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Managing Communications In Organizations Final Exam (3)

Managing Communications In Organizations Final Exam

Name

Institution

Managing Communications In Organizations Final Exam

Section One

Question 2

Description

Intercultural communication theory is a principle that allows people of different cultural backgrounds to interact, share ideas, and work together towards a goal (Mohan, 2008). The approach is applied when people of different cultures can interrelate and get meaning from the communication undertaken. Culture is the way of thinking and acting that is related to a particular group of people or a discourse community. The individuals in the community must have a common background. Communication is the exchange of information, whereby the recipient listens, understands, interprets, and can give feedback that creates meaning to the communicator. Therefore intercultural communication theory encourages the creation of meaning between people of different cultural backgrounds to enhance social interactions, solve problems, and promote socialization.

I applied the theory to interacting with peers in class during group discussions and in getting information that is beneficial in achieving academic success. The interactions helped in understanding people of different natures, with diverse backgrounds, and also increased my knowledge of my identity. This benefit is because most of the decisions made in life by individuals are based on their religion, culture, language, and also the status in society. Therefore, the understanding of my identity enhanced my decision-making skills, as I could ask for advice from fellow students and learn from the experiences of friends. Also, through the intercultural application, I have improved my speech through constant communication and vocabulary use from various cultural backgrounds.

Analysis and Insight

As the saying goes, no man is an island; interactions with other individuals from different cultures helped to improve skills in communication, problem-solving decision making, and teamwork skills (Dejanasz et al.,). I am an introvert, and at first, it was quite hard for me to speak to people, especially those from other communities. Australia comprises multicultural societies with many ethnic groups hence the background of students in school differed a lot.. Therefore, I was scared to talk to people, how to start, and the method of passing information to them for easy understanding. The fear was their understanding of language and scared to say something that would undermine another person’s culture. Besides, understanding the cultural setups to know how to interact with them was a challenge, thus cutting preferring silence in class.

However, I had to instill communication skills when we started the group works. The application of the intercultural communication theory enhanced my interaction with others. Through the group works, I learned how to communicate with others and work with different personalities to achieve a specific goal. Interactions during group works are also beneficial in instilling teamwork skills. The groups consisted of five to ten individuals, who are from separate ethnic groups and cultural setups. The regulations for group work is that everyone has to participate. I would watch how they handled issues affecting the group, the communication to solve problems, and slowly, I practiced the actions. I was the silent one in the group for a while, but transformation occurred.

The intercultural communication concept is essential in skill-building. Through the theory, I learned that some habits that we thought were natural in people could change and that we create the barriers for communication. Interacting with other people enables one to get new ideas and knowledge in solving problems through a different cultural way of life, and one can achieve a lot in academics and the workplace. It also reduces stereotyping, where one has a negative attitude towards a particular culture. I was surprised by how fast I learned to communicate with group members and contribute to the discussions. I expected us to perform well in the group work after everyone’s contribution and suggestions, and we did. From then on, I knew that I wasn’t naturally weak in communication but lacked the platform to learn and practice various skills, which led to developing the ability.

Improvement Plan

Culture is based on many activities and beliefs by people originating from the group. Hence before understanding the details of the culture, the first action is to avoid humor that involves a community should be avoided. Humor such as jokes or idioms can easily offend someone in the society hence destroying the communication. Also, during a conversation, requesting for clarification is appropriate rather than assuming words that have been spoken. The assumptions made may be contrary to the information intended hence lead to cultural-based conflict. The interpretation and perceiving of communicated information is a factor that leads to successful intercultural communication. Therefore, the second plan would involve ensuring an understanding of transmitted information before providing feedback to the person providing the information or any party intended.

Intercultural communication also involves non-virtual and non-verbal communication. Non-virtual are those that we cannot see nor hear; therefore, they require learning of concepts of various cultures. These are such as the use of body language and paralanguage in communication. The non-verbal involves the way of dressing, hairstyles, and jewelry, as it varies in various communities (Lecture, 5). In the improvement plan, I will strive to understand multiple Australian communities through reading and asking the involved individuals on the practices undertaken by their cultures. The ideas enhance understanding of the communities hence not easy to give information that contradicts one’s lifestyle. Also, there will be an improved flow of data due to prior knowledge. Therefore, the third plan would be to learn various cultural activities of the ethnic groups in Australia to improve my intercultural communication.

Lastly, the practice creates perfection. Hence the continued practice of listening and observing skills will enhance communication. Communication with a person from a different culture requires active attention and listening skills. Interactions with people nurture the listening skill as the discussion is only complete when one listens and understands (Wood,2011). Practicing the skill, as well as being attentive to dressings and way of life of people, also help to improve intercultural communication. Thus I will keep practicing through constant conversations with individuals.

Section Two

Question Three

Description

After the outbreak of Covid-19, press conferences increased where leaders gave reports on progress and answered questions of the citizens. Australian Prime Minister on April 21 addressed a press conference, speaking about easing some of the restrictions kept to prevent the spread of Covid-19 disease (“PM Scott Morrison COVID-19 Briefing Australia April 21 – Rev”, 2020). It was a long speech, but from an extract, he says that the government will look for areas to ease but gives conditions for the ease. These include transmission rate of less than one, continued testing and tracing and identification of risks.

The communication shows that the ease of restrictions depends on the transmission rate; hence it is still not guaranteed by the government. Morrison starts by saying that the government is looking for areas to ease, but his later statements negate the declaration, as he gives the conditions that would lead to the ease. The possible feedback would involve the time by which the ease will take place as the citizens are anxious to step out of their homes. Also, the people would remind the prime minister about the needs that make them wish for freedom, after a while of having a lockdown.

Analysis

World leaders have mastered the knowledge of effective communication due to their regular speeches to people during various circumstances. Strategic communicator is equipped with personal, business, social, and cultural literacies since they communicate to large crowds of people and require consistency of information and non-compromising information (Walker, 2011). The competencies for global leaders are evident in the communication by Australian prime minister Scott Morrison. First, in the personal literacy, he mentions that the government, of which he is part of, is trying to identify a factor that it could ease. Second, social literacy is evident where Morrison states the measures taken by the government to prevent spread and gives it as a reason not to ease restrictions yet. Through literacy, he shows that the actions implemented act to protect the individuals and not the government. These literacies provide a flow of information and ensure an understanding of the data.

In the systems-based models, there are system theories that incorporate the sensemaking concept in communication. Seven properties base the approach, which applies in conversation to create meaning to the recipient (Weick et al., 2005). The World leader speech has applied some of the properties of sensemaking to ensure there is an understanding of his intended communication. The identity construction is depicted in the first statement where there is an attachment to the government of Australia. Also, there is social property as the leader tries to explain the reason for not easing the restrictions at the moment. Communication is ridden by plausibility rather than accuracy (Lecture 9). The minister promises that the government is looking for an area to ease, but in his explanations, there is no hope for easing the factors any soon. He tries to please the citizens with statements rather than providing facts on the conditions of the state during the pandemic.

In the global leadership competence model, a leader conceptualizes the process of cultural intelligence. This concept occurs through a process where Awareness overcomes ignorance, leading to understanding, appreciation, acceptance, internalization, and adaptation. For the leader to get to the point of informing on updates of covid-19, he must have gone through the process of leadership competence. The leader first tells of the wish to ease the ban, the receivers understand and interpret the concepts; they then accept and decide to adapt after explanations of the reasons for failure to lift the restrictions.

Improvement Plan

The communication by the global leader in Australia can be well understood due to the flow of information. However, the leader starts by giving hope of easing the restrictions through government negotiation. But he is certain that the action will not take place at the time due to the transmission rate. Instead of asking a promise that may not be fulfilled, the leader should report the truth based on facts and say on the impossibility of easing any restrictions kept. With such the starting statement, the audience is aware of the situation at hand and would not be waiting for a positive response when the facts show a negative one. The aim to seek public support rather than communicate should not be kept as a priority, but the information described. Therefore, leaders need to value the wellbeing of people rather than think of the benefits they receive from speaking in public or communicating with people on the pandemic. Leaders are trusted individuals thus should be honest and base responses on fact.

The challenge that may occur is the audience thinking of the positive information provided without facts and hoping for the lift to take place. The information easily inconveniences the audience as they await for ease on restrictions. This data would also lead to mistrust in the future for leaders communicating with their audience. People judge their leaders based on their communication methods they use and the techniques applied to handle crises (Seeger &Ulmer, 2003). Due to these challenges, communication should be made to the audience that easing the restrictions will only occur when the lower than one transmission rate has been achieved. The information will also be based on facts of the prices at the moments, along with a projection of the expected time. The forecast is also calculated considering the current values of new infections and recovery data.

With a well-stipulated communication having evidential proof, the audience is satisfied with the information received. It also saves time for the ‘why’ question since incomplete information has to accept the why question to find explanations. The communication with statement ensures that the leaders are respected, and positive response of contentedness received due to complete receiving, understanding, interpretation.

References

Dejanasz, C., Dowd, K., & Scheider, B. (2014). Coaching and providing feedback for improved performance. In Interpersonal skills in organizational (pp. 410-446) McGraw-Hill education.

Millar, k. (2012). Cultural Approaches in organizational communication: Approaches and processes (6th ed., pp. 81-89). Wadsworth Cengage learning.

PM Scott Morrison COVID-19 Briefing Australia April 21 – Rev. Rev. (2020). Retrieved May 1 2020, from https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/pm-scott-morrison-covid-19-briefing-australia-april-21.

Seeger, M. W., & Ulmer, R. R. (2003). Explaining Enron: Communication and Responsible Leadership. Management Communication Quarterly, 17(1), 58-84.

Walker, R.(2011). Foundations of communication. In strategic management communication for leaders (pp. 17-37). South-Western Cengage Learning.

Weick, K., Sutcliffe, K., & Obstfeld, D. (2005). Organizing and the Process of Sensemaking. Organization Science, 16(4), 409-421. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1050.0133

Wood. J. T.(2011). Listening and responding to others (Eighth Edition). In communication mosaics: an introduction to the field of communication (6th ed., pp. 108-129). Boston, MA: Wadsworth

Work 6118 Managing communications in organization, Lecture 5: Emotions and Non-verbal communications.

Work 6118 Managing communications in organization, Lecture 9: Emotions and Non-verbal communications.

Managing Communications In Organizations Final Exam (2)

Managing Communications In Organizations Final Exam

Name

Institution

Section One

Question 2

Description

Intercultural communication theory is a principle that allows people of different cultural backgrounds to interact, share ideas, and work together towards a goal (Mohan, 2008). The approach is applied when people of different cultures can interrelate and get meaning from the communication undertaken. Culture is the way of thinking and acting that is related to a particular group of people or a discourse community. The individuals in the community must have a common background. Communication is the exchange of information, whereby the recipient listens, understands, interprets, and can give feedback that creates meaning to the communicator. Therefore intercultural communication theory encourages the creation of meaning between people of different cultural backgrounds to enhance social interactions, solve problems, and promote socialization.

I applied the theory to interacting with peers in class during group discussions and in getting information that is beneficial in achieving academic success. The interactions helped in understanding people of different natures, with diverse backgrounds, and also increased my knowledge of my identity. This benefit is because most of the decisions made in life by individuals are based on their religion, culture, language, and also the status in society. Therefore, the understanding of my identity enhanced my decision-making skills, as I could ask for advice from fellow students and learn from the experiences of friends. Also, through the intercultural application, I have improved my speech through constant communication and vocabulary use from various cultural backgrounds.

Analysis and Insight

As the saying goes, no man is an island; interactions with other individuals from different cultures helped to improve skills in communication, problem-solving decision making, and teamwork skills (Dejanasz et al.,). I am an introvert, and at first, it was quite hard for me to speak to people, especially those from other communities. Australia comprises multicultural societies with many ethnic groups hence the background of students in school differed a lot. Therefore, I was scared to talk to people, how to start, and the method of passing information to them for easy understanding. The fear was their understanding of language and scared to say something that would undermine another person’s culture. Besides, understanding the cultural setups to know how to interact with them was a challenge, thus cutting preferring silence in class.

However, I had to instill communication skills when we started the group works. The application of the intercultural communication theory enhanced my interaction with others. Through the group works, I learned how to communicate with others and work with different personalities to achieve a specific goal. Interactions during group works are also beneficial in instilling teamwork skills. The groups consisted of five to ten individuals, who are from separate ethnic groups and cultural setups. The regulations for group work is that everyone has to participate. I started learning by watching others speak. I would watch how they handled issues affecting the group, the communication to solve problems, and slowly, I practiced the actions. I was the silent one in the group for a while, but transformation occurred.

The intercultural communication concept is essential in skill-building. Through the theory, I learned that some habits that we thought were natural in people could change and that we create the barriers for communication. Interacting with other people enables one to get new ideas and knowledge in solving problems through a different cultural way of life, and one can achieve a lot in academics and the workplace. It also reduces stereotyping, where one has a negative attitude towards a particular culture. I was surprised by how fast I learned to communicate with group members and contribute to the discussions. I expected us to perform well in the group work after everyone’s contribution and suggestions, and we did. From then on, I knew that I wasn’t naturally weak in communication but lacked the platform to learn and practice various skills, which led to developing the ability.

Improvement Plan

Culture is based on many activities and beliefs by people originating from the group. Hence before understanding the details of the culture, humor that involves a community should be avoided. Humor such as jokes or idioms can easily offend someone in the society hence destroying the communication. The first action in the plan is to avoid jokes that involve cultural activities or people believing in something. Also, during a conversation, requesting for clarification is appropriate rather than assuming words that have been spoken. The assumptions made may be contrary to the information intended hence lead to cultural-based conflict. The interpretation and perceiving of communicated information is a factor that leads to successful intercultural communication. Therefore, the second plan would involve ensuring an understanding of transmitted information before providing feedback to the person providing the information or any party intended.

Intercultural communication also involves non-virtual and non-verbal communication. Non-virtual are those that we cannot see nor hear; therefore, they require learning of concepts of various cultures. These are such as the use of body language and paralanguage in communication. The non-verbal involves the way of dressing, hairstyles, and jewelry, as it varies in various communities. Understanding of these types of communication enhances intercultural communication. In the improvement plan, I will strive to understand multiple Australian communities through reading and asking the involved individuals on the practices undertaken by their cultures. The ideas enhance understanding of the communities hence not easy to give information that contradicts one’s lifestyle. Also, there will be an improved flow of data due to prior knowledge. Therefore, the third plan would be to learn various cultural activities of the ethnic groups in Australia to improve my intercultural communication.

Lastly, the practice creates perfection. Hence the continued practice of listening and observing skills will enhance communication. Communication with a person from a different culture requires active attention and listening skills. Interactions with people nurture the listening skill as the discussion is only complete when one listens and understands (Wood,2011). Practicing the skill, as well as being attentive to dressings and way of life of people, also help to improve intercultural communication. Thus I will keep practicing through constant conversations with individuals.

Section Two

Question Three

Description

After the outbreak of Covid-19, press conferences increased where leaders gave reports on progress and answered questions of the citizens. Australian Prime Minister on April 21 addressed a press conference, speaking about easing some of the restrictions kept to prevent the spread of Covid-19 disease (“PM Scott Morrison COVID-19 Briefing Australia April 21 – Rev”, 2020). It was a long speech, but from an extract, he says that the government will look for areas to ease but gives conditions for the ease. These include transmission rate of less than one, continued testing and tracing and identification of risks.

The communication shows that the ease of restrictions depends on the transmission rate; hence it is still not guaranteed by the government. Morrison starts by saying that the government is looking for areas to ease, but his later statements negate the declaration, as he gives the conditions that would lead to the ease. The possible feedback would involve the time by which the ease will take place as the citizens are anxious to step out of their homes. Also, the people would remind the prime minister about the needs that make them wish for freedom, after a while of having a lockdown.

Analysis

World leaders have mastered the knowledge of effective communication due to their regular speeches to people during various circumstances. Strategic communicator is equipped with personal, business, social, and cultural literacies since they communicate to large crowds of people and require consistency of information and non-compromising information (Walker, 2011). The competencies for global leaders are evident in the communication by Australian prime minister Scott Morrison. First, in the personal literacy, he mentions that the government, of which he is part of, is trying to identify a factor that it could ease. This information encourages the citizens of the government concern about their wellbeing. Second, social literacy is evident where Morrison states the measures taken by the government to prevent spread and gives it as a reason not to ease restrictions yet. Through literacy, he shows that the actions implemented act to protect the individuals and not the government. These literacies provide a flow of information and ensure an understanding of the data.

In the systems-based models, there are system theories that incorporate the sensemaking concept in communication. Seven properties base the approach, which applies in conversation to create meaning to the recipient (Weick et al., 2005). The World leader speech has applied some of the properties of sensemaking to ensure there is an understanding of his intended communication. The identity construction is depicted in the first statement whee there is an attachment to the government of Australia. The prime minister tells the public of the source of the message. Also, there is social property as the leader tries to explain the reason for not easing the restrictions at the moment. Communication is ridden by plausibility rather than accuracy. The minister promises that the government is looking for an area to ease, but in his explanations, there is no hope for easing the factors any soon. The leader tries to please the citizens with statements rather than providing facts on the conditions of the state during the pandemic.

In the global leadership competence model, a leader conceptualizes the process of cultural intelligence. This concept occurs through a process where Awareness overcomes ignorance, leading to understanding, appreciation, acceptance, internalization, and adaptation. For the leader to get to the point of informing on updates of covid-19, he must have gone through the process of leadership competence. The leader first tells of the wish to ease the ban, the receivers understand and interpret the concepts; they then accept and decide to adapt after explanations of the reasons for failure to lift the restrictions.

Improvement Plan

The communication by the global leader in Australia can be well understood due to the flow of information. However, the leader starts by giving hope of easing the restrictions through government negotiation. But he is certain that the action will not take place at the time due to the transmission rate. Instead of asking a promise that may not be fulfilled, the leader should report the truth based on facts and say on the impossibility of easing any restrictions kept. With such the starting statement, the audience is aware of the situation at hand and would not be waiting for a positive response when the facts show a negative one. The aim to seek public support rather than communicate should not be kept as a priority, but the information described. Therefore, leaders need to value the wellbeing of people rather than think of the benefits they receive from speaking in public or communicating with people on the pandemic. Leaders are trusted individuals thus should be honest and base responses on fact.

The challenge that may occur is the audience thinking of the positive information provided without facts and hoping for the lift to take place. The information easily inconveniences the audience as they await for ease on restrictions. The information from the leader would be made seriously hence affecting their lives. This data would also lead to mistrust in the future for leaders communicating with their audience. People judge their leaders based on their communication methods they use and the techniques applied to handle crises (Seeger &Ulmer, 2003). Due to these challenges, communication should be made to the audience that easing the restrictions will only occur when the lower than one transmission rate has been achieved. The information will also be based on facts of the prices at the moments, along with a projection of the expected time. The forecast is also calculated considering the current values of new infections and recovery data.

With a well-stipulated communication having evidential proof, the audience is satisfied with the information received. It also saves time for the ‘why’ question since incomplete information has to accept the why question to find explanations. The communication with statement ensures that the leaders are respected, and positive response of contentedness received due to complete receiving, understanding, interpretation

References

Dejanasz, C., Dowd, K., & Scheider, B. (2014). Coaching and providing feedback for improved performance. In Interpersonal skills in organizational (pp. 410-446) McGraw-Hill education.

Millar, k. (2012). Cultural Approaches in organizational communication: Approaches and pROCESSES (6th ed., pp. 81-89). Wadsworth Cengage learning.

PM Scott Morrison COVID-19 Briefing Australia April 21 – Rev. Rev. (2020). Retrieved May 1 2020, from https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/pm-scott-morrison-covid-19-briefing-australia-april-21.

Seeger, M. W., & Ulmer, R. R. (2003). Explaining Enron: Communication and Responsible Leadership. Management Communication Quarterly, 17(1), 58-84.

Walker, R.(2011). Foundations of communication. In strategic management communication for leaders (pp. 17-37). South-Western Cengage Learning.

Weick, K., Sutcliffe, K., & Obstfeld, D. (2005). Organizing and the Process of Sensemaking. Organization Science, 16(4), 409-421. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1050.0133

Wood. J. T.(2011). Listening and responding to others (Eighth Edition). In communication mosaics: an introduction to the field of communication (6th ed., pp. 108-129). Boston, MA: Wadsworth

Managing Conflict Questions

Managing Conflict Questions

Student’s name

Institution of affiliation

Instructor

Course

Date

Managing Conflict Questions

How would you describe the conflict that has arisen between the members of the Web programming department?

The conflict that has arisen between the members who had a great cohesion before is as a result of space. Even though martin who is the team leader decided on the spaces of the new office with the best intentions in mind, it seems that the members do not seem to understand any of this and they are all offended by the decisions made by Martin (Liddle, 2017). Therefore, they change their behavior as a response to the conflict which is happening.

Is the conflict a relational conflict? If so, what type of relational conflict? Is there a content dimension to this conflict?

The conflict is a relational conflict in that the members of the team no longer listen and understand each other. Even though the cause of the conflict is the space and new arrangement it still has effects on the members of the team and their personal feelings towards what is happening makes it very difficult to manage (Liddle, 2017). The type of relational conflict represented by the case presented is an improper communication relational conflict. This is because when martin divides the rooms he does not communicate to the members. The same the members do not communicate of their dissatisfaction with the new offices.

Using Fisher and Ury’s method of principled negotiation, how would you separate the people from the problem? What do you think is really, really going on in this conflict?

With the issue at hand, it is easy to use v Fisher and Ury’s method of principled negotiation. Firstly, the authors state that it is important to separate people from the issues. Therefore, in this case the members and personalities will be separated from the problem which is taking place. However, the issues at hand will be dealt with effectively. The other aspect of the conflict resolution is making sure that the interests are what is being focused on. Therefore, the people are not focused on but the interests of each person and why they have such an interest (Liddle, 2017). The next stage is generating options which can be done to make sure that the situation is better and the final part is using objective criteria in implementing the new methods which will ensure that everything needed is achieved. Separating the problem from the personalities can be difficult but majorly the most important thing is to realize that the problem in this conflict is about the arrangement as well as the state of the new office. Therefore, these issues can be isolated and resolved.

Using the Kilmann and Thomas conflict styles, how would you characterize Sanjay’s conflict style? What about Bradley’s? Do Rosa and Kris have a style as well?

Different people react differently to different conflicts. In this case different people also behave differently, for example Sanjay can be described as using the avoidance style of dealing with conflict because he is feeling irritated and he is in bad mood. When Rosa and Kris try to chat over his room he gets upset and tells them to stop. The style for Bradley is competition. This is because he feels that his needs should be looked after more. He asks for a better room from martin claiming that he is one of the oldest employees.

How could Martin use fractionation and face saving in attempting to resolve this conflict?

Fractionating is the process of cutting and dividing conflicts into smaller ones which are manageable. The first thing which martin can do under this is divide the conflicts into the working space not being likable and second the inter-personal relationships caused by lack of communicating. Further breakdown can help come up with solutions (Liddle, 2017). Face saving means that a person says something or does not say something to save the other person. In this case martin can state that it is not the fault of anyone but rather his own fault that they are divided the way they are. Therefore, he can request the members not to blame each other.

Reference

Liddle, D. (2017). Managing conflict: A practical guide to resolution in the workplace. Kogan Page Publishers.

Managing Crimes in an Organization

Managing Crimes in an OrganizationAs a business manager, fraud is one of the most common crimes that I would have the ability to prevent. Fraud in business may occur in different ways that include assets misappropriation, financial statement fraud, and corruption. Of all three, corruption is one of the biggest challenges since there is no evidence to link it with the employees; it involves extortion, bribery as well as the conflict of interests. However, corruption in the organization is not as prevalent as asset misappropriation, which makes up to 90% of all the fraud cases in the company. Asset misappropriation refers to all the schemes in which the employees exploit or steal the resources that belong to the organization without permission. An example of asset misappropriation includes stealing cash before recording, taking non-cash assets that belong to the company as well as making false reimbursement claims so that an employee can be compensated. Fraud crimes are of great concern to managers as they may lead to lots of losses to the company and also damage the organization’s image. One of the best ways that I can use to manage cases of fraud in the organization is by hiring trustworthy employees as well as experts who will help in running honest transactions. Another policy would be living to the organization’s corporate culture, which is free from fraud. Based on this, any employee who is caught to have committed fraud would be fired until the organization’s culture is upheld. Another crucial policy is setting up anti-fraud policies and fraud detection strategies and make them visible to the employees to help deter such acts of fraud within the organization.

Managing Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Managing Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Section 1

Question 1

In a crisis, businesses are affected since movements are restricted, and contact with people is also affected. However, with a company that has embraced E-Commerce, its operations will keep running online. For example, a retail business dealing in groceries, food and household products could apply e-commerce to ensure a complete supply chain even with the existence of a crisis. This is through the creation of an online platform where products are displayed, and consumers make their orders, use online payments and the products are delivered to their doorsteps or destination of choice.

In a time of a crisis, people reduce their movements to stores to purchase groceries and foodstuffs. At this time, the retail shops lack consumers visiting the shops, hence have reduced sales relating to low profits or no profits at all. The problem at hand is making products available for consumers due to the restricted movements caused by a crisis. Hence having an existing e-commerce platform becomes an excellent opportunity for the business to strive. Consumers will be getting products through online platforms, and the company will continue irrespective of the effects of the crisis. Also, with increasing competitors in the market, e-commerce is an opportunity at the moment since consumers will be attracted to faster buying procedures and simplified selection of products without any movements. Even though the crisis affects most business operations, it becomes an opportunity for the retail business to increase its consumer base and make more sales compared to the organizations relying on customer contact.

Most grocery products are perishable and need to be sold fast to consumers. The longer they stay in the retail shops, the higher the wastage rate. Groceries include cereals, meat and fish, and farm produce such as fruits, vegetables and tomatoes. Therefore, online entrepreneurship using e-commerce solves the problem of low sales due to a crisis, by making the products available to consumers. The products are acquired from farmers and industries, and the consumers are made aware of the availability of the product in their stores. The customers only have to visit the online sales platforms, identify the products they need from the stores and make an order. After ordering, payment is made online either before or after delivery of the products. This method provides an opportunity to make more sales and serve more consumers more than before the crisis. The opportunity occurs since people will be attracted to the organization making goods available for them hence choose the e-commerce retail shop. Value is the benefit received by the consumer after receiving the product. Value is created by minimizing the acquisition cost of the product, providing one-click delivery and saving time for ordering and purchasing. The unique selling proposition Is convenient and effective buying.

The direct to consumer model connects a large consumer base through one platform. This model makes it easy for consumers to know the available products and make purchases hence allowing the business to meet demands more efficiently. Also, consumption of groceries is high; thus, the purchasing frequency rate also rises. It shows that consumers will keep purchasing the products at any time. The model is beneficial as it is available every day, at any time. The accessibility to search for products online ease the customer search jobs, which increases their purchase frequencies. The e-commerce for the retail products displays the products in one unlimited self, which provides access to potential customers and covering a wide market range. Also, ordering is done with one click, which allows the purchase of a variety of products, including different types of groceries and household products.

The value provided by the retail business through online sales is an advantage to the consumers and over the competitors. E-Commerce allows the company to provide information on the value that will be received from purchasing products through the platform. This model makes it excite for consumers, unlike for the competitors in the same industry, who require customers to buy the products from their stores physically. Direct delivery to consumers saves some costs that the consumers could have incurred when purchasing hence prefer the online purchase rather than the physical acquisition of the products. The supply chain of a product is of interest to the consumers. Since the E-commerce platform provides information on the source of the products, consumers are more confident to purchase, due to the guaranteed safe products.

Question 3

In times of crisis, established incumbents’ strategies are profoundly affected because the economic status decrease and most of the operations of the company are affected. Startups indeed have an advantage over the incumbents because the business is set up using the current conditions of the market. Startups are organizations grown from a zero base. It means it has created product design and tested it in the market affected by the crisis. Hence as it operates during the time of crisis, its strategies focus on the current condition of the market.

The value proposition of an organization focuses on customer problems and needs, as well as the products and services offered. For incumbents, the value proposition had been developed before the occurrence of the crisis; therefore, the changes that occur in the economy due to the crisis profoundly affect them. Agile development also affects the incumbent and startups. Business agility allows a company to adapt to market changes that occur. For startups, it is easier to follow through the process of agility hence quickly adapt to any crises that occur. For example, Kodak was an exiting company for photography. As technological developments kept improving, digital phones emerged, thus affecting the operationality of the company. Lack of agility caused the company’s downfall.

Covid-19 has affected operations of businesses, primarily through the lockdowns and travel bans. Large corporations require developed supply chain which enhance the movement of products and services from the producers to consumers. Therefore covid-19 has paralyzed the flows of goods which ha led to decreased production and purchases. Corporations also have an extensive human resource to facilitate the production and distribution of products. Due to low income, there have been high turnover rates in corporations. This fact is because of the lack of revenue from the organizations to pay for staff salaries. Also, the demand for products and services has decreased, leading to lower production in corporations.

Businesses have had to rebalance risk and liquidity, to identify more opportunities for growth even at the decreasing economic growth. Strategies such as using online platforms for sales is now being embraced by the corporation. For example, a corporation’s websites are being used to provide information about the products and services of the organization, as well as a method for selling online. This activity is supported by the delivery of the products to preferred places. Also, changes have been made on the strategic techniques of businesses to strategize moves and create new futures for the product. The actions aim at ensuring that companies survive in the market and is not profoundly affected by the financial crisis caused by the pandemic.

The ambidextrous organization is a firm that has combined both the exploration and exploitation motives, to become more agile and adapt to the changing environment. It aims at increasing innovation strategies to make the organization have an advantage over its competitors. It also facilitates the acquisition of new ideas, technological developments, new markets and firm’s policies to ensure sustainability. The organization focuses on both the demand and products of the firm. In the current market, the firm optimizes by improving the existing products in the market. In an existing market, new products are developed, and in new markets, new technological developments are created. It explores the market to find new opportunities, which provide a framework to exploit resources.

In creating an ambidextrous organization, the focus should be on the availability of resources during the crisis time. Since the organization focuses on both exploiting capabilities and finding new opportunities, identification of the critical tasks and culture is appropriate in building a strategic organization. Due to the unrest caused in times of crisis, sequential ambidexterity is most suitable for the organization to engage in periods of exploration first, then followed by exploitation. This sequence is because there may be limited resources as caused by the crisis. Exploration first allows the identification of opportunities, which will then lead to exploitation. Therefore, the company innovates, adapt to structures, take risks and experiment, before panning for productivity and profits.

Section 2

Question 1

Blue and red ocean concept were developed by Kim and Mauborgne, to find ideas to break free. Blue ocean strategy is a concept involving the identification of a place to offer new business models and new products and service instead of using the same existing ideas. It allows the creation of non-competing product hence making competition unnecessary in the market. The strategy creates and captures new demand and breaks the value through the application of differentiation and low-cost strategies. The concept ensures that a firm exists in business independently and does not experience any threats from existing or new entrants providing the same product.

On the other hand, the red ocean strategy involves imitating or using the existing business models and plans for the creation of product and service. Therefore, many firms in the same industry are producing the same product using the same techniques. In this strategy, there is high competition, and firms exploit existing demand for the products. Also, the firms develop strategic choice for differentiation, to contrast their products with those of the competitors. There is a low rate of sustainability and existence in the blue ocean since any company which differentiates its products well gains more consumers hence dominate the market.

The value curve is a concept developed for the blue ocean to visualize the effectiveness of a firm’s strategy in the market. It is within the strategy canvas, which determines the principles to be used in a particular market. It is a graphical representation of strategies employees by a company, showing the relative performance of a company within an industry. The strategy eliminates competition as it defines the position of a company within a particular time as well as the competitive factors that make a company unique. The curve optimizes three characteristics of the blue oceans, including high offering rates, the divergent shape of the value curve as compared to those of competitors and a tagline representing new factors created.

For example, using an example of the short-haul airline industry, south-west airline graph differs from the other airlines. It means that the company has unique factors of competition and high offering levels that cannot be imitated by the competitors.

18764252798446Factors of Competition

00Factors of Competition

1323971055054Offering

00Offering

The Southwest curve varies from the other airlines’ curve hence challenging to compete with them. Other airlines can try raising the offering of some of the factors, but the Southwest airline factors offering are distributed unevenly, making it difficult to imitate.

Question 3

Mass collaboration is where organizations open up to external parties to find new ideas to develop their human resource and intellectual property. Mass collaboration is made possible through open innovation where organizations establish a more open and collaborative network-based approach to change. It is considered a step to generate innovations because it allows tapping of ideas and knowledge, resources and expertise and collaborates with the external parties to innovate and develop new ways that will help in achieving own objectives.

For example, the Samsung company collaborates with external parties through partnerships, acquisitions, ventures and accelerators. Through the acquisition of Smartthings company, Samsung aims to achieve the objective of creating new experiences n internet of things for home use. This is because Smartthings company has developed its innovations that were unique to Samsung hence collaborating with them promotes the change to create a new product or service.

However, open innovation may decrease healthy competitions in the market. This fact is because new companies will be emerging, but the existing ones collaborate with them ether through acquisition or partnering with them hence decreasing the competitiveness in the market. Using the Samsung example, Smartthings company had a competitive advantage over Samsung, but after collaboration, it loses its strength due to revealing of its intellectual property.

Crowdsourcing is the ability of organizations and individual to access global knowledge and information from various sources to help in boosting their innovation processes. It covers four areas, collaboration, funding, voting and development. In all areas, there in sharing of information and opinions under specific rules of the different organizations. Crowdsourcing encourages creativity as it taps into the crowd’s intelligence hence develop innovation strategies. It also speeds up project timelines due to accessibility of information from different organizations and social networks. For example, Wikipedia has existed in providing knowledge after collaboration with various companies and institutions. Organizations rely on the provided information for their operations.

Corporate venturing is the process where a corporate enters into a joint venture arrangement with another company to increase innovation output within an organization through capital methods and technological assets. It helps in commercializing new technology, products and services, and business models in a fast and effective way compared to when done by an individual organization. It helps to leverage new ideas and increase innovation methods hence leading to a developed market. A company engaging in corporate venturing expects to receive fund management incentives such as corporate salaries and bonus structures. It also adds value to a company through business networks and fund management experience.

Question 4

Design thinking is the methods and processes required to investigate problems, acquire information and analyze the knowledge o find solutions to the issues. A good problem statement requires to have gone through the process of design thinking, including empathy, defining, ideating, prototyping and testing. Empathy involves the questioning to understand aspects of particular knowledge, after which the needs of people are considered. After defining the problem based on peoples needs, an idea is brainstormed to solve the problem. It is then conveyed through prototyping and later tested to find feedback from the prototyping. Virtual campuses provide content of learning materials and simplify communications between participants.

However, the users experience problems such as less available content in the virtual system. The content provided in the system is limited as compared to the library, where there are a variety of books and materials that enhances researching. Also, technical difficulties occur, such as requiring high-speed internet connection or challenges of sound and vision. These problems affect students’ experiences in navigating through the online platforms hence create barriers to successful accomplishments and understanding of the course. Design thinking helps to find solutions to the problems through the provision of links to online resources and designing a virtual system that is easy to connect to and navigate.

Design thinking involves understanding, creating and delivering ideas to improve the experiences of people affected with the problems. Understanding the issues requires empathy and defining the problem. Through empathy, the students using virtual learning are strictly observed, hence identifying the challenges they go through. The students are then incorporated to describing the challenges to increase the understanding of the problem. In creation, the first component is ideating, which is the involvement of the students in brainstorming to find solutions. Then prototype the technical challenges of failure of sound and visual, in this stage, solutions such as improving internet connections, providing means for more materials. Provision of reliable internet will solve communication problems as well as prevent the technical issues that affect the students.

In the process of design thinking involving the students to brainstorm on the possible solutions provide a range of factors that can be implemented to solve the challenges. The online library is a factor that can help solve the problem of getting materials. Therefore, this is possible through the university having an existing online library, through which it can include in the virtual university learning platform. Also, the university requires to provide the online courses that do not require a lot of internal memory or a high-speed internet connection to increase the speed of navigation.

Managing Interpersonal Relationships (2)

Managing Interpersonal Relationships

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Professor’s Name

Course

Date

Managing Interpersonal Relationships

The Layers of Self Disclosure and the Appropriate Layer to Discuss on the First Date

There are three layers of self-disclosure. The first layer is referred to as the superficial layer (Masaviru, 2016). This is the outermost layer of self-disclosure where individuals reveal facts about themselves that are not threatening (Guerrero et al., 2017). Such information may include demographics such as age, birthplace, ethnicity, and gender. Usually, it is easy to penetrate through this layer during self-disclosure. The second layer of self-disclosure is referred to as the middle layer. This layer entails attitudes and opinions about things. For example, in this layer, people can share their tastes in things such as entertainment, music, and food. Lastly, the inner layer is whereby people start knowing each other to deeper levels, such as knowing each other’s personal values, secrets, goals, and spiritual values. According to Guerrero et al. (2017), people only reveal the inner layer to only trusted people. I think it is appropriate to discuss the superficial layer and the intermediate layer on the first date. It is appropriate to discuss the superficial layer on the first date since it allows people who have met for the first time to know each other better by knowing their place of birth, and age, among other demographics. When people have known about each other’s basic information, they can proceed to share their likes and dislikes, which are revealed as people penetrate the middle layer of disclosure.

Group Project

I was part of a small group that collected usable clothing and shoes and donated them to orphanages in our community. After realizing that children in community orphanages were lacking appropriate clothing during the harsh weather conditions, we joined a group of 10 volunteers and decided to collect usable clothing and shoes from members of our society and well-wishers to put a smile on these children’s lives. The end result of our group project was productive. We collected and donated many usable shoes and clothes to the two orphanages. These donations were very helpful to these children who could not afford to buy new clothes. Although I was not the leader of our group, I could tell who the leader was. When we met and came up with the idea of collecting and donating the items, the first thing that we did was to select the group leader. We needed a leader to ensure that the collected items and funds received from well-wishers were safe and used for the intended purpose. I believe that the group’s direction in completing the task aligned with how I felt the task should have been completed. This is because we engaged in an open discussion and planned our activities and how to go about each group activity. Therefore, everything that we did, we had mutually agreed on it as a group.

References

Guerrero, L. K., Andersen, P. A., & Afifi, W. A. (2017). Close encounters: Communication in relationships. Sage Publications.

Masaviru, M. (2016). Self-disclosure: Theories and model review. Journal of Culture, Society and Development, 18(1), 43-44.

Managing Interpersonal Relationships

Managing Interpersonal Relationships

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Professor’s Name

Course

Date

Managing Interpersonal Relationships

The Layers of Self Disclosure and the Appropriate Layer to Discuss on the First Date

There are three layers of self-disclosure. The first layer is referred to as the superficial layer (Masaviru, 2016). This is the outermost layer of self-disclosure where individuals reveal facts about themselves that are not threatening (Guerrero et al., 2017). Such information may include demographics such as age, birthplace, ethnicity, and gender. Usually, it is easy to penetrate through this layer during self-disclosure. The second layer of self-disclosure is referred to as the middle layer. This layer entails attitudes and opinions about things. For example, in this layer, people can share their tastes in things such as entertainment, music, and food. Lastly, the inner layer is whereby people start knowing each other to deeper levels, such as knowing each other’s personal values, secrets, goals, and spiritual values. This layer of self-discourse is rarely revealed. According to Guerrero et al. (2017), people only reveal the inner layer to only trusted people.

I think it is appropriate to discuss the superficial layer and the intermediate layer on the first date. It is appropriate to discuss the superficial layer on the first date since it allows people who have met for the first time to know each other better by knowing their place of birth, and age, among other demographics. When people have known about each other’s basic information, they can proceed to share their likes and dislikes, which are revealed as people penetrate the middle layer of disclosure.

Group Project

I was part of a small group that collected usable clothing and shoes and donated them to orphanages in our community. After realizing that children in community orphanages were lacking appropriate clothing during the harsh weather conditions, we joined a group of 10 volunteers and decided to collect usable clothing and shoes from members of our society and well-wishers to put a smile on these children’s lives. We had planned to collect these items in a span of three weeks, where we walked from door to door, collecting the items from the fortunate members of the community. The end result of our group project was productive. We collected and donated many usable shoes and clothes to the two orphanages. These donations were very helpful to these children who could not afford to buy new clothes. Also, we received some financial help from well-wishers, which enabled us to buy more clothes and donate to these children who needed them most. The orphanages we had served reached out after we made our donations, thanking us for our great work.

Although I was not the leader of our group, I could tell who the leader was. When we met and came up with the idea of collecting and donating the items, the first thing that we did was to select the group leader. We needed a leader to ensure that the collected items and funds received from well-wishers were safe and used for the intended purpose. I believe that the group’s direction in completing the task aligned with how I felt the task should have been completed. This is because we engaged in an open discussion and planned our activities and how to go about each group activity. Therefore, everything that we did, we had mutually agreed on it as a group.

References

Guerrero, L. K., Andersen, P. A., & Afifi, W. A. (2017). Close encounters: Communication in relationships. Sage Publications.

Masaviru, M. (2016). Self-disclosure: Theories and model review. Journal of Culture, Society and Development, 18(1), 43-44.

Managing, Leading and Stewardship

Managing, Leading and Stewardship

Self-Reflective Portfolio

Pre-subject Reflection

Before enrolling for this subject, I assumed that managing is all about controlling and monitoring activities and ensuring that the team members execute assigned tasks as per the instructions of instructions and decisions of the team leader. On the hand, leading entails the activities that outline strategies and a common goal of the firm and getting inspiration to achieve that common goal. That leading depends on the leader’s strategic vision. While stewardship involves not having knowledge and experience about managing and leading.

I expect the subject of Managing, Leading and Stewardship to teach me about managing and leadership concepts to help me climb the ladder of the leadership successfully. Climbing the leadership ladder entails job promotion, and it stands in for the career and life success which everyone desires. When I just read the name of the subject, I felt that I would be able to learn enough about how to tackle employee disagreements, inspire them, and lead them effectively. What I’m not sure about this subject is definitions and difference of managing, leading and stewardship, and it usually confuses me. I do hope I will be able to learn about existing differences in managing, leading, and stewardship deeply. Learning that will help me confirm my assumptions about managing, leading and stewardship. Before, enrolling this subject, I had gathered much experience in the management field by meeting various directors and managers with distinct personalities and knowledge from different companies. The experience I acquired enabled me to enrol for the subject.

As a newly promoted supervisor with only one and a half years of experience, the promotion plunged me into many challenges. The challenges that I experienced in my career included feeling pressured due to the change in my role to the managerial position. Senior employees had many misconceptions about my supervisory skills and experience, and it a challenge for me when I was promoted. In this case, I felt so pressured that I couldn’t even lead my team members. Additionally, when I had different opinions in regards to the views or strategies of the senior employees, I find them not caring about my ideas. It was, therefore, difficult to deliver my thoughts and for sure they had backups to reject my ideas. Therefore I hope the subject will help me sort such cases.

Moreover, as a recently promoted young manager, I was happy to be promoted of course, but, the issue of regional balance was pressuring me. Regional discrimination was not my appetite at all when it comes to developing employees. In our organisation, I understood that those employees from the same region with the director of the company have the upper hand when it comes to promotion in our organisation. So when I was promoted, several questions were pressuring my mind if I could accept the offer and stay in the same company or leave it and seek new job opportunities. Due to such pressures, I needed, therefore, to know what it means when it comes managing, leading and stewardship in the organisation, and I hope I will learn from this subject.

Furthermore, in the past years, the economy of China aggressively increased; hence the sales volume of our company increased. But recently, the economy has been decreasing, and it negatively reduced our sales volume, which created disagreements between the marketing and the sales department. Since I was working in the sales department as the supervisor, I didn’t know much about the marketing department. Surprisingly I did not know how to communicate with the marketing department staff to solve the issue. I hope the subject will help me understand how to tackle such a problem in our company. I hope at the end of the subject; I will be able to communicate and hold consultative meetings with my employees. The subject of Managing, Leading and Stewardship to me seems to be the foundation of the ability to work efficiently, leading and management skills, and thus I hope at the end of the subject I will have acquired them.

As a supervisor in the sales department, we had to go for overtime as a means of boosting our sales. However, the company must pay employees for working overtime as part of complying with the government directive. But, they were not paid since the organisation was focusing much on the profits. Additionally, working overtime subjected the employees more too harsh working conditions and raised the issue of safety of the employees. Despite such poor working conditions, and no pay for overtime, employees would not complain since they would be replaced immediately to prevent production interference as the company was focusing on boosting its sales volume. Such situations made me confused about how I can successfully manage and lead my team and how to ethically increase the efficiency of my employees to meet the needed sales volume. Therefore I expect this subject to help me tackle such situations efficiently and effectively for the benefit of us all that is the organisation and the employees.

Additionally, I need to learn about the origin of managing, leading and stewardship. The originality of managing, leading and stewardship and its definitions will help me amalgamate know-how in regards to leadership and the management. I also hope to understand the management power and politics. Lastly, I do hope I will appreciate some of the theories found in the subject as well as its applications and assumptions. The critical areas related to managing, leading and stewardship that are of my concern are the key differences between managing, leading and stewardship. Also understand the application of theories of managing, leading and stewardship.

Mid-Subject Reflection

At this stage of my studies, I have learnt about the theories of managing, leading and stewardship. Also, I have learnt about their definitions and differences. My earlier assumptions that I had in my mind before I enrolled for the subject have now been confirmed. But in some ways, it has been challenged. My initial assumptions about the subject clicked with those in the class resources. The class discussions, lectures, and reading have deepened my understanding about managing, leading and stewardship. The book of Ann Cunliffe and J.T Luhman (2012) have helped me increased my knowledge of the crucial concepts of the organisational theories and how they are influencing the management of the organisation. The book has made me consider the importance of understanding the organisational theories as to the foundation of managing, leading and stewardship. It has also helped me recognise that importance of experience in the corporate management practice. The book of Ann Cunliffe (2014) has helped me learn about legitimacy as the fundamental principle in organisational management. It has made me consider the significance of legitimacy in corporate management practices.

When the organisation supports and conform to the values, expectations, and social norms, legitimacy is awarded to such organisation (Cunliffe 2014, p. 88). Therefore, the organisation needs to support the rights of their employees. When employees work in a hazardous environment, their health is jeopardised; thus, as a decent leader, I believe it is our responsibility to ensure that their employees are working in a safe environment. Cunliffe (2014, p. 131) notes that employees need to be provided with a better working environment. Employees need to be protected from any form of harassment and violence. I now believe that the leader should be responsible for taking care of the employees’ health and safety apart from making profits for the company. In this case, the book has enriched my management perspectives.

According to Cunliffe (2014, p. 90), legitimacy can be derived both locally and globally. To earn legitimacy, the organisation should not push their employees to work overtime without any payment. In my supervisory role, I had been driving my team to work overtime to achieve the sales target of the company. But, now I believe that it is not morally right to push them as it is a means of overloading them and would possibly rise to disapproval and unsatisfaction of my management thus legitimacy will not be earned. In future, therefore, l will strive to ensure my employee’s welfare are well taken care of within my scope of authority in the organisation. There is also a need for paying much attention to the working environment of the employees by creating an enjoyable and relaxed working environment. Now, I do believe that focusing on the safe working environment in the organisation; helps boosts the productivity of the employees. Also, it increases work effectiveness in the organisation and reduces employees’ disagreements since it improves work discipline. Therefore, the class resource has enriched my management approach.

According to Cunliffe and Luhman (2012, p. 42), stewardship is concerned with moral responsibility and legacy benefitting the higher good of employees and the organisation and when a person does so it is because of a higher level of satisfaction. The stewardship theory has supported the concerns of stewardship. According to Davis et al. (1997, p. 20), people are naturally inspired to work for companies to realise assigned duties and responsibilities. It also argues that people are not individualistic; instead, they are pro-organisational towards the achievement of societal, group or organisational goals. It also depicts followers as trustworthy and collectivist. Stewardship theory has helped me to understand different behaviours of the management in the organisation. I now understand that as a leader, I should weigh different perspectives to arrive at the optimal decision that benefits all that is my followers and the organisation. Also, I should arrive at a management solution that promotes collectiveness and trust in the organisation since my followers will act on what I will decide. Doing so boost the moral and personal responsibility of my followers. Such resources have enriched my understanding of what stewardship theory is all about in the field of management.

According to Hernandez (2008, p. 121), stewardship promotes personal responsibility of the followers for the benefit of the society and the organisation. Building moral courage and institutional trust foster stewardship in the organisation. Therefore, I now do understand that, as the leader, promoting stewardship behaviour in our organisation helps build moral courage and personal responsibility among our employees hence boosting employee ethical practices. Leaders also need to inspire their followers to execute assigned duties effectively and efficiently. In this case, I understand the importance of stewardship in management.

According to Messick and Bazerman (1996, p. 9), today’s business management is challenged with ethical requirements. The business executives are challenged by the trade-off between ethics and profits of the company, which may result in poor decision making by disregarding other people’s welfare and interests. Also, the manager’s beliefs may affect the managerial decision-making process. Messick and Bazerman provided moral guidance to the organisational executives on how to identify unethical situations and enhance them in making quality ethical decisions. Through this book, I now understand what stewardship is that is making decisions that take care of the welfare and interests of others apart from taking care of the organisational benefits. It has enriched my understanding of what is needed when it comes to making better and informed management decisions in the organisation while tackling its challenges.

Post-Subject Reflection

After this subject, I can look back and think of my assumptions about managing, leading and stewardship and now I can see a higher level of insight of how these concepts interweave. I see my journey towards management roles in the company has been shaped significantly through different thoughts and ideas and management theories we discussed in the class, what I read and watched, and also through class lectures.

One of the business management issues currently is about the female employees taking the managerial roles which were presumed to be the roles of the male employees. During the class and group discussions, many of classmates suggested different thoughts and ideas on the issue of management discrimination and the parts of female employees. An example of such cases is that a female management team presumed that more and more companies in Australia would give an upper hand to female employees when it comes to job opportunities and promotions. The reason is that females have the upper hand when it comes to administrative positions, accounting, and human resources in such companies. Additionally, compared to male executives, female executives are much more logical as well as they can easily communicate with the employees. Before my class attendance, I was ignorant about the roles and ability of female executives and employees in an organisation. But now I feel enriched as far as female employees managerial roles are concerned. After such class discussions, I think the management team of the company should focus more on female employees and ensure gender balance is maintained. From my job experience, 70 percent of employees in the sales department were male because it involved many business trips, and the job was stressful. Due to the nature of the sales position, a large number of tasks were assigned to the male employees. Now, I have gained a more in-depth understanding on the importance of female employees in the business management; therefore, in the future, I will pay more attention to female employees, and I will give them more opportunities which include business trips. Additionally, the human resource department should now consider providing equal opportunities for female employees.

When I think of business management, I think of power and politics, and this was one of my tensions in the past, and I needed to explore more about it. In my job experience in China, it was clear that leadership of the company was all about power and politics since those employees coming from the same region with the director had the upper hand in terms of job employment and promotions since they had power in the organisation. In this case, many employees were bribing to get promoted. But now, through class discussions, lectures, and reading, I have gained a deeper understanding of what is all about management power and politics.

According to Taylor (2004, p. 7), when the organisation is systematically ruled such that it cooperate efficiently, no one can be able to compete with such an organisation. Through this book, therefore, I have understood that the leader who has the power to rule the organisation have better ability and understanding of managing and organising their organisation than other ordinary employees. Also, I now know that the organisation need to have capable employees, and they can understand the demands of their positions such that they can work effectively and efficiently. In the recruitment process, the organisation should assess the skills of the applicants and allocate them with the positions in which they well compatible. When it comes to position promotions, the employees should be well monitored in terms of their capabilities and leadership skills to enhance fairness in the promotion process. In this case, the organisation will be systematically ruled through well-written policies and procedures, and thus, the organisation will develop smoothly and gain its competitive advantage. Through such an understanding of leadership in the organisation, in the future, I would propose the company to set up a monitoring and evaluation department, which will operate independently and assess the performance of the employees annually. Additionally, the recruitment and dismissal process in the organisation should be discussed openly rather than the autonomous decision made by the Board of Directors in the organisation.

Moreover, when it comes to the management, moral principles of the leader comes in hand. Taking care of other people’s interests and welfare is a significant concern of a steward leader. According to Hernandez (2008, p. 122), a steward leadership possess good morals principles since it means a leader works harmoniously with their followers and towards a common goal. Therefore steward should balance the trade-off between making profits and taking care of the interests of the society to act morally and ethically. In this case, it has enriched my understanding of the importance of steward leadership in business management.

During my free time, while studying this subject, I watched a film titled “The Wave.” The film was released in 2008, and it is all about National Socialism in school. It depicts management theories of how people are managed. It shows the students following a teacher within two weeks of top authority. Despite the film showing various incidences of extreme power, bureaucracy, and politics, it helped me to appreciate the importance of using symbols and labels to represent the culture of the organisation and its shared values. In the past, I used to think that the organisational culture is just its formal protocols. But, now I understand the importance of shared values and sense of belonging in the organisation as I believe it makes the organisation more effective. In the future, I will ensure my employees are inspired towards that.

My Action-Guiding Principles

As I climb the ladder of leadership as a steward leader, I will consider the interests and welfare of others while making managerial decisions since it is the moral responsibility of the steward leader. In the past, I was too focused on the organisational profit motive. But now I know how to balance the profit motive of the company and the welfare of the people. I want to make quality ethical decisions to boost the ethical practices of my organisation and its sustainability. I now know how what it means to be managed and how to manage my employees. In the sales department, I will ensure that I represent their welfare and interests to the management to enhance the working standards. I want to closely work with my employees in the future by strengthening transparent communication and leadership as it boosts productivity. I will ensure the employees’ demands are well represented in the management, and each one is treated fairly in terms of promotions and work assignment.

Furthermore establishing a close working relationship with my employees enhances teamwork and collaborative working environment, which I believe it boosts productivity and effectiveness in the organisation. Therefore, I will ensure that I work closely with my employees, and I will always hold consultative meetings to discuss pertinent issues in the organisation. Doing that will enhance openness and trust between the management and the employees of the organisation since it enhances information sharing. I believe it is the best way of leading and managing the organisation since the challenges that we will face as the organisation will be solved quickly.

References

Cunliffe, A.L. and Luhman, J.T., 2012. Key concepts in organisation theory. Sage.

Cunliffe, A.L., 2014. A very short, fairly interesting and reasonably cheap book about management. Sage.

Davis, J.H., Schoorman, F.D. and Donaldson, L., 1997. Toward a stewardship theory of management. Academy of Management review, 22(1), pp.20-47.

Hernandez, M., 2008. Promoting stewardship behavior in organisations: A leadership model. Journal of business ethics, 80(1), pp.121-128.

Messick, D.M. and Bazerman, M.H., 1996. Ethical leadership and the psychology of decision making. MIT Sloan Management Review, 37(2), p.9.

Taylor, F.W., 2004. Scientific management. Routledge.

Manet as the father of modern art

Manet as the father of modern art

Manet is considered a radical artist who was truly interested in truly depicting modern life in Paris. I am of the perception that Manet is a true radical, modern artist in that he drew what he saw and not what other people wanted to see. Based on his Olympia artwork, Manet presents a nude woman, with whom is accompanied with a fully dressed maid. Her gaze is shameless and confrontational and she is more likely to be a prostitute. In the Olympia artwork, Manet forces the audience to acknowledge the changing and distasteful aspects of the modern Parisian lifestyle, an indication of realism.

The reason as to why the Olympia painting can be regarded as a depiction of modern art is because it is based on the idea of exploring new subject matter, new spatial relationships as well as new painterly values, which were a basic characteristic of Manet’s works. The nudity and the shameless gaze is a depiction of the moral values that were present in Paris by then and thus, Manet wanted his audience to have a broader thinking perspective. It is therefore true that Manet was a true radical, modern artist.

Mangroves,

Mangroves, And Mangrove Ecosystems Being Impacted by Climate Change.

Student’s name

Institution

Course

Tutor

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Mangroves are coastal trees that grow in salty water. The mangrove tree is an evergreen with several salt-tolerant species found in many parts of the world including South America, Central America, Western Africa, Eastern Africa and Asia. They can be found in oceans as well as landlocked seas such as the Black Sea or Red Sea. The Mangrove ecosystems are a vital part of our planet, providing protection against storms. Rising air and water temperatures could harm these vital ecosystems, making them less resilient and more vulnerable to damage during extreme weather events (Alongi, 2014).

Mangroves are important to the world in many ways. They help protect coastal areas, provide drinking water, and they even help mitigate climate change by absorbing and then storing carbon. Unfortunately, the impacts of climate change are making it harder for Mangroves to survive, which threatens the future of humankind. The impacts of climate change on Mangroves, and Mangrove ecosystems can be quite broad. The first impacts are a result of climate change due to rising temperatures, impacts of ocean acidification, and changes in sea level. The second impact is the natural effect of mangroves moving to higher ground so they won’t be killed by high waters. Finally, the third part is how some ecosystem services can decrease or even go extinct entirely because of climate change like the extinction rate for honeybees and formation rates for coral reefs (Dittmar, 2006).

Another major impact of climate change on Mangroves, and Mangrove ecosystems, is the reduction in tolerance of saltwater to freshwater. This means that the increased salinity can cause Mangroves to die off, and they are unable to provide a range of benefits they have historically given us. There are some ways in which marine organisms adjust though; one way is an increase in symbiotic algae that grow on these dead Mangroves. This enables them to survive both because the algae provide nutrients and shelter for the other organisms living there. Unfortunately, this adaptation does not come without risks for these organisms as well as those that live nearby; high levels of toxins from bioavailable manganese in water, released by decomposing dead Mangroves also pose a risk for surrounding marine life (Wilson, 2017).

In conclusion, a mangrove is any tree or shrub that grows with its roots in the ground but above water (in coastal regions). there are various key Impacts of climate change on Mangroves, and Mangrove ecosystems. These impacts are mainly due to the global rise in sea levels and climate change, which are both having a dramatic effect on these important coastal ecosystems. I encourage you to find out more about how climate change is impacting our planet, and what you can do to help solve this issue before it becomes too late. Mangroves are an essential part of our world’s ecosystem, so it is important that we take these issues seriously and try our best to help. Mangrove conservation may be one of the most important environmental efforts of our time. Mangroves are salt tolerant plants that grow on sheltered mudflats, estuaries and along tidal rivers and streams in tropical regions. They are called halophytes, because they grow at “high” saline levels when most plants cannot cope with this situation.

References

Dittmar, T., Hertkorn, N., Kattner, G., & Lara, R. J. (2006, February 21). Mangroves, a major source of dissolved organic carbon to the oceans. AGU Advancing Earth and Space Science. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1029/2005GB002570Alongi, D. M. (2014). Carbon cycling and storage in mangrove … – website.whoi.edu. Carbon Cycling and Storage in Mangrove Forests. Retrieved February 21, 2022, from http://website.whoi.edu/gfd/wpcontent/uploads/sites/14/2018/10/Mangroves_Alongi_D _2014_ARMS_268964.pdf Gilman, E. L., Ellison, J., Duke, N. C., & Field, C. (2007, December).

Review threats to mangroves from climate change and … – IUCN.. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://www.iucn.org/sites/dev/files/import/downloads/aquatic_botany_mangrove_artic le2008.pdf The Ocean Portal Team Reviewed by Candy Feller. (2018, December 18). Mangroves. Smithsonian Ocean. Retrieved February 22, 2022, from https://ocean.si.edu/oceanlife/plants-algae/mangrovesWilson, R. (2017). Impacts of Climate Change on Mangrove Ecosystems in the Coastal and Marine Environments of Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Commonwealth Marine Economies Programme. Retrieved February 21, 2022, from https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_dat a/file/607715/7._Mangroves_combined.pdf