Textual Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Textual Analysis - Essay Example For the beauty being objective, there must be a single eternal and unchangeable idea of it that all sensible things re to be judged. Similarly, just and holiness is subjective and variable because their very nature is impermanent. The objects of opinion, such as beauty, just and piety is in constant flux; thus, they cannot be termed knowledge because knowledge is permanent in nature (being). Leadership and opinion vary based on the situation and the environmental factors. However, in its fundamental nature, knowledge is permanent and remains so regardless of the situation or circumstances. In application, a leader makes decisions based on his knowledge of a matter but the decision is influenced by other factors such that the conclusion arrived at one particular time under special circumstances can vary from another occasion in similar circumstances. Similarly, opinion about an issue is impermanent because, under dissimilar circumstances, individuals give different views on the same subject. Regardless of this, the knowledge of these persons does not change irrespective of the condition. In that accord, it agrees that the concept of leadership and opinion has a similar definition as the notion of justice, piety and

Blogs for innovation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Blogs for innovation - Essay Example During their arrival, Orchha was gradually emerging as a tourist attraction. Due to poverty and lack of knowledge in the region, it prevented the growth of tourism (Sisodia, 2013). As a result, Asha came up with a Village Home Stay program intended for Orchha village. The aim of the program was to exploit tourism opportunities in the region in order to enhance local economic development, education, cultural exchanges between locals and visitors as well as environmental protection. It had also to offer the people of Orchha with superior work opportunities, which would positively influence the individual life of the residents. In 2007, Asha founded Friends of Orchha with the aid of a few friends from Europe to enhance tourism that is socially responsible and one that would offer an opportunity for cultural exchanges and a source of income for the needy families (Sisodia, 2013). Friends of Orchha provided help to the poor families to build and renovate their courtyards that would be hired to visitors. The families were engaged to participate voluntarily in the construction of three homestays. At that particular moment, the families were unable to carry on their main activity, which was farming that was brought to a halt by drought from 2003 to 2007 (Sisodia, 2013). Therefore, they had no capital to invest, and the organization had to set up a revolving fund, which helped to build the first three home stays. Participating families provided labor in building the sanitary block and rooms. In 2009, the first room was rented out and since then the home stay has hosted more than 500 visitors from different countries. The exploiting of the tourism opportunities improved the economic conditions of the residents as well as their live style (Sisodia, 2013). With this regard, I agree with the case as it attempts to point out issues in operating gainful employment amongst a large rural population in India. It addresses that the inability to dialogue in spoken

Alfred Adler Essay Example for Free

Alfred Adler Essay Alfred Adler born February 7, 1870, received his medical degree in 1895, he took an interest in social issues and, in 1902, became part of Sigmund Freuds circle of friends. He created the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA) in 1910. He and Feud worked together for many years but eventually their relationship soured and Adler left to form his own school of individual psychology. Their major point of disagreements stems from the aspect of sexuality Adler rejected Sigmund Freuds emphasis on sexuality and theorized that neurotic behavior is overcompensation for feelings of inferiority. He objected to the Freudian emphasis upon sex as the root of neurosis. To him a feeling of helplessness during childhood usually leads to an inferiority complex, as he too was ill during his childhood. Adlers theory focused on social forces, and his therapy focused on overcoming the inferiority complex through positive social interaction. Adler also rejected Freuds theory of the libido. He considered the individual as a complete being, whose social goals at the present began earlier on as an infant who has feelings of inferiority. And therefore compensation and the search for power and supremacy, as well as the sense of belonging to a collectivity is the most basic goal for such a client. Adler considered psychic development to be the formation a lifestyle, starting with early childhood, and that later symptom had to be taken into account from this point of view. Freud on the other hand placed more emphasis on sexuality as a motive. The Psychoanalysts say behavior is determined by unconscious motivations, irrational forces, instinctual drives and psychosexual events occurring during the first six years of life. Freud once commented: For, whether a man is a homosexual or a necrophilic, a hysteric suffering from anxiety, an obsessional neurotic cut off from society, or a raving lunatic, the Individual Psychologist of the Adlerian school will declare that the impelling motive of his condition is that he wishes to assert himself, to overcompensate for his inferiority, to remain on top, to pass from the feminine to the masculine line. 1 To Adler, the most important motive is the feeling of inferiority, which he felt originated in the sense of dependence and helplessness which infants experience which differs remarkably from Freud concept. In essence Psychoanalysts strive for fundamental reconstruction of an individuals total personality whereas Adlerian thought focuses on the patient re-educating and re-organizing his priorities and goals. True changes to a Psychoanalyst therefore comes from an individual gaining self awareness by bringing unconscious thoughts ,motivation, feelings and experience into the conscious so that behavior is based more on past reality than present social state of the mind. A second difference is on the nature of environmental stimuli. Adler stressed consideration of the individual in relation to his total environment. His system emphasizes the uniqueness of the individual and his relationships with society. Adler said it is not the childhood experiences that are crucial, it is our present interpretation of these events that matter. Unconscious instincts and our past do not determine behavior. Mental health therefore is measured by the degree to which we successfully share with each other and are concerned with their welfare. To them, encouragement is the most important method available for change of a person’s belief and clients are told they have the power to choose to act differently. Adlers early career was marked by a zeal for social reform, often expressed in articles in socialist newspapers. His first professional publication was a social-medicine monograph on the health of tailors. He could not agree with Freuds basic assumption that sex was the main determinant of personality, and all that this implied: the dominance of biological factors over the psychological; the push of drives, making for identical, predictable patterns; the part commanding the whole; pleasure-seeking as mans prime motivation. Whereas Freud tried to explain man in terms of machines and animals, Adler sought to understand and influence man precisely in terms of what makes him different from machines and animals. Individual psychology therefore has the kind of simplicity which comes with concreteness, dealing as much as possible with what can be observed and as little as possible with what must be taken on faith. A chagrin that Freud was not amused with when he commented Such doctrine is extremely welcome for the lay man because a theory such as this is bound to be very welcome to the great mass of the people, a theory which recognizes no complications, which introduces no new concepts that are hard to grasp, which knows nothing of the unconscious, which gets rid at a single blow of the universally oppressive problem of sexuality and which restricts itself to the discovery of the artifices by which people seek to make life easy. As: the mass of the people themselves take things easily: they call for no more than a single reason by way of explanation, they do not thank science for its diffuseness, they want to have simple solutions and to know that problems are solved. 2 Many of the aspects on which these two fields differ are. Goal-striving Adler saw man imbued with a unitary dynamic force, a striving from below to above. Since this striving is an intrinsic necessity of life itself, like physical growth, there is no need to infer a further source of energy for it. Which energy the psychoanalyst believed can be got from reflection through free association To Adler. To understand the personality or any behavior, one must seek its purpose. The desires of the self ideal were countered by social and ethical demands. If the corrective factors were disregarded and the individual over-compensated, then an inferiority complex would occur, fostering the danger of the individual becoming egocentric, power-hungry and aggressive or worse. To a psychoanalyst like Anna Freud each development phase constructs on the previous one. She says that psychological disorders could be most effectively studied in its developmental and evolutionary phase. We must look at beginnings and end points of a client’s life. She encouraged the observance of clients in their natural settings and then constructs the relationship with systematic observation from the consulting room. Another concrete phase was the relationship between the Therapist and the Patient. The therapists function, according to Adler, is not to treat mental disease as is the case with psychoanalysis, but to divine the error in the patients way of life and lead him to greater maturity. To this end Adler introduced a number of diagnostic approaches. Among these, his theory of dreams, the meaning of early childhood recollections, and the role of birth order in the family. Alfred Adler believed a great deal in the effect that birth order has on an individual. Adler believed that family constellation, where ones position was in birth order, played a crucial part in individual development. Adlerian therapy entails several stages.

Reasons Behind Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy

Reasons Behind Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy Undoubtedly, the complexity and unpredictability of the external environment-market forces/stakeholders influenced the way and manner Lehmans CEO, Mr Richard Fuld behaved. He involved himself and his organization into unethical practices due to so many expectations on them. The market competition was getting very fierce, so he had to bend the rules in order to keep his organization profitable. Market complacency, weak financial regulations, lack of transparency and poor internal financial control policy led to the demise of Lehman Brothers. Mr Fuld adopted the omnipotent view of management but told the U.S House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform that the collapse of his firm was totally out of his control-i.e. symbolic approach. This indicated a weak moral culture/development at the preconditional level. His ethical inclination indicated a utilitarian approach which involves decision making based on favorable anticipated outcomes. Clearly, the fall of Lehman Brothers was a preventable man-made disaster. He enshrined a very poor risk management culture in the organization by offering highly leveraged Mortgage Backed Securities. Even if Mr. Fuld felt the economic tides were beyond his control as he proclaims, he should have at least sold the company early enough the way Merrill Lynchs CEO smartly did. But his ego as well as poor management insight took a better part of him. Lehman never engaged in real Corporate Social Responsibility, rather what they did was philanthropy with ulterior motives in mind. They never issued a CSR report of any kind depicting lack of transparency and accountability. There is no denying the hard and bitter truth that we are experiencing a global financial recession with many a nation counting their losses. We are in fact going through possibly the worst global credit crisis since the Great Depression. Given that the world is flatter and with advancing technology, global financial markets are now integrated thus making an otherwise national financial market a global phenomenon. By a simple click of a button, billions of dollars can seamlessly traverse national boundaries at the speed of light. Sadly, this global financial meltdown originated in USA due to the widespread subprime mortgage defaults, economic recession is affecting all the major players of world economy. By September 2008, the credit crunch, which started around 2006, had alarmingly ballooned into Wall Streets biggest crisis since the Great Depression as hundreds of billions in mortgage-related investments went sour; mighty investment banks that once ruled high finance firmament crashed. In the midst of this conundrum, accusing fingers are been pointed at different quarters; some blame the regulatory authorities over complacency and blind-faith, while some blame the private and investment banks over greed, poor corporate governance/practises and investment decisions. The worst hit directly were the insurance companies, investment banks, Hedge Fund operators, Large Mortgage Lenders such as Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac etc. The United States government has been battling to starve off what has surely snowballed into a global economic recession by acquiring national mortgage giants: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG as well as midwiving Bear Stearns Cos Incs sale to JPMorgan Chase. Bank of America took over Merrill Lynch. While these bailouts were going-on, a blind eye was turned on the struggling fourth largest investment giant- Lehman Brothers. Consequently, the Lehman brothers filed for bankruptcy on September 15, 2008 as a result of the Fed refusing to bailout them out or at least backstop their toxic assets. 1.1 CASE ISSUES The case issues discussed are: The Internal and External Environment We shall evaluate how these environments interacted with Lehman Brothers. Managerial Ethics Reactions are bound to be elicited as organizations continue to interact with their environments. Hence we shall attempt to assess how Lehman Brothers behaved and reacted in accordance with ethical theories and standards. Corporate Social Responsibility Lehman Brothers Social Responsibilities as well as their attendant consequences shall be evaluated. PART A 2.0 THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT OF LEHMAN BROTHERS 2.1 The External Environment: Organizations do not operate in a vacuum because they derive their ultimate existence from the environment. Environmental factors whether specific or broad-based, influences an organizations strategy for survival and profitability. Lehmans external environment consists of its stakeholders such as Mortgage financiers, Hedge Funds, Pension Funds, Government Regulators, Commercial Banks, Investors, Credit Rating Agencies, employees, Home Owners, Small and Large companies, etc. See figure below for a schematic diagram of Lehmans overall environment. Figure 1 GLOBAL ECONOMICS DEMOGRAPHICS POLITICAL/ LEGAL TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIOCULTURAL Suppliers Pressure Groups LEHMAN BROTHERS Customers Competitors How uncertain and complex is Lehman Brothers environment? Below is the Uncertainty matrix used to evaluate how the external environment affected Lehman Brothers. Figure 2 ENVIRONMENTAL UNCERTAINTY MATRIX Source: Robbins, Bergman, Coulter, Management 4e, 2006, Pearson Education, Australia Due to the type and nature of business, Lehman Brothers falls within the cell block 4: which connotes a dynamic and unpredictable environment characterised with many components and a high need for knowledge. Hence, Lehman stands the chance of been influenced by the external environment which may reduce the influence of its managerial decisions and interventions. Lehman Brothers broader environment as it affected their activities, behaviour and outcomes are discussed under the following sub-headings using the Political/Legal, Economical, Socio-cultural and Technological changes, PEST analysis: Political/Legal: Lehman Brothers which was formed some 158 years ago was initially involved in assisting large corporate firms such as Sears, Roebuck and F.W. Woolworth, etc raise capital to expand their businesses. During the 1930s, the Lehman Brothers diversified into strictly Securities business when the U. S government forced all financial institutions to choose between commercial banking and Securities. Lehmans portfolio deepened following the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999, during the Clinton administration. The act prohibited banks from investing on Wall Street, thus shielding consumers from riskier transactions. Once that protection was abolished, Lehman was able to gamble; and it became among the largest issuers of Mortgage-Backed Securities making its share price to climb from its 1994 price of $5 to $86 in 2007. As a result of Lehmans desperate attempts to compete fiercely with its core rival, Morgan Stanley for market share, it employed several under-arm tactics that exposed it to several bitter brushes with the law amounting to multiple litigations (See appendix 1). This further hurt its corporate image by brewing fear, panic, distrust amongst its stakeholders resulting in it been abandoned during its time of need. Lehman would have been saved just as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Bear Stearns and AIG under the current political climate, but there were outstanding issues involved e.g. the Federal Reserve picked out big holes created by the toxic assets in Lehmans balance sheet coupled with their refusal to come out clean to the public. Instead, Treasury and Federal Reserve bosses, Messrs Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke respectively, preferred to save others because they felt that allowing these (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Bear Stearns and AIG) to fail would have resulted in a cataclysmic cascade of events that will consume not only in the U. S economy but the Worlds. Moreover, Mr Paulson never believed it was right to use taxpayers money to save Lehman. Whether this was a right decision remains to be seen as the Lehmans bankruptcy has inevitably crippled global financial markets worldwide. Economic: The Macro and Micro-economic environment which Lehman Brothers operated played a vital role in its demise. Indeed, what basically happened to Lehman was typically a simple economic case of supply outstripping demand. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Fed greatly lowered interest rates in other to stimulate economic growth and prevent deep recession. Expectedly, the largest Wall Street firms began reacting to this Federal Reserve policy of extremely low rates at which money was borrowed by purchasing billions of dollars of subprime mortgage loans. These were most likely bought from nonbank mortgage companies, which borrowed money from companies like Lehman in order to make loans and quickly resell them to Wall Street. Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers almost monopolised this market as other players like Merrill Lynch were late arrivals to the highly leveraged/risky subprime lending and securitizing business. Lehman offered bulk loans to nonbank lenders, also purchasing mortgage products and then turning them into Asset Backed Securities (ABS), and then selling these bonds to end investors basically made up of the insurance companies, Hedge Funds, Pension Funds, Local Governments and foreign banks. The Securities and Exchange Commission escalated the already worsening economic situation in 2004 by encouraging these investment banks through the relaxation of the pre-existing limits on leverage. Expectedly, the leverage ratios of the five largest independent investments banks hit the rooftop (Labaton, 2008). Lehmans greedy internal financial policy did not help matters at all, as it offered potentially dangerous leverage ratios as much as 30:1, asset-to-equity ratio (Table 6, see appendix 2). Given this scenario, any 3% drop in value of assets completely blows out the entire value of equity thus rendering the company bankrupt. Nevertheless, Lehman grew rapidly, playing a dominant role in the securitisation market and the leveraged lending businesses posting quarter after quarter of record earnings from 2004 to 2007. Even after the economy had recovered, the U.S Fed notoriously kept interest rates low which made mortgage payments even cheaper and affordable thus greatly reducing the likelihood of defaults to barest minimum. Therefore, demand for homes began to escalate, sending prices up. In addition, millions of homeowners seized the opportunity of rate drops to refinance their existing mortgages. As the industry became saturated (as virtually everybody now owned a home), coupled with the never-ending competitive rivalry among lenders, the quality of the mortgages went down resulting in the erosion of underwriting standards. For the fear of inflation due to excess liquidity in the markets, Fed started increasing interest rates which eventually made mortgages already owned, worth less than the amount for which they were initially purchased due to higher payments. This sent widespread panic across all stakeholders which to loss of confidence and trust in financial markets leading to mortgage defaults and subsequent foreclosures. With this ugly scenario playing out, coupled with the Lehmans increasing inability of meeting its debt obligations, investors lost confidence in its stocks resulting to bankruptcy with about $613 billion in debt. Socio-cultural: These are factors such as behaviours, beliefs, values, demographic trends as they affect organization. A majority of Lehmans workforce belong to the generation Y. Generation Y are generally lifestyle oriented, tech-savvy, ambitious, impatient, etc. Because they generally flock to where the money is, Lehmans top management continued to do everything in its power to retain its best brains. With the continuous availability of low interest funds, change in consumer taste became the norm. An individual who otherwise wouldnt have been able to afford a house now had access to owning more than one house. This made the public adopt the culture tending towards investment rather than consumerism which affected other real sectors of the economy. This change in consumer taste favoured Lehman initially because of increase in mortgage demands. Soon Lehman had no borrowers for its mortgage products because everybody now had a house; and with the increase in interest rates, foreclosures became appare nt because the real weak financial status of its borrowers became obvious. Technological: Advancement in technology played a very double-edged sword role at Lehman Brothers. It brought about drastic reduction in the cost of creating mortgages. The growth of the internet coupled with easier availability of information about potential borrowers by the simple click of the mouse button, encouraged it to rely more heavily on convenient sources of information, such as credit scores and ratings, rather than on the more labour intensive time tested methods. It also made searching for a new set of borrowers easier and less costly, mortgage offerings using bulk email sending tools. On the other hand, these innovations created what economists call an agency problem. Since the mortgage originator was no longer going to hold the mortgage to maturity, but rather was going to immediately sell it to a securities firm and collect its fees upfront, it did not have a strong inclination to conduct a thorough appraisal of the loan. 2.2 The Internal Environment The internal environment of any organization basically symbolizes its culture, personality, commonly shared values and beliefs (Robbins S., et al, 2006). Companies will react to same circumstances differently due to the differing cultures that distinguish them. Furthermore, an organizations internal strengths and weaknesses as well as opportunities and threat, SWOT can play a vital role in its success or failure. 2.2.1 Lehmans Culture Lehmans CEO, Mr Richard Fuld in my opinion is viewed as an omnipotent leader because he single-handedly turned the fortunes of the company around when he assumed office in 1994. He ran the organization like a warfront where he enshrined a very strong culture amongst his subjects. His colleagues even nicknamed him Gorilla because of his imposing stature on the firm as nobody not even outsiders dared challenge his ideas, policies and decisions. This behaviour was not unexpected because Lehman has had a long history of hostilities, in-fighting and coup de tat within its ranks which had cost it its independence in 1984. Since we already know that the internal environment of an organisation is all about its culture, behaviour and reaction as to how it sees the external environment. For the scope of this report, we may not dwell so much on the positive culture of Lehman rather we shall take a critical look at how its culture might have played a role directly or indirectly in its demise using the seven dimensions of culture. Usually, attention to details is very much of required skill financial institutions must possess. But due to the competitive landscape and greed on the part of senior management, ethical details were ignored regarding the type of mortgage loans that were issued. Background checks werent performed to determine the credit worthiness of its mortgage borrowers Innovation and Risk tolerance X High innovation/High risk tolerance culture as evidenced in their highly leveraged mortgage securities offering which came through several complex financial innovative packages Outcome orientation X -Outcomes/result-oriented culture that focuses more on results rather than how they were achieved. This attitude made it lose sight on the illiquidity of the market during the impending crisis because of blind greed Short term performance reward culture throughout the firm not minding if these loans would survive in the long term or not Stability X Very strong/stable culture of lets maintain the status quo which resulted in their inability to adapt to the current financial situations. People orientation X -Poor and ineffective communication culture from top management to the bottom. Senior execs never took feedbacks from employees in the field seriously While senior management compensated themselves with cash bonuses, other employees were issued bonuses mainly in stock options and bonds. Lack of recognition for outstanding performance especially if it came from a lower employee A culture of lack of transparency among the senior executives. They never communicated the true nature of their liquidity to their employees and other stakeholders Aggressiveness X Overly aggressive culture in which they tried to bully, manipulate and outsmart the market but got their fingers burnt. Team orientation X Non collaborative competitions which dampened employee morale. The atmosphere was like that of a collegiate, people formed cliques and cartels. There was teamwork, but competition was basically on a personal level because of rewards that may accrue from individual performance The above listed cultural adoptions by Lehman went a long way in tarnishing their image before its global stakeholders which made it difficult for it to be trusted and rescued when its state of insolvency became apparent. Table 2.0 2.2.2 SWOT Analysis of Lehman Brothers SWOT DESCRIPTION Strengths -Lehman has a robust financial base with liquidity in excess of $42 billion as at Aug., 2008 which is capable of withstanding severe financial stresses (Scott S., Tanya A., 2008). It also has a strong franchise across its core investment banking, trading, and investment management businesses. Cutting-edge IT infrastructure is one of Lehmans strengths which it exploited maximally in the acquisition of customers more efficiently (see PEST analysis). Strong knowledgeable and skilled workforce Strong culture which is one of team-work, collaboration and knowledge sharing as evidenced by the rotation of workers around departments at least every two years Weaknesses -Poor managerial decisions which led to the inability or otherwise outright refusal to see the financial dangers coming. -Poor risk management and internal controls which led to its finances being exposed to risk of been wiped out within days. Strong culture which resulted in sluggish adaptability to the changing financial situations within and without the organization. Opportunities -The U.S Federal Treasury kept interest rates low for prolonged periods which made mortgage acquisition/repayments even cheaper and affordable which increased the patronage that accrued to investment banks, Lehman Brothers inclusive. Securities and Exchange Commission relaxed limits of financial leverage which gifted Lehman with the opportunity to offer more highly leveraged mortgage backed securities to its investors. But these seeming good opportunities turned out to be a curse in disguise. Threats Stiff competition coming from Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and Merrill Lynch in the hunt for new mortgage clients leading to the drastic reduction in the quality of mortgage instruments issued. More and more leverage was issued in other to remain competitive and remain profitable. The worst threat came from the Federal government backed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac which had exclusive access to government subsidy (very low interest rate loans) making them issue the lowest rate mortgages thereby dominating the mortgage market. This then forced other players to issue even lower rates in order to stay in business. -Short selling of its stocks by brokers on the floor of the exchange which made the value fall freely thereby escalating investor anxiety resulting in loss of confidence. Negative market sentiments concerning its likely collapse due the earlier collapse of Bear Stearns, bailouts of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Summary of the SWOT Analysis No doubt, Lehman is an indeed very large bank. With its robust financial war chest, experienced/diverse workforce and cutting-edge IT/IS at its disposal, it still went under. Lehman failed to utilize its strengths/opportunities to strategic advantage. Stiff competition, financial regulation laxity as well as poor management made it issue highly leveraged risky Mortgage Backed Securities, MBS which eventually wiped out its liquidity due to massive defaults in mortgage repayments which came as a result of increased interest rates to checkmate rising inflation. PART B 3.0 MANAGERIAL ETHICS These are laid down standards of conducts or moral judgements used in the discharge of business. More importantly, it refers to the rules and principles that define right and wrong conduct. It is the ultimate duty of the manager to effectively communicate and implement ethical issues within an organization. Lehman Brothers adopted the utilitarian view of ethics, in which decisions were made based on outcomes and/or consequences. They concerned themselves with making enough profits to satisfy the greedy yearnings of the top few at the top hierarchy of management not minding if their activities were detrimental to the welfare of others. This was clearly seen in the way mind boggling bonuses was dished out to the CEO, Mr. Fuld and other top management executives. According to Mr. Fulds report to the Federal Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, over $30 million was paid to him as bonuses. He also claimed that during the fruitful years, 2004-2007, an astonishing $16 billion was disbursed as bonuses out of which he alone grossed over $260 million. Below is a table showing a list of variables as they affect Lehmans ability to behave the way it did. Table 3.0 3.1 Factors affecting Lehmans ethical behaviour Factors affecting Managerial Ethics Comments State of moral development (managers) Since the ethical behaviour of managers is the single most vital factor that influences employee decisions (Robbins S., et al, 2006), we shall focus on the state of moral development of Lehmans CEO, Mr Fuld R. He operated at the preconventional level since his actions (selling highly leveraged Mortgage Backed Securities at all cost) were hugely inclined to the rewards and bonuses he and his cronies would get. Personality/Values (ego strength/locus of control) Values which represent personal convictions of what is right and wrong (Robbins S., et al, 2006) go a long way in influencing ethical behaviour. Mr Fuld has a very strong personality (ego strength) always believing that whatever he does is the right thing. Even at the collapse of Lehman, he never accepted responsibility for his actions and/or inactions. When he was alerted about what financial crisis they were in, by an insider, he waved it off. He also believes he has the ultimate power to control both his destiny as well as that of others (internal locus of control) Organizational Culture/Design -For the fact that Mr. Fuld took Lehman from rag to riches, he was seen as a demigod who was above the law. Hence, he was not subject to the organizations code of ethics and conduct. The organizational design/structure adopted a Top-Bottom management style of leadership. It enshrined a strong master-subordinate relationship which stifled information and knowledge sharing as no employee dare alert top management on their wrongly adopted strategies Lehmans culture is such that encouraged risk taking and constant innovation which later proved to be its undoing. The emphasis on individual achievement above group/team achievement encouraged employees as well as management to go extra lengths even if its unethical to perform e.g. the more mortgage clients you get, the more your bonus and recognition which was further boosted by its culture of short-term performance appraisals. Issue Intensity Greatness of harm: Lehman brothers never believed their actions (highly leveraged MBS) would have deleterious effects on its overall stakeholders after all, it believed its investors had being hedged against dangers through the Credit Default Swaps, CDS being issued by American Insurance Group, AIG -Consensus of wrong: Nobody dared oppose Mr. Fulds decisions, the very few that did were summarily sacked. So there was no basis for consensus of wrong here. -Probability of harm: Lehman believed the probability of foreclosures was minimal because of the seemingly prolonged low interests rates which created a lot of liquidity in the economy Immediacy of consequences: Mr. Fuld in his opinion believed that even if theres an eventuality of foreclosures, economic downturn and/or write downs, it would be for a short while because historically crises does occur every few years and the markets would always heal itself -Proximity to victims: Lehman pushed its mortgage customers far off using its distanced subsidiary, Aurora Loan Services as the issuer of its mortgages. This, it used to distance itself from its customers. By so doing, most people never knew the subprime mortgages were being offered by Lehman in order to maintain a clean public image and avoid responsibility for any untoward adverse effects of its unethical actions -Concentration of effect: Lehman ignored how concentrated the effect of foreclosures that would arise from its subprime mortgage sales would have on the national as well as global economy. They failed to see the broader picture of a likely global economic downturn. That necessitated their continuous unethical/risky financial actions. Conclusion Mr. Fuld of Lehman Brothers acted unethically in most of his decisions From the complex interplay of several factors that affected Lehmans unethical behaviour in the table above, we shall take a closer look at some of the ethical issues faced at Lehman Brothers below with a view to comparing opposing views on their conducts. Table 4.0 Opposing arguments concerning Lehmans managerial ethical decisions. Ethical issues Arguments for Arguments against Sale of risky/highly leveraged Mortgage Backed Securities Small percentage appreciation in value can translate to explosive profits for its balance sheet and investors alike Little decrease in value potentially wipes out the entire credit of the company rendering it insolvent. It is unethical to use investors hard earned monies to venture into greedy and risky ventures under whatsoever guise. Constant financial products reengineering and innovation This creates potential attraction for new customers as well as retaining the existing ones Causes confusion as to the understanding of the potential risks these products- offers portends. Unscrupulous bulking or bundling of mortgages This otherwise smart strategy helps to dilute the toxic effect of under-performing mortgage securities by lumping them with the good ones thereby creating a positive appearance leading to AAA ratings by rating agencies This strategy deceived many investors by underplaying the actual value and safety of their stock holdings leading them to be taking by surprise when their stocks became worthless Generating mortgage demands; packaging them, and then reselling them back to Wall Street and the investing public for large profits when in reality, there werent real buyers for them This was a way to create profits out of nothing This is an unethical attempt to manipulate the natural forces of demand and supply. Hiding behind their phony subsidiary, Aurora Loan Services to propagate falsehood contributed to the housing market bubble burst when it became evident there was no more demand for these mortgages Underwriting loans to questionable lenders e.g. FAMCO, Delta Funding Corp., etc and assisting them in cheating borrowers thereby violating consumer protection laws (Graham R., 2008, see bibliography) NA This led to widespread erosion of global investor and public confidence in the company which further contributed in its bankruptcy. Mr Fulds non-equity incentives were astronomical exceeding the 85th percentile. Furthermore, his bonuses grossly exceeded the normal industry average of bonus= base salary x Two. Mr. Fulds bonuses were five times his base salary (Nell M., 2008, see bibliography) NA This compensation practice doesnt align in favour of shareholder interests PART C 4.0 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILTY This is a broad term which is used to describe an organizations business activities as it affects the well-being of its stakeholders- customers, investors, employees, communities and the environment within which it operates. It is the justifiable ethical standard for which all of an organizations operational activities are measured (Davidson, P. Griffin, R, 2005). Achieving financial success in a manner that honours ethical values and respect people, communities, and the local environment is what defines CSR. An effective CSR program is one that is not mainly based on philanthropy or goodwill but rather on creating productive relationships with stakeholders who represent various social, financial and environmental concerns. Lehman Brothers adopted the hand of management approach to CSR in which it strongly believes in the advancement of its corporate economic interests as well as the protection and enhancement of the quality of life of its stakeholders. The conscience and practise of an organizations management is often a subject of frequent debate globally. Is it compulsory that an organisation must protect and improve the welfare of its specific and remote stakeholders? Well, the scope of this report is not to argue in favour of or against this motion but to analyse where Lehman got it wrong as regards to CSR. Lehman engaged in several philanthropic (socially responsive) activities all over the world where they had their businesses. Lehmans CSR spanned through the economic and legal levels terminating at the ethical level. Lehman used its philanthropy to avoid legal actions both from the government and its stakeholders while making sure its activities stayed within the ambit of the law. It engaged in philanthropy (in a socially responsive way) in my opinion because it did what it did just to create more global awareness (Public Relations for financial gains) (economic CSR) as well as to fulfil the general expectations society members place on corporations (ethical CSR). See Bibliography (URL link) for comprehensive details of their charity works. Corporate Social Responsibility goes beyond just philanthropy. CSR means accountability towards a firms various stakeholders e.g.: shareholders, employees, customers, local and international communities, etc. Unfortunately, Lehman and Bear Stearns produced no CSR report of any s

Politics and The Death Penalty :: the anti-death penalty position

The question regarding whether the United States should implement the death penalty as a form of punishment is a heated issue in American politics. The topic is so divisive because it deals with death, which is permanent. Life is valued in every society, and when life is taken away, emotions rise. Most human beings maintain a strong underlying fear of dying, so they wish to prevent their own death, especially their murder, at any cost. Furthermore, since crime is a prevalent problem in the U.S., Americans yearn for a successful way to reduce the homicide rate. However, most Americans do not favor the use of the death penalty when other options, such as life in prison without parole plus restitution, are presented (Dieter). By comparing the empirical and moral claims of the arguments in favor and against the use of the death penalty, we suggest that the presidential candidate take a cautiously anti-death penalty stance. The key issues involve whether the U.S. should sustain the current death penalty system, abolish it in favor of life in prison without parole plus restitution, or only reform the system to make it less costly and free of class, racial, and mental illness discrepancies. Many people have a stake in the issue. Organizations such as Amnesty International and the American Civil Liberties Union are against the death penalty because they claim it is a cruel and unusual form of punishment, while other groups such as the National Center for Policy Analysis support the death penalty because they believe that life sentences do not deter homicide. Furthermore, victims’ families have a stake in the issue because they deserve justice for their murdered loved ones, and convicted murders have a stake because their own lives are in jeopardy as they sit on death row. Most importantly, all the citizens of the United States are involved in the matter, since the way in which we punish crime af fects public safety. Death penalty supporters believe that capital punishment is the only sure way to deter murderers from committing murders again. â€Å"The argument that murderers are the least likely of all criminals to repeat their crimes is not only irrelevant, but also increasingly false. Six percent of young adults paroled in 1978 after having been convicted of murder were arrested for murder again with six years of release† (Death Penalty Paper).

Advantages and Disadvantages of Entertainment Essay

Present day entertainments are either good or bad or ugly. Advantages: good ones with pure fun, frolic, knowledge dissemination through various media keep us in good moods, healthy thoughts and entertained. Bad ones can be ignored by matured audience or readers but nonetheless, they leave a bad impression on our minds. The ugly ones are those that border on vulgarism like hard core porno entertainments, horror movies or badly worded books or comics. Disadvantages: All the above will be of great disadvantage if any form of entertainment is not used moderately and on a selective basis by those who seek fun and laughter. Any kind of entertainment, good or bad, will be bad for children who get addicted to any kind of habit, become couch potatoes and finally end up with obesity, lack of interest in studies and finally become a burden to the society. Portable entertainment devices, such as: Mp3 or DVD-players, which allow people to listen to music or watch films, are now commonplace. What do you think are the main advantages anddisadvantages of this development? Nowadays, products of hi-tech like a Mp3 or DVD-players become to be parts of the humans’ life. In my opinion, these technologies have merits and demerits. People use these modern techniques everywhere and any time because they are portable, compact and may contain a lot of info compared with diskets or tape recording. For example, we can take Mp3 or DVD-players with us during the travelling or going to somewhere. And these devices don’t claim more place than oldest. Moreover, we are able to record not only music or movies, but also educational programmes. These type of technologies have some opportunities. For instance, it can work without electricity and it is easy to handle. Besides, they have additional devices earphones in order not to distract other people. On the other hand, Mp3 or DVD-players have some drawbacks. I mean, they cause sometimes incidents (stray off the environmental around). As an example, while crossing the street or driving transport facilities, which even be reason for an accident. To sum up, I agree that today Mp3 or DVD-players play a great role in human’s life. And these easy movable techniques have both advantages and disadvantages. However, I think that there are more merits than demerits. Nowadays, hi-tech products such as Mp3 or DVD-players have become a part of the human life. In my opinion, these technologies have merits and demerits. People can use these modern techniques everywhere and at any time because they are portable, compact and contain a lot of information compared to older versions such as diskets or tape recorders. For example, we can take Mp3 or DVD-players with us while travelling . And these devices don’t require much space as required by older portable entertainment devices. On the other hand, Mp3 and DVD-players have some drawbacks. , they sometimes cause incidents (stray off the environmental around). For example, while crossing the street or driving transport facilities, what can be reason for an accident. To sum up, I agree that today Mp3 or DVD-players play a great role in human life. And these easy movable techniques have both advantages and disadvantages. However, I think that there are more merits than demerits (give an evidence) Nowadays, hi-tech products like Mp3 players or DVD-players have become common parts of human life. I made some changes. I also made it so that â€Å"human† is used as an adjective. It is not wrong the way you did it, but this change makes it sound nicer. You can always just say â€Å"going somewhere† and not going to somewhere. For example, we can take Mp3 or DVD-players with us during the travelling or going somewhere. As an example, while crossing the street or driving, these products may even become the causes of an accident. The Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet In the history of mankind, the Internet is the greatest development in the domain of communication industry. Similar to each and every invention, the Internet carries a number of advantages and disadvantages. Nevertheless, the advantages of the Internet are so huge in number that they outperform the disadvantages quite easily. What is Internet? According to the definition provided by Oxford dictionary, the Internet is an arrangement of connected computers, which lets the computer users all over the globe exchange data. At the present time, approximately 33% of the world population has accessibility to the Internet. The Internet is an extraordinary entertainment and learning tool that may be utilized in a number of modes to increase the ability of a user to collect information. The principal components of the Internet are the World Wide Web (WWW) and e-mail. With the passage of time, the Internet has become the most effective business tool in the contemporary world. It can be described as a global meeting place where people from every corner of the world can come simultaneously. The advantages of Internet Following are the advantages provided by the Internet: 1) Information The biggest benefit offered by the Internet is information. It functions as a valuable resource of information. You can find any type of information on any subject with the help of the search engines like Yahoo and Google. 2) Communication The primary goal of the Internet is communication. It has done extremely well in this field, however the development process is still going on to make it more dependable and quick. By sending an e-mail, we can contact a person who is physically present thousand miles away within the fraction of a second’s time. 3) Entertainment Internet functions as a popular medium of entertainment. A wide variety of entertainment including video games, music, movies, chat room, news and others can be accessed through the Internet. 4) E-commerce E-commerce is the idea that is implemented for any form of commercial strategy or business transactions that entails transmission of data from one corner of the world to another. E-commerce has become a fantastic option through which you can shop anything. 5) Formation of communities Internet helps in formation of communities or forums. Here a number of people can participate in different types of debates and discussions, express their views and gather valuable knowledge. 6) Services A variety of services are offered via Internet, for example job searching, online banking, buying movie tickets, hotel reservations and consultation services etc. When you avail these services offline, they become more expensive. The disadvantages of Internet Following are the disadvantages of Internet: 1) Spamming: Spamming denotes distribution of unsolicited e-mails in large numbers. They are meaningless and they unnecessarily block the whole system. These activities are treated as illegal. 2) Theft of personal details While using the Internet, there is high probability that your personal details like name, address and credit card number may be accessed by con artists and used for fraudulent purposes. 3) Pornography: Pornography is definitely harmful for your children. There are numerous pornographic sites available over the Internet and watching any of those can have very bad influence on the mental health of your children. 4) Virus threat Virus is a program that interrupts the usual operation of your personal computer system. PCs linked to the Internet have high probability of virus attacks and as a result of this your hard disk can crash, giving you a lot of trouble. Advantages and Disadvantages of Entertainment Units Entertainment devices are usually used in a room and they are big pieces of furniture, a TV, DVD player, game console, DVD and so on will stop. You need entertainment systems and keep them out of sight when not in use. For example, if you watch TV you must open the doors on the front panel. If you update your living room or TV room, consider buying a drag entertainment device. To help you decide, here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of this type of element. Pro – there are so many different kinds of entertainment devices that have no trouble finding someone to be the style or theme of your room to be adjusted. For example, if you are looking for a modern design a single, high-gloss black or gloss white, clean and tidy appearance. Con – if you do not have much space in your living room furniture of this type can not be a good choice. Most entertainment units are quite large because they are intended, shelves, drawers, etc.. Although this represents a significant premium for many people a disadvantage when space is tight in your home. It is possible, but this kind of unity, which is slightly less to find, so if you have your heart set on a not abandon your search Pro – modern furniture, as it is more and more popular with people who want a clear look into her room to create. When televisions and other electrical equipment, as well as DVDs, etc. are just entertainment devices away for a very good choice for those who do not like the messy look, which sometimes can make these objects are stored. By the way, closed its doors a device like this and have a high quality furniture, in stead of TV stands, DVD racks and boxes of toys is a definite plus point. Con – it could be difficult for a device like this that come in a finish other than wood to get. For example, a glass, if you’re a fan of devices that you will not find one suitable. This is because these devices are designed to keep objects out of sight when not in use, and if any part of them were destroyed by the glass, this effect will be. As you can see there are various pros and cons of entertainment devices. But the drawbacks of these products are really on their size and the materials from which they were instead based their functionality or design. These devices are a good choice for anyone who wants their TV, DVD player, game console, etc. out of sight when not in use Advantages and disadvantages of entertainment online There are plenty of options available for entertainment online, particularly due to the onset of internet and the fast speeds which keep increasing these days. While it is reasonable for parents to be concerned about some aspects of this entertainment online, it is important to note that the internet offers plenty of choices that are both useful and knowledgeable for kids both young and old. For instance, toddlers can enjoy music and pictures online. However, for older kids, parental control is obviously always advised to limit the entertainment online to those selections which are appropriate for the kids’ ages. Like everything else, entertainment online has both advantages and disadvantages. The goal of all parents and guardians must be to use it for educational and appropriate entertainment purposes and have some control on the sites that the kids can browse. Not only will this help them to learn how to use the internet in a positive way, but it will also build healthier relationships between you and your kid. Internet will be inevitably used by your child as he or she grows. Instead of rejecting its use completely while they are still young, why not use them suitably and make them aware of what you approve? Studying, researching, school assignments all require google and other search engines. Therefore, showing your child the ways of the internet and how to locate information can be extremely useful for their future.

Market Structure in Aircraft Manufacturing

Market structure in the aircraft manufacturing industry The market for commercial passenger aircraft is an oligopoly dominated by Boeing and Airbus. Critically evaluate competitive factors which influence firm growth, new product Development and pricing in the commercial aircraft market. [60%] How is the commercial aircraft market different from the market for personal computers, In terms of market structure, new product design and growth opportunities? [40%] Ensure that you make use of an appropriate economics based theoretical framework Which employs suitable concepts developed in this course, as well as appropriate examples? Oligopoly is a form of market structure known as imperfect competition a) There are a small number of players or firms which have and exercise market power for example supermarkets in the uk. In aircraft manufacturing industry it is even more concentrated there is only two major players namely Airbus and Boeing. Implications are that the importance of a small number of large customers makes it sensible for suppliers to invest heavily in close long term relationships with them. Key account management is essential considering 80% of output is being to 20% of customers. ) Products are differentiated which allows firms to price them differently. c) High capital usage(and large fixed costs)and research and development mean that the optimal firm size is very large, resulting in a small number of sellers(producers/firms). d) Huge impacts of patents and research and development costs, as well as intellectual property rights. e) Economies of scale f) High government regulation(health and safety)recently Air has had a number of problems with Royce Royce engines on the A380 which has led to a number of planes being grounded