text: 2.21.1 Introduction to Shopping Cart Processing for IT 184.108.40.206 Program Scope and Objectives 126.96.36.199.1 Background 188.8.131.52.2 Authority 188.8.131.52.3 Roles and Responsibilities 18.104.22.168 Program Management and Review 18.104.22.168 Program Controls 126.96.36.199 Terms/Definitions/Acronyms 22.214.171.124 Related Resources 184.108.40.206 Determine if an Acquisition is Needed 220.127.116.11 Acquisition Planning 188.8.131.52 Develop Requirements 126.96.36.199 Unfunded Request (UFR) 22.214.171.124 Obtain Requirements Reviews and Approvals 188.8.131.52 Determine the Shopping Cart Routing Path 126.96.36.199.1 Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) Approval 184.108.40.206.2 Signature Authority Approval 126.96.36.199.3 FMS Financial Plan Manager Approval 18.104.22.168 Prepare Shopping Cart 18.104.22.168 Review and Approve Shopping Cart 126.96.36.199.1 Process a Shopping Cart Returned by Procurement 188.8.131.52.2 Approval of Limited Competition Part 2. Information Technology Chapter 21. Requisition Processing for IT Acquisition Products and Services Section 1. Introduction to Shopping Cart Processing for IT 2.21.1 Introduction to Shopping Cart Processing for IT Manual Transmittal February 23, 2021 Purpose (1) This transmits revised IRM 2.21.1, Shopping Cart Processing for Information Technology (IT) Products and Services, Introduction to Shopping Cart Processing for IT. Material Changes (1) IRM 2.21.1 - Updated with current processes, procedures, references and links. (2) IRM 126.96.36.199.2 - Clarified the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) and Taxpayer First Act (TFA) is the policy that mandates how IT expenditures are approved. (3) IRM 188.8.131.52.2 (3) - Changed IRM 1.2.41 reference to IRM 1.2.62, which is the correct reference. (4) IRM 18.104.22.168.2 (6) - Updated IRM 220.127.116.11, Policy Statement 2-92, to include the actual revision that is available on the IRM on-line site. (5) IRM 220.127.116.11.2(7) - Revised IRM 184.108.40.206, Policy Statement 2-93, to reflect the modified language. (6) IRM 22.214.171.124 - Updated the Terms/Definitions/Acronyms Listing to reflect the addition or removal of some definitions and acronyms. (7) IRM 126.96.36.199 - Added the Unfunded Request (UFR) Template website to the Related Resources Section. (8) IRM 184.108.40.206 - Clarified that Acquisition Plans are approved after Procurement receives the package. (9) IRM 22.214.171.124 - Updated the Request Funding Section to capture the new, streamlined Unfunded Requests (UFRs) process developed by Financial Management Services (FMS). (10) IRM 22.214.171.124 - Changed the 508 Compliance Section with the latest guidelines to be referenced. (11) IRM 184.108.40.206 - Noted in the Determine the Shopping Cart Routing Path Section any exceptions to the IT approval requirement will be documented in a Memorandum of Agreement/Memorandum of Understanding (MOA/MOU) between IT and the Business Unit in accordance with IRM 22.214.171.124.5, Policy Statement 2-93. (12) IRM 18.104.22.168.1 - Updated the Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) Approval Section to cover when the exercise options and the incremental funding items do not require Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) approval. (13) IRM 22.214.171.124.2 - Added a new section on Approval of Limited Competition. Effect on Other Documents IRM 2.21.1, dated November 27, 2019, is superseded. Audience All IRS personnel involved in the processing of shopping carts for IT products and services. Effective Date (02-23-2021) Nancy A. Sieger Chief Information Officer 184.108.40.206 (09-28-2018) Program Scope and Objectives Purpose: The purpose of this IRM is to identify the policies, processes and information required to create a Procurement for Public Sector (PPS) shopping cart for IT products and services and the approvals required during the processing of the shopping cart. Audience: IRS personnel involved in the creation, review and approval of shopping carts for IT products and services. Policy Owner: Director, Strategic Supplier Management. Program Owner: Program Management (an organization within IT, Strategy & Planning). Primary Stakeholders: Procurement; Privacy, Government Liaison and Disclosure (PGLD). Program Goals: Ensure that shopping carts for IT Products/Services have the following attributes: Required fields are completed accurately. Required acquisition documentation is attached. Required reviews are documented. Required approvals are obtained. Acquisition planning dates are met. 184.108.40.206.1 (02-23-2021) Background IRS IT is responsible for approving the expenditure of IT funding based in accordance with Delegation Order IT-2-1-1, Approval of Information Technology (IT) Requisitions. Internal IT organizations and stakeholders have reviews and approvals that need to be documented. 22.214.171.124.2 (02-23-2021) Authority Treasury Policy Memorandum for Bureau Chief Information Officers Review and Approval of Information Technology Acquisitions, dated March 15, 2019, formally establishes the process of Treasury CIO's review and approval of IT acquisitions in order to monitor and maintain the effectiveness and efficiency of IT Acquisition strategies implementation. IRS IT Policy Memorandum for Management of IRS Information Technology, dated July 15, 2020, communicated the CIO's responsibilities for managing IT acquisitions for the IRS as required by the Taxpayer First Act (TFA). IRM 1.2.62 (07-31-2018), Servicewide Policies and Authorities, Delegation of Authorities for IT Activities, Division/Function Delegation of Authorities for Information Technology (IT), contains the Division/Function delegation orders issued by the Chief Information Officer (CIO). In addition, any revised delegation orders are posted on the Publication Management & Resource Services website Delegation Orders. The Department of Treasury's Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) of 2014 guidance, which delegates to the IRS CIO responsibility for reviewing the acquisition and contract selections and grants the Chief Information Officer (CIO) the authority to govern all areas related to Information Resources and Technology Management. Delegation Order IT-2-1-1, Approval of Information Technology (IT) Requisitions, provides IRS IT leadership with delegated signature authority for approving IT purchases of goods and services. IRM 18.104.22.168.4 (04-10-1994),Policy Statement 2-92, (1) Deviation from compatibility standards for Federal Information Processing (FIP) equipment and software requires CIO approval. IRM 18.104.22.168.5 (11-12-1999), Policy Statement 2-93, Management and Control of Automated Data Processing (ADP) Property. 18.104.22.168.3 (11-27-2019) Roles and Responsibilities Technical Point of Contact (TPOC): The person who is responsible for working with the applicable IRS organization to transform the business requirement into a technical requirement and completing the acquisition package. Requestor: The person who enters a shopping cart into PPS and tracks it through the approval path to Procurement. Signatory Authority Approver: The person who has the responsibility to ensure the shopping cart is fully compliant with IRS requirements and has the authority to approve shopping carts up to a specified dollar amount as described in Delegation Order IT-2-1-1. Financial Plan Manager (FPM): The person who manages the overall spending within the financial plans under their control and approves shopping carts in accordance with IRM 1.35.24, Financial Accounting, Establishing Commitments and Obligations. 126.96.36.199 (02-23-2021) Program Management and Review Program Reports PPS Report: The PPS Report is reviewed to ensure that shopping carts created outside of Information Technology have gone through the appropriate Information Technology reviews. This report shows shopping carts generated from PPS that are en-route to Procurement. Acquisition Timeliness: The date that shopping carts reached Procurement is compared to Procurement's Acquisition Planning Due Dates for the fiscal year to determine if they are timely. Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) provides a report to measure each ACIO's timeliness of shopping carts. Program Effectiveness: This IRM is reviewed annually to ensure that the information about required reviews and the shopping cart creation process are current. Feedback on the effectiveness of the required reviews is shared with the responsible stakeholder organizations for consideration as part of the annual IRM review process. 184.108.40.206 (02-23-2021) Program Controls Program Controls help SSM to oversee the status of shopping carts for the ACIOs. Data calls are sent by SSM throughout the fiscal year for Information Technology Contract Tool (ITCT) updates to be made by the ACIO Acquisition Program Managers (APMs) and Contracting Officer's Representatives (CORs). The IT areas are responsible for updating their shopping carts entries in the ITCT. Monthly meetings are held in quarters 1-3 of the FY with Procurement, Financial Management Services (FMS) and APMs to discuss the status of shopping carts. The frequency of these meetings changes to biweekly in June and weekly for August and September. 126.96.36.199 (02-23-2021) Terms/Definitions/Acronyms Defined Terms Term Definition Financial Plan Manager (FPM) verifies that there is adequate and appropriate funding available; is in approval path Requestor initiator of shopping cart Shopping Cart used to request external goods and services and to secure the necessary approval and funding for those goods and services prior to the request being submitted (formerly called a requisition) Signatory Authority Approver the person under IT-2-1-1 who has the authority to sign up to a specified dollar amount and who ensures that the shopping cart is fully compliant with IRS requirements prior to forwarding it to the Financial Plan Manager (FPM) Defined Acronyms Acronym Definition ACIO Associate Chief Information Officer ADP Automated Data Processing AP Acquisition Plan APM Acquisition Program Manager BU Business Unit CI Criminal Investigation CIO Chief Information Officer CO Contracting Officer COR Contracting Officer's Representative DCIO Deputy Chief Information Officer DME Development, Modernization and Enhancement EA Enterprise Architecture EIT Electronic and Information Technology ESP Enterprise Standards Profile FITARA Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act FMS Financial Management Services FPM Financial Plan Manager HW AM Hardware Asset Management ICT Information and Communication Technology IFS Integrated Financial System IGCE Independent Government Cost Estimate IRAP Information Resources Accessibility Program IRSAP Internal Revenue Service Acquisition Procedures IT Information Technology ITCT Information Technology Contract Tool JEFO Justification for an Exception to Fair Opportunity JOFOC Justification for Other Than Full & Open Competition KISAM Knowledge, Incident/Problem, Service Asset Management LSJ Limited Sources Justification O&M Operation and Maintenance PA Privacy Act PGLD Privacy, Government Liaison and Disclosure PII Personally Identifiable Information PM Program Manager POC Point of Contact POP Period of Performance PPS Procurement for Public Sector PTS Project Tracking System PWS Performance Work Statement SAM Software Asset Management SBU Sensitive But Unclassified SIW Senior Executive Service in Waiting SPI Spend/Spending Plan Item S&P Strategy and Planning SOW Statement-of-Work SS Support Services SSM Strategic Supplier Management TCV Total Contract Value TEOAF Treasury Executive Office Asset Forfeiture TFA Taxpayer First Act TPOC Technical Point of Contact UFR Unfunded Request UWR Unified Work Request WRMS Work Request Management System 184.108.40.206 (02-23-2021) Related Resources Acquisition Planning Due Dates Form 14775, Security Compliance Review Checklist for IT Acquisitions IRM 2.15.1, Enterprise Architecture (EA), EA Overview IRM 10.8.1, IT Security, Policy and Guidance Section 508 IRM 11.3.24, Communications & Liaison, Disclosure of Official Information Disclosures to Contractors IRSAP Section w1039.9001 Software Development Prerequisites IT-2-1-1-A, Consent to Approval of JOFOCs, JEFOs and LSJs IT-2-1-2, Delegation Order Authority to Approve Information Technology (IT) Acquisition Plans IRS Procurement - Acquisition Package Document Checklist (IT and Non-IT) IT Shopping Cart Checklist Procurement 101 Procurement for Public Sector (PPS) Process Returned Shopping Cart - Business Unit PPS Work Step Instructions 2020 Unfunded Request Template 126.96.36.199 (09-28-2018) Determine if an Acquisition is Needed In-house: If the IT organization can provide the needed IT products or services, develop a work request as described in IRM. 2.22.1, Business Planning & Risk Management (BPRM), Unified Work Request (UWR) Process. Outsource: If the IT organization cannot provide the needed IT products or services, plan an acquisition as described in the next section. 126.96.36.199 (02-23-2021) Acquisition Planning The TPOC or COR, serving in the TPOC role, plans the acquisition and produces the documents needed by Procurement. The required documents are described in the IRS Procurement - Acquisition Package Checklist (IT and Non-IT). Acquisition Plans are approved after Procurement receives the acquisition package. In accordance with Treasury Department Memorandum for Bureau Chief Information Officers (CIOs), dated March 15, 2019, the IRS CIO is responsible for approving all IT Acquisition Plans (APs) for contracts with a Total Contract Value (TCV) greater than $250K or with periods of performance greater than five years. Delegation Order IT-2-1-2 describes how the AP approval authority is delegated by the CIO. Requests for CIO, DCIO, and S&P signature of IT APs will be sent to the Director, Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) or designee. The signature authorities and delegations are covered in Delegation Order IT-2-1-2, IT Acquisition Plans. Acquisitions should be planned to meet Procurement's Acquisition Planning Due Dates Note: If a justification for other than full and open competition is required after the shopping cart is forwarded to Procurement, the justification will be approved in accordance with Delegation Order IT-2-1-1-A. 188.8.131.52 (02-23-2021) Develop Requirements Procurement 101 provides guidance on developing requirements. Treasury policy and standard forms are also located on the Acquisition Gateway in the Treasury Hub. Privacy Act (PA)/Personally Identifiable Information (PII): If the acquisition involves the creation, collection, use, processing, storage, maintenance, dissemination, disclosure, or disposal of information that is linked or linkable to an individual, contact the *Privacy mailbox for a pre-award review for compliance with privacy and disclosure requirements. See IRM 11.3.24, Disclosures to Contractors for further information. Caution: A contractor and its employees are not considered employees of the Department of the Treasury for purposes of the Privacy Act 5 USC § 552a. Therefore, PA protected records cannot be disclosed to contractors pursuant to 5 USC § 552a(b)(1). Disclosures of such records to contractors may be made only if one of the statutory disclosure provisions applies. The most commonly applicable disclosure provisions are 1) a published "routine use" in the appropriate system of records notice and 2) written consent to the disclosure from the individual whose records are at issue. Caution: A contractor and its employees are subject to the PA's criminal penalties pursuant to 5 USC § 552a(m)(1) if the contract is to operate a system of records for the agency. The IRS routinely includes disclosure prohibitions in contracts that authorize contractor access to PA protected records. Caution: For tax returns and return information, IRC § 6103 preempts the PA. Disclosure of tax returns and return information is controlled by IRC § 6103. Returns and return information may not be disclosed to a contractor unless the requirements of IRC § 6103 are met (regardless of whether the PA authorizes disclosure). See IRM 11.3.24 for tax returns and return information contract requirements pertaining to disclosure and refer to IRM 10.5.6.2.4.1, Privacy Act Contract Requirements, for further information. A general nondisclosure clause is not sufficient to meet 6103 (n) requirements to authorize disclosure. Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) Information: All IRS acquisitions and contract vehicles contain appropriate language holding contractors and other service providers accountable for complying with federal and IRS privacy policies and procedures. SBU refers to any information that if lost, stolen, misused, accessed or altered without proper authorization, may adversely affect the national interest or the conduct of federal programs (including IRS operations), or the privacy to which individuals are entitled under the Privacy Act. For the full definition, refer to TD P 15-71, Treasury Security Manual, Chapter III, Section 24, Sensitive But Unclassified Information. For further guidance on SBU Data, see Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) Data. Note: Post-award compliance contract reviews are conducted to monitor conformity with Disclosure, Privacy Act and Safeguard policies and procedures. 188.8.131.52 (02-23-2021) Unfunded Request (UFR) Request funding for the requirement. The FPM must validate funding and accounting string information. Note: Do not use a purchase card for Electronic and Information Technology (EIT), as EIT is on the Restricted Purchase List. When an ACIO requires funding that was not planned in the current year budget or the amount needed exceeds what is available, the ACIO can submit an Unfunded Request (UFR) to the CIO. For unfunded shopping carts, obtain the accounting codes from Project Manager and include them on the Funding Template. Procurement may return an approved unfunded shopping cart to the FPM to add funding. If changes have been made to the acquisition package that require additional levels of approval, the shopping cart must go through the same approvals as a new requirement. If no changes have been made that require a difference level of approval, the FPM will send the shopping cart directly back to Procurement once the funds are added. An acquisition package must be sent to Procurement, so the Acquisition Planning Due Date is met, especially when the acquisition need is for the first quarter of the next fiscal year. 188.8.131.52 (02-23-2021) Obtain Requirements Reviews and Approvals Enterprise Systems Management Review (ESMRVW) – All hardware, software, and cloud technologies must be approved and reviewed by Enterprise Architecture (EA); and posted on the Enterprise Standards Profile (ESP). EA manages at the major release level, so upgrades to the next or "newer" version are not automatically approved. Please send an email to the EA office at *EA Change Requests or email@example.com with the subject title "Shopping Cart – Request to buy Technology" and provide EA the vendor name, product name, and major version of the technology being purchased. EA staff will look up product to verify it's in the ESP. For any technologies being requested that are not in the ESP, requester will be given instructions via a separate correspondence on how to submit an Enterprise Architecture Enterprise Standards Profile Change Request for ESP inclusion. Attach the email approval from the EA Office to the shopping cart as evidence of compliance. You can find additional references and guidance in IRM 2.15.1, Enterprise Architecture (EA), EA Overview. Technical Tier III Review: This tier consists of end-user computing-related hardware, software, maintenance and related services, including desktops, laptops and personal communication devices. i. All acquisitions for workstation/Tier 3 software licenses, subscriptions, and/or maintenance, including for off network and Cloud based products, require Tier III approval. Approval requests should be emailed to the *IT T3 Software Review mailbox or email email@example.com. Approval requests must include publisher name, product name, license type, quantity, version, Period of Performance and the applicable End User License Agreement (EULA). ii. Once approval has been obtained, the applicable review completion/approval e-mail(s) must be attached to the shopping cart. Enterprise Hardware Asset Management Review: This review consists of enterprise IT hardware, hardware maintenance and related services. Every acquisition for new and maintenance hardware must have Hardware Asset Management (HW AM) review email approval. i. Every acquisition for new trackable hardware and hardware maintenance must have Hardware Asset Management (HW AM) review email approval. Email requests must be sent to *IT Asset Management Review mailbox or email firstname.lastname@example.com to be reviewed and to prepare for proper asset barcoding, tracking, management and shipment confirmation. Asset tagging (barcoding) of new hardware purchases must be included for a quantity of 10 or more assets. Acquisitions for maintenance hardware must have a list of the impacted assets to be covered by the hardware maintenance contract. At a minimum, the list must contain barcodes, serial numbers, brand, model, location, and Period of Performance (POP) dates of the hardware assets. The list of hardware assets will be validated with the information from HP Asset Manager (KISAM). ii. Once approval has been obtained, the applicable review completion/approval e-mail(s) must be attached to the shopping cart in the "Notes and Attachments". Security Compliance Review: This review applies to the following: any acquisition for the procurement of an IT system, or IT products; any IT hardware and/or software, telecommunications, equipment, maintenance or service. acquisition of any consulting services, commercial service provider, out-sourcing or cloud provider that will operate, manage, access or use any IRS IT system and/or data, including SBU, PII and/or IRS taxpayer data. Complete and submit IRS Form 14775, Security Compliance Review Checklist for IT Acquisitions for approval. Once approval has been obtained, the approved Form 14775 must be attached to the shopping cart. Note: PerIRM 10.8.1, IT Security, Policy and Guidance, any vendor that will operate, manage or use any IRS IT system and/or data, including SBU, PII and/or IRS taxpayer data, must follow the guidance of IRS. IRS Publication 4812, Contractor Security Controls for any contractor operated system and is subject to the IRS contractor site review/assessment process. Section 508 Compliance: Requisitions for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) exceeding the dollar threshold identified in IRM 184.108.40.206.10, Electronic and Information Technology Buys shall be submitted to Information Resources Accessibility Program (IRAP) office for review and approval. For specific instructions and requirements please visit IRAP's website IRAP's website, IRAP.web.irs.gov. Requisitions for ICT that do not exceed the dollar threshold (Micro-Purchase) identified in IRM 126.96.36.199.10 must follow the same process; however, they are not subject to IRAP's review and approval. Note: Section 508 does not apply if state and local entities are the supplier. 184.108.40.206 (02-23-2021) Determine the Shopping Cart Routing Path IT shopping carts initiated by an IT ACIO area must be routed to the appropriate manager, per Delegation Order IT-2-1-1, for review and approval. Note: Each ACIO may have their own internal management review process, which may require adding reviews prior to the Signatory Authority Approver. Signature Authority Approver: The signature authorities and associated re-delegations supported by Delegation Order IT-2-1-1, apply to shopping carts for purchases of IT products and services. FMS Financial Plan Manager approves IT shopping carts in accordance with IRM 1.35.24, Financial Accounting, Establishing Commitments and Obligations. IT shopping carts initiated by a non-IT BOD must be routed to the Appropriate ACIO for review and approval only after FMS has approved funding. Exception: Any exceptions to the IT approval requirement will be documented in an MOU between IT and the Business Unit in accordance with IRM 18.104.22.168.5, Policy Statement 2-93. A shopping cart is required to exercise an option. 184.108.40.206.1 (02-23-2021) Strategic Supplier Management (SSM) Approval The SSM Director or designee approval is required on shopping carts for: Bailment agreements, no cost demonstrations, Request for Information (RFI), Market Research Requests or evaluation agreements for software, hardware, managed services and "cloud" based services, regardless of dollar value; "Pilot IRS" shopping carts (a program under which a more streamlined procurement process allows a company to propose an innovative solution to an IRS problem and receive technical and actionable feedback in weeks instead of months regardless of dollar value); Infrastructure acquisitions (e.g., servers, mainframes, network/telecom, managed services, "cloud" based services) and infrastructure-related services with an Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) greater than or equal to $1,000,000. Infrastructure-related services are services supporting the delivery, installation and initial configuration of the new infrastructure; Software acquisitions with an IGCE greater than or equal to $500,000. For clarity, shopping carts in the following categories do not require SSM approval: Services supporting non-infrastructure-related work, such as cyber analysis, data analysis, business process improvement and other services not directly related to IT infrastructure installation or configuration; Exercise of option periods for previously approved contracts are not required to be approved again unless the scope has been modified; and Incremental funding items do not require approval again when an IGCE from a previously approved cart is attached SSM review will be conducted prior to ACIO/Director/Senior Manager approval of the shopping cart via Procurement for Public Sector (PPS) routing. The following describes the scope of the review: Evaluate if similar, in-place agreements or capabilities could be used or if requirements could be combined to improve economies of scale to reduce costs to the IRS. Confirm required documentation (PWS/SOW, LSJ, IGCE, Market Research, Acquisition Plan) has been submitted. Validate the documentation reasonably and accurately describes the requirements of the proposed acquisition. In support of this review, Program/Project Managers, Acquisition Program Managers (APMs) and TPOCs/CORs are encouraged to contact SSM as soon as upcoming requirements are identified. SSM reviews will be completed: Within 8 working days after approval request for shopping carts with an IGCE value less than $4,000,000; or 15 working days after approval request for shopping carts with an IGCE value from $4,000,000 to $10,000,000; or Case-by-case basis as determined by Director, SSM or designee, for shopping carts with an IGCE value greater than $10,000,000. Note: For Shopping Cart that use Surge CLINs or are submitted with limited documentation, further discussions may be required to determine appropriateness and requirements before approval will be granted. 126.96.36.199.2 (02-23-2021) Signature Authority Approval Each ACIO may have their own internal management review process, which may require adding reviewers prior to the Signatory Authority Approver. IT shopping carts initiated by a non-IT BOD must be routed to the appropriate ACIO for review and approval only after FMS has confirmed there is approved funding. The signature authorities and associated redelegations supported by Delegation Order IT-2-1-1 apply to shopping carts for purchases of IT products and services. Signature authority up to $50,000 for shopping carts/purchase card transactions that support non-IT goods or administrative services (court reporters, movers, executive certificate framing, fax/printer toner, general office supplies) and IT operating costs specifically associated with telecommunications recurring billing (i.e., local/long distance phone service) may be approved by the senior manager or frontline manager. This authority cannot be redelegated and acting managers are not approved as proxies. The contract writing system (PPS) record must include the approval of the signature authority. Signature authority for shopping carts greater than $50,000 (cumulative) revert to standard IT shopping cart signature authority. The Delegation and Signature sheet called Shopping Cart Signature Authority List outlines each level of funding authority. This sheet is updated monthly or whenever an executive change occurs. Due to the length and frequency of senior manager and frontline manager changes, it is not feasible to include these names in the Shopping Cart Signature Authority List. The current Shopping Cart Signature Authority List is maintained on the IT Delegations Orders website. Shopping Cart Proxy, Actors and Executive Officers or SES in Waiting (SIW) - Situations arise when executives cannot electronically approve shopping carts due to no n-system access such as vacations or conferences. Executive Officers or SES in Waiting (SIW) in Executive Positions: Executive Officers or SES in Waiting (SIW) are employees who are performing in Executive positions but have not completed their executive certification. These candidates are authorized to sign as approvers commensurate with the level of the position they are filling. Proxies for Executives: Executives who cannot electronically approve shopping carts due to non-system access (such as computer downtime) can designate a proxy staff member on an as-needed basis to perform the electronic signature. The staff person is responsible for obtaining and retaining electronic approval of the proxy delegation (via e-mail) for audit purposes. The staff person performing the proxy action must state in the PPS approval comments section: "Proxy (name) Approved and signed by (title and name) on (date). The e-mail approval of shopping cart is on file." Executives Appointing Actors with Same Funding Authority: Executives, who will be unavailable for specific periods, can appoint another executive to "act" in their position. Non-executive staff personnel cannot be given acting authority in terms of approving shopping carts. To clarify the process, the designating executive is the unavailable executive and the executive appointed will be called an actor. When the designating executive and the actor have the same funding level authority, the shopping cart routing path should be changed to the actor's name instead of the designating executive name. This should be completed before the shopping cart reaches the designating executive in PPS or the document routing becomes an issue in the electronic system. The only remedy when this occurs is for the helpdesk to redirect the shopping cart. Contact the helpdesk via phone (240-613-8540). Executives Appointing Actors with Lower Funding Authority: When a designating executive's funding authority is higher than the actor, a formal "acting" document must be generated and retained for audit purposes. This documentation will allow the acting executive to approve shopping carts at the designating executive's higher funding authority. • This formal acting authorization must be in a memo or email. The authorization must contain the actor's authority for a specific period. This authorization must be retained by the actor for audit purposes. • When the actor approves a shopping cart, an additional statement must be inserted in the PPS approval comment section. The comment should state "Acting for (name) from (date) to (date). Acting documentation on the file with the Acting Executive." Proxies and Actors for Senior Managers and Frontline Managers: There is no authorization for a senior manager or frontline manager to designate a proxy or an actor to approve shopping carts. Senior manager or frontline manager unavailability requires approval at a higher level. Approval of $0.00 Shopping Carts for Accounting Code Changes: IT Strategy & Planning, Financial Management Services, Senior and Frontline Managers may approve $0.00 shopping carts for accounting codes changes if they do not serve as an initiator of the shopping cart or as the Financial Plan Manager. Note: For shopping carts associated with purchase card transactions, consult the Purchase Card Guide for any associated dollar limits. 184.108.40.206.3 (11-27-2019) FMS Financial Plan Manager Approval FMS Financial Plan Manager approves IT shopping carts in accordance with IRM 1.35.24, Financial Accounting, Establishing Commitments and Obligations. 220.127.116.11 (02-23-2021) Prepare Shopping Cart The Requestor creates the shopping cart using the following guidance to ensure all fields are completed properly: IT Shopping Cart Checklist, which is used to guide the Requestor through entering information in the various tabs in PPS (e.g., General Data tab, Account Assignment tab and Item tab) and the required approval path. This must be completed during the shopping cart creation and added to the shopping cart attachments. Work Step Instructions, which are available for detailed guidance on completing the shopping cart fields. Note: In case of a Lapse in Appropriation due to a government shutdown, the information contained in Continuity of Operations (in PPS), Lapse Plan Exception Code and Lapse Plan Justification Text, needs review for confirming accuracy or making updates for identifying contractors to continue work during a shutdown . For software development acquisitions, the Request must indicate in the Description field of the PPS record that the shopping cart is for software development and describe the nature of the software development to be performed. This information notifies the Contracting Officer that required clauses must be incorporated into the contract. See Internal Revenue Service Acquisition Procedures (IRSAP) Section 1039.9001 Software Development Prerequisitesfor more information. An unfunded shopping cart is needed when funding is not available and one of the following is true: the Acquisition Planning Due Date must be met the acquisition need is for the first quarter of the next fiscal year an option is being exercised i. A price, quantity and cost center data must be entered in the Item Overview line. ii. The Accounting Assignment Category must be changed from Cost Center to Unfunded. The Requestor attaches the required documents. as identified in the IRS Procurement - Acquisition Package Document Checklist (IT and Non-IT), to the shopping cart. Note: The IRS Procurement - Acquisition Package Document Checklist (IT and Non-IT) is not used for exercising an option, extensions or incremental funding. Please see the Procurement 101 Reference Guide for more details on "Exercising an Option" . Once all required documents are attached, the completed IRS Procurement - Acquisition Package Document Checklist (IT and Non-IT) is attached to the shopping cart to be used by shopping cart reviewers. Note: This checklist and all applicable documentation must be attached to the approved shopping cart in PPS to be considered a complete package. Many documents are collaborative; however, TPOCs/CORs must complete as much of the required information as possible and include signatures where applicable to avoid delays in processing. The Requestor validates the field entries and attaches the completed IT Shopping Cart Checklist to the shopping cart. Note: The IT Shopping Cart Checklist is not used for exercising an option, extensions or incremental funding. The Requestor submits the shopping cart for approval. 126.96.36.199 (11-27-2019) Review and Approve Shopping Cart Reviews are conducted in PPS sequentially. Reviewers may approve, edit or reject the shopping cart. The FPM validates availability of funds and releases the shopping cart to Procurement. 126.96.36.199.1 (11-27-2019) Process a Shopping Cart Returned by Procurement If an approved shopping cart is returned by Procurement, the Requestor follows the Work Step Instruction: Process Returned Shopping Cart - BusinessUnit. 22.214.171.124.2 (02-23-2021) Approval of Limited Competition When a Justification for Other than Free and Open Competition (JOFOC), Justification for an Exception to Fair Opportunity (JEFO), or Limited-Source Justification (LSJ) is required after the shopping cart is forwarded to Procurement, the justification will be approved in accordance with Delegation Order IT-2-1-1-A. More Internal Revenue Manual


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In forthcoming Serbia-Kosovo talks this Thursday and Friday at the White House, President Trump wants to focus on economic development and "flipping the script". The U.S. maintains the position that all types of Kosovo land-swap discussions are left to the parties involved.
Special Advisor to President Trump, familiar with the details of the forthcoming Serbia-Kosovo talks on Thursday and Friday at the White House, told the Pavlovic Today that the Trump administration did not and does not plan to discuss Kosovo land-swaps, stating, "We, the United States, leave all of those types of discussion to the parties."
He gave his insight into any possibility of land-swap conversation, insisting that Ambassador Richard Grenell "was never privy to such conversation.
"That's not something that he would remotely discuss. He wouldn't discuss it. It's not part of our economic development discussions," Special Advisor to the President told the Pavlovic Today.
" I don't know how clear I need to be, but I've never been around those discussions in any of my conversations. It's solely been economic, and that's what we're concentrating on, economic normalization", he added.
"What President Trump wanted to do was to see if a focus on economic development and job creation for young people could somehow change the dynamic of the situation. For the last, you know, more than a year, we have been solely focused on economic normalization, trying to find a way to move the parties into putting the political issues aside to create momentum around economic issues", he said.
President Trump's attendance to the Serbia-Kosovo meetings later this week at the White House has not been confirmed.
"He [President Trump] has already participated in terms of our side and what we can kind of push forward and how we prioritize these economic projects. But at the end of the day, I think the parties need to be able to make progress in order for the United States to continue utilizing these mechanisms in such a powerful way," Special Advisor to President Trump added.
The fact that President Trump asked Richard Grenell to lead the talks is "really a testament to the fact that we do believe that a concentration on the economic development side would produce progress, but we still need to test that theory," he said.
According to the Special Advisor to the president, the win-win scenario that Ambassador Grenell and President Trump are going for has the potential to be considered great success, focusing on "economic development."
"We've been very successful so far, even though the media hasn't really focused on the historic three agreements that we've made around economic normalization, one of which is the first flight between Pristina and Belgrade in 21 years. We have an agreement on that. It has not been implemented. The flight has not taken place. We're not there yet to open it up to travel and commerce. But the agreement is there," Special Advisor to the President remarked.
In a recent, exclusive interview for the Pavlovic Today, Serbian President Vucic said that Kosovo Albanians were not in a rush to implement the achieved flight agreements.
The Trump administration is aware of this problem, given that the Kosovo government is in transition and there is a global COVID-19 pandemic. "We are solely focused on implementing the air, rail, and motor agreements that we've already agreed on. Those agreements really are going to allow us to build economic development," Special Adviser to the President said.
Where the previous administration failed to resolve a historic problem, the Trump administration wants to apply non-linear thinking, and they invite the media to do so as well. "Trump wants to flip the script," said the Special Advisor to the President.

subset: commoncrawl


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No matter how clean you keep your home, there's always the potential for mold growth. What's worse is that it isn't always easy to detect when a type of mold is present. But make no mistake, it's important to remain vigilant about mold prevention—particularly when it comes to black mold, which only takes a day or two to start growing. What is it and what are some of the long-term effects black mold exposure can have on your health? Keep reading to find out. What Is Black Mold? Black mold is an umbrella term for a dangerous species of mold often found in homes. Typically, homeowners can expect to find black mold in damp, warm areas such as sinks, tubs, faucets, grout, pools, toilets, and vents. Furthermore, black mold thrives in areas where dust and dirt accumulate. In some areas, such as a tub or sink, homeowners can … [Read more...]
What Are the Symptoms of Inhaling Toxic Mold?
Did you know that a staggering 50 million people in the United States suffer from allergies? Or that allergies rank sixth when it comes to chronic illnesses in the country? The most concerning fact here is that many people can experience allergic reactions to allergens (substances that trigger the allergy) that they don't even see. For example, mold spores tinier than the eye can see can trigger severe allergic reactions. And that's not all. Certain types of molds can also cause poisoning. Of these microorganisms, toxic black mold is one of the most dangerous. But what exactly happens to those exposed to these fungi? What are the symptoms if you've inhaled its spores? Keep reading for some basic but important information about dealing with mold toxicity. Toxic Black Mold: The Basics First things first: Black mold (or … [Read more...]
How (and When) to Check for Mold in Your Home
Has your home started smelling a little musty lately? If so, it's probably in your best interest to learn how to check for mold. The truth is, mold growth is a more common problem in Milwaukee than you may imagine. Mold spores grow anywhere where there is moisture, and it doesn't take them long to form colonies. There are almost 1,000 types of household mold, and many of them pose a significant health risk to you and your family. If it's not dealt with in time, a mold outbreak can also be very costly to address. Not sure whether you have something to worry about? Here is what you need to know about testing for mold in your home. Mold Indicators First, let's go over the more obvious signs you're dealing with mold issues. The biggest indicator of mold is actual, visible mold growth. In this situation, the only question is … [Read more...]


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Added by: Norah Added on: February 25, 2019
## Sides, Episode 2 ##
Hello everyone. Welcome to Norah's Cooking Diary.
If you like this video, please give it a thumbs up by pressing the like button. Please also consider subscribing so that you will not miss my next video. Your support means a lot to me.
In this video I am going to share with you a Herbs Mashed Potatoes recipe that goes well with almost any types of roasted, baked and fried main dishes. These creamy mashed potatoes are taken to a whole new level with the addition of fresh herbs. You could enjoy these Herbs Mashed Potatoes as is or add some gravy to it to serve as a starter dish with a warm bun. It is an extremely simple and easy to prepare side dish. All the ingredients should already be readily available in your kitchen.
Several notes here to share with you:
Here is a quick rundown of the recipe:
Boil red skin potatoes in 2 cups of plain water until tender. Discard the boiling water, add butter and mash together with a potato masher. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Serve the herbs mashed potato with the mains of your choice.
That's it. Isn't this side dish quick and easy? :-)
Happy cooking ;-)


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July 8, 2021 – (Boston and Washington DC, USA; The Hague, Netherlands). Blue Ocean Analytics – Emergency Management for Tomorrow announces the launch of a new solution to strengthen Emergency Preparedness and Response for disaster managers, incident responders, port authorities, maritime logisticians, and resilience across the entire Water Sector.
BOA's "complex water sector simulation" capabilities are developed, designed, and facilitated by international emergency managers and simulation experts in close collaboration with business-to-business partners.
"BOA's new water sector simulations are the creative vision of our Majority Owner. She wanted to develop elegant mechanics in an EOC environment with meticulously crafted storylines and vibrant multimedia injects," says Nick Burk, Co-Director of BOA. "Our interoperable solution can be deployed on a tabletop, on a Smartboard, through LCD panel displays, or remotely through a Zoom meeting. The simulations are intended to support meaningful revisions of Emergency Plans and procedures. They're highly participatory, and fully integrate with the existing GIS-based Emergency Management platforms used by our partners."
BOA's complex water sector solutions can be developed for any marine environment–the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Asia-Pacific, Indian Ocean…even the Arctic Ocean. The initial prototype is a four-stage Emergency Response that takes place in the Port of Boston, Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, and Outer Cape Cod in coastal New England USA. The prototype, called "Cape Cod Light" is based on real-world events and follows the journey of a Liquid Natural Gas tanker which becomes the focal point of a sophisticated maritime rescue.
Stage 1 involves a distress call and rapid activation of a Unified Command. Stage 2 is the execution of a complex rescue involving both maritime and aviation assets. Stage 3 is a voyage home to Boston, through a Marine Sanctuary that is stressed by climate change and has requires avoiding a ship strike with endangered right whales. Stage 4 represents a "worst case scenario" docking accident with a containment breech that threatens the entire port system, vulnerable coastal communities of color as well as a major international airport.
For BOA's business-to-business partners and simulation designers who want a look "under the hood," the video below shows our design methodology for Cape Cod Light, our story shapes and plot elements, and the detail we took in crafting our prototype. We thank our transatlantic partners, Goldworthy, Stolk and Associates and the Utrecht Institute for Crisis and Conflict Simulation for the collaboration, synergy and inspiration throughout our design process.
For information on how BOA can support your water sector Emergency Management needs, please e-mail email@example.com.


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Hello! I am Cody, a freelance graphic and web designer based in Mauritius.
During my 10+ years working in the field, I've learned that mastering the tools and application of skills is only a part of the design process. Understanding users is just as important.
If you'd like to work with me or just want to say hello, send me a message.
Thank you!


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Scottsdale will use funds set aside for trail, road and sidewalk improvements to pay some of the more than $13-million required to fix two bridges in the Old Town area.
City leaders said routine inspections revealed severe structural issues with the Civic Center Mall bridge over Drinkwater Road and a bridge on 68th Street, north of Indian School Road. Part of Drinkwater Road has been closed since July over safety concerns and the 68th Street bridge was reduced from four lanes of traffic to two lanes.
Last week, city council voted to transfer funds for the emergency repairs. A roughly $1.2-million Loop 101 frontage road project and $390,000 trails project in the WestWorld area were among the items canceled. Other completed projects came in under budget, helping offset the cost.
"It's unfortunate but it's a reality," Council member David Smith said during the Oct. 16 meeting. "We are sacrificing projects or moving them out beyond conceivable time. We are moving money between funds with no evidence of how we're going to repay it so I am not satisfied," he said.
Public works director Daniel Worth told ABC15 the city hasn't "lost sight" of the other projects.
"We're still going to try and find ways to fund them," he said, adding the items will be reviewed again next budget cycle.
Worth said addressing the bridge issues will benefit all residents "because of the importance that [the Old Town area] has for the tourism industry."
Spring Training games and other events "generate revenue that gets used citywide," he said.


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Upcycled Louis Vuitton Cute Horse Keychain
Delight your inner child with a Louis Vuitton cute horse keychain. Whether you're a true Philippa or you simply can't resist an adorable charm, this made-to-order piece will wow you. Pink pastel accents and hand-stitching contrast with fashionable upcycled authentic Louis Vuitton bag material to create a memorable status accessory.
- 100% genuine LV upcycled material
- Cowhide leather
- Cotton wool
- Copper hardware
- Measures approximately: 9.5*8.5 cm(3.7*3.3 inches)
Design inspiration:
You can take a horse out of the wild, but you can't take the wild out of the horse.


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Editor's Note: Ford Vox is a physician specializing in rehabilitation medicine and a journalist. He is a medical analyst for NPR station WABE-FM 90.1 in Atlanta. He writes frequently for CNN Opinion. Follow him on Twitter @FordVox. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.
What are we to make of the latest perceptual debate taking over the internet, separating loved ones from each other, causing chaos, sobbing, grief?
We jest, here. But only a little, as we speak of Yanny vs. Laurel.
Chances are you'll be entranced and/or made crazy by this viral phenomenon—if you haven't been already. It is the aural equivalent of the "white and gold or blue and black dress" debate from a few years ago.
Should you trust your senses?
Click here to try it out - do you hear "Yanny" or "Laurel"?
Those of us who hear "Yanny" precisely and clearly can't fathom what the heck is going on in the minds of those who claim to hear Laurel, and vice versa. Auditory illusions are perhaps even more striking to us than the visual kind, but we should understand that there's in fact an array of illusions for your every sense, each exploiting the edges of human perception, where any of us can end up seeing or hearing differing things in the static.
Such perceptual illusions occupy the time of enough experimental psychologists and neuroscientists to populate a scientific journal titled Perception, which has been in monthly publication since 1972. The peer-reviewed journal will no doubt deal with Yanny vs. Laurel in due course, but in the meantime its pages offer insight into the mental mismatches between us and our world.
In one recent study, researchers showed that people can be fooled about how many tones we think we hear, based on how they are arranged, using piano and drum sounds, where the piano sounds change in pitch but the drums stay the same.
There are visual versions of the same illusion where we can't correctly estimate how many black and white marbles there are, based on how they're arranged. These illusions and many others demonstrate that the human brain has evolved to pick out patterns in the noise first, likely because that's the fastest and most efficient way to generally get things right. And once we perceive a pattern, it dominates our subsequent capacity to reason.
But our natural bias towards pattern recognition can go too far, and that can be a sign of mental illness. Psychotic hallucinations are sensory perceptions gone haywire, an extreme form of illusion where the brain exerts its own view of the world such that it becomes severely distorted.
Scientists have explored the tendency to hear voices within white noise among people with and without schizophrenia, and there's clearly a spectrum for this tendency: 9% of healthy people hear a voice where there is none (tricked into doing so by exposure to a variety of sound clips, some of which did contain faint voices), but that number triples to 30% in people with psychosis. If your brother or sister has psychosis, you're more likely to hear a voice as well - 14% in the study.
Now, Yanny vs. Laurel certainly isn't going to cause anyone to be diagnosed with schizophrenia, despite how heated the standoff is getting between the aural Sharks and Jets. The audio file is a one-off, a unique low-quality audio test that doesn't have a clear winner or loser.
Unlike the number of marbles on a table – or whether scientists hid a whispering voice in some TV "snow" (tests which have an objective answer) – in Yanny vs. Laurel it doesn't actually matter what the speaker said at the time of the audio recording. It doesn't even matter what color "the dress" was hanging in the store on the day it was photographed (black and blue, in person). The dress was a similarly "low-fidelity" photo.
Both of these phenomena are alterations of reality in and of themselves. These types of visual and auditory memes are tough for scientists to recreate and test. But they succeed wonderfully in putting our wiring differences into high relief.
So, why the standoff between the Yannys and Laurels all over social media, with people vociferously insisting on their sensorial superiority? Part of this bombast is simply the accepted style of social media, and in a world where many are at each other's throats over grave matters of domestic and international policy, everyone knows this is a safe space to channel a little emotion, like rooting for the home team with a war chant.
But if you're shocked by the Yanny and Laurel differences in your own household and social networks, by all means use this as a moment to reflect on what else you might perceive differently, in the political messaging swirling around us.
Illusions like this fascinate us because they reveal there is a gap between what we perceive to be true and what actually exists. It's baked into our biology; we're equipped with brains that spend far more of their energy and devote far more network activity to processing and changing what we sense. Nothing gets in that isn't dramatically altered before it reaches our conscious awareness.
All knowledge is a feat of human interpretation. These periodic revelations that we see things differently are one of the all-too-fleeting healthy forces of social media, reminding us that we have to work together if we're going to get things right.


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CLAVERIA, Misamis Oriental - The Local Government Unit (LGU) of Gingoog City proposed Php18 million worth of livelihood to members of Underground Mass Organization (UGMO) during the Peace Rally held at Covered Court of Don Restituto Baol Elementary School last October 21, 2020.
Hon. Erick Cañosa, the City Mayor of Gingoog, and Hon. Peter Unabia, the City Vice-Mayor offered various livelihood programs of the National Government to the former mass supporters of the New People's Army (NPA).
The programs and projects include Cacao production, Fish cage culture, Corn production, and Livestock and Poultry livelihood services such as Animal Dispersal Program.
This creates opportunities for farmers to uplift their living conditions and empower them to become more resilient. Further, it attests to the government's commitment to providing basic and social services to the vulnerable, marginalized, and conflict-affected communities.
Also, this is in line with the implementation of Executive Order No. 70 (EO70) which converges all government agencies to render the necessary support to end local communist armed conflict in the country.
In his message, Hon. Erick Cañosa said, "We will continue to collaborate with other government agencies, with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Philippine National Police (PNP) as well as the non-government organizations to help you in your basic needs so that we will attain peace and development in our city."
On the other hand, the Hon. Peter Unabia encouraged the farmers to help the government in attaining lasting and inclusive peace through their cooperation, unity, and non-support to the terrorist groups. Also, he urged them to inform their families, relatives, and friends who are still in the armed group about the livelihood programs of the true government and to convince them to lay down their arms and return to the mainstream society.
Furthermore, Lt. Col. Ricky L Canatoy, Commanding Officer of 58IB said, "I hope that with the continued programs and projects of the government, we will be able to finally convince the remaining members of the CTGs to abandon their armed struggle and return to the folds of the law. To those who wish to surrender, rest assured that your Philippines Army will assist you to avail the ECLIP program of the government."
Source: Civil-Military Operations Office, 58th Infantry Battalion, Joint Task Force Diamond, PA


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Former Gov. Bruce Rauner and his wife, Diana, late Monday placed their eight-bedroom, 6,870-square-foot Nantucket-style mansion in Winnetka on the market for just under $3 million.
A former private equity firm executive who in 2014 told the Tribune that he was worth at least $500 million, Rauner, 63, lost re-election in November to J.B. Pritzker, and he left office in mid-January.
The Rauners built the Winnetka mansion in 1996 on land that they had bought the previous year for $830,000. It has six baths, four fireplaces, millwork, high ceilings, a living room with a library, a dining room with a butler's pantry, a great room, a kitchen with a breakfast room, a roof deck, a master suite with a spa bath and a lower level with a rec room.
The house sits on 0.51 acres in a neighborhood just west of Green Bay Road.
Listing agent Jena Radnay did not respond to a request for comment. The Rauners also own two units in the 340 on the Park condominium building, at 340 E. Randolph Street on the Near East Side. They paid $4.06 million in 2008 for the 61st-floor penthouse unit and paid $1.229 million that same year for a 41st-floor unit.
Rauner is not the only former Illinois governor with a home on the market. As Elite Street has exclusively reported, former Gov. James R. Thompson and his wife, Jayne, currently have their four-bedroom, 3,515-square-foot condo unit in the building at 57 E. Delaware Place on the market for $1.7 million. They have had the unit on and off the market since 2015, and the Thompsons recently went under contract to sell it.
The Rauners also own numerous other homes around the U.S., including a penthouse co-operative unit at 50 Central Park West in New York, which they purchased in 2005 for $10 million, and a four-bedroom, 5,370-square-foot mansion on Card Sound in Key Largo, Fla., which they purchased in 2003 for $5.6 million.
Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
[ Former Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg lists Burr Ridge mansion for $3.995M ]
[ Julia Sweeney of SNL sells Wilmette home for asking price of $1.3M ]


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Goal-setting is critical to planning for a changing industry.
Think long-term
Dr. Stephen Covey's 2nd habit is "Begin with The End in Mind," the principles of which should be applied to your property management strategies as a single-family rental property manager. This is especially true now as we enter 2022 with an industry that continues to evolve. Goal-setting should start with an understanding of where you want to be in several years, not just at the end of this year. It forces you to consider industry trends that you may not feel the impact of immediately, but will definitely affect the viability of your business in the future.
Short-term goals should ladder up to long-term goals. They should serve as pieces to the long-term puzzle. It's important not to lose sight of what that puzzle is supposed to look like when it's finished. Anticipating how trends will affect the industry and creating action items to address that will keep you a step ahead of companies that are reacting after these market forces have already begun to affect their bottom line. Those action items then become your short-term goals for the next year.
Identify opportunities to improve resident experience
As the most important industry trend continues to be the evolution of demand from a simple service to a more complex experience, you should be identifying opportunities to improve resident experience and setting goals based on how you want to achieve said improvement. What can you do this coming year to improve the living experience for your residents? This could include new programs to be developed and implemented, new roles on the team specifically focused on experience, or a number of things depending on your answer.
The best way to identify opportunities is to listen to your residents. It sounds simple, but they'll tell you what they perceive as a great living experience, and that becomes data you can act on. Consider a list of services you think a resident may like, some of which could be rental rewards, home-buying assistance, credit-reporting, holiday gift certificates to local businesses, etc. You can survey your residents on these ideas pretty easily, or you can simply roll them out and gauge resident response.
As long as your programs are creating real value for the residents, any pushback. A small fee for something they'll actually use and benefit from is typically considered a win by a resident. It's just a matter of ensuring you are creating value.
Identify opportunities to improve investor experience
We talk a lot about the triple win here at Second Nature. The third branch of the triple win is a win for your clients. Typically, this is laddered up to by a resident win, which minimizes vacancy to the benefit of the client. There is more you can do, though, to really deliver something irreplaceable to your clients.
A popular takeaway from PMLX 2021 was the value of communication with clients. Scheduling quarterly meetings with your clients and overcommunicating everything they could want to know about the management of their properties has proven valuable to the companies that pioneered this concept. Launching these quickly became a popular short-term 2022 goal for many attendees.
Clients leave with an extensive understanding of what is happening with their investments. That's an additional win for them and for you, as investors are not only more involved, but they tend to appreciate the time you take to communicate with them and can gain deeper insight into the full value that your company provides. This isn't the only way to improve client experience, but it's a popular and relatively easy one to implement.
When setting goals for next year, make sure you know what the puzzle is supposed to look like when it's completed. Then set your 2022 goals to put together the right pieces.


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Morning Routine
I was never a morning person. But once I had my son Ford, I would be so tired by the end of the day that it was impossible to accomplish anything. So I started training myself to wake up a little bit earlier every day. Now, most mornings, I'm able to wake up pretty early. I like to wake up before everyone in our house and have my me-time or get a few things done before the chaos begins!
I wrote down a simplified version of my morning routine below, but you can watch the condensed version I created on reels too!
Here is my morning routine:
6-6:15 am
wake up
let saint out to go potty
drink my jug of lemon water
diffuse essential oils
word search or gratitude journal
10 minute workout (this happens maybe every two weeks)
water my plants
make breakfast for mom and dad (oatmeal for dad and cereal for mom)
take multivitamins
ford wakes up
feed him his bottle
hang out as a family til Brock has to go to work
package orders from the night before
answer a few emails
reheat my coffee
That's about it! My Morning Routine is a bit different every day. Sometimes Brock will let me sleep in and get up with him or I'll use that time to shower and get ready! Sometimes I'll work out or work on whatever I need to get done that's urgent. Either way, while I used to be a night owl, I now can't wait to wake up in the morning and get that time to myself! It makes me feel human again 🙂
What about you guys…Are you a morning person or a night owl? Check out this post with my evening routine tips in order to have a successful morning 🙂


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Little different from the sandy beaches of Andaman, the trip to Baratang is just amazing. Starting from the long drive through the Jarawa reserve to the boat ride to the limesto...
Wandoor Beach is situated around 30 km east of Port Blair, Wandoor beach is famous amongst tourists and locals alike. The picturesque scenery of the beach makes it ideal for swimming, photography, and sunset view.
Wandoor Beach
Away from the milling crowd of Port Blair, Wandoor beach is a delight for the urge to seclusion. Wandoor beach was badly devastated during the Tsunami and its impact can still be seen in the form of fallen trunks on the shoreline. The shoreline is fringed with long trees and partly indented with waterways to mangroves. Sunset on the distant horizon in the foreground of mangroves under the shadows of clouds and twilight reflecting over the rolling ocean is a treat to the eyes.
The 30 Km road journey from Port Blair to Wandoor is very scenic. The route is surrounded by lush green trees of coconuts and mangroves.
There are many agricultural research farms of ICAR and CARI, situated near Sippighat along this route. One can also see the submerged landmasses resulting from the Tsunami waves.
Wandoor Beach is located approx. 1 km after the Mahatma Gandhi Marine national park which is also the embarkation point for Jolly Buoy Island.
The scenic beauty, the vastness of the ocean, and the beautiful islands look amazing from the shore.
It is an ideal beach to spend a few quiet hours, away from the crowd. The beach is long enough with a giant uprooted tree in the middle, creating a very beautiful view.
How to reach Wandoor beach?
Wandoor is a one-hour drive from Port Blair via the Andaman Trunk road. Regular government and private buses are also available from Port Blair.
The Wandoor beach is open to tourists from sunrise to sunset, however, the best time to visit the beach is before sunset.
What to see at Wandoor beach?
Wandoor beach, North Wandoor beach, and Marine Interpretation Centre.
What to do at Wandoor beach?
Swim on the beach, sunbathe, sit back and relax on the beach.
What to eat?
Try the fresh tender coconut sold on the beachside.
What you should not miss
Sunset from the beach, if you visit in the evening.
What you can skip
Visiting North Wandoor beach as you can not swim there as it is a crocodile sanctuary.
Ideal for Families and couples looking for a relaxed leisure time on the beach.
A customized tour gives you the best experience to visit and anjoy in nature's lap.
Some more destinations you may like to visit.
Little different from the sandy beaches of Andaman, the trip to Baratang is just amazing. Starting from the long drive through the Jarawa reserve to the boat ride to the limesto...
An hour drive from Port Blair to reach Wandoor and a 40 minutes boat ride takes you to the no-mans-land of Jolly Bouy Island. This is the most beautiful island in the marine nat...
Cellular jail stands mute witness to the saga of the Indian freedom struggle. This is a must-visit for every Indian. The jail hosts many museums and gallows where prisoners were...
Chidiyatapu is a beach situated 25 km from Port Blair. This place is mostly visited by tourists for the sunset view. The MUndapahad beach near Chidiyatapu is ideal for a day pic...
The most happening beach in Port Blair city, Corbynscove is the place for Parasailing, water sports, and party-goers. The relaxing experience in the beach chairs and some delici...
Mount Harriet is the highest peak in Port Blair. It used to be the summertime rest house of the Britishers and is now a popular tourist spot. One needs to cross the sea in a veh...
North Bay and Ross Island is a full-day tour by boat from Port Blair. While North Bay is famous for its underwater corals and colorful fishes, Ross Island is more of a historic ...


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Matured in a combination of ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks, this is the 10 year age stated release from Speyburn, an often over-looked brand in the Scotch whiskey universe that's quickly seeing greater pick up in the United States. This release is bottled at 40% ABV with no mention of coloring or filtering.
Sweet honey, fresh baked bread and biscuits. Sweet, a light hint of lemon peel. Floral, perfume-y. Waxed fruits, like Clynelish of old.
Thin to medium on the palate. Sweet, fruity, lemon curd forward. Waxy, interesting. A touch of heat despite the low proof. Quite a bit going on here.
Short finish, wisps away cleanly. A touch hot, despite the lower proof. Sweet, fruit forward, a bit of malt, and that big big buttercream and lemon note.
Fascinating and interesting! Perhaps one of the best entry level, inexpensive single malts on the shelf. It can't unseat its older siblings, but it's well worth the price of admission, and provides a more unique profile for the age.
Disclosure: The producer provided this sample to review free of charge, and without expectation of review or rating.


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Onderwijsactiviteiten - prof.dr. TR (Tinde) van Andel
In July 2016 the first course in Ethnobotany will start at Wageningen!
BIS-90306 Ethnobotany, Period 6. (https://ssc.wur.nl/Studiegids/Vak/BIS-90306)
The course will give a general overview of the state of the art in the science of Ethnobotany. The focus is on traditional plant use in the tropics.
Content: (1): Lectures on theoretical aspects.
Overview of the history of the discipline, link between cultural and biological diversity, ethnobotany and public health, threats to traditional knowledge.
Plant domestication by humans: from wild-harvesting (evaluating sustainability aspects) to cultivation, with special attention to traditional landraces and agrodiversity.
Invited guest lecturers currently active in the Netherlands in ethnobotany-related research will lecture on their subject.
(2) Lectures on quantitative ethnobotanical research methods: interview designs, botanical collecting, documenting traditional knowledge, evaluating harvest sustainability, preference ranking, market surveys, cultivar descriptions, DNA analysis.
Evaluation of different data analyses: interpretation of interviews, plant identification, quantitative analysis, and some frequently used statistical methods.
(3) Excursions to migrant markets where students can witness and practice 'ethnobotany in action'. Students will design and carry out a sort research project, including quantitative methods, collecting specimens, data analysis and presentation..
|Short Research Project in Biosystematics Group
|MSc Internship Biosystematics
|MSc Research Practice Biosystematics
|Capita Selecta Biosystematics
|Capita Selecta Biosystematics
|Capita Selecta Biosystematics
|Capita Selecta Biosystematics
|MSc Thesis Biosystematics


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Dusting of snow. Just below freezing. Pretty totally discouraged. Driving home last night I could feel how angry I was at myself (Eve said she picked up on it) and I was able to be OK with being angry. But this morning I feel stuck and angry and discouraged. Can I be OK with that? Yes, it's how I am now. Can I bring compassion to it? No. Can I be OK with not being able to bring compassion? Yes it's how I am. Broken. One of the bozos on the bus. I think there must be a lot of people out there who feel just like me: depressed, discouraged, not knowing how they will keep going. But they aren't trying to be compassionate about it. But there must be some of those out there too, people who are trying to find compassion in the midst of misery. I feel a softening when I think of them. Sisters in Misery. I think, can I just sit here, with this tangle of negative feelings and not try to change it? My shoulders relax.
What do I know?
1) that I haven't wasted my life
2) that the source of the Universe is spiritual
Would it really make any difference if I stopped trying to make things change?
3) that I've done the best I can and that's enough.
It's actually above freezing out there. Sky is grey. I can just keep on keeping on. Reading, typing journal, playing Solitaire, hauling wood, washing dishes, etc. I did want to do a post for Break the Chain. And I wanted to do one from the day Eve called me in tears and I was able to feel the compassion for her that I couldn't feel for myself.
Pray for those who are discouraged and depressed and don't know how they're going to go on.
Eve said that despite my feeling depressed and discouraged, she could see the one who was not. I suppose, if that's true, that I could still be doing good in the world, despite feeling so hopeless and helpless.
Dear Guides and Guardian Spirits, I'm feeling bottom-of-the-pit hopeless. Can you help me?
Dear Jenny, relax. You are trying too hard. You are trying to live up
— Jane just came with food. I cried & said I was doing really badly. She said she saw me as a person who reaches out to others. She said my tears were seeds that would bring forth goodness some time in the future. —
That was guidance, breaking right into my life. And it's true that I'm trying to live up to some pathologically high expectation. Let it go. Be lazy, be bad, do "nothing." Do paintings that are like Tink's mosaics. Collages!
"bozos on the bus" is from Joan Borysenko, Fire in the Soul
"Tink's mosaics" are from Broken for You


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You can search for alternatives to the toys made under the famous brand names. These alternative toys are correspondingly cheaper and the quality is not very inferior, but here we must carefully choose not recommend buying in the markets. If you still decided in favor of the market, all toys should be quality certificates, and you can ask them. How to save on the holiday table? Second, no less paper costs – is to buy products for the holiday table. I have to say, do not must try, to cover a large table with plenty. Charles Schultze: the source for more info. The child is not the point, even if friends come to him, you can safely do without, the so-called "sweet table" is what necessarily need to do is come up with more games and competitions, to have something to occupy children (of course it needs to stock up on a small prize). Here is an example of "sweet table": a) cake or pie (for holiday candles), b) 3-4 type of sweets, and c) jelly, marshmallows (very tasty obtained cake, if we put half a marshmallow on the cookies), d) fruit e) juice, sweet water or fruit compote (which is this need more) This will take not a lot of money, and tasty, we all love. Where to celebrate? a) more economical of all spend the day at home with family.
If the weather is nice you can get to nature, above all stay away from temptations. Here and active games with your child and start a mini fireworks, it will all be good, memorable holiday for the child. b) If your child is older, he would be happy if you would allow him to invite friends home, and themselves to evening Tarry with relatives, socializing with peers give him joy. Morgan stanley wanted to know more. How to give a gift? You can of course just give a gift by themselves, not bothering. But if you want something special, do not forget, there's another option: Here I will cite one example, tell you how I gave gifts to my parents.
Every birthday I was asked to choose a character from a favorite cartoon or movie. I was the protagonist. Mom sewed clothes. A lot of skill here is not necessary. For example, the main attribute of Batman cape and mask, the Ghostbusters, a backpack with a hose, and so on, then is, in principle, all can be made from materials at hand, everything else makes children's imagination and beat the main story cartoon or movie. Well then I woke up, dressed in a suit, and the adventure begins. Parents come up with different tasks, unrelated story, it turns out that something like the passage of a computer game. I'm satisfied in the end of the adventure finding a long-awaited gift. Feeling great! Why, I myself went through many trials, like a real super hero! And he found his gift! The only thing you need at least a chance to preview the animation with the selected character and can come up with an adventure. Believe me, baby, the party is not forget.


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Project DIRECT travel guide
As part of Project DIRECT's initiative to help our educators get the most out of our 3D immersive environment we have put together a travel guide featuring some of the best educational spots to visit. In this video you will see NASA's CoLab region. Space has never been so accessible!


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Bella Val (206Se)
Description of the holiday rental
- Location: Central, quiet and sunny neighborhood in Lenzerheide. Very close to the cross-country ski trail, shops, the ski school meeting area, the sports bus stop and the natural ice rink. 600m from the lake/Lido. - Infrastructure: Elevator, ski room. - Access: The building can be accessed by vehicles all year. - Miscellaneous: Rental of children's strollers, high chairs, backpack carriers and baby beds.
- Cable TV / Sat. TV
- WiFi
- Dishwasher


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Migraine Management Mastermind for Pharmacists
Developed by a multidisciplinary team, this flexible educational program features four interactive modules that assist pharmacists with addressing clinical challenges, developing individualized treatments, and improving patient outcomes in relation to migraines.
Migraines have a debilitating impact and often reduce the quality of life for patients. With an increase in therapies for acute and preventative migraine treatments, pharmacists have an opportunity to intervene in patient care and prevent medication overuse. The proximity and frequency in which pharmacists have with patients can assist with an accurate diagnosis, management of migraines by improving the understanding of medications and an individualized management plan to reduce the burden of the disease. This program will better equip pharmacists with counselling patients who experience migraines. Options for migraine prevention, various therapies, and medication overuse headache will also be discussed.
Learning objectives:
Upon completion of this program, participants will be able to:
- Be familiar with the diagnostic approach to migraine;
- Apply the elements of a care plan to effectively counsel patients with migraine;
- Understand the management of acute treatment of migraine and medication overuse headache;
- Consider first-line options for migraine prevention and the role of second-line therapies (onabotulinum toxin type A and CGRP antibodies);
- Recognize the different strategies for menstrual migraine, contraception in women with migraine with aura, and menopausal issues.
Course outline:
This program consists of the following online modules:
Course at a glance:
Who should take this course:
There is no prerequisite to register for this program. This program supports pharmacists interested in learning more about providing care and counselling to patients with migraines.


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Battle Creek Open House
The evening of September 7th we will be conducting an open house at Battle Creek. This is a great opportunity for families to come meet their students teacher, see their classroom, adn alleviate some back to school anxiety they may be feeling.
To decrease the number of people in our building we are asking families to come at the designated times listed below based on student last name. If you have students in your family that might have different last names that is okay. Pick a time slot that would best fit your time schedule.
To help follow the districts guidance on maintaining social distancing as well as follow all safety guidance we are asking families to only have their current student and their parent/guardian come to our open house.
Students with last names
A-L please come between
4:00 to 5:00 pm
Students with last names
M-Z please come between
5:00 to 6:00pm


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This Privacy Policy was last updated on 9th February 2021.
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Should the list of data processors change, it will be noted on this page.


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Mastering the business situation isn't just critical for positioning the business ideally and strategizing moving forward, but also for assessing the risks the business is exposed to. The business conditions can be understood from several angles, one of which is the relative position in the so-called business cycle.
About a decade ago, I learned for the first time about longwave business cycles. It had struck me that several incidents seem to repeat themselves, not so much in a seasonal pattern, but over a relatively long period. My accountant, Steef Stolp, suggested investigating a person by the name of Kondratieff.
Fortunately, my accountant pointed me in the right direction. The Kondratieff cycles, or K-waves as they are known, show a repetitive pattern of on-average 53 years. Commissioned by Stalin, Nikolai Kondratieff compared economic growth between socialism and capitalism. To determine growth over time in capitalism, Nikolai investigated the price fluctuations of commodities and several other indicators. He found a remarkable recurring pattern, a business cycle of about 53 years, that he believed was exemplary for capitalism.
According to Kondratieff, each cycle had two periods of growth and two of decline. Even though Stalin was convinced that capitalism was at a dead end, Kondratieff found that these business cycles, despite an unavoidable destructive character, proved that capitalism was sustainable and created more economic growth than socialism could. A few years after publishing his findings in his book The Major Economic Cycles in 1925, Kondratieff was arrested and sentenced to 8 years in prison. In 1938, he was subjected to a second trial, convicted, and executed the same day.
The following image shows some of the economic data that Kondratieff used to construct his longwave theory. Amongst others, he used the S&P500 Index, US Producer Price Index (PPI), CRB Commodity Index, Homestake Mining Company (Gold price, longest-listed stock at the NYSE), and US Debt-to-GDP (debt cycle).
In 2002, Carlota Perez, in her book Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital, assigned significant technological advancements to each of these K-waves. Thereby confirming the theory of creative destruction by the renowned economist Joseph Schumpeter as well as supporting his argument that technology is the key driver of economic growth. Schumpeter argued that technological progress allows for the more efficient production of more and better goods and services, leading to more prosperity. Schumpeter also coined the term K-wave out of respect for Kondratieff's work.
Keynote Preparation
While preparing a keynote presentation for Social Media Week 2014 in Rotterdam, I pondered the question: Could business dynamics change simultaneously with the dynamics of these long economic waves?
At the beginning of my career, I had read the book In Search of Excellence (1982) by McKinsey's consultants Peters and Waterman. For some reason, I had stopped reading after three-quarters of the book. I decided to pick where I left it almost 30 years ago and found support for my hypothesis.
Peters and Waterman exposed that so-called 'excellent' organizations were much better than their peers at unlearning habits and reassessing the corporate purpose while allowing people to test a product-market combination early. And they were minimizing cost and risk by creating a prototype to test their assumptions before upscaling the operation. According to the authors, Proctor & Gamble, among others, was particularly successful because it even allowed teams to disrupt the company's existing products.
In fact, the learnings I took from the book matched most, if not all of the characteristics of the so-called LEAN startups. However, Steve Blank's book 'The Four Steps to the Epiphany: Successful Strategies for Products that Win' was published more than 20 years after 'In Search of Excellence', while Eric Ries's book 'The LEAN Startup' launched as late as 2011, almost 30 years after McKinsey's bestseller. Since most of the Silicon Valley startups had founders and employees that came from these deemed-excellent companies, it should come at no surprise that they adopted the incumbents' highly cost-effective and low-risk market-entry strategy.
Have we changed?
I became more and more intrigued by the idea that business dynamics change depending on the relative position in the business cycle.
During my keynote, I asked the question: Technology has changed, but have we?
During much of the past 10.000 years, I argued, we've evolved as farmers. People relied on seasonal preparations and were laden with rituals and superstition, hoping not to disturb the next season's yield. Following Einstein's argument ─ that it is insane to expect different results by doing the same thing repeatedly ─ it was more than reasonable for farmers to develop habits.
In contrast, in our short industrial age, the one that disrupts its product cycle before someone else does would be the wiser. However, given how we've evolved, what is the likelihood of a change occurring? Research shows us that resistance to change is the norm, given John Kotter's assertion that 70% of corporate transformations fail. We will only change if we believe it will improve our lives.
Keynote Presentation
After further deliberation, I presented the following slide at Social Media Week in Rotterdam, broadcasted internationally:
The way businesses commonly adapt to the longwave business cycle, I argued, could best be described by four driver systems:
- Market-driven, implying that the market will decide which new technologies to favor, forcing brands to follow their lead.
- Service-driven implies that service will determine which brand will favor the other after the new technologies have settled.
- Resource-driven, following the tipping point, the battle for market share will drive companies to reduce costs and increase productivity to maintain profitability.
- Product-driven, implying that companies will try to extend products for as long as possible until there is no more profit margin.
Even though one could argue each of these drivers, I still believe that it is a pretty good representation of reality.
During the presentation, I added a few characteristics of the growth (bull) and decline (bear) stages of the business cycle:
The four value positions can also be described as product innovation, service innovation, product/service optimization, and product/service dismantling. These four stages match the typical pattern of the product lifecycle, i.e., Introduction, Growth, Maturity, and Decline.
Top (Peak) versus Bottom (Trough)
Recently, I came to understand that the differences in dynamics between the top of the wave and that of the bottom are particularly relevant today, given the fact that we're approaching the bottom of the fifth K-wave. I wrote an entire blog about it, called Ascending from Decline. I invite you to read it, so you can learn more about how to adapt to the turmoil we're in today.
Conditional Mastery™
Ultimately, the assumption that business dynamics will (need to) adapt to the business cycle seems valid. Mastering growth during each phase of the business cycle is a part of what I refer to as Conditional Mastery™.
As such, when a business cycle reaches its end, indicating that most of the technologies that emerged at the beginning of the revolution come to an end, executives need to consider the early demise of some of all its products and look for new opportunities for growth to secure its future.
Although the image above may suggest that Mastering Conditional Growth™ is entirely related to longwave business cycles, it is not. Conditional Growth is related to every event, condition, circumstance, or lifecycle a company is involved in or exposed to, including the Venture Lifecycle, Product Lifecycle, Customer Lifecycle, and Growth Lifecycle.
Additionally, a PESTLE analysis, STEEPLE analysis, Porter's Five Forces, 5C analysis, VRIO analysis, SWOT analysis, or SOSTAC framework will help determine the potential, as well as the gaps and constraints, of Conditional Growth™.
Understanding how to grow your business demands a thorough understanding of the position in each of these cycles, which, amongst others, requires a breadth of perspective. Without a broad understanding, a firm is more likely to develop unfavorable products or markets, create the wrong customers, keep an unrealistic vision, pick an unfeasible strategy, get ambushed by more astute competitors, and allocate valuable resources to undesired initiatives, attract unsuitable talent, and so on.
Read on: Mastering Conditional Growth – The Rise and Fall of Empires – The Four Archetypes of the Business Cycle


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UFE's Mazher Ali shares news of Responsible Wealth's "Tax Wealth Like Work" campaign on Workers Independent News' Labor Radio, emphasizing progressive tax policy as a common sense measure to help avoid slash and burn budget measures that exacerbate the economic crisis and hurt the most vulnerable citizens. Taxing investment income the same as wages and salaries would raise more than $80 billion annually.
Click here to download the interview.
Senator Orin Hatch (R-UT) just doesn't get it – taxes are not charity. His idea that rich people who recognize that their taxes must go up should "write a check to the IRS" is just plain nonsense… nonsense that we've heard before.
If you read Sunday's Associated Press (AP) story, "Super rich see federal taxes drop dramatically," you may be left with the false impression that United for a Fair Economy (UFE) is a network of wealthy individuals who support higher taxes on themselves. Well, that's close, but not exactly right. UFE is a cross-class organization with supporters of all financial means...
Responsible Wealth Director Mike Lapham joined Julie Dougherty and Ken Morgan, hosts of Money Radio's "Business for Breakfast" (Phoenix, AZ), to explain the failure of tax breaks for the wealthy, and to urge Arizonans to join RW's "Tax Wealth Like Work" campaign to tax investment income like wages.
When it comes to taxes, not all income is created—or taxed—equal. Despite the time-honored value of rewarding hard work, our tax code gives preferential treatment to income derived from pre-existing wealth, rather than income earned from work.
Principles and policies of good federal taxes.
A network of over 700 individuals who are among the wealthiest five percent of Americans who advocate for fair taxes and corporate accountability.
A series of participatory workshops that transform economic statistics into engaging learning experiences to move people to action.
Provides resources that deepen understanding about boundaries to economic parity among communities of color.
A network of 28 state-level advocacy groups that promote fair and adequate taxation at the state and federal levels through grassroots organizing.


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Fast food in popular chain restaurants can be more unhealthy on holiday, parents have been warned, after a survey found that children's meals can have double the amount of salt abroad as they do in Britain.
A study by World Action on Salt and Health (WASH) found huge differences in the recipes of chains like McDonalds, KFC and Burger King.
OK, so perhaps we should ask people. Do your burgers taste better abroad or at home? And if it's the former:
In Britain government health drives have seen huge reductions in the amount of salt in processed food, but other countries have yet to catch up.