The Revolt of the City by Samuel Lubell Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Revolt of the City by Samuel Lubell - Essay Example In the third chapter of the book, â€Å"the revolt of the city†, the author describes the revolution that takes place in the event following up to the elections and the even after it. Samuel Lubell says that in the political America of today a two-party system is considered as the pioneer of the prevalent alternating one-party rule. He says that there is a "sun" party denoting the majority party and a "moon" party denoting the minority party. He describes that these majority parties is responsible for dealing the issues of any particular period and fights over it. The world saw that in the 1980s, Republicans ceased the entrepreneurial energies and the democrats did not and so the cold war was ended. This can be denoted as the republican’s â€Å"sun† period. These days the Democrats are on the rise and dominate the system by taking over the economic and the health care issues. The human’s belief proves that humans are most irrational and puzzling ways that the human mind works. Lubell was a sociologist as well. The elections proved the democratic incompetent Harry Truman to be the better man. Even though his ratings had to gone down to 23 percent before the elections but he still won. Every person, every poll, every survey and every pundit predicted the democrat to be solely defeated by the republican Thomas E. Dewey. But, instead the democrat, Harry Truman, won in history’s most startling turn of events in the elections of the 1948. Everyone was so stunned with the outcome that the republicans gasped with shock. Lubell set out to determine the cause of such a turn of tables. This defeat set the entire place on fire and the people on edge. People set out to revolt and a revolution turned up. Lubell went around the country, through a small Midwestern town to Washington dc. The mid2western town was founded at the start of 19th century by the Germans; Lubell was very much amazed to find out that this town had supported Dewey throu gh and through, even though everyone knew that Truman would have been a very logical economic decision for the town’s people. The town’s people said that they had never forgotten the democrat, President Woodrow Wilson, who dominated in 1917. He had declared war on Germans. As the town was full of Germans, so they had not forgiven him. Because of this war, the entire country was full of anti-German feelings and deeply despised that town’s people. And they had been greatly dishonored and mistrusted by everyone. So even after two World Wars, they had not forgotten the democrat president and like natural human behavior were not thinking logically or rationally about the economics of themselves. Samuel Lubell says in his book that â€Å"Whenever a new majority coalition comes into dominance, as the Democrats in toppling the old Republican ascendancy, it brings with it a distinctively different orbit of political conflict. This orbit also governs the movement of stru ggle within the minority party.† Although Lubell wrote this book in the 1951, but the theories of this book are still alive and fresh today. Lubell wrote both profoundly simple politics and simply profound politics. What his book reveals his that, when a political party has had a history of events strung along it just for the sake of victories, and so is presented as the majority party or the â€Å"sun†

Microeconomics and macroeconomics Essay Example for Free

Microeconomics and macroeconomics Essay Microeconomics is the branch of economics which deals into a more ‘individual’ scope of the study, such as the choices made by people in terms of the utilization and allocation of resources as well as the pricing of goods and services. In addition, it includes taxes and the policies created by governments. This field of economics deals with supply and demand together with other factors that acts as determinants in identifying the price levels for particular companies in specific industries. This is exemplified by how microeconomics focus on a specific companys potential to maximize its production as well as its capability to lower its prices to better compete in the particular industry that it belong to (Investopedia, n. p. ). On the other hand, macroeconomics deals with the behavior of the economy as a whole. Unlike microeconomics, it does not focus on specific companies but rather takes into account entire industries and economies. This field of economics studies phenomena that take place in a wide scope of the economy like the effects of Gross National Product (GDP) with unemployment, national income, rate growth as well as price levels. A good example is how macroeconomics measures the effects of the rise and fall of net exports in a countrys capital account and also how the unemployment rate affects the status of the GDP (Investopedia, n. p. ). Nevertheless, even though these two fields of economic are different from each other, they are actually interdependent. This is due to the fact that most of the issues that fall under each field overlap and thus, they compliment each other. Basically, microeconomics has a bottoms-up approach while macroeconomics has a top-down approach. Nonetheless, they should be understood and analyzed in order to fully comprehend how the economy works (Investopedia, n. p. ). Distinguish between positive and normative economics. Positive economics is responsible in providing a system of generalizations, which could be used to make accurate predictions regarding the effects of any variation in circumstances. It is free of any ethical position or normative judgments. Keynes further elaborated on this idea by saying that it deals with â€Å"what is â€Å"and not with â€Å"what ought to be† (Economists View, n. p. ). Being the case, positive economics is or can be an objective science because it is judged according to precision, scope, and conformity as well as with empirical evidences. Positive economics deals with the interrelations of human beings with each other as well as with the economy (Economists View, n. p. ). Normative economics, on the other hand, is different from positive economics because it takes into account subjectivity in its analysis. It deals with â€Å"what ought to be† rather than what is really happening because it is heavily dependent in value judgments and theoretical scenarios. Normative economics tend to represent opinion instead of an objective perspective. Moreover, normative economics could be valuable in establishing goals and new ideas. However, it should not be the basis for policy decisions (Investopedia, n. p. ). References â€Å"Milton Friedman: The Methodology of Positive Economics. † 26 November 2006. Economists View. 19 July 2008. http://economistsview. typepad. com/economistsview/2006/11/milton_friedman_2. html. â€Å"Normative Economics. † 2008. Investopedia. 19 July 2008. http://www. investopedia. com/terms/n/normativeeconomics. asp. â€Å"Whats the difference between macroeconomics and microeconomics? † 2008. Investopedia. 19 July 2008. http://www. investopedia. com/ask/answers/110. asp.

Movie Essay -- essays research papers

THE STUDY OF FILM   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A person puts on a front for the public to view. Often there are two sides to a person. One does not always see the other side of a person. In the films: The Talented Mr. Ripley, Unusual Suspect, Fight Club, and Persona let us view the other side of one. The film leads one on with using clues, hints, symbolism, and foreshadowing. Each film has some kind of a surprise ending. By using these foreshadowing techniques, it helps the ending seem believable. It makes the ending seem like everything fits. At the beginning of each film they each start off by examining each person, and taking a look at what is really going on in their head.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the film The Talented Mr. Ripley, Thomas Ripley is uncomfortable with himself and begins a journey by living his life through the people around him. Ripley moves out to Europe on a quest to find Dickey Greenthumbs and bring him back to the United States. Tom goes out there to only find a person living the life that he would want to live. Tom becomes very jealous and ends up moving in with Dickey and lives the same life as he does. Tom becomes jealous of a secret affair that Dickey had and does away with her life. It comes to a point where that Dickey no longer wants Tom around anymore. Tom is crushed by this and kills Dickey. Tom would only where one set of clothing and when he was living his own life. Tom obsessed with his life and decided to actually transform and become that person. Tom with drew money from his bank account. Tom takes off his glasses and comes his hair and dresses just like Dickey would. Tom becomes convinced that he is actually Dickey. When one of Dickeys friends starts to stumble onto what Tom is doing, Tom does away with his life . Tom sees nothing wrong with this. Dickey wore two rings that never came off his fingers. He goes on to kill his gay friend and thinks that he is dickey at all time. The rings represented his life, and when Tom wore the rings he became Dickey. When Tom Ripley killed Dickey in the movie it happened at in the water. Water is usually in a movie when a significant change is about to occur in ones life. From that point on is Tom changed and became Dickey. Towards the end of the film tom is once again looking out into the water along with his gay friend. This when his girlfriend of when he wa... ... Brad Pitt and that was him that started and created fight club. It was the same deal with Norman Bates in Psycho. He comes too the conclusion that the only way to get Brad Pitt out of his head was to shoot himself in the head. Edward could not deal with the other part of himself, so this was the only way out for him.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Persona is a film which all of these other films were based from. It starts with a nurse and its patient. For some reason the nurse and the patient look very similar giving a hint to what is to come at the end. The patient is a mute while the nurse it trying to help her with her friends. Along the way the nurse discovers that she has problems of her own. The film uses a lot of close up shots. These shots compare the two girls together. As the nurse tries to help the patient she starts to realize that she needs help herself. The two girls seem to have more in common then they originally thought. The two girls didn’t resemble one another for no reason, but as you find out in the ending that the two girls are in fact the same girl. Along the way there are many clues that these two girls just don’t look and share some of the same qualities.

Henrik Isbens A Dolls House Essay -- A Dolls House Essays

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A Doll’s House, a play by Henrik Ibsen, tells the story of Nora, the wife of Torvald Helmer, who is an adult living as a child, kept as a doll by her husband. She is expected to be content and happy living in the world Torvald has created for her. By studying the play and comparing and contrasting the versions presented in the video and the live performance, one can analyze the different aspects of it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ibsen’s purpose for writing this piece is to entertain while pointing out an injustice. Through the events of the play, Nora becomes increasingly aware of the confines in which Torvald has placed her. He has made her a doll in her own house, one that is expected to keep happy and busy as a songbird, who acts and does as he deems proper. As a result of this, she is often pointed out to be very simple by the other characters. Her friend Christina calls her â€Å"a mere child,† showing how naà ¯ve she appears to be to the hardships in life. To prove to her friend that she really has achieved something on her own to be proud of, Nora tells Christina of her secret borrowing of money for the trip to Italy that saved Torvald’s life. Everyone believed that Nora had gotten the money from her father, while actually she found someone to borrow the money from and had been paying her debt back. She did so by spending frugally and always saving some of the money Torvald had given her and by doing odd jobs. She explained to Christine, When Torvald gave me money for clothes and so on, I never spent more than half of it; I always bought the simplest things†¦and besides that, I made money in other ways. Last winter†¦I got a heap of copying to do. I shut myself up every evening and wrote far into the night†¦[I]t was splendid to work in that way and earn money. I almost felt as if I was a man. Later, while discussing his illness with her, Dr. Rank actually comments that Nora is â€Å"deeper than†¦[he] thought.† He too looked at her as like a child. The climax of the story comes when Torvald learns of Nora’s forgery and yells angrily at her. He then finds the promissory note, returned by Krogstad, and realizes that no one has anything over his head any longer. During this episode, Nora realizes what has been going on: that she has become Torvald’s â€Å"doll† which plays around his â€Å"doll† house. She points out to him: You have never under... ...le â€Å"lark.† She spends her days shopping and playing with the children. Also, the characters, locales, and scenes are limited. The characters in this play number only eleven: Nora, Torvald, the three Helmer children, Dr. Rank, Christina, Anna, Krogstad, Ellen, and a porter. The live stage production did not even include the children, as they were not essential to the action of the play. There was but one set in the stage production, and few more in the video, and the play has only three acts. Finally, the construction is tight. There are few, if any, loose ends at the conclusion of the play. Nora reveals her true feelings to Torvald in an exciting scene, Christina deals with unresolved situations with Krogstad, and Dr. Rank tells the Helmers good-bye. These all neatly tie together the previous conflicts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is interesting to see how these elements---purpose, point of view, genre, style, motivation, and structure---make up the underlying pieces of the play. Without them, the play becomes little more than a pointless story with which the audience cannot identify. Even with these common pieces, different versions show us different twists on the same play. Henrik Isben's A Doll's House Essay -- A Doll's House Essays   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A Doll’s House, a play by Henrik Ibsen, tells the story of Nora, the wife of Torvald Helmer, who is an adult living as a child, kept as a doll by her husband. She is expected to be content and happy living in the world Torvald has created for her. By studying the play and comparing and contrasting the versions presented in the video and the live performance, one can analyze the different aspects of it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ibsen’s purpose for writing this piece is to entertain while pointing out an injustice. Through the events of the play, Nora becomes increasingly aware of the confines in which Torvald has placed her. He has made her a doll in her own house, one that is expected to keep happy and busy as a songbird, who acts and does as he deems proper. As a result of this, she is often pointed out to be very simple by the other characters. Her friend Christina calls her â€Å"a mere child,† showing how naà ¯ve she appears to be to the hardships in life. To prove to her friend that she really has achieved something on her own to be proud of, Nora tells Christina of her secret borrowing of money for the trip to Italy that saved Torvald’s life. Everyone believed that Nora had gotten the money from her father, while actually she found someone to borrow the money from and had been paying her debt back. She did so by spending frugally and always saving some of the money Torvald had given her and by doing odd jobs. She explained to Christine, When Torvald gave me money for clothes and so on, I never spent more than half of it; I always bought the simplest things†¦and besides that, I made money in other ways. Last winter†¦I got a heap of copying to do. I shut myself up every evening and wrote far into the night†¦[I]t was splendid to work in that way and earn money. I almost felt as if I was a man. Later, while discussing his illness with her, Dr. Rank actually comments that Nora is â€Å"deeper than†¦[he] thought.† He too looked at her as like a child. The climax of the story comes when Torvald learns of Nora’s forgery and yells angrily at her. He then finds the promissory note, returned by Krogstad, and realizes that no one has anything over his head any longer. During this episode, Nora realizes what has been going on: that she has become Torvald’s â€Å"doll† which plays around his â€Å"doll† house. She points out to him: You have never under... ...le â€Å"lark.† She spends her days shopping and playing with the children. Also, the characters, locales, and scenes are limited. The characters in this play number only eleven: Nora, Torvald, the three Helmer children, Dr. Rank, Christina, Anna, Krogstad, Ellen, and a porter. The live stage production did not even include the children, as they were not essential to the action of the play. There was but one set in the stage production, and few more in the video, and the play has only three acts. Finally, the construction is tight. There are few, if any, loose ends at the conclusion of the play. Nora reveals her true feelings to Torvald in an exciting scene, Christina deals with unresolved situations with Krogstad, and Dr. Rank tells the Helmers good-bye. These all neatly tie together the previous conflicts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is interesting to see how these elements---purpose, point of view, genre, style, motivation, and structure---make up the underlying pieces of the play. Without them, the play becomes little more than a pointless story with which the audience cannot identify. Even with these common pieces, different versions show us different twists on the same play.

Managing Employee Motivation and Performance

INTERNATIONAL BURCH UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT MANAGING EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION AND PERFORMANCE RESEARCH PAPER by Nedzad ISAKOVIC Project Supervisor M. A. Edin SMAJIC SARAJEVO April, 2012 Contents 1. Introduction2 1. 1. The Motivation Process2 1. 2. Wath Managers Do In Practice2 2. Motivating by Structuring Jobs to Make Them Interesting3 2. 1. Job Design3 2. 2. Job Enrichment and Job Enlargement3 2. 3. The Job Characteristics Model4 3. Conclusion5 4. References7 1. Introduction Motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides and maintains goal-oriented behaviors.Motivation is what causes us to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to reduce thirst, reading a book to gain knowledge or performing some specific job assignment to get pay. Why is the motivation of employees so important at the workplace? It is important for managers because it determines individual performance of the workers along with ability of the workers and work environment . The most challenging factor for manager to control of these three is motivation. Individual behavior is a complex phenomenon, and the manager needs to enter the core of the problem if he is going to solve it. 1. 1. The Motivation ProcessThe motivation process progresses through a series of discrete steps. Content, process, and reinforcement perspectives on motivation address different parts of this process (Griffin, 2008). Content perspective tries to find what factor or factors motivate people. The most popular content theories are Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the ERG theory and Herzberg’s two-factor theory. Process perspectives on motivation explore how the motivation process works and how it occurs. They try to find out why people certain behavior options to fulfill their needs and how workers evaluate their satisfactions after their decisions.Theories of process perspectives are expectancy theory, equity theory and the newer attribution theory. The reinforcement perspective tries to find out which factors force employees to continue being motivated. It tells us that employees will repeat the behavior for which they are rewarded, and they won’t repeat behavior for which they are punished. Reinforcement perspective uses positive reinforcement, avoidance, punishment and extinction as tools to keep employees motivated. These are just theories which help managers to determine what to do in practice. 1. 2.What Managers Do In Practice The most shared thought and strategy among managers in practice is that money motivates. Because of that managers use large variety of reward systems such as merit reward systems, incentive reward systems and team reward systems to improve motivation and performance of their employees. Their assumption is correct and employees do actually perform better when they know that they will receive more money for their improved performance. But another question arises: How long will the improved performance last if mo ney is key motivator?The answer is that it won’t last long. The studies have shown that individuals have difficulty recalling the bonus they receive and it does not seem to have the same impact it did within the first few weeks or months of receiving it. That's because money, in and of itself, will not continuously motivate individuals. Employees are motivated much more if money rewards are combined with recognition and with improved job design. Another problem that arises from using the money as a key factor of motivation is that it costs.The companies need to give large amounts of money to employees as bonuses and there were several cases where bonuses are actually larger than annual salaries of some employees. This becomes a real problem if company wants to decrease the amount of bonuses employees receive. Employees become more dissatisfied and unmotivated because they are used to have large bonuses, so their performance falls quite a lot. My opinion is that the best way t o motivate employees to perform better is to design jobs by making them more appealing to people. 1. Motivating by Structuring Jobs to Make Them Interesting 2. 3. Job DesignThis approach of motivation is directed at improving the essential nature of the work performed by changing the design of the job. Job design is concerned with structuring jobs in order to improve organization efficiency and employee job satisfaction (Snell/Bohlander, 2007). Employees today engage in repetitive movements, which they find highly routine and monotonous. Not surprisingly, people became bored with such jobs and their performance falls with time. Fortunately, today’s organizational scientists have found several ways of designing jobs that aren’t just efficient, but are also pleasant and motivating.Job enlargement and job enrichment are two approaches that improve motivation by changing job design. 2. 4. Job Enlargement and Job Enrichment One of the first modern approaches to redesigning jobs suggested that boredom of employees by engaging in highly repetitive jobs could be minimized by having people perform an increased number of different tasks all at the same level. This approach is known as job enlargement (Greenberg/Baron, 2008). Because of this approach employees don’t need higher skills or have higher responsibility, but perform more different actions at the same level.Changing job in this way is an increase in the horizontal job loading. Several studies showed that job enlargement is very useful way to increase employee job satisfaction and employee boredom at the workplace. A more effective approach, job enrichment, gives employees not only more jobs to do, but more tasks to perform at a higher level of skill and responsibility (Greenberg/Baron, 2008). The main idea of job enrichment is making jobs more interesting to people so that they will be more highly motivated to perform them.Job enrichment gives employees the opportunity to take greater contr ol over how to do their jobs. Because people performing enriched jobs work at higher levels than others, this approach increases a job’s vertical job loading. Even the job enrichment is successful it has some problems in implementation. First one is difficulty of implementation because it is expensive to redesign existing facilities. Second problem is lack of employee acceptance because not all employees are ready to accept the changes in their job accomplishment and higher obligations for the work they perform. 2. 5. The Job Characteristics ModelIn previous text I stated that employers should enrich the jobs, but I failed to specify precise what elements of a job need to be enriched for it to be effective. Job characteristics model answers this question. It assumes that jobs can be designed so as to help people get enjoyment out of their jobs and care about the work they do (Greenberg/Baron, 2008). It tells us how jobs can be redesigned to help employees feel that they are d oing meaningful and valuable work. The model specifies that enriching certain elements of jobs influences employee’s psychological states in a manner that increases their work effectiveness.It identifies five core job dimensions that help create three critical psychological states, leading to several beneficial personal and work outcomes. The five critical job dimensions are skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback. Skill variety shows us how many different tasks the employee performs using several of his skills and talents. Task identity shows us how much is employee involved in one piece of work, from beginning to end. Task significance shows us how much impact employee’s work has on others.Autonomy shows us how much freedom employees have in planning and performing jobs as they wish. Feedback shows us how much the job allows employees to know is their performance efficient enough. The model tells that these various job dimensions have important effects on many critical psychological states. Combination of these job dimensions have effect on experienced meaningfulness of the job performed, which is then experienced as highly important, valuable and worthwhile. Job dimensions also determine how much employees are personally responsible and accountable for their work.When they are free to decide what to do and how to do it they feel more responsible for their work. Finally, these job dimensions impact employee’s knowledge of the results of their work. When a job is designed to provide employees with information about the effects of their actions, they better understand how effective they are – and such knowledge improves their effectiveness. These critical psychological states affect personal and work outcomes such as: feelings of motivation, the quality of work performed, satisfaction with work, absenteeism and turnover.The higher these psychological states are, the more positive the personal and work benefits and outcomes will be. The job characteristics model is highly applicable and it has high and positive results. The employees that respond best to this model are the ones which have high need for personal growth and development. The model has been focus of many empirical tests, most of which are supportive of many aspects of the model. One study conducted among a group of South African clerical workers found particularly strong support for the job characteristic model (Greenberg/Baron, 2008). . Conclusion In my opinion altering employee motivation by changing job design is much more productive and better than improving motivation by incentive reward systems. It is true that inducing motivation by changing job design has several problems, such as difficulty of implementation and lack of employee acceptance, but these problems are easier to overcome than problems that occur when companies use money to motivate their employees. Incentive reward systems have problems beside the incredibly high costs to organization.These systems may lead to lower job satisfaction as the employees work until they reach their limit and then they become unhappy. They can also create competition within the organization and destroy cooperation among employees. Employees cannot be treated just as machines and the money they receive for their work just isn’t enough to satisfy them. They need recognition for their work and they need to see that the work they do is meaningful and worthwhile, and this is the thing that job design allows them to have. They feel respected and fulfilled and, at the end, motivated to perform the best they know. . References Ricky W. Griffin (2008). Management (9th Edition ed. ). Houghton Mifflin Company. Jerald Greenberg ; Robert A. Baron (2008). Behavior in Organizations (9th Edition ed. ). Pearson Prentice Hall. Luis R. Gomez-Mejia ; David B. Balkin ; Robert L. Cardy (2007). Managing Human Resources (5th Edition ed. ). Pearson Prentice Hall . Scott Snell ; George Bohlander (2007). Human Resorce Management. Thomson. http://psychology. about. com/od/mindex/g/motivation-definition. htm , http://www. entrepreneur. com/article/202352

Regency Grand Hotel Essays

Regency Grand Hotel Essays Regency Grand Hotel Essay Regency Grand Hotel Essay The following case study illuminates the dilemma of the employees undergoing the management changeover following its acquisition by an international group. In the earlier set-up, the employees were expected to follow the orders of their managers without questioning them. Initiatives to solve problems at personal level were discouraged and it led to lack of innovation and risk-averse behavior. Eventually, the hotel staff got accustomed to the style of management over the past fifteen years, and it made the work go smoothly with minimal number of conflicts. However, the recent sale of the hotel to a new American group introduced an altogether new style of administration to the employees. The management style of the new GM was entirely opposite to what the staff was familiar to, and it caused problems bringing the hotels performance and reputation down the drain. Problems The problem of the Regency Grand Hotel entails a number of factors in its failure to meet expectations of its new management, though the challenges did not exist previously. As it is observed that there are some significant challenges in managing the workplace In changing business environment. Following this, Becker did not employ a communication strategy that supported the dissimilarity between management and employees and their different cultures. The unclear decision making process and power hierarchy. Lack of proper analysis of the chances of success of the strategy of empowerment. Lack of proper coordination within the management team, when trying to implement the empowerment strategy. The Hotel also faced the challenge of social emotional conflicts among employees. Contingencies of power such as source of power were not clearly outlined. These issues resulted in high levels of stress, absenteeism and turnover. Communication and Culture: Communication and Culture Prior to the take over, The Regency Grand was Thai owned and operated. While weighed down by the internal processes the census was one of understanding and fitted in within the cultural bounds. The American conglomerate conducted little research into the culture as reflected by Becker’s appointment and utilization of predetermined strategies ill-suited to an already successful business. English is becoming the common business language in Thailand (Chakorn, 2006). Verbal and written communication differs greatly between the two cultures, amplifying the need for Active listening. Implementation of organizational change: Implementation of organizational change in times of change within an organization, it is essential for the management team to ensure that employees are actively involved in the process of change. Becker introduced his new policy to the directors of the organization. He however, found himself all alone trying to implement the empowerment practice. Involving employees in the decision making initiatives is crucial. The purpose of this is to make them feel part of the organization (Lynn, 2008). The empowerment criteria employed by Becker enabled assimilation of employees in the decision making process. Their contributions were however, not profitable to the organization. Involve staff in change Involve staff in decision making Ensure staff feel included in organization More successful organizational change Organizational Culture and Change : Organizational Culture and Change Organizational culture exists where a set of cognitions is widely shared by members of a social unit and comprised of fundamental assumptions, values, behavioral norms and expectations, and larger patterns of behavior (O’Reilly, Chatman Caldwell, 1991). Employees at the Regent had an organizational affiliation to the Hotel, adding to the organizational culture. O’Reilly, Chatman and Caldwell (1991) indicate that individuals will choose roles, occupations and organizations based on congruency with their own values. Organizations tend to recruit individuals who are likely to share their values. When Becker implemented changes in job roles and organizational structure, without maintaining a congruency in values, this may have lead to changes in the organizational culture. Person-culture fit will increase commitment, satisfaction and performance. To ensure this is implemented, it may be necessary to adjust aspects such as hire new staff with similar values, or help existing staff to see congruency between their values and those of the organization. Personality : Personality â€Å"Cultures shape the expression of traits but not their levels† (Hofstede McCrae, 2004, 74). Personality traits have been found to have a significant role in influencing job choices and work values (Berings, Dufruyt Bouwen, 2004) Therefore, these traits should be taken into account, both when hiring employees and when designing and redesigning job roles. Big Five Personality Traits: Big Five Personality Traits Through research, five primary personality traits have been found to account for personality variations in society (Robbins, Bergman, Stagg Coulter, 2006). These traits are: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience. Teng (2008) indicates that Schneider and Bowen (1985) found that personality traits of service employees can predict service quality. By hiring employees with personality traits in mind during the selection process, organizations are better able to create a suitable job-personality fit, and therefore improve profitability. Personality Trait requirement comparison (Adapted from Robbins et al, 2006) : Personality Trait requirement comparison (Adapted from Robbins et al, 2006) Personality Trait requirement comparison – cont. : Personality Trait requirement comparison – cont. Working effectively with personality traits: : Working effectively with personality traits: Although personality traits are intrinsic, it is possible to assist employees to display desirable behaviour in a range of circumstances through effective training techniques and skill building. Individual variations in preferences for different organizational cultures are associated with interpretable differences in personality characteristics (O’Reilly et al, 1991). The redesign of roles, responsibilities and reward systems to encourage desirable outcomes will increase congruency between individuals’ self-perception and person-organizational-fit, thereby improving the high staff-turnover situation as well as job satisfaction. Unclear power hierarchy : Unclear power hierarchy Another major issue encountered at the Regency Grand Hotel which affected the organizational culture was the problem of unclear power hierarchies which lead to staff not understanding their role clearly in the decision making process. Employees were given empowerment but this proved to be problematic as staffs were unable to discern between what constituted a major or minor problem. Staff found that in many cases when they did make a decision it was later overturned by supervisors. One part of the process of empowerment is impact. â€Å"Empowered employees view themselves as active participants in the organization; that is, their decisions and actions have an influence on the company’s success† (Mc Shane, 2008, p. 185). Becker introduced empowerment but this part of the process was distorted as the employees felt that their decisions were not valued and often overturned. Additionally, Becker stated he would not tolerate the same mistake twice. Staff now found it easier to revert back to their old ways of passing all problems over to their supervisors. This was directly counteractive to the plan of â€Å"allocating more decision-making authority to front line employees† (McShane, 2008, p. 192). This further reduced the effect of empowerment. Job Design and Role Ambiguity: Job Design and Role Ambiguity Employees were uncertain of the types of issues that were to be considered â€Å"Minor† and â€Å"Major†. Without clarification, they continued to refer problems to management. Jobs that have ambiguous demands, jobs that have too many demands, and jobs that do not allow the employee to participate in work related decisions are likely to hinder attempts at successful performance, thereby frustrating higher order needs† (Beehr, Walsh Taber, 1976, 42). This frustration results in reduced effort and motivation. They go further to state that â€Å"Effort toward quality is related to role ambiguity in that concern with the quality of one’s work is not maintained if it is unclear what constitutes task success†(Beehr et al, 1974, 46). Supervisors were unsure and reversed employee decisions to refer them on to higher levels of management. Role Conflict: The front-line staff were expected to experiment and be creative in dealing with situations at work, but were only allowed to make a mistake once. This resulted in reduced learning capacity as employees began behaving defensively in order to avoid reprimands for errors. Reduced Job Satisfaction: Increase in customer complaints, increase in absenteeism and employee turnover. Intra-organisational relationships suffered as trust was lost and fear reigned. Poor reviews due to declining levels of customer service. Role ambiguity: Role ambiguity Role ambiguity was another issue for the Hotel. â€Å"Role ambiguity can be defined as a lack of information needed to perform the role (Pearce, 1981; Cooper et al. , 2001). This issue can lead to many problems. â€Å"Employees who experience role ambiguity tend to perform at lower levels than employees who have a clear understanding of job requirements and what is expected of them. Likewise, role ambiguity is reflected in employees uncertainty concerning appropriate actions in commonly occurring job situations. It explicitly results when employees are not clear concerning the amount of authority they have and when they do not know others job performance expectations† (Boles Babin, 1996, as cited in Ussahawanitchakit, 2008). What is my role? What are my responsibilities? What are my functions? Who is my supervisor? What are the delineations of my role? Where is the information I need? Where is the information I need? Do I have the power/control to do this? Role ambiguity: Role ambiguity According to role theory, role ambiguity will result in coping behaviors by the uncomfortable employees in organizations that may attempt to solve the problems by avoiding stress, or to use defense mechanisms for changing the real situation. Therefore, ambiguity will allow an employee to be dissatisfied with his role in the organization, change reality and reduce his performance (Rizzo et al. , 1970). It can be seen in the case of the Regency Grand Hotel that due to the lack of clarification of the role each employee played within the organization stress resulted. This stress lead to an increase in staff moving toward the defensive tactic of pointing the finger at other employees therefore disowning any problems they may have encountered themselves. Recommendations for defining roles and reducing ambiguity: Recommendations for defining roles and reducing ambiguity The remedy for the situations that have evolved within the hotel is to clearly define each person’s role and make them aware of the importance their part plays in the overall operation of the hotel. Ensure employees are aware of their responsibilities. Additionally to define what is a major and minor problem and make it clear to members of staff who has the power to make decisions at each level, would also be of great assistance. For example if a problem arises at the front counter with a customer which would incur a minimal cost to the organization this could be handled by reception staff with little impact on the supervisor and within a much faster time frame causing less inconvenience to already disgruntled customers. This could be achieved by removal of the ‘same mistake twice rule’ that Becker introduced. In this way employees would truly feel empowered to make decisions that would have an impact on the organization thereby feeling that they were an important part in the hierarchy that exists in the hotel. Address Managerial / Supervisory level employees’ concerns at losing power. Reward them for encouragement and development of front-line team results. Job Satisfaction Aspect: Job Satisfaction Aspect Job satisfaction is essential for the work. Steven Travaglione (2007) note that happy workers are generally more productive. The initial management run by the Thai investors provided attractive employment packages e. . high salaries and bonuses. The performance was however, not impressive. The empowerment practice introduced by Becker reduced the bureaucratic governance. Employees were now able to interact freely with the top management. Becker interacted with employee and solved their problems. Nevertheless, there was an increase in the number of complaints and mistakes made by employees. Job Satisfaction Recommendations: Job Satisfaction Recommendations An audit process should be implemented to ensure change in strategy is adopted effectively. Open communication and feedback is required to ensure management is aware of the situations and any recurring issues that may require further investigation. Employees will respond well to feedback on their actions, this will assist with the learning process. Employ a risk manager, they do one on one coaching/counseling with employees to help with their concerns and be a impartial person to talk to when frustration arise and learn coping skills for the working at the hotel, this would have been great for when they did the changing of owners for a easy transition. Recommendations: Recommendations As front-line employees have not had power to make decisions in challenging situations in the past, it may be necessary to implement training sessions to improve skills when dealing with these situations, for example, conflict resolution courses, customer service training. An audit process should be implemented to ensure change in strategy is adopted effectively. Reward employees for correct/suitable actions – note rewards may be as simple as verbal encouragement or â€Å"Employee of the Month† titles. Open communication and feedback is required to ensure management is aware of the situations and any recurring issues that may require further investigation. Employees will respond well to feedback on their actions, this will assist with the learning process. Motivation: Motivation is a fundamental aspect of improving the quality of performance of the work force. The Regency Hotel management aimed at developing motivation among employees. However the employees were not motivated. Increased frustration, stress, job dissatisfaction and high turnover were some of the factors that demoralized employees. Encouraging innovativeness and reativity among employees is an essential component of a successful organisation. The free environment provided by the organisation was not effectively utilized by the employees. The performance of the organisation depreciated as a result. Motivated staff Improved performance of organisation Motivation Recommendations : Motivation Recommendations As mentioned earlier, reward employees for correct/ suitable actions – note rewards may be as simple as verbal encouragement or â€Å"Employee of the Month† titles. Team Building events, going on vacations with other employees to train up with other employees from the other hotels in the chain. Whenever the emphasis is on positive feedback it is a good idea to provide feedback in both public and private settings. When employees are recognised and encouraged in public, it acts as a natural stimulant for others who are close enough to see or hear whats taking place. Monthly training to empower and motivate the employees and sub management to have more skills and coping strategies in stressful/pressure situations. There is never an end to training, employees can also better themselves and that betters the organisation as a whole. Stress management seminar’s, motivation seminar’s, new skills seminar’s as they say knowledge is power and the more knowledge their employees have will create more motivation and improvement in their work and the hotel efficiently. Team building : Team building Team building enhances the capacity for an organisation to perform tasks faster and effectively (Steven Travaglione, 2007). Through empowerment employees were supposed to be more united. Employees were instead more divided and constantly in conflict. The empowerment policy was basically enacted for the purpose of improving the organisations performance. Complaints from customers were frequent The deterioration in service provision captured media attention. Team Building Recommendations : Team Building Recommendations Communication Exercise: This type of team building exercise is exactly what it sounds like. Communications exercises are problem solving activities that are geared towards improving communication skills. The issues teams encounter in these exercises are solved by communicating effectively with each other. Goal: Create an activity which highlights the importance of good communication in team performance and/or potential problems with communication. Problem Solving/Decision making exercises focus specifically on groups working together to solve difficult problems or make complex decisions. These exercises are some of the most common as they appear to have the most direct link to what employers want their teams to be able to do. Goal: Give team a problem in which the solution is not easily apparent or requires the team to come up with a creative solution Planning/Adaptability Exercise: These exercises focus on aspects of planning and being adaptable to change. These are important things for teams to be able to do when they are assigned complex tasks or decisions. Goal: Show the importance of planning before implementing a solution Trust Exercise: A trust exercise involves engaging team members in a way that will induce trust between them. They are sometimes difficult exercises to implement as there are varying degrees of trust between individuals and varying degrees of individual comfort trusting others in general. Goal: Create trust between team members Stress and case relationship : Stress and case relationship All of the factors identified in the Regency Grand Hotel case contribute to the high levels of stress, and resulting symptoms of stress: absenteeism and high turnover. Research supports the findings above by citing that open upward and downward communication; supporting creative organisational cultures by encouraging new ideas and mistakes that naturally ensue; clear and constant feedback (Baptiste, 2009); structured job design and work organisation; and well managed organisational change (Redfern, Rees Rowlands, 2008) are all elements that help reduce the levels of stress felt by employees within an organisation. According to Redfern et al. , (2008, p. 288) negative stress occurs ‘when the pressure placed upon an individual exceeds the perceived capacity of that individual to cope’. They offer a definition of stress by describing it in the following way: ‘stress releases powerful neurochemicals and hormones that prepare us for action to flight or flee† (Redfern et al, 2008, p. 288). Results from recent studies highlight some of the possible reactions of negative stress within organisational settings: ‘stress related problems among workers contribute to dysfunctional organisational consequences such as decreased organisational commitment, increased absenteeism, and high turnover’ (Chiu, Chien, Lin and Hsaio, 2005, p. 839). These reactions have been strongly experienced as symptomatic of issues at the Hotel. Visual depiction of case stressors and results in staff : Visual depiction of case stressors and results in staff New management Organisational change Unclear decision making hierarchy Communication problems Espoused versus enacted values – issues with creative organisational culture Lack of feedback Cultural clash between management and employees Issues with job design Stressors Release of powerful neurochemicals and hormones Possible outcomes Reaction Fight Flight Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel : Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel Physical activities such as exercises like jogging, aerobics, walking, and circuit classes can be implemented as lunchtime sessions which not only benefit employees by reducing stress levels and stress related illnesses but also work towards strengthening the social and team aspects of work. Research shows that the regular undertaking of such activities in an organisational setting has many positive effects on resilience to stress. For example physical well being is improved, as is mental alertness, decision making abilities and job performance. Relaxation technique classes also introduced to the Hotel staff would, assist with coping with mental and physical manifestations of stress. Classes that teach employees deep breathing skills, meditation, and yoga echoes the benefits of exercise with additional advantages such as restoring energy and vitality (Treven and Protocan, 2005). Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel : Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel Much research has been undertaken on how learning and development programs within the workplace can add to employees resilience to stress (Redfern et al. , 2008). Programs such as: Lifestyle programs which educate employees on the advantages of balanced diets and a regular exercise regime Time management kills within a job role to ensure that goals are met with minimal stress (Shuttleworth, 2004) Specific training for managers to ensure they have the skills to control their own stress levels as well as track those of their employees – this particular training will have the added advantage of buy in from the management perspective to develop an appropriate culture at the Regency Grand Hotel as well ensuring that the managers act as role models for their employees (Shuttleworth, 2004) In addition to the exercise, relaxation techniques and learning and dev elopment solutions, it is recommended that Employee Assistance Programs be introduced to the Hotel, this program offers employees a service whereby challenging situations can be discussed with counsellors and psychologists who can provide tools that will embed coping mechanisms (Trevern and Protocan, 2005). Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel : Recommendations for introduction into the Regency Grand Hotel In addition to the exercise, relaxation techniques and learning and development solutions, it is recommended that Employee Assistance Programs be introduced to the Hotel, this program offers employees a service whereby challenging situations can be discussed with counsellors and psychologists who can provide tools that will embed coping mechanisms (Trevern and Protocan, 2005). Recommended stress reducing strategies Physical activities Relaxation techniques Learning and development solutions Employee assistance program Conclusion : Conclusion The majority of problems experienced during the acquisition of the Regency Hotel may have been avoided or at least reduced dramatically through effective communication strategies, incorporating a comprehensive feedback loop to ensure understanding of changes and new requirements on an organisational level as well as individual level for all employees. Cultural, personal and organisational aspects should be taken into account; and changes to job design and job roles should be made clear to ensure successful adoption of the new system. At this stage, the Regency hotel is in a state of flux, with reduction in staff retention, profit and reputation. Effective change management strategies as outlined in this presentation should now be introduced to assist the employees to build a new Organisational Culture and incorporate the Empowerment strategy.

Different Types Of Sustainable Tourism Tourism Essays

Different Types Of Sustainable Tourism Tourism Essays Different Types Of Sustainable Tourism Tourism Essay Different Types Of Sustainable Tourism Tourism Essay Law thinks that Tourism has become one of the largest and most influential industries in the universe. It has created incomputable value for the environment, societies and civilizations. ( as cited in Seldjan and Donald, 2009 ) But at the same clip, touristry as an characteristic industry has its ain guilt and detrimental effects in socio-cultural and environmental footings ( Opperman and Chon, 1997 as cited in Nevenka, 2002 ) . With the planetary accent on sustainable development, a turning proportion of the touristry research has paid attending on the sustainable touristry. Although a elaborate treatment of sustainability is hard, but in order to understand the positions are emerging of sustainable touristry now, and can work out utile schemes about the hereafter development of touristry at finish countries. ( Hunter,2002 ) The purpose of this essay is through understanding the definition and discoursing different types of sustainable touristry ( ST ) to happen new attack and do new scheme to accomplish ST. This paper begins with the readings of the construct of sustainable development ( SD ) and definition of ST. Then will discourse the cardinal information of Tourism, for illustration the two types of it. Concluding measure is to necessitate recommended schemes and attacks. Sustainable Development As the World Commission on Environment and Development s Report ( WCED ) , the definition of SD is Sustainable development is development that meets the demands of the present without compromising the ability of future coevalss to run into their ain needs. It involves within it two cardinal constructs, the first is to run into the demands of the universe s hapless precedence. The 2nd is purely limit the position quo of engineering and societal organisation on the environment s ability in order to run into the demands in nowadays and hereafter. Argument has described such correlate of import constructs as: SD needs to prehend the chance to fulfill their desire to do life better ; At least SD must non endanger the nature systems that provide resources for life on Earth ; SD requires that the rate of ingestion of non-renewable resources should cut down as few hereafter options as possible ; SD must protect the works and animate beings species and cut down the inauspicious impacts on H 2O and the quality of air in order to keep the overall unity of the ecosystem. ( Geneva, 1987 ) Turner argued that Interpretation of SD can be divided into the scope from really strong to really weak . ( as cited in Hunter, 1997 ) There are four major SD places and two cardinal issues of argument are selected for amplification. Weak sustainability places highlight the possibility of capital permutation and the strength of the proficient procedure to to relieve resource ingestion and pollution jobs. Strong sustainability places Recognize the chief value of the care of ecosystem map and unity through human resources. ( Hunter, 1997 ) Sustainable touristry With the popularisation of the construct of sustainable development in the WCED, the same as other industries and Fieldss of academic research, sustainable touristry besides responded to the construct of sustainable development. World Tourism Organization expressed sustainable touristry merely as Tourism that takes full history of its current and future economic, societal and environmental impacts, turn toing the demands of visitants, the industry, the environment and host communities. Sustainability rules related to environmental, economic and socio-cultural facets of touristry development, these three countries is of import to represent a suited balance in order to guarantee its long-run sustainability. So ST should: take full advantage of environmental resources to keep indispensable ecological procedures and the protection of natural heritage and biodiversity, which is the cardinal factor in sustainable touristry development. Respect for the genuineness of the socio-cultural and protect their original civilization and traditional values while advancing inter-cultural apprehension and tolerance. Ensure economic long-run operation for an just distribution of socio-economic benefit to all stakeholders. Benefit include stable employment, chances of income earing and societal services. At same clip contribute to the hapless country. ( unwto, 2012 ) ST as sawed-off forms to two variants-light viridities ( LG ) and dark green ( DG ) by Hunter ( 2002 ) . Under normal fortunes, these two discrepancies are applicable to different degrees, from the person concern up to a national touristry development program or policy statement. Peoples adhere to the DG merely like pupils are more interested in ecology, geographics and the environmental scientific disciplines in the school, and are likely to stand for positions from prophylactic or knowledge-based positions by Jafari ( 1989 ) . And advocators of LG merely like pupils who merely focus on usage which natural resources can acquire profit, and are likely to show positions from advocator and adaptancy positions by Jafari ( 1989 ) . ( Hunter, 2002 ) An illustration of sustainable touristry is around Rimini, Italy and Calvia, Spain. It is a Life Environment undertaking. Its called Strategies and Tools for Sustainable Tourism in Mediterranean Coastal Areas. After about four million tourers descend each twelvemonth, their beaches and the finishs are hunt for associate economic and societal facets to esteem the environment. This undertaking has three actions include: A comprehensive scheme for the direction of coastal countries in mass touristry finishs. Help private operators improve environment public presentation. Enhance tourer and circuit operator consciousness on environmental issues. ( sustainabletourism, 2012 ) Mass touristry and Alternate touristry There are two cardinal signifiers in ST that are Mass touristry ( MT ) and Alternate touristry ( AT ) . Vanhove argue that Mass touristry is a batch of people enjoy going in the same topographic point, which is its first characteristic. The term aa‚Â ¬Amass touristry means that the vacation is standardized, stiffly packaged and inflexible ( as cited in Julien ) Mass touristry has dominated the full touristry industry for many old ages, more and more negative impacts of environment, people began to pay attending to a new signifier of tourism-alternative touristry. Increase involvement in alternate touristry is besides weaken mass touristry. ( Julien ) Academic wage more and more attending in alternate touristry, Alternative touristry has been a assortment of accounts, such as Weaver A ; Lawton ( 2002 ) argued that is polarized antonym and replacement for mass touristry ( as cited in Rami.K.I, 2010 ) and Butler ( 1992 ) argued that is yet others speak of a transmutation in all touristry towards more benign signifiers ( as cited in Rami.K.I,2010 ) Harmonizing to comparing between mass touristry and alternate touristry of Butler ( 1990: cited in Gartner, 1996. P.338-342 ) General Features: the fast development is MT features, it focus on growing the economic but ignore environment issues and sociol jobs. The development will go unmanageable cause MT, it merely concentrate on develop rapidly instead than sustainable development. As focal point on environmental and societal factors that AT development is slow, but seek to happen the economic benefits from a long-run position. Tourist Behaviour: a big figure of tourer would wish travel to purchase the keepsake, but they did non recognize the tradition civilization deeply in MT. A little group of tourer who like to hold a conversation with local people and genuinely be effected by civilization. Basic Requirements: Meitneriums have two utmost consequences of development, because it has seasonality. AT can be anytime. The last comparing is Tourism Development Schemes: many scenic are being overdeveloped, take to cut down the proportion of traditional industries, eventually the local people did non acquire benefit yet in MT. Rely more on the local labour force and the original beginning of financess to develop itself in AT. ( as cited in Narueporn. L, 1999 ) Complexity of the touristry system Simple method can non understand the touristry as stakeholders in a complex system of stakeholders. External and internal can impact all types of stratification, including subsystems, and influenced by related behaviour will take a unpredictable consequences. For touristry industry it is necessary to understand the relationship, significance, underlying values and issues of each faculty of complex system and need ability balance for each parts that can better sustainable touristry development. ( Janine.R.M, 2009 ) There are some features of complex touristry system. First is a big figure of foundations and agents, its impaction is flexibility reciprocality. Second is polystage and decked in nature. Third newness outgrowth ceaseless and self-organisation. Fourthly it has possible that input a small to the system can hold distinguishable alteration. These features were summarized by Cilliers, 1998 ; Coveney A ; Highfield, 1995 ; Geldof, 1995 ; Prigogine A ; Stengers, 1985 ; Waldrop, 1992. ( as cited in Janine.R.M, 2009 ) Challenges, new strategic and attack There is a major challenge to sustainability for now and the hereafter, how to specify sustainable touristry, and this definition need intermix into the environmental factors used in concurrence. ( Randy J.V. A ; Megha.B, 2011 ) another is hard to make balance of each of stakeholders which base on protect environment. ( Nicolae.C and Cristina.P, 2010 ) So happen an appropriate strategic and attack is of import. Hall ( 2000 ) notes that scheme of sustainable touristry planning and development seeks is to accomplish that addition experience of common influence between the visitants and resources while protecting the resource value, to maximise protect who is the stakeholders of their state s economic, societal and environmental. ( as cited in Lisa, R, 2010 ) There is am attacks called community- based attacks. Kirsten and Rogerson ( 2002 ) argued It provides greater chances of involve the local concern by combine with limited environmental and societal impacts. ( as cited in Gianna, 2007 ) Hall ( 2005 ) thought this attacks are popular for touristry, because local stakeholders tough it can understand that the determinations about the types and locations of proposed touristry development. ( as cited in Gianna, 2007 ) Decision Tourism is an of import industry of the procedure of achieve sustainable development. It has been assist a batch of states developed, and contribute for economic in whole universe. But environmental and societal jobs besides emergent in present clip. So it is necessary transportation original signifier of development, that is sustainable development. For touristry industry is sustainable touristry. In this paper, harmonizing to a batch of writers perspective, it help readers recognize definition and feature of ST and SD easy. SD is the foundation of long-run economic operation that can run into demands and make better life. ( Geneva, 1987 ) This paper besides discuss two key signifiers of touristry. Both MT and AT affect the environment and economic. Detail about feature of each signifier is in MT and AT portion. Besides discuss the complex touristry system, it is necessary to equilibrate ability of each faculty. Finally harmonizing to sum up challenge to happen new strategic and attacks to accomplish ST. The cardinal point of strategic and attacks is develop economic at the same clip must non destruct environment. ( Geneva, 1987 )

Preditory Nature essays

Preditory Nature essays The Internet offers an amazing array of options to everyone. However, with that freedom also comes danger. The advent of the Internet has given once reclusive and hard to find criminals a wide-open playground. The crimes perpetrated on the Internet range from victimless white-collar crime to serious and sometime violent cyber stalking. Girls, boys, women and men are all vulnerable to attack and exploitation. Some cases may only amount to simple verbal harassment, but others have led to a darker and final end...death. Hello, J how are you CUTEGal?...Im fine, how are you CyberGuy?...Oh, not bad I just got back from the lake, I was using my new Jet Ski...Really! I love Jet Skiing, of course my Mom thinks its too dangerous...Oh, its not dangerous its a ton of fun!...so you like Jet Skiing, by the way how old are you?...Im 15...Cool...my sister is 15 too, she went with us to the lake. Sounds innocent doesnt? Its just a couple of young kids talking on a chat line about Jet Skiing. If you look at their profiles you would find that CUTEGal is a 15 year-old girl who likes water sports, volleyball and boys. CyberGuys profile shows a 16 year-old boy who plays football and baseball, likes to go out with his friends and so on. However, CyberGuy is really a 38 year-old convicted pedophile in search of his next victim. What makes this even more unsettling is that this is not simply good narrative...it could be real. The details of similar stories will be explored further, but first it is important to look at some aspects of the Internet as it applies to cyber crime. We will review issues with cyber stalking and crimes against children, other associated crimes both on and off the Internet, what the government and local authorities are trying to do, and some real-life examples of what happens when thin...

The film Frankenstein Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The film Frankenstein - Essay Example Finally Frankenstein manages to put life into his imagination. The reborn dead body played by Robert monster was first quite and pleasant but Fritz torments monster and so his criminal brain begins to catapult into a fully criminal behavior. Fed up by the criminal behavior of monster Frankenstein leaves him with his mentor Dr.Waldman. The monster escapes from Dr.Waldman and comes to village to take revenge on Frankenstein. Before escaping monster kills both Fritz and Waldman since Fritz was torturing him with fire and whips and Waldman was about to dissect him to dispose. After escaping from the castle the monster went to Elizabeth's bedroom seeing him she screams and he flees. The manhunt is on for the monster and is found in the mountains. He over powers Frankenstein and ties him to a windmill. The windmill is seta fire and eventually it falls on the monster and he burns to ground. Frankenstein is shown carried. The movie was really close to what Mary Shelly has written in her novel. The direction was so appropriate that it brought the darker side of the story to the silver screen. Shelly was trying to make it clear in the novel that science should not tamper with life. The movie miserably fails to make shelly's point clear.

Karl Marx about alienation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Karl Marx about alienation - Essay Example Karl Marx about alienation Alienation of labor occurs only in a capitalist society, where capitalist modes of production exist. Marx identifies four different types of alienation. They are a) the alienation of the laborer from the product, b) the alienation of the laborer from the labor process, c) the alienation of the laborer from his fellow human beings and d) alienation of human beings from human nature. In the capitalist mode of production, the ownership of the product produced by the labor-power of the laborers is not with them; rather, it is controlled by the capitalists. Before the upcoming of capitalism, labor was solely part of the laborer and was dependent on him. In such a situation, the laborer had full control over the production and use of anything he produced. In the new system, labor acquired the status of an object of external existence and thus it becomes autonomous. This autonomy gained by the product controls the worker and his labor. This is a form of alienation where the life given to the product by the laborer alienates its creator .As a result; the laborer becomes a commodity like any other product available in the market. The labor-process refers to the process of production. In the time prior to capitalism, the laborers had full control over the conditions in which he works. These conditions include how the work is organized, when to work, how the work affects the physical and psychological states of the laborer and so on. In the capitalist system, the worker lost control over these conditions.

Teaching Literary Strategies in Children's Books Essay

Teaching Literary Strategies in Children's Books - Essay Example Nodelman and Mavis also state that there are many strategies that can be used in order to help children become aware of good literature. According to these authors, the children are helped even more if they also enjoy literature; if they do, they are able to teach their students better. 1.1 What to Teach Nodelman and Reimer suggest that teachers must teach their students the techniques that people who read literature on a regular basis use (34). This basically means that children must learn how to interact with literature by making good choices of what to read and by being motivated to read, because what they read is interesting. As an example, in this author’s opinion, one of the reasons the Harry Potter books became so popular was because children of all ages (including adults) could read and enjoy the books. Readers were motivated to read each book as it came out because J.K. Rowling left something for readers to wonder about at the end of each book. The books are fun, inte resting, and they make the reader want to go to the land of Hogwarts. For some children and adults, Harry Potter may have created an interest in other book series like the Hobbit or Narnia books because they were also interesting and able to take the reader into these far away lands. The research done by Nodelman and Reimer provide several ideas for teaching literary strategies that they learned from observing children and teachers in Britain. Some of these were: Children need to have a variety of literature to read in their homes and parents need to love and read literature also to set the example. Children need to be able to read a variety of literature from comic books to nonfiction and fiction. Teachers should allow students to choose from a variety of literature in their classrooms and children should have a say in the books they want to discuss in class. Parents can encourage their children by becoming familiar with the books their children are reading and talking to them abou t the books. These are a few of the many tips that are available to help teach a love of literature to children. The rest of this research paper will discuss a variety of strategies that have been used to teach this topic. 2 Teacher Strategies for Teaching Literature Helping children learn is a major reason to promote the teaching of literature. The reason literature is important is because it can be used to teach across the curriculum. This discussion begins with Gail Goss, a teacher who combines children’s literature and her students’ interests to help them learn easier. Goss suggests an interdisciplinary approach because it: 1. Increases the student’s curiosity in a subject and makes them want to read. 2. By using several content areas, students make a connection between any of their subjects. 3. This allows the teacher to provide â€Å"real world† activities like â€Å"researching, collecting and synthesizing data †¦ narrative reports, and it he lps to connect students with real world situations† (Goss 4). Goss uses the theme of cats to work with her students and uses a variety of literature about cats. As an example, she uses the books Puss ad Boots and Cats of Myth to teach grammar. Children

Team SuccessTeam Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Team SuccessTeam Building - Essay Example The Colts's leadership has stressed that the players are role models for youth and for the community. They participate in events to benefit children such as 'Coats for Kids' and toy drives during the holidays ("Coats" 2007). This aspect of leadership brings the team together in a common bond that transcends being simply teammates. Along with the players' role as leaders, Coach Tony Dungy uniquely makes his demands on the field. He does not scream, swear, or throw things to show his disappointment. He is quietly demanding and his demand is for excellence. These two aspects of the team are seen on the field in what Weaver (2004) calls, "...loyalty, charity and diligence". The team's strong Christian ethics have also contributed to their winning. They are humble in their success. This is illustrated in their holding back on premature celebrations, taunting, or personal fouls. The pragmatic result is fewer penalties. Along with this character comes the trait of humility. This may be the Colt's biggest intangible asset. When they win, they win as a team. And when they lose, they all lose. Peyton Manning has never taken the credit for a win. When they lose, he takes his blame and responsibility for it. All the players share in this attitude. There are no stars, only a team. This makes winning not only the most important thing, but also the only thing. The

Computer Software Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Computer Software - Essay Example The ultimate objective is to get ordinary persons to be able to use the computer for their requirements. The nature of software divides it into three portions - operating systems, languages and applications. The first of these is the operating system which sets down the laws for exchange of information between men and the machine. This is taken by users as being part of the machine and is generally seen by individuals when they first switch on their computers. In many cases, for individuals using a computer at home, this is Windows. Till the system becomes functional and the loading of Windows stops, the user will not be able to start using the machine. Anything that is typed by the operator before Windows is ready for taking instructions will only result in the computer just clogging up and stopping operations. At the same time, Windows is not the only possible operation for a computer, as it may also have "UNIX, Apple Mach, Ban, VMS, RS, OS2, Irix, AIX or HP-UX" among others. (Comp uter Software) However, the operating systems lead to files being written in particular languages, and thus it is difficult for information to be exchanged between computers which have different operating systems. This is very important today in view of the high usage of Internet and sending of mail across the world. That is made simpler as the language for sending information is generally Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox. Files in these languages are accepted by all operating systems so that communication is not interrupted. In the same machine also it is possible to have more than one language like having both Windows and Linux, though Windows does not recognize the existence of Linux as it is viewed as a competitor. The next question is of languages used for writing instructions for the operation of the computer. This is the language used by programmers so that the computer itself can translate their instructions to machine language for the operation of the computer. It is important to know that the operations of the computer are carried out in machine language and that is in the simple method of off or on. Off is viewed as zero, and on is viewed as 1. Thus 2 are written in machine language as 10, and three is written as 11, and four as 100. Similarly, there are also codes for the alphabets, and for every character, there are 16 bits or 32 bits being used now. This also results in large sizes for files in computers. One page of typed matter has a size of over 20,000 units of bits. This makes it essential that computers have large storage capacities, presently over 80 gigabytes or 80 trillion bytes. Coming back to the point that we were discussing, some common languages are "C, C++, FORTRAN, COBO L, Pascal, Perl and Java". (Computer Software) Presently, the language popular among programmers is Java, as the instructions in that language can be the shortest. However, the ultimate language for passing on all instructions to the computers is machine language, and

Team SuccessTeam Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Team SuccessTeam Building - Essay Example The Colts's leadership has stressed that the players are role models for youth and for the community. They participate in events to benefit children such as 'Coats for Kids' and toy drives during the holidays ("Coats" 2007). This aspect of leadership brings the team together in a common bond that transcends being simply teammates. Along with the players' role as leaders, Coach Tony Dungy uniquely makes his demands on the field. He does not scream, swear, or throw things to show his disappointment. He is quietly demanding and his demand is for excellence. These two aspects of the team are seen on the field in what Weaver (2004) calls, "...loyalty, charity and diligence". The team's strong Christian ethics have also contributed to their winning. They are humble in their success. This is illustrated in their holding back on premature celebrations, taunting, or personal fouls. The pragmatic result is fewer penalties. Along with this character comes the trait of humility. This may be the Colt's biggest intangible asset. When they win, they win as a team. And when they lose, they all lose. Peyton Manning has never taken the credit for a win. When they lose, he takes his blame and responsibility for it. All the players share in this attitude. There are no stars, only a team. This makes winning not only the most important thing, but also the only thing. The

What were the key elements of the policy of deterrence and containment Essay

What were the key elements of the policy of deterrence and containment during the Cold War Evaluate their effectiveness and their costs - Essay Example policy of deterrence is basically a threat by one party to convince another party to halt evil actions that could become harmful for international peace. It should be noted that the era of cold war was greatly depending upon deterrence (Wison 1962). Considering Containment during cold war, it can be said United States had to implement the policy of containment to make sure that communism does not spread among other countries. The implementation of the policy of containment and deterrence was followed by United States during the cold war due to the threat of being threatened by communism (Hunter 1998). It should be noted that adherence of United States with the theory of containment during the cold war allowed intervention activities in Vietnam. Similar instance was noted at the Central America and Grenada. This shows the effectiveness of the key elements and theories as practically implemented. This is the key element that led to the implementation of these policies during cold war (Ray 2004). United States noticed that the influence of European counterparts was increasing with every passing day. United States was actually being pushed to defeat as the Vietnam havoc was basically because of communism spread. Thus, policy of containment was implemented to contain communism to their respective origin country (Gladdis 2005). The policy of containment is also refereed as the foreign policy of United States with other countries which that were noted as potential to harm United States. However, the cost involved throughout this foreign implication was relatively high. There was a risk of military attack by other activities despite undertaking deterrence (Ray 2004). The cost was high in terms of finance as the capital of European Union and United States was used to buy arms to compete with the forces in order to stay stabilized. The cost of humanity is another aspect that should be noted. However, it has been noted that implication of the policies allowed the Unites

What does John Steinbeck have to say about friendship Essay Example for Free

What does John Steinbeck have to say about friendship Essay What does John Steinbeck have to say about friendship and loneliness in Of Mice and Men and how do cultural, social and historical issues affect this? John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men was set in California during the early to mid 1930s, a time of economic depression and high unemployment. It is a famous story about the harsh realities of life for the poor and unskilled workers who were disrupted by the Depression. Large numbers of migrant workers came to California from other parts of America in search of work. Two of these workers are George and Lennie. They are two very different men, who together search for work. The action takes place at or around the ranch where they eventually find work. The main themes in the story are friendship and loneliness. Migrant workers found friendships difficult to establish at that time as they were thrown together in difficult circumstances, often competing for a single job and were not in the same place for very long. This competitiveness was a common cultural aspect amongst the migrant workers who were mostly men. Men had to leave their wives and families behind and mostly travelled alone, roaming from ranch to ranch, farm work being the only type of work available to them. Against this historical background, the friendship between George and Lennie is all the more special because it is so rare. Steinbeck often shows this by displaying how other characters question and react to their friendship which they find unusual and even distrustful. This can be seen at the ranch when George and Lennie have just arrived and the boss is suspicious as he has never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy. He presumes George must be exploiting Lennie by taking away his pay. The two very different men are dependant on each other, but for different reasons. Lennie is physically strong but mentally weak and relies on George to keep him going, literally, to keep him alive. Without George as his guide, Lennie would be unable to find any work due to his severe lack of intelligence and would most likely have spent time in some form of mental institution. George takes responsibility for Lennie partly out of pity, partly out of affection and partly for companionship; being with Lennie is far better than being lonely, something which most other workers had to put up with. George is looked upon as Lennies mentor. This is shown in the way Lennie copies Georges actions when drinking from the pool on the way to the ranch: Lennie, who had been watching, imitated George exactly. He pushed himself back, drew up his knees, embraced them, looked over to George to see whether he had it just right. He pulled his hat down a little more over his eyes, the way Georges was.- (Line 3, page 21) Lennies lack of intelligence to think for him self is displayed here. However, the way in which he imitates George could be due to Lennies lack of exposure to other people. George is the only person who Lennie actually knows and their constant travels in search of work would not help Lennies skills in interacting with others. This very point is displayed at the ranch towards the end of the story. Curlys wife is alone with Lennie in the barn while the rest of the ranch workers are heavily involved in a bet in another room. She is telling Lennie about what she could have done with her life, expecting Lennie to talk back and perhaps comfort her. However he is not at all concerned on what she has to say but is completely focused on his obsession with his rabbits and his and Georges dream of their own plot of land. Dont you think of nothing but rabbits?- (Last line of page 125) Lennie even dismisses this question which has been asked angrily by Curlys wife and continues to describe his and Georges dream, something which George had told Lennie to keep a secret! Despite Lennies fault in revealing his and Georges American dream, something which Americans commonly shared at that time, to Curlys wife, he did in fact remember to meet with George at the camp site by the river. This is the place where George tells Lennie to go if anything went wrong. Also, it is the exact same location where the story first opened, showing George and Lennies friendship as they stumbled together across the plains. At this final point in the story, the two companions friendship is displayed perfectly. George knows that the other workers, in particular Curly, are coming after Lennie to punish him for the death of Curlys wife, and knows that when they catch him they will either brutally kill him or send him to a mental institution as he would be viewed by the society at that time as unsafe . George feels entitled to shoot Lennie himself as he realises the harsh realities that would befall Lennie if Curly caught him. At this point, historical and social aspects affect the outcome very much. If Lennie was captured today, hed be taken to a court case and would most likely be committed to a caring institution because of his mental instability. However this is not the way it worked in the society of the 1930s. Immediately Lennie would be labelled insane and sent to jail or to an institution which would differ very much from one in todays society. George therefore takes it upon himself to kill Lennie at the peaceful scene where the story first began and makes his death as humane as possible. He dies a quick, clean death, blissfully unaware of what is happening to him, but happy in Georges reassurances of their future. In contrast to the obvious friendship between George and Lennie, Steinbeck portrays the lack of friendship between Curlys wife and the men on the ranch. A noticeable point is the way in which she is labelled. Throughout the whole story she is never given a proper name other than Curlys wife. This is not because she is unimportant in the story she is one of the key characters whose fate is the same as Lennies but more to do with the way in which she is despised by the ranch workers. She is seen as a piece of jail bate who will only cause trouble due to the way she flaunts herself around the ranch in inappropriate clothing; She wore her bright cotton dress and the mules with red ostrich feathers. This was certainly not typical ranch wear. She constantly flirts with the ranchers. Steinbeck suggests the flirting that caused her to be ignored may be caused by factors other than her natural personality. With no real companionship on the ranch, it is not altogether surprising that she looks for company in the way she does. She is named as Curlys wife; defined by her relationship to Curly, not as an individual. This may also have something to do with the way women were looked upon at that time. Between the 1920s and 1930s there was a sexual revolution where women, just like Curlys wife, became more confident in their appearance and became far more aware their sexuality. However some men frowned upon this. Men on the ranch would see women like this as a distraction more than anything and this is evident in the way they do everything they can to ignore her as she only brings trouble; Cause shes a rap trap if I ever seen one (Bottom of page 54). Crooks, the only black ranch worker is described by Candy as a nice fella. He is first introduced into the story when the boss of the ranch is angry and, because of Crooks race, takes it out on him. While Curlys wife is lonely because of her attitude and general appearance, Crooks is lonely simply because of the colour of his skin. The way in which he is segregated from the rest of the ranch workers because of the colour of his skin is to do with the way blacks were looked upon by society at that time. Black Americans, then called negros, were seen as an inferior race, and many laws drastically affected their freedom. This is shown in the way Crooks is not allowed to mingle with the rest of the workers apart from on special occasions like Christmas, but, even then he ends up as the victim of a fight. Despite this, he is resigned to being separated from the rest of the group and has a great interest in books, his only true friends. His bunk where he spends most, if not all of his time while he isnt working is his territory over which he has grown to be very protective. This is shown when Lennie, totally unaware of the racial boundaries of that time, enters his room uninvited. Crooks, out of pride, use his only right, that being in the privacy of his own room, and taunts Lennie with stories of George not returning from his night out. Crooks does this to show Lennie what being lonely is really like but soon realises that Lennie didnt come into his bunk to cause harm, but just to have somebody to talk to. Unfortunately, just as Crooks is beginning to open out and reveal himself to Lennie about how he is constantly lonely, Curlys wife enters. Her presence causes anger and tension inside the room but due to there deficiencies, Crooks being black and Lennie suffering from learning difficulties, they are both powerless and cannot retaliate to her abuse. Her anger is caused by the common bond that all workers have, loneliness. Steinbeck portrays friendship that seems to be fixed in male companionship. This true to the historical context of men being thrust together by historical circumstances. This friendship is more than just the absence of loneliness. It has positive aspects such as the sharing of the American dream, common to the society of the 1930s, and the solid trust which is based purely on companionship and not on any duty or commitment to one another. This friendship between males does not seem to cross the racial or gender boundaries. This accurately depicts the situation of the women and black people of the time.

The implementation of strategic change at Microsoft Canada

The implementation of strategic change at Microsoft Canada The Organization Development literature has directed appreciable attention at in being able to lead and manage change. The major portion of the material is highly normative, advising managers about how they should be planning and implements organizational changes. For example, one study suggested that successful managers in ceaselessly changing organizations should first; provide clear responsibility and priorities with extensive communication and freedom to improvise. Second, explore the future by experimenting with a wide variety of low cost probes; and thirdly, link current projects to the future with predictable intervals and choreographed transition procedures. Traditionally the main focus of change management is on identifying sources that resist change and offers ways to overcome them. Most of the recent contributions have been challenging the focus on resistance and have shifted the aimed at creating vision along with gaining political support for them, and managing the trans ition of the organization toward them. The various ways in which managing change can be classified are in figure below. MOTIVATING CHANGE Creating Readiness for Change Overcoming Resistance to Change CREATING A VISION Describing the Core Ideology Constructing the Envisioned Future EFFECTIVE CHANGE MANAGEMENT DEVELOPING POLITICAL SUPPORT Assessing Change Agent Power Identifying Key Stakeholders Influencing Stakeholders MANAGING THE TRANSITION Activity Planning Commitment Planning Management Structures SUSTAINING MOMENTUM Providing resources for Change Building a Support System for Change Agents Developing New Competencies and Skills Reinforcing New Behaviors Staying the Course The above mentioned activities contribute a lot to effective change management and have been listed in the order in which they usually are performed. The first amongst the activities involves motivating change and also includes creating a readiness for change amongst the members of the organization and which indeed helps them to address resistance to change. Initially motivation is a critical issue for change process because a lot of evidence indicates that people as well as the organizations want to preserve the status quo and are willing to change only when there are strong powerful reasons to do so. The next activity is considered with creating a vision and is closely alignment with leadership activities. The vision has the sole purpose of providing a purpose and lay out for change and it describes the desired future state of the organization. The next activity involves the task of developing political support for the change. Organizations of all kinds are composed of powerful ind ividuals as well as groups that can either block or promote change, and it is the task of the leaders and the change agents to gain the support and permission of the higher authorities in order to implement changes. The fourth activity is concerned with managing movement from the current state to the desired level in the organization. It involves designing a plan for managing the change activities as well as planning particular management structures for working of the organization during this transition. The next and the final activity involve sustaining the flow or momentum for change so that it is being able to be carried to completion. The final activity includes task such as providing resources for implementing the changes, building a support system for change agents, developing new competencies and skills needed to implement the changes. Unless man-to-man are motivated and bound up to change, unfreezing the status quo will be very difficult. Without vision, chances are there th at change will be disorganized and diffused. Along with the fast moving pace of global, economic, and technological development change becomes an inevitable feature of the life of the organizational. But change that happens to an organization externally by the environment is quite different from the change that is planned and incorporated by the members of the organization. The main motive of Organizational development is to bring in changes in the organization in a planned manner so as to be able to increase its effectiveness and this organizational change is usually initiated and implemented by managers, with the help of professional OD practitioners. Conceptions of planned change have tended to focus on how change can be implemented in organizations. In order to implement change in any organization, certain frameworks are used as models that describe the activities that must take place to initiate and carry out successful organizational change. Let us now discuss change that Microsoft Canada tried to implement in its organization by implementing Strategic Change. MANAGING STRATEGIC CHANGE AT MICROSOFT CANADA Microsoft Canada is a subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation responsible for the service, marketing and the sales of the full range of software products, including the Windows operating system, the office productivity suite, a variety of Net products, and the Xbox game console. The organization marketed to a variety of segments, such as software application developers, small and medium business and large enterprises, through a broad range of partners that worked directly with the client organizations to install and optimize the software used. A small service organization provided consulting support to clients with the partner. Before 2001, Microsoft Canada had been part of North American subsidiary. Under this structure, large US market was clearly the focus of attention from Microsoft server, desktop, other software products. However, Frank Clegg, President of Microsoft Canada, argued that the Canadian market was different and under developed. It had a different mix of customers that did a United States, different competitors and different growth opportunities. Moreover, software sales and personnel computers shipments as a percentage of markets size and growth were below worldwide averages. These differences, Clegg argued warranted a specialized strategy. As the fiscal year ended Clegg and his newly appointed Director of Strategic Planning, Sandra Palmero, wanted to cease the opportunity to define a uniquely Canadian strategy. Before becoming Director of Strategic Planning, Palmero had been Director of Marketing and Corporate Communications in Microsoft Canada. There with Richard Reynolds, her Senior Marketing Manager, they had planned and implemented a participative process of strategic planning. Sandra conducted the OD practitioner who had worked with them and contracted to design and implement a Strategic planning process for the Canadian organization. Over a 2 month period, Sandra conceived of a series of workshops involving the Canadian leadership team. This team represented a broad cross section of the organization including representatives from legal staffs, human resources, service business and Microsoft consultant, marketing managers, customer support and managers responsible for different segments of Microsoft business inclu ding enterprise customer, small and medium business, the Microsoft Network and the Xbox. The strategic analysis phase consisted of preliminary work by several members of the Canadian leadership team as well as initial exercises during the first workshop. Member of Canadian Leadership team each prepared an analysis of their respected areas of responsibilities. For example, the enterprise sales manager provided historical growth rates in the revenue, developed forecast for market growths and Microsofts share, described current levels of Customer satisfaction and technology road map of products being developed by the Redmond headquarters organization. In addition to this specific analysis, Sandra contracted with a market research firm to provide overall description of Canadian information technology market. Finally a competitor analysis was performed to develop and understanding of likely strategies, goals, and initiatives from key competitors such as IBM, Sun Micro System, and Oracle as well as competitive threat posed by the Linux Operating System Software. During first workshop the Canadian Leadership team used the pre work data to perform an environmental scan. They discussed, debated, and ultimately came to some agreements about the trends affecting the organization. Based on that scan, the group engaged in a vision and value formation exercise and set out an initial list of short and long term goals. These activities let to several important decisions for new marketing organizations. For example, the vision and values exercised produced important insight about what the Canadian organization stood for, its uniqueness compared to the marketing subsidiaries within the Microsoft Organization, and its strengths in competing as a Canadian organization. The values also informed discussion about future goals and strategy to achieve them. Importantly, the Canadian leadership realized that customer loyalty would and should become a driving force for the organization. This realization led to passionate discussions about the relative emphasis i n the organization on revenues versus customer satisfaction and loyalty. It also led to development of Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) that the members of the Canadian Leadership Team believed would be challenging but achievable. The first workshop ended with a number of assignments, unresolved issues, and excitement about the future. In between the first and second workshops, members of the Canadian Leadership Team worked with their own organizations. Issues, decisions and questions that were addressed within the Canadian Leadership Team were discussed throughout the organization. The most important discussion concerned the Big Hairy Audacious Goal and the relative emphasis of revenues and customer loyalty over the short and long term. A consensus began to emerge that the right and proper strategy for Microsoft was to argue for a slower growth rate in revenues the short term, invest in customer satisfaction and then leverage that loyalty for a more secure stream of revenues in the future. Frank Clegg took this idea to the executives in Redmond and discussed the implications of this strategy, including revenue projections, risk involved, the budget implications, and how the strategy aligned with corporate and other marketing organizations initiatives. The result of these conversations became the subject of opening discussions at second workshop. The cautions but positive support from the corporate organization allowed the Canadian leadership team to move forward on its strategic intent. In second workshop, the organizations mission and values were finalized; year by year revenue goals were agreed upon to achieve the Big Hairy Audacious Goal, and these goals were broken down and assigned to specific groups and managers. Finally, key customer and partner loyalty programs were established and outlined. Ownership for different initiatives was assigned and a strategic change plan originated. Frank Clegg pressed the group on its decision to emphasize customer loyalty and challenged the group with several scenarios that tempted them to trade off satisfaction for revenue. These scenarios helped fix the Canadian leadership teams commitment to their strategy. The important part of the strategic change plan that came out was a discussion and decision to tie the individual performance appraisals of Canadian leadership team as a whole also staked their end of fiscal year bonuses to the achievement of customer satisfaction, instead of revenue goals. The strategic change efforts at Microsoft Canada are important for few reasons. First, the Canadian organizations realization of the benefits of customer satisfaction and loyalty was influential in moving the larger Microsoft Corporation to examine its values in this area. Business Week reported on the changes Steve Ballmer was making in the organization; they reflected the increased importance of customer loyalty in Microsofts strategy and structure changes. Second, the organization learned how to organize a strategic planning effort. In the second year since this effort began, Sandra Palmero did built a stronger strategic planning organization and taken more and more responsibility for driving the strategic planning process. Even as the corporate Microsoft organization was making important changes in its reporting structure, business process, financial systems, the Canadian organization was able to adapt using its own resources and knowledge. Finally, the Big Hairy Audacious Goal h as become an institutionalized part of the organization that drives thinking and decision making in the organization. In context with the case in hand we are suppose to work on a few task related to the case in hand. Firstly, let us discuss the history of the organization in hand, which is Microsoft Canada. Microsoft Canada Inc. was established in 1985. It is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corp. the worldwide leader in services, software and solutions that help inhabit and small business realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. It has its headquarters in Mississauga and has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software- anytime, anywhere and on any devise. Secondly, let us now discuss the circumstances that led the organization to undergo strategic change. Frank Clegg, President of Microsoft Canada, argued that the Canadian market was different and under developed and it had a different mix of customers. Thus it demanded for different co mpetitors and different growth opportunities. Another circumstance was that the percentage of markets size and growth of software sales and personnel computers shipments were below worldwide averages. These circumstances demanded a specialized strategy. Thirdly, the type of change that was implemented in the Microsoft Canada was basically strategically. The change has been incorporated in such a way that every aspect of the organization starting from legal staffs, human resources, service business and Microsoft consultant, marketing managers, customer support and managers responsible for different segments of Microsoft business including enterprise customer, small and medium business, the Microsoft Network and the Xbox were taken into consideration. The senior members of the organization have tried its best to formulate and design the strategically change in such a manner that it helps Microsoft Canada to increase its percentage market share and gain better growth. Fourthly, in orde r to incorporate the strategically change into the organization the involvement of every member of the organization is very necessary. The strategically change was initiated by Frank Clegg, President of Microsoft Canada and Sandra Palmero, Director of Strategic Planning. Sandra Palmero along with Richard Reynolds, her Senior Marketing Manager, had crafted and implemented a participative process of strategic planning. Sandra conducted the OD practitioner who had worked with them and contracted to design and implement a Strategic planning process for the Canadian organization. Fifthly, the methods used in implementing the strategically change were basically workshops, assignments and discussions of issues related to work. Canadian Leadership Team was formed by members of various departments of the organization that were focused on developing and implementing strategically change in the Microsoft Canada Organization. During the first workshop the Canadian Leadership team used the pre w ork data to perform an environmental scan. They discussed, debated, and ultimately came to some agreements about the trends affecting the organization. Based on that scan, the group engaged in a vision and value formation exercise and set out an initial list of short and long term goals. These activities let to several important decisions for new marketing organizations. The Canadian leadership realized that customer loyalty would and should become a driving force for the organization. A consensus began to emerge that the right and proper strategy for Microsoft was to argue for a slower growth rate in revenues the short term, invest in customer satisfaction and then leverage that loyalty for a more secure stream of revenues in the future. In second workshop, the organizations mission and values were finalized; year by year revenue goals were agreed upon and these goals were broken down and assigned to specific groups and managers. The important part of the strategic change plan that emerged was a discussion and decision to tie the individual performance appraisals of Canadian leadership team as a whole also staked their end of fiscal year bonuses to the achievement of customer satisfaction, rather than revenue goals. Steve Ballmer increased the importance of customer loyalty in Microsofts strategy and structural changes and also the organization learned how to organize a strategic planning effort. Microsoft organization has made important changes in its reporting structure, business process, financial systems; the Canadian organization was able to adapt using its own resources and knowledge. Big Hairy Audacious Goal has become an institutionalized part of the organization that drives thinking and decision making in the organization. Finally, the main changes that have been seen in the performance level of the employees getting better along with rise in the percentage of market share which led to its growth both internal as well as external. Also, the Canadian Leadership Team and the Big Hairy Audacious Goal was permanently incorporated in the structure of the organization. (b) Strengths of Bureaucratic organizations are as follows: Higher level of consistency is maintained in decisions and implementation of projects. The control exerted by the head quarters or top level management ensures that the systems and delivery of services to the beneficiaries are in line with the laid down procedures. The major and important final decisions made by top management, considering various perspectives of organization. In this aspect the powers and interests of various stakeholders also taken care in delivering the final outcome. Another benefit is better cost control and management. Weaknesses of Bureaucratic organizations are as follows, The higher level of bureaucracy leads to lack of innovation and development in the organization, which leads to loss of competitive advantage in certain circumstances. Another disadvantage is that higher the structure and communication ladder impedes the speed of communication and decision making, and speed of response in emergency situations. The motivation of employees drops because of the lower level of delegation of duties and responsibilities and lower empowerment.. What must be realized is only that the strait jacket of bureaucratic organization paralyzes the individuals initiative, while within the capitalist market society an innovator still has a chance to succeed. (c) Managing change is an inevitable part of Organizational Development. Organization Development is about how people and organizations function and how to get them to function better. The field is based on knowledge from behavioral science disciplines such as psychology, social psychology, sociology, organizational behavior, organization theory and management. OD programs are long-term, planned, sustained efforts. Various definitions of OD are: Organization development refers to a long-range effort to improve an organizations problem solving capabilities and its ability to cope with changes in its external environment with the help of external or internal behavioral-scientist consultants, or change agents, as they are sometimes called. (Wendell French) Organization development is a system-wide process of data collection, diagnosis, action planning, intervention, and evaluation aimed at (1) enhancing congruence among organizational structure, process, strategy, people, and culture; (2) developing new and creative organizational solutions; and (3) develop the organizations self renewing capacity. It occurs through the collaboration of organizational members working with a change agent using behavioral science theory, research, and technology.(Michael Beer) Thus, Organization development is a system based and wide application that transfers behavioral science knowledge to the planned improvement, and reinforcement of the process that lead to effectiveness and efficiency of the organization. All OD programs have three basic components: diagnosis, action and program management. The symptomatic component represents a uninterrupted collection of data about the total system, its subunits, its processes, and its culture. The action component consists of all the activities and interventions designed to improve the organizations functioning. The program management component encompasses all activities designed to ensure success of the program. The process of Organizational Development is quite complicated and the completion of the change process consumes a lot of time with a minimum of one year and sometimes keeps indefinitely. There are different approaches to the process but the usual process consists of seven steps, which are initial diagnosis, data collection, data feedback and confrontation, action planning and problem solving, team building, inter group development and evaluation and follow up. organizational development process The following steps are vital steps taken into consideration while implementing any alternative forms of organizational development: Communications patterns, styles and flows. Goal setting. Decision making, problem solving, and action planning. Conflict resolution and management. Managing interface relations. Superior- subordinate relations. Technological and engineering systems. Strategic management and long-range planning. Vision/ Mission formulation. Organizational learning. Task 2 (a) The key stakeholders in Microsoft Canada can be people from any of the departments and levels of the organizations. But in general, the following people are the stakeholders of Microsoft Canada: Financial analysts Business analysts Forecasting or sales individual contributors Controller IT specialists and administrators. Legal staffs Human resources Service business and Microsoft consultant Marketing managers Customer support Managers responsible for different segments of Microsoft business including enterprise customer. Etc. (b) As discussed already it has been seen that the above cited stakeholders are the main members of the Canadian Leadership Team and plays a very significant role in the successful formation and implementation of Strategically Change in Microsoft Canada. The stakeholders, most of whom are also the members of the Canadian Leadership Team have played important role in the workshops, assignments, and discussions that was basically done to decide upon implementing new strategically changes required by Microsoft Canada to achieve its long term and short term goals. Also in the beginning of this report we have discussed three different models that are usually used in any organization as models for implementing and managing change, which are, Lewins Planned Change Model, Action Research Model and Positive model. After going through the entire case in hand it is seen that the Action Research Model best suits the procedure in which implementation of strategical change was carried out in Microsoft Canada. As the Action Research Model of change suggests, Microsoft Canada firstly, identified the problem that the organization was facing and having done that it was discussed upon by the experts of the organization and data was gathered from various sources to analyze the problem in order to be able to provide with the best possible solution. Finally, The Canadian Leadership Team acted as the Action team that helped to implement the solutions and bring in the Change in Microsoft Canada. Thus, the above report is a good example of implementing and managin g change in an organization. Task 3 (a) UnfreezingLewins Planned Change Model Refreezing Movement Action Research Model Data Gathering after Action Action Joint Action Planning Joint Diagnosis of Problem Feedback to Key Client or Group Data Gathering and Preliminary Diagnosis Consultation with Behavioral Science Expert Problem Identification Positive Model Design and Deliver ways to create the Future Envision a Preferred Future Discover Themes Inquire into Best Practices Initiate the Inquiry There are various types of change that an organization may implement. (b) It is often remarked that the only constant thing in the world is Change and having said that in todays so fast moving world and economy, every organization needs to implement change in its working structure and structure to be able to cope up with the changing environment. Today, organizations basically go for a change in order to be up to date with the current world and also are able to cope up with the increasing competition. Change suiting to the organization helps the organization to attain better brand name and a increased market share. Also change in the structure and working environment usually helps the organization to provide its employees to be happy and satisfied working in the organization and give maximum effective result to the output of the organization. Thus there may be a number of reasons that might have led to any organizations decision to implement change in the organization. In case of Microsoft Canada, Frank Clegg, President of Microsoft Canada, argued that the Canadian market was different and under-developed and it had a different mix of customers. Thus it demanded for different competitors and different growth opportunities. Another circumstance was that the percentage of markets size and growth of software sales and personnel computers shipments were below worldwide averages. These circumstances demanded a specialized strategy. Thus this was the major reason that led Microsoft Canada to decide to implement Strategic Change in the organization.