Running Head: TITLE OF YOUR RESEARCH PAPER
If the title is
less than 50
characters,
including
spaces, provide
the whole title;
if more, create
an abbreviated
title, including
major words.
This cover page
title has the
words
Running Head:
before it.
The Full Title of Your Paper
Your Full Name
The Name of Your College or University
One-inch margins all around.
The front page content is centered
on the page top-to-bottom (about 4
inches from the top of the page)
and the lines are centered left-toright.
All lines are double-spaced.
1
TITLE OF THE PAPER
2
Abstract
Follow the Writing an Abstract
guidelines PDF Handout posted on
D2L.
The word Abstract is centered on
the page as above. This is a Section
Title, not a Heading; therefore, it
should not be set off in any way but
centering.
Do not indent the first line of an
abstract.
The entire abstract should appear
in one paragraph only, followed by
the Keywords list.
TITLE OF THE PAPER
3
Title of Your Paper
Center the Title of Your Paper on this page 3. The title of your paper
is a section title and not a heading; therefore, do not set the title off
with any other formatting except centering and title case.
Do not write the word Introduction.
Your readers will assume that this
first section to your paper is the
introduction.
Follow the CARS Handout posted on
D2L to write your introduction,
including the parts listed on that
PDF.
Paragraphs in your paper should be
more than one sentence long and less
than one-full page long. Indent these
paragraphs one tab-over.
You may include the researched
information that follows the
Introduction in any order that makes
sense to you. Be sure to begin each
part with an explanation of your
rational for including the research.
Below I list the parts of the Disciplinary Literacies paper, which will appear
centered, as Headings and are boldfaced. Any Sub-Headings will appear
flush to the left margin. Sub-Headings are also bold-faced.
TITLE OF THE PAPER
4
An Interview with a Professional in [name your field of study]
This is a Level One Heading.
It should be boldfaced.
Begin the Interview coverage directly after the Introduction. The Interview
should include the essential information from the interview you conducted with a
professional. Begin with a short paragraph explaining why you conducted the
interview, i.e., what information you wanted to find out. It is not necessary to state
the questions you asked. If you give the readers the answers to those questions, the
readers will know what questions you asked.
Be sure to tell what he or she reads or writes on a day-to-day basis?
Be sure to tell what he or she does on a day-to-day basis?
Do not include information about Challenges of the field—gender, race, ethnic,
and ethical. You will include those interviewee replies in the Challenges section.
Use APA style in-text format for Interviews.
Typical Reading and Writing of the Field
Write a short paragraph explaining your rational for including this section in this
paper; what do you hope the readers will learn from it and why?
Rhetorical Analysis of [name of your field] Scholarly Journal
Follow the Article Analysis Guidelines PDF posted on D2L, answering those 10
questions listed there.
Rhetorical Analysis of [name of your field] Trade Journal
Follow the Article Analysis Guidelines PDF posted on D2L, answering those 10
questions listed there.
TITLE OF THE PAPER
5
Survey of Juniors and Seniors at MSU
Remember: Center Level One Headings
Write a short paragraph explaining your rational for including this section in this
paper; what do you hope the readers will learn from it and why? Then include the
significant results of the survey. Interpret those results. It is not necessary to state
the questions you asked. If you give the readers the answers to those questions, the
readers will know what questions you asked. Be sure to include data. Follow the
APA guideline for numerals and numbers.
Challenges in the Field
Level Two Headings
appear flush left.
Write a paragraph explaining your rational for including this section in this paper;
what do you hope the readers will learn from it and why? Remember to include
information about these issues from your Interviewee.
Ethical Issues That May Arise
Gender Biases and Concerns
Ethnic and Racial Biases and Concerns
Job Outlook
Include a brief statement of why you included this information for the readers. Be sure
to include data. Follow the APA guideline for numerals and numbers.
Include charts, graphs,
and infographics.
Future Trends
TITLE OF THE PAPER
6
References
References is a section title, like the
Abstract; i.e., no bold-face.
Alphabetize the list.
Use hanging indent.
Use APA style formatting for
references. NO ALL-CAPS.
Use the Traits Rubric and the Prompt to check that you have included everything in this
paper the way that it should appear. If you don’t understand, ask me during workshop
time.
Steps to Writing an Abstract
An Abstract’s Purpose:
Summarizes the entire paper.
Serves as the reader’s window into contents.
An Abstract’s Features
Brief, no more than 150 – 250 words.
Dense, filled with information; writer makes every word count.
Objective-sounding voice.
Writing an Abstract
Warm Up Activity: Read abstracts to professional articles to see how they are written. You may
have done this sort of reading by now, but if you skipped reading abstracts, search for articles on
our library site written for your field of study and read their abstracts now. Notice the main
points that the authors cover in their abstract. Think about what things you should include in
your abstract to your research paper. Not the Keywords that appear below most abstracts.
The abstract is required for APA Style formatted papers. If no abstract accompanies a paper,
then the introduction to the paper or the first paragraph serves as the abstract. See the CARS
handout for what should be included in the introduction.
STEPS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Begin an abstract on a new page.
Place the running head in the top left-hand corner.
Place the page number 2 in the top right-hand corner.
Center the word Abstract at the top of the page.
Do not indent the first paragraph.
Keep it short. According to the APA style manual, an abstract should be between 150 to
250 words.
a. Determine which elements of the paper are the most important.
b. Describe these elements.
Structure the abstract in the same order as your paper. Begin with a brief summary of the
Introduction, and then continue on with a summary of the Topic, Purpose, Research
Methods, Results, and Conclusions drawn or the thesis arrived at.
Write a rough draft of your abstract.
a. Write one to two sentences summarizing each section of your paper.
b. Once you have a rough draft, you can edit for length, concision, and clarity.
c. Aim for concision during revision; make every word count.
Create and write Keywords just below the abstract, as indicated in APA.
Edit: Check for errors.
Remix 1
The Remix Module
Worth 50 pts. in Category 4 (10 percent of grade.)
This Project has three parts:
1. A proposal written in ELI worth 20 points in Category 2.
(Cat. 2 counts as 15 percent of your total score for this
course.)
2. The video composition shown during class and
reviewed by your peers on ELI during class. This
composition is worth 50 points in Category 4. (Cat. 4
counts 10 percent of your total score for the course.)
3. A Reflective Essay loaded into the appropriate D2L dropbox with the typed script of your video
voice-over at its end. (Cat. 5 counts as 30 percent of the total score for this course.)
DESCRIPTION
For this project you will compose a remix. A remix is a redesign and reconceptualizing of your own
and/or other people’s compositions. In this case, you will remix the Memoir Module.
o
In making a remix you redo a composition, a part of it or the whole thing, and make it express its
ideas or theme through this new delivery format—which in this case will be a video
composition. The remix may be designed for a different audience. (Public-service type infovideos are not acceptable for this assignment.)
In this case, you will make a video composition made up of either 1 or 2 below:
1) Still photos video, which must also have the following:
Your own voice-over
Added music
Text on screen, minimal
OR
2) Live-action performance video, with
Some of your own voice-over
Added music
Text on screen, minimal
OBJECTIVES: You will do these things . . .
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Discover visuals within the public domain/free.
Create composition parts.
Re-invent compositions and re-compose into another composition (make it your own).
Re-design the mode of delivery (text to video).
Situate your selections around a theme.
Experience the processes of redesigning and reconceptializing
Experience the processess of creating an audio- visual composition.
Remix 2
o
o
Reflect on the moves you make and the processes in which you engage to invent, arrange,
revise, and deliver the creative composition by writing a reflective composition (see
accompanying instruction sheet).
Reflect on audience needs.
PURPOSE: The reason for creating the composition in the first place might be to entertain, to impart
a theme, or to enlighten. Other purposes exist to create a video, but here we are emphasizing memoir,
so the purpose should be mostly to entertain, to enlighten through telling of captivating moments, or to
impart a theme. (Public-service type info-videos are not acceptable).
AUDIENCE: Your choice, but be conscious that you will be showing this before a class of your peers
and your instructor. Keep it clean and inoffensive (see below for offensiveness test).
WHAT THIS ASSIGNMENT TEACHES
The remix/reconceptualization assignment enhances skills with . . .
Re-imaging compositions.
Refining compostions.
o Honing what to keep or not to keep.
o Concision—saying less with words and more with images.
o Refocusing--conveying meaning consistent with earlier theme, plan, purpose, or big
idea.
Reconstructing information in a redesigned and, in this case, digital space.
Appraising the role and reaction of audience to audio-visual compositions.
Thinking critically about presenting information in a substantially different form.
Thinking creatively about ways to present and enhance the digital story for the audience.
RESOURCES YOU’LL NEED
For this project you will use video clips, artwork, photos, and the like from the internet or from your
own stash. The most important thing to remember is that you are remixing works already done in one
form and redesigning and delivering them in another form, making them your own. You can use
whatever—pictures, images, photos, cartoons, short, short video clips (see below), and so on.
You will show your video composition in this class but you MUST NOT show your finished composition
outside this classroom environment unless you have used only public domain images or use Creative
Commons permissions (See Use and Remix on menu bar).
The video composition should be no more than 2.5 minutes and no less than 1 minute.
SUBJECT OF VIDEO: The remix must made from the flash memoir module—choose a part to
focus on or the whole.
CAUTION: Please do what you are comfortable doing, BUT use no offensive language or images. So
what’s offensive? Use this test: If you wonder if it is, it is. The compostion will be marked down
severely if offensive language or images are used in the compostion.
WORKSHOP
Remix 3
We will workshop this assignment during one class period during which you should utilize your
classmates as sources of knowledge and collaboration. Some of them may know more about videomaking than you or your instructor and some may know less. Help and be helped.
You have roughly one to two weeks to complete this assignment. Let me tell you that, from experience,
the whole project will take at least four to six hours to put together and edit, if you have average skills.
Doing these sorts of compositions can be really fun, rewarding, and engaging. Give yourself ample time,
use your classmates and the instructor as resources, and enjoy the process.
RESOURCES
The MSU Library Multi-Media Center (I should have details about those visits on D2L posted in this
module’s folder.
The Writing Center, which has a number of helpers who know about video design. Make an
appointment and use this resource. You may have to request a helper with multi-media expertise.
Your classmates. We’ve got a lot of talent right here in our classroom. Help others in any way you can
and let them help you.
Your Instructor is here to help you all that she can, and she loves doing it, too, so don’t be shy about
asking her. If she doesn’t know how to do something, she will help you find out.
DO NOT BUY ANY SOFTWARE. There are plenty of options free that will do just fine for this assignment.
You may use a video camera, Jinga screen capture, Audacity, iMovie. There are a number of freeware
programs to choose from. Check out what is available from these companies:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/search/result.aspx?q=video+maker+videoshow,
https://www.apple.com/mac/imovie/ and, for audio, https://www.audacityteam.org/. For other
software such as audio/music clips and such, try this site:
http://www.freewarefiles.com/category/audio_video.php (Use at your own risk. Freewarefiles.com has
been around since 1998 and I have used it.)
Caution: There are many other sources online and helpful videos on You Tube. You may want to do
some searching. Tech blog writers often discuss freeware video software and which to use. Just
remember to employ caution when downloading from sites you are not familiar with and make sure
your virus checker is up-to-date and active on your machine. You should make your own decisions about
the software offered. Your instructor is not responsible.
Do not make VOICED-OVER POWERPOINTS.
Do not use someone else’ videos. If you want to show a bit of a video that someone else
has made, personally or commercially, you may, but use no more than 15 seconds in total of
videos from other sources.
A SCRIPT
Type out of script of what you will say.
Remix 4
Turn in this script into the Dropbox, adding it at the end of your
Reflection.
To store your video, upload it to Kaltura, your own video hosting space at MSU! SAFE and CHEAP—it’s
free! https://mediaspace.msu.edu/ .
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Log in.
Click on “My Media.”
Click on “New,” which is along the top of the sceen, to upload new video media.
Follow the instructions on the screen.
Limit the permissions to UNLISTED so only people to whom you give out the Kaltura URL for the
video can view it.
o You can deactivate the “allow comments” feature if you wish.
o Use the “collaborative sharing” option during the WORKSHOP session, if you want
classmates to help you edit the video.
DUE DATE
You will present this project in class, beginning on the due date listed on the D2L calendar.
ASSESSMENT
See the accompanying page for the reflective write-up for this assignment, loaded on D2L in this folder.
The refection is the most worth 50 points in Cat.5, same as the other reflection that you have written for
this course.
Your technical and artistic video-making skills are not assessed. The assessment of the video you make
will be this: If you make the moves you need to make to create the video and do it by the due date, if
you go through the processes, you will receive full credit (provided you follow the guideline of no
offensiveness).
So, if you invent, arrange, revise, and deliver, with attention to style, purpose, audience, theme,
ethos, pathos, and logos, when appropriate, you will receive full credit for the video composition.
RUBRIC
A peer rubric for this assignment is loaded into our course Googleapps folder. As an audience member,
you will use this rubric to comment on your classmates’ videos during the classroom showings of the
videos.
THIS REFLECTION HAS ITS OWN GUIDESHEET, which is posted in this
Module’s folder.
1
Running head: Artifact
Artifact
Dongming He
Michigan State University
Jade Buddha Pendent
Abstract
This article mainly describes a mystical jade Buddha pendant of mine. The jade
Buddha pendant has significant meaning to our family because it saved my greatgrandfather's life when he was in the battlefield. After the war was over, my greatgrandfather came back home with the jade Buddha pendant. Since then, my family
began to embrace Buddhism. As the sustenance of my belief, the jade Buddha pendant
to me is like the cross to Christians. Moreover, a high-quality jade itself is also often
very valuable to people. In Chinese culture, jade usually symbolizes purity and virtuous
qualities. Through this article, I want to narrate the story of my great-grandfather, my
belief, and the culture of jade in Chinese history to the audience.
Key words: Jade Buddha Pendent, story, belief.
During my childhood, I usually surrounded myself with my grandfather. He was
not only always tolerant of my stubborn and obstreperous behaviors, but he patiently
2
told me some experiences of him and his father, my great-grandfather. Through my
grandfather's description, I knew that my great-grandfather was a patriotic soldier. My
great-grandfather was born in 1914. During his childhood, he always wanted to be a
soldier to defend our country in the future. World War II began on September 1, 1939,
and Japan officially invaded my country, China in 1937. When Japanese invaders
slaughtered his compatriots, he volunteered to be a soldier for defending his country
against aggressors. In the early period of the war, our military did not have enough
military supplies, and lacked basic military training. Thus, when our soldiers fought
during the war, they usually had to encounter very dangerous situations, so it would be
so dangerous which Chinese people are called 九死一生 (jiu si yi sheng), which means
in English “Solider with a slim chance of surviving” (九死一生). However, my greatgrandfather was still fearless, and decided to join a dangerous campaign in the war front.
He met a monk on the match, and the monk said that my great-grandfather had the
predestination with Buddha. Then, he gave my great-grandfather a metal box and told
great-grandfather that "Take it with you, but do not open it until the campaign is over."
My great-grandfather accepted the monk's advice and put the metal box in his lapel
pocket. Finally, my great-grandfather's life was saved due to the monk's advice. Once
my great-grandfather was shot in a charge, fortunately, the metal box blocked the bullet.
After the campaign was over, my great-grandfather opened the box, and he was
surprised that there was a jade Buddha pendent inside. When my great-grandfather
remembered the monk's words about the predestination with Buddha, he believed that
3
the jade Buddha pendent saved his life. After World War II was ended, my greatgrandfather became a Buddhist. He always carried that jade Buddha pendent with him
until he passed away. Thereafter, all my family members embrace Buddhism, and
whenever we are on holidays, we go to a temple to pray with incenses.
The jade Buddha pendant is not only seen as a souvenir to cherish the memory of
my great-grandfather, but it represents my family's faith like the cross represents the
faith of Christians to some degree. In other words, I think that the meaning of the jade
Buddha pendant to the Buddhist is like the meaning of the silver cross to Christians.
For example, it seems that Christians appeal to the cross for blessing when they get into
trouble, and we do the same thing by using the jade Buddha pendant or the Buddha
beads (some Buddhists do not wear buddha pendants but Buddha beads). Furthermore,
people believe that a Buddha pendant has its own “spirituality.” “Most spiritual
ornaments come with a special meaning such as for good luck, good health, good fortune, and
more. Buddha pendant is one such ornament that is considered a symbol of good luck, peace,
and longevity. It is long believed that wearing religious jewelry can protect us from dangers;
real or imagined. This type of jewelry is worn by Buddhists as well as non-Buddhists. The only
thing matters is your belief on God and the positivity around. A well-picked pendant is believed
to bring good luck and, therefore. Also called as prosperity amulets. Many people wear these
amulets to increase prosperity, health, and happiness. Wearing it can help us fight negative
energy and bring in more positive energy that helps in surpassing troubles in life. Wearing
spiritual pendants remind us of all positive sayings and help us forget all worries and doubts.”
4
I found this article from website, I agree the author idea. “Pilgrimage to the West” is a
Chinese classical literary masterpiece under the background of Buddhism. Some people
argue that the stories in the masterpiece are fake. However, it is a real history that a man
called Tang Seng went to India to collect Buddhism scriptures. He encountered various
kinds of difficulties, but he never gave up because of his faith. During his life, he made
a great contribution to the development of Buddhism in China.
Jade has a high praise in China history, Jade represents nobility and purity, so
ancient people use jade to metaphorize wonderful thing and people. For example, China
has a proverb “the man will be appreciated who has jade’s moral in country. (玉者,
国之重器.)”. “Because jade represents desirable virtues, the word for jade is incorporated
into many Chinese idioms and proverbs to denote beautiful things or people . For example, 冰
清玉洁 (bingqing yujie), which directly translates to "clear as ice and clean as jade" is a
Chinese saying that means to be pure and noble. 亭亭玉立 (tingting yuli) is a phrase used to
describe something or someone that is fair, slim, and graceful. Additionally, 玉女 (yùnǚ),
which literally means jade woman, is a term for a lady or beautiful girl.” I have found this
paragraph on website; the author has same idea with me. The jade does not only have
high praise in China, but it also has a real value. According to its color, origin, hardness,
transmittance and many other things to judge a piece of jade is good or not. My jade is
green which I think this green is so beautiful and different to other green, and it is
smooth. We know gold has price, but the best jade is priceless. Recent years, Chinese
people has an interesting gamble that they use couple thousand CNY to buy stone, then
5
the seller will help them cut the stone. If they were lucky that a good jade is inside, they
could sell it to get ten times higher than how much they bought.
Overall, although I do not know how much my jade Buddha pendant is worth, it
is invaluable for me because it is not only the carrier of my feeling of missing my
great-grandfather, but it is the expression of my faith. Whenever I touch my jade
Buddha pendant, I can feel at peace because I believe that Buddha has been blessing
and protecting me.
6
Reference
A. (2016, 03). How Buddha Pendant Is a Symbol of Good Luck and Peace. Retrieved
04, 2016, from https://naturaltribaldesign.wordpress.com/2016/03/15/how-buddhapendant-is-a-symbol-of-good-luck-and-peace.
Shan, Jun. (2017, July 31). Jade in Chinese Culture. Retrieved from
https://www.thoughtco.com/about-jade-culture-629197
Running head: SUPPLY CHAIN
1
Supply chain
Dongming He
WRA101
Michigan State University
SUPPLY CHAIN
2
Abstract
Businesses have established their operations in various parts of the world with the aim of
growing. Most organizations have identified different ways through which they can succeed in
business operations. The management of every organization has to identify a strength that will
make the firm move ahead and succeed in the highly competitive business environment. In all
industries, many organizations have ventured in operations which have made their activities
focus on building a broad customer base and retaining them for the rest of their operations.
Competition has also made corporations look for different strategies and policies which they can
use for long term success. The management of every firm should thus identify the vital factors to
consider when making decisions on how to run their businesses successful.
Keywords: Supply Chain, Management, Ethics, Morals,
SUPPLY CHAIN
3
Supply chain
A supply chain involves a system of organizations, information, people, activities and
resources involved in the process of moving a product or service from the supplier to the
customer. Organizations are involved in the process of manufacturing and making products and
services available to the customers. However, in some cases, the corporations cannot manage to
supply the products through a direct link to the customers. As a result, there is the need for
suppliers who take initiative and deliver them to the customers thus making it easy for them to
use for the improvement of their living standards (Schoenherr & Speier‐Pero, 2015). Despite
having suppliers, the manufacturer has to ensure that the customers have access to the products
and services which have a high quality and fairly priced. Some organizations do not get involved
in the manufacturing but focus on delivering the products to the customers. Some of the other
groups involved in the supply chain include the wholesalers and the retailers whose function is to
take the products close to the buyers. The information acquired during the process of supplying
the products is of importance as it assists an organization in determining the trends in the market
and how they may change with time.
The success of every firm is tied to its supply chain management function. In some cases,
when the supply chain does not run as intended, it might become hard to achieve the set goals
and objectives thus calling for the need to have the right people on the ground. The
manufacturing companies require raw materials which they use for their daily operations. The
suppliers of the raw materials have to deliver quality which will then make it possible for the
corporation to deliver quality products and services (Stank, Keller & Daugherty, 2001). Supply
SUPPLY CHAIN
4
chain management is one of the tasks that require highly skilled professionals who can interpret
the trends in the market and the changes in tastes and preferences by the consumers. The task of
managing the supply chain also plays an important role in determining the success of a firm in
the long term. Some people might find it challenging to understand the supply chain but with a
detailed analysis in the paper, the concept will become clear and easily understood.
Interview with a professional
In understanding the supply chain, it was necessary to conduct an interview with a person
who has worked in the field long enough to have sufficient knowledge. The interview focused on
having a clearer definition of the supply chain and its impact on organizational operations and
companies in general. The need to have a clear picture of the activities involved in the supply
chain also made it necessary to conduct the interview which would give elaborative answers.
Some of the questions asked during the interview include;
1. What is the best way to define supply chain?
2. How does supply chain influence the success of business operations?
3. In which ways could the management get involved in ensuring success of the firm
through the supply chain?
4. Who are the stakeholders in the supply chain of a firm?
5. How do you ensure that all employees understand the impact of the supply chain to the
organization?
SUPPLY CHAIN
5
6. What are the current trends in supply chain and what are their impacts on organizational
operations?
7. What causes failures in supply chain management and how can
management deal with
the issue?
8. Who makes decisions on how to have an effective supply chain?
9. Do you think that your organization has right supply chain?
10. What would you advise supply chain managers for a successful future in their
businesses?
The interviewee was a supply chain manager who requested to have his name reserved
for confidential purposes. He stated that as part of his daily activities, he has to have a record of
all the supplies made into and out of the company. The supplies into the company include the
raw materials which go through processing for production of end products. On the other hand,
the supplies out of the company include the finished products being delivered in the market for
consumers to purchase. Also, the manager indicated that he writes this information in his register
and at the end of every month, he has to do an analysis of how the supply chain has contributed
to the growth of revenue and income in the corporation. The manager also controls all the
supplying activities by enquiring from his other managers in the department. The junior
managers have a responsibility for reporting daily operations which makes it easy to analyze the
progress of the corporation. For the manager, every day is a decision making platform which he
has to utilize to give the way forward for business operations.
Rationale for the section
SUPPLY CHAIN
6
When deciding on a major, it has to understand how it will impact on his or her career in
the future. Students might not give the required information to make the right decisions on
whether to take a course or not. Tastes and preferences differ and the only option remaining is to
acquire information from an experienced person and person who has succeeded in the field. As a
result, conducting the interview with the manager was a clear way of getting to understand the
components of supply chain and a way through which I broke down its components to have a
clear picture of the career in the field in the future (Stank, Keller & Daugherty, 2001).
Sometimes lack of information might make a learner have the wrong attitude towards a course
and this might affect the person they become in future. The readers will have an opportunity to
know some of the roles involved in supply chain and its how they should see its operations in the
context of an organization.
Rhetorical analysis of the supply chain scholarly journal
As a way of understanding the supply chain major, I had to read a scholarly journal and
below I have included some of the important concepts I gathered from the journal.
For students
to understand the supply chain major, they have to read widely and get concepts from various
articles in journals. This way, they will get to learn more about the field thus making it easy to
decide on whether to take the major or not. I cite the article, ‘A cross functional curriculum for
supply chain education at Michigan State University' which indicates the components of the
course and the outcomes once completed (Closs & Stank, 1999). The article was publish in the
Journal of Business Logistics and focused on educating students on the different ways through
which they can succeed in their course.
SUPPLY CHAIN
7
According to the article, the traditional method of supply chain management has become
outdated and new trends have been embraced by different companies. In learning, students need
to understand the history of supply chain. Based on the changes that has taken place in supply
chain education, learners should be exposed to the different issues that affect every major and
focus on ways through which they can overcome challenges to emerge successful in the various
fields where they want to study. Achieving their set goals in life is one of the reasons why
learners have to go to school. The article explains that the learners should have skills related to
successful research which will make them proficient in the field (Closs & Stank, 1999). On the
other hand, the students have to realize that the market keeps on changing and that they have to
advance their skills to get to the levels where they will become successful as professionals. Also,
the career makes it possible for the students to realize that they can achieve their dreams in life if
they remain focused but have to face challenges before proving that they can make it in the field.
Rhetorical analysis of supply chain trade journal
In having a better understanding of how to undertake the course, I based my
understanding on the article, ‘what can I do with a major in supply Chain?' found in the
American Journal of Business. According to the article, supply chain requires one to have a
proficiency in controlling and managing the flow of materials and finances as well as
information from manufacturers, the suppliers and distributors as well as the final customers
(University of Kansas, 2017). The business decision making process takes place by considering
what others think about the products and services offered. In this case, the impact of the
information acquired depicts the success of business operations in the long term. The article
explains that the field of supply chain is affected by the information gathered and the trends in
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business activities. Therefore, one should know that a major in supply chain must require one's
proficiency in research and development as well as problem solving.
Ethical issues professionals and gender issues deal with in the field
As a way of succeeding in the field, there is the need to understand some of the potential
issues. Through research, I identified some of the issues as explained below;
Ethical issues
Supply chain management requires honesty and accuracy of all information presented.
On the other hand, some of the ethical issues that may affect the field would include the quality
delivered to the customers and the prices which they will have to pay for the products. In most
cases, some of the customers feel that an organization does not consider their needs when pricing
the products (Stank, Keller & Daugherty, 2001). However, the people involved in between the
beginning and the end of the supply chain have an impact on the prices of the products thus
making it hard for the customers to receive them at the intended price by the corporation. The
profession requires application of ethics in every activity to ensure that the company achieves
profits through successful delivery of products and services.
Gender issues
The field does not have a specific gender as the largest percentage. Both women and men
have ventured into the profession (Birou, Lutz & Zsidisin, 2016). However, as the case of gender
discrimination, some organizations will still prefer to have the male gender as the majority
involved in the top positions of supply chain management. Despite involving the female gender,
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they most occupy some other positions but not those of the managers. Below is a graph showing
the issues affecting the supply chain field in organizations;
Based on the graph, some of the challenges that affect the field include those associated
with diversity, suitability of raw materials and auditing operations. When these become ethical
issues, it implies that they make it hard for an organization to achieve its goals and objectives
(Birou, Lutz & Zsidisin, 2016). On the other hand, the graph indicates some of the future
challenges that may affect business operations and the impact which they may have on
corporations. The success of firms will depend on how well they will manage the ethical and
gender issues to strike a balance in the field of supply chain.
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Future trends
The field of supply chain might face some changes in the future which will include
incorporation of advanced technology. This implies that the use of artificial intelligence will
affect the way in which business operations take place. The learners thus have to realize that they
will have to cope with challenges and implement solutions that will make them succeed in their
business operations. On the other hand, the learners will have to realize that studying supply
chain will go hand in hand with information technology (Schoenherr & Speier‐Pero, 2015). The
use of wearable devices is another way in which supply chain will change. In this case, there will
be the need to monitor all activities in the supply chain. As a result, knowledge on how to handle
the changes and use the gadgets will also be required for the success of the learners who major in
the field. Trends in the business environment will have a positive impact on organizational
operations but those firms that fail to embrace the changes might end up failing or getting phased
out in the market. Therefore, it is important for learners to know that they have to get updated
information in the field.
Major in supply chain will require that students have adequate information which will
assist them in making the right decisions for their careers. Supply chain does not only deal with
the movement of goods into and out of a company (Stank, Keller & Daugherty, 2001). It also
includes other activities such as extracting important information from the data gathered and
moving with the trends in the business environment. Therefore, it should go through thorough
preparation to achieve success in the field.
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References
Birou, L., Lutz, H., & Zsidisin, G. A. (2016). Current state of the art and science: a survey of
purchasing and supply management courses and teaching approaches. International
Journal of Procurement Management, 9(1), 71-85.
Closs, D. J., & Stank, T. P. (1999). A cross-functional curriculum for supply chain education at
Michigan State University. Journal of Business logistics, 20(1), 59.
Stank, T. P., Keller, S. B., & Daugherty, P. J. (2001). Supply chain collaboration and logistical
service performance. Journal of Business logistics, 22(1), 29-48.
Schoenherr, T., & Speier‐Pero, C. (2015). Data science, predictive analytics, and big data in
supply chain management: Current state and future potential. Journal of Business
Logistics, 36(1), 120-132.
University of Kansas, (2017). What can I do with a major in supply chain? Retrieved from
https://business.ku.edu/what-can-i-do-major-supply-chain
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