Organizational Knowledge Essays

Organizational Knowledge Essays Organizational Knowledge Essay Organizational Knowledge Essay We live in an information economy in which the major source of wealth and prosperity is the production and distribution of information and knowledge.An era in which the key economic resource is knowledge is startlingly different from an era in which the key resources were capital, raw materials, land and labor. Emerging service economy trend lead many organizations towards the information base strategies to face and fight with the current business competitions. In that case knowledge plays a major role in every organization. In an economy where the only certainty is uncertainty, the one sure source of lasting competitive advantage is knowledge. (Harvard Business Review) Therefore an organization? s most valuable assets are the people it employs.The ideas, experiences, expertise and knowledge contained in the mind of an individual may be worth more to an organization. In this case, Knowledge can be recognized as an important weapon for sustaining competitive advantage in organizations and many companies are beginning to manage organizational knowledge. Any organization that dynamically deals with a changing environment ought not only to process information efficiently but also create information and knowledge. (Lee Choi, 2003) 3 Organizational Knowledge It is often said that an organization? s most valuable assets are the people it employs.The ideas, experiences, expertise and knowledge contained in the mind of an individual may be worth more to an organization than can be quantified with respect to how that knowledge is applied each day to save time, reduce costs, and advance the organization? s initiatives. How can an organization capitalize on individual knowledge? How do individuals contribute to subunits or groups within the organization to build and perpetuate group knowledge? How does individual and group knowledge become organizational knowledge that can be captured, reused, and applied to achieve measurable positive effects for the organization?When might extraorganizational knowledge be used to further increase or enhance the capabilities of an organization? In line with the topic; Organizational knowledge, we have to explores these questions, first by defining each knowledge ty pe, then by examining how knowledge moves through an organization and becomes valuable organizational intellectual capital. Defining Knowledge Knowledge is a cognitive, a spiritual, event that take place inside people? s heads. There are two primary definitions of the knowledge as the Tacit Knowledge and the Explicit Knowledge.In simply knowledge residing in the minds of employees that has not been documented is called tacit knowledge, whereas knowledge that has been documented is called explicit knowledge. Tacit Knowledge Tacit Knowledge can be defined as knowledge that has not yet been codified from the outside the individual? s mind. On another words, knowledge that comes from experience and is difficult or impossible to communicate. It is intangible and consists of knowledge which is difficult to express and to communicate to other people.Also it is more difficult to transmit than codified knowledge and hard to formalize due to belonged personal qualities. Examples for tacit kno wledge are; Awareness Mental models Wisdom Skills Expertise Corporate memory 4 Explicit Knowledge Explicit knowledge, in contrast, is the knowledge that can be codified and is transmittable in formal systematic language. (Nonaka 1994) It consists of knowledge which can be expressed in symbols, and which can be communicated through these symbols to other people. Knowledge can reside in e-mail, unstructured documents, hand books, manuals can be listed under this category.Examples for explicit knowledge are; Databases, statistics, collections Books, publications, reports, documents, correspondence Photographs, diagrams, illustrations Computer code, expert systems, decision support systems Presentations, speeches, lectures Recorded experiences, stories Materials for education, teaching and training Laws, regulations, procedures, rules, policies Individual Knowledge Individual knowledge can be defined simply as knowledge possessed by the individual. This knowledge is most often tacit unless the individual possesses explicit knowledge that is not shared with anyone or any organization other than the individual.A private journal or private blog might be considered explicit individual knowledge. Individual knowledge can be acquired through experiences, and at times it can be acquired without language. When an individual is acquiring knowledge from observing another person? s actions, and once the individual applies his or her own experiences and background to what is learned it becomes individual knowledge. The creation of new „individual? knowledge derived from observation, imitation and practice is called socialization, or tacit to tacit knowledge sharing. Individual knowledge can certainly develop from explicit knowledge.What a person reads, for example, can contribute to new thoughts and ideas in the mind of the individual. This method of knowledge creation is referred to as internalization – turning explicit knowledge into 5 tacit knowledge. By re ading or acquiring explicit knowledge, independent thought and analysis can develop into new, individual knowledge. An individual can make a greater contribution to the knowledge sharing and creation process by allowing their knowledge to be internalized by others or socializing their knowledge with others, which leads to the creation of group knowledge. Group KnowledgeGroup knowledge might be defined as individual knowledge that multiple individuals rely upon as truth, share and understand. Group knowledge is broadcast information (Correa da Silva Cullell, 56), but is not necessarily information shared „publicly? (i. e. common knowledge). Group knowledge can be generated and disseminated through socialization and often results in the transformation of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge, or externalization. When groups come together and exchange ideas, individual knowledge is synthesized to arrive at group knowledge, which eventually becomes routing at the organizational level.Thus, the transformation of individual knowledge into organizational routines leads to complex and embodied organizational knowledge. When group knowledge from several subunits or groups is combined and used to create new knowledge, the resulting tacit and explicit knowledge can be called organizational knowledge. 6 Important Dimensions of Knowledge Knowledge is a firm asset Knowledge is an intangible asset. Knowledge is not subject to the law of diminishing returns as physical assets, but its value increases as more people share it.Knowledge has different forms Knowledge can be either tacit or explicit (codified) Knowledge involves know-how, craft and skill Knowledge involves knowing how to follow procedures Knowledge has a location Knowledge is a cognitive event involving mental models and maps of individuals There is both a social and an individual basis of knowledge Knowledge is sticky, situated, and contextual Knowledge is situational Knowledge is conditional: Knowing wh en to apply a procedure is just as important as knowing the procedure Knowledge is related to contextSOURCE: Laudon and Laudon, 2008. Management Information Systems Knowledge Creation New knowledge always begins with the individual. Making personal knowledge available to others is the central activity of the knowledge creating company. It takes place continuously and at all levels of the organization. Organizational knowledge creation may be explicated by the interchange between tacit and explicit knowledge. According to Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995), tacit knowledge is highly personal and hard to formalize, making it difficult to communicate or to share with others.Subjective insights, intuitions, and hunches fall into this category of knowledge. On the other 7 hand, explicit knowledge is more easily transmitted as it is characteristically codified. As such, explicit knowledge is more easily processed and shared with others. According to the theory, the process of knowledge conversion proceeds through four different modes: 1. Socialization (the conversion of tacit knowledge to tacit knowledge) 2. Combination (the conversion of explicit knowledge to explicit knowledge) 3. Externalization (the conversion of tacit to explicit knowledge) and 4.Internalization (the conversion of explicit to tacit knowledge) Socialization During the socialization mode, tacit knowledge is transferred through interactions between individuals, which may also be accomplished in the absence of language; individuals may learn and gain a sense of competence by observing behavior modeled by others. For example, mentoring and apprenticeships instruct tacitly through observation, imitation, and practice. Combination The combination mode of knowledge conversion embodies the aggregation of multiple examples of explicit knowledge (Nonaka, 1994).Explicit knowledge may be exchanged during meetings or conferences in which a diversity of knowledge sources combines to shape a new and enhanced conceptio n. Externalization The externalization mode of the knowledge conversion spiral references the translation of tacit knowledge into explicit. Metaphors are recommended as a way to facilitate this translation (Nonaka, 1994). Metaphors assist individuals in explaining concealed (i. e. , tacit) concepts that are otherwise difficult to articulate by assisting individuals in forming impressions based on imagination and intuitive learning through symbols.Internalization The conversion of explicit to tacit knowledge, i. e. , the internalization mode occurs through a series of iterations in which concepts become concrete and ultimately absorbed as an integral 8 belief or value. Where externalization utilizes metaphors to facilitate knowledge conversion, internalization represents an active process of learning. Nonaka (1994) describes this as participants†¦.. sharing explicit knowledge that is gradually translated, through interaction and a process of trial-and-error, into different aspec ts of tacit knowledge.It is found most commonly at highly successful Japanese companies such as Honda, Canon, Matushita and Sharp are in focusing to the knowledge creation. Managers in these companies recognize that creating new knowledge is not simply a matter of mechanistically Processing objective information. The knowledge creation process The mutual exchange of tacit and explicit knowledge that describes the knowledge creation process is initiated at the level of the individual employee or organizational member. Because individuals are an integral component of this conversion process, their commitment to knowledge creation is critical.According to Nonaka (1994), knowledge creation may be activated when organizational members have freedom and sufficient purpose to pursue new knowledge. A continuous process of questioning and reconsidering existing premises by individual members of the organization fosters organizational knowledge creation (Nonaka Takeuchi, 1995). Knowledge Mana gement For hundreds of years, owners of family businesses have passed their commercial wisdom on to their children, master artificer have taught their trades to followers, and workers have exchanged their knowledge on the job.Therefore knowledge management is nothing new, but until the 1990s that managers were not talking about knowledge management. (Harvard Business Review) When the industrialized economies have shifted from natural resources to intellectual assets, managers have been constrained to censor the knowledge underlying their businesses and how that knowledge is used. At that same time rice of technological devices using; mainly computers has made it possible to codify, store, and share certain kind of knowledge more easily than ever. In current business environment, Knowledge management has become an important theme at many large business firms as managers realize that much of their firm? s value depends on firm? s ability to create and manage knowledge. (Laudon Laudon ). Studies have found that a substantial part of a firm? s stock market value is related to its intangible assets, of which knowledge is one important component, along with brands, reputations, and unique business processes (Gu and Lev, 2001).Well executed knowledge-based projects have been known to produce extra ordinary returns on investment, although knowledge-based investments are difficult to measure (Blair and Wallman, 2001). Knowledge Management is the process of leveraging organizational knowledge to deliver longterm advantage to a business. This, in turn, requires technology to capture, codify, store, disseminate and reuse the knowledge. Any organization, before framing a strategy, should analyze the industry and should understand all relevant parameters of industry growth.This analysis would yield results on the industry parameters like growth/ recession buyer/supplier power leading to determining the attractiveness of competition. The competitor analysis would reveal the strategy adopted by the competitors and identify the possible future movements of the competitors and to predict the strategies that are likely to be adopted by them. An organization can gain competitive advantage and sustain it only if it is able to understand the needs of the customer and track the changes in the customer needs.In this context, the analysis of the needs of customer gains importance. An organization should assess the resources and capabilities, before formulating a strategy, since the resources and capabilities should aid the operationalization of the chosen strategy. The right combination of resources and capabilities in the context of a strategy can be discovered through the process of knowledge management. Knowledge Management Value Chain Knowledge management increases the ability of the organization to learn from its environment and to incorporate knowledge into its business processes.Knowledge value is very difficult to measure and it is extracted when knowled ge is used. Knowledge sharing increases the value of knowledge with abundance. Knowledge management value chain is a sequence of intellectual tasks by which knowledge workers build their employer? s unique competitive advantage and social and environmental benefits. There are four main value adding steps in the knowledge 10 management value chain; each stage adds value to raw data and information as they are transformed into usable knowledge. Acquisition Storage Dissemination ApplicationFigure 02: Knowledge Management value chain Knowledge acquisition Organizations acquire knowledge in a number of ways, depending on the type of knowledge they seek. In a way, organizations acquire knowledge by developing online expert networks so that employees can find the expert in the company who has the knowledge in his or her head. Other than that firms have to create new knowledge by discovering patterns in corporate data or by using knowledge work stations where engineers can discover new know ledge. A coherent and organized knowledge system also requires systematic data from the firm? transaction processing systems (sales, payments, inventory, customers etc. ), news feeds, industry reports, legal opinions, scientific research and government statistics as well. Knowledge storage Knowledge storage generally involves the creation of a database. Expert systems also help corporations preserve the knowledge that is acquired by incorporating that knowledge into organizational process and culture. Management must support the development of planned knowledge storage systems to update and store documents properly. 11 Knowledge DisseminationPortal, e-mail, instant messaging and search engine technology have added to the existing technologies for sharing documents, data and graphics. Training programmes, informal networks and shared management experience communicated through a supportive culture help managers focus their attention on the important knowledge and information which is really important for their decisions and their work. Knowledge Application Knowledge that is not shared and applied to the practical problems facing firms and managers does not add business value.To provide a return on investment, organizational knowledge must become a systematic part of management decision making and become situated in decision support systems. An organizations can do this is to build online information databases that employees can access which works as an online knowledge bank. Other than this some knowledge management experts have suggest that organizations create communities of practice, which are groups of people who share a concern, a set of problems or a passion about a topic and who deepen their knowledge and expertise in that area by interacting on an ongoing basis.Out of the four steps in knowledge management value chain, knowledge sharing is considered to be the most important one, and it is said Knowledge sharing is the power instead of Knowledge is the Power. In order to do this an organization must have a knowledge supporting culture, that management can support the knowledge creation and sharing. In line with that perfect human resource management is a prior functional area in an organization. Top management provides employees with a sense of direction by setting the standards for justifying the value of knowledge that is constantly being developed by the organization? members. Deciding which efforts to support and develop is a strategic task. (Harvard business review on Knowledge management, 2008) 12 Knowledge Applications in the Technological Aspect Business Problems ? ? ? Monitor service levels and costs Develop document access rules Management ? Document intensive business Fragmented information in legacy systems and manual processes ? ? ? Coordinate Documents and maintenance data Develop Document Access procedures Revise repair and maintenance procedures Organization Information systems Business solution ? ? Reduce time Red use cost ? ? ? ?Implement oracle database Deploy laptops Technology Immediately access Equipment maintenance information Figure 03: Use of Technology in Knowledge Management Process The diagram shows how organizations can use technology in solving business problems and how an organization can reduce the time consumption and the cost by using information systems. These information systems would include transaction processing systems, management information systems, decision support systems, expert systems and intelligent systems etc. Knowledge Management Strategies There are mainly two types of knowledge management strategies.In some companies, the strategy centered on the computer. In that c knowledge is carefully codified and stored in databases, where it can be easily accessed and used by anyone in the company. This is called Codification Strategy. 13 Codification Strategy Codification strategy implies the theme; people to documents, pointing to develop an electronic document syst em that codifies, stores, disseminates, and allows reuse of knowledge. The companies that follow codification strategy rely on the economics of reuse. Once an organization invests in knowledge asset; they can reuse it many times.The reuse of knowledge saves work, reduces communication costs and allows a company to take on more projects. And the strategy focuses on generating large overall revenues. And also the organizations always think in the point of human resource management to hire new graduates who are suited to reuse knowledge and the implementation of solutions, to train people in groups and through computer based learning, to reward people for using and contributing to document databases. Earnest Young is an organization which uses this strategy as their knowledge management strategy.In other companies, knowledge is closely bounded to the person who developed it and is shared mainly through direct person to person contacts. In those companies main purpose of the computers is to help people to communicate knowledge, not to store it. This is called Personalization Strategy. Personalization Strategy And this strategy implies that person to person fact which points to develop networks for linking people so that tacit knowledge can be shared. In contrast to the codification strategy, the personalization strategy relies on the logic of expert economics.It focuses on maintaining high profit margins. But on the other hand the process of sharing deep knowledge is time consuming, expensive and slow. It can? t be made much efficient. The companies that applied this strategy as their knowledge management strategy; wish to hire people who like problem solving and can tolerate ambiguity and to reward people for directly sharing knowledge with others. Choosing the knowledge management strategy is not an arbitrary thing, it depends on the economics of the company, the way it serves its clients and the people it hires.Experts believe that the choice between codificat ion and personalization is the central one facing virtually all 14 companies in the era of knowledge management. However an organization? s strategy for knowledge management reflects its competitive strategy; it creates value for customers; how that value support for customers; how that value supports an economic model and how the company? s people deliver on the value, because it is the leading fact and the base of all other functional areas in the organization for gaining the competitive advantage in the dynamic economy. Types of Knowledge Management systems in an OrganizationThere are essentially three major types of knowledge management systems namely; enterprisewide knowledge management systems, knowledge work systems and intelligent techniques. Figure 3 shows the knowledge management system applications for each of these major categories. Enterprise-Wide Knowledge Management Systems Knowledge Work Systems Intelligent Techniques Structured knowledge systems Semi structured kn owledge systems Knowledge network systems Computer aided design (CAD) Data mining 3 D Visualization Virtual reality -Neural networks Expert systems Intelligent Agents 1. Enterprise-wide knowledge management systems are general purpose firm wide efforts to collect, store, distribute and apply digital content and knowledge. They provide databases and tools for organizing and storing structured and unstructured documents and other knowledge objects for locating employees with expertise in a particular area including web based tools for collaboration and communication. Structured knowledge systems: These systems perform the function of implementing the tagging, interface with corporate databases where the documents are stored and 15 reating an enterprise portal environment for employees to use when searching for corporate knowledge. Semi structured knowledge systems: These systems track, store and organize semi structured documents (folders, messages, proposals, e mails, slide pr esentations etc) Knowledge network systems: Knowledge network system addresses the problem that arises when the appropriate knowledge is tacit knowledge residing in the memory of expert individuals in the firm. Because such knowledge cannot be conveniently found, employees expend significant resources rediscovering knowledge.Knowledge network systems provide an online directory of corporate experts in well-defined knowledge domains and use communication technologies to make it easy for employees to find the appropriate expert in a company. 02. Knowledge work systems (KWS) are specialized systems built for professionals and other knowledge workers charged with discovering and creating new knowledge for an organization. The development of powerful networked work stations and software in the discovery of new knowledge has led to the creation of knowledge work systems. 03.Intelligent techniques have different objectives from a focus on discovering knowledge (through data mining and neur al networks) to distilling knowledge (through expert systems and fuzzy logic) in the form of rules for a computer programme in order to discover optimal solutions for problems. Knowledge Portals Many organizations have integrated their content and document management capabilities with powerful portals and these will provide access to external sources of information, such as news feeds and research, as well as to internal knowledge resources along with capabilities for e mail, chat, discussion groups and video conferencing.Organizations are now using blogs, wikis and social book marking for internal use to facilitate the exchange of information between individuals and teams within organizations. 16 A learning Organization In more recent times, managers seem to be searching for new approaches to management. Fuelling this search is a range of new issues that modern managers face but that their historical counterparts did not. These issues include a concern about the competitive decline of western firms, the accelerating pace of technological change, the sophistication of customers, and an increasing emphasize on globalization.A new approach to management that is evolving to handle this new range of issues can e called as the learning organization approach. Organizational learning means the process of improving actions through better knowledge and understanding. Therefore under the organizational knowledge title organizational learning is another important fact which can be identified as a supportive term for the organizational knowledge. A learning organization is an organization skilled at creating, acquiring and transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights.Learning organizations emphasize systematic problem solving, experimentation, learning from their own experience and past history, transferring knowledge. These activities leading the organizations towards the fact of gaining competitive advantage by relying on t he scientific method and data rather than assumptions, searching for and testing of new knowledge, reviewing their successes and failures, learning from others; specially from immediate environment, and spreading the knowledge throughout the organization quickly and efficiently.Actually the most important thing is that the using and sharing the knowledge which has collected. Otherwise there is no any created benefit from the knowledge to the organization, peculiarly learning from others and spreading the knowledge throughout the organization is become more important in this case. Learning occurs in two forms, those are single-loop and double-loop. Single loop learning asks a one dimensional question to expose one dimensional answer. Double loop learning takes an additional step or several additional steps.It might also ask why the current setting was chosen at the first place. In other words, it asks questions not only about objective facts but also reasons behind those facts. 17 A learning organization is focusing to create, acquire and transfer knowledge continuously from the environment and there by modify its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights. This involves mainly three areas. An organization has to follow ongoing programmes, designed to produce incremental gains in knowledge.An example to indicate that an organization can import new ideas from outside and apply it to daily operations; a case study, General Electric’s impact program originally sent manufacturing managers to Japan to study factory innovations, such as quality circles and kanban cards, and then apply them in their own organizations. This program was one of the major reasons that General Electric recorded productivity gains averaging nearly 5 % over the last four years. (Harvard business review on Knowledge Management, 2008) Successful ongoing programmes also require an incentive system that favors risk taking.Employees must feel that the benefits of experimentation exceed s the costs; if not they will not participate. This is challenging for managers, since they must maintain accountability and control over experiments without stifling creativity by unduly penalizing employees for failures. Companies must learn from past experiences and should review their successes and failures, assess them systematically and record the lessons in a form that employees find open and accessible. 18 Learning and the Knowledge Management The knowledge continuum shows the process of transforming data in to knowledge and wisdom.The knowledge continuum In this continuous process organizations acquire knowledge throughout its life cycle. Therefore learning plays very important role in the knowledge management process. Its probably appropriate to develop some perspective regarding this stuff called knowledge, which there seems to be such a desire to manage, really is. Consider this as a basis for thought relating to the following diagram. ? ? ? ? A collection of data is not information. A collection of information is not knowledge. A collection of knowledge is not wisdom.A collection of wisdom is not truth. The idea is that information, knowledge, and wisdom are more than simply collections. Rather, the whole represents more than the sum of its parts and has a synergy of its own. 19 8 Average Time (Hours) 4 6 Learning curve 2 10 20 quantity 60 30 40 120 180 240 Figure 07 – Learning Curve 20 Conclusion Organizations can achieve competitive advantage by focusing their knowledge Management efforts in harnessing their assets and competences in their core areas of operation, which can be identified by the value chain analysis approach.An organization progressively discover that value creating activities change over a period of time, and helps to identify value-creating activities faster thereby providing a strategic direction. As organizations evolve into more effective and efficient knowledge creators and knowledge consumers, the effects of knowled ge management efforts should be measurable as knowledge management itself requires an investment of time, resources and manpower.Perhaps organizations will continue to create their own frameworks for valuation or be able to rely on a common methodology for such measurement regardless of the type of organization doing the evaluating. On the other hand, any organization, before framing a strategy, should analyze the industry and should understand all relevant parameters of industry growth. This analysis would yield results on the industry parameters like growth/ recession buyer/supplier power leading to determining the attractiveness of competition.The competitor analysis would reveal the strategy adopted by the competitors and identify the possible future movements of the competitors and to predict the strategies that are likely to be adopted by them. An organization can gain competitive advantage and sustain it only if it is able to understand the needs of the customer and track the changes in the customer needs. In this context, the analysis of the needs of customer gains importance. An organization should assess the resources and capabilities, before formulating a strategy, since the resources and capabilities should aid the operationalization of the chosen strategy.The right combination of resources and capabilities in the context of a strategy can be discovered through the process of knowledge management. In short, today? s organizations act with the theme of Knowledge sharing is the power instead of Knowledge is the Power, in order gain competitive advantages, by keeping a knowledge supporting culture, that management can support the knowledge creation and sharing, maintaining a perfect human resource policy which lead to minimize the employee turnover for the purpose of securing organizational memory in the organization.

Bicamerilism essays

Bicamerilism essays In 1787, a pattern of government started to form in the colonies. A king chose a governor to serve as an advisory body and chief executive, which became the upper house of the colonial legislature. The lower house was elected by the colonist who owned property and were eligible to vote. This provided our founding nation of a bicameral legislation. However, critics of bicameralism didnt want it included into the constitution because they thought of the Senate as undemocratic. They would make an argument about how much larger regions with less population had the same number of representatives in the Senate, compared to a smaller region with a much larger population. The purpose of the Senate was to have equal number of representatives to prevent the most populated regions from dominating the Congress. Bicameralism provided for equal representation for each state in the Senate, and for the House of Representative to be elected based on their respective populations. Currently, a legislature is made up of two chambers that is supported the system of checks and balances. Either house is able to block legislation approved by the other. The two houses have to cooperate with each other and compromise on the differences in writing the nations laws. Although the House and Senate share similar powers and can be considered equal, the two houses differ in a numerous ways. The House of Representatives has 435 members, with each member elected from each congressional district. The Senate however has only 100 members, two from every state. Because of the Houses larger size, the House is more formal and stricter than the Senate. A member of the House has to be recognized in order to speak during a debate for a short time period. The Houses own members choose a longtime member that has influentially contributed over the years to be the Speaker. The Speaker is then the acknowledged leader of its majority party. If the Sp...

International Business Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

International Business Finance - Essay Example The different structures of currency (fixed, pegged, etc.) also influence the risk. Fluctuations in forex rates have a direct impact on the sales revenues, and thus the profits of importers and exporters. This impact can be at all the three levels; short-run, inter-mediate term, and the long run. There are 4 factors that influence the fluctuation of forex rates: It is defined as the elasticity of the real domestic currency value of Assets and Liabilities, appearing in the financial statements to unanticipated changes in exchange rates. This value serves as a standard to evaluate discounted cash-flow evaluation. It is used for income tax purposes and for legal obligation to combine financial statements. Accounting exposure cannot be managed. Selection of valuation technique is immaterial as the choice doesn't affect any real cash flow except for taxes; the only correct method is economic value anyway. For simplicity and a consistent method current rate method is used. It is defined as the elasticity of the real domestic currency value of Assets and Liabilities, when assets and liabilities are liquidated with respect to unexpected changes in exchange rates for exporting, importing, or import-substituting firms. As the name suggests, it is the exposure that rises due to trading of goods and services, borrowing and lending funds, etc. Forex transaction exposure can be dealt by with the usage of contractual, operating, and financial hedges. Contractual hedges employ the forward, futures, money and options market. Operating and financial hedges employ the use of risk-sharing agreements, some types of financial derivative, and other strategies. In this part, we focus on contractual hedges. Hedging implies replacement of an unlock future exchange risk with a presently known exchange rate where alternatives such as Forward/Future Market Hedge, Money Market Hedge, Risk shifting (price all products in home currency), Pricing Decisions, or Currency Risk Sha ring can be used. Operating Exposure: It is defined as the elasticity of the real domestic currency value of Assets and Liabilities, or future operating incomes to unforeseen changes in exchange rates. They are based on the extent to which the value of the firm - as measured by the present value of its expected cash flows. Scenario I: Closed Economy Internal costs and prices are unaffected by exchange rate changes, therefore no exports or imports. Scenario 2: Open Economy Small, open economy and an international price for all goods and factors increase by 45%. Then, except for contractual exposure effects. There are two widespread misunderstandings about forex as follows: a) Only organizations having international operations are exposed to it b) Quoting prices for trade in local currency would eliminate the exposure. The true assumption that can be concluded from the two concepts is the fact that the structure is fairly static; however, it is not so. Competition from a foreign firm or exports may eventually cause problems for

Project Manager Being an effective project manager Essay

Project Manager Being an effective project manager - Essay Example Indeed, we managed to implement the system but this was not an easy task given that there were so many problems that were encountered right from the project initiation process up to the end. However, I realised that the success of such a project mainly depends with the leader’s capability to deal with people involved in the project in a positive manner. It is not very easy to convince people to buy the idea of a new project without explaining to them the main idea behind such an initiative. When confronted with such a situation, an effective leader ought to engage all the people who will be involved in the project so as to be in a position to gain their support towards the idea. According to Fox (2008), the most important thing when initiating a project is to ensure that there is agreement and consensus among all the stakeholders who will be involved in such a project. People often view the same thing in different ways and their opinions differ as a result of various factors. However, I realised that in order to become an effective project manager, there is need to involve all members who will execute the project so that they can be in a position to express their views and ideas freely. Mutual understanding can be created if all members of the team share the same ideas towards something. In our case, we only managed to reach consensus when we discussed the idea as a team given that some of the employees were against the idea in the first place. An idea that is shared by the majority of people in a group is likely to succeed and project leaders should be accommodative to different views suggested by other people. When the project idea has been approved and an agreement has been reached, the project manager should take a leading role in the execution of that project. However, being a leader does not mean to say that a project manager has the autonomy to dictate everything to other members involved in the project. An effective project manager is always on t he ground to monitor all tasks and activities being performed by different members of the team. The manager should also be in a position to get feedback from the team members so as to be in a position to make necessary adjustments to different aspects of the work being undertaken. As a leader, I noticed that it is essential to interact with different team members so that all people involved share the same vision as stated in the project plan. All project phases have to be implemented according to schedule so as to ensure that the set goals are attainable. Effective managers carefully consider all aspects of a project and they make sure that all activities are performed according to set plans. Another very important element that determines the effectiveness of project managers is related to team communication. It is quite impossible for any project to be a success without proper communication in place. Kritzinger, Bowler & Goliath (2003) suggest that there is no project which can be a success without a good communication system in place. Basically, communication ought to be timely and it should be effective so that all people involved in the project share the same vision towards the project goals. An effective manager in this case has the responsibility of coordinating all communication initiatives and he should also make sure that open communication channels are put it place in order to ensure that he can get

Management Evolution Essay Example for Free

Management Evolution Essay The evolution of management can be traced back to the start of the Industrial Revolution. â€Å"Management and leadership abilities were not thought of as learnable skills but derived from one’s heredity. There did not exist the need for a theory of management: leaders were born, not made. † (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 14). This belief ignored the need for a written theory of management and focused on the practice itself. As industrialization increased and spread, problems related to the factory system began to appear. Large numbers of workers were needed to keep up with the rapid economic expansion. Many of these workers were immigrant, unskilled, and non-English speaking. Managers did not know how to train these employees. This led to a scientific study of management and to what is today known as management theory. Classical School of Management The first management theory, Scientific Management, arose because of a need to increase worker efficiency and productivity. Emphasis of this approach was placed on the best way to get the most work accomplished. Focus was on examining the work process and developing the skills of the workforce. The classical school owes its origins to several contributors; including Frederick Taylor, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, Henry Gantt, and Mary Parker Follet. Frederick Taylor is often referred to as the â€Å"father of scientific management†. He believed that organizations should study and gain an understanding of work and develop precise procedures to complete it. â€Å"Taylor believed that economic prosperity could only be achieved by maximal worker productivity, which in turn, would be the product of making workers more efficient† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 5). By analyzing every job through scientific observations, he felt there was only one best way of doing a job. He believed managers should study each job and determine the minimum necessary steps needed to complete it. Individuals step would be analyzed to determine the most efficient way of performing it. Managers would then total the time of each individual task to determine the optimum amount of time necessary to complete the entire task. Workers would then follow the precise instructions of management. If tasks were not completed in the optimal amount of given, workers were removed from the job. He believed this system gave managers power over workers. Workers could no longer resist management demands. Managers possessed the knowledge and workers performed their detailed steps. Frank and Lillian Gilbreth were a husband and wife team that studied job motions. â€Å"The Gilbreths are considered pioneers in making use of motion studies to improve worker efficiency† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 16). Frank analyzed worker actions to determine the best possible method of performing a given job. When he understood all the motions, he would seek to improve the efficiency of each action and reduce the number of motions required to accomplish the job–a process called job simplification† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 16). Managers would then select, train, and develop workers with devised procedures. Lillian extended this theory into the home in an effort to determine the ideal way to complete household tasks. Henry Gantt developed the Gantt chart; a work scheduling chart that measures planned and completed work along throughout each stage of completion. The Gantt chart is a powerful planning and evaluation tool used by managers. He believed inefficiency was a result of management unrealistic production standards. According to Gantt, â€Å"work standards should be determined by scientific observation and measurement, and only then may realistic work standards be set† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 17). Gantt also believed that workers should be rewarded for good work through a bonus system. He felt that workers would be more productive and achieve higher levels of production if there was an incentive. To motivate workers to go beyond the daily production quotas, he pioneered the use of a production bonus (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 18). Gantt also focused on the importance of quality leadership and management skills and their relationship to building effective industrial organizations. Mary Parker Follet is often referred to as the â€Å"mother of conflict resolution†. â€Å"Her research and writings pointed to a collaborative approach to problem solving that advocated compromise† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 17). Follet focused on the importance of establishing and developing common goals within the workplace. She believed workers should be allowed to participate in the decision making process. She believed workers could and would comply and follow management’s logical requests without being given too many orders; workers should not be micromanaged. â€Å"The classical approach to management theory had asserted that the key to worker efficiency and organizational productivity was efficient job design, use of appropriate incentives, and effective managerial functioning† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 23). This approach emphasized the work elements and eliminated the human dimensions. Behavioral School of Management The behavioral approach stresses that effective management will come from an understanding of the worker† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 23). Emphasis of this approach is based on the belief that every human being has social and physiological needs which affect performance and motivation. Focus was on improving the self-esteem and self-confidence of the workforce. Contributors to the behavioral school include Elton Mayo, Chester Barnard, and Douglas McGregor. Elton Mayo was the founder of the human relations movement. â€Å"Mayo concluded that factors other than the physical aspects of work had the power of improving production. These factors related to the interrelationships between workers and individual psychology† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 25). Mayo believed that if workers were treated with respect and their needs were being met, they would be more productive and their work would be more efficient; therefore both the employee and management would benefit. Mayo is known for his work conducted at the Western Electric Company in Chicago; known as the Hawthorne Experiments. He was able to prove that the relationship that employees have with management directly affects productivity. He concluded that management needed to be more directly involved with employees. Chester Barnard developed the acceptance theory of management, which focuses managerial authority. He believed that employees themselves determined if managerial order is legitimate and acceptable. He felt that in order for employees to accept that managers have legitimate authority to act, they must first understand the communication they receive from management. Employees must also feel that the communication that is received is consistent with the organization’s purpose. Bernard believed that managers needed to share a common purpose and express a willingness to cooperate with the employees. â€Å"Douglas McGregor, in distinguishing between the pessimistic Theory X view of employees and the optimistic Theory Y, had a dramatic impact on management theory and practice† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 27). Theory X which characterized the views of Taylor is based on the assumption that the average human being dislikes work and that because of this dislike they must be threatened and controlled before they will work. Theory X also assumes that the average person desires security and prefers being directed. Average people dislike responsibility and have little ambition. Theory Y which characterized the views of Mayo is based on the assumption that if a job is satisfying and the working conditions are good, then the worker will be committed to the organization. Theory Y also assumes that if the average worker is committed, then they will not only accept, but seek responsibility. McGregor believed that managers should operate with the belief that workers will contribute more to an organization if they feel valued and are treated responsibly. The behavioral approach to management theory focused on the workforce and their needs; the human element of the organization. This approach emphasized work as a group activity and aimed at increasing work productivity through collaboration. Production Operations Management (POM) Approach The Production Operation Management Approach to management was developed in response to increasingly difficult operational problems and a rapidly changing environment. The concepts of the POM Approach were based on the belief that the scientific method was the solution to problem solving. Herbert Simon was a major contributor to the POM Approach. â€Å"Herbert Simon is best known for his research in decision-making and information processing but also made contributions to cognitive psychology, computer science, public administration, philosophy of science, and artificial intelligence† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 29). Simon coined the term satisficing which was based on the belief that executives rarely had access to perfect information. They were more apt to accept data acquired early in a search and seek solutions or accept choices that are deemed good enough for their purposes. He believed that seeking the maximal solution or result expended resources. â€Å"Production operations management stresses a systems approach that views the total operating system and analyzes a problem within that system. The problem is seen to exist as it relates to the total system, and any proposed solution is evaluated as it relates to the same system† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 30). The POM approach focused more on production and less on the human factor. Contingency Approach The contingency approach to management is the most recent school of thought about management. It combines the ideas of the other three approaches and states that there is no one universal set of management principles or one best way by which to manage an organization. This approach is based on the belief that to effective, planning, organizing, leading and controlling must be contingent on the circumstances in which an organization operates. Different problems require different solutions. â€Å"This approach arose out of the observation that the three earlier approaches to management–the classical, the behavioral, and productions operations research–did not always lead to an acceptable solution† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 1). The contingency approach applies to all areas of management, not just organizing and leading. This approach takes into consideration both the internal and external environments of the organization. Conclusion â€Å"The foundations of the various approaches to schools of management theory are found in a variety of disciplines, inclu ding economics, psychology, sociology, mathematics, philosophy, and industrial engineering. But management theory, even though it makes use of other scholarly areas and the observations of the practicing manager, has emerged as a separate area of study since the 1940’s† (Montana Charnov, 2008, p. 4). The thoughts and ideas of the classical school have been analyzed and developed over the years; however the basic concepts are still in practice today. Relation to Work Environment I believe that the contingency approach to management is the most effective. The classical, the behavioral, and productions operations research approaches all are based on a universal approach, one best way, of management that applies the same techniques to every organization. As a manager I have come to realize that not all people and every situation should be handled identically. I believe managerial decisions and actions are contingent upon a given situation. Managerial styles and techniques must vary according to the circumstances of the situation. To be effective, managers must determine which factors are relevant in what situation. I believe the most important aspect of the contingency theory is that it accounts for the human factor. As the Dining Services Director at Miles Community College, I am required to make daily decisions concerning both my department and the organization as a whole. I believe that to be an effective manager it is necessary to evaluate each and every situation to come up with the appropriate decisions and actions. I understand that each and every situation is unique and requires a situational analysis. I also believe that every decision I make affects the organization therefore my decisions are based on the goals and values of the organization as a whole. I believe that the contingency theory best fits my management style.

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis Essay -- Papers Christian Religion Lew

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis, is written as set of guidelines of Christian belief. Lewis does not say there is any particular way to believe but he does make a point that the topic of religion itself is serious. As you consider whether you want to believe or not, you have to recognize how much thought it requires, and how thought provoking a process this decision is. Lewis covers Christianity in four different books within his book. In book one, Lewis discusses the Law of Nature and makes note of a tendency in humans of appealing to a standard of absolute truth in quarrels and arguments. He calls this standard the Law of Nature or the Moral Law. The Law isn't the same as the law of gravity because in the latter case, we have no choice but to obey physical laws. The Law that governs human conduct is distinct, then, from the "way the universe works." Lewis concludes that the moral law is alive and active in human lives. According to Lewis, science cannot be used to discover the mind behind the creation of the universe. In book two Lewis simply states what Christians believe. He talks about the major divisions within belief in God, and discusses what he calls Christianity-and-water. Lewis speaks on free will, Satan, and the nature of Christ. Book three contains The Three Parts of Morality. He discusses what he calls the cardinal virtues. According to old writers, there are seven virtues. Four are called cardinal and the other three are theological. Lewis argues for morality between man and man, and what a society would be like if it were completely Christian. He also discusses chastity, marriage, forgiveness, the great - sin pride and self-conceit, and gives another look at the theological... ...ion. In the beginning of the book Lewis compared situations where moral decisions were at stake, to keys on a piano. In some situations they keys were right and in others wrong, depending on the tune you are playing. In book three Lewis describes what the basic rudiments of "Moral music" thus defining the bounds of the songs we as humans can properly write and play and still be recognized as music. As in real music there is a structure and there are rules on how songs can be put together. When the structure is not followed it is very hard to play music that is beautiful to listen to because it would lack a melody with all the harmonies that are pleasing to the ear. As for the seven virtues and Moral law they guide the symphony of our life in which each day is new movement. Without the guidance of the Moral Laws, our life would be the same as jumbled notes on a page.

ALS Disease Psychological Aspects

This paper explores the psychological profile of patients with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Aside from the physical challenges experienced by patients, they also have to endure psychological changes such as depression and denial. There are several factors that may contribute to the psychosocial profile of a patient such as degree of severity, age, onset of disease, time span, and dependence on machines like respirator.This paper examines the psychological features of ALS patients and how it affects the family and support team. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease is a progressive degenerative disease attacking the brain and spinal cord. The destruction of the nerve cells, called neurons, in the body’s upper and lower motor neurons leads to the inability of the voluntary muscles to function normally (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2008).With the death of the muscles, ALS patients will have impaired use of their arms and legs. Loss of control is the trademark of ALS. As the disease progresses, the patient will have trouble accomplishing day-to-day activities like eating, tooth brushing and putting on clothes (Olney, 2005, p. 8). Furthermore, the patient’s breathing will suffer and in the end, a ventilator will be needed (2005). Although the disease is debilitating, it does not impinge on the patient’s senses- sight, taste, and smell, hear and touch (2008).There are three diagnostic factors in ALS: clinical features such as â€Å"weakness and involuntary muscle contractions†, having positive results of electromyography (EMG), MRI and blood tests) and ruling out other disorders (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Canada, n. d. p. 1). Not only is the etiology of ALS unknown but there is also no cure for it, which makes the disease more frustrating. The drugs and treatments currently available are targeted only to mitigate ALS symptoms.Given the complexit y of the disease, it is not surprising to find that ALS-afflicted patients endure physical symptoms as well as cognitive and behavioral changes like memory and speech problems and emotional distress (Levine, n. d. ). Another study reports the onset of depression and denial in ALS patients (Houpt, Gould, and Norris, 1977). Given the grim prognosis that accompanies the disease, there are ALS cases when the patient undergoes severe psychological/ social/ spiritual distress. After all, ALS is a â€Å"life-changing event for an individual and his/her loved ones† (Ciechoski, 2002, p. 9).Typically an individual facing the end of life undergoes what psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross the five stages of dying: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance (Morris and Maisto, 2002, p. 437). The same phases may also apply in patients with ALS (Ciechoski, 2002, p. 12). In an ALS Patient Profile project, it was found that ALS patients experience greater bouts with depression- 60% c ompared to the 16 -20% exhibited by the normal and fit population (McDonald, 1992). This can be construed as a sign that the ALS patient is overwhelmed with sadness, apathy and feelings of worthlessness.Depression, after all, is a normal reaction in individuals diagnosed with a life-threatening disease (Ciechoski, 2002, p. 15). Another study concurs with finding, adding that aside from depression; ALS patients are also more to go through denial as a response pattern (Houpt, Gould, and Norris, 1977). Denial, as Kubler-Ross suggests, is the first in a sequence people undertake as they await death. It means that the individual refuses to accept the diagnosis and swears that everything is all right. The study conducted by Drs. Houpt, Gould, and Norris reports that 22.5 percent of ALS patients are â€Å"major deniers† (1977). Again, this is something common to an individual coping with changes. For example, an ALS patient may refrain using a wheelchair even though he/she is clearl y demonstrating difficulty being mobile. It may take some time before the patient finally accepts the situation and resorts to using a wheelchair. However, this does denote giving up or succumbing to the disease but merely a sign that the patient is looking after his/ her well-being. In doing so, the patient will have a â€Å"sense of control† (p. 17).Yet, another research shows that ALS-afflicted patients suffer from behavioral instability- displaying polarity in emotions, from being overly reactive and exaggerated to being extremely reticent and dull (Levine, n. d. ). There is also an increased chance of the patient becoming withdrawn, becoming less interactive and shying away from interaction with others, as well as professing â€Å"lack of insight† (n. d. ). Likewise, the patient may start having troubles making decision. Decision making in a serious ailment such as ALS is crucial, thus is requires a great amount of â€Å"flexibility and creativity† (Ciechos ki, 2002, p.18). Among the issues that need to be addressed by the patient are living accommodations, employing caregiver services, use of ventilator and feeding tube, family and work life, and even the subject of creating a living will (p. 21). Decision making should be consulted with the family, medical and support group but ultimately it must be stressed that it is the patient that makes the final decision (p. 22). Despite the torrents of emotions experienced by the patient, it is not suffice to conclude that ALS patients have a predictable psychosocial profile.There have been studies indicating that some ALS patients only go through mild depression or none at all (McDonald, 1992). There are several factors that contribute to the psychosocial profile of an ALS patient- the onset of the disease, age of acquisition, seriousness of ALS, extent of the disease, reliance on respirator and other medical machines, and rate of deterioration (1992). It was found that the onset of the sympt oms do no factor in the patient’s psychosocial status (1992). It will also be a factor when there are unresolved issues on the patient’s part prior to diagnosis.On the other hand, age contributes to the patient’s well-being. ALS patients that are diagnosed during late adulthood (over 65 years old) tend to be more depressed and hopeless than those diagnosed in their younger years (1992). While ALS may not primarily be the root of depression, if one is to follow Kubler-Ross’ stages of dying, depression is a normal reaction when the subject of end-of-life id talked. An ALS diagnosis will only aggravate the fear. In addition, when a patient exhibits an acute presentation of ALS, the probability of it affecting the individual’s psychosocial status intensifies.The same assumption, on the other hand, does not apply to the length of ALS. When one is faced with ALS, the prognosis is grim, giving the patient a time life of 3-5 years (1992). However, current data shows that there are ALS patients, roughly 18-42%, outliving the five year mark (1992). Thus, it can be deduced that it is not age but the patient’s will and family support that help him/her uplift his/her psychosocial welfare. When an ALS patient suffers rapid deterioration, his/ her psychosocial profile is also affected.Furthermore, it was found that the longer the patient has been diagnosed with ALS, the more distressed he/she can be (1992). The same is applied to patients whose symptoms have worsened, thus have the need to rely on respirators and other machines. Such individuals may feel more helpless, affecting their attitudes and behaviors. As with any illness, ALS affects relationships- between spouses, siblings, children, friends, family, colleagues and other support system. Family, especially first-degree members are inclined to report periods of depression and denial (McDonald, 1992).One study reports that an astounding 47% of spouses experience stress during a n ALS diagnosis (1992). An ALS diagnosis changes the role play in a family, sometimes the wife become the breadwinner or the children take on the role of main caretaker, depending on who gets ill. Aside from family, the patients’ relationship with friends and work colleagues may also suffer, depending on the degree of closeness experienced. Furthermore, the patient’s relationship with the health care professional is important. The better the line of communication between the patient and the health care team, the better outcome there will be.The health care professional may help the patient deal with depression by prescribing medication and counselling, whichever is appropriate. The psychological characteristics of ALS patients vary in patients. Some may be depressed while others may be hopeful. Coping with a difficult illness like ALS is difficult not only for the patient but the family and support group as well. Worsening of symptoms may hinder their psychological wel l-being. Thus, it is important for everybody concerned to remember that ALS is a disease not to be battled alone.With help and support from everyone involved, patients will be able to live full lives. References Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Canada. (n. d. ). A guide to all ALS patient care for primary care physicians [PDF file]. Retrieved Mary 12, 2009 from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Canada Website: http://www. als. ca Ciechoski, M. (2002). Coping with change [PDF file]. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from The ALS Association Website: http://www. alsa. org/files/cms/Resources/ALS_manual2. pdf. Houpt, J. , Gould, B. and Norris, F. (1977). Psychological characteristics of patients withamyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) [PDF file]. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from Psychosomatic Medicine Website: http://www. psychosomaticmedicine. org. Levine, S. W. (n. d. ). Neurocognitive, behavioral and psychological changes associated with ALS [PDF file]. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from AL S Connection Website: http://www. alsconnection. com/Neurocognitive_Testing_vers_2. pdf McDonald, E. (1992). Psychological aspects of ALS patients and their primary caregivers. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from American Holistic Health Association Website: http://www. ahha. org/articles/McDonald2.htm Morris, C. and Maisto, A. (2002). Psychology an introduction 11th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2008). NINDS amyotrophic lateral sclerosis information page. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Website: http://www. ninds. nih. gov/ Olney, A. (2005). Daily activities made easier for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [PDF file]. Retrieved May 12, 2009 from The ALS Association Website: http://www. alsa. org/files/cms/Resources/OT_Manual_2006. pdf.

Practical Wisdom

First Book Review Schwartz, B. , & Sharpe, K. (2010). Practical Wisdom: The Right Way To Do The Right Thing. Riverhead Books. New York. Summary Schwartz and Sharpe present an interesting array of examples of how there has been a demoralisation of the medical, legal, educational and financial institutions. Where efficiency, accountability and profits become the driving force of organisations, the authors argue this causes a corruption and demoralisation of practitioners where they become discouraged from getting the balance right.The authors suggest we take refuge in rules however the rules keep us from understanding what we are doing. They share how some conscientious professionals who no longer find it possible to practice their profession following the rules and incentives set, have practically applied their knowledge to facilitate a more humane way of practicing which the authors label as practical wisdom. Review The authors refer to what Aristotle named â€Å"phronesis† (p ractical wisdom) which is obtained through learning from experience and applying to new situations. Rules and incentives, sticks and carrots† will not create wisdom. Finding practical ways to apply contextualised knowledge takes courage to question conventional thinking or practices. Practical wisdom as highlighted by the authors is like an antidote to both rules and incentives: it appeals to good judgement and responsibility. This cannot be taught but gained through experiences where these experiences increase awareness and promote critical thinking: encouraging one to examine and assess for themselves â€Å"the right way to do the right thing. In the book an example is given whereby a cleaner was accused of not cleaning the hospital room by a patient’s father even though he had done so. The cleaner chose to not engage in an argument and exercised wisdom about the consequences of holding onto his â€Å"rights† and he just went and re-cleaned the room . Knowing when to exercise this wisdom is at the heart of what the author’s discuss. The author’s encourage you to self-reflect and think more consciously about what you do.Reading some of the examples in this book where practical wisdom was exercised, reminded me of something I once heard: â€Å"in any situation you can choose to be right or kind†. This comment had a visceral impact on me and gratefully comes to mind at times where I am reminded about the way in which I can choose to act in a given situation. I believe this is what the authors are encouraging. I did not learn anything new from this book but it was a great reminder of wanting to be a ‘good person’ in all relationships and encounters and encouraged me to be more mindful of my choices and the impact of my actions.

Advertising, Publicity, and Public Relations

Advertising, Publicity, and Public Relations Introduction The ultimate goal of every business is to sell its products to as many customers as possible in order to make high profits. To achieve this goal, businesses employ various strategies, which include advertising, public relations, publicity, and direct salespersons to market their products. This paper will discuss the importance of each of these strategies in the process of marketing a product.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Advertising, Publicity, and Public Relations specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Significance of a Salesperson Salespersons make significant contributions to their companies since they possess a variety of values that alternative marketing systems such as e-commerce cannot replace. To begin with, a salesperson is an expert who is well connected in a particular market segment. This enables him to reach out to customers and to identify their needs, thereby creating opportunities for new pr oduct development and market share expansion. An effective salesperson is usually likeable and is capable of building strong relationships with customers. The relationships enable customers to identify with the company’s product, thereby increasing the chances of repeat purchases. Salespeople identify important leads that ultimately turn into huge sales. They are passionate about the company’s product and explain its benefits to customers in a manner that creates a lasting emotional impact. It is this personal connection rather than the product or brand that turns potential customers into actual customers. In a nutshell, salespersons are very important since they enable companies to take business away from their competitors. The type of the product being sold determines the significance of the salesperson. For instance, first moving consumer goods (FMCG) such as bread usually do not require a salesperson because the consumers already have adequate knowledge about them. Additionally, the product is so important to the consumer that they have to buy it without being persuaded by a salesperson. However, for a service such as insurance a salesperson is very important because the product is costly, has complicated features, and is often associated with rip-off. In this context, a salesperson is not only needed to explain the benefits of the product, but also to convince customers to purchase it. Expectations of a Salesperson The main expectations of a salesperson include the following. First, a salesperson expects to maintain a high customer satisfaction rate. This helps in reducing customer attrition by improving the loyalty of existing clients. Second, a salesperson expects to maintain a positive and professional attitude.Advertising Looking for essay on advertising? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More A positive attitude is important to a salesperson since he is bound to experience reje ction in the market. A positive attitude provides the motivation to pursue new leads in order to meet sales targets. Third, a salesperson expects to meet his sales targets within the set timeline. In order to realize this expectation, the salesperson is required to have excellent negotiation skills and product knowledge. The sales role is a position that I would be interested in. This decision is supported by the following facts. To begin with, the role will enable me to make valuable contributions to the company. Undoubtedly, selling is the most important activity in any company since it directly generates revenue. The sales role is also important to me because it creates new challenges that have to be addressed through innovative strategies. This not only eliminates boredom, but also provides numerous opportunities for learning and creativity. Working as a salesperson is a highly rewarding career in nearly every company. For instance, most organizations provide their sales personn el with a fixed and a variable pay. The variable component provides the opportunity to the salesperson to increase his income according to his ability. Advertising Policy Ethics determine the long-term benefit of advertising. Specifically, the society’s perception or attitude towards an advert can lead to an increase in demand or a total rejection of a product. An advertising activity is considered to be ethical if it demonstrates respect to the target audience. Showing respect in advertising involves anticipating and addressing the intentional and the unintentional effects of an advert on the society. Based on these perspectives, my advertising policy would be to create responsible desire. This involves using advertising to create desire or stimuli in a manner that does not create harm in the society. Basically, this policy is based on the principle of do good and no harm. The proposed policy is likely to be effective because it addresses all the elements of a firm’s triple bottom line. The elements include profitability, social responsibility, and environmental responsibility. Creating responsible desires leads to sustainable advertising. Adverts that do not cause any harm to the society and the environment will not be resisted by social activists or banned by the government. Thus, they can be used for a long time to stimulate the public to purchase a particular product, thereby increasing the company’s profits. Public Relations, Publicity, and Corporate Advertising Publicity, public relations, and corporate advertising have the following similarities. First, they are all used to create awareness about a company and its products. Second, they all depend on the print and electronic media to convey information about the company and its products.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Advertising, Publicity, and Public Relations specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Publicity, public r elations, and corporate advertising are different in the following ways. Publicity is the act of drawing the attention of the media in order to improve the visibility of a brand, product or a company in the public. The main objective of publicity is to garner as much media coverage as possible in order to create awareness about a brand or a product. Unlike advertising, publicity is often not paid for. Moreover, publicity does not involve controlling what is being covered by the media. Thus, publicity can be positive or negative. For instance, Virgin Cola brand received positive publicity in the US when the chairman of the company that produces it, Sir Richard Branson, drove a Sherman tank down a street in New York in 1998 during its launch. The main strength of publicity is that it enables companies to create brand awareness at a low cost. Public relations activities are concerned with influencing the public’s opinion through the media. Thus, its main objective is to improve the reputation of a brand or a company. For instance, after the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, BP used public relations in 2012 to regain its reputation as an efficient firm in the oil industry. Thus, the main benefit of public relations is to help companies to minimize the negative impact of various events on their brands. Advertising involves paying media companies to convey specific information about a brand or a product. Unlike publicity, advertising enables the company to determine the message that the media presents to the public about its product. The difference between advertising and public relations is that the later positions information as news, whereas the former presents information as an appeal to make a purchase decision. For instance, Nokia Lumia 920 gained market share in the US in 2012 after its advert presented iPhone 5 (its main competitor) as boring. Publicity in Future Publicity will continue to play an important role in improving the competitiveness of products in future because of the following reasons. First, publicity ensures credibility since the message about the product emanates from an independent source. As the public becomes more informed about the consequences of consuming various products, publicity will be one of the tools that companies will use to enhance the credibility of their brands. Second, publicity is cost-effective and provides a lot of information to the public. As competition increases in various industries in future, companies are likely to turn to publicity to improve their brand awareness at low costs. Finally, technological advancements such as the use of the internet and smartphones to access real-time information will enhance the suitability of publicity in marketing.Advertising Looking for essay on advertising? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Conclusion Advertising, publicity, and public relations are used by marketers to improve the brand awareness for their products. Unlike advertising and public relations, publicity is cost-effective and is likely to be used in future by companies that have limited marketing budgets. Apart from implementing the aforementioned strategies, companies should employ salespersons to sell their products. However, the need for a salesperson depends on the characteristics of the product. References Amstrong, G., Kotler, P. (2011). Marketing: An Introduction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Hisrich, R. (2000). Marketing. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons. Johnsons, M. (2012). Attracting and Retaining Customers in a Competitive Market. Strategic Direction, 28(1), 17-20. Kazmi, S. (2007). Marketing Management. London, England: Sage. Pride, W. (2004). Marketing. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Ranchhod, A., Marandi, E. (2005). Strategic Marketing in Practice. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

The role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition

The role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition Introduction Hungary was a centralized economy during and before early the 1980’s. The economy was highly controlled by the government including sectors within the economy. The Hungarian banking sector was under the control of the government with no private banks in operation during this time.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The country was operating under a mono-bank. The bank was later divided based on specialization with introduction a two-tier banking system. This led to the establishment of three banks that were owned by the state. In 1987, Hungary initiated the transition process of converting its economy from being centralized to become market-oriented economy.[1] This transition led to the changing of Hungarian banking sector from centralized banking system to a market-oriented system through pri vatization. Creating an open competitive market for foreign banks to invest was one of the government roles in developing banks in Hungary. During this time of transition, the economy of Hungary was performing poorly and was nearly collapsing. The state-owned banks during the beginning of transition were faced with the problem of non- performing debts, bad debtors, as well as bad investments. The financial sector, which highly incorporates banking, had thus a great role to play in this transition process. In the late 1980s, Hungary was faced within the problem of bad debts, massive under-capitalization as well as high concentration.[2] The main reason of developing banks in Hungary through use of market-oriented system was to establish a stable banking system. The government had to solve the existing problems in the banking system before introducing new reforms. This paper discusses the process of consolidating state-owned banks and then privatizing them. The paper also looks into t he role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition. The transition of banking to a new system In the late 1940s, the Hungarian banking system was established with formation of the national bank known as National Bank of Hungary (NBH). NBH was established as a monopoly. It was the only bank dealing with money circulation and credit activities within Hungarian economy. The government further established a centralized banking system with the introduction of specialized banks. For example, the NBH only dealt with allocating credit to enterprises, the National Savings Bank (NSB) only dealt with colleting deposits from savers, and Hungarian Foreign Trade Bank was only involved with foreign trade transactions. All these banks were owned by the state that made them monopolies in their respective areas of specialization.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the late 1980s, the Hungarian economy was performing poorly. The government initiated the process of transition from use of centralized economy to introduction market oriented economy.[3] The market-oriented economy meant that foreign investors would invest in Hungary. This made the government permit some foreign banks to invest in Hungary. During this time, these foreign banks faced competition from the state owned banks in foreign exchange and trade transactions.[4] The banking system became more decentralized with introduction of the two-tier banking system. This system led to NBH becoming the central bank while its commercial functions were delegated to three new commercial banks, which were introduced in the country. The government went further to allowing introduction of new specialized banks, which had very narrow functions. These reforms greatly influenced the post-socialist government to create way for more reforms in the banking sector. In early 1990s, the new democra tic government formed new reforms for the banks. The banks were expected to meet a certain percentage of capital adequacy ratios. Banks were also expected to provide reserves against their bad loans. This issue on bad loans made the banks to suffer huge losses. This is because several major banks had huge negative equity percentage of loans that were considered doubtful loans. These banks suffered huge losses, as the existing accounting laws at this time did not require provision for doubtful loans. These structural reform initiatives led to a significant drop of the country’s GDP. This drop in GDP led to heavy losses among state-owned enterprises, which made them unable to service their debts to banks. With these losses, the government had to resolve the issue on bad debts. This led to the instruction of loan consolidation program in 1993. This program enabled banks to exchange their bad debts for government bonds called consolidation bonds. These bonds had a coupon equal to 90-day treasury bills.[5] Although this program removed bad debts from banks, it did not create new capital in the banking sector. The government then went further to recapitalizing its state-owned banks to attain the minimum requirement of 8 percent. In the mid 1990s, there was a significant progress in establishing a market-oriented banking system. The government still discouraged foreign banks with its preference of keeping a golden share of the venture. To achieve transition in the banking sector the government started negotiations with foreign banks in offering them flexible terms and conditions of bank privatization.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Privatization of large state-owned banks involved two important stages. The first stage of privatization took place in parts with blocks of shares being offe red to different foreign investors at different times. This was a significant step for foreign investors whose initial cost and risk of investments was reduced strategically. Although the government offered block of shares to the foreign investors it still held 20-to-25 percent ownership of these banks. The government instead allowed the foreign partners to take full control on management of these banks.[6] In the second stage of privatization, the government negotiated with foreign investors. The government came into contract with foreign investors on terms of privatization. These contracts allowed subsequent price adjustments in the purchase price, according to profits to be made by the bank in future. The contract also provided for acquisitions of share from the government or any other non-private partners. This method of liberal privatization faced criticism politically even if others supported the idea as it meant a strong efficient banking sector foundation. The role of debt c learance In developing banks in Hungary, the government wanted to deal with the problem of bad debts, which had even led to collapse of many firms. This had contributed greatly to the poor economy and high rates of unemployment. In trying to overcome this problem on debts, the government had to allow for entry of foreign banks into Hungary. The government had to restructure the banking system by developing banks to deal with issue on debts as some state-owned banks had even lost their capital. The government had to deal with the issue of debts and debtors in the banking system through bank consolidation. The government wanted to develop banks with no bad loans to pave way for privatization and avoid the problem of bad debts again. In the initial stages of bank consolidation, the government had to do portfolio cleaning. Here the government gave bonds in exchange for bad debts to those banks with a capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of less than 7percent. The government then sold a part of the non-performing loans bought as bonds at a discount to the Hungarian Development Bank (HDB). Although the government left the other part of bad loans with the banks it gave them a fee of 2 percent to encourage them work out bad loans.[7]Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This measure of government exchanging bad debts with bonds solved the problem on debts partially. This is because the government did not include neither doubtful nor substandard loans. The government also failed to solve the problem of banks’ bad investments and contingent liabilities. In 1993, the bad debts were still increasing and the government had to carry out recapitalization but this time including bad investments and contingent liabilities of the banks. The government here purchased newly issued shares by the recapitalized banks through use of bonds. This increased the government ownership in the banking sector. The government then recapitalized banks by extending subordinated loans to banks. This form of recapitalization prevented increasing government ownership. The government then left the banks to solve issue on other debtors as it had more information regarding them. The objective here was to try to separate banks with more debtors from those with few. This paved way for privatization process. The government also introduced consolidation program aimed at putting banks on track. This program required banks to improve their management, internal control and come up with modernized operations. These measures enabled the government to develop banks and solve the issue of debts in the beginning of transition.[8] Role of privatization The government had controlled the banking system before transition process began in Hungary. The government had to develop banks to enable their privatization as it had being unable to run them. This is because at the time of transition Hungarian banks were facing large bad debts, and were poorly managed. The government had thus to introduce a market-oriented banking system to enhance economic growth. Therefore, another role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition was to encourage their privatization.[9] The government also encouraged privatization of banks through introduction of liberal li censing policy. This policy encouraged many foreign banks to set up subsidiaries in Hungary. This led to a decrease of government ownership in the banking sector with about 20 percent. This enhanced competition which encouraged better management skills, and provision of services in the banking sector. This left the government with the ownership of just one large commercial bank. The banks from European Union invested in Hungary contributing to the 70 percent of foreign ownership in the country. Privatization of banks in Hungary has played a great role in its economic growth. This is shown by the stabilization of Hungarian banking system that is evident as shown by the current high level of CAR. The percentage of bad debts has also decreased significantly to a very low percentage of about 3 percent.[10] The increased investment of foreign banks in Hungary has also encouraged direct investment in other sectors with banks from home countries operating in Hungary.[11] Role of bank regul ation and supervision The centralized banking system applied by Hungarian government before beginning of transition prevented better regulatory measures to apply. The government was unable to impose measures, which would regulate banking system efficiently as it was the one still controlling them. Therefore, another role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition was to establish a regulatory structure. The government had experienced high rate of non-performing debts before transition began. These debts had led to high instability in the banking system leading to a deteriorating economy. The government had thus to develop banks to as to introduce measures to regulate and supervise the banking system. These regulations in the banking sector help to control the stability of an economy. Hungary with the aid of EU has improved its regulation and supervision in the banking sector.[12] The government established a group-based supervision as opposed to the institutio n-based mode of supervision applied earlier. The group-based supervision was to be introduced through formation of a single agency to supervise all banks. Management role The government of Hungary had experience and significant increase of the non-performing debts during the late 1980s. This was due to the poor performance of the state-owned banks during this period. These banks allocated loans on basis of political influence rather than based on profitability that had contributed to the large amount of bad debts.[13] This was partially the contribution of poor management and unskilled staff in the banks. Another role of developing banks in Hungary during the beginning of transition was to improve their management and human capital. Privatization process of state-owned banks was also aimed at improving their management. In the first face of privatization though the government only allowed a given percentage of ownership to foreign investors, it left management role to them. This is because these banks were characterized with poor operations management structure that incorporates many undisguised employees. The government also introduced measures through ministry of finance to supervise these banks on basis of management. These measures led to the decrease on non-performing loans, which were now allocated on basis of profitability. Conclusion Hungary transition from a centralized economy to a market-oriented economy started in late 1980s. The government had to change the banking system from a centralized banking system to a market-oriented system. The government had to allow foreign banks to invest in Hungary. Before foreign banks were allowed to invest in Hungary, the government had to solve the problems, which existed within the state-owned banks. The role of developing banks was thus to pave way for more reforms in the banking sector which would lead to a stable banking system. One role of developing banks in the beginning of transition was first to consolid ate them. The government had to deal with the issue existing bad debts and bad debtors that had even led to the closure of some banks due to lack of capital. The government had to introduce use of bonds to buy these bad debts and those debts debtors were owing to banks. The government went further to recapitalizing the banks including their bad investments and liabilities. This was followed by privatization of these banks to be owned by other foreign banks. The government did this by first selling partial ownership before realizing full ownership in mid 1990s. The government then introduced a single group-based supervision agency to supervise all banks on standards of management, performance and services offered. This has led to improved banks management, and reduced non-performing loans within the banking sector. Through these developments of banks, the government of Hungary has been able to establish a stable banking system. References Barta, G. (2005). Hungarian spaces and places : patterns of transition. Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Colombo, E. and Stanca, L. (2006) Financial market imperfections and corporate decisions: lessons from the transition process in Hungary. New York, NY: Springer. Cottarelli, C. (1998). Hungary: economic policies for sustainable growth. Washington DC. International Monetary Fund. Hajdu, Z. (1999). Regional processes and spatial structures in Hungary in the 1990’s Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Horvath, J. (2006). International currency arrangements and policies. New York, NY: Nova Publishers. Footnotes Barta, G. (2005). Hungarian spaces and places: patterns of transition. Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Colombo, E. and Stanca, L.(2006) Financial market imperfections and corporate decisions: lessons from the transition process in Hungary. New York, NY: Springer. Hajdu, Z. (1999). Regional processes and spatial structures in Hungary in the 1990’s Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Colombo, E. and Stanca, L.(2006) Financial market imperfections and corporate decisions: lessons from the transition process in Hungary. New York, NY: Springer Hajdu, Z. (1999). Regional processes and spatial structures in Hungary in the 1990’s Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Colombo, E. and Stanca, L. (2006) Financial market imperfections and corporate decisions: lessons from the transition process in Hungary. New York, NY: Springer Barta, G. (2005). Hungarian spaces and places: patterns of transition. Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Horvath, J. (2006). International currency arrangements and policies. New York, NY: Nova Publishers. Cottarelli, C. (1998). Hungary: economic policies for sustainable growth. Washington DC. International Monetary Fund Cottarelli, C. (1998). Hungary: economic policies for sustainable growth. Washington DC. International Monetary Fund Barta, G. (2005). Hungarian spaces and places: patterns of transition. Hungary. Centre for Regional Studies. Horv ath, J. (2006). International currency arrangements and policies. New York, NY: Nova Publishers. Cottarelli, C. (1998). Hungary: economic policies for sustainable growth. Washington DC. International Monetary Fund

Employment of Forensic Science Examinations within the U.S. Military Dissertation

Employment of Forensic Science Examinations within the U.S. Military - Dissertation Example It is also very light and easy reading and does not make use of technical terms to express its important elements and details. The disadvantages of this article are that firstly, it is not an academic paper hence its sources are not cited and supported. Secondly, most of its data do not come from primary evidence as most of them come from second-hand data secured from other authors and other studies. Nevertheless, this study establishes a clear picture of the value and importance of DNA and forensic evidence in the criminal justice system within and outside the military system. In a paper by the Committee on Identifying the Needs of the Forensic Sciences Community (2009), the committee carried out a study on the strengthening of forensic science in the United States. The study discussed the different recommendations of a Senate Report on assessment of forensic science needs of state, and local authorities; on the maximal use of the resources for forensic sciences; identification of p otential forensic advancements; on the recommendations of programs to increase qualified forensic sciences; and on the assessment of the role of the forensic community in homeland security. This study also identified issues on limited resources in the application and the use of forensic science. These issues also include the transition of forensic science into the process of litigation which may sometimes translate to gaps in its application. The study makes different recommendations which include the increase of funding and allocation in forensic science, the use of standard terminology in the reporting of forensic examinations, research on validity and reliability of forensic science, studies on the improvement of the... This study is advantageous because it specifies the different issues which forensic science is facing, and these issues are well-supported by evidence. Proper sources are provided by the committee and are used as basis for the review and assessment of the forensic science and its applications in the actual practice. The issues are also clearly defined by the committee and the causes as well as the possible recommended solutions to each issue are also clearly presented by the committee. Recommendations in relation to homeland security are also established by the committee, and this is based on the specifications of the Senate report. This report is also an academic and scholarly paper because the details it includes and discusses are well supported by verifiable and reliable evidence. Although it is a report supported by the government, there is no sign of bias or falsehood in its content. This report is disadvantageous in the sense that it does not provide sufficient data and support on the current applications of forensic science in the military. Although it provides a discussion on forensic science in terms of the Department of Homeland Security, it does not provide a picture of how forensic science can be applied in the military in their criminal investigations. There is a need therefore for future studies of this committee to consider the actual applications of forensic science in the military and to review how well they blend in into the system and how well they assist personnel in the application of the criminal justice system.