Personal Statement:Business and Management 27

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Business and Management Personal Statement

Throughout this last term I feel I have continually furthered my abilities and competency surrounding the learning process. More specifically I have gained a deeper knowledge surrounding management as well as substantially building on many skills

One of my biggest achievements this year has been my drastic improvement in my presentation giving ability. Before the CIM seminars my experience in giving presentations had been minimal and so as a result my confidence was very low. It is now clear, after practice in both CIM seminars as well as other modules; my confidence has grown, as well as the effectiveness of my presentation. For example I feel there is more clarity in my speech and a greater level of interaction through eye contact

I was allocated the task of creating the PowerPoint slides for our presentation. This was quite a challenge at first but after getting help from friends as well as following help tutorials I am now confident in using PowerPoint. Through this experience, I have learnt a valuable skill that will contribute immensely in future presentations

Interestingly through having to give presentations a number of my other weaknesses have also been improved on. For example my time-keeping skills and organisational had to be better, as to not let fellow group members down in meetings. I felt that all members of my syndicate group participated fully and we all worked well together

This gave a positive drive to the group and as a result led to the group working more effectively and efficiently

Within both lectures and seminar the types of presentations varied considerably. This took some adjusting to, as previously I was use to the same lecturer throughout. This particularly caused a problem when the presentation was not on a particular interesting topic of when the presenter lacked enthusiasm. I found it hard to listen and to keep concentration. By making notes this problem is minimised but I still feel this is a major issue in my learning process that has to be overcome

When giving feedback it is especially hard to express my opinion when I do not fully agree with the view shared or when I have negative criticism. With the use of the "class presentation assessment sheet" I learnt how to state my view in diplomatic yet fair manner. Not only did the audience learn from the presenters, but also through the discussion people were able to share any knowledge they had gained through extra research

During the seminars it soon became apparent that ones own interpretation and views were at times more important then the facts represented in the case. It made us think "outside the box" and I learned that it was not about finding the right answer but about crucially evaluating the issues within the case

I especially found the lecture on Effective Report Writing very interesting. It made me question my own techniques and structure when writing a report. I realised it is ineffective to put non relevant information into the appendix and footnotes when it is not needed. I also found the "Why, What, When and How" structure of report writing quite useful and will look to incorporate it within my future essays

The Consumer culture lecture also challenged my thinking. I was able to look at marketing issues differently. For example statements such as "Large print gives and small print takes away" was of particular interest as it made me think further of the purpose of particular methods used

I found that within lectures I was particular interested in real life examples and cases. For example the use of the "Sunny Delight" drinks case in the Consumer Culture lecture. Here I was able to draw from my own memories and knowledge surrounding this issue. I feel I relate better to these "live examples" rather then just theory and so perhaps this is area I should concentrate more on when conducting my research

After completing this 1st CIM term I feel I have learnt a lot and further developed my skills. I have learnt not only on issues surrounding management, but also about how to critically evaluate them to form a balanced conclusion. From carrying out this learning diary I have highlighted both positive as well as negative aspects to my learning, on which I hope to build on in the future.

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