The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove Chapter 22~23

Twenty-two Theo The walls of Molly's trailer were plastered with movie posters. He stood in the middle of the living room among the scattered videotapes, magazines, and junk mail and slowly turned. It was her, Molly. She hadn't been lying all this time. Most of the posters were in foreign languages, but every one featured a younger Molly in various states of undress, holding weapons or fighting off bad guys, her hair flying in the wind, a nuked-out city or a desert littered with human skulls and burned-out cars in the background. The adolescent male part of Theo, the part that every man tries to bury but carries to his grave, reared up. She was a movie star. A hot movie star! And he knew her, had in fact put handcuffs on her. If there was only a locker room, a street corner, or a second-period study hall where he could brag about it to his friends. But he didn't really have any friends, except for Gabe maybe, and Gabe was a grown-up. The prurient moment passed and Theo felt guilty about the way he had treated Molly: patronizing her and condescending to her; the way many people treated him when he tried to be something besides a pothead and puppet. He kneeled down to a bookshelf filled with videotapes, found one labeled KENDRA: WARRIOR BABE OF THE OUT LAND (ENGLISH), and slipped it into the VCR and turned on the television. Then he turned off the lights, laid his guns on the coffee table, and lay down on Molly's couch to wait. He watched as the Crazy Lady of Pine Cove battled mutants and Sand Pirates for half an hour before he drifted off to sleep. His mind needed a deeper escape from his problems than the movie could provide. â€Å"Hi, Theo.† He came awake startled. The movie was still casting a flickering light over the room, so he couldn't have been sleeping that long. She stood in the doorway, half in shadow, looking very much like the woman on the television screen. She held an assault rifle at her side. â€Å"Molly, I've been waiting for you.† â€Å"How'd you like it?† She nodded toward the television. â€Å"Loved it. I never realized. I was just so tired†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Molly nodded. â€Å"I won't be long, I just came to get some clean clothes. You're welcome to stay here.† Theo didn't know what to do. It didn't seem like the time to grab one of the pistols off the table. He felt more embarrassed than threatened. â€Å"Thanks,† he said. â€Å"He's the last one, Theo. After him there aren't any more of his kind. His time has passed. I think that's what we have in common. You don't know what it is to be a has-been, do you?† â€Å"I think I'm what they call a never-was.† â€Å"That's easier. At least you're always looking up the ladder, not down. Coming down is scarier.† â€Å"How? Why? What is he?† â€Å"I'm not sure, a dragon maybe. Who knows?† She leaned back against the doorway and sighed. â€Å"But I can kinda tell what he's thinking. I guess it's because I'm nuts. Who would have thought that would come in handy, huh?† â€Å"Don't say that about yourself. You're saner than I am.† Molly laughed, and Theo could see her movie-star teeth shine in the light of the television. â€Å"You're a neurotic, Theo. A neurotic is someone who thinks something is wrong with him, but everyone else thinks he is normal; a psychotic thinks something's wrong with her. Take a poll of the locals, I think I'd come out in the latter category, don't you?† â€Å"Molly, this is really dangerous stuff you're messing with.† â€Å"He won't hurt me.† â€Å"It's not just that. You could go to jail just for having that machine gun, Molly. People are getting killed, aren't they?† â€Å"In a manner of speaking.† â€Å"That's what happened to Joseph Leander, and the guys working the drug lab, right? Your pal ate them?† â€Å"They were going to hurt you, and Steve was hungry. Seemed like great timing to me.† â€Å"Molly, that's murder!† â€Å"Theo! I'm nuts. What are they going to do to me?† Theo shrugged his shoulders and sat back on the couch. â€Å"I don't know what to do.† â€Å"You're not in a position to do anything right now. Get some rest.† Theo cradled his head in his hands. His cell phone, still in the pocket of his flannel shirt, began ringing. â€Å"I could sure use a hit right now.† â€Å"There's some Smurfs of Sanity in the cupboard over the sink – neuroleptics Dr. Val gave me, antipsychotics – they've done wonders for me.† â€Å"Obviously.† â€Å"Your phone is ringing.† Theo pulled out the phone, flipped it open, hit the answer button and watched as the incoming number ap peared on the display. It was Sheriff Burton's cell phone number. Theo hit disconnect. â€Å"I'm fucked,† Theo said. Molly picked up Theo's .357 Magnum from the table, held it on Theo, then picked up Joseph Leander's automatic. â€Å"I'll give these back before I go. I'm going to get some clean clothes and some girlie things out of my bedroom. You be okay here?† â€Å"Yeah, sure.† His head was still hung. He spoke into his lap. â€Å"You're bumming me out, Theo.† â€Å"Sorry.† Molly was gone from the room for only five minutes, in which time Theo tried to get a handle on what had happened. Molly returned with a duffel bag slung over her shoulder. She was wearing the Kendra costume, com-plete with thigh-high boots. Even in the dim light from the television, Theo could see a ragged scar over her breast. She caught him looking. â€Å"Ended my career,† she said. â€Å"I suppose now they could fix it, but it's a little late.† â€Å"I'm sorry,† Theo said. â€Å"I think you look beautiful.† She smiled and shifted both of the pistols to one hand. She'd left the assault rifle by the door and Theo hadn't even noticed. â€Å"You ever feel special, Theo?† â€Å"Special?† â€Å"Not like you're better than everyone else, just that you're different in a good way, like it makes a difference that you're on the planet? You ever feel that way?† â€Å"I don't know. No, not really.† â€Å"I had that for a while. Even though they were cheesy B movies and even though I had to do some humiliating things to get into them, I felt special, Theo. Then it went away. Well, now I feel that way again. That's why.† â€Å"Why what?† â€Å"You asked me why before. That's why I'm going back to Steve.† â€Å"Steve? You call him Steve?† â€Å"He looked like a Steve,† Molly said. â€Å"I have to go. I'll leave your guns in the bed of that red truck you stole. Don't try to follow, okay?† Theo nodded. â€Å"Molly, don't let it kill anybody else. Promise me that.† â€Å"Promise to leave us alone?† â€Å"I can't do that.† â€Å"Okay. Take care of yourself.† She grabbed the assault rifle, kicked open the door, and stepped out. Theo heard her go down the steps, pause, then come back up. She popped her head in the door. â€Å"I'm sorry you never felt special, Theo,† she said. Theo forced a smile. â€Å"Thanks, Molly.† Gabe Gabe stood in the foyer of Valerie Riordan's home, looking at his hiking boots, then the white carpet, then his boots again. Val had gone into the kitchen to get some wine. Skinner was wandering around outside. Gabe sat down on the marble floor, unlaced his boots, then slipped them off. He'd once been into a level-nine clean room at a biotech facility in San Jose, a place where the air was scrubbed and filtered down to the micron and you had to wear a plastic bunny suit with its own air umbilical to avoid contaminating the specimens. Strangely, he'd had a similar feeling to the one he was feeling now, which was: I am the harbinger of filth. Thank God Theo had made him shower and change before his date. Val came into the sunken living room carrying a tray with a bottle of wine and two glasses. She looked up at Gabe, who was standing at the edge of the stairs as if ready to wade into molten lava. â€Å"Well, come on in and have a seat,† Val said. Gabe took a tentative step. â€Å"Nice place,† he said. â€Å"Thanks, I still have a lot to do on it. I suppose I should just hire a decorator and have done with it, but I like finding pieces myself.† â€Å"Right,† Gabe said, taking another step. You could play handball in this room if you didn't mind destroying a lot of antiques. â€Å"It's a cabernet from Wild Horse Vineyard over the hill. I hope you like it.† Val poured the wine into stemmed bubble glasses. She took hers and sat down on the velvet couch, then raised her eyebrows as if to say, â€Å"Well?† Gabe joined her at the other end of the couch, then took a tentative sip of the wine. â€Å"It's nice.† â€Å"For a local cheapie,† Val said. An awkward silence passed between them. Val made a show of tasting the wine again, then said, â€Å"You don't really believe this stuff about a sea monster, do you, Gabe?† Gabe was relieved. She wanted to talk about work. He'd been afraid that she would want to talk about something else – anything else – and he didn't really know how. â€Å"Well, there are the tracks, which look very authentic, so if they are fake, whoever did them studied fossil tracks and replicated them perfectly. Then there's the timing of the rat migration, plus Theo and your patient. Estelle, was it?† Val set down her wine. â€Å"Gabe, I know you're a scientist, and a discovery like this could make you rich and famous, but I just don't believe there's a dinosaur in town.† â€Å"Rich and famous? I hadn't thought about it. I guess there would be some recognition, wouldn't there?† â€Å"Look, Gabe, you deal in hard facts, but every day I deal with the delusions and constructions of people's minds. They are just tracks on the ground, probably like that Bigfoot hoax in Washington a few years ago. Theo is a chronic drug user, and Estelle and her boyfriend Catfish are artist types. They all have overactive imaginations.† Gabe was put off by her judgment of Theo and the others. He thought for a second, then said, â€Å"As a biologist, I have a theory about imagination. I think it's pretty obvious that fear – fear of loud noises, fear of heights, the capacity to learn fear – is something that we've adapted over the years as a survival mechanism, and so is imagination. Everyone thinks that it was the big strong caveman who got the girl, and for the most part, that may have been true, but physical strength doesn't explain how our species cre-ated civilization. I think there was always some scrawny dreamer sitting at the edge of the firelight, who had the ability to imagine dangers, to look into the future in his imagination and see possibilities, and therefore sur-vived to pass his genes on to the next generation. When the big ape men ended up running off the cliff or getting killed while trying to beat a mas-todon into submission with a stick, the dreamer was standing back thinking, †˜Hey, that might work, but you need to run the mastodon off the cliff.' And, then he'd mate with the women left over after the go-getters got killed.† â€Å"So nerds rule,† Val said with a smile. â€Å"But if fear and imagination make you more highly evolved, then someone with paranoid delusions would be ruling the world.† Val was getting into the theory of it now. How strange to talk to a man who talked about ideas, not property and personal agendas. Val liked it. A lot. Gabe said, â€Å"Well, we didn't miss that by far with Hitler, did we? Evolution takes some missteps sometimes. Big teeth worked pretty well for a while, then they got too big. Mastodons' tusks got so large they would snap the animal's neck. And you've probably noticed that there are no saber-toothed cats around anymore.† â€Å"Okay, I'll buy that imagination is an evolutionary leap. But what about depression?† Talking about mental conditions, she couldn't help thinking about what she'd done to her patients. Her crimes circled in her mind, trying to get out. â€Å"Psychiatry is looking more and more at mental conditions from a physical point of view, so that fits. That's why we're treating depres-sion with drugs like Prozac. But what evolutionary purpose is there for depression?† â€Å"I've been thinking about that since you mentioned it at dinner,† Gabe said. He drained his wineglass and moved closer to her on the couch, as if by being closer, she would share in his excitement. He was in his element now. â€Å"A lot of animals besides humans get depressed. Higher mammals like dolphins and whales can die from it, but even rats seem to get the Blues. I can't figure out what purpose it serves. But in humans it might be like nearsightedness: civilization has protected a biological weakness that would have been weeded out by natural dangers or predators.† â€Å"Predators? How?† â€Å"I don't know. Depression might slow the prey down, make it react less quickly to danger. Who knows?† â€Å"So a predator might actually evolve that preyed on depressed animals?† Right and it's me, Val thought. If I haven't been preying on depressed people, what have I been doing? She suddenly felt ashamed of her home, of the pure materialism of it. Here was an incredibly bright man who was concerned with the pure pursuit of knowledge, and she had sold her integrity for some antiques and a Mercedes. Gabe poured himself another glass of wine and sat back now, thinking as he spoke. â€Å"Interesting idea. I suppose there could be some sort of chemical or behavioral stimulus that would trigger preying on the depressed. Low serotonin levels tend to raise libido, right? At least temporarily?† â€Å"Yes,† Val said. That's why the entire town has turned into horndogs, she thought. â€Å"Therefore,† Gabe continued, â€Å"you'd have more animals mating and passing on the depression gene. Nature tends to evolve mechanisms to remain in balance. A predator or a disease would naturally evolve to keep the depressed population down. Interesting, I've been feeling especially horny lately, I wonder if I'm depressed.† Gabe's eyes snapped open wide and he looked at Val with the full-blown terror of what he had just said. He gulped his wine, then said, â€Å"I'm sorry, I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Val couldn't stand it anymore. Gabe's faux pas opened the gate, and she stepped through it. â€Å"Gabe, we have to talk.† â€Å"I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She grabbed his arm to stop him. â€Å"No, I have to tell you something.† Gabe braced himself for the worst. He'd fallen out of the lofty world of theory into the awkward, gritty world of first dates, and she was going to drop the â€Å"Don't get the wrong idea† bomb on him. She gripped his arm and her nails dug into his bicep hard enough to make him wince. She said, â€Å"A little over a month ago, I took almost a third of the people in Pine Cove off antidepressants.† â€Å"Huh?† That wasn't at all what he'd expected. â€Å"My God, why?† â€Å"Because of Bess Leander's suicide. Or what I thought was her suicide. I was just going through the motions in my practice. Writing prescriptions and collecting fees.† She explained about her arrangement with Winston Krauss and how the pharmacist had refused to put everyone back on the drugs. When she finished, to wait for his judgment, there were tears welling up in her eyes. He put his arms around her tentatively, hoping it was the right thing to do. â€Å"Why tell me this?† She melted against his chest. â€Å"Because I trust you and because I have to tell someone and because I need to figure out what to do. I don't want to go to jail, Gabe. Maybe all my patients didn't need to be on antidepressants, but a lot of them did.† She sobbed on his shoulder and he began to stroke her hair, then pushed up her chin and kissed her tears. â€Å"It'll be okay. It will.† She looked up into his eyes, as if looking for a hint of disdain, then not finding it, she kissed him hard and pulled him on top of her on the couch. A Higher Power And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? – Revelation 13:4 Twenty-three Steve What horrors can a dragon dream? A creature who has, in his own way, ruled the planet for millions of years, a creature for whom the mingy man mammals have built temples, a creature who has known no predator but time – what could he possibly dream that would frighten him? Call it the knowing? Under a stand of oak trees, sexually satisfied and with a bellyful of drug dealers, the dragon dreamed a vision of time past. The eternal now that he had always known suddenly had history. In the dream he saw himself as a larva, tucked into the protective pouch under his mother's tongue until it was safe to venture out under her watchful eye. He saw the hunting and the mating, the forms he had learned to mimic as his mercurial DNA evolved not through generations, but through regeneration of cells. He saw the mates he had eaten, the three young he had borne as a female, the last killed by a warmblood who sang the Blues. He remembered the chan-ging, not so long ago, from female to male, and he remembered all of it in pictures, not in mere instinctual patterns and conditioned responses. He saw these pictures in the dream, brought on by the strange mating with the warmblood, and he wondered why. For the first time in his five thousand years, he asked, Why? And the dream answered with a picture of all the oceans and swamps, the rivers and bogs and trenches and mountains beneath the sea, and they were all empty of his kind. As sure as if he were floating through the cold black at the end of the universe, where light gives up hope and time chases its tail until it dies from exhaustion, he was alone. Sex does that to some guys. Val â€Å"Oh my God, the rat brains!† Gabe shouted. It was a different response to lovemaking. Val wasn't sure that she might not be hurt, feeling vulnerable as she was, with her knees in the vicinity of her ears, a biologist on top of her, and her panty hose waving off one foot like a tattered battle flag. Gabe collapsed into her arms and she looked over his shoulder to the coffee table to check that they hadn't kicked the wineglasses off onto the carpet. â€Å"Are you okay?† she asked, a little breathless. â€Å"I'm sorry, but I just realized what's going on with this creature.† â€Å"That's what you were thinking about?† Yes, her feelings were definitely hurt. â€Å"No, not during. It came to me in a flash right after. Somehow the creature can attract mammals with lower than normal serotonin levels. And you've got, what, a third of the population running around in antidepressant withdrawal?† She was pissed now, not hurt. She dumped him off her onto the floor, stood up, pulled her skirt down, and stepped away. He scrambled into his pants and looked around for his shirt, which lay in shreds behind the couch. He had a tan that ended at the neckline and just below the shoulders; the rest of him was milk white. He looked up at her from the gap between the couch and the coffee table with a pleading in his eyes, as if he were looking up from a coffin in which he was about to be buried alive. â€Å"Sorry,† he said. He wasn't looking her in the eye, and Val suddenly realized that he was talking to her exposed breasts. She pulled her blouse closed, and a battery of insults rose in her mind, ready to be fired, but all of them were mean-spirited and would serve to do nothing but make them both feel ashamed. He was who he was, and he was honest and real, and she knew that he hadn't meant to hurt her. So she cried. Thinking, Great, crying is what got me into this in the first place. She plopped down on the couch with her face in her hands. Gabe moved to her side and put his arm around her. â€Å"I'm really sorry. I'm not very good at this sort of thing.† â€Å"You're fine. It's just too much.† â€Å"I should go.† He started to stand. She caught his arm in a death grip. â€Å"You go and I'll hunt you down and kill you like a rabid dog.† â€Å"I'll stay.† â€Å"No go,† she said. â€Å"I understand.† â€Å"Okay, I'll go.† â€Å"Don't you dare.† She threw her arms around him and kissed him hard, pulling him back down onto the couch, and within seconds they were all over each other again. That's it, she thought, no more crying. It's the crying that does it. This guy is aroused by my pain. But soon they lay in a panting sweaty pile on the floor and the idea of crying was light-years away. And this time Gabe said, â€Å"That was wonderful.† Val noticed a wineglass overturned by her head, a cabernet stain bleeding over the carpet. â€Å"Is it salt or club soda?† Gabe pulled away far enough to look into her eyes and saw that she was looking at the stained carpet. â€Å"Salt and cold water, I think. Or is that blood?† A drop of sweat dripped off his forehead onto her lips. She looked at him. â€Å"You weren't thinking about that creature that doesn't exist, were you?† â€Å"Just you.† She smiled. â€Å"Really?† â€Å"And a weed-whacker, for some reason.† â€Å"You're kidding.† â€Å"Uh, yes, I'm kidding. I was only thinking of you.† â€Å"So you don't think I'm a horrible person for what I've done?† â€Å"You were trying to do what you thought was right. How could that be horrible?† â€Å"I feel horrible.† â€Å"It's been a long time. I'm out of practice.† â€Å"No, not about this. About my patients. You really think something could be preying on them?† â€Å"It's just a theory. There may not even be a creature.† â€Å"But what if there is? Shouldn't we call the National Guard or something?† â€Å"I was thinking of calling Theo.† â€Å"Theo isn't even a real cop.† â€Å"He deserves to know.† They lay there in silence for a few minutes, staring at the spreading stain on the carpet, feeling the sweat run down their ribs, and listening to the beat of each other's hearts. â€Å"Gabe?† Val whispered. â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Maybe we should go to couples' counseling.† â€Å"Should we get dressed first?† â€Å"You were serious about the weed-whacker, weren't you?† â€Å"I don't know where that image came from.† â€Å"There's supposed to be a good couples' guy in San Junipero, unless you'd rather go to a woman counselor.† â€Å"I thought we were going to call the National Guard.† â€Å"Only if it comes to that,† Val said. Thinking, When we tell the shrink about this, I'm leaving out the part about the wine spilling. Theo Is there anything more irritating than people who have just been laid? Especially when you have not. Not for a long time. Oh, it was obvious as soon as they came through Molly's front door, waking Theo for the second time that night: Gabe's grin looking like the oversized grill on an old Chrysler, Val Riordan wearing jeans and almost no makeup; the both of them giddy and giggling and blushing like children. Theo wanted to puke. He was happy for them, but he wanted to puke. â€Å"What?† Theo said. Gabe was obviously amped and trying not to show it. He put his hands in his pockets to keep from waving them around. â€Å"I† – he looked at Val and smiled – â€Å"we think that this creature, if it exists, may be attracted to prey with low serum serotonin levels.† Gabe bounced on the balls of his feet as he waited for his statement to sink in. Theo sat there, staring at him, with no discernible change in expres-sion from the weariness he'd worn since they came through the door. He guessed that he was supposed to say something now. â€Å"Molly was here,† Theo said. â€Å"The creature exists. It ate Mikey Plotznik, and Joseph Leander, and who knows who else? She said it's a dragon.† Gabe's grin dropped. â€Å"That's great. I mean, that's horrible, but it's great from a scientific point of view. I have another theory about this species. I think it has some specialized mechanism to affect its prey. Have you been horny lately?† â€Å"There's no need to be arrogant, Gabe. I'm glad you two had a good time, but there's no need to rub it in.† â€Å"No no, you don't get it.† Gabe went on to explain about Val Riordan's decision to take her patients off antidepressants and how the lowering of serotonin levels could lead to increased libido. â€Å"So Pine Cove has been full of horny people.† â€Å"Right,† Theo said. â€Å"And I still can't get a date.† Val Riordan laughed and Theo glared at her. Gabe said, â€Å"The rats I found alive near this trailer, where we think the creature might have been, were mating when I found them. There are some species of carnivorous plants that give off a sex pheromone that attracts their prey. In some species, the behavior of the male – a display, a dance, a scent – will stimulate the ovaries in the female of the species without any physical contact. I think that's what's happened to us.† â€Å"Our ovaries are being stimulated?† Theo rubbed sleep from his eyes. â€Å"I gotta be honest with you, Gabe. I'm not feeling it.† Val turned to Gabe. â€Å"That's not very romantic.† â€Å"It's incredibly exciting. This may be the most elegant predator that the world has ever seen.† Theo shook his head. â€Å"I have no home, no job, no car, there's probably a warrant out for my arrest, and you want me to be excited over the fact that we have a monster in town that makes you horny so he can eat you? Sorry, Gabe, I'm missing the positive side of this.† Val chimed in, â€Å"It may be the reason that you've been able to quit smoking pot so easily.† â€Å"Pardon me? Easily?† Theo wanted to jump off the couch and bitch-slap them both. â€Å"Were you ever able to go this long before?† â€Å"She could be right, Theo,† Gabe said. â€Å"If this thing affects serotonin, it could affect other neurotransmitters.† â€Å"Oh good,† Theo said. â€Å"Let's open a detox clinic. We'll feed half of the patients to the monster and the other half will recover. I can't wait.† â€Å"There's no need to be sarcastic,† Gabe said. â€Å"We're just trying to help.† â€Å"Help? Help with what? Bar fight? I can handle it. Skateboard theft? I'm on it. But my law enforcement experience hasn't prepared me for dealing with this.† â€Å"That's true, Gabe,† Val said. â€Å"Theo's little more than a rent-a-cop. Maybe we should call the sheriff or the FBI or the National Guard.† â€Å"And tell them what?† Theo asked. Rent-a-cop? I'm not even that now, he thought. â€Å"He has a point.† Gabe said. â€Å"We haven't seen anything.† â€Å"That old Blues singer has,† Val said. Theo nodded. â€Å"We need to find him. Maybe he'll†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"He's living with Estelle Boyet,† Val said. â€Å"I have her address in my office.†

Motivation techniques

Entrepreneurs who start and build new businesses are more celebrated than studied. They embody, in the popular imagination and in the eyes of some scholars, the virtues of â€Å"boldness, ingenuity, leadership, persistence and determination but policy makers see them as crucial source of employment and productivity growth; our systematic knowledge of how entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses is limited, since the activity does not occupy a prominent place in the study of business and economics because laments about the ineffable nature of entrepreneurship dominate the discourse about new and fledging businesses.Most new business lack any ideas or assets that differentiate them from their competitors, they don’t really earn profit; they merely provide a wage to their proprietors that is set by a competitive market for the proprietor’s labor, and for many individuals this wage turns out to be lower than what they could make working for someone else, and therefore , they have a powerful incentive to shut down. Most entrepreneurs agree that their businesses generates a positive cash flow within months of launch and the profitability of their businesses is difficult to estimate; small firms often keep inaccurate financial records and commingle company and personal expenditures.The capacities of the incorporated companies finance their high rates of growth through internal generated funds suggesting that their profit margins are significantly positive. The belief that many entrepreneurs are special has widespread appeal, but we cannot easily specify their exact distinctive traits and skills but folklore attributes some of the many qualities of the entrepreneur as; great energy, vision, leadership skills, and lastly a never-say-die spirit, to name just a few. In addition formal research on entrepreneurs, also assumes as individuals with distinctive traits and skills, but contrastingly empirical studies provide weak support, in â€Å"profiling th e entrepreneur’s personality† (Adler, 1999).Although, the studies have suffered from basic methodological problems, for instance, many researchers have tried to identify a universal entrepreneurial personality where they have implicitly assumed that owners of the car dealerships, self-employed accountants and the founders of software companies share common traits that distinguish them from the population at large, but this seems unlikely, given the wide variety of problems and tasks that these individuals face; a related problem also is derived from the arbitrary selection of traits, and   consequently researchers have studied whether entrepreneurs have ‘Type A’ personalities or a high speed for achievement, without specifying why these qualities matter.In business theories and models studies, most businesses mature gradually and only exceptional business start with talent, capital and strategies that will rapidly propel them into the ranks of large well established companies. Fledging businesses turn into long-lived companies through a protracted, multistage process rather than through a one-short transformation. It requires decades of sustained investment to develop the necessary systems of coordinated assets, since, developing the assets that will sustain a long-lived firm requires much more investment than does when starting a promising business. This therefore implies that entrepreneurs have to undertake initiatives that require considerable out of-pocket outlays or opportunity costs to develop brand names, technologies, broad product lines, and distribution channels.Fore knowledgeEntrepreneurs cannot easily envision the design of an effective system of complementary assets in advance. For example the distinctive features of the Wal-mart discount chain is its focus on underserved rural areas, low prices,   purchasing skills, investments in information technology, employee culture and the greater store entrances; all these hav e an impressive logic and coherence. The Wal-Mart system evolved over more than a decade, after much trial and error and some failed initiatives, rather than through the execution of a master plan (Ballard, & Langrehr, 1993).Learning by doingSome critical assets like the know-how technique and reputations can only be developed through repeated action. Firms build relationship with customers by consistently providing high-quality service and products. They develop valuable brand names and distribution capabilities after decades of effort and investment. Therefore, the evolution of coordination mechanism follows the gradual development of assets.The   mainstream economic theories has little to tell us about how and why some firms survive and grow and others do not; since in the standard microeconomic theory where it focuses on perfect competition among many identical competitors, the question of survival does not arise. Although variations in the size and longevity of firms have no influence on outcomes, and the evolution of a specific firm is irrelevant; it makes little difference in this theory whether changes in characteristics are treated as altering the existing firm or were able to implement early were rewarded with growth in output and value; the others joined a mass exodus (Bielski, 2007).In the life-cycle models; or ‘stages of growth’ or life cycle models often predictions on how firms develop as well as advice to entrepreneurs on nurturing their new ventures. The models recognize that businesses evolve in a gradual way; The Ford Motor Company and General Motors, which came to dominate the US automobile industry, evolved in markedly different ways. Ford’s evolution reflects founder Henry Ford’s engineering and manufacturing interests.It was produced on a moving assembly line, with machines specialized for minute tasks and extreme division of labor. The system of mass production of a single standardized productivity yielded c ost savings, which allowed for low prices, which in turn helped expand consumer demand. Ford Motor Company grew by replicating this system in even larger and more vertically integrated facilities.The survival of such businesses depends more on effective adaptation to unexpected problems and opportunities than on the entrepreneur’s ability to formulate and implement a strategy. This therefore means long-term strategies do play an important role in the management of large corporations. Entrepreneurs who build long-lived firms establish audacious goals for their companies. For the founders of promising businesses may have a far-reaching vision, but it is not necessary for starting their ventures.These goals help entrepreneurs build large and long-lived firms contrary to the case where fledgling businesses do not automatically undertake the initiatives and investments needed to build a system of coordinated assets according to the satisfaction principle, audacious goals must stim ulate the search for these initiatives and investments.Employees’ motivationThe diversity of activities in these corporations requires the boards and top executives to delegate their control and management responsibilities to employees with the appropriate specific knowledge. The top executives do not initiate or implement many concrete proposals, but rather influence the initiatives undertaken by subordinates by formulating an overall corporate strategy and the processes for evaluating new initiative, not specific investment decisions. Instead of monitoring the implementation of every project, the board evaluated aggregate performance and the control system. For example, the board may evaluate whether the auditing function has sufficient independence from the operating managers.There is separation of ‘management’ and ‘control by the broad policy which leads to a corresponding separation of roles for specific decisions, and this is done by instituting monit oring devices and policies boards whereby top executives can give decision making rights to subordinates whom they cannot directly supervise while protecting shareholders from abuse of these rights. For instance, a sales person or executive or brand manager who has direct knowledge of customer needs and competitive offerings may initiate proposals for a new product (BhidÉ, 2003).It cannot be denied that, chance events often provide the spark for starting a promising business, entrepreneurs often encounter their opportunities by accident. In connection two factors also predispose some individuals to look for and take advantage of chance events; human capital and family backgrounds, and tolerance for ambiguity. In general, the transition of a fledging business into a large, well-established corporation requires a fundamental transformation rather than a simple scaling up, because of some basic differences in their attributes, since the profits of fledging businesses are derived fr om a few factors. Given the appropriate predisposition, what traits and skills determine an individual’s capacity to adapt to new circumstances and to secure resources on the converse the qualities do not have a material bearing on an individual’s willingness and capacity to start a promising business.ConclusionThe transformation from fledging to mature firm requires protracted, purposive investment. The firms acquire a system of coordinated assets gradually, because capital constraints limit the size of individual investments and since it takes time to build customer relationship, know-how, and other such intangible assets. This process is not predestined, such as the normal development of an infant into an adult; entrepreneurs must consciously abandon the pursuit of short-term cash flow in favor of long-term investment. And although the sequent and pattern of investments are not predetermined, they are not random or opportunistic either, thus building long-lived firm s involves the coordination of investments and efforts across functions and time. In specific, entrepreneurs have to adopt and articulate audacious goals and formulate a set of general rule (Bielski, 2007).ReferencesAdler, P. S. (1999). â€Å"Hybridization of Human Resource Management at Two Toyota   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Transplants,† In J. Liker, M. Fruin, and P. S. Adler, eds., Remade in America:   Ã‚   Transplanting and Transforming Japanese Management Systems. New York:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Oxford University Press.Ballard, M., & Langrehr, F. W. (1993). What CPAs Can Learn from Wal-Mart. Journal   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Accountancy, 176(5), retrieved November 21, 2007, from Questia  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   database:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.questia.comBhidÉ, A. V. (2003). The Origin and Evolution of New Businesses. New York: Oxford University Press. Ret rieved November 21, 2007, from Questia database:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.questia.comBielski, L. (2007). Texas Growth plus Wal-Mart Locations: Wood forest National Bank   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ABA Banking Journal, 99(6), 42. Retrieved November 21, 2007, from Questia  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   database: www.questia.com

The ethical concerns

The ethical concerns that I have related to this dilemma are many. What is the doctor’s responsibility to try to stop the mother’s contractions? What are the limits of the attempts that should be made to save the child?   Should the mother be allowed to risk her own life to attempt to save the life of a child that is probably not viable outside the womb? Should the doctor plan a cesarean section despite the fact that the infant will probably die as soon as it is removed from the mother’s womb?   I can’t imagine making this decision personally, but many mothers are forced to make it every day. Here is the situation that lead to my ethical quandary.I have a patient who is 3 week ante partum and has had premature rupture of membranes. This condition could cause hemorrhaging for her and death of the infant in uterus. In layman’s terms, both she and the infant are at risk of death. She is starting to contract and the physician will not do anything si nce the fetus is not considered viable. The physician has described the issues of having a vaginal birth versus a cesarean section with this patient because the fetus is breech. The patient wants everything to be done to save this baby. As described above, the issues are exceedingly complex. The physician appears to have determined that the child is a lost cause and is thinking only of the health of the mother, but this is contrary to her wishes. Should the mother’s desire to save her child be allowed to override her own survival instincts? And, what role, if any, should the child’s father have in decision-making process?My literature survey for this situation was amazingly frustrating. I expected there to be a great deal of study materials available regarding this topic. It is, in essence, the quintessential ethical debate: do you save the life of the mother or the life of the child?   And, there is the question of the doctor’s ethics. Should he be able to de termine the best medical course of action if it is contrary to the mother’s wishes? And, who determines when a fetus is viable? Can we allow it to be based on an arbitrary date?I found a lot of older research regarding the ethics of abortion and approaching the discussion of fetal viability from that point of view, but there was nothing recent and nothing than dealt with miscarriages as opposed to abortion. And, there was nothing that talked about the discussion of the life of the mother versus the life of the child. I think this would clearly be a great place for additional study. I think specifically the ethical question of whether medical decisions should be made contrary to the patient’s wishes should also be considered.Right now, as a society, we allow a person to make their own decisions about their health care even though we do not allow them to determine when or how they die.   What I did find were several articles regarding the mental trauma that miscarriage and stillbirth inflict on the mother and an interesting article promoting the development of advanced directives regarding pregnancy health care. Of all the articles, this is the one that I found most interesting and directly applicable to the situation at hand.In this article, Anita Caitlin proposes that obstetricians think outside the box and promote the development of advanced directives for prenatal and delivery care.   The proposal is simple, just as a person can create a living will for care during a terminal illness or traumatic injury, a pregnant woman would in her early weeks of pregnancy discuss in depth with her doctor the potential things that could go wrong and develop a plan of action.   For instance, a woman would decide at the very beginning of the pregnancy what circumstances would lead to her decision for a cesarean section (Caitlin, 2005).This would eliminate the need to make the decision during a high stress time, since we can assume that such decision would cause stress, and at a time that the mother’s mental and emotional state is impacted by the high levels of hormones associated with pregnancy. I understand that being able to hold a woman to the advanced directives would be impossible, but a woman could elect to rely on the already issued directive and not add the trauma of making a decision to an already stressful time. This would also allow the person to discuss the eventualities with those whom she believes have a right to have a say in her life instead of just those that the laws say have a right to assist with her decision-making (next of kin, when the patient is incapacitated).Another article that drew my attention that I found in my literature review was a discussion about the ethical concerns some doctors have about making medical recommendations that are contrary to their own moral and ethical beliefs.â€Å"A growing number of doctors, nurses, and pharmacies are refusing to provide, refer, or even tell their patien ts about care options that they feel are not in keeping with their own personal religious beliefs,† stated Barbara Kavadias, Director of Field Services at the Religious Coalition and leader of the three-year project that created In Good Conscience. â€Å"Institutions are refusing to provide essential care, citing their religious commitments.† (Bioweek, 2007)This is a growing ethical trend in medical care that I have some major concerns with. Take, for instance, the case of my current patient. If she were (or is) being treated by a doctor who believes all life is sacred, he might be willing to risk the life of the mother in an effort to try to save the child. In this case, it is difficult to determine how a person with these moral concerns might treat the patient. Taking the child via c-section is probably the best for option to preserve the mother’s life. It may result in the immediate death of the fetus. Waiting and trying to abate the mother’s contractio ns may provide the child with a greater chance of survival, but also puts extra risk on the mother’s life. At that point, what are the criteria used by those with this moral outlook to determine the proper course of action?These questions are likely to grow in controversy as technology increases and the fetus is increasingly viable outside of the womb. The more that society becomes able to keep a child alive without the benefit of the mother, the more questions regarding the ethics of doing so or not doing so will grow in prominence. It is absolutely possible that with increasing medical technology and the ability to prolong life we will have additional debates regarding who gets to determine what lives are worth saving and what lives are lost.I believe that a trend toward making informed decisions is a good one and a move in the right direction, taking people away from having to make a decision in a crisis situation. I also think that it is worthwhile to discuss the role of the father in the decision-making process. Because of the trend toward increasing women’s rights and in an effort to prevent a return to the days of the complete male dominance, society appears to be moving away from the rights of a souse to have a say in decisions that affect them.For example, the birth of a child is an 18-year (minimum) commitment for men as well and in an effort to secure the rights of women, we have completely removed the father from the decision-making process. As a human, I believe that ultimate control of a person’s body should be his or her own, but it is also reasonable to believe that a spouse (or life partner) should have some say in the decision. In the case of m patient, I cannot believe that a loving partner would encourage her to risk her own life for the tiny chance to save a child which would already have been lost if not for technology.Works CitedCaitlin, Anita. â€Å"Thinking Outside the Box: Prenatal Care and the Call for a Prenata l Advance Directive†Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing. Frederick: Apr-Jun 2005. Vol. 19, Iss. 2; pg. 169.Geller, Pamela A. â€Å"Understanding distress in the aftermath of miscarriage† Network News. Washington: Sep/Oct 2002. Vol. 27, Iss. 5; pg. 4.Klier, C. M. , P. A. Geller, J. B. Ritsher. â€Å"Affective disorders in the aftermath of miscarriage: A comprehensive review†,Archives of Women's Mental Health. Wien: Dec 2002. Vol. 5, Iss. 4; p. 129.‘Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice; Religious Leaders Call for New Efforts to Reverse Growing Imposition of Sectarian Religious Beliefs on Reproductive and End-of-Life Care† Biotech Week. Atlanta: May 9, 2007. pg. 973

BIOGRAPHY OF OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II Research Paper - 1

BIOGRAPHY OF OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II - Research Paper Example As a youth, Oscar dabbled in theatrical undertakings debuting at his public school in a Christmas procession. He started his piano lessons when he was nine years old. The death of his mother, however, when he was only fifteen ruined his happy childhood (Notablebiographies.com, 3). During his formative years, Oscar was greatly involved in theatrical activities. Nevertheless, when he was choosing a career his father kept him back from theater. He sent him to Columbia University to study law. However, his father died in the year 1914 leaving him reliant on family members who were more theatrically inclined (Notablebiographies.com, 3). While at Columbia University, Oscar essentially started his career in theater. At the age of 19, he became a member of the Columbia University Players and took part in ‘On Your Way,’ the 1915 Varsity review. For several years, he was a close follower of the student shows and he participated both as a performer and a writer (Pbs.org, 2). After finishing his first year in law school, Oscar was able to convince his uncle to take him in on one of his shows at the capacity of an assistant stage manager. By the year 1919, his uncle made him the production stage manager for all his shows. In this capacity, Oscar managed to do write and re-write on development scripts. In the long run, he began writing musical comedies of his own (Pbs.org, 3). In the year 1917, Oscar married Mary Flynn, who begot him two children namely Alice and William, who later became a theater producer-director. In the year 1929, Oscar divorced Flynn and married Dorothy Blanchard Jacobson and they got a son called James Hammerstein who became a director of theater (Hischak, 81). Soon after marrying Flynn, Oscar wrote ‘The Light’, his first play. His production started in 1919 but it was stopped after only lasted four performances. He stepped back and evaluated what

Effective Performance of Prudential Securities and Bridgestone Case Study - 10

Effective Performance of Prudential Securities and Bridgestone Firestone Organizations - Case Study Example This paper illustrates that Prudential security is an investment bank that up to December 2000 had operated for 20 years. Its core business focused on both issuer and investor services to customers. However, because of stiff competition and poor strategy, the organization could not survive effectively in the industry and subsequently had to divest part of its product range. Its prospects failed ideally due to bad strategy and execution of its mandate in the financial sector that require explicit and dynamic decisions. This is keen on addressing business matters. As explained, the cooperation did not have strong and relevant synergies capable of building its effectiveness. Consequently, the bank also failed to offer other major services beyond issuers and investor services to clients who always expected extra services. In such an environment, the bank needed to adopt clear policies and differentiation tactics that would build its image in the entire industry and on clients. In the glo bal business arena gaining competitive superiority and growth is based on organizational key incentives that are invested to compel the idea. The decision to undertake any business venture has consistently not been considered flawed, even business scholars and successful managers assert that its execution is paramount. The bank clearly through its management failed to adequately practice strong cooperate fiduciary functions. This could have ensured proper integration of its services and management. Therefore, the business simply failed because of poor and inconsistent execution of vital business aspects that could have catalyzed its competitiveness. In the tire sector, earning business prestige as a prudent and effective product provider is paramount for sustainable performance especially in recent days when the sector is increasingly becoming more volatile. Consequently, any successful gains and performance are much dependent on product portfolio, accurate strategies and balanced r esource distribution to the respective business units.

Issues in Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

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Intro Political Science - Research Paper Example In adopting the normative approach, politics is considered as the study of power to establish the "right" values. The normative approach in the study of politics is actually founded on value. As stated by Jayapalan, the normative method is a value-laden method (21). In this approach, emphasis is placed on "what ought to be" and not "what it is" (Jayapalan 21). This means that in applying the normative method, the values that politics should uphold are stressed. It is more on formulating ideals. It can also be asserted that this approach is idealistic in a sense. In this context, certain disadvantages have been attributed to this method. First, it is claimed as not analytical (Macridis and Brow, qtd. in Jayapalan 21). It only poses ideas which are ought to be practiced and observed in politics. It is purely descriptive (Macridis and Brow, qtd. in Jayapalan 21). It is already contented in making suggestions and does not entertain a critical way of analyzing political events and behavio rs. Second, it has a very legalistic approach and demonstrates an outlook that is very narrow (Ball and Lauth, qtd. in Jayapalan 21). For the political scientists who use this method, the study of politics is ought to be legalistic. The problem on being legal is that it is restrictive. Third, it puts emphasis on values.

Team and Group Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Team and Group Paper - Essay Example The word group refers to a collection or crowd of people who have something in common, for instance they know each other, they have a common interest or because of either gender, sex or other similarities. Furthermore, most groups are headed by a leader to whom everyone in the group is accountable to and the group’s goal is actually one furnished by the leader. On the other hand, a team is a collection of people who have specific roles in the team and who work together in order to achieve certain specific goals. The members of a team are accountable to each other and to the group (Parco, 2007). There are several differences between a team and a group. For instance, groups are easier to form than teams, because teams needed internal structures and the careful selection of members in order for goals to be achieved. Other differences include the fact that in teams everyone contributes in decision-making and problem-solving, while in a group the leader dictates everything, in a te am, there are shared responsibilities and decisions are made through a consensus, while in a group, the leader is in charge of everything and makes every decision, which have to be followed by the group members, in a team, every team member’s view point is considered, while in a group only the team leader’s view point is considered important.

The dimensions of the Decision-Making Processes Research Paper

The dimensions of the Decision-Making Processes - Research Paper Example One of the widely suggested approaches to effective organisation management is proficient leadership. Proficient leadership is particularly needed to deal with the decision-making process. This is in consideration to the fact that success relies on how smart the decisions are made. However, the decision-making process appears to be a complicated subject, considering the common blunders that are committed by the managers, the underlying factors and the imperatives of the process of making decisions. This paper aims at exploring the imperatives decision-making process in organization, including the factors that affect the decision-making processes. Literature perspectives about the decision-making process and organization Literature information regarding the decision-making process, it challenges, imperatives and dimensions is well documented. According to Schwartz (2013), what makes a manager worth is if he can make decisions that are sound. Schwartz (2013) argues that all the other r oles of managers or organization leaders are dependent on how the decision-making processes are executed. The roles of leaders are effectively elucidated based on principles of proficient management, as documented by Madura (2007). Here, proficient leaders are expected to execute a range of functions. These can be enlisted as controlling, organizing, leading, staffing and planning. Planning can be described as the process where mapping is done to achieve certain goals. In the case where the goals of the organizations are seeking sale improvement, the leaders are needed in devising decisive steps that would enable the organization realize these. Such decisive steps could include conducting recruitment or offering training to the teams responsible for sales and even increase advertisements. Such steps are what would be considered to add up to a plan that enables companies achieve success. After the plans have been executed, the leaders should go further in mobilizing the resources and necessary materials in accordance with the plans. Such a process is known as organizing. Essential to organizing is giving the authority for the activities to be carried out, and this includes making assignation of the tasks. In all these processes, it will always become necessary for them to conduct recruitment of additional employs or offer training to the existent employees, and this could be labelled as staffing. More often than not, this is often done by the departments of human resource. This also requires that proficient leadership is to be exercised. Leading is also pivotal in the sense that it is a process that involves making communications, offering encouragement, motivation and guidance to the team members so that the goals can be achieved. This role does not only require one to assist, but also coach and help with solving problems. Lastly, controlling is also another pivotal role. Leaders are required to monitor the results in a continuous fashion. They are also requir ed to implement various forms of correction that ensure the intended outcomes are achieved. There is further suggestion that every member on the management teams is to perform such functions, only that the time that is set aside for the execution of this may vary (Trompenaars 1993). While this point may serve to consider the managers and leaders as synonymous to perform

Leopards and Humans Conflict in india Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Leopards and Humans Conflict in india - Essay Example Apart from the encroachment of humans into protected regions, another reason why wild animals cross over to human landscape is food shortage in protected regions. This is due to high competition between carnivores such as leopards and tigers. This usually prompts wild animals such as the leopards to move onto human land in search of food where they normally target human livestock, dogs and chicken. In the republic of India, conflicts between human beings and wildlife are a common occurrence. One common wild animal that humans are ever having conflicts with is the leopard. According to Ramesh [1], leopards are adaptable animals that are capable of living not only in but also around human dominated landscapes. Conflicts between humans and wild animals such as the leopards normally occur when humans cross into protected areas or wild animals crossing over to human territory. Wild animals such as the leopard and other carnivores normally cross to human territory in search for food, whereby they usually target livestock [2]. In most cases when human beings interact with wild animals, a conflict ensues and apart from injuries, this results to loss of lives on both sides. It is because of this that the Indian government is ever on the move to ensure that the rate of human-wildlife conflicts are minimized since if left to prevail could eventually result to extinction of endangered spe cies. The paper will relay information on how human-wildlife conflicts are a major problem in India in addition some of the most appropriate measures that ought to be enacted in order to minimize the conflicts. In a move to determine how adverse the conflict between human beings and wildlife has become, a number of researches were conducted in various protected regions and its environs. One study was in Akole Tahsil, a densely populated region located in Ahmednagar district. In the western regions of Akole

Analysis of Ethics and Values Essay Example for Free

Analysis of Ethics and Values Essay Values are defined as things that are important and of some value for others. Values are of utmost importance while formulating vision. Importance of value is not just for individuals but organizations also emphasize greatly on its core values and even their vision is consistent with the values of the organization. All the decisions about right and wrong are based on the values that an individual or organization has. Thus it is said that values are the rules that one follows both in personal and professional life. Value shows what is right and what is wrong whereas doing what is right or wrong is determined by ethics. When one says that behave ethically, they mean behave in the right way. (Portman, 2010). By ethics we mean certain standards of conduct that shows how one should behave and fulfill the duties and responsibilities Professional Values and Ethics: Professional values and ethics refer to set of standards of conduct that supports the prestige of various professions that exist in the society. These set of principles indicate that how a particular professional group should behave in the society and what personal qualities they need to develop and in what way they are supposed to communicate at the workplace as well as with others in the society. For example for scientists moral principles involve integrity and patriotism. Justice and sincerity are the ethics for judiciary. Professional ethics become an important part of an organization because it increases the productivity of the organization as it indicates the way people should communicate with each other and the way they should carry out their responsibilities. Ethics for Military Organization Everyone agrees to the fact that integrity, honesty and moral conduct are important elements in a good human being but what people don’t agree is that these standards are applied equally for both personal and professional lives. An employee thinks that as long as his task are fulfilled, his employer should not care about his private conduct and he has all the rights to drinks, cheat take drugs or whatever he wants to do in his personal life. This may be true for the civilian sector but in the military there is different view. They do not tolerate drugs or alcohol. They do not allow sexual involvement with others in the workplace and severe punishments are given for dishonesty. Senior leaders say that for them private and public line are erased they cannot do what they want to do even in private as they answerable for the entire act that they do in private life as well. Military Ethics and Ethical Concepts: Military ethics refers to the code of conduct of military personnel while performing military activities. This concept of military ethics revolves around three sub concepts. The first concept refers to suitable behavior of individual for their profession, proper understanding of their standard mission and the assignments given to them and the right manner through which they can achieve their missions. The second concept underlines the suitable conduct of the military which is based on the fact that military members belong to a specific profession. The third concept specifies proper conduct of military members as a citizen of a free society where people are expected to respect the dignity of humans and adhering to the values of the democratic society. Professionalism Concept: Military ethics is based on complete professionalism which identifies the military members as professionals. Just as all other professionals are expected to perform their duties in a certain manner; the same military members are also required to adhere to the values and principles of the society. Conception of Owing: There are three Os on which the military ethics rely. These include; owing, ordering and to ought. Military officers are indebted to a lot of people such as country people, their families and comrades therefore they should realize that it is a selfless service. Conception of Ordering: Concept of ordering is also very important in military ethics. It is about priorities and moral structures. For example a top ranking officer knows that there is certain defect in a weapon that military requires badly, should the military officer reveal this information to the committee which is analyzing the weapon or he should withhold this information and go ahead in getting the weapon for his men. Here the question of ethics and priority comes. Conception of Obligations: This means what military members ought to do. According to military ethics, soldiers are expected to obey all the orders of the seniors promptly. But sometimes this happen that these orders raise ethical question therefore the military men are usually stuck between obeying the command or doing what is right and needs to be done.

Impact of new innovations and rise of information administration Essay Example for Free

Impact of new innovations and rise of information administration Essay In 3 to 5 years time, operations test and dangers which incorporate globalization of business sectors, social duty, the impact of new innovations and rise of information administration will immensely affect Penang Mutiara. Since larger part of the incomes in accommodation will be produced from the Web. By 2006, the Web will contribute more than 24% of all in appointments which will be immediate to-purchaser (i.e. by means of inn possessed sites). To conquer the dangers, Wernie can improve the innovation technique, remain in front of his rivals and catch new piece of the pie with a viable Direct Online Conveyance Methodology with the upsides of having direct online circulation cuts costs, pulls in well-to-do clients and reduces the reliance on online discounters and more customary and costly channels. It will likewise give the lodging long haul upper hands and decrease their reliance on mediators, discounters and customary channels that are going to wind up plainly old. Wernie can likewise utilize all Immediate Channel procedures, for example, email and pay-per-click advertising, interface creation, least value assurance, reliability and maintenance projects, and put stock in working to energize, allure, and change overlookers into bookers on his site. Different measures likewise incorporates: re-assess his introduction in the Backhanded Online Conveyance Channel to maintain a strategic distance from brand and value disintegration with long haul negative repercussions ; confinement of presentation in the Aberrant Channel to just a chose number of lodging friendlier middle people ; establish a complete Aggregate Online Circulation Procedure, which transforms the direct-to-purchaser dissemination show into the principle center of his Web system and advances the Immediate versus Roundabout Channel adjust for the inn ; subscribe aggressive insight to enable him to help him to distinguish lodging estimating and situating on major aberrant channels all through the Web, and guarantee he keep up control of valuing with situating without having to fundamentally coordinate lower focused rates. He can likewise embrace facilitate methodologies, for example, Site Advancement Technique, complete Goal Web Procedure, play out a powerful Web crawler System and cooperate with an accomplished business neighborliness consultancy to enable him to explore the Web and use the Direct Online Dispersion Channel to its fullest potential at the sensible cost, with fast turnaround. Over the long haul, Wernie should investigate expansion and grow comprehensively, strip non-center properties, target new source markets, for example, Southeast Asia, China, and India. As a major aspect of human asset administration, Wernie ought to energize two route interchanges between higher administration and staff. Investment by all levels of staff ought to be urged to give criticism and proposals to ad lib operations and administrations since they are the general population who have the most contact and are in coordinate contact with the clients. They are the ones who know clients requests and can get quick criticism and significant reactions which are essential for consistent change. While executing operation changes, Wernie must have the capacity to manage social changes and changes in the mentality of the staff so as to prevail in any minor or major rebuilding of operations administration of the lodging As a component of its long-haul technique, Wernie can receive execution administration to accomplish long haul, key cost diminishment. Besides, Add up to quality administration, which is worried about the persistent change of all parts of operations execution, can likewise be received to consistently meet and surpass anticipating desires of clients. To finish up, accomplishing upper hand through accomplishing honors by winning a few esteemed global honors over the long haul can likewise improve the inn name to acquire stable incomes and benefits.

Theories Of Corporate Social Responsibility Management Essay

Theories Of Corporate Social Responsibility Management Essay Introduction The field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) shows to have become more important around the world. The role of business and the way it is perceived by society has gone through several changes throughout the history. Over time, until today, an increased awareness of the impact of business and its interaction with social and environmental issues have emerged. Companies are today obliged to some certain responsibilities in the society where they are active. The most basic responsibilities are laws and rules that they have to supply under. Organizations today are forced to show that their business stands for something more than just profits, and that their activities add some value, or at least do not negatively affect the community around them (Ledwidge, 2007). What is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) CSR is a concept that has many different definitions and a concept that is growing in the corporate world today. Look in most journal articles and you can find the list. But do the people really understand what exactly means by corporate social responsibility? van Marrewijk, (2003) defined CSR is regarded as the panacea which will solve the global poverty gap, social exclusion and environmental degradation. Refer to a work by Abeysuriya et al, (2007), corporate social responsibility of CAR common purpose for facilitating the move towards a socially and ecologically sustainable future through voluntary business activities. Boyd et al, (2007) defined corporate social responsibility as general sense reflects obligations to society and stakeholders within societies impacted by the firm. Beckman et al, (2009) pointed out that CSR known as the organizations status and activities with respect to its perceived community responsibility. CSR is developing in the ethics, marketing, and management fields. The ethics consists of three types of issues i.e., macro-, meso- and micro-level based. The macro- and meso- refer to stakeholder engagement and micro- is center of specific such as code of ethics. van Marrewijk, (2003) defined CSR is regarded as the panacea which will solve the global poverty gap, social exclusion and environmental degradation. Ethical challenges Robinson et al, (2006) noted that one challenge entrepreneurs face is about how to define the ethical dilemma explicitly, so as to address it within the context of the entrepreneurial purpose. The ethical issues in business has to do with making the right choices and there is often no apparent single right way and may meet optimist expectations. Entrepreneurs are therefore frequently faced with choices in business that creates tensions between their need to be ethical and their desire to optimize profits. This tension may sometimes manifest as a fundamental choice between private gain and public good, though this is perhaps to simplistic a way to view the matter Robinson et al, (2006). The author noted that any decision where moral considerations are relevant may give rise to an ethical dilemma. In general, an ethical dilemma may result from a decision that: requires a choice between rules has no rule, precedent or example to follow morally requires two or more courses of action, which are practically incompatible should be taken (in self-interest), but which appears to violate a moral principle The process of Corporate Social Responsibility Figure 1: Phases and steps within the CSR process (Extracted from ORiordan and Fairbrass, 2008) ORiordan and Fairbrass, (2008) demonstrated the potential moves (CSR processes, phases, and steps diagram) in figure 1. According to the authors, there are two distinct stages can be identified i.e. strategy development and strategy implementation of CSR. The strategy development phase includes the following factors: Values which drive the strategy; Alternatives which encompass the various range of options available to decision makers (e.g. using an analogy from chess, the pieces on the board that are available to be moved); The strategy (or action) which is the ensuing results from the decisions taken in the two earlier steps of phase 1. The implementation phase marks stage two of the CSR process. It includes the factors: Implementation and control which involve the technical aspects of implementation at a more tactical level and the crucial step of control of the entire process (i.e. the feedback loop); Finally, the output step is included based on the rationale that a results-orientated approach is beneficial to ensure an effective and efficient use of managerial resources. Theoretical foundation Refer to Clark, (2000) CSR consists of four steps process i.e., awareness or recognition of an issue, analysis and planning, response intern of policy development and implementation. The process of CSR also includes environmental assessment, stakeholder management, and issues management. Becker-Olsen et al, (2006) mentioned that CSR a link between social initiatives and improved financial performance. According Besley and Ghatak, (2007) CSR is dependable with profit-maximization in competitive markets. In equilibrium firms sell ethical brands and neutral brands, and consumers self-select according to their valuation of the public good. According to Margolis et al, (2008) the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate financial performance across eight categories of CSR and found that different initiatives have significantly different impacts on financial performance. Pies et al, (2009) documented that the ordonomic approach can be used in business ethics to foster effective leadership skills and encourage CSR. The ordonomic perspective is a valuable framework for discussing the meaning and role of ethics in effective leadership and CSR in the age of globalization. The authors explained that the ordonomic approach provides a three-tiered conceptual framework for analyzing society and social interaction (refer to figure 2). Figure 2: the three-tiered conceptual framework of the ordonomic perspective (extacted from Pies et al, 2009) This framework distinguishes between the basic games of antagonistic social cooperation, the meta-games of social rule setting, and the meta-meta games of rule-finding discourse. The authors stated that the basic game of social interaction refers as cooperation is only made possible by the existence of institutions, i.e., rules. for mutual advantage. The meta game is rule-setting processes that are geared toward creating a mutually advantageous social structure. Finally, the meta-meta game serves as a rule-finding discourse. Its discursive practices aim at critically discussing semantics and with the goal of developing shared perceptions as to the social interdependence of the players (Pies et al, 2009). Levels of Corporate Social Responsibility Carroll (1991) stated that CSR consists of four level basic responsibilities to society i.e., economic, legal, ethical and discretionary. From these four level responsibilities, Carroll uses to build his CSR model (refer to figure 3). Philantropic Responsibilities Ethical Responsibilities Legal Responsibilities Economic Responsibilities Be a good corporate citizen. Contribute resources to the community; improve quality of life Be ethical. Obligation to do what is right, just and fair. Avoid harm Be profitable. The foundation upon which all others rest Obey the law. Law is societys codification of right and wrong. Play by rules of the game Figure 3: The pyramid of corporate social responsibility (Extracted from Caroll 1991) Refer to the Carrolls model, economic responsibility is the foundation of the pyramid. The next level involves legal responsibilities, which is followed by ethical responsibilities. At the top of the pyramid is philanthropic responsibilities which is to be the highest level of corporate responsibility. Economic and Legal Responsibilities Economic responsibilities mean that the core activity of a business is to provide goods and services. The legal responsibilities refer to companies cannot only focus on the profit motive; simultaneously they are expected to act in accordance with current laws and regulations transmitted by federal, state and local communities as the ground rules under which business should operate (Carroll, 1991). Table 1: Economic and Legal components of Corporate Social Responsibility (extracted from Carroll, 1991) Economic Components (Responsibilities) Legal Components (Responsibilities) 1. Perform in a manner consistent with maximizing earnings per share. 1. Perform in a manner consistent with expectations of government and law. 2. Be committed to being as profitable as possible. 2. Comply with various federal, state and local regulations. 3. Maintain a high level of operating efficiency. 3. Be a law-enduring corporate citizen. 4. Maintain a strong competitive position. 4. It is important that a successful firm is defined as one that fulfils its obligations. 5. It is important that a successful firm is defined as one that is consistently profitable. 5. Provide goods and services that at least meet minimal legal requirements. Ethical Responsibilities Refer to Caroll, (1991) ethical responsibilities represent standards, norms and expectations that consumers, employees, shareholders and the community look upon as fair, even though they are not transferable into laws. The ethical responsibility is the voluntarily responsibility by the company to act in a manner that is fair and justice and to avoid or at least minimize the risk that the shareholders of the company is affected in any negative manner. In the latest years the ethical responsibility has created high expectations on corporate managers and social pressure forces the companies to act in a manner that is far beyond their legal responsibilities. Philanthropic Responsibilities Philanthropic responsibility is always voluntarily and could be implemented through both devote the employees time and the companys money for the best of the society and always try to strive for improving the world around them. The societal approach indicates that companies are responsible to the society as a whole, of which they can be seen as an integral part (Carroll, 1991). Table 2 Ethical and Philanthropic components of Corporate Social Responsibility (extracted from Carroll, 1991) Ethical Components (Responsibilities) Philanthropic Components (Responsibilities) 1. Perform in a manner consistent with expectations of societal mores and ethical norms. 1. Perform in a manner consistent with the philanthropic and charitable expectations of society. 2. Recognize and respect new or evolving ethical moral norms adopted by society. 2. Assist the fine and performing arts. 3. Prevent ethical norms from being compromised in order to achieve corporate goals. 3. That managers and employees participate in voluntary and charitable activities within their local communities. 4. It is important that good corporate citizenship be defined as doing what is expected morally or ethically. 4. Provide assistance to private and public educational institutions. 5. Recognize that corporate integrity and ethical behaviour go beyond mere compliance with laws and regulations. 5. Assist voluntarily those projects that enhance a communitys quality of life. Different approached had been used by van Marrewijk, (2003) i.e, three theories about different levels of CSR (refer to figure 4). Figure 4: General model of CS/CR and its dimensions. (van Extracted from Marrewijk, 2003) According to van Marrewijk, (2003) there the ultimate objective of CSR is to obtain Social Sustainability. This cannot be achieved without the different levels of CSR, in economy, social and environmental issues. In the shareholder approach it is clear that the central aim for a company is the pursuit of profit maximization and that the social responsible activities are not concerned with the corporate body but are a major task for the government and the public sector. In this process CSR is only interesting in the way that it contributes to achieve he objectives of the company, which in the long run is profitability for the owners. Theories of Corporate Social Responsibility The implementation theories correspond to the basis to create a model that describes a CSR implementation process According to Carol, (1991) business and politics communities have been influenced by the globalisation process and the displacement of values from material to immaterial values that has taken place. Refer to a work by Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) CSR theories associated with four groups i.e., (table 3) Instrumental theories The corporation is used strategic tool for wealth creation. There are three main groups of instrumental theories which depend on the economic objectives. The three groups are; Maximizing the shareholder value According to the authors, any investment social demands that contribute to maximizing the shareholder without deception and fraud are include in this group. It has been noted that the shareholder value maximization as the supreme reference for corporate decision-making. Strategies for achieving competitive advantages Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) noted that this group of theories are concentrated on long term social objectives by knowing how to allocate resource and create a competitive advantage. There are three approaches can be included within this strategies i.e., social investments in competitive context, natural resource-based view of the firm and its dynamic capabilities and strategies for the bottom of the economic pyramid. Cause-related marketing Cause-related marketing refers as the process of formulating and implementing marketing activities and the goal is to enhance company revenues, sales or customer relationship by building the brand through the acquisition of, and association with the ethical dimension or social responsibility dimension (Garriga and Melà ©, 2004). Political theories The authors pointed out that political theories focus on interactions and connections between business and society and on the power of business and its inherent responsibility. There are two major theories can be distinguished through Corporate Constitutionalism and Corporate Citizenship Corporate Constitutionalism The authors mentioned that the firm has power to influence the equilibrium of the market. Social powers of the firm are internally and externally without destroy power. They channel organizational power in a supportive way and protect against unreasonable organizational power. Corporate Citizenship Corporate citizenship refers as responsibilities and possible partnerships of business in society. It has been reported that some theories on corporate citizenship are based on a social contract theory. Corporate citizenship theories generally have a strong sense of business responsibility towards the local community, partnerships which are the specific ways of formalizing the willingness to improve the local community and for consideration for the environment. (Garriga and Melà ©, 2004). Integrative theories According to the authors, the integrative theories depend to social demands for its existence continuity and growth. Social demands means society interacts with business and gives it a certain legitimacy and prestige. In addition, the authors noted that the theories of this group are focused on the detection and scanning of, and response to, the social demands that achieve social legitimacy, greater social acceptance and prestige. Issues management The concept of social responsiveness broadens with the concept of issue management which refers as a process for making a corporate response to social issues. Issues management is a process of the corporation can identify, evaluate and respond to those social and political issues which may impact significantly upon it. The principle of public responsibility Public policy consists of law, regulation and broad pattern of social direction reflected to public opinion, emerging issues, formal legal requirements and enforcement or implementation practices. Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) noted that if business adhered to the standards of performance in law and the existing public policy process, then it would be judged acceptably responsive in terms of social expectations. Stakeholder management Stakeholder management focuses on the public responsibility principle and combines groups with a stake in the firm into managerial decision making (Garriga and Melà ©, 2004). Corporate social performance Refer to Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) the corporate social performance theories includes social legitimacy with process for giving appropriate responses. The corporate social performance also include the principles of CSR, expressed on institutional, organizational and individual levels, processes of corporate social responsiveness, such as environmental assessment, stakeholder management and issues management, and outcomes of corporate behavior including social impacts, social programs and social policies. Ethical theories Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) documented that ethical theories focus on the ethical requirements that strengthen the relationship between business and society which is based on principles that express the right thing to do or the necessity to achieve a good society. Normative stakeholder theory The authors noted that the normative stakeholder theory is a way to integrate social demands. Normative stakeholder theory has a normative core based on two major ideas stakeholders are persons or groups with legitimate interests in procedural and/or substantive aspects of corporate activity (stakeholders are identified by their interests in the corporation, whether or not the corporation has any corresponding functional interest in them) and The interests of all stakeholders are of intrinsic value (that is, each group of stakeholders merits consideration for its own sake and not merely because of its ability to further the interests of some other group, such as the shareowners). Universal rights Universal rights (human rights) UN Global Compact includes in the area of human rights, labor rights and the environment protection as a basis for CSR. Sustainable development Sustainable development requires the integration of social, environmental, and economic considerations to make balanced judgments for the long term. In order to maintain the sustainable developmenet there is a need for the organizations aims and intentions be aligned with the organization strategy, as an appropriate response to the circumstances in which the organization operates (Garriga and Melà ©, 2004). Table 3: Corporate Social Responsibility Theories and related approaches (extracted from Garriga and Male, 2004) The common good approach Refer to the authors, this approach maintains that business, as with any other social group or individual in society, has to contribute to the common good, because it is a part of society and it shouldnt be harmful to society. Morimoto and Hope, (2005) are using Grounded Theory approach to undertake the complex issues CSR auditing. According to the authors the grounded theory is grounded in the data; developed from it by the analysis process and tested in the existing data for verification. It is systematic rigor and thoroughness from initial design, through data collection and analysis. Chih et al, (2009) institutional theory on CSR comprising a series of propositions specifying the conditions under which corporations are more (or less) likely to behave in socially responsible ways such as financial performance and economic environment, competition, legal environment, private regulation and the presence of independent organizations, business education environment, and employer-employee relations Another study by Frederiksen, (2009), the author had chosen two kinds of teleological moral theories, i.e. egoism and utilitarianism, and two kinds of deontological moral theories, i.e. libertarianism and common-sense morality and moral theory, i.e. utilitarianism and common-sense morality. From the authors finding, the companies act in CSR is not according to their CSR policies on goal-orientated teleological moral theories, such as ethical egoism or utilitarianism, but they prefer on duty based common-sense morality. In addition, managers mainly perform with goal-oriented teleological moral the ethical guidelines, utilitarianism and this theory is in disagreement with deontologically oriented theories i.e., common-sense morality. Teleological moral theories Egoism According to Frederiksen, (2009), CSR concerned with benefiting the company such as employees, the local community and companys self-interest. Ethical egoist refers to any kind of social arrangement that would be rational for their own best-interest. Therefore, egoism in a company should to do good or refrain from doing harm only if it is good for the company, normally meaning if it helps to maximize profit. Utilitarianism It has been stated that the relationship between CSR and utilitarians is companies have a moral obligation to promote the best possible outcome, i.e. maximise happiness from an impartial perspective. Impartiality refers as the one is impartial in relation to who the benefactor is and who the beneficiary is such as those who closely related to the company, employees (Frederiksen, 2009). Deontological moral theories Libertarianism The author noted that the relation of CSR and libertarianism, it is believe that companies have no moral obligation to positively help anyone; they are only morally obligated not to violate anyones negative rights. Common-sense morality The relationship between CSR and the common-sense orientation believe that companies have a moral obligation not to violate anyones rights and that they also have positive duties towards certain groups, such as employees, the local community and others closely related to the company. The author mentioned that common-sense moral principles seem to be principles concerning special obligations; for example special obligations towards shareholders or other closely related groups. Hsieh, (2009) documented that there are two prominent theories of corporate purpose i.e., stakeholder theory and corporate citizenship theory. Stakeholder theory The corporation ought to be managed for the benefit of all its stakeholders Corporate citizenship theory It emphasize business enterprises in respecting and defending human rights and in contributing to social welfare and human development within society Refer to Padgett RC, Galan JI, (2009), resource-based view (RBV) theory related to CSR in the sense of they can generate competitive advantages; the firm is also affected by external factors. RBV in the study of CSR is explained by the emphasis it places on the importance of specific intangible resources, such as know-how, corporate culture and reputation for firms to obtain competitive advantages. Table 4: In summary of Corporate Social Responsibility Theories Theories Types of theories Authors CSR theories associated with four groups Instrumental theories- strategic tool for wealth creation Political theories- on interactions and connections between business and society and on the power of business and its inherent responsibility Integrative theories- social demands for its existence continuity and growth. Ethical theories- ethical requirements that strengthen the relationship between business and society Garriga and Melà ©, (2004) Undertake complex issues regarding CSR auditing Grounded theory It is systematic rigor and thoroughness from initial design, through data collection and analysis. Morimoto and Hope, (2005) Institutional theory CSR comprising a series of propositions specifying the conditions under which corporations are more (or less) likely to behave in socially responsible ways such as financial performance and economic environment, competition, legal environment, private regulation and the presence of independent organizations, business education environment, and employer-employee relations Chih et al, (2009) CSR associated with two kinds of teleological moral theories and two kinds of deontological moral theories. Teleological moral theories Egoism Any kind of social arrangement that would be rational for their own best-interest to help maximize company profits. Utilitarianism To promote the best possible outcome, i.e. maximise happiness to those who closely related to the company, employees. Deontological moral theories Libertarianism The companies have no moral obligation to positively help anyone; they are only morally obligated not to violate anyones negative rights. Common-sense morality and moral theory Principles concerning special obligations not to violate anyones rights and that they also have positive duties towards certain groups; for example special obligations towards shareholders or other closely related groups. Frederiksen, (2009) There are two prominent theories of corporate purpose Stakeholder theory the corporation ought to be managed for the benefit of all its stakeholders Corporate citizenship theory It emphasize business enterprises in respecting and defending human rights and in contributing to social welfare and human development within society. Hsieh, (2009) Resource-based view (RBV) RBV theory allows to analyse the effect of RD intensity on CSR Resource-based view (RBV) theory Importance of specific intangible resources, such as know-how, corporate culture and reputation for firms to obtain competitive advantages. Padgett and Galan, (2009) Corporate Social Responsibility Implementation Marimoto et al, (2005) there are six key elements to the achievement of successful CSR are perceived as good stakeholder management, good corporate leadership greater priority for CSR at board level, integration of CSR into corporate policy at all levels and in all divisions of business, regulation at the national and international level understood and demonstrated across all areas of business, active involvement of, and good coordination between, government business, NGOs and civil society. Raps (2005) noted that in order to achieve successful implementation of CSR, there is a need to understand a long-term process that requires creativity and careful planning. The author pointed out ten critical points to overcome and improve the difficulties in the CSR implementation context. Commitment of top management Refer to Raps, (2005), the importance of having top-managers working hard to achieve the purpose of the strategy is crucial for the implementation to succeed. Top-managers must influence middle managers in order to get their true message forward; they cannot relay on and believe that the middle-managers perception of the implementation is the same as theirs. Involve middle managers valuable knowledge The author pointed out that to make use of the knowledge that middle managers possess and make sure they are involved increases their motivation and make them feel like they are a part of the process. This motivation boost is important for everyones everyday day work since the middle managers engagement increases the awareness of the implementation throughout the organization. Communication is what implementation is all about Refer to Raps, (2005) illustrates in his communication-model how it is possible to provide appropriate information regarding implementation throughout the organization (Figure 5). Figure 5: Issues to be addresses in the communications plan (Extracted with Raps 2005). Integrate point of view It is essential to see the implementation as a method used integrated within all aspects of the company. Traditionally implementation often overemphasizes the structural aspects e.g. organizational structure and disregards other existing components such as cultural aspects and human resources perspective. All of these aspects need to be taken into consideration to create an integrated measure for implementing activities (Raps, 2005). Clear assignment of responsibilities To avoid power struggles between departments and within hierarchies, there should be a plan with clear assignments of responsibilities regarding detailed implementation activities. This is a preventive way of proceeding. Responsibilities are clear and potential problems are therefore avoided (Raps, 2005) Preventive measures against barriers Change is a common phenomenon for companies today and the companies that are capable of handling change has a great advantage. The ability to manage change has become a core competency. A great challenge within strategy implementation is to deal with potential change barriers. Therefore, it is important to prevent these barriers and by changing the way they view and practice strategy implementation, senior executives can effectively transform change barriers into gateways for a successful execution (Raps, 2005). Emphasize teamwork activities Teamwork is an important part when implementing a strategy. It is however often forgotten when it comes down to implementation process activities (Raps, 2005). Respect the individuals ´ different characteristics Human resources are valuable and intangible assets within a company. Latest studies indicate that HR is the key factor for successful implementation (Raps, 2005) Take advantage of supportive implementation instruments According to the author, there are two implementation instruments can be applied i.e., the balanced scorecard and the supportive software solution. The balanced scorecard provides a functionality to translate a companys strategic objectives into a coherent set of performance measures. In addition, it provides a framework to integrate the strategic planning and meets the requirements that the strategic planning system itself can display. The software solutions can be helpful to improve the quality of strategy implementation and provides clear assignments of responsibilities throughout the organizations implementation process. Calculate buffer time for unexpected incidents The author reported that the most important in strategy implementation is the exceeding of time restrictions. The important key is to find out the time-intense activities and harmonize with the time capac