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Nuclear Strategic Game Between The United States And The...

It has now been 53 years since the Cuban missile crisis. Even though disaster was averted, the world came too close to destroying itself to let the lessons of October 1962 played from our memories. In this paper, I will show while the nuclear strategic game between the United States and the Soviet union was so dangerous. Good intelligence is crucial to making good decisions in such a dangerous situation. Acquiring that good intelligence pros to be quite dangerous and the Cuban missile crisis. Also complicating matters was the fact that the two leaders of the crisis President Kennedy and Soviet leader Khrushchev, we re getting catastrophically bad advice from the military experts and ancillary players After World War II, Stalin locked up all the countries along its western border behind, what Churchill came to call, an iron curtain. Russia had invested millions of lives to defeat in Germany in World War Two and felt entitled to a buffer zone against future invasion. Stalin was suspicious that the Marshall plan was a devious attempt to win back his hard won satellite states from the Soviet Union. The ideological battle lines of the Cold War were drawn by those European countries that participated in the Marshall plan vs. those that shows or were not allowed to. Some historians think the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was in reality the first shot of cold war, principally aimed at checking the spread of Soviet communism. If so, Truman got a nice bang forShow MoreRelated COLD War and the Arms Race Essay1686 Words   |  7 Pagesthe use of two nuclear weapons in 1945 against the Japanese in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II, the nature of international security was changed irreversibly. At that time, the United States had what was said to have a monopoly of atomic bombs. Soon thereafter, the Soviet Union began working on atomic weaponry. In 1949, it had already detonated it first atomic bomb and tensions began to heat up between the two countries. With the information that the Soviets had tested theirRead MoreThe Cuban Missile Crisis: The Day the World Became so Close to Full-Blown Nuclear War1554 Words   |  6 PagesHow did the world become so close to full-blown nuclear war? It all started with a deep r outed conflict between the United States and Soviet Union. The U.S and the Soviet Union had different views on political and economic systems. The United States believed in Democracy, which means the people have say in what the government does. While the Soviet Union believed in Communism which means the government controls everything and ultimately leads to a dictatorship. After World War II the superpowersRead MoreThe Cold War And The Soviet Union Hockey1111 Words   |  5 Pagesin the 1980 Soviet-American Olympic hockey game. The Soviet Union hockey team had dominated the hockey world consistently for the previous decade. This era of Soviet hockey superiority came to an end as the underdog American team routed the Soviets 4-3, moving to the next round of competition with a chance to win the gold medal in the 1980 Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York. The game symbolized confrontation between the United States of America (USA) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Read MoreThe Door to Annihilation: Who Dares to Open it? Essay1346 Words   |  6 Pagesannihilation for thirteen days. It is caused by the Soviet Union’s clandestine action of putting nuclear missiles in Cuba, which the United States perceived as an offensive and dangerous move. The two countries know that they are capable of destroying the entire world with the nuclear weapons, so they plan each step slowly and carefully. If there is any mistakes in the process, the price is destruction of every human civilization. Policies like brinksmanship, nuclear arms race, and spies made the Cuban MissileRead MoreSignificance of Cuban Missile Crisis1470 Words   |  6 PagesSignificance of Cuban Missile Crisis -This was an intense period where nuclear war could break out at any time. -A rash decision by any side could spark off war between the USSR and USA and in turn nuclear weapons might be deployed. -Fortunately, the leaders made rational decisions to resolve the crisis. -After the Cuban missile crisis, both sides realized the danger of nuclear war and began to talk more about peaceful co-existence. -A hotline was established bet the USSR amp; the USARead MoreThe Game Theory And Politics1709 Words   |  7 Pages Game Theory and Politics Whenever Game theory is taught at colleges, politics is one area that is never touched upon as an application of game theory. Though game theory in international relations and national politics has been a studied in detail in the past, there has been a recent increase in the popularity of this study. An increasing number of game models are extensively being used in informed studies of arms control, preservation of international peace, disarmament policies, environmentalRead MoreThis Historical Study Will Define The Dual Hostility Of1836 Words   |  8 PagesThis historical study will define the dual hostility of the Soviet Union and the United States in the instigation and resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The nuclear arms race of the early 1960s defined a period of history in which a stalemate occurred between superpowers. The United States and the Soviet Union were continually seeking to build larger nuclear arsenals and to also expand their territorial influence ov er lesser nations. The Cuban Missile Crisis defines also defines theRead MoreU.s. Obama s Foreign Policy1621 Words   |  7 Pagesbecause Obama promised to end war in Afghanistan and Iraq. Which he did during the end of his presidency he ended the Iraq war and also signed a nuclear deal with Iraq from obtaining nuclear weapons. He tended to keep away from foreign policy. Some of Obama s Major Foreign Policy accomplishments are:Ending the war in Iraq Killing of Osama Bin Laden ,Nuclear deal with Iran ,Paris Climate Change Agreement, Opening of relations with Cuba, Trans-Pacific Partnership. He also went to go visit Cuba duringRead MoreThe 1980 Miracle on Ice1308 Words   |  6 Pagesthirty-four years ago with the 1980 Miracle on Ice. The Americans defeating the dominant Soviet team at the Olympics was not only an important triumph for USA Hockey, but for the entire nation. Contrary to popular belief, the underdog win was not only the result of a miracle; it was also the result of a hard-working team led by Coach Herb Brooks. With increasingly negative views on the position of the United States in the Cold War, the Miracle on Ice and the gold medal win lifted the spirits of the nationRead MoreCold War in 1980s3505 Words   |  15 Pages The Cold War in 1980s – The Prone Seigneur Between the Two Superpowers Since Cold War began at the end of World War in the late 1940s, the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, were racing their power to get their dominance over another. Each side feared the other’s superior weapons, such as the United States had nuclear weapon and the USSR had their mighty Red Army. The Cold War spread through decades and seemed to be indefinite. Two superpowers with the race of weapon not

Michael Jackson 30th Anniversary Special and Product Design Free Essays

Republic of the Philippines TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs Industrial Relations and Job Placement Ayala Boulevard, Ermita, Manila NARRATIVE REPORT ON SIT PROGRAM Product Design and Development Technology (PDDT) Work Stations: Product Design and Development Center of the Philippines (PDDCP) – CCP Complex Christmas Decor Producers and Exporters Association of the Philippines (CDPEAP) – CITEM Compound Chamber of Furniture Industry of the Philippines – Cebu (CFIP-Cebu) – ManilaFAME 2013 at SMX Convension Center From November 12, 2012 to March 25, 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction II. Jobs Performed in the Company a. We will write a custom essay sample on Michael Jackson : 30th Anniversary Special and Product Design or any similar topic only for you Order Now TINUKIB – Iloilo Showroom and Souvenir Shop i. Modular Designs for Shelving ii. Space Planning iii. 3D Rendering using â€Å"Google SketchUp† and â€Å"Vray† iv. Floor Plan (autoCAD) v. Working Drawings of displays (autoCAD) b. TINUKIB – Iloilo Cafe i. 3D Rendering using â€Å"Google SketchUp† and â€Å"Vray† c. Technology Updating Workshop i. Bleaching and Dyeing of Fibers ii. Palm Frond Making iii. Hand papermaking iv. Papier Mache’ v. Finishing for Furniture vi. Finishing for Gifts and House Wares ii. Finishing for Paper and Paper Products viii. Lamination of Palm Husk and Seed d. Design Talks i. Rey Soliven – ii. Sionil Jose – National Artist for Literature e. Lectures i. Benjamin – Trends and Forecast Sources ii. Rowe Requejo – Full Sizing and Furniture Aesthetics iii. Ben Bacamante – Creative Thinking f. CDPEAP Christmas Decor Designs g. CDPEAP-PDDCP-DTI Source Book in Indigenous Materials â₠¬â€œ New Design Team with Mr. Robert Alejandro of Papelmeroti i. Product Design ii. Product Development iii. Product Design Expansion iv. Book Layout v. Layout Cover vi. Prototype Supervising ii. Product Photo-shoot h. Ikenobo-Ikebana Society of Manila 30th Anniversary Celebration – Organizer with Dr. Romeo Balderama Jr. from CDPEAP i. Event Wall ii. Event poster for Shangri-La Plaza iii. Sarilikha Leaflets iv. Abaca Atelier Association Leaflets v. Anniversary Book Design vi. After Party Invitations i. Vina Domingo-Roy Exibit i. Opening Committee j. Manila FAME – PDDCP Booths and PDDCP Employees, – Next One Now with CFIP-Cebu, Leslie Mejares, Rey Soliven and Joey Yupangco – OTOP with Joanna Raymundo, Ryan Tresvalles and Jinggoy Buensuceso i. The OTOP Marketplace (Ingress) i. The OTOP Marketplace – Visual Merchandising Team iii. Next One Now Design Awards CFIP-Cebu – Assistant Judge for Lesti iv. PDDCP Information Booth v. PDDCP Booth  œ Color Trends 2013 vi. The OTOP Marketplace (Egress) III. Experiences a. Knowledge i. Applied from School ii. Learned from Training b. Skills i. Applied ii. Developed c. Values i. Learned ii. Applied d. Human Relationships i. Observed ii. Applied IV. Problems a. School b. Company V. Suggestions and Recommendations VI. Requirements a. Daily Work Activities b. Time Records c. Evaluation Sheet d. Certificate How to cite Michael Jackson : 30th Anniversary Special and Product Design, Papers

Change Management in the Modern Organizations

Question: One of the more recent issues in management is role of change management in organisational effectiveness .You are to undertake a literature review discussing the impact of change management on organisational effectiveness. literature review should consider : What is change management.What are some of the major challenges when trying to manage change in organisation.What are some of the current theories on change management.How can current change management theories be applied to support organisations. Answer: Introduction Organizational change deals with proper resource and it build the sustainable competitive edge across the business world. This also creates and restores the capability of the organization to function effectively. It integrates the effectiveness with business strategy and aligns the capabilities with effective implementation. The change in organization creates flexible and reliable communications within the work place. It also helps to increase the productivity and the work is integrated in a smooth manner. The perception of employees also changes with the process of change and they are the major target to influence the employees properly. People in an organization have the same aspirations towards change and they help to see the connection to improve the transition. It also identifies the models of planned change and different levels of strategic change process. Mutual trust and cooperation is important for the foundation of effective work team that develops major productivity. Successful change begins with competitive situations and management also supports the flexible policies and procedures. They foster change through trust and cooperation. The team is responsible for progress evaluation towards a real situation and change is important to improve the performance. It also helps in subsequent understanding of change. Thus it ensures to achieve the performance successfully. The clear goals and motivation supports the system to ensure higher level of success. Change is driven by situations and the leaders possess high set of skills to deal with the change. Thus the assignment will discuss the theory and approaches of change management with major challenges and also it will analyze the challenges. Literature review Change management Change is necessary and is made to deal with serious challenges. Change always impacts the work place and it is the modification to improve the organization performance.Change is difficult in any organization and it is the core of an increasing number of programs. This way, it shapes the direction and commits to provide the best efforts. It contains skills, definitions and addresses the curriculum. Thus it intends to develop high capacity and to adapt to renew the organizations. It is based on human values and ethical concerns such as social justice, choice and fairness. Thus it seems there is a conceptual background and it is more embedded with the culture. (Worley Feyerherm, 2014).OD will continue to deal with the research that describes the effectiveness of change theory and it is to coordinate the research and theories. There is an ability to deal with the effectiveness of an organization. Change management is known well as unfreezing, moving, refreezing the values and goals wit hin the work place. Change is the identity that is common for employees and communication plays a vital role in change management. (Zell, 2014).Change management is known as the continuous process that is redesigned for proper direction, structure and capabilities. There is no doubt that the organization is able to meet the needs. (Todnem, 2005) Major challenges when trying to manage change in organization Anderson (2011) says that organization is the planting of the change process that is to be followed when the guiding principles in the organization with the leading changers is seen in the way that will implement the positive changes to bring out the challenges that are faced in the daily life. There are some of the major challenges that are faced when one makes the try to have the change in the organization. These are explained with the procedures and the illustrations below:Lack of cultural backgrounds: Donald (2011) says that there is always the lack of the cultural backgrounds especially when the employees are running in the organization without having the knowledge of the culture of the backgrounds. Then the tasks that are to be performed by them are to be maintained in the manner that will give them the look to their works. This is the process of the changes that is desired. No resistance: Brown (2011) says that it is generally desired that when the work is done in the organization then there will be made no resistance as all the members are the same party and they belong to the same organization.They believe in the best of the organization. But, when the organization and the process that is carried are not done in the proper way then it is desired to have the dealings of the process to be done with the resistances. (Agnieszka, 2014)Employees awareness: Burke (2011) is of the view that when the employees have no proper awareness then the thing that is considered is that there will be made available all the employees and they should work in the proper manner so that there will be made the proper will and the determination with which the organization will carry on the business.These very businesses are to be carried in the proper manner. What is expected is that when we are able to have the workings and the operations in the organization, then we are desir ed to have the goals and the goals are accomplished in the proper manner.Without knowledge of companys operations: Warner (2011) states that without having the proper knowledge of the companys operations and the way the process in the organization to be carried out there can be made no kind of the systems that are prevailing in the organization.In this regard, when, the organization is carrying with the proper way then the organization will give the best of its awareness and the employees will be able to work on the way it is required.What if no kind of yes is made to organization: Cummings (2009) states that when there is made no kind of the yes that means that when the people dont have the time to get the agreements and the consensus then how can they make their organization and the works to be performed in the well manner.There is always said that when the organization is to be run, then all the mangers, employees and the chief officer of the organization is expected to have the same.Worley (2009) is of the view that these the very challenges are faced by the organization when the change is desired and the reason for this is that when the change is to be brought then there is seen the various kinds of the challenges for which the organization has to made the strategies to cope up with it. Current theories on change management Change management is quite important for the successful business conduct and operational activities. Through this method, it is possible to control the loss that is incurred at the time of carrying out the operational activities. Changes that are intended to be implemented by the company have to drafted and implemented in the right manner. Change management is defined as the structured approach through which the required changes can be planned and introduced by the company. In this method, analysis is done to find the impact of change and this is done by understanding the present and the future goals of the business. There are many theories that support the change management system, and it is necessary to consider the same. Nudge theory is one of theories that basically concentrate on human thinking. In this method, the ability of the people to react or to think about an aspect is analyzed. This also includes emotional analysis, which is analyzed on a rational and logical basis. Such factor also depends upon different variables that are considered to be necessary for analyzing the changes that are required for implementing the changes. In this method, human intelligence is considered as this will help in introducing the changes that would benefit the company. It is quite essential to analyze the different ways that will be followed for understanding how and why people think in the way that is usually done. It also includes analyzing the decision and the reason for particular behavior in human beings. The principles also apply to the indirect interventions that are used for improving the new choic es (Carol, 2008). Business development driven change theory This is another type of change management system, which analyzes the changes that need to be made for understanding the development prospects. In this process, the quality of the tasks that is performed by the management and the steps that will be followed for executing the work is analyzed. This is done through effective planning and implementation of the steps that will be considered to be necessary for introducing the required changes. Based on the changes that are intended to be made the management of the company has to develop and implement development strategy that will be useful in accomplishing the plan that has been drafted by the company. Some of the areas where the changes has to be implemented includes Sales development Analyzing plans for new product development Drafting policies for new market or area development Planning the tools, machines, and equipments that will be required for implementing the changes that will benefit the company. 1. Adopting new and better methods for people management and implementing communication process, which also includes training process.Introducing new strategic distribution method, which also includes partnership development (Susan, 2009). 2. Such planning is required for implementing the changes that will benefit the company. Before planning it is essential to analyze the challenges that can affect the performance of the company. The changes have to be communicated with the members as this will help in implementing the changes. Change management theories applied to support organizations In todays modern world, change is required to be managed correctly as it helps to develop and maintain the competitive edge. It requires proper knowledge, skills and abilities with respect to opportunities. The recent theories and approaches of change management help to achieve the involvement, aims and goals and proper commitment. It also motivates the team to manage the change and the responsibility for managing change also helps people to understand the situation and know the skills. (Hornstein, 2004) According to John P Kotters eight step of change, the stage acknowledge the model of understanding where one can see, feel and change.It is summarized as:Increase of the need of change: This motivates people to create the real and effective goals. It develops the right kind of skills and right commitment.Design a team: To entertain the right people with respect to right commitment requires proper skills and levels. This way, the team plays a vital role in managing the change.Right vision: To produce the correct vision and to establish the strategy, thus to concentrate on the major emotional and innovative aspects requires high efficiency and effectiveness. Communication: To include as many people as possible and to communicate the effective and major appeal then to respond to the needs of people. Thus, technology also works successfully for change management. Empower the action: To remove the barriers and to build the constructive actions and to support the leaders with proper and effective rewards and achievements that plays an important role in success. Build short term goals: To develop the aims and objectives that is easy to achieve the success. To manage the skills and initiatives are important and there is a need to start new ones. Encourage to continue: Foster the change with encouragement and design the future goals carefully. Thus continuous change is important for success. Stable the change: Reinforce the change with respect to recruitment, promotion and new change leaders. (Chapman, 2014) Williams (2014) discusses that the above eight step of change helps to analyze the problem solving, staffing, controlling and budgeting. The organization masters the skills and abilities that enhance the likelihood of success in the present and future. Leaders are designed to help the clients implement the process and to develop the skill sets to lead the change. These change skills reflect success for long term and it is found to be the best way to achieve an organizations inspirations. It connects to the strategic and systemic to deal with the self-discovery and development and to meet the business goals. References Agnieszka, B. 2014. Triggers of organizational change: Duration previous changes and environment. Vol. 14. No. 3, pp. 405-424. Aguirre, D. 2014. 10 principles of leading change management: Strategy+business. Anderson, Donald L.Cases and Exercises in Organization Development and Change. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2011a. Anderson, Donald L.Organization Development: The Process of Leading Organizational Change. 2d ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2011b. Apmg. 2014. Change management certification: Certification. Brown, Donald R.An Experiential Approach to Organization Development. 8th ed. Boston: Prentice Hall, 2011. Burke, W. Warner.Organization Change: Theory and Practice. 3d ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2011. Carol B, 2008. Outcome Realisation and Organisational Change Management The Tasmanian Government Approach Department of Premier and Cabinet. Chapman, A. 2014. Change management: Organizational and personal change management process plans change management and business development tips. Cummings, Thomas G., and Christopher G. Worley.Organization Development and Change. 9th ed. Mason, OK: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2009. Hornstein, H. 2004. Using a change management approach to implement IT programs: Ivey business journal Oliver W, 2001 Strategic Communication - Creating Understanding and Support for Change Prosci.com. 2015. Change management: Manage change maximize performance. Susan M, 2009. Communication Is Key in Change Management. Todnem, R. 2005. Organizational change management: A critical review. Journal of change management. Vol. 5. No. 4, pp. 369-380 Victor J, Latemore G, 2004. The Best-Laid Plans: Uncertainty, Complexity and Large-Scale. Organisational Change. Mt Eliza Business Review. Williams, R. 2014. Why change management fails: Psychology today Worley, C. Feyerherm, A. 2014. Reflections on the future of organization development: Journal of applied behavioral science. Zell, D. 2014. Organizational change as a process of death dying and rebirth: The journal of applied behavioral science. Vol. 39. No. 1, pp. 73-96.

Analysis of the Russian Telecommunication Industry at the Case of Mts Essays

Analysis of the Russian Telecommunication Industry at the Case of Mts Essays Analysis of the Russian Telecommunication Industry at the Case of Mts Essay Analysis of the Russian Telecommunication Industry at the Case of Mts Essay Course: Contemporary Strategic Analysis (fall 2011) Analysis of the Russian telecommunication industry the case of MTS 1. - Speculate on the distinctive features of the telecom industry and define their effect on the company strategy. Historical background To start with, the telecommunication industry for a long time seen as a provider of public goods, next to post service and railway, also involves heavy investments at a steady but relatively small cashflow income. Hence, it was seen that economics of scale are need to lead such a business successfully. Historically this industry was highly regulated in form of monopolistic companies owned by the government. According to Fransmann (2011) in the days of the Old Telecoms Industry the conventional wisdom was that telecoms was an example of ‘natural monopoly’, that is due to increasing returns to scale telecoms services could only be provided efficiently by a monopoly provider. Accordingly, in most industrialized countries was dominated by a monopoly network operator. The situation could be described as closed innovation system, very high entry barriers (in fact impossible to enter), very few innovators, fragmented knowledge base, medium-powered incentives, Slow, sequential, innovation process. Because of missing competition the price-quality relationship of telecom services in most countries was a disaster and companies still didn’t manage to operate profitably. This was the case in almost all countries before the 1980 and 90’s when liberalization made it possible for private â€Å"high-tech† players to enter the market when in the mid-1980s, for different political-economic reasons, Japan, the UK and US decided to end the monopolies of their monopoly network operators. The result was the birth of the original new entrants. The new era From the late-1990s, it was clear that a qualitative change had occurred in the Telecoms Industry in the early-1990s, signifying the birth of the New Telecoms Industry. The most evident sign of qualitative change was the rise of the new new entrants who quickly eclipsed the original new entrants and became the biggest threat to state enterprises. For the new entrants fast growth was needed in order to have economics of scale and cost-efficiency to pay back loans for investments and satisfy shareholders (Fransmann, 2011). With such low technological barriers to entry, the result has been a highly competitive market for network services. However, the contribution of specialist technology suppliers was not confined to the supply of technology. A significant bottleneck is the factor of human resources provided through the operations of the labor market to both the original new entrants and new ones. Moreover, financial markets have a big influence as they, firstly, facilitate the entry and initial growth of new entrants, in particular the new entrants and, secondly, facilitate the ‘re-shuffling of the capital stock’ that has taken place as both network operators and specialist technology suppliers with highly valued shares have used their valuable ‘paper’ (shares) to acquire the complementary knowledge and tangible assets of other companies. By so doing, financial markets have facilitated the process of consolidation in the Telecoms Industry The telecommunications industry nowadays provides a number of services such as data, voice services, graphics, television, and video at increasing speeds and through diverse channels. While landline telephonic communication is still the core service mode, wireless communication, internet, cable and satellite program distribution are increasing their share in overall industry earnings. The industry is experiencing rapid deregulation and technology disruption in service offerings. In many markets across the globe, governments are revoking monopolistic policies, and older players face a new breed of competitors. According to Gupter (2008) The market of this industry includes residential customers, small businesses, and big corporate customers. In the residential customers market, competitors rely heavily on price to increase their customer base. Success depends on branding, reputation, and investment in agile order management and billing solutions. The corporate market has different characteristics as compared to residential customers. Big corporate customers are ready to pay premium for the quality and reliability of their voice services and data delivery. They are less price-sensitive when special services like virtual private network, data security, and videoconferencing come into picture. Telecom operators also provide network connectivity services to other companies that need it. The players with far-reaching networks lend circuits to heavy network users like large corporations and internet services providers (Gupter, 2008). Porter’s five forces analysis In order to analyze the industry we can take Porter’s model and look at the five forces which dominate circumstances. Firstly, looking at the rivalry within the market, we can say that from the former monopolistic industry, as described before, the situation went to fierce competition with high price pressure in most markets. Moreover, technologies are changing very fast and, hence, operators need to constantly adapt and to investment into RD. In addition, there are quite high exit barriers as companies have a lot of technical investments which usually cannot be devested without considerable losses. To sum it up, we can say that this industry compresses a highly competitive and difficult environment. When looking at possible substitutes, we can find that the internet makes a huge competition for classical telecom providers. Especially free-internet call services like Skype offer a very good alternative. Anyway, right now there is no real 100% substitute possibility for mobile phone services which could offer the same satisfaction of needs at reasonable cost. Hence, we can conclude that there is only little till medium competition for telecom providers at the very moment. Speaking of suppliers’ power we can conclude that main actors are technology companies selling equipment plus governmental agencies giving licensees which is done usually only once this is not a constant pressure on telecom enterprises. Moreover, we can state that there is a vast number of technology suppliers which decreases their power. On the other hand, the power of buyers strongly increased during the last years as their choice of providers, fighting each other, grew a lot. In some segments or markets customer power can be lower because of less competition (e. g. France, Germany) whereas in other markets it is huge (e. g. Austria, Estonia). To conclude, we can say that the overall situation in the industry is challenging for telecom providers but, nevertheless, many people keep saying that competition is good for business. One approach to deal with these tricky circumstances within the industry is an extensive expansion strategy, which is discussed consequently by the case of MTS. 2. - Summarize the advantages and disadvantages of the company strategy in Russia and in CIS; think of possible ways of improving it. MTS nowadays is the number telecommunication player in the CIS. During 1993-2001, MTS was developing on the domestic market, increasing its coverage area by regional expansion within Russia. In 2002-2004 the company started its internationalization by expanding to neighboring CIS countries and has used a very aggressive strategy driven by mergers and acquisitions. Starting from its home market, Russia, the operator firstly entered Belarus and, consequently, Ukraine by acquiring and development a big local player. Entering new markets According to Lisitsyn (2008), for any company in the mobile communication sector, entering new markets to extend its network largely through the usage of existing infrastructure in the country of destination. From that point of view, the higher the level of its technological development the more attractive is the target market. This factor also strongly favors acquisitions of existing companies, which operate on the local mobile communications market and have their own infrastructure and subscriber base. In addition to that, a regulatory factor is rather important for mobile communications sector as the state quite often tries to protect it from foreign operators. In general, a combination of technological and regulatory considerations largely predetermines foreign market entry mode for the companies in the sector. Entry modes for MTS were predetermined by technological and regulatory considerations. As for target markets, they largely resulted from historical and cultural traditions, common infrastructure network, similar business practices, and development of re-integration process within the framework of the CIS. As the company started its internationalization already in 2002 by entering several markets in the region, it could gradually increase its experience and build up competence and use its knowledge and existing positions as â€Å"the platform† for future expansion to other CIS countries. Due to various types of similarities between Russia and its neighbors MTS may better understand market environment in the region in comparison with Western counterparts, and therefore use this understanding as its competitive advantage. At the same time, the main threats would most probably come not from national telecom service suppliers, but from large Western telecoms with huge financial recourses. Regarding regulatory issues, it is necessary to mention that without the political will of the national authorities MTS could not get access to their privatization processes. In addition to that, due to the high level of monopolization in most of the countries under review, in order to be successful MTS should establish a good relationship with local anti-monopoly agencies. MTS positions itself as an international company and the leading mobile service provider in Russia and the CIS countries. Hence, in three cases (out of four) it entered foreign countries by purchasing the most successful national mobile companies with prominent market shares. Only in Belarus it partly made greenfield investments and then the company did its best to gain the leading position in the local telecom sector. Drawbacks of the acquisition strategy In order to discuss the disadvantages of MTS’ growth strategy we firstly need to sum up its pluses. As discussed before the advantages of external growth, in our case acquisition of already existing telecom firm in new markets, the growth is not limited by internal resources. This means that the company does not need to invest in building up new infrastructure, getting state licenses and creating a first customer base. Moreover, there is not such an extensive pressure on the working capital for such initial investments– instead the firm just acquires another full-functional company which can be seen in the balance sheets and increases the enterprise value. Another point it, that it may reduce the number of competitors on the market. The acquisition can include the managerial skills, customers, goodwill, patents, and other intangible assets of the acquired business. Also, there may be tax and accounting elements which could be available. Added economies of scale may result from the elimination of duplication in facilities, management personnel, purchasing practices, and improved utilization of fixed assets. Nevertheless, the strategy of growth through acquisition has also its drawbacks. This includes that the company also acquire assets specific to the business, meaning that MTS had to acquire the whole target in one piece even if some business units or assets were completely useless and difficult to resell again. Another point is that there might be creditors or minority shareholders of an acquired business. In the case of MTS there are other shareholder in Georgia, Kirgizstan and Armenia, holding each between 25 and 49 percent of the local company’s stock. Such shareholders not only absorb profits but also can bring in their personal interests which might conflict with the group’s expansion strategy. Moreover, in the course of such an MA expansion strategy the company must go through costly negotiations and the problems of corporate valuation. This risk especially applies to MTS’ situation as it is assumed that the operator paid too much for some of its assets acquired. Prices of stakes are usually not evaluated on an asset-based approach but on the basis of discounted future cashflows. Since this take a look in the future and estimate such cashflows is an impossible task, such evaluations are based on assumptions and personal expectations. Recent outlooks – new product markets entry As MTS managed to capture a huge market within the CIS region, they now focus on extending their business field in those markets. By doing so, they again use the MA strategy by building partnerships and closing mergers with expert companies in order to avoid unnecessary investments in RD and infrastructure which can increase entry barriers which may discourage new competition. According to Andrey Dubovskov, the new MTS Groups’ President and CEO (since 2011), the company the merger with Comstar, the leading fixed broadband and cable television provider in Russia, allowed the company to enter the promising fixed line market. Given the low levels of Internet penetration and positive socio-economic factors, as well as the strong brand and large subscriber base of MTS, they believe in a good chance of capturing significant growth in this market. Following the completion of the merger and the integration of Comstar’s operations, wants to offer their customers a wide range of convergent products with quality customer care. On the operational level, the merger will allow MTS to realize hundreds of millions USD in synergies as they cut on SGA and infrastructure-related expenses. As Andrey Dubovskov says, further mergers are planned to expand in other business of such kind. Conclusions According to Lisitsyn (2008), the growth could be explained by two main reasons: An urgent need for modern communication tools on the one hand, and aggressive marketing campaigns of mobile service providers on the other hand. Of course this kind of aggressive expansion strategy could only be achieved by huge capital investments. This capability is bound to a strong and big home-market (Russian Federation) as well as a big and financially solid owner (Sistema). As those factors are fulfilled MTS’ business expansion and growth strategy is absolutely successful. There were some drawbacks mentioned before among which the problem of corporate evaluation plays an essential role. It can be assumed that MTS paid too high prices for some of its acquisition as expectations at the time of transaction were too optimistic. Anyway, capturing a top market position in markets with high potential growth, at least in the long-term perspective (even Ukraine will recover and become a solid economy one day) will pay off. An alternative and more conservative way of growing would have been to use its own experience in terms of technology and marketing by going for the slower â€Å"green-field† approach and fighting local players directly. This sounds good in theory, but as mentioned before the market conditions in CIS are affected by protectionism, entry-barriers and corruption. Hence, to acquire an already existing successful player avoids a lot of troubles. References Gupta, Aman; BPTrends: ‘Pursuit of the Perfect Order: Telecommunications Industry Perspectives’, November 2008 * Fransman, Martin; Telecoms Policy Magazine: Mapping The Evolving Telecoms Industry: The Uses And Shortcomings of The Layer Model, 2011 * Business Monitor International; Canada Telecommunications Report: Regulatory Environment Industry Developments, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), 2010 * Dubovskov, Andrey; Financial times: Company interview: MTS Group (MBT); 2011 * Lisi tsyn et. l, Journal of East-West Business: ‘Russian Telecommunication Company MTS Goes to the CIS’, 2008 * Huyghebaert, Nancy; Universiteit Leuven Academic papers: Determinants of Growth through Mergers and Acquisitions An Empirical Analysis, 2008

Sociological theories of interpersonal violence Essays

Sociological theories of interpersonal violence Essays Sociological theories of interpersonal violence Paper Sociological theories of interpersonal violence Paper Violence can mean many different things to different people. The term violence can be used precisely or vaguely and can take many different forms including physical, sexual, verbal, psychological, emotional, social, spatial and financial abuse. This makes it very difficult to find a definition of violence that works for all situations and at all times. Therefore violence, what is meant by violence, and whether there is a notion of violence at all, are historically, socially and culturally constructed (Hearn 1998: 15). What is named as violent in one situation may not be named as violent in another; therefore violence is both historically and culturally specific. There are many different theories as to why men are more violent than women. These theories include biological theories, which focus on hormonal patterns and aggression; psychological theories, which focus on personality types and disorders; psychoanalysis, which looks at projection and displacement and sociological theories, which focus on concepts grounded in interpersonal, collective, institutional, structural or societal processes (Hearn 1998: 17). Biological theories propose that women are naturally less violent than men. Maccoby and Jacklin (1975) describe how women display aggression and interpersonal responses which are different to that of men, which mean that situations are usually resolved without incurring violent behaviour. Biological theories of how violence naturally occurs rely on explanations of differences between male and female chromosomes, hormones, genetics and territoriality. During research in the 1960s biologists found a number of genetic abnormalities in the cells of humans. As Ainsworth (2000) describes, one of these abnormalities was a condition which was labelled XYY. The name came from the discovery that a small proportion of males had an extra Y chromosome (males normally have one X and one Y chromosome, hence XY). This meant that the men with XYY had double male chromosomes, an abnormality which became nicknamed the supermale syndrome. The syndrome became associated with violent crime as it was claimed that these men were twice as aggressive and violent than the average male (Price et al. 1966 and Jarvik et al. 1973 Cited in Ainsworth 2000). However, later research showed that while XYY males were more likely to be involved with crime they were not necessarily more likely to be involved with specifically violent crimes (Witken at al. 1976 Cited in Ainsworth 2000). Some biologists suggest that human aggression is hereditary. As Ainsworth (2000) describes, one way of examining this claim is through the studies of twins. Identical twins have identical genetic make-up, so if aggression is hereditary then both twins should, in theory, display identical levels of aggression. However from studies carried out of identical twins that are brought up in different environments it has been shown that they often display different levels off aggression and therefore theorists have suggested that levels of aggression are much more closely related to environment rather than genetic make-up. Biological explanations are highly criticised for neglecting ideas of power, cultural and historical relativity and morality. Psychological explanations, on the other hand, locate explanation in mind, mental processs that transcend sex/gender or nature of the male of masculine psyche (Hearn 1998: 20). However, both biological and psychological explanations are criticised because they dont address interrelations of body and society, and of body, mind and society. (Hearn 1998: 20). This leads us to the psychoanalytical explanations of violence which include intrapsychic conflict, personality disorders, denial mechanisms, developmental deficiencies/impaired ego, narcissism, traumatic childhood, machoism (Dankwort 1992-3 cited in Hearn 1998: 21). Through the psychoanalytical perspective it is not violence that is the focus of attention, but instead the dynamics of violence which are more closely considered. Hearn (1998) describes how Freudian and Neo-freudian theorists believe that violence is internally driven, in other words violence is located inside a person. Freud describes how exaggerated masculinities cause men to act violently to compensate for their fears of femininity and of women taking control. Chodorow (1978 cited in Hearn 1998) goes on to explain how the development of a rigid ego is created by men to cope with separation from their mother and the absence of their father. This rigid ego derives from notions of how to be a man which involves the idea of the need to be aggressive in order to show masculinity. However psychoanalytical theories are criticised for placing too much blame on the victim. For example, in the case of domestic violence it is suggested that women let it happen because of treatment they received as children. Because of this psychoanalytical theories are often labelled as not feminist or antiwoman. (Hearn 1998: 21). Despite this, psychoanalytical explanations remain very powerful and influential in the social sciences, although more socially located theories have become increasingly significant. Socially located theories suggest then it is men with social dispositions, not psychological dispositions who are prone to violence (Hearn 1998). There are various socially located theories which include the Social Learning Theory, Socialization and Cognitive-Behavioural Analysis. All of these are based on the same basic idea that mens violence is behaviour which men learn. Although psychoanalytical theories suggest that observing other people committing violence or even expressing ones anger in a non-violent way may actually reduce violence in a person, this is not the case in sociological explanations where it is believed that violence is externally derived. Sociologists argue that violent behaviour can be closely related to an individuals socialization, namely through learning theories. Jones (2000) describes how there is a possibility that the expression of some violent behaviour is causally connected to either observation or experience of aggression. He discusses how human behaviour is based on learned experiences rather than instinct or some other innate characteristic (Jones 2000: 49). One of the best-known sociological theories of socialization is Sutherlands theory of differential association (Sutherland 1947 cited in Jones 2000). He argues that cultural, in this case delinquent, behaviour is learnt through interaction with others. Most people come into contact with both law-breaking people and law-abiding people, but it is when a person has more contact with the law-breakers that they become delinquent. Ray (2000 cited in Hearn 1998) describes how the crisis of masculinity could also be a causal factor of male violence. The crisis of masculinity refers to, amongst other things, increasing unemployment combined with increasing womens equality. Due to unemployment young men or lads begin spending more time on the street, (they dont want to go home as they believe that home is the womans place) and so have more chance to commit crime. Real manhood is based on devotion to group membership, particularly that of street gangs. These gangs or subcultures (Hearn 1998: 30) use violence as a way of confirming status in street culture and so encourage young men to act aggressively and violently. Sutherlands theory of differential association (1947 cited in Jones 2000) becomes clear in Rays (2000 cited in Hearn 1998) connection between real manhood and male violence; a person becomes violent because of stronger exposure to people who commit violence than those who dont, through association with other violent males on the streets. The social learning theory outlines the idea that violence is observed and then reproduced or imitated and focuses on past experiences, especially from childhood (Hearn 1998). According to social learning theorists early experiences in the childhood form a persons personality, basically if a child witnesss a parent being violent they are more likely to be violent themselves, even if it does not become obvious until later in their adult life. However social learning theorists also accept that if children witness violence being used as a punishment then they are less likely to copy, and therefore will be deterred from violence (Bandura 1973; 1977). Children develop learned patterns of violence through intergenerational relations (Hearn 1998; Hoffman et al 1994; Ainsworth 2000). However the exact process of learning violence is often less clear and there is a divide between theorists who believe that individuals learn through cognitive structuring, personality formation, behavioural reinforcement and modelling (Jones 2000; Hearn 1998). Cognitive-behavioural analysis looks at particular forms of learning that have taken place for particular individuals and how reproduction of violence occurs through intergenerational learning and socialization. Goldstein (1989:124 cited in Hearn 1998) identifies the three main areas in which aggression is learned: in the home, school and the mass media. He theorises that learning is either direct through individual practice of aggression or indirect through observation of people being rewarded for aggressive behaviour. Hotaling and Sugarman (1986) suggest that men who are violent to their wives were traumatized as children, either through being abused themselves or through witnessing abuse of their mother by their father, again focusing on the intergenerational production of violence. Bandura (1973; 1977), a major proponent of Social Learning Theory, combined aspects of behaviourism and cognitive psychology. He argued that people learn their behaviours not only through the idea of rewards and punishments achieved through certain types of behaviour but also through observing other peoples actions. By doing this individuals can learn to anticipate the effectiveness of particular courses of action in achieving desired goals (Jones 2000: 51; Hoffman at al 1994). To reinforce his theory Bandura conducted an experiment involving a Bobo doll (Bandura 1973; 1977). In this experiment, he had some children witness an adult aggressively attacking a plastic clown called the Bobo doll. The children watched a video where a model aggressively beat up a doll. In order to frustrate the children, after the video they were placed in a room with attractive toys, but they could not touch them. Then the children who had watched the video and some other children who had not witnessed the violence, were led to another room where there were identical toys to those used in the Bobo video. Bandura found that the children exposed to the aggressive model were more likely to act in physically aggressive ways than those who were not exposed to the aggressive model (Ainsworth 2000; Bandura 1973; Bandura 1977; Hoffman et al 1994; Jones 2000). However there are also many criticisms of these theories as the exact process of how social learning or socialization takes place is often unclear and often represent a very simple explanation of how violence happens and is reproduced. Hearn (1998: 27) also claims that there is an under theorization of gender amongst the socially located theories. Certain questions such as why dont girls copy violence like boys do? and why do boys understand and imitate the violence of men but not the violation of women? are extremely important issues which are not addressed in these explanations of male violence. Another set of theories which attempts to explain why men are more violent than women are reactive theories, which can be either psychological or sociological in focus. Reactive theories are based on the idea that violence is a response to external conditions, men use violence when their goals are blocked and non-violent alternatives are ineffective (Hearn 1998). The stress theory suggests that certain factors such as low income, unemployment, part time employment and a large number of children are more likely to cause stress to men which can make them more prone to violence. Despite this, it would be unfair to isolate stress as a causal factor of violence because it is a constant feature of everyday life which everyone, both men and women, have to deal with. Another criticism of this theory is that if stress is a single causal factor of violence then why is it mainly men and not women whoare violent? (Hearn 1998). Reactive theories also look at the abuse of alcohol as an exernal factor, and how this can cause men to act violently. However as Horsfall (1991) outlines alcohol cannot be seen as a direct cause of violence. She concludes that if alcohol is a causal factor of violence, why do some men react violoently when others do not and why does the social structuring of boys and men bring them up to think that in order to feel like a manyou must drink with the boys, often to excess. The construction of gender is a very useful starting point to understand why men are more violent than women. As Moore (1994) writes, discourses about gender construct women and men as different sorts of persons. Discourse that is used to describe men is active; men are portrayed as aggressive, thrusting and powerful (Moore 1994: 138). Whereas discourse that describes women is usually passive; women are portrayed as essentially powerless, submissive and receptive (Moore 1994: 138). However, these constructions actually only have the most peripheral relation to the behaviours of individual women and men. Moore (1994) goes onto describe how discourses engender women and men as persons who are defined by difference(Moore 1994: 139). They produce discursive effects which produce gender difference, therefore producing symbolic or culturally constructed categories of women and men as different from each other. The discourse used to conceptualize violence is also very important as it often tends to take the focus, blame and responsibility away from the man who commits the violence and pushes it towards the family. Phrases such as domestic violence, conjugal violence, marital violence and family violence are often used and although it is important to acknowledge the relational nature of gender and relational context of violence it is equally important not to reduce violence to the product of the relationship' (Hearn 1998: 28). So far we have identified that, according to socially located theories, violence is produced and reproduced through learning, socialization, modelling and imitation, and this can be conceptualized as producing an environment of violence which operates over time (Hearn 1998: 29), for example intergenerational violence. Cultural theorists go on to discuss how these environments can be thought of as a culture with norms and values, or a system with systematic characteristics. They shift the focus away from the individual to take into consideration social relations and raise important issues such as cycles of violence, whereby the victimiser may once have been the victim themselves (Geffner 1989: 107). Multi causal explanations of violence are very important and claim that violence is a result of not just one individual force, but numerous factors working together. Multi causal theorists bring all, or at least some, of the theories I have already discussed together. Edleson et al (1985) put forward a multicausal explanation where they combine: ideas of violence in the mans family origin from the social learning theory; personal characteristics, such as an individuals attitudes and ideas towards violence taken from the psychoanalytical approach; the use of substances as an external force from the reactive theory; and they also condsider the context of violence by looking at demographic and relationship variables and specific violent events from a mans past.

MW Petroleum Corporation (A) finance case Study

MW Petroleum Corporation (A) finance - Case Study Example Apache on the other hand is seeking to grow. This is a good opportunity for the company to do so. This transaction would be beneficial to Apache the portion of MW Petroleum that Apache is considering is located in the same general area where the company currently operates and so consolidation will further reduce costs. This should allow for increased economies of scale in the form of reduced direct operating costs and even more so overhead costs for Apache. It is cheaper for Apache to buy an existing business as it has been doing rather than carry out exploratory drilling. This acquisition will also allow the company to diversify geographically its portfolio of assets which is important when the riskiness of the operations is considered. This diversification will somewhat help to stabilize Apache’s earnings even though both gas and oil prices are highly volatile. The acquisition of Amoco will also enhance Apache’s standing among US independents and lead to even further acquisition opportunities. The company is considering further growth opportunities in the future and this represents a stepping stone that will allow Apache some amount of bargaining power and would therefore put the company in a better position to compete with other companies. It is reasonable to expect that the MV properties are more valuable to Apache than to Amoco because Apache will benefit from synergies and rationalization of expenses. Table 2 below shows the present value of the aggregate overheads that Apache could reduce substantially if the acquisition takes place. Amoco would be better off if it had cash in hand which the company could invest in more profitable ventures. Currently, the properties are not contributing substantially if any at all to the company’s overheads. Part 1 (b) The sources of value that most plausibly account for the difference between buyer and seller are: The exclusion of fields in Michigan and the Gulf of Mexico; Expected synergies; Other opportunities mentioned; and The beta value that was used. Exclusion of Fields in Michigan and the Gulf of Mexico Apache was only interested in fields containing approximately 78% of MW’s proved developed reserves and 75% of the Proved undeveloped reserves. These account f or approximately $120 million of the difference. No details were given of the percentage of the probable and possible reserves that would be included in the fields in Michigan and the Gulf of Mexico. However, these could be substantial. Assuming that these fields are in the same proportion as the proved undeveloped reserves then the total value would be approximately $906 million. This is 294 million less then the $1.2 billion that Amoco indicated that the properties were worth. See APV Calculations in the Appendix. Table 1 Reserves Total (MMBOE) Proportion included in Purchase Value included in APV Total Value Proved Developed Reserves 155.2 78.22% 121.4 247,750,571.44 316,728,901.87                   Proved Undeveloped Reserves 25.6 75% 19.2 151,257,604.86 201,676,806.48 Sub Total          399,008,176.30 518,405,708.35                   Probable Reserves    75%    145,575,867.21 194,101,156.28                   Possible Reserves    7 5%    145,125,191.13 193,500,254.84                   Total          689,709,234.64 906,007,119.47 Synergies The synergies can be quantified as some overheads would be much reduced as well as some direct operating costs. The table below shows the present value of the projected aggregate overhead expenses. Apache is expected to save a substantial portion of this approximately $201 million. Table 2 Year Aggregate Overheads PV Factor (13%) PV Cash Flow 1 36.6 0.885 32.39 2 38.7