EGT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

EGT - Essay Example Admittedly, the very first thing that is noticed about Chinese culture is the importance they give to relationships and connections. In other words, there is a term ‘Guanxi’ in Chinese that means ‘relationship’. Evidently, the Chinese give too much stress on having relationships based on trust and cooperation. In other words, for them, business promotion will not merely run on publicity but it will depend on developing trust and cooperation in China. Another sensitive area in business marketing in China is the personal pride. In this nation, humiliation; either private or public, has a seriously negative impact. However, in this nation, praising can do wonders even if done in moderation. It brings respect, loyalty and negotiations. Another important point is the use of ‘Keqi’, which means ‘courteous and refined behavior’. Generally, in China, exaggerated claims are often viewed with suspicion and disdain. On the other hand, modesty and humility always manage to win hearts easily, as they are recognized as the indications of truthfulness. One important point where contradiction can arise is the speed of negotiations. As Zhao (1991) points out, while Americans are known for their fast pace and the eagerness to get immediate result, Chinese believe in long term relationships and they generally dislike hurried transactions. Evidently, the American marketing strategy should aim first at developing trust and then at praising the Chinese culture in a way that does not arouse suspicion. Efforts to exaggerate the company’s credentials in the very beginning may not get the kind of response it can reasonably expect in the West. The second point of consideration is that the marketing and business negotiations should aim at the right person. Often, US marketing people engage in negotiations with people and finally realize that they were

Substance Abuse Treatment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Substance Abuse Treatment - Essay Example Many of the counselors at GCASA revealed that they actually prefer to work with mandated clients because, even if they initially resent having to come to treatment, they eventually are more motivated to continue with treatment and get something positive from it. Dr. John Kelly, the lead investigator on the study mentioned above is quoted as saying, "Once in a therapeutic environment, mandated patients seem to reflect on their situation and accept the need for treatment. The findings suggest that people can learn from the 'teachable moment' offered by a judicial mandate, even though the initial motivation for treatment is external." Employees are a vital part of any business. It is better to offer assistance to employees with personal problemsthan to discipline or fire them. Recovering employees become productive and effective members of your Kelly, J.F.; Finney, J.W.; and Moos, R. Substance use disorder patients who are mandated to treatment: Characteristics, treatment process, and 1- and 5-year outcomes. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment 28(3):213-223, 2005.

Antigen Presenting Cell (APC): Structure and Function

Antigen Presenting Cell (APC): Structure and Function There are many complex mechanisms employed by the immune system to destroy invading organisms, abnormal cells and contain infections in order to maintain health and life. Antigen presenting cells (APC) are some of the cells that form part of these mechanisms. This essay will look at what APCs are, the different types with examples and their specific roles in the immune response. APCs are cells that take up antigens and present them to lymphocytes during an immune response (Sherwood et al, 2009). The components of APCs that actually do the presenting are Major Histocompatibility complexes (MHCs): Class I and Class II MHC molecules (Sompayrac, 2003). These two complexes provide two different pathways of antigen presentation that stimulates different population of T cells to eliminate the invading pathogen concerned. All nucleated cells of the body express MHC class I molecules and are therefore referred to as non-professional APCs (Kropshofer et al, 2005). MHC class I molecules are like billboards that display on the surface of the cell, peptides of processed endogenous proteins (Sompayrac, 2003).The endogenous proteins could be those encoded by viruses or parasites that have infected the cell. The main focus of MHC class I APCs is on events within the cell. Typically in a viral infection, the virus enters the cell and uses the cells own biosynthetic machinery to produce proteins encoded by viral genes (Wagner et al, 2004). Viral proteins are broken down into peptides by enzymes within the cell (proteasomes) (DeFranco et al, 2007). Following this, the peptides are carried into the endoplasmic reticulum by a TAP transporter (Sompayrac, 2003). After which MHC class I molecules within the cell are loaded with these peptides along with a sample of other normal proteins being made by the cell. This M HC-peptide complex is then transported to the cell surface for presentation. The protein fragments are displayed on MHC class I molecules to cytotoxic T cells (Tc) (Schindler, 1991). Having this mechanism in place allows all body cells to be monitored by CD8+ve Tc cells which inspect the cells. Tc cells detect foreign peptides bound to an MHC so if a cell has been invaded by a virus or parasite, the Tc cells are alerted and respond by destroying the abnormal cell thus preventing the spread of viruses throughout the body (DeFranco et al, 2007). MHC class II molecules are designed to present peptides to helper T cells (Th). Unlike the MHC class I molecules, MHC class II molecules are restricted to certain cell types termed professional APCs. Their focus is on events unfolding in the outside environment so can present samples of antigens derived from exogenous antigens in various parts of the body. Professional APCs display class I and class II MHCs as well as co-stimulatory signals (Sompayrac, 2003). In order to function, T cells, both Tc and Th cells, require activation. For this to happen, T cells need to recognise its cognate antibody in an MHC complex and they also need a co-stimulatory signal which can only be provided by professional APCs (Wellness.com, 2010). Co-stimulation is provided by a protein (B7) on APCs which interlocks with another protein (CD28) on the surface of T cells. Examples of professional APCs are activated macrophages, activated dendritic cells (DC) and activated B cells. DCs are the most important of the APCs as it capable of initiating an immune response by activating naà ¯ve T cells (Sompayrac, 2003). These cells are strategically located in areas of the body such as the skin, mucosal lining of lung and digestive tract where microbes are likely to enter (Sherwood et al, 2009). In normal tissues DCs are immature, expressing few B7 protein and MHC molecules on their surfaces so are poor antigen presenters. However, when a microbe(s) invade the tissue which DCs reside, they mature. DC are specialised as they have pattern recognition receptors on their surface which recognises common features of invading microbes such as LPS on the surface of gram negative bacteria. DCs takes up pathogens through receptor mediated endocytosis and degrade it in a lysosome (DeFranco et al, 2007). During a invasion, cytokines (TNF ÃŽ ±) released by activated mac rophages are recognised by the DC which informs it that innate immune system is under attack. Cytokines bind to receptors on the DC causing it to cease phagocytosis, leave the tissues (site of infection) and migrate through the lymphatic system. Whilst travelling, the DC equips the class II MHC reserves with the antigen and also produces B7 co-stimulatory protein. During this time also, DC upregulates the expression of class I MHC molecules as a precautionary measure that if the DC was infected by a virus or parasite at the site of infection, the antigen could be processed into protein fragments for presentation if necessary (Male, 2004). By the time the DC reaches the lymph node, it has its co-stimulatory molecules and the MHC class II- peptide complex(es) primed and ready to activate naà ¯ve T cells. Lymph nodes have compartments that have bountiful supplies of B and T cells (Schindler, 1991). Whilst at the lymph node, DCs trigger the adaptive immune response by presenting antigens to CD4+ve Th cells with matching receptors (Sherwood, 2009). After which, the APC secrete interleukin, a chemical which activate Th cells. Activated Th cells then secretes cytokines which stimulates the Th into rapid proliferation and differentiation into effector Th cells and memory Th cells (DeFranco et al, 2007). Memory Th cells are useful in future infections by the same pathogen whilst effector Th cells activate B cells to secrete antibodies enhancing other immune activities (Sherwood, 2009). Additionally effector Th cells and antibody molecules depart from the lymph node and enter the circulation which they then leave at the infection site. Antibodies opsonise the bacteria enhancing their uptakes by phagocytes, stimulate Natural killer cells (NK) to directly lyse the bacteria and also activate th e lethal compliment system (Sherwood, 2009). CD4 +ve T-cell on the other hand activate macrophages to become more cytotoxic. It is important that the magnitude of the immune response be in proportion to the seriousness of the attack (Sompayrac, 2003). As previously mentioned DCs migrate to lymph nodes only when activated by battle cytokines. In a serious infection, many cytokines are released and thus more DCs are activated. Before their migration to lymph nodes, activated DCs release chemokines, a chemical which triggers precursor cells (monocytes) to leave the blood stream and become their replacement as DCs in (Sompayrac, 2003). These new DCs are then able to be activated and make their way to the lymph node which amplifies the response to the invasion. The new recruits of DCs are like photojournalists, the antigenic peptide which they carry to the lymph node being a snapshot of the infection site (Sompayrac, 2003). This is useful so if there are changes in the area, the appropriate T cell can be activated and thus elicit the immune response most suitable. If the infection is mild, there will be fewer c ytokines produced, less DCs activated, fewer chemokines released, fewer replacements of DCs therefore the number of DCs that make their way to the lymph node will also be significantly less. Consequently the number of B and T cells that becomes activated in the lymph nodes relies greatly on the number of DCs present. As detailed above DCs play a role in the activation of macrophages. Macrophages are one of the early defences against invaders that initiate the cell mediated immune response (Schindler, 1991). Macrophages are very weak at presenting antigens as they only possess enough MHC molecules and co-stimulatory proteins when activated by battle cytokines e.g. IFN ÃŽ ³ (DeFranco et al, 2007). Macrophages function in the re-stimulation of experienced T cells so they continue to partake in the fight against the pathogen (Male, 2004). They engulf pathogens that have invaded the tissues, process it using internal enzymes and present the peptides on MHC class II molecules. This continual display of antigens is recognised by Th cells which continue to complete their function. Next the activated macrophage releases cytokines are previously mention that act on the DC i.e. TNF ÃŽ ±. Other cytokines released includes IL-1 and IL-8. IL-1 aids in the activation of B and T cells (Schindler, 1991). B cells are the third professional APC. At the start of an infection B cells are naà ¯ve so do not play a definitive role. However throughout the course of the infection B cells become activated. Some B-cells are specific to T-independent antigen so only require binding of its receptor (BCR) to a cognate antigen for activation (Sherwood 2009). Other B-cells are specific to T-dependent antigen so after processing the antigen and displaying it on MHC class II molecules, binding of a Th cell is required for their activation. The MHC class II complex interacts with the TCR on the CD4+ Th cell which recognise the specific antigen on the B cell. Next the helpers release a chemical known as interleukin triggering the activation of the B cell. Activated B cells go through rapid proliferation and differentiation into memory cells and antibody producing plasma cells (Sherwood, 2009). B cells have the advantage of presenting the antigen very quickly so makes the immune response more efficient. The development of two different pathways of antigen presentation i.e. via MHC class I and II molecules can be rationalised in that each ultimately helps to elicit the most appropriate immune response through stimulation of the T cell the population most effective in eliminating the pathogen in question. MHC class I APCs allows for the monitoring of all body cells through Tc cells whilst MHC class II APCs seek the help of Th cells and B cells which directs the immune response in a way that corresponds to the seriousness an infection. Through these functions, APCs ultimately helps to maintain health and life. Should Teens Be Allowed Internet Access? Should Teens Be Allowed Internet Access? The internet is a large market with practically everything available in it. It is a massive network of computers worldwide connected by cables and satellites. Most of the time, it is just referred to as The Net or the World Wide Web (www). The internet today is used for multiple tasks such as receiving email, communicating with people from all around the world, receive text, images, video and sound. It is a very helpful tool for getting any information needed. This is because it has people from all around the globe posting information onto the internet for the use of everybody who access the internet which is a public accessible feather for millions of people nationwide. (Young Media Australia 2008, What is the internet?) However, the internet nowadays is too widely used by tweens and is becoming an issue among our society. This is caused by different factors that may be dangerous to them. This study is to investigate whether it is advisable for tweens to be allowed internet access. We may wonder who exactly are tweens? To be exact, they are individuals who are no longer children anymore yet not a teenager. This means they would fall in the age group of between 11 13 years old. People are doubtful about giving them internet access because they may not be mature enough to differentiate what is good or bad and this may cause them to be susceptible to internet danger. Internet danger is generally caused by people who are not taught with moral ethics and try to inflict damage onto tweens. Advantages of the internet for tweens Offers a wide spectrum of information The internet is a virtual treasure chest full of valuable information. It has a huge amount of publications added everyday and is slowly evolving as one of the greatest source of information. Any form of information from A to Z can nowadays be so easily obtained just by a few clicks on the computer and tons of information show on the screen. Also, with the help of search engines on the internet, the work of hunting for information or data is minimized. Since the internet provides so much of information, it is a great source of reference for students who does research work or even just to look for information which cannot be obtained in school. Through the internet, forums can be accessed and through forums, people are able to trade information and share opinions with each other. (The Advantages Disadvantages Of The Internet n.d.) Communication with the world There are plenty of chat rooms that can be used on the internet such as Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Skype and so on. These chat rooms allow worldwide communication to be possible. As long as computers are connected to the internet, anybody from any part of the world can communicate online. It is very convenient for family members who are apart to communicate with each other instantaneously without the need of using email or snail mail. (The Advantages Disadvantages Of The Internet n.d.) Saves times in completing tasks Before internet existed, there were many tasks that took a lot of time to complete. Now with the help of internet in the modern society, the time used to complete these tasks is reduced by an uncanny amount. One example would be students using the internet to communicate with teachers online. Students who are slacking in studies may have extra classes with teachers through communication programs. This greatly reduces students time needed to revise on their own and yet not fully comprehend the subject. Also, assignments done can be sent to teachers via the computer with the use of email. Educational games programs Games nowadays intrigue tweens and play a big role in their lives. Computer games are constantly being played by tweens from all around the world and the internet has a huge load of these games. Specifically, educational games are the games that have positive effect on tweens. These games can provide practice in problem solving and logic and also provide practice in use of fine motor and spatial skills. Furthermore, some of the educational games require two players or more so this allows parents to occasionally play together with the child and have some family bonding. These games being fun activities help to relieve stress and help keep the mind fresh. (Effects Of Video Game Playing On Children 2009) Risks disadvantages tweens might face However good the internet might appear to be and have many advantages upon tweens, the ugly side of internet should also be reviewed carefully to actually determine whether the internet is more harmful than helpful to tweens. Access to inappropriate content or information The internet being the treasure chest to all information, it also contains negative contents such as pornography and violence. Tweens who accidentally access to pornography may see images that would scar them for life and may potentially cause problems in their future life as these images may surface without warning. It is always internet pornography that is the first exposure to tweens of these sexual images and the images they see causes their brain to play mind tricks on them. This causes human intimacy to be planted into them as something twisted and perverted and this implantation is irreversible. Ultimately, this may lead to sexual deviancy and crime, which in turn affects their future relationships and marriages. (Children as Victims n.d.) Violence also can make a huge impact on tweens. Tweens who are exposed to violence would generally be more hot-tempered and are very likely to have antisocial behavior such as threatening aggression and assault. This is because they are brainwashed into the world of violence and cannot distinguish between fantasy and reality. They may think that violence is the only way to settle problems and that being violent shows charisma and looks macho-like. (Children And Media Violence 2009) Chance to come across internet predators An internet predator is usually an adult who exploits vulnerable children or tweens for sexual or abusive purposes, or also known as paedophiles. These people try to do these out of the norm things to satisfy their personal fetish. They would try to use the internet as a way of getting in contact with tweens and try to coax them to meet up. At this point, these tweens who are not under adult supervision may not be mature enough to think that this is potential danger and would simply just agree to meeting with this anonymous person. This would allow tweens to be vulnerable to these internet predators to carry out their dirty activities. In some reported cases, these paedophiles have raped and killed innocent children. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Become victims of cyber bullying Cyber bullying is quite common nowadays in the virtual world. What exactly does cyber bullying mean? It basically is any form of harassment that occurs via the internet. Posting fake videos on web sites, leaving mean and evil emails towards somebody are forms of cyber bullying. Tweens who are cyber bullied would feel very depressed and overwhelmed as they do not know who these people are who cyber bully them. These helpless victims would usually suffer quietly and be mentally imbalanced because they usually dont tell an adult about this issue and just keep it to themselves. (What is Cyberbullying? n.d.) Be subjected to invasion of privacy, unsolicited advertising financial risks There are plenty of commercial websites on the internet that may invade privacy by requesting for personal information. Tweens may be encouraged to complete questionnaires and enter competitions that lead to the divulgence of personal information or incur unforeseen costs. Also, some sites have advertisements that encourage tweens to acquire products which are costly and unnecessary for them. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Addiction to the internet It is very easy for tweens to get addicted to the internet because it is so interactive. With all the contents available on the internet, tweens would opt to sit in front of a computer all day and this would cause them not to have time to finish assignments or work and decrease the time for socializing with people in person. This usually also causes tweens to be less healthy as they would lack the exercise needed for their body. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Conclusion To look at the whole argument in an unbiased way, a comparison has to be made between the advantages and disadvantages of the internet. It may appear that it is not advisable for tweens to be allowed internet access because of all the negative effects it may cause. However, from a survey carried out, majority of the people agree that tweens should be given internet access and that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of the internet. These negative effects are avoidable and it basically comes down to the way tweens use the internet and how much they understand about the internet. These problems may be avoided if they are guided along the way by an adult because an adult is able to differentiate whats good and whats not on the internet and teach tweens how to avoid these sites on the internet. Most of the tweens who suffer from internet disadvantages are those who are ignorant and are not taught well on how to utilize internet as a powerful tool. (1615 words)

Organ Transplants in the UK Essay -- Healthcare

The need for organs in the UK is increasing by an outstanding rate, leaving up to 5000 people to die, while waiting for an organ to be donated, each year. Hospitals and their resources are exhausted. The number of donated organs is simply not enough to keep up with the increasing demand for healthy, transplantable organs. Scientists have in recent years come up with numerous advances in this area of science; however various issues have become apparent on the road to successful transplantation. Transplantation is the process of replacing a damaged or failing organ with a compatible functioning one. For years the only foreseeable solution were voluntary donors who allowed the use of their organs after they passed away or live donors who were prepared to donate cells, blood or transplantable organs such as kidneys. The main issue with organ transplantation is the lack of donors. Governments in the past have put forward the idea of compulsory donation. However some people argue that this is unethical and a person has the right to refuse. In some major religions the idea of harming the body after death is just simply not an option. Counter arguments claim that these issues are irrelevant as the number of lives saved would outweigh any negatives; they would be ‘saving lives’. Transplants from human donors are relatively straightforward on the face of it however underneath the surface hides a tangle of ethical and moral concerns. What are the sources of organs used in transplantation? Should we pay for organs? Should someone who has already received one transplant, be allowed a second? Should alcoholics be given liver transplants? Yes, in the United Kingdom, organs are sourced from volunteers, however in recent years the issue of or... ...arch?’ http://www.sciencemag.org/content/318/5858/1917.abstract, ‘Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Lines Derived from Human Somatic Cells’, November 2007 http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/About-us/Policy/Spotlight-issues/Human-Fertilisation-and-Embryology-Act/Stem-cell-basics/WTD040077.htm, ‘The ethics of stem cells’ http://www.stemcellresources.org/pdf/uw_ethics.pdf, ‘The ethics of stem cells’ http://stemcells-research.net/2011/07/09/stem-cells-ethics/, ‘stem cell ethics’ http://ndt.oxfordjournals.org/content/27/3/1246.full.pdf+html?sid=cc03e2a4-2c56-4dfa-9a45-2ac85b454869, ‘Comparison between bortezomib and rituximab in the treatment of antibody-mediated renal allograft rejection’ Journals/Books: Budiani-Saberi, Da; Delmonico, Fl, "Organ trafficking and transplant tourism: a commentary on the global realities.†, American journal of transplantation, May 2008

Health and social care unit 1 m1 criteria Essay

In health and social care, there are many legislations, policies and procedures you have to abide by in order to maintain a lawfully and safe run setting. After watching the clip of Holby City, I noticed a few legislations, policies and procedures, being followed and being breached. Policies and procedures in a hospital are put in place in order to promote the health and safety of individuals. When watching the clip, I had noticed that Archie’s step dad was not allowed to enter the operating room or take part in the operation. This is because if in the operating room anything would have happened to Archie, the step dad would have felt at fault. Also he could have felt like Archie’s life was in his hands and would have or could have made a quick reaction mistake, thinking he was doing something extra to help when in reality he could have made things worse. We also see medical staff wearing appropriate clothing to minimise risks of cross contamination. They were wearing, face masks, aprons and head covers. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) When watching the Holby City clip, I noticed that all medical staff were clothed accordingly, when operating on the child (Archie) and whilst preparing medicines and following procedures for the child in their care. Face masks, aprons and head covers were worn, to stop spread of germs, bacteria, illnesses or diseases. PPE is put in place in order to reduce the risks of cross contamination. Security During the Holby City clip, I noticed that all staff were wearing ID badges and that all doors were security coded. In also had noticed that all the patients notes were handled with care and not just left on the side. There was always a member of the medical tam holding on to the notes so that they were not seen by anybody who did not need to have a glimpse of the notes. Legislations, laws, acts and regulations are put in place for all workplaces to abide by lawfully =. They are put into practice to protect all individuals. Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) This regulation is put in place to ensure that any substances and chemicals are handled and disposed of correctly. In the Holby City clip, this regulation was breached. We see one of the nurse’s droop and mix up two different types of medications. The nurse did not act on the issue appropriately, which the later led to Archie’s death. The wrong medication was given to the patient, which meant that he was taking a lethal dose of the wrong medication. Medications should have been prepared in a medication dispensary, if the medication was prepared in the dispensary, the risks of the medicines being swapped would have been reduced. She wouldn’t have been as pressured as she was in the clients resting room and wouldn’t have acted in a pressured way. The nurse also didn’t report the incident that occurred. If she reported the incident, she and the other medical staff could have acted accordingly; the medication would have been disposed of appropriately and then prepared again with caution. Then they could have found a way of then reducing the risk of happening again. This was an act of omission that she had committed.

Management and Interpersonal Roles

In this article Mintzberg reviewed that managing through people bringing them one step closer to managerial action instead of information roles. The author used Hawthorne’s organizational experiments as their data gained which demonstrated in 1930s to describe the importance of interpersonal roles. His research focused on the managerial roles, which are interpersonal, informational and decisional roles towards management. This article is useful for my research topic, as Mintzberg stated that interpersonal roles dealt with leadership. The main limitation of the article is that the author more concerned about leading. However, Mintzberg indicated that most of the managers seemed to spend most of their time in interpersonal roles. This article will help me to form the base of my research essay. Lamond,D. 2003, â€Å"Henry Mintzberg vs Henri Fayol: Of Lighthouses, Cubists and the Emperor’s New Clothes, The Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship, vol 8, no. 4, pp. 5. In this article Liamond reviewed the management of Mintzberg as the nature of managerial work. Based on the author article, Mintzberg used structured observation techniques for his research. His article differentiates the management of Henri Mintzberg and Henri Fayol. This article is useful for my research topic, as Liamond explained how Mintzberg’s management works. The main limitation of this article is that the author used generalization as a description of his article. Thus, his article discusses the works of Mintzberg and Fayol theoretical understanding about managerial. This article will help me as additional information to my research. Mintzberg, H. 1975. The manager’s job: folklore and fact. Harvard Business Review, 53(4), pp. 49-61. In this article Mintzberg stated that there are 3 main roles in management, which are interpersonal roles, informational roles and decisional roles. Mintzberg studied and researched to maintain his point of view. His article focused on the manager’s job. This article is useful for my research topic by how Mintzberg separate those roles in detail. The limitation of this article is it doesn’t fully focus on my research topic, which are the interpersonal rules. However, he also gives us some important information about the various types of interpersonal roles. This article will help me to complete the base of my research topic.

Energy Resources essays

Energy Resources essays For this paper, I am going to explain different geological energy resources. Along with the different types of resources, you will learn about what they are made of and how they are used. One can divide the energy resources of the world into two divisions: Renewable and Non-renewable. Renewable resources include chemical and nuclear energy, while non-renewable resources are solar, hydro, wind, and geothermal. (See Table 1 in the Appendix to see the worlds usage.) Although working with a group was recommended for this research paper, I found out all the information by myself. Because the internet is often unreliable, all of my information is gathered from the Fremont Main Library. I checked out books four weeks before the paper was due and spent the first two weeks getting information and making notes of what I read. Moreover, as previously learned in high school, I used index cards to make note cards. With the note cards, I organized them by types of energy, so when writing, all the information I had would be in order. When the time came to write the paper, I found Microsoft Word easiest to use. Most of our energy comes from non-renewable resources. However, chemical and nuclear energy is being used faster than it can be replaced. Chemical energy consists of all the energy bound up in fossil fuels and biomass, and it supplies over 90% of the current US energy needs. Commonly used fossil fuels are oil, natural gas, and coal. Oil is made of a mixture of hydrocarbons, which consist of carbon and hydrogen atoms. It is found underground between folds of rock and in areas of rock that are porous and contain the oils within the rock itself. Nearly 45% of a typical barrel of oil is refined into gasoline. An additional 45% is transformed into other fuels such as propane, jet fuel, diesel fuel, home-heating oil, and heavy fuel oils for industries, ships, and electric power plants. The remaining 10% is used to make p...

10 qualities to include in a leadership essay

10 qualities to include in a leadership essay While writing your term paper, if you’re asked to write an essay on leadership, how will you begin? Will you define leadership from the Oxford Dictionary, will you begin by referring to your favorite leader’s qualities or will you outline the general characteristics that you think will make a leader? Well, if you are in doubt, please know that it is fine to begin the essay with any of the above methods.   The important aspect to keep in mind is that you’re describing a quality and you should supplement it with ample examples, references and if possible, quotes. The introduction to your essay is obviously the place to hold and capture your reader’s attention, so make sure whatever you write makes the reader curious enough to read through the entire essay. Also, remember that writing a leadership essay encompasses many different aspects – like leadership styles, leadership development, types of leadership, successful leadership, leadership principles and values etc. Before beginning your essay, make a draft about what aspect you want to highlight upon. Your prescribed essay length should help you decide how much you can include and how many aspects you can briefly allude to. Leadership is not just about commanding people, but it is also about following them, and listening to them. One does not always have to be a commander, a chief or a boss to be a great leader. A great leader can also be one who has total command and control over his life, his words, his deeds and actions, and who helps others help themselves. There are lots of great qualities in a leader that you can choose from and elaborate on them with examples. For instance, 10 great leadership qualities that most people agree should be present in a leader are: Empathy Dedication Sincerity Passionate about his beliefs Puts people’s interests above his own Responsibility and ownership Self motivated Ability to influence Ability to lead Ability to teach An effective leader can be humble and strong at the same time, teach and learn at the same time, give credit to his followers and command respect at the same time. To be prepared on writing a leadership essay, you can also read biography essays of great leaders. You can also build up your knowledge by reading on different leadership strategies and how they affected people in various stages in life. To make your leadership essay more interesting, also try to compare two very different kinds of leaders and provide an analysis of what made them successful or unsuccessful as leaders. Remember to conclude your essay with a statement on what you learned from the lives of great leaders.

Analysis of semco and pixar animated studio as an example of innovative organizations

Companies like Semco, Gore and Associate, 3M and Pixar have made a reputation for themselves due to their emphasis on creativity. Innovation is a product of collaborative learning, idea generation, sharing and idea realization practices of workers in an organization (Dovey, 2009, p.311). For innovation to occur an organisation must foster an environment and culture that give room for creativity which is what Semco and Pixar have achieved. To this end, this report will analyse Semco and Pixar as an exemplar of innovative companies and the relationship that exist between them using some key theories of innovation and the defining features and managerial actions that set them apart as innovative organisations. SEMCO Semco is a loose organisation that encourages innovation and self organisation leading to trust, collaboration and cooperation. Semco was a small family engineering company originally called Semler and Company established in 1952 in Sao Paulo, Brazil by Antonio Curt Semler and renamed Semco after Ricardo Semler, the 24 year old son of the owner resumed office as the new chief executive officer in 1984, firing more than half of the top managers on his first day of resuming office as chief executive officer and eliminated all secretarial positions (CNN, 2004). The company prior to Ricardo taking over was characterised with autocratic style of management with control and rules being the order of the day and operating at the edge of collapse. Ricardo Semler favours a participating style of management, profit sharing and free flow of information. The company product range includes dishwashers, pumps, mixers, cooling units for air condition, biscuits factories among others (Semler 1999, p. 1). It is one of the most innovative companies in the world and has become the subject of study for most business schools all around the world due to its peculiar management style. There is no organisation structure that feeds managers ego, subordinates choose their own bosses, employees set their salaries, production targets and achieve them at their own time, and are encouraged to participate, share ideas and also share in the profit (Semler 1999, pp.1-7, 130 131). PIXAR Pixar animated studio was established in 1986 after Steve Jobs purchased the computer graphics division of Lucas films for $10 million with Ed Catmull being named co-founder and Chief technical officer, Smith as vice president alongside Steve Jobs (Price, 2008, p.74 85-197). In 2001, Ed Catmull was named Pixar’s president. The company originally manufactures and sell hardware and software that enable computer graphics to develop animations. In 1987, the company began the making of short films with its first computer generated movie, Toy Story being released in 1995. The company which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Walt Disney acquired 2006 at $7.4 billion and located in Emeryville, California (Paik, 2007). The acquisition will help Pixar gain economies of scale and access to new technologies. Pixar has a range of films under its belt that has surpassed box office expectations from Rango, Hop, Toy Story 3, finding Nemo, the incredible and many others (Emerald Group Review, 2 011). Its target audience cuts across all ages and nationalities and include families and children and its product range include short films in DVDs, soundtrack CDs, animated films among others (Price, 2008, pp.3-7). It fosters an environment that gives room for mistakes and encourages collaborations among teams and departments and devoid of micro management by executives to ensure creativity and innovation (YouTube-imperial college, 2009). THEORIES OF INNOVATION USING EVIDENCE FROM SEMCO AND PIXAR What makes Ricardo Semler and Ed Catmull exceptional in the way they run their companiesCould it be that they were born to innovation, an act of God, divine intervention, grace, or years of experience and acquisition of knowledge and educationAnalysts and business tycoons have called these men genius. Some critics of Semler and Pixar would have called the transformation at these companies as a gift from the gods. However, it is worthy of note that Semco was a company already in operation prior to Ricardo taking over and Pixar had several failed attempts before its major breakthrough in 1995 with Toy Story. Emerald group, 2011 quoted Ed Catmull in Harvard Business Review ‘I don’t think our success is largely luck. Rather, I believe our adherence to a set of principles and practices for managing creative talent and risk is responsible.’ Was grace far from the transformation in these companiesRicardo was one of the youngest graduates at Harvard Business School who wo uld have learnt some of the traditional management theories in school but choose to manage in a uniquely different way that suite his life and believes suite those of his employees. Moreover, having had an encounter with a doctor who told him to change his work style, he decided to change his way of management, a factor that has led to the key changes at Semco today. Thus innovation at Semco may be a combination of association having graduated from Harvard, accident-a chance meeting with the doctor, personality-considering that while at high school he raised some money for the school vacation program which he reinvested to yield a return before the vacation, feature of life and a bit of cognitive considering the fact that innovation at Semco had evolved over time. It is far from being grace or act of gods. Several forms of innovation can be said to have taken placed at these organisations. They are: Organisational innovation: An organisational innovation is one that entails the implementation of a new organisational method in the firm’s business practices, workplace or external relations (Stoneman, 2010, p.17; OECD, 2006). It is often intended to increase a company’s performance through improvement in workplace satisfaction and labour productivity and access to knowledge. It entails an adoption of an organisational method such as flatter organisation structures, employees’ participation among others that have not being used before in an organisation and often results from strategic decisions taken by management (Stoneman, 2010, p.18). Semco and Pixar posses a great deal of organisational innovation. Semco had implemented theories that have never being tried before such as the satellites programs that allow ex-employees to open their own companies with financial help and resources and become partners with Semco and employees cutting their wages by 30% to Semc o at difficult times to get a higher returns when trading conditions get better. What drive such innovation are the organisational culture, structure and learning. Social innovation: This is the innovation that supports and it is beneficial to the society. Pixar is an example of such innovation whose films though animated have a lot of influence on the society both young and small. Its latest film, hop for instance gives social lessons about the role of adult and children in society. Semco has also contributed to the Brazilian society through employment and a reduction in job cuts. Traditional innovation: This is technological innovation and is measured in different ways such as through patents, expenditure and development among others. Semco and Pixar have shown a lot of innovation and creativity in technology with Pixar having a lot of patents. All these types of innovation create social capital which will be discussed later in this report. FEATURES OF INNOVATIVE ORGANISATIONS OR MANAGEMENT ACTIONS SEMCO and Pixar’s success is built on a lattice or flatter organisational structure devoid of control culture that has gone through series of transformation through the years which has enhanced their innovative ability. An organisational culture devoid of control fosters innovation as individuals are giving the freedom to self organise and make their own decisions just like Semco where employees set their salaries and take decisions on production targets and the time they meet such targets (Semler, 1999, p.1). These companies have been able to manage innovation in the following ways: Structure and culture: Organisational design is crucial to the continuous innovation of an enterprise. As the business environment becomes complex and uncertain, so is the organisational design changing to meet up with customers’ demands for value maximising products. Traditional management scientists like Max Weber emphasised formal structure which is a top-down approach characterised with command, control, rules, position power and neglect social and psychological influences on behaviours of employees and teams (Burnes 2000, p.45). Employees are likely to respond to a good leader who they trust and respect than being managed in a bureaucratic way as argued by Adair 1986:54. Semco operates a lattice structure and considers all workers as equal and has reduced bureaucracy from twelve layers of management to three (Semler 1999, p.7). Reduced hierarchies and high involvement will lead to faster decision making and idea generation and information sharing, leading to innovation. F ormal organisational structure stifles individual creativity. In the words of Semler, authoritarianism diminishes productivity and as such no privileges or rules that discourages flexibility (Semler, 1999, p. 4). At Semco, People are made to enjoy their job and feel good about themselves, not just to survive. Business strategy in the company is determined without interference from the top. Similarly, Pixar is free from the thick layers of formal management and executives are not involved in the day to day running of the organisation. All employees are equally important and all work together for the success of a story. Both companies are devoid of micro-management which ensures creativity and innovation. To have these kind of organisations require a conducive organisational culture that is devoid of control. In the words of Ed Catmull, ‘Management really doesn’t tell people what to do.’ Thus both companies give employees freedom to take risk and there is reflecti on, learning and feedback. However , not everyone can work in an environment with such a structure as some people like being told what to do, also, people wants to know what their responsibilities are and who they are report to while others do not like responsibility. It means that such environment will attract liked minded individuals. Trust and Freedom: Due to the flexible organisational structure and lack of formal reporting structures, employees can be trusted to carry out their roles. However, there is a tendency for employees to abuse the system giving the few reporting structures. Semco has absolute trust in her employees and encourages them to be self managing and governing and have made partners with them. There is so much trust that Semco made entrepreneurs out of its workers through assistance with setting up their own company through its satellite programs, buy from them and encourage them to sell to its competitors. One will assume trust will not be a possibility giving the large number of employees of over 3000. Semco has defiled business school expectations and has gone as far as allowing workers to participate in managerial decision making from deciding how much they get paid, to unlimited access to financial information and freedom to work whenever and wherever they choose and meet targets at their own set time and set their salaries which has resulted in impressive growth, long term loyalty and increase and better productivity. To Semler, his interest is in the final result not where, how and hours worked (Easen, 2004). Freedom drives performance and encourages innovation. Staff can work better if given more independence (Handy, 2004). Semco adopts a participating or democratic management style that create an atmosphere where both bosses and subordinates ( partners and associate) interact regardless of jobs and position and all are involved in decision making (Semler, 1999.pp.6 81). In the words of Semler (1999, p. 6), ‘We don’t have as many bosses as we used to. As workers began to exercise more control over their jobs and assume more voices in our policies, the need for supervisors diminished.’ Having trust in individual will give them a sense of belonging and being wanted and encourage new ideas and sharing of ideas among one another. Semco and Pixar re alised that the most powerful resources at their disposal are the people who make things happen in their organisations and have learnt to trust, believe in them and give them the freedom to express their innovative capabilities and drive production forward. Trust is seen as an outcome of social capital and shared values (Cote and Healy, 2001). However, the problem with freedom is that not everyone like being free. Some people want to be controlled and directed to get their job done. Some see control as a motivator. Moreover, some top managers may resist the need for reduced hierarchies for fear of losing control and power. Social capital and Collaboration: At Semco and Pixar, there is collaboration and teamwork as people work together for common and shared values and not get in each others’ way but are committed to the achievement of the common goal of the company. At Semco, employees participate in managerial decision not just relating to their jobs but the business as a whole. They are included in decisions that pertain to choosing who their boss becomes (Easen, 2004). Before people are hired or promoted to leadership positions, they are interviewed and approved by all who will be working for them, and every six months managers are evaluated by their subordinates. Semco has autonomous business units established by ex- employees who open their own business with help from Semco and have become partners, associate and collaborators and has made Semco a leaner and agile organisation (Semler, 1999 P.7). Also different departments and business units and teams work collectively to drive innovation f orward at Semco and Pixar. Easen, 2004 reported Semler as saying that ‘Growth and profit are a product of how people work together.’ There is a balanced collaboration at Pixar as artist and technologists are paired together. Every offer or idea is accepted and then people get the chance to plus it (Nelsen, 2008). A term Nelsen called ‘plussing’- taking an idea or a piece of work and find a way to add or improve upon it without judging it. At Pixar, collaboration means amplification whereby employees who are listening and interested in each other are joined together to work and bring separate depth to the problems and breadth that gives them interest in the solution as well as allow teams to communicate at different levels. The brain trust at Pixar is a framework or forum that gives an opportunity for some of the best brains to use their expertise and experience to share their understanding and knowledge with others and to get feedback. The Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation, OECD defines social capital as ‘networks together with shared norms, values and understandings that facilitate cooperation within or among groups’ (ONS, 2001; Cote and Healy, 2001:41). It is the glue that holds organisations together and enables employees to join forces more effectively and pursue shared objectives. In a culture of continual change and uncertainty, sustainable communities are those who are collaborative and always growing with and towards each other in the formation, sharing and adaptation to new knowledge (Smith and Paquette, 2010). Some of the outcomes of social capital are social relations, trust, collaboration, mutually enforceable agreement, general reciprocity and innovation (ONS, 2001). In Semco there is mutually enforceable agreement resulting from profit sharing. In the past, Pixar had used stock to motivate employees and encourage them to stay. Also, the need to produce quality output at Pixar could be a form of mutually enforceable agreement (Price 2008, p. 114). Pay recognition: Motivation such as adequate pay, interpersonal relations and work and group dynamics are some factors that increase productivity and workers satisfaction (Mullins, 2007, p.53). Employees will be committed to work if they are being paid fairly and feel that their contribution is appreciated in the organisation. Semco’s employees set their salaries and share in the profits. As Semler (1999, P. 4) says, ‘Profit-sharing is democratic. We negotiate with our workers over the basic percentage to be distributed- about a quarter of our corporate profit.’ This has worked so well at Semco as there is very low labour turnover and when the need arises, those laid off are assisted to form their own company. Reward systems and benefits retain people and lead to workers’ satisfaction, commitment and loyalty (Chiu et al, 2002). There were times when workers salary proposal were rejected in instances of over- statement. Contrary to this is the argument that financial rewards are not enough to motivate people and that group pressure has more influence on employees than financial rewards (Mullins, 2007, p.301). In addition, people also have intrinsic motivation derives from within the individual which propels them towards the need for self actualisation and fulfilment. Learning and feedback/ Gives room for mistakes/Risk taking: Learning within projects teams depends heavily on the inflow and transfer of knowledgeable among them. Semco and Pixar are learning organisations. Such organisations give room for failure and learning from mistakes and encourage risk taking and have a wide tolerance for new ideas and do not punish mistakes. A learning organisation was defined by Johnson et al (2008) as, ‘One capable of continual regeneration from the variety of knowledge, experience and skills of individuals that encourage mutual questioning and challenge around a shared purpose or vision.’ Semler pointed out that mistake is welcome and a sign that the employee is taking enough risk. Without mistakes, there will not be learning and consequently, innovation will be stifled. Likewise at Pixar, continuous innovation requires that executives resist the natural tendencies to minimise risks and accept uncertainty to ensure originality and ability to r ecover from failures resulting from taking risks. It encourages creativity by allowing people to experiment with new ideas and mistakes genuinely made are treated as part of the learning process Emerald Group review, 2011). Mistake are not punished at Pixar but seen as building block for new ideas and innovation just like 3M. Pixar endorses and encourages a creative by rejecting hierarchical and controlled system, instead the taking of risks and recognizes the importance of serendipity in the creative process (Smith and Paquette, 2010) It has been argued that employees’ collective knowledge exceeds those of the organisation and its capabilities and managers should aim at encouraging processes that unlock employees’ knowledge and encourage information, knowledge and idea sharing which is the sort of environment both companies have created for their employees. As a narrator said, each movies produced by Pixar contains a combination of tens of thousands of ideas arising from risk taking, failure and learning. Ed Catmull said that ‘Innovative people are failure recovered not failure avoider.’ Both companies give room for reflection, learning and feedback. The benefits of learning cannot be over emphasis. Learning increases employees’ commitment, improve quality as mistakes are identified. Senge 1999 reiterated that organisational learning leads to organisational performance. Commitment: At Semco, everyone is committed to the achievement of the organisation’s objectives as they all feel a sense of belonging and part ownership of the company arising partly from the profit sharing. Employees are seen as being importance and valued. A worker in an interview said if an employee is idle, another worker will often ask why he or she is not working, reminding him or her that failure to work will reduce their profits and subsequently reduction in money for their pockets. So there is peer pressure. If employees feel that they are being trusted to take decision on their own and self manage, they will be committed. Semco operates an egalitarian company where there is no preferential treatment. Parking lots are for first come basis and all employees eat on the same canteen. Meetings are held based on the first two employees to be present. This makes employees feel as being a part of the team and big family and give them a sense of being wanted by the company. B y removing privileges of ranks, employees will see themselves as a wider community, thus feel comfortable voicing their opinion, leading to generation of new ideas. Dynamism: Semco is a highly flexible company with no boundaries to the type of business and products, making it difficult to say exactly what kind of business the company is in. There is no fixed business and it is open to any form of business that comes their way. It is also characterised with the absence of business plans and company strategy. In the words of Semler (2003, p.4), ‘ Once you say what business you are in, you create boundaries for you employees, you restrict their thinking and give them a reason to ignore new opportunities as they will say we are not in that business.’ Semco is so dynamic in its operations and processes that employees must not use one desk two days in a row. This is to make them difficult to track and are free to move and work anywhere that appeals to them be it home office. There is time flexibility as they are not concerned about when the employees arrive at work. However, contracts are negotiated on the basis of what to be achieved at a set period and what it stands to gain for paid value and what the employees get in return. It is a mutually enforceable agreement as both parties- employees and Semco benefit. Pixar, though in a core line of business of animated films, it is not to say it is not a dynamic company as different forms of films that benefits both adult and children have being produced over the years. There is effective communication at both companies due to the organisational culture and flatter structure devoid of control. There is information, idea and knowledge sharing. At Pixar, technologists communicate with the artists. SUMARY AND CONCLUSION Semco and Pixar are said to be innovative even though the companies are different in what they do and how they approach innovation. Nevertheless, some common factors in both companies is the delegation of a large amount of control to their employees and absolute freedom to take risk and give room for mistakes and failure, giving them freedom to generate new ideas and thus take a more active role and commitment. Both companies have decentralised the management structures to get employees more involved in decision making and give them a sense of belonging. They have created a culture that gives room for mistakes, failures, sharing of information, and ideas. There is also collaboration between employees, teams, departments, business units and partners, trust, social capital, communication, lack of micro-management and similar organisational culture and structure which encourages innovation. However, both companies differ in a number of ways such as absence of profit sharing at Pixar, la nguages, products, country of location and time scales. Having carried out a detailed analysis of Semco and Pixar, it is possible that what works at these companies can be applicable to other companies. However, some disadvantages will be accrued if these features are applied in another company characterised with hierarchical control culture and structure such as resistance from top management who are control freaks and unwilling to relinquish power. Moreover, not everyone will be able to self manage as some people like being controlled and told what to do. In addition, that trust and freedom work well in these organisations does not mean it can be implemented in other organisations as differences in culture and environment will play a role in determining its effectiveness in another company with different organisational culture and business environment. Having said this, nothing is worth not trying, so these managerial actions that have worked so well in these organisations can be applied to other organisations. The reward may not be see n immediately, but in the long run, it will pay off. REFERENCE ADAIR, J. 1986. Effective Team Building: How to make a Winning Team. London: Gower Publishing Co Ltd.BURNES, B. 2000. Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. 3rd edn. England: Pearson Education Ltd. CHIU, R. K, LUK, W.V AND TANG, T.L (2002) Retaining and motivating employees: Compensation preferences in Hong Kong and China. Personnel Review [Online journal], 31 (4), pp.402-431. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=Retaining+and+motivating+employees%3A+Compensation+preferences+in+Hong+Kong+and+Chinact=allec=1bf=1 . (April 19 2011). COTE, S AND HEALY, T. (2001) The Well-being of Nations. The role of human and social capital. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris. CNN. 2004. Ricardo Semler, Semco SA. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/06/29/semler.profile/index.html?iref=allsearch(27 April 2011). DOVEY, K. 2009. The role of trust in innovation. The Learning Organization [online journal] 16(4). Pp.311-325. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=role+of+trust+in+innovationct=allec=1bf=1 . (March23/3/2011). EASEN, N. 2004. Interview with Ricardo Semler. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/05/19/go.semlar.transcript/index.html (15 April 2011). EASEN, N. 2004. Democracy in the Workplace. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/05/19/go.democratic.workplace/index.html?iref=allsearch (15 April 2011). EMERALD GROUP, 2011. How Pixar animates its talent team: not knowing the answers can be the way ahead. Development and Learning in Organizations [Online journal], 25 (1), pp. 30-32. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=pixarct=allec=1bf=1. (April 8 2011). HANDY C, 2004. Giving your Staff More Freedom. [WWW] http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/ hi/ business /4058519.stm (1 April 2011). JOHNSON, G, SCHOLES, K AND WHITTINGTON, R. 2008. Exploring Corporate Strategy: Text and Cases. 8th edn. England: Pearson Education Limited. MULLINS, L. J, 2007. Management and Organisational Behaviour. 8th edn. Essex: Pearson Education Limited. NELSEN, R. 2008. Pixar’s Randy Nelsen on the Collaborative Age. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhXJe8ANws8 (1 April 2011). OFFICE OF NATIONAL STATISTICS. 2001. Social Capital: A review of the literature. [WWW] http://www.statistics.gov.uk/socialcapital/downloads/soccaplitreview.pdf (26 April 2011). PAIK, K. 2007. To Infinity and Beyond: The story of Pixar Animation Studio. London: Virgin Books Ltd. PIXAR GROUP 24. 2009. Innovation Management: Imperial College. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTB5S2mc3wA (20 March 2011). PRICE, D. A.2008. The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company. USA: Alfred A. Knopf. SEMLER, R. 2003. The Seven-Day Weekend. London: Century. SEMLER, R. Semco – Ricardo Semler – MIT SF 11 – Leading organizations. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1qJ2W9cVDM (14 April 2011). SEMLER, R. (1999) Maverick! The Success Story Behind the World’s most Unusual Workplace. London: Random House Business Books. SEMLER, R. 2007. Interview with Ricardo Semler. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJkOPxJCN1wfeature=related (13 March 2011). SENGE, P.M. (1999). It’s the learning: the real lesson of quality movement. The Journal for Quality and Participation, 22 (6)Pp.34-40. STONEMAN, P. 2010. Soft Innovation: Economics, Product Aesthetics and Creative Industries. New York: Oxford University Press.SMITH, S. AND PAQUETTE, S. (2010). Creativity, chaos and knowledge management. Business Information Review, 27 (2), pp. 118-23. BIBLIOGRAPHY BESSANT, J. 2003. High Involvement innovation: Building and Sustaining Competitive Advantage Through Continuous Change. England: John Wiley Sons. CHRISTENSEN, C.M, AND ERIK, A.R. 2004. Seeing What is Next: Using the Theories of Innovation to Predict Industry Change. USA: Harvard Business school Press. BURDETH, O.J. 1994. The Magic of Alignment. Management Decision [online journal], 32 (2), pp. 59-63. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=alignmentct=allec=1bf=1go=Go. (March 3 2011). Analysis of semco and pixar animated studio as an example of innovative organizations Companies like Semco, Gore and Associate, 3M and Pixar have made a reputation for themselves due to their emphasis on creativity. Innovation is a product of collaborative learning, idea generation, sharing and idea realization practices of workers in an organization (Dovey, 2009, p.311). For innovation to occur an organisation must foster an environment and culture that give room for creativity which is what Semco and Pixar have achieved. To this end, this report will analyse Semco and Pixar as an exemplar of innovative companies and the relationship that exist between them using some key theories of innovation and the defining features and managerial actions that set them apart as innovative organisations. SEMCO Semco is a loose organisation that encourages innovation and self organisation leading to trust, collaboration and cooperation. Semco was a small family engineering company originally called Semler and Company established in 1952 in Sao Paulo, Brazil by Antonio Curt Semler and renamed Semco after Ricardo Semler, the 24 year old son of the owner resumed office as the new chief executive officer in 1984, firing more than half of the top managers on his first day of resuming office as chief executive officer and eliminated all secretarial positions (CNN, 2004). The company prior to Ricardo taking over was characterised with autocratic style of management with control and rules being the order of the day and operating at the edge of collapse. Ricardo Semler favours a participating style of management, profit sharing and free flow of information. The company product range includes dishwashers, pumps, mixers, cooling units for air condition, biscuits factories among others (Semler 1999, p. 1). It is one of the most innovative companies in the world and has become the subject of study for most business schools all around the world due to its peculiar management style. There is no organisation structure that feeds managers ego, subordinates choose their own bosses, employees set their salaries, production targets and achieve them at their own time, and are encouraged to participate, share ideas and also share in the profit (Semler 1999, pp.1-7, 130 131). PIXAR Pixar animated studio was established in 1986 after Steve Jobs purchased the computer graphics division of Lucas films for $10 million with Ed Catmull being named co-founder and Chief technical officer, Smith as vice president alongside Steve Jobs (Price, 2008, p.74 85-197). In 2001, Ed Catmull was named Pixar’s president. The company originally manufactures and sell hardware and software that enable computer graphics to develop animations. In 1987, the company began the making of short films with its first computer generated movie, Toy Story being released in 1995. The company which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Walt Disney acquired 2006 at $7.4 billion and located in Emeryville, California (Paik, 2007). The acquisition will help Pixar gain economies of scale and access to new technologies. Pixar has a range of films under its belt that has surpassed box office expectations from Rango, Hop, Toy Story 3, finding Nemo, the incredible and many others (Emerald Group Review, 2 011). Its target audience cuts across all ages and nationalities and include families and children and its product range include short films in DVDs, soundtrack CDs, animated films among others (Price, 2008, pp.3-7). It fosters an environment that gives room for mistakes and encourages collaborations among teams and departments and devoid of micro management by executives to ensure creativity and innovation (YouTube-imperial college, 2009). THEORIES OF INNOVATION USING EVIDENCE FROM SEMCO AND PIXAR What makes Ricardo Semler and Ed Catmull exceptional in the way they run their companiesCould it be that they were born to innovation, an act of God, divine intervention, grace, or years of experience and acquisition of knowledge and educationAnalysts and business tycoons have called these men genius. Some critics of Semler and Pixar would have called the transformation at these companies as a gift from the gods. However, it is worthy of note that Semco was a company already in operation prior to Ricardo taking over and Pixar had several failed attempts before its major breakthrough in 1995 with Toy Story. Emerald group, 2011 quoted Ed Catmull in Harvard Business Review ‘I don’t think our success is largely luck. Rather, I believe our adherence to a set of principles and practices for managing creative talent and risk is responsible.’ Was grace far from the transformation in these companiesRicardo was one of the youngest graduates at Harvard Business School who wo uld have learnt some of the traditional management theories in school but choose to manage in a uniquely different way that suite his life and believes suite those of his employees. Moreover, having had an encounter with a doctor who told him to change his work style, he decided to change his way of management, a factor that has led to the key changes at Semco today. Thus innovation at Semco may be a combination of association having graduated from Harvard, accident-a chance meeting with the doctor, personality-considering that while at high school he raised some money for the school vacation program which he reinvested to yield a return before the vacation, feature of life and a bit of cognitive considering the fact that innovation at Semco had evolved over time. It is far from being grace or act of gods. Several forms of innovation can be said to have taken placed at these organisations. They are: Organisational innovation: An organisational innovation is one that entails the implementation of a new organisational method in the firm’s business practices, workplace or external relations (Stoneman, 2010, p.17; OECD, 2006). It is often intended to increase a company’s performance through improvement in workplace satisfaction and labour productivity and access to knowledge. It entails an adoption of an organisational method such as flatter organisation structures, employees’ participation among others that have not being used before in an organisation and often results from strategic decisions taken by management (Stoneman, 2010, p.18). Semco and Pixar posses a great deal of organisational innovation. Semco had implemented theories that have never being tried before such as the satellites programs that allow ex-employees to open their own companies with financial help and resources and become partners with Semco and employees cutting their wages by 30% to Semc o at difficult times to get a higher returns when trading conditions get better. What drive such innovation are the organisational culture, structure and learning. Social innovation: This is the innovation that supports and it is beneficial to the society. Pixar is an example of such innovation whose films though animated have a lot of influence on the society both young and small. Its latest film, hop for instance gives social lessons about the role of adult and children in society. Semco has also contributed to the Brazilian society through employment and a reduction in job cuts. Traditional innovation: This is technological innovation and is measured in different ways such as through patents, expenditure and development among others. Semco and Pixar have shown a lot of innovation and creativity in technology with Pixar having a lot of patents. All these types of innovation create social capital which will be discussed later in this report. FEATURES OF INNOVATIVE ORGANISATIONS OR MANAGEMENT ACTIONS SEMCO and Pixar’s success is built on a lattice or flatter organisational structure devoid of control culture that has gone through series of transformation through the years which has enhanced their innovative ability. An organisational culture devoid of control fosters innovation as individuals are giving the freedom to self organise and make their own decisions just like Semco where employees set their salaries and take decisions on production targets and the time they meet such targets (Semler, 1999, p.1). These companies have been able to manage innovation in the following ways: Structure and culture: Organisational design is crucial to the continuous innovation of an enterprise. As the business environment becomes complex and uncertain, so is the organisational design changing to meet up with customers’ demands for value maximising products. Traditional management scientists like Max Weber emphasised formal structure which is a top-down approach characterised with command, control, rules, position power and neglect social and psychological influences on behaviours of employees and teams (Burnes 2000, p.45). Employees are likely to respond to a good leader who they trust and respect than being managed in a bureaucratic way as argued by Adair 1986:54. Semco operates a lattice structure and considers all workers as equal and has reduced bureaucracy from twelve layers of management to three (Semler 1999, p.7). Reduced hierarchies and high involvement will lead to faster decision making and idea generation and information sharing, leading to innovation. F ormal organisational structure stifles individual creativity. In the words of Semler, authoritarianism diminishes productivity and as such no privileges or rules that discourages flexibility (Semler, 1999, p. 4). At Semco, People are made to enjoy their job and feel good about themselves, not just to survive. Business strategy in the company is determined without interference from the top. Similarly, Pixar is free from the thick layers of formal management and executives are not involved in the day to day running of the organisation. All employees are equally important and all work together for the success of a story. Both companies are devoid of micro-management which ensures creativity and innovation. To have these kind of organisations require a conducive organisational culture that is devoid of control. In the words of Ed Catmull, ‘Management really doesn’t tell people what to do.’ Thus both companies give employees freedom to take risk and there is reflecti on, learning and feedback. However , not everyone can work in an environment with such a structure as some people like being told what to do, also, people wants to know what their responsibilities are and who they are report to while others do not like responsibility. It means that such environment will attract liked minded individuals. Trust and Freedom: Due to the flexible organisational structure and lack of formal reporting structures, employees can be trusted to carry out their roles. However, there is a tendency for employees to abuse the system giving the few reporting structures. Semco has absolute trust in her employees and encourages them to be self managing and governing and have made partners with them. There is so much trust that Semco made entrepreneurs out of its workers through assistance with setting up their own company through its satellite programs, buy from them and encourage them to sell to its competitors. One will assume trust will not be a possibility giving the large number of employees of over 3000. Semco has defiled business school expectations and has gone as far as allowing workers to participate in managerial decision making from deciding how much they get paid, to unlimited access to financial information and freedom to work whenever and wherever they choose and meet targets at their own set time and set their salaries which has resulted in impressive growth, long term loyalty and increase and better productivity. To Semler, his interest is in the final result not where, how and hours worked (Easen, 2004). Freedom drives performance and encourages innovation. Staff can work better if given more independence (Handy, 2004). Semco adopts a participating or democratic management style that create an atmosphere where both bosses and subordinates ( partners and associate) interact regardless of jobs and position and all are involved in decision making (Semler, 1999.pp.6 81). In the words of Semler (1999, p. 6), ‘We don’t have as many bosses as we used to. As workers began to exercise more control over their jobs and assume more voices in our policies, the need for supervisors diminished.’ Having trust in individual will give them a sense of belonging and being wanted and encourage new ideas and sharing of ideas among one another. Semco and Pixar re alised that the most powerful resources at their disposal are the people who make things happen in their organisations and have learnt to trust, believe in them and give them the freedom to express their innovative capabilities and drive production forward. Trust is seen as an outcome of social capital and shared values (Cote and Healy, 2001). However, the problem with freedom is that not everyone like being free. Some people want to be controlled and directed to get their job done. Some see control as a motivator. Moreover, some top managers may resist the need for reduced hierarchies for fear of losing control and power. Social capital and Collaboration: At Semco and Pixar, there is collaboration and teamwork as people work together for common and shared values and not get in each others’ way but are committed to the achievement of the common goal of the company. At Semco, employees participate in managerial decision not just relating to their jobs but the business as a whole. They are included in decisions that pertain to choosing who their boss becomes (Easen, 2004). Before people are hired or promoted to leadership positions, they are interviewed and approved by all who will be working for them, and every six months managers are evaluated by their subordinates. Semco has autonomous business units established by ex- employees who open their own business with help from Semco and have become partners, associate and collaborators and has made Semco a leaner and agile organisation (Semler, 1999 P.7). Also different departments and business units and teams work collectively to drive innovation f orward at Semco and Pixar. Easen, 2004 reported Semler as saying that ‘Growth and profit are a product of how people work together.’ There is a balanced collaboration at Pixar as artist and technologists are paired together. Every offer or idea is accepted and then people get the chance to plus it (Nelsen, 2008). A term Nelsen called ‘plussing’- taking an idea or a piece of work and find a way to add or improve upon it without judging it. At Pixar, collaboration means amplification whereby employees who are listening and interested in each other are joined together to work and bring separate depth to the problems and breadth that gives them interest in the solution as well as allow teams to communicate at different levels. The brain trust at Pixar is a framework or forum that gives an opportunity for some of the best brains to use their expertise and experience to share their understanding and knowledge with others and to get feedback. The Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation, OECD defines social capital as ‘networks together with shared norms, values and understandings that facilitate cooperation within or among groups’ (ONS, 2001; Cote and Healy, 2001:41). It is the glue that holds organisations together and enables employees to join forces more effectively and pursue shared objectives. In a culture of continual change and uncertainty, sustainable communities are those who are collaborative and always growing with and towards each other in the formation, sharing and adaptation to new knowledge (Smith and Paquette, 2010). Some of the outcomes of social capital are social relations, trust, collaboration, mutually enforceable agreement, general reciprocity and innovation (ONS, 2001). In Semco there is mutually enforceable agreement resulting from profit sharing. In the past, Pixar had used stock to motivate employees and encourage them to stay. Also, the need to produce quality output at Pixar could be a form of mutually enforceable agreement (Price 2008, p. 114). Pay recognition: Motivation such as adequate pay, interpersonal relations and work and group dynamics are some factors that increase productivity and workers satisfaction (Mullins, 2007, p.53). Employees will be committed to work if they are being paid fairly and feel that their contribution is appreciated in the organisation. Semco’s employees set their salaries and share in the profits. As Semler (1999, P. 4) says, ‘Profit-sharing is democratic. We negotiate with our workers over the basic percentage to be distributed- about a quarter of our corporate profit.’ This has worked so well at Semco as there is very low labour turnover and when the need arises, those laid off are assisted to form their own company. Reward systems and benefits retain people and lead to workers’ satisfaction, commitment and loyalty (Chiu et al, 2002). There were times when workers salary proposal were rejected in instances of over- statement. Contrary to this is the argument that financial rewards are not enough to motivate people and that group pressure has more influence on employees than financial rewards (Mullins, 2007, p.301). In addition, people also have intrinsic motivation derives from within the individual which propels them towards the need for self actualisation and fulfilment. Learning and feedback/ Gives room for mistakes/Risk taking: Learning within projects teams depends heavily on the inflow and transfer of knowledgeable among them. Semco and Pixar are learning organisations. Such organisations give room for failure and learning from mistakes and encourage risk taking and have a wide tolerance for new ideas and do not punish mistakes. A learning organisation was defined by Johnson et al (2008) as, ‘One capable of continual regeneration from the variety of knowledge, experience and skills of individuals that encourage mutual questioning and challenge around a shared purpose or vision.’ Semler pointed out that mistake is welcome and a sign that the employee is taking enough risk. Without mistakes, there will not be learning and consequently, innovation will be stifled. Likewise at Pixar, continuous innovation requires that executives resist the natural tendencies to minimise risks and accept uncertainty to ensure originality and ability to r ecover from failures resulting from taking risks. It encourages creativity by allowing people to experiment with new ideas and mistakes genuinely made are treated as part of the learning process Emerald Group review, 2011). Mistake are not punished at Pixar but seen as building block for new ideas and innovation just like 3M. Pixar endorses and encourages a creative by rejecting hierarchical and controlled system, instead the taking of risks and recognizes the importance of serendipity in the creative process (Smith and Paquette, 2010) It has been argued that employees’ collective knowledge exceeds those of the organisation and its capabilities and managers should aim at encouraging processes that unlock employees’ knowledge and encourage information, knowledge and idea sharing which is the sort of environment both companies have created for their employees. As a narrator said, each movies produced by Pixar contains a combination of tens of thousands of ideas arising from risk taking, failure and learning. Ed Catmull said that ‘Innovative people are failure recovered not failure avoider.’ Both companies give room for reflection, learning and feedback. The benefits of learning cannot be over emphasis. Learning increases employees’ commitment, improve quality as mistakes are identified. Senge 1999 reiterated that organisational learning leads to organisational performance. Commitment: At Semco, everyone is committed to the achievement of the organisation’s objectives as they all feel a sense of belonging and part ownership of the company arising partly from the profit sharing. Employees are seen as being importance and valued. A worker in an interview said if an employee is idle, another worker will often ask why he or she is not working, reminding him or her that failure to work will reduce their profits and subsequently reduction in money for their pockets. So there is peer pressure. If employees feel that they are being trusted to take decision on their own and self manage, they will be committed. Semco operates an egalitarian company where there is no preferential treatment. Parking lots are for first come basis and all employees eat on the same canteen. Meetings are held based on the first two employees to be present. This makes employees feel as being a part of the team and big family and give them a sense of being wanted by the company. B y removing privileges of ranks, employees will see themselves as a wider community, thus feel comfortable voicing their opinion, leading to generation of new ideas. Dynamism: Semco is a highly flexible company with no boundaries to the type of business and products, making it difficult to say exactly what kind of business the company is in. There is no fixed business and it is open to any form of business that comes their way. It is also characterised with the absence of business plans and company strategy. In the words of Semler (2003, p.4), ‘ Once you say what business you are in, you create boundaries for you employees, you restrict their thinking and give them a reason to ignore new opportunities as they will say we are not in that business.’ Semco is so dynamic in its operations and processes that employees must not use one desk two days in a row. This is to make them difficult to track and are free to move and work anywhere that appeals to them be it home office. There is time flexibility as they are not concerned about when the employees arrive at work. However, contracts are negotiated on the basis of what to be achieved at a set period and what it stands to gain for paid value and what the employees get in return. It is a mutually enforceable agreement as both parties- employees and Semco benefit. Pixar, though in a core line of business of animated films, it is not to say it is not a dynamic company as different forms of films that benefits both adult and children have being produced over the years. There is effective communication at both companies due to the organisational culture and flatter structure devoid of control. There is information, idea and knowledge sharing. At Pixar, technologists communicate with the artists. SUMARY AND CONCLUSION Semco and Pixar are said to be innovative even though the companies are different in what they do and how they approach innovation. Nevertheless, some common factors in both companies is the delegation of a large amount of control to their employees and absolute freedom to take risk and give room for mistakes and failure, giving them freedom to generate new ideas and thus take a more active role and commitment. Both companies have decentralised the management structures to get employees more involved in decision making and give them a sense of belonging. They have created a culture that gives room for mistakes, failures, sharing of information, and ideas. There is also collaboration between employees, teams, departments, business units and partners, trust, social capital, communication, lack of micro-management and similar organisational culture and structure which encourages innovation. However, both companies differ in a number of ways such as absence of profit sharing at Pixar, la nguages, products, country of location and time scales. Having carried out a detailed analysis of Semco and Pixar, it is possible that what works at these companies can be applicable to other companies. However, some disadvantages will be accrued if these features are applied in another company characterised with hierarchical control culture and structure such as resistance from top management who are control freaks and unwilling to relinquish power. Moreover, not everyone will be able to self manage as some people like being controlled and told what to do. In addition, that trust and freedom work well in these organisations does not mean it can be implemented in other organisations as differences in culture and environment will play a role in determining its effectiveness in another company with different organisational culture and business environment. Having said this, nothing is worth not trying, so these managerial actions that have worked so well in these organisations can be applied to other organisations. The reward may not be see n immediately, but in the long run, it will pay off. REFERENCE ADAIR, J. 1986. Effective Team Building: How to make a Winning Team. London: Gower Publishing Co Ltd.BURNES, B. 2000. Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. 3rd edn. England: Pearson Education Ltd. CHIU, R. K, LUK, W.V AND TANG, T.L (2002) Retaining and motivating employees: Compensation preferences in Hong Kong and China. Personnel Review [Online journal], 31 (4), pp.402-431. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=Retaining+and+motivating+employees%3A+Compensation+preferences+in+Hong+Kong+and+Chinact=allec=1bf=1 . (April 19 2011). COTE, S AND HEALY, T. (2001) The Well-being of Nations. The role of human and social capital. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris. CNN. 2004. Ricardo Semler, Semco SA. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/06/29/semler.profile/index.html?iref=allsearch(27 April 2011). DOVEY, K. 2009. The role of trust in innovation. The Learning Organization [online journal] 16(4). Pp.311-325. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=role+of+trust+in+innovationct=allec=1bf=1 . (March23/3/2011). EASEN, N. 2004. Interview with Ricardo Semler. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/05/19/go.semlar.transcript/index.html (15 April 2011). EASEN, N. 2004. Democracy in the Workplace. [WWW] http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/05/19/go.democratic.workplace/index.html?iref=allsearch (15 April 2011). EMERALD GROUP, 2011. How Pixar animates its talent team: not knowing the answers can be the way ahead. Development and Learning in Organizations [Online journal], 25 (1), pp. 30-32. 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[WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTB5S2mc3wA (20 March 2011). PRICE, D. A.2008. The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company. USA: Alfred A. Knopf. SEMLER, R. 2003. The Seven-Day Weekend. London: Century. SEMLER, R. Semco – Ricardo Semler – MIT SF 11 – Leading organizations. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1qJ2W9cVDM (14 April 2011). SEMLER, R. (1999) Maverick! The Success Story Behind the World’s most Unusual Workplace. London: Random House Business Books. SEMLER, R. 2007. Interview with Ricardo Semler. [WWW] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJkOPxJCN1wfeature=related (13 March 2011). SENGE, P.M. (1999). It’s the learning: the real lesson of quality movement. The Journal for Quality and Participation, 22 (6)Pp.34-40. STONEMAN, P. 2010. Soft Innovation: Economics, Product Aesthetics and Creative Industries. New York: Oxford University Press.SMITH, S. AND PAQUETTE, S. (2010). Creativity, chaos and knowledge management. Business Information Review, 27 (2), pp. 118-23. BIBLIOGRAPHY BESSANT, J. 2003. High Involvement innovation: Building and Sustaining Competitive Advantage Through Continuous Change. England: John Wiley Sons. CHRISTENSEN, C.M, AND ERIK, A.R. 2004. Seeing What is Next: Using the Theories of Innovation to Predict Industry Change. USA: Harvard Business school Press. BURDETH, O.J. 1994. The Magic of Alignment. Management Decision [online journal], 32 (2), pp. 59-63. Available from Emerald at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=alignmentct=allec=1bf=1go=Go. (March 3 2011).

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