Strategic Estimates

Joint Operational Planning is the overreaching and collaborative process that guides the commander throughout the decision-making process for military operations. Military commanders are necessitated to make strategic decisions constantly. In their day to day operations, they work cooperatively with their staffs, such as SGM/CSMs in resolving basic and complex routine issues. While making decisions, they integrate their knowledge, professional judgment, and experience to make strategic estimates. Assessing the operational environment enables commanders as well as their staffs the full context of the operational environment to differentiate between what is known and the unknown and develop operative assumptions with regards to how opponents and the military force will interact within the environment.

The operational environment encompasses the land, air, space, sea, as well as the information setting and associated rival and neutral systems such a socio-economic, infrastructure, legal, and informational, which are necessary for understanding the exact joint operation (NWC, 2013). Assessing and understanding the operational environment requires more than analyzing the opponent’s military force and other battle capacities within the current operational environment. For accurate strategic estimates are made after identifying the critical rival’s competences and point out the vital operational environmental forces such as the terrain, geographical location, weather, health, and environmental risks, gauging attitudes of indigenous people, and potential avenues of an attack like sea, land, and air approach. The information acquired from the operational environment is used throughout the phases of military operations planning which helps in making effective strategic decisions that supports the set combat goals.

As a future SGM/CSM there is a need to understand these operational variables to provide the command with an accurate advisory for strategic estimates in military operations. Understanding the operational variables helps in the development of a reliable strategic plan, and the command can make credible decisions without risking the lives of the military force. The global environment is today’s characterized by regional chaos, unconventional threats, and increased production of weapons across different territories (DOD, 2014). As dictated by the joint doctrine, succeeding in the defense operations requires recognition of reality and operating with clarity. It is the assessment of the operational variables that mandates an adaptive and flexible planning approach and increases cooperation between parties. The understanding also helps in coordinating efforts of the allies and other security agencies within the region. For this reason, future SGM/CSM needs to understand how the variables affect operational planning.

Moreover, the commander charges the SGM/CSM with the responsibility of considering all the possible options for strategic response and their respective outcomes. Since the military must accomplish the set missions in submission to the combat and national values, decisive victory is a necessity to avoid avoidable casualties (NWC, 2013). Therefore, the SGM/CSM must understand the operational environment and provide accurate and reliable information to guide the command in deciding the most appropriate military operations.

Categorically, it is the responsibility of the SGM/CSM to conduct an in-depth investigation and understand the operational variables in a specific setting to provide accurate information for strategic estimates. A comprehensive understanding of the planning process and the operational environment are necessary for absolute accuracy.

References

DOD. (2014). Joint Strategic & Operational Planning For Planners. The Lightening Press. Retrieved from: https://www.thelightningpress.com/bookstore/book/54/?getsample=1

NWC. ( 2013). Joint Operation Planning Process (JOPP)Workbook.  JMO Department, Naval War College. Retrieved from: https://dnnlgwick.blob.core.windows.net/portals/0/NWCDepartments/Joint%20Military%20Operations%20Department/NWC-4111J-July-2013-chg1.pdf?sr=b&si=DNNFileManagerPolicy&sig=dddVUnI7j1yBrhnm6yva7zTW7QJW8TG9UdvCLD%2Fhruo%3D

Strategic thinking

Dynamic strategic thinking is important in the health care industry as it helps practitioners to address the different needs of their patients. In order to offer quality care, caregivers must think strategically so as to come up with approaches to ensure that they can handle the different needs that their patients have. Organizations that neglect to think strategically therefore expose themselves to the risk of poor quality of service (Keegan, 2019). If strategic thinking is not employed, caregivers may only use the guidelines given without alterations regardless of the impact on the patient and this could greatly affect the quality of care given. An example of why health organizations have to keep thinking strategically is the constant evolution in the human desire for better quality health. In order to meet the quality of care patients expect, health institutions must constantly seek new strategies to help carry out their functions.

A competitive advantage is important in that, it helps to improve the trust established between the patients and their caregivers. Organizations with a significant competitive advantage are often regarded as having better quality of service and also well equipped. This in return creates more demand as patients are more likely to seek medical help from recognized instructions. In order to gain a competitive advantage, hospitals invest a lot in training employees and improving their skills (keegan, 2019). The organizations also give rewards and compensation to employees who excel at their duties. Attending to the needs of employees gives the organization a competitive advantage in that; the employees are more goal oriented and they give better quality of service. Patients view the improved service as a sign for better care and this gives the organization a competitive advantage over others in the market it operates in.

Reference

Keegan P, (2019) “The value of strategic thinking” Forbes

The Effects of Differentiated Leadership in Groups

Part I: Summary of the Research Study

Differentiated leadership is an issue that has a great effect on the performance of groups, the behaviour of a leader within the group determines the success or failure of goal achievement of the group. This study tries to understand the effect that differentiated leadership has on group performance and the potential managerial cost of this type of leadership. Group focused transformational leadership is a model that is used in the study to help show the importance of leaders working with every member within the group without focusing on individuals (Wu et al., 2010).  

This study develops and tests a group level model that involves group and also distinct fixated leadership, through the use of a three phased review data from seventy work clusters in eight corporations within the United States (Wu et al., 2010). The groups include departments in retailing, marketing, customer care, accounting, product management, human resource and also engineering.

The results of this research indicate that segregated leadership within groups does diminish the efficiency of the group by creation of variance in identification of leaders and self-efficacy of the members. Leadership as indicated in the study as a communal asset, leaders behave correspondingly towards diverse associates and the associates react depending on their insight of the leadership conduct.  The results also indicate that the best group leadership style is group fixated leadership because it enables group documentation and cooperative effectiveness. For instance, a leader can wholly inspire group work by communicating the group as whole and also by providing group based rewards (Wu et al., 2010). This helps to instil the concept of share perceptions and beliefs within the group and hence unity within the group. All this positively contribute to the effectiveness of the group and hence organizational goal achievement.

The results of this study suggest that group leaders should be conscious of the fact that handling members as distinct individuals and adoption of distinguished leadership can consequence in loss of group efficiency. The variance in self-efficacy of the members lowers group worth and so leaders should use contingency standpoint when they are trying to reunite the pressures between group focused and individual focused management.

Part II: Key Learning Points in the Research Study

1. Leadership behaviour is a key motivation within group work
2. Leaders should treat all members equally to enhance group efficiency
3. Group members appreciate a leader that is not biased
4. Inspirational motivation is one of the best strategy to motivate members in a group
5. In order for collective vision to be achieved the effort of all employees should be considered

Part III: Eight Important Statements within the Research Study

1. Leaders affect groups by directly linking leadership with performance at the group level (Wu et al., 2010). Leaders are the motivators that direct whether goals of the group will be achieved depending on their leadership behaviours (Hoffner, 2018). Members in a group look up to their leader for guidance and if a leader displays some weakness or biasness, the members disregard his or her skills. A group where the leader is not trusted has a higher risk of the goals of the group not getting achieved (Chiu et al., 2018).
2. Transformational leadership behaviors inspire followers to pursue higher-order goals and to exert extraordinary effort (Wu et al., 2010). This statement is true, a transformational leader encourages and inspires the workers to innovate and also create change in a manner that helps the company to grow. A transformational leader leads by example and by doing so sets a strong sense of corporate culture that is followed by the other workers (Avolio & Yammarino, 2013). There is no micro-managing in transformational form of leadership. The employees are trusted to make the right decisions in their job roles, and hence motivating them to be creative in finding solutions to any problems they are faced with as they work (Buil et al., 2019). Employees get trained to become transformational leaders through this sense of mentorship.
3. Differentiated leadership may dampen group effectiveness (Wu et al., 2010). This statement is true. Leadership is an important element in any organization, the type of leader that is selected determines the success of an organization (Bormann & Diebig, 2018). An effective leader within a team is one that understands the importance of setting the right tone for the members. A leader should understand that every member within the team is important and therefore avoid any form of biasness. Guidance on how to conduct tasks should be offered to all members, because ignoring some members may demotivate them and cause them not to be effective in their work (Hoffner, 2018). A leader should create an environment of cooperation between the members by monitoring them as a group, and not individually to ensure that they work together to achieve team objectives instead of fulfilling only the individual goals. A leader that exhibits fairness and integrity in dealing with the group members serves as a role model and motivates the members to follow his lead.
4. Group-focused leadership leads to shared perceptions and beliefs about group identification and collective efficacy (Wu et al., 2010). The main aim of having a team is to ensure that a common goal within an organization is effectively achieved. A team is created by putting several individuals in a task, these people are expected to work together to achieve this common goal (Ceschi et al., 2014). The team leader is expected to ensure that the common goal is achieved by the team, which is only possible if the team is motivated as a group. A leadership where the leader treats the team as one is effective as it helps the team to commit to each other and help each other out to achieve the set goal (Chiu et al., 2018). The leader should ensure that each member understands the value of the team’s mission and vision. Ensuring that they understand their roles and responsibilities are all tied together to enhance the potential of the team.
5. Differentiated leadership promotes within-group divergence on leader identification and self-efficacy (Wu et al., 2010). Differentiated leadership is when a leader focuses on individuals within the group, to motivate them and guide them on how to conduct various tasks. Members of a group always expect the leader to work with them as a group and when their expectations are not fulfilled, they become demotivated and loose trust on their leader. A group where the members do not trust their leader cannot be successful because these members will never listen to the guidance of this leader (Ceschi et al., 2014). These members always feel like the leader is biased and not worth following, this cause the team spirit to be broken and the team becomes inefficient.
6. Group identification influences group members’ shared belief in their group’s collective capability of integrating available resources for successful group task performance (Wu et al., 2010). People within a group are brought together by a common goal; this is one thing that a group leader should understand. With this understanding, a group leader should hence come up with goals that can be achieved as a group (Chiu et al., 2018). For the goals of the group to be achieved, the motivation tactics employed should be group influenced. The standards and values that direct group behaviour should be employed to help in refining team growth and enactment. Open lines of communication, early conflict resolvement and high level of respect among the members can all help to achieve the goals of the group (Ceschi et al., 2014). High accomplishing teams actually converse and come to an agreement on their working rules, morals that are discussed and agreed upon by all the members.
7. One important function of social identity is self-enhancement (Wu et al., 2010). Self enhancement is all about motivating oneself to become a better person, it is the motive to create the view that one is a talented and also a skilled individual irrespective of reality (Sedikides et al., 2018). The construction of this self-favouring narratives help to uphold an ideal state of positive reactions and they also add to the development and protection of emotional welfares. Self enhancement can greatly help in achievement of group goals, by the members claiming as much good as they can from their strengths and achievements, they are motivated to work hard and accomplish group objectives (Sedikides et al., 2018).
8. Efficacy perceptions influence both group performance and group viability (Wu et al., 2010). People with high efficacy have a tendency of setting higher goals for instance they increase performance standards and their output quality is also high. This people develop actual task linked tactics meaning they have improved problem resolving strategies and implementation tactics (Bormann & Diebig, 2018). This group of people also understand their strengths and they select appropriate tasks and hence enhance their performance. These same criteria apply in groups, where the groups that have people with higher efficacy experience positive in group effect (Chiu et al., 2018). Appropriate tasks are selected and high group goals are set all which enhance the performance of the group.

Part IV: Critical Analysis of the Research Study

This article is effective in that it helps to explain the negative effects that differentiated leadership has on group work. The title of the article is simple and very easy for everyone to understand; the abstract gives a clear summary of what the article is all about. The language that is used throughout the article is easy; the authors’ choice of word is effective in that it makes the article to be easily understood. All the key phrases and words relating to this study are clearly defined and explained in relation to the theme of this study, helping to make it very easy for one to understand the study.

The article is well structured beginning from the introduction where the issue of group leadership is discussed with some explanation on why this topic is an important topic of research in this study. To help explain the negative effects that differentiated leadership has on group work, the article concentrates on transformational leadership that focuses on improving the capacity of workers by focusing on their capacities, needs and affective states. The choice to focus on transformational leadership is one of the limitations to this study because there is no other form of leadership that could it could be compared to within the study. Other future studies should consider comparing transformational leader in regard to the effects of differentiated leadership, with other leadership types like transactional leadership.

Group differentiation has negative effects and it causes the group to be insufficient. This fact has clearly been illustrated by the article through the use of a well-structured methodology, where workers from different sectors help to illustrate how group differentiation affects their work motivation. The methodology used for this study is sufficient because for one the workers used as the study sample are from diverse industries and they are workers from all the departments, which helps to enhance generalization of the findings. The choice of using past studies and at the same time conduct a fresh study was very efficient as it helped to prove the credibility of those past studies. The study uses independent performance ratings that have constructive connections with the independent data; however it would have been more appropriate and effective if objective group effectiveness measures were used.

The literature used to support the arguments in this study is all peer reviewed journals and thus helping the results of this study to be very reliable. The articles are not limited to the year of publication and this helps to understand the concept of differentiated leadership in a wider view from what has happened in the past industrial societies to what is happening today.

The findings of this study indicate that differentiated group leadership is wrong and it has negative impacts on the group.  The study also indicate that there are scenarios when individualized leadership maybe applied, but a leader requires to be intelligent in order to understand the situations when this is required without compromising the effectiveness of the group (Wu et al., 2010). Group focused leadership is demonstrated to be the most effective method in helping motivate group work. The findings of this study are important most especially for the managerial sector; it helps managers to understand the importance of treating all members within a group work equally to help in goal achievement. As this article indicates, leaders should be well trained so that they understand circumstances in which customized leadership is important and how it should be applied without distressing the efficacy of the group (Wu et al., 2010).

Part V: EAU Leadership Culture and Application of Group Focused Transformational Leadership

United Arab Emirates is one of the nations that is known for its success, what is surprising is the fact that all this success has been achieved in less than four decades and it is all attributed to its leadership styles (Sowmya et al., 2018). In EAU, leadership revolves around the constitution and the rulers within its constituents. The choice of leadership in each of the constitution has played a very important role in motivating the success of this country. The visionary leadership style of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan has fostered the growth and development of the UAE and it is what has guided leadership within all sectors be it private or public (Hanan, 2016). The leadership style in UAE is directive and paternalistic, the leaders are expected to give clear instructions to the members, who are in-turn expected to follow them to the letter. A leader that does not give clear instruction is perceived to be weak and to have poor management skills. This type of leadership leads to poor relationships between the leader and the other workers because the leaders at times are so harsh with the other members (Sowmya et al., 2018).

 This type of leadership within most EAU organizations leads to lack of initiative because the employees do not have an input into the dealings of the organizations. The employees that come up with a different idea and do more than what is expected of them for the good of the organization are perceived to be disobedient to their leader. The concept of transformational leadership as discussed in the article can greatly help to change the idea of group leadership within EAU. Leaders in EAU should understand the importance of allowing employees to give their views on the growth of the organization. Employees within an organization are more motivated if they are given a chance to contribute in the organizational decision making process. An employee given a certain task to handle works hard to learn everything there is to that task and this means that he or she is in a better position to make sound judgements. This is as compared to the manager who is overlooking the whole project and managing all the members within that project.

Businesses around UAE are normally family based, meaning that the main leaders within this business are family members. In most cases the employees are the family relatives most especially those who are not doing well in life (Hanan, 2016). This factor greatly affects the leadership style within the organizations, where the employees work in fear because their main interest is keeping their job. They follow the lead of their leader blindly even when most of these leaders do not have the right managerial skills to lead, because they fear disrespecting them. A group focused transformational leadership would best work within EAU because it is a multicultural nation. There are very many foreigners working in EAU, which gives the country the advantage of diverse cultural labor (Sowmya et al., 2018). By adopting a group focused transformational form of leadership, organizations in EAU can gain great insights from the foreign workers, helping EAU to economically grow and become even more economically diversified.

Part VI: Recommendations to EAU Business Field Decision Makers

EAU is a country that will continue to grow economically decades to come. More businesses will continue to be opened within the country and hence attracting more foreign workers to come to EAU. The decision makers in EAU business field need to understand that the most important HR strategy that can help in the success of a business is leadership. A leader is the one that can help to accomplish tasks, keep groups focused and help to ensure the success of an organization. The efficiency of a leader is all dependent on his leadership style, the world today is changing and employees prefer working with leaders that motivate their growth. Employees can be motivates within an organization by offering them an opportunity to take part in the decision making process.

The best leadership style that allows employees to grow is transformational leadership, this leadership style entrusts the employees on making the right judgement in various organizational decisions. By doing this, the employees are prompted to work hard and act appropriately because they understand that they have a responsibility of making the right judgements for the success of the organization. Proper leadership training programs should be incorporated in EAU, to help train the leaders on the importance of respecting all employees as the most important people that help ensure the success of their organizations. Policies should be implemented to motivate business leaders to adopt group focused transformational leadership style within all EAU organizations both in the private and the public sectors. Adopting a group focused transformational form of leadership will help EAU as a multicultural nation to grow to higher economic heights, and it will encourage other Arabic nations to follow this type of leadership.

References

Avolio, B. J., & Yammarino, F. J. (2013). Transformational and Charismatic Leadership :

The Road Ahead (Vol. 10th anniversary edition, second edition). Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1196791&site=ehost-live

Bormann, K. C., & Diebig, M. (2018). Trickle-Down Effects of Differentiated Leadership on

Lower Level Leadership and Team Helping. Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings, 2018(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2018.170

Buil, I., Martínez, E., & Matute, J. (2019). Transformational leadership and employee

performance: The role of identification, engagement and proactive personality. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 77, 64–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2018.06.014

Ceschi, A., Dorofeeva, K., & Sartori, R. (2014). Studying teamwork and team climate by

using a business simulationHow communication and innovation can improve group learning and decision-making performance. European Journal of Training & Development, 38(3), 211–230. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-01-2013-0004

Chiu, C.-K., Joe, S.-W., Lin, C.-P., Wu, T.-Y., & Yen, P.-H. (2018). Being an excellent team:

understanding how politics influence team performance. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 29(3/4), 365–386. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2016.1189823

Hanan AlMazrouei, 2016. " Developing a strategic leadership style in the United Arab

Emirates,” Proceedings of International Academic Conferences 3505583, International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences.

Hoffner, L. A. (2018). Leadership Is More Than a Noun. Parks & Recreation, 53(5), 50–54.

Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hjh&AN=129489391&site=ehost-live

Sedikides, Constantine & Alicke, Mark. (2018). The five pillars of self-enhancement and

            self-protection.

Sowmya, D. V., Chandrasekaran, A., & Patterson, L. (2018, November 21). An Empirical

Study of Leadership Styles in the UAE Human Resource Strategy. Retrieved from https://www.abacademies.org/articles/an-empirical-study-of-leadership-styles-in-the-uae-human-resource-strategy-7661.html.

Wu, J. B., Tsui, A. S., & Kinicki, A. J. (2010). Consequences of Differentiated

Leadership in Groups. Academy of Management Journal, 53(1), 90–106. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMJ.2010.48037079

Gender pay gap in the UK

The gender pay gap also referred to as the gender wage gap is the average difference between the compensation and payment issued to male and female employees. Organizations are required by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission to report the figures they make as a way to assess how they treat their employees. The responsibility of verifying the authenticity of the data provided however falls on the equalities and human rights commission. There have been problems within the EHCR which have led to women being discriminated against especially in terms of payment and compensation for the work done. There is, therefore, a need for unions and the various women’s groups to pressure the responsible organization to call attention to the disadvantages an unfair gender pay gap poses to not only women but society in general.

           In the year 2018, firms in the United Kingdom with 250 employees or more were requested to submit data on the pay gap within the organization or risk facing legal consequences (Woodburn, 2019). The data revealed that the pay gap had increased by 50 percent and that in 80 percent of the firms assessed, the gender pay gap favored male employees with only 14 percent favoring women more than men (Woodburn, 2019). This meant that men were paid 11.8 percent more than women on average in the United Kingdom. From the data collected, Ryanair Inc. emerged as the worst performer as its gender pay gap had reached 64 percent favoring men. The high gender pay gap can, however, be attributed to the low number of female employees hired as pilots by the organization. In the aviation industry, there are more male employees than females and this greatly contributes to the existence of the undesirable gender pay gap. Although there has been an increase in the number of women employed as pilots, the number is still low and the gender pay gap continues to be poor in the aviation industry.

           The low number of senior women in some professions is often used to explain the alarming gender pay gap in such industries. Take the case for Credit Suisse as an example. The company had a gender pay gap of over 29 percent in the United Kingdom (Woodburn, 2019). Organizations that attempt to close down the gender pay gap find it difficult especially because of the lack of female that can fill up the top positions. Both the organization and the employees must work together to bring about the changes needed to achieve a desirable gender pay gap.

Despite the existence of challenges in balancing the gender pay gap, some organizations have achieved great success in their attempts to close the gender pay gap. Take the case for Chanel for example. The company employs the use of various initiatives aimed at creating an inclusive environment for its male and female employees and this has greatly reduced the gender pay gap within the organization. Unlike most organizations in the United Kingdom, women in Chanel occupy 40 percent of the executive positions in the company and employees are given equal pay for the same work done regardless of their gender (Clarke, 2018). The company further has equal hourly pay for all its employees working in the middle pay category. Chanel has a gender pay gap of 2.85 percent and unlike most organizations in the United Kingdom, the pay gap favors women more than men.

            The company has invested a lot to ensure that the discrepancy between salaries and compensation for male and female employees is addressed. Since the gender pay gap also addresses the average earnings that both men and women receive across the labor market or within an organization, it helps to ensure that employees’ needs are catered for. It not only addresses the issue of equal pay but also other advantages and opportunities that may be denied to employees solely based on gender (Clarke, 2018). It further addresses issues such as the appointment of women to higher positions, the ratio of men to women in the top positions and other actions that could discriminate women based on gender if not resolved.

           Most of the success enjoyed at Channel 4 is as a result of the organization’s commitment towards doing away with issues of gender bias within the organization. The decision to offer equal opportunities to all employees regardless of gender serves a larger purpose other than establishing a desirable gender pay gap (Petter, 2019). The company tries to establish an ideal workplace environment by ensuring that the needs of all employees are met. Since each individual has a role to play towards ensuring that the company objectives are met, the organization in return ensures that they have an ideal environment to work in (Petter, 2019). The relationship established between the organization and its employees ensures that each party plays its part and that accomplishing the organizational objectives helps individuals meet their personal goals. In the process of maintaining equality, the organization can maintain the desirable gender pay gap.

           Other than the corporate culture, the bad gender pay gap in the United Kingdom is as a result of the different needs that exist for employees of both genders. Women, for instance, have to take maternity leaves and also time to rear children. While maternity leave is offered to both male and female employees, women are at a disadvantage because their leave is necessary unlike for men which is optional (Nevitt et al, 2019). As such, men have more opportunities to increase their knowledge and experience while women are at home. In the case a top position opens up, men have an advantage in that they have more experience and are present to apply. Women who take sick leaves may miss out on an opportunity if the job opening occurs when they are away on leave. They also face stiff competition from men who gain more work experience during their absence (Nevitt et al, 2019). An organization may make all the necessary arrangements to avoid an undesirable gender pay gap but the different characteristics possessed by employees of different genders make it difficult to attain the desired gender pay gap.

           The government, along with other organizations have tried to close the gender pay gap in the United Kingdom. A good example is the introduction of shared parental leave where both male and females employees are given maternal leaves equally. The approach ensures that men and women are treated equally and that women do not lag while their male counterparts continue improving their skills (Nevitt et al, 2019). Extending parental leave to include men further helps reduce the time spent at home during maternal leaves. When both partners are given maternity leaves, women get more assistance from their husbands and this shortens the recovery time, allowing women to get back to work faster.

           Also, the government has made the provision for women to request flexible working hours while they undertake their parental leaves. The working hours are flexible enough to allow the mother to take care of the family and still get some work done. The advantage of such provisions is that mothers do not take longer periods than necessary off work (Taylor, 2019). Female employees are therefore able to look after the family and still get some work done. The provision is beneficial to both the employee and the organization in general as it ensures that the flow of work does not get interrupted as much. The female employees benefit by gaining more experience in a conducive environment (Clarke, 2019). They are not only able to take care of their wifely responsibilities but also improve their skills and reach a position where they can comfortably compete with their male colleagues for top job positions.

           Channel incurs little to no cost in its attempt to close the gender pay gap as its projects mostly focus on creating equality. The company tries to bring equality by showcasing how both men and women can perform any task and both qualify for the benefits that arise from performing one's duties. Equality is not only practiced when assigning duties but also when compensating employees through promotions and other rewards. Take the case of maternal leave as an example (Silverman, 2018). Both men and women are given maternity leaves even though it is the women who carry the pregnancy. While such leaves mostly favor women, men also have a role to play in taking care of their newborns. Issuing maternity leaves communicates to the employees that such leaves are not just for women but men alike (Silverman, 2018). By doing so, male employees are placed in the same position as men and this helps to do away with the misconception that women are inferior, or that they do not work as much as their male counterparts.

           Another cost-effective way that Channel uses to close its gender pay gap is through the internal succession plan used by the organization. Whenever a vacant position opens up within the organization, the management first informs the current employees in case they want to apply (Whitehead, 2019). This not only speeds up the hiring process but also improves employee commitment to the organization. Promoting in-house gives women an equal chance to get the top positions because there is less competition and the existing employees already know how the corporate culture works and are therefore more competent compared to hiring new people with no prior experience working for Channel (Clarke, 2019). It also encourages more women to apply for top management positions and compete with men because the organization has made it possible through the elimination of gender as a factor in the hiring process. Employees are selected on their qualification as well as abilities and the position vacated is available to anyone who applies and meets the qualifications the management is looking for.

           The gender pay gap is a good way to determine the approach that an organization takes when trying to promote equality. In the United Kingdom, most organizations tend to favor women more than women and this has led to the undesirable gender pay gap that exists in the country. However, attention from the media and calls for change from various lobby groups and influencers is likely to push organizations to treat women as equals and offer them the same opportunities that their male counterparts receive. There is however need for more engagement by the government and policymakers to ensure that women are not discriminated against and that whatever opportunities one benefits from is a result of the work they put in and not just because they were born male.

References

Clarke S, (2018) “Discovery finds gender pay gap of 13% for salaries, 49% for bonuses at its       largest UK unit” Variety, retrieved from, https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/discovery-uk-         gender-pay-gap-report-1202739008/

Clarke S, (2019) “U.K films and TV firms show improvement in gender pay gap but little            equality” Variety, retrieved from, https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/uk-gender-pay-gap-         film-tv-bbc-itv-nbcu-turner-endemol-sky-viacom-2018-1203180668/

Nevitt C, Shannon E, Tilford C and Wisniewska A, (2019) “Gender pay gap: Women still short   changed in the UK” Financial Times, retrieved from, https://ig.ft.com/gender-pay-gap-            UK-2019/

Office of National Statistics, (2019) “Gender pay gap in the UK: 2018” retrieved from,             https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworking            hours/bulletins/genderpaygapintheuk/2018

Petter O, (2019) “Gender pay gap: What it is and how it is different from equal pay”         Independent, retrieved from, https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/women/gender-   pay-gap-equal-pay-women-paid-less-motherhood-a8856121.html

Silverman R, (2019) “The British companies with no gender pay gap” The Telegraph, retrieved   from, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/british-companies-no-gender-pay-gap-did/

Taylor C, (2019) “Gender pay gap widens at almost half of UK firms” CNBC, retrieved from,             https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/05/gender-pay-gap-widens-at-almost-half-of-uk-   firms.html

Whitehead J, (2019) “New feminist monopoly gives women players more money than men: But not everyone is convinced” Independent, retrieved from,   https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/women/monopoly-new-game-feminist-gender-    pay-gap-inequality-equal-pay-men-women-a9100266.html

Woodburn D, (2019) “Gender pay gaps of the UK’s top resellers broken down” CRN, retrieved    from, https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/uk-gender-pay-gap-film-tv-bbc-itv-nbcu-turner-  endemol-sky-viacom-2018-1203180668/

 Different Generations Composing the Workforce Today

           A unique and extraordinary change is happening in our workplaces today. There are currently five generations with only four in workplaces of many organizations across the world. The generation includes the Silent generation, baby boomers, Generation X, Millennial and Nexters. Companies must therefore ensure that generations work together to create a favorable working environment that upholds productivity. As far as generations of employees in the workplace are concerned, the evolving demographics in the workplace may be surprising. When the world appears more divided than ever, uniting all generations with the workplace globally can create an advantage for business thriving (Woods, 2016). Research indicates that employees are more divided than ever, but a workplace has five generations of colleagues all working together with incredible levels of focus and collaboration. In today’s contemporized business landscape, the success of any given enterprise relies on teamwork and thus, the management must ensure that the generations interact and collaborate in sharing their unique insights and expertise.

The silent generation includes individuals born between 1900 and 1945. Currently, it makes up only about 3% of the global workforce and is identified as the most important generation in the workplace based on its loyalty and commitment towards the success of a company Baby Boomers is the second generation which comprises of individuals born amid 1946 and 1964. The generation is known to compromise of workaholics since they are driven by the need to achieve career and material success. The third generation is Generation X comprising of persons born from 1965 up to 1980. The generation is fueled by the need for security. The Millennial is the fourth workplace generation which incorporates persons born from 1981 up to 2000. People from this generation have been brought up in an internet driven society. The generation currently is the most established and prevalent in the workplace, it comprises 20% of the global workforce (Woods 95). It is undisputed that Millennial are on the process to make up to 50% of the workforce by 2020 worldwide (Clark, 2017). The Nexteer’s or Z generation is individuals born was born after 2000 and made up 3% of the global workforce. However, generation Z makes up more than 25% of the global population compared to any other generation (Woods, 2016). It is speculated that by 2020 they will be out of school, thus they will be making up more than 20% of the worldwide workforce slightly behind the millennial generation. 

           In total, it is clear that the two youngest generations in the global workforce compose close to 70% of the worldwide employees in the next four years (Clark, 2017). In that sense, the older three generations in the global workforce will still remain in the workplace. In order to achieve a successful work environment, it is essential for all workforce generations to work together and understand each other well (Clark, 2017). Perhaps, this can also become a rare opportunity when it comes to building a dynamic workforce that is multi-generational. Findings show that many compliance and ethics officers believe that they can undoubtedly identify the critical differences between generations. But what is most complicated is the mixing and blending of generational beliefs and attitudes. Based on the age of some employees, they may be grouped as the Silent Generation and that is because they make use of information technology in ways parallel to millennial generation. In addition, some Nexteer’s have similar worldviews and work habits to Baby Boomers (Clark, 2017).

           The phenomenon of blending the habits and traits, in fact, underscores the significance of identifying employment opportunities and positive engagement among generations. Similarities in behavior and traits in a workforce interplays between the generations in order to produce a thriving and dynamic culture. It is significant for compliance and prudent ethic officers to pay attention to points of tension and that can create risk workforces and employment opportunities (Clark, 2017). Ultimately, understanding the uniqueness of each generation composing today’s workforce is the most significant step to ensuring our organizations are offering the best and thriving employment opportunities in a multi-generational workplace.

           In conclusion, it is my belief that all generations in the workforce can work together to bring success for organizations. Pulling apart cannot help to create employment opportunities and a good workplace environment. Failure of the generations to work together creates a scenario where business operations in an organization move in separate directions. In the global workplace environment, a business must run efficiently without the friction of workforce generations in order to compete. Without a doubt, the procedures which were used in the oldest generations will survive in today’s market. Similarly, this implicates that the employment opportunities which were available at the birth of Baby Boomers and Traditionalists Generations are less thriving in today’s global workplace. For that reason, Organizations are laying employees off and eventually shutting down businesses.

           The only safe way for organizations to survive is to have a workforce that is fully dedicated and has the ability to scrutinize the future by thinking outside the box. All workforce generations should learn from each other and all employees globally are supposed to have an open mind that is receptive to change. This supports the organizations to have a successful performance hence creating more employment opportunities globally.  Any person who is familiar with our generation knows that it is extremely different from our parent’s generation. This factor creates a gap between one generation and another generation and this has been acknowledged by organizations’ managers across the world (Clark, 2017). At last, each generation has different career expectations as well as employment opportunities.

The Implications for Employees

           Employers have to make some implications in order to create enforcements in their companies. These implications can be based either on technology, changing workforce or workspace environment. In terms of technology, every employer has the right to know which ways their employees make use of the company’s computers (Kuhn, 2017). This is through monitoring the emails they sent, posts shared and also internet searches. With proper use of the technology, a company can grow its boundaries and even create links for the company’s benefit. With advanced technology, communication within the company is made easier and this creates efficiency. Moreover, training employees is made easier since information can be shared with them more easily. However, employees should not use computers for an immoral purpose. Employers should do everything they can do to discourage employees from using personal emails for business purposes (Kuhn, 2017).

           On changing the workforce, this may occur due to differences in age and experience, labor shortage, communication barrier and even compensation. This is encouraged by the way the business does its businesses. Changes in management also change the workforce. New rules may be implemented which might seem to be hard on employees to accept them. A leader is the one who can outline the broad vision and the direction, and say here’s where we are going to go, here’s why we need to go there, and here’s how we are going to get there. A manager is the one who gets up under the hood and tunes the carburetor (Kuhn, 2017). Every employee should be able to cope with such situations. Moreover, the work environment needs some implications from the employers. The employers should control the work environment by making decisions over habits and disciplines. Social interactions should have limits, from the subordinates to peers and even managers. This creates good and great work. There should be no sexual conduct within employees.

           Technology is the best way to grow a business, both in structure and development. It creates a positive working environment with efficiency in communication and in marketing the business products for company grown. Every employee should make proper use of technology to make new and advanced work standards (Dolan, 2019). The changing workforce should also be bearable to all employees and should have the means to understand each other due to either communication barrier or other changes. Conducive work environment creates great work. This can be created by employers through inspiring employees and even empowering them. The emotional and empathetic and intelligent work environment is reputable for increasing and improving productivity in organizations.

           Differences in experience and age should be considered during the employment process. This makes it easier to making judgments and assigning duties as well. Moreover, it helps in widening young people’s mindsets and even gaining experiences. If the employees are employed on contract bases, the time should be observed. This gives employees rights against unusual dismissal and works with flexibility in making requests. Payroll providers should be in a position to provide Pay slip information for every employee, either working on hourly bases or any other payment agreement and calculate correctly their reference period (Dolan, 2019). Having an immense panel in business triggers a successful result. The unsurpassed managerial is the one which has adequate sense to choose good working team to do what requires to be done, and self-disciplined to make sure they follow the work appropriately.

References

Clark, K. R. (2017). Managing multiple generations in the workplace. Radiologic technology, 88(4), 379-396.

Dolan, V. R. (2019). Illness and the American Workplace: Issues and Implications for Employers and Employees. pp.56-78.

Kuhn, S. (2017). Opioid addiction and implications for employers. Benefits quarterly, 33(1), 33.

Woods, K. (2016). Organizational ambidexterity and the multi-generational workforce. Journal of Organizational Culture, Communications and Conflict, 20(1), 95.

Advantages of Transport

The transport sector has been slowly advancing with the recent changes in technology. This has resulted in the development of more efficient, safer, and fast products which has today made transportation less challenging as it was in the past. This paper will discuss some of the advantages of transportation.

The transport sector has shaped the agricultural sector by facilitating smooth movement of farm produce from the farmer to the consumer. This has increased the availability of different products in the market, which then provides a pool where the customers can choose from. Besides, air transport has made it possible for perishable products such as flowers to reach their consumers while still fresh (Chann, 2016). The market for the product has also increased globally due to the closure of the gap, which was there due to delivery issues. Therefore, it has also resulted in more profits from the products.

Furthermore, transportation has enhanced tourism in different parts of the world because people can move more efficiently from one place to another. For example, a person can travel from America to great destinations in Africa within a day due to the availability of air transport (Vasigh, Fleming & Tacker, 2018). The challenges involving movement across different destinations due to long-distance, impassable roads and areas which could not allow road transport such as forest, lakes, and oceans are today reachable due to the advancement in the transport sector (Donaldson, 2018). This has improved access to different tourist attraction sites, thus facilitated tourism in the areas.

Modern transport has also led to a significant expansion of both internal and external trade. With the current transport system, together with technology, business has become more global. This is due to the existing possibilities to sell or order products through the internet, which are then delivered through the most efficient means of transport to the consumer (Chann, 2016). The local businesses have also benefited from the shortening of the distribution channels of products and a decrease in possible destruction before they reach the consumer due to inadequate means of distribution.

As well, it has enabled faster and easier migration of people from one region of the world to another. This usually occurs when there is civil wars, harsh weather conditions, drought and famine, education purposes, business, and treatment purposes. Therefore, it has saved the lives of many people across the world which could have lost through civil wars and the poor weather condition (Donaldson, 2018). Besides, it facilitates the exportation of knowledge and skills among individuals with particular expertise with demand in other parts of the world.

Additionally, the transport sector has also led to the generation of government revenue. This usually occurs through the collection of tax and payment of licenses by individuals offering services in the sector. People operating private vehicles also pay taxes and other insurance services from where the government will be able to get more revenue. Apart from revenue collection, transportation has also facilitated the movement of raw material to the factories and movement of the end products to the customers (Vasigh, Fleming & Tacker, 2018). This has reduced challenges with transportation and has made it more efficient, thus, overcoming issues of shortage.

Conclusively, transportation has come with benefits both directly and indirectly in the current world. With the advancement in technology, the transport sector has also shifted and created more opportunities in different sectors, such as agriculture and business. Furthermore, it has also helped in increasing government revenue, which can then be used in offering other government services to improve the living standards of its people.

References

Chann, S. (2016). The advantages of transportation. Retrieved 27 September 2019, from https://www.slideshare.net/SmeeKamChann/the-advantages-of-transportation

Donaldson, D. (2018). Railroads of the Raj: Estimating the impact of transportation infrastructure. American Economic Review, 108(4-5), 899-934.

Vasigh, B., Fleming, K., & Tacker, T. (2018). Introduction to air transport economics: from theory to applications. Routledge.

 Adapting to innovations

The diffusion of innovation is a theory developed by E.M. Rogers (1962) and it seeks to explain how an idea, product or service can gain momentum over a duration of time, allowing it to diffuse into the target population or society (Rodgers, 2010). The theory argues that, over time, people in the community that a product or service is introduced in are likely to adopt the new product and use it as a substitute for other products or services. For diffusion to occur however, the target audience must first perceive the product or service as new and then opt to use it over others in the market.

Despite the efforts that a business undertakes to create awareness of its innovated products or services, the adoption of the product or service is not always simultaneous as people in society have different needs and different understanding of the information presented to them regarding the product (Mignon, 2016). Some people are seen to adopt innovated products earlier than others and this is caused by the different characteristics that different people in society possess. When launching innovated products, business should therefore take the different characteristics that people possess into account and design an approach that is respective of these differences (Mignon, 2016). Under the diffusion of innovation theory, the target audience is divided into innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards, depending on the rate in which they adopt the innovated products in the market. The approaches taken should then focus on these differences and try to make adoption of the product faster and to as many people in the market served as possible.

Other than the diffusion of innovation, organizations must also figure out how to work around the product lifecycle and the adoption curve in order to assess how to best reach the target audience. For international companies, leveraging the product lifecycle and the adoption curve promotes demand for the innovated products regardless of what stage of development that the product is in (Levitt, 2019). Apple for instance has had great results when launching innovative products, an achievement that has given it the competitive edge it needs to dominate the technology industry. When innovating a product, Apple Inc. tries to make the consumer part of the innovative product as much as possible and this occurs in most, if not all stages of the product lifecycle (Apple, 2019). Keeping the consumer clued in also allows the company to have some level of control on how the innovated products performs in the different stages of the adoption curve.

            The first step in the product lifecycle is the market development stage where the product is introduced into the market. While the product is often intended to meet a certain demand, innovated products often try to satisfy a need that a customer may not yet realize they have (Destigner, 2013). For Apple, the innovated products are used to not only create awareness but also inform the target audience on how the product seeks to satisfy their needs. When launching the iPhone for instance, Apple ensures that the consumer has significant information regarding the gadget long before the product is launched. The information is designed to target innovators as they are the ones most likely to try out the new product first (Apple, 2019). To enhance the success of the new products both locally and internationally, the company offer discounts and reduce prices to innovators who in turn give testimonials regarding the product. The testimonials combined with marketing done by the company ensures that more people get to know about the product.

            When the product reaches the second stage in its lifecycle, market growth stage, there is more demand as more people are aware of the product and seek to purchase it. When the product is in this stage, Apple Inc. structures its message to target early adopters who are more likely to try out the new product in the market. Since the company operates internationally, this stage focuses on the regions that are known to have the highest number of customers that are loyal to Apple and are likely to purchase its innovative products such as the iPhone (Apple, 2019). Introducing the product in regions where the company is popular increases the chance for fast adoption as the company has prior history with the target audience. Early adopters push the product into the third stage of its lifecycle which is the Market maturity stage. In this stage, the demand for products levels out and grows significantly. The growth is often promoted by early majority group which is made up of people who already know about a product and are willing to use it over others in the market (Levitt, 2019). At this stage, the company no longer has to inform the public what a product is because the information is already available to the public. For apple, approaches to promote sales are favored over product awareness. When launching the iPhone, the company focuses more towards encouraging people to purchase the device rather than informing them of its presence in the market.

            The last stage in the product lifecycle is the market decline stage and it is characterized with loss of demand and reduced growth. It is at this stage where people have already purchased the product but are either switching to substitutes or waiting for a more innovative product to be launched. For apple, this is the stage where the company targets people in the late majority and laggards group (Destigner, 2013). Late majority and laggards have the potential to maintain sales made by an organization. The chances of this taking place is however determined by the nature of relationship that exists between the business and its customers. While in the final stage, there are already similar products to the one innovated and the competition often presents similar products to try and lure customers. Apple tries to overcome the challenges in this stage by offering various benefits to its customers. the customer loyalty programs ensure that there is demand for Apple products while the company tries to innovate a new product.

            One of the major ethical consideration that the approaches have to consider has to do with vulnerable consumer groups such as children, the elderly and the disabled. While informing the public bout awareness is intended to create awareness about a product, some methods may be inappropriate for vulnerable consumer groups. Businesses must ensure that the message is structured in such a way that is appealing to everyone including those in the vulnerable consumer group. Another ethical approach would be to design approaches intended to specifically target the elderly, children and people with disabilities. This will ensure that the message being communicated is ideal for people with different needs.

References

Destigter B, (2013) “Leveraging your products lifecycle in international markets” Shipping          Solutions

Levitt T, (2019) “Exploit the product life cycle” Harvard Business Review

Mignon I, (2016) “Inducing large scale diffusion in innovation” Linkoping University Electronic Press

Rogers M, (2010) “Diffusion of innovations” Simon and Schuster

Gender and Leadership

The main points of the article by Corey (2017) is that in the 20th century, women played significant roles in developing the U.S. The percentage of women in the U.S population is 51%, and the percentage of women in the professional jobs is 52%. The percentage of women in the leadership position is 25% in office management, 19% in board leadership level, and 4.6% in Chief Executive Level (Corey, 2017).The article asserts that there is a leadership gap, and this gap needs to be closed.  The gap occurs as a result of gender stereotypes where people believe that women are not capable of being in leadership positions. In American culture, women are also regarded as ideal workers who are primary caretakers and therefore do not work long hours.   The society has also constructed the idea that women want to stay at home, among other unconscious biases toward (Corey, 2017). In general, women are marginalized, and they are assumed to be unqualified and incompetent. The major point is that the gender gap in leadership should be eliminated and allow women to achieve their dreams and advance their careers. Many highly skilled women can become leaders and move the organization to the next level.

The article supports the idea of ‘bridging the gap' as described in the textbook. Northouse, (2009) asserts that gender stereotype has influenced people to develop negative perceptions toward women, and women themselves have been negatively affected. There many females who can become effective leaders and therefore, organizations should change the culture and allow women to reach the top positions.  Many organizations have negative assumptions about the female gender, yet these assumptions remain invisible. There is no gender diversity, but rather, the place of works is characterized by unconscious bias where women are discriminated in career development, work-life support, mentoring, and other areas. Corey (2017) states that organizations should eliminate the leadership gap and provide them with developmental opportunities, gender equity, and equal opportunity. The only way the organization can achieve these elements is by assigning women leadership roles, and as a result, this will lead to organizational success. When choosing leaders, the organization should stop ignoring women and focus on gender equality

Reference

Corey, T. (2017). Women in leadership: Progress has slowed, so rev up to close the gap. Grand

Rapids Business Journal, 35(6), 11. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bwh&AN=121209680&site=ehost-live

Northouse, P. G. (2009). Leadership: Theory and Practice. SAGE Publications Ltd.

Followership

Leadership: Theory and Practice

Case 12.3 - Penn State Abuse Scandal

 I can describe the followership at Penn State as ineffective. First, it is important to understand that the leader at Penn State is Mr. Paterno. He was the head coach, and he did an outstanding job of creating a football program and brought national recognition. He had a unique role, and the fans, students, and community trusted him (Northouse, 2009). The followers were Sandusky, Curley, Schultz, and McQueary. The followership was ineffective in that they did not accomplish their goals. Note that followership is not like leadership.  Leadership involves leading a team in a positive direction. However, followership involves being led and also supporting the leader for a good job (Northouse, 2009). An important point to note is that followers do not only follow a leader, but they also observe and also develop leadership ability. For example, in the case study, followers did not consider the leader's role, and they did not care. They did not utilize their thoughts and became accountable to benefit the organization. Note that for leaders to function effectively, followers should open their eyes, and mind to observe how the leader is doing the organization roles (Northouse, 2009). In general, all followers were ineffective since they did not speak up, and they concealed problems.

Using Kelly's typology, both Curly and Shultz have a conformist followership style. This because they very well knew that Sandusky was abusing boys, but they failed to report. They continued to follow the leader's direction and guidance (Northouse, 2009). They failed to disclose child abuse. On the other hand, McQueary has a passive followership style. This is because he did a very good in reporting the suspected child abuse to his immediate supervisor. However,  he could go beyond the law and report the incident to the police. Even though he fulfilled the legal obligation, he did not consider the moral requirement (Northouse, 2009).    Since he knew child abuse is taking place, he could inform the police. He lacked a sense of responsibility, and therefore, he is not an effective follower.

  Regarding the failure of Paterno's program, the leader carries the burden of responsibility. This is because he very well knew about the Sandusky scandal, but he failed to unfold the news to the police (Northouse, 2009). He only did what the law required, but he did not go beyond the law and notify the police. He could follow up, yet this is an issue that needs serious attention. Thus, he failed in his leadership role, and since he was a senior position, he could apply leadership ethics (Northouse, 2009). However, his leadership action was insufficient, yet he was in a position to lead the followers.

Reference

 Northouse, P. G. (2009). Leadership: Theory and Practice. SAGE Publications Ltd.

                                                                         Leadership in the Criminal Justice Setting

                   In the modern day where globalization goes along with by complexity, uncertainty and diversity, running of any business or agency has become a very challenging undertaking. Leadership is an important element of any organization and this applies also to the criminal justice. Leaders help in providing motivation and inspiration to their followers to help them progress as they advance towards their united vision (Podmore, 2004). A team leader should have an organizational vision and should be able to inspire and motivate their groups to remain productive and to maintain the drive and ability to reach organizational goals (Wang et al., 2014). Leadership in the criminal justice setting is directly related to the overall success of the organization. Strong leaders within the criminal justice setting help to promote organization, management, productivity, motivation and creativity.

                   The role of leaders in the criminal justice is to ensure that tasks that they are leading are effectively completed. These leaders need to have strong working familiarity in the task for this to happen, this knowledge can be established through training, education and practice (Jones-Burbridge, 2012). Many times, leaders in the criminal justice tend to be over dominant and proud which affects their relationships with their subordinates. Criminal justice leaders that do not relate well with the team members affect the effectiveness of the criminal justice agency. It is very important for leaders in the criminal justice to have respect of those that they wish to lead in order to be effective (Jones-Burbridge, 2012).  Respect in this sense means, giving everyone a chance to give their views on various issues within the group. Doing this, helps to ensure that all the team members feel appreciated and it motivates them to work harder to achieve the goals of the team. A good criminal justice leader is one that understands his team and always strives to ensure that their work and personal lives are well balanced. Subordinates appreciate working with leaders that cares about them and one that supports their personal and career growth.

                   There are two management styles that work effectively in the criminal justice setting; there is situational leadership and transformational leadership. Situational leadership necessitates leaders to quickly asses a state and distinguish the suitable staffs and assets that are essential for a particular mission (Podmore, 2004). The nature of police work is both high risk and vibrant, it is significant for a leader to steer through developing and often risky situations. Possessing the capacity to digest information fast and to make verdicts under pressure is vital. Transformational leadership inspires the achievement of others, this leader cultivates a dream of the future which is proposed to motivate and encourage subordinates. Transformational leaders can nurture a positive transformation in their agencies and societies by addressing the low self-esteem of officers who are regulating in an anti-police culture (Podmore, 2004). The hostility, uncertainty and disapproval of law enforcement have turned out to be very prevalent as is demonstrated in the social media and in the streets. A transformational leader can help motivate officers by emphasizing on their accomplishments, identifying their strengths, providing openings for progress and refining their abilities.

                   An effective leader is able to gain respect from their subordinates dependent on how they present and carry themselves while working. One of the ways that the leaders can earn respect is by ensuring that they have the abilities that are vital for one to be in a management position. It is essential for leaders to recognize their strengths and weaknesses, in order for them to develop their style of management (Wang et al., 2014). Leaders who act outside their normal style of headship can seem stubborn and this can eventually affect their leading capacity. It is also imperative for the criminal justice leaders to appreciate their juniors, people are inspired by diverse things and it is hence very significant for a leader to understand what inspires each individual subordinate (Jones-Burbridge, 2012).

                   Strong leadership is an important element in the criminal justice organization. A criminal justice agency that has strong leadership helps to improve productivity, morale and it leads to success of that organization. A strong leader does not engage in unethical activities and leads by example which ensures that the criminal justice agency is free from unethical behaviours.

                                                            References

Jones-Burbridge, J. A. (2012). SERVANT Leadership. Corrections Today, 73(6), 45–47.

Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=70273627&site=ehost-live

Podmore, J.(2004), "Leadership and management in the criminal justice system: an

exploration of the management of change in a ‘failing prison’", The British Journal of Forensic Practice, Vol. 6 No. 3, pp. 30-35.

Wang, D, Waldman, D. & Zhang, Z.  (2014).  A meta-analysis of shared leadership and team

            effectiveness.  Journal of Applied Psychology, 99(2), p. 181-198. 

Employee Performance Reviews

Introduction

            Employee performance reviews or employee performance appraisal is a systematic process that is used to review the employee's performance. This is an essential process as it allows the employees to gain self-development, and the manager uses the information to make decisions concerning recruitment, promotions, and other strategic management. Another important point to note is that the performance review allows organizations to promote innovation performance. This means that when reviewing the employee's job performance, managers focus on helping employees improve their performance to achieve a competitive advantage. Thus, performance review increases creative and innovation potential among the employees. It is also important to note that performance appraisal improves political behavior. This is because, in performance appraisal, organizational politics (political perceptive) allow the employee to use their power to follow one's self-interest, and avoid negative outcomes.  In most cases, employees believe that managers are influenced by liking or disliking and thus, it is important to create a political climate during a performance review to allow employees to develop self-serving behaviors.  Finally, performance review is a dreaded task since managers fear to review negative feedback and a result, they give inaccurate evaluation which leads to inflated performance reviews. It is recommended that in the performance review, managers should use the best practices to improve motivation, reduce complaints and turnover.  In today's changing organizational environment, managers are required to conduct a performance review to help employees develop a new effective working habit, and more importantly, improve individual and organizational effectiveness. 

Summary of the article

 MANOLACHE & NETEDU, (2017) assert that the primary role of performance appraisal is to motivate employees to increase performance, and to allow the human resource manager to make informed decisions on training and development. The important point is that performance appraisal is not a punishment activity, but it is a systematic process that allows the organization to assess the individual performance and adjust the dysfunctions. The main point, according to Monalache & Netedu (2017), is that managers should consider independent variables such as age, sex, and length of work during reviews. They should use appropriate measures and consider the key variables to avoid errors. Ahmed et al., (2018) state that among the many roles of performance appraisal, it focuses on creating an innovative performance. Note that during the appraisal, managers identifying the strengths and weaknesses and implements the right ingredients to improve performance. Employees also expect management support and resources to increase performance and more importantly, increase innovation performance.  According to Abbas & Awan (2017), for employees to improve performance, they must modify their attitudes and behaviors.  Note that the organization can play its role to improve performance, such as looking for abilities, looking for the right employees, empowering employees, having open communication, among other leadership roles. However, the authors' key point is that these elements cannot help employee increase performance unless employees align their personality traits with organizational goals.  In other words, organizational politics must be integrated into the performance appraisal system to allow employees to use their power in career advancements. Above all, Posthuma & Campion (2008) add that for managers to use a well-designed performance reviews process, they must employ the best practices that meet distributive justice (fairness and equality), procedural justice (fair procedures), and interactive justice (respect and dignity). The best practice that would help managers achieve the three types of justice are;  proper timing, conduct an independent review,  communicate the specific and clear instructions,  policies of conduct, and performance expectations.

Evaluation

            From the peer reviews journal articles, it is clear that employee performance reviews is vital not only for the organization but also for individual employees. Note that today, businesses are operating in a competitive environment, and thus, it is the role of the organization to improve performance by conducting performance appraisal (MANOLACHE & NETEDU, 2017). It should be a continuous process so that the organization can not only understand areas where employees need improvement but also increase communication skills, and problem-solving skills. The articles inform and also persuades the modern organization to implement the appraisal in the human resource management to manage performance frequently, adhere to performance standards, and use the information gained properly, that is, not only to gain feedback but also to motivate employees to improve performance (Posthuma & Campion, 2008). Overall, these articles are straightforward, well-written, and they deliver an important message.

Conclusion

            Performance appraisal is a tedious task, but organizations must conduct appraisal to help employees grow professionally. It is a formal process where managers evaluate how employees perform tasks to improve performance. The articles recommend that managers should ensure a fair and accurate system, the procedural should aim at elevating performance, and it should be tied to corporate goals.  Due to the globalization and competitive environment, employees need high performance. In other words, the organization must evaluate how employees carry out their task, identify strengths and weakness, and provide them with knowledge and skills. The only way organizations can help employees improve performance is through performance reviews, and thus, it is important to implement this formal management procedure to increase organizational profitability. Note that the appraisal does not focus on understanding the employees' personality, but its focus on employees' performance and evaluate whether they meet the performance goals.  It is not only a management tool, but it also acts as a communication  tool since it allow  both manager and employees to communicate and more importantly, build a productive work relationship.

.

References

MANOLACHE, D., & NETEDU, A. (2017). PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

OF THE HUMAN RESOURCES. SOME CONSIDERATION AFTER A CASE STUDY

IN AN ECONOMIC ORGANIZATION. Scientific Annals of the “Alexandru Ioan

Cuza” University, Iaşi. New Series SOCIOLOGY AND SOCIAL WORK

Section, 10(2).

Ahmed, U., Shah, S. A., Qureshi, M. A., Shah, M. H., & Khuwaja, F. M. (2018). Nurturing

innovation performance through corporate entrepreneurship: The moderation of

employee engagement. Studies in Business and Economics, 13(2), 20-30.

Posthuma, R. A., & Campion, M. A. (2008). Twenty best practices for just employee

performance reviews: employers can use a model to achieve performance reviews that

increase employee satisfaction, reduce the likelihood of litigation and boost

motivation. Compensation & Benefits Review, 40(1), 47-55.

Abbas, Q., & Awan, S. H. (2017). Impact of organizational politics on employee performance in

public sector organizations. Pakistan Administrative Review, 1(1), 19-31.

High-reliability organization (HRO) 

The role of leadership in creating a quality-driven organizational culture

Today, the healthcare industry has improved as a result of technology. Healthcare professionals are now offering quality services, they are increasing the life expectancy, and chronic illnesses are well managed. However, lack of safety and lack of patient satisfaction are the major challenges facing the industry (Griffith, 2015). Despite the fact that the quality of healthcare has improved, patient safety is still at a lower level. The industry should improve patient safety to avoid errors, save costs and minimize harm. To maintain safety, the organization should create a quality organizational culture. A quality culture will be achieved by improving trust, fix the reported problems, and communicate the improvements (Griffith, 2015). These factors will create a stable organizational culture. Other factors that lead to quality organizational culture include communication, creating a strong relationship, and quality tools. Effective communication is very important in the healthcare industry. In order to communicate effectively, leaders should use the right channels. For example, they should use a directive channel (tell the client what to do), the requestive channel (request for information), the nurturative channel (maintain contact), and the emotive channel (use energetic tone) (Pauley & Pauley, 2012). These channels will ensure successful communication. If healthcare professionals feel that one challenge is not working, they should use another channel which suits both the speaker and the listener.  Managers should also create a quality culture by making substantial changes in strategies and tools. For example, the organization can apply tools such as Six Sigma to minimize errors and maximize patient safety. 

Organizations should create a High-Reliability Organization (HRO) rather than hope for one.

Healthcare organizations should achieve the goal of high reliability. Today, many organizations are using the Baldrige Criteria to improve performance. The principle of the Baldrige Criteria states that if organizations apply the model in the management framework, they will receive positive performance results. In other words, the model will improve health care outcomes, effectiveness, satisfaction, customer engagement, among other benefits (Griffith, 2015). The current debate is whether the Baldrige model should be used to achieve organizational reliability. Organizations that have employed the model argue that the model has helped them improve safety, reduce infections, increase patient satisfaction, and quality improves in other areas (Griffith, 2015). They argue that the model will help the organization achieve high reliability.

 According to my opinion, the Baldrige model does not create a high-reliability organization. Therefore, rather than using the Baldrige model to achieve high reliability, the healthcare organization should create one. In other words, organizations should create high organization reliability by using the Chassin-Loeb Model (Griffith, 2015). In comparing the Baldrige model and Chassin-Loeb model, it is clear that the organization that uses the Baldrige model are not high-reliability organization since they do not meet the criteria. The gap occurs in that the Baldrige model does not focus on strategic priorities, whereas the Chassin-Loeb model focuses on strategic priority which is ‘zero patient harm'.  For example, the Baldrige model focus on factors such as leadership, customers, workforce, results, and more. On the other hand, the Chassin-Loeb model focus on board members, physicians, information technology, accountability, assessment, training, among other factors (Griffith, 2015). I argue that the Baldrige award recipients have not yet become high-reliability organizations. Rather than applying the Baldrige model to achieve high reliability, the organization should create a high-reliability organization. This will be achieved by concentrating not only on quality but also on highest-priority strategic goal (Griffith, 2015). The purpose of strategic priorities is to maintain patient safety and improve satisfaction.

References

Griffith, J. R. (2015). Understanding high-reliability organizations Are Baldrige recipients models?.

Journal of Healthcare Management, 60(1), 44-61.

Pauley, J. A., & Pauley, J. F. (2012). Establishing a culture of patient safety: Improving communication,

building relationships, and using quality tools. Milwaukee, WI: ASQ Quality Press.