet together with its natural satellite, we call moon, orbits around it and also calling those lights in the sky while at night as somewhat like similar to our own sun but just really far away from us. I couldn’t think on how do this certain philosopher came up with this answer by just sitting and observing the night sky without anything at hand to prove his answers. The next one is Galileo Galilee, the one who discovered that there are some heavenly bodies which orbits a planet. Nights after nights he observes this Planet which was now known as Jupiter. He first observe 2 satellites orbiting this planet, after some time it became 3 and thus become 4 but there were also times that one of this satellite disappear or in other words hide beneath the shadow of the planet. Unfortunately because of his discovery, he was imprisoned for the reason that it contradicts the Church. He was first sentence in a death row but later on it was lowered to a 9 years imprisonment. Though he asks forgiveness to the church but he still insisted that those satellites really do move and orbits around Jupiter. His works was then pursued by Albert Einstein, which formulated the formula E = MC ². According to Steven Hawking, there were only 3 things or ingredients to make a universe. The first one is Matter, anything that occupies space and has a mass. The second one is Energy, it is found around us. And the last one is Space. But for Einstein, this was only his basis. He did found out that Matter and Energy was somewhat like similar and thus he formulated the formula E = MC ². Summing up all this studies, Scientist came up with the Big Bang Theory. It was said that this theory consume matter and if it explodes it releases energy towards the space and thus created the universe. But the question is, before it explodes who or what thing triggered this event? For them there was no such thing as a trigger because relating to the sub-particles of an atom, protons and neutrons just appear from nothing. Hence they conclude that there was no time for a creator or a time for a creator to exist. For me this was big statement for the scientist to hold for it does contradict the church itself. Denying the fact for a creator to exist.

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Our Founding Fathers Effect on the Past, Present, and...

In the beginning, the nation’s Founders were profoundly skeptical of direct democracy. They believed that the â€Å"follies† of direct democracy far outweighed any virtues it might possess (Politics in American pg. 76). According to an essay by Rose Wilder Lane (Lane, 1943), â€Å"George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, James Madison, and James Monroe feared democracy.† The founders believed that the Constitution left all other governmental powers to the states (Politics in American 2009 pg. 133). Our Founding Fathers never intended for America to become a democracy. Most of them had served in the American Revolution, either as soldiers in the Continental Army or as part of a legislative body. After the Revolutionary†¦show more content†¦Essentially, the new constitution was written to protect the people from a democracy. The Founding Fathers had learned from the past that a democracy was a form of lawless mob rule. They saw t hat the ancient Greeks tried a true democracy that had failed and led to chaos. A true democracy would not run efficiently or properly. The Founding Fathers saw our Government as a Republic (McManus 2001). They were realists who believed in limited government and low taxes. Their ideal was to build a unique structure of government to put into action their beliefs in nationalism, limited government, and separation of powers with check and balances, and judicial reviews. The Founding Fathers wanted to generate a strong government while ensuring that the government would not become a threat to liberty or property. It was also decided that the legislative branch should consist of two houses. So a new constitution was drawn up and once ratified, the process of organizing a new government began. On September 13, 1788, Congress determined that the city of New York should be the seat of the new government. 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