34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better Writer

34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better Writer 34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better Writer 34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better Writer By Daniel Scocco A couple of weeks ago we asked our readers to share their writing tips. The response was far beyond the initial expectations, and the quality of the tips included was amazing. Thanks for everyone who contributed. Now, without further delay, the 34 writing tips that will make you a better writer! 1. Daniel Pay attention to punctuation, especially to the correct use of commas and periods. These two punctuation marks regulate the flow of your thoughts, and they can make your text confusing even if the words are clear. 2. Thomas Participate in NaNoWriMo, which challenges you to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. I noticed that my writing has definitely improved over the course of the book - and it’s not even finished yet. 3. Bill Harper Try not to edit while you’re creating your first draft. Creating and editing are two separate processes using different sides of the brain, and if you try doing both at once you’ll lose. Make a deal with your internal editor that it will get the chance to rip your piece to shreds; it will just need to wait some time. A really nice trick is to switch off your monitor when you’re typing. You can’t edit what you can’t see. 4. Jacinta In a sentence: write daily for 30 minutes minimum! Its easy to notice the difference in a short time. Suddenly, ideas come to you and you think of other things to write. You experiment with styles and voices and words and the language becomes more familiar 5. Ane Mulligan Learn the rules of good writing†¦ then learn when and how to break them. 6. Pete Bollini I sometimes write out 8 to 10 pages from the book of my favorite writer in longhand. This helps me to get started and swing into the style I wish to write in. 7. Nilima Bhadbhade Be a good reader first. 8. Douglas Davis While spell-checking programs serve as a good tool, they should not be relied upon to detect all mistakes. Regardless of the length of the article, always read and review what you have written. 9. Kukusha Learn to take criticism and seek it out at every opportunity. Dont get upset even if you think the criticism is harsh, dont be offended even if you think its wrong, and always thank those who take the time to offer it. 10. John England Right click on a word to use the thesaurus. Do it again on the new word and make the best use of your vocabulary. 11. Lillie Ammann After editing the work on screen or in print, I like to read the text aloud. Awkward sentences and errors that slipped through earlier edits show up readily when reading out loud. 12. H Devaraja Rao Avoid wordiness. Professor Strunk put it well: â€Å"a sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.† 13. David Write as if you’re on deadline and have 500 words to make your point. Then do it again. And again. 14. Yvette Sometimes I type in a large font to have the words and sentences bold before me. Sometimes, in the middle of a document I will start a new topic on a fresh sheet to have that clean feeling. Then, I’ll cut and insert it into the larger document. I wait until my paper is done before I examine my word usage and vocabulary choices. (And reading this column it has reminded me that no two words are ever exactly alike.) So at the end, I take time to examine my choice of words. I have a lot of fun selecting the exact words to pinpoint my thoughts or points. 15. Amit Goyal To be a good writer is to start writing everyday. As Mark Twain said, the secret of getting ahead is getting started. Try using new words. i.e avoid repeating words. this way we learn the usage of different words. Do edit your previous articles. Start with small paragraphs like writing an article for a Newspaper, and proceed from there. 16. John Dodds Remove as many adjectives as possible. Read Jack Finney’s tale, Cousin Len’s Wonderful Adjective Cellar for a fantastical tale about how a hack becomes a successful author with the help of a magical salt cellar that removes adjectives from his work. 17. John Ireland I set my writing aside and edit a day or two later with the aim of making it terse. It has trained me to be more conscious of brevity when writing for immediate distribution. 18. Jai Try to write in simple way. Express your views with most appropriate words. 19. Mark Read great writers for inspiration. If you read them enough, their excellent writing style will rub off onto your dazzling blog. YOU ARE what you read (and write!). 20. Caroline I watch my action tense and wordiness in sentences when I am writing my technical diddley. For example, in a sentence where you say †¦Ã¢â‚¬ you will have to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I replace it with â€Å"†¦you must†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , or â€Å"Click on the Go button to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  can be replaced with â€Å"Click Go to†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . Think of words such as â€Å"enables†, instead of â€Å"allows you to† or â€Å"helps you to†. If one word will work where three are, replace it! I always find these, where I slip into conversational as I am writing quickly, then go back and purge, purge, purge. 21. Akhil Tandulwadikar Don’t shy away from adopting the good habits that other writers use. Do not worry about the length of the article as long as it conveys the point. Of course, the fewer words you use, the better. Start the article with a short sentence, not more than 8 words. 22. Julie Martinenza Instead of adding tags (he said/she said) to every bit of dialogue, learn to identify the speaker by showing him/her in action. Example: â€Å"Pass that sweet-smelling turkey this way.† With knife in one hand and fork in the other, Sam looked eager to pounce. 23. Aaron Stroud Write often and to completion by following a realistic writing schedule. 24. Joanna Young One that works for me every time is to focus on the positive intention behind my writing. What is it that I want to communicate, express, convey? By focusing on that, by getting into the state that I’m trying to express, I find that I stop worrying about the words just let them tumble out of their own accord. It’s a great strategy for beating writer’s block, or overcoming anxiety about a particular piece of writing, whether that’s composing a formal business letter, writing a piece from the heart, or guest blogging somewhere ‘big’†¦ 25. Shelley Rodrigo Use others writer’s sentences and paragraphs as models and then emulate the syntactic structure with your own content. I’ve learned more about grammar and punctuation that way. 26. Sylvia Avoid long sentences. 27. Mike Feeney Learn the difference between me, myself and I. For example: Contact Bob or myself if you have any questions. I hear this very often! 28. Richard Scott When doing a long project, a novel, for instance, shut off your internal editor and just write. Think of your first draft as a complex outline waiting to be expanded upon, and let the words flow. 29. David Careful with unnecessary expressions. â€Å"At this point in time† came along during the Nixon congressional hearings. Too bad it didn’t go out with him. What about â€Å"on a daily basis?† 30. E. I. Sanchez For large documents, I use Word’s Speech feature to have the computer read the article back. This allows me to catch errors I have missed especially missing words or words that ’sort of sound the same’ but are spelled differently (e.g. Front me instead of ‘From me’). 31. Cat Either read the book â€Å"Writing Tools 50 Strategies for Every Writer†, by Roy Peter Clark, or read the Fifty Writing Tools: Quick List on his blog. Then join a writing group, or hire a writing coach. 32. Suemagoo Write the first draft spontaneously. Switch off your internal editor until it is time to review your first draft. 33. Lydia If youre writing fiction, its a great idea to have a plot. It will coordinate your thoughts and add consistency to the text. 34. Pedro Edit your older articles and pieces. You will notice that great part of it will be crap, and it will allow you to refine your style and avoid mistakes that you used to make. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Possessive of Proper Names Ending in S"Latter," not "Ladder"Dissatisfied vs. Unsatisfied

Whats it like to work with a ghostwriter on your memoir

Whats it like to work with a ghostwriter on your memoir What's It Like to Work with a Ghostwriter? Well, Let’s Ask One Katy Weitz is an acclaimed UK ghostwriter who has worked for some of the biggest names in publishing including Harper Collins, Simon Schuster, Macmillan and Penguin Random House. In this guest post, she pulls back the curtain to reveal what the collaboration between a ghostwriter and an author  is really like.Just a few days before Christmas last year, I sent an email with the subject line - Your Book: The Full Manuscript - to my latest author Fiona. As I clicked on the send button, I actually grinned. I felt like Saint Nicholas himself, delivering to Fiona the very thing she had dreamed of for so long - her very own memoir. A few months before we had never even heard of one another and yet now, four months down the line, I knew Fiona’s life so intimately that I had been able to ‘become’ her on the page, to structure her story and create a narrative entirely from the interviews she had given me. Together, we had written a book! As always, the whole process s eemed miraculous, even to me, and I knew that Fiona (not her real name) was delighted with the result. I have been on this same journey a dozen times now, and yet it is never less than extraordinary every single time. And though the end result may be a physical thing - a book - it is the process of writing the story that is transformative. That is where the real magic happens; that is why I love what I do. Parts of a Book Explained: Front Matter, Body, and Back Matter Read post And so, with all the chapters written and amended, I put the whole lot together, including the ‘furniture’ of the book - i.e. the contents page, acknowledgments, and dedication - to create the full manuscript. Now it was time for a thorough read to check for pacing, consistency and structural issues. At this point, I can still make quite drastic changes. After all, it is the first time you are reading the book as a whole entity. It must come together in a coherent way. Have we tied up the loose ends? Are the chapters the correct length? Did we explain the background to each character? It takes a bit of time but only after I am completely satisfied will it go to my author and I get to send that wonderful email titled: Your Book: The Full Manuscript.For the author, there may be a few more steps on the road to publication but this is the moment I treasure - and those are the words I never tire of writing.If you have any experiences of working with a ghostwriter - or any questions you'd like to ask Katy - just leave a message in the comments below.

Individual Personality Profile Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Individual Personality Profile - Assignment Example The study of personality is undertaken mostly by both sociologists and psychologists to give them an insight into what makes a person tick. There are two broad ways of how to approach or implement the study of personality. The first is through discovering some general principles that apply to all types of people such as self-actualization principle that governs all human beings. The second approach is to observe and understand an individual by his unique aspects. The first approach is generalized or macro view (termed as nomothetic psychology) while the second is a micro view of a person or specific and called idiographic psychology. There are also several theoretical viewpoints used to study personality such as social learning perspective, biological, humanistic, behavioral and psycho-dynamic. Various tests have been designed to determine an individuals personality using some of these theories to arrive at a coherent and complete picture of a persons psychological composition or makeup. Personal psychology is used in a variety of ways such as hiring policies for employment. This paper will describe my personality based on some tests I took and discuss its implications. Knowing your personality type can help a lot in career decision making. This is due to the fact that certain personalities are more suited to particular jobs or professions. Having a good fit between personality and job description helps towards achieving efficiency at work and increased employee satisfaction as well. This is why personality tests are important in the world of work and many firms use personality tests to determine if an applicant is suitable or not for a vacant job position. Hiring the right employees helps to improve or achieve overall organizational objectives. Training and work experience can come in later and augment all an employees strengths in performing the job functions but the

Underground Railroad Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Underground Railroad - Essay Example These were groups that were against slavery and they felt that there was a need to come up with more effective measures to end this vice. The idea was actualized in 1838 with a well organized Underground Railroad having been developed. Robert Purvis was on the helm of this idea. Through the directions that were provided by the agents, thousands of slaves were able to escape from their masters. These Underground Railroads composed of mainly the back roads, swamps, caves, forest, rivers, etc. These well developed routes made it hard for the masters to recapture the escapees. As a result, many masters felt that there was no need to purchase more slaves only for them to escape using these well developed networks. Therefore, the notion that slave-trade was a loss making business played a significant role in reducing the magnitude of the trade (Peterson 35). The reason is that the demand for slaves reduced drastically after thousands of slaves escaped from their masters.The Underground Rai lroad actualized the campaign by the abolitionist that slave trade was immoral. Slaves who used these routes were put in safe places such as homes and churches where they could eat before embarking on the journey to freedom to as far as Canada. This aspect encouraged many slaves to attempt to escape, an aspect that made it hard for the masters to keep these slaves in their farms. This increased the interests of the masters towards paid labor or the use of machineries which were more predictable.

The Battle of San Pasqual :: essays research papers fc

The Battle of San Pasqual   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The battle of San Pasqual was one of the many battles fought against Americans to protect their land. The greedy American government was determined to conquer California from Mexico and make it part of the union. The mass migration of immigrants caused the widespread of people to flee south.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mexico had departed from Spain in 1821. California wanted to manage their own affairs however, they lacked self government. Pio Pico was the civil governor and Jose Castro was the military comandante. The two men held great hostility toward each other. They divided California’s land and raised armies for themselves. These divisions of armies led to future problems, due to the lack of unity between the two.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The United States Navy arrived in Monterey on July 2, 1846. â€Å"The two California leaders made a half-hearted attempt at cooperation† (Johns 2). The two men and their followers met at a ranch near San Luis Obispo to agree on an opposition towards the American forces. The lack of trust within one another led the two armies to march in separate units to Los Angeles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Upon the troops arrival in Los Angeles Castro wrote a letter to Commodore Robert F. Stockton demanding to discuss a way of preventing war. Stockton wrote back concluding that the men must allow American forces to raise an American flag in California. Baldridge 2 The American flag represented that California was America’s land. Stockton also claimed that a treaty would be issued after the flag was inputted in the California soil. Castro refused to take the American negotiation. Castro soon spread the word of American disgrace to Governor Pico, and he also informed him that he was vacating the land due to a lack of resources. He claimed the resources were unable to carry on a war. Pico soon followed with the same intentions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Following the departures of Pio Pico and Jose Castro, the United States naval forces entered Los Angeles without opposition and raised the stars and stripes on August 31, Stockton appointed Captain Archibald Gillespie military commandant of the town, with instruction to be vigilant, firm and strict, and by no means permit anyone to escape† (Johns 3). California natives soon grew angry with Gillespie’s demands and lodged an attack on him; the Americans won the small battle. And, four days later California won another attack at Chino Rancho of Isaac Williams. â€Å"Encouraged by their success, the local inhabitants then gathered a large force which surrounded the detachment in the pueblo and forced Gillespie to evacuate his post on Sept, 30† (Johns 5).

Research Bank Sohar

Research Project Contents Table ContentsPage number Acknowledgement Abstract Action Plan Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1. 1Introduction 1. 2Rationale of the Study 1. 3Objectives of the Study Chapter 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2. 1 Introduction to the company 2. 2 Meaning of the topic 2. 3 Objectives and research of the topic 2. Different types of employee motivation Chapter 3 METHOD OF RESEARCH 3. 1 Design of the study 3. 2 Methods of collected data 3. 3 Types of research 3. 4 Sample size used in interview 3. 5 Limitation 3. 6 Analyzing the data Chapter 4 FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS 4. 1 Findings 4. 2 Recommendations Conclusion Bibliography ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS At the outset, I would like to thank my Guide who explained to me about this Research Project in a very clear manner and assisted me at every step in completing it successfully, and my thanks are especially due to ———————————–for all his cooperation, in spite of his heavy schedules of work, and ———————– the Trainer who was very helpful in providing me with accurate information to use in this Research, and I convey my thanks to all the colleagues who cooperated with me by participating in the research by way of responding to my interviews and to the questionnaires which helped to lead me to findings and conclusions. Finally I thank all the people whoever helped me and stood by me to provide all the needful assistance to my requirement. ABSTRACT The productivity of the staff depends upon many factors for the bank. Humans are complex beings which ne ed continuous motivation to work without being burdened. Therefore, the Human Resources Department should not only impart motivational triggers but also should encourage the various groups of the staff to maintain a healthy competition; these ensure a continuous boosting of the staff’s energy levels. Dedication and loyalty to the company can also be cultured by providing staff with encouraging means to develop themselves as well as the company. The staff which feels comfortable with the bank will unlikely shift to other banks. Dedicated employees willingly work for the bank. By comparing with other banks, the bank should modify its policy’s and plans so as to not only attract more customers but also attract more staff from the other banks. Motivation thus plays an important role thus in maintaining a productive staff. A dedicated staff will anticipate not only customers’ needs but also try to develop bank through innovative ideas. This research is conducted to study the motivational aspects of Bank Sohar. The findings of the study demonstrate that proper strategies and right procedures are followed in this Bank Sohar. ACTION PLAN ID Task Name Start Finish Duration 1 Introduction: †¢Discussion with the guide about the topic. †¢Determine the requirement and objective. †¢Prepare questionnaires. †¢Planning for interview and making interview. †¢Determine and justify the research methodology. 2 Literature Review: 3 Data collection: †¢Determine and justify the research methodology. †¢Collection of both primary and secondary dates by appropriate methods. †¢Selection and preparing detailed and relevant objectives. 4 Analysis of the research project: †¢Analysis and interpretation of data and carry the research into specified areas. Making reviews with the guide regarding the project. 5 Documentation: †¢Prepare the full project in one accept format. †¢Present and evaluate findings and recommendations. 6 Presentation: Chapter 1: 1. 1 Introduc tion Bank Sohar was established on 9 April 2007. Although it is a very short time since it started its operations, it has been an extraordinary time as this new bank changed the ground rules for banking in Oman. Dr Mohammed Abdul Aziz Kalmoor, the CEO of the bank declared this year that their income of operating profit showed up a 31. 3% increase in 2010 from that of 2009. The bank’s net loans and advances grew by 14% in the last year. Customer deposits have augmented by 20% in 2010. Bank Sohar has introduced friendly financial solutions for everything from the purchase of cars to higher education. Their increased network has given it an added presence and opportunity to reach out their customers. Their new branches in prime locations of the county have given the bank an edge in the market and strengthened its position in the banking sector of the economy. Bank Sohar has developed a tradition of meeting the customers from different parts of the country at informal gatherings and road shows. This has turned out to be a model for modern marketing. Bank Sohar believes that customer satisfaction is the critical measure for bank’s success. All the decision-making processes at Bank Sohar are taken up by its finance team which assists the executive management and the board in planning and provides information and critical analysis of the Bank’s performance on a continuous basis. It is committed to providing quality banking solutions to help customers achieve their financial goals. A small example is that it is the Bank Sohar which introduced for the first time the cash deposit facility through their ATMs. All other banks in Oman emulated this bank soon. By adopting a lifecycle approach to the household sector they have created value-added services such as various savings deposits options, mortgages, consumer lending, insurances and wealth management products etc. In addition, they keep their clientele of small and medium entrepreneurs well informed of the market developments that may affect their enterprises. Bank Sohar always tries to tailor its services to suit the requirements of not only individual customers but also potential customer groups like the business communities. Thus they adopt sector-specific approach to corporate banking. As the network of the bank has increased through opening of several new branches, staff strength has automatically increased to over 500 by the end of 2010. Bank’s Omanisation ratio has steadily improved to 88% year after year. These achievements are due to the efficient management of human resources at the bank. The Human Resource Management (HRM) of Bank Sohar has been strengthening the profile of the bank by implementing its strategic goals through best international practices in human resource management. The bank encourages its staff to expose to the new and rapidly changing areas of banking industry. Facilities for learning and developing professional experience are regularly arranged by the staff at different levels. In short, Bank Sohar can be described as a bank, deeply committed to delivering excellent services with convenience and integrity to their customers. In no time it is sure to achieve their vision statement: â€Å"One stop financial super mall having boutiques of products and services across various segments, each with a unique set of propositions† 1. 2 Study the rationale As an employee in the Bank Sohar, I have the personal knowledge and understanding of the bank’s organization and its activities. Bank Sohar is he fastest upcoming bank in our country. It follows its own strategy to deal with the customers directly. Everybody working in this bank like me is treated respectfully and cordially. Their treatment can be said to be the main key for the progress of our bank during this short span of five years. 1. 3 Goals of the study –The main goal of this study is to recognize the methods of motivating and encouraging the staff at Bank Sohar. –Also it is to identify what makes the Bank Sohar achieve success in all branches in general and in Ruwi Branch in particular. Chapter 2: 2. 1 Introduction to the company: At Bank Sohar, banking is made easy. All the employees in the bank are committed to making the banking experience much smooth and efficient. Bank Sohar is well-reputed for its open and communicative relationship with the customers. They know that you are the best possible source to inform them the best way to cater your needs. Here you get specialized divisions ready to serve you. Customer’s requirement and queries are met by specialized Relationship Manager of the concerned division. They also try to solve all your banking issues with a click. With their e-Channels, your bank has become portable. Accessing your bank account has been made easy as you can access through the ATMs, Internet. Customers can also have online connectivity to their account through mobile phones. They offer a wide range of treasury services to large corporate clients, small and medium enterprises and various government departments and fund managers. †¢RO clearing and settlement †¢ RO payments to Bank Sohar accounts as well as to accounts at other banks having a presence in Oman †¢ Treasury and Foreign Exchange related services †¢ Local cheque collection †¢ Prompt query handling †¢ High degree of automation and straight-through processing †¢ On-line view only access to your account 2. 2 The meaning of the topic: Employee motivation plays vital role in the development of the company in many ways. ttp://www. managementstudyguide. com/importance_of_motivation. htm 2. 3Objectives and research of the topic: Bank Sohar provides the opportunities improvement to the productive staff. It’s in general trying to recognize the achievements and to earn more profitab le results which depends on the on the quality of staff performance, that’s why it always tries to provide their employees a good environment in order to promote personal growth. Bank Sohar gives importance to the group interest which is placed above the individual level. The officials at the bank always treat their customers, suppliers and even their colleagues very fairly and objectively. Behind all of the mentioned above, the following points are the main objectives of Bank Sohar which they are always trying to keep specific principles to help in improving their performance: †¢Provide healthy and safe workplace. †¢Make sure that the work environment is preventing the disabled people work practices and don’t present the prejudices and unreasonable barriers for which they are qualified within the bank. †¢Decrease the number of contribution for employees which can be made to the organization. †¢Recruit and return the right staff at the right time to the right place to work. †¢Promote the qualified and skilled staff based on there performance very fairly, which will gain their trust of fair treatments. 2. Different types of employee motivation: 1. Thanks award letter: Bank Sohar awards their staff monthwise by choosing the employee of the month, quarter and end of the year ,so that it provides them a voucher and including a Shukran (Thank You) Award Letter. Example: Mr / Ms†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Bank Sohar, Danq Branch NSC Department ,Oman 20 February 2010 Dear,†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Shukran (Thank You) for your initiative and good support. Congratulations and thank you for your hard work. We hope that your willingness and initiative serve as an example to your colleagues. We appreciate your commitment and dedication in cooperating the department in the absence of two staff who have resigned. You demonstrated that you were willing to shoulder additional responsibility and support the smooth running of the department. In token of our appreciation, this Bank Sohar awards you a Shukran Certificate, Smiley Badge and a Gift voucher. Yours Sincerely, HEAD HUMAN RESOURCE DEPT. 2. Long Term Services Award Upon the completion of 10, 20 and 30 years, staff will be given the following awards: 30 Years: Certificate signed by the Group Chairman, a gift of the employees choice (Approximately cost USD 1,000) and one month’s basic salary. 20 Years: Printed Certificate signed by the Deputy Chairman & CEO, Bank Sohar. 10 Years: Printed Certificate signed by the Area CEO. 3. Training: Overall Aim: To establish and maintain a key competitive advantage, Bank Sohar is committed to investing in human resources development through relevant ,planned and systematic training and other activities, which will contribute directly to the achievements of Banks business objectives, as well as meeting the demands of the Omanisation process. The basic training will be conducted by the Learning and Development Manager. Where necessary, regional training centre trainers at Muscat will conduct courses throughout Oman depending on the training needs. In addition, staff may be nominated to attend various training course held in Muscat and the group training at the Management Development Centre, Liverpool ,UK. External training may also be provided mainly through College of Banking and Financial Studies and other local institutes in Muscat, Salalah etc. On the job training may also be arranged, if line managers identify any such needs. Details of the training courses are available on the intranet or may be obtained from the Learning and Development Manager. 4. Career Development: †¢Employees retiring within two years from the date of drawing up or reviewing the rotation plan will be exempt from further job rotation unless it is deemed necessary to permit the rotation of others. †¢Should line managers be unable to rotate any of their staff in accordance with these guidelines he or she must justify the exceptions ensuring that the department head supports the exceptions made. In small or specialist departments such as HR,TSY, Legal, IT or for translators ,job rotation may have to be less frequent than the guideline suggested above. 5. Retirement: Staff will retire from Bank’ s employment on attaining 60 years (for male staff) and 55 years (for female staff). This is not applicable to temporary employees. Your age is the number of years elapsed since the date of your birth as stated in your identify cards, birth certificate or passport. The bank will write to you not less than one month in advance confirming the date on which you will retire. End of services benefits will be handled in accordance with the laws regulations of Public Authority for Social Insurance. 6. End of services benefits: For the Omanis Pension Scheme: Bank will pay 10% of the monthly deducted salary and contributes to the pension scheme of the retired Omani employees who will be receiving their monthly pension as per the rules and regulations of PASI. For the Expatriate employees Terminal Benefit: Bank will pay the expatriate employee a gratuity at the of half a month’s basic salary for the first five years of service, which will be granted at the time of quitting the job. 7. Occupational Health & Safety at Work: Making sure that they protect there staff health and safety at work is essential . We make the same commitment to our customers and any other visitors who come into our branches or offices. It’s the Bank’s objective is to promote a healthy working environment and a high level of safety management and fire prevention. As an employee of the bank, you have a major responsibility for maintaining health ,safety and fire precaution guidelines of the work place. These are essentially to: †¢Take reasonable care for your own health and safety and those who may be affected by your action. †¢To follow any laid down procedures and guidelines communicated to you. †¢To bring to the attention of management any defects in the building, electrical system and machinery. Chapter 3: 3. 1 Design of the study: Primary Data: This is the data acquired through the distribution of questionnaires and from the personal interviews. The personal interviews are always not possible and require more time. Therefore, Primary data is the un-analysed data obtained from research methods. Secondary Data: The data which on analysis gives perception and information to the grounds of research is called Secondary data. This data is classified into qualitative and quantitative; therefore the Secondary data is important for the formation of new grounds in the research. 3. 2 Methods of the collecting data: Primary Data: 1. Questionnaire: It is a list of questions containing all the possible parameters that the researcher wants to consider. It is the easiest and fastest way to do a research. The advantage is that only desired fields are considered and hence the data obtained is more focused. 2. Interview: In this type, the researcher communicates with the employee or customer for their opinions and thus researcher can obtain personal opinions of the fields that the researcher wants consider. But the data is not focused. 3. Observation: Observation is the method in which the researcher observes the fields without interfering with the process. The researcher deduces the data from his observation. This does not require searching for contacts. 4. Experimentation: It’s a technique used to do the investigations, which will observe the changing and find out where the influences are including the regards. Secondary Data: †¢Magazines: -Business Today Magazine (April 2011) –Times of Oman (dated 23 April 2011) †¢Internet websites: –www. banksohar. com –www. zawya. com –www. ameinfo. com – (http://www. humanresources. hrvinet. com/ questionnaire-method/) †¢Books: – Booklet of summery review of Bank Sohar’s Brand and Values in 2009 (Provided by the HR) 3. 3 Types of research: Questionnaires: In Bank Sohar, the service quality is of utmost importance. To achieve this many strategies are used. The Human Resources Department of Bank Sohar mostly uses questionnaires to collect the data from both the employees and customers. This method, as mentioned above, is easy and efficient. The data thus collected is then further analysed. Such method helps the bank to review its performance and also to know of the popularity of its various services. 1. In comparison with other banks does Bank Sohar provide you best way to get staff motivation: A. Yes B. Some times C. No D. At all 2. What do you think Bank Sohar should focus to achieve more staff motivation? A. Promotions B. Rewarding system C. Salary review D. All above 3. Is Bank Sohar providing the following selections to their employees fairly? A. Yearly bonus B. Promotions C. Increment of allowances D. Pension 4. Compared with other local banks, Bank Sohar provides good conditions to ts staff? A. Yes B. No C. No comments D. No answer 5. What makes you feel proud to work for Bank Sohar? A. Work environment B. Policies and conditions C. Team Work D. Rewards system 6. Does your current position satisfy your motivation level using the specific conditions? A. Yes B. No C. Sometimes D. No comments 7. Which of the followi ng banks would you like to apply in future? A. Current bank (Bank Sohar) B. Bank Muscat C. HSBC D. Nothing from the above. 1. Do you think that the bank is providing you a very fair performance appraisal? †¢Yes they are discussing with us before confirming Human Resources about the final performance results. They are using a very fair system where you can load what you have done during the year including the extra improvements, so it will be very clear for them to apprise each one among the bank. 2. Is Bank Sohar setting a fair targets for each staff? †¢Actually there are some people in the management departments dividing the work not in order to be covered by all staff, so in this some of the staff will feel demotivated as he will be pressurized in compare with others. 3. Does you line manager update you about your performance from time to time? †¢Yes, whenever any mistake is done he will keep me updated and insure that it won’t happen again. 4. Does Bank Soha r provide you a chance to develop your skills? †¢Actually, they are always promoting an online courses which you can go through it any time, but before the due dates. †¢They are sending their staff for external courses in the College of Banking and Finance. In addition they also provide us chances to graduate with higher diploma certificates for such specialized subjects. †¢They are rewarding their staff annually one person from one department by sending them for an attachment to one of the Europe branches, in order to learn more and gain more knowledge. 4. What are the returns which you can provide to the bank if you are satisfied with them? †¢I will do my best to increase the number of quality customers which will help in increasing the profit of the bank. Also I will be proud in front of my family and friends to work for the bank in order to keep a good view for people who are thinking to apply for the same bank specially qualified and experienced people. 3. 4 Sample size used in interview method as follows: Sl NoOrganisationDesignationName of the Employee 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Loan Department Salary & Deposit Cards Department Corporate Department Remittance Assistant Officer Manager Officer Manager Ibrahim Issa Ibrahim Al Zidjali Yusuf Suleiman Salem Al Wahibi Anas Hamad Seif Al Wahibi Juma Ra’shid Juma Al Saadri Fahma Al Mugheini Sl. noLocationCustomer/StaffName of the Employee 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Main Branch Main Branch Main Branch Qurum Branch Qurum Branch Main Branch Al Sarooj Branch Al Khuwair Branch Al Khuwair Branch Main Branch Al Khuwair Branch Al Seeb Branch Al Khuwair Branch Al Khuwair Branch MQ Branch Main Branch Al Khuwair Branch Qurum Branch Qurum Branch Main Branch MQ Branch MQ Branch MQ Branch Main Branch Al Seeb Branch Al Seeb Branch Main Branch Main Branch Main Branch Qurum Branch Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Employee Eyas Sayid Saud Al Mashri Sara Teasdale Iman Seif Al Lamki Tariq Mohd. Al Balushi Assim Ahmed Ali Al Wahibi Abdul Aziz Abdullah Al Wahibi Abdullah Ahmed Al Wahibi Abdullah Siddik Al Balushi Narjees Sa’ad Al Harthy Abdullah Mohd. Al Balushi Amina Seif Al Mussallum Majd Salem Saleem Al Wahibi Mohd. Salem Khamis Al Saithani Mohd. Salem Mohd. Al Wahibi Mohd. Mubarak Sayid Al Oufi Mohd. Mousa Yahya Al Harbi Mohd Nasser Humeid Al Badaae Masoud Salem Al Harthy Frhat Ali Al Zidjali Nadia Issam Al Balushi Dawood Ibrahim A’Salmi Ali Salem Al Shammaqi Salem Manal Al Tourqi Juma Ra’shid Juma Al Saadri Hussain Sayid Al Lawati Saad Salem Al Balushi Sayid Ra’shid Mohd Al Oufi Saifuddin Hisham Aziz Diwidaar Seif Sayid Nasser Al Wahibi Yusuf Yaqub Al Alaawi 3. 5 Limitation: No matter what method the researcher uses, there are always certain disadvantages. And moreover, in most cases the time is limited and therefore it becomes hard to manage the collection and analysis of data. Other limitations that I faced are: Some information about the bank is not accessible and is difficult to find As I chose the method of interview I got mixed up answers. As the level of knowledge and skill differ from one person to another, the responses varied greatly. In order to trace the trend in my data, I had to use large numbers of samples or interviewees. 3. 6 Analyzing the data: 1. In comparison with other banks does Bank Sohar provide you best way to get staff motivation? Conclusion : In the above chart it shows that most of the staff was satisfied with the motivational level which is been provided by Bank Sohar, as the negative answers are least chosen by the employees question (represented by C and D series in graph) are not very satisfied with motivation. 2. What do you think Bank Sohar should focus more in order to achieve staff motivation: Conclusion: Bank Sohar, staff are not happy with their salary as it wasn’t a good review for their salaries, but at least the rewarding system was playing a good part in their emotions. This can be easily understood by looking at the number who was happy with their salaries. 3. Is Bank Sohar providing the following selections to their employees fairly? Conclusion : Bank Sohar staff are not happy at all with the pension policies,where the level of satisfaction in the yearly bonuses was covering that percentage of motivation level which follows the promotion level, then it decreased again in the allowances increments. 4. Compared with other local banks, Bank Sohar provides good conditions to its staff? Conclusion: Bank Sohar staff is happy with the conditions which are provided to them as the calculation was very high in that level. Where some of them only are not satisfied at all, and at the lowest level was calculating in no nswers as most of them didn’t answer the question. 5. What makes you feel proud to work for Bank Sohar? Conclusion: The level of team work satisfaction was very high between Bank Sohar staff as one of the bank’s aim’s is to create a good environment and a strong team work, as it shown in the results that they are ha ppy with that strategy. 6. Does your current position satisfy your motivation level using the conditions? Conclusion: Bank Sohar staff are very happy with the conditions provided to them in their current passion where it was fluctuating between no answers and no comments, but in general they are happy with the conditions provided to them. 7. Which of the following banks would you like to apply in future? Conclusion: The staff are mostly satisfied and wish to continue working in the same environment in Bank Sohar. They are not satisfied to work with other banks in comparison. The highest result was calculating for Bank Sohar, so in general they are satisfied with the future chances which are provided to them. Chapter 4: 4. 1 Findings: On referring the observation depicted in the graphs, the human resources department of Bank Sohar is taking appropriate steps for maintaining the motivational levels of the employees. It closely monitors the employees and then relates their levels to their performances. The staff is happy with the policies and conditions provided to them and the staff satisfaction is in high levels. Highest levels of staff satisfaction in the bank can be achieved through continuous comparison the facilities which are provided to their staff with those of other banks, thus the bank will be able to identify the positive triggers which attract employees and consumers. The bank through this can identify its weak areas. Therefore the bank should look after other bank’s issues seriously and try to learn to not commit same mistakes and plan wisely to leap in the market. Some other measures to ensure staff motivation include: †¢The bank should do salary review from time to time. By improving the level of motivational facilities such as; increase the level of allowances, promotions, more development skills programs and rewarding system show positive levels of motivation. †¢Throughout the year, the staff is to be updated regularly about their performance. â⠂¬ ¢The bank needs to do more comparison with its competitor banks in term of motivating their staff. In general Bank is doing a very good job and they are always trying to motivate their staff and try to keep them for ever specially the experienced and skilled people. 4. 2 Recommendation : 1. Regular surveying is necessary to measure the motivational levels of the staff. This enables management to update various hindrances which cause de-motivation. 2. Personal opinion gatherings are essential to make the bonds between the management and employees which is essential for long term performance development. 3. By increasing the factors that cause the motivation, the company can instill motivation. For example vouchers limit can be enhanced. 4. By involving various levels of employees in the meetings to induce motivation into the lower levels of employees and help in overall staff development. 5. By sending the staff to other institutions for development and other educational programs, the motivation levels can be increased. Conclusion: Motivation level can be developed easily in Bank, as the management should keep in their minds that they are dealing with humans who need a special and very respective standard level. Generally management should follow a proper strategy in treating their staff by following the right procedures so as to intensify motivation and competition. Bank Sohar prioritizes the motivation of the employees as an important aspect in the whole bank’s functioning. The Human Resources Department of the bank regularly surveys and finds various ways to ensure the continuity of the motivational levels among the staff. The bank well understands that healthy competition and motivational are vital for dedicated performance. Bibliography: –www. banksohar. com –www. zawya. com –www. ameinfo. com –http://www. humanresources. hrvinet. com/questionnaire-method/ –Business Today Magazine (April 2011) –Times of Oman (dated 23 April 2011)

Bmo Organizational Structure Analysis - 2274 Words

Introduction As Canada’s oldest bank that officially opened for business on November 3, 1817, BMO has been helping its customers and communities for over 190 years, offering them a broad range of personal, commercial, corporate and institutional financial services across Canada and in the United States. It has approximately 16,200 employees and over 960 branches across Canada. As one of the Big Five banks in Canada, it has been passionate to build team strategies and to try new challenges. In this report we will explore the team and organizational structure of BMO and discuss the efficiency of its strategies. We will primarily be focusing on how groups are constructed within BMO and group members interact. Then on a more macro scale, we†¦show more content†¦This means as a team, operating groups are working efficiently and that reduces its undesirable loss. Also, proper and professional norms help to achieve industry-leading customer loyalty and enhance productivity to drive performance and shareholder value, which are the two primary goals of BMO. As the company cares about how the employees behave, especially how they interact with customer since jobs in bank is customers-based, the company will pay more attention to train and improve employees’ behaviors, and that is to say, the company will focus on the norms. At the same time, the company encourages employees to be innovative to present better wok so as to generate more values for the shareholders of BMO. In this way, the two primary goals can be achieved by setting right norms. Group Cohesiveness: Group Cohesiveness, the extent of how a group is especially attractive to its members, plays a crucial role in an organization as well. As for PC Canada, a new objective in 2013 is to improve productivity and the customer experience. In this regard, a number of initiatives are underway such as eStatements, mobile banking enhancements and online booking of appointments. To attain the goal, PC Canada team members need to fully understand and accepts the new initiatives. So with high level of cohesiveness, as team members become integrated into the team’s objective and values, which will help PC Canada to beShow MoreRelatedMultiformity in the Workplace Essay example659 Words   |  3 Pagesinitiatives being implemented to improve corporate productivity and performance. Multiformity in the workplace introduces an element of heterogeneity in problem solving /decision-making. This leads to a larger range of perspectives and stronger critical analysis of issues2 Diversity is a reality in today’s workplace. It shouldn’t be merely tolerated but valued for what it brings to the organization. ‘It’s not about assisting the individual to â€Å"fit into† the corporate culture by â€Å"fixing† what is differentRead MoreEnterprise Resource Planning in Bangladesh2091 Words   |  9 Pagesbusiness: firm structure, management process, technology platform, and business capability. At present in Bangladesh, companies can use ERP to support organizational structures that were not previously possible or to create a more disciplined organizational culture. The working force or the employees in the country are not technologically sound enough to get adapted with ERP at this moment, which is a great constraint in ERP investment. But effective measures like training, organizational developmentRead MoreExecutive Compensation Essay7457 Words   |  30 Pages 3. Team performance rewards. Based on a pre-determined set o f criteria and relative to the top teams performance. This should be the third ranked level of salary package component. Limited to 20 times the bonus reward for the lowest paid organizational team performance. Up to a maximum of 20% of average individual profit share (as in point 2). 4. Individual performance reward. Based on the achievement of pre-set goals. This should be the least component of salary package. Limited to 20%Read MoreWestjet Essay5237 Words   |  21 PagesCrewing efficiencies: Pilots can fly all variants of the 737s due to their common cockpit configuration. †¢ Maintenance efficiencies: Maintenance will be simplified since all planes utilize the same parts and engines. †¢ Simplified route structure and operations. †¢ Use of secondary airports where available. †¢ Growth strategy: Increase the number of markets served, as well as increasing the frequency of flights. Also focus is on long-term health of the airline, not merely on