I can't support a policy ______ I have never approved.A.with whichB.to whichC.for whichD.o
I can't support a policy ______ I have never approved.
A.with which
B.to which
C.for which
D.of which
I can't support a policy ______ I have never approved.
A.with which
B.to which
C.for which
D.of which
第1题
Section B – TWO questions ONLY to be attempted
iCompute was founded twenty years ago by the technology entrepreneur, Ron Yeates. It initially specialised in building bespoke computer software for the financial services industry. However, it has expanded into other specialised areas and it is currently the third largest software house in the country, employing 400 people. It still specialises in bespoke software, although 20% of its income now comes from the sales of a software package designed specifically for car insurance.
The company has grown based on a ‘work hard, play hard work ethic’ and this still remains. Employees are expected to work long hours and to take part in social activities after work. Revenues have continued to increase over the last few years, but the firm has had difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. Approximately one-third of all employees leave within their first year of employment at the company. The company appears to experience particular difficulty in recruiting and retaining female staff, with 50% of female staff leaving within 12 months of joining the company. Only about 20% of the employees are female and they work mainly in marketing and human resources.
The company is currently in dispute with two of its customers who claim that its bespoke software did not fit the agreed requirements. iCompute currently outsources all its legal advice problems to a law firm that specialises in computer contracts and legislation. However, the importance of legal advice has led to iCompute considering the establishment of an internal legal team, responsible for advising on contracts, disputes and employment legislation.
The support of bespoke solutions and the car insurance software package was also outsourced a year ago to a third party. Although support had been traditionally handled in-house, it was unpopular with staff. One of the senior managers responsible for the outsourcing decision claimed that support calls were ‘increasingly varied and complex, reflecting incompetent end users, too lazy to read user guides.’ However, the outsourcing of support has not proved popular with iCompute’s customers and a number of significant complaints have been made about the service given to end users. The company is currently reviewing whether the software support process should be brought back in-house.
The company is still regarded as a technology leader in the market place, although the presence of so many technically gifted employees within the company often creates uncertainty about the most appropriate technology to adopt for a solution. One manager commented that ‘we have often adopted, or are about to adopt, a technology or solution when one of our software developers will ask if we have considered some newly released technology. We usually admit we haven’t and so we re-open the adoption process. We seem to be in a state of constant technical paralysis.’
Although Ron Yeates retired five years ago, many of the software developers recruited by him are still with the company. Some of these have become operational managers, employed to manage teams of software developers on internal and external projects. Subba Kendo is one of the managers who originally joined the company as a trainee programmer. ‘I moved into management because I needed to earn more money. There is a limit to what you can earn here as a software developer. However, I still keep up to date with programming though, and I am a goalkeeper for one of the company’s five-a-side football teams. I am still one of the boys.’
However, many of the software developers are sceptical about their managers. One commented that ‘they are technologically years out of date. Some will insist on writing programs and producing code, but we take it out again as soon as we can and replace it with something we have written. Not only are they poor programmers, they are poor managers and don’t really know how to motivate us.’ Although revenues have increased, profits have fallen. This is also blamed on the managers. ‘There is always an element of ambiguity in specifying customers’ requirements. In the past, Ron Yeates would debate responsibility for requirements changes with the customer. However, we now seem to do all amendments for free. The customer is right even when we know he isn’t. No wonder margins are falling. The managers are not firm enough with customers.’
The software developers are also angry that an in-house project has been initiated to produce a system for recording time spent on tasks and projects. Some of the justification for this is that a few of the projects are on a ‘time and materials’ basis and a time recording system would permit accurate and prompt invoicing. However, the other justification for the project is that it will improve the estimation of ‘fixed-price’ contracts. It will provide statistical information derived from previous projects to assist account managers preparing estimates to produce quotes for bidding for new bespoke development contracts.
Vikram Soleski, one of the current software developers, commented that ‘managers do not even have up-to-date mobile phones, probably because they don’t know how to use them. We (software developers) always have the latest gadgets long before they are acquired by managers. But I like working here, we have a good social scene and after working long hours we socialise together, often playing computer games well into the early hours of the morning. It’s a great life if you don’t weaken!’
Required:
(a) Analyse the culture of iCompute, and assess the implications of your analysis for the company’s future performance. (13 marks)
(b) iCompute is currently re-considering three high level processes:
(i) Advice on legal issues (currently outsourced)
(ii) Software support (currently outsourced)
(iii) Time recording (in-house, bespoke software development)
Evaluate, using an appropriate framework or model, the suitability of iCompute’s current approach to EACH of these high level processes. (12 marks)
第2题
Last summer I found, in the rock garden, a tiny little plant that I could not immediatelyrecognize. I knew I didn&39; t plant it and Denise said she didn&39; t either. We decided to let it continuegrowing until we could find out what it was.
Weeks passed and as I made my way back to the strange plant, it appeared to&39;be a sunflower. Itlooked thin and tall with only one head on it. I decided to baby it along and weed(除草) around it.As I pulled rocks from the area to get to the weeds, I noticed something unusual. The sunflower hadnot started where I saw it begin. It actually had begun under a big rock and grown under and around it to reach the sun.
If a tiny little sunflower didn&39; t let a big rock stand in its way of developing, we too have theability to do the same thing. If we believe in ourselves like that little sunflower, we can reach wherewe aim to go and get what we need for growth.
We need to believe in ourselves knowing we have the ability to achieve our goals. Like thesunflower, it knew it had the ability to get over the rocks because it had faith in itself that it wouldsucceed. Stand tall like the sunflower and be proud of who and what we are,then other things will beginto support us. We will find a way to go under or around any "rocks" in order to realize our goals.
Why did the family plant flowers in the "rock garden"?
A.To attract visitors.
B.To remove the rocks.
C.To please their neighbors.
D.To make the area colorful.
The author let the tiny plant continue growingA.to see how long it could live
B.to see how big it could grow
C.to find out what it actually was
D.to know if his wife had planted it
Why did the author think the sunflower was unusual?A.It was very thin and tall.
B.It had only one head on it.
C.It grew on top of a big rock.
D.It began to grow under a rock.
What does the author want to say through the story?A.Rocks cannot prevent us from success.
B.Sunflowers are able to grow everywhere.
C.We should take good care of the rock gardens.
D.We can get over difficulties if we trust ourselves.
请帮忙给出每个问题的正确答案和分析,谢谢!
第3题
One day, after telling Mr. White a long story of his troubles, Tom asked for five pounds.
Mr. White had heard this sort of thing before, but he listened patiently to the end. Then he said, "I understand your difficulties, Tom. I' d like to help you. But I' m not going to give you five pounds this time. I'll lend you the money, and you can pay me off next time you see me."
Tom took the money, but he never appeared again.
Tom was now in difficulties because he ______.
A.worked in a city office and was poorly paid
B.was poorly paid and had a large family to support
C.was poorly paid and always spent money carelessly
D.was out of work and had a large family to support
第4题
At Burlington High in suburban Boston, Principal Patrick Larkin says the $ 500 ipads is better than textbooks in the long term, though he said the school will still use traditional texts in some courses if suitable electronic programs aren’t yet available. Larkin said of textbooks, “but they’re pretty much outdated the minute they’re printed and certainly by the time they’re delivered”.
But some experts warn that the districts need to ensure they can support the wireless infrastructure (设施), repairs and other costs that accompany a switch to such a tech - heavy approach. Mark Warschauer, an education and informatics (信息学) professor said, “I think people will like it. I really don’t know anybody in high school that wouldn’t want to get an iPad,” he said. “We’re always using technology at home, then when you’re at school it’s textbooks. So it’s a good way to put all of that together.” Districts are varied in their policies on how they police students’ use.
And the nation’s textbook publishing industry, accounting for $ 5. 5 billion in yearly sales to secondary schools, is taking notice of the trend with its own shift in a competitive race toward developing curriculum specifically for ipads. Jay Dickey, executive director of the Association of American Publishers, schools division, said all of the major textbook publishers are moving toward electronic offerings, but at least in the short term, traditional bound textbooks are here to stay. “I think one of the real key questions that will be answered over the next several years is what sort of things work best in print for students and what sort of things work best digitally.”
The first paragraph is mainly about________________ .
A.a program to promote ipads marketing in new school year
B.a program to spread electronic learning in new school year
C.a plan of how to use ipads in the coming school education
D.a plan of how to oppose IT technique in the coming school teaching
What’s the problem for ipads to be used in schools at presentA.Some students wouldn’t like to have ipads in schools.
B.The ipads are too expensive for school students to buy.
C.Most experts oppose the idea that ipads replace paper textbooks.
D.The ipads may be unavailable for some traditional courses.
The underlined sentence in the passage implies that .A.traditional textbooks are behind the times before they are printed
B.traditional textbooks possibly need to he printed again before delivered
C.contents of traditional textbooks can’t be renewed in time as electronic ones do
D.the ipads can deliver information much more rapidly than printed textbooks
From the passage we can draw conclusion that .A.more students tend to use printed textbooks rather than electronic ones
B.textbook publishing houses will develop more electronic textbooks of their own
C.it is impossible for the ipads to be widely used in schools in the future
D.electronic textbooks will take the place of printed ones in new school year
请帮忙给出每个问题的正确答案和分析,谢谢!
第5题
It seems that there is______ that I can't do.
A.nothing
B.anything
C.everything
D.none
第6题
A.No, I can't
B.Sorry, I can't help
C.Well, seafood don't suit for
D.Thanks, but I don't like the seafood
第7题
A.No,no way
B.No,I couldn't
C.No,I can't
D.Sorry I can't. I have to go to a meeting right now
第9题
A.Regards as
B.As regards
C.Regards to
D.To regards
第11题
You can' t hear what I'm saying ______ you stop talking.
A.only if
B.unless
C.lest
D.except that