How would you describe Akio Toyoda’s leadership style?

Leadership is the process of directing the behaviour of others toward the accomplishment of some objective. Leadership style is the behaviour a leader exhibits while guiding organization members in appropriate directions. Today leaders are often eliminate unnecessary levels of organization and introduce work teams in order to enhance organizational decision making and work flow. In this case study, Akio Toyoda’s prove himself as today’s leader by making few necessary changes in organization to boost his way to make Toyota as number one auto maker in the world. Entrepreneurial leadership Akio Toyoda can be categorized in entrepreneurial leadership because of his critical role in Toyota. Toyota must have global outlook, interact with environmental changes to make its way to the top. Akio Toyoda as a senior managing director and was appointed as head of china business, when it was joint venture with troubled firm. He is impatient to see faster growth of business in China, work hard for a year to complete the merging of Toyota with a larger, more aggressive local firm by convincing top management and government officials to approve the deal. Once he succeeded, Toyoda’s next step was to revamp the management structure. Transformational leadership Akio Toyoda also can be categorized in transformational leadership by studying his action toward management structure he created. In China’s country department under his leadership, departmental heads will only answering to headquarters executives which isolated the managers and complicated coordination. This method making way for them to work closely with each other and report to an executive vice president who can make decisions for the China business instead of waiting for the corporate approvals. ) Where on the continuum of leadership behaviour would you place Yoshi Inaba, and why? Continuum of leadership behaviour that emphasizes decision making can be arranged into 7 type of behaviour: 1. The manager makes the decision and announces it 2. The manager â€Å"sells† the decision 3. The manager presents ideas and invites questions 4. The manager presents a tentative decision that is subject to change 5. The manager presents the problem, gets suggestions and then makes the decision 6. The manager defines the limits and asks the group to make a decision 7. The manager permits the group to make decisions within prescribed limits Yoshi Inaba helps Toyota managers grapple with decisions about balancing market share and profitability. He can be placed in and as the manager, who permits the group to make decisions within prescribed limits in the continuum of leadership behaviour. Yoshi Inaba can be characterized as a leader who makes decision by exercising little control and allowing subordinates much freedom and self-direction. He is becoming an equal member of problem solving group which is allowing his managers to fact finding some solutions in balancing market share and profitability, bring it in discussion and finding the best achievable solutions. The best example in this context is when an official from the U. S division described about competitive price cuts and warn him about the sales and profits which could be affected if he couldn’t give discounts for the rental car companies that buy in volume. He participates in discussion and suggested alternate solution by selling to businesses that buy in volume which contribute to higher profit opportunities. â€Å"Maybe we lose in terms of total volume,† but that’s acceptable because â€Å"it’s all about return† this quote explain to us of his participation and his way of acted as equal member in finding solutions.

Health Social Care

Making sure they have their fluids I set my standards very high and undertake all of my tasks for my service user to a gig standard even down to their cleaning, if standards aren't set high then this can cause problems with the service user for example: – if you don't brush their teeth one morning and forget to do it the next then their mouth would have a horrible taste and bad breath smell, this could then be called abuse and OVA (protection of venerable adults) could come into it. So it is very important for standards to be high in the work that is carried out. A way of describing how personal attitudes and beliefs that could be affected and how not to approach in this way is:- If you have a service user of different religion even though yourselves don't agree with this type of religion then you shouldn't treat them any different Service user has different skin color, you should treat them as any other person with same color skin as yourself If you and a service user have ha d a disagreement then you should just continue doing you work as normal and treat them as you normally would.Outcome 2: Be able to reflect on own activities Reflecting on your own work and activities is good because you can see where you are or have gone wrong, you can then change this by getting more training or advice room other people and they can show you what you are doing wrong. When you have done something good for example: I was in a service user's home and it was time for her medication, I gave her medication and then noticed she was putting them into her bag I asked if I could see and found loads of uneaten medication I then informed her that I was disposing of this medication. It made me feel so happy by doing this as I know she could've been planning an over dose or something. Sources of support for own learning and development could be: Spend time working alongside other colleagues.Talking to colleagues and asking them questions Going to training sessions either interna l or external Team meetings and discussions A personal development plan should be worked out with a supervisor. We will then discuss my goals and the best way of achieving them. Then my support manager will go through the best person for me to shadow in my new Job to learn new skills and to work on skills I already have, this person will then report back to my support manager on how well I am doing or if I need more training. This would then be discussed in another meeting we have to review what has been happening and how I am getting on in the new role Health Social Care Making sure they have their fluids I set my standards very high and undertake all of my tasks for my service user to a gig standard even down to their cleaning, if standards aren't set high then this can cause problems with the service user for example: – if you don't brush their teeth one morning and forget to do it the next then their mouth would have a horrible taste and bad breath smell, this could then be called abuse and OVA (protection of venerable adults) could come into it. So it is very important for standards to be high in the work that is carried out. A way of describing how personal attitudes and beliefs that could be affected and how not to approach in this way is:- If you have a service user of different religion even though yourselves don't agree with this type of religion then you shouldn't treat them any different Service user has different skin color, you should treat them as any other person with same color skin as yourself If you and a service user have ha d a disagreement then you should just continue doing you work as normal and treat them as you normally would.Outcome 2: Be able to reflect on own activities Reflecting on your own work and activities is good because you can see where you are or have gone wrong, you can then change this by getting more training or advice room other people and they can show you what you are doing wrong. When you have done something good for example: I was in a service user's home and it was time for her medication, I gave her medication and then noticed she was putting them into her bag I asked if I could see and found loads of uneaten medication I then informed her that I was disposing of this medication. It made me feel so happy by doing this as I know she could've been planning an over dose or something. Sources of support for own learning and development could be: Spend time working alongside other colleagues.Talking to colleagues and asking them questions Going to training sessions either interna l or external Team meetings and discussions A personal development plan should be worked out with a supervisor. We will then discuss my goals and the best way of achieving them. Then my support manager will go through the best person for me to shadow in my new Job to learn new skills and to work on skills I already have, this person will then report back to my support manager on how well I am doing or if I need more training. This would then be discussed in another meeting we have to review what has been happening and how I am getting on in the new role

Belonging Strictly Ballroom

Understanding nourishes belonging†¦ a lack of understanding prevents it Understanding can nourish belonging and let it grow, however a lack of understanding can damage a person’s sense of belonging and prevent it. This concept is portrayed in Baz Luhrman’s film â€Å"strictly ballroom† and related text poem â€Å"Rhapsody on a windy night† by T S Elliot. These texts depict the way a lack of understanding may damage a person’s sense of belonging and the foundation of belonging is powerful to one’s self identity.Lack of a sense of belonging is portrayed in the ‘mockumentary’ film â€Å"Strictly Ballroom† through the character Scott Hastings as he is treated as an outcast because he refuse to conform to the mainstream way of ballroom dance. The opening scene portrays the false, fairytale feeling of the world of ballroom dance through the motif showing big red curtains opening with matching theatrical music. The over the top fakery is shown through the fluffy costumes and over the top hair of the dancers in the opening scene.They are shown hugging and exchanging high fives, portraying that they belong because they have conformed to the mainstream way of dance presented by Barry Fife. â€Å"You can dance any steps you like but it doesn’t mean you will win. † This quote spoken by Barry fife shows the power he holds because he controls who wins. Unless you perform his steps that are shown in the video ‘The right way to dance’ you are not going to win. In the extreme close up of his mouth, we see the crooked rotten teeth because symbolically he is a crooked rotten person.When Scott dances his own steps the scene is shown in slow motion with a freeze frame, beautiful music with a pleasing crowd reaction to match shows that everyone including Scott was enjoying the dance. The camera switches to the furious faces of Shirley and Barry fife showing that everyone loved the new steps except for everyone who had confirmed that sat on the federation leaders table. The Table is situated higher than the dancers and audience depicting how they are in charge. Liz’s lack of understanding for Scotts love for his own steps is shown when she threatens Scott to conform to the federation steps for Ballroom dancing. I'm not dancing with you until you are supposed to† Barry has programmed the dancers like robots to follow his ‘Right steps’ â€Å"what did you think of the steps? †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. â€Å"I don’t think! † Fran as a beginner dancer does not belong in the ballroom dancing world. Her frizzy hair, acne covered skin, thick unattractive glasses and covered figureless body makes her a target for nasty comments. The Slapstick humour when Liz and Scott knocking over Fran when she is trying to comfort them shows how she is not respected and over looked. Understanding however can give a person a sense of belonging in society or within themselves.Fran and Scott both feel like outcasts because they love to dance their own steps and not conform to the federation â€Å"I want to dance with you your way†. When the song â€Å"time after time† plays while Scott and Fran are dancing, Fran shows Scott what she is capable of proving that she is not a hopeless dancer like everyone stereotypes her to be. Scott tells her to dance without her glasses and we notice throughout the movie the tighter clothing she wears to reveal her toned elegant body structure, portraying as she feels a sense of comfort and understanding towards Scott, she starts to gain her own identity.

Quality Management Assessment Executive Summary Essay

Quality Management Assessment Executive Summary - Essay Example Several principles guide quality improvement efforts: client-focused care, teamwork, leadership, systems, and data. Finding a way to achieve greater value in health care delivery, the healthcare organizations are striving hard to create efficient, affordable and transparent system by reducing unnecessary costs and waste while improving patient satisfaction and outcomes. The challenges are even more daunting due to increased costs, regulatory requirements, technological innovations, burgeoning aging population, consumerism and above all society’s expectations of better clinical outcomes. The importance of quality service and quality management would not be overstating in this complex working environment with huge responsibility, wherein any failure can directly affect the life of a patient (Salman 2005). Even though, health care organizations have been lacking behind in adopting the principles of quality improvement such as total quality management employed in other sectors and industries.

Contemporary Issues in Childhood - Late Motherhood Essay

Contemporary Issues in Childhood - Late Motherhood - Essay Example In almost all the parts of the world this issue has been discussed and debated upon amongst both the medical and non- medical people. Motherhood has been portrayed by the society and various exponents of literary genre as the noblest feeling that a woman experiences in her entire lifetime. It is true that it is a great feeling to be a mother, to rear a child with all her affection, doting on the child and bringing him/her up, but is the picture so simple and easy on either sides of the coin of motherhood? The complicated and multi faceted lifestyle of today’s women have raised the issues of late motherhood with more relevance than any other time, â€Å"Women’s physical and emotional experiences in childbirth are being drastically altered† (Woliver, 1991, p.482) in the last few decades. Many critics of late motherhood, including several medical personalities opine that it is the skyscraping ambitions of the modern woman that is pushing her to have a late conceptio n, around the age of 40 years and sometimes may be above. The impact of late motherhood on children cannot be ignored. Hence Campbell (2008) has rightly raised the question about the identity of these late mothers. In order to identify and address the complications that late motherhood brings to the lives of both the mother and the child, it is important to understand who these late mothers are. In UK, the late motherhood instances are running high. Prevalent growth in the employments of women, fall in reproductive standards or fertility rates and contemporary standard of living in Europe lead to the incidence of childbearing amongst the mothers in the age group of 35 – 49 years. The fertility rates of the women have been going through a drastic change in Europe that could be shown by a chart: These huge transformations in fertility rates and motherhood make at least one fact

Human resource performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Human resource performance - Essay Example As coaching managers, they have to pay attention to the behaviors, values and skills that are linked to the desired outcomes by the organization. As the senior manager, I will emphasize on the need for listening as this aspect is counter-intuitive. For instance, I would ask the managers to meet with the employees or even the supervisors and managers so as they discuss the difficulties they encounter. Through sharing their points of view, these parties develop rapport; thus, accommodate each others point of view. Additionally, I will plan to focus on the behaviors that need to be changed. I will highlight these change areas in meetings. For instance, I will clearly highlight that use of unwanted language is unacceptable in the office, with specific examples that some employees or even supervisors used. Through explaining this out rightly to the employees will reduce chances of reoccurrence of the same as the particular individuals with these behaviors will know that have been identified from the crowd (Bacal 162). As the senior manager, I will focus on the need to explain the importance of interpersonal relationships in the workplace. As argued by Bacal, performance can only be attained in an organization only if another people’s interests are identified and respected (155). In this case, chances of verbal abuse will be minimal as the managers will instill the feeling of co-working in the entire workplace. None of the employees or supervisor will, therefore, take up a perfectionist role; thus, reduction of hostility and an increase in the employee relations (Weintraub & Hunt 112). In terms of increased turnover, I will train managers on the need to be more patient while hiring and not do it out of mere desperation. Gathering adequate information on an applicant is vital for the long term success of the company as the manager will hire the best person from the list of

Analytical Report of Professional Practice (Behaviour Management) Essay

Analytical Report of Professional Practice (Behaviour Management) - Essay Example This reflective piece describes the challenges as an educational professional in behaviour management, an identified personal weakness, which requires significant development in order to facilitate a cohesive classroom environment and assist children in constructing a sense of communality and to respect the rights of others from a social standpoint. There are a range of strategies designed to modify problematic behaviours with primary school-aged children, including elements from cognitive behavioural therapy, an interactive and authoritarian role of the educational practitioner, creating sanctions, and a variety of reinforcement strategies to curb or otherwise deconstruct problem habits in the classroom. As a professional, the practitioner must understand which strategies are appropriate for children in the pre-operational or concrete operations stage of cognitive development in order to ensure that the aforementioned strategies will be effective in producing a socially-harmonious l earning environment and curbing problematic behavioural issues. ... r has recently taken on the professional role of 1:1, working with a child maintaining very aggressive behaviours and oppositional attitudes that significantly complicate the learning process. Traditional behaviour management strategies are oftentimes ineffective when engaging the child, representing a substantial challenge in facilitating a positive educational practice. This child maintains a socio-historical background that apparently did not provide appropriate social guidance and strategies for curbing impulsive responses, making it the role of the practitioner to attempt to deconstruct these caregiver oversights that likely occurred during earlier childhood development. Reflection will focus on these interventions with the aggressive and non-compliant child, referencing contemporary theoretical positions on behaviour management in the educational environment to assist in professional self-development in behaviour control. Defining behaviour and behaviour management. Behaviour i s defined by Endoo (2012, p.83) as the† specific actions and/or reactions of the individual in relation to environmental stimuli, either conscious or unconscious† that drives mannerisms and conduct. Behaviour management is strategies that are inclusive of all actions to increase the likelihood that people, both as individuals or in the group/team environment, choose to manifest behaviours that are fully productive, socially appropriate and even fulfilling from a personal perspective (Baldwin and Baldwin 1986). Behaviour management works under the premise that the professional attempting to manage problem behaviours can effectively manipulate changes to behaviour and attitudes once the practitioner identifies what the individual deems personally rewarding (Grenning 1993). They key

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Case Study Example One of the most effective policies to employ in the organization for greater security is the usage of key passes. These are very important, as they will help in the identification of people who enter and live various sections and rooms in the organization. The policy of ensuring that every employee in the organization has a key pass will help secure the organization’s assets such as computers as the organization works through the internet. In case of any mishap, the information technology specialists in the organization just have to review the latest people to access the place in question. This is a short-term goal as the keys can be created from inside the organization A long-term goal that can be set for the organization in terms of security is ensuring that it creates firewalls. These are very important in an effort to save the files that are located in the computers through the continuing commercial activities. Firewalls are important in that they assist in the prevention of hackers. In the contemporary world, hacking has become one of the widely recognized activities in the field of Information technology. E-commerce involves the trading of commodities online, there are people who may hack and alter the system to some form such as it would seem as they have paid money for a commodity, hence go ahead, and claim it. This form of hacking is bound to be curtailed by the installation of firewalls. The installation of a diverse and complex backup system is very influential. This is one of the policies that should be put as a long-term aspiration. Back-up systems are influential in that they assist in the recovery of files in case of a crash of systems due to some of the contemporary issues that may arise such as a sweep of the system by some form of Electromagnetic wave (Newman, 2009). Another issue noted in the field of commerce is the increased number of players. With an increased number of players, one of the increasing

Written report of Ma Wan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Written report of Ma Wan - Essay Example Although Ma Wan is a small island, it has proved to be a favourable destination for international and local tourists (Sewell & James, 1995). It has a number of leisure places such as the Ma Wan Park, Noah’s Ark Museum, Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach overseen by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Heritage Centre (Sewell & James, 1995). Ma Wan is an island and a relative small one and as such has a small number of inhabitants. One thing notable is the old abandoned houses that are found in sections of the island. The governments seem to have prompted an agenda of relocating some of the locals to ease population in this area. The reduction of the population had fallen to 800 in 2008 (You Lin Xu, 2011). Abandoned shops are visible, and schools too, one being the Kei Wai Primary School indicating that the locals had not been alienated to the outside world. Religion integration is well-bonded in Ma Wan. Noah’s Ark is also an important landmark in Ma Wan. It is based on the Biblical story about Noah. The presence of temples has been an indication of the preservation of Ma Wan’s religion. Presence of churches and temples places Ma Wan as a multi-religion region, and there has been a peaceful co-existence between these different groups. These indicates an important aspect of diversification around Ma Wan. Ma Wan transport has been significantly advanced, and the construction of Kap Shui Mun Bridge is an indication of this progress. However, though, the people of Ma Wan depend on water transport mainly to get to the mainland and also the tourists mainly use water transport as part of their leisure activities. Therefore, it is an indication that Ma Wan has limited connection of roads to the mainland of Hong Kong. As such, the locals offer transport services through boats. A harbour is also present in Ma Wan, and this has been as a result of the evacuation

Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 29

Art - Essay Example It should of course be understood by the reader that although proceeding analysis is indicative of this author’s interpretation, it cannot be viewed as the only correct interpretation. The first of these is of course the most important fact that the figures within the context of the sculpture are indicative of dance; appropriate to the arena in which they are displayed. However, more importantly than merely dance, the figures do not represent gender, age, race, or any other factors that would engage the viewer with any level of bias. Instead, the artist chose to represent them as faceless and genderless as a means of engaging with the widest audience possible and drawing a level of thought and contemplation to the emotions and feelings that the dancers themselves represent. The level of emotion and feeling that is displayed within the sculpture is also an item of considerable importance due to the fact that the dancers are not only engaged in mid stride for a particular dance that is un-described; they are also in a clearly celebratory stage of this dance. The viewer is left to imagine whether the action that is captured is indeed part of the dance itself or is instead the exemplification of the completed action and the final movements that the dancers make as a way of engaging the audience and their approval of the performance that has just been presented. It is the belief of this particular reviewer that the latter is most likely the case as the upraised arms on the part of both dancers helps to engage the imagination with a celebratory movement that is being performed as the final part of a well received performance. Moreover, the position of the feet, upturned on the part of the character in the foreground and flat/running on the part of the charac ter in the background is indicative of a type of victory stance and celebratory lap that is usually engaged within the final

High School and Local Elementary School Essay Example for Free

High School and Local Elementary School Essay It feels like just yesterday I was in high school, without cares just making my portfolio. Now, it’s been a couple years since college and I’m trying to adjust to married life. It’s been about a year or so since I got hitched. I’m getting ready to have my first child, Winter. I hope to have another in a few years. I currently teach fifth grade in a local elementary school. It’s an okay job, the pay is alright it will get me through my bills, after a few more years I should be getting a raise. I talk to my parents a lot now, they are very important to me. My husband and I are trying to decide how to raise our child. I believe the most important value my parents taught me was to always be polite to people because you never know who is watching. I hope my child grows up learning that. I am very in love with my husband, we met at school and we had an instant connection. Both my grandmother and grandfather have died, it was very tough but time heals all wounds. My husband and I live in a little house but we are looking to relocate to somewhere a little bigger, for the children. We go to the Catholic church every sunday and are very involved in church life. My hope for the future is that I raise my kids to be fabulous people and never give up. The three most important things that have happened since high school would be, graduating college, getting married, and now having my child. What I miss most about the â€Å"good old days† is just being able to horse around without having to care about bills and work. When I die, I hope everyone remembers me as a nice person who tried her best to do well.

Social Stigmas and Gender Roles Essay Example for Free

Social Stigmas and Gender Roles Essay Social stigmas accompany every one of life’s categories – especially male and female. Gender-based stereotypes – existent since the beginning of time – help in both the advancement and hindrance of the sexes and of society. Gender roles helped create society. They generated a world in which the man went out into the world in order to work and provide monetarily for his family while the woman stayed in the home, working hardly to accomplish the couple’s domestic responsibilities and to raise the couple’s children. This traditional notion of the roles of genders enabled families to function in history; however, in the modern-day era, this notion only thwarts progress. As women travel out into the work place, they are not treated as the equals of men. The societal perception of the weak, lesser woman still remains, preventing women to become truly equal. On the contrary, gender stereotypes also inhibit the growth of men, causing them to feel compelled to follow the traditional definition of masculinity. Gender should be seen as fluid (with personality characteristics and preferred hobbies that can be demonstrated and admired by both sexes), rather than as a rigid set of characteristics needed to be met. Societal expectations of gender differences should not be forced upon people. Gender roles played a big role in the formation of history. In prehistoric times, women gathered food near their home while their male counterparts hunted for game. While searching for food, the women took responsibility over the children and the cleaning of the house. These roles followed men and women into modern times. The man – venturing out into the world – was always considered to be stronger and worldlier, while the woman was considered to be innocent and naive. During the nineteenth century, women were denied the right to vote because it was seen as something that would tarnish their innocence and disrupt the so-called Cult of Domesticity. Women were also denied the right to vote because it was assumed that they would vote for the same candidates as did their husbands and brothers, thus essentially doubling the vote of the male population (Cayton). Roles that once were beneficial to culture – as during the prehistoric times when necessary labor could be unquestioningly divided between the sexes – now hinder from expansion the very society they created. The same gender ideations that existed in the times of the prehistoric human still determine a lot of today’s social and cultural characteristics. These roles and preconceptions are dramatically outdated and obsolete. In a world where a woman can be the breadwinner of her family, she should not be looked down upon simply because her cells code for XY chromosome sex characteristics. Vice versa, men should not be expected to be perpetually tough and strong. Men who do not fit the mold are immediately ostracized and ousted from society, mocked for their â€Å"feminine† traits. However, personality characteristics should not be assigned to different genders. The association of certain inherent qualities with one gender over the other causes a schism in humankind, separating people into two groups of male and female. The mere grouping of people based on common characteristics leads to the assumption that all people in the category must abide by the decided upon characteristics, or said person will be seen as an anomaly and ousted. The necessity to conform places an undue pressure upon the citizens of the world. This stress manifests itself in a myriad of different (sometimes harmful) ways: a person may become depressed or even suicidal. Many people, in response to intense societal pressure break laws and attack others (such as when people rape or murder others, based on their gender or sexual preferences). Societal perceptions of man and woman should be eradicated; they are much too outdated, specific and assuming for a self-proclaimed â€Å"progressive† society. Although it is clear that current gender roles are extremely outdated and inapplicable, many people still enforce them. Why does this coercion to conform occur? People from all walks of life buy into the theory that men should do certain tasks and women should do others. Why does a world so partisan about most issues suddenly join together in a crusade to maintain the tradition of the separation of genders? Many people enforce gender roles simply because they are accustomed to such notions. People generally fear the idea of change rather than the aspect that should be changed. Meaning, people fear more the act of change rather than the results of change. The masses usually do not like learning how to accept the new. Fear also fosters intolerance, which then leads to the alienation of the people who have the undesirable trait or traits. Some religions also heavily discourage the expression of traits that deviate from the social normal. Not only are expectations of each gender detrimental to society in an economic sense (as women are often not treated equals in the work force and thus not offered the same occupational and pay opportunities), but they also greatly harm society’s social integrity. Women are often victimized for their gender, through crimes as heinous as rape and murder. These cr imes are most often committed because women are seen as weak and sinful creatures, according to old notions. In the Bible is the story of Adam and Eve – the first humans ever to grace the Earth. One day in the Garden of Eden – the cradle of civilization – Eve was seduced by a snake to eat the red apple, the very fruit she was instructed by God to avoid. Eve then coerced Adam to eat the apple as well, and both were punished by God’s wrath accordingly. Whether the Bible tells the truth is up for debate; however, the influence of this book is irrefutable. Religions all over the world follow the word of Genesis as if it were law, reaffirming the belief that women are lesser, irresponsible beings due to the supposed actions of Eve (The Bible). Due to the belief that women are sinful creatures, an excuse – a duty – arises for the mistreatment of women. Men, usually those who have a mental illness, rape and otherwise attack women because they see something inherently wrong with all women, and see it as their duty to correct it. Society pressures men to be macho, thus giving them the twisted idea that they need to victimize women to be so. America’s notion of manhood is â€Å"pitiful,† convincing men that they must be violent and oppressive to be considered men (Theroux). Many women fall victim to female genital mutilation (otherwise known as FGM). Many governments of the world turn a blind eye to this awful human rights violation. One hundred to one hundred and forty girls worldwide are victims of female genital mutilation (WHO). Female genital mutilation occurs usually because women are not respected in society. According to traditional values, males are stronger and more powerful than are females. This notion contributes to why, in some cultures, the genital region of a female is sewn shut. This way the male has to forcible penetrate the female during sexual intercourse, asserting his dominance as a man. Yet in other cultures, the clitoris is removed from the female anatomy before she reaches puberty. This atrocity is committed because the people of these cultures want to preserve the innocence of women. Society expects women to be innocent, pleasant creatures, contributing to some extremes like female genital mutilation. In a gain for the equal rights movement, women can fight in the armed forces (in America, at least). However, this win did not solve all of the problems of women: although they can enlist in and fight for the armed services, they are most often not treated as legitimate soldiers. Not only to they not receive the respect they have earned, but they are also victimized by their fellow soldiers. In 2009, over 2,900 women in the armed forces reported being raped. Out of the 2,974 women who reported a rape or sexual assault, only 292 women even got their day in court, and even fewer got justice. In addition to these shocking statistics, it is estimated that another 80% of women in the military endure a sexual assault but are too scared to report it (Couric). In addition to the rampant nature of rape in the military, officers make it extremely hard for women to report the abuse. The attacker is usually a person of a higher rank so when a victim speaks out, she is disbelieved more than would be for a civilian. These rapes occur for the same reasons civilian rapes occur: men see themselves as of high statuses than those of women. That notion goes back to the prehistoric notions of man and women, and the presumed societal differences between men and women. Women are not taken seriously because of their gender, and thus men try to put them back where the men think they should be through rape and other suck attacks. Although most people see women as getting the short end of the stick as far as societal pressures are concerned, men lose some of their individualism through expectations enforced by society. Males are seen as inhuman, almost, expected to be emotionally stoic and stolid regardless of their situation. Men are traditionally deprived of the privilege of spending time with their children. They are forced out into the cutthroat world of business and finance, giving them little time to spend with their families and forcing them to become the macho, stoic men they are supposed to be. All men do not fit these characteristics; each person has their own personal characteristics that create their being. Personality characteristics should not be associated with a specific gender; the way a person acts is not determined by his or her sex. Men are pressured to be very macho, which leads to them attempting to overpower women and commit many different crimes against them. Also, men portrayed in advertisements are not the average man and the two specimens do not have the same characteristics (Ehrlich). The societal pressure to conform to a specific gender makes many people feel very isolated and alienated from their communities. Lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgendered people suffer a lot of backlash from society for expressing their true selves. Lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered people (LGBT) discover – from early childhood – that the world is not sympathetic to their plight. LGBT teens are bullied, in schools all across the country and all across the world, to the point of suicide. Many feel forced to keep their sexual orientation a secret. Transgendered people especially are tormented for expressing their true character. A transgendered person is someone who feels that they were born in the wrong body; a male feels like a female and a female feels like a male. Recently, more and more studies have been discovered that say that gender is more fluid than it is rigid: for instance, a boy can still want to be a boy anatomically, but he may want to partake it traditionally more feminine activities (Gash). These people feel extremely alienated because of they believe gender is a personal decision. Some transgendered people can feel like a woman one day, and a man the next (Gash). LGBT people further show why society should not push its expectations upon its citizens. Because of the blind hate and fear society projects, LGBT people are ridiculed and tortured all over the world. This form of bullying is one of the most ruthless forms in existence. Researchers show that LGBT teenagers are at greater risks of suicide and depression than are any other category of people (Soulforce). This country was founded on the soul principle of freedom. If even one person doesn’t have the freedom to express him or herself, can the nation ever be truly free? The Constitution of the United States of America was founded to promote and ensure equality amongst its itizens and amongst the citizens of the world. The preamble states that there are certain inalienable rights that cannot be taken away from the people by their government: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. If the pursuit of happiness of some citizens is halted because of the pressures and preconceived notions about gender and sexuality, how can Americans claim to live up to the promises of the Constitution (Attendees of the Constitutional Convention). In the Gettysburg Address, late President Lincoln made a speech dedicating a cemetery to fallen soldiers. In the speech, the President referred to a government that was â€Å"of the people, by the people and for the people. † This quotation refers to the fact that the government of the United States of America was founded in order to help the people of the United States of America, and the people first (Lincoln). However, with a government that increases intolerance by throwing around old notions of what a man is and of what a woman is, how can the youth change the future? Gender roles – although previously useful – should not be implemented in today’s modern society, because they only lead to havoc and inequality.

Project Management and Leadership in Construction Company

Project Management and Leadership in Construction Company Management There are several key elements that contribute to the success of any organization good management, inspirational leadership, proper service-orientation, and economic stability. Today, little emphasis is placed on the study of an organization’s infrastructure, function, and employees’ behaviors as they relate to successful accomplishment of the organization’s goals. Rather, these concepts are typically taken at face value and accepted for what they are. Employees work and accomplish at a minimum what needs to be done. Within the last century or so studies relating to behavior in organizations began to increasingly emerge resulting in the theoretical framework of this field. The three most notable facets of this framework includes: scientific management, human relations movement and bureaucracy. (Greenberg and Baron, p.12-14). This paper will provide brief information on the theoretical framework of an organization’s structures which in turn will provide an overview of types of management/leadership styles, an assessment of the New York City Department of Design and Construction’s (NYCDDC) style of management, and my personal management preference. According to Greenberg and Baron, one of the earliest pioneers in the study of behavior in organizations, Frederick Winslow Taylor, an engineer, sought ways to change the ineptitudes of employees. His research, the concept of scientific management, â€Å"not only identified ways to design manual labor jobs more efficiently, but also emphasized carefully selecting and training people to perform them.† The second facet of the theoretical framework, the human relations movement, was founded by Elton W. Mayo, an organizational scientist and consultant. The human relations movement â€Å"emphasized the social conditions existing in organizationsthe way employees are treated by management and the relationships they have with each other – influence job performance.† Bureaucracy, the third facet, was initiated by Max Weber, a sociologist. This form of organization is governed by a â€Å"set of applied rules that keep higher-ranking organization officials in charge of lower-ranking workers, who fulfill the duties assigned to them.† (Greenberg and Baron, p.12-14) Today, at least one form of the theoretical framework can be found in any existing organization, and, each form comes with a different type of management leadership style within the organization. So then, what is management? Management, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary as, â€Å"the conducting or supervising of something (as a business or people).† Management) Managers are endowed with the power to lead their organization. They must share that power in conjunction with other leaders in other parts of the organization and wield that power successfully over a designated staff within the organizational hierarchy. Since no one individual is gifted with precise knowledge on every topic, managers must: possess their own particular area of expertise, have an understanding of general organizational psychology, consistently offer creative thinking and innovative views on current issues facing the organization at different levels and guide (supervise) and motivate their team effectively along a predetermined path that will meet their corporate goals in order to insure the success of the entire organization. But not all managers supervise their staff in the same way. The different management leadership styles are noted in the Every Manager’s Desk Reference by Penguin Group, Inc. Some of the styles include: â€Å"dictatorship, the ‘almost’ democracy, the partnership and the transformational leadership.† According to the Every Manager’s Desk Reference In a dictatorship, managers, tend to keep decision- making powers and most critical knowledge to themselves. In the ‘almost’ democracy, the leader â€Å"strives to make sure the group is well informed and participating in the direction of the team as a whole.† In a partnership, the lines between the leader and the members of the group are blurred. The leader â€Å"becomes just one of the group.† And, in the case of the transformational leader, the leader â€Å"goes beyond trying to keep individuals and team performing at the status quohe/she is .one who has the power to bring about change in team members and the organization as a whole. (Penguin Group, Inc., p. 309-312) The theoretical framework and management style employed by an organization determines whether or not it is effectively leading its staff, enhancing and improving the morale and the overall work environment; and, thereby increasing productivity and output quality by employees. Based on some of the characteristics listed by Greenberg and Baron, which includes, â€Å"Formal rules and regulations; Division of Labor; Hierarchical structure; Authority structure, etc†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Greenberg and Baron, p.14), the theoretical framework employed by the NYCDDC is that of a bureaucracy and a â€Å"directive leadership† style of management. Under a directive leadership, the managers â€Å"give specific guidance to their subordinates.† However, there are limitations associated with the directive leadership style of management because it can be â€Å"redundant, less effective and can reduce a worker’s satisfactions.† (12 Manage Premium, 2009) Additionally, adherence to the agency’s policies and procedures are a strict requirement. There is also a partnership style that applies within the NYCDDC’s various divisions/units. It is essential for all units of the agency to work cohesively together to ensure the agency’s mission, goals and objective of safe, successful, and expeditious completion of projects are met. The day to day management of any organization is one of the most essential factors that will either result in the success of that organization or to its eventual demise. In support of the above statement, Chris Lauer, in his book, â€Å"The Management Gurus,† states, â€Å"Who you are determines what you see and the way you see it†¦and who you are determines how you see others.† (Lauer, p 8) Although, the agency employs the directive leadership method, the style of management most applicable to my personality is, â€Å"the ‘almost’ democracy.† My work ethic parallels the basic characteristics of this style. I encourage â€Å"participation from all team members and welcome their opinions in setting new goals, procedures and direction for the unit.† (Penguin Group, Inc., p.310-311) This form of management creates a trusting environment between management and staff because it welcomes and encourages communication of staff views and ideas. All viable ideas are openly considered. With this style, any given team is motivated to do what is best for the team and for the organization as a whole while displaying adaptability and openness to ideas from peers. This style of management declares that an open line of communication is imperative to the successful relationship between management and staff, but, notes that management is still the leader and must have the final say on any matter without being necessarily obligated to explain its decisions. An assessment of my work ethic corroborate that I utilize â€Å"the almost democratic† style of management when managing my group. My overall personality characteristics reflect openness. I freely admit to not being knowledgeable in every topic. I welcome, encourage and respect the views of others. I can explain decisions I make without hesitation should they come into question. But, I have no difficultly asserting my role as the manager of my group. Overall, I believe that a strong work ethic, two-way communications, an innate trust and a shared common goal to succeed are key principles for positive group dynamics. I also strongly acknowledge individual success and outstanding performances as well as the shared success of the group. I believe that when the manager shares his/her success with the whole team the relationship between management and staff is strengthened and enhanced. The almost democratic style of management has its drawbacks. The line between management and staff can be precarious at times. For example, the staff can develop several creative ideas and suggestions concerning how to improve and increase employee morale. Although some suggestions can and will be taken into consideration and possibly utilized, a contributing member of the team might feel slighted if his or her idea is not adopted. That employee might possibly be offended by the final decision made by management which might result in that employee feeling less motivated. In conclusion, the theoretical framework of management I have outlined acknowledges the three organizational structures: scientific management or division of labor; human relations movement or people oriented; and, the bureaucratic method where managerial emphasis is placed on policies and procedures to run the organization. Along with these facets an array of management styles have been established and employed by managers throughout time. While the NYCDDC employs the bureaucratic management framework and the directive leadership and partnership styles of management, I follow the same organizational framework, but utilize the â€Å"almost democratic† style of management. However, I also, acknowledge that no manager can agree to use only one style of management at all times. Different situations, different groups of people and different tasks require different management styles at any given time. Deviation from the norm will be necessary for success to be accomplished. But, overall, a manager who tends to stay true to what works best for them and his/her subordinates will be viewed as consistent and reliable. My intentions are, whenever possible, to stay true to myself and my staff. The Organization As defined by Jerald Greenberg and Robert Baron in their book, â€Å"Behavior in Organizations,† an organization is â€Å"a structured social system consisting of groups and individuals working together to meet some agreed-upon objectives.† (Greenberg Baron, p.5) However, an organization is much more complex than what this simplistic definition seems to imply. Because it is a society of persons working together, the internal management of the individual steps necessary to attain the overall goals of the organization and the abilities of the managers and specialized workers are intrinsically linked together in order to determine the success or failure of that organization. The essence of any organization lies within its infrastructure. History The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) was established in 1996, with the objective of providing â€Å"design and construction expertise to over 20 City agencies.† (10th Anniversary Magazine Supplement, DDC, 1996, p.1) When originally established and this practice continues to date, the agency is a cultivated agency with the majority of its employees coming from two sister city agencies: the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. (NYCDEP) The NYC Department of Transportation (NYCDOT): City agency responsible for any work related to bridges and roadways, including the rehabilitation and reconstruction of them. The NYC Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP): City agency responsible for any work related to water mains, storm and sanitary sewers, including the rehabilitation and reconstruction of them. The relationship among these three agencies is that the NYCDDC is the managing agency for the NYCDOT and NYCDEP projects dealing with â€Å"design and construction related to roadways, sewers, water mains, correctional and court facilities; cultural institutions; libraries; and other public building, facilities and structures†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (DDC, 2006, p.ii) Management Philosophy/Style The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) employs over 1,200 employees in numerous professions, including architects, engineers, estimators, project managers, communications and community outreach, auditors and outside consultants. The scope of responsibilities of the 1,200 plus employees is divided into two groups: Design and Construction; the Design Staff covers all five boroughs while the Construction Staff is divided into divisions: Infrastructure and Structure Divisions. The Infrastructure and Structure Divisions’ staff are divided into New York City’s five boroughs: Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan. Although, there is an overall leadership team for the agency, each borough consists of a borough director that administers the day to day operations of his/her respective borough. Although some materials covered in this paper are reflective on the NYCDDC as a whole entity, but, the primary focus will be on the Infrastructure Division. The NYCDDC headquarters is located in Queens at 30-30 Thomson Avenue, Long Island City, New York, 11101, where it currently occupies four floors – the 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th floors. While there is an overall bureaucratic management structure that governs the agency and because of the physical structure of the agency, various management philosophies are employed at the headquarters location and the satellite or borough offices. Yet these different, but cohesive, philosophies are essential for the successful governance of the agency. For example, there is a directive leadership that governs the overall agency structure, but, also evident is a partnership amongst units such as the Design and the Office of Community Outreach and Notification Units. Directive leadership is the overall management style of the NYCDDC. Direction and management decisions come from the top and trickle down the organizational chart from management to key supervisory staff. This is internally the same for each unit within the agency and is based on the policies and procedures that must be followed. For example: each borough has a chain of command that is headed by the Borough Director. He/she directs his/her immediate staff (Deputy Borough Director and Borough level staff) on agency philosophy, key initiatives, changes or additions to current policy as well as what to do and how to perform their duties/tasks. These directives are then passed on to the Engineers-In-Charge, then onto the project support staff. The Borough Director oversees all projects in his/her borough and provides the consent/approval for most day to day operations. In addition, the borough director also has a chain of command that must be followed. Certain decisions/approvals have to be reviewed by subordinates as they travel up his/her chain of command: Assistant Commissioner, Associate Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, and Commissioner. The numbers of approvals that are required from the members of the hierarchy depend on the scope of the issue. The Office of Community Outreach and Notification’s (OCON) staff are comprised of the Director, Deputy Director, Citywide Construction Liaisons, Community Board and Small Business Service Liaisons, Executive Assistant and Graphic Artist. They work in tandem with each of the Borough Office’s Staff – Director, Deputy Directory, Engineers-In-Charge, Resident Engineers, Project Liaisons, and Office Management. This direct partnership between the two entities facilitates the exchange of information necessary to keep all individual projects moving forward. This partnership also helps to address and eliminate any and all complaints and concerns of the affected communities where the work will be or is being performed. Mission The New York City Department of Design and Construction’s (NYCDDC) mission, â€Å"To Deliver The City’s Construction Project In A Safe, Expeditious, And Cost-Effective Manner While Maintaining The Highest Degree Of Architectural Engineering, And Construction Quality.†(DDC, 2006, p.i) With such an overreaching and specific mission statement, all of the organization’s personnel must strive on a daily basis to meet the fundamental goals and objectives set forth by the agency. Goals A goal is defined define as, â€Å"the end toward which effort is directed.† (Goal. 2009) The goals of the NYCDDC are, to build and upgrade the infrastructure and public spaces provided by local government in order to ensure the health, safety as well as the economy of the City of New York. Objectives Objectives are defined as, â€Å"something that ones efforts or actions are intended to attain or accomplish; purpose; goal; target.† (Houghton Mifflin Company, 1995) The objectives of the NYCDDC are, to continue to achieve and maintain excellence in design and construction while adhering to safety and quality standards. The NYCDDC achieves its goals and objectives by continually recruiting and employing highly trained and certified professionals of all disciplines including engineering, architecture, construction management and administration. (DDC, 2006, p.ii) Internal Systems: Strengths and Weaknesses For any organization to succeed it is equally important to provide excellent goods and services to its clients while reviewing and addressing elements its internal infrastructure-the strength and weaknesses of the organization and its personnel. Human Resources: Paid and Unpaid The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) currently staffs approximately 1,200 plus paid employees providing skills needed to execute the daily requirements of projects in the design and construction phases in a timely and efficient manner. In addition to its full-time paid personnel, the agency also offers both paid and unpaid summer internships to students in all areas of the agency’s current working environment. General consensus among workers is they are underpaid and overworked. Employees of NYC agencies are hired under a particular title that comes with an associated salary range. The same rule of thumb applies when employed by the NYCDDC. An employee’s salary is based on the range to which that title has a minimum and maximum amount; if through an employee’s tenure that he or she max out at the range and still in the position hired then he or she will remain at that salary until their unions get involved. The City’s employee unions attempt to compensate its members with percentage and cost of living raises as contracts are renegotiated. Merit raises are sometimes awarded, although, they are few and far in-between. There are occasions when employees are asked to perform tasks beyond their normal required duties. In these cases grievances are usually filed in order to be compensated for out of title work. Additionally, employees of NYC agencies enjoy good job security as it is rare that city workers are removed from their positions. Interns at the NYCDDC experience a cross section of the daily tasks performed at the agency. These internships can often result in promoting the desire of a potential engineer or architect, or changing the focus to a completely different specialty or field. Committees and/or Boards The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) perform its duties under a chain-of-command organizational chart that clearly delineates the units, ranking of officials and the required approval process. Figure I illustrate the overall chain of command for the agency’s various units and Figure II illustrates the overall chain-of-command for the NYCDDC Infrastructure Division’s OCON unit. (See Appendix for the NYCDDC’s Organizational Charts). The NYCDDC’s strength lies in the vested time in developing and maintaining its infrastructure so that the agency could meet its goals and requirements without confusion or question of direct authority. However, the agency’s weakness is noted when at times, even in a structured environment, that things can be overlooked or tasks mistakenly believed to be the responsibilities of another department. Formal And Informal Groups Several formal groups exist at the New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) which enhances the overall environment of the agency. These groups include Design and Construction Procurement Services or the Agency Chief Contracting Officer (ACCO). This group is responsible for â€Å"ensuring that the NYCDDC procures goods, services and construction in conformance with City regulations.† (DDC, 2006. p.31) The Project Review Service Unit consists of the agency’s architects and engineers who provide the creativity and oversight of a project in the design stages. The Office of Sustainable Design unit â€Å"identifies and implements cost-effective ways to promote greater environmental responsibility in building design.† (DDC, 2006. p.31) The Research and Development Unit studies â€Å"innovative technologies, construction materials, methodologies and management strategies to improve the design and construction of buildings and infrastructure in New York City.† (DDC, 2006, p.31) The Performance Metrics is when the NYCDDC utilizes the â€Å"Key Performance Indicator (KPI) program† to process the â€Å"Inter-related databases that maintain information about the agency’s projects, contracts, payments and support functions, as well as a multi-level reporting system which extracts data on critical processes in the agency’s operating divisions and presents it in an easy-to-read, yet comprehensive format.† (DDC, 2006, p.31) The Quality Assurance and Construction Safety Unit oversees that safety procedure are adhered to in every aspect of the project for all of the agency’s projects. The Geographical Information Services works with and utilizes the Geographic Information System (GIS). This system allows the agency to clearly oversee the project dimensions of all projects locations on an electronic map and allows the agency to appropriate coordinate their work with other entities. The Technical Supports group works prior to the onset of construction. They conduct investigations, monitor and provide information on â€Å"asbestos, lead, and other environmental contaminants†¦provide research, analyses and survey preparation for property-line, damage and acquisition, new buildings and all roadway, water and sewer projects.† (DDC, 2006, p.31) The Percent for Art Unit works with the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs to integrate arts into a project scope. And, the Peer Review program promotes and enables review and open discussion from the agency’s staff on design issues. (DDC, 2006, p.31) Informal Groups Whether at the New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) headquarter office or at the borough office level, the agency encourages frequent informal group discussions. Among the groups are the lunch groups who meet on a daily basis to discuss socio-political-economical issues and the ethnic groups that celebrate religious and national milestones, etc. The strength of the NYCDDC lies both in its employees and in the groups listed above. The presence of both the formal and informal groups enhances, strengthens and excites the overall agency culture. The experience of attending these groups helps to encourage and educate all staff members to address the myriad of concerns the agency faces and promotes cultural diversity; this ensures that each employee feels welcome and accepted as part of his/her work environment. This acceptance helps to alleviate employee stress. As with any organization with such a varied cross-section of personnel, the weaknesses lies in conflicts of many kinds that can occur especially when employees allow personal issues to overrule their professionalism. Therefore, for that organization to be successful it must rely heavily on each individual staff member pulling his/her weight and performing to the best of his/her ability. Material Resources The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) provide an array of free public information materials for the communities they serve and educational materials for its employees. Prior to the onset and for the duration of most projects, the NYCDDC-Office of Community Outreach and Notification (OCON) releases several public information printed resource materials including: Start-Up Advisory Notice which provides essential project information distributed to all affected parties prior to the onset of any project; Project Brochure is the medium used to provide a detailed overview of the project; Bi-Monthly Newsletters provides an update on the project status Work Operation Notices provides all affected parties with work operations that may affect their daily routines including water shut-offs and so forth; Bus Cards are handouts that provides information to affected bus rides if a bus route will be affected because of a project and so forth. The education materials are designed to provide NYCDDC employees with essential information. Some materials include: Employees Manual which Provides employees with all the essential rules for being a successful employee of the agency; the Design Consultant Guide provides vital information including the goals and objectives on the design phases for all of the agency structures projects; the Design Construction Excellence: How the City is Improving its Capital Program is a publication that provides a review and explains the policy changes that were implemented and provides information of design and construction projects. The NYCDDC is a proactive agency that provides the community and its employees with an array of vital information and assistance. This sensitivity illustrates how important the agency values its image and credibility. A major concern is that the information provided to the user is easily accessible, comprehensive and understood by all. A weakness that applies is a manual should be applicable and understanding to all the agency’s personnel rather than a selected group. Constraints Due to its configuration, the New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) have both structural and human constraints. Structural. The NYCDDC currently occupies by means of rental, four floors at its current location and has five respective borough offices. This is a costly endeavor for the agency because it has occupancy is five borough offices rather than one. Human (Political, Relationships) The NYCDDC currently employees over 1,200 employees in its overall structure. There are some noted political affiliations; for example, the agency’s Commissioner is appointed by the Mayor of the City of New York. More of than not, if an employee can assist in any means to find advance the career of a friend, associate, acquaintance, then that employee will assist in what means he or she can. There are often scheduling conflicts when planning meetings. These conflicts lead to delays in actions that may need to be taken thus inhibiting the progression of an issue. Additionally, because of the locations of most of the borough offices, traffic and parking are major issues. Because of the five borough offices, more often than not, relationships are formed through emails and telephones. Therefore, personal contact with coworkers is being eradicated at a hasty pace. Relationship To External Systems Collaborative Agreement with Outside Agencies on City/ Local State and Federal Levels. The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) has and maintain collaborative relationships with many municipal entities. These collaborations are essential to the daily operation of the agency’s work flow and for the successful completion of projects. The NYCDDC receives funding from these entities based on the client agency’s annual budget allowances and its specific objectives to be achieved. Accurate accounting is kept of how the monies are spent. There are times when an overrun will occur and additional funds are necessary for the completion of a project; an under-run also can occur when funds remain after the completion of a project. The municipalities, the NYCDDC collaborates which includes: the NYC Comptroller keeps count of all finances and provides oversight to ensure the proper ethical procedures are being adhered to. The Borough Presidents and the NYC Council are entities that collaborate with the agency’s project management on issues dealing with land and zoning matters or if these entities funded any project within their borough or district. The Client Agencies include several external agencies that work with the NYCDDC; these external agencies includes the twenty plus NYC agency clients including: Departments of Children’s Services, Environmental Protection, Parks and Recreation, Transportation and so forth; NYS Office of Court Administration; Office of the Chief Medical Examiner; New York, Queens and Brooklyn Public Libraries, and so forth where the NYCDDC manages the projects from the initial steps in design to the final stages in construction for the projects set forth by these agencies. The Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget provides the NYCDDC with services ensuring all finance related issues dealing with a project are dealt with properly and without conflicts. The NYCDOB is the city agency that provides the NYCDDC with any/all necessary and applicable permits for some projects to occur. The Mayor’s Office of Contract Services ensures that any project bidding operation is done in a fair manner with an open competition amongst contractors providing the opportunity for no conflicts of interest to happen. The NYCDDC collaborates with the fifty-nine NYC Community Boards to hold public meetings with their constituents when a project is being planned for their community. At these meetings, residents’ are given a presentation about the project and its impact on the community. An open forum follows so that concerns and opinions are addressed. The Utilities companies gas, electric, cable and telephone services is a very vital relationship. Clear, proactive cooperation ensures the progression of the project and limits the opportunity for problems surrounding limiting/eliminating services to their constituents. The NYCDDC’s OCON Unit is a proactive unit that reaches out to affected communities, ameliorates problems and concerns and addresses all public inquiries. The NYDDC collaborates with the NYC Art Commission to bring approved public arts to the appropriate projects. (DDC, 2006, p.29) The history, management philosophy, mission, internal and external systems all play vital roles in the structure of any organization. These entities must interact, have a directional flow and coexist with each other for the day to day operations of the organization to proceed smoothly. Since there are times when conflicts arise, it is imperative that such issues be dealt with properly and in an appropriate manner. For example, failure to hire the appropriate personnel can and will lead to the decrease in the services the agency aims to provide to its clients; hence, a decrease in the credibility of not only the employees but the reputation of the agency. The NYCDDC has a proven reputation for providing excellent goods and services to its clients. Its leadership role in implementing new facets of technologies and its innovative thinking when applying new management models into the agency’s overall infrastructure clearly enhance its ability to accomplish its mission statement. The Target Service Area For any business or organization to succeed in providing the professional services it offers, it first must assess, analyze and fully understand the service area(s) and the target audience(s) it hopes to provide its services to. The New York City Department of Design and Construction (NYCDDC) services the five boroughs of New York City by â€Å"building and upgrading the City’s infrastructure and public spaces.† (

Feminism is for Everybody :: Free Essays Online

Feminism is for Everybody The following paragraphs are an excerpt from a paper written about the political and social theories of bell hooks. These sections focus specifically on her newest book, Feminism is for Everybody. Throughout her works, hooks maintains a firm belief in the accessibility of the theory she seeks to situate within society. To that end, hooks’ latest work, Feminism is for Everybody, is an accessible book that outlines the basic tenants of a radical feminist theory. More inclusive than many of her other works, this book attempts to address an audience that is completely unfamiliar with feminist thought. In the introduction, hooks discusses the rampant misconceptions surrounding the movement. In her encounters with people on a daily basis, she finds that: â€Å"When I ask these same folks about the feminist books or magazines they read, when I ask them about the feminist talks they have heard, about the feminist activists they know, they respond by letting me know that everything they know about feminism has come into their lives thirdhand [sic], that they really have not come close enough to the feminist movement to know what really happens, what it’s really about. Mostly they think feminism is a bunch of angry women who want to be like men. (vii). It is these misconceptions that hooks feels must be corrected. Only in this way will the everyday relevance of feminism become clear. Hooks goes on to explain that this book is an effort to answer the question â€Å"what is feminism† in a clear, concise way that is not reductive to her readers (viii). She stressed the failure of the feminist movement to produce a multitude of works that are accessible and useful in many arenas. Many of the chapters in Feminism is for Everybody recapitulate and simplify the arguments put forth in Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center. Hooks attempts to diffuse common myths surrounding the feminist movement, and to that end, she suggests ways the movement may become all-inclusive. In the section entitled â€Å"Feminist Masculinity† hooks discusses the dichotomy perpetuated by Second Wave feminists who sought to classify the male as the â€Å"enemy†. The polarization of men as the â€Å"oppressor† and woman as the â€Å"oppressed† propelled the women’s movement initially, but it was not long before women were able to step back and realize that the system itself was flawed (68).

Slaughterhouse Five Essay -- essays research papers

Thesis: Because he was unable to find comfort from human cruelty in common human institutions, Billy Pilgrim turns to the Tralfalmadorian concept of time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Billy Pilgrim has been through many cruelties in his life. As a child his own father was cruel to him. They had gone to the Y.M.C.A. to teach Billy how to swim. A horrible, traumatic, event that would stay with Billy for the rest of his life. â€Å"Little Billy was terrified, because his father had said Billy was going to learn to swim by the method of sink-or –swim. His father was going to throw Billy into the deep end, and Billy was going to damn well swim†(43). Roland Wear was a very cruel man as well. He even to it as far as to try and kill Billy by kicking him in the spine. The only reason he had to kick Billy in the spine was because some organization Roland had in his mind about he, and the other two scouts being the â€Å"Three Musketeers†. In Roland’s mind, Billy had broken them up, he had severed the connection between the greatest fighting force in the army. â€Å"Weary drew back his right boot aimed a kick at the spine, at the tube which had so many of Billy’s important wires in it. Weary was going to break that tube†(51). A horrible and saddening event that even the U.S. A. would hide for twenty-three years from the people of its own nation. The bombing of Dresden was the major cruelty for the simple reason that it killed so many innocent people with there being no military around. One of the most beautiful cities in the world to see devastated by war. â€Å"There were hundreds of corpse mines operating by and by. They didn’t even smell bad at first, were wax museums. But then the bodies rotted and liquefied, and the stink was like roses and mustard gas†(214). Such horrible tragedies how could Billy ever even come close to being able to cope with them all? Something must keep Billy sane.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The failure to comfort Billy through human institutions, is how humanity has failed to try and comfort those less fortunate. Billy’s daughter, who is trying to comfort him constantly, does not do a very good job for the fact that she puts down every single thing that Billy will say about Tralfalmadoriane. If family should help comfort humans then why would Billy’s daughter yell at him so often? Family is supposed to be understanding and sensitive to each other’s proble... ...madorian concept of time and has finally achieved the peace he has so long needed. â€Å"It was all right, said Billy. Everything is all right and everybody has to do exactly what he does. I learned that on Tralfalmadore†(198). As he was giving his speech in Chicago, Billy knew he would die that day by the end of his speech. This showed how much he had accepted what the Tralfalmadorian’s had taught to him. â€Å"It is time for your to go home to your wives and children, and it is time for me to be dead for a little while-and then live again.†(142). Billy’s belief in the Tralfalmadorian concept of time not only gives him peace of mind, but a courage that he will not fear death because he will still live in memories therefore not being dead at all.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The only way Billy could keep from going insane from the nagging question of â€Å"why†, was to turn to the Tralfalmadorian concept of time. Billy now has the answers to any of the â€Å"why† questions he has ever asked. This makes life more free and comforting to many people since they may now have a guilt free mind. â€Å"Now he closes his speech as he closes every speech- with these words: farewell, hello, farewell, hello†(142).

The Role of Women in the Caholic Church :: essays research papers

Role of Women in the Roman Catholic Church   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Women in the Catholic Church take on many roles, from parishioner to laywoman to nuns. Women parishioners help prepare for the mass. They can be lectors, choir members, CCD instructors, etc. Laywomen â€Å"†¦are the Catholic women traditionally permitted certain ministerial responsibilities (Wessinger, 244).† They work in churches, schools, prisons, etc. Nuns dedicate their lives to religious devotion. They take three vows; poverty, chasity, and obedience. They are to live simple lifestyles. They live their lives teaching others and helping others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1995, at the Fourth World Conference on Women, in Beijing, the pope stated: â€Å"Today I appeal to the whole Church community to be willing to foster feminine participation in every way in its internal life. This is certainly not a new commitment, since it is inspired by the example of Christ himself†¦.nevertheless, he also involved women in the cause of his kingdom; indeed he wanted them to be the first witnesses and heralds of his resurrection. In fact, there are many women who have distinguished themselves in the Church’s history by their holiness and hardworking ingenuity.† The pope also stated that the feminine presence could be seen through, â€Å"†¦theological teaching, the forms of liturgical ministry permitted, including service at the alter, pastoral and administrative councils†¦Ã¢â‚¬  A year later, according to a research project, The Notre Dame Study of Catholic Parish Life, many women have assumed parish responsibilities. â€Å"†¦The following percentages of ministerial activities done by women reveal: alter preparation 85 percent, teaching 80 percent, social caring and justice ministries 85 percent, parish council leadership 52 percent (Wessinger, 246).†. Church practice is - to a large extent - women's practice. Without the unpaid cooperation of women, important pastoral activities would stop. A fair number of women choose to give their time and efforts to the church, rather than take paid employment. Many times these women are over looked.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many questions as to why women can not become priests. Women can not receive the Sacrament of Orders and cannot fulfill the function of ministerial priest hood. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, â€Å"Only a baptized man validly receives the sacred ordination.

Foundation Degree in Accounting and Finance Essay

Introduction There is a radical change after the privatisation of Atlantic Water. The change not only affects the organisation’s objectives and strategic planning, but also its structure and culture. B Burnes (1996: 115) cited writers such as Handy (1986), Allaire and Firsirotu (1984) argued the issue as follow: ‘†¦to operate effectively and efficiently, an organisation’s culture need to match or be appropriate to its structure. Given that an organisation’s environment can change rapidly, as can its structure, situations will arise in the environment, structure and practices of the organisation.’ Observing organisational behaviour is not enough, we need to understand the meaning of the behaviour, and therefore, it is important to identify the culture and structure of an organisation, to enable management to react quickly for any external or internal change. 1. Defining Culture It is difficult to define culture, usually it is defined as ‘how things are done around here’ or ‘this is how we are’. Culture within an organisation is influence by the personality of an individual, pattern of communication, work performance, behaviour of management and subordinate as a role. Schein (1983) defines organisational culture as: ‘†¦ the pattern of basic assumptions that a given group has invented, discovered or developed in learning to cope with its problems of external adaption and internal integration and that have work well enough to be considered valid, and, therefore , to be taught to new member as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems.’ Schein views culture as not being over behaviour or values, but the assumptions that underlie them. Here are the views based on three level of culture: * Level 1: The visible artefacts and creations, which are easy to observe, but do not explain why a group behaves the way it does. * Level 2: The values which can be inferred from interview, but which manifest the espoused reason for behaviour, not the underlying unconscious reason. * Level 3: The underlying assumptions which are typically unconscious, but which actually determine hoe people perceive, think and feel. The meaning of Organisational Culture was also defined in Oxford Dictionary of Business (2003) as follow: ‘Organizational Culture: The values, customs, rituals, and norms shared by all the members of an organization, which have to be learnt and accepted by new members of the organization.’ Culture impacts most aspect of organisational life, such as how decision are made, who makes them, how rewards are distributed, who is promoted, how people are treated, how the organisation responds to its environment etc. This particular set of values, beliefs, customs and systems are unique to the organisation. 1.1 Organisation culture R Harrison suggested that there are four main types of organisation culture. They are the following: Power Culture is where the authority and control within the organisation are centralised. The control is passing from the central to key individuals. The power of members is based on control over resources and personal influence with the centre. Role Culture is where work within and between departments is controlled by procedures, role descriptions and authority definitions. Job position is central to this, not necessarily the job holder as a person. People are appointed to a role based on their ability to carry out the functions and to satisfy performance of the role. R Harrison (1972: 119-128) cited Role Culture as follow: ‘Role culture often referred to as a bureaucracy, it works by logic and rationality.’ Task Culture is job or project oriented and the main purpose is to complete the task or project. This might involve getting the right people to work as a team, giving them decision making power to complete the task. Person Culture is when the individual is focus on. This includes their personality and personal feeling etc. For example if a group of people decided to do their own thing and other members of staff help, this is a person culture. It only existed for the people concerned. Many organisations have a mixture of the above culture, it is important to understand the concept of each of the above culture and to establish an appropriate structure. 1.2 Culture of the old Water Authority The old Water Authority had a complex grading framework, narrow spans of control and more level of authority, this resulted in a high hierarchical structure, and this indicated that the organisation had a strong power culture. It was mentioned in the case study that the old Water Authority called their managers ‘officers’ and administered the organisation and ran almost along a military line, where the authority and control were centralised. The employees were job oriented where they can only carry out the job they were originally employed for, there was no need to re-organise their position, where they just followed the day to day procedures. Management saw their jobs as minimising external interference rather then seeking for some change to improve the performance of the employees. Employees in the old Water Authority had a certain level of job security where they could work extra hours where needed, which would give them an extra income. Due to the high hierarchical structure of the organisation, there would be a difficulty for employees’ career progression, this affected those who are seeking for career improvement and lower their motivation and morale within the organisation. Management did not offer new training skills nor did subordinates look for self improvement. From these evidents the old Water Authority had a mixture of the all the culture which R Harrison suggested. 1.3 Culture of new Atlantic Water Plc In the new Atlantic Water Plc, they re-structured their grading framework, the spans of control reduced the level of hierarchical structure and the result of this, employees had more opportunities to progress within the organisation. The organisation also decided to empower their managers to take more responsibility, the decentralization enabled decisions to be made closer to the operation level of work. In the result of job cuts after privatisation, Atlantic Water offers their employees a chance to gain qualifications and ensured they are cross-skilled. Not only the employees offered to gain new skill, managers are also sent on a training course, where they will have a clearer focus on the organisation’s objective and to create a new relationship within the organisation. Since Atlantic Water had a large number of jobs cuts, employees suffered from the job insecurity after the privatisation. Although the organisation encouraged them to gain new skills, the main reason will probably be for them to keep their job rather than looking for self improvement. On the other hand, the organisation introduced a new salary structure leaving many employees worse off financially. Since the employees are not gaining any benefits financially and suffering from job insecurity, this impacts the employees’ morale and their commitment to the organisation. 1.4 Comparison of the old Water Authority and Atlantic Water The old culture of Water Authority was inappropriate to their competitive needs. Atlantic Water changed the culture by shaping the value, beliefs and attitudes of their employees. They started by changing the recruitment, selection and redundancy policies. Managers were recruited from private sector, this effected the composition of the workforce so that promotion and employment prospects are dependent on those concerned possessing or displaying the beliefs and value the organisation wishes to promote. The introduction of the flatter hierarchical structure and decentralisation is an advantage of a private company. The managers can work closely with the working operational level and it will reduce the time it takes to make decision. This also demands a greater involvement of the staff and creates opportunities for employees developing their career. The encouragement of staff training is vitally important to the change of an organisation, this will not only benefit the organisation’s productivity, but will also improve the level of employees’ morality and to make them understand their value to the organisation. 2. Defining Structure P Drucker (1974: 52) defined structure as follow: ‘Structure is a means for attaining the objectives and goals of an organization.’ An organisation existent is to achieve its goal and objectives, the work within an organisation has to be divided among its members. It provides the framework of an organisation and makes all process and application possible. The effectiveness and efficiency of the organisation will be influenced by the structural design and the behaviour of the people who work within the structure. 2.1 Organisational Structure An organisation’s structure is designed to ensure that rules and procedures are used and followed, it contains four frameworks of relationships within an organisation: the individual’s job description, job specialisation, its lines of communication and its hierarchy. Organisational structure can be layered into three hierarchical structures: the technical level, the managerial level and the community level. It is important to have clear objectives within the organisation, good communications both horizontally and vertically can enable an organisation to perform effectively and efficiently. The correct grouping of individuals and work is also important to maintain a high level of performance. 2.2 The old Water Authority’s structure The old Water Authority was a public service organisation, its main objective was to provide a service to local communities. Job description was clarified to individuals and the working pattern was not flexible. The division of work was based on the employees’ skills, i.e. operation of clean water side and the dirty water side. It had a narrow span of control and more level of authority, this result in a ‘tall’ hierarchical structure and there are a few problems with this structure. It restricts the decision making process and information is difficult to pass on from either level to another. It is not cost effective since there are more middle managers within the organisation and there could be a conflict between management if the objective was not clarified between departments. The old Water Authority was a centralised organisation where the decision making retained in the top level of management. There are advantages of centralisation, some of which applied to the old Water Authority. The decisions are fitted to broad organisation’s objectives and it is easier to coordinate the activities within the organisation. But the problem occurred when the decisions were not made close enough with the operational level, it might not be appropriated to the lower level of hierarchical structure. ‘Line and staff management: A system of management used in large organizations in which there are two separate hierarchies; the line management side consists of line managers with responsibility for deciding the policy of and running the organization’s main activities, while the staff management, and its separate staff managers, are responsible for providing such supporting service.’ Oxford Dictionary of Business (2003: 300) This explanation suited the structure of the old Water Authority, each operational department running parallelised and having advisory department across them (See Diagram 1). The mechanistic organisation theory applied to the old Water Authority, where employees had specified roles and definitions of the authority within the hierarchical structure. Communication and interaction are vertical, the structure of the old Water Authority was appropriate as the external environment was stable. 2.3 Atlantic Water’s Structure The privatisation changed the Water Authority from a public service organisation to an economic organisation. The objective is no longer just to provide service, but to make a profit and to survive in the competitive market. Atlantic Water re-structured their grading framework, it reduced the level of management, the wider span of control resulted in a ‘flatter’ hierarchical structure. It reduced the bureaucratic costs, i.e. less middle managers, less coordination problem and reduced the chance of information distortion. Decentralisation is another result of down-sizing the hierarchical structure, this allows decisions to be made closer to the operational level and reduces information overload on upper managers. Managers have more free time to do something else, i.e. provide personal care for its subordinates. The line and staff organisational structure also changed, it became a matrix structure, where there is more than one critical orientation to the operations of the organisation, such as they introduced the pay negotiations in house and fixed-term contractors. Atlantic Water encouraged their employee to gain qualification to enable them to be cross-skilled, so they can be deployed by their manager where and when they are needed, the flexibility of the working pattern is essential. The mechanistic organisation is no longer applicable in the lower level, it combined both the mechanistic organisation at the top of the hierarchy and the organic organisation at the bottom of the level. Organic organisation has a flexible system and structure which is characterised by the adjustment and continual redefinition of tasks. Communication and authority does not necessarily coincide with positional authority. 3. Organisational Change L Mullins (2002: 798) suggested organisation development is a key to organisational change. ‘Organisation development is concerned with the diagnosis of organisational health and performance, and the ability of the organisation to adapt to change.’ In order to change the organisation effectively, organisation development is essential to have the correct strategies: survey research and feedback, T-group and team building. Survey and feedback involves using questionnaires to help identifying the attitudes of individuals within the organisation. Top management can analysis the feedback and discuss the problems, and the action to be taken to help to improve performance. T-group is also known as sensitivity training, it involve informal groupings to discuss the individuals’ feeling toward the organisation and to understand their abilities in themselves. Team building is identifying the task procedures and the pattern of interaction within the work group. The aim of this function is to improve overall performance of the organisation through the effectiveness of the team. Organisational development is not only about improving the organisation effectiveness and efficiency, but also improve the morality and commitment of individuals. 3.1 Strategies for Change and Innovation There are different strategies approaches to changes in the organisation, however it has to be carefully design and apply. From the strategic management point of view, organisational change has four main facets which need constant re-appraisal and planned action: * Human resource implications – This involve training, personal skill development, the culture needed to be accepted. The organisation needs to encourage and motivate their employees by providing opportunity for improvement. * Functional implications – Communication need to be improved between departments, the understanding of how the department works is also important, different area of organisation has their own way of working method. Decentralise the authority and appraisal system should be introduced. * Technological implications – Increase use of technology can improve the productivity and administration of an organisation. Although there is a cost of the installation and operational cost, but it actually reduce overhead cost in long term, i.e. less manual labour and improve accuracy. * Organisational implications – This involve change of relationship, work groups, routines and practices. There will be a new requirement of communications between departments and the management skills need to be improved to compromise within the organisation. 3.2 Atlantic Water’s Approaches After the privatisation, Atlantic Water applied the organisation development techniques. They are role analysis, life and career planning, quality of work life and counselling. Role analysis – Employees are trained to be cross-skilled so they can be deployed by their manager where and when they are needed, so their tasks are more flexible than before. Life and career planning – The organisation encourages their employees to gain qualifications, this will not only benefit the individual, but also the performance of the organisation. The organisation also invested heavily in management development so the managers have a clearer commercial focus and a new relationship with its workforce. Quality of work life – The new grading framework of the organisation creates opportunity for many employees who wish to develop their career. The organisation introduced a new salary structure, but it leaves many employees worse off financially, Atlantic Water failed to provide a better quality of work life. Counselling – There is a programme to help individual to deal with stress which are caused from job insecurity. This will help and assist individual to attain their goal and to re-build their confidence. Atlantic Water has improved their performance in general by investing in training programmes for both the management and their staff, but they did not consider their employees’ feeling. The morality and commitment level had dropped significantly due to the amount of work load and insecurity of their job. Although they offered a counselling programme, their employees are not being awarded for the extra efforts they put into the organisation. The low level of morality and commitment has major influence on the level of work performance. Atlantic Water should try to re-build the relationship with their employees by re-viewing their salary structure. The employees should be informed at a reasonable level of the activity within the organisation, sharing the success of the organisation will also boost the level of confidence for the individual. The management training should not be limited to the knowledge within the industry, it should includes counselling, coaching and leadership skills. Managers have a major influence on the motivation and behaviour of employees. 4. Conclusion The change has a massive impact upon Atlantic Water, the structure, culture and organisational climate had changed significantly. They have taken a certain level of approach but the results are not all positive, they need to carefully re-build relationships with its employees. The organisational climate is an indication of the employees’ feeling and beliefs, obviously Water Atlantic’s climate needs to be improved. It must develop new ways to increase the loyalty and commitment of employees. This includes attention to reward strategies based on recognition of contribution rather than status or position. The management of organisational climate is an important means of improving productivity and standard of work performance. Diagram 1    Bibliography Burnes B. (1996) 2nd Edition, Pitman Publishing, London Drucker P. (1974), ‘New templates for today’s organizations’, Harvard Business Review, London Huczynski A. & Buchanan D. (1991), Organizational Behaviour, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall, London Mullins L. (2002), Management and Organisational Behaviour, Prentice Hall, Essex Schein E. (1997), Organizational Culture and Leadership, Jossey Bass Wiley, London Schneider S. & Barsoux J. (2003), Managing Across Culture, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall, London Reference Burnes B. (1996), Managing Change, 2nd Edition, London, Pitman Publishing, Drucker P. (1974), New templates for today’s organizations, Harvard Business Review, London Mullins L. (2002), Management and Organisational Behaviour, Prentice Hall, Essex Schein E. (1997), Organizational Culture and Leadership, Jossey Bass Wiley, London Oxford University Press (2003), Oxford Dictionary of Business, 3rd Edition, Market House Book Ltd, London