Hugos Presidency in Venezuela Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hugos Presidency in Venezuela - Essay Example Hugo embarked on a nationwide campaign for the presidency on a platform of Bolivarianism. His beliefs included Venezuelan sovereignty, anti-imperialism, populist democracy, mass participation in the government, strong nationalism and economic self sufficiency. Hugo strongly believed that the revenues from oil sales had to be distributed equally in Venezuela. He later won the election becoming Venezuela’s fifty third president. In 2006, Hugo was re-elected as Venezuela’s president upon which he made an announcement that he will make radical changes within the country. Some of his radical changes were characteristic of authoritarianism and dictatorship. Chavez withdrew from the IMF, cracked down on all television stations that were critical on him and nationalized electrical companies. He closed 32 radio stations that were privately owned. He went ahead to propose a law that would punish media crimes. Chavez was clearly moving to silence all of his critics. He accused the stations of supporting the 2002 coup against his government. He even denied a certain broadcaster a chance to renew its license claiming that the broadcaster was supporting the opposition (CNN World). Worse still, he proposed a referendum that would see introduction of certain constitutional changes that remove term limits and centralized power in the presidency (New York Times). Despite the problems of electricity shortages and a recessing economy, Chavez still uses certain tactics to consolidate power. He makes use of tactics like expropriation of his supporters’ businesses and conducting secret police raids. He makes use of military loyalists to execute his orders. His allies had successfully controlled the National Assembly since the year 2005 after the opposition boycotted legislative elections in the same year (New York Times). Despite these actions, Chavez continues to enjoy great support from the poor who feel that they are better of with Chavez as the president. Chavez distributed the revenues from oil equitably across the nation thereby improving the poor Venezuelans quality of life. Chavez, upon becoming the president in 1998 fired the management of the oil company (state owned) something that angered the middleclass. This resulted in an attempted coup in 2002 that failed (New York Times). Hugo has been the focus of criticism by the West for his action to support the Syrian president (Mr. Assad) by supplying him with oil. Mr. Assad had taken action against an uprising in Syria. This resulted in mass murders and multiple violations of human rights. The UNGA (United Nations General Assembly) had widely condemned President Assad for violating human rights, mass murders of children women and torture. Chavez’s choice to support Assad was widely viewed as supporting terrorist activities and was highly controversial (New York Times). Chavez had earlier supported Iran’s President (Mr. Mahmoud) who had ridiculed claims by the West that his country (Iran) was seeking to acquire the ability to make nuclear weapons. Despite the wide condemnation that Muammar president of Libya faced due to his strike back against an uprising in his country, Chavez went ahead and forged close economic and political ties with Libya. Chavez overtime according to a 2009 poll that consisted of a large number of Arab countries, he was the most popular and famous leader both by margin and fear. Chavez had courted almost any

Could Islamic Banking help avert the financial crisis Essay

Could Islamic Banking help avert the financial crisis - Essay Example Also, the focus will be on the Islamic economy to bring out how such factors will bring stability that the world is in need of (In Ahmed, In Asutay & In Wilson, 2014). The world could be in the midst of financial crisis which puts a lot pressure on the world’s economic recession. Islamic credit brought a lot of worries and confusion in that period of 2007 when economic depression was experienced making United States’ markets to rupture. An experience of the economic crisis is very threatening in that it brings into a stand still all the economic development due to increased prosperity and employment especially in the western economies and more so this leads into too much loss in the world economy (Kettell, 2011). Examining this topic will help in the understanding and appreciating of the roles of banking in diverse backgrounds (Kim & McKenzie, 2010). This can help borrow some knowledge in terms of rules and regulation that govern the banking activities in Arabic countries which can then be implemented in our banks. For example, Islamic banking holds fast on the principles of Sharia Law in which it is characterized by prevention of interest application on the loans given, and more so limiting excessive financial speculation (In Ahmed, In Asutay & In Wilson, 2014).The study of this topic gives me an understanding of international finance in that it gives the major causes of financial crisis, it impacts and also its effects (El, 2011). The financial crisis of 2007 had two major effects to the United States. First is that banks were unwilling to give or lend money which in turn increased the prices of borrowing. For example, the bonds that had been issued against different mortgages turned down $1.9 billion, in just a year, to $500 million in the year 2008 (Venardos, 2010). Second is that very many financial institutions became devastated, especially in the private finance initiative industry, single-line insurers

Strong Culture and Organizational Effectiveness

Strong Culture and Organizational Effectiveness Organizational culture is the pattern of shared values and beliefs that help individuals understand organizational functioning. The characteristics that captures the essence of organizations culture include member identity, group emphasis, people focus, unit integration, control, risk tolerance, reward criteria, conflict tolerance, means-end orientation, and open system focus. Appraising the organization on these ten characteristics gives a composite picture of the organizations culture. However, we have strong culture and weak culture. Strong cultures are those in which organizational values and beliefs are widely shared and significantly influence peoples behaviour on the job. Organizations with a strong culture create clear and coherent values and expect that members agree with and care intensely about those values. Denison identifies four key traits that an organization should master in order to be effective as mission, consistency, involvement, and adapt ­ability. Strong organizational cultures have been linked to increased staff alignment, resulting in enhanced organizational effectiveness. However some research shows that strong cultures may enhance short-term success but inhibit long-term organizational performance, and may even contribute to long-term failure by preventing organizations from adapting to changing contingencies. TABLE OF CONTENTS (JUMP TO) 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Culture 1.2 Organizational culture 1.3 Strong culture and weak culture 2.0 Strong culture and organizational effectiveness 2.1 Subculture 3.0 Leadership role in organizational effectiveness 4.0 Conclusion 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 CULTURE Culture is the way we do things are done around here (Schein, 1985) defining the actions of an organization in overt and covert ways, and when change takes place (Smollan, 2009). Culture can also be defined as the collective programming of the mind (Hofstede, 2005). According to Jan Vom (2011), two significant elements covers the scope of culture: (1) cultures manifestation (2) scope of the referenced group. Cultures manifestation Organizations culture is manifested through visible structures and strategies (Jan Vom, 2011). The three layers of culture related to its manifestation are; artefacts, espoused values, and basic underlying assumptions (Schein, 2004 as quoted in Jan Vom, 2011). The visible artefact through which culture is manifested includes companys symbols, its products, architecture, way of dressing, typical behaviours and rituals. It is important to connect artefacts to values. Espoused values are less visible and encompass publicly expressed strategies, goals, norms and rules that provide the daily operating doctrine for members of the organization. Basic underlying assumptions are a subconscious part of the culture which accounts for a mental map of fundamental aspects of life such as the nature of time and space, the role of social hierarchies, and the relative importance of work, family, and self-development. These represent the essence of culture. Scope of the referenced group Reference group refers to the set of people an individual perceives as belonging to his or her work environment which defines the social world of work in which he or she engages, including people with whom the individual does and does not communicate (Lawrence, 2006). Thus, the referenced group are the people within the context of the culture. The scope of the culture is defined depending on the referenced group (Jan Vom, 2011). 1.2 ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE Organizational culture has been defined by numerous authors in different ways. Deshpande and Webster (1989) define organizational culture as the pattern of shared values and beliefs that help individuals understand organizational functioning thus providing norms for behaviour in the organization. In contrast, other authors such as Schein (1985) have put forward that culture is best thought of as a psychological tendency, which he refers to as basic assumptions, that members of an organization learns as it solves its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, and considered valid because it is successful, and then taught to new members to use when facing those problems. However, no matter how we choose to define culture, culture is an important aspect of an organization, and organizations with strong culture increase the chances that members can execute its objectives and increase organizational performance by enlightening members on those objectives (Pottruck, 2001). Chantman, and Chaldwell (1991) quoted in Dwivedi (1995) suggests that the ten primary characteristics that, in aggregate, capture the essence of organizations culture includes: Member identity: how employees identify with the organization as a whole rather than with their type of job or field of professional expertise. Group emphasis: The degree to which work activities are organised around groups rather than individuals. People focus: the degree to which management decisions taken into consideration the effect of outcomes on people within the organization. Unit integration: the degree to which units within the organization are encouraged to operate in a coordinated or interdependent manner. Control: the degree to which rules, regulations, and direct supervision are used to oversee and control employee behaviour. Risk tolerance: the degree to which employees are encouraged to be aggressive, innovative, and risk seeking. Reward criteria: the degree to which rewards such as salary increases and promotions are allocated according to employees performance rather than seniority, favouritism, or other non- performance factors. Conflict tolerance: the degree to which employees are encouraged to air conflicts and criticisms openly. Means-ends orientation: the degree to which management focuses on results or outcomes rather than on the techniques and processes used to achieve those outcomes. Open system focus: the degree to which the organization monitors and responds to changes in the external environment. These characteristics reflect the organizations value and are used to determine an organizations culture. Depending on its strength, it can bring about organizational effectiveness (Dwivedi, 1995). However, some researchers have questioned how well strong cultures improve organizational performance. According to Denison (1990), organizations with strong cultures had greater returns on investments, but this only happens in the short run, after three years the relationship between cultural consistency and performance becomes negative. Also, Alicia (2002) is of the opinion that strong cultures may facilitate short-term success but inhibit long-term organizational performance, and may even contribute to long-term failure by preventing organizations from adapting to changing contingencies. Thus, while cultural strength may bring about increase in organizational performance in the short run, they may also inhibit an organizations ability to adapt, change, and innovate. 1.3 STRONG CULTURE AND WEAK CULTURE An organizations culture can either be strong or weak depending on the degree of alignment of the organizations value and employees response to stimuli because of their alignment with it (Olivier, 2009). Strong cultures: Here, organizational values and beliefs are widely shared with significant influence on peoples behaviour with respect to their job (John, 2006). It encompasses the ability to influence and motivate organizational members to act in an approved manner in the organization, and also an agreement on the part of members, regarding the importance of the organizational values (Schein, 2004). Weak cultures: Here, there is lack of motivation by the members of the organization, and it encompasses little or no  strategy-implementing assistance since there are no traditions, beliefs, values, common bonds, or behavioural norms that  management  can use to motivate to execute the chosen strategy (John, 2006). 2.0 STRONG CULTURE AND ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS Culture has long been regarded as essential to organizational effectiveness (Schein, 1992). According to Alicia (2002); Organizations with a strong culture create clear and coherent values and expect members to care and agree with those values, even if core values emphasize dissent and creativity (Flynn Chatman, 2001). Chatman (2002) is of the opinion that organizations attain strategic advantages through strong cultures. For example, Southwest Airlines has better performance than its competitors, over a period of time, due to its strong culture of focusing on keeping costs low and customers happy. However, Denison (1990) postulated a model that highlights the four key traits of organizational culture, which includes; mission, consistency, involvement, adaptability. Denisons research has demonstrated that effective organizations have high culture scores in all four traits. Thus, effective organizations are likely to have cultures that are adaptive, yet highly consistent and predictable, and that foster high involvement, but do so within the context of a shared sense of mission. External Focus (Adaptability + Mission) The adaptation hypothesis asserts that an organization must hold a system of norms and beliefs which support the capacity of an organization to receive, interpret, and translate signals from its environment into internal behavioural changes that increase its chances for survival, growth and development (Denison, 1990). Schein (1985) emphasizes that a culture usually consists of some adaptive collective behavioural responses, and the capacity to manage these responses is key to organizations effectiveness. A mission, on the other hand, provides purpose and meaning by defining a social role for an institution and defining the relevance of individual roles as related to the institutional role (Denison, 1990). Hence, an organization that is focused on adapting and changing in response to the external environment, and also has well defined goals and objectives has a strong external focus which is key to organizational effectiveness. A strong external focus typically impacts revenue, sales growth, and market share (Denison, 2006). Internal Focus (Involvement + Consistency) High levels of involvement and participation create a sense of ownership and responsibility (Denison, 1990). Members of an organization are able carry out coordinated action when they shared system of beliefs, and values, which are widely understood. Consistency involves defining the values and systems that are the basis of a strong culture. Strong organizational culture which is consistent leads to organizational effectiveness by priding itself on the quality of its products or services. An organization with strong internal focus has higher levels of quality, fewer defects, less rework, good resource utilization, and high employee satisfaction (Denison, 2006). Flexibility (Adaptability + Involvement) A flexible organization has the capability to change in response to the environment with focus is on the marketplace and its people. An organization that is flexible has higher levels of product and service innovation, creativity, and a fast response to the changing needs of customers and employees (Denison, 2006). Stability (Mission + Consistency) A stable organization has the capacity to remain focused and predictable over time. An organization that is stable has high return on assets, investments and sales, as well as strong busi ­ness operations (Denison, 2006). Hence an organization should master these key traits and strengthen its culture in order to be effective. According to Barney (1986), strong organizational culture facilitates increased staff alignment, thus strengthening organizational effectiveness, and increasing employee productivity and commitment. However, on the contrary, Gagliardi (1986) suggested that organizations with strong cultures are only capable of a limited change because of resistance by members to changing those strongly held and widely shared values. For example, such resistance threatened the survival of Westinghouse electrical company in the 1950s, by preventing it from reaping any benefits from acquiring a factory automation business. It was concluded that the failure was due to the organizations culture of merging an entrepreneurial organizational activity into a relatively slow-moving, large American corporation (Nohria, Dwyer, Dalzell, 2002). This further reinforces the point that cultural strength increases organizational performance, but only in the short run, they may also inhibit an organizations ability to change. However Alicia (2002) suggests that organizations facing such problems can use subcultures to become more agile and to drive innovation. 2.1 SUBCULTURE Subcultures are groups whose common characteristic is a set of shared norms and beliefs, formed based on an array of individual, societal, and organizational characteristics (Chatman, 2002). Organizational subcultures may be based on membership in various groups (departments, workgroups, and teams), levels of hierarchies, professional and occupational affiliations, socio-demographic categories (sex, ethnicity, age, or nationality) and performance-related variables such as organizational commitment and work performance (Trice Beyer, 1993 quoted by Chatman, 2002) Hofstede (1998) suggested that subculture provides information about employees perceptions of the organization, and thus managers lack of awareness of existing or potential subcultures can be damaging. As mentioned earlier, members of strong cultures may resist change, and change within strong culture organizations may lead to conflict. Subcultures can absorb this conflict, with the value of the organizational culture intact. Thus, subcultures may offer a way for organizations with strong culture to be flexible enough to change and adapt to external occurrences (Chatman, 2002). 3.0 LEADERSHIP ROLE IN ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS According to Bryman (1992), the leader could alter or impact the organizational culture. Weese (1995) suggested that leaders have tempered positions relative to the impact that a leader can have on shaping and preserving the culture of an organization, that the culture is the organization, not something that the organization possesses, and consequently, culture change is an arduous assignment. Hence, transformational leaders are needed to help shape and maintain the desired culture of an organization (Schein, 1993), which may link to organizational effectiveness. High transformational leaders possess strong organizational cultures and carry out culture-building activities, especially the customer-orientation function, to a greater extent than other leaders do (Weese, 1995). Also, Bass and Avolio (1992) suggested that transformational leadership and organizational culture is vital to organizational effectiveness. Yukl (1994) defined transformational leadership as the process of influencing major changes in the attitudes and assumptions of organizational members and building commitment for the organizations mission, objectives and strategies. Leaders should therefore focus on developing a strong organizational culture which supports achieving set goals and objectives, coordinated team work, customer orientation, as well as managing change in the organization. 4.0 CONCLUSION It has been established that culture has a significant impact on organizations performance. Organizations with strong culture, and are able to maintain its stability enjoy better performance than weaker cultural organizations. Organizations should pay attention to mission, consistency, involvement, and adapt ­ability in order to have organizational effectiveness (Denison, 2006). Also, it is important for transformational leaders to possess a stronger organizational culture. However, strong cultures may inhibit an organizations ability to change, but such organizations can use subcultures to become more agile and to drive innovation (Chatman, 2002).

Stupid Friday Night Shit :: essays research papers

All week long, the only thing everyone can talk about is Friday night. â€Å"What are you doing this weekend?† And the first thing you’ll hear out of any college student’s mouth is â€Å"getting shitty-faced.† Sounds like we got a plan. So Friday night rolls around, and there is a thick and definitely noticeable electricity in the air because everyone is pumped up to go out and drink the week away. All of them say they drink because they â€Å"like the taste.† That’s bullshit. If they really like the taste, they wouldn’t have to play ignorant little games to coax them into drinking the crap. So they’re playing this game now and it’s getting really fucking boring. Now they are all looking at their cup like it’s their enemy and groaning every time they end up having to take a swig. The gulps that everyone started the night out with are slowly turning into tiny little slurps, and the night is dying fast because every one has passed the point of fun-cool-drunk to not-coherent-enough-to-sit-up drunk. Eventually, someone has the bright fucking idea to have some sort of contest to see who can drink the most, the fastest. Joe Dumbass wins, and everybody cheers at how cool he is. Boy does he look real fucking cool two minutes later when he’s sprawled out on the floor puking in a punch bowl, babbling some gibberish shit because he forgot how to fucking talk. Now Mr. Dumbass gets his second wind and discovers that, all of a sudden, he’s the most handsome guy at the party and can stick his meat to anyone at the party he so chooses. Unfortunately, these same beer goggles that made him look so much better, also make the 400-pound heifer in the corner look just as good. Heif knows she’s hideous, and the only reason she comes to these parties it to wait for someone to get drunk enough to think she’s pretty so she can get some good ol’ loving drunken style.

A Critique of “Who Needs College?” Essay

Meaghan O’Hare Professor Haytham Mahfoud LIBS-3003-02 September 22, 2013 A Critique of â€Å"Who Needs College?† In her essay â€Å"Who Needs College?† Linda Lee addresses the issue of whether or not a college education is necessary in order to have a successful life. Lee believes that too much importance is placed on going away to school and getting a degree when it is very possible to find a job and learn valuable life lessons without it. While many would strongly oppose her position on this topic, it has been proven time and time again by numerous individuals that a bright future is well within reach without having to obtain a degree. Going to college is considered to be one of the most important parts of a person’s adult life. Lee focuses on this unnecessary pedestal that the college experience is put on. Kids treat it as an excuse to party and do not place the same level of importance on it as their parents do. Lee had this realization with her own son when she thought about how she was â€Å"paying $1,000 a week for this pleasure cruise† (52). This lead her to pull her son out of school until he was ready to go back and be serious or find a job to occupy his time more efficiently. Her son went on to have many different jobs. They were not the most glamorous, but taught him independence and how to be responsible with his own money. Lee argues that this life path got her son to a fulfilling place where he was enjoying what he was doing and had found a good job where a promotion was in his near future (2). This end result is typically why students go through college in the first place. Throughout the essay, Lee uses multiple statistics in order to back up her position. This is useful because it helps the reader understand that the point being made is a valid one. Lee goes on to make references to people ranging from her hair colorist all the way to Bill Gates to prove that a degree is not necessary to go places in life (52). It is helpful that she also has the advantage of being able to say her son benefited from this way of living. This broadens the audience immensely because the varying age  groups can relate to the different examples and statistics used throughout. Lee makes a very refreshing point and is correct when asking the question of why so many people feel it is necessary to go to college. It is always assumed that after graduating high school, college is the only acceptable step a young person should be taking. These are very high expectations that put a lot of pressure on the ones who might not be ready yet. It is much more practical to focus on what you are passionate about first and then going back to school instead of the other way around. Lee states that â€Å"†¦most kids today view college as a way to get a good job† (52). This only sets graduates up for disaster when they go out into the real world and find out that they cannot find a job as easily as they thought they would. Making it seem like getting a degree is the only way to get places in life is entirely the wrong impression to be giving. Furthermore, while the notion of bypassing a college education is unheard of for most people, it is very possible to be successful without one. Lee thoroughly believes that going to college should not have to be expected from everyone. Referencing the experience she went through with her own son and how he left school opened her eyes and lead her to ask the title question of â€Å"Who Needs College?† Earning a degree may be essential for those who wish to pursue a career in medicine or law, but is not always helpful to those who do not have similar goals. Multiple statistics are used throughout in order to validate this. Lee opens the door for many who might not have thought skipping out on college at first or altogether was an option. It is more then possible to learn the same important lessons and find a good career and now, thanks to Lee, awareness can be raised. Works Cited Lee, Linda. â€Å"Who Needs College?† Perspectives on Contemporary Issues: Readings Across the Disciplines. 4th ed. Ed. Katherine Anne Ackley, Boston: Wadsworth/ Gengage Learning, 2005. 51-52. Print.

Mrs Bestar Mwanza

UNIVERSITY OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE IN ASSOCOATIONS WITH OPEN LEARNING CENTRE MINUTES OF THETEAM GOLD’S 4th MEETING HELD ON Thursday 08 November 2012 at the Bank at 1800hrs. ____________________________________________________________________ Present:Bestar Mwanza(BM) (chairperson) Dzingwa Madzima(DM)(Secretary) Ephethehile Mazibeli(EM) Apologies:Willing Dizawatiza(WD)(wife and kids involved in an accident) ITEM NO. | ITEM| DUE| ACTION| AGENDA1) Welcome Remarks2) Follow-up on previous minutes3)Study Material and Assignment4) Team Bank Account5) Schedule of Activities6) One Day Event7)Personal Development Records8) Any Other Business| | | 1| WELCOME REMARKSThe chairperson noting the presence of a quorum declared the meeting duly constituted. | | | 2| FOLLOW-UP ON PREVIOUS MINUTESThe minutes were confirmed as a true record of the proceedings. | | 3| STUDY MATERIAL AND ASSIGNMENTRecommended study material was discussed and the following was shared;1) Johnson and Scholes: Exploring Corp orate Strategy. 2)Hanagan-Concepts of Management3)Assignment Format4)CIMA Strategy ModuleAssignment to be done individually, authors of and models(PESTEL, SPECTECLES, SWEPT, Porter's 5 forces, value chain, war gaming)to be researched on and shared, we will proof read assignments for each other.The following milestones were agreed upon on assignment preparation;1) Finish Introduction 2) Complete assignment body 3) Recommendation and Implementation-Draft assignment4)Submit Assignment We also need to confirm the number of references required for the assignment| 12/11/1216/11/1220/11/1230/11/1210/11/12| AllAllAllAllAllAll| 4| TEAM BANK ACCOUNTTeam Bank Account already opened with IDBZ; EM, DM and BM signed the application form.BM to organise for WD to sign. Conditions on the team account are that any two team members can sign. | 09/11/12| BM/WD| 5| SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIESThe schedule for deliverables for the team to be designed and filled. | EM| All| 6| ONE DAY EVENTSubmit our suggestion to larger group on food and activities, audit.Audit checks: as the team had not been assigned a specific duty the team members suggested they would propose to be the audit team for the event so as to ensure compliance throughout the organising of the event EM-| 10/11/1210/11/12| AllEM| 7| PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT RECORD(PDR)Review each other's PDR | 15/11/12| All| 8| ANY OTHER BUSINESSN/A| | | | There being no further business to be discussed, the meeting closed at 19:30 Hrs. Date of Next Meeting: Thursday, 15th November 2012 at 18:00 Hrs. | ————————————————————————————– CHAIRMANDATE