On Sustainable Global Development, Long Time International Professional Heather Rome, formerly of DAI

Living in a world where more than one and a half billion people live under the poverty line, it can be difficult to decrease levels of poverty and increase the distribution of economic income. There can also be many roadblocks associated with implementing sustainable global development, according to Heather Rome, formerly of Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI). While humanitarian aid and disaster relief are meant to deliver short-term assistance in times of unforeseen emergencies and catastrophic natural disasters, global development is aimed at delivering long-term and sustainable economic solutions for income generation and stabilization.

Heather Rome DAI

Some of the development challenges faced by the underdeveloped nations in our world include internal political conflict or a close proximity to warring external nations. Other nations must compensate for limited natural resources, geographic barriers, or climate challenges. A variety of statistics are often reviewed to categorize the level of global development need, including the gross domestic product of a nation, the average per-capita income, literacy rates, and infant mortality rates.  Existing information on population growth, such as life expectancy, human rights and political freedoms, are also evaluated. Studies show that successful global development is not only a matter of creating sustainable economic solutions, but also implementing them in accordance with the area’s cultural and social norms.

Heather Rome saw firsthand, through her global work with DAI, some of the daily challenges faced by underdeveloped nations and their populations.  Her efforts, initiatives, and compassion to help provide opportunities, innovative solutions, and a higher quality of life in the global arena have earned much respect and renown throughout the development and business communities.

Heather Rome, Previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI): Why Pack Light?

Traveling abroad is nothing new for seasoned international professionals like Heather Rome, previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI). One of the most common tips that experienced travelers have is to pack light. Whether traveling for business or vacation, packing light makes international travel flow more smoothly.  Some of the most common benefits are listed below:

Packing light is less expensive. Modern airlines charge excess baggage fees, and the less you pack, the less likely you will have to pay these excess fees.  Check with your airline to determine what they consider excess baggage and pack accordingly.

Packing light saves time. If you can fit everything into a carry-on, you will avoid time spent in luggage lines, baggage claim, and customs. This also greatly reduces the risk of lost luggage.

Packing light makes the return trip easier. When you are ready to come home, it will be easier to re-pack your minimal inventory. Dealing with stuffed, messy luggage is not the way to start a stress-free return trip.

Packing light allows you to bring home souvenirs, as you will inevitably see a few things you would like to buy when exploring a new environment.  If you pack light, this will not be a problem. One trick that experienced travelers use is to pack an empty suitcase in their outbound carry-on, fill the suitcase with souvenirs, and check it as luggage on the way home.

Heather Rome DAI traveled to the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe during her time with DAI. After traveling to even half of the countries that Rome has, you will figure out exactly how light you can pack and still travel comfortably.

Heather Rome, Previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI) – Language Learning Tips

Heather Rome is an international business professional and previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI). She has traveled the world for most of her professional life, and in doing so, Rome has acquired an appreciation for learning language and linguistic skills. She speaks both English and Spanish fluently. Only 20% of US residents are bilingual, but communicating in a second language is a valuable skill to learn. If you would like to join the bilingual population, below you will find a few language learning tips to help get you started:

• Find a conversation partner. In most cases, a conversation partner will benefit your linguistic aspirations more than only spending time in a classroom. Find someone who speaks your chosen second language better than you do, and engage in the enjoyable, yet sometimes challenging, conversations that will ensue. Language skills must be processed more than memorized, and a conversation partner will help with that progression.
• Start with 100 commonly-used words. If you look at any language, it will have words that are used several times more often than other words, and these will be the most valuable to you. Learning commonly-used words makes it easier to follow conversation and to assemble sentences.
• Put your ego aside. Learning a language is a humbling activity and you must accept that you will make grammatical errors. Linguistic mistakes happen, and they are part of the fluency learning process.

Learning languages can also help strengthen your brain and improve your creative thinking, regardless of who you are or where you live. When Heather Rome traveled the world during her time with Development Alternatives Inc (DAI), she experienced many linguistic opportunities in various languages and settings.

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Heather Rome DAI

During her time at DAI, Heather Rome exhibited expertise as a business analyst, helping the company to improve its processes and forge relationships, both domestically and internationally. She is also experienced in business operations and strategic implementation, with a particular expertise in international markets. Her work ethic and desire to succeed translated to excellent results during her time at DAI.

Source: Heather Rome DAI

Heather Rome, Previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI) – Creating a Peaceful Workday

Heather Rome, previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), is one of many professionals who lead busy lives. The following tips will help you create a more peaceful workday:

• Create a daily morning routine that you can maintain at home and on travel. Your morning routine might include quiet reading time, exercise, or another activity that you find relaxing. Following your daily morning routine will start your day on the right foot, even if you are traveling or handling a particularly busy workweek.
• Create a calming evening routine that you can also consistently maintain on a daily basis. Your evening routine might include getting clothing ready for the next day, writing in a journal or stretching. Whatever you choose should help you to both mentally relax and prepare for the next day. This will help slow your mind so it is easier to obtain quality sleep and release the day’s accumulated stress.
• Use a daily planner to help ensure that you do not double-book appointments. Daily planners also serve as a record of your endeavors that is easily accessible if you need to know the time and date of a meeting or appointment several months after it took place.
• Reduce your daily commitments. Write down your daily commitments for a seven-day span and then consider what is absolutely necessary. Prioritize events and eliminate those that are nonessential.

When Heather Rome DAI worked with DAI and managed a large portfolio with a variety of responsibilities, she was busy, but calm. Her calm demeanor and disposition were commended by many, and led to the construction of a practical workday with prioritized tasks.

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Heather Rome, Previously of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI) – Lighting in the Workplace

Heather Rome is a practiced business professional with exceptional experience at Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI).  In her years as a businessperson, Rome has experienced varied office environments. Workplaces like those that Heather Rome worked in while with DAI demonstrated that improved ergonomics often lead to increased employee satisfaction. Ergonomic lighting, for example, has been shown to positively impact workplace performance. The higher the illuminance, the greater the efficiency employees typically demonstrate in completing both complex and simple tasks.

Heather Rome DAI

The correct level of lighting can help decrease levels of tiredness, reduce employee stress, and improve overall concentration. Illuminance of between 750 Lux and 1,000 Lux is ideal for both elderly and young employees. Combining light sources to meet lighting requirements can further improve mood, productivity and energy of employees. Natural lighting quality, direct lighting and appropriate luminance lighting typically create a productive combination.

Whether you are designing lighting ergonomics for the workplace or a home office, working near a natural light source helps improve productivity. Additionally, a balance of both direct and indirect lights that are flicker-free and silent will reduce distractions and stress. If possible, the intensity of light in each room, from each source, should be adjustable to suit employee preference.

If you are working in an office with poor lighting and you are not in a position to rework the situation, consider adding a lamp to help illuminate your space. For situations when this is not possible, speaking to management about lighting ergonomics might inspire a deeper analysis.  Through her work for DAI and other businesses, Heather Rome is aware of the benefits of lighting ergonomics.

Heather Rome, Formerly of DAI – Traveling Light

During her time with DAI, Heather Rome found that she was required to travel on a regular basis. She learned how to pack everything she required to do her job while keeping things lightweight. Here are a few tips that she encourages people to keep in mind when packing.

A Small Case

The theory behind this tip is fairly simple, as the smaller your case, the less you will be able to take with you. This means that you will have to prioritize, only taking the things that you really need. Of course, you also get the added advantage of traveling with less weight than you would have with a larger case.

Take Detergent

Instead of packing multiple outfits, try only packing a few reusable items and taking some detergent so that you can wash them at your hotel. You may even prefer to purchase some detergent when you arrive at your destination.

Shoes

Be very particular with your shoe selection. Ideally you should have one pair for leisure and one pair for the office. Wear your leisure shoes on the plane, so that you only have to pack the one pair that you need for the office. Consider bringing some shoe polish so that you can keep office shoes looking great throughout the duration of your trip.

Light Clothes

Packing light clothing is recommended, particularly as clothing can be layered to accommodate changing climates. Clothing made from cotton, linen and merino wool are all excellent choices and won’t leave you feeling bogged down.

Heather Rome DAI is an experienced international traveler and businesswoman who has worked for global corporations such as Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI), and recommends packing and traveling light during your next international adventure.

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Heather Rome, Formerly of DAI – Building a Culture of Collaboration

Heather Rome is a natural leader with a talent for helping groups of people to focus on their individual goals, while also ensuring that they are able to collaborate with one another to reach a shared objective. This is one of the many qualities she implemented at DAI and she has the following tips to share.

Be Understood

If team members are unaware of the objectives towards which they are working, they will soon begin to lose focus and perhaps even start bickering amongst themselves. Make sure that everybody knows the milestones they need to achieve and the priority that is placed on each one. This will allow them to make better use of their individual talents to achieve the collective goals.

Foster Friendship

Team members are more likely to be happy working together when they enjoy each other’s company. Encourage interaction outside the workplace by organizing the occasional lunch. By forming friendships outside the office, each member of the team will feel more comfortable with each other when sharing ideas or offering constructive criticism.

Leadership

As a project leader, be sure to hold team meetings and listen to all suggestions and feedback. Publically acknowledge each individual’s skill set and contributions, and organize workloads accordingly.

Teamwork

Encourage the team to work together towards the shared goal by balancing group tasks with individual tasks to enable those who prefer a more individual workspace to feel comfortable, while still having access to the group as a whole.

Heather Rome, formerly of Development Alternatives, Inc., (DAI) is a project management professional and understands the numerous benefits of a collaborative team work environment.

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Heather Rome, Formerly of DAI – Maintaining Focus

Heather Rome has always been an extremely focused individual, which served her well during her time at DAI, but she also recognizes that the modern world is full of distractions. With the invention of smartphones, computers, email and other things vying for your attention at work, understanding how to avoid distractions and stay focused on the job could lead to increased productivity.

A Steady Pace

Aim to maintain a steady pace towards task accomplishment by working quickly enough to complete your tasks without stressing to finish them in a rushed manner. Trying to cram everything into as short a time as possible will simply lead to burning out by the middle of the day.

Plan Your Day

When faced with a busy day, try spending a little bit of time organizing your tasks and crafting an action plan. Break big jobs down into smaller milestones and assign time to each of your tasks instead of flitting between them in an effort to finish them all at once.

Turn Off the Phone

If you need to concentrate on an important piece of work, try taking a break from all of the technologies that might distract you. Silence your phone and avoid your email inbox until you have finished what you set out to do. You may need to alert colleagues of this plan in advance.

Take a Break

Taking regular short breaks allows you to collect and organize your thoughts. Taking a few moments to pause from the task can also do wonders for your productivity levels when you return to the task at hand.

Heather Rome DAI has worked for several international businesses, including Development Alternatives, Inc (DAI) in a variety of management roles and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA).

Heather Rome, formerly of DAI – Tips for Creating a Healthy Work Environment

Positivity leads to productivity, as Heather Rome found during her time at DAI. When people feel happy in what they do, they are more willing to put in the extra effort required to help a company achieve its goals. With that in mind, here are a couple of tips that should help you create a positive workplace.

Heather Rome DAI

Be Appreciative

If you have the opportunity to lead a project of any size, always be sure to show your appreciation to your team whenever they accomplish a task. Just a simple compliment or thank-you can boost a person’s mood and ensure they remain positive throughout the course of the day. This appreciation should also extend to all people who have helped the team reach success, including those with whom you rarely come into contact.

Listen

Strong leaders take the time to listen to suggestions and feedback. Being heard is one of the most encouraging aspects of positive team membership, communicates that team members are valued individuals, and leads to increased productivity. It also encourages team members to share methods that can contribute to overall increased levels of efficiency.

Have a Little Fun

While the focus of the office is on the work at hand, personal interactions and causal celebrations of team success can boost office morale. Maintaining positive team morale leads to increased productivity, team dedication, and greater levels of overall success.

Heather Rome DAI (Development Alternatives, Inc) is an experienced and knowledgeable professional who appreciated a healthy and productive work environment.