Chevron Assignment Essay

Nowadays, recycling, ecology, environmental protection †¦ are a part of everyday citizens, businesses, politicians; an awareness that has allowed the development of an economic sector and the creation of new jobs. The global warming has increased our awareness towards the planet and its future. In more and more countries, new regulations have been introduced by the government to reduce the amount of pollution. The industrial revolution of our century has put in danger our living resources, nature, and thus potentially putting at risk our own future lifestyle. One of the most pollution producers are the oil or petroleum industries. In this essay we will examine the case of Chevron Corporation which is one of the biggest petrol producers in the world. The company operates approximately 24000 services stations in more than 180 and has over 62000 employees worldwide. (Hoovers inc 2012). We will first examine and discuss the negative impact of this industry on the environment, so therefore on the society, and then we will see how Chevron’s corporation is proceeding to achieve their goal: â€Å"we believe that is the right thing to do and that is critical to our success in a world in which energy sources should be compatible with an environment that’s clean, safe and healthy†. (Hoovers inc 2012) Negative impact on environment of Chevron Corporation. Extraction of petrol itself is not without consequences on local ecosystems, although, as in any industries, the risks can be reduced by vigilant practices. While these fossil fuels can be extracted in a way that environment can be preserved, government and oil companies choose generally, the speed and the efficacy, rather than respect for the environment or the interests of local people, most affected by production. One of the most extreme case of oil exploitation of the rainforest is the equator, where the U. S. oil giant, Chevron-Texaco (now known as the Chevron), seriously damaged the ecosystem of Ecuador for a generation. (Chevron Corporation 2012, 32) This petroleum operation affected more than 30000 Indigenes and settlers homes. However as we noted, this degradation has been punished by the government of equator who fined Chevron corporation 18 billion dollars of compensation (Environment News Service 2012) As shown above the risk of producing oil can be very big. The example, the pollution in equator shows a lack of professionalism and mastery of Chevron Corporation for 18 years. Another example of Chevron’s negligence is the case in Brazil where a leak in one of the drills has caused an oil spillage. In the past, at least 2,400 barrels of crude were spilled into the Atlantic, in the block Campo do Frade, 370 km north-east coast of Rio. ( Jeff Fick 2012) In March 4 2012, a new leak was detected 3 km from the first and nearly 1300 metres deep, of more than 3400 of crude barrels, triggering the suspension of activities of Chevron in Brazil. ( Brazil 2012) Such example provides evidence that this incident could affect the entire marine ecosystem of the region, which could lead to an extinction of some species and thus could have an impact on the  economic activities of the area. For instance, those fishing area may be closed for a long or a short period because of the risk of contamination by oil. The contaminated fishes could have a serious effect on human health if some were used for consumption. From this perspective, the fishery sector of the area affected could see their economy decrease if consumers stop buying their products (Global Marine Oil Pollution Information getaway 2002). As a consequence, the petroleum activities of Chevron Corporation in Brazil have been temporarily stopped. Another fine of 42 millions euro was given to them by Brazil government, but also 17 high level staffs of the industry are prosecuted and will have to pay a fine of 1 million reais, which represent 415000 Euros. (Brazil 2012) Positive impact of Chevron Corporation in environment and stakeholders health. While Chevron Corporation activities in Brazil or equator have been described as negative for the environment, this has not always been the case. Chevron Corporation deployed a program in 2007, the ESHIA (Environment, Social and Health impact assessment process) to anticipate and avoid any negative impacts on health and environment. Chevron has also made a biodiversity statement which expresses its commitment to incorporating biodiversity consideration, as part of their ESHIA program (Chevron 2011). For instance, the Salak project inside one of Indonesia’s biggest national park has for main purposes to preserve the biodiversity in this area. They work with the local farmers to protect species, such as, gibbons, hawk eagles and leopards. Chevron also received an award by Indonesia community for Best Environmental Management during their operations at Salak. Such example provides evidence of chevron commitments with regards to environmental issues while helping the world meet their need for energy. Stakeholders, such as employees are probably the ones who can be the most affected by Chevron toxic pollution during the extraction of oils. They work day by day surrounded by dark smoke, petroleum and without some good health measures their well being could be seriously in danger. We understand why, Chevron Corporation has invested a lot on employees’ health. From this perspective, cost related to employees’ health, or productivity can be considerately improved. The Argentina cases during 2009, where nearly 800000 people were seriously affected by the flu H1N1 in only 6 months, can show how well Chevron Argentina, has managed it within the industry. By multipronged strategy, only 20 employees, which represent 6. 8% of the business, were affected by the disease. Furthermore, in 2010 Chevron introduced a training program over the problem of tuberculosis. ( Chevron 2011) The high rating of tuberculosis in the world pushed them to invest in this cause. For instance, the provincial program which fights against tuberculosis, in Cabinda, Angola, has benefited from a donation of several drugs and diagnostic facilities, under the initiative of the Chevron Corporation in October 2011. ( Chevron 2011) The evidences above demonstrate that Chevron is really implicated into the well being of the society. By fighting those scourges, like H1N1 or Tuberculosis, Chevron enhance its image in its fight to maintain people’s health while at the same time doing all they can to better respect the environment. Apart from its implication in the health field, Chevron is also taking measures which aimed reduce its energy consumption as more as possible and therefore pollute less. One of the most effective ways is the use of Energy Efficiency, which is one of the most valuable sources of new energy. (Chevron on Track to Achieve 20 Percent Production-Growth Target by 2017 2012 ). As describe in Chevron website, the use of Energy Efficiency is highly beneficial because it reduces carbon emissions, lowers cost and it helps Chevron to conserves its supplier. For example, according to Chevron Corporation a reduction of 5% in global energy we use can reduce the extraction of petroleum by 10 millions barrels per day, which represent enough energy to supply Australia, United Kingdom and Mexico. ( Chevron 2011) We believe that in order to meet the world demand for energy, Chevron cannot forget about oil, which is one of the most polluted materials in the world to use, and focus their work only on renewable energy and efficiency energy as this will reduced their competitive level. However as the world is more and more concern in environmental issues, it is clear that renewable energy technologies that are scalable, sustainable and profitable will take gradually take over from the traditional sources of energy. Conclusion The petroleum conglomerates are easy targets for environmentalists. Their operations are very noticeable, and create a dramatic impact on the local economy and local social conditions. Chevron mistake among the management of its pollution, in Argentina, but especially in the Ecuadorian forest, reveals all the negative impact they had on the community and the environment of the area. However, as local communities are recovering from profits of oil development, while shouldering the majority of social and environmental costs, it is easy to see why the contribution of oil development in the destruction of the environment is often exaggerated. It is by critical episode like Argentina or Ecuador drama, that people ultimately judge those companies. In contrast, when examining Chevron commitment with regards to people’s health and respect on the environment, (with organization such as ESHIA) the evidence demonstrates that Chevron care a lot about all these issues. They are also working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, by working on new technologies which could in a near future change our world. In light of this, we can conclude by saying that Chevron has consistently met the needs of their stakeholders in most operation, apart from those mistakes we know.

Themonstersaredueonmaplestreet

Once the object flies overhead, the machinery and technology in the neighborhood begins to fail; the cars won't start, the phones don't work, and the power grid for the homes goes dark. Though there may be many different messages to interpret with this particular episode, I believe the main one to leap out at us is this: if technology fails us, we resort to our primal instincts and chaos ensues. This is evident when a young boy in the neighborhood hypothesizes that the object overhead is some sort of alien craft, and that the aliens won't let any of them leave the neighborhood.The boy goes on to mention that in a comic book that he read, only the aliens sent down before the spacecraft would be able to leave the town and that they would look and act just like one of them (humans). I would personally find this idea a farce, but the neighborhood entertains this idea after a man disappears to investigate the next block over and doesn't return for hours. At this point, mass hysteria begin s to take hold.The neighborhood becomes suspicious of their neighbors and begins to ostracize one another to figure out who the invaders are. When one neighbors car starts on its own, the mob is quick to question why his car works but theirs don't. Another neighbor points out that she often sees the man standing out in his yard late at night, gazing up into the sky as if he were looking for something. Accusations continue to be passed around, with each neighbor pointing out something suspicious about the other.Are we beginning to see the theme here? As night falls, paranoia has taken over. Though some might argue that it would likely take more than one day for neighbors to act so rashly, its easy to e that in this confusion of an inexplicable event how effectively The Twilight Zone fast-forwards the like-minded mob mentality to communicate the episode's message. A figure appears in the street, and one man–thinking it to be some sort of invader-?raises a gun and kills the figu re for all the mob to see.It's revealed to us that the figure was no monster at all, just the innocent neighbor that went to investigate the other blocks only couple of hours earlier. At this point, the mob accuses the man who shot their neighbor that he's the real monster-?maybe he wanted them dead all along. They throw stones at him and more chaos ensues. At the end of the episode the camera pans out to a spacecraft perched on a hill overlooking the neighborhood. Two aliens look on as the neighborhood rips itself apart.They discuss how easily man can be manipulated when you take away their technology and how quickly they turn on one other in times of great panic. The episode concludes with them mentioning how easy it will be to conquer the species with this knowledge in hand. Personally I think The Twilight Zone did an excellent job of showcasing how quickly we can turn on one another in times of crisis. In my own experience with the military, I've been in several situations where something went wrong and people began looking for others to blame.

Operation information system management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Operation information system management - Essay Example The telecommunication component constitute of information technology that helps to channel information to all the departments within an organization. In addition, information technology encourages creativity and innovativeness because of dynamism experienced in business environment. The major types of information systems include; functional system and organization information systems. Functional information systems provide support to specific departments within an organization (Encyclopedia Britanic pp.1-3). An example of functional information systems include; production system, marketing systems and cross functional systems. Those systems helps in ensuring that there efficient and effective logistics operations (Encyclopedia Britanic p.3). On the other hand, organization information systems are those systems that enhance effectiveness and efficiency in organization operations. Among the organization systems include; those that provide support to the organization operations, organiz ation knowledge and managerial support. Operation support encompasses three major areas of operations namely; supply chain management, transactional systems and management of customer’s relationships (Encyclopedia Britanic pp.2-3). Knowledge support system facilitates flow of knowledge through out the organization. Among the knowledge systems include; collaboration support systems, professional knowledge support systems and knowledge management systems. A collaboration management system helps to ensure proper coordination among all departments within an organization. On the contrary, a professional knowledge management system helps to promote cohesiveness among different professionals working together in a company. Connectively, management support system entails decision support models such as executive support systems and managerial reporting systems (Encyclopedia Britanic p.3-7). Therefore, this study will provide a comprehensive report and an analysis of the role and acqui sition of information systems for TGL senior management as well as line management. Role and acquisition of IS for TGL for its senior management and line management Information system involves three major roles namely; providing support to business operations, making managerial decisions and providing support to achieve strategic competitive advantage (Bagad p.2). Business operation role involves applying information systems in recording inventories, billing of vendors and customers, management of cash flows to mention just but a few. For example, it can be scrutinized that TGL Company has an account department that takes part in executing business operation role. For example, it was reported that TGL account department makes purchase orders as well as make payment for goods and services on behalf of the entire organization. In addition, TGL marketing department conduct marketing research to determine popularity of their company products and design marketing strategies that can be e mployed to market their company products. Whereby, marketing managers provides managers with necessary information that can help them make sound decisions on the most appropriate design that can be employed. On the other hand, information system plays decision role, this involves providing information that may help TGL managers to decide whether to invest, divest or not to invest on a particular product (Bagad p.2-3). Finally, information syst

Prepare a report presenting the results of the analysis of recent Statistics Project

Prepare a report presenting the results of the analysis of recent trends in sales, costs and profits of a chosen company - Statistics Project Example The Coca Cola Company is the largest beverage company in the world accounting for about 1.3 billion servings of the 50 billion servings consumed each day. There are over 500 nonalcoholic beverage brands consisting of sparkling beverages and still beverages. Sparkling beverages include Coca Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta. The still beverages are water, enhanced waters, juices, ready to drink teas and coffees, energy and sports drinks. The company makes huge profits but notable it made loss in 2006 and 2008 financial years as indicated by the consolidated statement of income (CE-AR, 2006 and CE-AR, 2008). The company is however doing the best to correct mistakes that lead to losses witnessed earlier and prevent such eventuality. The sales of these products tend to be seasonal. The second and third quarters normally accounts for higher unit sales than the first and fourth quarters. The second and third quarters accounts for over 60 percent of the annual net operating income. The seasonality of the sales volume affects the results on quarterly basis. The changes in weather patterns, selling times/days and the shifts in holidays influence the results on annual or quarterly basis. (The Coca Cola Company 2006 Annual Report) The emergence of new companies that deal in beverages have presented a case of stiff competition for Coca Cola. Market research becomes an important determinant of attracting customers. The company hires research experts to facilitate such. In order to counter the steps made by their competitors, the company watches over them. The company has several branches across the world. Although the major branches are in the United States, sales volume outside US exceeds them. Given the marketing strategies used in other parts of the world, the products sell a lot (Breneiser & Allen, 2011). The Coca Cola Company operates in socially and environmentally friendly manner. That remains a long-term priority of the company. It is committed to

Assigment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assigment 2 - Essay Example The collision between the particles in the matter has been observed by Field (2013) to be perfectly elastic. This theory has been critical in explaining various characteristics of matter including heating and change of state. In solids, the particles would be strongly attracted to one another more than they would be attracted in liquids and in gases. Introduction of heat to the matter would cause the molecules to vibrate more quickly, causing some of it to escape from the matter. For example, when heat is applied to ice, a solid state, the ice particles would vibrate, moving apart from each other to change to water, its liquid state. Heat and Temperature Heat refers to a form of energy which when supplied to a matter causes an increase in the internal energy of the matter, typically made up of both the kinetic and potential energies of both its molecules and atoms. The atoms and molecules would have kinetic energy due to the translational, vibrational and rotational motions and poten tial energy due to their relative positions. The greater the potential energy of a matter, the greater the molecules would be farther apart. Considering a pot of soup and a mug of soup laded from it, the thermal energy, heat in the pot would be greater due to the greater number of particles moving and creating energy. On the other hand, temperature refers to the quantity of energy in a molecule as opposed to heat which measures the total amount of energy contained in all the molecules in a matter. It refers to the coldness or hotness of a matter which is based on the average kinetic energy, hence the relationship between heat and temperature (Baser, 2006). Temperature measures the intensity rather than quantity as in heat (Field, 2013). As such, considering the case of the soup, the particles could be averagely vibrating at the same speed in the pot and the mug thus making them both have the same temperature despite their difference in size. Temperature, as opposed to heat is not en ergy but rather its measure. Heat would normally be transferred from a hotter matter to a colder one until both matters have same temperature. But at times, heat transfer would not necessarily lead to change in temperature as the molecules of the matter absorbing heat basically change or rearrange, referred to as phase change. An example would be in water changing to vapor during heating. Both heat and temperature are not observable quantities. Similarly, just like heat, temperature could be measured. The device used to measure heat changes in a reaction is called a calorimeter which measures in joules (Jung, Lorente, Anderson, & Bejan, 2011). A thermometer would be used to measure temperature in degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit. Properties of a Substance determining its Heat Capacity The heat capacity is a critical property of matter which represents the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of a given quantity of matter by one degree (Zhang et al., 2011). Different mater ials would have different heat capacities. Take for instance blocks made of different materials but of the same mass and cross section of bases. When heated in an oven to same temperature and placed on a piece of ice, despite of their same mass and temperature, they would melt the ice to different depths. When measured per unit mass, this would be referred to as specific heat capacity. Heat capacity of a material would depend on its

Driven to Explore (Portfolio#3) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Driven to Explore (Portfolio#3) - Essay Example Many of these artists fought failure but through persistence and different faith bases, they become popular and often, well known even. These artists used their spirituality in their works as their beliefs became intertwined with how they were able to express it. Spirituality can influence creativity. Some of these artists simply believe in a higher power, not necessarily assuming a specific religion. Many of them believe that a God of some sort gave them the power to create and it is their purpose, taking them on a journey of the unknown. People are driven to explore beyond what they know in their cultures and their own personal experiences influence their abilities to create. Oftentimes, artists are so deep and analytical, they need to seek a purpose in life. For them, they often seek an understanding and are embarking on an emotional desire for their reason. It is through embarking on their journey through spirituality that they find the calling in their lives which then comes out in the form of creation and artistic

Comparative esaay comparing three stories. Everyday Use,Rose for Essay

Comparative esaay comparing three stories. Everyday Use,Rose for Emily,Dead Mans Path. How each story shows progression - Essay Example In â€Å"A Rose for Emily†, the Grierson house stands as a testament to a different era that has withstood the test of time. First, it stood as a monument, a breathing, living symbol of the Griersons’ wealth and power in their town. The looming structure sheltered Emily’s ancestors, her father and aunt, and lastly, herself. After her father’s death, it became a shield with which she drove away others from her, and she hid behind her shield so well that nobody had access to what was going on inside the house. And yet, as time passed, the house also became her prison. She was chained to the comfort and protection that her family’s house provided. Her faithful manservant became her only contact to the outside world, and even he was not fully aware of the developments in the town. Emily did not even know that the mayor who spared her family from taxes has been gone for a decade. It is this kind of sameness within her cocoon that made her retreat from th e world so effective. The house also contained her secrets, and hid them well. Nobody has ever set foot inside the house for so long, and this has added to that air of mystery that it embodied. Even when Emily opened her house to children who came to learn china painting, she did not reveal to them all of the hidden nooks and crannies of her abode. The house remained formidable, a stalwart witness to the passing of time. In the end, however, time was the only thing that remained, and upon Emily Grierson’s death, the house had to be opened up to enquiring neighbors. It was then that they finally discovered the secrets that the house harbored for a long time, and in a way, this became Emily’s posthumous salvation, for in the very end, they understood that she too experienced love for a man, and that she too, whom they previously thought was above them, was very human and was not after all alien to the willful demands of passionate love. The house then became a symbol of Emily’s emancipation and liberation, and of how, when it finally opened up to the outside world, it had withstood the progression of time. A similar symbol of liberation can be found in â€Å"Everyday Use.† The quilt, which was handed down from generation to generation, represented Maggie and Dee’s family heritage and identity, and the richness of their family’s history. The significance of the title lies in the way that the quilt brought out the fundamental differences between Maggie and Dee. Each saw the quilt quite differently: Dee thought that the quilt was good to hang in the wall and to be preserved, given that she has learned, through her progression to being cultured and educated, that the quilt must be handled with care. Maggie – and her mother – on the other hand saw the quilt as a source of comfort and connection to their older generations, and as such, must be kept closer to heart and be used daily for the very purpose that it wa s intended. The way they viewed the quilt represented the fundamental difference between their characters. The conversation revolving around Dee’s name change also revealed the kind of relationship that Dee had with her family. It can be inferred that Dee was not aware that she was not named after white people, but rather, that her name was a derivative from their ancestors. It was this kind of not-knowing, of ignorance of their family

HRM Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

HRM - Coursework Example In order to set up an effective HR department, the first step would be to review current policies and practices. This involves reviewing the various HR functions and expectations. In this case, the HR functions will include recruitment and selection, performance management, reward management, workplace management, capacity building, employee relations and establishing an effective HRM system. The HR takes into account the organization’s structure, systems, politics, positions among others. The next step is to discuss the beliefs and values of the organization with senior management. Here, the HR takes it upon himself discuss issues such as the organization’s short term and long term goals and objectives, the expectations of the HR department and how the HR contributes to the objectives of the organization. The HR should also discuss the current organizational culture, as well as core activities and business drivers with senior management. By now the HR has a wide view o f what the organization is working towards and is ready to be part of it. The next step is to formulate the HR department’s objectives and strategies. This involves drafting job description, job analysis, job specifications, payroll and compensation. The HR will also have to lay out appointment, termination and resignation procedures. As a function of HR, it is necessary to draft induction and orientation programs. At this point, it is essential to review main functions of HR department. These key functions include job development, recruitment and selection, organizational behavior policies and programs, organizing, HR planning, performance management, HR development, reward management, employee relations, health and safety of employees. With this in mind, the next step is to note what is necessary for the organization in order of priority to make up the HR system. Here, the HR should write a report detailing the situation on the ground, the HR department required priorities, the action plan and the time schedule. The HR can now form the department as the HR manager with the assistance of one training manager, one salary administration manager and recruitment and selection manager. The HR then seeks approval from senior management to implement the plan. Question two The most appealing HR function is the recruitment and selection process. This is because it is the core function of the HR department. Without recruitment and selection, there would be no workforce; hence, there would be no HR department. Absence of workforce to carry out the activities an organization will lead to its closure. The information in the article is detailing the importance of the recruitment and selection process in any organization. The article details the steps that the HR manager should follow in the recruitment and selection process. Any organization requires qualified and competent employees; hence, the article emphasizes the need for a thorough recruitment and selection pr ocess. According to the article, the recruitment and selection process should be as efficient as possible, because the success of any organization depends on it. The article attempts to solve the problem of managers who take the process lightly. A HR manager, who fails in the selection and recruitment of employees, will be responsible for the failure of the organization. The articles also insist that team charged with recruitment and selection should have the required skills. This is because this team has the

Human resource management challenges in knowledge-intensive sectors Essay

Human resource management challenges in knowledge-intensive sectors and solutions - Essay Example Based on this research human resource management (HRM) is of crucial importance for the optimum functioning of the organisation, irrespective of whatever sector they operate in. As the organisations in all the sectors including knowledge-intensive sectors will have humans or employees, human resource management is inevitable. With the organisations in the knowledge intensive sectors maximally dependent on the employees and their intellectual assets than other sectors like manufacturing, service, etc., (which could have use of infrastructures and machineries), HRM has to play a major role to solve all the HRM centric challenges. In any organisation, Human Resource Department (HRD) in association with other departments will play a variety of roles. HRD as part of HRM will select of the right people for the right jobs or designations through aptly conducted recruitment drives. Then, they have to provide a healthy and effective work environment for them to exhibit high productivity. Effe ctive work environment in the sense, the employees can be made to work as part of teamwork, can be involved more in the decision making processes and importantly could be given timely incentives so that their efficacy levels are always at the peak. All these key aspects have to be taken by the organisation or the management with good inputs from the HRD in line with optimum HRM. Workers are the integral part of any successful organisation and that includes Knowledge-Intensive Firms (KIP). This paper will discuss the HRM centric challenges and problems that will normally arise among the employees in KIPs, and importantly discuss how it can be solved, thus making the employees provide optimum productivity and thereby keep the operations of those firms, running in a smooth, well lubricated manner. Knowledge-intensive sector or Knowledge-Intensive Firms (KIPs) The concept of KIFs is apparently distinct from other organisational categories or organisations in other sectors. This is becau se in other traditional organisational categories, the emphasis will be more on the raw materials, capital, machineries, etc., with employees and their intellectual assets playing a complementary role. However, in the case of firms in the Knowledge intensive sectors, their entire operations will depend on humans and their knowledge. â€Å"KIFs are generally considered to be diametrically opposite to traditional manufacturing firms in that the knowledge rather than physical or financial capital is central to the companies’ existence† (Jorgensen, Becker and Matthews 2009, pg. 451). Thus, the firms operating in the Knowledge Intensive sector carry out their operations based on the professional knowledge exhibited by their employees. That is, using the knowledge of the employees, they mainly provide knowledge based support, service and even products for other business processes. As stated by Rylander and Peppard (2005, pg.4), â€Å"KIFs are characterized as organisations where well-educated and qualified employees form a major part of the work force and engage in mainly â€Å"intellectual work†. Certain organisations, which do and provide these types of works or services comes under this knowledge intensive sector. For example, consulting organisations, financial companies, law firms, private banks, architecture companies, etc., comes under this sector because these companies will use their employees’ knowledge and data analysis skills to provide service to the other businesses or clients. Because of this main focus on the employees and their knowledge, more than their physical skills, their mental abilities will be focused. Thus, these firms will have a different employment structure than the traditional firms. For example, â€Å"their employment structures are heavily weighted towards scientists, engineers, auditors and other experts in specific fields.† (Metcalfe and Miles 1997, pg. 8). Thus, it is clear that the organisation al and employment struct

Leadership Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Leadership - Assignment Example The today business world faces numerous challenges; the economic world is actually characterized by the never unknown transformations of new technologies, ever growing and changing market demands and the global competition (Gardner & Schermerhorn Jr, 2004). There is a high level of uncertainties and complexities facing the workers in their various workplaces, and the job roles are becoming very ambiguous and the originations have found a new companion called change. The leaders who look at company matters for their personal gains instead of considering the organizational well-being usually because deep resignation, general mistrust amongst the employees and the citizens, in general. In this unpredictable business environment, demand for new original leadership is rising very fast. The lack of the public trust in the business world always has some consequences which are very dangerous to the many who enjoy the market system and that is why the development of unique set of business leaders who treat the very people who work for them as the backbone of their business and the key to success rather than some capital incentives for doing business is actually very essential (Dent, Higgins, & Wharff, 2005). Many people are going round looking for the actual meaning of their working life, looking for the leaders who can restore the much-needed trust, the ever needed confidence, optimism and the much-envied resilience. The society in the today’s world is in the constant need of innovative and sustained performance which is based on the much needed ethical values that usually go beyond the daily financial gains. The secret of leading the ever growing leading business organizations firmly lies in the slow development and some adoption and integration of authentic leaders who can actually give their employees the much needed guidance and together march on for a shared vision, and the authentic leaders who are competent enough

Causes and Effect of Poverty Essay Example for Free

Causes and Effect of Poverty Essay The level of poverty, causes and effects on the Educational sector as well as academic performance of students within the Nigeria is worrisome. Poverty, which forms a specific culture and way of life, is a growing issue in Nigeria. The number of Nigerians living in poverty is continually increasing; hence its effects on students performance. This research focuses on the causes and effects of poverty on the academic performance of pupils in primary school, using primary school within Pankshin Local Government as a case study. To create a comprehensive overview of the study and data collection, both primary and secondary methods were used. The primary method includes the questionnaire while secondary method includes books, articles, results and academics performance of students between 2005 – 2011. Questionnaires were distributed among three (3) randomly chosen primary schools, and the returned questionnaires were collated, analysed and interpreted. The results showed that majority of students in primary schools studied have parents who are living below poverty line subsequently, this affects their performance in school as a result of lack of income. Moreover, majority of the students whose parents are below poverty line have reported cases of different diseases which lead to absenteeism. Lastly, it was observed that some students dropout as a result of inability to pay tuition fees. This research hereby recommends that Government should team up with private bodies to make as well implement policies to reduce poverty. Finally, teachers are advised to inculcate teaching techniques that will help students understand the subject easily in order to perform well.

Merger and Acquisitions Theories in Management

Merger and Acquisitions Theories in Management Management theory and practice Mergers and acquisitions are a main means by which single and individuals are able to grow and then enter the new markets. After this happens, the competitive structure of the whole industries may alter radically in a span of a short time. Mergers are the unifications of two or even more firms into forming a new one whereas acquisitions are the companys purchases of the majority of the shares from another. Mergers and acquisitions can also represent a major mechanism through which the firms that are national are able to become multinational firms. The cost and benefit analysis of the mergers and acquisitions affect the decision by the managers and the shareholders of whether to take up a specific merger and acquisition. The decision by the employees also can lead to the acceptance or refusal of the merger and acquisition (Paul Simon 2). In this paper, I am going to research on why the employee-related issues prevent the succeeding of a merger or acquisition. The modern business environment is characterized by change that is continuous in nature. Every organization is considered as a system where work, process, system, people are all aligned in order to ensure that the unit of the individual, individual and overall systems are well fit to deliver the strategies of the organization. The objective of the integrative process is to integrate people, processes, technologies and strategy without interrupting service, quality or product and not only to combine financial standing of any two companies. Employees issues in relation to the integration phase always relate to the human capital related integration issues such as integration of the culture of the organization, leadership, organization structure and design, processes and systems and retention of the key talent. The other important issues are effective planning for the purpose of integration, employee communications, and the selection of good leaders to manage the business combination and the creation of practices and policies for knowledge sharing and learning and also the transfer. The failure to address the issues that concern merger and acquisition impacts the new and current organization very negatively at the stage of post-merger in two levels. One of these two levels is the individual level and the reactions of the individual employees are insecurity, powerlessness, alienation, a drop in productivity, loss of energy and the rise in absenteeism which increases turnover and profits. Other stress factors include the performance evaluation criteria, the loss of control over the life of the professional and also the alterations in the reporting relationships which would also impact the merger or the acquisition adversely or negatively. There are also many other psychological impacts which result from the merger activity. These are lifestyle instability, loss of confidence, depression, anxiety among others and these symptoms may lead to large-scale industrial strikes at times (Nilanjan and Bhattacharya 143). From this we can find that due to these impacts, the employees can resist the mergers and or acquisition in their companies. The other level is the corporate level and at this level the impacts are long-term in the cultural integration, organization structure and design, processes and systems. The failure to tackle these issues in the phase of planning of the merger process can lead to outcomes such as benefits integration, high financial costs, incompatible HR plans and policies, inadequate communication to the employees, insufficient provisions and reserves for risks that had not been discovered and/or improperly evaluated, inefficient financial accounting for the integration costs, the loss of loyalty of the employees leading to the high turnover rates, the dilemma of the workforce reduction, reduced productivity and finally leads to lowered employee morale (Nilanjan and Bhattacharya 144). These issues are the ones that drive the employees to be against and protect the mergers and acquisitions. The strategic combinations of the mergers and acquisitions have a dramatically greater chance of success in terms of providing the added value to all employees, and shareholders. The success could also be experienced in justifying of the acquisition premium when they are led, designed and implemented with these four elements. The first element is the integrative perspective in which the mergers need to be seen as combinations that try to balance the interplay of the organizational architecture and organizational strategy with the guiding principles of the management of the change. The second element is the designed integration which is the scope, intensity and degree of the integration and should be driven by elementary business case for the merger or acquisition which defines integration process. The third is the differential leadership because leadership is very vital and different leaders have different roles. The leadership roles should be considered and assigned at the initial stages because this could bring confusion at the late stages. Lastly, the expanded due diligence factor is considered where the organizational issues are discussed. In this case, the organizational diligence is made a crucial part of the merger and the acquisition chain of events as is the due financial and legal diligence. An example of the job losses caused by mergers and acquisitions and also the reduction of salaries of the members of banks is the European banking sector. Since the start of 1990s, the European banking sector has witnessed massive job losses and the decrease of the salaries of the employees who were left. The impact of these job losses has been greater in the Northern Europe rather than in the southern Europe. The employment in the sector of insurance has also been affected as a result of mergers and acquisition. The nature and quality of the employment has greatly changed from the year 2000 in Europe (Paul and Simon 2002: 45). The reductions of employment have affected the branch administrative and networks functions. The older workers with the conventional banking skills who do not qualify and therefore not transferable easily to the new developed and centralized functions, for example those that work in the call centers, are affected adversely. These are the people who may rise ag ainst any mergers and/or acquisitions and also the banks may consider these people and reach a decision not to accept any mergers and acquisitions. Mergers and acquisitions have been known to accelerate corporate practices because the enterprises tend to review the whole cost structure entailing the mergers and acquisitions with the aim of identifying the very maximum savings that are possible. The job losses have increased greatly from 17.5% to 24% due to many mergers and acquisitions. A merger and/or acquisition also referred to as a takeover invalidates in many ways the employment contract. The employee works for someone else without having taken the required steps to change his or her employers. This brings into clear view in an emphatic manner the one-sidedness of the employment relationship and also the idea that the employees do not have any control over the decision of who their employers are. The mergers and/or acquisitions are described as the legitimate means for breaking the implicit contracts in the view of restructuring (Paul and Simon 2002: 183). The mergers are seen as avenues to disrupt job security that the employees have held for long periods and therefore are bound to disrupt the process of mergers and/or acquisitions. These mergers and acquisitions appear to the employees as deliberate strategies to violate the internal norms and also as a hard, brute exercise of powers and therefore they can prevent the succeeding of the mergers and acquisitions. The integrating of the different company procedures and systems requires the harmonization of the different aspects of terms and conditions that apply to the employment signings. These include job titles, pay scales, job descriptions, entitlements and benefits, supervisory and reporting lines are all subjected to revision in order to ensure that there is common practice in the new mergers and acquisitions. These changes may make the employees to reject any mergers and acquisitions. The mergers and the acquisitions upset the links between explicit and implicit contracts in accompany that was in the past based on trust between workers and managers, they are presently founded on assumptions and beliefs regarding mutual responsibility between employees and employers. The integration, merger and acquisition also requires the harmonization of the different aspects of conditions and terms of the employment to ensure that common practice in the combined organization which may alter the existing practices of the human resource and management of either or even both of the organizations. Workers or employees have also considered the lack of incentives due to mergers and acquisitions. There is no transparency in the reward systems and the mergers also lead to contradiction between performance assessments that focus on personal contribution and the objectives that require team-based work. The employees therefore call for better balanced team-based and individual rewards. This is supported by trade unions where they argue that the alterations to the psychological contract which include erosion in the job security are not well reflected in the enterprise reward systems after the mergers and acquisitions. This decreased job security, increased workloads, stress and anxiety are other significant consequences of the heightened merger and acquisitions activity. These factors coupled with lowered morale and also a deterioration of the organization performance has led the employees to be against the implementation of mergers, takeovers and acquisition. This human side of the acquisitions and mergers is all about the overall impact that mergers and/or acquisitions have on the employees in a certain company. These impacts on the psychological difficulties that the employees experience, the culture clashes which may emerge in companies during the post-merger integration period. Finally the ways in which these outcomes manifest themselves that include communication breakdowns, there is also the we-they mentality that occurs between the inclusive organizations in the merger and acquisitions, minimized commitment, reductions in productivity, organizational struggles for power and also office politicking and at last the loss of the key and main organizational members. All these factors combined include the employee issues that affect the realization of mergers and acquisitions (Anthony and James 3). Through research through face to face interviews, a writer concluded that the employees were an important asset to the companies and that they should be considered when the management decides on mergers and acquisitions. Through an interview with an employee of a company that had undergone acquisition, Hayes was told that the employees would not make any move because they were told that their methods were outdated and that they would have to readjust to the new companys way of conducting their activities. He indicated that when he tried to complain to the corporate about the situation, he was warned that if he squawked too loud, his position would be in jeopardy. This resulted to the destruction of the company morale and with time, the main people started leaving and it did not take much time before he also resigned (Hayes 1981: 131). If the company had taken into consideration all complains of their employers, they would have retained their experienced workers and this would increas e the productivity levels. Acquisition and mergers can adequately transform the organizational processes, systems, structures and also cultures of one or both of the companies involved that the employees will often feel confused, frustrated, frightened, stressed or even frustrated and therefore whenever the employees of a particular company here of any merger and/or acquisition they are ready to prevent the realization of the same. On the personal level, these feelings often lead to psychosomatic difficulties, sense of loss, marital discord and at the extreme level, they can lead to suicide. On the level of organization, these feelings are manifested in lowered productivity and commitment, increased disloyalty and dissatisfaction, increased turnover among the key managers, power and leadership struggles especially among the managers who remain in the organization and finally an increase in the dysfunctional work-related behaviors at all the levels of the hierarchy. These impacts on the employee and by the empl oyee are issues that negatively affect the mergers and acquisitions. It is reported that in the 3000 and above mergers that occurred in the year 1985, so many employees estimated to be more than ten thousand lost their jobs and others were forced to accept early retirement (Kanter and Segger-man 1986: 17). It was also estimated that by the year 1990, there will be 2500 savings and loans and 5400 banks that would be involved in mergers and these would affect more than 900, 000 people in the United States. In the year 2009, it was noted that there were decreasing mergers and acquisition activities and that also the credits were tightening. One of the reasons of a successful merger and transaction activity is the compensation which is never done and if it is done it is only given to the executives. The compensation can be a powerful tool to motivate the management and its team to influence positive outcomes in the activity involving mergers and acquisition. This has not been the case in the recent past and the employees are laid off without being paid well leading to the negative feelings that they experience shortly afterwards. This can explain the reduction of the merger and acquisition activity because the employees through their managers are able to prevent the realization or completion of a merger and/or acquisition owing to the fact that they are not compensated. In the recent past there was the acquisition of Merrill Lynch by the Bank of America, there was a problem in the executive pay and compensation and this led to a very expensive roadblock to the desired transaction. A report by the PricewaterhouseCooper indicates that the merger and acquisition activity has decreased 86 percent from the year 2008, the previous year. In addition to these statistics, when the High Court approves the schemes of arrangement of a merger, it takes into account the workers interests. The scheme of arrangement must provide for adequate protection for the employees service benefits and conditions. If the scheme shows otherwise, the High court does not agree to the terms and conditions of the merger and therefore we find that the issues of the employee are considered. The organizational behavior is always reflected by acquisition behavior, the relative size and the cultural compatibility. Global mergers and acquisitions are the main corporate strategies which the multinational corporations use to diversify, expand or even consolidate their businesses. In the year 2006, there was a recorded worldwide annual value of the acquisition transactions exceeded US $ 4 trillion (Larsen 2007: 23). This trend was also recorded in the year 2007 where the worldwide transaction value of the acquisitions in only the first 3 months ranged at US $ 1.13trillion which was the highest busiest recorded quarter ever in history (Saigol and Politi 2007: 145). However, almost 83%of these transactions were unsuccessful (KPMG, 1999; Sirower 1997). A considerable amounts of research developed that the failures were caused by the absence of a national cultural fit which is the cultural distance of the workers and employees (Rottig and Reus 2006: 340). This may lead to cultural problems and clashes among the involved workforces. This in return lowers the employee cooperation and commitment, cause voluntary turnover of the acquired top managers and could also complicate the process of post-acquisition integration (Very and Schweiger 2001:22). The cultural distance might have some positive results but it is among the high points that lead to the failure of the mergers and acquisitions and it is an employee-related issue. The organizational culture which is defined as the interdependent and interrelated system of practices, beliefs, norms and assumptions that the members of the organization bear collectively should be put into consideration before a merger and/or acquisition because when they are altered extensively after the merger, the employees will tend to work against them and this will not promote success of the merger and/or acquisition. The assumptions, norms and practices could be unconscious which are learnt through the socialization of the organization and often reflect the shared perceptions of the daily practices and also determine the things that are carried out within an organization (Gertsen, et al. 1998: 123). An example is the acquisition of the Tokyo Bank by the Mitsubishi Bank in the year 2003. These two organizations had very dissimilar organization cultures. The employees of the Mitsubishi Bank shared a common cultural norm of being to work on time, wearing only white shirts while at work and also thanking their department supervisors and managers in person for any monthly pay checks. But in contrast, the employees of Tokyo Bank were not used to strict dress code and being reprimanded for getting to work late and they also had no duty to carry out a thanksgiving ceremony as they collected their monthly salaries. After the acquisition activity, a huge number of the employees of the Tokyo Bank were alienated by the strict culture of the Mitsubishi Bank and they left the combined company voluntarily. This was in the United States. This is an example of how the employee-related issues could lead to unsuccessful mergers and acquisitions. Poor communication between the employees of the same company after a merger or an acquisition could lead to problems of integration in both the domestic and the international mergers and/or acquisitions. This may cause unsuccessful mergers and acquisitions and it is an employee-related issue. On the other hand, the international acquisitions are characterized by ethnocentrism; nationalistic attitudes; xenophobia and language barriers (Vaara 2003: 864) and these could lead to the failure of the mergers and acquisitions. Work cited Nilanjan Sengupta and Bhattacharya Mousumi. Managing change in organizations.PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd. Anthony Buono and James Bowditch. The human side of mergers and acquisitions: managing collisions between people, cultures and organizations. Chicago: Beard Books, 2003 Kanter, R and Seggerman, T. managing mergers, acquisitions, and divestiures. Management review, Oct 1986, pp 16-17. Hayes, R. what happens to my people after I sell? The human side of acquisition. In S. J. Lee and R. D. Colman (eds.), handbook of mergers, acquisitions and buyouts. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1981. Paul Temple and Simon Peck. Mergers and Acquisitions: critical perspectives on business and management. : Taylor Francis, 2002. Thomas Straub. Reasons for frequent failure in mergers and acquisitions. Germany: DUV, 2007. Rottig, D. Reus, T.H. Organizational and national cultures consequences for acquisition performance: A meta-analysis, Paper presented at Southern Management Association, Clearwater Beach, 2006. Saigol, L. Politi, J. MA volume tops $1,000bn, Financial Times, March 30: 13, 2007. KPMG. Mergers and Acquisitions: Global Research Report 1999. London: KPMG, 1999. Gertsen, M., Soderberg, A.M. Torp, J.E. Cultural Dimensions of International Mergers and Acquisitions, Walter de Gruyter: Berlin, 1998 Gertsen, M.C., Soderberg, A.M. Torp, J.E. Different concepts of culture, in Gertsen, M. C., Soderberg, A.M. Torp, J. E., editors (eds.) Cultural Dimensions of International Acquisitions, Walter de Gruyter: Berlin, 1998. Vaara, E. Post-acquisition integration as sense making: Glimpses of ambiguity, confusion, hypocrisy, and politicization, Journal of Management Studies, 40(4): 859-94, 2003 Very, P. Schweiger, D.M. The acquisition process as a learning process: Evidence from a study of critical problems and solutions in domestic and cross-border deals, Journal of World Business, 36(1): 11-31, 2001. Sirower, M.L. The Synergy Trap: How Companies Lose the Acquisition Game, Free Press: New York, 1997.

Literature Review on Leadership Theories

Literature Review on Leadership Theories 1. Introduction This chapter examined the literature of leadership practices on organizational commitment among managers. The study of leadership is seen as complicated because there has not yet reached any agreement among the researchers in terms of the real meaning of leadership. Professions from different fields around the world such as researchers, philosophers, organizational leaders had attempted to define the concept and meaning of leadership (Woods, 2007). As there are a lot of definitions define by professions around the world about the term of leadership, this study helps to identify the concepts of leadership in order to improve leadership practices on organizational commitment. The elements that will be discussed in this chapter were about theories of leadership that have been argued centuries. Then the definitions of leadership practices and five dimensions of leadership practices will be explained in detail. Lastly, the definition of organizational commitment will also be identified and be elaborated in detail. 2. Leadership Theories There had been existence of arguments about the definition of leadership for several centuries (Woods, 2007). It was indicated that the term of leadership cannot be defined easily. However, the existence of leadership in an organization cannot be denied in terms of its role in achieving the goals and objectives of the organization (Grojean, Resick, Dickson Smith, 2004, p.224). The scientific study of leadership became popular on 20th century and a lot of studies at that time were mainly focused on the effectiveness of leadership (Weinberger, 2009; Yukl, 1998). Daft (2005) defined leadership as a relationship between two parties which were leaders and followers that who were willing to create a shared value and strive toward a shared missions and objectives together (Lee, 2008). Besides that, leadership consisted of the meaning that a leader acts as an example or role model for the employees so that they can follow the step of the leader on the path towards the accomplishment of their tasks (Knab, 2009). The members in an organization tend to create the perceptions of what capabilities and criteria should be posses by an effective leader. Therefore, leadership was seen as effective when the leaders are able to develop and maintain the commitment of the employees through efficient monitoring and encouragement (Knab, 2009). According to Weinberger (2009), leadership can be nurtured in the attitudes and behaviours of the people through consistent training and practices. As many leaders in the leading organizations today are unable to fulfil the needs of team. Therefore, the studies of the leadership in terms of teamwork had received attention by the researchers around the world (Carroll and Levy, 2010). This is because different leader have different attitudes and behaviours. Thus, they will perform in different types of leadership practices under different circumstances (Morgeson, DeRue, and Karam, 2010; McGrath, 1962). In current century, the requirement of a leader to practice well in the leadership is getting more difficult. For the situation nowadays, leaders have to confront with more dynamic environment compared to the working environment that was less challenge for a few centuries ago (Leonard and Lang, 2010). The effective leaders were those who were able to fulfil their obligation perfectly and were able to achieve the expectation of the organization and its stakeholders (Weinberger, 2009; Goleman, 2000). There is no comprehensive of the theory and meaning of the term leadership, so it is difficult to determine what a leader should react and how the leader should behave in a particular situation. Regardless of the various meaning and definition of leadership, it continues to be one of the most widely researched topics today. The previous research on leadership had spur out different types of leadership theories such as Great Man Theory, Trait theory, Contingency Theory, Behavioral Theory, Transactional Theory, and Transformational Theory. Each of the leadership theories mentioned has their own meaning and explanation. The existence of different types of leadership theories indicated the efforts of previous researchers in the studies of leadership. Those theories play important role for the further literature study of the leadership (Morgeson, DeRue, and Karam, 2010). The management styles in Asian countries are different with those in western countries. Therefore, there is difficult to practice the western style of leadership in Asian countries such as Malaysia. Consequently, the leadership styles and theories that are accepted by western countries may not have the notable impact on the management styles of organizations in Malaysia (Lee, 2008). Every leader is different in his or her attitudes, behaviours, and management styles. Hence, there is no single theory works for all leaders. Leaders need to develop their own leadership approach by learning more about the following leadership theories. Great Man Theory Trait theory Contingency Theory Leadership Theories Behavioral Theory Transactional Theory Transformational Theory 2.1.1 Great Man Theory Researchers who support the Great Man Theory believe that people are born with the ability and competency to become a leader (Penn, 2008). The earlier studies defined that Great Man Theory described the leaders that had achieved greatness in their behaviours and attitudes (Daft, 2008). In the new era of today, there are still people that are willing to believe in this theory. Although this theory may sound old-fashioned in the eyes of some people in management team today, research suggests that some people actually possess the intelligence, personality traits, and characteristic that lead them to become good leader (Penn, 2008; Yaverbaum and Sherman, 2008). The term Great Man Theory was first studied by Thomas Carlyle (1841) who suggested that great men are the people that posses the intelligent and created the history of the world. Carlyle argued that great man is born with well personality traits, good behaviours, and high degree of knowledge. They are the people that able to facil itate their power and ability of leadership and open minded which lead them to become a great leader and will leave their footprints in the legend and history (Eckmann, 2005). Leader Born Personality traits Behaviours Knowledge 2.1.2 Trait Theory Trait Theory suggested that an effective leader can be identified through the recognition of his or her traits. Traits are the personal characteristic that possess by a leader, such as intelligence, knowledge, values, ideas, self-confidence, and attire or appearance (Daft, 2008). Trait theory suggested that a leader that complete with perfect and unique characteristic will become an effective leader. There were several studies found that potential leader will posses that similar straits of an effective leader. Trait theory had been neglected in the pass studies of leadership. However, as there had been more researchers explored the studies of leadership theories, more research had been done on this theory in recently years (Penn, 2008). Since the studies about straits theory has getting more popular, more research can be done on other personal traits that a leaders possess such as physical and social characteristic so that a more specific and appropriate trait of an effective leader can be develop. According to Daft (2008), there were some studies of this theory showed that same kind of personal characteristic may not suitable for every situation as the environment is always changing. Leader Characteristics or Traits Intelligence Values Self- confidence Appearance 2.1.3 Contingency Theory Contingency theory suggested that effective leaders will perform an appropriate leadership practices according to the different environment and situation (Penn, 2008). They will commit in the management styles that suitable and acceptable by the employees and organizations. According to this theory, the challenge and environment for every organization was different, so there was no a particular leadership or management style that can fit into all kinds of scenarios. A leadership style will have a positive impact for the organization and its member when the style fulfils the requirement of the situation and expectations of the employees. There were two Contingency had been identified in the past studies which were Path-Goal theory and Situational theory (Penn, 2008). According to Daft (2008), Path- Goal Theory suggested leaders can increase the commitment and enthusiasm of the employees to their jobs through the implementation of the leaders behaviours that fulfil the expectation of the employees. Besides that, this theory emphasized that employees organizational commitment can be increase through the using of reward to show the appreciation of contributions of the employees. On the other hand, Situational Theory emphasized that suitable and appropriate leadership styles will be formed for different situations and leaders have to make sure that their leadership styles are match with the abilities of the subordinates and function in the right situation (Hamilton, 1992). Contingency Theory Path-Goal Theory Situational Theory Leader Behaviour Use of Rewards Right Situation Leadership Style 2.1.4 Behavioral Theory In contrast to other theory discussed above, Behavioural Theory suggested that the actions of leaders will have a positive impact when the leaders perform appropriate behaviours that fit into the situations. In other words, everyone can learn to become a good leader if he or she can match the categories of their behaviours with the appropriate leadership styles (Katsuhiko, 2007; Shapira, 1997). According to Coleman (1986), Blake and Mouton of the University of Texas had proposed a two-dimensional leadership theory called the leadership grid. Each axis on the grid is a nine-point scale, with 1 meaning low concern and 9 meaning high concern. Figure 4.1.4 shows the leadership grid. According to Blake and Mouton (1980), Team management (9,9) was considered as the most effective leadership style because all members in the organizations that work together as a team will complete the tasks faster and can achieve a better result through the process of knowledge sharing in a team. Country club management (1,9) occurred when the leaders were behave to be more concern about the well-being of the employees instead of the productivity of the company. In a contrast, Authority- compliance management (9,1) occurred when the leaders show more concern of the productivity instead of the well-being of the employees. Nevertheless, Middle-of-the-road management (5,5) reflected a moderate amount of concern for both people and production. Impoverished management (1,1) was identified as the worst leadership style as the leaders are not concern for both people in the organization and productivity of the organization. Managers are not put their efforts in the maintaining of the relati onship with the subordinates. They also do not concern of the sustainability of the organizations production. 2.1.5 Transactional Theory Transactional leadership suggested that there was an agreement of contract made between the leader and follower about the obligations of both parties (Penn, 2008). According to the agreement, the followers need to perform and accomplish the task and instructions given by the leaders with full commitment. Instead, leaders have to recognize the contributions of the employees and reward them if the tasks given are being fulfilled effectively. Transactional leadership suggested that people tend to put in more effort in order to complete tasks given when there is existence of the rewards and reorganization. However, in the today diverse working environment that full with challenges, there are getting more people that put in effort to complete the task not by the attraction of rewards, they are doing so due to the self motivation and the inspiration of challenge themselves. Transactional leadership consists of two factors which are contingent reward and management by exception (Bass, 1990) . Contingent reward is formed when there is a mutually agreement between leaders and followers in with the ultimate purpose of achieving the objectives and goals of the company. On the other hand, management by exception is focusing on task execution which means that there is mutual trust between the leaders and the employees. Leaders will try their best in correcting the problems arise in order to maintain employees well performance (Weinberger, 2009). Transactional leadership Contingent Reward Management by Exception Mutual Agreement Focusing on task execution Correcting Problems 2.1.6 Transformational Theory Burns (1978) developed the original idea of Transformational Theory. This theory was defined as a process that transforms people through the motivation, values, and well planning goals which can lead the leaders and followers to higher level of satisfaction and successful in achieving target (Anagnoste, Agoston, Puia, 2010). This theory also indicated the ability of leaders in satisfying the needs and expectations of the followers (Kuhnert Lewis, 1987). Bass (1985) suggested that Transformational Theory emphasized the influence of leaders to the followers by developing a way that can encourage the commitment of the followers to achieve a better performance (McCall, Jr., Morgan, 1986). Transformational leaders tend to have the capability to inspire the subordinates. They always encourage the employees to explore deeper of their potential so that they can be more confident about themselves and can contribute more in the effort of achieving the goals of organization (Carless, 2001). According to Bass (1985), there were four major factors that must be practiced by the leaders that wanted to commit in Transformational Leadership. The first factor was Charisma which emphasized on the characteristics expressed by the leaders that can attract and retain the employees through their persuasive words and actions. The second factor was Inspirational leadership which was defined as a sub factor within charismatic leadership behaviour. The leaders that commit in this leadership have the capability to motivate and influent others through the emotional qualities. The third factor was Individualized Consideration which means that the leaders concern for the needs and development of each employee and they respect the dignity of each employee. The last factor was Intellectual Stimulation which implied the intelligent of leaders in problem solving. They encourage the subordinates in asking question and explore the potential of employees to be creative (McCall, Jr., Morgan, 1986) . Transformational Leadership Charisma Inspirational Individualized Intellectual Leadership Consideration Stimulation 2.2 Leadership Practices There were several aspects of the studies of leadership practices because it compromised by different identifications and reorganization (Morgeson, DeRue, and Karam, 2010). An effective leadership practices is the main key to improve employees achievement. Therefore, the focus on this study is to identify the effectiveness of leadership practices in promoting the followers to achieve higher level of organizational commitment. According to Knab (2009), leaders that perform well leadership practices have the ability to motivate and generate interest of the employees to the jobs. At the same time, they are the leaders that can inspire the employees to strive for the wellness of the organization and productivity and look beyond their own self interest. Kouzes and Posner (1993) suggested that credibility is characteristic that can be learnt by leaders through the experience of previous actions. Leaders that had been through different kinds of challenges tend to be more mature and know the way to handle their relationship with subordinates (Woods, 2007). Leaders are responsible to strive and maintain the credibility through continuing behaviours. With credibility as the essential ingredient of leadership, leaders need to always improve in that particular area in order to increase the trust and commitment of employees to them. Kouzes and Posner (2007) also suggested that the theory of leadership practices had been studied by many researchers and those practices can be studied jointly or independently. According to the previous research, practices of credible leaders can be defined in five categories which are: (a) Challenge the Process (b) Inspire a Shared Vision (c) Enable Others to Act (d) Model the Way (e) Encourage the Heart Leadership can happen at any location, in any form and occur in anytime. The effective leaders that organize the people well can accomplish many and different kinds of difficult tasks. According to Kouzes and Posner (2009), every leader that wanted to success in the leadership must commit in the five dimensions of leadership practices that mentioned earlier. 2.2.1 Challenge the Process The meaning of this Challenge the Process leadership practice was defined detail by Kouzes Posner (1995). The previous studies showed that this particular leadership practice described the characteristic of a leader that always look into the opportunity and space for improvement. They are the group of people that willing to confront with the challenges and risks. Besides that, they always prepare themselves to face the changing of the world (Knab, 2009). Leaders that commit in this leadership practice are not afraid of failure, instead they take failure as a process to grow up and improve. The leadership practice of Challenge the Process emphasized on the attitude of leaders that always prepared to venture out. They are the group of people that able to accept new creations and encourage the followers to accept new products, systems, and processes. In fact, they are the one that bring into the new products or services into the organization. The leaders engaged in this leadership practices are the originators of innovation. Therefore, this leadership practice suggested that the leaders to constantly think the situation from different dimensions so that they can create a different and unexpected new thing that can contribute to the productivity of the organization (Kouzes Posner, 2009). 2.2.2 Inspire a Shared Vision Members of the organization expect their leaders to have a clear image of the future and share the vision with them. Leaders who committed leadership practice of inspire a shared vision will helps everyone to formulate a clear picture about future goals that are acceptable and achievable by everyone (Knab, 2009). Leaders play a significant role in communicates the objectives and future plans to the employees in an effective way, and in the meanwhile inspires them to work towards a shared vision. According to Hyatt (2007), the effective leaders that commit in this leadership practice have to share their ideas with the employees. Therefore, the employees will know the direction that of their effort and will strive towards the goal with full commitment. Besides that, the leadership practice of Inspire a Shared Vision emphasized on the behaviours of the leaders that allow the employees to take part in the forming of future vision (Hyatt, 2007; Gabris Ihrke, 2000). Thus, employees will have a feeling that they are part of the organization and play an important part in future planning. Leaders that engaged in this practice are willing to accept known possibilities of the future. They tend to figure out the outcome first before they give the instructions to start a new project. Therefore, they will form a clear picture about what exactly they are pursuing and the best way to achieve the successful. Furthermore, they create a common and shared vision taking into account of the needs and expectations of all members in the organization (Kouzes Posner, 2009). 2.2.3 Enable Others to Act According to Knab (2009), an effective leader that engaged in leadership practice of Enable Other to Act have the ability to influent others and encourage others to act in the way that expected by the leader. They are the leaders that support and encourage the employees to speak out their mind and contribute their ideas in the projects. Besides that, they always provide options for the employees and inspire the commitment of the employees. This leadership practice emphasized the effort of leaders and subordinates work as a team (Woods, 2007). Therefore, leaders play an important part in nurturing mutual trust within the team members (Hyatt, 2007; Tan Tan, 2000). In order to achieve successful in a project, mutual trust and cooperation among the team members are extremely important. This practice also suggested that leaders enable others to act not by forcing or strictly command. Instead, they encourage others to act through the delegation of power (Hyatt, 2007; Gabris Ihrke, 2000). They allowed the employees to make their own decision as long as the decision they make was for the good of the organization. Moreover, they always use the word we to emphasize the important to work as a team (Kouzes Posner, 2009). Thus, the employees will have a perception that they are on the same boat with others member, then the organizational commitment will increase. 2.2.4 Model the Way The leadership practice of Model the Way suggested that leaders can develop and foster mutual trust between the leader and subordinates and within the subordinates by being the role model for the subordinates (Knab, 2009). Leaders that engaged in this practice are the leaders that ethic, honest and respect dignity of others. They will clearly define the obligations of employees and give a specific instruction so that employees will receive a clear picture of what are the expectations of leaders to them. According to the study of Woods (2007), it was defined that leaders that engaged in this particular leadership practices are able to express themselves with a clear values. Then they will make sure that their behaviour and attitudes are aligned with the values they show to the employees. Competency leaders know that they must involve in the role model expected by employees so that they can gain the trust of the employees and upgrade the commitment of the employees. To be an effective leader that model the way, leaders have to make sure their values and beliefs were accepted by the employees and demonstrate their daily actions that committed to their values and standards (Hyatt, 2007; Gabris Ihrke, 2000). Leaders actions will have more impact on the commitment of the employees than their words or instructions. However, leaders actions must be consistent with what they are promised to the employees. Besides that, leaders have to identify their position in the eyes of employees. They have to make sure that their existence in the organization is important and their instructions always followed by the subordinates. The leadership practice of Model the Way explained the right attitudes that leaders should commit in their direct interaction with employees. The leaders that act as a role model tend to be the leaders that earn the respect of the employees (Kouzes Posner, 2009). 2.2.5 Encourage the Heart Leaders that engaged in leadership practice of Encourage the Heart are willing to show their appreciation to the employees publicly, and always find ways to celebrate the achievement of the subordinates (Knab, 2009). Therefore, people will be more enthusiasm to their job as their contributions are appreciated by the leaders. Besides that, the employees that receive the recognition of the leaders will increase in their self-confidence and self-esteem (Hyatt, 2007; Javidan Waldman, 2003). Thus, they will not be afraid to share their ideas and knowledge with other colleagues. The increase of confidence of employees will then encourage the commitment of employees in their jobs. This will be a competitive advantage for the organization to compete in this challenging world. The high level of organizational commitment among the employees will then increase the productivity ultimately. In the process of upgrading the quality of the products and services require the leaders to motivate the heart of the employees. Leaders play an essential role to ensure that the employees values are align with the objectives of the company (Kouzes Posner, 2009). The leaders that appreciate the effort of the employees will increase the sense of belonging of the employees. When the employees feel that they are a part of the members in the organization, they will be more commit in their jobs and willing to stay with the organization even in the through tough times. 2.3 Organizational Commitment Organizational commitment had received highly attention of the researchers in the previous studies. Previous research had identified that organizational commitment had a significant influence in some aspect of working attitudes and behaviours such as job satisfaction, job performance, and turnover rate (Lee, 2008; Lok and Crawford, 2001; Yousef, 2000). Organizational commitment focuses on employees commitment to the organization. Mowday et al., (1974) explained the definition of organizational commitment as the belief of employees regarding the organizations objectives and values. This will imply the desire of the employees effort and the willingness to contribute to the organization. The employees will be more committed in their organizations if the values and culture of the organizations align with their expectations. Then they will stay loyalty to the organization. According to Cole (2000), a committed worker always believes in companys products and services. He or she is willing to put in a lot of effort and even willing to make sacrifices as long as the purpose is for the good of company. Besides that, the employees are willing to introduce the company to their friends. They will feel proud of their company and recommend their organization to the others as the best place to work for. Furthermore, they will choose to contribute to the company that spur out their organizational commitment rather than the company that provide high salary but absence of the sense of belonging (Lee, 2008). Meyer and Allen (1991) developed three different types of organizational commitment. According to Woods (2007), the three aspects of organizational commitment were defined as below. Affective Commitment This aspect of the commitment described the feeling of employees to the organization that expressed in a positive way. They feel attach to the organization because the organization provided them a sense of belonging. The choose stay in the organization because they want to. Continuance Commitment This aspect of the commitment explained the perceptions of the employees that they will lose their benefits if they leave the organization. Besides that, they afraid to suffer the cost of losing their friendship with colleagues and the cost of losing the economic cost such as insurance, welfare, bonus, and etc. Therefore, they will choose to stay in the organization because they have to. Normative Commitment This aspect of the commitment suggested that the employees continue to contribute to the organization as they have a feeling of obligation. There will be many causes of that feeling. For instance, an employee will have a sense of moral obligation and afraid to leave the company as the company had invested a lot in his or her training. Therefore, the employee will have a perception that he or she has the responsibility to stay still in the organization. As a result, the employees will choose to commit in the organization as they feel that they ought to. 2.4 Summary Leadership was defined in many meanings by researchers and it showed that leadership was indeed plays an important role in todays organization. Although there have been many different theories and definitions of leadership, there is still space for further research about leadership (Lee, 2008). Since it was suggested by previous studies that principal of leadership is the key to improve employees achievement, it is important that we continue to investigate what type of leadership is most effective for the organizations (Knab, 2009). The need for effective and efficient leadership practices are important for the leaders in today organization to engage in. Sufficient and efficient practices of leadership in the organization by leaders will increases the organizational commitment of the employees. As a result, the productivity will also be increased. A leader may have knowledge and skills to act effectively in one situation but he or she may not perform as effectively in a different situation as there is always consist of different challenges in different situation (Lee, 2008; Rad and Yarmohammadian, 2006). In this chapter, the theories of leadership were defined. Subsequently, in this chapter the five leadership practices was explained and its important was discussed as well. Furthermore, the meaning of organizational commitment also be defined and three-component model of commitment was identified.

The Ultimate Purpose of Learning Essay -- literature, college, challeng

By the time a student reaches college, they would have studied for tens of thousands of hours, both inside and outside of the classroom. They would have studied and memorized countless facts and formulas, from history to science to grammatical rules and languages. However, while most of a student’s time is devoted to digesting this information, they are missing the point of all of this studying. I assert that the ultimate purpose of learning is not to absorb what is being taught, but to master how to learn and how to think for oneself. During my learning observation, I witnessed how the professors of the â€Å"Introduction to World Literature† class taught poetry. They did not require that the students memorize or learn the poems presented. Instead, they individually discussed with each member of the class their thoughts on each of the pieces presented. This engagement required the students to formulate his or her own thoughts on this subject, and then share their opinions with the others in the class. The class emphasized the importance of the individual experience over the subject. From the layout of the classroom to the way the students interacted with the professors, it was clear that the students’ ability to discuss and share their ideas were the focus of the class, not their assimilation of the topics being taught. The way the teachers challenged the students to think and discuss their thoughts on the poems rather than dictacting to them what the teachers thought were important. Besides, a ccording to the syllabus of the course, the biggest portion of the grade is â€Å"short papers†. There is a special rule: first, they need to write short papers in class analyzing the reading materials. Then, after receiving the professor’... ...being challenged and motivated. In conclusion, learning how to learn and think other than blindly accepting and memorizing what we are taught is the key to learning. I see many classmates who are tired of learning and try to escape from the heavy pressure of studying. But this article is not just to remind the leaders and teachers in the education field, but also to show students that learning is very personal and that we should try to learn to think for ourselves. Works Cited Works Cited Lenz, John. Introduction in World Literature. Drew University. Depts. of Classics. Syllabus WLIT 101 2013. Einstein vs. Newton. Thinkquest. Oracle Education Foundation. 29 March 2011. Web. 15 December 2013. Delbanco, Andrew. College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2011. Print.

Eamon De Valera :: essays research papers fc

Eamon de Valera, although born in New York City, in the United States of America, devoted his life to help the people of Ireland. As he once said it, â€Å"If I wish to know what the Irish want, I look into my own heart.† De Valera loved Ireland and its people with a deep and lasting passion. It was he, probably more than any other person in their history, who helped that country win freedom from British rule and then shaped its history well into the twentieth century.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  De Valera’s mother, Catherine Coll, usually known as Kate, came to the states in 1879, at the young age of twenty-three. Like so many other Irish immigrants of that time, she had suffered from poverty, and even hunger, in her native land and saw America as a place where she could go to try and get a fresh start. She first took a job with a wealthy French family that was living in Manhattan. This is where and when she met Vivion Juan de Valera. He was a Spanish sculptor who came to the home of her employers to give music lessons to the children.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1881, the couple married. A little over a year later, while living at 61 east 41st Street, Kate Coll de Valera gave birth to the couple’s only child. His name was Edward, called by Eddie at first, but would become known to the world by the Irish variation of that name, Eamon.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Always in poor health, Vivion de Valera left his young family behind him and traveled to Colorado, hoping that perhaps the healthier air would help him out. Within a few months he died. Now a widow, Kate went back to work, leaving Eamon in the care of another woman who also had come from the tiny village of Bruree, in County Limerick. Later in his life, Eamon would remember occasional visits from, as he knew her, a woman in black, which ended up being his true mother. Kate de Valera decided that Eamon would be better cared for by her family back in Ireland. Before long he found himself away from noise of Manhattan, living in Bruree in a one-room house with mud walls and a thatched roof. Living with him were his grandmother, his twenty-one-year-old uncle, Pat, and young Hannie, his fifteen-year-old aunt. Shortly after Eamon arrived, the family moved to a cottage, built by the Irish government for farm workers, but it was only a little bit larger.

Latin Love :: Online Community Communities Essays

Latin Love I was taken by surprise and intrigued when my teacher told me to join an online community and follow the postings and chats for my next English paper. That same class period I spent a lot of time looking around finding all sorts of sites and topics that could keep my interest. As I explored I was trying to figure out what an online community really was. I wasn’t sure if a site with just a discussion board was enough for this project, so I tried to find others with chat rooms. Finally I came across a subject that interested me and I felt met the requirements for an online community. It was a place where common interests link people to a community online. In Howard Rheingold’s The Virtual Community an online community is stated as, â€Å"an online discussion group in which members develop long-term friendships through their interactions online. In such a community, members become intimate though they have never seen each other face to face.† Such a place is illustrated when Rheingold related the tick story in his book. It was late one night when he and his wife found a tick on their baby’s scalp. They were frightened and didn’t know what to do, so the Rheingold logged onto the WELL, an information site, to see if he could get an answer. Before his wife got a hold of the normal pediatrician, he had received an answer online. â€Å"Many people are alarmed by the very idea of a virtual community, fearing that it is another step in the wrong direction†¦Ã¢â‚¬  However, such a place for people to gather and help is needed, as demonstrated by the tick incident. An online community is a place where peo ple can gather and share information they have learned throughout the years. It is a place of solace to many and a resource to others. â€Å"Who is to say that this preference for informal written text is somehow less authentically human than opting for audible speech† (Rheingold 94)? Who is to say that written text is not as valid as spoken words? Before the time of the telephone, the only form of communication was written letters. The online community I chose tied both the written and the audible to the site. Music was the common interest in my online community.

Appearance vs Reality in More Strabberries Essay

Disguises can come in many forms, some of which are so carefully constructed one may not even realize that it is a disguise or, they can also be obvious to the person to whom you wish to hide. Eric Wright’s â€Å"Twins† and Nelson Bond’s â€Å"Vital Factor† are short stories whose central theme of appearance versus reality is seen through the analysis of the plots and its’ characters. Subsequently, both the murderer and Wilkins are not whom they speak, having a single minded focus can both save the wife and deceive Crowder, and using much time to conceive a master plan goes corrupt for the husband and Crowder. Through the analysis of the stories â€Å"Twins† and â€Å"Vital Factor†, deception plays a very important role in the methods used by both the husband and Wilkins. It is evident, through the comparison of these stories, that the husband and Wilkins never reveal or hint anything about their plans, rather they just seem to be doing it hoping that their schemes will arise into a reality. In the short story â€Å"Twins†, the appearance is that the husband’s devious and fool proof plan works and he kills his wife, but in reality, she discovers her husband’s real intentions, which eventually leads to her killing him instead. Using his identity as a writer as well as a loving husband, the husband leads his wife into his murderous plan, convinced that he is going to get away with it. This is apparent when the husband proudly says, â€Å"It’ll work all right. It’s going to work. † (Wright 216) The husband’s overconfidence leaves him vulnerable to the few mistakes he leaves behind. The appearance in â€Å"Vital Factor† is that the character, Wilkins, is just a brilliant engineer who has the plans to build a fantastic and working flying machine. In reality, Wilkins is an alien who uses Crowder and his money to fund his project to get home. As a wandering alien, Wilkins finds himself using others to get what he needs; a ride home. No one notices the strange little man, but rather his creative contraption, allowing him to slip away into an unseen reality. Crowder’s mind is too full of his money making plans that the idea of an odd person coming with no briefcase or blueprint but only a small metallic floating object does not appear bizarre. Consequently, this leads to an improvised vision of what others want rather than what is really desired. Accordingly, the husband and Wilkins both use their raw talents to hide their true selves using the brilliant awareness of deception. In the short stories â€Å"Vital Factor† and â€Å"Twins† there is dissimilarity in the idea of unclouded vision. In â€Å"Vital Factor†, Crowder only desires to be the best and greatest of all men in the world. He uses his â€Å"iron will and icy determination† (Bond 57) to guide him to his goal. With this as his main obsession, he clouds his own vision and does not think of the possibility that Wilkins will use him and his money to develop a way home. This gives Wilkins the perfect advantage of manipulating Crowder into providing him with an opportunity home. In â€Å"Twins† the wife has an unobstructed vision, unlike Crowder, of what her husband wants to do to her. She sees what her husband’s plan is when she finds his gun hiding in the fishing box. Using her clear vision, she makes her own plan on how to stop what her husband plans to do to her and flip it to kill him instead of vice versa. She exercises her wits and intelligence to notice the flaws in her husband’s cruel scheme and work her way through them and uses her traits to hide from her husband that she knows his plan and create her own plan to kill him. Therefore, in comparing the stories â€Å"Vital Factor and â€Å"Twins†, having a single minded focus can in some cases be detriment, blinding a clear threat to one’s life. On the other hand though, it can actually save one’s life, albeit through deception. In both stories â€Å"Twin† and â€Å"Vital Factor†, the appearance is that the characters have amazing plans that seem to foolproof and impervious to failure but in reality fail and are used against themselves. In â€Å"Twins†, the husband has a marvellous plan to murder his wife and to marry a girlfriend whom he really loves. He uses his profession as a writer to disguise to his present wife that he wants to kill her but rather uses the story he is writing as a plan to get away with the perfect murder. The husband is reckless and has flaws in his plan, for example leaving his gun in a place where his wife might be able to find it. Seeing as the wife did find the gun, she discovers her husband’s plans and goes with her husband into the thick brush seeing to know nothing, while in truth has a plan up her sleeve, the plan her husband wants to use against her. In â€Å"Vital Factor†, Crowder has a brilliant money making idea to send people to space. He finds a unique engineer who is able to build the spacecraft he dreams of. He spends months making this contraption with only money signs in his eyes. This brilliant engineer does exactly as his plans say and build the flying machine. Crowder is so involved in his money and ambition that he sees no other way one can use this machine but to fly from space and back to Earth. Wilkins was always a step before Crowder when he admits to Crowder that â€Å"Your money and ambition paved the way†¦but sentiment was the vital factor that sent me to you†¦I wanted to go home. †(Bond 61) Wilkins is in reality an alien who longs to return to his planet but has no way of getting there. When he meets Crowder, he sees an opportunity to use the power hungry man into paying his way back home. Clearly, when one creates a plan he must look at all the possibilities on how it will become and not just his own.