Shariah Issues in Islamic Banking : Bay Al-Inah, Tawarruq and Wa’d

Abstract The rising of the Islamic banking and finance industry is a direct response to the growing awareness amongst Muslim regarding the need of alternative financial products and services that is complied with the teaching of Islam. To be specifically, the demand is based on the avoidance of the element of Riba which is widely and fundamentally practiced in the conventional banking industry. The attempt by the Islamic banking and finance industry had so far been successful and it could be witnessed by the launching of wide range of Shariah compliant financial products and transaction.However, none of us can guarantee that the Shariah compliant products approved are fault-free absolutely. Among the practices of the industry, the practice of Bay al-Inah or the practice of sale and buy-back, Tawarruq which quite commonly used in Malaysia, have been criticized strongly especially the voices from the Middle East. The other issue that will be discussed briefly in this project paper is t he applicability of Wa’d , the unilateral promise. Key terms of the research 1 Bay al-Inah 2 Tawarruq 3 Wa’d 4 Al Ijarah al Muntahiya Bittamleek 5 Statutory DeclarationObjectives of the research: Identify the issues of the Bay al-Inah , Tawarruq and Wa’d encountered by the Islamic banking industry and proposal of an alternative solution to it. Table of content GENERAL INTRODUCTION SHARIAH ISSUE ONE: Bay al-Inah †¢The Concept †¢Current Practise of the Industry †¢Legitimacy of the Bay al-Inah †¢Alternative Solution SHARIAH ISSUE TWO: Tawarruq †¢The Concept †¢Current Practise of the Industry †¢Legitimacy of the Tawarruq †¢Alternative Solution SHARIAH ISSUE THREE: Wa’d †¢The Concept †¢Legitimacy of Wa’d †¢Solution CONCLUSION REFERENCES GENERAL INTRODUCTIONThe rising of the Islamic banking and finance industry is a direct response to the growing awareness amongst Muslim regarding the need of alterna tive financial products and services that is complied with the teaching of Islam. To be specifically, the demand is based on the avoidance of the element of Riba which is widely and fundamentally practiced in the conventional banking industry. The attempt by the Islamic banking and finance industry had so far been successful and it could be witnessed by the launching of wide range of Shariah compliant financial products and transaction.However, none of us can guarantee that the Shariah compliant products approved are fault-free absolutely. Among the practices of the industry, the practice of Bay al-Inah or the practice of sale and buy-back, Tawarruq which quite commonly used in Malaysia, have been criticized strongly especially the voices from the Middle East. The other issue that will be discussed briefly in this project paper is the applicability of Wa’d , the unilateral promise. SHARIAH ISSUE ONE: Bay al-Inah THE CONCEPTLinguistically, the term â€Å"Inah† carries t he meaning of salaf, or contracting a loan. It is used in this meaning to refer to purchasing on credit. It could also be a derivative of the term â€Å"ayn†, which also means present assets, that is cash. Thus, it denotes a situation whereby one purchases an asset for its subsequent sale on cash that is needed by him. Bay al-Inah is generally defined as an arrangement whereby a seller sells to the buyer some object for cash deferred payment; then, simultaneously, the seller mmediately buys back the same object for a lesser amount than the deferred price in cash. Thus, the transaction amounts to a loan whereby the difference between the two prices represents the interest . Modus Operandi: The above diagram shows the modus operandi of the Bay al-Inah that has been practiced by the Islamic banks in Malaysia so far. In this transaction, the bank sells its asset to the customer who is in need of liquidity on credit. The price under the sale includes the bank’s profit margi n charged on the customer.Subsequently, the bank buys back the asset from the customer for cash payment. Eventually, the customer gets the cash payment, and pay the bank the deferred price over a tenure by periodic instalments which constitutes the same effect and result of a loan . CURRENT PRACTICE IN THE INDUSTRY In Malaysia, the practice of Inah may take 2 names, depending on the original owner of the asset. If the asset to be used belongs to the customer, the contract is known as Bay Bithaman Ajil (BBA). If the asset belongs to the bank, then the contract will be named as Bay al-Inah. ven though the legal documents may differ from one financing to the another, but the common documentation will consist of Property Purchase Agreement (PPA) and Property Sale Agreement (PSA). Besides, the Master Facility Agreement will also be prepared to encapsulate and detail out all necessary ingredients of the facility granted. These documents reveals that though the two sale contracts are execu ted separately without making one of them conditional to the other, the master facility Agreement has clearly indicated the intention of the parties in entering into these two consecutive sale contracts.LEGITIMACY OF BAY AL-INAH The main proponents of Bay al-Inah is the Shafii school. The Shafii jurists have illustrate their permissibility in a situation whereby a person sells a commodity on cash or credit terms and hands over possession, and the parties separate with mutual pleasure about the contract, it is permissible for him to purchase it from the previous buyer for an amount equal to, higher, or lower than the former price, of the same currency as before or different, paying cash or oncredit, after receiving payment for the previous sale or before it.On this basis, according to the authoritative position upheld by the Shafii scholars, the two independent contracts, jointly referres to as â€Å"Inah† are held valid, but reprehensible. This principle even applied when one of the two parties is known for the practice of Inah, as according to the principle upheld by the Shafii school, the intention of the parties, even when it happens to be unacceptable, does not result in the invalidity of the contract, unless such intention is given expression in the contractual text.As a result, it will be the case whereby even the situation indicates the parties’ intention to carry out a second sale, this will not necessitate the invalidity of the contract. In a simple word, the Shafii school considered the intention of the parties only taken into account when the invalid intention is explicitly written in the contract . In the other side, the Maliki and Hanbali schools opined that the contract of Bay al-Inah is not valid.The Maliki jurists have categorized the process in question under buyu’ al-ajal, which concerns on the discussion of various form of two sale contract being taking place in sequence involving combination of different prices and peri ods. They have described 9 possible variations, the permissibility of two of which have been subjects of different opinions, while there is unanimity pertaining to the rest. It was said that when one sells a commodity on a deferred payment and thereafter purchases it again, the price in the second transaction could be deferred for a period equal to the first, shorter than the first, or longer.In each of these situations, the price of the second transaction could be equal to that of the first, lower than, or higher. The types where jurists have differed are: -where the price of the second transaction is lower than that of the first, and is on a cash basis; and -where the price of the second transaction is higher than that of the first and is deferred for a longer period. Imam Maliki and other jurists regard these formats invalid.They considered the second transaction along with the first, and regard the grounds viable enough to suspect that the purpose is to exchange an amount of mon ey with a higher amount that is deferred, which substantially constitutes the prohibited Riba. Hence, the transaction acts as a medium for attaining what is prohibited and it is invalid inherently. The Hanbali school agreed that the Bay al-Inah is not valid as the difference of the selling price of a commodity with profit margin and the lesser buying price transaction serve as an avenue leading to Riba.One could seek to legalise the sale of one thousand against one thousand five hundred by involving an asset in this manner. But, it was also mentioned that if the price of the second transaction is equal to that or higher than the first transaction, then it is permissible since no margin equal to the nature of Riba is involved. The above ruling applies where the commodity had not diminished in any manner after its sale. If it had diminished, it could be purchased at any price, as any decrease in the price could be against the loss of value in the asset, and not for the purpose of Riba .If the purchase is against another asset, or the first sale was against an asset and the commodity is then repurchased for cash, it is permissible due to the fact that Riba is not applicable between money and commodities. If the first sale is on cash, and the second sale takes place through another currency, it is permissible. Basically, the determination of validity in contract is based on the parties’ motive and validity in sale under consideration, the motive of the parties is illegal will put the sale invalid aas it constitutes a legal device to obtain a loan with interest which should be averted.Imam Hanifah from the Hanafi school opined that if the two prices are such that Riba could be applicable such as gold and silver, and are identical in type, for example: gold, it is not allowed to repurchase the sold commodity except at a price equal to the first, without any increase or decrease in price. If the price of the first sale was such that Riba is not applicable, such as commodities, he may repurchase the sold commodity for a price higher than the initial price or lower.If the two prices belong to different types where Riba is applicable such as gold and silver, disparity between them although analogically permissible, but is unlawful based on Istishsan. The majority objection to Bay al-Inah were supported by a number of Hadith attributed to the Prophet and his companions. One of the example was the Hadith that the Prophet warned those who practiced Bay al-Inah with calamity (bala’) or disparagement (dhill). Another example was a report on a Bay al-Inah transaction that had been brought to the knowledge of Aishah r. a. hich read: â€Å"Aliyah binti Ayfa said: I entered Aishah’s place with Umm Walad of Zaid bin Arqam and his wife. Then, Umm Walad of Zaid bin Arqam said: I had sold a slave to Zaid bin Arqam for 800 dirhams on deferred payment. Then I bought him back from Zaid for 600 dirhams cash. Aishah replied: Very bad is what yo u sold and bought. Convey to Zaid that he had nullified his struggle with the Prophet, unless he repented. † ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION Al Ijarah al Muntahiya Bittamleek Under this structure, the bank appoints customer to be its agent to make purchases from the seller.The customer then takes the purchased asset on lease from the bank, for rental payments. At the end of the lease period, the asset will be transferred to the customer via a sale (normally the price of the last rental payment) or as a gift. SHARIAH ISSUE TWO: Tawarruq THE CONCEPT Tawarruq has been generally used to refer to an arrangement whereby a person who was in need of cash bought some goods for deferred payment. Then he sold the goods to another party other than the original seller for payment of cash with a lower price . Tawarruq is considered an alteration based on the Bay al-Inah.The distinction between the Bay al-Inah and Tawarruq is that the person who requires liquidity purchases an asset from a seller on cr edit, thereafter sells it on cash basis at a price lower than the purchase price to the seller in the case of Bay al-Inah. However, Tawarruq involves a third party whereby the one who requires liquidity purchase an asset from someone on credit, and thereafter sells it, usually for a lower price, to a person other than the original seller. So, the structure does not give a direct indication of Hilah solely to undercover the Riba.Modus Operandi: CURRENT PRACTICE IN THE INDUSTRY The concept of Tawarruq contract is popular among the contemporary Islamic financial system. In fact, the short term financing which various adaptions of Murabaha was used as the standard mode by the majority of Islamic banks in the industry is in deed structurally designed based on this Tawarruq principle. However, there are some variation on the simple structure of Tawarruq due to the reason the Islamic banks encounter objections from the classical scholars with the similar stand and analogy as the way they e nounced the Bay al-Inah. One of the most popular variation is the Tawarruq Masrafiy. In this mode of Tawarruq Masrafiy, the Islamic bank is acting as a mere intermediary and does not possess the asset that could be readily brought into the Tawarruq financing process and therefore is in need of liaising with a trader/ broker, usually an external party, for the purpose of facilitating the Tawarruq contract. Similarly, the disposal of such asset by the customer of the facility needs to be further simplified by the mediation of an agent.Hence, this Tawarruq Masrafiy could be more complex in its structure . Modus Operandi: LEGITIMACY OF TAWARRUQ Most of the scholars make their conclusion on the validity of Tawarruq based on the same authorities and analogy of the validity of the Bay al-Inah. The scholars who have upheld the permissibility of Tawarruq have fundamentally relied on the general connotation of the verse permitting sale while prohibiting usury. Tawarruq as a type of sale, is i ncluded within this context of permissibility due to the absence of any Quranic verse or Hadith that rules it unlawful.The proponents somemore cited the Hadith reported by the Companion Abu Said al-Khudri which narrates that a man from the region of Khaybar who had been contracted the upkeep of a plantation came to the Prophet with some dates of good quality. When the Prophet asked him whether all dates of Khaybar were of similar quality, the man replied in the negative and added that they used to obtain a measure of better dates against two measures of ordinary dates, and two measures against three measures.The Prophet forbade him from doing so and directed him to sell the low quality dates against silver coins, and then purchase better dates against silver . This Hadith indicates the permissibility of using the described method for avoiding involvement in Riba overtly or covertly; the medium of a sale is employed, which fulfils all conditions and prerequisites of sales, free of fa ctors that result in its invalidity. The intention of procuring dates of better quality as the end result of the transaction has not been considered to invalidate the material structure.Hence, this shows that the legality og the sale transaction where different purposes are intended when the medium utilized is acceptable and free of Riba explicitly and implicitly. As a conclusion for the proponents, it is permissible to attain liquidity through a medium of sale such as the case of Tawarruq when there is a need for doing so. On the other hand, the denouncers of the Tawarruq have mainly concentrated on the aspect of intention.They argues that the intention here is to procure money, which could tentamount to the sale of money against a different amount of money, while the asset serves only as a medium, the acquisition of which is not primarily intended. Therefore the structure strongly connotes the p[ossibility of a legal stratagem adopted for this purpose. thus a major reason for the disapproval of tawarruq is that it appears to be a Hilah adopted for attainment of what could otherwise be Riba. It is money against money, with a piece of silk cloth pushed in between. † as the stand of Ibn Abbas when he was asked on the question regarding the permissibility issue. One of the frequent cited authorities by these denouncers is the Hadith which reported that The Prophet has said: A time is certainly coming to mankind when people will bite each other and a rich man will hold fast what he has in his possession though he has not commanded for that.Allah the Almighty said: (and do not forget liberty between yourselves), and then those who are forced to contract sales while the Prophet forbade forced contracts, one which involves some uncertainty and sales of fruits before they are ripe. In a simple word, the end result of the whole transaction is their main concern in determining the legality of a particular structure of transaction. Hence, the Tawarruq is deemed no thing but equally to the practice of Riba as the purpose of Tawarruq is to obtain instant cash for a higher consideration later.In the OIC Islamic Fiqh Academy in its 15th Meeting, it was decided that the Tawarruq is allowed. However, in its later meeting, ehich is the 17th Meeeting, the OIC Islamic Fiqh Academy clarified its stand on Tawarruq by stating that the Tawarruq Masrafiy that largely adopted by the Islamic financial institutions is disallowed. The reasoning behind the disapproval is that the Tawarruq Masrafiy practiced by the Islamic banks is in the form of organized Tawarruq or pre-planned Tawarruq rather than ad hoc Tawarruq which cuasing it almost synthetic and fictitious as Bay al-Inah in essence.ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION Since the problem of Tawarruq shares the similar features of the Bay al-Inah, the alternative solution could be the same as discussed in the former part. Hence the Al Ijarah al Muntahiya Bittamleek could be the substitution for both Bay al-Inah and Tawarru q as a solution for avoiding the Riba element concerned. SHARIAH ISSUE THREE: Wa’d THE CONCEPT The 3-letter root WA-A-D (wa’d), corresponding to the verb Wa’ada, indicates a promise but can also be used for a threat.The technical definition of Wa’d (promise) is based upon the linguistic definition, affirming the positive meaning and excluding the negative meaning (threat). A promise has to be for something Ma’ruf (recognized as good by the Shariah and sound intellect). If a promise is to do something evil or wrong, then it is not obligatory to fulfill it and the time in which a promise is to be fulfilled is the future, not the time at which the promise is made. The problem incurred in application of Wa’d is that some banks claim that their unilateral promise (Wa’d) is not binding.However if the customer breaks his/ her unilateral promise, then the bank charges the customer for the loss incurred as a result of not fulfilling his unilat eral promise . LEGITIMACY OF WA’D The resolution 1409H of the Islamic Fiqh Academy has decided that a unilateral promise (Wa’d) which is issued unilaterally by either orderer or the client, is by religion binding upon the promisor except where otherwise justified. It is also judicially binding if it is made contingent upon a reason and if the unilateral promise (Wa’d) entails a cost for the unilateral promise (Wa’d).Insuch cases, the consequences of the binding character of the unilateral promise (Wa’d) are determined by either the fulfillment of the unilateral promise (Wa’d) or by reparation for losses actually incurred as a result of the non-fulfillment of the unilateral promise (Wa’d) without justification. According to the resolution of the Islamic Fiqh Academy that prohibits the Wa’d to be binding on both parties but allowed it to be so on one of them, it is rather too arbitrarily and hardly acceptable. It should be the ot her way round whereby one should treat the Wa’d either binding on both parties or optional for both parties.Making it binding upon one to the exclusion of the other, is illogical and denotes a misinterpretation of jurisprudential principles. In a summary, it is admissible for Wa’d as an alternative to a invalid contract to be binding because Wa’d is analogous to a contract as well. Any suggestion for making it binding upon both or either parties explicitly or impliedly with any other Hilah is not founded on any legitimate basis. SOLUTION The Wa’d is at its best to be excluded in the practice of the Islamic banking legal documentation system due to the uncertainty and arbitrariness.However, the characteristic of the Wa’d might be implemented through a contemporary form of statutory declaration in declaring certain sub-condition for the contract between the bank and customer instead of the main terms and conditions of the contract. For example, if th e real estate was brought on the purpose for self-staying purpose instead of profit generation, then the statutory declaration may be made in declaring this. This might not be the main issue in the construction of the bank’s facility agreement which must be included within the terms but can be proclaimed in the way of declaration.For the consideration and/or performance that is much important which will affect both parties essentially, of course must be included in the facility documents entered by the parties and there is no point to make it in a rather uncertainty form of Wa’d. CONCLUSION The Al Ghazali once said that the very objective of the Shariah is to promote the welfare of the people and whatever ensures the safeguarding of people’s faith, life, intellect, posterity and wealth serves the public interest and is desirable.In the issue of Wa’d, it is certainly not the best form of contracting to the Islamic banking industry that put much demand on c ertainty, hence it would be rather fully utilize the bilateral contract on main consideration/performance or only using the statutory declaration on the least important issue such as the example given since the ambiguity part of the Wa’d is not serving the public interest for all. From the point of Shariah, the Bay al-Inah and Tawarruq is not really serving the welfare of people and it has similar oppressive character of Riba.The banks are still getting the pre-determined rate of return and the application of Bay al-Inah or in other name BBA and Tawarruq is mostly cosmetic. If the Islamic banks label their hamburger as a MECCA burger, as long as it still has the same ingredients as a McDonald’s burger, is it really any different in substance? It is also the case between the Bay al-Inah, Tawarruq with inherent Riba element and the conventional interest-based loan.References: A: Book Dr. Muhammad Saleem (2005), Islamic Banking- Observation and Arguments on Riba (interest or usury), Islamic Banking Practices, Venture Capital and Enlightenment, published by Xlibris Corporation, p26. Professor Rafic Yunus Al-Masri (2002), The Binding Unilateral Promise (Wa’d) in Islamic Banking Operations: Is it Permissible for a Unilateral Promise (Wa’d) to be Binding as an Alternative to a Proscribed Contract? , J.KAU: Islamic Econ, Vol 15: pg29-33 Dr. Mohamad Akram Laldin, The Concept of Promise and Bilateral Promise in Financial Contracts: A Fiqhi Perspective, The International Shariah Research Academy (ISRA), pg 3-30 Muhammad Abd al Ghaffar, al Tatbiqat al Masrafiyyah li al Tawarruq, pg 16 SH1003: Shariah Rules in Financial Transactions of CIFP Module 2012, published by the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF), pg 97- 129Dr. Mohd Daud Bakar and Dr. Engku Rabiah Adawiah Engku Ali (2008), Essential Readings In Islamic Finance, CERT Publications Sdn Bhd: pg 133-165 http://www. isra. my/media-centre/downloads/finish/7-islamic-b anking/273-the-concept-of-promise-and-bilateral-promise-in-financial-contracts-a-fiqhi-perspective-english/0. html retrieved 17/11/2012 20. 00pm http://dahabshilbank. com/cms. php? id=ijarah_en& retrieved 16/11/2012 16. 00pm

Diversity in the Classroom Essay

INTRODUCTION Teachers are faced with the challenge of students bringing with them, vastly different experiences, cultures, interests and abilities. These characteristics can have a great impact on how students learn. Teaching to such a diverse group requires teachers to be more flexible and place a greater emphasis on the individual. Through the aid of variety and choice, teachers can differentiate presentation to motivate interest in the individual, and hence aid the student to become an independent learner. (Tomlinson, C. A., Brighton, C., Hertberg, H., Callahan, C. M., Moon, T. R., Brimijoin, K., Conover, L. A. and Reynolds, T. 2003) LEARNING STYLES While it is unfair to expect teachers to fully grasp the psychological & cognitive complexities that comprise learning, they should have a solid understanding that individual students have different preferences in the way they prefer to receive, perceive, interact and respond to information; known as their preferred â€Å"Learning style†. A widely used model of learning styles is based on Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory, which suggests learners fall into seven distinct categories of learning intelligence. â€Å"Visual/Spatial† learners prefer pictures and images; â€Å"Aural† learners prefer sound and music; â€Å"Verbal/Linguistic† learners prefer words in writing and speech; â€Å"Physical/Kinesthetic† learners prefer the use of touch, movement & action, and â€Å"Logical† learners prefer reasoning and sequence. Aligned with these learning styles is also a preference by students toward â€Å"Social/Interpersonal† learning, in groups or â€Å"Solitary/Intrapersonal† learning where the student prefers to learn alone. (Howard Gardner, multiple intelligences and education. 2007) Most students have a preferred learning style, but are not solely dependent on one style. They can adapt to other styles and use them in combination with their preferred style. APPROACHES IN THE CLASSROOM Diversity in the classroom inevitably creates complexities for teachers in formulating learning and teaching models that suit their specific context, situation, and the students varying needs. (Rayner, S. 2007) Some researchers, agreeing that learning styles are important, suggest that teachers should match instruction to the content being taught rather than the preferred learning style of the student (Glenn, D. 2009). This seems plausible in light of research into brain plasticity, which suggests that the brain has the ability to transform, adapt and â€Å"increase its capacity to learn† (Walker, S. 2010). Other’s place greatest emphasis on â€Å"matching† instruction with the learning styles of the individual student, which the overwhelming literature suggests is the ideal approach for the benefit of the student. However, in practice, theory and expectation can often fall short of reality. CHALLENGES With class sizes often ranging from 20 to 25 students, trying to cater to every student’s individual learning preference can be very resource intensive. Very few teachers will have the knowledge and understanding of every form of diversity within their classroom. Teaching students with special needs is a prime example, often requiring assistance from specialist aids. This is all good and well in principle, however, additional assistance usually comes at a financial cost, where often schools are restricted by budgetary constraints. High stakes testing such as NAPLAN can also create conflicts between what is best for the students and what is best for the school. This may exacerbate the unwillingness of school hierarchy to deviate from traditional core curriculum/structures, as overall results can often be linked with a school’s reputation as well as government funding. (Tomlinson et al. 2003) LESSONS FROM JESUS Jesus was the epitome of what a teacher with a diverse student body needs to do. He taught in parables imbued with illustrations familiar to the daily lives of all the people in his audience, who had a diversity of experiences. By teaching through stories, of shepherds, fishermen, seasons of growth and harvest, rich men, servants, kings and slaves, he was able to impart the same message, to a diverse audience, so that all could relate to, and understand according to their own experiences. Teaching methods of old sought to adapt the student to the material being presented. Jesus’ methods aptly illustrate that today’s teachers need to be able to adapt to the learning capacity of the students. Jesus also differed in many ways to those around him but transformed the lives of others by the way he lived. By his example, he helped mold many into his own image (The Role of the Christian Teacher 2013). As teachers who are Christian, our aim should not be to directly preach about Christianity. This can be left to the local church priest or pastor, and the willingness of the individual to accept such a direct approach. In a diverse classroom there will be students with vastly different beliefs and experiences that contrast our own, and that impact on their learning capabilities. The goal would then be, like Jesus, to subtly portray our Christian understanding by our own actions, therefore becoming a role model to students. Jesus taught: â€Å"†¦everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher† Luke 6:41 As role models, we should be aware that students may imitate and model their behaviour according to the way we as teachers act, speak and behave. Therefore, unless our behaviour is aligned with fundamental Christian principles, it can do more harm than good. It would be wise to follow the encouragement given by the apostle Paul: â€Å"Imitate me as I imitate Christ† 1 Corinthians 11:1 †¦by living out our faith, we show our students the essence of God through our own words and deeds. CONCLUSION In light of existing research and Christian philosophy, a meshing of theories is necessary which tends toward a balanced approach. Making sure all learning style preferences are addressed in some way; as students will need to garner at least some of the attributes of all learning styles, for future success. Also using experience and expertise in our own learning preferences, to bridge the divide between teacher and student and become that positive role model that developing student’s need. Employing a balanced approach is no easy task, but can be aided in a number of ways: Firstly, inclusive teaching, were students are not segregated or made to feel inferior due to differences in preferred learning styles or abilities. Aligned to this is the idea of flexible grouping where research shows that when students are put in small groups comprising varying learning preferences and abilities, weaker students attain better learning outcomes, without detriment to stronger students. (Tomlinson et al. 2003) Secondly, Scaffolding where teachers, peers or teaching aids; support, assist and guide the student, particularly those who have difficulty. This is a more personalized approach to the flexible grouping. Thirdly, Engagement with parents/carers and students enables the teacher to attain valuable information about the student, and engagement with colleagues can assist in gaining additional knowledge or formulating shared strategies. Finally, Methods of presentation is at the heart of catering to diverse array of learners. Using technology enables a teacher to present material in multiple styles at the same time. (Guidelines for responding to learner diversity in the classroom through curriculum and assessment policy statements 2011) Ultimately, we as teachers need to nurture students, and expose them to a variety of learning styles, despite our own preferences, enabling them to become independent learners. Children are less flexible and cannot easily adapt to unfamiliar learning styles, so it is incumbent upon the teacher, to adapt and modify teaching methods, activities and environments in order to create interest, thereby stimulate and motivate a student’s desire to learn. REFERENCES Cook, P. F. (1998). Teacher Reflection in learner-centred education. Journal for Education Reform in Namibia, v.8, 8p. Discover your Learning Styles – Graphically! (2013.) (n.p.) Available Internet http://learning-styles-online.com/ Glenn, D. (2009) (n.p.), Matching Teaching Style to Learning Style May Not Help Students, The Chronical of Higher education, Available Internet http://chronicle.com/article/Matching-Teaching-Style-to-/49497/ Guidelines for responding to learner diversity in the classroom through curriculum and assessment policy statements (2011), Directorate Inclusive Education, Department of Basic Education, preoria South Africa. 52p. Howard Gardner, multiple intelligences and education (2007) Regis University Available Internet http:// academic.regis.edu/ed205/gardner.pdf Humphrey, N., Bartolo, P., Ale, P., Calleja, C., Hofsaess, T., Janikova, Vera., Mol Lous, A., Vilkiene, V., and Westo, G. M. (2006). Enderstanding and responding to diversity in the primary classroom: an international sudy. European Journal of Teachr Education, 29(3), 305-318. Rayner, S (2007). A Teaching elixir, learning chimera or just fool’s gold? Do learning styles matter? Support for Learning, 22(1), 24-30. Teachers and their influence (2010) (n.p.) Covenant Christian School Sydney Available Internet http://www.whychristianschools.com.au/wcs/teachers-influence.html The Role of the Christian Teacher (2013) (n.p.) Transforming Lives. Available Internet http://m.transforminglives.org.uk/thinking-of-teaching/role-of-the-christian-teacher Tomlinson, C. A., Brighton, C., Hertberg, H., Callahan, C. M., Moon, T. R., Brimijoin, K., Conover, L. A. and Reynolds, T. (2003). Differentiating Instruction in Response to Student Readiness, Interest and Learning Profile in Academically Diverse Classroom: A review of Liteature. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 27(2/3), 119-145. Walker, S. (2010) (n.p.), Lifelong Learning and the Plastic Brain, Scientific Learning Internet http://www.scilearn.com/blog/lifelong-learning-brain-plasticity.php

War Brings Out the Good in People

War brings out the best in people War does not bring negative effects all the time. It does bring out the best in people. This is because during war people start caring more about everyone. The war unites people and makes them more courageous. During war time, people start caring more about everyone’s humanity. When people see, for example, a family in distress due to war, then people would become more hospitable and help them in every way they can. They might give them clothing, food and provide all their necessities, and also sometimes let them stay at their own place.During the war time people become more united. For example, the town I lived in got bombed, then all the people in our town would get together to survive in the bad times. Even enemies will be united in these bad times . During war people will not only think about themselves, but they would also think about others too. For example, the people who live in the next town would collect money and help our town that was bombed. Even other neighboring countries would help us in times as these.During the war time, people would get more courageous. This is because to survive people will have to be courageous. If they are not scared then they can somehow bare any sort of pain. But if people are scared they would not be able to face the ugly truth of war. To conclude, I would say that war does not bring bad in people. It does bring the good in people as the facts I have written above. Because of war people would be more hospitable, caring , courageous and be untied to survive together.

Discuss Hurricane Katrina Impact on Bermuda and International Research Proposal

Discuss Hurricane Katrina Impact on Bermuda and International Insurance Markets, and Explain How Storm Affected Our Attitudes Towards Insurance - Research Proposal Example We observed the complete lack of communication between federal government, state government, and the cities, officials. Inefficiency, no initiative, no clear leadership, delay in every action, and overall chaos can characterize the behavior of those who should try to prevent and minimize the damages. And on top of everything, most of the areas and people hit and affected by the Katrina were not prepared for the scale of disaster. Katrina was hugely devastating and the magnitude of its damage will linger probably for some time, in areas affected and in minds of people who witnessed that disaster. However, the federal and state officials, as well as ordinary people can derive a lesson from Katrina. This was not the first such disaster, and it surely was not the last one (Hayhurst, 2007). According to earth scientist, due to changes in climate and global warming, hurricanes and other natural disasters will appear more frequently. How can we, ordinary citizens as well as officials on different levels, prevent such after-disaster crisis? How can we better manage crisis? Are there ways to diminish peoples suffering? And mostly importantly, who should pay for everything? Money is always crucial issue and in situation of such crisis it takes another meaning. We have to be aware of the fact that we cannot rely always on the others for help. In many critical situations, we have to come up with our own solutions to the problems. In this case study, the situation of an average family living in the hurricane-prone area is analyzed. The analysis is performed on different levels. First, we closely look at the prevention and avoiding severe crisis due to disaster. We, as humans, cannot control nature, but we can and should take every measure to protect human life in the face of a disaster. Therefore, what measures people should take to protect themselves and their personal

Brand management report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Brand management report - Essay Example Target customers are the high-end customers of the society thrive for lifestyle trendy products like Apple. Innovative and technological attributes of the Apple products are reinforcing the brand. The personality of the brand Apple is very different from other competitor brands. It is unique in nature. Trust worthiness of Apple products are very important benefit for the brand as can be seen in appendix. Innovative technologies provide intellectual development for consumers. Brand mantra of Apple is described on the basis of three factors those are 1) Brand Function, 2) Descriptive Modifier and 3) Emotional Modifier. Brand function of apple describes it as an example of innovation. Descriptive modifier for the brand Apple is technology. Emotional modifier is the passion for Apple products. Customer feels very passionate about possessing Apple products (Michael, 2005, pp. 145-152). On the base of the above analysis the brand identity of Apple is unique in nature. Apple products are generally costlier than its competitors. Still people feel passionate about buying this product because people get excitement and emotional attachment with the brand. The brand identity of Apple is unquestionable and unique in nature. Apple uses a different strategy of Blue Ocean that makes it different from other brand. The brand focuses on emotional aspects of the customers. It is very much related with life style kind of product. People feel that Apple is a very reliable brand. Customers fells lots of trust worthiness out of Apple. Customers feel very excited for the particular brand. Customers are so emotionally attached with the brand that they feel Apple as an important part of their life. Continuous innovation in technology is making this brand more and more superior in nature. Customers are always expecting something new from the brand and the brand always coming up with som e new innovations. Technological

Parenting licence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Parenting licence - Essay Example However not every person is a born parent or a natural when it comes to looking after small human beings. We need to see children as human beings who are so often left either unattended or uncared for when parents are busy with their lives. Parents think they know how to be good parents but the fact of the matter is that many parents don't. Some may learn through trial and error but why use a real human being as your experiment's guinea pig. Kids are too precious for this kind of experimentation. Therefore before a couple takes on the responsibility of becoming parents, they should be asked to take classes and sit for an exam in order to receive their parenting license. It is only after they have been successful that they should be allowed to become parents and become responsible for another life. There was once a time when mothers would sit at home and their only job was to take care of their kids. Most women were housewives and since they had time on their hands, they could invest in their kids with sincerity and devotion. Things have changed now. Not only many mothers are working, most also have a life besides home, husband and kids. They may have done women emancipation a lot of good but it has seriously affected lives of small children in many households. Apart from that, some women no matter whether they are housewives or not, may actually find themselves too overwhelmed when they are given the responsibility of a child. They feel they are not natural mothers and this affects their ability to take care of their young ones. For this reason again, parenting license is a great idea. The opponents of the idea would probably find the whole thing quite insensible. They argue that parents have been parenting since time immemorial so why now Why must they take a license when God saw them fit for the job and gave them a kid These arguments may seem fine on the surface but when studied in the context of time and changes, we see their invalidity. The fact is that God doesn't necessarily give kids to people with good parenting abilities. We have already seen cases of people like Spears and Michael Jackson. Secondly, people may have been doing it for centuries but haven't times changed drastically As mentioned earlier, women in olden times had but one concern: to please their husbands and take care of their children. Most women did a great job because they had little else to do and besides even if they did a bad job, they were never reported and children suffered in silence. Why allow that kind of inhumanity when we can change the picture and make lives so much better for these little souls. The opponents also feel that such a system cannot be successfully implemented. They feel that setting the standards would be difficult and how would we urge parents to take parenting courses. There is a simple solution to this: make it mandatory in every hospital across the country so no first time parents are allowed to register without prior registration for parenting classes. They must also carry a proof they are attending these classes and they must get a license before delivery date. This would be quite a simple thing to do and if law protects it, people will not be able to violate it. A poor parent can learn many skills and a potential great parent can become even better. This kind of practice would minimize the risk of a child being neglected or falling into the hands of unprepared,

Political Ideologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Political Ideologies - Essay Example Ideologies are therefore patterns of thought that play a crucial role in shaping political landscapes often in unconscious ways1. Of these, include democratic ideology. With its origin traced back to the ancient Greece, democracy refers to a system of leadership in which political governance is by people directly or by electing their representatives into leadership positions. The emphasis of this ideology is the free exercise individual rights in shaping political orientations of their country. Its basic tenet is the rule by many through democratic selection processes. The major flaw with this ideology is that the majority always gets their way and may result to oppression of the minorities. Second is conservative ideology. As the word suggests, this ideology refers to the assertion that the traditional governance institutions function the best way possible and that it necessary to avoid radical changes taking place in the society as much as it is practically possible. The emphasis h ere is on ensuring continuity of systems, maintaining stability and where possible returning things to their original status. Liberalism is the third. Attaining equity and liberty in the society are the key defining assertion of this political ideology. The emphasis here is on such things as the constitution, exercise of inherent human rights, democracy defined by free and fair elections, free market economy defined by free trade, and secularism in a country. Embracing divergent political views, libertarians advocate for a minimized statehood or its abolition while advancing a maximized individual liberty. This means that an examination of observed liberalism may establish that they have liberty situated in their core; human rights, democracy, and equality are adjacent while nationalism is on the periphery2. Other political ideologies include socialism, which opposes capitalism on the basis that it creates and concentrates wealth and power to a small segment of the society through w anton exploitation of resources including human resources. They advocate for a system that creates equal opportunity for all people to maximize their potential while using technology and resources for the benefit of the public as a whole, while doing away with any form of coercive pecking order. Closely linked to this is the green party ideology that promotes the exercise green politics defined by social justice, local level democracy, environmentalism, and violence free societies to realize world health. The independent ideology promotes none affiliation to political parties although standing by the principals and manifestoes of political parties is acceptable3. Based on evaluation of the various types of political ideologies, the liberal ideology provides the best flat form for freedom and equality among society members. Since attaining equity and liberty are its basic precepts, this ideology advocates for a structure that provides individuals with basic human rights and freedoms entrenched in a constitution. It further captures aspects like the exercise of free and fair elections also advocated for by the democratic ideology as well as for equal opportunity based on free markets and secularism for people to attain their full potentials4. As opposed to the socialism and republican/ conservative ideology, liberalism allows for improvement in the state of affair to attain maximum benefit possible for an individual in a free market setting. In conclusion, the different types of politica

On Schizophrenia and Beautiful Mind Movie Review

On Schizophrenia and Beautiful Mind - Movie Review Example One example of this destruction is that of the birth of his first child, he becomes so paranoid that he presents a real threat to his wife and the child. Eventually his marriage ends in divorce, but later, when he begins to come to terms with his illness, he and his wife are reunited. However, unlike, the 1950's, when Nash became ill, today, medical science has made it possible for this genetic illness to be controlled in some cases such as Nash's without medication. Two factors help to make this possible. The first is the fact that if the affected individual receives medical help early enough, including cognitive therapy, he or she has a better chance of overcoming the disease. The movie is truthful in showing how, after Nash's acceptance of his illness, he is able to recognize that the voices are not real and to quit letting them run his life. The second is the fact that has become evident to scientists that the disease of paranoid schizophrenia improves in latter life. This is even truer if the afflicted has been treated early on. In the respect of normalcy, the movie presents a distorted view of Nash's life regarding his compensation for the disease in maturity. While he did go on to achieve greatness as a mathematician, there are scientists who believe that this was not in spite of his illness, but because of it. Nash believed this himself as he stated in a radio broadcast in which he was interviewed. (1) (All things Considered) Otherwise, according to him, he may have accepted mediocrity-instead, in 1994 he was awarded the Nobel Prize! However, the movie did portray the world of schizophrenic hallucinations such as hearing voices and/or these voices appearing to talk back to the individual; voices talking out loud among themselves; hallucinations which cause the interruption in the person's thoughts result in scattered speech, and paranoid hallucinations causing false perceptions about other people, including perceptions that cause the afflicted to become violent or fear violence from others. The onslaught of paranoid schizophrenia normally begins between " the ages of 15 and 34 with a preoccupation with one or more systematized delusions or with frequent auditory hallucinations related to a single theme. In addition to suffering from hallucinations and the presence of voices, the person affected usually suffers delusions of grandeurThe main course of treatment for the disease is the use of medicines which arecommonly called 'atypical antipsychotic'Compared to the older convention' antipsychotic drugs such as Chlorpromazine (Thorzaine), fluphenazine (Prolixin), haloperidol (Haldo), thiothixene (Navane), and others, these drugs have fewer severe side effects. They are equally effective as the older drugs for helping reduce the positive symptoms like hallucinations and delusions, but may be better than the older medications at relieving the negative symptoms of the illness, such as withdrawal, thinking problems, and lack of energy. The atypical antipsychotic drugs include aripiprazole (Abilify), risperidone (Risperdal), clozapine (Clozanl), olanzapine (Zyprexa), quetiapine

The story of the lizard who had the habit of dining on his wives by Essay

The story of the lizard who had the habit of dining on his wives by Eduardo Galeano - Essay Example The story written by Eduardo Galeano remains both an allegory and a fable, one which paints women as preys and men as predators. Dulcidio in the book becomes referred to as the lizard, which often refers to mostly harmless lizards with the exception of the Komodo dragon, which feeds on chunks of meat from its quarry. Hence the word lizard remains used in the story because of its reference to Dulcidio. The main character too becomes depicted as gluttonous as he eats endlessly from his wives. In addition, since Dulcidio came from a powerful family, he used that to lure women with his richness but failed on the woman wearing glasses. In comparison, the story of Helix written by Banana depicts how a normal relationship looks like. A normal relationship often possesses ups and down. The two, boy and girl were discussing on how to go to a healing clinic to have unpleasant memories of their relationships wiped out. First of all, both stories speak of gender relationships. In Helix, the boys often think of getting rid of the unpleasant things that had happened in their relationship, but after discussing with his girlfriend, both resolve the issue. The story hence depicts the power of man and woman to solve their problems in a relationship. In as much as a relationship exist, problems will always be there, and escape will not be a solution. The man in the story of helix thinks of going to the clinic where unpleasant memories were removed. When compared to the story by Eduardo Galeano, drifts in relationships become shown. In a relationship, love should be the ensuing component, but for Dulcidio, it was a different thing, food. Dulcidio got consumed by eating a lot of food, and never loved the women he married. In addition, the women also agreed to enter into such a marriage since Dulcidio possessed a lot of family wealth. Eduardo Galeano remains to be a practical individual when it comes to relationships. In his stories, he majorly emphasizes on common day issues that p eople often take for granted. On the other hand, Banana becomes depicted as creative individuals that always try to keep her audience knowledgeable when it came to the new stuff. Banana introduces the concept of memory wiping in the story, a new thing that the young generation often associate. In contrast, Eduardo Galeano speaks for the old generation. In both stories, the issue of multiple partners in a relationship becomes brought up. In Helix, for instance, the man seated in the bed remembers about how his past girlfriends knew everything about him. In the story by Eduardo Galeano, Dulcidio marries many wives.

Therapeutic Landscape Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Therapeutic Landscape - Essay Example Thus, intervention in the front lawn of the school should improve students’ wellbeing. The site should support students’ better socialization, relaxation, and learning. The discussed site is a large space (about 340 meters), and therefore has a large potential. It’s generally, an open space with a nice view to the lake into the distance. For this reason one feels relaxed in the site, but at the same time, insecure. Queen Str. road going by only increases feeling like exposed. It would be hard to make the site attractive for students because now, there’re rarely any students. Therefore, first challenge is to save an open space while taking away feeling of being exposed for students’ comfort. The site already has some plants growing, and there’re also some material objects. Growing grass, a few tamaracks, maples, cedars and oaks already growing make a good start for a picnic, relaxation, and gathering area. However, the challenge is that plants grow mostly randomly, without any use. Similar challenge is to deal with objects. Large maple tree has four branches around. They can serve well for a new design, but there’s also a memorial in the middle of the site. It draws all the attention, thus it’s a challenge to design new landscape around the memorial. Important is to keep in mind that the site is a part of educational institution property. Julie M. Johnson (2007) discusses specifics of school landscapes and says, â€Å"In school landscapes design qualities need to support meaningful experience for cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development†. Generally, the school site should serve for a better learning helping to relax after lessons, or to clear one’s mind in solitude. At the same time, the site should encourage students on group discussions and social activities (including ceremonial) etc. Johnson (2007) says it’s important for students to feel safe when doing any of those activities. School landscape should

Blue Ocean Strategy Essay Example for Free

Blue Ocean Strategy Essay Competing in overcrowded industries is no way to sustain high performance. The real opportunity is to create blue oceans of uncontested market space. Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne Included with this full-text Harvard Business Review article: 70 Article Summary The Idea in Brief—the core idea The Idea in Practice—putting the idea to work 71 Blue Ocean Strategy 80 Further Reading A list of related materials, with annotations to guide further exploration of the article’s ideas and applications Reprint R0410D Blue Ocean Strategy The Idea in Brief The best way to drive profitable growth? Stop competing in overcrowded industries. In those red oceans, companies try to outperform rivals to grab bigger slices of existing demand. As the space gets increasingly crowded, profit and growth prospects shrink. Products become commoditized. Ever-more-intense competition turns the water bloody. How to avoid the fray? Kim and Mauborgne recommend creating blue oceans— uncontested market spaces where the competition is irrelevant. In blue oceans, you invent and capture new demand, and you offer customers a leap in value while also streamlining your costs. Results? We chose to show American industries because they represented the largest and leastregulated market during our study period. The pattern of blue ocean creations exempli? ed by these three industries is consistent with what we observed in the other industries in our study. harvard business review †¢ october 2004 page 73 Blue Ocean Strategy Key blue ocean creations Was the blue ocean created by a new Was it driven by entrant or an technology pioneering incumbent? or value pioneering? New entrant Value pioneering* (mostly existing technologies) Value pioneering (some new technologies) Value pioneering (some new technologies) At the time of the blue ocean creation, was the industry attractive or unattractive? Unattractive Automobiles Ford Model T Unveiled in 1908, the Model T was the ? rst mass-produced car, priced so that many Americans could afford it. GM’s â€Å"car for every purse and purpose† GM created a blue ocean in 1924 by injecting fun and fashion into the car. Incumbent Attractive Japanese fuel-ef? cient autos Japanese automakers created a blue ocean in the mid-1970s with small, reliable lines of cars. Incumbent Unattractive Chrysler minivan With its 1984 minivan, Chrysler created a new class of automobile that was as easy to use as a car but had the passenger space of a van. Incumbent Value pioneering (mostly existing technologies) Unattractive Computers CTR’s tabulating machine In 1914, CTR created the business machine industry by simplifying, modularizing, and leasing tabulating machines. CTR later changed its name to IBM. Incumbent Value pioneering (some new technologies) Unattractive IBM 650 electronic computer and System/360 In 1952, IBM created the business computer industry by simplifying and reducing the power and price of existing technology.

Foundations of Organizational Structure Essay Example for Free

Foundations of Organizational Structure Essay TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 1 General Introduction 1. Ice-breaking session. 2. Self-introduction by tutor and students. 3. Briefing on course requirements. 4. Tutorial expectations and participation. 5. Briefing on Group Report Oral Presentation (requirements and expectations). 6. Team formation for Group Report. (4 members per group) 7. Tutor assigns question and time for oral presentation group report ** Oral presentation and group report submission will starts from Week 3 to 5** **Important note** Students are required to sit for one (1) online test on Week 3. Please make sure that you are registered under this course and be able to access to CEL to take the test. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 2 Topic 1 : Foundations of Organizational Structure Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) The ________ refers to the number of subordinates that a manager directs. A) span of control B) unity of command C) chain of command D) decentralization principle E) leadership web 2) A task that is subdivided into many separate jobs is considered to have ________. A) a high degree of departmentalization B) a low degree of decentralization C) a high degree of work specialization D) a low degree of structure E) a high degree of matrix structuring 3) Aeronautics Inc., a parts supplier, has departments for government aircraft and contracts, large commercial aircraft clients, and small personal aircraft clients. This is an example of ________ departmentalization. A) product B) function C) geography D) customer E) service 4) Stalsberry Company has employees in personnel, sales, and accounting. This division of an organization into groups according to work functions is an example of ________, the second element of structural organization. A) social clustering B) bureaucracy C) specialization D) centralization E) departmentalization 5) The unbroken line of authority that extends from the top of the organization to the lowest echelon and clarifies who reports to whom is termed ________. A) chain of command B) authority C) span of control. D) unity of command E) web of authority 6) Which one of the following is consistent with a simple structure? A) high centralization B) high horizontal differentiation C) high employee discretion D) standardization E) bureaucracy 7) Which of the following is a drawback of a narrow span of control? It ________. A) reduces effectiveness B) is more efficient C) encourages overly tight supervision and discourages employee autonomy D) empowers employees E) increases participatory decision-making 8) In an organization that has high centralization, ________. A) the corporate headquarters is located centrally to branch offices B) all top level officials are located within the same geographic area C) action can be taken more quickly to solve problems D) new employees have a great deal of legitimate authority E) top managers make all the decisions and lower level managers merely carry out directions TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 3 Topic 2 : Organizational Culture Part A: Discussion Question 1) Explain the primary methods of maintaining an organizations culture. Once a culture is in place, there are practices within the organization that act to maintain it by giving employees a set of similar experiences. Three forces play a particularly important part in sustaining a culture: selection practices, the actions of top management, and socialization methods. a) First, the explicit goal of the selection process is to identify and hire individuals who have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the  jobs within the organization successfully. It would be naive to ignore that the final decision as to who is hired will be significantly influenced by the decision makers judgment of how well the candidates will fit into the organization. This attempt to ensure a proper match, whether purposely or inadvertently, results in the hiring of people who have values essentially consistent with those of the organization, or at least a good portion of those values. In addition, the selection process provides information to applicants about the organization.   Candidates learn about the organization and, if they perceive a conflict between their values and those of the organization, they can self-select themselves out of the applicant pool. b) In addition to selection, the actions of top management also have a major impact on the organizations culture. Through what they say and how they behave, senior executives establish norms that filter down through the organization as to whether risk taking is desirable; how much freedom managers should give their employees; what is appropriate dress; what actions will pay off in terms of pay raises, promotions, and other rewards; and the like. c) Finally, no matter how good a job the organization does in recruiting and selection, new employees are not fully indoctrinated in the organizations culture. Because they are unfamiliar with the organizations culture, new employees are potentially likely to disturb the beliefs and customs that are in place. The organization will, therefore, want to help new employees adapt to its culture. This adaptation process is called socialization. This is when the organization seeks to mold the outsider into an employee in good standing. Employees who fail to learn the essential or pivotal role behaviors risk being labeled nonconformists or rebels, which often leads to expulsion. But the organization will be socializing every employee, though maybe not as explicitly, throughout his or her entire career in the organization. This further contributes to sustaining the culture. 2) Explain how an institutionalized culture can be a barrier to diversity. Describe how an organization could utilize the three forces at play in sustaining a culture to help create a diverse workforce. By limiting the range of acceptable values and styles, strong cultures put considerable pressure on employees to conform. In some instances, a strong culture that condones prejudice can even undermine formal corporate diversity policies. Strong cultures can also be liabilities when they support institutional bias or become insensitive to people who are different. Hiring new employees who differ from the majority in race, age, gender, disability, or other characteristics creates a paradox: management wants to demonstrate support for the differences these employees bring to the workplace, but newcomers who wish to fit in must accept the organizations core cultural values. Because diverse behaviors and unique strengths are likely to diminish as people attempt to assimilate, strong cultures can become liabilities when they effectively eliminate these advantages. The explicit goal of the selection process is to identify and hire individuals with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully. Taking diversity into consideration at this phase does not have to be antagonistic to the culture. The final decision, because its significantly influenced by the decision makers judgment of how well the candidates will fit into the organization, identifies people whose values are essentially consistent with at least a good portion of the organizations. Looking beyond surface level differences at the selection phase will help create a diverse workforce. Through words and behavior, senior executives establish norms that filter through the organization about, for instance, whether risk taking is desirable, how much freedom managers should give employees, what is appropriate dress, and what actions pay off in terms of pay raises, promotions, and other rewards. Management actions should be inclusive and non-prejudicial to create a diverse and functional culture. During the metamorphosis stage of socialization management should use institutional practices to encourage person–organization fit and high levels of commitment. 3) What are the three stages of socialization through which employees become indoctrinated into an organizations culture? The three stages of socialization are prearrival, encounter, and metamorphosis. a) The prearrival stage recognizes that each individual arrives with a set of values, attitudes, and expectations. These cover both the work to be done and the organization. b) Upon entry into the organization, the new member enters the encounter stage. Here the individual confronts the possible dichotomy between her expectations and reality. c) Finally, the new member must work out any problems discovered during the encounter stage. This may mean going through changes hence, this is called the metamorphosis stage. 4) Discuss the difference between strong and weak organizational cultures and discuss the effect that a strong culture can have on an acquisition or merger. Strong cultures have a greater impact on employee behavior and are more directly related to reduced turnover. In a strong culture, the organizations core values are both intensely held and widely shared. The more members who accept the core values and the greater their commitment to those values is, the stronger the culture is. A strong culture will have a great influence on the behavior of its members because the high degree of sharedness and intensity creates an internal climate of high behavioral control. One specific result of a strong culture should be lower employee turnover. A strong culture demonstrates high agreement among members about what the organization stands for. Such unanimity of purpose builds cohesiveness, loyalty, and organizational commitment. These qualities, in turn, lessen employees propensity to leave the organization. In recent years, cultural compatibility has become the primary concern. All things being equal, whether the acquisition actually works seems to have more to do with how well the two organizations cultures match up. The primary cause of failure is conflicting organizational cultures, when people simply dont match up. Therefore, when considering an acquisition or merger, management would need to carefully evaluate the cultures of each organization. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 4 Topic 3: Foundations of Group Behavior Understanding Work Teams Part A: Discussion Question 1) List and briefly describe the stages in the five-stage model of group  development. The five-stage group development model characterizes groups as proceeding through five distinct stages: forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. a) Forming is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the groups purpose, structure, and leadership. Members are testing the waters to determine what types of behavior are acceptable. b) In the storming stage, members accept the existence of the group, but there is resistance to the constraints that the group imposes on individuality. There is conflict over who will control the group. c) The third stage is one in which close relationships develop and the group demonstrates cohesiveness. There is now a strong sense of group identify and camaraderie. This norming stage is complete when the group structure solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of expectations of what defines correct member behavior. d) The fourth stage is performing. The structure at this point is fully functional and accepted. Group energy has moved from getting to know and understand each other to performing the task at hand. e) In the adjourning stage, the group prepares for its disbandment. High task performance is no longer the groups top priority. Instead, attention is directed toward wrapping up activities. 2) Design the most effective team to figure out ways to reduce the number of preparation hours for shipping products overseas for your company. Choose the type of team from one of the four principal team types. Describe your teams context, composition, and process parameters. Answers will vary. A problem-solving team is probably the best type of team for this task. In a problem-solving team members share ideas or suggest how work processes and methods can be improved. The problem-solving team will offer ideas to management. Together they discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment. The team will need information on what products are being shipped and how  long each of them takes, as well as details on the current procedures. Adequate information is essential. A firm goal of reducing the hours spent must be established by a leader. The group should be comprised of workers and management with expertise in the shipping department procedures. The team should have five members, three management and two people from shipping and packaging. The process parameters should be clearly outlined, with goals of exactly how much time needs to be shaved off of packaging processes. 3) Explain the difference between groupthink and group shift. Give an example to support your answer. Groupthink is related to norms. It describes situations in which group pressures for conformity deter the group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views. Groupthink is a disease that attacks many groups and can dramatically hinder their performance. Group shift indicates that in discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a solution, group members tend to exaggerate the initial positions that they hold. In some situations, caution dominates, and there is a conservative shift. More often, however, the evidence indicates that groups tend toward a risky shift. Students answers may vary. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 5 Topic 4: Motivation Concepts Part A: Discussion Questions 1) Compare and contrast a manager that implements Theory Y and one that adheres to the expectancy theory. How would each choose to motivate their employees? Theory Y managers assume that employees can view work as being as natural as rest or play, and therefore the average person can learn to accept, even seek, responsibility. Theory Y assumes that higher-order needs dominate individuals. Theory Y managers would contend that ideas such as participative decision making, responsible and challenging jobs, and good group relations are approaches that would maximize an employees job  motivation. A Theory Y manager believes that the employee is inherently motivated as long as the conditions respect his intellect and character. A Theory Y manager would work hard to include the employee in decision making concerning his job, to satisfy work environment preferences, and to make sure the work is stimulating. Expectancy theory proposes that employees will be motivated to exert a high level of effort when they believe it will lead to a good performance appraisal; that a good appraisal will lead to organizational rewards such as bonuses, salary increases, or promotions; and that the rewards will satisfy the employees personal goals. An expectancy theory manager would focus much more on the reward expectations of the employee, versus the psychologic expectations. It would be important for the manager to understand the personal goals that the employee strives to achieve so that he can be appropriately rewarded and praised. 2) Describe Maslows hierarchy of needs including the types of needs and how they become dominant. Maslows hierarchy of needs hypothesized that within every human being there exists a hierarchy of five needs. a) The physiological needs include hunger, thirst, shelter, sex, and other bodily needs. b) Safety includes security and protection from physical and emotional harm. c) Social includes affection, belongingness, acceptance, and friendship. d) Esteem includes internal esteem factors such as self-respect, autonomy, and achievement; and external esteem factors such as status, recognition, and attention. e) Self-actualization is the drive to become what one is capable of becoming; includes growth, achieving ones potential, and self-fulfillment. As each of these needs becomes substantially satisfied, the next need becomes dominant. So if you want to motivate someone, according to Maslow, you need to understand what level of the hierarchy that person is currently on and focus on satisfying those needs at or above that level 3) According to Two-Factor Theory, how might a manager motivate employees? According to Herzberg, the factors leading to job satisfaction are separate and distinct from those that lead to job dissatisfaction. Therefore, managers who seek to eliminate factors that can create job dissatisfaction may bring about peace but not necessarily result in motivation. Conditions surrounding the job such as quality of supervision, pay, company policies, physical working conditions, relations with others, and job security were characterized by Herzberg as hygiene factors. When they are adequate, people will not be dissatisfied; neither will they be satisfied. If we want to motivate people on their jobs, Herzberg suggested emphasizing factors associated with the work itself or to outcomes directly derived from it, such as promotional opportunities, opportunities for personal growth, recognition, responsibility, and achievement. These are the characteristics that people find intrinsically rewarding. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 6 Topic 5: Motivation: From Concepts to Applications Part A: Discussion Questions 1) List and describe THREE (3) different variable-pay programs. Be sure to include piece-rate plans, profit-sharing plans, and gainsharing. a) Piece-rate plans. In piece-rate pay plans, workers are paid a fixed sum for each unit of production completed. When an employee gets no base salary and is paid only for what he or she produces, this is a pure piece-rate plan. b) Merit-based pay. Merit-based pay plans also pay for individual performance. However, unlike piece-rate plans, which pay based on objective output, merit-based pay plans are based on performance appraisal ratings. c) Profit-sharing. Profit-sharing plans are organization-wide programs that distribute compensation based on some established formula designed around a companys profitably. d) Bonuses. Bonuses can be paid exclusively to executives or to all employees. Many companies now routinely reward production employees with bonuses in the thousands of dollars when company profits improve. e) Skill-Based Pay. Skill-based pay (also called competency-based or knowledge-based pay) sets pay levels on the basis of how many skills employees have or how many jobs they can do. f) ESOPs. Employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) are company-established benefit plans in which employees acquire stock, often at below-market prices, as part of their benefits. g) Gainsharing. Gainsharing is a formula-based group incentive plan. Improvements in group productivity determine the total amount of money that is to be allocated. By focusing on productivity gains rather than profits, gainsharing rewards specific behaviors that are less influenced by external factors. Employees in a gainsharing plan can receive incentive awards even when the organization isnt profitable. 2) Compare and contrast the benefits of intrinsic rewards such as recognition and extrinsic rewards such as pay as forms of motivation. Organizations are increasingly recognizing that both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards are important. Rewards are intrinsic in the form of employee recognition programs and extrinsic in the form of compensation systems. Intrinsic rewards range from a spontaneous and private thank-you to widely publicized formal programs in which specific types of behavior are encouraged and the procedures for attaining recognition are clearly identified. Pay, an extrinsic reward, is not the primary factor driving job satisfaction, however, it does motivate people, and companies often underestimate its importance in keeping top talent. No matter how much recognition a top performer gets, he will be tempted to leave if the pay scale is much lower than the market and another offer arrives. Recent survey data indicate most employees dont see a strong connection between pay and performance. Variable pay structures, such as bonuses are often the best production motivators. When pay is tied to performance, the employees earnings also recognize contribution rather  than being a form of entitlement. Over time, low performers pay stagnates, while high performers enjoy pay increases commensurate with their contributions. An obvious advantage of intrinsic rewards like recognition programs is that they are inexpensive since praise is free. However, they are highly susceptible to political manipulation by management. When applied to jobs for which performance factors are relatively objective, such as sales, recognition programs are likely to be perceived by employees as fair. However, in most jobs, the criteria for good performance arent self evident, which allows managers to manipulate the system and recognize their favorites. Abuse can undermine the value of recognition programs and demoralize employees. Research suggests financial incentives may be more motivating in the short term, but in the long run intrinsic incentives will retain good employees if the extrinsic incentives are competitive. 3) What is employee involvement and why is it important. Give two examples. Employee involvement is defined as a participative process that uses the entire capacity of employees and is designed to encourage increased commitment to the organizations success. The underlying logic is that by involving workers in those decisions that affect them and by increasing their autonomy and control over their work lives, employees will become more motivated, more committed to the organization, more productive, and more satisfied with their jobs. Examples of employee involvement include a) Participative management. Participative management programs use joint decision making. Subordinates actually share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate superiors. b) Representative participation. Representative participation refers to worker representation by a small group of employees who actually participate on the board. The goal is to redistribute power within an organization, putting labor on a more equal footing with the interests of management and stockholders. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 7 Topic 6: What do Managers Do Leadership Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Which of the following is most likely to be a belief held by a successful manager? A) Technical knowledge is all that is needed for success. B) It is not essential to have sound interpersonal skills. C) Technical skills are necessary, but insufficient alone for success. D) Effectiveness is not impacted by human behavior. E) Technical skills do not influence efficiency. 2) Which of a managers primary functions requires the manager to define an organizations goals, establish an overall strategy for achieving these goals and develop a comprehensive hierarchy of plans to integrate and coordinate activities? A) controlling B) planning C) staffing D) coordinating E) leading 3) As a manager, one of Joes duties is to present awards to outstanding employees within his department. Which Mintzberg managerial role is Joe acting in when he does this? A) leadership role B) liaison role C) monitor role D) figurehead role E) spokesperson role 4) Jill is valued by her colleagues for her ability to perform effective break-even analysis on upcoming ventures. In this case, her colleagues value her for competencies that fall within which essential management skills categories? A) technical B) communication C) human D) conceptual E) education 5) Leadership is best defined as ________. A) the ability to influence a group in goal achievement B) keeping order and consistency in the midst of change C) implementing the vision and strategy provided by management D) coordinating and staffing the organization and handling day-to-day problems E) not a relevant variable in modern organizations 6) The two dimensions of leadership behavior identified in the University of Michigan studies are ________. A) coercion and motivation B) emotional and rational C) employee-oriented and production-oriented D) initiating structure and consideration E) initiation and completion Part B: Discussion Questions 1) Describe the three essential management skills that differentiate effective managers from ineffective ones. Provide a workplace example of how these skills could be used when dealing with the challenge of a workplace recession. The three essential management skills identified by researchers are technical, human, and conceptual. Technical skills are defined by the ability to apply specialized knowledge or expertise. Human skills are defined by the ability to work with, understand, and motivate other people. Finally, conceptual skills are defined by the ability to analyze and diagnose complex situations. In a time of recession human skills are essential to motivate fearful employees and to create a positive work environment. They would also be necessary in the event of workplace staff reduction. Technical skills could be applied in the area of expertise to raise production and, combined with conceptual skills, can be used to look for small market niches and ways to analyze the industry to continue to make a profit until times are better. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 8 Topic 7: Leadership Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Hersey and Blanchard developed which of the following? A) situational leadership theory B) cognitive resource theory C) managerial grid model D) path-goal theory E) cognitive orientation model 2) Hersey and Blanchards leadership theory differs from other leadership theories primarily because it ________. A) explores the role of the expectations of the leader for the follower B) focuses on the followers C) holds that leadership style should be dependent on the situation D) is normative E) deals strictly and exclusively with contingencies 3) What is the main principle of path-goal theory? A) Successful leadership is achieved by selecting the right leadership style. B) Stress is a form of situational unfavorableness and a leaders reaction to it depends on his or her intelligence and experience. C) Effective group performance depends on the proper match between the leaders style and the degree to which the situation gives control to the leader. D) Leaders establish a special relationship with a small group of their followers because of time pressures. E) The leader is responsible for providing followers with the information, support, or other resources necessary for them to do their jobs. 4) Which of the following is not a key characteristic of a charismatic leader? A) sensitivity to follower needs B) unconventional behavior C) vision and articulation D) task orientation E) willingness to take risks 5) Researchers are conducting a study of a company called Acme Corp, which they believe to be led by a transformational leader. Which of the following, if true, would most support the conclusion that Acmes leader is a transformational leader? A) Acmes top managers often conflict over defining the organization’s goals. B) Acmes goals tend to be very ambitious and to hold personal value for employees. C) Creativity is discouraged among Acme employees. D) Acme managers are cautious and rarely take risks. E) Acmes compensation plans are designed to reward short-term results. 6) Leaders who clarify role and task requirements to accomplish established goals exhibit a _________ style of leadership. A) transformational B) transactional C) charismatic D) self-initiating E) situational 7) Richard is a transactional leader who has just assigned a series of tasks to a project team. Which of the following is most likely to be true about the teams performance under Richards guidance? A) They will set new standards of productivity for the department, exceeding Richards expectations. B) They will meet the goals set for them but are unlikely to go beyond those goals. C) They will tend to be unclear about the roles assigned to each team member. D) They will be highly motivated by what they view as Richards heroic or extraordinary qualities. E) They will tend to put their individual self-interest above the interests of the company. Part B: Discussion Questions 1)Compare and contrast Hersey and Blanchards situational leadership theory with Houses path-goal theory. Hersey and Blanchards situation leadership theory is a contingency theory  that focuses on the followers. Successful leadership is achieved by selecting the right leadership style, which Hersey and Blanchard argue is contingent on the level of the followers readiness. The emphasis on the followers in leadership effectiveness reflects the reality that it is the followers who accept or reject the leaders. The term readiness refers to the extent to which people have the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task. SLT says if a follower is unable and unwilling to do a task, the leader needs to give clear and specific directions; if followers are unable and willing, the leader needs to display high task orientation to compensate for the followers lack of ability and high relationship orientation to get the follower to buy into the leaders desires; if followers are able and unwilling, the leader needs to use a supportive and participative style; and if the employee is both abl e and willing, the leader doesnt need to do much. Path-goal theory was developed by Robert House. The essence of the theory is that its the leaders job to assist followers in attaining their goals and to provide the necessary direction and/or support to ensure that their goals are compatible with the overall objectives of the group or organization. The term path-goal is derived from the belief that effective leaders clarify the path to help their followers get from where they are to the  achievement of their work goals and make the journey along the path easier by reducing roadblocks. House identified four leadership behaviors. The directive leader lets followers know what is expected of them, schedules work to be done, and gives specific guidance as to how to accomplish tasks. The supportive leader is friendly and shows concern for the needs of followers. The participative leader consults with followers and uses their suggestions before making a decision. The achievement-oriented leader sets challenging goals and expects followers to perform at their highest level. House assumes that leaders are flexible and that the same leader can display any or all of these behaviors depending on the situation. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 9 Topic 8: Communication Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Communication serves all of the following functions within a group or organization except ________. A) motivation B) planning C) emotional expression D) control E) conveying information 2) Alejandro is annoyed that the new recruit, Ben, is working faster than anyone else in the group, making the rest of the group look bad. In the company cafeteria Alejandro teases Ben and calls him the super recruit and imitates his style of working so rapidly. Alejandro wants to intimidate Ben so that he will work slower. Which function of communication is Alejandro using by making fun of Ben? A) motivation B) control C) expression D) information E) formal 3) Helena and Laura were talking on the phone. Lauras two year old son fell and started crying and Laura could no longer hear what Helena said. This is an example of ________. A) transmitting B) decoding C) noise D) understanding E) analysis 4) The communication used by managers to provide job instructions is ________ communication. A) downward B) lateral C) formal D) directional E) diagonal Part B: Discussion Questions 1)Describe the communication process. Include the communication process model and explain the eight parts of this model. Before communication can take place, a purpose, expressed as a message to be conveyed, is needed. It passes between a sender and a receiver. The message is encoded (converted to a symbolic form) and passed by way of some medium (channel) to the receiver, who retranslates (decodes) the message initiated by the sender. The result is a transfer of meaning from one person to another. The key parts of the communication process are 1) the sender 2) encoding 3) the message 4) the channel 5) decoding 6) the receiver 7) noise 8) feedback The source initiates a message by encoding a thought. The message is the actual physical product from the source encoding. The channel is the medium through which the message travels. The receiver is the object to whom the message is directed. The symbols must be translated into a form that can be understood by the receiver. This is the decoding. Noise represents communication barriers that distort the clarity of the message. The final link is a feedback loop. 2) Explain how the grapevine functions and why it exists in organizational communication. Describe the general direction of communication and the form of communication most commonly used in the grapevine. What can a manager do to limit the negative effects of the grapevine? The informal communication system is the grapevine. While it is informal it is still an important source of information. A survey found that 75 percent of employees hear about matters first through rumors on the grapevine. The grapevine has three main characteristics. First, it is not controlled by management. Second, most employees perceive it as more believable and reliable than formal communiquà ©s issued by top management. Finally, it is largely used to serve the interests of the people within it. Rumors emerge as a response to situations that are important to us, when there is ambiguity, and under conditions that arouse anxiety. The fact that work situations frequently contain these three elements explains why rumors flourish in organizations. The secrecy and competition that typically prevail in large organizations, encourage and sustain rumors on the grapevine. A rumor will persist either until the wants and expectations creating the uncertainty are fulfilled or the anxiety has been reduced. The grapevine generally follows lateral communication in which persons from the same hierarchical levels begin to relay messages. Very rarely does management participate in the grapevine. In fact, one study reported that management only relayed messages to the grapevine ten percent of the time. Generally oral communication is used to relay grapevine information, although written e-mail can be used as well, but is considered less safe for accountability reasons. Managers can not entirely eliminate rumors. What they should do is minimize the negative consequences of rumors by limiting their range and impact. The best way to reduce the negative consequences of rumors is to: 1) Provide information; 2) Explain actions and decisions that may appear inconsistent, unfair, or secretive; 3) Refrain from shooting the messenger; and 4) Maintain open communication channels. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 10 Topic 9: Conflict Management Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) The traditional view of conflict is the belief that conflict is ________. A) harmful B) natural C) necessary D) situationally-dependent E) neutral 2) Which of the following is not a cause of conflict, according to the traditionalist view? A) general poor communication between people B) lack of openness in the organization C) trust between people in the organization D) management failure to be responsive to employee needs E) management failure to be responsive to employee aspirations 3) The ________ view of conflict argues that conflict is necessary for a group to perform effectively. A) human relations B) interactionist C) traditional D) functional E) reactive 4) ________ conflicts are almost always dysfunctional. A) Task B) Job C) Relationship D) Process E) Functional 5) The first stage of the conflict process is termed ________. A) cognition and personalization B) behavioral manifestation C) potential opposition or incompatibility D) intention E) habituation 6) High job specialization can lead to ________ conflict. A) communication B) structural C) personal-variable D) job-related E) team 7) In which stage are conflict issues defined? A) potential opposition B) cognition and personalization C) intuitions D) behavior E) reaction and transference 8) The conflict-handling intention of collaborating is ________. A) assertive and uncooperative B) assertive and cooperative C) unassertive and uncooperative D) unassertive and cooperative E) affective and reflective 9) Angelina feels that her cubicle neighbor talks too loudly on the phone, but in other ways she is a great neighbor. Angelina gets annoyed every time her neighbors phone rings, but she has decided its simply not worth the trouble to talk to her neighbor. Angelinas conflict intention is called ________. A) competing B) avoiding C) accommodating D) compromising E) collaborating 10) Which of the following is not a conflict-resolution technique? A) creating superordinate goals B) appointing a devils advocate C) avoiding the conflict D) exercising authoritative command E) generating additional resources 11) Stage II of the conflict process deals with conflict being ________. A) perceived and felt B) apparent and experienced C) expressed and perceived D) overt and covert E) internalized 12) Irma does not like a few of the standard operating procedures adapted for the new project. However, she discussed the items with the team and told them that she realized she was in the minority and that she would adapt the new procedures to maintain smooth operations within the team. This type of intention is called ________. A) sacrificing B) accommodating C) collaborating D) compromising E) competing TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 11 Topic 10: Power and Politics Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Power can be defined as ________. A) the ability to influence the behavior of others B) the actualization of the dependency of others C) congruence between the goals of the leader and those being led D) downward influence on ones followers E) upward influence on ones leaders 2) One reacts to ________ power out of fear of the negative ramifications that might result if one fails to comply. A) legitimate B) coercive C) punitive D) referent E) abusive 3) The power that the College Dean has been granted by the University over the faculty is termed ________ power. A) academic B) positional C) legitimate D) organizational E) balanced 4) Power tactics can be defined as ________. A) the only legitimate sources of power B) techniques for translating power bases into specific action C) strategies for gathering and maintain support D) organizational structural characteristics E) approaches for winning arguments 5) Vivian has not been handling one portion of her duties in a satisfactory manner. As a result, her manager threatens to withhold her promotion. Which power tactic is being used? A) exchange B) ingratiation C) pressure D) personal appeals E) inspirational appeals Part B: Discussion Questions 1) Contrast leadership and power. Power does not require goal compatibility, merely dependence. Leadership, on the other hand, requires some congruence between the goals of the leader and those being led. A second difference relates to the direction of influence. Leadership focuses on the downward influence on ones followers. It minimizes the importance of lateral and upward influence patterns. Power does not. Still another difference deals with research emphasis. Leadership research, for the most part, emphasizes style. It seeks answers to such questions as: How supportive should a leader be? How much decision making should be shared with followers? The research on power encompasses a broader area and focus on tactics for gaining compliance. Power can be used by groups as well as by individuals to control other individuals or groups. 2) List and discuss the bases of personal power. Personal power comes from an individuals unique characteristics. Two bases of personal power are expertise, the respect and admiration of others. a) Expert power is influence wielded as a result of expertise, special skill, or knowledge. Expertise has become one of the most powerful sources of influence as the world has become more technologically oriented. b) Referent power is based on identification with a person who has desirable resources or personal traits. If I like, respect, and admire you, you can exercise power over me because I want to please you. 3) Distinguish between legitimate political behavior and illegitimate political behavior. Legitimate political behavior refers to normal everyday politics complaining to your supervisor, bypassing the chain of command, forming coalitions, obstructing organizational policies or decisions through inaction or excessive adherence to rules, and developing contacts outside the organization through ones professional activities. On the other hand, there are also illegitimate political behaviors that violate the implied rules of the game. Those who pursue such extreme activities are often described as individuals who play hardball. Illegitimate activities include sabotage, whistleblowing, and symbolic protests such as wearing unorthodox dress or protest buttons, and groups of employees simultaneously calling in sick. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 12 Topic 11: Human Resource Policies and Practices (Human Resource Planning Forecasting, Recruitment) Part A: Discussion Questions 1) Define human resource planning. Describe the TWO (2) components in human resource planning. Human resource planning is the systematic process of matching the internal and external supply of people with job openings anticipated in the organization over a specific period of time. Human resource planning has 2 components: requirements and availability. A requirements forecast involves determining the number, skill, and location of employees the organization will need at future dates in order to meet its goals. The determination of whether the firm will be able to secure employees with the necessary skills, and from what sources, is called an availability forecast. 2) Describe human resource databases and how databases can assist in matching internal employees to positions. A human resource database contains employee information that permits management to make HR decisions. Information that might appear in such databases, includes, but is not limited to, the following: work history and experience, specific skills and knowledge, licenses or certifications held, organizational training completed, educational background, previous performance appraisal evaluations, assessment of strengths and weaknesses, development needs, promotion potential at present, and with further development, current job performance, field of specialization, job preferences, geographic preferences, career goals and aspirations, anticipated retirement date, and personal history, including psychological assessments. Databases are being used by organizations to enable human resources to match people with positions. 3) List TWO (2) methods are available to firms when either a shortage or surplus of workers is forecasted? Firms faced with a shortage of workers may use: 1) 2) 3) 4) innovative recruiting, compensation incentives, and training programs to fill positions. Lowering of employment standards Firms faced with a surplus of workers may use: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) layoffs,  restricted hours,  hiring freezes may be necessary, and  encourage early retirement and  the use of vacation time. TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 13 Topic 12: Human Resource Policies and Practices (Selection) Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Which of the following is the most common method of initial selection? A) written tests B) background check C) performance test D) application form E) work-sample test 2) More than ________ percent of employers conduct some type of background check on potential employees during some point in the hiring process, usually either in the initial phase or the contingent phase. A) 25 B) 50 C) 65 D) 80 E) 95 3) The best way for an employer to find out if a potential employee can do a job is by ________. A) using the interview process B) using a written test C) having them spend a day in the office D) administering an IQ test E) using a performance simulation test 4) Work sample tests are widely used in hiring ________. A) unskilled labor B) skilled workers C) professional workers D) managers E) knowledge workers 5) The results of which of the following tend to have a disproportionate amount of influence on employee selection decisions? A) interviews B) written tests C) performance simulation tests D) work sampling methods E) personality tests 6) The behavioral structured interview is built on the assumption that ________. A) past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior B) technical knowledge and skills are the best predictor of job performance C) personality is the best predictor of job performance D) personality and mood are highly correlated E) technical knowledge and mood are highly correlated Part B: TRUE /FALSE Questions 1) As a selection device, written tests have decreased in usage during the past 20 years. (TRUE /FALSE) 2) A test that measures factors such as dependability, carefulness, responsibility, and honesty is referred to as a performance factor test. (TRUE /FALSE) 3) Work samples yield validities almost consistently superior to written aptitude tests. (TRUE /FALSE) 4) In assessment centers, job candidates are evaluated as they go through several days of exercises that simulate real problems they would confront on the job. (TRUE /FALSE) TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN COLLEGE ABDM2083 ORGANIZATION HUMAN RESOURCE TUTORIAL 14 Topic 13 14: Human Resource Policies and Practices (Performance Evaluation) Part A: Multiple Choice Questions 1) Performance evaluations today are generally based on which three types of behavior? A) task performance, productivity, tenure B) productivity, efficiency, absenteeism C) task performance, citizenship, counterproductivity D) citizenship, counterproductivity, personality E) leadership, training, efficiency 2) Performance evaluations are used as a mechanism for all of the following except ________. A) monitoring the success of marketing strategies B) determining promotions C) pinpointing employees skills D) identifying training and development needs E) providing feedback to employees 3) Which of the following is not a weakness of the 360-degree evaluation system? A) artificially inflated feedback from peers B) insufficient training for performance evaluators C) discrepancies between evaluating groups D) provides a wide performance perspective E) difficulties in reconciling differing evaluations 4) Performance evaluations are used to ________. A) improve group cohesiveness B) define departmental structure C) help management make HR decisions D) identify how jobs are completed E) decrease conformity within organizations 5) Which of the following is the least predictive set of criteria used to evaluate employees? A) traits B) task outcomes C) behaviors D) personality E) mood Part B: Discussion Questions 1) What are the three most popular sets of criteria for evaluating employee performance? The three most popular sets of criteria for evaluating employee performance are individual task outcomes, behaviors, and traits. a) If ends count, rather than means, then management should evaluate an employees task outcomes. In many cases, its difficult to identify specific outcomes that can be directly attributable to an employees actions. b) Its not unusual for management to evaluate the employees behavior. c) The weakest set of criteria, yet one that is widely used by organizations is individual traits. They are weaker because they are farthest removed from the actual performance of the job itself. 2) Who should perform employee evaluations? With many of todays organizations using self-managed teams, telecommuting, and other organizing devices that distance bosses from their employees, an employees immediate superior may not be the most reliable judge of that employees performance. Thus, in more and more cases, peers and even subordinates are being asked to participate in the performance evaluation process. Also, increasingly, employees are participating in their own performance evaluation. In most situations, in fact, it is highly advisable to use multiple sources of ratings. Any individual performance rating may say as much about the rater as about the person being evaluated. By averaging across raters, we can obtain a more reliable, unbiased, and accurate performance evaluation.