Corporate Communications of Marriott Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corporate Communications of Marriott - Essay Example "Those ideas quickly find their way into the hands of members of the team at HQ who can either solve the problem or spread the word about a good concept that works." Managers need to understand the basics of the company's products and services to manage with depth. For many years their chief financial officer and other non-operations executives have been required to attend the company's "food school" to gain a bit of "hands on" experience with the products and services that form the basis of Marriott's world. Mr. Marriott recounts that his dad particularly enjoyed talking to his employees. Marriott's corporate legend is full of stories of his father perched on a hotel lobby sofa, listening to the family problems of one of their associates while senior managers "cooled their heels" waiting for him to return to the office. He confirms that the stories are true. His Dad felt very strongly that the concerns and problems of the people who worked for him were always worth listening to. In his eyes, a successful company puts its employees first. Mr. Marriott says: "I couldn't agree more. When employees know that their problems will be taken seriously, that their ideas and insights matter, they're more comfortable and confident. In turn, they're better equipped to deliver their best on the job and to the customer. Everyone wins: the company, the employee the customer." The philosophy of putting employees first is particularly important in the hospitality industry, because Marriott is in the people business, not just the service business. Customers are not just affected by the tangible parts of the business but the intangibles as well. If the people who are responsible for supplying that human touch are unhappy, tired, stressed, poorly trained, or otherwise distracted, they're probably not going to do a good job. On the flip side, if employees are content, confident, and generally happy with themselves and the job, their positive attitude will be felt in everything they do. The Marriott "Pathways to Independence" is employer-sponsored welfare reform done right. An employer needs to stay involved with new employees to help them overcome their failure points. Other areas of success: "over-managing" by design and work-life programs. He recounts many ways in which these tasks have become more daunting as the nation's hourly workforce has become more multicultural in makeup. Many of their hourly associates "must cope with complicated immigration procedures, interpersonal cultural clashes, and social discrimination, in addition to the pressures of child care, elder care, substance or domestic abuse, or housing problems." To that end, Marriott started a toll-free consultation service for their associates staffed by social workers who field questions and find solutions to just about any problem. And they can do it in more than 100 languages. They rolled out the 800 Associate Resource Line (ARL) on a national basis in 1996, after a two-year regional trial run. Although the program is based on intensive studies of their associates' needs, the thinking behind it is actually pretty simple. At heart, it's really just a higher-tech version of Mr. Marriott's Dad's

Self Awareness Essay Example for Free

Self Awareness Essay 1. Introduction How you access yourself in order to become more self-aware and how you reflect on your career on an ongoing basis is of utmost importance to ensure a successful personal development plan is followed continuously. In the current day and age most managers find it very difficult to set time aside for proper reflection and to spend some quality time putting development plans in place to ensure constant personal growth and development. Some of the key questions a typical manager will have to answer is how to find a balance between work, family life and personal development, or what would be the best models and tools currently available to assist him or herself to enable optimum personal growth. Another question would be how to apply these tools optimally based on your current circumstances. In this assessment I will attempt to address some of these questions, however, I do think that some of the proposals that I will put forward will have to be reviewed on an ongoing bases. This is to ensure it stays aligned with my ever evolving understanding of self-development. 2. Reflection and the way forward 2.1 Reflecting on personal development If I have to reflect back on my career it is clear that I have reached a key moment in my life about three years ago when I hit a ceiling as a subject matter expert. I also realised that I do not have sufficient management experience to make a smooth transition from a subject matter expert to a senior manager. I have reached this ceiling because I have exhausted all possible promotion options. The only way ‘forward’ for me was sidewards. The first question that came to mind was how do I change this conundrum and where do I go from here? I embarked on an MBA at Henley business school without a scientific approach in the hope that it will provide some answers. Fortunately we were exposed early on to tools and models to assist us. I used the Strategic Analysis diagram developed by Prof. Marc Day (2013) to determine which model will be the best suited for my current situation. I decided that the Force Field Analysis model developed by Lewin, K (1952) was the best fit. The reason is because I mainly need to improve my capability to become a better manager, or rather to refine my capabilities, to become a better manager. It also lies close to the Competition quadrant within a firm. This is also very applicable because of the severe competition when it comes to climbing the corporate ladder. Refer to figure 2.1 for details. The first question that now comes to mind is how do I eliminate the opposing forces in order to move from my current state to my desired state. Another question would be how can I best utilise my learning style to speed up the transition? I evaluated these opposing forces and have identified some of them that are more tangible and easier to manage. * Is an MBA the right vehicle or choice for me? I have the highest preference for the Monitor Evaluator team role according to the Belbin Team Role Report (Belbin, 2012) compiled by Henley Business School (2013). This, in short, means that I can often judge accurately, however, I sometimes lack drive. I currently have more confidence that the MBA is probably the right decision because I have the ability to judge accurately, according to Belbin, however, it will remain an open ended question that will only be answered in due time. The MBA is also a formal program. This will hopefully provide the drive I lack from time to time and the motivation I need to complete my studies. I am also Pragmatist (AE) according to Kolb (1985). Honey Mumford (2000) commented that Pragmatists like to see how learning is put into practice in the real world. This also supports my decision to join the formal Henley MBA program because all the case studies are real and theory will thus be applied into practice in real world scenarios. I therefore think that I have made the right decision to decide on an MBA as my education vehicle of choice. In doing so I have definitely weakened one of the opposing forces. * Impact on my personal life, my career and my family I realise that completing an MBA will require serious commitment and will definitely impact my family, my career and my personal life. My wife and children realise that I have reached a dead end in my career and that I will have to do something extra ordinary to change direction. They have also committed to support me from day one because they know that my despondency about my work will eventually rub off on our marriage and family life. We also realise that it is still early days and that the real challenges lie ahead. I am, therefore, convinced that this is an opposing force that I can manage down in order to weaken it. These two are also the most prominent opposing forces, so it will have a major effect on the outcome if they are managed properly. * Financial Constraints This constraint is one of the few that are not really manageable, however, I have arranged with Henley Business School to pay the tuition fees in payments. This will definitely assist me and it will also weaken the opposing force. * Networking ability My ability to network is still an ongoing constraint. I will address this developing need in the next sessions. 2.2 Reflect on recent career I used the Henley Team Working Questionnaire (2010) to reflect on my recent career in order to establish a fit (or lack thereof) between me as a manager / team leader and my role within my organization. I realize that this is not an assessment tool of my current job, but rather a tool to be used to asses my current need of learning in going forward. This has highlighted a few areas that require development. These areas might also be the reason for the misalignment/misfit between my current career expectation and my progression within my organization. I have always realized that I have areas in need of development, hence my decision to start my Henley MBA. The Henley Team Working Questionnaire has assisted me a great deal in identifying those areas. I have used the Henley Star (Henley Business School, 2011), as part of this assignment, to assist me in analysing my most important development areas. The area that has come out on top was my development need to demonstrate impact and to influence others. I currently have a lot of questions that are still unanswered. I hope to get a better understanding of exactly how to approach it and how to address them in order to ensure a successful outcome. I will spend more time on how I plan to address these questions in the next section. For now it is important that I have a starting point for my own personal development in order to improve my current fit. I have also completed chapter 5 of the textbook provided, A Manager’s Guide to Self Development (Pedler, M, Burgoyne, J Boydell, T, 2007: 27). This has also indicated that I need to develop my creativity as well as my command of the basic facts in my company. 2.3 Planning ahead The key question at this stage is how would I go about addressing these areas of development over the next twelve months? I will need to balance three main areas, my life and family, my working career as well as my time spend studying for my MBA. In addition, I will also have to constantly focus on my areas of development in order to try and approve them. Doing this should improve my management capabilities. It will also align me with the correct individuals in my current company to ensure improved opportunities in growing my career. Pedler, M, Burgoyne, J Boydell, T (2007:37) gave a list of activities to do for each area that requires development in their book A Manager’s Guide to Self Development. I have highlighted some of these activities and have drawn up a plan to do it over the next 12 months. Refer to appendix A. I will also have to make sure I spend more time in our office and with top management in order to gain access to valuable information, insights and data. This will assist in improving my impact and my influence with other people. I will also have to manage my time with my client more efficiently in order to attend all the ‘open days’ and information sessions at our company so that I can achieve my goal. I put a schedule together to ensure I manage all areas of development. I know this is premature, however, it is a start. Refer to Appendix B. I intend recording my progress as well as my learning journals in a tool called Evernote. This tool is available across all platforms and it syncs seamlessly between all my devices. This makes it an ideal tool for my requirements. Conclusion I have tried various approaches in the past to improve my managerial capabilities to move from a subject matter expert orientated environment to top management. I realise now that I will have to change my approach because I tend to favour the Monitor Evaluator team role and I am a pragmatist. The key question that still remains is exactly how? This assignment has assisted me in identifying three main areas where development is needed, namely the ability to demonstrate impact and to influence other, creativity and a command of the basic facts. I have put an activity plan together (Appendix A) to assist me improving my areas in need of development. The main issue to keep in mind is that I continuously will have to be self-aware. I will also have to reflect on each and every move I make from now on. My activity plan should also be revaluated on an ongoing basis to ensure it is still the best fit for my current needs. The finer detail is still missing. My hope is that I will be able to i mprove it by applying the models, tools and exercises available during the course of the MBA and to get more clarity in moving forward.

Impact Of Organisational Culture In The Hairdressing Sector Commerce Essay

Impact Of Organisational Culture In The Hairdressing Sector Commerce Essay Culture is quite difficult to define, when we speak of culture we know what it is and what / how it is manifested in an organisation but a clear, unambiguous definition eludes us! This is because culture has different meanings, depending on life experiences, background, religion, belief and values. Nonetheless, there are several influential writers on culture including Hofstede, Trompenaars, Hampden Turner, Schein, Ouchi, Schneider and Barsoux, Deal and Kennedy and Handy, whose work is still recognised in contemporary organisations. However, Handy, described culture in organisations as the way we do things around here. These things are accepted norms and values of an organisation, developed over time into expected behaviour patterns. They generally emanate from top management level of the Organisation; but this is not always the case (Managing in Organisation, ABE Study Manual, 2008). Even though it is reasonable to infer that culture can influence behaviour, this relationship is over-simplified by strong culture models. According to Guy S. Saffold, III, (1988), if researchers are to precisely examine the link between culture and performances, they must assess other internal processes that affect performance. Although, the literature on organisational culture and its correlation with business performance is rich and diverse, there are only a few empirical studies that profoundly explored this relationship. Furthermore, these studies simply focused on the impact on culture on medium to large organisation but few or little has focused specifically on small businesses in the hairdressing sector. For this reason, this project will seek to Assess organisational culture using several theoretical frameworks Evaluate if there is a link between organisational culture and performance in small hairdressing businesses Identify the advantages and disadvantages of having a strong culture in hairdressing business Introduction It is not the physically powerful, hasty and most ferocious who survive. It is the most flexible Charles Darwin Organisations operate in a very unpredictable environment; hence survival depends on the organisations ability to exploit resources; collaborate and adjust. There are extensive demonstrations (Kotter and Heskitt, 1992) that strong cultures support performance by creating value to stakeholders through consistency and high quality goods and services. Deshpandà © and Webster (1989) by exploring several studies in organisational behavior, sociology, and anthropology, defined organisational culture as a pattern of shared values and beliefs that aid individuals understand organisational functioning and thus provide them with the norms for behavior in the organisation (p. 4). Following these and other authors (e.g., Chatman and Jehn, 1994), organisational culture is conceptualized and quantified in terms of widely shared and strongly held values. The elements of organisational culture range from basic assumptions through values and behavioral norms to actual patterns of behavior (Rousseau, 1990). Values typically act as the defining elements of a culture, and norms, symbols, rituals, and other cultural activities revolve around them (Enz 1988). When the members of a social unit share values, an organisational culture or value system can be said to exist (Weiner 1988). According to (Denison, 1984), if an organisation possesses a strong culture by exhibiting a well-integrated and effective set of specific values, beliefs, and behaviors, then it will perform at a higher level of productivity. On the other hand (Kotter Heskitt 1992) concluded that the statement that a strong culture is the basis for outstanding performance appears to be incorrect. Burt et al (1999) agreed with Kotter and Heskitt to an extent but carried their analysis further. They suggest that the relationship between culture and performance depends upon the degree of rivalry. Their research showed that culture is important depending on the competitiveness of the market. They believed that market and culture go hand in hand. If firms have low rivalry in the market then strong culture is not an advantage. Furthermore in some markets where there is competition there is still no correlation between culture and performance. Equally, (Sorenson, 2002) believed that strong cultures often hinders flexibility which is required for survival especially during sporadic transformations, such as we face currently, organisations with strong culture are most often crippled by their own organisational DNA. Whether or not culture is an economical advantage depends upon the market situation. In the retail sector, culture may be a competitive asset. In a multifaceted market, culture appears to have no effect on economic performance (Douglas N. Ross, 2002). It all depends. However, gaining a profound understanding of culture is essential in order to find out whether there is a link between organisational culture and performance. The next chapter begins with an overview of culture. An overview of organisational culture The term organisational culture was used for the first time in the academic literature by Pettigrew in 1979 in the journal Administrative Science Quarterly. Organisational culture was used to explain the economic successes of Japanese firms over American firms by motivating workers who were committed to a common set of core values, beliefs and assumptions (Denison, 1984). One of the most important reasons that explain the interest in organisational culture is the assumption that certain organisational cultures lead to an increase in organisational financial performance. According to Peters and Waterman (1982) successful organisations possess certain cultural traits of excellence. Ouchi (1981) showed a positive relationship between organisational culture and productivity. We have seen many definitions of culture, earlier in the analysis, however, Edgar Scheins defined organisational culture more specifically as the basic assumption and beliefs that are shared by members of an organisation, that operates unconsciously and define in a basic taken-for-granted approach, the routine that build ups over time. In other words, culture is about that which is taken for granted but nonetheless contributes to how group of people respond and behave in relations to the issues they face. It therefore has important influences on the development and change of organisational strategy (Johnson and Scholes, 2008). According to Johnson and scholes (2008) , the culture of an organisation is often concevied as consisting of four layers which would be disucussed in Fig.1.below. Fig.1 The four layers as described by Johnson and Scholes (2008) are Firstly, values are easily identifiable in an organisation, and are often documented statements about an organisation mission, objectives or strategies. However, they can be vague. Secondly, beleifs are more specific but again they can typically be discerned in how people talk about issues in the organisation. Thirdly, behaviors are the day to day way in which an organistion operates and can be seen by people both inside the organisation. This includes the work routines, how the organisation is structured and controlled and softer issues around symbolic behaviors. Finally, taken for granted assumption or paradigms are the core of an organsational culture. They are the facets of an organisations life which people find difficult to identify and explain. The paradigm can underpin successful strategies by providing a basis of common understanding in an organisation, but can also be a major problem (Johnson and Scholes, 2008). Similar conceptions of culture are offered by Dandridge et al. (1980), Pettigrew (1979), as well as Trice and Beyer (1984). Schein (1990) suggests that cultures are created through the way organisations have reacted to important incidents in the past and have thus evolved certain norms, as well as through the identification of organisational members with their leaders. As such, organisational cultures are perpetuated through the process of socialization of new members into the organisation. Hofstede (1980) identified four dimensions of organisational culture: power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism /collectivism and masculinity / femininity. Later, Hofstede (1998:238) defined organisational culture as a concept that has the following features: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ holistic (describing the synergy); à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ historically determined (reflecting the past,); à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ related to the things such a customs and symbols, (these are studied by anthropologist). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ socially constructed (moulded and preserved by the collection of individuals who collectively form the organisation); à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ soft, and; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ difficult to change. This overview on culture provides useful insight in understanding culture from a theoretical standpoint which would be useful in this research analysis. Literature Review It is arguable that the academic acceptance of culture, without the usual bickering and scepticism associated with new concepts, is a major indication of the perceived importance of the concept (Alvesson, 1990). However, this is not to infer that there is consensus on the meaning and relevance of the concept. On the contrary, there is widespread disagreement on the definition and scope of the organisational culture concept (Ogbonna and Harris, 1998a). However, the link between organisational culture and high performance in an organisation has been very debateable; because there is little empirical evidence to suggest a direct link between culture and an organisational performance especially in small businesses. Of course failure to establish an empirical link does not mean that no such link exists. According to (Skà ¶ldberg, 1990), empirical study in the area is very difficult to carry out. Not only is culture difficult to capture but so is performance. While it has been suggested that culture accounts for the economic performance of various countries (Hofstede, 1980; Hofstede and Bond, 1988), the idea of corporate culture also serves to provide a basis for understanding the differences that may exist between successful companies operating in the same national culture (Schein, 1990). Peters and Waterman (1982), for example, believed that successful organisations possess certain cultural traits of excellence. Ouchi (1981) presented a similar relationship between corporate culture and increased productivity, while (Deal and Kennedy 1982) argued that the performance of an organisation is dependent on the degree to which the values of the culture are widely shared, that is, are strong Nevertheless, the claim that organisational culture is linked to performance is founded on the perceived role that culture can play in generating competitive advantage (Scholz, 1987). Reed and DeFillippi, (1990) added that sustainable competitive advantage arises from the creation of organisational competencies which are both superior and imperfectly imitable by competitors. Similarly, (Bryan Adkins, 2004) suggests that culture does matter, and a strong, effective culture will outperform a weak culture every time. In a study done by (Coogan Partners Apos, 2005) they concluded also that companies who out-perform their competitors have specific cultural differences. Early researchers who link culture to organisational performance are unequivocal in their claims. An illustration of this is derived from the works, (Deal and Kennedy, 1982; Ouchi, 1981; Pascale and Athos, 1981; Peters and Waterman, 1982) who argue that successful organisations are distinguished by their ability to promote cultural values which are consistent with their chosen strategies. Although this view met with initial popularity in the 1980s, the principal tenets of the argument have been subjected to extensive criticism from writers such as (Legge, 1994; Ogbonna, 1993; Willmott, 1993). By the 1990s, researchers assessing the links between culture and performance were more cautious. For example, Gordon and DiTomaso (1992) and Denison (1990) both propose that there is a link between certain organisational culture characteristics and performance but each add a number of conditions. In particular, they note that culture will remain linked with superior performance only if the culture is able to adapt to changes in environmental conditions. Besides, the culture must not only be strong as suggested by writers such as Deal and Kennedy 1982, Ouchi, 1981 and Peters and waterman, 1982) but it must also have unique qualities which cannot be imitated. However, more recently, it has been suggested that the relationship between culture and performance, is fragile (Ogbonna and Harris: Leadership style organisational culture and performance 769 (Hop et al., 1992; Lewis, 1994; Lim, 1995; Ray, 1986; Willmott, 1993). Sorenson, (2002) argued that continuous change; such as we encounter presently, strong cultured organisations are most often crippled by their own organisational DNA. According to (Dean Mcfarlin), when organisation with well-defined culture is operating in somewhat steady milieu, their core competences and strategies are in alignment with the business objectives. In such environments, well structured cultures enable an organisation to function like new machines, sailing down by outstanding performance. That said, if the environment becomes extremely unstable, companies must become innovative and efficiently exploit resources to stay on top. However, companies with well-built cultures may find it difficult to adapt to such extremely unpredictable situation. A well-defined culture makes it easy for employees to clutch onto the existing status quo and, simultaneously, less willing and enthusiastic about exploring new ways of performing the task. The underlying principle is that a strong organisational culture may be something of a two-fold sword. When you believe in the existing culture of the organisation, it becomes hard to replace them with new id eas even if it a source of competitive disadvantage. Some researchers believed that strong cultures may, however, impose a level of stability on organisations, and such stability has mixed implications for performance. Denison and Mishra (1995) found that stability traits such as a firms mission, consistency, and normative integration, were related to its profitability. Specifically, organisations with strong cultures had greater returns on investments, but only in the short run; after three years the relationship between cultural consistency and performance became negative (Denison, 1990). Sorensen found that strong culture organisations were more financially successful in stable environments and less successful in dynamic environments. Thus, while cultural strength and stability may enhance organisational performance in the short run and in stable environments, they may also inhibit an organisations ability to change, adapt, or innovate. Finally it is not possible to say that organisational culture in general or a specific type of culture has a clear and simple effect on performance but this does not mean that there is no connection between culture (however defined) and performance; on a general level there certainly is. Whipp et al. (1989: 582) believed that elements of culture may supply vital links between the rational aspects of policy and the subjective, less tangible features of employees behaviour exactly because of the way values pervade an enterprise. Propositions of how culture brings about distinct outcomes, however, often seem problematic. Either the causal link is speculative and uncertain or it is difficult to separate culture from outcome. Some of the authors treated in some depth above (Schein and Louis), run into problems when they claim correlations between organisational culture and what they treat as other elements. However it is difficult, even misleading, to say that the culture as a whole has been a significant cause of financial returns. Despite the claims for a link between organisational culture and performance is very rich and diverse, few studies appear to have actually examined the existence as well as the nature of this relationship. Strong cultures and its influence on performance are questionable in the current dynamic environment, besides some theorists query the universality of a culture-performance link. Research design and Methodology The subject of organisational culture and its influence on performance has attracted extensive interest from many scholars, students and researchers alike, but their interest has focused extensively on medium to large businesses but little has focused directly on the influence of organisational culture on the performance of small businesses, hence my interest in the subject matter. This research would be conducted using both primary and secondary research methods of data collection. The primary method proposed is semi-structured interview and the secondary methods would be text books and journal articles. After careful analysis of past literature on culture and performance, qualitative research design such as interview was clearly appropriate. Consequently, a sample of 30 businesses in the hairdressing industry would be selected via the utilisation of a systematic random selection procedure with appropriate units to be selected on a variety of criteria, including company turnover, date of registration, and number of employees. In order to limit potential measurement error, responses would be required from key Personnel, knowledgeable in a variety of tactical and strategic activities (Bowman and Ambrosini, 1997; Snow and Hrebiniak, 1980; Hambrick, 1981; Nayyar, 1992). Undeniably, a plethora of prescriptive articles and books such as Alan Bryan Emma Bell (2003) Business Research Methods, proposed useful suggestions on effective research design, formulation and execution which would be helpful in this research and as a result improve content validity and reliability and most importantly covers ethical issues associated with research. The efficient and effective administration and implementation of the research method (semi-structured interview) is key and the researcher is aware that this could influence the overall success of data generation and the achievement of satisfactory responses (Dillman, 1978; Churchill, 1991; Faria and Dickinson, 1992). A pilot study will be carried out to pre-test the research instrument (Baker 1994: 182-3). The study would be undertaken because it would establish whether the sampling frame and technique is correct. Semi-structured interview would be used; this would allow questioning to be guided as is required also many points that needed to be made clearer would be done much more easily than in something like a mailed questionnaire (Frey and Oishi 1995:03). However, according to (Breakwell, Hammond and Fife-Schaw 1995:238) this technique heavily relies on the respondent being willing to give accurate and complete answers. Additionally, it gives the freedom to explore general views or opinions in more detail. On the other hand this method would be very time consuming and expensive. Finally a tape recorder would also be used so that the data could be referred to at a later date and thus make the analysis more reliable. Conclusion Nowadays, organisations operate in a dynamic environment and they must learn to adapt in order to survive. According to the literature review some researchers such as (Ouchi, 1981) believed that a strong culture is linked to high performance in an organisation. Whereas, Writers such (Kotter Heskitt 1992) concluded that the statement that, well-built culture produce outstanding performance emerge to be completely incorrect. Most interestingly, the culture-performance relationship is seen as a two-fold sword (Dean Mcfarlin). On completion of this project there would be light on whether there is an organisational culture-performance link in small hairdressing businesses. References Bryan, Alan Bell Emma (2003) Business Research Methods: Oxford University Press New York. Johnson, Gerry, Scholes, Kevan Whittington, Richard (2008) Exploring Corporate Strategy: Text and Cases 8th Edition: Pearson Education Limited Association of Business Executives study manual, Managing in Organisation, 2008: ABE RRC Adkins, Bryan, Sr., and Stewart, Cindy, 2004 Shift Organisational Culture to Improve Organisational Performance, viewed on 29th January, 2010 Mcfarlin, Dean 2002, Strong culture can be double-edged sword, Dayton Business Journal, viewed on the 3rd February, 2010 http://www.allbusiness.com/company-activities-management/management-corporate- Culture/5462715-1.html viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://www.denisonconsulting.com/Libraries/Resources/Adkins-2004-Shift-Culture.sflb.ashx, viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/aeo9702.html, viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://www.culturestrategyfit.com, viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://marketing.byu.edu/htmlpages/ccrs/proceedings99/webster.htm, viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://www.jstor.org/pss/258374, viewed on 29th January, 2010 The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 13, No. 4 (Oct., 1988), pp. 546-558 (article consists of 13 pages), viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-17520695/examining-organizational-culture-and.html, viewed on 29th January, 2010 http://steconomice.uoradea.ro/anale/volume/2008/v4-management-marketing/057.pdf, viewed on 2nd February, 2010

media research :: essays research papers

Running Head: Discovering the World of Journals in Media Research Abstract This assignment consists of 4 journals, two of which were scholarly and the rest were trade journals. The objective of this assignment was to familiarize us on how to obtain and record data from different journals. This assignment will teach the class how to be efficient researchers in different media fields. Media Research assignment 3 Running Head: Discovering the World of Journals in Media Research Discovering the World of Journals in Media Research Class Since my related field is television production, I decided to use Broadcasting and Cable as my first scholarly journal. This journal is published by Reed Business Information (formerly Cahners Business Information) and is a leading provider of critical information and marketing solutions to business professionals in targeted industry sectors. Broadcasting and Cable is a great scholarly journal for anyone who works for a cable company on or off the production set of the business. The journal informs readers on the latest technology such as Cameras, tape decks, lighting and televisions. The journal also informs us on current events in the broadcasting industry, for example the journal reviews how many satellite companies made money last year. I chose to summarize an article called â€Å"News Corp.’s Carey moves on.† News Corp.’s Chief Operating Officer Chase Carey resigned because of a deal that went bad with Direct TV. News Corp was trying to make a deal with Direct TV in order to build a worldwide satellite distribution company. If the deal went through for News Corp, it would have made them one of the most powerful entertainment industries in the world. Unfortunately someone else beat Chase Carey to the punch in buying Direct TV. Chase feels handing in his resignation will prevent News Corp from blaming him for the unsuccessful deal. Media Research assignment 4 Running Head: Discovering the World of Journals in Media Research The last scholarly journal I decided to use was Educational Technology. This journal is published by FNO (For Now On) Press, which makes a philosophical commitment to engaged learning, problem-based learning and Information Literacy. I chose this particular journal because my girlfriend is studying to be a teacher and I wanted to learn some statistics about her field. The term Educational Technology refers to science-based knowledge. Its concerned about hardware and software systems that can help students learn in many different ways. Readers of this journal include anyone who interested in teaching children by using mechanical devices such as computers and video recorders rather then by using strictly lecture.

Intercultural aspect of conflict resolution Essay

During the first day of the workshop, I did not completely understand the real meaning of culture. I did not even have a single definition for the term culture. Many questions came into my mind such as, â€Å"What is culture? What are the factors that create culture? What is the scope of culture? Does culture improve itself or not? Although, I started the inquiry on the concept of culture without certain answers for these questions, I had figured them out step by step during that day. I started to find answers for most of the questions that I faced. I finally understood what culture was and why different people with different cultures had different behaviors. By understanding the factors that influenced culture, I started to learn its importance to the parties who got involved in particular conflicts. Throughout that day, I comprehended why people with different cultures got involved in particular conflicts and what were their objectives. I started to give answers for these queries. They might need someone whom they can air their grievances or opinions with. Moreover, they might only wish that others would respect their culture as it was. In the role play, I learned that listening skill was very helpful in making the parties who were involved in the conflict feel better. Also, they should be given the chance to continue telling their stories without any interruption. I had also learned that I could be able to interact with them simply through body language such as moving my head up and down which tells, â€Å"I understand you. Keep going.† Furthermore, these skills would give me the chance to get as much information as possible and understand the parties’ cultures. Personally, I think that having much understanding of other cultures using the skills mentioned earlier would help me adapt with their behaviors and become more flexible when dealing with them.   Culture’s factors such as religion, climate and geography play very significant roles in parties’ behavior. These explain why different countries have different cultures. Finally, all ideas and skills that I had learned during the first day of the workshop let me pay a close attention on understanding other cultures, respecting their beliefs and values as I want other people do the same thing when they cross my culture. I would try to use these ideas and skills in my daily life – simply by listening to other people and respecting them.

Elements of a Poor Geography Personal Statement Examples Essays

Elements of a Poor Geography Personal Statement Examples Essays Elements of a Poor Geography Personal Statement Examples Essay Elements of a Poor Geography Personal Statement Examples Essay It is true that good geography personal statement examples can prove to be an effective guide for those applicants who don’t know how to begin and conclude it. Personal statements are basically an important part of your college admission process. When you seek admission in any college you have to create statement relevant to your field and submit it along with an admission application. No matter which college you choose to apply to, you have to tackle such essays even if you don’t like it. Personal statement examples can help a student big time by offering him a readymade framework, explaining how an efficient statement is written. However, there are some examples that are poorly made and not worth your time. Instead of offering the students how they can craft a compelling statement, these examples take the student on the opposite track, that is, how to make it mediocre. Every student should avoid mediocre examples by understanding the various elements of a poor statement example: Ineffective Outline Ineffective outline is one of the most distinct elements of a poorly created personal statement examples. Given that a sample will provide an effective guide to the applicant, it must include an outline which is simple, effective and to the point. The role of an outline is to offer a framework to the writer so that he can understand what sort of details should be included in a manuscript and what details should be excluded. Example personal statements that do not have an effective outline are definitely not an excellent guide for the applicant. So, choose an example statement that provides you an excellent outline. Typos and Incorrect Grammar Another common element of a poorly created example is incorrect grammar. Grammar mistakes and typos are the critical errors detrimental to your personal statement. If you submit your statement to the admission department with lots of lots of typos and grammatical errors, there is not a single percent of chance that the department would accept the application unless the appraiser is blind. Remember that it will certainly be impossible for you to showcase your motivation, determination and skills to the board through a terrible statement. Therefore, it is very important that an effective example should have a correct grammar and to the point writing style. Proofreading is also necessary to make sure that the document doesn’t cater any sorts of errors. Terrible Samples There are some websites that offer students free personal statement examples or samples. These free websites are not recommended since the samples provided by these websites are terribly written. The information given in the free geography personal statement samples are mostly incorrect. The information regarding the achievements, background, academic performance or motivation of the student is written horribly in these samples. It is better to look for samples on other sites than a free website. The above given tips are very crucial and must be given serious consideration. One must make sure that these elements are not presented in the sample as such samples are only detrimental for the statement.

Sex Drugs and Pimply Teenagers A Positive Perspective On Video Games essays

Sex Drugs and Pimply Teenagers A Positive Perspective On Video Games essays When you watch TV, you vegetate. TV is a passive medium, you sit, eyes open mouth open if you are of a lesser stock. You take in all that is thrown at you with only two options change the channel and take a chance that you will something important(like the people who were taking a whiz when JR was shot) or you can turn it off. No one turns it off, ever, some people dont even watch it but they leave it on. That is called background noise, just the fact that they do that, shows that TV is fluff with rarely important things on it. Video Games, some challenge the mind, some satisfy a Neolithic bloodlust that is innate in all humans(mostly active in men). In some of these First person shooters(I will refer to them as FPS from now on) strategy is involved, you are constantly planning, analyzing, every noise every movement every pixel on your screen COULD be something thats trying to kill you. It excites the mind AND the senses, however if you have all the planning and strategy in the world it doesnt make a lick of difference when someone points a desert eagle at your head. The key to satisfying the bloodlust is KNOWING HOW TO AIM. IF YOU CANT AIM THE GUN THEN NOTHING DIES, and thats pretty pointless isnt it? So not only does one require a sharp and strategizing mind, one also must have excellent hand-eye coordination. If you havent played a game like this before, you are probably one of those people who says : Thats easy, anyone can do that, or, Video games affect children in the wrong way. They do not, you have no clue about the subject youre speaking about, so shut up. If you want to see how easy it is then go and get a copy of Counter-Strike, and ill show you just how easy it is, ok? Which brings me to my next point : Competition. The world (except for some bas-ackward places) runs on a system that is based on capitalist democ ...