BP company employee training and development

Introduction The following report is concerned with the extent upon which an organization adopts a structured training process approach to the analysis, design, delivery and evaluation of its learning and development provision. The report starts with an understanding of the Bp Oil. co. Ltd. located in Hull. It also defines the learning and development theories, their applications and also includes the conclusions as well as the key recommendations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on BP company employee training and development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More An overview of BP Company The BP Company has its locations in the United Kingdom and it is one of the leading gas and Oil Company the entire Europe continent. Its headquarters are based at London. However, this report focuses on the BP Company that is located at Saltend which nears the Hull city. The BP Company plays a key role as far as the world’s chem ical industry is concerned. The company also exist as a centre for Technology as well as Research in the entire world. BP is a multinational company and operates in more than 80 countries across the globe. The initials†BP† was as a result of the organization’s founders, British Petroleum. Apart from being much involved into oil as well as gas manufacturing, the company is also concerned with the social corporate responsibilities. The company is also listed in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) as well as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). An understanding of learning and development theories, models and frameworks in BP The learning and development theories are part of the larger human resource management that is concerned with the policies, programs and practices which are designed to maximize both the organizational and personal goals. Employees training and development usually plays an important role of determining the profitability of an organization i.e. it ens ures that the employees perform well hence increasing the productivity (Gibb, 2008, 8). In BP Oil Company that is located in Hull, training is done on old and new members of staff as well. This enables them to adjust with regards to the changes that occur in the course of their duties. It enables them to be conversant with the technological changes that take place.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The methods that are employed in training the employees in BP oil company includes the following; job rotation, lectures, apprenticeships, role playing as well as simulation, audiovisual methods, internships among others. David Kolb who is an educational theorist came up with learning styles in the early 1980s. David Kold came up with important concepts regarding the learning styles and the concepts are applied in many organizations today. The theory focuses on four learning styles which are interpreted in a cycle. According to David Kolb, the learning process is in form of a cycle whereby, the trainee is expected to touch all the cycle’s bases. The cycles are composed of the concrete experience, observation and reflection, testing implications as well as the formation of the abstract concepts as well as generalisations. According to him, the concrete experience results to reflection as well as the observation. The reflection and observation are then incorporated into theoretical concepts i.e. the abstracts. The implications are then tested and experimented so that the corrective action can be taken. The testing as well as the experimentation also enables one to come up with new experiences. Kolb holds the view that learners usually prefers a particular learning style and that there are several factors that influences one to prefer a given learning style. The following diagram represents Kolb’s 4 cycles of learning process According to sparks an d Loucks (1998), there are usually five models with regards to employee’s development. The first model is the individually Guided Development in which the instructor devises the tasks that will be accomplished. The employees are vested with the role of coming up with the means of objectives attainment.By so doing, the mode; is believed to motivate them. The model is also important because it allows the instructors to attend to their own issues and hence creating some professionalism.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on BP company employee training and development specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The other model with regards to employee’s development is the observation as well as assessment. The employees are allowed to provide feedback regarding to the teachings that they receive. The employees learn as they observe the teachers’ teaching behaviour. The employees are also allowed to discuss amon g themselves and this enables them to exchange important ideas (Harrison, 2009, 67). The third model as far as employee’s development is concerned is the employee’s involvement in the development process. This helps to bring about the maximum individual development of the employees in the organization. The employees are assessed and areas that require to be improved are highlighted. The involvement is important as it enables the employees to acquire new skills. The fourth model of the employee’s development is training. In this model, the presenter devises the learning activities that should be carried out together with the effects that are associated with the learning activities. In this model, the employees are trained on the theoretical as well as the practical aspects as far as the organizational activities are concerned (Swart et.al. 2005, 89). The last model with regards to employee’s development is the inquiry. Inquiry is concerned with identifying the problems and collecting the data. Usually, the teacher prepares some questions so as to determine their personal teaching practices and to take actions where necessary. Application of learning and development theories, models and frameworks The learning and development theories, models and frameworks with regards to the BP Company are applied in analysis, design, delivery as well as the evaluation of the learning and development provision. Application of training and development theories in employee’s analysis Learning and development theories enable the management to effectively analyse the performance of the employees. The employee’s performance is thus measured against the set objectives. The trainees usually liaise with the senior leadership team of the organization so as to provide them with an insight concerning their progress. Essentially, the trainees are only required to have a positive attitude towards raining and also show their willingness to successfu lly complete the training and development programmes. They should also put extra effort to ensure that they capture all that they are taught. Training also requires the employees to be reliable and cooperative with their trainers.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The selection criteria of employees who requires training in BP co. is usually informal. The line managers in organizations usually select the employees that require to be trained. Also, the employee who feels that they need training so as to enhance their skills also forwards themselves. Employees are thus trained on the following areas; customer satisfaction, problem solving, communication skills as well as teamwork management and control. Each area of training is completely different from the other and therefore the teachers should ensure that they teach one area at a time so that the employees can understand well (Walton, 1999, 19). A SWOT analysis of the employees training is also conducted in order to determine the strength and weaknesses of the programme and whether the programme is facing any threats and has any opportunity in the market. This is usually done by the senior management team in the organization, the organization’s training specialists, and those employee s who are through with their training among others. The SWOT analysis team may also be comprised of a small group or an individual who has adequate knowledge concerning the organizational as well as employees’ training needs. The trainees are thus informed of the reasons why SWOT analysis is being carried out before the process begins. The strengths refers to the areas that employees are best in i.e. those aspects that the employees performs very well such as outgoing e.t.c. training however, the training team should not give a high priority to strengths (Stewart, 1999,15). Weaknesses entail the aspects which calls for employees require to be improved. For instance, poor customer service is a form of weakness which if not improved may lead to loss of potential customers in an organization. Opportunities as well as the threats are usually as a result of the outside factors. Opportunity entails the new openings that if utilized properly, could lead generate greater revenue to t he organization for instance, a new product may call for direct sales representatives so as to conduct the market promotion and hence the need for training. Threats entails the occurrences on the employees that could make it difficult for them to perform their duties effectively and efficiently e.g. the sales staff may find it difficult to promote the company’s product as a result of the emergence of a competitor who offers low prices for goods. Thus, unless they are trained, the sales staff may not be able to create sales for the business. Thus, the learning theory and development is very important as far as the employee’s analysis is concerned (Reid, Barrington, 2004, 24). Application of training and development theories and employees design in BP Company Employees design entails a program that is set so as to ensure that the employees training objectives are met. The training designs have indeed developed over the years in that it has began using the systematic mod els. For instance, the BP Company has been using the instructional systems design commonly referred to as ISD so as to enhance efficiency with regards to the training programmes. The training designs ensure that the employees are ready for the training and it also ensures that learning is carried on in a smooth manner. It also helps in monitoring and evaluating the employees training and development. Thus training design enables the employees to achieve their training goals. For the training design to be effective, the learning goals to be attained should be determined ahead of the training process (Bee, Bee, 2003, 89). The efficiency of an employee training program can be enhanced by the following; the trainers requires to define the training needs of the employees first i.e. they should approach the training with a clear mindset. The company’s needs should also be determined so as to identify the area that requires to be improved. There should be no hurry at all in determi ning the ideal training programmes. The training should also be done in a suitable place. Also; the organizational leaders should ensure that they don’t have much workload during the employees training period so as to support the employees where necessary. The trainers too requires to be very attentive in that should act promptly to support the employees in case of anything (Sparks, Loucks, 1998, 26). Training programs design is meant to assess whether the employees are able to use the resources available effectively and efficiently. If the employees fail in a program, it results in the waste of resources for the organization. The success of the program depends on the type of the trainees that are selected for training by the company and therefore the right people should be selected (Megginson Whitaker, 2007, 54). The training and development thus enables the creation of an effective program that ensures that the employees training objectives are met. The training programs at the BP Company ensure that the employee’s are able to study the materials. The programs also ensure that the employees are able to utilize the resources that they have in an efficient manner. The training programs help to motivate the employees during the training program. Application of training and development theories in training delivery The BP Company usually holds a question and answer session so as to explain to the employees the importance of training, the reason as to why they were chosen to be trained among others. Employees training are usually very expensive particularly in a case where the employee’s exits the organization after being trained and therefore, it is important for the managers to select carefully the employees to be trained. The trainers should ensure that the training programs’ objectives are in agreement with the employee’s training needs. The training goals should be set in such a way that the employees are able to know whe re they are today and where they should be in the near future. It is thus important for the senior management team to have meetings with the trainees regularly in order to ensure successful completion of the training program. In Bp Company, the human resource manager usually liaises with the employees regularly so as to determine as to whether the employees are well trained and to take up the corrective measures as fast as possible. This enables the employees who are being trained to become familiar with the training expectations and so they works extra hard so as top meet these expectations. The training delivery plays a key role of ensuring that the employees successfully complete their training programmes. The successful completion of the training by the employees ensures that the organization performs well. This is due to the fact that the employees are part and parcel of the organization and so their success reveals the organization’s success. Employees are usually uniqu e with distinct learning styles and therefore, the delivery methods helps to cater for the needs of each trainee. In the BP Company, the training delivery helps the trainees to know their responsibilities so as to work towards achieving their overall objectives. Application of training and development theories in evaluating the training programs An organization requires evaluating the training program that it has implemented so as to determine as to whether the program is successful. The organizations should consider whether the trainees have gained the required skills. If it turns out that the employees have not acquired them relevant skills, the organization should determine the reasons behind it. The senior leadership team at BP oil Company located in Hull for instance holds regular meetings with the employees so as to determine as to whether the employees fails to gain skills due to their personal inability or due to other factors such as unsuccessful training programs(McKenna , 1997,13). The BP Company usually collects all the data concerning the employees training so as to evaluate the employees learning programs effectively. Organizations should first collect all the important information regarding the training so as to clearly evaluate their employees learning programmes. The information that is collected should be quantified and measured in such aspects as output, cost, time-period, and value among others. The BP oil company in Hull also uses quantitative information in form of working habits, employee’s mindset, employee’s growth, compliance, initiativeness among others in evaluating the employees training programs. The company also evaluates the employees training programs so as to determine as to whether the training programs facilitated the employees to adapt to the working environment. Also, the company evaluates the employees training programs by way of observation as well as holding interviews with the employees. The company monito rs the behaviours of the employees all through the learning process so as to establish as to whether the employees are familiarizing themselves with the organization as well as their jobs (Marchington, Wilkinson, 2008, 34). The BP Company also gauges the employee’s reactions with regards to the training programmes. The feedback that the company obtains from the trainees is essential as it enables the company to know how the trainees perceive the training programs and hence to come up with measures aimed at improving the programs. The use of questionnaires as well as the meetings enables the organization to determine the trainees’ attitude towards the training programs. Conclusions based on analysis of theory and practice The learning and development theories, frameworks and concepts play a critical role as far as employees training programs are concerned in organizations. An effective training program is very important as it can facilitate the organization’s su ccess. An organization that is contemplating to formulate an employees learning strategy should consider the following issues i.e. the main customers and the value that they buy from the firm, the competitors and their products in the market, strengths as well as the weaknesses of the organization, the reason as to why the organization is intending to formulate the training strategy e.t.c. This answer with regards to the above issues enables an organization to determine its employees training needs. The human resource department of an organization plays as important role of assessing the training needs of the employees. The management can compare the employees existing skills or performance s against the expected skills.In case of any differences between the employee’s current skills and the anticipated ones, then the training should be recommended (Woodall Winstanley, 2000, 22). Recommendations The following are my recommendations; an organization should clearly identify th e employees who require to be trained so a not to waste monetary assets in training the employees and the same employees exits the organization as a result of finding employment opportunities elsewhere. Thus, it is important to find out where learning is required and an internal audit should be carried out so as to assist in pointing out the needy areas for training. The organizational leaders should maintain an open and trusted relationship with the employees so as to ensure that they share important information with regards to employees training and development. An organization should asses its current employees skills so as to determine it can provide the appropriate training programs to each and every trainee. The management should thus determine the future directions of the organization so as to determine the effectiveness of a learning program. Also, it is important for the senior leadership team to determine as to whether the company is committed in supporting the learning ef forts based on such aspects as financial aspects e.t.c. This will help to ensure that the training program to be developed does not fail following the lack of financial commitment. The management should also liaise with the trainees on regular basis so as to determine as to whether the training is in accordance with the set goals. Reference List Bee, F Bee, R., 2003.Learning needs analysis and evaluation: 2nd ed. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Gibb, S., 2008. Human resource development: process, practices and  Perspectives: 2nd ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Harrison, R., 2009.Learning and development 5th edn. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Marchington, M. Wilkinson, A., 2008. Human resource management at work:  4th edn. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. McKenna, E, P., 1997. When work doesn’t work anymore: women, work and  Identity. London: Simon Schuster. Megginson, D. Whitaker, V. , 2007.Continuing professional development, 2nd  Ed. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development Reid M. Barrington H., 2004. Human resource development: beyond training  Interventions. London: CIPD. Sparks, J. Loucks, H.R., 1998. Evaluating professional development. UK: Corwin Press. Stewart, J., 1999. Employee development practice. London: Financial Times Management. Swart, J. et al., 2005.Human resource development: strategy and tactics. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Walton, J., 1999. Strategic human resource development Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall Woodall J. Winstanley, D., 2000.Management Development: Strategy and  Practice. Hoboken: Blackwell. This essay on BP company employee training and development was written and submitted by user Shania S. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Audit in Podiary medicine Essays

Audit in Podiary medicine Essays Audit in Podiary medicine Paper Audit in Podiary medicine Paper Audit in Podiatry Medicine Auditing plays a very crucial role in organizations and not just in podiatry medicine. It is usually divided into two, where we have both internal and external audit. The role of internal audit is to â€Å"provide independent assurance that an organization’s risk management, governance and internal control processes are operating effectively† (Institute of Internal Auditors, 2010). Internal auditors deal with issues that are pivotal to the survival and success of the organization. They look at such things as the organizations standing in society, the way the organization treats its employees, growth and development, and the organization’s impact on the environment. External auditors however, look at such issues like financial risks and statements of the organization (Institute of Internal Auditors, 2010). National Institute for Clinical Excellence (2008) describes Clinical audit as a â€Å"process of improving quality that tries to find a way to improve patient care and outcomes through systematic review of care against overt criteria and the implementation of change†. To do this, aspects of the structure, processes and outcomes of care given are selected and systematically evaluated against a clear-cut criteria. Where indicated, changes are implemented at an individual, team or service level. When conducting a clinical audit, some key notes need to be observed. These are: Firstly, clinical audit projects are best conducted within a structured program. They should have effective leadership and emphasis on team work and support and participation by all staff. Organizations should also know the fact that this kind of exercise requires enough funding. Another thing that organizations need to recognize is that improvements in care resulting in clinical audits can increase costs. The barrier that is cited as the most common in clinical audits is the failure by the organizations to provide enough protected time for the healthcare teams. Organizations should make sure that their healthcare staffs learn the skills of clinical audit, and that those involved in organizing audit programs must consider various methods of making sure that health service staff provide their full participation. Nice says that another key note is that clinical audit is used to improve aspects of care and is used to confirm that the current medical practice being offered meets the expected level of performance. Participation of staff is important especially in selecting topics because this enables concerns about care to be reported and addressed. This is not always necessary, but it may play a big role in reducing resistance to change. Lastly, since what is important to the patients that are receiving care are significantly different from those of clinicians, service users should therefore be involved in the clinical audit process (2008). According to the Board of Podiatric Medicine (2010), one of the roles that audit plays in podiatry medicine is the role of ensuring that doctors of podiatric medicine (DPMs) show continued capability in their work. According to section 2496 of the State Medical Practice Act, requirements for continued competence are specified and it authorizes the Board of Podiatric Medicine to adopt regulations to ensure the â€Å"continuing skill of persons licensed to practice podiatric medicine†. Every time a renewal is done, a DPM must officially state that he agrees with one of the following under punishment of false swearing, subject to audit: that the DPM, is required to have passed an exam administered by the board within the past ten years. He is to have passed an exam administered by an approved specialty board within the past ten years, to have completed an approved residency within the past ten years. He is also  required to have current, suitable or competent status with an approved specialty board. He is to have passed Part 111 exam administered by the National Boards within the past ten years, be recertified by an approved specialty board, and have completed an extended course of study approved by the board within the past five years. He should have granting/renewing healthcare facility privileges within the past five years. Audit is also important in podiatry medicine, because it helps keep doctors accountable to their patients. Though this is not common practice as such, there is one surgeon, Ernest Amory Codman MD (1869-1940) who employed this rule in his profession. Despite the fact that he was one of the best doctors of his time, even he made mistakes. The only difference between him and his counterparts was that instead of hiding his mistakes, he publicized them and chose instead to learn from them. It is said that he â€Å"recorded diagnostic and treatment errors and linked these errors to outcome in order to make improvements† (Neuhauser, 2002). He resigned from Massachusetts General Hospital where he was a staff and started his own private clinic called the â€Å"End Result Hospital†. The difference between Codman’s hospital and the average healthcare organization is that he admitted his errors in Print and in public. He published this report so that patients would be the ones to decide whether they would be able to receive quality care from him, and the outcome of the care provided. He sent copies of these reports to major hospitals throughout the country, challenging them also to follow his prints, but this did not happen. They would say that they were not allowed to do so by their lawyers. Another role that audit plays in this field of podiatry medicine is to improve the practice of the doctors. The General Medical Council advises that it is mandatory for all doctors to take part in regular and systematic medical and clinical audit. They are advised also that when doing this, they should record their data honestly, so that they are able to get the proper results and be able to improve their practice, by for example, taking part in further training. The UK Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting, says that every registered practitioner is responsible for assisting the coordination of quality improvement initiatives such as clinical audits. Clinical audit is indeed an important exercise to carry out in one’s organization. According to the Royal Society of Psychiatrists (2009), the main reason that audits are done is to improve the service offered to users. They say that without some form of clinical audit, it is not easy for one to know whether they are doing the right thing or even practicing effectively. If you are not sure about this yourself, then it also becomes a difficult task to demonstrate to others that you are practicing effectively. Some of the benefits of clinical audit are audit helps to ensure that working relationships, communication and liaison between staff, staff and service users (the people who receive service from medical practitioners), and between agencies are improved.   It identifies and promotes good practice, and it may result to the improvement of service delivery and outcomes for users. Another benefit of doing clinical audits is that when performed, one is able to provide informat ion to show your users that your service is effective and pocket friendly, thus, ensure its development.   Audits provide opportunities for education and training. They help increase efficiency by ensuring that there is better use of the resources that are available. They also help in improving working relationships, communication among staff members, staff and service users and between agencies.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Audit is an avenue that medical professionals can use to retain the trust and respect of their patients especially in an era where the patients are becoming increasingly critical. This is one of the ways that they can establish and maintain confidence in the quality of clinical care that is being accorded to them. It is a quality improvement tool, and through it, one may be able to tell whether efforts are being made by medical professionals to give their patients high quality professional care. It is increasingly becoming an essential component of professional practice (Nice, 2008).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When done in the right way, audit has provided a way in which the quality of care that is given to patients by medical professionals can be assessed and reviewed objectively, within an approach that is supportive and developmental. All areas of professional practice have been subjected to questions and challenges due to changes in society. Clinical audit therefore provides medical practitioners with a way of responding that compares the care given to the best practice while keeping the central role of the clinical team in agreeing and implementing plans for change. Clinical governance provides a new challenge – â€Å"to take audit at its best and incorporate it within organization’s wide approaches to quality†. References Institute of Internal Auditors. (2010). What is an internal audit? Website, (online) Site: iia.org.uk/en/about_us/What_is_internal_audit.cfm Accessed 06/05/2010 NICE. (2008). Principles for Best Practice in Clinical Audit. Report (online). Site: nice.org.uk/media/796/23/BestPracticeClinicalAudit.pdf Accessed 12/4/2010 Royal Society of Psychiatrists. (2009). Clinical audit: what it is and what it isn’t. What is a Clinical Audit? Report (online).Site: rcpsych.ac.uk/pdf/clinauditChap1.pdf Accessed 06/05/2010 Surrey and Sussex NHS Trust. (2006). Audit Committee, Terms of Reference: Report (online) Site: surreyandsussex.nhs.uk/about_us/documents/tors/tor-auditcommittee.pdf Accessed 06/05/2010 Neuhauser, D. (2002). Heroes and martyrs of quality and safety: Ernest Amory Codman. Quality Safety Health Care, 11, 104-105 (online). Site: http://qshc.bmj.com/content/11/1/104.full Accessed 06/05/2010 Sackett, DL., Rosenberg, WMC., Gray, JAM., Richardson, WS. (1996). Evidence based medicine: What it is and what it isn’t. British Medical Journal, 312 ,71-72 (online). Site: http://ebnp.co.uk/What%20is%20EBP.htm Accessed 06/05/2010

HR article review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HR article review - Essay Example With an identified knowledge gap in the relationship between human resource practices and employees’ performance, the study investigated relationships between human resource management practices such as recruitment and selection, training and development, employees’ participation, reward, maintenance, and separation, and employees’ performance. A cross sectional survey design was implemented and data collected a sample of 285 participants, out of which 198 offered the required information. A scale was used to aid data collection and regression analysis used to investigate relationships between the different human resource management practices and employees’ performance. Results identified significance of some of the human resources practices but not all. Recruitment and selection, level of employee involvement in an organization, reward, and maintenance had significant effects on employee performance. Other practices identified insignificant relationships to employee performance. The factors were further correlated and the authors recommends continuous evaluation of the human resource management practices in an organization because of effects of time factor and the developed knowledge is significant and comprehensive to human resource management that deals with issues relating to organizations’ employees (Tabiu and Nura 247- 256). Tabiu, Abubakar, and Nura, Abubakar. â€Å"Assessing the effects of human resource management (HRM) practices on employee job performance: A study of USMANU Danfodiyo University Sokoto†. Journal of Busines Studies Quarterly 5.2 (2013), 247-259,

Add words to all the subtitles that is in yellow Essay

Add words to all the subtitles that is in yellow - Essay Example Seniors can benefit by learning to do online banking instead of standing in long lines at the bank. Seniors can also sign up for Medicare benefits and make changes online. It is also imperative to consider relative technical understanding of the older generation in regard to technology use as compared to the young people. This will serve as a critical parameter in assessing their level of commitment towards use of technology. The overall attitude and desire to use technology in their banking activities exhibit a uniform pattern. This is because most of the elderly persons are time conscious and physically vulnerable to fatigue from the traditional banking method. Adoption of online registration and subsequent use of such applications is likely to encourage the older generation to embrace it outside the limits of Medicare services and banking to many other activities like insurance services, online notification from various organizations for which they are membership and air travel bookings. The chosen sample size is representative of overall technology perception trend among the total population. The current research is the growing aging population in this country and the increasing need for access technology leadership believe there is a growing gap (Gilly, 2012). Resistance to computer use by specific age-related segments of the consumer population further fueled the computer literacy debate (Gilly, 2012). Defining the attitudes and perspectives of an aging population in regards to their understanding of accessing technology can address foundational problems. The study integrates an ethnographic qualitative view to change leadership perspective to foster improvements in technology for the aging populations (McMurtrey, 2011). The increasing technological advancement which surpasses the rate of familiarity with the aged population is one major challenge. This means a significant technology acquisition time lag which is

Hazardous Material Management and Hazard Communication Essay - 7

Hazardous Material Management and Hazard Communication - Essay Example By names, it means the names of both the hazardous chemicals and the other chemicals perceived as not hazardous (McLeod 2009). The availability of spread sheet that has more information such as chemicals name, manufacturer’s name, room number stored and availability of the material safety data sheet that should be available to all the employees when needed. The inventory would be very current if also the chemicals with a higher flammability level are well indicated in the inventory well. The inventories should have spaces for recording the chemicals physical properties it contains, health hazards it can cause this helps to be able to choose the kind of protective wear to use on the chemical( Hoboken 2009). The inventory would be said to be current if it includes the manufacturer’s emergency number. This emergency number helps in getting back to the manufacturer in case of a chemical spill or an unusual reaction of the hazardous chemical. The inventory would be current if it is checked regularly and a different person from the same department crosschecks again. In conclusion, the inventory should be very much current with all the said things above-mentioned (McLeod

Dislike of mathematics amongst secondary students

Dislike of mathematics amongst secondary students DISLIKE OF MATHEMATICS AMONGST SECONDARY STUDENTS 1. INTRODUCTION Why do kids, students and adults seem dislike mathematics? It is quite common for small children to say â€Å"I love numbers†. Do they really know exactly what mathematics is? We always see small children counting numbers from 1 to 10, even sing a song make up from the numbers. But what happen to these children as they grow up? What make them to change their mind to dislike mathematics? Some will roll their eyes or let out a sigh. They give so many reasons, such as â€Å"Its too hard,† â€Å"Im not good at math,† or â€Å"why do I even need Mathematics?† Where does this attitude come from? After being a Mathematics teacher for about 3 years, I have discovered that almost all students in Brunei Darussalam claimed to â€Å"hate mathematics†. This can be seen from their attitude in the class, interaction with the teacher and also the students progress report. The very much sad thing is that students just want to pass the examination without understanding why they have to study mathematics. Still mathematics has the highest failure rate of any subject at school-leaving level. Why does mathematics seem to inspire fear and intimidation in students in secondary schools and even when they are in the higher level. In my childhood, I still remember is that I was not taught how to study mathematics. Like any subject the study of mathematics becomes a pile of information. But if you are taught how to study mathematics then you will never find this problematic. Mathematics cannot be taught one way. Students always stick to the method being taught without seeking the alternative way of the working. These kinds of attitude make mathematics become â€Å"strict to the rule method†. One funny culture about students in Brunei, it is an â€Å"honor† for them to admit they are not good in mathematics, but who would ever admit to NOT being able to Read? This has been passing from generations. Math is an essential subject to maintain our modern way of life. Without mathematics, not much would be possible. So why is it acceptable to become a failure at mathematics? They believe that mathematics only belongs to gifted or genius who wants to become a mathematics teacher, doctor, professor, engineer and lots more. 2. Real Scenario in Brunei From my previous experience as a Mathematics teacher, students in Brunei especially weak classes, tend to show their unwillingness at the start of the lesson. Students still keep wandering around during teacher presence in front .Students are expected to be ready for lesson the moment the teacher steps into the classroom. Textbooks, exercise books and any materials as required by the teacher are to be placed on their desks. Action is usually taken on persistent students who always forget to bring their learning materials, the purpose, which is to teach and instill self-responsibility in the students. However, there are also some students who do not care about the warning given by the class teacher. First task when teaching a class is to correctly understand the students background, their expectations from the course and their willingness to do the required efforts. May be this can be done by conducting a survey or simply just ask them personally. At the beginning of the lesson, for upper secondary level, students will find the topics quite new for them. It is quite a common scene to see students lost their direction at the beginning of the lesson. It is the job of the teacher to interact with them and try to relate the topics to everyday life. What I can say here, the level of ignorance of the students very high towards the subject Mathematics. Students who show interest in studying Mathematics at the beginning of the lesson may also somehow lost their direction as the teacher goes deeper into the subject matter. Students are also required to submit their homework on time. Usually, I begin the lesson by reviewing the homework that has been set during the previous class. Some students do not submit due to difficulties that the students have. Generally teachers are very strict with deadlines for the submission of homework. Overall, there is always a sentiment of anti-mathematics in every class that I taught which can be seen from all aspects of the students. In the next pages, I will explain more on the factors that rise up this critical issue of mathematics. 3. Sign of having problems in Mathematics amongst the students A student with problems in mathematics may shows one or more of the following below: unable to recall basic mathematics rules, or formulas even the teachers have explain repeatedly having difficulties in understanding mathematical work and spend long time in learning simple topics Very low esteem which can seen from their handwriting which is hard to read. Have difficulties in remembering previously encountered questions which have been attempted many times before. Have problem in recall what have been taught in previous class Not confident, hesitate and forget what he or she is doing in the middle of a math problem Have difficulty with the language of mathematics and easily being confused. The students do not know when/how to use the correct theorem/formula for mathematical problems. Easily lost direction or concentration whiles the teachers teaching in front. Have difficulty explaining and communicating about mathematics, including asking and answering questions. Escape or absent from class, late submitting homework and fail in mathematics are one of the most common behavior of problematic students towards mathematics. 4. The factors that make students dislike Mathematics A. Sequential in nature. Mathematics is sequential in nature. That means that when we learn one concept , knowledge or skill, it will be needed in another topics. This is basically true when students who have not mastered a preceding skill have difficulty in learning new work. Students might feel discourage by this continuous learning and exhausted throughout the process. Obviously, students who have strong basic knowledge will be able to do mathematics problem much faster compare to students who are not. Students find math to be hard is because it is usually not taught correctly, and it is usually not studied correctly. Mathematics needs to be learned step by step, topic by topic. If a student does not completely understand a particular topic, there is no point in moving on to a harder topic that requires knowledge of the first topic. It is typical in Brunei, there is very little time to review back the old materials in school. It is up to the student to recognize if the students do not fully understand a particular topic, and to go for tutoring. In most cases, this doesnt happen, and the student gradually becomes more and more confused and discouraged. Another problem is that students are promoted from one grade to the next, even if they are not at all close to being ready for the next grades work. There are a variety of reasons why this happens, none of which are the focus of this editorial, but Ill just say that until we stop pushing kids into classes that they arent ready for, the education crisis in this country will continue and get worse. Mathematics is a subject that requires a tremendous amount of thought and patience. Weak students typically rush through their mathematics homework, and declare it to be done, The students not even check the working properly and not even thought of the answer. The following day in school, the teacher will review the homework very quickly, and then just move on to a new topic. B. One answer concept Mathematics is an exact subject. Normally, students in Brunei will take 8 subjects during their secondary level and Mathematics is the only subject that requires long working but yet only one acceptable answer. Many students have trouble with the exactness of mathematics. For them, what is wrong is always wrong and vice versa. Students always thought that â€Å"Doing mathematics means getting one right answer,† â€Å"Mathematics is a collection of rules, theorems, and procedures to be memorized,† and â€Å"Teaching math involves working through the textbook page by page and assigning drill exercises from the workbooks or worksheets for practice.† As a result of belief in these myths, many students are convinced that they cannot do math. Students are very fragile at this stage, they rather concentrate on the subjects that not required drilling like mathematics and give up mathematics. But the students do not know that mathematics can become more interesting as they go further, mathematics is not just getting the right answer. C. Math Phobia â€Å"Im not good at math†, â€Å"I hate math† or â€Å"math is too hard† are common phrases heard by teachers and parents. One of the symptom is s/he does not want to do any class work. When the task is easy, s/he tries to do the work but never completes the assignment. Sometimes, s/he gets frustrated and says that s/he is stupid because she just doesnt understand math. Anxious individuals may avoid mathematics classes, may be more likely to have negative attitudes toward mathematic related activities. This type of students seems to suffer from math phobia also known as math anxiety. Mathematics anxiety means the students fear that one wont be able to do the math or the fear that its too hard or the fear of failure. The students had very negative experiences in her mathematics class that the students failed before. May be the previous teachers might have had ignored this type of students that lead to lack self-efficacy. D. Difficulty Transferring Knowledge(connection with reality) One very common difficulty experienced by students with mathematics problems is the inability to connect mathematics concept to the real world. In school, this can obviously be seen when we give questions which involve loss and profit gain of purchasing products to the students. Only few of them can deeply understand what is meant by loss and gain. The fear of mathematics makes them uneasy to relate mathematics problems to their everyday life. In ‘O level Mathematics Examination, it is about 20 percent in paper 1 dealing with everyday life mathematics and the students always fall into these tricky questions. They spend long time in solving this and sometime to a halt. Students do not believe that directly proportion rules can be used in our life when buying goods. What I try to say here is that, the students do not trust the power of mathematics and how mathematics can benefit us. Students usually are not aware that mathematics is everywhere in this world and it is unavoidable for them to meet Math problems in the real world. Whenever they go to the shop, students normally do not bring the knowledge they have gain in school with them. They thought that mathematics exist only in school just for the sake of the examination. E. Less motivation The last but not least, students have less motivation when come to studying mathematics. The word â€Å"lazy† is very common given to the students who do not submit their homework. Lengthy working and long formula become a burden for them. Not all students who are weak in mathematics because they have problems with the subject but due to lack of motivation from the teachers and also the parent. It is quite common to encounter students who do badly in mathematics but excel in other subjects. In some case, the students do give up in studying mathematics and even choose not to involve in the fields that required Mathematics. There are also students who just escape the mathematics class just to avoid this important subject. Less motivation will lead the students to less confident in doing mathematics problem and as the days goes by, they see mathematics as a subject that make the feel down. F. Incomplete Understanding of the Language of Math For some students, dislike of mathematics is driven by problems with language. These students may also experience difficulty with reading, writing, and speaking. In mathematics, however, their language problem is due to the topics itself example matrices, simultaneous equation, vector and some of which they hear nowhere outside of the math classroom. These students have difficulty understanding written or verbal directions or explanations. 5. How to overcome students who dislike mathematics a) Teach basic concepts using concrete objects. Let students learn mathematics in which they can feel and experience themselves. Learning probability will become more interesting by allowing them using marbles, cards and colored balls. Students will tend to remember more which help them to understand the concept easily. b) Provide specialized materials. As a teacher it is important to use correct materials for the students. For example, using graph paper will help the students in drawing the axes and plotting the points. Scrap paper can also be used to encourage the students to do working for every mathematics problems. Teachers should aware the students to be more organize in doing there working and emphasize the important of discipline in mathematics. c) Practice student-centered. Ask the students the procedures they would like to use when solving a problem, and guide each procedure for them. The interaction between students and teacher will somehow help in the learning process. By doing this also, the teachers will know the weakness, the strength of each of the students and the confusion they leading to. d) Use cooperative math-problem-solving activities. To overcome dislike of mathematics, teachers should give opportunities for students to work in groups when solving math problems. The students will gradually gain their confidence by sharing their thinking aloud as they solve problems. e) Provide time for reviewingtheir work. Teachers must emphasize that completing math assignments is a process. Encourage students to become comfortable reviewing their work, making changes, or asking questions when they are unsure of their answers. f) Connect mathematics concept to the real-world. Teacher must understand that mathematics is always a problem for students. By connecting mathematics problems to the everyday used will be very helpful to the students. Students can easily digest the mathematics concept and even apply to themselves. For example in studying statistics, we can ask the students to make a case study of population in Brunei or how to use percentages to understand the price of a jacket on sale at the mall or the amount of their allowance spent on snacks. 6. My conclusion From my own understanding, with the widespread dislike of mathematics, it is not the job of educator only but also the society on changing these negative attitudes. I suggest that teachers should focus on improving the classroom affective environment and mentally motivate the students to foster positive attitudes in mathematics. As a parent, they must understand that gaining knowledge is not only at school but also need to be cultivated at home.

Collective Strategy Development Essay

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John Wiley ; Sons is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Strategic Management Journal. http://www. jstor. org Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 9, 375-385 (1988) AND COMPETITIVE MATCHING COLLECTIVE RUDIK. F. BRESSER Baruch College, The City University of New York,New York,New York,U. S. A. This paper discusses possibilities for combining collective and competitive strategies. Combinations can be problematic if competitive intentions are disclosed through the information links resultingfrom collective strategies. After describing how different collective strategies may lead to an uncontrolled disclosure of strategic information, a typology evaluating the feasibility of strategy combinations is developed. The typology’s implications for research and managerial practice are discussed. A recent development in the business policy literature is a concern with strategic planning at a collective level. Collective strategies are attempts by sets of organizations to manage their mutural interdependence and the system dynamics of their interorganizational environments (Astley and Fombrun, 1983a; Bresser and Harl, 1986; Thorelli, 1986). In managing interdependent and dynamic environments, collective strategies can be reactive by absorbing movement within an environment, or they can be proactive by forestalling the unpredictable behavior of other organizations. Firms can use collective strategies in combination with competitive strategies. This paper discusses the extent to which such combinations are feasible. MANAGING INTERDEPENDENCE Organizational interdependence exists whenever one organization does not entirely control all the conditions necessary for achieving a desired action or outcome (Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978). In addition to environmental movement, interdependence can cause problems of decision-making uncertainty for focal organizations. This occurs because the success of activities chosen by any interdependent organization depends on the activities selected by other organizations. Consequently, an interdependent organization may need to consider other organizations’ actions, and it faces decision-making uncertainty if it is aware of its interdependence and has difficulties in controlling the activities of other organizations. Decision-making uncertainty is most likely to be perceived among horizontally interdependent organizations operating in oligopolistic markets. Under these conditions all organizations are aware of their mutual interdependence and have considerable difficulties in controlling each other’s behaviors as they compete with one another for market share (Fombrun and Astley, 1982; Pennings, 1981). Business firms can use both competitive and collective strategies to manage their interdependencies. The literature distinguishes three major dimensions of competitive strategies: price, promotional, and product competition strategies (Khandwalla, 1981). Competitive strategies manage interdependence successfully if they result in advantageous competitive positions, thus forestalling interdependence and reducing decisionmaking uncertainty (Pennings, 1981). For Received 20 October 1986 Revised 21 July 1987 ? 0143-2095/88/040375-11$05. 50 1988 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 376 R. K. F. Bresser Table 1. Coordination mechanisms for collective strategies Coordination mechanism Regulative legislation Contracting Mergers Joint ventures Interlocking directorates Trade associations Collusion and industry leadership Degree of formalization High High High High Moderate Moderate Low instance, product differentiation can create a protected domain for a focal organization with boundaries hard to penetrate by other competitors. However, in complex business environments interdependencies often are obscured from focal organizations so that individually coping with the dynamics of these environments becomes problematic (Emery and Trist, 1965). In these situations, collective strategies can supplement competitive strategies as a means of coping with the variation of interdependent environments (Astley and Fombrun, 1983a). CONCEPTIONS STRATEGY OF COLLECTIVE CONFLICTS BETWEEN COMPETITIVE AND COLLECTIVE STRATEGIES Bresser and Harl (1986) described the dynamic relationship between competitive and collective strategies as being composed of two strategic perspectives that are dialectically related to one another. For instance, when competitive strategies prevail within a market the resulting turbulence and decision-making uncertainty eventually will encourage organizations to use more collective forms of strategizing. However, when collective strategies prevail and create dysfunctions (such as reductions in strategic flexibility, amplified impacts of external disturbances, and attraction of innovative outsiders) which also cause environmental movement and decision-making uncertainty, competitive strategies may again be considered the more attractive methods for coping with interdependence. The dialectical relationship between competitive and collective strategies implies that organizations should remain alert to potential dysfunctions developing from their operating strategies, and that they should maintain a capacity to alternate between more collective and more competitive forms of strategizing (Bresser and Harl, 1986). However, some conflicts between competitive and collective strategies can be anticipated and should be considered before a particular strategy mix is adopted. This paper evaluates combinations between competitive and collective strategies in light of a potential conflict arising from the need to both share and conceal strategic information. Whenever organizations attempt to use both types of strategies simultaneously, i. e. competitive The term ‘collective strategy’ has been defined in two different ways (Astley and Fombrun, 1983a; Bresser and Harl, 1986). On the one hand a collective strategy is defined as a larger interorganizational network which emerges unintendedly. As individual organizational actions aggregate into interorganizational networks an unintended collective strategy emerges that none of the participating organizations could have foreseen. Developments in the telecommunications industry exemplify the emergence of an unintended collective strategy (Astley and Fombrun, 1983b). On the other hand a collective strategy can also be voluntary and intended. Such a collective strategy results from the purposive collaboration of organizations attempting to manage their mutual interdependence. This paper focuses on voluntary collective strategies, developed by oligopolists to manage their horizontal interdependence. Voluntary collective strategies can be based on different coordination mechanisms. Table 1 presents these mechanisms using degree of formalization as the distinguishing criterion (Bresser and Harl, 1986; Fombrun and Astley, 1983). Regulative legislation (resulting from collective lobbying) and contracting represent coordination forms with high levels of formality. Collective strategies based on interlocking directorates or trade associations are characterized by moderate levels of formality, and collusion as well as industry leadership can be classified as informal coordination mechanisms. Matching Collective and Competitive Strategies strategies in one business area and collective strategies in others, a potential for contradictory activities or conflicts arises, because the major advantage of a collective strategy is a major disadvantage from a competitive point of view. With regard to managing interdependence the major advantage of a collective strategy is that it establishes linkages and communication channels through which information about other interdependent organizations can be obtained. Through this information the behavior of other organizations becomes predictable. This makes an environment more stable and less threatening for a focal organization, and thus reduces decision-making uncertainty (Fombrun and Astley, 1983; Pennings, 1981). Precisely this advantage of a collective strategy (stability through predictability) is a disadvantage if organizations wish to use competitive strategies to further their growth goals. Successful competitive strategies require that organizations maintain the secrecy of their strategic plans to forestall imitation (Starbuck and Nystrom, 1981). However, this need for secrecy is jeopardized if interorganizational linkages and communication channels resulting from a collective strategy allow organizations to predict and anticipate one another’s moves in areas where they wish to compete. Thus, organizations face a risk of uncontrolled information disclosure when using collective and competitive strategies side by side. Risk of uncontrolled information disclosure is defined as the likelihood that a disclosure of strategically sensitive information will occur, where the process of disclosue is uncontrolled from a focal organization’s point of view and damaging to its competitive plans. The potential damage resulting from an uncontrolled disclosure of information is particularly salient in oligopolies (the dominant US market structure) because in such markets ompetitors typically are in a position to use sensitive information to exert control over each other’s fates (Pennings, 1981; Scherer, 1980). Evaluating the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure emanating from collective strategies is important for two reasons. On the one hand, such information disclosure tends to render competitive strategic intentions ineffective. On the other hand uncontrolle d information disclosure tends to aggravate problems of strategic inflexibility. Bresser (1984) and Bresser and 377 Harl (1986) argued that organizations adopting collective strategies limit their strategic flexibility because, by agreeing to abstain from certain types of competitive behaviors such as price competition, they curtail their repertoire of available strategic tools. When considering the problem of uncontrolled information disclosure, losses in strategic flexibility resulting from a collective strategy may be even more encompassing. If the managements of organizations realize that the communication links provided by a collective strategy allow for an uncontrolled disclosure of strategic plans, they may be reluctant to pursue competitive strategies even in those business areas that are not subject to a collective agreement. PROCESSES IMPAIRING SECRECY Since potential combinations between competitive and collective strategies face the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure resulting from collective strategy links, they raise the issue of strategic fit (Venkatraman and Camillus, 1984). In order to minimize problems of uncontrolled information disclosure it is necessary to obtain some degree of compatability among possible strategy combinations. Attaining a fit between competitive and collective strategies requires first of all an appreciation of the processes that may impair an organization’s desire to maintain the secrecy of its strategic plans. Table 2 summarizes for each type of collective strategy the particular processes that may lead to an impairment of secrecy, and it assesses the risk of uncontrolled disclosure of information. If collective lobbying leads to protective regulation the activities of regulators may impede competition (Pennings, 1981). Regulators often collect and disseminate a wealth of information about regulated industries. Through these information flows, regulators can allow competitors to forecast each other’s moves even in areas that are not subject to regulatory control. For example, Litwak and Rothman (1970) suggested that the Federal Communications Commission had provided the broadcasting networks with so much information about the broadcasting industry that the networks were able to anticipate their competitors’ behavior and, as a result, effective competition was not possible. The autonomy of 378 R. K. F. Bresser Table 2. Processes impairing secrecy and risk of uncontrolled disclosure by type of collective strategy Type of collective strategy Impairment of secrecy Risk of uncontrolled information disclosure Regulative legislation Contracting Mergers Joint ventures Interlocking directorates Trade associations Collusion and industry leadership Regulators collecting and disseminating information Contracts contingent on information Dissatisfied employees (defectors) Mediation of information Passing on of information due to multiple and indirect communication links Distribution of trade statistics Informal communication High Low Low Intermediate High Intermediate Low regulatory agencies in their information-gathering activities results in high risk of uncontrolled disclosure. Contracting refers to the negotiation of formal agreements among organizations (Thompson, 1967). In general, the information exchanged as a result of contractual negotiations will be focused, avoiding the disclosure of sensitive competitive aspects. However, some contracts such as bank loans may require that focal organizations provide extensive information about their competitive plans. This raises the possibility that information leaks within the information-seeking institution will be exploited by a focal organization’s competitors. Since he disclosure of sensitive information in the context of contractual negotiations is not very common, the risk of uncontrolled disclosure can be considered low. Mergers and joint ventures are two special forms of contracting. Mergers, with the exception of hostile takeovers, are contracts through which two or more organizations comneunder common control. Joint ventures can be viewed as partial mergers which preserve the autonomy of the org anizations involved. Often mergers are accompanied by a host of administrative problems (Lubatkin, 1983). For example, departments and operations must be consolidated and initial inequities in compensation have to be resolved. If such administrative problems remain unresolved, inefficiencies will result, as well as employee dissatisfaction and turnover. The merger between Kennecott Corp. and Carborundum Co. is a case in point (Business Week, 1983). The two companies’ managements quarreled over administrative problems and, after a short period of infighting, most Carborundum executives jumped ship. There is danger that defecting executives may disclose strategically sensitive information concerning the merging firms when they join other organizations within the same industry. However, the risk of uncontrolled disclosure resulting from a merger is considered low. This is because senior executives leaving merging firms often receive generous severance compensation for which they promise continued confidentiality. Additionally, since merging firms often develop new strategic concepts, the information available to departing executives is likely to be quickly obsolete. If a collective strategy is based on a joint venture the risk of uncontrolled disclosure is considered to be at intermediate levels. Although the cooperation provided by a joint venture is restricted to specific, mutual business problems, the regularity and longevity of interactions typical of a joint venture may allow participating firms to improve their intelligence about each other’s competitive strategies. For example, firm representatives engaged in joint ventures can develop friendship ties where they feel free to discuss more general strategic issues. During such discussions sensitive information may be disclosed inadvertently. Interlocking directorates result from organizational co-optation activities whereby organizations appoint external representatives to their Matching Collective and Comnpetitive Strategies boards of directors. Since many directors sit on the boards of two or more companies (Bunting and Barbour, 1971), interlocking directorates emerge which can be used as instruments for managing interdependence and uncertainty by encouiraging cooperation and the formation of collective strategies (Aldrich, 1979; Pennings, 1980, 1981). However, the risk of uncontrolled disclosure is high because the scope and the intensity of intra-industry communication facilitated by direct and indirect interlocks is beyond the control of individual organizations. Therefore, it is very difficult for individual organizations to conceal their competitive strategies when their directors have membership in a network of interlocking directorates. Trade associations provide member organizations with special services at low costs. For instance, they may distribute trade statistics, provide credit references on customers, offer legal and technical advice, or help collect bills (Olson, 1965). In addition, associations can aid in removing decision-making uncertainty resulting from interdependence. Since trade statistics generally include prices quoted in recent sales transactions as well as cost developments, member organizations have the opportunity to coordinate their market behavior and thus implement a collective strategy (Scherer, 1980). The dissemination of statistical information provided by trade associations may impair the desire of focal organizations to maintain secrecy their competitive strategies. While firms regiarding are often in favor of price and cost reporting activities, they run the risk that other sensitive information concerning their competitive strategies may also be disclosed. Trade associations sometimes analyze industry trends regarding product development or marketing strategies, and thus allow competitors to anticipate each others’ moves. A focal organization may have little control over the kind of information being disseminated because trade associations are often dominated by a few powerful organizations. Olson (1965) described the National Association of Manufacturers as largely financed and controlled by a few big corporations, although the association had several thousand members. There is the possibility that such domination leads to activities favoring a handful of member organizations rather than the majority. In addition, the selective services provided by 379 ssociations function as subtle forms of coercion restricting a firm’s flexibility. The exclusivity and low costs of legal, financial or other services operate as strong incentives for joining or remaining within an association even if a focal organization disagrees with some association activities. Thus, when using trade association activities to enforce a collective strategy, a moderate risk of uncontrolled information disclosure is likely. The term collusion denotes express agreements, open or secret, that have the purpose of restricting competition. Most collusive agreements are outlawed in the United States because they encourage monopolistic pricing behavior. Nevertheless, collusive practices are widespread and often effective means of managing interdependence. Their attraction is associated with their high degree of informality which makes it difficult for outsiders to detect conspiratorial agreements (Khandwalla, 1981). Industry leadership is a tacit version of collusion based on imitation. It describes a situation where a specific firm is the acknowledged leader in setting prices, and other firms follow. As opposed to collusive agreements, industry leadership has the advantage of not being contrary to the antitrust laws. It is considered legal as long as it is grounded on voluntary imitation rather than explicit communication (White, 1981). Since collective strategies mediated by collusive agreements are based on informal communication and, in the case of industry leadership, on imitation, the risk of uncontrolled disclosure is low. Colluding firms will share information only in areas where they wish to cooperate while maintaining the secrecy of their competitive plans. The above risk assessments imply that uncontrolled information disclosure is always damaging for the success of a focal organization’s competitive plans. While the dynamics of oligopolistic markets would tend to support this assumption (Scherer, 1980), the degree of damage resulting from uncontrolled disclosure can be viewed as contingent upon several situational variables. Specifically, four situational variables appear important: breadth of information disclosure, quality of information disclosure, asymmetry in interdependence, and event control. These situational variables can facilitate the combination of a ‘high-risk’ collective strategy with competitive strategies, and they can make the adoption of a 380 Matching Collective and Competitive Strategies dimensions. This is relevant for evaluating strategy combinations because an uncontrolled disclosure of information is less troublesome if competitors are unable to capitalize on the information due to their inability to respond rapidly to a focal organization’s competitive moves. Table 3 presents a typology of possible combinations between competitive and collective strategies, and evaluates their feasibility from the perspective of individual firms. Generally, a strategy combination is considered feasible if (1) the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure is low. Feasibility evaluations also take into account (2) the degree of competitor responsiveness typical for a competitive dimension, and (3) typical characteristics of specific collective strategies, namely the number of participants involved and the stability of an agreement. Considering typical characteristics of collective strategies is important because such characteristics can modify feasibility ratings that are based on assessments of the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure and the level of competitor responsiveness. Situational variables, described above, may mediate the damage resulting from uncontrolled information disclosure but do not lend themselves to generalizations and therefore are excluded from considerations leading to the typology shown in Table 3. However, in using the typology, situational variables will have to be taken into account, as is shown in the implications section. In Table 3 the competitive dimensions pricing, advertising and promotion, and product innovation are distinguished for each of the seven collective strategies summarized in Tables 1 and 2. Within each of these competitive dimensions, organizations can relate to each other by using either competitive or collective strategies. Thus, six strategy combinations are possible for each type of collective strategy,’ leading to a total of 42 combinations presented in Table 3. I Since only two values are possible within each competitive dimension, and since the extreme cases (competitive or collective strategies across all competitive dimensions) are irrelevant as they do not represent combinations of collective and competitive strategies, the total number of strategy combinations C for each type of collective strategy can be calculated by collective strategy with low or moderate risks of uncontrolled disclosure problematic. For example, the potential damage resulting from uncontrolled disclosure may be considered low, and thus can facilitate the adoption of a collective strategy where the risk of uncontrolled disclosure is high, when the competitive information that could be disclosed is not very encompassing (breadth of information disclosure), or of questionable quality regarding its reliability and/or timeliness (Adams, 1976; Smart and Vertinsky, 1977). Similarly, if interdependence is asymmetric, with some organizations being in a relatively powerful competitive position (e. . due to their size), uncontrolled information disclosure may not be very troublesome for these powerful organizations because they know that other competitors lack the resources to exploit the disclosed information (Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978). Likewise, damage may be low and containable, if organizations can rapidly and effectively counteract events leading to uncontrolled information disclosure, for example, by changing perso nnel or the content of a collective strategy (Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978). Implications for evaluating the feasibility of strategy combinations resulting from the role of situational variables are discussed below. COMBINATIONS OF COMPETITIVE AND COLLECTIVE STRATEGIES Apart from an understanding of how collective strategies can lead to uncontrolled information disclosure, an assessment of what types of combinations between competitive and collective strategies are feasible requires that different competitive strategies also be distinguished. Three distinguishing dimensions of competitive strategies are pricing, advertising and promotion, and product innovation (Khandwalla, 1981). These dimensions can be classified according to their degree of ‘competitor responsiveness’ (Ansoff, 1984). The term competitor responsiveness refers to the speed with which competitors can respond to variations in competitive conditions. While price cuts usually can be matched instantly, it takes much longer to organize retaliations to a heavy advertising campaign, and even longer to respond to product innovations (Khandwalla, 1981; Scherer, 1980). Thus competitor responsiveness decreases along these three competitive C = (2†³1- 2) where d is the number of competitive dimensions considered. For d=-3 dimensions the number of possible strategy combinations is C=6. R. K. F. Bresser Table 3. Combinations of competitive and collective strategies and their feasibility Dimensions of competition Types of strategy Pricing combinations 1. 1 1. 2 1. 3 1. 4 1. 5 1. 6 2. 1 2. 2 2. 3 2. 4 2. 5 2. 6 3. 1 3. 2 3. 3 3. 4 3. 5 3. 6 4. 1 4. 2 4. 3 4. 4 4. 5 4. 6 5. 1 5. 2 5. 3 5. 4 5. 5 5. 6 6. 1 6. 2 6. 3 6. 4 6. 5 6. 6 7. 1 7. 2 7. 3 7. 4 7. 5 7. IL Competition Regulation Regulation Competition Regulation Competition Competition Contracting Contracting Competition Contracting Competition Competition Merger Merger Competition Merger Competition Competition Joint Venture Joint Venture Competition Joint Venture Competition Competition Interlocks Interlocks Competition Interlocks Competition Competition Trade Association Trade Association Competition Trade Association Competition Competition Collusion/IL Collusio n/IL Competition Collusion/IL Competition Advertising and promotion Regulation Competition Regulation Competition Competition Regulation Contracting Competition Contracting Competition Competition Contracting Merger Competition Merger Competition Competition Merger Joint Venture Competition Joint Venture Competition Competition Joint Venture Interlocks Competition Interlocks Competition Competition Interlocks Trade Association Competition Trade Association Competition Competition Trade Association Collusion/IL Competition Collusion/IL Competition Competition Collusion/IL 381 Product innovation Regulation Regulation Competition Regulation Competition Competition Contracting Contracting Competition Contracting Competition Competition Merger Merger Competition Merger Competition Competition Joint Venture Joint Venture Competition Joint Venture Competition Competition Interlocks Interlocks Competition Interlocks Competition Competition Trade Association Trade Association Competition Trade Association Competition Competition Collusion/IL Collusion/IL Competition Collusion/IL Competition Competition Feasibility of strategy combination Low Low Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate High High High High High High High High High High High Intermediate Intermediate High High High High Low Low Low Low Low Low Low Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate Industryleadership The first group of (six) strategy combinations uses competition in one or two competitive dimensions in conjunction with regulation as the basis for enforcing a collective strategy. The feasibility of all six combinations is rated either at low or intermediate levels. The first two combinations (1. 1 and 1. 2) have a low feasibility rating. If organizations use regulation to harmonize their promotional and product innovation activities, and have competitive flexibility in the area of pricing (combination 1. 1), their chances of competing successfully are slim. This is because 382 R. K. F. Bresser an industry may remain intense. In fact, often firms merge to obtain strategic advantages in the areas of price competition, promotion or product innovation wlhich may increase rather than decrease competitive interactions. When joint ventures serve as mechanisms to enforce collective strategies, feasibility ratings for strategy combinations are similarly favorable. This form of collective strategizing also tends to involve only a few organizations, allowing for competition within a particular area in spite of joint venture activity. fHowever, joint ventures carry a higher risk of uncontrolled information disclosure than contracting or mergers. Thus cautious feasibility evaluations seem appropriate when a focal organization engages in joint ventures in more than one comnpetitivearea, and when the only competitive dimension not subject to collective coordination is characterized by relatively high levels of competitor responsiveness (combinations 4. 1 and 4. 2). In these situations the relatively high number of information links among firms participating in several joint ventures multiplies the risk and potential damage of uncontrolled disclosure. If organizations choose interlocking directorates to coordinate intra-industry activity, they constantly run a high risk of uncontrolled information disclosure. Co-opted directors may intentionally or inadvertently, directly or indirectly, pass on sensitive information to a focal organization’s competitors. Thus, relying on interlocks to enforce collective strategies while simultaneously attempting to maintain some competitive flexibility does not appear feasible. The predominant feasibility rating assigned to the group of strategy combinations using trade associations as a means to develop collective strategies is ‘intermediate’. Although experience demonstrates that the coordination provided by trade associations mostly does not go beyond price and cost reporting (Scherer, 1980), the possibility of trade associations collecting and reporting other sensitive information is always acute. Often individual organizations cannot oppose such uncontrolled reporting of industry developments, especially if the association is dominated by a few powerful corporations. If trade associations do not engage in price reporting, but are used to develop collective strategies in the areas of advertising and promotion, and product innovation (combination 6. 1), a low uick competitor responsiveness can be expected with respect to the pricing dimension, and regulators are likely to disclose sensitive information concerning advertising and innovations. A similar argument applies to combination 1. 2, where competitive conditions exist only with regard to advertising and promotion, a dimension characterized by intermediate levels of competitor responsiveness. Since competitors usually need considerable time to respond to product innovations, combination 1. 3 (with regulation in the other two dimensions) is not quite as problematic as the first two combinations. However, the distinct possibility of uncontrolled information disclosure through regulator activities makes combination 1. 3 feasible only at an intermediate level. Combinations 1. 4 through 1. allow for competition in at least two dimensions. While these combinations provide organizations with a larger arsenal of competitive tools than the first three combinations, they also are considered feasible only at intermediate levels because of the risk of uncontrolled disclosure through regulators. The feasibility of strategy combinations involving contracting as a form of collect ive strategizing generally is considered high because the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure tends to be low. In addition, often (and in contrast to regulation) only few organizations participate in a particular contractual agreement, thus limiting the extent to which competition is constrained. If, within an industry of say eight oligopolists, three contract to standardize product designs, competition with the remaining five oligopolists in the area of product innovations is still possible and likely. The only strategy combination where a less favorable (intermediate) feasibility rating is assigned is combination 2. 1. If extensive contracting in the areas of advertising/promotion and product innovation has considerably lowered the participating firms’ strategic flexibility, relying on price competition as the sole competitive tool does not appear sensible. Price competition is likely to face a high degree of competitor responsiveness. The third group of strategy combinations, using merger activity to realize collective strategies, has high feasibility ratings throughout. The risk of uncontrolled information disclosure is low, and the number of firms involved in a merger is usually quite small, so that competition within Matching Collective and Competitive Strategies feasibility rating seems appropriate. Again, in this situation firms would maintain competition only in an area where high competitor responsiveness is likely. Combinations of competitive and collective strategies using the various forms of collusion and industry leadership are not as problem-free as the risk evaluation in Table 2 might suggest. Although collusive agreements are not burdened with the problem of uncontrolled information disclosure, their combination with competitive strategies appears feasible at an intermediate level at best. Since collusive agreements are informal and difficult to enforce, individual firmns have a strong incentive to chisel-that is to increase their profits by secretly deviating from the agreement (Stigler, 1964). Secret deviations cannot be concealed for long periods of time, and frequently result in collusive conspiracies breaking down and touching off bitter rivalries such as price wars (Scherer, 1980; Weiss, 1961). It is likely that the tendency of collusive agreements towards breakdown will be aggravated if colluding organizations decide to compete in some competitive areas rather than displaying ‘gentlemanly’, non-competitive behavior across all competitive dimensions. A firm’s successful competitive behavior in one area will encourage less successful firms to chisel in other areas that are subject to collusive coordination. Thus combinations of competitive and collective strategies can be expected to be volatile when collusion serves as a means for enforcing collective strategies. This volatility results from the particular characteristics of collusive agreements, and exists regardless of the risk for uncontrolled information disclosure or the level of competitor responsiveness. 383 SUMMARY AND IMPLICATIONS This paper extends the literature advocating the development of voluntary collective strategies as means to manage environmental turbulence and interdependence (Astley and Fombrun, 1983a; Bresser and Harl, 1986). It assesses the possibilities of combining competitive with collective strategies from the perspective of individual organizations. Such combinations may be problematic because an organization’s ability to maintain the secrecy of competitive strategic plans may be jeopardized by information links established through different forms of collective strategy (Fornbrun and Astley, 1983a; Starbuck and Nystrom, 1981). After discussing how collective strategies may lead to an uncontrolled disclosure of strategically sensitive information, combinations of competitive and collective strategies are classified according to their varying degrees of feasibility. A comparison of the ratings presented in Tables 2 and 3 makes apparent that the feasibility of strategy combination tends to be inversely related to the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure. If the risk and the feasibility ratings are expressed numerically with the values of ‘low’ equaling 1, ‘intermediate’ equaling 2, and ‘high’ equaling 3, a correlation coefficient can be calculated on the basis of all 42 strategy combinations. The resulting coefficient is r = -0. 70, indicating that within the present classification scheme about 50 percent of the variance in feasibility evaluations is accounted for by the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure. However, high risks of uncontrolled disclosure do not generally lead to low feasibility ratings, and low risks do not necessarily imply high feasibility scores , as is demonstrated by the combinations involving collective strategies based on regulation and collusion respectively. The unexplained variation in feasibility ratings suggests additional factors are important in assessing the feasibility of strategy combinations, notably the degree of competitor responsiveness and the particular characteristics of the type of collective strategy employed. Further variation in feasibility ratings can be expected when situational variables such as breadth and quality of information disclosure, asymmetry in interdependence, and event control are considered (Adams, 1976; Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978; Smart and Vertinsky, 1977). This is so because these situational variables can contain or amplify the potential damage resulting from uncontrolled infornmationdisclosure. While situational variables were not considered in the development of this paper’s typology of strategy combinations, they have implications both for research and managerial decision-making that can originate from the typological classification given in Table 3. The existence of situational variables highlights a feature common to all typologies or organi- 384 R. K. F. Bresser information disclosure is of little relevance? 7. How rapidly and effectively can events of uncontrolled information disclosure be counteracted? Answers to these and similar questions can help executives to apply the information provided by Table 3 situationally before adopting a specific combination of collective and competitive strategies. From this process the selection of compatible strategies should result. This paper’s discussion has concentrated on oligopolistic markets because, typically, in such markets competitors are aware of their mutual interdependence, have incomplete control of each other’s moves, and yet the success of each oligopolist’s strategic intentions depends considerably on the activities chosen by other competitors (Pennings, 1981). Obviously, within such a context, the damage resulting from an uncontrolled disclosure of sensitive information is potentially high. While the theory of oligopoly has been developed mainly for domestic, nondiversified enterprise (Stigler, 1964), the issues and ideas discussed in this paper can also be of relevance to multinational and diversified corporations. Due to the dominance of oligopolies, both multinational and diversified firms will often find themselves operating in different national or regional oligopolies. Additionally, managing a match between collective and competitive strategies may be more difficult in interindustry and international arenas than in intraindustry environments because the number of interdependent segments representing a particular coporation’s domain is larger and more complex (Bresser and Harl, 1986; Hawkins and Walter, 1981). Thus, anticipating factors such as the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure and the potential damage resulting from such disclosure may be even more important for multinational and diversified firms than for domestic oligopolists. zational phenomena. Classifications of the type developed in Table 3 are ideal types, based on generalizations derived from common knowledge and common sense (Blau and Scott, 1962; Pugh, Hickson and Hinings, 1969). However, the strategy combinations distinguished represent 42 separate hypotheses regarding the opportunities and risks organizations might encounter when utilizing competitive and collective strategies side by side. The accuracy of any particular feasibility evaluation is an empirical question open to resolution through historical research, where the mediating role of situational variables has to be included in the research design. From a managerial point of view a typology of strategy combinations with varying levels of feasibility can aid in strategic decision-making. The strategic options evaluated in Table 3 can serve as a guide to managers considering a particular strategy combination. In attempting to extrapolate easibility evaluations, decisionmakers would have to assess whether the variables leading to the feasibility ratings shown in Table 3 are of the assumed magnitude, and to what extent deviations would lead to different feasibility assessments. In addition, decision-mak ers would have to evaluate the extent to which situational variables require changes in feasibility ratings. For example, a firm intending to implement a strategy mix similar to combination 4. 3 would have to consider the following questions before deciding whether the feasibility of such a combination is high: 1. Is the risk of uncontrolled information disclosure resulting from the planned joint venture activity really at moderate levels, and how can it be contained? 2. Is there really a low degree of competitor responsiveness to product innovations within this industry? 3. Is competitive flexibility in pricing and promotional strategies maintained in spite of joint venture activity within these competitive dimensions? 4. How encompassing is the information that could get disclosed? 5. How reliable and timely is the information that competitors could obtain? 6. 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