Crafting Strategy Essays

Crafting Strategy Essays Crafting Strategy Paper Crafting Strategy Paper Henry Mintzberg’s Crafting Strategies is based on conclusions from decades of research that tracked 11 organizations through important moves they made in the observed period. . Patterns were marked and lumped as strategies, graphically showing distinct periods of stability, flux, or global change. (Mintzberg:75) His thesis: strategizing is more of crafting a strategy a potter shaping clay aware of her past experience and her future prospects as she performs her craft.. In contrast, the popular notion of bosses rationally and precisely plotting strategy in corporate meetings is an inaccurate depiction of strategizing and therefore misguides those who adhere to this notion uncritically. The article only seems to tilt towards an emergent approach to strategy. The author argues that a key to managing strategy is the ability to detect emerging patterns and to help them take shape. A manager’s job is not merely to see ahead but to detect patterns and get involved when the time is ripe. (Mintzberg:74,75). But Mintzberg also clarifies that all strategy making â€Å"walks on two feet: deliberate and emergent. † Purely deliberate precludes learning, and purely emergent has no control. Neither approach makes sense, which explains why strategy means emergent and deliberate behavior. (69) Mintzberg’s theory therefore also aptly captures the ideal mix of the four archetypes of Richard Whittington’s classical, evolutionary, systemic, and processual schools of strategy. These archetypes are in fact meant as conceptual reference points, set up in descriptive archetypal quadrants that are not necessarily exclusive of each other. In his interpretive article, William Sheridan aptly applied Whittington’s conceptual framework. His summary of Whittington is this: that strategic thinking requires conceptual space in which there is room for different policies, tactics, and intelligence gathering. Within each strategic space, the four archetypal quadrants each stand up for different assumptions, goals, methods, and perspectives. Sheridan translated the four quadrants into their operational core as behavioral, institutional, societal, and cognitive. He said strategic thinking now means anticipating and preparing for implications and consequences of present actions. Whether acting alone (classical), on behalf of another(evolutionary), or as adviser (processual), or as societal leader (systemic) , strategic thinking (considers ) the interests of all stakeholders to protect systemic integrity. (Sheridan: full article). Sheridan then intertwined Whittington and Mintzberg: The craft of strategy consists in identifying the mix of appropriate policies, deploying them as needed, and staying alert to the prospect that changing circumstances will require changing the mixture. Citing Mintzberg, within the context of Whittingtons four schools of strategy, Sheridan summed up that strategy is not predominantly rational modeling nor formal planning, but rather an informed overview, of which the key factor is the breadth of strategic thinking also labeled as wisdom in Crafting Strategy. (Mintszberg: 69 ) Mintzberg’s theory captured the four archetypes of Richard Whittington’s classical, evolutionary, systemic, and processual schools of strategy archetypes that characterized the potter as a craftman strategist. Theoretical Underpinnings, Assumptions on strategy, business environment or organizations of the essay : Is the author’s worldview rational or based on logic/chaos/uncertainty? Are the assumptions realistic? In the book Critical Approaches to Strategic Management by David L. Levy, Mats Alvesson and Hugh Willmott the authors concede that much current thinking on strategic management is anchored on the work of Michael Porter and Henry Mintzberg. Mintzberg and colleagues (1998) with their ten schools and five definitions of strategy. My own random survey of literature on strategic management shows the complexity of the task of selecting strategies, and the overload of very involved prescriptions and descriptions of strategy. Levy and group have panned against Mintzbergs approach for its skeptical look on established classical and rational perspectives. They note that his views miss broader issues of domination and fail to scrutinize managerial assumptions. For example, Mintzbergs view on power tends to look at this issue narrowly within an intra-organizational perspective that eschews broader social and political issues, according to these same authors. Though Mintzberg shares the basic comprehensive perspective of Whittington, I believe his school of thinking shows a palpable emphasis on the micro side of strategic management. Under his method, broader social issues affecting management concerns ( for example , current issues as the Wall Street crash and our problems in Iraq, etc) would have to be relatively relegated to the rear ground, and this may not serve the end of strategic management. Sheridan is right that in terms of social insights, critical theorists of strategic management have the edge. In the present essay, Mintzberg cited the example of GM as a large and complicated organization, describing the complexity and confusion that gets tucked under the veneer of strategic order meetings, debates, dead ends, folding and unfolding of ideas as the company pursues its strategies. (68) From its lens, Crafting Strategy sees the reality hidden in the veneer of strategic order. As a craft theorist, one would see alternately a balance of chaos or order. The craft theorist would therefore not just think of new clever strategies, but allow them to develop gradually. His strength would be in the intuitive balance, his espousal of both learning and controls, his responsiveness to the material at hand. (69) In this context the theory is receptive to application, creativity, and intervention. Crafting Strategy: Main strengths and weaknesses –Persuasive Power and Basis of Persuasion Within the framework of its own assumptions and findings, Henry Mintzberg’s â€Å"Crafting Strategy† has a persuasive expressive content. It however presents a doubtful diminution of previous schools of strategic management , arguably presenting itself as a comprehensive modifying school of thought. (Sheridan: c. 2003). On the other hand it has yet to offer operational tools for managers confronted with, for example, labor unrest or racial inequity. Of course its adherents may argue that managers schooled in its perspective would have the sensitivity and other skills of the craft, but as negated by Levi et al, its relative de-emphasis on broader social issues may limit management leaders from the optimal application of established strategic tools. If anything can be said on Crafting Strategy , it is that its arguments are always nuanced. For example, it upheld both the grass roots approach to strategic management, and its opposite, the hot house strategy, estimating Reality falls somewhere between the two. (68) There is however no evidence presented that traditional tools espoused by other schools of thought have necessarily become obsolete, even granting that those findings on the research basis of its thesis have been validated. Also, the example of 11 observed firms may be a statistically insignificant in a universe of millions of counterparts in other countries. Finally I find the potter inadequate as a metaphorical parallel of corporate reality. The metaphor fails to capture the sophistication of managing complex emotions, social distinctions, biases, intrigues, competition in the marketplace, corporate politics, etc†¦that are the problems of strategic management.

Anti-alcoholism Programms - Smart Custom Writing Samples

Anti-alcoholism Programms - Smart Custom Writing Gulf Spill's Estimated Impact May Be More than $1.7 Billionâ€Å"If tourism losses reach 30 percent and fishing losses 80 percent what Addy called the worst-case scenario the overall economic loss would reach more than $3.3 billion, with almost 49,000 jobs wiped out and up to $150 million in state and local tax revenues not collected† (Woodruff, By Cosby). The British Petroleum oil spill is measured as a cost in monetary value. However, it is more than that. It is a failure of policy. An act of greed. A disrespect of life itself. Rebecca Solnit has shed light on all the widespread repercussions of the British oil spill in her article entitled ‘Diary’. She has effectively used pathos as well as ethos to communicate her claim and I strongly agree that the combination of both these is necessary to explain such an issue. Moreover, she has mentioned first hand and gathered insight from the ground workers themselves. Thus, I support her approach on the issue. The article, based on the writer’s personal experience, has the appeal to ethos as well as pathos right in the opening paragraph which immediately identifies that the writers is well-informed and is absolutely clear about her approach to the argument. This method is reasonably effective to explain an environmental issue because such issues inherently involve both the use of facts as well as an appeal to ones feelings. The article starts by a vivid description of the most perfect environment to live in, with ‘oak trees’, ‘Spanish moss and Mardi grass beads’,’ beautiful old houses with turrets’ and most importantly, ‘no refineries’ for miles.   Suddenly, the reader is engaged with an abrupt transition from the thoughts of the heavenly abode to the bitter reality, that is, of the existence of ‘powerful smell of gasoline’ and a ‘strange metallic taste in ones mouth’. Here, the writer has effectively gained the reader’s attention by reminding them that the even the most serene environments, free from massive development, are negatively affected by the BP oil spills. Moreover, the writer also pinpoints the inadequate measures taken by the authorities in regard to the spills. She reminds the reader of the fact that the tragic incident of the British Petroleum oil spill was only catered for or more appropriately, temporarily unplugged, in mid-July. Millions of gallons of oil was still floating in the ocean and travelling in the air.   She also highlights the fact that the handout published by the Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency was unhelpful. Furthermore, it provided evidence of the policy maker’s indifference as the handout bluntly stated ‘These effects should go away when levels go down or when a person leaves the area’. However, she presents a weak argument to support her assertion. The fact that a birdwatcher, Drew Wheelan, wrote on his blog, ‘that 20 hours later my mouth and tongue still feel as though they’ve been burned by a hot liquid’, does not provide concrete evidence that the effects ward off with distance. It might just be a fictitious claim or an attempt to generate negative propaganda. If the claim was verifiable or has she been able to establish Drew Wheelan as a reliable source, than the case might have been in her favour. The writer has accommodated all class of people being affected by the environmental damage in her article to highlight the widespread affects of the spills. She writes. ‘ it’s home, for pregnant women, for children, for old people who’ve spent their entire lives here, for people who love the place passionately   †¦ And for countless birds, fish, crustaceans, cetaceans and other ocean life. The spill has hit them all hard’. Here, the use of pathos is again very effective as she instantly strikes an emotional cord when she mentions that people of all age group, gender and medical condition are adversely affected by the traumatic repercussions of the oil spill. Her approach to the oil spill being better explained as synonymous to a blowout on policy also identifies her deep understating of the widespread repercussions of the issue. She claimed that she also saw the pictures of oiled pelicans like the others, but insists that the sensitivity of the issue is far complex than just a spill causing threat to life (human and animal both). It is actually a failure of policy under ‘the Bush-era corruption that turned the Minerals Management Service into a crony-ridden camp’. Here again, she has been able to highlight another flaw in the system which most of the articles on environmental damage fail to account for. Along with highlighting the failure of the companies and policies involved, she has also pointed the general apathy and ignorance of the people. She emphasized that petrol is part of our daily life, we are well aware of the threats posed, but never bother. Thus, she has rightfully held both profit oriented companies and people responsible for the hazards. This also adds complexity to her approach on the issue and makes it more appropriate. Most of the facts mentioned have been gathered through reliable sources like CNN and the employees themselves. For example, she mentions the BP clean up worker who quit because he was asked to only remove the surface sand. Similarly, another worker was fired on questioning over the clean up process and keeping the media at bay. Workers had to sign non-disclosure agreements and all their recording technologies were confiscated. All these provide evidence that the BP was well aware of the health and environmental violations but displayed unexplainable apathy. Perhaps the strongest argument presented by the author is the comparison between natural and technological disasters. She explains that hurricanes come, wreck and are soon over. Hurricane Katrina alone led to eight million gallons of petroleum being spilled. However, the damage was rectified. However, the damage posed by technological disasters like meltdowns, contaminations and toxic spills can neither be measured and nor be controlled. Effectively Building her argument further, she explains that ‘uncertainty has been central to the horror of spills’ as ‘the spill has no clear termination, no precedent, there’s little that ordinary people can do to respond, and no imaginable end to its consequences’. As mentioned earlier, the writer has cleverly presented the issues of people with differences in age, gender and social status. She quotes a poor tattoo artist, the person who called the first big demonstration against BP in New Orleans and co-founder of the organization ‘Murdered Gulf’, saying that ‘I don’t even eat seafood anymore, because that shit’s fucked up.’ Similarly, she highlights the threat to the $330 million fishing industry posed by the diversion of Mississippi river water. The industry is the livelihood of highly skilled but poorly educated people. On the other hand, a University of Alabama economist, Sam Addy claims that "Water transportation was not affected to our knowledge, fishing lost at least one major season out of two annually, and tourism was not wiped out al though it was severely impacted in the two coastal counties". The evidence against this assertion is the fact that twenty-one years after the Exxon Valdez spill, fishing industry has not revived. It is unjust to deny the repercussions and avoid taking responsibility of one’s act. Moreover, the existence of adverse affects after twenty-one years presses one to ponder how long would the BP oil spills last and what will be the repercussions.   The article finishes on the same note and thus, a solemn message was communicated effectively. Almost all the aspects of the issue were covered and diverse perspectives were also highlighted. Woodruff, By Cosby. "Gulf Spill's Estimated Impact May Be More than $1.7 Billion | Montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser." Montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser | Montgomery News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Montgomery, AL. 06 Nov. 2010. Web. 06 Nov. 2010. montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20101106/NEWS02/11060346/Gulf spill s estimated impact may be more than 1.7 billion.

To what extent do the provisions of the civil and criminal law ensure Essay

To what extent do the provisions of the civil and criminal law ensure that corporate bodies are held responsible for their harmful acts and omissions - Essay Example In doing so, the paper evaluates the degree to which the provisions of the civil and criminal law in the UK guarantee that corporate bodies can be held responsible for their harmful acts and omissions. Assigning responsibility for harm comes out as an important problem in both morality and law. The assertion that one is responsible for harm means that the individual can be blamed, punished, or required to pay compensation. In moral contexts (but not in all legal ones), an individual is responsible for a harm provided that the harm has a causal consequence of something that the individual has or omitted to do (Ashworth 2009, p.5). Legal exceptions to this general rule encompass corporations held liable for the harms inflicted by the companies’ employees or board of directors. Thus, companies, just like individuals, can be held responsible not only for the harmful consequence of their actions, but also for the harmful outcomes of their omissions (Fisse and Braithwaite 1993, p.2). Assigning professional responsibility for harm in instances of negligence frequently hinges on what is reasonable to expect from the members of any given profession. The liability of a company derives from the principle that comprehensive imposition of the criminal law against corporate offenders, where appropriate, delivers a deterrent effect, safeguards the public, and entrenches and reinforces ethical business practices. The prosecution of a company should not be identified as a replacement for the prosecution of criminally liable individuals such as officers, directors, employees, or shareholders (Wells 2001, p.160). The prosecution of such individuals avails a powerful deterrent against future corporate wrongdoing. Similarly, the consideration of prosecution of individuals should also feature deliberation of probable liability of the company where the

Recession & tourism industry in London during 2007-2010 Dissertation

Recession & tourism industry in London during 2007-2010 - Dissertation Example The tourism industry in London serves as the epitome of how the recession greatly ravaged several industries, given that it is considered as specialising in the provision of services that are secondary to human needs. However, the gravity of the matter herein is that this development does not auger well for the entire economy, since tourism provides important socio-cultural, economic and political values to any given economy. It is for this reason that studying the impact of the 2007-2010 global financial recession on tourism becomes needful. Introduction That financial vibrancy of an economy affects different industries therein is a matter that is beyond gainsay. This is so since austere economic constraints compel people to seek more economically viable alternatives. This is particularly the case when the industries involved are seen to be peripheral to human needs. Specifically, recreational and tourism industry are very vulnerable to financial meltdown that may take place at eith er the national or global level. This is because tourism is considered marginal to values that are sacrosanct to the sustenance of human life. Man eventually prioritises his needs during the times of financial recession as a way of eradicating unnecessary expenditure, so that he can eventually keep afloat. This is to say that the global financial recession of 2007-2010 affected the tourism industry in sundry ways that can be seen in the discussion that ensues forthwith. Part 1: Purpose of the Research The research topic of this research is determining the different ways in which the global financial recession of 2007-2010 affected the tourism industry. This is not to mean that the essence of the research is mainly limited to the chronological time frame of 2007-2010. On the contrary, by looking at the effects of the 2007-2010 global financial recession, one can determine the manner in which the variable which is economic recession can affect tourism and recreational industry. The im port of this above is that the main objective of this study is to determine the manner in which the global financial recession of 2007-2010 affected the tourism industry, so as to bring about a myriad of corrective measures and policies that can keep tourism afloat, even in the face of serious financial challenges. In turn, the need to keep tourism vibrant perennially is underscored by the socio-cultural, economic and political values that it (tourism) endows a nation with. No sooner than an economy downplay the importance of tourism than for its foreign policy begin to lose effectiveness and efficiency. The setting of this research undertaking comes against the backdrop of 2 years that succeed the 2007-2010 global financial recession. The 2 years which succeed 2007-2010 the global financial recession are significant in this research, given that it allows for adequate observations and rumination over the dynamics that the 2007-2010 global financial recession may have acted upon the tourism industry. This ensures that information that shall have been gathered on this matter will be as comprehensive as is needed in scholarly discourse. The need for a comprehensive discourse is underscored by the dictates of objectivity in academics. It is only by being objective that one will be able to see the relevance of 2007-2010 global

Health and illness across the lifespan of diabetes Essay

Health and illness across the lifespan of diabetes - Essay Example All countries around the world should ensure proper care on those infected, to improve their lifespan. Diabetic pathophysiology calls for the comprehension of knowledge of the essentials of carbohydrate metabolism and the insulin action. Diabetes would then occur when there is an imbalance between the demand and the processing of the hormone insulin in the body. The bigger picture here is the control of the blood sugar (Katon et al 2013, p. 78). Food taken is broken down into sizeable components. The breaking down of sugars and carbohydrates into glucose gives the body some energy reservoir. A healthy individual would have insulin to regulate the excess sugar in the body. This is the reason as to the explanation of the fall of insulin in the case where the blood glucose level goes down too and vice versa (Chang & Johnson, 2008, p. 90). If insulin production and secretion gets interference from body anomaly, the blood glucose dynamics would definitely change. In the case where glucose penetration into body cells finds a challenge, the resultant effect is hyperglycemia. From the nurse’s desk, many things would make one diabetic. Some like one’s weight, and how one exercises, heart disease, and stroke may get a quick remedy from a nurse. On other occasions, one’s age, family history is not a preventable bite for one to turning diabetic. According to research, there are some groups of individuals prone to getting diabetes (Snoek, & Skinner 2005, p. 88). Among these, people who have close relatives who are diabetic, people over 40 years of age, and those who have periodic high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels or other fats in their body blood. Other vulnerable groups include those individuals who have had prior gestational diabetes or having given birth to a baby that weighed more than 4 kilograms. Those who with some sought of disabilities and those diagnosed with pre-diabetes fall

Survey on human motivation using a Likert scale Research Paper

Survey on human motivation using a Likert scale - Research Paper Example Many researchers are driven to conceptualize a procedure to take account of and record data related to human motivation in order to develop a theory on why a human is motivated to conduct in a specific activity. McClelland and colleagues (McClelland, Atkinson, Clark, & Lowell, 1953) designed a preliminary experiment to measure motivation in human participants, which was guided by the early works of Henry Murray, who was active in the development of a theory in motivation during the 1930s through the 1960s. Murray (1938) divided human needs into a primary and secondary group. Primary needs were explained as deriving from a biological origin, such as the need for food, water, air, and sex, and the reluctance to experience pain. Murray believed that secondary needs derive from either a biological base or the psychological realm. Examples of secondary needs are achievement, recognition, acquisition, dominance, affiliation, autonomy, and aggression. Murray was led to believe that intense needs are presented with greater frequency over time. This leads to a greater frequency in the intensity of the behavior. Through his work, Murray learned that secondary needs are the driving force behind the personality of an individual. The degree to which primary and secondary needs impact the individual depends on the combination of personality and behavior. During his tenure at the Harvard Psychological Clinic in the 1930s, Murray, with the help of peer Christiana & Morgan, created the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT). The TAT is a projective test that is used to assess and encourage personal accounts or descriptions about familial or social interactions. The TAT can help recognize prevailing emotions, responses and disagreements through the 31 provided pictures (Murray, 1938). Each picture can elicit a range of responses from the individual, as the examiner asks for a story about the events taking place in the picture. McClelland (1953)

Responsibility for Violation of the Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Responsibility for Violation of the Law - Essay Example George saw Arthur approaching and said to him ‘what are you doing here you nutter.’ Arthur was incensed by this and swung a punch at George which missed George and hit Tony in the face. Tony fell off the bridge and landed on the side of the river not moving. Arthur took out the knife and told George he was going to kill him and moved forward to stab him. George ran off into the path of a bus and was killed instantly. Arthur ran away from the scene and went to Larry’s house to deliver some heroin to him as he regularly supplied him. Larry asked Arthur to prepare a syringe with the heroin which Arthur then gave to Larry who injected himself. Larry immediately had convulsions after injecting himself and fell unconscious. Arthur thought Larry was dead and decided to set fire to the house in case he got the blame. After setting fire to it, he left the house and headed home. He passed the bridge where he had been earlier and saw Tony’s body by the side of the river as no one else had noticed it. He went down to the body and thinking Tony was dead, he pushed the body into the water as he did not want Tony to be found. Tony was in fact still alive and died as a result of drowning in the river. A neighbor of Larry’s noticed the smoke and called the fire brigade and Larry was found dead in the house.   It is likely that since Arthur was acting under the influence of drugs the defense counsel for Arthur would attempt to prove automatism in order to avoid Arthur being charged with murder.  Ã‚