MODEL COMMUNICATION
Introduction
While the field of communication has changed considerably over the last thirty years, the models used in the introductory chapters of communication textbooks (see Adler, 1991; Adler, Rosenfeld, and Towne, 1996; Barker and Barker, 1993; Becker and Roberts, 1992; Bittner, 1996; Burgoon, Hunsaker, and Dawson, 1994; DeFleur, Kearney, and Plax, 1993; DeVito, 1994; Gibson and Hanna, 1992; Wood, 2002) are the same models that were used forty years ago. This is, in some sense, a testament to their enduring value. Shannon’s (1948) model of the communication process (Figure 1) provides, in its breakdown of the flow of a message from source to destination, an excellent breakdown of the elements of the communication process that can be very helpful to students who are thinking about how they communicate with others. It remains, however, that these texts generally treat these models as little more than a baseline. They rapidly segue into other subjects that seem more directly relevant to our everyday experience of communication. In interpersonal communication texts these subjects typically include the social construction of the self, perception of self and other, language, nonverbal communication, listening, conflict management, intercultural communication, relational communication, and various communication contexts, including work and family. In mass communication texts these subjects typically include media literacy, media and culture, new media, media industries, media audiences, advertising, public relations, media effects, regulation, and media ethics.
There was a time when our communication models provided a useful graphical outline of a semesters material. This is no longer the case. This paper presents the classic models that we use in teaching communication, including Shannon’s information theory model (the active model), a cybernetic model that includes feedback (the interactive model, an intermediary model (sometimes referred to as a gatekeeper model of the two-step flow), and the transactive model. Few textbooks cover all of these models together. Mass Communication texts typically segue from Shannon’s model to a two-step flow or gatekeeper model. Interpersonal texts typically present Shannon’s model as the “active” model of the communication process and then elaborate it with interactive (cybernetic) and transactive models. Here we will argue the value of update these models to better account for the way we teach these diverse subject matters, and present a unifying model of the communication process that will be described as an ecological model of the communication process. This model seeks to better represent the structure and key constituents of the communication process as we teach it today.
Shannon’s Model of the Communication Process
Shannon’s (1948) model of the communication process is, in important ways, the beginning of the modern field. It provided, for the first time, a general model of the communication process that could be treated as the common ground of such diverse disciplines as journalism, rhetoric, linguistics, and speech and hearing sciences. Part of its success is due to its structuralist reduction of communication to a set of basic constituents that not only explain how communication happens, but why communication sometimes fails. Good timing played a role as well. The world was barely thirty years into the age of mass radio, had arguably fought a world war in its wake, and an even more powerful, television, was about to assert itself. It was time to create the field of communication as a unified discipline, and Shannon’s model was as good an excuse as any. The model’s enduring value is readily evident in introductory textbooks. It remains one of the first things most students learn about communication when they take an introductory communication class. Indeed, it is one of only a handful of theoretical statements about the communication process that can be found in introductory textbooks in both mass communication and interpersonal communication.
Shannon’s model, as shown in Figure 1, breaks the process of communication down into eight discrete components:
- An information source. Presumably a person who creates a message.
- The message, which is both sent by the information source and received by the destination.
- A transmitter. For Shannon’s immediate purpose a telephone instrument that captures an audio signal, converts it into an electronic signal, and amplifies it for transmission through the telephone network. Transmission is readily generalized within Shannon’s information theory to encompass a wide range of transmitters. The simplest transmission system, that associated with face-to-face communication, has at least two layers of transmission. The first, the mouth (sound) and body (gesture), create and modulate a signal. The second layer, which might also be described as a channel, is built of the air (sound) and light (gesture) that enable the transmission of those signals from one person to another. A television broadcast would obviously include many more layers, with the addition of cameras and microphones, editing and filtering systems, a national signal distribution network (often satellite), and a local radio wave broadcast antenna.
- The signal, which flows through a channel. There may be multiple parallel signals, as is the case in face-to-face interaction where sound and gesture involve different signal systems that depend on different channels and modes of transmission. There may be multiple serial signals, with sound and/or gesture turned into electronic signals, radio waves, or words and pictures in a book.
- A carrier or channel, which is represented by the small unlabeled box in the middle of the model. The most commonly used channels include air, light, electricity, radio waves, paper, and postal systems. Note that there may be multiple channels associated with the multiple layers of transmission, as described above.
- Noise, in the form of secondary signals that obscure or confuse the signal carried. Given Shannon’s focus on telephone transmission, carriers, and reception, it should not be surprising that noise is restricted to noise that obscures or obliterates some portion of the signal within the channel. This is a fairly restrictive notion of noise, by current standards, and a somewhat misleading one. Today we have at least some media which are so noise free that compressed signals are constructed with an absolutely minimal amount information and little likelihood of signal loss. In the process, Shannon’s solution to noise, redundancy, has been largely replaced by a minimally redundant solution: error detection and correction. Today we use noise more as a metaphor for problems associated with effective listening.
- A receiver. In Shannon’s conception, the receiving telephone instrument. In face to face communication a set of ears (sound) and eyes (gesture). In television, several layers of receiver, including an antenna and a television set.
- A destination. Presumably a person who consumes and processes the message.
Communication Model Terms as provided by Rothwell
Noise; interference with effective transmission and reception of a message.
For example;
physical noise or external noise which are environmental distractions such as poorly heated rooms, startling sounds, appearances of things, music playing some where else, and someone talking really loudly near you.
physiological noise are biological influences that distract you from communicating competently such as sweaty palms, pounding heart, butterfly in the stomach, induced by speech anxiety, or feeling sick, exhausted at work, the ringing noise in your ear, being really hungry, and if you have a runny nose or a cough.
psychological noise are the preconception bias and assumptions such as thinking someone who speaks like a valley girl is dumb, or someone from a foreign country can’t speak English well so you speak loudly and slowly to them.
semantic noise are word choices that are confusing and distracting such as using the word tri-syllabic instead of three syllables.
Sender; the initiator and encoder of a message
Receiver; the one that receives the message (the listener) and the decoder of a message
Decode; translates the sender’s spoken idea/message into something the receiver understands by using their knowledge of language from personal experience.
Encode; puts the idea into spoken language while putting their own meaning into the word/message.
Channel; the medium through which the message travels such as through oral communication (radio, television, phone, in person) or written communication (letters, email, text messages)
Feedback; the receiver’s verbal and nonverbal responses to a message such as a nod for understanding (nonverbal), a raised eyebrow for being confused (nonverbal), or asking a question to clarify the message (verbal).
Message; the verbal and nonverbal components of language that is sent to the receiver by the sender which conveys an idea.
Humans act toward people or things on the basis of the meanings they assign to those people or things. -“Language is the source of meaning”. -Meaning arises out of the social interaction people have with each other.
-Meaning is not inherent in objects but it is negotiated through the use of language, hence the term symbolic interactionism. As human beings, we have the ability to name things. Symbols, including names, are arbitrary signs. By talking with others, we ascribe meaning to words and develop a universe of discourse A symbol is a stimulus that has a learned/shared meaning and a value for people Significant symbols can be nonverbal as well as linguistic.
-Negative responses can consequently reduce a person to nothing. -Our expectations evoke responses that confirm what we originally anticipated, resulting in a self-fulfilling prophecy.
HOW BUSINESS CAN BE SUCCESSFUL
Lots of people have the dream, but they get bogged down in the details of how to go about it. While this article isn’t meant to serve as a complete business start-up guide, it will give you an idea of some of the steps involved in starting your own business.
Hire Professionals
The most important professionals you’ll need at the beginning are a lawyer and an accountant. The lawyer can help you decide if you want to be a corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, or some other type of company. A good accountant can help you make this decision based on which will be most advantageous to you from a tax angle. A lawyer can also help you register your business and get any licenses and permits you will need, and can advise you about patenting your idea or protecting your intellectual property by requiring everyone you discuss your business with to sign non-disclosure or confidentiality agreements.
Make a Business Plan
You may need to hire a writer or other business professional to help you write a business plan. You’ll need one to help yourself get organized as to what your business’s main purpose or goal will be. This could be anything from serving hot dogs to people outside the home improvement store to providing technology support to major players in the business world. Either way, you need a plan that sketches out how you will proceed toward your goal and an estimate of how much money you’ll need to get there. What will your equipment costs be? Will you be hiring employees? How about renting office space? All of these cost estimates should be included in your Business Plan.
Get Financing
How much start-up money will you need? Do you have savings you can use? Friends or business associates who might want to invest in your venture? Or do you need a bank loan? Whatever the situation, you’ll need to present a copy of your business plan to bankers or investors if you need to borrow money to get your company rolling.
Set Up Your Record-keeping System
A good accountant can advise you on the best record-keeping software for your business, and help you set up a system for keeping track of payables, receivables, sales tax, payroll, employee benefits plans, and so forth. You will be relying on the accountant for at least your yearly tax return for your business, and possibly for quarterly payroll and sales tax returns. Your accountant can also get you an EIN number (Employer Identification Number).
Find a Location
Depending on your business, location may be very important. If you need to be visible to the public (say your business is a bookstore or restaurant), then you’ll have to think long and hard about where you should set up shop. Location can make you or break you-and the rent is due no matter which way your fortune turns. You will also need to get a phone, get the utilities turned on, install your furniture and equipment, and get a sign or two that shouts “Hey look! We’re here!”
Set Up Accounts with Credit Card Companies
Every brick-and-mortar business these days takes plastic or they don’t stay in business. You’ll pay a small percentage for every credit or debit card transaction a customer makes. You will need to invest in a method for checking the validity of debit and credit cards-like those “Slide Card Here” machines at cash registers everywhere.
Hire Employees
You may not need to do this step if you’re a one-person operation. Maybe you can get by with just one part-time person to answer phones and do some of the paperwork. Of course, it depends on your business. You can probably run a small bookstore by yourself, but even a tiny restaurant means you’ll need a cook, several servers, someone at the cashier, and so forth. You’ll need to have them complete various forms for the IRS, and you may want to run background checks or at least check some references before you hire anyone.
Promote Your Business
Decide how you will let people know you exist, what you can do for them, and why they should come to you instead of someone else. Common forms of advertising are TV and radio commercials, newspaper ads, flyers, and coupons that appear in booklets distributed by local companies.
The list above might make you think twice about starting a business of your own. Perhaps you aren’t looking to make such a financial commitment regarding the hiring of professionals, finding a location… And it’s also a big, big risk.
But let’s look back at the way this article began: “I’ve always wanted to have a business of my own. Something I’d really enjoy doing. Be my own boss.”
YOU CAN! Without all of the headaches of traditional business.
There is a very simple way of attaining this goal that has worked well for millions of people. You can have your very own business in your home, and you can cross off all or most of the steps listed above. The best part of exploring home-based business opportunities is that there is little risk and the upside is tremendous.
Many of the inconveniences and pressures of the traditional business are wiped away with the home business. The biggest roadblock to starting or buying a business is that they require a considerable up-front cash investment. In addition to the large investment, the time commitment you must make when starting a business can ultimately turn out to be far greater than what you have experienced in any job, and the return is not necessarily worth the extra time or the financial risk.
HOW CAN A BUSINESS BECOME FAIL
Small businesses fail because they run out of cash.” A statement such as this is 100% accurate but completely unhelpful. It’s like saying: “The patient died because he or she stopped breathing.” When people set up their own business for the first time, three issues come up time and time again, often resulting in early-stage failure.
The first is not fully understanding what they are letting themselves in for. It’s important that you go into any new venture with your eyes wide open. In all honesty you cannot do enough research and homework before you start. The more unfamiliar the territory is to you, the higher the implementation risk.
The second is getting paid – bad debts often become a major issue. Lack of capital will destroy your business over time, lack of liquidity will destroy it in a heartbeat, and accounts receivable is your biggest contributor to liquidity. It is imperative therefore that you devise a strategy that will facilitate your being paid promptly, whether your clients are small businesses, multinationals, or public sector entities.
The third reason for failure is choosing the wrong business partner(s) to help grow the business. It is very difficult to steer two or more people onto the same page from the outset; it’s even harder to keep them there. People drift for a variety of reasons, or they may not subscribe to the same code of conduct as the founder. Do not take any chances – try to find a way that you can collaborate before formalising matters, so that you have an opportunity to see how you interact in practice. If this goes well, then you can proceed. If you have the slightest doubt, then take that as a sign not to proceed, at least not immediately.
Once you prove to yourself and the market that your model works, life becomes a great deal more complex as you look to take your business to the next level. As part of my research for the third book in my Crew to Captain series, I assembled the following pieces of advice:
1. Making decisions based on insufficient management information (MI) is not going to help. Make sure your MI is timely, meaningful and relevant. Furthermore, make sure you understand the financial drivers in your business, in particular your gross and net margins and your breakeven point.
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2. Businesses without a plan B often fail. Make sure you have a risk register, with countermeasures to eliminate the main risk in your business.
3. Cash is, and will remain, king. Make sure your expansion can be supported by either long-term capital, working capital, or both. Without cash, your days are numbered. An expansive order book is no use if you cannot pay your bills.
4. Avoid concentration risk – it’s great if you have a significant predictable revenue stream each month from one client, but what if your key sponsor leaves?
5. Don’t lose sight of your core values – they should be enduring and if you lose them you are building your house on sand, in biblical terms.
HOW TO MAKE GOOD COMMUNICATION
Building good relationships with other people can greatly reduce stress and anxiety in your life. In fact, improving your social support is linked to better mental health in general, since having good friends can act as a “buffer” for feelings of anxiety and low mood. This is especially true if you are socially anxious and desperately want to make friends, but are either too fearful to do so or are unsure about how to reach out to others. As a result of these anxious feelings, you may even be avoiding social situations.
Unfortunately, one of the consequences of avoiding social situations is that you never have the opportunity to:
build up your confidence interacting with others, or
develop strong communication skills that would increase the chance for successful relationships!
For example, if you are afraid of going to parties or asking someone out on a date, your lack of confidence and experience will make it even MORE difficult to know how to handle these situations (like what to wear, what to say, etc…). Often, people have the necessary skills, but lack the confidence to use them. Either way, practice will increase your confidence and improve your communication skills.
Why are communication skills important?
Communication skills are the key to developing (and keeping!) friendships and to building a strong social support network. They also help you take care of your own needs, while being respectful of the needs of others. People aren’t born with good communication skills; like any other skill, they are learned through trial and error and repeated practice!
CASE STUDY
CASE STUDY
- If there are some employees don’t work well in company, it shows that there are some problems. It can be internal or external problems. For example, the owner or the manager doesn’t give tha standard salary to the employees so it can be problems for both of them. It also can be problem if the employees don’t get good facility to work, but the tasks can be finishable if the facilities can support. The solutions for that problems are the owner or the manager should be understand what is the employee want, and the owner or the manager has to control all activities in their company.
- I will accept the employee who has physical defect but the skills and characteristics should be relevant with the criteria that the company want. The company search new employee to be certain relevant with the criteria that the company want, although the employee has physical defect, if the employee has criteria that the company want. I will accept him/her to work in my company.
- a) I will approve my senior’s family to be the employee in the company although the he/she has same result of the test with other applicant because it’s easy to manage or to train him/her how should he/she does in that position in the company
b) I don’t think so because the result of the test is same. If the others have better result rather than my senior’s family but i approve my senior’s family, it is nepotism.
THE ANSWERS ABOUT MANAGEMENT
THE ANSWERS ABOUT MANAGEMENT
- The division of labor
Information superiors and subordinates
Type of work performed
Grouping the work bagain
- Function : Planning, Organizing, Directing / Leading / Actuating, Controling
Element : SDM, Money, Materials, Machines, Methods, Market
- Line manager is a leader who has the authority line (line of authority), entitled and responsible directly realize the company’s goals.
Staff Manager is a leader who has the authority staff (staff authority) are only entitled to provide advice and services to facilitate the completion of tasks line manager.
- Authority (authority) is a tool or a legal basis for action. The authority also is the official power of a person to act and govern others.
• Delegation of authority is a key organizational dynamics.
• Du characteristic is the subordinate accept the authority of superiors, but at the same time employers will still have that authority.
• Centralized authority is when most of the power is still held by the leadership.
• Decentralization of authority is when a small portion of power held by the leadership, while most of the powers delegated to subordinates.
• The leader is someone who uses the authority and leadership to direct others and take responsibility for the work of the people in achieving a goal.
• Leadership is a leadership style influence subordinates, to cooperate and work effectively in accordance with his orders.
- system management
• Opened Management: The nature kepemimpinananya is fatherhood.
• Closed Management: management abilities only known
council leader or council manager.
• Open Management (Participation): The nature of open leadership and
known by his fellow employees and the leadership of the parties.
• Management of Democracy: Sifatkepemimpinannya based deliberation.
b. Areas of management
• Human Resource Management
• Expenditure Management
• Production Management
• Cost Management
• Marketing Management
• Office Management
• Risk Management
• Management By Objectives
• Quality Management (TQC & QCC)
c. Levels of management
• Top Manager / Top Manager
The responsibility of top managers is the overall performance and effectiveness of a company. Top managers who also have sex with other companies and governments.
• Managers Medium / Middle Manager
The manager in charge of implementing the strategy, policies and decisions made by the top-level manager or peak.
• First Line Manager / First-Line Manager
This lower level managers most monitoring or supervision of employees and ensure strategies, policies and decisions that have been taken by the top and middle managers have run.
d. organization chart
Chart that shows how the departments within the organization to coordinate together through a pathway of authority and responsibility. Depiction of a graph illustrating the working structure of an organizational structure.
- Management principles
• The division of labor (Division of work)
• The authority and responsibility (Authority and Responsibility)
• Discipline (Discipline)
• Unity of command (Unity of command)
• Unity briefing (Unity of direction)
• Prioritize interests above the interests of the organization itself
• Payroll clerks
b. definition of management
Management is the science and art of governing the use of human resources and other resources effectively and efficiently to achieve a certain goal.
- both a science that regulate the human element in an organization, in order to support the realization of the goal.
- The division of labor means that each box will represent the responsibility of an individual or sub-unit to a particular part of the organization’s workload.
• Information superiors and subordinates meaning organizational chart will show the command line or anyone who’s boss and subordinate.
• Type of work performed means that the description boxes show the organization of work tasks or areas of different responsibilities.
• Grouping working parts means the whole chart shows the basic division of the organization’s activities (on the basis of area, production, enterprise function, and others).
• The level of manager means a chart not only shows managers and subordinates as individuals, but also the overall management hierarchy. All the people who report to the same oang are at the same level of management, no matter where their appearance on the chart.
• Chairman of the organization means an organization chart menunjukansistem organizational leadership, what single leader (triangles) or collective leadership (cone).
- This is extremely good because the number of workers that many workers DAPT did his job after the field, and the leader must dapet supervise the workers were very much
- Competent leadership must maintain all the relationships in harmony so that the potential of the organization can be utilized optimally. The task of maintaining this relationship is very difficult, because the employees are heterogeneous background, which was brought into the organization.
- Organizational form lines, functional, line and staff, functional and staff
- The division of labor
Information superiors and subordinates
Type of work performed
Grouping working parts
Level managers
organizational leadership
- (n=5)
ΣR = 5 (5(25/2+5-1)= 100
- Highlights in each management function is planing (planning), because according to almost all experts plaing always exist in management functions
- Each place will represent a liability or sub-units to a particular part of the organization’s workload
- The division of labor
Authority and responsibility
Discipline
Unity of command
Unity briefing
Put the interests of the organization
- Personal receptive, Willingness to release, Willingness to let the other make-error, Willingness to trust subordinates, Willingness to build and use a wide control
- Centralization: can most of the power is still held by the leader. Centralization resulted in the leadership work, while the subordinate chill Decentralization: small skillful leaders held power, while large sebgaian power delegated to subordinates. With the decentralization of authority, leadres have plenty of time to plan, direct, and supervise subordinates.
AN EXPLORATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEARNING ORGANISATIONS AND THE RETENTION OF KNOWLEDGE WORKERS
AN EXPLORATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEARNING ORGANISATIONS AND THE RETENTION OF KNOWLEDGE WORKERS
ABSTRACT
Knowledge is an important asset and strategic resource which organisations need. Organisations face the difficulty that knowledge, which it seeks to harvest, is produced, held and applied by its employees, as knowledge workers (KWs). KWs are recognised as having different needs within their workplace which should be reflected in alternative HR practices. The job satisfaction (JS) literature indicates a relationship between high JS and low turnover intention (TI) which will reduce voluntary turnover (VT). It is posited that implementing learning organisation (LO) processes not only supports knowledge development, but also develops the employee-employer relationship in such a way as to increase JS and reduce turnover. This study examines the link between LO processes and KW retention. From a survey of KWs there is overall evidence of a relationship between LO disciplines and TI. All LO disciplines discussed correlate to at least one of the six JS facets measured and TI, of which the JS facets, Reward and Challenge, exerted the most significant influence. The paper concludes that careful management of LO processes could increase KW retention by recognising their specific differences and needs within the workforce.
INTRODUCTION
It is widely accepted that knowledge, coupled with the potential to transform that knowledge into improved actions, can provide organisations with a competitive advantage (Drucker 1964; De Geus 1997; Drucker 1998). Knowledge is always embodied in a person; carried by a person; created, augmented, or improved by a person; applied by a person; taught and passed on by a person; used or misused by a person. The shift to the knowledge society therefore puts the person in the center. (Drucker, 2001, p.287). Personal know-how and tacit knowledge are not stored within the organisation, but are held by the employees (Drucker 1999) whose use and application of this knowledge will differentiate one company from another. This has revolutionised the employee-employer relationship as knowledge workers (KWs)s can leave an organisation and remove a key asset (Drucker 1999). Retention of KWs is, therefore, vital for organisations operating in this knowledge era and great effort has been put into, firstly, developing systems which will increase the effective creation and utilisation of knowledge and, secondly, understanding the mechanisms and concepts involved in retaining KWs.
Turnover intention (TI), the last cognitive step employees make in the voluntary turnover (VT) process (Steel and Ovalle 1984) has been shown to have a strong and consistent relationship with VT (Mathieu and Zajac 1990; Tett and Meyer 1993) and is often the only antecedent directly effecting actual VT (Miller, Katerberg et al. 1979). The literature suggests that research should focus on the direct and indirect influences on TI rather than actual VT (Dalessio, Silverman et al. 1986). What interests HR Managers is establishing processes that increase job satisfaction (JS), thereby reducing the loss of valuable knowledge assets (Lee et al. 1999; Carsten and Spector 1987; Mobley et al. 1978).
We posit that the development of learning organisation (LO) capabilities should enable an organisation to support such efforts. LO models are attempting to harness a potential for change achieved through increased knowledge in order to achieve competitive advantage via transformational, not purely incremental, learning (McGill, Slocum et al. 1992). In order to do 5 this certain input elements are developed which, it is argued, will develop radically new outputs (Senge 1990; Garavan 1997; Pedler, Burgoyne et al. 1997). Not only does the concept include elements which are aimed at providing an organisation with the capability to learn, but these elements should also lower the level of VT in an organisation, by increasing employees’ level of JS.
EXPLANATION
This paper demonstrates that there is a relationship between the LO theory and the potential to retain KWs. This can be achieved by understanding how LOs elements are related to the JS facets of comfort, challenge, reward and relations with co-workers which are important in determining TI. These findings were not surprising given the literature; however, the way they were obtained was novel. This quantitative study gives empirical evidence of the relationships investigated. It emphasizes that HR Managers must recognise specific relationships between LO elements, JS facets and TI as they emerge for KWs.
Previously, most studies have taken an overall JS measure and considered the LO as a whole; by breaking down the elements it not only provides managers with a better insight into the way the LO disciplines impact KWs, but also allows better planning and management of the changes organisations will need to undergo when adopting the LO disciplines. The paper suggests that HR managers need to concentrate on the implementation of certain elements and that it is the interaction of such elements that will impact upon TI. Adopting such strategies should lead to increased retention of KWs and their knowledge. What will be of interest is to replicate this study for other types of workers in order to establish whether there are differences in the relationships between LO disciplines and JS facets for different groups. When the specific issues of reward, mental models, comfort and challenge are reflected upon for KWs it seems likely that other groups will be different.
REFERENCES
Argyris, C. and D. A. Schon (1996). Organizational Learning ll: Theory, Method and Practice. Massachusetts, USA, Addison-Wesley.
Blackman, D. (2004). ‘How Developing Mental Models Can Develop Stagnation’.
SAM/IFSAM VIIth World Congress in Göteborg, Sweden 2004.
Blackman, D.A. and Davison, G., (2004). ‘The Role of Mental Models in Sustaining Innovative Teams’. To be presented at: Continuous Innovation: Strategic Priorities for the Global Knowledge Economy, 5th International CiNET Conference, Sydney, 22-25, September.
Blackman, D. and Lee-Kelley, L. (2003). ‘The Role of Human Resource Development in preventing Organisational Stagnation’. International, Comparative and Cross-Cultural Dimensions of HRD, 5th International Conference on HRD Research And Practice Across Europe, University of Limerick, 27-29th May.
Bontis, N., M. M. Crossan, et al. (2002). “Managing An Organizational Learning System By Aligning Stocks And Flows.” Journal of Management Studies 39(4): 437-469.
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
Nama : Farhandhika Giswara
Class : ICT A
- 1. Explain the concepts of organizational boundaries and multiple organizational environments!
All business operate within a larger external environment consisting of everything outside an organization’s boundaries that might affect it. Because the external environment plays a major role in determining success or failure, managers must have a complete understanding of their environments so that they can operate and compete within it.
An organizational boundary is that which separates the organization from its environment. But while they were once relatively easy to identify, they are becoming harder to pin down. For one thing, organizations have multiple environments. Some environments are relatively general, such as prevailing economic conditions. Others are much more precise, such as the pricing policies of competitors.
- 2. Explain the importance of the economic environment to business and identify the factors used to evaluate the performance of an economic system!
The overall of the economic environment-the economic system in which they operate-affects organizations. The two key goals of U.S. system are economic growth and economic stability.
Economic growth : the pattern of short-term ups and downs in an economy constitute its business cycle. The main measure of growth in this cycle is aggregate output : the total quantity of goods and services produced by a system in given a period.
In a growing economy, two things happen : (i) output per capita-the quantity of goods and services provided by the system per person-goes up. (ii) people then benefit from a higher standard of living : they can buy more goods and services with their currency. To know how much standard of living is improving, we consider the following factors : (i) Gross National Product (GNP)– the total value of all goods and services produced by a national economy within a given period regardless of where the factors of production are located. (ii) Gross Domestic Product (GDP)-the total value of all goods and services produced within a given period by national economy through domestic factors of production. If GDP is going up, so is aggregate output;if aggregate output is going up, we have economic growth.
GDP is preferred for calculating national income and output. The real growth rate of a system is the growth rate of GDP adjusted for inflation and changes in the value of the country’s currency. Nominal GDP means GDP measured in current dollars, but we calculate real GDP when we calculate GDP to account for changes in currency values and prices changes. This adjusment accounts for purchasing power parity– the principle that exchange rates are set so that the prices of similiar products in different countries are about the same.
Productivity compares how much a system produce with the resources needed to produce it. Among the factors that can inhibit growth, two of the most important are balance of trade and the national debt. (i) balance of trade is the value of all products exported minus the value of imported products. (ii) national debt is the amount of money that a government owes its creditors.
(2) Economic stability : stability means that the amount of money available in an economic system and the quantity of goods and services produced in it are growing at about the same rate. There are two key threats to stability : inflation and unemployment. (i) inflation occurs when there are widespread price increases throughout an economic system. We measure inflation by measuring inflation by measuring price increases through such indexes as the consumer price index (CPI)-the prices of typical products purchased by consumer living in urban areas. (ii) unemployment is the level of joblessness among people actively seeking work. When it’s low, there’s a shortage of labor available. Meanwhile, producers also start producing less because they can’t sell as much. Aggregate output then decreases and we have recession-a period during which aggregate output, as measured by real GDP, declines. A prolonged and deep recession is a depression.
The government manages the economy through two sets of policies. (1) it manages the collection and spending of its revenues through fiscal policies (such as tax increases). (2) monetary policies focus on controlling the size of the nation’s money supply. Together, fiscal policy and monetary policy make up stabilization policy : government economic policy whose goal is smooth out fluctuations in output and unemployment and to stabilize prices.
- 3. Describe the technological environment and its role in business!
Technology refers to all the ways by which firms create value for their constituents, including human knowledge, work method, physical equipment, electronics and telecommunictions, and various processing system.
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a large-scale information system for organizing and managing a firm’s processes across product lines, department, and geographic locations. The ERP stores information on activities, coordinates internal operations with activities by outside suppliers and customers, and generates up to the minute financial reports.
- 4. Describe the political – legal environment and its role in business!
The political – legal environment reflects the relationship between business and government, usually in the form of government regulation. The legal system defines in part what an organization can and can’t do. Pro-or antibusiness sentiment in government can further influence business activity. During periods of probusiness sentiment, firms find it easier to compete and have fewer concerns about antitrust issues.
- 5. Describe the sociocultural environment and its role in business!
The sociocultural environment includes the customs, mores, values, and demographic characteristics of the society in which an organization functions. Sociocultural processes determine the goods and services, as well as the standards of business conduct, that a society values and accepts.
An especially critical element of the sociocultural environment is the practice of ethical conduct and social responsbility. The central issue today resolves around the fact that rapid changes in business relationship, organizational structures, and financial flows pose difficulties in keeping track of company’s financial position.
- 6. Identify emerging challenges and opportunities in the business environment!
Business today is more complex and demanding than ever before. Successful companies are responding to these challenges in new ways. They are redrawing traditional boundaries, joining together to develop new goods and services. They are focusing on their core competencies-the skills and resources with which they compete best and create the most value for owners.
The innovative ways in which companies respond emerging challenges and opportunities include outsourcing, viral marketting, and buiness process management.
PRINCIPLE OF ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE
I. ABSTRACT
Accounting is a comprehensive system for collecting, analyzing, and communicating financial information. It measures business performance and translates the findings into information for management decisions. Accountans also prepare performance reports for owners, the public, and regulatory agencies. In chapter “Understanding Principles of Accounting” we learn about explain the role of accountans and distinguish between the kinds of work done by public and private accountans, discuss the CPA Vision Project and explain how the CPA profession is changing, explain how the following concepts are used in accounting : the accounting equation and double-entry accounting, describe the three basic financial statements and show how they reflect the activity and financial condition of a business, explain the key standards and principles for reporting financial statements, show how computing key financial ratios can help in analyzing the financial strengths of a business, explain some of the special issues facing accountants at firms that do international business.
II. INTRODUCTION
At the head of the AIS is the controller, who manages a firm’s accounting activities. As chief accounting officer, the controller ensures that the AIS provides the reports and statements needed for planning, controlling, decision making, and other management activities. This range of activities requires different types of accounting specialists. In this section, we begin by distinguishing between the two main fields of accounting : financial and managerial. Then we discuss the different functions and activities of certified public accountants and private accountants.
III. EXPLANATION
- Explain the role of accountans, and distinguish between the kinds of work done by public and private accountants.
Accounting is a comperehensive system for collecting, analyzing, and communicating financial information. Bookkeeping is the recording of transactions. Ensuring consistent, dependable financial information is the job of the accounting information system (AIS) – an organizaed procedure for identifying, measuring, recording, and retaining financial informationso that it can be used in accounting statements and management reports. Users of such information include:
- Business Managers
- Employees and Unions
- Investors and Creditors
- Tax Authorities
- Government Regulatory Agencies
There are two main fields in accounting:
- Financial Accounting System
- Managerial Accounting
Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) offer accounting services to the public. Virtually all CPA firms, large or small, provide all or most of the following services :
1) Auditing : an audit examines a company’s AIS to determine whether financial reports reliably represent operations. It also ensures that the AIS follows generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
2) Tax Services : because tax laws are quite complex, tax services include tax planning as well as tax return preparation.
3) Management Advisory Services : as consultants, CPAs provide management advisory services ranging from personal financial planning to planning corporate mergers.
- 2. Discuss the CPA Vision Project, and explain how the CPA profession is changing
It has identified the following as the most important issues in the profession’s future :
- Success will depend on public perceptions of CPA abilities and roles
- CPAs must respond to market needs rather than rely on regulation to stay in business
- The market demands more high-value consulting and fewer auditing and accounting services.
- Specialization will be vital
- CPAs must be conversant in global strategies and business practices
- 3. Explain how the following concepts are used in accounting
Accountant use the following equation to balance the data pertaining to financial transactions : Assets = Liabilities + Owner’s equity
An Asset is any economic resource that is expected to benefit its owner (such as buildings, equipment, inventory, and payments due the company). A Liability is a debt that the firm owes to an outside party. Owner’s equity is the amount of money that owners would receive if they sold all of a company’s assets and paid all of its liabilities.
- 4. Describe the three basic financial statements
Accounting summarizes the results of a firm’s transactions and issues reports to help managers make informed decisions. The class of reports known as financial statements, are divided into three categories – balance sheets, income statements, and statements of cash flow.
- 5. Explain the key standards and principles for reporting financial statements
The following are three of the most important standard reporting practices and principles :
- Revenue recognition is the formal recording and reporting of revenues in the financial statements.
- The matching principle states that expenses will be matched with revenues to determine net income. It permits users to see how much net gain resulted from the assets that had to be given up in order to generate revenues.
- Because they have inside knowledge, management prepares additional information that explains certain events or transactions or discloses the circumstances behind certain results.
- Show how computing key financial ratios can help in analyzing the financial strengths of a business
Financial statements provide data that can be applied to ratios. Ratio are grouped into three major classifications :
- Solvency ratios estimate risk
- Profitability ratios measure potential earnings.
- Activity ratios reflect management’s use of assets by measuring the efficiency with which a firm uses its resources.
- 7. Explain some of the special issues facing accountants at firms that do international business
Accounting for foreign transactions involves special procesdures, such as translating the values of different countries currencies and accounting for the effects of exchange rates. As they are traded each day around the world, their values are determined by market forces – what buyers will to pay for them. The resulting values are foreign currency exchange rates, which can be fairly volatile.
IV. REFERENCES
- Business International Edition
- Microsoft Power Point
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