The Indian Ocean Essay Example for Free

The Indian Ocean Essay In 2004, the world most saw one of the most annihilating catastrophic events that had happened over the most recent 100 years. On December 26th of that year, a seismic tremor in the Indian Ocean brought forth a colossal torrent that killed thousands in the encompassing terrains. In the months following the tidal wave, many thought about what steps could be assumed to limit human misfortune in case of such an unavoidable characteristic occasion. Thus, researchers started to look for an improved early ready framework to identify tidal waves. Very nearly two years after the Indian Ocean seismic tremor, NASA’s Earth Observatory declared the advancement of another ocean bottom weight recording framework that is intended to identify torrents not long after their turn of events. The new framework is relied upon to stretch out alarm times notwithstanding maintaining a strategic distance from bogus cautions. The undertaking is being directed by the German National Research Center for Geosciences, situated in Potsdam, Germany. Researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research are coordinating the undertaking. Also, Optimare and develogic are organizations that are chipping away at the acoustic-based segment of the framework known as PACT. See more points Road security. The Zentrum hide Marine Umweltswissenschaft and the University of Rhode Island are additionally taking a shot at PACT. In spite of the fact that for the most part thought to be a solitary goliath sea wave, torrents are really made of various waves. In numerous cases, the influenced shoreline can be more than once hit by a few huge waves. Torrents are brought about by an abrupt movement in the sea depths which can be the aftereffect of a tremor, volcanic ejection, a submerged avalanche, or the effect of a huge shooting star. Most torrents are brought about by quakes that start in subduction zones, or territories where a maritime plate is being constrained into the earth’s mantle. Where there is a lot of contact between two plates, the superseding plate can get twisted and subsequently a lot of vitality is put away, frequently over many years of hundreds of years. After the put away seismic vitality surpasses the frictional powers between the two plates, the misshaped plate unexpectedly comes back to its unique position and a quake results. The overlying water is uprooted, producing enormous waves that spread outward from the focal point. The recently evolved framework estimates vibration and even ocean bottom developments so as to find seaquakes, which might produce torrents. The estimations that are taken from the ocean bottom are gotten and investigated with a matter of only a couple of moments. Information is gathered and dissected at regular intervals. Water levels are additionally marked off the coast utilizing base constrain sensors to distinguish any ascents in ocean level before the enormous waves come to the shallower waters along the coast. So far the framework has demonstrated to be minimal, solid, and vitality productive. Now, an acoustic modem sends data to a subsequent modem, which sends a satellite message, or wire, to the notice place, conveying notice of a wave. Following two years of improvement, none of the messages were lost, which accepted to be an early sign of the system’s significant unwavering quality. The new framework will be executed into the prior worldwide framework which is utilized to recognize wave occasions. Further testing will be directed in the Mediterranean. The engineers will likewise analyze the unwavering quality of the system’s capacity to transmit under various climate conditions. The advancement of this improved framework shows extraordinary advancement in the push to give compelling admonitions to waves, along these lines decreasing the quantity of setbacks. The potential for the accomplishment of this framework has been shown in a progression of fruitful tests and the way that no messages have been lost to date. Much despite everything is not yet clear, in any case, in deciding the restrictions of the framework and finding factors like climate conditions may add to decreased proficiency of the framework. The article doesn't specify the significant part of how the individuals who are in the way of a tidal wave will be advised that they may empty so as to stay away from the calamity. This is of specific significance on account of remote towns and zones where innovative framework may not be created to the degree of progressively industrialized areas. Regardless of how rapidly the information is gathered and transmitted to the notice community, it is basic that the data in regards to the moving toward tidal wave be conveyed to the individuals who might be influenced in an ideal way. Conveying data to remote districts might be a test that the engineers should deliver as they endeavor to address the issue for early notice in the regions that lie along the Indian Ocean. In spite of the fact that there are as yet potential worries that should be assessed, it is promising that a propelled framework has been set up over a generally brief timeframe. Besides, there is presently a ready framework in a locale where beforehand no such system existed. This may give more prominent assurance and readiness to a district that has just observed the obliteration that a tidal wave can do. On the off chance that the framework keeps on being fruitful and is actualized into the worldwide framework, it will in the long run spare numerous lives and it might likewise permit researchers to study the seismic movement that happens under the sea depths. All in all, NASA’s article gives a useful report on a significant achievement in the improvement of a framework that won't just assistance individuals over the earth get ready for cataclysmic events, however that likewise may prompt pivotal revelations that could permit researchers to extra significant finds that can assist us with bettering comprehend our planet Works Cited Earth Observatory. Torrent recording in the Deep Sea. 25 November 2007. NASA. 17 November 2007. http://earthobservatory. nasa. gov/Newsroom/MediaAlerts/2007/2007111925951. html.

Resume chapter 16 (EXPORT-ORIENTED GROWTH IN EAST ASIA) Essay

Resume part 16 (EXPORT-ORIENTED GROWTH IN EAST ASIA) - Essay Example The worldwide downturn of 2008 likewise influenced their economies, yet their encounters in universal exchange are altogether worth considering in light of the fact that they determined a lot of achievement in it. With these HPAE are subgroups, for example, the Four Tigers, to be specific Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. Another gathering is the Newly Industrializing Economies (NIE) of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. China has a classification all its own because of its size and socialism impact. The NIE stuck to this same pattern after the Four Tigers’ economies took off. Specialists have examined how the HPAE have supported their financial achievement and discovered that these nations were cautious in keeping up stable macroeconomics. They likewise organized sharing the advantages of their financial development with their residents by giving them access to medicinal services, instruction and lodging, so individuals were caused to feel they were all around deal t with. Such activities were effective in requesting people’s backing and certainty. Thus, the high paces of proficiency delivered in their kin were alluring to remote financial specialists and multicultural firms. Another explanation behind their prosperity is the advancement of their sent out items while being available to imports. These nations accepted that exportation gave the outside trade profit they required just as urged organizations to be serious in concocting excellent items to send out while importation realized new innovations and novel items to refresh their insight in aptitudes. Salary rates in these Asian nations are a lot higher than their Latin American partners. Rather than them, East Asian economy didn't have high imbalance in pay and riches toward the start of their development. The example followed what was known as â€Å"Kuznet’s curve†, which proposed correspondence first decreases and afterward rises. The relative fairness in these coun tries came about because of the trademark sharing of riches from monetary achievement. Consequently, the arrangement of essential needs just as land change, free government funded training, free fundamental medicinal services and critical interests in country framework, for example, clean water frameworks, transportation and correspondence frameworks. The constructive results of such arrangement stretches out to the ascent in business openings since the individuals have buying capacity to help little and medium-scale business people which are privately based. This adds to political dependability and continues the enthusiasm of organizations in to put resources into these nations on a drawn out premise. The fare push in the East Asian countries brought about too much in all out world fares and absolute world fabricated fares. Such achievement was ascribed to instruction approaches preferring the promotion of education spread in essential and auxiliary tutoring. In addition, HPAE coun tries embraced trade advancement plicies that made a catalyst for send out organizations. For instance, trade financing credit and tax cuts were promptly accessible in Japan and the Four Tigers for organizations that arrive at their fare targets. Levy free access to imports of capital hardware required in assembling is likewise given. Such acts of fare advancement associated with high paces of development might be viewed as questionable in financial aspects just as sharing such fare advancement systems with different countries as it is probably going to make exchange clashes since it might conflict with the standards of reasonable exchange consented to by the individuals from the World Trade Organization. The security kept up in macroeconomic conditions in the

Whats a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL), and How Can You Get One

Whats a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL), and How Can You Get One Whats a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL), and How Can You Get One? Whats a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL), and How Can You Get One?The only downside to Payday Alternative Loans (PALs) is that you have to join a credit union now in order to apply for one when you really need it.Frequent readers of the OppLoans Financial Sense Blog (or “Sensies” as we insist on calling them despite the fact that everyone tells us this is a terrible name) know how we feel about payday loans. To put it succinctly, we’re not fans.As such, we’ve spent a lot of time writing about ways that people can avoid payday loans and other types of high-cost, short-term no credit check loans, like title loans and cash advances. The best way to avoid them, for the record, is to start saving money and build up an emergency fund.But that’s a long-term fix to what is often a very immediate problem. When you have a financial emergency, like a surprise medical expense or an unexpected car repair, you need a solution that’s going to help you right now.This is where Payday Alterna tive Loans, or PALs, come in. They do require a little bit of foresight in order to access, but they are one of the best financial products out there for people who are looking to steer clear of predatory payday loans. What is a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL)?So, there’s a difference between any old alternative to a payday loan and a Payday Alternative Loan (PAL). Notice how the latter is capitalized and comes with its own acronym in a very fancy set of parentheses? That’s because PALs are a specific type of loan product.PALs are loans offered by credit unions that belong to the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). Credit unions, by the way, are non-profit alternatives to traditional for-profit banks. Generally, membership in a credit union is determined by factors like where you live, work, or worship.Because credit unions are nonprofit institutions designed to serve the interests of their members, they are able to offer products at a lower rate than for-profit instituti ons that are concerned with maximizing profit.As such, credit unions that belong to NCUA have the option of offering PALs that come with much, much lower interest rates than other bad credit loans. Like payday loans, they also come with shorter terms than a traditional personal loan.What are the terms for a PAL?Under the policies set by the NCUA, all PALs  must meet the following criteria:Loan amounts between $200 to $1,000.The borrower must be a member of the federal credit union for at least 1 month.The term of the loan must range from 1 to 6 months.The federal credit union can charge an application fee only in the amount needed to recoup the actual costs associated with processing the borrowers application, up to $20.The PAL cannot be rolled over.The maximum interest rate for a PAL is 28 percent, which is almost one-fourteenth the cost of an average payday loan. Additionally, the NCUA has proposed some rule changes that would allow credit unions to, among other things, ditch the one-month membership requirement.How are PALs better than payday loans?PALs are better than payday loans in pretty much every way! As we mentioned in the paragraph above, the maximum interest rate for a PAL is 28 percent. Compare that to the average APR for a payday loan, which comes in at 391 percent!Additionally, credit unions are barred from rolling over PALs, which means that borrowers are less likely to be caught in a predatory debt cycle. Rolling over and reborrowing short-term loans is why the average payday loan customer ends up spending almost 200 days a year in debt.The current NCUA regulatory framework goes even further to protect borrowers from entering a debt cycle with PALs. Credit unions are not only forbidden from loaning more than one PAL at a time to any single borrower, but they are also barred from lending out more than three PALs to a single borrower within any six-month rolling period.How can you get a PAL?The biggest disadvantage to PALs is their accessibility . You have to be a member of a given credit union in order to apply for one. So if there isn’t a credit union that you can join that also offers PALs, you’re out of luck. Getting a payday loan, on the other hand, is easy. Much too easy!The one-month membership requirement also means that you cannot, for instance, go out and join a credit union right now if you need a PAL to pay for a car repair. Instead, you should go out and join a credit union before  you have an emergency expense. That way, you’ll be ready to borrow a PAL when you need it.If you’re already a member of a credit union that offers PALs, just call or visit your local branch to apply. And while you’re at it, see if they offer any free financial counseling services to their members. Many do!There’s another payday loan  alternative out there.If you need a bad credit loan and you can’t access a PAL, then you’re pretty much stuck with a payday or title loan, right? Nope! We hate to get all “Yoda’s Ghos t” on you but … there is another.Bad credit installment loans can make for a safer, more affordable alternative to payday loans. The right installment loan will come with a lower interest rate plus more affordable individual payments.Some lenders, like OppLoans, even report your payment information to the credit bureaus, meaning that on-time payments could help improve your credit score, which can mean better options for emergency bridge financing in the future!Still, the best way to steer clear of payday loans isn’t to take out a PAL or a bad credit installment loan. It’s to build up your savings so that you don’t need any loan in the first place! To learn more about how you can improve your long-term financial outlook, check out these related posts and articles from OppLoans:How to Finance a Medical Emergency: An OppLoans eBookFrom Budget to Baller: 6 Tips to Grow Your MoneyYour Guide to Escaping a Debt Trap8 Ways To Save Money Today, Tomorrow and Every Day AfterDo you h ave a financial question youd like us to answer? Let us know! You can find us  on  Facebook  and  Twitter.

The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs Essay - 1316 Words

In Shaping of the Modern World, we are learning about political and cultural changes around the world. Slavery is a significant topic in Shaping of the Modern World, how our world change throughout slavery and how slavery changes over time. In the narrative writing, Incidents in the life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs, she talks about how her life changed while serving different and new masters and mistresses. I think that this narrative writing is an important text to help us understand the different perspectives of slavery in America. There are some slave owners that are kind and humane, and some slave owners that are cruel and abusive. Additionally, reading from a female slave’s perspectives teaches us that life on the plantations and life in the house is different. Especially as a female, they would get different treatment from their masters and mistresses. The text has changed my understanding of slavery that not all slave owners are harsh, and not all slaves are not intellectual. In the narrative text, Incidents in the life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs changed my understanding of slavery that not all slaves were treated as animals. For example, Harriet Jacobs’ family is owned by a very kind and teaching master and mistress. Even though her father is a slave, he is a very talented carpenter and the head workman. He also had the money to give his mistress to give a good living condition to his family. Evidently, â€Å"On condition of paying his mistress two hundredShow MoreRelatedThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs858 Words   |  4 PagesThe way that Harriet Jacobs describes slavery in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl was not a surprise to me. I believed that slaves were treated poorly and often times were hurt, the way that I thought of slavery is just like it is described in the book if not worse. I will discuss what I believed slavery was like before I read the book, how slavery was according to the book using in text citations and e xamples and also explain my thoughts on why the treatment was not a surprise to me. FromRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1606 Words   |  7 PagesSlaves in the southern states of the United States were oppressed, beaten, and deprived of their natural human rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Which in turn caused many slaves to resist their ill fate that was decided by their masters. Through the story of â€Å"Incidents in the life of a slave girl† by Harriet Jacobs she wrote in her experience how she was resisting her masters and how many people helped her in her escape. And it wasn’t just black that resisted the slave systemRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1791 Words   |  8 PagesIn the slave narrative entitled Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs also known as Linda Brent, is faced with a number of decisions, brutal hardships, and internal conflicts that she must cope with as an enslaved black woman. She opens the narrative with a preface that states: â€Å"READER, be a ssured this narrative is no fiction. I am aware that some of my adventures may seem incredible; but they are, nevertheless, strictly true. I have not exaggerated the wrongs inflicted by Slavery†Read MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacob Essay1049 Words   |  5 PagesIn the novel Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacob’s writes an autobiography about the personal struggles her family, as well as women in bondage, commonly face while maturing in the Southern part of America. While young and enslaved, Harriet had learned how to read, write, sew, and taught how to perform other tasks associated with a ladies work from her first mistress. With the advantage of having a background in literacy, Harriet Jacobs later came to the realization that she wouldRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1198 Words   |  5 PagesIn her autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs portrays her detailed life events on such an intens e level. Jacobs was born in 1813 in North Carolina. She had a rough life starting at the age of six when her mother died, and soon after that everything started to go downhill, which she explains in her autobiography. Her novel was originally published in 1861, but was later reprinted in 1973 and 1987. Harriet Jacobs presents her story using numerous detailed descriptionsRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1292 Words   |  6 Pagesslavery. I chose to focus on two texts: Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. In the personal narrative Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, author Harriet Jacobs depicts the various struggles she endured in the course of her life as a young female slave and, as she grew older, a runaway escaped to the â€Å"free† land of the North, referring to herself as Linda Brent. Throughout this story, Jacobs places a heavy emphasis on the ways in which Brent andRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs928 Words   |  4 Pagesin the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs offers the audience to experience slavery through a feminist perspective. Unlike neo-slave narratives, Jacobs uses the pseudonym ‘Linda Brent’ to narrate her first-person account in order to keep her identity clandestine. Located in the Southern part of America, her incidents commence from her sheltered life as a child to her subordination to her mistress upon her mother’s death, and her continuing struggle to live a dignified and virtuous life despiteRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1335 Words   |  6 PagesHarriet Jacobs wrote Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Incidents) to plead with free white women in the north for the abolition of slavery. She focused on highlighting characteristics that the Cult of True Womanhood and other traditional protestant Christians idolized in women, mainly piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness. Yet, by representing how each of her characters loses the ability to maintain the prescribed values, she presents the strong moral framework of the African AmericanRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs1575 Words   |  7 Pagesncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Slavery, in my eyes, is an institution that has always been ridiculed on behalf of the physical demands of the practice, but few know the extreme mental hardships that all slaves faced. In Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs writes autobiographically about her families and her personal struggles as a maturing mullatto child in the South. Throughout this engulfing memoir of Harriet Jacobs life, this brave woman tells of many trying timesRead MoreThe Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacob993 Words   |  4 PagesHarriet Jacob’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, depicts a personal and true account of how woman were sexually and physically abused rather than just physically abuses as that of an enslaved man. Enslaved woman struggled tremendously to not only be considered equal to man though to be seen equal pure and virtuous identical to the white women. Jacob’s female slave narrative was a special kind of autobiography, were she not only used anothe r person to represent her, however, she wanted the reader

Old Man and the Sea - 1537 Words

There is never a simple key to any writer worth much attention, but in the case of Hemingway there is something that looks so like a keyÂ… that it cannot escape any informed and thoughtful readers notice (OConner 153). Ernest Hemingway was one such author. Very rarely did he summarize statements, therefore the only way to solve his puzzle was to take it apart and examine each components. One of the hidden elements that the reader must analyzie closely is the parallel between Santiago and Jesus Christ. In the novel, The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway creates connections between Santiago and Jesus Christ that adds religious coloration to the story. Santiago can be compared to a Christ figure on the basis of his relationships†¦show more content†¦This later passage which details Santiagos painful climb up the hill to his shack, bearing the mast of his boat on his shoulders is an allusion to Christs last ascent (Wylder 91). William OConner believes The Old Man and the Sea can be classified as a Christian tragedyÂ…especially in several marked allusions to Christian symbolism, particularly of the crucifixion (OConnor 169). Following the example of Christ, he [Santiago] suffers unjustly and undergoes defeat. He experiences his own type of crucifixion. But he accepts suffering, again following the model of Christ (Auer 22). Carrying the mast (cross), Santiago struggles to his shack. At the shack, Santiago goes to bed in a crucifixion pose: face down, arms out, palms up. He pulled the blanket over his shoulders and then over his back and legs and he slept face down on the newspapers with his arms out straight and the palms of his hands up (Hemingway 112). As a result of the precise parallel between Santiago and Christ, the reader can infer that Santiago is Christ in disguise. One critic Arvin Wells believes Santiago can be seen as a Christian saint (22). Wells concludes this theory because Santiago has achieved the most difficult and saintly of all Christian virtues, humility. There are reminiscences of Christianity present in the story sometimes as a symbol, sometimes as direct allusion and sometimes merely as aShow MoreRelatedThe Old Man And The Sea1561 Words   |  7 Pages The Old Man and The Sea is more than a book about a fish and an old man, it teaches us strength and never giving up on ourselves. The Old Man and The Sea is written by Ernest Hemingway about Santiago, The Old Man. Hemingway is a writer known for his iceberg themes in his novels, where ten percent of its message is what you read and the ninety percent is hidden. That ninety percent is up to interpretation. My interpretation is Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea he expressesRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1154 Words   |  5 PagesThe sea in a w ay is like a living being. The way it rhythmically carries itself, showing all of its majestic beauty. The sea has such power, each wave coordinately smashing against whatever stands in its way. Sea erosion, most commonly known as coastal erosion, is the slow process of wave action constantly shaping and reshaping the coastlines of our world. In The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway portrays nature as a continuum-an endless progression of the invention and destruction which is ultimatelyRead MoreThe Old Man and the Sea900 Words   |  4 PagesThe Old Man and the Sea is a short, but rich novel about an old fisherman who, after eighty-four unsuccessful days in a row, hooks the largest fish of his life. Written by Ernest Hemingway in 1951, and published in 1952, the novel was the last of Hemingway’s novels to be published during his lifetime. The book was praised by critics, and became an immediate success. The story was also awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and w as a factor in Hemingway winning a Nobel Prize. The story was publishedRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea Essay1718 Words   |  7 Pagesearly to mid 20th century. Known mainly for his success in writing the critically acclaimed novel, The Old Man and the Sea, Hemingway had many symbolic meanings instituted throughout this novel and many other works. Many having the theme of a hero confronting a natural force, as seen when Santiago confronts the mighty sea. Along with the heroic themes, Hemingway had become a religious Catholic man growing up and decided to include many religious references and biblical allusions. Since the beginningRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1128 Words   |  5 PagesLiterature Analysis 3 The Old Man and the Sea was written by Ernest Hemingway. It was published by the Charles Scribner’s Sons in 1952, and contains 127 pages. The genre is literary fiction. The story is about an old man named Santiago who fishes alone in the Gulf Stream and has been very unsuccessful for the past 84 days. A simple tale, this takes timeless themes of courage of one man’s struggle and personal triumph. The author’s purpose was to write both a realistic andRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1412 Words   |  6 Pagesboth having completely different writing styles and ideas, seem to have an underlying similarity in how they view leadership and heroism. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemmingway and Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh both show internal battles and undeniable fate within characters throughout each novel. In The Old Man and the Sea Hemmingway uses Santiago, the old Cuban fisherman, to represent internal transformation, renewed life, triumph, and defeat. Ghosh also represents similar struggles throughRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1586 Words   |  7 Pageswithin the plot of the novel, The Old Man and the Sea and the motion picture, Life of Pi. In the novel, the old fisherman, Santiago spends a few days out at sea attempting to capture the fish of his dreams. He battles through pain, thirst and hunger in order to bring the Marlin to the shore. However, whi le losing his prey, he gains a priceless experience combined with pride, respect and compassion. On the other hand, the main character in the movie survives at sea for 227 days with a wild animal,Read MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1121 Words   |  5 Pagesimpact on the author of The Old Man and The Sea, Ernest Hemingway. Gertrude, an American novelist, poet, playwright and art collector, served as a mentor for Ernest. The novelist also served as a godmother to Ernest along with her companion, Alice B. Toklas. Ernest Hemingway used his experience with Gertrude in his 1952 book, The Old Man and The Sea. Santiago and Manolin share a relationship similar to Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein. Throughout The Old Man and The Sea, Ernest Hemingway providesRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea1395 Words   |  6 PagesBoth The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway and â€Å"To Build a Fire† by Jack London both explore the literary conflict of man verses nature. Both main characters sha re many similarities; however, they also have various differences that set them apart as well. In The Old Man and the Sea the story is about Santiago, an old fisherman who sets out one day and catches the fish of a lifetime. Santiago then spends multiple days fighting the fish in the middle of the ocean. â€Å"To Build a Fire† is about aRead MoreThe Old Man And The Sea993 Words   |  4 Pages one Earnest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, is a captivating story about and old seasoned fisherman named Santiago. It is a tale of his epic struggle with the greatest catch of his life after not catching anything for eighty-four days. He face psychological challenges and encounters multiple villains. Santiago is fishing with a young boy named Manolin and the boy leaves the old man to go on another boat. Hemingway explains to us why they boy had to leave the boat. â€Å"But after forty

What Makes an Effective Executive Free Essays

string(84) " the Marie Rankin Clarke Professor of Social Science and Management at the Peter F\." ARTICLE www. hbr. org What Makes an Effective Executive by Peter F Drucker . We will write a custom essay sample on What Makes an Effective Executive or any similar topic only for you Order Now Included with this full-text Harvard Business Review article: 1 Article Summar y The Idea in Brief—the core idea The Idea in Practice—putting the idea to work 2 What Makes an Effective Executive 8 Further Reading A list of related materials, with annotations to guide further exploration of the article’s ideas and applications Product 6980 What Makes an Effective Executive The Idea in Brief The Idea in Practice Worried that you’re not a born leader? That you lack charisma, the right talents, or some other secret ingredient? No need: leadership isn’t about personality or talent. In fact, the best leaders exhibit wildly different personalities, attitudes, values, and strengths— they’re extroverted or reclusive, easygoing or controlling, generous or parsimonious, numbers or vision oriented. GET THE KNOWLEDGE YOU NEED So what do effective leaders have in common? They get the right things done, in the right ways—by following eight simple rules: Ask what needs to be done. When Jack Welch asked this question while taking over as CEO at General Electric, he realized that dropping GE businesses that couldn’t be first or second in their industries as essential—not the overseas expansion he had wanted to launch. Once you know what must be done, identify tasks you’re best at, concentrating on one at a time. After completing a task, reset priorities based on new realities. †¢ Develop action plans. Ask what’s right for the enterprise. Don’t agonize o ver what’s best for owners, investors, employees, or customers. Decisions that are right for your enterprise are ultimately right for all stakeholders. †¢ Take responsibility for decisions. CONVERT YOUR KNOWLEDGE INTO ACTION †¢ Take responsibility for communicating. Develop action plans. Devise plans that specify desired results and constraints (is the course of action legal and compatible with the company’s mission, values, and policies? ). Include check-in points and implications for how you’ll spend your time. And revise plans to reflect new opportunities. †¢ Ask what needs to be done. †¢ Ask what’s right for the enterprise. †¢ Focus on opportunities, not problems. COPYRIGHT  © 2004 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. †¢ Run productive meetings. †¢ Think and say â€Å"We,† not â€Å"I. † Using discipline to apply these rules, you gain the knowledge you need to make mart decisions, convert that knowledge into effective action, and ensure accountability throughout your organization. gies, product innovations, new market structures), asking â€Å"How can we exploit this change to benefit our enterprise? † Then match your best people with the best opportunities. ENSUR E COMPANYWIDE ACCOUNTABILITY Run productive meetings. Articulate each meeting’s purpose (Making an announcement? Delivering a report? ). Terminate the meeting once the purpose is accomplished. Follow up with short communications summarizing the discussion, spelling out new work assignments and deadlines for ompleting them. General Motors CEO Alfred Sloan’s legendary mastery of meeting followup helped secure GM’s industry dominance in the mid-twentieth century. Think and say â€Å"We,† not â€Å"I. † Your authority comes from your organization’s trust in you. To get the best results, always consider your organization’s needs and opportunities before your own. Take responsibility for decisions. Ensure that each decision specifies who’s accountable for carrying it out, when it must be implemented, who’ll be affected by it, and who must be informed. Regularly review decisions, especially hires and promotions. This enables you to correct poor decisions before doing real damage. Take responsibility for communicating. Get input from superiors, subordinates, and peers on your action plans. Let each know what information you need to get the job done. Pay equal attention to peers’ and superiors’ information needs. Focus on opportunities, not problems. You get results by exploiting opportunities, not solving problems. Identify changes inside and outside your organization (new technolopage 1 Great managers may be charismatic or dull, generous or tightfisted, visionary or numbers oriented. But every effective executive follows eight simple practices. What Makes an Effective Executive by Peter F. Drucker COPYRIGHT  © 2004 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. An effective executive does not need to be a leader in the sense that the term is now most commonly used. Harry Truman did not have one ounce of charisma, for example, yet he was among the most effective chief executives in U. S. history. Similarly, some of the best business and nonpro? t CEOs I’ve worked with over a 65-year consulting career were not stereotypical leaders. They were all over the map in terms of their personalities, attitudes, values, strengths, and weaknesses. They ranged from extroverted to nearly reclusive, from easygoing to controlling, from generous to parsimonious. What made them all effective is that they followed the same eight practices: †¢ They asked, â€Å"What needs to be done? † †¢ They asked, â€Å"What is right for the enterprise? † †¢ They developed action plans. †¢ They took responsibility for decisions. †¢ They took responsibility for communicating. †¢ They were focused on opportunities rather than problems. harvard business review †¢ june 2004 They ran productive meetings. †¢ They thought and said â€Å"we† rather than â€Å"I. † The ? rst two practices gave them the knowledge they needed. The next four helped them convert this knowledge into effective action. The last two ensured that the whole organization felt responsible and accountable. Get the K nowledge You Need The ? rst practice is to ask what needs to be done. Note that the question is not â€Å"What do I want to do? † Asking what has to be done, and taking the question seriously, is crucial for managerial success. Failure to ask this question will render even the ablest executive ineffectual. When Truman became president in 1945, he knew exactly what he wanted to do: complete the economic and social reforms of Roosevelt’s New Deal, which had been deferred by World War II. As soon as he asked what needed to be done, though, Truman realized that foreign affairs had absolute priority. He organized his working day so that it began with tutorials on foreign policy by the secretaries of state and page 2 W hat Makes an Effective Executive Peter F. Drucker is the Marie Rankin Clarke Professor of Social Science and Management at the Peter F. You read "What Makes an Effective Executive" in category "Essay examples" Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California. He has written nearly two dozen articles for HBR. harvard business review †¢ june 2004 defense. As a result, he became the most effective president in foreign affairs the United States has ever known. He contained Communism in both Europe and Asia and, with the Marshall Plan, triggered 50 years of worldwide economic growth. Similarly, Jack Welch realized that what needed to be done at General Electric when he took over as chief executive was not the overseas expansion he wanted to launch. It was getting rid of GE businesses that, no matter how pro? able, could not be number one or number two in their industries. The answer to the question â€Å"What needs to be done? † almost always contains more than one urgent task. But effective executives do not splinter themselves. They concentrate on one task if at all possible. If they are among those people—a sizable minority—who work best with a c hange of pace in their working day, they pick two tasks. I have never encountered an executive who remains effective while tackling more than two tasks at a time. Hence, after asking what needs to be done, the effective executive sets priorities and sticks to them. For a CEO, the priority task might be rede? ning the company’s mission. For a unit head, it might be rede? ning the unit’s relationship with headquarters. Other tasks, no matter how important or appealing, are postponed. However, after completing the original top-priority task, the executive resets priorities rather than moving on to number two from the original list. He asks, â€Å"What must be done now? † This generally results in new and different priorities. To refer again to America’s best-known CEO: Every ? ve years, according to his autobiography, Jack Welch asked himself, â€Å"What needs to be done now? And every time, he came up with a new and different priority. But Welch also thought through another issue before deciding where to concentrate his efforts for the next ? ve years. He asked himself which of the two or three tasks at the top of the list he himself was best suited to undertake. Then he concentrated on that task; the others he delega ted. Effective executives try to focus on jobs they’ll do especially well. They know that enterprises perform if top management performs—and don’t if it doesn’t. Effective executives’ second practice—fully as important as the ? rst—is to ask, â€Å"Is this the ight thing for the enterprise? † They do not ask if it’s right for the owners, the stock price, the employees, or the executives. Of course they know that shareholders, employees, and executives are important constituencies who have to support a decision, or at least acquiesce in it, if the choice is to be effective. They know that the share price is important not only for the shareholders but also for the enterprise, since the price/earnings ratio sets the cost of capital. But they also know that a decision that isn’t right for the enterprise will ultimately not be right for any of the stakeholders. This second practice is especially important for executives at family owned or family run businesses—the majority of businesses in every country—particularly when they’re making decisions about people. In the successful family company, a relative is promoted only if he or she is measurably superior to all nonrelatives on the same level. At DuPont, for instance, all top managers (except the controller and lawyer) were family members in the early years when the ? rm was run as a family business. All male descendants of the founders were entitled to entry-level jobs at the company. Beyond the entrance level, a family member got a promotion only if a panel composed primarily of nonfamily managers judged the person to be superior in ability and performance to all other employees at the same level. The same rule was observed for a century in the highly successful British family business J. Lyons Company (now part of a major conglomerate) when it dominated the British food-service and hotel industries. Asking â€Å"What is right for the enterprise? † does not guarantee that the right decision will be made. Even the most brilliant executive is human and thus prone to mistakes and prejudices. But failure to ask the question virtually guarantees the wrong decision. Write an Action Plan Executives are doers; they execute. Knowledge is useless to executives until it has been translated into deeds. But before springing into action, the executive needs to plan his course. He needs to think about desired results, probable restraints, future revisions, check-in points, and implications for how he’ll spend his time. First, the executive de? nes desired results by asking: â€Å"What contributions should the enterprise expect from me over the next 18 months page 3 W hat Makes an Effective Executive Asking what has to be done, and taking the question seriously, is crucial for managerial success. to two years? What results will I commit to? With what deadlines? † Then he considers the restraints on action: â€Å"Is this course of action ethical? Is it acceptable within the organization? Is it legal? Is it compatible with the mission, values, and policies of the organization? † Af? rmative answers don’t guarantee that the action will be effective. But violating these restraints is certain to make it both wrong and ineffectual. The action plan is a statement of intentions ather than a commitment. It must not become a straitjacket. It should be revised often, because every success creates new opportunities. So does every failure. The same is true for changes in the business environment, in the market, and especially in people within the enterprise—all these changes demand that the plan be revised. A written plan should anticipate the need for ? exibility. In addition, the action plan needs to create a system for checking the results against the expectations. Effective executives usually build two such checks into their action plans. The rst check comes halfway through the plan’s time period; for example, at nine months. The second occurs at the end, before the next action plan is drawn up. Finally, the action plan has to become the basis for the executive’s time management. Time is an executive’s scarcest and most precious resource. And organizations—whether government agencies, businesses, or nonprofits—are inherently time wasters. The action plan will prove useless unless it’s allowed to determine how the executive spends his or her time. Napoleon allegedly said that no successful battle ever followed its plan. Yet Napoleon also lanned every one of his battles, far more meticulously than any earlier general had done. Without an action plan, the executive becomes a prisoner of events. And wi thout check-ins to reexamine the plan as events unfold, the executive has no way of knowing which events really matter and which are only noise. Act When they translate plans into action, executives need to pay particular attention to decision making, communication, opportunities (as opposed to problems), and meetings. I’ll consider these one at a time. Take responsibility for decisions. A deci- harvard business review †¢ june 2004 ion has not been made until people know: †¢ the name of the person accountable for carrying it out; †¢ the deadline; †¢ the names of the people who will be affected by the decision and therefore have to know about, understand, and approve it—or at least not be strongly opposed to it—and †¢ the names of the people who have to be informed of the decision, even if they are not directly affected by it. An extraordinary number of organizational decisions run into trouble because these bases aren’t covered. O ne of my clients, 30 years ago, lost its leadership position in the fast-growing Japanese market because the company, after deciding to enter into a joint venture with a new Japanese partner, never made clear who was to inform the purchasing agents that the partner de? ned its speci? cations in meters and kilograms rather than feet and pounds—and nobody ever did relay that information. It’s just as important to review decisions periodically—at a time that’s been agreed on in advance—as it is to make them carefully in the ?rst place. That way, a poor decision can be corrected before it does real damage. These reviews can cover anything from the results to the assumptions underlying the decision. Such a review is especially important for the most crucial and most dif? cult of all decisions, the ones about hiring or promoting people. Studies of decisions about people show that only one-third of such choices turn out to be truly successful. One-third are likely to be draws—neither successes nor outright failures. And one-third are failures, pure and simple. Effective executives know this and check up (six to nine months later) on the results of their people decisions. If they ? nd that a decision has not had the desired results, they don’t conclude that the person has not performed. They conclude, instead, that they themselves made a mistake. In a well-managed enterprise, it is understood that people who fail in a new job, especially after a promotion, may not be the ones to blame. Executives also owe it to the organization and to their fellow workers not to tolerate nonperforming individuals in important jobs. It may not be the employees’ fault that they are underperforming, but even so, they have to be removed. People who have failed in a new job should be given the choice to go back to a job page 4 W hat Makes an Effective Executive Executives owe it to the rganization and their fellow workers not to tolerate nonperforming people in important jobs. harvard business review †¢ june 2004 at their former level and salary. This option is rarely exercised; such people, as a rule, leave voluntarily, at least when their employers are U. S. ?rms. But the very existence of the option can have a powerful effect, encouraging people to leave safe, comfortable jobs and take risky new assignments. The organization’s performance depends on employees’ willingness to take such chances. A systematic decision review can be a powerful tool for self-development, too. Checking the results of a decision against its expectations shows executives what their strengths are, where they need to improve, and where they lack knowledge or information. It shows them their biases. Very often it shows them that their decisions didn’t produce results because they didn’t put the right people on the job. Allocating the best people to the right positions is a crucial, tough job that many executives slight, in part because the best people are already too busy. Systematic decision review also shows executives their own weaknesses, particularly the areas in which they are simply incompetent. In these areas, smart executives don’t make decisions or take actions. They delegate. Everyone has such areas; there’s no such thing as a universal executive genius. Most discussions of decision making assume that only senior executives make decisions or that only senior executives’ decisions matter. This is a dangerous mistake. Decisions are made at every level of the organization, beginning with individual professional contributors and frontline supervisors. These apparently low-level decisions are extremely important in a knowledge-based organization. Knowledge workers are supposed to know more about heir areas of specialization—for example, tax accounting—than anybody else, so their decisions are likely to have an impact throughout the company. Making good decisions is a crucial skill at every level. It needs to be taught explicitly to everyone in organizations that are based on knowledge. Take responsibility for communicating. Effective executi ves make sure that both their action plans and their information needs are understood. Speci? cally, this means that they share their plans with and ask for comments from all their colleagues—superiors, subordinates, and peers. At the same time, they let each person know what information they’ll need to get the job done. The information ? ow from subordinate to boss is usually what gets the most attention. But executives need to pay equal attention to peers’ and superiors’ information needs. We all know, thanks to Chester Barnard’s 1938 classic The Functions of the Executive, that organizations are held together by information rather than by ownership or command. Still, far too many executives behave as if information and its ? ow were the job of the information specialist—for example, the accountant. As a result, they get an enormous amount of data they do not need and cannot use, but little of the information they do need. The best way around this problem is for each executive to identify the information he needs, ask for it, and keep pushing until he gets it. Focus on opportunities. Good executives focus on opportunities rather than problems. Problems have to be taken care of, of course; they must not be swept under the rug. But problem solving, however necessary, does not produce results. It prevents damage. Exploiting opportunities produces results. Above all, effective executives treat change s an opportunity rather than a threat. They systematically look at changes, inside and outside the corporation, and ask, â€Å"How can we exploit this change as an opportunity for our enterprise? † Speci? cally, executives scan these seven situations for opportunities: †¢ an unexpected success or failure in their own enterprise, in a competing enterprise, or in the industry; †¢ a gap between what is and what could be in a market, process, product, or service (for example, in the nineteenth century, the paper industry concentrated on the 10% of each tree that became wood pulp and totally neglected he possibilities in the remaining 90%, which became waste); †¢ innovation in a process, product, or service, whether inside or outside the enterprise or its industry; †¢ changes in industry structure and market structure; †¢ demographics; †¢ changes in mind-set, values, perception, mood, or meaning; and †¢ new knowledge or a new technology. Effective executives also make sure that problems do not overwhelm opportunities. In most companies, the ? rst page of the monthly management report lists key problems. It’s far page 5 W hat Makes an Effective Executive In areas where they are simply incompetent, smart executives don’t ake decisions or take actions. They delegate. Everyone has such areas. harvard business review à ¢â‚¬ ¢ june 2004 wiser to list opportunities on the ? rst page and leave problems for the second page. Unless there is a true catastrophe, problems are not discussed in management meetings until opportunities have been analyzed and properly dealt with. Staf? ng is another important aspect of being opportunity focused. Effective executives put their best people on opportunities rather than on problems. One way to staff for opportunities is to ask each member of the management group to prepare two lists every ix months—a list of opportunities for the entire enterprise and a list of the best-performing people throughout the enterprise. These are discussed, then melded into two master lists, and the best people are matched with the best opportunities. In Japan, by the way, this matchup is considered a major HR task in a big corporation or government department; that practice is one of the key strengths of Japanese business. Make meetings productive. The most visible, powerful, an d, arguably, effective nongovernmental executive in the America of World War II and the years thereafter was not a businessman. It was Francis Cardinal Spellman, the head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York and adviser to several U. S. presidents. When Spellman took over, the diocese was bankrupt and totally demoralized. His successor inherited the leadership position in the American Catholic church. Spellman often said that during his waking hours he was alone only twice each day, for 25 minutes each time: when he said Mass in his private chapel after getting up in the morning and when he said his evening prayers before going to bed. Otherwise he was always with people in a meeting, starting at breakfast ith one Catholic organization and ending at dinner with another. Top executives aren’t quite as imprisoned as the archbishop of a major Catholic diocese. But every study of the executive workday has found that even junior executives and professionals are with other people—that is, in a meeting of some sort—more than half of every business day. The only exceptions are a few seni or researchers. Even a conversation with only one other person is a meeting. Hence, if they are to be effective, executives must make meetings productive. They must make sure that meetings are work sessions rather than ull sessions. The key to running an effective meeting is to decide in advance what kind of meeting it will be. Different kinds of meetings require different forms of preparation and different results: A meeting to prepare a statement, an announcement, or a press release. For this to be productive, one member has to prepare a draft beforehand. At the meeting’s end, a preappointed member has to take responsibility for disseminating the ? nal text. A meeting to make an announcement—for example, an organizational change. This meeting should be con? ned to the announcement and a discussion about it. A meeting in which one member reports. Nothing but the report should be discussed. A meeting in which several or all members report. Either there should be no discussion at all or the discussion should be limited to questions for clari? cation. Alternatively, for each report there could be a short discussion in which all participants may ask questions. If this is the format, the reports should be distributed to all participants well before the meeting. At this kind of meeting, each report should be limited to a preset time—for example, 15 minutes. A meeting to inform the convening executive. The executive should listen and ask questions. He or she should sum up but not make a presentation. A meeting whose only function is to allow the participants to be in the executive’s presence. Cardinal Spellman’s breakfast and dinner meetings were of that kind. There is no way to make these meetings productive. They are the penalties of rank. Senior executives are effective to the extent to which they can prevent such meetings from encroaching on their workdays. Spellman, for instance, was effective in large part because he con? ned such meetings to breakfast and dinner and kept the est of his working day free of them. Making a meeting productive takes a good deal of self-discipline. It requires that executives determine what kind of meeting is appropriate and then stick to that format. It’s also necessary to terminate the meeting as soon as its speci? c purpose has been accomplished. Good executives don’t raise another matter for discussion. They sum up and adjourn. Good follow-up is just as important as the page 6 W hat Makes an Effective Executive meeting itself. The great master of follow-up was Alfred Sloan, the most effective business executive I have ever known. Sloan, who eaded General Motors from the 1920s until the 1950s, spent most of his six working days a week in meetings—three days a week in formal committee meetings with a set membership, the other three days in ad hoc meetings with individual GM executives or with a small group of executives. At the beginning of a formal meeting, Sloan announced the meeting’s purpose. He then listened. He never took notes and he rarely spoke except to clarify a confusing point. At the end he summed up, thanked the participants, and left. Then he immediately wrote a short memo addressed to one attendee of the meeting. In that note, he summarized the discussion and its conclusions and spelled out any work assignment decided upon in the meeting (including a decision to hold another meeting on the subject or to study an issue). He speci? ed the deadline and the executive who was to be accountable for the assignment. He sent a copy of the memo to everyone who’d been present at the meeting. It was through these memos—each a small masterpiece—that Sloan made himself into an outstandingly effective executive. Effective executives know that any given meeting is either productive or a total waste of time. arvard business review †¢ june 2004 Think and Say â€Å"We† The ? nal practice is this: Don’t think or say â€Å"I. † Think and say â€Å"we. † Effective executives know that they have ultimate responsibility, which can be neither shared nor delegated. But they have authority only because they have the trust of the organization. This means that they th ink of the needs and the opportunities of the organization before they think of their own needs and opportunities. This one may sound simple; it isn’t, but it needs to be strictly observed. We’ve just reviewed eight practices of effective executives. I’m going to throw in one ? nal, bonus practice. This one’s so important that I’ll elevate it to the level of a rule: Listen ? rst, speak last. Effective executives differ widely in their personalities, strengths, weaknesses, values, and beliefs. All they have in common is that they get the right things done. Some are born effective. But the demand is much too great to be satis? ed by extraordinary talent. Effectiveness is a discipline. And, like every discipline, effectiveness can be learned and must be earned. Reprint R0406C Harvard Business Review OnPoint 6980 To order, see the next page r call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500 or go to www. hbr. org page 7 What Makes an Effective Executive Further Reading ARTICLES Your Best Managers Lead and Manage Harvard Business Review OnPoint Collection November 2003 Product no. 5402 Drucker’s rules imply that effective executives know how to lead and manage. This Harvard Business Review OnPoint collection reinforces th e notion that leadership and management aren’t discrete jobs. Together, they form a tapestry of interwoven roles—all of which are essential if executives are to boost their organization’s performance. How to embrace this multifaceted role? First, deeply understand each aspect of it. In the classic article â€Å"Managers and Leaders: Are They Different? ,† Abraham Zaleznik shines the spotlight on the traits required for leadership—including passion, innovativeness, and a keen awareness of â€Å"the big picture. † According to Zaleznik, the best leaders also have a talent for inspiring others, embracing chaos, captivating imaginations, and welcoming fresh approaches to problems. Zaleznik suggests ways companies can create the right conditions for individuals to develop these abilities. To Order For reprints, Harvard Business Review OnPoint orders, and subscriptions to Harvard Business Review: Call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500. Go to www. hbr. org For customized and quantity orders of reprints and Harvard Business Review OnPoint products: Call Frank Tamoshunas at 617-783-7626, or e-mail him at ftamoshunas@hbsp. harvard. edu In â€Å" The Five Minds of a Manager,† Jonathan Gosling and Henry Mintzberg update Mintzberg’s emphasis on reflection and analysis with five mandatory mind-sets for executives: 1) reflective, 2) analytical, 3) worldly, 4) collaborative, and 5) action. When you understand each and move flexibly among all five, you deepen your understanding of your organization’s challenges, boost innovation, strengthen collaboration, and take more precise action. Interweave your mind-sets with your colleagues’, and you enhance the collective impact on your company’s performance. In â€Å" The Manager’s Job: Folklore and Fact,† another Harvard Business Review classic, Henry Mintzberg shifts the focus to the managerial role. The manager’s job, he maintains, has always been more complicated than the textbook mantra of â€Å"plan, organize, coordinate, and control. In reality, managers play so many roles that it’s hard to excel at any one. Job overload can lead to superficial analysis and premature decisions that miss the big picture. To surmount these challenges, stop and think. Reflect on the roles you naturally prefer. Stretch beyond those you’re most comfortable in, depending on what the situ ation demands. Reduce your impossible workload by delegating and taking advantage of in-house analysts. Most important, force yourself to do the things you believe are crucial. page 8 How to cite What Makes an Effective Executive, Essay examples What Makes an Effective Executive Free Essays Karrie Sebring BU531: Session 2 Harvard Article Review â€Å"What Makes an Effective Executive? † by Peter F. Drucker What is this article about as a whole? There is no science on how to improve effectiveness; effectiveness is a disciple and therefore can be learned by anyone. Drunker concludes that you don’t have to be a leader or possess specific personalities, strengths, values or beliefs to be an effective executive. We will write a custom essay sample on What Makes an Effective Executive or any similar topic only for you Order Now Utilizing the following eight simple practices allows executives to be effective: Asking, â€Å"What needs to be done? † Asking, â€Å"What is right for the enterprise? † Developing action plans Taking responsibility for decisions Taking responsibility for communicating Focusing on opportunities rather than problems Running productive meetings Speaking as â€Å"We† rather than â€Å"I† The first two practices give executives the knowledge they need. The next four help them convert this knowledge into effective action. The last two ensure that the whole organization feels responsible and accountable. What are the essential points in this article? Executives need to ask what is right for the enterprise, rather than what is right for the owners, stock price, the employees or the executives. Asking this question does not guarantee the correct decision will be made; however failure to ask this question will nearly guarantee the wrong decision. Knowledge is useless until it has been translated into actions but actions need to first be planned to identify possible restraints and implications. The action plan should be a statement of intention rather than commitment and should be revised often because every success and failure creates new opportunities. The action plan needs to have a system for checking results against expectations. Lastly, the action plan has to become the basis for the executive’s time management, which is an executive’s most scarce and valuable resource. Executives need to take responsibility for communicating; executives need to share their plans, ask for feedback and indicate specifics on what information they need from their subordinates to get the job done. Good executives focus on opportunities rather than problems; they treat change as an opportunity rather than a threat. Effective executives ensure problems do not overwhelm opportunities and put their best people onopportunity tasks. Executives must make meetings productive and ensure that meetings are work sessions rather than bull sessions. A few key notes are to decide in advance what kind of meeting each session will be, end each session when the purpose has been accomplished and lastly, follow-up on each meeting. Effective executives have authority because they have the trust of the organization and therefore think of the organizations needs and opportunities before their own. Lastly, one rule stands; listen before you speak. How can you apply what you learned to business? 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Edmund Hallet Carrs What is History free essay sample

A critical review of this work, with respect to the meaning and purpose of history. This paper reviews the work What is History, by Edmund Hallet Carr. It looks at how the work redefines the way historical facts are understood and the importance of context in the interpretation of historical facts. It looks at the importance of a historian having an awareness of the time-frame a historical work was written in, the objectives of the writer at that time and his/her own society-based biases. The paper then brings in Cronons `A place for stories: nature, history, and narrative` and Linda Alcoffs The problem of speaking for others, as examples of how Carrs ideas have been used by other historians writing on the meaning of history. `Edmund Hallet Carrs book, What is History?, was first published in 1961 and had a major impact on the understanding of history. We will write a custom essay sample on Edmund Hallet Carrs What is History? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Reading this book over 40 years later, it still has the same impact, creating a change in the way history is viewed and understood. The lasting impact of Carrs concepts can also be seen by the way they are still applicable to modern ideas on the meaning and purpose of history.`