IT working enviroment

The raise of social media and the it environments a completely reshaping the workplace landscape everything form the approach to work to how people dress in workplace changes

Working hours

It used to be that up until now a job was a place out of home you went there to work for 9 hours every day then came back home to rest rinse and repeat. This was because most of the tools required to carry out the work were found in the offices and if the job did not require specialized tools it required good communication with team members. Now days the raise of the internet allows the employees to work from home without any restrictions.

Cultural shift

The work places/environments have been relaxed people are no longer micro managed they are entrusted with the power to set their own gaols and agendas and select the way of working that makes them the most productive. A democratic workplaces took over after the old hierarchical systems where every person gets the same treatment rather than the superiority/inferiority system used before. Instead, more experienced workers will mentor inexperienced co-workers, leading by showing rather than telling.

Social networks

Took keep the people working/collaborating efficiently in a work place that is so fragmented companies have chosen to focus on social media to let them communicated in their down time with people they normally don’t meet face to face. These companies create their own chat rooms, rent out servers on communication platforms like TeamSpeak and create groups on social media sites like Facebook 

Harvard Referencing

Harvard is a modern design/guideline/standard to writing about the material used in the piece of work it is employed by universities and most work places.

When referencing a book you should state the following:

·         Authors name

·         Date of publication

·         Title

·         Place of publication

·         Publisher

Example

Macdonald, D.J. (1984) Poverty in Britain.

London. Routledge

Macdonald, D.J. (1984) Poverty in Britain. London. Routledge

When referencing journal articles the following should be stated:

·         Author

·         Date of publication

·         Title

·         Title of journal

·         Volume

·         Pages

Example:

Rimmer, L. (1986) Family unemployment

and welfare. Quarterly Journal of Social

Affairs, 2(3), p. 243-264

Rimmer, L. (1986) Family unemployment and welfare. Quarterly Journal of Social

Affairs, 2(3), p. 243-264

Referencing internet pieces of work is the same as referencing books with the addition of the url that should leap to a particle piece of text or image being used. All of the references should be stored at the end of the work as a bibliography arranged by the authors name if the name is not know the book title letter should be used instead.

Professional Development

Process of improving and increasing capabilities of staff through access to education and training opportunities in the workplace, through outside organization, or through watching others perform the job. Professional development helps build and maintain morale of staff members, and is thought to attract higher quality staff to an organization. Also called staff development.

Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/professional-development.html#ixzz44x6zQeTv

Professional development can provide the drive to progress your career, keeps engineers across the industry competitive and, ultimately, can make you more employable. Professional development is something you will do every day of your life without even thinking about it; however, being conscious of the development you undertake will allow you to record this and develop in a systematic way. In order to maximise your potential for lifetime employability, it is essential that you maintain high levels of professional competence by continually improving your knowledge and skills.

 

Finding resources in the LRC

What’s available in the LRC?

•          Books

•          Reference Materials

•          Journals

•          DVDs / CD-ROMS

•          E-books / E-journals

•          Online Databases

•          Careers Information

•          Photocopiers

•          Computer Access

•          Printers / Scanners

•          Study Facilities

Dewey Classification Scheme:

Books in the library are organised using a scheme known as The Dewey Decimal Classification System, which is the most widely used method for classifying books in the library. This system is a general knowledge organization tool that is continuously revised to keep pace with knowledge. It is named after Melvil Dewey, an American Librarian who developed it in 1876.

Who can use the LRC?

-          Any member of staff.

-          Any student  currently registered at the College. 

-          Your student card is your LRC/library card and is issued through the LRC.

Rules for using the LRC:

1) Students must have their ID cards with them to visit the LRC.

2) Mobile phones must be switched off before entering the LRC.

3) Food and drink are not permitted in the LRC with the exception of bottled water. This must be consumed away from the computer workstations.

4) Students are expected to work quietly while using the LRC and show consideration to other users.

5) Students will be suspended from using the LRC for infringing LRC rules and regulations.

Writing for different audiences & purposes

Technical Writing:

Technical writing is a type of writing where the author is writing about a particular subject that requires direction, instruction, or explanation. This style of writing has a very different purpose and different characteristics than other writing styles such as creative writing, academic writing or business writing.

Technical writing is straightforward, easy to understand explanations and/or instructions dealing with a particular subject. It is an efficient and clear way of explaining something and how it works.

The subject of technical writing can either be:

·         Tangible - Something that can be seen or touched, such as a computer or software program, or information on how to assemble a piece of furniture.

·         Abstract - Something that involved a series of steps that aren't related to a tangible object. One example of this might be steps required to complete an office process.

Some examples of technical writing include:

·         Instruction manuals

·         Policy manuals

·         Process manuals

·         User manuals

Academic Writing:

Academic writing in English is linear, which means it has one central point or theme with every part contributing to the main line of argument, without digressions or repetitions. Its objective is to inform rather than entertain. As well as this it is in the standard written form of the language. There are eight main features of academic writing that are often discussed. Academic writing is to some extent: complex, formal, objective, explicit, hedged, and responsible. It uses language precisely and accurately.

Reflective Writing:

Reflective writing involves an exploration and explanation of an event. It may feel particularly difficult and more challenging than other forms of academic writing as it involves thinking and writing about anxieties and errors as well as successes in your interactions with an individual or when carrying out a practical task. Try to stand back from the situation and be as objective as possible. Although you are writing about your own experiences and feelings, you need to be as rigorous and thorough as you would be for any other assignment.

Blog:

A blog is a frequently updated online personal journal or diary. It is a place to express yourself to the world. A place to share your thoughts and your passions. Really, it’s anything you want it to be. For our purposes we’ll say that a blog is your own website that you are going to update on an ongoing basis. Blog is a short form for the word weblog and the two words are used interchangeably.

Use of Email:

Short for electronic mail, e-mail or email is information stored on a computer that is exchanged between two users over telecommunications. More plainly, e-mail is a message that may contain text-files, images, or other attachments sent through a network to a specified individual or group of individuals.

Professionalism

From small to big businesses the professionalism will improve the workflow of the business it will make sure the business is successful and will stay that way. Employees have to behave professionally when interacting with customers they cannot be laid back they cannot use improper language if the company objectives and goals are to be met. The employees must behave professionally and look professionally if they are they will be able to take pride in what they do and in the work place this will improve the work they do. Managers behaving professionally will set a good example and a high standard this will allow the company to flourish.

Establish Boundaries

Clear boundaries have to be established between what is appropriate and not. Such boundaries allow the employees to stay clear of them as they might be a cause of conflict and discomfort. A good employee steers clear form those clear line when talking/working with other staff members, superiors, clients

Encourage Improvement

Business with a clear code of conduct and dress code set will be more efficient at work. According to “Dress for Success” a non-profit organization dedicated to helping businesswomen obtain professional work attire, professional dress codes support career development and personal growth in the work place. Workers who act/dress appropriately have a better opinion about themselves which improves the quality of their work and by that the quality of work that the entire company produces.

Maintain Accountability

As well as professionalism improving company image when interacting with clients directly it also helps allot when the company communicates not directly with the customer. The quality of the written reports, invoices.etc makes the company more accountable for what they are doing as well as making the documents much easier to read.

Promote Respect

Professionalism in business establishes respect for authority figures, clients and co-workers. The professional attitude reduces gossip and inappropriate behaviour by the staff it also shows great respect for the people being spoken to. Keeping a professional attitude with a person/client who is laid back and not professional shows the respect for that person and the employer who demands a high standard from the employee.

Minimize Conflict

Conflicts arise within a company the is an eventuality that will happen sooner or later. A high level of professional behaviour allows the company to deal with those disagreements quickly and efficiently. It allows avoids conflicts with clients and business partners from other companies and promotes respects for people of different cultures/religions in the company

Communication/social media presence:

Days of letters and tv are gone by its all about the internet now days. The rise of the internet social sites supported by the growing 3g/4g network gave rise to a completely new kind of marketing. Marketing where not only the advertisers get to talk but the people that are the targets of the advertisement get to voice their opinions. Social media in most businesses is integral now because if you do something wrong the internet will let you know very quickly. The other benfit of the advertisements through social media is that demographics for the internet are much wider nowadays than tv or radio huge portion of younger people don’t watch tv at all, some households don’t have connection to any tv network at all either. This large demographic means that you need to write in such a way that it’s understandable for the average joe. Here are some useful tips

• Write for the average reader.
• Organize to serve the reader’s needs.
• Use helpful headings.
• Use “you” to speak to your reader.
• Use active voice.
• Use short sentences and short sections.
• Use concrete familiar words.
• Omit excess words.
• Place words carefully.
• Use no more than 2 or 3 levels.

A huge part of the social media presence come from the two main competitors twitter and Facebook but other forms of communication with the customers exists. The company might start running its own blog or host its own website. Advantage of this kind of media presence is that they are much more highly customizable and completely restriction free. On Facebook and twitter posts are limited to only few images and some text while if you start your own blog for example you can set your own house style and you can post about anything you want. There are also helpful guidelines for these two in terms of graphics while the same guidelines apply to the text:

• Attractive
• Relevant
• Supports the messages and purpose of the content
• Includes white space
• Uses images that demonstrate desired behaviors
• Creates good contrast between printed text and paper color; makes limited use of reverse text
• Shows consistency in font size and style

Legal Issues continuation:

Plagiarism :
in its simplest example, is taking someone’s work and passing it off as your own. An example of this is copying and pasting from a website without properly crediting the author.
Another type of plagiarism is when the author incorrectly cites a source by accident, however even though it has been an accident, it is still considered a form of plagiarism.
Plagiarism can simply be avoided by being honest and making sure the sources cited are correct. A business plagiarizing someone can be liable for a court case which will definitely hurt the business reputation and by that also hurt the business income.

Intellectual property:

is a misleading title because the laws surrounding it talk about both physical assets and ideas as Intellectual property. Intellectual property rights fall principally into four main areas; copyright, trademarks, design rights and patents.

Copyright :

protects the creator of a piece of work. This might be a write of an original song or designer of a database. Their works must require skill and use of their judgment, then their works falls under the copyright protection law.

Trademark:
You can register your trade mark to protect your brand, eg the name of your product or service.
When you register your trade mark, you’ll be able to:

• Take legal action against anyone who uses your brand without your permission, including counterfeiters.
• Put the ® symbol next to your brand - to show that it’s yours and warn others against using it.
• Sell and license your brand

Patent:

This is a short term right granted by the government to the creator of an idea, to manufacture the product. When the patent is accepted it becomes the asset of the inventor so it can be sold or given out. A lot of companies that patent sell rights to other companies for manufacturing of the product.

Registered Design:

Design right applies to things like engine configurations, for example, and protection for a maximum of 15 years even without applying for it. They
protect the user who uses existing “pieces” to design something new/in a new arrangement. They also stop anyone else using that design unless the designer grants them permission to use it.

Issues:

Professional Issues:
Running your own business as an entrepreneur is risky. Running your own business has to be done with careful business planning to satisfy the stakeholders and employees financially but the business also has to satisfy the law requirements.
Professional issues can be:

• Technical awareness / Training
• Are staff members fully trained to carry out their jobs?
• Other issues such as Health/Law Issues..
• Do you know how many days members are allowed to have on sick leave?
• Do you know the minimum wage for members over 21?

Moral Issues:

These are some basis values that the business sides/stands with. These are not enforced by the law or required, but these are good to have clearly set out because they can be used to fire an employee that does not abide, for example. They can also help to attract customers that agree with the moral stance

“Business scandals involving financial irregularities, exploitation of foreign workers, discrimination, environmental damage or misleading customers on a grand scale can be enough to sink a company. Whatever the size of your business, drawing up a code of ethics can help you avoid any moral slips and let your customers and trading partners know you take the way your company behaves seriously.”
Moral issues can be:

• Equal Opportunities
• Does you company provide equal opportunities when hiring new members?
• When recruiting, are factors such as age, race, religion etc taken into consideration?

Ethical Issues:

Ethics concern the moral judgment of acti
ons if an action is right or wrong. Those are influenced by culture and religion but in general they deal with exploitation of certain groups or exclusion. Good company ethics will attract customers and stakeholders because such a company is trust worthy.

• Copyright / Plagiarism
• Do you understand copyright laws and adhere to these within your business?
• Have you tried to plagiarise/steal other people’s ideas and pass them off as your own?

Legal Issues:

This usually consists of checking for libellous or false statements before the copy goes to print. This is an especially important step to ensure that publishers don’t commit libel by printing inaccurate or falsified facts or statements about people or events.

• Legal issues can be:
• Computer Misuse Act
• Data Protection Act
• Is all the sensitive data held about your business and about your staff secure?
• Are all staff members allowed access to these?