Narrative Essay — The Birth of my Daugher

It was day like any other day, one that revolved around me and my wants and needs, but all that was about to change. The sun was shining through my bedroom window of the small two bedroom apartment that was shared between me and my roommate. The day was a nice enough day for all to enjoy. With temperatures in the 80's and not a cloud in the beautiful Carolina blue sky, who wouldn't want to enjoy a day like that? Not me. Not when I was nine months pregnant, with only seven days till doom's day and whale (yep, spelled it that way on purpose) past the 25-35 pounds suggest by my doctor that I should gain.I was sick from not being able to stomach even the thought of food, which was unusual for me and was starting to have some pains in my abdomen but had brushed it off, thinking it was due to the nausea. It didn't take long to realize that the baby I was carrying was ready to meet me when the back pains started to become regular and more intense. As I laid on the beautifully crafted gold a nd burgundy comforter that was spread over my bed, I started to fell pressure in my lower back. It was as if someone was taking dull knives and running them deep in to my muscles along the top of my tailbone.There was no doubting the fact that my labor had started when I got up and noticed that same elegant comforter was now forever stained. My water had broke causing the pains to bring me to my knees. With tears in my eyes, I was ready for some relief from the pain and wanted to get to the hospital in order to get an epideral(wonderful things that make you numb from the waist down). It didn't take long to get to the hospital, especially since the ride was in an ambulance. Thanks to my roommate who dialed 911 in a moment of panic; hers' not mine, she deemed it necessary to dail 911 and request assistance.If that is what you would call a request, screaming at the top of your lungs at the 911 dispatcher. The pain had become unbearable and I was forever thankful when I was told by the mid-wife that it was time to start pushing the baby out. Two minutes later at 12:37pm on a bright Tuesday afternoon, my daughter was born. She seemed so small and fragile but the effect was immeasurable. Lynssa Grace Girma Adugna, 6lbs. 5oz. 20 1/5in. Her hair was so shiny that it looked brown with touches of gold thrown in here and there. Her eyes were such a deep, dark blue that they look like the ocean at night.She was breathtaking. When our eyes met for the first time I felt my heart skip a beat. As I held that tiny bundle, that was just as much a part of me as I was a part of her, my mind was in awe of how much I immediately felt such an overwhelming amount of love for her. The kind of love that I felt in that moment was instant and was more intense then any emotion I had every felt. I never knew that this kind of love was possible, to be able to love something or someone the way that I loved her. I knew then that I would go to any lengths to make her happy and to give her ever ything that she every needed.I swore to give her my absolute best and I meant every word. My entire existence had been meaningless up until then, or at least everything I had every accomplished felt like it failed in comparison to her, my daughter. I had never knew that there was an emptiness in my heart until this completeness replaced where there once was a void. When my daughter came home the â€Å"real world† begun. I traded nights with the girls for a night with the most important girl, and nights out with friends, to midnight feedings and diaper changes. These times were stressful without a doubt.Although all I needed to make them worth the work was a glimpse of her smile. Which she would give while she was sleeping. I am told that babies are dreaming about angels when they smile like that. These late nights were hard to handle when they were followed with early morning wake up calls which gave way to a morning full of much needed errands. My life was no longer my own. Life now circled around this tiny little human which I was trusted to take care of . Before Lynssa came along, I was not the one who you could find in a church pew on Sunday. You did good to see me on the holidays such as Christmas and Easter for that matter.Now that I was responsible for someone else's mortal soul, it seemed very important to get back in church and to teach her the same values that were instilled in me. So now you can be sure where to find me on Sunday. I wanted to be sure to incorporate Christian values and beliefs into my child's heart and mind, and the only way to do that was to but them back into mine. Even though my child is very young and not likely to remember these times, somehow I still believe that it is important to behave a certain way. I also changed not only my outlook on life but also my outward appearance as well.I begin thinking in ways that would have never come to mind before had my daughter never been born into this world. There was not only the fact that I was a mother now that changed me but also the fact that I was the mother of an impressionable young girl was what affected me in a way that I never though possible. I wanted her to be everything that was good and right about me and none of what was wrong with me. I decided that the best way to teach her these things was to lead by example, and with a little hope and a lot a prayers she would follow. I needed to be the mother that my child could be proud of.Nobody's perfect and I sure do have a long way to go before I can even be close to being where I want to be in life. I am still learning. Learning new things everyday. Changing for the better a little everyday is my goal. To always be that person, striving to be the best mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend and student that I can possibly be. That's who I am. I would never be the person that I am today if I had not received an award so great as that of motherhood. Word do not express how thankful I am everyday when I s ee my daughter is growing and becoming a little lady.

Haier Human Resources Management

HRM Effectiveness Evaluation Synergy makes it possible! HRM Effectiveness Evaluation Synergy makes it possible! To Sir Sohail Islam By Group # 3 Date 24-01-2008 Letter of Transmittal GIFT University Gujranwala, Pakistan January, 09, 2008 Mr. Sohail Islam GIFT University Gujranwala, Pakistan Dear Sir, The report is focused on evaluating the effectiveness of Human Resource Department of any multinational Company. We chose Haier for this purpose.We are very thankful to you that you gave us the opportunity to work on such topic, which really made us aware of a lot of hidden facts about the practical HR work done at companies. You helped us a lot in defining this topic. We are very grateful to you that you think us capable of this. Really, we have given our full in this report. We hope it will be above your expectations. Yours affectionately, Zain Hameed, Sarfraz Ahmed, Zohaib Khalid, Umair Ameen, Usman Khalid. Table of Contents Topics Detail |Page Number | |Executive Summary |1 | |Int roduction |3 | |Introduction to Haier |6 | |Company Background |6 | |Company Facts |9 | |Corporate Overview |9 | |Global Presence |10 | |Board of Directors |10 | |Recognition |10 | |Leadership at Haier |12 | |Haier’s HR |14 | |Conception of HR 14 | |Challenge your content, manage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |16 | |Values and Philosophy |18 | |Haier in Pakistan |32 | |Evaluation of HR Department |34 | |Conclusion |50 | |References | | Executive Summary This project is concerned with evaluating effectiveness of an HR Department in any multinational company. For the above-described activity, we chose well-known transnational electronic appliances manufacturing company named as â€Å"Haier†. Haier Pakistan holds its office at Raiwind Road. Haier Pakistan has split its HR Department in two parts. One part deals with marketing and distribution employees, while other deals with rest of the employees including administration, accounting, finance, security, and production depart ments.As discussed above, our task was to evaluate the effectiveness of the HR department, and for this purpose we focused on one part of Haier’s HR Department that deals with administration, accounting, finance, security, and production departments. First of all we defined these functions and then evaluated effectiveness of each function in Haier’s HR Department. Haier was incorporated in 1984 only producing household refrigerators. In 2004, Haier’s global sales hit RMB100. 9 billion and Haier brand, valued at RMB61. 6 billion, topped all Chinese trademarks at a nationwide survey. Haier was ranked first in the row of China’s Top 10 Global Brands August 30, 2005 on the Financial Times. Haier CEO Zhang Ruimin was placed 26th of the World’s 50 Most Respected Business Leaders on 17th November, 2005 on Financial Times.Haier’s international promotion framework encompasses global networks for design, procurement, production, distribution and after -sales services. Haier has established 15 manufacture complexes, 30 overseas production factories, 8 design centers and 58,800 sales agents worldwide. From Euro-monitor Statistics, Haier is currently ranked fourth among the global white goods makers by revenue and Haier’s goal is to play a leading role in the world white goods industry. Facing the challenges brought by E-commerce and China’s accession to the WTO, Haier began a management restructuring program in 1998 backed by the efficient Haier Market-chain System practice.During first 5 years, Haier focused on the organization restructuring, management decentralizing with application of advanced information and network systems in order fulfillment, Market-chain performance, logistics, capital operation, after-sales service, product inventory and operational cost reduction. During second 5 year period from 2003, Haier carried out the SBU (strategic business unit) management to stimulate the enthusiasm of every employ ee and to enhance Haier’s competitiveness in global marketplace. Haier has 51,000 full time employees and hires 175,000 contract service personnel, providing a total of 230,000 job opportunities. Haier’s management has been worldwide recognized.Haier has been recommended to the EU Case Studies by Lausanne Management College for Haier Market-chain Management. Haier’s goal is to become a global recognizable brand. (â€Å"Company Background†) The Haier Group is China’s largest home appliance brand and one of the world’s leading white goods home appliance manufacturers. By April 2006, the Haier Group has obtained 6,189 patented technology certificates and 589 software intellectual property rights. Haier products are sold in over 100 countries. Haier is the official Home Appliances Sponsor of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. As CEO, Mr. Zhang’s current goal is to further enhance Haier’s leadership in Chinese and global markets and st rengthen the reputation of Haier’s brand worldwide.The philosophy is the driving force behind the motivation and enthusiasm of Haier’s staff of over 50,000 employees worldwide. Haier is now widely recognized in the world. Haier’s production and management system restructuring has enabled Haier to diversify internal and external resources. Haier’s goal is to obtain worldwide recognition and to become one of Fortune Global 500. Haier Pakistan is the Pakistan Sales & Marketing division of the international Haier Group, a globally recognized manufacturer of world-class electrical home appliances. In the next portion evaluation of Haier’s HR department is done on the following basis. †¢ HR Department †¢ HR Planning Analysis and Design of Work †¢ Training and Development †¢ Performance Evaluation We have asked different questions, which are mentioned in the report, which leaded us to following conclusions. There should be a General Ma nager HR, who should be formally trained in HRM. At Haier, Administration Department is merged with Human Resource Department. HR Department should be separate from Administration Department. There are less than enough HR professionals in the Department. According to our information, Haier practices downsizing. Even if Downsizing is inevitable, then lay off employees should be adjusted to other sister organizations, like Haier has SV-RUBA.While designing jobs, The HR department takes information through relevant HODs. The work flow is not documented at Haier. Haier HR Department takes JIT decisions. Haier’s first priority is internal sources for recruitment. The employees who come from internal sources are usually friends or relatives of existing employees. Nepotism is practiced, highly, at Haier. Nepotism reduces the efficiency of employees. Haier’s HR Department does not have any research regarding any issue. Company does not have any system to measure the change in performance and behavior after training. The minimum basic pay at Haier is 4,000. More than 1500 people are working at Haier.Haier’s employees should be given proper and formal training to work on a particular kind of machine. There should be sessions, in which employees should be trained regarding safe work practices. Haier HR department is of the view that most accidents are due to carelessness of employees. Even if it is true, still it is fault of HR department that they did not provide proper training to employees regarding safe work practices. Introduction This project is concerned with evaluating effectiveness of an HR Department in any multinational company. The word, HRM Audit, is also used to describe this activity, but the word, audit, creates some problems in some cases.Audit, usually, refers to financial audits, which is statutorily conducted, and has some negative meanings attached with it for some involved parties, so it would be very wise to call it the evaluat ion or effectiveness measure instead of Audit. For the above-described activity, we chose well-known transnational electronic appliances manufacturing company named as â€Å"Haier†. Haier is expanding very quickly, and has opened many subsidiaries in many countries including Pakistan. Haier Pakistan holds its office at Raiwind Road. This Office is a small portion of a giant size manufacturing plant at the same location. Haier Pakistan has split its HR Department in two parts. One part deals with marketing and distribution employees, while other deals with rest of the employees including administration, accounting, finance, security, and production departments.As discussed above, our task was to evaluate the effectiveness of the HR department, and for this purpose we focused on one part of Haier’s HR Department that deals with administration, accounting, finance, security, and production departments. We split our evaluation work in components. These components were acco rding to different HR Functions. First of all we defined these functions and then evaluated effectiveness of each function in Haier’s HR Department. For this purpose we decided to adopt interviewing approach, because it was most suitable, quick and reliable method as we planned to record each word of that interview. But before doing our desired work, we had to get some general information about Haier, because if you don’t know something, then you can never know a component of that particular thing.Actually our focus is to check the effectiveness of a part of picture by taking whole picture in mind, so a brief introduction about Haier, its History, its leader ship, its achievements, its philosophy and values, its HR Conception, and, most importantly, information about its presence in Pakistan is given below before starting the Evaluation work. Introduction to Haier Company Background Haier was incorporated in 1984 only producing household refrigerators. Over the past 20 years, the company has witnessed significant prosperity and is now a transnational organization widely recognized in the world community. Haier currently manufactures a wide range of household electrical appliances, 15,100 varieties of items in 96 product lines, and exports products to more than 100 countries. In 2004, Haier’s global sales hit RMB100. 9 billion and Haier brand, valued at RMB61. 6 billion, topped all Chinese trademarks at a nationwide survey. Haier was ranked first in the row f China’s Top 10 Global Brands August 30, 2005 on the Financial Times. Haier CEO Zhang Ruimin was placed 26th of the World’s 50 Most Respected Business Leaders on 17th November, 2005 on Financial Times. Zhang Ruimin was ranked 6th of the Asia’s 25 Most Powerful People in Business on Fortune in August, 2004 and first of the 25 Most Powerful Business Leaders inside China on the Chinese Edition of Fortune in April 2005. Haier’s international promotion framework e ncompasses global networks for design, procurement, production, distribution and after-sales services. Haier has established 15 manufacture complexes, 30 overseas production factories, 8 design centers and 58,800 sales agents worldwide.From Zhongyikang Statistics, Haier’s leadership position in Chinese home appliance industry has been solidified by obtaining the domestic market share of 21% for overall appliances, far ahead of all its competitors, 34% for white goods, exceeding globally recognized domination line, and 14% for small electric appliances, overtaking all previous competitive rivals. In the world market, Haier has gained first place in the United States for sales of compact refrigerators and wine coolers, in Iran for washing machines and Cyprus for air conditioners. From Euro-monitor Statistics, Haier is currently ranked fourth among the global white goods makers by revenue and Haier’s goal is to play a leading role in the world white goods industry.On Marc h 4, 2002, Haier unveiled its American headquarters in the landmark neo-classical building, the former offices of the Greenwich Savings Bank, on Broadway, Manhattan, New York, an indication that Haier had moved into a new phase for globalization of product design, manufacture and sales and had a strong determination for long-term development in the United States. On August 20, 2003, Haier erected an electric billboard in the shopping district of Ginza, Tokyo, symbolizing that Haier’s determination to reach Japanese marketplace. Facing the challenges brought by E-commerce and China’s accession to the WTO, Haier began a management restructuring program in 1998 backed by the efficient Haier Market-chain System practice.During first 5 years, Haier focused on the organization restructuring, management decentralizing with application of advanced information and network systems in order fulfillment, Market-chain performance, logistics, capital operation, after-sales service, product inventory and operational cost reduction. During second 5 year period from 2003, Haier carried out the SBU (strategic business unit) management to stimulate the enthusiasm of every employee and to enhance Haier’s competitiveness in global marketplace. Over the past 20 years, Haier provided more than 100 million appliances to worldwide consumers and paid cumulatively a total tax of RMB13. 6 billion, of which RMB2 billion in 2004, RMB5. 5 million per day on average.Haier has scheduled to finance 100 Project Hope primary schools, of which 47 are put into operation. Haier has 51,000 full time employees and hires 175,000 contract service personnel, providing a total of 230,000 job opportunities. Haier’s management has been worldwide recognized. Haier’s experience has been introduced in 16 case studies in business merger, financial management and corporate culture by 7 foreign educational institutes, including Harvard University, University of Southern Califor nia, Lausanne Management College, the European Business College and Kobe University. Haier has been recommended to the EU Case Studies by Lausanne Management College for Haier Market-chain Management.Haier’s goal is to become a global recognizable brand. (â€Å"Company Background†) Company Facts Corporate Overview The Haier Group is China’s largest home appliance brand and one of the world’s leading white goods home appliance manufacturers. Haier was founded in 1984 in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China and manufactures home appliances in over 15,100 different specifications under 96 categories. By April 2006, the Haier Group has obtained 6,189 patented technology certificates and 589 software intellectual property rights. Haier products are sold in over 100 countries. Haier is the official Home Appliances Sponsor of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Headquarters: |Qingdao, Shandong Province, China | |Employees |Over 50,000 worldwide | |Financial Informatio n: |Haier’s global revenue in 2005 reached RMB 103. 4 billion | | |Average annual growth of 68% between 1984 and 2005 | |No. of Subsidiaries |Over 240 | |Listed Subsidiaries |Haier Electronics Group Co. , Ltd. listed on the Hong Kong Stock | | |Exchange | | |Qingdao Haier Co. , Ltd.Listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange | |Business Scope |Technology research | | |Product development and manufacturing | | |Trade | | |Financial services | |Key Product Lines |Refrigerators/Freezers, commercial air-conditioners, microwave | | |ovens, washing machines, dishwashers, televisions, mobile phones,| | |computers | |Global Presence | |Trading Companies: |64 | |Design Centers |8 | |Industrial Complexes |15 | |Sales Network |Over 58,000 | Board of Directors Chairman and CEO Mr. Zhang Ruimin President Ms. Yang MianmianVice Chairman Mr. Wu Kesong Recognition †¢ Ranked 86th among the world’s 500 Most Influential Brands by World Brand Lab in 2006. Only Chinese brand to be ranked in top 100 for three consecutive years †¢ Ranked 1st among Chinese brands with the most potential by Glebor’s Global Financial Reports of Canada, 2006 †¢ Ranked 1st among China’s Top 10 Global Brands by the Financial Times in 2005 †¢ Ranked 1st among China’s Top 10 Global Brands by China State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision (CSBTS) for refrigerators and washing machines in 2005 †¢ CEO Zhang Ruimin ranked 26th among World’s Most Respected Business Leaders by the Financial Times in 2005 CEO Zhang Ruimin ranked 6th among Asia’s 25 Most Powerful People in Business by Fortune magazine in 2004 †¢ Received a World Climate Award from the United Nations Development Program and the US Environment Protection Administration in 2000 (â€Å"Company Facts†) Leadership at Haier â€Å"As far as transforming moments go in a CEO’s career, Zhang Ruimin has a story to match anyone’s. † †“ Financial Times Zhang Ruimin is the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Haier Group, a position he assumed in 2000. He also holds the title of senior economist. As CEO, Mr. Zhang’s current goal is to further enhance Haier’s leadership in Chinese and global markets and strengthen the reputation of Haier’s brand worldwide.In 1984, Zhang Ruimin was appointed director of the Qingdao Refrigerator Factory, a small, ailing collectively-owned factory in the Shandong province of China. Under his leadership and unique management philosophy, the company has since grown to become what is now the Haier Group, China’s leading home appliance brand, and one of the world’s largest home appliance makers, with a distribution presence in over 100 countries. Mr. Zhang began the turnaround of Haier with an order to destroy 76 defective refrigerators, laying into one himself with a sledgehammer – now preserved for its symbolism in Haier’s muse um. That singular act of destruction impressed on employees that poor quality would not be acceptable. He reinforced the message with an aggressive Western-style quality control program. Mr.Zhang’s management philosophy is a blend of international management principles and Chinese wisdom, with innovation and excellence as its cornerstones. The philosophy is the driving force behind the motivation and enthusiasm of Haier’s staff of over 50,000 employees worldwide. Mr. Zhang acts as a role model for modern Chinese entrepreneurs, and his leadership philosophy and business acumen are widely admired, both in China and within the international business community. Mr. Zhang holds an MBA degree from China Science and Technology University. He was born on January 5, 1949 in Laizhou, Shandong province, China. Zhang Ruimin[pic] Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (â€Å"Leadership†) Haier’s HR Conception of HR Globalized Enterprise and Globalized StaffZhang Ruimin, CEO of Haier Group, performs branding strategy, multi-directions strategy and global strategy under the direction of globalization and creation of famous branding. Currently, Haier acquires continuously quick increasing; the brand of Haier keeps its first position of China home electronics industry, and the brand wins more and more credits in the international market. In 1997, State Economic and Trade Commission decided to support Haier as one of six main Chinese enterprises to compete â€Å"World Top 500 Enterprises†. Globalized operation model in Haier drives it to â€Å"the Express Way†, so in the international market, Haier wins more and more respects in short period of time.However, we can clearly recognize that Haier still has distance compared with world top enterprises. During the current situation, as long as the brand of Haier becomes a global branding, each of our staffs initially shall become a globalized talent. The objectives of HR development in Haier G roup must match our enterprise's strategic objective of globalization, to develop international and competitive talents. (â€Å"Conception of HR†) Promotion based upon excellence, not appearance Promotion is based upon excellence, not appearance —- Haier's Rule of its HR Development During our HR development, we insist on innovation of notion, innovation of system.We keep creating a kind of environment of fair, just and straightforward, and build up a set of mechanism to develop personnel potentialities. Therefore, while we purchase our enterprise's objectives, we can offer each individual a developing space to realize his own value. â€Å"How much you can be involved, we will provide you a corresponding platform. † 1. â€Å"Each individual is a talent, and promotion is based upon excellence, not appearance. † —- Providing a fair, just and open competition environment in fact is the competition of talents. Staffs lead to the enterprise in success. If an enterprise has of most talented and high-qualified people, it will win in the competition.Haier's HR development initially based on â€Å"Each individual is a talent†, â€Å"firstly training people and then creating a brand† to change the function of most of traditional HR departments, and finally built up a HR mechanism and a policy with the function of, how to research and develop individual potentiality, which is different to traditional HR function, but concerning about who should be trained, and who should be promoted to the position of leadership. We provide our staffs 3 kinds of career designing: 1. For administrators; 2. For professionals; 3. For workers. Each of them has one direction towards his promotion. 2. â€Å"Who is incumbent who shall be inspected; promotion is based on competition; One's position shall be changed after his expired term of office. † —- We need to inspect and control the incumbent administrators.There is such a rule in Haier's HR management: the so called â€Å"if you give one person rights, you shall definitely trust him, and if you suspect him, you won't give him any rights†, which is a definitely deny of market economy. In market economy, the essential relationship is driven by benefits. Trust or distrust your staff, or evaluate one staff only based on your private emotions or only based on his personnel capacity won't be a proper method, and maybe will have negative effects in success of an enterprise. Therefore, Haier makes a rule like â€Å"Who is incumbent who shall be inspected; promotion is based on competition; position shall be changed after one's expired term of office†. 3. â€Å"Usually more deeply dolphin dives, more highly it jumps. â€Å"—- Mechanism of promotion and demotion.When we promote a cadre to a high-level position, we won't him immediately inaugurate, however, we assign him to work in related department as an ordinary role; sometimes, even if he is already been playing a important role in the department, due to his lack of such experience, we will let him lower his position and work as a common staff. Sometimes, one person is very experienced, but only lack of integrated and coordinated skills; we will assign him to certain department to have so-called internship. However, it is tough for a cadre under such high pressure; on the other hand, he is finally trained and cultivated his integrated skills. 4. Elimination Quota—- That means in certain period of time and within certain division, we set a quota to lay off staffs in percent.It can be cruel; however, it is good for an enterprise to purchase its long-term strategy. In Haier, there is no such saying â€Å"I cannot give any achievement to the enterprise; however my time and physical works shall be took into account. † If you cannot offer your best efforts, you probably make a fault. Therefore, in such period of time, within certain division, we follow out ou r elimination quota in proportion. (â€Å"Conception of HR†) Challenge your content, manage yourself and challenge yourself Hang Rui Min, CEO of the Group, pointed out in the article My Point of View towards New Economy that, in the age of new economy, people is the key factor to ensure your innovation.Each individual person can body of innovation, and we design our train of thought as a market chain to support outstanding. 1. â€Å"External market competition leads to the internal†Ã¢â‚¬â€- Market Chain Effect. We convince that there are 2 markets involved in one enterprise, the internal and the external. The internal market is how to meet the requirements of the staffs to arouse their initiatives; on the other hand, the external market is to meet the requirements of the clients. Inside Haier Group, â€Å"the next processing is the client†, so it must have a main body to perform their responsibilities for their own market. â€Å"The next processing is the clie nt†, each staff can represent a client, or he is the market.Each staff can suppose to have no responsibility to his supervisor occasionally, but the most important thing is he must have the responsibility to the market all the time. Market chain mechanism, initialized as â€Å"SST† based on Chinese pin yin, that is to say: Firstly, we need to serve our client and acquire the related rewards; and if we cannot match the market's requirements we must give corresponding reimbursement. Neither rewards, nor reimbursement, it could be a blank in the mechanism that means problem will occur. Therefore, the group is under the mechanism, and there are many people in their position under the sprit of â€Å"managing yourself† where people treat their own as a host in their division of Haier Group.They manage their position as operating their own boutique so that they have extraordinary efforts in such as saving energy, decreasing consumption, improving quality etc. 2. Real ti me stimulation—- it is to stimulate and develop the initiatives of the staffs. To encourage new technical invention and innovation, Haier Group issues Staff Rewarding Regulation for Inventions, which establishes an award of â€Å"Haier†, â€Å"Hope of Haier† and â€Å"Rationalized Advice† etc. and based on the economic effectiveness and social effectiveness they achieved, and the enterprise, the administrators and the staffs have equal chances to win the awards respectively. Haier Group is as a sea to take domestic and overseas professional people in.CEO of Haier, Zhang Rui Min, in the article of Haier is the sea wrote with full passions â€Å"as long as to gather all Haier people's power together, it can generate the power as much as a sea, which need the sprit of ‘unselfish contribution and excellence chasing' so that we can have the sense of team work. We make most of the incredible and the impossible become realizations and possibilities. There fore, the great wave of Haier can exceed all barriers, and keep going ahead. (â€Å"Conception of HR†) Values & Philosophy Cultural Concept Corporate Culture Haier corporate culture has been widely recognized by Haier’s employees as innovative value created by Haier senior management. Innovation is the core of Haier corporate culture, Haier’s unique cultural system cultivated and developed over the past 20 years.Haier corporate culture is guided and developed by advanced concept, innovative strategy, efficient organization, creative technology and market orientation, which have enabled Haier to grow swiftly with business expansion from China to outside world. Haier corporate culture features recognition and participation of all employees. Today, Haier is ambitious to gain worldwide recognition. To achieve this magnificent goal, Haier has had all its employees involved in realizing Haier’s ideal to be a global recognizable brand. (â€Å"Haier’s Cor porate Culture†) Haier Spirit †¢ Creating resources and worldwide prestige †¢ Resource Creation is based on innovation . Even Haier has less resources than its rivals, it can benefit from the core competence originated from innovation. The higher objective of the Global Brand strategic stage is â€Å"worldwide prestige† which is accomplished in meeting the needs of customers from all over the world and which will in turn make Haier a globally recognized world-class brand. Haier Style Individual-goal combination, swift action and success â€Å"individual-goal combination† is our method and â€Å"swift action and success† is our target. The market of each SBU should be identified clearly and actions should be taken promptly. Haier HR Concept Promotion is based upon excellence, not appearance Haier provides its every employee opportunities to develop and demonstrate talents. It is not able people, but the mechanism to encourage able people developme nt, should we be concerned about. The responsibility of a manager is to establish a â€Å"race track†, ie. personality development opportunity, for every employee to become a SBU.The â€Å"Horse racing court† requires three principles, firstly, fair competition; secondly, ability-based appointment; thirdly, reasonable job rotation. Under the contract labor system policy, employees are regularly evaluated and classified by performances, and the managerial personnel do not work at the same position permanently but rotate regularly in a fixed period. The significance of Haier’s human resource management is to stimulate the enthusiasm of employees. In this system, every employee can feel the pressure from both inside and outside the company and convert the pressure into creative motility. This is the key to success. Authorization and supervision Performance with full power authorization must be supervised.Haier regulates the rules on post control, promotion competit ion and job rotation â€Å"Post control† is so defined that firstly managerial personnel should self control and discipline; secondly, Haier has to establish a control system to guide the work objective and orientation and shun directional mistakes. In addition, it is aimed to control financial performance and to eliminate misconduct in business practice. â€Å"Promotion competition† indicates that a competitive system is to be operated to promote or demote employees according to their ability and performance. Every employee will be able to feel pressure while having opportunity to demonstrate and develop his potential capability. Job rotation† is destined to change positions of managerial personnel with fixed term, aiming to avoid inefficient performance in management due to thought rigidity and creativity shortage after a relatively long period on the same post. Job rotation system will create more opportunities to young managers for practical experience and ex pand more human resources for the company. Haier strategy Concept Activating shock fish Activating shock fish† Policy has been employed by Haier in acquisition of ailing companies for business expansion. International acquisition is characterized by three stages. In Stage 1, â€Å"Big fish eat small fish†, companies powerful in capital, not technology, merger with less powerful companies.In Stage 2, â€Å"Fast fish eat slow fish†, these companies are powerful in technology, not capital instead. Microsoft, for example, started later than some other counterparts, however, it kept leading the industry with advanced technology and surpassed some old brands. In Stage 3, â€Å"Sharks eat sharks†, â€Å"Power Alliance† became popular in 1990s. Boeing merged with Mcdonnell in such circumstance. In China, â€Å"big fish† not allowed to eat â€Å"small fish†, nor â€Å"fast fish† and â€Å"sharks†, only â€Å"shock fish†. â €Å"Shock fish† represent those companies which are well equipped but not well operated and can be vitalized if effective management is introduced. Three directional changes In early 1999, Haier was about to decide the development guideline.Zhang Ruimin, then President of Haier, brought forward a proposal that Haier’s 1999 development policy should be concentrated on globalization to approach Haier’s goal of global recognizable brand. To realize this goal, Haier prepared and launched an overall plan to restructure Haier’s management system for improvement of corporate competence. Zhang Ruimin proposed â€Å"Three directional changes† of restructuring the company management system. Reference: Previously, Haier focused upon maximization of profits, and Haier gives the priority to customer demands satisfaction. Directional change in management From linear organization structure to BPR of Market-chain DecentralizationDecentralization of traditional Pyr amid management system on the basis of market principle application for interdepartmental management and customer needs satisfaction. Information Based upon interest of customers, production and management processes are operated under the principle of Market-chain Management with continuous and update information. Directional change in market orientation Emphasis shifted from domestic to overseas market Directional change in production scope Emphasis shifted from manufacture to service industry E-commerce system in operation for product sales Haier E-commerce System supported by advanced information technology for network management, marketing, service and procurement. Overseas Expansion based upon domestic success There are two principles.Firstly, the best efforts are made to fully develop the current industry before entering new segment of relative products; secondly, the best efforts are made to gain the leading position in the new segment of the industry after a certain period i n which the business has been well developed. Market development precedes production plants. The principle, â€Å"Market development precedes production plants† was once used for overseas business development in the initial period of Haier. It suggests that production plants should not be built unless sufficient purchase orders are received from the market developed by product sales at the very beginning of business.In 1992, Haier set up its headquarter industrial complex in Qingdao and more then 10 industrial plants throughout the world, especially in the United States. Haier OEC Management: OEC Management. OEC is an abbreviation of Overall Every Control and Clear, indicating that overall control and supervision of every employee every day. â€Å"O† stands for Overall, â€Å"E† for Everyone, Everyday and Everything and â€Å"C† means Control and Clear. Purpose of the OEC Management is as follows: Day-based task accomplishment and improvement The task ass igned for every day basis should be accomplished in the same day with an increase of 1% over that in previous day. The OEC Management is comprised of three systems: Objective > Daily Accomplishment > IncentiveThe Objective must be established first; Daily accomplishment is basic to fulfillment of the objective; Result of Daily Accomplishment will be of significance when it is attached with incentive policy. Slope & ball theory An enterprise likened to be a ball on a slope requiring traction force to stop it from rolling downward and to keep it upward needs efficient management to prevent it from lagging behind and creative ideas to achieve more opportunities for development. What’s remarkable? What’s Difficult? What’s remarkable? It is remarkable for doing well simple things. What’s difficult It is difficult to accomplish the matters the public believe simple. Day-based task accomplishment and improvement The â€Å"Slope and Ball Theory† is used to describe indications of OEC Management in 3 aspects: Management is decisive to business success.An enterprise cannot succeed and business will go down if it is not well operated. Consistent efforts should be made for management efficiency. It is a painstaking and profound process. Efficiency level of management does not always stay unchanged, even the supervising mechanism, but fluctuate continuously. Efficiency management requires untiring efforts. Management is dynamic, endlessly. Enterprise business develops while supervising mechanism needs improvement. Management is not rigid, but flexible and adjustable according to enterprise objectives and internal and external conditions. Haier’s policy is â€Å"Prepare for actual use, not for show Haier's Market-Chain Market- chainMarket-chain management is based upon Haier’s corporate culture and computerized information system, concentrated upon order information flow and operated for logistics and capital performance to realize the Three-Zero objective business restructuring. The system incorporates the factors of sync flow efficiency, SST intensity and performance-based salary system to encourage employees to work hard to satisfy consumer requirements with application of innovative technology, valuable orders, improvement of corporate competence and creation of market demands Demolish the walls inside the outside enterprises. Chinese enterprises should demolish two side and outside walls.Outside wall stands for the life-and-death competition between enterprises of the same trade, suggesting that competitors cooperate with each other for win-win relationship. Inside wall means administrative relation between different departments in the same enterprise, suggesting that competition mechanism be introduced to improve management efficiency. Accelerated pace for information technology application is the key to demolish the walls. Zero stock, distance and working capital. Order based performance indicat es that production will not be arranged unless buyers have placed purchase orders. The entire production process is operated for ordered products. In such way, products are delivered at sight of payment and thus the goal of zero stock, distance and working capital is realized.Zero stock The mission of logistics is to eliminate distance with time and stock volume with time efficiency. Haier’s goal is to eliminate all stock in warehouse. If warehouse is likened to a reservoir, Haier will change the reservoir into a flowing river by the JIT tool. JIT purchase: Purchase is precisely arranged according to the actual needs; needed parts and raw materials are procured through worldwide suppliers for order fulfillment. JIT supply chain: Haier’s warehouse is just a transit station in which all materials can only be stored for 7 days at most. In Haier automated high-bay warehouses, parts and components will be allowed for 3 days.JIT delivery: Haier has established a nationwide l ogistics system for product delivery to every corner in the country. Zero distance Zero distance is another goal of the Market-chain Management. Under this system, Haier will, immediately after obtaining the purchase order, take every effort to satisfy the needs of customers. In the process, delivery efficiency plays a significant role to shorten the time with space efficiency. Buyers can place orders at the Internet and Haier will deliver the ordered goods to the buyers. Zero distance is important for a manufacturer to acquire orders. The enterprise strives to shorten or even eliminate the distance to buyers to obtain and satisfy individual orders.If the distance is not eliminated, the manufacturer might not easily know what customers need and how to satisfy their demands. Zero working capital The third goal of the Market-chain Management is to realize zero working capital. It is believed to be the capability to change cash into material objects and then convert material objects in to cash. Zero working capital means no fund is used as floating capital. Before making the payment to sub-suppliers, the manufacturer receives payment from buyers. This can be realized as production is scheduled at request of customers. This will result in healthy operation of the enterprise. Doing right things and doing things right way Haier’s operational restructuring based upon the Market-chain is carried out by three phases.In phase 1, internal resources are integrated to structure the Market-chain system; in phase 2, valuable orders are obtained from the Market-chain system, giving emphasis upon customer demands satisfaction and establishment of global supply-chain to improve the corporate competence. Currently, Haier has entered phase 3 of the operational restructuring process by focusing upon integration of human resource to make every employee a SBU for more valuable orders. Haier is carrying the OEC Management with an aim to improve management efficiency and quality assurance. This is doing things in right way. On the other side, Haier launches the Market-chain program for competition in the world market place. This is doing right things. There is a distinct difference between doing right things and doing things in right way.An example, a worker on production line is doing things in right way if operation and product quality comply with technical specifications. However, if the product cannot be marketed, what the worker has done is not right. From this point of view, doing right things is the basis of doing things in right way. Continuous improvement of management is to ensure that every employee is doing right. Speed, innovation and SBU Since 2002, Haier’s development theme has been Speed, Innovation and SBU. Speed helps create customer resource. In other words, Haier wants to be the early bird catching the worm. Innovation is to help customers create value provided customer resource is ensured.If every employee becomes a SBU, loyalty of customers will be achieved. Speed Why speed? The fantastic efficiency of the Internet makes us believe that slow players will sure fail. Those who have no relation with the Internet will be washed out. Those using the Internet in business practice but having weak competitiveness will also be eliminated from the competition in the marketplace. Speed plays a significant role in order acquisition, fulfillment and follow-up service. Aim of fast speed Fast speed is aimed at realizing zero stock, zero distance and zero operating capital. Innovation Why innovation? In current depressed market, fast speed is gained by innovative thinking and spirit.The obtained market shares cannot be continued if no innovation is pursued. During the innovation process, innovation should be combined with speed. The decentralized organizing structure is aimed to get the enterprise involved in the market practice. The entire process of management and production are concentrated upon satisfying the needs o f both market and innovation. How to help customers create value by innovation In current network age, value of customers is realized by two methods, ie. customization and globalization. In the current market where supply exceeds demand, buyers have more options. Only those who satisfy their individual demands will be chosen by the buyers.Aim of innovation: acquisition of valuable orders under the following conditions: Essence of innovation Approach of innovation: innovative simulation and introduction. SBU What’s SBU? SBU is an abbreviation of Strategic Business Unit If not only every division, but also every employee is a SBU, Haier’s business strategy will be carried out and shouldered by all employees. At the same time, the innovation of every employee will ensure that Haier’s strategy is successfully implemented. Why SBU? SBU is a carrier of efficient and innovative performance. Those who do not pursue fast speed and innovation are not SBUs. Managers have t o fulfill business assignment.If subordinates are not SBUs, the enterprise cannot satisfy individual customer needs. In other words, what SBU demonstrates is fast speed innovation. With this philosophy, Haier’s objective of fast speed innovative production is quantified for every employee. As a result, every employee will have to carry out technical innovation for production or management efficiency improvement for customer need satisfaction. Haier’s One-Stop service and B-to-E process is in operation to optimize customization production. How to become SBU? Four essential requirements are market objective, purchase order, sales achievements and market reward. These are goals of the company to achieve and break down for every employee.Market objective: competitive power with fast speed creating customer resources Purchase order: acquiring valuable purchase orders with innovative technology to achieve market objective. Sales achievements: quantitative data on customer sa tisfaction gained by order fulfillment and displayed by the company information system Market reward: pay allocated from additional income created by marketing performance and used as incentive for employee enthusiasm in better performance Function of SBU What does SBU mean to the company, employees and customers? To employees, SBU means innovation, and employees will demonstrate their values by helping customers create values.To the company, SBU means corporate competence, which cannot be copied by competitors if every employee becomes a SBU. To customers, SBU means a network age and loyalty to the manufacturer and its brand. If every employee carries out innovation, customer demands can always be satisfied. Features of SBU Feature 1: Only marketing target and position, not senior management or subordinate, considered in business practice. Feature 2: Only market changes, not time to start nor place to finish, focused upon for innovation. Feature 3: Only competitive end market could we are encouraged by to energetically and efficiently realize our ambitious goal. Go abroad; go localized, go up to a higher level – globalized Haier. First difficult, than easyBuild name brand in developed markets and then expand the business into developing markets with little resistance. Without domestic market, business is rootless, without international market, business is weak Without domestic market, business is rootless, without international market, business is weak. If a business is uncompetitive in the domestic market, it is impossible make its way into the international market. However, if a business is successful only in the domestic market, the superiority won’t last long. Haier has experienced a tough time when starting to go abroad. Some asked the question what is the point to seek for a bone abroad when there was easy meat in China.The truth is when all are fighting over the same piece of meat, there will be nothing left but the bone in no time. A bus iness like Haier should actively take part in the global competition. Three 1/3s 1/3 made and sold at home 1/3 made at home and sold abroad 1/3 made and sold abroad Three-in-one localization Three-in-one localization: Haier has its technical development centers, manufacture bases and trading companies set up overseas to enable localized operations with respect to design, manufacture and marketing, among which are Haier America, Haier Europe, Haier Middle East, Haier Southeast Asia, and more. Case study Acquisition of Italian refrigerator plant June 19, 2001.The signing ceremony of Haier acquiring an Italian refrigerator plant was held in the central building of Qingdao Group. The acquisition marked the successful three-in-one localization (localized design, manufacture and marketing) in Europe after the United Sates. The Italian plant was located in a geographically convenient area together with many plants from famous manufacturers like Whirlpool, CANDY, Zanussi, etc. The project w ould bring Haier â€Å"three windows† and â€Å"two radiation effects†, i. e. windows of information, technology and purchase and marketing radiation from Italy to the rest of Europe and product radiation from refrigerator to the rest of product mix.The transnational acquisition provided Haier a white goods production base in Europe as well as access to local manufacturer association and local information, paving the way for integrating of funds, intelligence and cultures and building a world-class brand. Haier believes that internationalization is supported by three-in-one localization of design, manufacture and marketing. The key to internationalization is making use of local funds and human resources. Integration and creation Integrate funds, intelligence and cultures to create a world-class brand. Three internationalization steps Internationalization of management system – to build up employee loyaltyInternationalization of service – to build up custo mer loyalty Internationalization of brand – to build up international competence Five globalization strategies Globalization of design In order to maintain the competitive edge in the international market, Haier has set up 18 design centers worldwide to consolidate resources from developed countries. Globalization of manufacture Haier has set up 10 industrial parks worldwide and 22 plants overseas, making Haier a global manufacturer and enabling prompt action to satisfy local user needs for quality Haier products which in turn greatly provides great support for Haier to achieve its goal of world-class brand. Globalization of marketingHaier has 5,000 overseas retail outlets and over 10,000 service centers all over the world. The principle of interaction, development and innovation has been uphold in the course of globalization, e. g. , the best practice of Haier America is shared with Haier Europe, and the successful marketing of Haier Europe is introduced to Haier Middle East , opening up a vigorous prospect of global marketing. Globalization of purchase Public bidding and online purchase are carried out via Internet. A strategic partnership has been established with best global suppliers, who also participate in the front-end design of Haier products. Globalization of capital operationBy virtue of its experience in manufacture industry, Haier has made its way into finance industry Up to now; Haier has invested in Qingdao Commerce Bank and Chang Jiang Securities and is also running an insurance agency, a life insurance joint venture and a finance firm. By taking 50% shares of Haier Electronics Group, a company listed in Hong Kong, Haier has laid a solid foundation for its further movement to the international capital market. Co-optition Co-optition is the strategic trend of corporate globalization in the 21st century. It is based on competency complementation which is enabled through exchange of resources and aimed at win-win cooperation. On January 8, 2 002, Haier announced the co-optition with Sanyo Japan.Later on February 20, 2002, Haier announced the co-optition with Sampo Taiwan Go abroad; go localized, go up to Haier level Go abroad: go to mainstream markets in mainstream regions; Go localized: be admitted into mainstream channels selling mainstream products; Go up to a higher level: be a mainstream brand Haier in Pakistan Haier is now widely recognized in the world. From the latest statistics of Euro-monitor, Haier was placed fifth for the global white goods manufacturers with the largest world market share for refrigerators. In the list of the most respected companies in Asia and Pacific Region published by the Far Eastern Economic Review issue December 26, 2002, Haier was placed first.Haier’s production and management system restructuring has enabled Haier to diversify internal and external resources. At pre0sent, Haier has put its worldwide logistics, distribution and manufacturing facilities into efficient operatio n for customer demand satisfaction. Haier’s goal is to obtain worldwide recognition and to become one of Fortune Global 500. |[pic] | |†Haier objective: Before selection of products you have many choices in the | | | |market but Haier is the name of trust confidence in the world†. | |Chief Executive | | | |Mr.Shah Faisal | | | |[pic] | |â€Å"We would like to work fast†. Haier is not only competing strictly on price but by | | | |winning market shares through user friendly design, innovative features and top | | | |service for a wide range of appliances and consumer electronics. | |Country Manager | | | |Mr. Faraz Fiaz | | | Haier Pakistan is the Pakistan Sales & Marketing division of the international Haier Group, a globally recognized manufacturer of world-class electrical home appliances.The joint venture between Ruba General Trading Company and Haier Group of China has brought Haier to Pakistan with an initial investment of about US$35 million and a com mitment to provide world-class innovative products based on uncompromising quality to the Pakistani consumer. The plant spreads over a vast area of 63 acres with a covered area of 0. 6 million square feet including a workers’ colony on Raiwind Road, Lahore. The project is expected to produce 0. 9 million pieces of household appliances per year with plans to export to the Middle East and all over Asia. In the first year of its operations, Haier will generate employment opportunities to 600 individuals with potential to grow up to 1200 within the next 5 years. Furthermore, Haier will supplement income of 1000 to 1500 families providing indirect earning and employment possibilities.The roster of products to be launched immediately in Pakistan includes Refrigerators, Air-Conditioners (Window & Split), Deep Freezers and Washing Machines, Microwave Ovens and Small Appliances with Dishwashers, Vacuum Cleaners, Television Sets and Mobile Phones to follow shortly. Haier Pakistan has e ntered the local market with a commitment to help its consumers reap the benefits of modern lifestyle and to provide them world-class innovative products, unmatched nationwide customer support, a vast dealer network and a steadfast after- sales-service throughout the country. (â€Å"About Haier†) Evaluation of HR Department As discussed in introductory portion of this project, we have divided evaluation task in different functions.The division is as following †¢ HR Department †¢ HR Planning †¢ Analysis and Design of Work †¢ Recruitment and Selection †¢ Training and Development †¢ Performance Evaluation †¢ Compensation and Benefits and Safety To get information about all above, we had to interview someone. For this, we got honor to meet Mr. Mohammad Asim Amjad, the HR administrator at Haier HR Department. We asked different questions about each of above functions from Mr. Asim. We recorded that interview, and also got important notes on spot. HR Department What is the structure of your HR Department? On the top of HR department is a General Manager Human Resource followed by a Senior HR manager.Then after it, there is an HR Administrator. Below, the HR administrator, there are HR executives for Recruitment and selection, training and development, Performance appraisals, and compliance. There are also HR officers for Recruitment and selection, training and development, Performance appraisals, and compliance, which work under relevant HR executives. There is also an HR assistant, which only assists Manager Human Resource. On administration sides, after them, there are Labor Officers, and then there are two administration officers, which are followed by a whole team. One administration officer deals with construction, plant, etc, while other deals with Govt. agencies etc.How many people are working in your organization, how many of them are permanent or otherwise, how many of them are on managerial positions and how many a re otherwise? There are Approximately 1200-1700 staff in total. There are 100-1500 workers and 200 managerial staff. The amounts of workers vary according to season and currently it is not season, so we are having only 1000 workers. In the HR Department, there are approximately 10 people required, but they still do not have complete ten and are still recruiting for other. There are more than 100 people in administration staff. The HR Department is merged with Administration department at Haier. We are also planning to install a new production unit, and we need approximately 100 more workers for this.What is your and other HR staff’s qualification? I have personally done MBA in Human Resource Management. Our Senior HR Manager is also as MBA in Human Resource Management. Some of our other HR officers are also MBA, while some of them are BBA, or Simple graduates. Our General HR Manager, who also looks after Finance matters, does not possess any formal degree in Human Resource Ma nagement. He is doing it by his experience. To Whom your HR Department Reports to? And how other people contact your HR Department? Our HR Department is headed by Finance Manager, and he only reports to CEO. So, Our HR Department Reports to CEO of the company. We have divided contact system according to function.It means, if an employee has some problem regarding performance appraisal, he will contact the relevant HR professional. Now, it is not true that is a professional is not on seat, the work will not be done. Another HR officer will have to accommodate according to the situation and will have to do the desired work. Are your Policies properly recorder/written? And do you properly communicate these policies to other departments? If yes, then how? Yes we do have properly written and documented HR policies in our Department. We give proper code to every policy, and its effectiveness date is also mentioned. (Annex 2. 1). Also, we properly communicate these policies to other depart ment. We also have a document regarding this communication.In that document we have mentioned, that which personnel of a department is going to receive a copy of the policy. By this, we make sure that only relevant personnel are given the policy and it is properly communicated to all departments. (Annex 2. 2) Limitations and suggestions: †¢ First of all, we have a problem with current HR structure. The General Manager of Human Resource Department is also looking after Finance Department. HR is a vast function and separate personnel should be there to look after its functions. Also General Manager HR does not possess any formal degree in HRM. So first of all, there should be separate heads for both HR and Finance Departments. Secondly, there should be a General Manager HR, who should be formally trained in HRM. At Haier, Administration Department is merged with Human Resource Department. They are doing it to reduce their costs. But HR functions are so wide that they should be se parated from administration functions, and so is the case with administration functions. HR Department should be separate from Administration Department. †¢ There are less than enough HR professionals in the Department. They still need some more professionals to divide work. As long as we know, the person we interviewed, has also resigned. So they should do something to keep their quality HR professionals intact and should try to hire new ones as required. HR Planning Do you believe in planning? Yes of course, Planning

Debeers Case Study/Pov

C. Lo April 11, 2013 DeBeers Consolidated Mines Ltd. 1st POV Situation: DeBeers Consolidated Mines Limited (DBCM) occupies a major presence in the diamond industry. Discoveries of diamonds in the late 1800s were pioneered in South Africa, in which DeBeers held a heavy monopoly over. Since then, they have cultivated an impressive track record and leadership position. The Central Selling Organization (CSO) controls and regulates the flow and sale of rough diamonds, and was acquired by DeBeers in the 1930s. Due to a stable economy both locally and internationally, DBCM was the world’s largest producer and distributor of diamonds in late 1998.However, just before the turn of the century, globalization and developments in international markets had affected all industries of business. This enlarged economy attracted and enabled emerging and junior companies to increase mining competition. Demand for this area of commerce became subject to volatility due to market expansion, in addit ion to the fact that continued existence of such a market was solely linked to disposable consumer income. Problem: The problem at hand concerns the degree of control over rough diamonds and the industry.With increasing market placeholder and pressures from emerging competitors and the attention brought to regulating environmental impact of diamond mines, DeBeers needed to secure their place in the industry and do it without losing significant margins of profit or resources. By 1999, DeBeers Consolidated had a notorious name and major domination of the rough diamond market, with over half of the world’s rough diamonds mined by DBCM, several joint ventures with non-competitors, unparalleled knowledge and assets, and control of over 70 percent of all diamond sales worldwide.DeBeers needed to differentiate themselves from new entrants as well as establish a secure route of long-term control over their precious commodity. Cause: As previously mentioned, the turn of the century ex perienced increasing globalization of the marketplace for not only diamonds, but also all other commodities. This had both positive and negative effects on business. Centralizing focus on the aspects that raised concern were the unfamiliar position of vulnerability in a market DeBeers had dominated for years, as well as the demolition of barriers to entry that existed prior to the market expansion.Remarkably, the aging diamond industry actually produced increases in the prices and value associated with diamonds. Clever promotional and marketing campaigns were the major source of both domestic (U. S. ) and international success in the sincerity and symbolism of what a diamond represented – love. Though DeBeers essentially pioneered the entire culture and reputation of the diamond, the legwork was already done for emerging and junior companies trying to get in on the train of success and profit that DeBeers had trekked alone on for nearly a century.Uncertainty of demand with su ch an increase in possible demand location made for rising concern over the control DeBeers had been used to. Alternative Solutions: 1. The first solution is to continue with what they are doing presently. Without suffering significant losses and without any real singular threats in the realm of competition, DeBeers could exist and continue to be the dominating presence in the diamond industry with their extensive track record and what one asset that no company or amount of time could take away from them – their name.The brand of DeBeers has been generated over years through being in business as the industry leader, through upholding the position of premier diamond resourcer both in domestic and international markets, and for coining the creation and reputation of what the diamond represents is infallible. Continuing on this road with their secured allies, assets and realm of control is more than enough to keep their company a household name. 2. The second solution is to simp ly repeat history.In the past, when presented with a threat like that of the discovery of mines in Siberia, DBCM dipped into their comfortable cushion of finances and bought up all inventory from Russia. This way, DeBeers kept relatively complete control over the diamonds, and swiftly eliminated any possibility of an environmental industry threat toward their future profits, resources or market share. To be straightforward, DBCM decided to follow a motto of â€Å"rather than compete, make sure to make threats obsolete. † Along the same lines, DeBeers also has a history of making alliances for their monopolistic enefit. In the event of mining resources in Botswana, Africa, government 15 percent share was made in DeBeers in 1969. The government licenses that DBCM had compiled over time gave them necessary access and authority to set mining firms in a country where mining availability was plentiful, but availability of entry and control like that of what DeBeers had generated, w as not. 3. The third solution is to liquidate those assets or areas of the company where industry benefit was incomparable to the kind of revenue that the retail and raw diamond sectors brought in.For example, we will turn to what the present economies of countries where DeBeers has a hand in the market, and what the future of those economies looks to be. Asia, China specifically, has a stable economy with the potential for continuous growth, and a future of prosperity where the DeBeers marketing campaigns could be highly successful. With a consumer-base that is likely to have the disposable income to spend on commodities like diamonds, it may be wiser to concentrate efforts in Asia.On the other hand, both the present and future state of the euro is volatile. With such a great deal of uncertainty, it may be conducive in the long run to pull out of the European market, or at least in areas of the market where the future of currency is vulnerable to a decline in value. Decision: The b est alternative solution would be the third, to move away from markets where the economic state is either currently or heading towards instability, and to move toward those markets where the state of the economy is growing with promise for future stability.In comparison to the other alternatives, the third is more practical. Because uncertainty and volatility are the very aspects causing concern over the best course of action to be taken, the third solution actually takes action and implements both the opportunity for high risk and high reward. Pulling out of a market is not a move that DeBeers is used to, however, finding themselves in a sinking economy where losses could be more detrimental the longer they try to hold on could cause a major financial upset.Similarly, acquiring inventory or means of control over resources or markets does not necessarily mean the facilitation of revenue. Though giving up market control in one country would mean freeing up space for competitors to ga in control and so forth, profit, DeBeers can focus their energy on generating revenue in growing economies, and making their presence in those financially-stable countries that much stronger.Action Plan: Stakeholders, specifically shareholders who may have been originally attracted to invest in DeBeers due to their massive scope of control over the diamond industry, may not be welcoming to the idea of forfeiting control in some markets, however if they choose to stay on board, a year or two of focused campaigning and profit-generating in countries with growing economies can give them peace of mind. One way of keeping those control-driven shareholders on board with the idea is to share financial forecasts.Breaking the plan down into parts where stakeholders can visually see where costs will be cut, where assets will be allocated, and where revenues will be made could facilitate trust and loyalty to the go with this third alternative solution. Assembling a team to do just this would b e the first step in assuring stakeholders that it would be in their best interest to keep with DeBeers. This team would also be responsible for detailing DBCM’s annual 10K so as to keep financial stakeholders in the know of capital-related progress.Success would be determined by not only profit margins, but visualization of presence in these growing markets. If DeBeers has the ability to build more locations that generate community recognition and acceptance, it will show that planned focus in concentrated areas can be beneficial. References: http://www. businessinsider. com/history-of-de-beers-2011-12? op=1 http://www. bloomberg. com/quote/DBR:SJ http://hbr. org/product/de-beers-and-the-global-diamond-industry/an/905M40-PDF-ENG http://www. studymode. com/subjects/de-beers-consolidated-mines-page1. html http://www. slideshare. net/packetsdontlie/analysis-of-debeers

Article # 4 (due 10-12) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Article # 4 (due 10-12) - Essay Example Provider operational issues arise as a result of the huge consumption of energy because some departments in the health care providers may require more energy than the other department. This is because some department may use more advanced machinery than others. According to the study work of Brimmer (2012), 76 percent of the health care provider’s finances get used to provide energy to the facility. This puts pressure on the management to find other sources of finances to facilitate the operations of other department. From the financial records of most health care facilities, lighting of the facilities and machineries also uses prodigious amount of energy this makes the operations department of the health care provider to use lighting conservation features. Focusing too much finance in one area depletes the finances of the health care providers hindering the other departments from working properly (Brimmer, 2012). Energy being a core aspect in the organizational operations, it is essential for the management to use energy saving tips to reduce the amount energy in

Analysis of Social and Health History Data for Older Persons Essay

Analysis of Social and Health History Data for Older Persons - Essay Example Moreover, the psychological changes among others are all problems associated with old age. The major changes that individuals face include adjustment to retirement, reduced income, and the use of leisure time. We will carry out a critical analysis of comprehensive social and health history data for two older persons. In this regard, one older person considers she or he is healthy’ for this stage of their life. Conversely, the second older person considers him/herself as experiencing ill health and/or a dysfunction. The potential health problems, demonstrate differences in these two persons’ social and health histories. Analysis will also be made on how these health problems impact on their quality of life and lifestyle. The person who will consider that he/she is healthy to this stage will react positively to changes. They will accept the fact that as the functions of the body changes, a healthy mental attitude helps a person to maintain a zest for living. This will fre e the person from monitoring changes and enables the person to seek medical care, hence adjust to personal lifestyle. This person will struggle to stay physically healthy by changing the poor health habits. Such habits include avoidance of negligence and body exercise that slows down the aging process. This postpones physical symptoms of aging such as heart failure, stroke, hypertension, and arthritis. Exercise will stimulate the mind and lessens premature dependence on others thereby improving the overall quality of life. This person with have positive social interactions that will enrich aging and can even involve themselves in community development, in volunteer activities, or even close family ties. All these provide enjoyment as a person ages. Ericson (1950) theory, Ego integrity versus despair, involve coming into terms with one's life. Any form of ill health can easily be dealt with, and these persons live long than expected. It is important to note that the adults who get to a sense of integrity feel whole, complete, and satisfied with their achievements (Martin & Kinsella, 2004, p.90). On the contrary, these other older person who considers he/she is experiencing ill health and/or dysfunction. These persons take the aging process negatively and lacks acceptance. At this stage, despair comes in and they feel they had made wrong decisions. In such a scenario, the time is too short to find an alternative route to integrity. Without another chance, these persons find difficulty in accepting the closeness of death and overcome with resentment, defeat, and hopelessness. These attitudes expressed as anger and contempt for others disguising contempt for oneself. These persons tend to have a faultfinding behavior with a tendency to blame others for their personal failures. They also have regretful view of their own life reflecting with a great sense of despair. These people will just lie down on their beds and start complaining. They get more prone to aging di seases as stroke, hypertension, heart failure, arthritis, and they lack the strength to struggle with such diseases. They die within a shorter period than expected. Compare the similarities and differences in the chosen health problems Similarities in these two persons are that they are both older persons thus exposed to illnesses associated with old age. Such diseases include omega 48 blood disorders, neurological disorders, and respiratory

The Significance of the Abrahamic Covenant for Israel and Its Impact Research Paper

The Significance of the Abrahamic Covenant for Israel and Its Impact on My Life - Research Paper Example Although the Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional, one of its aspects is in fact conditional – the Land aspect (Leigh). Nevertheless, whether unconditional or not, all three aspects of the Abrahamic Covenant bear a great significance to the nation and people of Israel and to my life as well. The Abrahamic Covenant is in fact stated in five major passages in the Old Testament Bible (Raddish 42). The first is in Genesis 12:1-3, 7, where God first showed favor to Abraham. This is followed by Genesis 13:14-17, where God expanded his promises to Abraham concerning his descendants and the land they will own in the future. The third passage is Genesis 15:1-21, where there is a formal binding of the covenant between God and Abraham. In the fourth passage, Genesis 17:1-14, the covenant was reaffirmed. Finally, in Genesis 22:16-18, the covenant was restated by God with finality, after Abraham has proven himself worthy by attempting to sacrifice his own son Isaac for God at Mt. Moriah. (4 2) It is a fact that there are three elements in the Abrahamic Covenant – the seed of Abraham, the universal blessings of God, and the land that Abraham’s descendants will own. ... With Abraham, God promised, â€Å"But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year† (Gn. 17:21). This particular promise God fulfilled when He tells Isaac, â€Å"Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you [and] I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky† (Gn. 26:3-4). After Isaac has passed away, God renewed the covenant with Jacob when He tells the latter, â€Å"All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring [and] I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land† (Gn. 28:13-15). What Jacob may have perhaps did not anticipate or did not clearly understand was that when God said, â€Å"I will bring you back to this land,† He meant that the descendants of Jacob will first be enslaved in Egypt before they were to return to Israel. Nevertheless, with only his faith to guide him, Jacob repeated this to his son Joseph when he tells him, â€Å"God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land and there he blessed me and said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and increase your numbers† (Gn. 48:3-4). The events that followed this included the famine in Israel which forced Joseph’s brothers to flee to Egypt, the slavery that the Israelites experienced under the Egyptian pharaoh, and their eventual deliverance through Moses. However, the ultimate success of the Seed aspect of the covenant comes before the exodus. This is stated in the Book of Exodus: â€Å"The Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land

To what extent can the Olympics, help to regenerate an urban area and Essay

To what extent can the Olympics, help to regenerate an urban area and produce lasting benefits Give reference to at least two - Essay Example The International Olympics Committee, the task of which is to evaluate the facilities of each city that bids for holding the Olympics, thoroughly examines the sustainability, accessibility and integrated city development (IOC, 2005). The Report of the IOC Evaluation Commission for the Games of the XXX Olympiad in 2012, for example, stresses out that even bidding for holding the games helps candidate cities to develop positive legacies from the bid, no matter whether the city is awarded the Games or not (ibid). Therefore, it can be said that even an attempt to hold the Olympic games positively influences urban areas in terms of infrastructure, accommodation and technology development. The following factors are evaluated by the International Olympics Committee when choosing a host a city for the Games (IOC, 2001): general national, regional and candidate city characteristics legal aspects customs and immigration formalities environmental protection and meteorology finance marketing spo rts & concept paralympic games Olympic village medical and health services security accommodation transport technology communication and media services olypmism and culture guarantees Consequently, keeping up high standards and complying to the requirements of IOC and International Sports Federations regarding urban development becomes a priority task for each city attempting to stage the Games. After 1960, Summer and Winter Olympic games became extremely visible in the sports world events and started involving large-scale transformations of urban areas, which, as a result, lead to more intense regional development. Advanced transportation facilities and even multiple Olympic villages have become the features of contemporary Olympic games (Chalkley and Essex, 1999). A bright example of how holding the Olympics can change a place is Park City of Utah. From a hill-side mining town, which it originally was, Park City became an internationally acclaimed arts center and a popular tourist ic destination (Arias, 2010). The city’s design and architecture were changed for holding the 2002 Olympic games. Lower slopes of Park City’s valley were made into easy suburban dwelling gave dramatic views of the sporting venues. Straight parallel blocks have intensified highway-to-recreation traffic, while recreational zones got combined with commercial ones, thus having extended the growth ratio of the urban plan. Today Utah Olympic Park, which was initially build in preparation for Winter Olympic Games of 2002, is a popular place used by Olympic and development level athletes as a training center. In addition, the Games gave the city such facilities as 2002 Winter Olympics and Ski Museum, a day lodge, a splash pool, ziplines, and a mountain coaster, among others. On this matter Jill Adler (2010) writes that holding the Games contributed to the growth of Utah’s tourism and convention industries, as well as facilitated economic development. The 29,000-square-f oot three-story building of Park City’s Sports Park is holding a museum, an Olympic highlight gallery, a cafe, a retail shop, a research library, sports exhibits and decks for watching freestyle training areas. Furthermore, the park is frequently used for music, lecture and film series, as well as hosts weddings and banquets (Grass, 1999). Therefore, reconstruction of the city in preparing it for the Olympics has improved the area’s economy and made a small mining city a center for sports, culture and

International Business Practices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

International Business Practices - Essay Example The penetration of the company into the global market is facilitated by its market entry strategy which is licensing. When deciding to expand its market, Coca-cola sells a domestic firm the right to use the company's manufacturing process, trademark patent, trade secret, and other item of value for a fee or royalty. The organizational structure of Coca-cola is highly decentralized. The company does this by "cutting half of the staff at its Atlanta headquarters and moving the regional chieftains closer to their local market" (Organizational Structure 2003). This management structure is observed throughout the firm's international operation. In India, the managers have been given the authority to implement decision within their scope of responsibility. This type of organizational structure supports the primary market entry strategy of Coca-cola as discussed above. Since licensing involves little contact and interference with the licensee, the decentralized organizational structure is very conducive to Coca-cola. Dell, Inc. is one of the largest personal computer manufacturers in the world. The company was able establish in the global IT industry because of its very efficient market entry strategy. In capturing foreign markets, Dell directly invest in a country by developing foreign-based assembly or manufacturing facility.

Sustainability Project Spain Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Sustainability Project Spain - Research Paper Example This has lead to use of sustainable designs whose goals are to expose architectural solutions that guarantee the coexistence of inorganic and living organisms. Conceptual framework informs architects on the various ways to meet the goal of sustainable designs. In undertaking sustainable projects, three principles are used. The first principle aims at economizing on the resources for the architects to reduce the use of the non-renewable materials in the establishment and operation of the building. In a construction site, materials continuously flow in and out of the building. The flow incorporates the movement of materials from the industries that provide the building materials throughout the life span of the building to get a good nature that support continuation of humans as well as their activities. The second principle is the life cycle model has the support on the usefulness of resources where resources are useful depending on the area of application. The third concept of sustain able design is the humane design probably the most important of all three principles. The concept has an emphasis on the respect towards other living organisms within the ecosystem and these include plants and animals. The other two principles are not considered highly valuable in comparison to the humane design idea because they require more on the efficiency and conservation than on the ecosystem. The paper will discuss the sustainability project in Spain and the various features of the building and standards instituted by the Spanish building standards as well as the importance of sustainability in construction. In the sustainable project, in Barcelona, the building standards have to be taken into consideration, and these standards have an emphasis on the protection of the ecosystem. The standards include the energy standards, which have elevated Spain to higher grounds in terms of solar energy all over Europe.

Independence vs. Commintment (Men and Women) Essay

Independence vs. Commintment (Men and Women) - Essay Example There are a number of researches showing that this is not really the case. In fact, these researches show that there is no difference between the predisposition of men and women to be committed. Most men just like the most ordinary women, desire to be in a healthy, happy relationship. However, the difference is in the fact that men face various societal and legal barriers, and/or penalties that women do not. These barriers are the key reasons why most men tend avoid commitments first (Rudov, 2004). They are still fixing up these barriers so that when they feel ready to commit themselves, possible problems are already eliminated. Rudov (2004) has categorized the evolution of man's readiness to commit in a relationship. The picture below shows the factors men take into consideration prior to entering into a higher level of relationship. In the picture above, it can be seen that the "bachelors" doesn't get involved with women to avoid dealing with different sets of friends, extended families and other community members who are the usual members of the women's circle. Meanwhile, men in the committed/unmarried category experiences all levels of the stack. He is either seeing his woman all of the time from a separate residence or is already living with her. This level of relationship contract is a continuously evolving.

Introduction of My Proposed System Essay Example for Free

Introduction of My Proposed System Essay The rapid advancement of computers in our society has made our daily workloads easier and more accurate. With its vast development, we need to set ourselves in its change and go with its flow. It had changed the views of many people to shift or after their way of doing their task from a manual system to a more detailed computerized system. Computer makes communication easier and faster. Getting connected to different kinds of people around the web it’s not difficult anymore. Technology had innovated our industry to move progressive and competent to our society, it introduced different ways to improved life. Such an instance is the improved computation and processing of data for our daily use. Computer technology is controlling the growth of our society in terms of information systems because the role of computer is the center of the modern main technology. Computer is a programmable electronic device that performs prescribed operations on data like calculations and sorting of files at high speed. The development of the modern day computer was the result of advances in technologies and mans need to quantify. Papyrus helped early man to record language and numbers. The abacus was one of the first counting machines. Some of the earlier mechanical counting machines lacked the technology to make the design work. Technology influences the people positively or negatively depending on how people used technology in their daily lives. You can tell that it changes the views of users of information and it changes the world we live in, technically it had made our industry systematic and revolutionized. See more: how to start an essay Information Technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications. Furthermore, technology had changed continuously like how people communicate, transport products in the industry and live in daily basis. Technology is considered almost as an absolute necessity for growth and development it has a very big role in many aspects of our lives, the answers of mankind’s circumstances. Technology leads to the improvement of our lives and it make things easier. Computer systems can make our daily workloads to more accurate and easier. The basic advantages of a computerized saving deposit system are efficiency and speed. In a manual system, clients deposit their cash in saving account book and record to official receipt then recorded to Cash Receipt Book and manually posted in subsidiary ledgers. While in withdrawing, client sign up a withdrawal slip then recorded to voucher and posted in subsidiary ledgers and lastly, the cashier an cash the withdrawn savings.

Perspective of Aging Paper Essay Example for Free

Perspective of Aging Paper Essay Aging, the process of developing or growing old; the progression of changes in appearance (American Heritage Dictionary, 2007). The role of the media is to educate and inform as well as other masses; the senior population suffers greatly from negative stereotyping than any other age group. Some media outlets portray aging in a stereotypical way relating old age to death or disease. This essay reflects on how older Americans are portrayed through the different media outlets. Television shows and commercial advertisements, news and magazines are three types of media outlets that depict older Americans. Television definitely stereotypes the elderly as it relates to their mental capabilities as well as their physical capabilities. Television shows and movie roles feature senior citizens through a lens of less value placing emphasis on the burdens of growing old. These roles show seniors as passive, weak, simple minded and incapable of doing things on their own and not being able to take care of themselves. For example an older movie called â€Å"The Cocoon† depicts older adults as dying and withering away until they found the fountain of youth and things that was done in their younger years, which now is a memory suddenly becomes everyday fascinations. It is not that seniors cannot function; it is more like they chose not to. Commercials advertise senior ageing creams that get rid of wrinkles all over the body especially under the eyes showing signs of aging while hair dying products gets rid of the unwanting grey; commercials also advertise different medical devices that can help seniors move around better or pick things up from a distance without moving out of their favorite chair. There are various commercials that advertiser life insurance or burial expenses. Another media outlet that depict older adults would be radio through entertainment for example when an older adult fall, they may not be able to pick themselves up and comedians will make a joke out of it with laughter. The media has the power that will allow people to have a preconceived notion to an audience as truth; the media can decide what way of life is acceptable and what is not. Media plays a critical part in shaping and reflecting public opinion. There has been a widespread of negative attitudes about aging in print in such magazines as Time or Newsweek that displays photographs of seniors looking disoriented as if they were lost; given the impression they cannot care for themselves based on the articles content. In closing, The overall impressions that the media offers about the older adult is by emphasizing the vulnerabilities of seniors in such a manner that gives the impression that being old is the thing that we as humans most want to avoid, so beauty creams that are offered that can remove wrinkles, telephones that are made with large face buttons, hearing aids that are sold with the message that you dont know what youre missing are just selling points. Many forms of plastic surgery are supposed to be the remedy for staying beautiful and looking young; Just about anything associated with getting older is portrayed as something people dont want to happen. The unfortunate downside of this barrage of negative messaging about becoming older is that it reinforces the thought that being older is being unwanted and no longer valuable to a fast moving beautiful world of people whose desire is to stay young, fresh faced, attractive and to be old, is to not be a welcome part of this society. Individuals should value the aging process in older adults because it is an unavoidable part of life that has it own special values and can offer so many things to the younger generations no matter what stage of life one might be in. The wisdom and information of the older adult offers a calming confidence to society that beauty does come in many forms and can be expressed in many ways and that it does not have to have a sexy component to it to be beautiful and desirable. The growing numbers of baby boomers in this society is bringing a new focus on how exciting and active the older citizen can be and that the contributions to government, science and entertainment and every facet of life is enriched by those who have lived long lives and are still actively giving back to society in countless ways new and creative views of how beautiful it can be to grow older and be appreciated for who you are and not how old you are. Reference American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2007) 4th edition Houghton, Mifflin

Human Nature Theories And Leadership Styles Management Essay

Human Nature Theories And Leadership Styles Management Essay When a manager is sent from his/her home country to manage either a culturally different or a highly diverse workforce, such a manager will most likely face some problems. Some of the problems are culturally contingent. This work looks at problems faced by an American manager when he relocates to Japan as a result of difference in their leadership styles. America managers relocating to Japan are being considered in this piece of work as a result of different reasons. Japan is regarded as one of the leading economies in the industrialized world. It is the second largest economy. Japan is regarded as Americas fourth largest export market and is the second largest foreign investor in America (U.S. Department of Commerce). Trade between America and Japan has had its ups and downs due to conflicts and tighter trade restrictions by Japan. However as a result of research done, The New York Times (1991) proposed that American companies operating in Japan now face fewer trade restrictions. Also, many companies were said to enjoy lucrative returns. American companies such as IBM, Bank of America and others were regarded as successful in Japan. Japanese companies such as Toyota operating in America also send American managers that are their employees to the head office in Japan to get more understanding of the corporate culture, processes, e.t.c. All these and more have necessitated the need to look at leadership styles of both countries and try to find a model that would work for the American manager and Japanese employees he would be leading in order to avoid conflicts, lack of cooperation, tension, lack of productivity that may result from incompatibility of the manager and the employees. The topic will As earlier stated, the problems faced by an American manager who has to relocate to a branch of the company in Japan will be examined and analyzed by looking at the different leadership styles, theories on leadership and role of culture in determining leadership styles. Leadership styles of America and Japan will be identified, analysis of the link between theories with practice will be done, the possible similarities/differences he will face, problems encountered and possible solutions to those problems will be identified before arriving at a conclusion. GENERAL OVERVIEW: Different definitions of leadership have been proposed overtime. According to Hogetts and Luthans (2003), leadership is the process of influencing people to direct their efforts towards achievement of some particular goals or goals. House et al (2004) defined leadership as the ability of a person to influence, motivate and enable others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of the organizations of which they are members. Leadership style Overview The style of the leader is considered to be very important in achieving organizational goals as it can induce performance among subordinates (Barling;  Berson  and  Zacharatos). Different leadership styles have been proposed by various scholars. Two models will be considered in this work: Transformational and Transactional leadership styles proposed by James Macgregor Burns (1978) and, Directive, Supportive, Participative and Achievement-Oriented leadership styles developed by House (1971, 1974) but with focus on Houses model as this makes comparison between American and Japanese leadership styles easier. Transformational This leadership style has overtime demonstrated benefits over the transactional style in achieving organizational goals. (McColl-Kennedy and Andreson, 2002). Transformational leaders are those that lead by stimulating and inspiring their followers to achieve extraordinary outcomes and in the process, develop their own leadership capacity. (Bass and Riggio 2006). Transformational leaders inspire their followers to do more than they originally intended or thought possible. This transformation occurs through individual interactions between leaders and subordinates, especially through the manner in which transformational leaders communicate with subordinates. Transactional Transactional leaders, on the other hand, lead through social exchange. Transactional leaders offer or deny rewards for productivity or lack of it (Burns, 1978). They engage in a process of negotiation, offering subordinates rewards in exchange for the attainment of specific goals and completion of agreed-upon tasks (Bass, 1985). As earlier stated, focus will be on the different leadership styles developed by House (1971, 1974) in his path-goal theory. This was developed to explain how the behaviour of a leader affects the performance and satisfaction of subordinates. The following leadership behaviours/styles were identified: Directive Leadership: telling subordinates what to do, giving specific guidance along the way, scheduling and coordinating things to be done and, asking them to follow rules and procedures. (Yukl, 2002). This should be applied in environments where there is strong acceptance of hierarchies. (Mohr, 2010). This style increases the followers sense of security. Supportive Leadership: this involves giving consideration to the needs of subordinates, being concerned for their welfare and creating a friendly work environment (Yukl, 2002). Should be applied in environments with strong group orientation (Mohr, 2010). Participative: involves consulting with subordinates and taking their opinions and suggestions into account when making decisions (Yukl, 2002, Kreitner et al, 2002). Should be applied in environments with strong equality and individualism (Mohr, 2010). This approach works best when subordinates are experts in their fields and can give advice when needed. Achievement Oriented: involves setting challenging goals in work and self-improvement, seeking high standards and performance improvement. Also showing confidence in abilities of subordinates (Yukl, 2002). Should be used in environments with strong individualism and pragmatism where result-orientation and achievement are the main motivational factors (Mohr, 2010). LEADERSHIP THEORIES: Theories on leadership are philosophical assumptions that help leaders know how to direct their subordinates most effectively. There are various theories supporting the concept of leadership style. They aid explanation and proper understanding of leadership styles. Theories to be considered in this assignment are: McGregors Human nature theory ( Theory X and Y) Ouchis theory (Theory Z) Douglas McGregors Human Nature Theory (Theory X and Y): According to Hodgetts and Luthans (2003), Theory X and Y are two philosophical assumptions which Douglas McGregor labelled to understand the human nature. Theory X assumes that people are basically lazy and, coercion and threats of punishment are often necessary to get them to work. In this case, leadership style has to be controlling and monitoring. Specifically, the theory assumes that: By nature, people do not like to work and so avoid it whenever possible. The individual is evil and will always want to cheat. Workers have little ambition, try to avoid responsibility and want to be directed. The main need of employees is job security. To get people to attain organizational objectives, it is essential to use coercion, control and threats of punishment. The Theory Y is based on the assumption that under the right conditions, people will work hard and also seek increased responsibility and challenge. Specifically, the theory assumes that, Individuals want to respected, allowed to show initiative, and given autonomy and responsibility. Using physical and mental effort at work is as natural to people as resting or playing. External control and threats of punishment are not the only ways of getting people to work towards achieving organizational objectives: if people are committed to a goal, they will exercise self-direction and self control. Commitment to objectives is determined by rewards associated with their achievement. Under proper conditions, the average human being learns not only to accept but also to seek responsibility. The ability to employ a reasonably high degree of imagination, ingenuity and creativity in the solution of organizational problem is widely distributed throughout the population. Under condition of modern industry life, the intellectual potential of the average human begin is only partly tapped. Ouchis Theory Z: The Theory Z approach to management simply suggests that involved workers are the key to increased productivity (Workman, 2008). Ouchis Theory Z recommends how employees should be motivated for increased productivity. (Woodman/Workman, 2008). This approach promotes participation in leadership. Involvement leads to the development of trust relationships and highly cohesive work groups (this tends to compel even greater involvement). Employees will be satisfied in the healthy social environment thus created. Detailed policies and rules to govern and slow employees behaviour at work will not be needed. Employees will be trusted to do the right thing and managers, to look out for employees welfare. The result will be a level of productivity superior to that achieved at similar non-Theory Z firms. ROLE OF CULTURE In looking at leadership styles, it is important to note that culture plays an important role in forming and understanding leadership styles/pattern. Therefore, a deeper understanding of American and Japanese culture is essential in the context of this work. There are cultural differences in America and Japan and, Hofstedes dimensions; Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Individualism/Collectivism, Masculinity/Feminism (England, 1983) will be considered in understanding these differences and similarities. From his dimensions, the following index was developed: Values Country Individualism Long term orientation Power distance Uncertainty avoidance Masculinity America 91 29 40 46 62 Japan 46 80 54 92 95 Table 1: Showing the index of America and Japan using the Hofstedes dimension. Source: Adapted from Mohr, 2010. Comparator (dimension) America Japan Power distance Low High Individualism High Low Masculinity High High Uncertainty avoidance Low High Long term orientation Low High Table 2: Showing the variation between America and Japan using Hofstedes dimension. After looking at Hofstedes dimensions, main points of American and Japanese work culture will be highlighted. The table below points out the highlights of American organizational/work culture. American Work/Organizational Culture American Individualistic, self-reliant and allowed to take decisions on their own Materialistic goals take priority over spiritual values Fast work pace/tempo Opportunistic, take risks and want immediate profit Start meeting with humour, chatting and use first names Blunt, like to negotiate and get oral agreement at the first meeting Quick to hire and fire Status accorded on basis of merit/achievement and wealth. Age, seniority and gender is largely unimportant Ethnocentric and assume they are the best Specialists in their fields Japanese Work/Organizational Culture Japanese Culturally different from everyone else Have great power in conformity with Confucian hierarchy but little involvement in daily affairs of the organization On appropriate occasions, policies/ideas are initiated from the factory floor and passed up the company hierarchy for approval and ratification in what is known as ringi-sho consensus Collectivist and cant take decisions on their own. They have to refer back to their Head Office. As a result, dont make decisions in the first meeting Vague; not direct/blunt. Dont want to lose face or have their feelings hurt Life-long employment with organization Generalists, not specialists Life-long job rotation Table 3: Lewis (2006) After the review of leadership styles and theories, and culture of America and Japan (both generally and within the organization), leadership styles in America and Japan will now be analyzed: LEADERSHIP STYLE IN AMERICA American leaders have a unique leadership motivation style that integrates the features which most closely fit with their cultural characteristics. Their leadership style is participative (Bass, 1990. Mohr, 2010). This leadership style matches/is in line with the high individuality and low power distance found in Hofstedes dimensions. Also, elements of Theory Y (paternalistic) and theory Z (participative) can be found in their leadership style. LEADERSHIP STYLE IN JAPAN The management style in Japan is a mix of participative and directive approach as was found in the research carried out by Spicer and Fukushige (2007). This leadership style matches/is in line with the low individuality, high power distance, and high uncertainty avoidance found in Hofstedes dimensions. Elements of theory Z (participative) can be found in their leadership style. Japanese leaders use a blend of both task-centred and people-centred approaches to lead subordinates (Workman, 2008). However, in the research done by Fukushige and Spicer (2007), it was found that Japanese employees prefer the following leadership styles: Network leadership style Protective Gender Equality RELATIONSHIP (ANALYSIS OF LINK BETWEEN THEORIES PRACTICE) Theories America Japan Theory X _ _ Theory Y Since Americans are committed to goals, they exercise high self-control. No threats of punishment are required to ensure task completion Paternalistic Theory Y where there is a mutual, two-way flow of information and influence between boss and subordinates. Seek and accept responsibilities. _ Theory Z Americans are motivated by a powerful commitment to be part of a greater whole in general, and more specifically to their organization Though individualistic, Americans derive satisfaction while contributing to their companys success. Employees seek out responsibility and strive for opportunities to advance in an organization. Both leaders and subordinates are motivated by a strong sense of commitment to be part of a greater whole (the Japanese organization in which they work). People are -satisfied when they contribute to organizational success through teamwork. In return for the organizations long-term commitment to providing job security (often for life), workers develop strong bonds of loyalty towards their employer. Communication flows between leaders and subordinates Because Theory Z is participative, Japanese organizations show continuous interaction and exchange of information and influence between leader and subordinates, as well as among subordinates. The multidirectional flow of communication n the more project-oriented Japanese organizational culture is different from leader and subordinate behaviour Table 2: Showing factors that make up theories Y and Z in America and Japan. PROBLEMS FACED: The problems that an American manager will face in Japan will basically be on the issues raised based on the theory Y which are absent in Japan. The table above gives a general overview on some issues that could be conflicting between the two cultures. Some other problems likely to be faced include: Culture Shock Conflicts in interest of the manager and the subordinate (Americans seek job satisfaction and individuality while Japanese seek personal goals achievement and collectivism). Frustration on inability to make decisions and having less autonomy. Adaptation to Japanese work/organizational culture. Inability to hire efficient staff and fire non-performing ones. CAUSE and EFFECTS OF THE PROBLEM: The major cause of such problem however is cultural differences amongst this two country as the national cultural has direct impact on citizens and affects their leadership style and every part of their lives. As a result, difference in leadership style will also cause problems. Most important effect will be the impact on performance/productivity. Positive effects will lead to improved performance/productivity and negative effects, vice versa. (McColl-Kennedy and Anderson, 2002). POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS To solve problems associated with difference in leadership style, the American manager has to be trained to understand the Japanese culture, work culture and be aware of differences that exist between the two cultures before being deployed. The following should also be done: The manager should look at researches (particularly current ones) done about leadership/leading in Japan Learn leadership styles Japanese employees are used to; their preferred leadership style and incorporate both to his/her leadership style as House and Dessler (1974) found that only leadership behaviour seen to bring satisfaction or with future potential will be seen as acceptable to employees Ask for feedback on his performance/style from employees to where and when to make changes Incorporate Ouchis theory Z (Integration) designed to make doing business in Japan easier for Americans (England, 1983). Type Z (integration) Long-run employment Job rotation in particular areas Majority decisions Responsibility for group members Develop specialists and generalists Source: Adapted from Mohr, 2010 CONCLUSION: In conclusion, leadership styles and theories have been considered both generally and specifically as it pertains to this piece of work, the role of culture in determining leadership style has been considered, problems faced have been noted and possible solutions have been highlighted. In order to cope with the conflicts/problems, solutions highlighted above should be considered. The manager should also develop trust with his subordinates as he/she might still be ineffective if the subordinates do not accept him/her.