Case Study of Organisation Culture: Google Essay

Google, one of the world’s wealthiest and fastest growing companies, is often presented as a model of a ‘progressive’ organisation. What lessons can other businesses learn? The white paper on work in 2020, released by the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) last month, contained a summary of aspects of Google’s culture, and drew some conclusions about its implications for other organisations. Established in 1998, Google now employs more than 20,000 people, has been adding staff at the rate of around 6000 per year, and receives around 7000 unsolicited job applications per day. Core culture statements Google has three core culture statements: 1. People are the most important asset. 2. You can be serious without wearing a suit. 3. You can make money without doing evil. Built-in ‘innovation time’ Google provides ‘innovation time off’, that is, one work day out of every five is allocated to solving problems. All business ‘problems’ are circulated to all staff for ‘solution sessions’. Work environment Amenities and benefits at Google’s US Head Office include 19 restaurants, free dental care, a health centre, haircuts, massages, a crà ¨che, gymnasiums, a hotel, laundry, car wash and community bus. The restaurant tables are oval-shaped, on the assumption that social interactions stimulate knowledge and learning breakthroughs. The aim is for people to interact with each other while they are eating, and the underlying cultural assumption is that work and other life should be merged as much as possible. Google wants its employees to spend as much time as possible there. But it’s not for everyone The AHRI white paper points out that one of the potential drawbacks of this ‘work is life’ culture is that if things go wrong at work, they are likely to go wrong in other aspects of your life as well. It is therefore important to maintain connections with people in your life outside employment. Genuine work–life balance implies that everyone needs to be part of something else outside the workplace — not all the core family, friends and relationships should reside or be nurtured within the workplace.

A Functionalist Perspective On Prison Sociology Essay

A Functionalist Perspective On Prison Sociology Essay Choose a social institution (i.e. family, education, religion, prison, economy, mass media) and explain it using the three major sociological perspectives: Functionalist Perspective Conflict Perspective Interactionist Perspective Sociological Perspectives 3 Abstract The social institution that I chose is prison; I chose the prison system because I wanted to see how prisoners are seen by society and why according to these three major perspectives. Functionalist Perspective – Functionalists such as Charles Darwin and Emile Durkheim view society as a system of highly interrelated structures or parts that operate harmoniously. (Tischler, pg. 21) The functionalist, interactionists they more so are subjective to the aspects of social life, instead of the objective structural aspects of social systems. The interactionists, is shifted away from stable norms and values, and toward continually readjusting the social process. Conflict theorists, on the other hand, such as Karl Marx and David Hume, view society as constantly changing in response to social inequality and social conflict. (Tischler, pg. 21) Sociological Perspectives 4 Crime-Functionalist Theory Functionalists believe that crime and deviance are inevitable and necessary for a society. Crime shows other member of the society what is right and wrong. Social consensus decides how right and wrong is determined. Crime can lead to social change, say the functionalists, because the existence of crime proves to the people in society that the government does not overly control the citizens. Crime can also help the economy of a society by creating jobs for law enforcement officers, psychiatrists, probation officers and the like. Even in the functionalist society, too much crime can be bad for the group, causing it to lose the standard harmony and eventually causing the society to collapse. (www.criminology.fsu.edu) Crime-Conflict Theory How conflict theorists see crime, and the laws governing them, are products of a struggle for power and control. According to the conflict theorist, a select few powerful individuals and groups make the laws, and those laws are enforced to outlaw any behavior that threatens their interests. The poor and powerless are much more likely to be arrested and convicted for serious crimes such as rape and murder, than the more powerful and wealthy. The crime rate among the poor is very high because of a lack of opportunities that were meant to improve the economical status and living conditions. The poor also lack education, skills, and a strong support system that is necessary for individuals to become productive, valued members of society (www.unc.edu).) Sociological Perspectives 5 Symbolic Interactionist Theory Sociology has another theory that could also explain race relations according to dominant and subordinate groups like whites and blacks in America is the Symbolic Interactionist theory. This theory focuses on how we â€Å"learn conceptions and meanings of racial and ethnic distinctions through interactions with others and how meanings, labels, and definitions affect racial and ethnic groups† (Mooney 176). One example the author uses is simply the difference in terms that use the word white and black and the difference in the connotations of these terms. For example, typically words that contain the word black are negative, such as blacklist, blackball, and black sheep. Studies clearly still demonstrate that whites are seen as more intelligent, harder working and more self-supporting than blacks. This labeling helps lead to the very thoughts we have about minorities, which in turn helps perpetuate their subordinate place in society.

Air National Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Air National Case Study - Essay Example Presently, HR today happens to be an amalgam of two wildly distinctive roles, the first being while the second tends to be the personnel functional role that is the daily business of human resources that must be right; however, those daily roles also can be extremely strategic. The HR plays a unique role in helping the leadership of the organization assess all those elements, which tend to affect the strategy (Lepak & Gowan 2008, p.35). Apart from that the HR assists the management team in examining the implications of essential decisions, for instance, when Air National intended to add GoJet as an additional service, there were questions about this new investment project such as, what are the repercussions of introducing this project? What systems or processes necessitate supporting this investment? Is it possible to scale the organization suitably in supporting this new project? Considering that the human resources function turns out to be analytics, as well as metrics driven; only the HR leaders will be capable of providing relevant information in framing key business decisions (Torrington, Hall & Taylor 2008, p.25). In consequence of the challenging times within the business sector, companies have had to respond to the slowdown in economic activity by cost-cutting measures, for instance, the case of Air National there was the selling of aircrafts and buildings, along with the suspending or abandonment of unprofitable routes. Therefore, it is the duty of HR to come up with trends for compensation and benefits, thereby understanding the competitive landscape for top talent, together with the repercussions for employee retention, as well as their morale. This downturn provides a business with the opportunity to recruit extremely talented employees who might have been unaffordable in an improved economic environment, for instance, employees recruited for GoJet (Torrington, Hall & Taylor 2008, p.49). Question Two According to John Storey, there are a number of w ays whereby HRM has the ability of changing earlier attitudes and perceptions of personnel management in regards to managing people as contained in this latest model of HRM. If Air National applies these elements, it will undoubtedly enhance the management of its staff, thereby leading to enhanced performance of the entire company. The HRM must (Ivancevich 2006, p.36):- i) Increasingly seek to connect HRM concerns to the inclusive strategy of the organization. Apparently, organizations having the most effectual HRM policies and practices seek out to assimilate such policies within corporate strategies thereby reinforcing or changing an organization's culture. This is achievable through integrating HRM concerns into an organization's strategic plans thereby securing the acknowledgement and inclusion of a HRM viewpoint within the decisions of line managers. Therefore, HRM policies regarding various functions such as recruitment and training must be internally consistent plus at the sa me time being in harmony with the business strategies hence replicating the organization's core values. ii) Build strong cultures as a way of endorsing certain organizational goals since the aim of a strong culture are uniting employees by means of a shared set of managerially approved values such as quality, service and innovation, which tend to assume the recognition of the employee, as

Dashboard and Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Dashboard and Executive Summary - Essay Example In this respect, the sales departments are charged with the responsibility of determining the effectiveness of the products of the company and the company rating among the consumers/customers. The sales design management team of Coca-Cola collected the following data from the survey on different variables that measure the performance of the organization in this competitive industry. The data collected measures the rating of the company services and products over the last four year. Besides, these information also measure the variations in the performance of Coca-Cola using key performance indicators (KPI) such as sales volume, market share and profitability index. Year 2009 2010 2011 2012 Sales Volume 20% 17% 16.3% 14.1% Profitability 23% 22% 11% 19% Market share 51% 50.2% 48% 48.6% Production cost 12% 12% 17% 19.2% No. of new customers 5% 7% 2% 3.1% From the above company performance dash board, it is evidenced that although the company is performing averagely in the industry, the s urvey indicates inconsistency in the industrial outcome over the last four years. Although Coca-Cola still has the dominant share and control of the soft drink and non-alcoholic drinks industry, the market share is slightly declining following the economic liberalization that allows room for other competitors to join the industry with diversity of products (Hays 12). This gives the consumers arrange of differentiated products to choose from. The entry of new firms in the market over the last decade has resulted into a continuous decline in the market share dominance of Coca-Cola. This was led to the slight decline in the market dominance from 51% in 2009 to 48.6% in 2012. Owing to the global economic and financial contagion of 2008-2009, the cost of production has been on the rise from 2009-2012. This because, the economic stability is yet to be realized globally, thereby making firms (including Coca-Cola) to invest more resource factoring in the expansionary inflationary pressure o n the production and raw materials that are essential for the entire process. The rise in the cost of production has negatively impacted on the sales and profitability index of the company. Over the last four years, as demonstrated above, the profitability index of Coca-Cola has significantly dropped. From 2009 to 2011, the records on the dash board indicate that the company profits have been falling from 23 to 11%. However, the little economic recovery in the last quarter of 2011 and 2012 resulted into a boom in the profitability index to 19% in 2012 (Hays 56-7). Consequently, the sales volume for the company also decline over-time since 2009 forcing the firm to revert to modern approaches of marketing and popularizing its product. It is revealed that the entry of new firms and the increasing customer base of other competitors such Pepsi-Cola have contributed to this fall in sales and profit margins. The survey also involved the customer survey on the variables such as satisfaction , likelihood of re-purchase, quality, pricing, design, and recommending Coca-Cola products to others. The outcome of the survey is as tabulated and dashed below. Year 2009 2010 2011 2011 Customer Satisfaction 72% 75% 81% 73% Re-purchase likelihood 67% 67% 69% 67% Recommending Coca to others 65% 71% 78% 56% Product Quality and Pricing 87% 70% 76% 72% The above dash board shows the customers’ level of satisfaction with the services and quality of products of Coca-Cola. Regarding the

Final Exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Final Exam - Essay Example On the day of Pentecost which is accounted for in the book of Acts chapter 2 from verse 1 to 4, the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples. It began by the blowing of strong and violent winds then what seemed like tongues of fire rested upon each one of them and finally they each spoke in strange and different tongues as each of them was enabled by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit had a lot of impact in the lives of the disciples and He prompted Peter to stand and address the crowd that had gathered around them. In his address, he referred to the prophecy of Prophet Joel in which the coming and manifestation of the Holy Spirit was prophesied. Therefore, what occurred on the Day of Pentecost was fulfillments to that prophesy. He went ahead to speak of how the coming of the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ had been revealed to David who was among the patriarchs of Israel. Through his message, many Jews believed and they were baptized. The coming of the Holy Spirit marked a turning point in the life of the disciples and they were scattered all over the world to spread the gospel of Christ with boldness. ... 2. The title Messiah was used in the Old Testament to refer to the kings in the line of David who were anointed by priests. In the book of Luke chapter 4 and verse 18, Jesus Christ rose to read from the prophesies of Isaiah referring to Himself as the anointed one of God to preach the good new to the poor and to set the captives free (Bauckham, 308) Peter talks of Christ as the Messiah in Acts 10 verse 38 and how He was anointed by God to set free the oppressed by the devil and to heal those who were sick. However, the view of Christ about the Messiah was somehow different from what the Jews expected. The misunderstood concept of the Messiah is revealed in John chapter 4 verses 25 when Jesus was speaking with the Samaritan woman. She was shocked to learn that Jesus was the Messiah because she thought the Messiah had not yet come. The Pharisees expected the Messiah to be a military person who will liberate them from oppression by the Romans by wedging a physical battle with them. Jesu s stood in sharp contrast to their expectation by advocating for a spiritual battle and not a physical battle. He portrayed Himself as a peaceful Messiah who entered Jerusalem while riding on a colt. The disciples too were confused and wondered at first if Jesus was the Messiah but they understanding of Him changed as He continued to reveal Himself to them. 3. Covenant forms a very integral part of the bible. Covenant refers to an agreement between two parties and they agree to be bound. There are several elements that make up a covenant which include a sign, witness, promise and the parties involved. God made several covenants with people in the bible. The first covenant that God made with man was with Noah. God told Noah to

Alzheimer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Alzheimer - Essay Example The results also explain the various findings of the study as related to the possible factors that contributed to the occurrence of Alzheimer’s disease: use of anesthetics, neurotic personalities or an inability to handle and manage stress, the occurrence of obesity, incidence of depression, and physical inactivity. The discussion gives detailed effects that the disease brings to the people as well as their complications. Finally, the conclusion gives the recommendations and additional information concerning the management of the disease. The problem of the research relates to the people affected by the disease and at what age. The effects the disease creates on the affected individuals, the economy, and the government. In recent years, over 5 million Americans were suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. After attaining the age of 60, most people started to show symptoms of the disease. This could mean that the risk of being infected increases with age. Younger individuals could also get the disease, but on rare occasions. It is important for people to determine their risk factors, in order to prevent themselves from acquiring the disease. This is because other researchers project that the number of infections could rise significantly in the future (Wimo & prince, 2010). The paper shows that age is the main risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. The prevalence of the disease is analyzed and its fatality rate. The disease affects the caregivers psychologically. It is costly for the government to provide medication and treatment services to the infected person. The disease infects a large number of older women as compared to men. The paper discusses the physical effects of the disease in the elderly. Alzheimer’s disease affects the brain in a progressive manner. It could be fatal for the cells of the brain. It interferes with the memory capacity of the brain and affects the normal thinking of a person. If the affected

The Psychological Effects of Law Enforcement Behavioral Modification Essay

The Psychological Effects of Law Enforcement Behavioral Modification Programs for Juveniles - Essay Example Study suggests that the child’s self-esteem may be damaged in the detention setting, where they are subject to strip searches, institutional clothing, and dictated routines (McShane & Williams, 2003). Research has demonstrated that properly implemented alternatives to detention are considerably less costly than secure confinement and youths placed in alternatives make their offenses while they are living at home (or in the community) awaiting the final disposition of their cases. In fact, well-designed alternatives can actually reduce failures to appear and pretrial crimes, because youth involved in these programs are in greater contact with court personnel in the pre-adjudication period (Krisberg, 2005). In February 2010, Hook featured the R.E.A.D.Y. program, inclusive of some of the stories that the team experienced in the sessions. In Hook’s (2010) article, the different activities done inside the jail were also carried out and the program officers showed toughness and strictness. Most of the parents intentionally brought in their misbehaving children, hoping for some changes, and based on the number of teens that were brought in, only 1.1% of them were truly arrested. Given the relatively sensitive issue of juveniles being sent to real jail, and the possible negative psychological damages that may be brought about by some legislations it is undeniable then, that alternative behavioral programs like the R.E.A.D.Y program be implemented and assessed soundly to prevent the youth from committing any crime. Moreover, it is imperative that the communities to which the adolescents belong to provide a healthy environment that nurtures a positive behavior through assisting those who enter into the program to make better choices, consequently deterring negative behavior. The US Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS] (2008) estimated in 2006 that more than 900,000 children were either