Midlands Community Training and Employment - Essay Example

? Management Introduction The following report will outline my proposed project, ‘Know Yourself’, which will be based on running workshops around different topics. The key areas which have been considered for this project are relationships, marriage, teenage pregnancy, health and nutrition and other topics which revolve around the lifestyle of individuals. The undertaken project will be meant especially for the young people from every community. Nevertheless, the prime focus will be on the South Asian Communities. After a careful thought, it has been decided that this project will aim at exploring the foundation as well as the constraints of why young people of BME communities hesitate while discussing topics that revolve around relationship and sexuality (Harrison, Benjamin, Curran and Hunter, 2007; Hoggarth, 2010). Hence, this project will certainly provide teenage population with an opportunity to freely discuss about sexual issues. The project has the scope to increase the knowledge of the participants about sexual health relationship and other topics of life skills (Banks, Butcher, Orton and Robertson, 2013; Hafford-Letchfield, 2009). Furthermore, the project also proposes to shed light on the significance of being aware about availing services pertaining to sexual health. The principal purpose is to target young people from the South Asian communities with complex and complicated needs presently (Hafford-Letchfield, Leonard, Begum and Chick, 2008). These complexities such as, stigma, religion, culture, appearance, behaviour and other factors, are acting as a hindrance in the acceptance of a relation. It is obvious that the project has the ability to meet the requirements of young people and not simply reflect upon the set standard of the society. A total of 15 participants will be targeted and the whole project will run for ten weeks. The program will run for two hours, each week, on specific days. Midlands community Training and employment Midlands Community Training and Employment is a charitable organization founded in the year 2008. The organisation specializes in providing community and personal development skills and means. The principal services of the organisation include skill development of the individuals, personality development, personal development, providing education facilities, confidence building classes, hosting seminars and workshops (Midlandscdc, 2013). The organization principally aims at empowering each and every individual with a particular skill set that might be beneficial and helpful for the individuals sustaining within the society. Hence, the organisation wants to ensure betterment of the society by enabling the individuals to enhance their basic skills. Furthermore, the organization also aims at bringing positive changes within the society for upgrading the standard of living of the individuals. The organization has entered into treaty with several other volunteer organizations so as to offer quality services to the target audiences. The intentions of the organisation are also reflected through their mission statement which states that “we want to make every individual a successful person” and “We are working in cooperation to bring change and development in our community” (Midlandscdc, 2013). The organisation mainly caters to the segments such as, poverty reduction, uplift education standards, offering assistance to deprived and isolated individuals of the society and health care and information sector. Training and development is another key area where the organization puts in strong efforts. In order to pursue their objectives, the organisation initiates and organizes several programs in a year and remains active in the field of Personal & Educational Development, Economic Development, Employment, Health Care and Housing. SWOT Analysis On the basis of the secondary research carried out in the study, an excerpt of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the organization is presented below: - Strengths One of the key strengths of the organization is the wide range of program offerings and catering to various sectors of the society (Adirondack, 2005; Banks, 2010). Tie-up with other volunteer organizations gives an added advantage to the organisations. Operating in the market since the last five years has allowed the organization to achieve trust of the society members and government. Weaknesses Often the intended programs fail to reach the target population and as a result of that, the attempts of the organisation have gone into vain. The organisation faces severe financial losses whenever there is an issue of program launching failure. Opportunities The organization has the opportunity to diversify their wings and start catering to the areas such as, child labour, protection of girl child and working towards environmental protection. These activities will greatly assist the organisation to enhance their reputation in the market. This also given them an opening to gain more financial grants from the government and other stakeholders of the organisation. Threats One of the biggest threats of the organization is the non-approval of government sanctions. This might lead the organization towards greater financial losses. Aims and Objectives Midlands Community Training and Employment principally works with all the communities with special attention to the BME community. The key activities of the organization include funding projects that are aimed at certain groups, job surgeries and welfare rights (Lambley, 2009). In addition, the establishment also has a homework club, a youth steering group, so as to target young people across the localities (Lawler and Bilson, 2010). Hence, it is evident that the organization caters to a diversified segment. Some of the key aims and objectives of the organization from a societal point of view are discussed below: - 1. The aim of the organization is to advance and improve the education infrastructure for economically and socially backward people, in the city of Nottingham and its adjoining areas, by providing them with the opportunity to avail education facilities and undergo skill training. 2. Another aim of the organization is to offer employment opportunities, particularly to the people belonging to ethnic minorities. The opportunities are provided in such a manner that it fulfils the requirement of training as well as increases the chances of employment opportunities. 3. To promote the health consciousness among the people of Nottingham and notify them about the ways to manage their health issues. The aforementioned are the aims and objectives of the organization in general, but the objectives of this project which has been scheduled are as follows: - Through this project, young people will be made aware about their sexual health by providing sex education. Through this project, a platform will be developed where young people can freely communicate about sexual health and can exchange their information. As of now, the communication platform will be the only campaigning area, but in the future, depending on responses, a digital online platform will be developed so that young people can exchange their views over the digital platforms. Figure 1 – STD growth (Source: Banks, Butcher, Orton and Robertson, 2013) It is believed that the project will allow the target respondents to gain enough knowledge about the subject and evaluation of the project’s success will be done on the basis of the level of knowledge that the participants have gained and the overall awareness of the project. In the next section, the key stakeholders of the project will be identified and their probable benefits will be underlined. Stakeholders and Relationship with the Organization The stakeholders of an organisation include the current and potential investors, the employees, suppliers, lenders, customers, community, government, media as well as other associates (Tyler, Hogarth and Merton, 2009). Stakeholder groups however differ from one business to another (Miller, 2008; Peck and Dickenson, 2008). In the context of this project, stakeholder groups are the target population i.e. young people of Nottingham, the funding body or the individual funders, local community as well as the government. 1. Participants: - The customers of the organisation are the most important stakeholders because a business cannot function in the marketplace without catering to customers (Lawton, 1998; McKimm and Phillips, 2009). For this project, the participants are the customers of the organisation and each of the activities are meant for them. The entire project has been designed to upgrade the knowledge of these young people about sexual health and foster an open discussion among the members. Hence, without the participants, the project stands invalid. The project is assessed to be highly beneficial for the respondents because it will allow them to gain an in-depth knowledge about the sexual health. In addition, it might also prevent them from various ill-activities. Through this knowledge, they can also enhance their sexual health and help their friends and family members about the subject. The project will also facilitate open discussion among the respondents which will in turn help in exchanging information. Thus, it can be said that the project will be truly beneficial for the participants. 2. Funders or Funding Body: - The funders or the funding agency are the individuals or establishments that provide monetary support to an organisation or project (Pollard, Thomas and Miers, 2010). Funders are often dubbed as one of the key stakeholders of an organisation because without adequate fund, an organisation will experience a huge amount of difficulties in operating in the market place. Some of the common funding agencies of an organisation are state and central government, financial institutions and individuals. In the context of this project, the prime funders will be the local government in Nottingham and the central government of the UK. In addition, the organization will also approach private organizations to fund their projects. The private companies can be U.K. based MNC who actively participate in socially responsible activities. Since the organization maintains a cordial relationship with the funders, it is believed that acquiring fund for this project will not be a difficult task. The benefits to this community will come in form of enhanced reputation in the society, where they will be regarded as socially responsible citizens. 3. Local Community: - The local community is the society or locality in which the organisation operates. Every organisation, whether profit or non-profit making, has certain responsibilities and liabilities towards the society. In the context of this project, the local community is the people of Nottingham. One of the biggest benefits to the society will emerge in form of an educated society. This project will greatly help the society to develop on a whole and issues related to sexual health can be minimized or simply expunged. 4. Government: - The government of the country will also get highly benefitted by the activities of the organization (Pritchard, 2004). Although the government is not playing a direct role in this process, yet it is aiding the process through financial grants. The development of the society as well as making the public aware of it is obviously an addition, apart from the role played by government in enhancing the society. The organization has luckily been maintaining a cordial relationship with the government of Nottingham since its inception. As a result of that, it is expected that government will lend its helping hand towards the successful completion of the project. In the above discussion, the key stakeholders of the project have been identified. It is also important to identify the hierarchy of the organization so as to determine the extent to which the strategy is justified and the ability of the organization to pull off the project. Pritchard (2004) describes an organizational hierarchy as the structure or arrangement followed by an organization to streamline the process of operation. The organizational hierarchy describes the various levels of management within an organization. In the context of Midlands Community Training and Employment, the organization follows a flat organizational structure. The flat organizational structure allows the organisation to save costs owing to fewer layers of management. The adoption of change rate is phenomenal when a flat organizational structure is being followed by a system. However, due to the less hierarchical levels, employees get the opportunity to freely express their ideas, resulting in creativity and innovation within the organization. In the next section, the delivery strategy of the project will be disclosed. Figure 2 – Rates per 1000 female ages 15-19 (Source: Banks, Butcher, Orton and Robertson, 2013) Delivery Strategy In devising a project strategy and creating a framework for project management, companies give special attention to the delivery mechanism. This is because a project remains unfulfilled and incomplete if it is not being delivered to the client properly. Scholars enumerate that it is extremely important to properly close a project, basically for two reasons. The first one is every project has a tendency to drift from its actual path and develop into some other projects, which is not required essentially. The second reason is that a project acts as the source of fund for the next project. Thus, it is extremely important to successfully deliver a project. In this section, the study seeks to highlight the ways by which the services will be delivered. The project delivery strategy is defined as the method followed by an organisation or establishment to handover the project to the client. In the context of event project, it is about how the intentions or objectives are fulfilled. In this context, the project is to create awareness among the young people of Nottingham about sexual health. For this purpose, 15 candidates will be chosen. The project delivery strategy will be to initiate campaigns within the localities of Nottingham. Campaigns will be organized at different places of the city so that the program gets a comprehensive response from the target audience. The organization will try to enter into a treaty with local event management companies and initiate the venture with their partnership. The biggest advantage of having a partner is that the process of arranging the campaigns becomes easy, even though the organization loses control over the operation. The project delivery schedule is as follows: - Total Number of weeks Number of Days in an Week Number of Hours in a day 20 2 2 Funding to the Organization However, before finalizing the strategy, an analysis of the external environment, in which the organisation operates, needs to be carried out so as to get an idea of the scenario. This will also help the organization to identify the viability of the revenue streams and simultaneously identify the potential sources for acquiring funds. Furthermore, the PEST analysis will also assist the organisation to examine the risks that might arise due to turbulence in the environment. The external analysis will be carried out with the help of PEST analysis. Since the organization is based in U.K., the PEST analysis will be carried out in the context of U.K. Political Factors: - The political factors such as, the legal lawsuits and rules and regulation, might undergo changes by the influence of a government. Some of the common areas where change might become evident are employment laws, taxation policies, trade restrictions, environmental regulations, political reforms and stability. Hence, organizations such as, Midlands Community Training and Employment, need to have greater awareness about the changes taking place in the aforementioned areas. The government of U.K. supports and encourages such organizations to promote welfare of the society. In addition, aid is also provided through various mechanisms. Economical Factors: - The economic factors impacting the operation of a charitable trust include the rate of economic growth, exchange rates, inflation, interest rates and cost of living. U.K. is an economically stable country with a GDP of $2.441 trillion and per capita income of $37,500. Hence, gaining access to funds will not be a major issue. Social Factors: - The societal factors encompass health and safety, consciousness, culture and other demographical factors. When it comes to charitable activities, the country always welcomes new initiatives that uplift the living standard of human beings. Technological Factors: - The technological factors are the overall infrastructure of the country, including transportation and technology. U.K. is known as one of the most technologically developed countries of the world. For example, U.K. has 82.109 million mobile subscribers and roadway connectivity of 394,428 km (CIA, 2013). Hence, delivering the services or organizing events will not be a difficult task for the organisation. Hence, after conducting the analysis, one thing is evident that the external environment will not harm the operation of Midlands Community Training and Employment. Rather, it will positively impact the organisation’s operations. Therefore, if an overall scenario is considered, up till this segment, the entire implementation strategy of the project has been underlined. Performance Evaluation Any project or activity is undertaken for the purpose of achieving certain goals or fulfilling certain objectives. The next stage that appears after the implementation of a strategy is to test its viability and effectiveness. In the similar way, this project has been undertaken for the sole purpose of creating awareness among the target population. The evaluation will be done on the basis of certain parameters. 1. Questionnaire Survey: - In this method, respondents will be asked to rate their overall experience of the campaign and also, the level of knowledge gained by attending the project. In addition, suggestions for bettering the venture for the future will also be entertained. 2. Attendance: - The total attendance will be the other criteria which will be used to measure the viability of the project undertaken. Conclusion and Analysis The report has outlined my proposed project, ‘Know Yourself’, where it aims at creating awareness about sexual health among the young people of Nottingham. This project will provide teenage population with an opportunity to freely discuss about sexual issues and also, bears the scope to increase the knowledge of the participants about sexual health relationship and other life skills issues. The project will be delivered through campaigning at different places of Nottingham so that a comprehensive response is obtained. It will run for a period of 20 weeks. The success of the project will be measured with the help of questionnaire survey and overall attendance. If a satisfactory level is reached, only then the project will be deemed as successful. It is believed that the project has the ability to solve complex and complicated issues of teenagers. However, over the recent past it has been witnessed quite often that the outcome of a project being conducted by the voluntary sector has severely been affected due to funding cuts. As a result of such cuts in funding, charities are not being able to provide adequate support to the ones in need. Issues are not being addressed with proper care and thus, the quality of work is deteriorating significantly. Normally projects that are directed towards fulfilling a certain cause are designed on the basis of the budget allocated to the project. Thus, with a reduction in the financial support being provided for such projects, charities are facing extensive barriers while designing such projects. With such constraints at place voluntary work cannot be conducted effectively thereby leaving many severe issues unaddressed. These facts highlight the importance of adequate funding in order to ensure smooth flow activities related to charity. Although the recent issue regarding the funding cuts in the voluntary sector has affected the services to some extent but the chiefs of charitable organisations are certainly confident about the future of the voluntary sector. With the advent of new organisations that cater to provide financial assistance to the voluntary and community services sector, the future of the sector looks quite stable. However, in order to ensure a long term stability and sustainability the leaders of this sector will have to have clear vision for both the sector as well as the society in order to ensure that adequate resources are available to them so as to perform voluntary community services efficiently and effectively. Reference List Adirondack, S., 2005. Just About Managing? 4th ed. London: London Voluntary Service Council. Banks, S., 2010. Ethical Issues in Youth Work. London: Routledge. Banks, S., Butcher, H., Orton, A. and Robertson, J., 2013. Managing Community Practice. 2nd ed. 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Midlandscdc, 2013. Overview. [online] Available at: < http://www.midlandscdc.org/about_us/> [Accessed 19 December 2013]. Miller, C., 2008. Management-Towards High Standards in Community Development. London: Community Development Foundation. Peck, E. and Dickenson, H., 2008. Managing and Leading in Inter-agency Settings. Bristol: Policy Press. Pollard, K., Thomas, J. and Miers, M., 2010. Understanding Inter-professional Working in Health and Social Care. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Pritchard, J., 2004. Good Practice in Supervision. London: Jessica Kinsley Publishers. Tyler, M., Hogarth, L. and Merton, B., 2009. Managing Modern Youth Work. Exeter: Learning Matters. Read More