Management Strategies and Practices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Management Strategies and Practices - Essay Example This paper explores methods available for today’s managers to assist in attracting, motivating, and retaining employees to make a more productive organization. Finding the right individual who can fit the culture of the organization, according to Greengard & Byham (2003), involves hiring based on attitude and the candidate’s perceived ability to relate to customers in a positive manner. The authors further suggest that using this behavioral approach to assessing potential employees can be time consuming, offering the need for multiple interviews in order to make the right assessment. This tends to suggest, despite the efforts required of the hiring manager, that the outcome of these extended efforts will produce the best employee for the job. In actual business practice, research suggests that many managers simply do not have the time to invest in lengthy, multiple interviews due to the demands of a competitive business environment (Nickels, McHugh & McHugh, 2005). However, it might be a logical assessment that making the effort, despite the difficulties due to increasing business pressure, would far outweigh any minor interruptions to regular business operations when the outcome is a quality employee who may remain loyal to the firm for years. Of interest to the concept of motivating employees is recognizing a theory of management proposed by Douglas McGregor: Theory X and Theory Y. Offering a brief definition, Theory X basically proposes that people are lazy by design, thus without management intervention they would not accomplish their tasks (Gallas). Theory Y, in opposite accord, suggests that employees, if they are nurtured to succeed, will work diligently toward assisting the organization (Gallas). Companies which direct employee activities using the Theory Y approach, in most instances, will likely receive a better end

Blue valentine Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Blue valentine - Research Paper Example Blue Valentine takes a non-judgmental and observant approach to the underlying forces of the associations that it discovers. Despite the fact that there are various small reasons for why the relationship sours, there is no singled fixed illustration for why it ultimately stops functioning. Accordingly, there is no any trial to allot responsibility to either individual and correspondingly to other marriage in crisis movies trying to argue who was more at fault. Blue Valentine by Derek addresses love or relationships that results into marriage as an issue of psychological culture in the society (Reynolds, 2003). Blue Valentine movie is a cultural and a psychologically ambitious and impressively subversive effort by Derek who is a new film producer. It is a subtle but clear way, a pro-life movie; this is means that it is quite vibrating and oppressive; the psychological intensity and instability surely are meant to keep viewers from relaxing and just enjoying themselves. The theory of interactionism derives social processes including struggle, collaboration, and personality development from human dealings. It is research concerning the way individuals behave within culture. Blue valentine has used this theory throughout in displaying its message to the audience. The main message that illustrates the cultural issues is that instinct or, better, natural guidance the social, personal; human beings are provided with in order to find life good lacks communicative and strong protectors in the present days. This is the reasons as to why the two main characters, which are husband and wife, are much extra broken, more bolted up than people need or should be. Their small daughters, in the meantime, looks to be very excited and very innocent or not broken at all; however, more reasons are not provided to show whether she is going to remain anywhere near that way. She is going to remain in a broke marriage, and with parents who even together, but certainly not s eparately will not provide her anywhere near what she requires to discover individual contentment. The movie is also, of course, about how poorly children are raised up in the present days, which illustrates the cultural changes in the present life worldwide. The wife referred to as Cindy it is noted that comes from an unemotional family with an at least orally offensive father. A lot of her past is exposed during what looks to be uselessly invasive interrogative at an abortion hospital. The author shows how Cindy had a poor upbringing making her to begin having sex at an early age with several sexual partners. Unfortunately, she got pregnant and the man responsible did not care about her; her father declares that she is not the kind to take her boyfriends to her family. The author demonstrates her more than once that she delight in perverse sex, which is more about physical control than individual love. She is particularly fascinated to a particularly bodily control enthusiast, who , in any profound intellect, is not stimulating or motivating at all. The author demonstrates just adequate to know that she rests more fascinated to him than to her husband, and one conceivable situation the audiences are left with is her reappearance to that person. Her husband declares, on their last night together, that he will not smash her and will not rape her no matter how much she likes it. Her future husband pointlessly courts her for a while; this is because he discovers her very substantially attractive and delightfully impractical and full of herself as most of beautiful women are always. On the other hand, she discovers him delightfully incompetent and so a waste of time. She becomes attracted in him only after she finds out she

Language changes during the play Essay Example for Free

Language changes during the play Essay Sheila takes the inspectors lessons to heart, and appears changed by the incident. In Act Two, Sheila sums up the whole familys reactions to the Inspectors questions. She reminds them of the greed, jealousy and selfishness they have all shown. It means we have no excuse now for putting on airs. This is just the start of the speech and she admits responsibility but is very frustrated that the others dont. She has clearly changed.  The audience will have noticed a dramatic change in her personality. She has been affected a lot by the death. She has changed from a jolly and self-centred person to a conscious and very guilty person. If any of the characters were going to change, or learn from the mistakes it would be Sheila. She shows a great deal of interest in Eva Smith/Daisy Rentons death right from the start and throughout. She also feels a lot of guilt and is the only character that is sorry. Her maturity during the interview is much higher than any other character as she is the only one to accept responsibility. Sheila is also the only one who emphasizes her mistake by saying she was very jealous.  Sheilas language changes during the play. She starts off speaking like a child, using words like mummy. She also typically squabbles with her brother. Her language begins to mature and become much more serious during the questioning and after. She begins to take control with the Inspector, trying to help them understand their part in the girls death. Priestley wants the audience, again to understand that honesty is very important. But also that everybody is responsible for each other. Society depends on responsibility for others and Sheilas character should highlight this.  Eric is a spoilt, moody and irresponsible man. (Sulkily) Im all right. Eric is sulking when he utters this line and it gives the impression that he is very young. This is because a lot of children sulk when they are unhappy and Eric is being very childish in doing this. This shows immaturity. I dont give a damn now whether I stay here or not. This suggests his immaturity and selfishness. He isnt in the best of moods after what happens and gets very moody and out of control. Eric lacks self-discipline. His immaturity during this encounter shows much more than the rest and so does his lack of self-discipline. He is old enough to know better.  (Almost threatening her) You dont understand anything. You never did. You never even tried you. This is the worst of Erics anger he does end up calming down. Eric is very distressed by the situation and cannot handle it. He is also very guilty and he does understand the mistake he has made. This is a rare bit of maturity from Eric. Though he is not a pleasant character, we may feel that he has learnt a lesson, that he is sincerely ashamed of his behaviour and he is capable of changing for the better. (Unhappily) My God Im not likely to forget. Eric is aware of the mistake he has made and feels a lot of shame and guilt. Like Sheila, Eric has learned his lesson and they both will learn their lesson. However, their parents dont feels the way they do and dont think anybody has done anything wrong, and this is what really frustrates Eric. Eric is the youngest child in the family and this is fairly noticeable because he speaks with great immaturity. He is rude and very hard to get on with. He uses demanding but very childish words, as if to draw attention. But his attitude and language change when the inspector questions him, and unlike most of the others, feels a lot of guilt, shame and wants to learn from his mistakes. Even when they find out the Inspector might have been a fake he still remained remorseful and full of pity. Priestley may have used Eric to represent the idea that nobody is perfect. Learning from mistakes will make you a much better person. Eric has done a lot of things wrong during his life, being rude and impolite to family members and also thieving and deceiving others. He has without doubt the worst history but he is mature enough to learn from this. Priestley may have also used Eric to represent the emotions that, if the audience were in a similar situation, might act like. He gets frustrated that his parents wont accept his guilt and does tend to lash out. Priestley uses the Inspector to convey his own ideas about morality to the audience. Rather than representing a real person, his character represents the abstract idea of human conscience, which ensures consideration and responsibility for others. He calls himself Inspector Goole. The word Goole has connotations of being ghostly, spiritual and non-human. Priestley could have wanted the inspector to be a kind of ghost and play on the characters conscience. We get the sense that he is some kind of supernatural force. Being called Goole gives the audience some idea he may not be real but he manages to control the situation and dominate the situation. He gets into the characters conscience and makes them reveal all. He does this by asking demanding short questions. Well? This question is very short but has so much power to it. He speaks as though he was a boss talking to an employer, or as if he was a teacher speaking to a student. He gets so much out of the characters by asking one-liners like this. This also shows confidence, Inspector Goole now believes he has taken control, which he Cleary has done, and starts to use these demanding questions. He is not afraid to contradict and be rude to his social superiors. (Cutting in) Never mind about that. The quote shows the inspector interrupting the flow of the conversation. The family would obviously not approve of butting in as they are supposed to be such a polite and well-bred family. By inspector Goole showing no fear in doing this it shows his dominance. He sets himself up as the boss in the whole situation right from the start and this is something Mr and Mrs Birling find hard to deal with.  Priestley wants the audience to ask themselves how responsible are we for others in society? He uses five different characters with five very different reactions to the situation. Mr Birling feels he has nothing to do with the death and the girl is at fault. Mrs Birling doesnt want anything to do with it and she doesnt have the time. Sheila on the other hand reacts totally differently from Mr and Mrs Birling, she is very sorry for what she has done. She seems very interested in the whole situation. She shows a lot of emotion and promises she will learn from her mistakes.  Gerald makes it quite clear that he is sorry for what he had done but shows little emotion. He does remain very honest throughout. Though when he finds out the inspector was a fake he starts to show less and less guilt and much more relief. Eric is certainly the most emotional of all the characters. He is very sorry and upset by the whole situation. We can tell by his reaction that he is the youngest in the family, as he becomes very moody and frustrated, at some point he almost breaks down. Its like the whole thing is too much for him to handle. Like Sheila he definitely learns his lessen and is willing to change. Now, the audience can look at each character and think, which one am I most like? Would I feel guilty? Would I be emotional and very sorry? Would I remain very honest? These are all questions Priestley wants the audience to ask themselves. Overall, the main question is, how responsible are we for others in society?  In my opinion Priestley succeeded in getting this moral question across. He certainly encouraged me to ask myself these questions.

internship Essay -- essays research papers

I had many responsibilities and duties as a teacher assistant/chaperone. Such as arriving at the assigned school for bus and student pick-up at 8:00 a.m. assisting teachers and counselors with Daily Opening Activity, with Math and Reading as well as Arts/Folklore classes. Escorting students to and from the bathroom. Supervising students during breakfast and lunch and assisting with clean up. Being responsible for picking up and returning materials to the GEAR UP office. Attending weekly Staff and Team meetings to discuss the past week and plan for the weeks ahead.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This internship opened many doors leading to my future. This would not only help me academically and financially, but would also provide me with necessary experience in real world situations. This internship with this program, is well established and a brilliant source of knowledge. Firstly, I will be able to physically see and experience the concepts that I have learned through out my life. This provides me a chance to reflect upon what I have learned in the past. On the other hand, I will be able to gain some very important insights of working with seniors officials in reality. I would be able to utilize their experience as a guide to correct my mistakes and discovering more skills that might be of use in the future. Another exciting feature about this internship program is that, I will actually realize what my duties would be when I would start as an employee for a similar organizat...

Social Networking Addiction

The last decade witnessed an explosion of social networks such as Myspace and Facebook, which added a new social dimension to the web. While such networks have made people, communities and groups with shared interests stay more â€Å"connected,† Internet addiction and social network addiction in particular also started being recognized as psychological disorders all over the world. While several 90? studies focused on Internet addiction, the next decade saw the growth of a new addiction related to all manner of social networking sites, especially the current king of the jungle: Facebook. In a recent study from the University of Athens, Greek psychiatrists argued that a woman who had gone as far as losing her job on account of her compulsion to check and update her Facebook, could be identified as a â€Å"social network addict. † Of course, there are different levels of social network addiction. Another recent study carried out at a Czech University analyzed Facebook-related academic procrastination. Though based on a sample too small to draw any general conclusions, one interesting finding of the research was that people tended to be unaware of just how much time they really spent on Facebook, and the effect this might have on their academic performance. On the other hand, it has been noted that there may be a correlation between low self-esteem and a sense of social inadequacy and social network addiction. It seems that many types of social interaction which would present great challenges in the real world for certain types of individuals have been rendered much easier for them in the virtual world, thus putting them at a higher risk of becoming addicted to Facebook and the like. A Mexican study found that Facebook addicts (a category defined by reportedly spending over four hours everyday on Facebook) had a higher incidence of depression and lower physical and general self-esteem levels than less frequent Facebook users. There are many factors that determine the characteristics of Internet and social network addictions in different parts of the world. The nature and scope of these problems are not only affected by technological advancement and the number of computers connected to the Internet per capita and other such quantitative data, but cultural factors are also key in determining the local incidence of these addictions. While social network addiction is not included in the DSM IV, many researchers advocated its inclusion in DSM V, which is currently under way. For example, in a 2008 editorial for the American Journal of Psychiatry, IAD (Internet Addiction Disorder) inclusion advocate Dr. Jerald Block cited the case of South Korea, stating that: After a series of 10 cardiopulmonary-related deaths in Internet cafes  and a game-related murder, South Korea considers Internet addiction one of its most serious public health issues. Using data from 2006, the South Korean government estimates that approximately 210,000 South Korean children (2. %; ages 6–19) are afflicted and require treatment. About 80% of those needing treatment may need psychotropic medications, and perhaps 20% to 24% require hospitalization. Since the average South Korean high school student spends about 23 hours each week gaming, another 1. 2 million are believed to be at risk for addiction and to require basic counseling. In particular, therapists worry about the increasing number of individuals dropping out from school or work to spend time on computers. As of June 2007, South Korea has trained 1,043 counselors in the treatment of Internet addiction and enlistedover 190 hospitals and treatment centers. Nevertheless, the DSMV V draft released earlier this year revealed â€Å"work group members decided there was insufficient research data† to include Internet addiction in the newly created â€Å"behavioral addictions† category. It has been over 13 years since pioneer Kimberley S. Young adapted the DSM IV criteria for gambling addictions to define Internet addiction. While her proposed diagnosis criteria have virally spread (to use a familiar term related to social networking) all over the world, it seems that the scientific community is not yet ready to reach a consensus as to what this type of addiction entails. Social networks have changed the ways we interact with each other enormously. One thing that has changed dramatically is the concept of meeting people. This was brought to my attention a couple of weeks ago, when I met a musician for the first time, whom I had casually crossed online a couple of times. Oddly enough, none of us acted as if this were a â€Å"first meeting. † Another thing that called my attention was when another musician said from the stage â€Å"thank you for coming; because a lot of people say they are attending on Facebook but they never show up. † This also made me think about how much time we are devoting to talking about Facebook, even when we are offline, and how many times we log on to Facebook to show our friends something, even during actual person-to-person meetings or social gatherings. Every drug has a gratification component, and, if social networks are causing an addiction, they must have one too. A very interesting study from the University of Bath tried to identify these gratifications, concluding that: Users derive a variety of uses and gratifications from social networking sites, including traditional content gratification alongside building social capital, communication, surveillance and social networking surfing. The different uses and gratifications relate differentially to patterns of usage, with social connection gratifications tending to lead to increased frequency of use, and content gratifications to increased time spent on the site. While the incidence of social network addictions in other parts of the world may not be as dramatic as Internet gaming addictions, for example, seem to be in some Asian countries, the rapid growth of social networks both in reach and in the number of interaction possibilities, poses new problems everyday for the elaboration of solid diagnostic criteria. From academic procrastination to social impairment as far as real physical interactions are concerned, diminished productivity at work and physical problems associated with a sedentary lifestyle; there seem to be enough problems related to Internet and social network addictions to give researchers enough to work on for many years to come. References Karaiskos, D. , Tzavellas, E. , Balta, G. , & Paparrigopoulos, T. (2010). P02-232 – Social network addiction : a new clinical disorder? European Psychiatry, 25, 855-855 DOI:10. 1016/S0924-9338(10)70846-4 Holbova, P. Academic procrastination on Facebook. Masaryk University, Czech Republic. Herrera, M. , Pacheco, M. , Palomar, J. , Zavala, D. Facebook Addiction Related to Low Self-Esteem, Depression and Lack of  Social Skills. Psicologia Iberoamericana,  Vol. 18 No. 1 (2010). Block, J. (2008). Issues for DSM-V: Internet Addiction  American Journal of Psychiatry, 165(3), 306-307 DOI:  10. 1176/appi. ajp. 2007. 07101556 Report on the American Psychiatric Association’s revisions for DSM V. YOUNG, K. (1998). Internet Addiction: The Emergence of a New Clinical DisorderCyberPsychology & Behavior, 1  (3), 237-244 DOI:  10. 1089/cpb. 1998. 1. 237

An Introduction to Shakespeare Prose

What is prose? How does it differ from verse? The difference between them is central to appreciating Shakespeares writing, but understanding prose vs. verse is not as difficult as you might think. Shakespeare moved between prose and  verse  in his writing to vary the rhythmic structures within his plays and give his characters more depth. So dont be mistaken—his treatment of prose is as skillful as his use of verse. What Does It Mean to Speak in Prose? Prose has characteristics that make it distinctly different from verse. They include: Run-on linesNo rhyme or metric scheme (i.e. iambic pentameter)The qualities of everyday language On paper, you can easily spot dialogue written in prose because it appears as a block of text, unlike the strict line breaks that are a result of the rhythmic patterns of verse. When performed, prose sounds more like typical language—there are none of the musical qualities that come with verse. Why Did Shakespeare Use Prose? Shakespeare used prose to tell us something about his characters. Many of Shakespeare’s low-class characters speak in prose to distinguish themselves from the higher-class, verse-speaking characters. For example, the porter in Macbeth speaks in prose: Faith, sir, we were carousing till the second cock, and drink, sir, is a great provoker of three things.(Act 2, Scene 3) However, this should not be treated as a hard-and-fast rule. For example, one of Hamlet’s most poignant speeches is delivered entirely in prose, even though he is a prince: I have of late—but wherefore I know not—lost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercise; and indeed it goes so heavily with my disposition that this goodly frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory. This most excellent canopy the air, look you, this brave o’erhanging, this majestical roof fretted with golden fire—why, it appears no other thing to me than a foul and pestilent congregation of vapours.(Act 2, Scene 2) In this passage, Shakespeare interrupts Hamlet’s verse with a heartfelt realization about the brevity of human existence. The immediateness of the prose presents Hamlet as genuinely thoughtful—after dropping the verse, we are in no doubt that Hamlet’s words are solemn. Shakespeare Uses Prose to Create a Range of Effects To Make Dialogue More Realistic Many short, functional lines like â€Å"And I, my lord† and â€Å"I pray you, leave me† (Much Ado About Nothing) are written in prose to give the play a sense of realism. In some longer speeches, Shakespeare used prose to help the audience identify more closely with his characters by using the everyday language of the time. To Create Comic Effect Some of Shakespeares low-class comic creations aspire to speak in the formal language of their superiors, but do not have the intelligence to achieve this and therefore become objects of ridicule. For example, the uneducated Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing attempts to use more formal language but keeps getting it wrong. In Act 3, Scene 5, he informs Leonato that â€Å"Our watch, sir, have indeed comprehended two auspicious persons.† He actually means â€Å"apprehended† and â€Å"suspicious,† and, of course, also fails to speak in correct iambic pentameter. To Suggest a Character's Mental Instability In King Lear, Lears verse deteriorates into prose as the play unfolds to suggest his increasingly erratic mental condition. We can also see a similar technique at work in the above passage from Hamlet. Why Is Shakespeare’s Use of Prose Important? In Shakespeare’s day, writing in verse was seen as a sign of literary excellence, which is why doing so was conventional. By writing some of his most serious and poignant speeches in prose, Shakespeare was fighting against this convention, bravely taking liberties to create stronger effects.

A Natural Application Of Logistics Business Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1631 Downloads: 4 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Logistics Essay Type Analytical essay Did you like this example? We human have many questions to answer, all can be answered by the nature but as we go in deep inside in the web of the nature. Again a question arises how to see and understand its nuances? Only we have to search a right magnifying glass to see through it. Here I like to put a magnifying glass on ant colony. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "A Natural Application Of Logistics Business Essay" essay for you Create order I know all of you thinking back in your mind how ants could teach lessons in logistics? That is absurd how that invisible, intangible and minute asset could leave such indelible marks on a companys bottom line? But in an economy that relies more on ideas, individuals and change rather than on traditional bureaucracy, companies achieve and maintain competitive advantage over others. Swarm intelligence Many Scientist are working on ants, butterfly, bee, cooken to nuances of amazing efficiency of social insects. Companies like Hewlett-packard , southwest Airline , Unilever are working on this new way of thinking about business. Eric Bonabeau is the founder and Chief Scientist of Boston-based Icosystem Corporation, one of the worlds leading experts in complex systems and distributed adaptive problem solving , co-writer of the book Swarm Intelligence, readily admits that he was not the first to see how his work studying social insect colonies could be applied to the management of complex corporations. When I was first approached to draw parallels between business and insect behavior, I was very skeptical, Bonabeau recalls. Then I realized that human behavior is highly constrained in a human organization [just like in an ant colony] and because of that, it might be possible to model human behavior with the same tools that I use to model social insect colonies. Such behavior, sw arm intelligence is a successful illustration of self-organization on a large scale. The traits that enable a colony of ants to find food manage colony and set up supply chains, can help companies to find efficient solutions to complex problems. The colony can quickly adapt to a changing environment; it can perform its necessary tasks even when one or more individual ant fails; and it needs relatively little supervision or top-down control. Bonabeau employs rigorous mathematical models that enhance these traits of flexibility, robustness and self -organization to help a company hone its competitive edge. Traits of social insect has helped several companies including Unilever , McGrawHill and Capital one to develop more efficient ways to schedule factory equipment, divide task among workers , organize people and even plot strategy Foraging For solution -These Ant-forging Algorithms is a natural application of Logistics. Researchers from Hewlett-packards laboratories in Bristol , England have developed a computer program based on ant-foraging principles that routes calls efficiently. In the program, hordes of Software agents roam through the telecom network and leave bits of information (digital information) to reinforce path through uncongested area. Phone calls then follow the trails left by the ant like agents. Southwest Airlines used the principles of swarm intelligence to streamline its cargo operations, save more than $10 million a year. Some of the airlines discoveries about itself at first seemed counter-intuitive. For example, Southwest discovered that it can be beneficial to leave cargo on a plane, even if it was initially headed in the wrong direction. If the airline wanted to send a package from Boston to Chicago, it might be more efficient to leave it on a plane heading for Atlanta and then Chicago rather than wait for a direct flight or transfer it mid-route. This finding slashed freight transfer rates by as much as 80 percent at the busiest cargo hubs and reduced the workload for people who move cargo, allowing Southwest to cut back on its storage facilities and minimize wage costs. Furthermore, the resulting flexibility meant that the airline could still make money even if the planes werent fully loaded, which opened up significant opportunities to generate new business. Variations on the ant-foraging algorithm also helped Unilever, the multinational consumer goods company; develop decision-making software for its production facilities that was faster and more automatic than traditional efficiency methods. At one complex-liquid manufacturing plant, the chemical mixers, storage tanks and packaging lines each have different rates of operation, different abilities to be connected to other equipment, different capacities, different changeover times for switching from one product to another and different maintenance schedules, all occurring in a dynamic environment in which machinery can break down without warning and cust omer demand is increasingly volatile. Bonabeau examined how ants surmount unexpected obstacles in their relentless quest to find food and bring it back to the nest, and produced software that copes easily with changing conditions. Insights gleaned from swarm intelligence also helped Capital One, the giant financial-services company; replace its rigid command-and-control management style with a more flexible approach better suited to a fast-growing business. Like a medium-size ant colony whose territory is invaded by a larger competitor, Capital One constantly searches out and targets new market opportunities. To encourage employees to look for opportunities outside their immediate departments, Capital One revamped its employee-evaluation system to reward people who actively search for such food sources. The extent to which this behavior supports the business strategy was implicit in a comment in the companys annual report soon after it adopted the precepts of swarm intelligence: Many of our business opportunities are short-lived. We have to move fast to exploit them and move on when they fade. Scanning the Periphery One of the important things we can learn from the Ant is scanning the Periphery. Ant builds their empire but never leave their eyes on the Periphery, they can deduce the incoming thread and opportunity in advance, it makes them easy to warn there counterpart in the colony. In most of the survey 9 out 10 corporate accept 3 out of 5 big threads which it faces, they dont have any information (warning) about it in advance. When thread came to smack them they are empty hands. With the ant behavior our modern Business house can learn how to have eye not only on target but also on periphery so they have proper and valid information that what other player are doing and use it for their benefits Networking knowledge When you look at how organizations really work, says Bonabeau, who has written about swarm intelligence in the Harvard Business Review, the Journal of Business Innovation and in a book he co-authored, Swarm Intelligence: From Natural to Artificial Systems (Oxford University Press, 1999), the hierarchical chart is very rarely the structure that people use to get their jobs done. Karen Stephenson couldnt agree more. A professor at Harvards School of Design and Imperial Colleges School of Management at the University of London as well as a software entrepreneur for NetForm International, Stephenson studies the informal pathways by which knowledge is communicated throughout an organization. Why is that important? Think of it this way: If the official organizational chart shows the rules of a company, the human network shows the ropeswhat really makes things work and gets things done. Each person in that web represents a node, but not all nodes have the same nature. Some are what Stephenson calls hubs, people who become a gathering and sharing point for critical information. Some are pulsetakers, who carefully cultivate relationships that allow them to monitor the ongoing health and direction of the organization. And some are gatekeepers, information bottlenecks who control the flow of contact to a particular part of the organization. These nodes and networks house and transmit tacit knowledge, the vitally important information that gives a company its competitive edge. Furthermore, Stephenson has identified at least six different types of networks, each of which represents a core layer of knowledge, ranging from how the company works to how innovation is sparked and nurtured to how it is disseminated throughout the company and becomes part of its modus operandi. Like the bodys circulation system, nervous system and skele-to-muscular system, all of these networks combine to sustain the health of an organization. Conversely, if theres a problem with one, t hen the health of the entire organization is affected. By performing the equivalent of an MRI on an organization, Stephenson helped Amgen, the worlds largest biotechnology company, reduce the rate of attrition among its research scientists, IBM re-engineer itself, Steelcase design a new furniture consultation service and J.P. Morgan smooth its merger with Chase Manhattan. The most relevant aspect of her work has to do with the lifeblood of companies today: innovation. At the root of all bureaucracies, she says, is an innovation that didnt get harvested in time. At the other end of the spectrum, is an innovation that went too far, which sometimes results in fraud. And in the middle is a network that nurtures innovation appropriately so that it benefits the organization. There is an optimal balance between social networks and organizational hierarchy, Stephenson says, and there are correlations between these networks that show when an organization is ready for a change. If yo ure knowledgeable about this, you can leverage your human capital appropriately. Grasping intangible assets One of the confounding aspects of tacit knowledge networks is that they can be mapped and their results measured on a companys bottom line, yet they cant be physically grasped. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan spoke to this issue last year when he talked about how the weight of the economy had declined. What he meant was that the economy is no longer being measured in locomotives and factories; instead, it is measured in ideas and people. Evaluating the ramifications of such intangible assets is what Jonathan Low and Pamela Cohen Kalafut of Cap Gemini Ernst Youngs Center for Business Innovation have been puzzling over for the past five years and wrote about in their recent book, Invisible Advantage: How Intangibles Are Driving Business Performance. Submitted by Abhishek Gupta Abhijat Singh Dhawal