The Union Reconstructed Free Essays

1. Explain how blacks responded to their former masters after the Civil War had ended. After the Civil War had ended, blacks responded to their former masters in two different ways. We will write a custom essay sample on The Union Reconstructed or any similar topic only for you Order Now They would either return to their former masters for work and every time they would leave the plantation they would go farther claiming they didn’t want to stay on the plantation forever. This caused them to continue to have communication with their former masters and never completely became independent. The second response was they would chose to become entirely independent to their masters. They would seek work in the city and began their new free lives. Often times they all struggled but they were now free. 2. Compare the economic conditions of the South with the economic conditions of the North during the period of Reconstruction. The economic conditions of the South compared to the North during the period of Reconstruction varied quite heavily. The South was limited in many ways after the war and had little to expand and prosper where as the North had everything from political power to trade. They made it so the South could not have much political power which in turn affected them economically. These limitations came from the fear of a repeated war due to the fact that there was still much conflict occurring within the country because of matters of freed slaves and other things. 3. Discuss how southern whites reacted to the emancipation of blacks during the period of Reconstruction. After the emancipation of blacks during the period of Reconstruction, southern whites had responses of both fear and anger. They could not imagine their world without slaves in bondage, often they felt it a hassle doing chores they normally didn’t do. This lead to the feelings of anger, due to their dependency on the slave labor they were now confused and society needed to adapt in order to function once again. In some cases though the slaves had become a part of the home and the white people would miss them as a family member, often times distraught. Aside from these things, a majority of whites began to be fearful of legal intermarriage, dreading the fact that the pure white race would be destroyed. 4. Discuss President Johnson’s plan for reconstruction and Congress’s response to that plan. President Johnson’s plan for reconstruction was simply to pardon and restore all the rights of property to any former Confederate who swore allegiance to the Constitution and the Union. With this he believed he had successfully reconstructed the south and did not do much more. With this they looked to ratify the thirteenth amendment to abolish slavery. With this plan all southern states completed the Reconstruction plan and then sent representatives to the Congress that occurred in December 1865. Congress refused to seat these new senators and a large controversy out broke. 5. Describe the general attitude of the Union soldiers stationed in the South during Reconstruction toward blacks. Support your answer by citing specific incidents that occurred during that period. The attitude of the Union soldiers stationed in the South during Reconstruction towards the blacks was quite in different. They just worked to keep them in control and try to transition them from slavery to freedom. In many cases they would treat them as inferior but as well never got as bad as their former masters. They were just making attempts to help the society function. Whether they were successful is a different story. But they tried and eventually had the communities put together like a white community. 6. Discuss Congress’s plan for reconstruction and explain what Congress hoped to achieve as a result of that plan. Congress’s plan for reconstruction mainly revolved around completely freeing the black communities. They created the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments to protect the black community and restricted the power of the executive branch. They were making decision that would benefit them in the long run. They would gain the black vote and be capable of gaining more power. So they limited the power of the former Confederates and attempted to have everything in their favor. 7. Discuss the economic conditions of poor blacks and poor whites during the period of Reconstruction. The economic conditions of poor blacks as well as whites differed. They both struggled financially due to crop shortages and other such things. However the blacks also were being aided by the Bureau of Freedom. They northern financed organization was created in order to help newly freed blacks to get on their feet. They helped them financially and helped with education. However they also in a sense forced blacks to accept low paying jobs when they didn’t want to. Even with this though they helped to get the blacks going in society. 8. Was the Republican administration that controlled the southern state governments during the period of Reconstruction a success or failure? The Republican administration that controlled the southern state governments during the period of Reconstruction was more of a success than it was a failure. They were able to stabilize the south in this time. They eliminated undemocratic features from prewar state constitutions as well as provided a universal male suffrage. They even loosened the requirements for holding office. They reconstructed the South financially and physically by overhauling tax systems and approving generous railroad and other capital investment bonds. With these accomplishments as well they set up a public school system in the south and stabilized it quite well. 9. Discuss the methods by which conservative white Democrats regained control of the southern state governments at the end of Reconstruction. The methods by which conservative white Democrats regained control of the southern state governments were very passive. They came in when the Republican Party had already begun to fail and economic problems began to surface. The Democrats began to discuss the new Grant scandals, unemployment and public works projects. To add to that they also discussed the currency and tariffs in order to show important issues. Discussion of these matters showed an interest in the country whether it was there or not and allowed the Democrats to win the popular vote. 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Leadership Strategy of Google Inc

Question: Discuss about the Leadership Strategy of Google Inc. Answer: Introduction Effective leadership in an organization requires establishing real and attainable objectives. Setting achievable, measurable, specific, and time-bound objectives helps in keeping the focus of the subordinate towards results that can enable productivity and long-term success. It requires the workforce to align their professional development objectives with the goals of the organization. To effectively manage the employees as well as the human resources of the organization, it is necessary for an organization to adopt a suitable leadership style that can help in meeting the strategic goals of the respective organizations (Manimala Wasdani 2013, P. 13). It also requires effective decision-making to promote the relationship between the selected leadership styles and the capabilities of the employees to achieve the strategic objectives. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the leadership styles adopted by Google Inc. to enable the organization to achieve the strategic its objective s. Leadership strategy is the process of adapting well-considered tactics in the process of communicating the vision of an organization according to (Eggers Lin 2015, 1786). A strategic leadership typically motivates, persuades, and manages staff to share similar visions. It is a vital tool for creating effective organizational structures or implementing effective changes within the business. A leadership strategy hence defines the leadership requirements of the organization as well as their roles in the process of driving the organizational activities towards the set goals and objectives according to Kilburg (2012). According to Price (2015), a well-defined leadership strategy play major roles for the organization to perform successfully since every organization has strategies put in place for the main purpose of achieving particular objectives. As a result, effective leadership strategies are important so as to ensure a successful coordination of the organizational activities in the plan of achieving the set strategic objectives and goals. A good leadership strategy is thus the backbone to a successful and effective performance of an organization as the actives of the employees is mainly dependent on the motivation, guidance, and direction from the leadership as denoted by Walker, Aritz (2015, p. 458). As a result, there are various types of strategies of leadership that can be seen in a working environment or adopted in an organization. The types of strategic leadership styles adopted by an organization dependent on various factors such as the goals and culture of the business in addition to the tasks put in place by the organization according to Marquardt et al. (2009). Core elements of good leadership strategy development A well-developed leadership strategy encompasses the following core elements; Geared towards team-building Great leadership strategy shows and adopts clear team building skills so as to attract and retain the top talents of the workforce for effective service. Every great leadership or management of an organization needs to recognize that having the best talents also requires good relationships and teamwork so as to promote success within the organization. A good leadership strategy hence needs to build a workforce with complementary skills and set experience towards their duty. According to (Durmaz and Ilhan (2015), teams performs best when they are made up of different styles and personalities so as to expand ideas and perspectives for problem solving and effective performance. Good leadership strategy thus facilitates teamwork, healthy discussions, and great consensus among the employees. Such a team will be more promoted to believe in themselves and work towards achieving the strategic plans of the organization. It hence builds trust between the employees and the management and thus p romotes the employees to work with little supervision (Kelly Chung 2013, p. 200). Vision driven A good leadership style also works effectively toward the vision of the organization. Instead of focusing much on the initiatives and tasks of the organization, a well-developed leadership strategy promotes a deep industrial or professional knowledge towards the strategic goals and objectives of the organization. According to (Manimala Wasdani 2013) a strategic thinking towards the goals promotes a strong network with a consistent identification of the market trends to as to tune the organization performance towards the dynamics of the market that may affect the achievement of the strategic goals of the organization. A good leadership strategy hence needs to sell the culture and a clear vision of the organization to the employees so that they can by the vision and work towards it. It hence requires a clear understanding of the target customers, propositional values of the organization, competitive abilities, and weaknesses of the organization. Well-developed leadership strategies wi ll hence promote core competencies; develop capabilities and skills that will enhance value promotion towards the strategic goals of the organization. Promotes honesty and integrity within the workforce Honesty and integrity are the primary core values that uphold the accountability and commitment of employees in an organization. Without integrity and honesty, it becomes difficult for an organization to uphold a long-term success and performance. Creating an organizational culture that promotes honesty and success hence require a well-developed leadership strategy with a visionary focus on the basic principles of achieving strategic objectives of the organization. Effective leadership should also be trustworthy and participate in the highest ethical conduct standards as denoted by (Diaz-Saenz Raile 2011). A good leadership strategy will as well promote the management to admit their mistakes as a step to administer trust and honesty between the management and the subordinate. When all these are adopted, it will be clear that the leadership strategy is focused towards the interest of the success of the organization rather than a personal gain of the management. In such an environment , there is unity in accountability as well as decisions and actions. According to Grant (2011), it promotes transparency since sharing both the good and the bad of the organization between the employees creates trust and deeper understanding as well as respect in the workplace (Eggers Lin 2015, 1786). A well-developed leadership strategy also promotes unity and good relationship in the working place. It ensures employees develop their skills and strategies through training and development that not only benefits the employees but the organization as well. It should promote an outstanding self-awareness among the employees and the management. According to Johnston and Marshall (2016), every employee has a fault and instinctive behavior that can result in consequences. Understanding the weaknesses and strengths of the workforce through healthy discussions and debates that can be helpful to promote the improvement of the weaknesses and strengthen the workforce. The strategy should also be persuasive and inspirational so as to unite the workforce towards achieving the strategic goals of the organization (Durmaz Ilhan 2015, p. 4). The business strategies adopted by Google Inc. Google Inc. is a global technological company whose main responsibility is organizing the worlds information so as to make it universally accessible and essential. It was founded in the 1998 but has grown to become the most outstanding organization in innovation technology and serves millions of customers globally. The organization hires smart and intelligent individuals who are taken through a series of training and development to develop their ability over experience that many organizations embrace as the major qualification. The organization strives to maintain a diverse culture where every employee is a hands-on contributor in sharing their opinions and ideas (Helft 2016, p. 87). Google Company adopts two major business strategies that have seen it sail through the top of the global technological ladder. According to Thompson (2015), the company adopts intensive growth and generic strategies and the major business plans promoted by its leadership. The strategies adopted relates directly to the nature of the business as well as the dynamics of the technological industry. As a result, the intensive strategies of growth adopted enable the firm to keep its position as among the best brands globally. Through the generic strategy, it is hence among the major players that influence the development and competitive nature of the industries. A combination of the generic and intensive strategies of growth has been effective in satisfying the continuous growth and leadership of the firm. Adopting the use of generic strategy has thus promoted its innovation and uniqueness in products as strategic objectives of remaining competitive in the technological industry (Zaccaro 2 011). Intensive strategies Google Company has adopted various methods of intensive strategies in its operations i.e. penetration, development, and product market development. The firm relies on the market penetration strategy especially for markets outside the United States such as China. Despite having set a market leadership in the US market, it is still competing with other online advertisement firms and larger search engines outside the US market. It thus uses the market penetration strategy to push its way of getting a better market share in the world online advertisement market. The company also uses marker development especially within the US market for its fiber product. For instance, Goodbridge et al. (2015) denote that cable television and Google Fiber services are available in few states such as Missouri, Utah, Texas, and Kansas. With the aim of expanding its Fiber products, the firm uses the market development strategy so as to cover more states in the future. The product development is adopted mai nly for the innovation and product uniqueness. Apart from the Google Glass as new products, the firm is also coming up with new models of the Nexus mobile devices. Through these intensive growth strategies, the firm has created more channels for income generation so as to attain its strategic objectives. Generic strategy The firm has adopted the strategy based on the Porters model of product differentiation involving a broad market scope. Even though the firm offers its products practically every digital individual across the globe, adopting generic strategy has enabled the company to develop various unique capabilities that makes it very competitive. The product uniqueness and high innovation level has led to other products such as Google Fiber Google Glass, and Google Search s its new innovations. They are a clear manifestation of the effectiveness of innovation and product differentiation under the generic business strategy. In addition, its search algorithm has evolved with time giving it a competitive advantage against Bing, Yahoo, among others (Huffaker 2010, 599). Google Inc. has a vision of providing access to the global information in one click and the business strategies adopted by the organization are a direct manifestation of its vision statement. For instance, one of its most popular products is the search engine optimization services. As a result, the strategies adopted should hence be geared towards the objective giving access to the worlds information. With the vision statement focused towards worlds information, easy accessibility, and single click, the strategies adopted thus promotes the working of the organization through offering products such as Google search engines that are easy to use. According to Thompson (2015), the good performance in the global technological industry by the organization is an evident of effective innovation strategic leadership that enables the organization to achieve its objectives. The innovative leadership style adopted by the company enabled the satisfaction of the universal information accessibility component which its mission statement is making its products globally recognized. The leadership strategies adopted promotes innovation that contributes to the capacity of the company to maintain its industrial leadership and performance. Implication on the leadership requirements The implementation strategies of the corporate visions of the firm have widely been successful for the organization. The firm has managed keeping a distinct and intact culture though its growth in the past 10 years. However, with the growth of the company as a result of good performance in the market, new challenges are coming up that are attributed to the leadership and business strategies adopted by the firm. For instance, focus on the product development required a more commitment from the employees so as to achieve the innovation targets owing to the high rate of competition in the global market. At the end of it all, there were complains that the firm was offering compensations that were not commensurate to the demand of the work despite inflation and the high standard of living that demanded more fiancs from the workforce. Poor payment leads to lack of commitment among the employees as well as poor motivation towards the strategic goals of the organization (Teoh Rashad 2015, 1 132). The firm is also reported to have issues with maintaining its fun image that might probably be as a result of lack of employees' motivation evident from the poor payment. The firm hence needs to adopt proper employees training and development strategies so as to shift focus of the workforce towards the strategic goals and objective of the Google Inc. As it moves towards smartphones platform and cloud computing, it is likely to run into the same sort of backlash in keeping the software priority. To keep such an image, the strategic leadership of the company will need to adopt plans that will motivate the workforce such as salary increment, performance appraisal, training and development, etc that will motive them and promote good working relationship. The firm has to work hard in keeping an open culture and maintain their developers, investors, and customers united in an open communication of innovation and development of not only the products but the workforce as well (Huffaker 2010, 600). A leadership strategy to support the achievement of effective strategic goals According to Durmaz and Ilhan (2015), it is necessary that the company focus on its product development efforts and the market boundaries. The firm has always been criticized for engaging in what seems to be disparate product development efforts in different markets and industries. The use of generic strategies as well as the intensive growth strategies has seen it through wide variety of products to build the dominance in the world market. However, there is a need of improving the strategic objectives and alignment. The firm hence needs to change focus towards ensuring the profitability on the current products it offers instead of concentrating on developing new products. It thus requires renewing its innovative leadership strategies towards production and market satisfaction and focus towards a wholesome development leadership strategy that focuses not only on product development and the employees. Development strategic leadership will also be vital in controlling the spending of the firm for programs such as training and development of employees, resource sustainability, good relationship in a working environment etc. It will lead to great investment and produce good returns that will fuel the innovation strategies and speed the launch of new products. According to Teoh and Rashad (2015) a development and innovation leadership strategy should not only focus on the strategic objectives of the organization. It should also focus on the training and development of workforce since they are the major driving force for the success of every organization. The strategy will as well help the firm in figuring out how to weather any negative economic environment as it maintains a productive workforce full of fun, skills, and diverse knowledge for a productive atmosphere. In the process of adopting the innovative development leadership strategies, it is also recommended that the organization ensure the leadership is equipped with different leadership skills in all the departments. These include charismatic, autocratic participative, and transformational types of leadership. Transformational According to Martin (2015), transformational leadership mainly dependents on a higher communication level from the leadership or management for guidance and instructions inmeeting the goals and objectives of the organization. Arnold et al., 2015 (p. 485) also note that such leaders enhance efficiency and productivity through employees motivation and high visibility as well as communication. The style requires the management participation so as to meet the goals of the organization. Leaders tend to delegate smaller responsibilities to the team in accomplishing the strategic goals of the organization while they focus on the big picture of the firm. Charismatic Charismatic leadership requires the leader to create a powerful self-image depending on his level of charm and his persuasiveness. For instance, a business leader with effective charismatic leadership skills can effectively launch new product lines or orchestrate turnarounds within the business. Charismatic leaders are hence driven by their conviction and commitment towards achieving their cause as denoted by Arnold et al. (2015, p. 453) in their study. Such leaders are known to use powerful oratory as well as engaging personality and unweaving commitment toward positively changing the organization. The charisma in the leader is normally identified during a crisis as the leader is seen to exhibit unique and exceptional expertise and devotion in different facets of positive development and change (Monzani, Ripoll, Peir 2015, p. 450). Participative Participative leadership is also called the democratic style of leadership in which the leader give high priority to the members input while he is charged with the responsibility for making final decisions in the organization. According to Monzani, Ripoll, and Peir (2015, p. 450), involving the workforce in the processes of making decisions boost the morale of the employees making them to feel that their decisions are also valued in the organization. In the process of making any possible change, participative leadership will enable the employees to accept any change as they play different roles in the changes. Conclusion The process of leadership involves influencing the thoughts, attitudes, and behavior of others in the attempt to set direction that can assist others to rise and face any issue or challenge that lies ahead. A good leadership strategy needs to identify the potential in the employees so as to identify effective ways of inspiring and encouraging greater heights of effective strategic performance. However, poor leadership strategy leads to conflicts between the management and the employees hence making it difficult to achieve the strategic objectives of the organization. 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Eggers, J, Lin, S, 2015, Dealing with failure: serial entrepreneurs and the costs of changing industries between ventures,Academy Of Management Journal,58(6), 1785-1803. doi:10.5465/amj.2014.0050 Goodridge, D, Westhorp, G, Rotter, T, Dobson, R, Bath, B 2015, 'Lean and leadership practices: development of an initial realist program theory',BMC Health Services Research, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 1-15. Available from: 10.1186/s12913-015-1030-x. [24 September 2016]. Grant Thornton, L, 2010, 'Grant Thornton grows Office of Strategy Management leadership team',Business Wire (English), 8, Regional Business News, EBSCOhost, viewed 28 September 2016. Greenberg, N, Jones, N 2011, 'Optimizing mental health support in the military: The role of peers and leaders',Deployment psychology: Evidence-based strategies to promote mental health in the militarypp. 69-101 Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association PsycBOOKS, EBSCOhost, viewed 28 September 2016. Hazel, CE 2016, 'Overview of the PYD-MTSS process',Empowered learning in secondary schools: Promoting positive youth development through a multitiered system of supportspp. 69-87 Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association PsycBOOKS, EBSCOhost, viewed 28 September 2016. Huffaker, D 2010, 'Dimensions of Leadership and Social Influence in Online Communities',Human Communication Research, 36, 4, pp. 593-617, Communication Mass Media Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 September 2016. Johnston, M, Marshall, W, 2016,Sales force management: Leadership, innovation, technology. Routledge. Kilburg, RR 2012, 'Reverence and temperance: Foundations for virtuous leadership',Virtuous leaders: Strategy, character, and influence in the 21st centurypp. 103-148 Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association PsycBOOKS, EBSCOhost, viewed 28 September 2016. 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Trimming Obesity in America Essays - Obesity, Human Weight

Trimming Obesity in America As Lindsey prepares to get on the bus, she prepares herself for the offensive looks and glares, just like when she was a child. Lindsey isn?t a child anymore, yet the stares, snickers and finger pointing has followed her all her life as she has fought to cope with the lethargy, cardiovascular problems and sleep apnea that her doctors have told her stem from one problem in particular: Obesity. Young or old, male or female, dark or light skinned; obesity is one disease that doesn?t discriminate and has become a growing problem worldwide. Stories such as Lindsey?s have become too common as more and more children and adults find themselves not only facing increased health problems and a shorter life span, but are also ridiculed by society. In California, obesity has particularly affected people of color, the poor and those with the least education. Six million adults are classified as obese and an additional 9.3 million are overweight. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, both obesity and being overweight are labels for weight ranges that are greater than what is considered healthy for a given height. For adults, overweight and obesity ranges are determined by using weight and height to calculate a number called the "body mass index" (BMI). BMI is used because, for most people, it correlates with their amount of body fat. The reliability of this measurement has been debated by groups, such as the Center For Consumer Freedom, which challenges that athletes such as boxer Mike Tyson, quarterback Donovan McNabb, and wrestling superstar ?The Rock? would technically be considered obese using the BMI index along with actors Tom Cruise, and Sylvester Stallone. Despite this discrepancy, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute estimates that 97 million adults in the United States are overweight or obese. Obesity is a condition that raises their risk of morbidity from hypertension, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, sleep apnea and respiratory problems. Experts believe that an inactive lifestyle, oversize food portions and other bad habits are at least partially to blame for society?s weight increase. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, many Americans do not have enough physical activity in their lives. We rely on modern technology and conveniences, such as driving cars instead of walking or bicycling. More than 2 hours a day of regular TV viewing time has also been linked to Americans becoming overweight and obese. Choosing to quit smoking and eating food portions that are too large can also influence weight increases. Generally speaking, food portions in gas stations, fast food places, restaurants, and even supermarkets can typically feed two people. People who smoke and decide to quit are also at a higher risk of eating more. One reason is because food tastes better after they quit. Nicotine also increases your body?s ability to burn calories, thus, when nicotine is absent, your body does not burn as many calories. For children, many bad habits are learned from their parents. A child who has overweight parents who eat high-calorie foods and are inactive, for example, will likely become overweight too. Some experts, however, debate whether obesity is the cause of health problems, or a symptom of other diseases. Those with an under active thyroid, for example, can feel tired and weak due to a low metabolism rate which also causes weight gain. Those with Cushing's syndrome can also gain weight due to their body making too much of the hormone cortisol. Those with Cushing?s also have upper-body obesity, a rounded face, fat around the neck, and thin arms and legs. Sleep and advancing age can also play a pivotal part in weight gain. As people age, they tend to lose muscle and gain weight around their middle, especially if they are less active. People who sleep for 5 hours or less a night are also more likely to become obese as opposed to those who sleep for 7-8 hours or more. Whatever the reason, experts are concerned that obesity could not only lead to increased health problems and mortality rate, but also to higher healthcare costs. Experts believe that healthcare costs in the U.S. could double every decade to $860.7?$956.9 billion by 2030 as 86.3% of adults become overweight and

The Flutes Magical Music essays

The Flute's Magical Music essays Copyrighted in 1971 by the Zen-On Music Publishers Co. of Tokyo, Japan, the Takahashi Flute School (part of the Suzuki Method,) was designed to aid beginning flutists in their journey to become professional. It is set up as an individual practice method book, with obvious references to a needed listening source, but never gives one. Takahashis method is to teach fundamentals via elongated paragraphs and step-by-step instructions on how to properly handle, hold, and play the flute. This is followed by a very short section of exercises intended to aid in the text portion of the book. At the very end is a small fingering chart, for a reference of those notes new to the student. In my opinion, this book would not be a successful tool for a beginning flutist. The first half of the book is completely read-only, whereas Takahashi has assumed that by reading such the student will understand and formulate his/her own way of playing. For a student new to music, text-only is very difficult to comprehend, especially when there are words that both the child as well as the parent may not know. This is coupled by the fact that the original book was written in Japanese, so the translation into English is a bit shaky at times, and can be difficult to understand for its lack of continuity of structure. The second portion of Takahashis book is the music section. Here seventeen short exercises are offered. Again, I would not use this method for a beginning student. In no place during the second half of the book is there an explanation on how to do any of the music written in place here. Therefore, on the whole, this book would merely be a supplement to a second year or rapidly exceeding first year student, but definitely not the sole source. In introducing his techniques, Takahashi first explains the Suzuki method, hoping to clarify his ways of going through the beginning intricacies of flute playing. He fully believes that ...

Project Pitfall Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Project Pitfall Analysis - Essay Example The risk management process is very important for smooth running of the concerned project. Generally a detailed survey of the market is not done which results in the facing of unidentified risk due to its wrong assessment. To overcome these barriers a few calculative measures have to be taken. The focus of risk aversion should be mainly to take up a level of project whose risk can be easily identified and acceptable; prioritize the alternatives of the risk attached to the concerned project; resourcing, selecting, planning and implementing the most appropriate course of action elected for the elimination of the risk; double check on whether the action plan thus formulated is working in accordance to the plan hatched and lastly a regular revision of the action plan keeping the present market conditions in mind (â€Å"The Risks and Risk Identification† 1). The inadequate project management capability can arise due to faulty selection of the personnel for the respective company. This can be overcome by appointing the right person at the right time for the right designation having the required qualification for the concerned post. As the incapability to perform in managing the project of the company generally arises out the lack of sound knowledge of that field. As said earlier that a project needs to have clarity before undertaking, thus the lack of it results in confusion and disagreements about the project responsibility. Confusion leads to disagreements which can be due to various reasons like goal conflicts which occur because of the end results attached to it along with clashes related to the objectives of the project and administrative conflicts which may arise due to the management structure and responsibility assigned related to tasks, functions and decisions. All these have a solution, the application of which will help overcome the crises. Firstly, developing a master plan with will be compatible for the application of the long term

Online Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Online Education - Essay Example This paper approves that the student responses published on the online message boards give the students a chance to share their views and ideas. The students can choose to have a virtual social life by forming online communities and groups. Considering the fact that the students pursuing online courses hail from diverse locations, belong to different age groups, have variegated professional backgrounds and are more diverse in their interests and affiliations, the online education certainly offers a more full bodied and enlightening academic environment to its students as compared to the regular classrooms. The online education system is also fast gearing up to the challenges imposed by the current job market. A number of online institutions do offer placement services to their students and many online courses are actively collaborating with the leading corporate concerns to upgrade and customize their courses so as to make their students more sought after and competitive in the real world. This essay makes a conclusion that with the ensuing advances in the telecommunication technology and the changing face of the society the world over, the online education system is expected to become more popular. It is the only way of taking education to each and every eligible aspirant. Definitely the standard modes of education are going to stay, but the real future of the world lies in the online dissemination of knowledge and facts

Leadership Theories Of Bill Gates And Oprah Winfrey Management Essay

Leadership Theories Of Bill Gates And Oprah Winfrey Management Essay This paper serves to critically survey the various leadership theories and evaluate the leadership qualities of two prominent and successful business leaders in USA Bill Gates (Founder and Chairman of Microsoft Corporation) and Oprah Winfrey (Global Media leader). Chapter 2 describes the background of Gates and Oprah. Gates, from his early interests in computer programming, dropping out from Harvard by choice, to how he successfully transformed his software company, Microsoft, from a small start-up company to one of the worlds largest and most powerful corporations. On the other hand, Oprah, from her difficult childhood experience but early exposure to public speaking, to how her perseverance and self-motivation in doing her best in whatever she does, have brought her to become a global media leader (her own The Oprah Winfrey Show, her own Harpo Productions, her own O, The Oprah Magazine, etc.). Chapter 3 explores the evolution of leadership theories, from Great Man and Traits to the current Transformational Theory. Gates and Oprah leadership qualities are then listed and compared with earlier described leadership theories in Chapter 4 and 5. Chapter 6 covers the authors opinions and reasoned analysis about the leadership styles of Bill and Oprah before making the final conclusion in Chapter 7. 2. Background of Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey 2.1 Bill Gates William (Bill) Henry Gates was born in Seattle USA, in 1955. His father was a successful attorney and his mother was a teacher. At age 13, Gates discovered his interest in software and began programming computers on a school computer at the private Lakeside School (Microsoft 2010). In 1973, Gates enrolled at Harvard University but dropped out half-way as he wanted to concentrate on his start-up software business and did not want to miss the opportunity of developing software for personal computers. His company Microsoft, the worlds first microcomputer software company, was born in 1975. Gates later wrote, Our initial insight made everything else a bit easier. We were at the right place at the right time. We got there first (Krames 2003, p.157). In 1980, Gates was offered an agreement to provide the operating system (MS-DOS) for IBMs new PC. He secured his future by insisting that Microsoft retained the copyright to the system, so that he could also license it to other hardware manufacturers. This contractual masterstroke helped propel Microsoft into its position as the countrys largest software company. In 2002, Gates topped the Forbes 400 list of the worlds wealthiest individuals, with a personal fortune of $43 billion (Krames 2003). Gates handed the reins and the title of CEO over to Steve Ballmer in 2000, as Gates became Chairman and acted as Chief Software Architect of Microsoft Corporation to help in developing next-generation products (Krames, 2003). Since 2006, Ray Ozzie has assumed Gates previous title as Chief Software Architect as Gates wanted to devote an increasing proportion of his time to the philanthropic The Bill Melinda Gates Foundation (Microsoft 2010). However, Gates continues to serve as Microsofts Chairman and an advisor on key development projects after July 2008 (Microsoft 2010). Time Magazine named Gates one of the most influential people of the 20th century. For the fiscal year ending June 2007, Microsoft had revenues of US$51.12 billion and employs more than 78,000 people in 105 countries and regions (Microsoft 2010). Till now, Microsoft is still one of the worlds largest and most powerful corporations and currently ranked No.36 in Fortune 500 Companies list (CNN Money 2010). 2.2 Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey was born illegitimate in Mississippi USA, in 1954. She lived her first six years with her grandparents and was taught to read at an early age. Oprah began speaking in front of audiences since she was only 4 years old, touring local churches and reciting others sermons by memory (ONeil 2004). From age 6 to 13, she stayed with her mother in Milwaukee but suffered repeated abuse and molestation by her relatives. Her mother later sent her to live with her father, Vernon Winfrey, in Nashville. With strict rules and high standards, Vernon helped to turn her life around. He taught her that she always had to pursue excellence in order to succeed. Oprah absorbed that attitude and said, Theres no such thing as failure in my life, I just dont believe in it (ONeil 2004, p.13). Oprahs broadcasting career began at age 17, when she was hired by WVOL radio in Nashville, and two years later signed on with WTVF-TV as a reporter. She also attended Tennessee State University, received her Bachelor Honours Degree in Speech Communications and Performing Arts. Oprah moved up quickly and in 1978 discovered her talent for hosting talk shows when she became co-host of WJZ-TVs People are talking. In 1986, she began broadcasting nationally, via The Oprah Winfrey Show, which became the highest rated talk show in television history. Shes now the host and owner of The Oprah Winfrey Show, which consistently wins high ratings, and the founder of the Harpo Productions, Inc. which produces her television shows and movies. Her O, The Oprah Magazine, launched by Hearst Publications in 2000, ranked in the top tier of new magazines for circulation and advertising, becoming the first magazine ever to be both Advertising Age Launch of the Year and Magazine of the Year (ONeil 2004). In 2003, Oprah became the first African-American woman to join the ranks of billionaires, as published by Forbes magazine for that year (ONeil 2004). From 2004-2009, she was the only woman to have been included in all six of TIMEs 100 Most Influential People in World lists. Today, Oprahs accomplishments as a global media leader and philanthropist has made her as one of the most respected and admired public figures in the world. 3. Theories on Leadership Critical Literature Survey Leadership definition and list of leadership theories According to Richard Daft (2008, p.4), leadership is defined as follows: Leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes. The evolution of leadership theories started from Great Man and Trait theories to the present Transformational leadership. Kippenberger (2002) reflects the time-line of such evolution: Period Leadership Theory Up to mid-1900s 1900-48 1930s 1945-60s 1957-70s 1967- Present Day 1970s-Present Day 1970s-Present Day 1970s-Present Day 1978-Present Day 1982-Present Day Great Man Theory Traits Theory Lewins research into autocratic, democratic laissez-faire styles Behavioural Theory (especially Ohio, Michigan, Texas) Situational Theory Contingency Theory Charismatic Leadership Team Leadership Servant Leadership Transformational Leadership In search of Excellence thousands of management books on leadership Table 3.1 Source: Time-line figure from The Leadership Styles by Tony Kippenberger (2002) Great Man Theory Based on the belief that leaders are born with innate leadership qualities and destined to lead. This is no longer true in todays leadership concept. Trait Theory Arose from Great Man theory which assumed that people are born with inherited traits and so by identifying the list of traits of successful leaders, it was believed that people with such traits could subsequently be recruited into leadership position. However, there exists people with these traits but are not leaders or people without some of these traits but are leaders; making the results inconsistent and inconclusive. Therefore, researchers started to evolve the next two theories (Behaviorist and Situational). Stogdill (1974) identified the following traits and skills as vital to leaders: Traits Skills Adaptable to situations Alert to social environment Ambitious and achievement-oriented Assertive Cooperative Decisive Dependable Dominant Energetic Persistent Self-confident Tolerant of stress Willing to assume responsibility Clever (intelligent) Conceptually skilled Creative Diplomatic and tactful Fluent in speaking Knowledgeable about group task Organised Persuasive Socially skilled Table 3.2 Leadership Traits and Skills (Stogdill, 1974) Behavioural Theory Behavioural Theory looks at the behaviours of leaders instead of focusing on their inborn traits or capabilities. It believes that leaders can be made, rather than are born and behaviours can be learned more readily than traits. This opens the floodgates to leadership development and schools of researchers. Tannenbaum and Schmidt (cited by Daft 2008) illustrated that leadership behaviour could exist on a continuum reflecting different amounts of employee participation. Thus one leader can be autocratic (boss-centred), another democratic (employee-centred), and a third a mix of the two styles. However, Tannenbaum and Schmidt suggested that the leader might adjust their behaviours to fit the circumstances. John Adair Blake and Moutons Leadership Grid (cited by Daft 2008), as simplified in below table, focuses on production (task) and employee (people) orientations of managers, and combination of concerns between the two extremes. Leaders are rated on a scale of one to nine according to two criteria (Concern for People on vertical axis and Concern for Results on horizontal axis). The highly recommended and most effective style is Team Management as it rated High (for People) and High (for Task) and work accomplishment is from committed people while leader is committed to both people and task. Today, the consensus is that leaders can achieve a high-high leadership style (Daft 2008). Concern for People High Country Club Management TeamManagement Medium Middle-of-the-road Management Low Impoverished Management Authority-Compliance Management Low Medium High Concern for Results Table 3.3 The Leadership Grid (simplified) Situational or Contingency Theory Leadership style adopted is contingent upon situational factors such as the characteristics of the followers, characteristics of the work environment and followers tasks, and the external environment (Daft 2008). Leadership style that is successful in some situations may not be effective in others. Hence, in order to increase the likelihood of successful leadership outcomes, the leader has to fully discern the characteristics of tasks, followers and organizations and subsequently adopt the most effective leadership style. Fiedlers Contingency Model (Daft 2008) serves to diagnose whether a leader is task-oriented or relationship-oriented and match leader style to the situation in terms of 3 key elements (Leader member relations, Task structure and Position Power) which can be either favourable or unfavourable to a leader. Task-oriented leaders tend to do better in very easy or very difficult situations whereas relationship-oriented leaders do best in intermediate favourability. Hersey and Blanchards Situational Theory (Daft 2008) focuses on the readiness level of the followers to determine the effective leader behaviours such as Telling, Selling, Participating and Delegating style. The Path-Goal Theory (Daft 2008) states that leaders are responsible to increase followers motivation by clarifying the behaviours necessary for task accomplishment and rewards. The four types of behaviours the leader can adopt are supportive, directive, achievement-oriented and participative styles and the two important situational contingencies are the personal characteristics of followers and the work environment. The Vroom-Jago Contingency Model (Daft 2008) focuses on varying degrees of participative leadership, and how each level of participation influences quality and accountability of decisions. The model has three major components: leader participation styles (Decide, Consult individually, Consult Group, Facilitate or Delegate), a set of 7 diagnostic questions (High or Low answer) with which to analyse a decision situation, and a series of decision rules. It also takes into account factors such as concern for time versus concern for followers development. Leaders can analyze each situation and answer a series of questions that help determine the appropriate level of followers participation. Charismatic Leadership Charismatic Leadership is based on leaders personal characteristics as a source of power to emotionally impact people by appealing to both the heart and mind. These leaders create an atmosphere of change, articulate an idealized vision of the future, inspire and motivate followers with an abiding faith. Team Leadership Daft (2008) believes that team leadership is based on three principles: Firstly, team leaders must create a vivid vision that is challenging and inspiring so that it provides a strong sense of purpose and direction. Secondly, team leaders must be willing to admit their ignorance or mistakes and the third principle is to provide support and coaching to team members. Transactional Transformational Theory James MacGregor Burns conceptualized leadership as either transactional or transformational in 1978. Transactional leadership is a transaction or exchange process between leaders and followers (Daft 2008). Transactional leaders recognizes followers needs and desires and then clarifies how those needs and desires will be satisfied in exchange for meeting specified objectives or performing certain duties. Thus, followers receive rewards for job performance, whereas leaders benefit from the completion of tasks. Transformational leadership is characterized by the ability to bring about significant change in followers and the organization (Daft 2008). Transformational leaders have the ability to lead changes in an organisations vision, strategy, and culture as well as promote innovation in products and technologies (Daft 2008). Transformational leaders stimulate and inspire followers to both achieve the outcomes and develop them into leaders. Transformational leadership is based on the personal values, beliefs and qualities of the leader rather than an exchange process between leaders and followers (Daft 2008). Recent studies support the idea that transformational leadership has a positive impact on follower development and follower performance. Avolio, Bass and Jung (Cited by Bass, 2006) have identified the four components of transformational leadership as: Idealized Influence, Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation and Individualised Consideration. 3.9 X (Female) Y (Male) of Leadership Liz Cook and Brian Rothwell (2000) convincingly describe the differences (structural, operational and chemical) in the brain of male and female, which attribute to their different thinking and act even when faced with similar leadership situations. Their interpretation (Cook Rothwell, 2000) is that the natural and genetic gifts that the average female and male brain brings to leadership are as follows: Feminine Masculine Relationship orientation Dialogue Listening Coaching Appreciation of paradox Interpersonal connections Social awareness Group working Multi-tasking Appreciation of distinction Action orientation Competitiveness Vision Inventiveness Risk-taking Target orientation Status quo challenge Desire to be the best Focus Structure and form Table 3.4. Average Female and Male genetic gifts Much of the debate in the 1990s spent time persuading leaders that it was good to be female and it was men who needed to change their leadership style to feminine-oriented leadership, with the emphasis on building relationship. Nevertheless, Cook Rothwell (2000) believed that leadership training should embrace the strengths of both approaches as the strengths of both sexes are needed to counteract the weaknesses that each sex brings to the leadership equation. 4. Comparison of Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey Leadership Qualities 4.1 Gates Leadership Qualities Gates possesses the following traits: Introvert, Intelligent, Knowledgeable, Aggressive, Charisma, Visionary, etc. Original vision when Microsoft was founded was a computer in every home. Oprah Leadership Qualities Oprah possesses the following traits: Extrovert, Intelligent, Self-Confident, Determined, Persistence, Excellent Communicator, Charisma, etc. Comparison of Gates and Oprah Leadership Qualities with Leadership Theories Both Gates and Oprah follows Transformational Leadership Theory 5. Comparison of Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey Leadership Qualities and with Leadership Theories/Models 5.1 Comparison of 6. Authors opinions about Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey Leadership Styles A REASONED ANALYSIS AND APPROACH Comparison of Bill and Oprah Motivation and Empowerment, Communication, Teams, Diversity, Learning Organization, Ability in bringing about change Motivation: Employees satisfaction à   Customers Satisfaction à   Customers Loyalty à   Companys Profitability Maslows Hierarchy of Needs Leadership Communication Effective listening and understand why listening is important to leadership communication. Recognize and apply the difference between dialogue and discussion. Appropriate communication channel for your leadership message. Use communication to influence and persuade others. Effectively communicate during times of stress or crisis. Transformational and charismatic leadership 7. Conclusion Based on extensive reading and research on leadership books, the authors conclude that effective leadership really boils down to how each leader first understand himself and then his followers, his organization and all external factors (inclusive of awareness of diversity, cultural differences and fast changing environment) prior to adopting the appropriate leadership styles and behaviours to suit these situations. In other words, theres no one fixed style as his or her leadership style should vary as per todays rapid changing and diversified business world. Gates is a visionary whereas Oprah is a transformational leader.