Strategic Management at Zhujiang Iron and Steel Company

Strategic Management at Zhujiang Iron and Steel Company 1.0 Introduction This material critically analyses the process of strategic management in the areas of nature of competition, the strategy, the strategy process, method of entrepreneurship and resources ofZhujiang Iron Steel Company (ZISCo). The analysis has been done by using some major theories such as gap analysis, balance score card, triple loop learning of ZISCo. Zhujiang Iron and Steel Company (ZISCo) is a Chinese state owned enterprise established in 1997. ZISCo is a steel manufacturer who produces wide range of steel sheets and plates that are used as inputs of various other products. In early 2003, ZISCo faced many problems in the key areas of production, procurement marketing and this has resulted in poor financial performance. In the past ZISCo implemented niche marketing strategy from 2003onwards, ZISCo planned to implement value creation strategy undertook many functional reforms with active participation from all its employees improved its financial performance during 2004 2006. However, in 2007 also ZISCo encountered various challenges, predominantly in the areas of cultural change, knowledge management, and development of organisational competence and learning capability Thus, this material initially analyses the current business strategies of ZISCo to understand the nature of their operations. Subsequently, conducts a PESTEL analysis, Porters five forces and value chain analysis to understand the environment of ZISCo, drivers of profit in the industry at present and the future. In addition, gap and balance score card analysis also has been done to understand the gaps that are existing in the context of ZISCo and to evaluate its performance. Strategic options can be considered to address the gaps that have been identified by the organisation. Therefore, the report will provide an exposure to the strategic options available used by ZISCo and whether they have effectively implemented the strategies. This has been done by analysis of 7S framework triple loop learning alone with an action plan. Finally, the report will suggest the recommendations where its applicable by providing justifications. The analysis of this report was done with the assistance of the case information provided and through industry related information from academic books, journals, websites and other publicly available secondary data sources. 2.0 Process of strategic management followed at ZISCo Businesses vary in the processes they use to formulate and direct their strategic management activities. The model enhances the development of strategy formulation skills by guiding the analyst systematic and comprehensive study of each business situation 2.1 Strategic factors and capabilities 2. 1.0 External environment From the PESTEL analysis Michael Porters five forces analysis it is clear that ZISCo is functioning in a very complex volatile environment which will impact all the strategies adapted by the organisation. Hence, a good understanding of ZISCos external environment will facilitate the organisation to exploit opportunities and avoid threats From the steel industry analysis we can conclude there are many well established key players in the Chinese market the industry has high potential to attract new players in future. Thus, the PESTEL variables in macro environment have major impact on the performance of ZISCo. 2.1.1 Internal environment Analysis of internal environment is a crucial phase to an organisation as it helps to identify the strength and weakness of the organisation. This would mean internal analysis will determine the required skills resources of ZISCo to cope up with competitors capabilities thus measures ZISCos effectiveness to gain competitive advantage According to the value chain analysis the main competitive advantage of ZISCo is technology leadership and implementation of value creation strategy in the steel and iron industry in china. However, through this analysis it is clear focus on quality was very low this is mainly due to the fact that quality department people were ignoring their responsibilities management did not place more care in this department as it does for marketing. 2.1.2Analysis of SWOT From the SWOT analysis key strength of ZISCo is that they have gained competitive advantage over technology leadership as they are the first company to introduce CSP technology in steel iron industry. In addition the other most important strength is their value creation strategy; ZISCo is the first company to implement value creation strategy and one stop shop services to their customers. Thus this will provide a first mover advantage to ZISCo as Chinese market moving toward planned economy to market economy. However, the primary weaknesses of ZISCo are poor quality products are being produced, has liability to pay bank loan interest of US$ 40million annually, and lower bargaining power in purchasing raw materials as a result of signing a contract with a supplier. The quality issues identified would erode companys goodwill among major most important customers; even company may lose its profitable customers for lack of focus in quality issues. Further the non current liability seems to be a huge amount, if proper care is not taken to settle the debt the whole company would go into liquidation. In addition company also faces problems with supplier; ZISCo will directly get affected if supplier does not provide raw materials on time in intended quality. Rapidly changing environment has influenced the performance of the organisation by creating opportunities and threats. The key Opportunities of ZISCo are Chinese economy is transforming towards market economy by creating an advantage for all the organisations in Chinese market and unsatisfied higher demand for container used steel sheets is a big opportunity for ZISCO. The unfavourable key factors that affect ZISCo performance and barrier to growth are slow moving organisational culture (slow change from production orientation to value orientation) , competitors imitating CSP technology and marketing practice very quickly. Further high raw material and electrical cost, the government restriction in steel industry such as limiting the number of employees been recruited and fixed price ranges are also threats for ZISCo 2.2 Strategies adapted by ZISCo Organisation can formulate strategies in three different levels known as corporate level, business level and functional level (Viljoen, J. and Dann, 2003, pg 235). As GISCo is the parent of ZISCo, they have adapted several comprehensive business strategies for their organisation. The business strategy of ZISCo is â€Å"value creation for both customers and company†. In order to follow this business strategy Zhujiang has adapted following strategies. Such as: Changing their niche marketing strategy to mass marketing strategy Pre-emptive strategy Differentiation strategy Cost reduction strategy New product development strategy Informal communication strategy Outsourcing strategy Adapting a new business model strategy 2.3 The performance of ZISCo The rapidly changing external environment has created some significant challenges for management of ZISCo. In order to analyse the overall performance balance score card approach has been used A general conclusion that the overall performance of ZISCO is at satisfactory level can be drawn from the balance score card analysis .However if we take each perspective in to consideration ZISCo has achieved maximum performance in financial and innovation learning perspectives whereas customer perspective and internal business perspectives are at moderate level. Therefore, ZISCo should concern on accelerating order cycling process to make improvements in internal business perspective performance. In addition they should also create possible steps to retain attract more customers by means of customer satisfaction. 2.4 Analysis of External, Internal and Stakeholders inconsistency To be successful, an organisations strategy must be consistent with the requirement of its current and expected future environment (external consistency), its capabilities must be consistent with the business strategy being pursued (internal consistency), and its performance from the existing business strategy must be acceptable to its key stake holders (Hubbard R.B, 2008, pg.167). Hence, an analysis has been done to identify the internal, external and stakeholder consistency of ZISCo According to the analysis of internal consistency of ZISCo it is evident that they have failed to adapt systems those match with their business strategies. This has ultimately created an internal inconsistency within the ZISCo. In addition, ZISCo also has external inconsistency as a result of government regulation on steel industry and changing market in china. 2.5 Gaps in Strategy formulation Gap analysis of ZISCo has been done on the basis of current business strategies of the organisation. Therefore environmental business strategy, organizational performance and business strategy gaps have been identified for ZISCo (Refer appendix diagram8). By analyzing these gaps it can be identified that ZISCo is trying to position its self uniquely in the market. 2.6 Strategic options available to overcome gaps ZISCo was not able to achieve their novelty among competitors due to gaps recognized in formulation of strategy. Thus, there are several strategic options available for ZISCo such as market strategy, generic strategy direction strategy. In order to sustain and gain competitive advantage all 3 options are equally important for ZISCo 2.7 The effect of competitors and stakeholders Stake holders competitors have major role in the performance of ZISCo. The key stakeholders who are exerting more power on ZISCo are government: Government has restricted the number of employees recruited by ZISCo; thus have created a barrier for further business expansions also government is controlling the prices of the steel products thus ZISCo wont be able to use the cost based pricing strategies add their target profit margins. Secondly, the bargaining power of suppliers is also high in the context of ZISCo because ZISCo has entered in to contract with limited number of suppliers. Thus this enables ZISCo to solely depend on them gives high power to the supplier. The other most important stakeholders are employees. They also create an impact on the business strategy adapted by ZISCo by resisting for the required cultural change. As employees have product orientation values it would be very hard to change them towards customer orientations. This would have greater impact in developing overall strategy of ZISCo. ZISCo would have to invest more funds for a long time period in training development since cultural change cannot happen soon as company requires. Finally, like all other stake holder mentioned above Customers also exerts high power in ZISCo because there is an unsatisfied demand for steel products in Chinese industry many market players are there. If a customer is not satisfied with ZISCo, the chances of switching brand are high. Therefore to survive grow in the competitive environment as ZISCo planned it should provide value to its customers. Competitors ZISCo is operating in a very competitive environment in which competitors are adapting to their opponents strategies very quickly. In the case of ZISCo also they have tried to adapt to CSP technology and tried harder to copy ZISCos business model and marketing practices. Thus, there is a possibility competitors can attack ZISCo anytime by imitating their unique innovations soon after the patent rights expire. Thus, this compels ZISCo to continually invest huge amount of funds in research development and in marketing. In addition to the local players ZISCo also faces high international competition in Chinese steel industry due to unfulfilled steel demand in China low costs of labour. These foreign players might have advanced technologies than ZISCo attack ZISCo simply in terms of quality. Thus, it is necessary for ZISCo to carefully understand nature of pressures exerted by both domestic international players and develop the most suitable strategy. 2.8 Implementation of gap Strategic implementation is complex and time consuming but success of an organisation lies on this stage. However good the business or corporate strategy is, it is off little value unless implemented (Hubbard R.C, 2008, pg 349). Therefore, during this phase, strategy makers should consider the question of who implements that strategy, what must be done and how the strategy is implemented (Fletcher, 2001, p.2). Hence, 7S framework has been applied to ZISCo to identify gaps the issues that should be addressed during implementation phase 2.9 Paradigm of operation ZISCo has shifted their paradigm from the conventional wisdom about how things have always been done and must be done to that of emergent strategies From previous paradigm ZISCo achieved efficiency productivity but did not produce products in intended quality that will fit the purpose of customers. Therefore ZISCo has shifted the paradigm from production orientation to marketing orientation by providing more value to their customers. In order to operate in new paradigm ZISCo has changed their market from niche to mass market, changed their organisational structure from functional structure to matrix structure and improved their financial performance through cost reduction 2.10 Recipe issues Recipe can be defined as a set of believes assumptions held commonly throughout the organisation, taken for granted in that organisation, but discernible to the outside observer in the stories of organisation history and explanations of events (Strategic management guide 3, 2004, pg 3). There are several issues have been identified for ZISCo in current paradigm In formulating strategy ZISCo did not define its goals objectives clearly which is critical for any organisation as it guides the employees towards mission vision of the organisation. Therefore, unstated purpose or goal of ZISCo makes the organisation unable to analyse the long term strategic purpose. Even though, ZISCo increased their financial performance by increasing profits through new business strategy still they unable to over come their long term debt. Therefore, this imposes a huge hidden financial risk on ZISCo. Another issue in relation to ZISCo is that cultivating a market oriented culture within the organisation while adding value to the organisation as well. In the past economy of china organisation strategies focused mainly on the production orientation, the value for production orientation already rooted strongly in employees minds is hard to change. Finally, ZISCo is loosing competitive advantage of CSP technologies as a result of competitors are adapting to CSP technology over past 2-4 years. Therefore, loss of competitive advantage (technology leadership) is a critical recipe issue for ZISCo. 2.11 Recommendation justification for ZISCo From the above analysis, I would recommend the following recommendations; ZISCo should implement vision mission in more transparent manner to their employees as it will help the employees to understand the long term strategic direction of the organisation. Thus, ZISCo should develop objectives that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and within the Time limit. ZISCo can transform their organisation as a learning organisation by allowing more innovations, continuous improvement in new product development by investing more in new technology, empowering employees and providing freedom to experiment. ZISCo should adapt to a TQM (total quality management) approach to attend real-time quality issues and invest more in compliance costs (Refer appendix diagram 14) In order to add value for both organisation customers, ZISCo should focus on new management accounting concepts such as extended value chain analysis target costing. These concepts will add value to organisation by reducing costs will add value to customers by providing them the intended benefits or quality(Refer appendix diagram 15 ) The president should also consider changing his leadership style; He should act both as charismatic a transactional leader because the president had performed well in strategy formation but he didnt concentrate much on communicating monitoring the developed strategy. ZISCo can also diversify their product to such as refining metals such as steel alloys. This can be done by merging with a recycling company or starting them self. This might reduce the cost of raw materials and reduce suppliers bargaining power in purchasing raw materials. Further, ZISCo can sell the raw materials to outsiders gain competitive edge. ZISCo can implement Just in time (JIT) system rather than having buffer stocks for raw materials, work in progress finished goods. JIT system would help ZISCo to deliver goods on time will reduce inventory holding costs Further ZISCo should also focus more in managing its supply chain. It should reconsider the contract with suppliers because the present supplier seems to be not reliable enough poor in quality. Thus, management should consider signing contracts with few reliable suppliers (Refer appendix diagram 16 ) ZISCos communication system also should be developed because it seems there is communication gap between top people bottom people ZISCo. Even though, Middle managers are acting as effective communicators between two parties it is insufficient for an organisation that intends to create value. Organisation should extend their one stop shop services in many geographical areas. By doing this they can gain competitive advantage and increase customer satisfaction as it reduce the transportation cost and time of customers. Organisation also should concern on their employees by creating carrier opportunity and carrier development to provide a value to their employees by providing them future sustainability. 2.12 Action plan of ZISCo ACTION Measure Person Responsible TARGET (Period Ending) 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Focus on growth strategies Market share, competitiveness President and Middle Management 6% 7.5% 8.5% 10% 15% Improve the CRM strategies Contribution to total revenue and net profit President and middle Management 10% 18% 28% 42% 55% Improve the quality of the final output Quality control measures Department of product quality 15% 25% 40% 65% 90% Create Learning Culture, Continuous Improvement and a flexible organization Innovation efforts, ability to correct mistakes and progress, quick response President and the middle Management 2% 4.5% 7% 10% 15% New Product Development New products developed R D 1% 2.5% 5% 9% 12% 4.0 Conclusion This case analysis has focused on the strategic management process of Zhujiang in the areas of nature of competition, the strategy, the strategy process, method of entrepreneurship resources of Zhujiang Iron Steel Company (ZISCo). The analysis has investigated apparent effects of the issues of ZISCo determined the causes of these consequences by use of appropriate theories. Based on this analysis, justifiable recommendations have been developed, which would redirect the organisation to its required respective strategic objectives. The recommendations for the organisations have been logically presented within a 5 year timeline which enables to generate the favourable outcomes while keeping the environmental changes in focus. At present ZISCo is operating in a very competitive market the competitive advantage of technology leadership is more short time oriented. Thus, in order to sustain in the market a key core competitive advantage is required for ZISCo as company planned the value creating strategy would be the most suitable. Further, the quality levels of ZISCo are inadequate. This is furthering them from their objective of value creation. ZISCo is putting efforts to move from a paradigm of production efficiency to value orientations. However, it is a great challenge to ZISCo as there are many gaps at ZISCo. The analysis indicates though the strategic objectives are appropriate for the environment, implementation of strategy is ineffective. Thus in conclusion it is clear that only by formulating effective strategies an organisation could not achieve its strategic objectives, unless it has the systems, procedures and most importantly willingness to efficiently implement the formulated strategies. 5.0 References Fletcher J (2003) .Strategic management Study guide and plan Edith Cowan University Perth Australia Hill,C and Jones G (1995) Strategic management an integrated approach (3rd)Houghton Miffin, Boston, Toronto Hubbard, G. Rice, J. Beamish, P. [2008] Strategic management Thinking analysis action 3rd ed Pearson education Australia Miller A, (1998), Strategic Management, McGraw Hill, 3rd Edition. New York.Study Guide: Strategic Management Viljoen, J. Dann, S. 4th edition (2003). Strategic Management, Frenchs Forest, New South Wales: Pearson Education Pty Ltd.

Adult Education Philosophy

One of the philosophies that is important to adult education is the liberal philosophy.     The liberal philosophy, which Socrates is known for, aims to develop intellectual powers of the mind.   Having a strong intellectual ability was vitally important to the Greeks.   Socrates was a classical Greek philosopher who helped found Western Philosophy.He was very much interested in ethics and logic.   Interestingly, Socrates himself did not write any philosophical texts.   All the current knowledge of Socrates’ life and study comes from the writings of others, such as Plato.   Socrates was very much in favor of oral arguments, and loved debate.   He felt that much insight was to be gained from hearing others giving their views on a topic.  Socrates spent much of his life trying to prove that he was not the smartest person.   He would debate people over and over again, but he always seemed to have the best and most original ideas.   To him, intellectual capac ity and prowess was the most valuable quality a person could possess.Socrates made a huge contribution to the field of education.   The Socratic Method, named for Socrates, is a style of debate that is used often in classrooms today.   Everyone gathers together and a question and answer type discussion takes place.As Seiferth (1997) states, the teacher does not give answers, but asks questions.   The teacher directs the session of debate by giving each student time to give opinions.   As each person puts forth an opinion, it is debated and critiqued by others.   This way, everyone can learn from everyone else.Therefore, it is the students’ own brain power that is shaping the lesson.   This is a good philosophy for adult students, because they have formed solid opinions and positions on issues.   The students’ life experiences can greatly influence their ideas.   The debate among adult students is often very thorough and can also contain a number of diff ering opinions based on what the students have gone through in their lives.Another scholar who was important in education was Skinner.   Skinner was a psychologist who made a huge impact on the psychological world with his idea of operant conditioning.   He also influenced the educational world because he thought teachers could be taught how to manipulate and motivate students to produce better results.   Skinner’s behaviorism is still utilized today.While a graduate student at Harvard, Skinner invented the operant conditioning chamber which studied the rate of response given when reinforcers were present.   His findings led to experimental, data-driven research.   The associations between an environmental stimulus, and a natural, recurring response, were found to be predictable.According to Boeree (1997) Skinner found that behavior could be shaped.   By giving positive reinforcers every time a desired behavior was exhibited, the behavior could become consistent.à ‚   A desired behavior became shaped when the behavior began to happen on its own without the needed reinforcer.Skinner’s behaviorism affected not only the field of psychology, but also education.   Skinner believed that every student could be motivated, and that behavior follows a predictable pattern.   If a teacher gave students a positive result for a particular behavior, they would repeat that behavior.   This is great for teachers because they can use a number of things to motivate students to do their work.This philosophy works well with adult students because they understand their own motivators.   Many adults are back in school to better themselves in their careers, so they are intrinsically motivated to do well.   The teachers need only to reinforce those pre-existing ideas that education will lead to a better job, and the students will respond accordingly.   The teacher directs and manipulates the outcomes desired by motivating the students with positive reinforcement.The progressive philosophy aims to promote social change through practical knowledge and problem-solving skills.   Active participation by all members of a class is key for the progressive philosophy to work.   Class members use their own experiences to learn and draw insight from, as well as a coming up with and testing hypotheses.   The teacher acts as a facilitator, guiding them through their experiences and evaluating their learning outcomes.A key scholar of the progressive philosophy is Dewey.   His model of learning included five stages: first, the student had to become aware of the problem; next they had to be able to define the problem; then they needed to propose a hypothesis to try to solve the problem; next they had to evaluate the consequences of the hypothesis based on their own experience; and finally they had to test the most likely solution.According to Zilversmit (2005) Dewey thought the classroom should be a model for the democratic society a t large.   He felt that teachers should use the classroom to show students how real-world issues happened, and let them work them out as a true society would.Dewey believed that real-life experiences were the best experiences for learning.   Setting up real-work simulations, actually going out into the world to test a hypothesis and learn about an idea, were the best ways to get a solid foundation of knowledge about a subject.   The environment is also very important to the progressive philosophy, because the environment shapes behavior, just as behaviors also creates a particular environment.Progressive philosophy works well with adult students because most often they are already working and living independently in the world.   Learning theory from books is useful, but they also need the real-world component to understand the concepts.   They need practical applications for the learning they are doing in the classroom that can translate into work experience.The humanistic philosophy takes the real-world experience of progressive philosophy one step further.   In humanistic philosophy, personal growth and development are the most important factors to consider.   The students are self-motivated, and the teachers act as guides and aides.   They do not facilitate learning; rather, they are a sounding board or advice givers.   Humanistic theory focuses on the person more than the subject.One scholar of humanistic philosophy was Maslow.   Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs were very significant in the psychological world, and also have implications in the educational world. Maslow found that each person had a number of different types of needs.   If a person’s most basic needs were not met, he would have trouble being well-rounded and meeting other needs.The needs in Maslow’s hierarchy are as follows: basic needs for survival, such as food, shelter, clothing; safety needs, which include the ideas that one’s home and family are safe, and that she has enough resources to live comfortably on.   The next level is the need for love and a sense of belonging.   After love comes self-esteem, which includes confidence and respect for oneself and others.   Finally, the last stage is the self-actualization stage.   This includes morality, creativity, and problem-solving.As stated by Simons, Irwin, and Drinnian, (1987), Maslow argued that if the basic lower levels of need are not met, a person cannot begin to complete the higher levels, and that educators should help students move from one level to the next. Following his theory, someone who is constantly hungry will not be very confident.   This is important for adult learners because there may be some students whose basic needs have never been met. These needs should be dealt with before venturing into the higher levels.   Conversely, many adult students will already have their basic levels of needs met, so the class time can be spent on working to ward the higher levels and reaching the self-actualization stage.A final philosophy of education is the radical philosophy.   This philosophy puts forth the idea that change is desirable and necessary.   The learner and teacher are considered equals as they discuss their own actions and reflect on the consequences of those actions.   Much time is spent in discussions when teachers are employing this philosophy.   Students’ own ideas and thoughts on how to promote change are highly valued, and the group tries to come up with some ways of affecting change on their environment.A scholar who has been instrumental to this philosophy is Freire.   His emphasis on dialog and praxis were very significant to the radical movement.   Many scholars have felt that education needs to be the basis on which change is made.   Students have always had ideas that would help them, school, or community.   The best way to bring about change is to talk about it.   He also felt dial og was just words without action, so he believed in praxis, which is putting ideas into action.Freire believed that the key to change was dialog.   According to Smith (2002), Freire felt that through dialog, ideas could be expressed and evaluated in order to deem their possibility.   Since dialog is a cooperative activity that involves some basic level of respect, it can be used to great effect.   When dialog produces useful ideas that lead to specific plans, great and significant changes can be made.   Once dialog has is done and action begins, change takes place.The radical movement would appeal to adult learners because as adults, they probably view themselves more as equals with the instructors than younger students.   Adult students also feel that they have the life experiences to know that some changes would make a great difference in their environment.Talking about issues that they themselves have had problems with in their lives would lead to great dialog about wha t could be done to make things better.   Adults are also often quite practical; they would be able to come up with plans for action that would be effective and efficient as well.The liberal philosophy works well in a workplace environment where there is a need to promote higher level thinking.   Colleges often use the Socratic Method to get students to think deeply about and debate and issue.   In a business, the managers might get together and debate the merits of shorter work weeks.It is not often used on a daily basis in many workplaces.   It can be used in certain situations, but since this philosophy can take time to employ, it is not practical in many areas of work.   It is not used much in the military, where ideas are given down from the chain of command, and no debate is allowed.The behaviorist philosophy can work well in certain aspects of many types of environment.   The basic stimulus-response behavior associated with this philosophy can be used to promote go od work output.   A factory with assembly lines would be a good place for the behaviorist philosophy because workers work as quickly as possible doing repeated behaviors.This philosophy would also be useful in other organizations where certain behaviors need to be repeated.   Employers could use basic conditioning to ensure that all hospital workers washed their hands after entering each patient’s room.   An appropriate practice and reinforcement would be well-served in this environment.   The military is also a great place to see the behaviorist philosophy at work.Soldiers constantly perform certain behaviors because of the known responses and consequences associated with those behaviors.   Behaviorist philosophy does not work well when ideas need to flow freely.   An advertising company thrives on new and unique ideas, so the behaviorist philosophy of producing repeated behaviors would not work well there.The progressive philosophy works well when there are envi ronmental aspects to the workplace.   When workers need to find specific ways of solving problems, or developing step by step procedures for operations, this philosophy is often utilized.The scientific and project nature Thinking outside the box instead of just taking in information is an important aspect of this philosophy, so creative workplaces will get a lot of use out of it.   Hospitals can utilize this philosophy because there are always unique real-life situations taking place in the emergency room.   This philosophy promotes that kind of thinking.The military does not use this philosophy.   There is no need for creative thinking is when learning how to walk in formation or assemble a weapon.   Workplaces where specific results are needed do not use this philosophy.Humanistic philosophy is best employed where individual ideas and creativity are valued.   Medical research is one area where this philosophy is used to great effect.   Group discussion and discovery are highly valued, and that is key to coming up with new ideas to try for new medicines.Almost every department of a college has a research department, and the people who work there are self-directed, motivated workers whose main objective is discovery.   Human Resources departments often use this philosophy as it takes into account feelings and emotional responses.   This philosophy would not work well when direct results are needed.A factory that produces cars does not need to use group discussions very much, as radiators need to be assembled in a certain way to work properly.   The military does not use this philosophy very much; the need for personal growth and independence is not as important as the unit.The radical philosophy would be best used in workplaces where the status quo is not what they are looking for.   Government agencies designed to improve or change relations between citizens and police could utilize the dialog and action of this philosophy to great effec t.   A lot of talking goes into party planning as well.A party planner would never be able to pull off a successful event without a productive dialog to find out what the client wants, combined with action that produces those desired results.   This philosophy does not work well in workplaces where the desired results are already being produced.   The military and assembly lines are already producing their desired results, so they have little need for dialog about change.It has been very difficult to pinpoint my own philosophy of adult education.   Each philosophy has pros and cons, and I can see how each would be beneficial in the workplace. However, my own experience has led me more toward the humanistic philosophy.   I feel most productive in a group environment where ideas are being shared, and I feel I have skills that would make me a good facilitator of other groups.I like to listen to other ideas and evaluate their merits.   I like to hear what others have to say on a topic that I am passionate about.   Therefore, I think the humanistic philosophy fits my personality the best.   I am also self-motivated, and could work well on a project on my own.   I have a hard time separating my experiences and feelings from my work, and this philosophy allows me to combine them both to produce good results.I also see value in the behaviorist philosophy, because I believe that all people have internal motivators, and if I could understand what those are, I could encourage a lot of productivity in the people who worked for me.I love incentive based projects and reward systems, and think everyone should be rewarded for a job well done.   I work well when given a task that I know has a reward at the end, and I think I could also plan appropriate rewards for people who worked for me.   Therefore, I think my own philosophy is a combination of the humanistic and behaviorist philosophies.All five of these philosophies have great value when it comes to adult learners.   It is important to understand the scholars who promoted these philosophies, as well as what the philosophies themselves are about.   Knowing what practices are employed in each of the philosophies would help any educator understand which one would be best suited to a lesson, as well as the unique group that is adult learners.ReferencesBoeree, C. (1998). B.F. Skinner 1904-1990. Personality theories. Retrieved May 28, 2009 fromhttp://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/skinner.htmlSeiferth, M. (1997). Socratic teaching. Palo Alto College critical thinking resource page.Retrieved May 28, 2009 from http://lonestar.texas.net/~mseifert/crit3.htmlSimons, J. Irwin, D. Drinian, B. (1987). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. from Psychology, TheSearch for Understanding. New York: West Publishing Company. Retrieved May 29,2009 from http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/Teachtip/maslow.htmSmith, M. (2002). Paulo Freire and informal education. The encyclopae dia of informaleducation.   Retrieved May 29,2009 from www.infed.org/thinkers/et-freir.htmZilversmit, A. (2005). Progressive education. Retrieved may 29, 2009 fromhttp://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1012.html

Self Assessment Personality Test - 997 Words

Self Assessment: Personality Test We don t usually transition our personalities, morals and commitment established on what we reviewed about ourselves. A conception of our personalities can help us find character in which we will do well, and assist us staying away from circumstances in which we will have an occurrence to have much stress. For example, if you are a highly reserved person, you are likely to experience more stress in a your life in a complicated position than a highly outgoing person would. So, if you are highly reclusive, you should either learn skills to manage with the demands of a intense job that requires extravert-type behavior patterns, or you should find a position that is more compatible with your personality. Knowledge of your personality helps you determine such a conclusion.Self-awareness helps managers identify gaps in their management skills, which promotes skill development. But self-awareness helps support stress management and motivation of oneself and others also helps managers f ind situations in which they will be most effective, assists with intuitive decision making. Self-concept plays an important role in leadership. Leadership self-concept symbolize a leader’s perceived ability to perform for the accustomed leadership tasks of advising, resolving and defeat obstacles. More specifically, it refers to the leader’s judgment that he or she can favorably make use of leadership by setting the route for the work group, buildShow MoreRelatedPersonality Assessment907 Words   |  4 Pagesyour selected personality assessment instruments.    ï‚ ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Examine the following items for each instrument:    o  Ã‚  Ã‚   Validity o  Ã‚  Ã‚   Comprehensiveness o  Ã‚  Ã‚   Applicability o  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cultural utility    ï‚ ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cite at least two references in your paper to support your assessment. 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