Gender Differences in Leadership Essay

1. What are the strongest points of the paper? What do you consider are its main contributions to the field of global people management? The paper itself has a very interesting purpose with the research question of whether women leaders are â€Å"really† different from men leaders. The paper gives a very good introduction in particular giving the literature review in order to get familiar with some basic knowledge on the topic of gender differences in leadership. The review focus combination of stereotypes and cultural differences stresses out well a new viewpoint of the problem, which has not been discussed that widely in prior research. Also the introduction of the new notion â€Å"stereotype threat†, which actually might be viewed as a partly solution for women sometimes performing not as well as they possibly could is an interesting point for management issues in reality. However the strongest points of the paper are evident. The introduction of the new concept of three paradigms: gender-blind view, gender-conscious view and that perception creates reality are not only the strongest points of the pap er, but in my opinion can also be considered as contributions to the field of global people management. This new paradigms could possibly change the perception of companies, maybe companies will use the tool of the three paradigms to analyse their own structures and be able to improve situations for women, giving them more possibilities. 2. What are the weakest points of the paper? (E.g. What arguments are not strong enough? What is not clear? What is missing?) Potential drawbacks are that paradigms are introduced, but not sufficiently discussed within. Also the paper gives good examples where they can be found, it could show more proof for their existence apart from summarising and drawing them together from old findings. Also the paper does not find a good way how to manage diversity and to capture it. It does not manage the combination of cost-effective coordination and senility to local cultures. Likewise the paper focuses on only two firms, â€Å"Fuel† and â€Å"Excel†, which are very different in how they â€Å"fill† out the paradigms. In my opinion two firms are not enough, more firms should be reviewed for example in a questionnaire in order to give more support for the findings. Correspondingly the paper does not include a focus on multinational firms, which is very important not to leave out in times of globalization. The last criticism is that the paper is unable to answer it’s paper purpose question à ¢â‚¬Å"what is the real difference between men and women in leadership†. 3. How could the author make the paper better? When writing the literature review the could build up the research papers and the gained knowledge chronologically and not going back and forth in the research dates. As the paper is missing some numbers, the technique of hypothesis could have been used, a bigger number of companies questioned in survey style as then a quantitative analysis would exist as evidence for whether the problem exists in real life and whether paradigms can be implied in the general management world. Also the point of view of women on this topic would be very interesting and more expedient. How do women perceive the gender different initiatives, what would they like as support? Also the paper as already mentioned should include a focus on multinational firms and include those in a study.

Great-Man Theory Essay

Introduction As I have read about it, a particular interest in my has been raising about the wonderful way many people has utilized their natural abilities as a medium of reunion and leadership. I found a string link between this gifts or skills these men had and their particular behavior in the time they lived. I would like to talk about the special characteristics that had to be present; more specific the building process of a divine individual, a prophet capable of guiding its people and the importance they have represented to humanity, whether realistic or not, since the theory has been around ever since. Great-Man Theory In order to get to know more about the theory of the great man, we should not ignore that this is a theory based on leadership. So, what is leadership? Scholars have defined leadership as â€Å" the process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task†. To my personal beliefs, leadership is: a medium to an end, it is a very particular tool with which gifted individuals in the interpersonal field can either alone or together command, guide, and lead another group of people towards completing an established goal by cheering, supporting and setting a relation with the subordinates based on a strong dose of trustworthiness. Now, the Great-Man theory of leadership according to Winston & Patterson (2006) refers â€Å"to the idea that leaders possess innately superior qualities that distinguish them from other people, including the ability to capture the imagination and loyalty of the masses.† In other few words, that leaders are born, not made. Winston & Patterson (2006) also quote that â€Å"a leader achieves influence by humbly conveying a prophetic vision of the future† meaning that he resonates with the follower beliefs and values in such a way that the follower can understand and interpret the future into present-time action steps. According to Leadership Central (2012) Dr. Thomas Carlyle a true believer of this theory would say that â€Å"effective leaders were a package of Godly motivation and the right personality.† Under this definition, the same Dr. Thomas Carlyle, this time quoted by Lapham’s Quarterly (2012) included as great-man leaders historical characters such as â€Å"Muhammad, Shakespeare, Luther, Rousseau, and Napoleon† undoubtedly amazing leaders that shaped their time. But, other many scholars – and I think I am going to take their side – refute this theory. Although Cherry (2012) gives a different definition, and I quote â€Å"the great man theory is a conjecture aimed at explaining the history of the effect of the great born men or heroes: people of great authority, thanks to their charisma, intelligence and wisdom have used their power in such a way as to leave a decisive historical impact† there is a powerful contradictory hypothesis quoted by Leadership Central (2012) in which they say â€Å"Herbert Spencer one the most forceful critics of the theory explains that the great-man theory is a nativist hypothesis of leadership† and in this approach, leaders cannot be made, but just born. Of course, the leader nativism is highly refutable, cultural skills are by definition highly refutable and acquirable only through human interaction and an environment conducive to the transmission of knowledge. Leadership Central (2012) focuses in that â€Å"many factors in life shape the individual’s skills to lead† and I believe their in the right position, since leaders are a product of society, which means leaders are shaped by the time they live in and not the way around. Let’s take another example of a another so called â€Å"great-man’ leader. This time we have John Fitzgerald Kennedy, a famous character not only in his home country, but around the globe. His incredible abilities as a leader are not put in doubt, though the fact that he was this good just because he was born that way for sure are. Although factors such as â€Å"your up-bringing, education, experiences are only modeling your leadership abilities† says Lapham’s Quarterly (2012), a person’s background and circumstances may have influenced what they are, it is only in their hands the responsibility of what they want to be. Other examples to refute this nativism theory are Stephen R. Covey’s paradigms shifts and rescripting. Since a paradigm is the way an individual perceives, understands, and interprets the surrounding world, â€Å"a paradigm shift is a change in thinking when we gain additional insight and understandings† (Covey, 1989). Anything could influence the way a individual thinks, and this individual could perform a rescripting process, proving that a person does not have to be born with superior skills to acquire a leader scheme, but he can obtain them throughout lived experiences. Cherry (2012) explains that the term â€Å"Great Man† was used â€Å"because, at the time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male quality, especially in terms of military leadership†. To make it clear, this leadership theory leaves behind women despite they could have innate abilities (I’m not saying this is the only ability they have) which is the basis of the â€Å"great-man† theory. For example, we have had great women capable of leading people, on the one hand the ex-prime minister of Britain, Margaret Thatcher also known as the â€Å"Iron Lady† which is the longest-serving British prime minister of the last century. We also find Oprah Winfrey, who not only is one of the most richest women in the world, but named also as the most influential women in it. So, was Dr. Carlyle in the right position, or is it the time he lived that did not allow women to arise as great leaders? Earlier when I gave my own definition of leadership and said that leadership is a matter of persons who can either alone or together exercise their leadership skills, I knew it was not only me, it results that Winston & Patterson (2006) think similar to me, since they say that â€Å"leadership may be provided by a group of persons†. Having said that, we can now refute another focus of this great-man theory concentrated in that leadership â€Å"can only be exercised by one person, the great man† (Cawthon, 1996). While some might say this is true, because most of companies, countries, or firms have one person as it’s head leader, well this is true. But, let’s face it there can not be more than one president in a nation, there can not be more than one president in a firm o company. Although there is the board of directors, which is the group in charge of every decision the company should take. All in all, yes, according to Cherry (2012) â€Å"you can find more individuals as leaders than groups as leaders†, but that does not mean, groups don’t exist, to the contrary, they exist more than ever, and a good example of that is the music group â€Å"The Beatles† which you can say was the most influential band of the last century leading into a simple cause millions of people. You can find also groups leading millions of people to manifest against the violation of human rights, more recently the group called Invisible Children Inc. who â€Å"only employs 43 people but with its movement has encouraged thousands more† to spread the word about Joseph Kony’s crimes (ICU, 2012). â€Å"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has† (Mead, 1970). I completely agree with Cawthon (1996) when he says that many people, of course â€Å"scoff at the theory, because it is anecdotal and unscientific†. At the end, the great-man theory does not have any credibility, because even though the ability to lead is directly linked to one’s personality, the belief that leaders are born and not made finds no veracity. In our times, it is meaningless to think of it as a viable explanation for a person’s skills in guiding, since it’s been proved that the this theory popularized in the 1840’s but suggested much earlier, only took into consideration men born in a social status that would allow them to lead regardless of their abilities, from there the hypothesis of the innate leader. Nowadays that particular matter has been changed, since a person’s background is not judged but instead their ability to be a leader is highly paid. As Cawthon (1996) says â€Å"Individuals in every society posses different degrees of energy, moral force and intelligence, and in whatever direction the masses might be influenced to go, they are always led by the superior few†. In the managerial world, Winston & Patterson (2006) say â€Å"a growing number of leaders from different parts of the world are being formed† so do not let people fool you when they say someone was born to be a leader, because given today’s uncertainty many so called traditional leaders are being superseded by those with best abilities to manage people. So, you better base your leadership skills in what you have learned, most importantly in what you truly are and let other people influence you before you can exercise a bigger influence on them, because leadership is doing the right things. Do not ever live upon other’s expectations, you are what you choose to be, for that, being a leader is not being born a leader living what others have scripted, but rescripting your life and forging yourself through stimulating yourself from experiences and knowledge acquired in life. After all If your actions inspire others to learn more, dream more, become more and do more, you are a leader. REFERENCES Cawthon, D.L (1996). Leadership: The great man theory revisited. Business Horizons, 39(3), 1-4. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere. Cherry, K. (2012). The great man theory of leadership. Journal of Effective Management, 3(2), 10-17. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere. Covey, S.R. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people. Provo: Free Press. Invisible Children (2012). More about us. Retrieved April 14, 2012, from www.invisiblechildren.com Lapham’s Quarterly. (2012). Great man theory. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from http://www.laphamsquarterly.org/voices-in-time/great-man-theory.php Leadership Central. (2012). Great man theory. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from www.leadership-central.com Mead, M. (1970). Culture and commitment. San Francisco: Natural History Press. Winston, B. & Patterson, K. (2006). An integrative definition of leadership. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 1(2), 7-14. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Academic Search Premiere.

Quotation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Quotation - Essay Example a) Freedom of speech and expression Freedom of speech is very crucial aspect of human beings. Every human being is entitled to his or mind and opinions (Samalavic?ius 18). This is because human beings vary in the manner and level of thinking, perception and looking at issues affecting them on earth. Due to such variations, people should be allowed to freely express their thoughts, feelings, ideas, and opinions concerning issues of life. Restricting people from expressing their ideas and thoughts is dangerous as it denies them the opportunity to present opinions, feelings, and ideas (Samalavic?ius 18). Some of the issues might be interfering with a person’s life, and thus the need to raise or express his or her dissatisfaction with the issues. In expressing his feelings or opinions on such issues, human beings might generate useful ideas and thoughts that may contribute to improved living standards of all people on earth. This is because there are people with brilliant ideas th at when implemented can solve some of the problems, and thus relieve or reduce life stresses (Samalavic?ius 27). Thus, freedom of speech is necessary since it ensures that people have freedom to write their minds, and thereby informing others of their perceptions and feelings towards certain issues of concern. Moreover, lack of freedom of speech hinders people from reading articles or other ideas written by other individuals. This bad since it denies people right to learn from and share ideas with other people. b) Freedom of worship The freedom to worship is very fundamental on earth. This is because people posses divergent views and perceptions concerning their faiths and beliefs about the existence of supernatural powers in the universe (Samalavic?ius 35). This is because human beings come from divergent backgrounds consisting of varied cultures and practices. Thus, recognizing and appreciating these cultural and social differences is crucial for peaceful existence on earth. Every person should be allowed to worship anything he prefers or recognizes as important since it is impossible to tell the reason for choosing the object or the unseen spirit. Consequently, recognition and respect for different religions on earth is vital for promotion of peace, love, and harmony (Samalavic?ius 51). This is because the existence of religious wars such as between Shia and Sunni Muslims, the fighting between Protestants and Catholics in Ireland and England arose due to disregard of other religions on the earth. Moreover, religious conflicts continue to emerge everyday in countries such as Nigeria, Egypt and in Iraq. For instance, in Egypt, the Muslim majority undermines the Copts since they are of Christian faith. Therefore, such freedom should be respected in all places on earth in order to avoid provoking other people and thereby causing tension and hatred. This is to avoid compromising peace and love among people on the earth. c) Freedom from want All human beings need to be financially stable. Being financially stable allows man to lead a good life whereby he can purchase or get anything he needs in order to satisfy his or her want (Samalavic?ius 91). Therefore, economic empowerment of man is essential since it ensures that people lead a comfortable life void of financial strains and stresses. In order to achieve financial stability and economic empowerm

Marketing planning of Roddick Foundation Assignment

Marketing planning of Roddick Foundation - Assignment Example According to the research findings a charity, in the UK, is a body established under the law of England and Wales for exclusively charitable purposes. The UK laws specify some of the purposes that are capable of being charitable by the Commission of Charity. Some of the purposes include poverty prevention or relief, promotion of education, improving health or saving lives, promoting community development, preservation of culture of some people, environmental protection, protection of human rights or conflict resolutions among many others. The firm that is analyzed in the paper is the Roddick Foundation is one of the recognized charities in the UK. The foundation was registered by the commission on March 18, 1997 with registration number 1061372 and company number 3304866. The foundation is mainly concerned with provision of support to the hardworking individuals of the society who would want to transform the world. Different macro-environmental factors will affect the operation and s uccess of a charity. The legal provisions, economic, social, environmental, and political factors affect the success of the organizations. England is a developed economy and a charity is able to attract donors and volunteers who are willing to change lives of others. The state has had political stability in the past that can promote philanthropic activities. Factors that are of particular significance here are the legal provisions on charity. The Charity Commission is a legal body that is mandated to examine the aims of a charity before registering it. The commission provides a definition for the appropriate and acceptable purpose of a charity (Balabanis et al, 1997). Before some charity is registered and recognized as a charity in England and Wales, the legal requirements provide that the organization must able to prove that its aims are meant to benefit the public (Charity Commission, 2011). The organization has to show that it is being established for charitable aims and the aims are geared towards the benefits of the public. It has to be stressed that all, and not some, of the aims should benefit the public. To prove this, the organization has to state clearly the benefits of the initiative, their relations to the aim, and a balance between the benefits and potential harms that may result from the program (Charity Commission, 2011). Besides, the legislation also requires that charity organizations should not develop political purpose or affiliate to some political organization (Charity Commission, 2008). However, since they often advocate for the right of the people, the charities can involve in political activities to achieve their purposes. The Roddick Foundation has developed purposes in line with the above provisions. One of the purposes is poverty eradication (Open Charities, 2012). The foundation funds development initiatives that are aimed at eradicating poverty in the region. The other purpose is promotion, improvement, and advancement of education to the members of the public (Open Charities, 2012). It also promotes culture and social welfare through provision of recreational facilities. As a charity, key stakeholders to the organization are the donors and volunteers. Several charities have been registered in England and the whole of UK and all the charities compete for these donor funds. This is analogous to competition for customers among profit organizations. Profitability is one of the elements of marketing concept. However, the charity organizations would not want to make profit- their analogy for profitability is survival (Balabanis et al, 1997, p.585). Thus, they also need to apply similar marketing concept

Employment Experiece Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Employment Experiece Journal - Essay Example of backlog in terms of my course works and assignments and made it more challenging for me especially in internalizing the various theories in the module. The things that I learnt about in this module will help in working in a global business environment. This will also be useful because modern firms, even those which don’t operate globally, have to work in a global arena and apply the tools that are necessary to operate in a global business environment. I was able to understand the various issues that are revenant in a modern business environment and how the global business environment came to be. Regardless of the many challenges that I had during the module, I was able to actually enjoy the module and I believe most of the things I learnt in the module will be useful in my future, either in employment or in operating my own business. Specifically, it is necessary to me because intent to start a web based business and operating a website is like operating a global business. Through this module and the personal research that I carried out, I am now able to help a business to identify the high volume area that it can used to access across worldwide market and use this as the basis if it is expanding to the international busine ss (Blyth & Zimmerman, 2005). This module was one of the most intriguing modules to study. I was able to learn a lot of things about modern marketing. Again, this module provided me with knowledge that wills be useful both in an employment environment as well as an entrepreneurial environment. While taking this module, I was able to have a few brainstorming with friends of mine and we were able to brainstorm on the various issues which were raised in the module and how valuable they are. This module provided me, and hopefully most of the other students, with a good foundation to roll out a successful career in marketing, especially with regard to modern business environment and global competitiveness. It was probably my deep interests in

Asset Assesment and E-Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Asset Assesment and E-Commerce - Essay Example early internal audit reports Delineation of Authorities and Responsibilities Roles defined and responsibilities delineated for: Overall fixed asset officer: 1. planning and overseeing of system asset management 2. involving in the implementation of asset management plan 3. taking action of defective or obsolete assets Hardware and software custodians (as related): 1. obtaining resources 2. performing functions 3. documenting and maintaining records 4. deployment and controls 5. managing contract agreements, internal and external customers’ relationships Asset Management manual and strategic plans, roles and responsibilities specified in the job description Organization-wide communication of the specified responsibilities Minutes of meetings, e-mails, posting in bulletin board Policies and Procedures Availability of policy and procedure development, periodic review, approvals, issuance, and control Approved policy and documented implementation Documented policies including: 1. Employees and leadership responsibilities on of software and hardware in use 2. limitations on the use of assets and software for personal use 3. compliance to legal and regulatory requirements, propriety and protection of data 4. asset acquisition 5. approval on installation and use of software 6. consequences of violating the policies Review of policies and documents on implementation Organization-wide communication of policies including: 1. newly joined employees during orientation period 2. continuing annually through in-house trainings 3. signing on acknowledgement 4. accessible to all anytime needed Publications through the e-mails, system database for manuals, adding to the code of conduct, e-mailing and minutes of meeting MANAGEMENT OF ASSETS INVENTORY Identification of Software Asset... This study shows that per audit checklist used, internal audit is not conducted periodically. Hardware changes are not covered in internal audit. Technology resources were not considered in the current year budget plan. Functions in control of assets overlap with overall fixed custodian and software and hardware custodians. Purchasing officer has nothing to do with assets contracts. Computer games are installed in the computer networks. No regular training of employees related to information technology. Positive findings deserve appreciation from the management to the responsible employees. â€Å"Keep up the good work.† On the other hand, all employees should get training on information technology. IT Department should be part of orientation program presenters for new employees. The human Resources yearly training program should include information technology topics. All employees should sign the â€Å"statement of confidentiality†. Storage of software, backup system an d consequences of information system violations should be included in the security policy.Findings from Belarc Advisor system audit recommendation should configure settings on account lockout, passwords, event logs, files permission, security options, user-right assignment and system services. Define policies for password issuance and usage, audit, the Internet, Explorer Seven and local computer. Impose restrictions on local computer administration templates, network, systems, and Windows. Create profiles for Windows firewall, domain, and standard.

Answer the following question Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Answer the following question - Essay Example For this reason, the human action does not entirely rely on genetic transfer but also depends on the external factors that are non-biological in nature (Palmer & Donahoe, 1992). As Skinner asserts, relatively undifferentiated baseline behavior by successive contingencies of reinforcement can shape highly organized and complex behavior. The history of Skinners work contains an integrated and comprehensive experiment to reject an informed conceptualization that offers misleading knowledge about a behavior. He has successfully grasped the variable nature of the intended subject and specified an appropriate methodology woven within the scientific fabric of modern biology (Palmer & Donahoe, 1992). His assertion of operant behavior focuses on the action within the conscious control of the organism, either spontaneously or purposely. In his understanding of behavior, he conducted research using the Skinner box that held a small animal with various keys that an animal would press to obtain a reward. Additionally, he developed a cumulative recorder to establish responsive slope line (Palmer & Donahoe, 1992). Using a rat as the experiment object in a Skinner box, he set the generic nature of the concept of stimulus and response in the analysis of operant

Individual Work Critical Review Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Individual Work Critical Review - Assignment Example The group members worked on different tasks including creating a uniform design, video, and presentation of the content. According to Strang, (2013), once the big image is in focus, it is necessary to form the implementation approach and plan. This starts with a detailed assessment of several aspects including specific training needs, present and proposed technology. The web design we created had consistency both on mobile screens and desktop, where we found that it was easier to keep dependable brand uniqueness. There was also no extra style guides that needed to be linked to several parties, like different interventions for the desktop and mobile types of our site. This made it easy for individuals to distinguish the website, regardless of where, and how they would visit the site.The group members have enjoyed the reliability that has seen the success of the media website. Since the usability is vital for any website that is responsive and user-friendly, our group website visitors had better relationship with our brand especially when they recognized our Wix site on mobile, they also had knowledge of how to use it. According to Phillips and others (2012) usually a regular content and style is essential since the majority of users do not expect it to be unique because they use different devices. An important feature of good usability is meeting ones user’s expectations. If one manages to do that, then they may experience less trouble navigating their website. WiX site makes it easy for its readers to browse the site on the devices while maintaining a positive user’s experience. Moreover, a good experience raises the chance of many repeat visits (Strang, 2013). Our group website has experienced better usability that has ensured its success. The group also enjoyed a small maintenance cost since the website had a responsive design where one is only needed to sustain one website. Although the layout fluctuates, the

Technology Ethics In the Classroom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Technology Ethics In the Classroom - Essay Example The imposition of ethics in the classroom however calls for application of certain restrictions. This means that the connectivity to the internet should be restricted and should be available only to authorized users. Recommendations: A double edged sword in the form of two parallel policies is most likely to work for the problem of unethical usage of technology in the classrooms. The forceful impositions of rules and policies have proven effectiveness but the efforts to invoke sense of responsibility works much more effectively. The forceful strategy may comprise of the following, †¢ MAC address based device connectivity. †¢ IP scanning for security breach. †¢ Usage of appropriate UTM (Unified Threat Management) systems. †¢ A class based forum like connectivity for discussion with the classmates. †¢ Provision of master console to the teacher/instructor to monitor individual activity like messaging. †¢ Jammers for GPRS or GSM (phone service based) connect ivity. Some schools distribute written material on responsible computing before granting permission to students to access the school’s network services. Children are often asked to pass an online quiz in order to prove that they have learnt and understood the basic criteria at which they are authorized the usage of technological devices. This is one basic effort that can be done in order to make the students responsible for any actions that they would commit otherwise. The role of school counselors is very important for the ethical brought up of students. This role is not restricted to the ethics of class rooms only. The parents of the students must also be counseled for a collaborative effort. A quick course in ethics would not be... This paper approves that technology has both pros and cons associated with it. Most of the schools attempting to incorporate the use of technology within them seem to overlook the cons that are accompanied with it. It is because of this very reason that they don’t seem to have any plans, in order to curb the side effects of the effort that is being incorporated for the embedding of technology in them. The role of technology in the enhancement of learning is beyond any doubt, but just as the steering of a car cannot be handed over to would be drivers before they get their license, similarly the juveniles cannot be left with technologically advanced equipment without any checks or restrictions. This report makes a conclusion that among all the technological provisions connectivity to the internet is of utmost importance. The ethical and responsible usage of this technology is extremely necessary for everyone. The importance of internet in learning is beyond any doubts and its availability in educational institutions is essential. However students need to be counseled morally so that they may employ this facility in a responsible manner. Along with the forceful checks and impositions the school counselors must also counsel the students. They should, not only guide the students towards the beneficial usage of technology but they should counsel the parents as well. This may produce a long lasting sense of responsibility in adolescents as compared to the timely effect inculcated via restrictions.