Consumers Digital Writes essays

Consumers Digital Writes essays Music piracy has caused quite a stir with copyright infringement laws in recent months. A current article I found talks about a recent issue within this topic. The main issue is consumers digital writes. It was published in the San Francisco Chronicle by Benny Evangelista. A group of entrepreneurs have proposed a law to protect consumers and allow them to copy CDs, use a MP3 player, and watch DVD movies on their computer. These three areas are the major pirated areas of digital products. The government is currently trying to crack down on these three areas and make it so it is not possible to do them on any computer. These entrepreneurs feel this is wrong and want to protect the consumers rights. They argue that not all people that own a computer are going to be piraters. They state All consumers are not potential criminals. The entrepreneurs have proposed a Consumer Technology Bill of Rights that says the following things should still be okay for consumer to do : record tv shows to watch later, copy songs from CDs to a portable device, make backup copies of content, and translate content into different formats. The concern that the government has is the rights listed about can be taken advantage of. This article is defiantly coming from one side of the topic. The side it is arguing is the consumer side. This side contains both innocent and guilty parties which includes the people that are taking advantage of digital technology; pirates. The other side is the artists and corporate businesses that want to protect their product. Without this proposal all consumers would be labels as piraters when just a certain percentage actually are. The writer for this article is a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle. His primary role is to inform the public about current issues. He specifically want to write about issues that impact the people of the San Francisco area. ...

Changing Your Canadian Postal Address Online

Changing Your Canadian Postal Address Online When you move, you can change your mailing address online and redirect your mail using the mail forwarding tool from Canada Post. The process is simple, and the fee is the same as you pay when you go to a postal outlet to fill in a form. The cost of mail forwarding varies depending on where you move, and different costs apply to individuals and businesses. You can make a permanent address change, which will forward your mail for up to 12 months, or a temporary address change if youre going on an extended vacation or wintering down south. The tool also allows you to select whether to have businesses informed of the address change. When to File Your Mail Forwarding Request For residential moves, you must submit your request at least five days before you move. For business moves, you must submit your request at least 10 days before you move. Canada Post recommends filing your request up to 30 days before either type of move. Restrictions on Using the Change of Address Online Service The online service for change of address is not available in some instances. For example, mail addressed to customers who receive mail through a shared postal address cannot be forwarded. This includes  individuals receiving mail through an institution such as a business, hotel, motel, rooming house, nursing home, hospital or school;  businesses with a common postal address; and  mail received through privately administered mailboxes. In cases of dissolved partnerships, divorce, and similar situations, if there is a dispute over who should receive the mail, Canada Post requires a joint written agreement signed by both parties. If restrictions apply to your situation, you can still go to your local postal outlet and fill in a form to redirect your mail the usual way. You can also find more information in the Canada Post mail forwarding service manual. How to Edit or Extend an Address Change Canada Post lets you easily make changes or updates to your request online. Getting Additional Help If you need help or have questions about the change of address online service, fill in the Canada Post customer service inquiry form.  General inquiries about the Mail Forwarding service should be directed to customer service at  canadapost.ca/support  or by phone at 800-267-1177.

In Doctor Strangelove, there was a great deal of emphasis placed upon Essay

In Doctor Strangelove, there was a great deal of emphasis placed upon the - Essay Example In 1964, Herbert Marcuse introduced to the word his radical masterpiece entitled One-Dimensional Man. He unbolted an impressive question at the opening of his book in which he inquired about the irony of the very function of the atomic catastrophe; he stipulated that while the annihilation of humankind is imminent due to the escalating inventions of weapons of mass destruction, these warfare technologies are the primary protectors of the power that created the danger. Recently, Marcuse budged his attention from thermonuclear destruction into pop culture or the production of cultural representations which are largely shown in consumer products. Marcuse dedicated much of his thinking time in calculating the upshots of technological advancement today. He stalwartly judged that empires generated technological stratagems to finally liberate an individual from excruciating labor and lack of knowledge while at the same time making use of these technologies to outwit and even outlast them. T he dilemma of this new development is the very existence of agencies of cultural diffusion such as the media and the information machineries which supposed to be a guiding light towards functional responsiveness and yet serve to preserve the balance or status quo. The postmodern world which is characterized by the buying and selling of not only goods and services, but also in massive extent information, lay claim to people’s mind fabricating a nostalgia of self-sufficing exploitation. A one-dimensional man dwells in the contemporary world who is actually a pleased, innovative being but then devoid of the immaterial understanding of his universe which is in reality governed by discourse and action. He will become a mainstay in the comfort zone he weaved with the help of modern artifacts and will never take the possibility of dallying outside the mirage provided to

EHarmony Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

EHarmony - Assignment Example ess allowed people to register and specify what they were looking for, and feedback would allow them to be part of the revolution (Piskorski, Halaburda and Smith 9). The fact that some of eHarmony’s competition had other online businesses made the business base a little trickier. Match, considered as eHarmony’s major competition, had other online businesses that people trusted and relied on for various activities. This worked toward increasing the customers that embraced their services. The expansion the company worked on overseas made it easy to acquire customers from different regions. The competition also focused on services and products that were similar to eHarmony (Piskorski, Halaburda and Smith 11). This made the company face serious competition like it had not witnessed during its inception. Waldorf would have to go for the final option. The rapid expansion option would work toward broadening the consumer base the company already has. The fact that they would have to venture into a different region may ensure that their products and services are accepted by more people seeking short and long term preferences when it came to courting and srelations. The final option also assumes that failure to expand might allow competitors in the same business to capitalize and eventually, lock them out of that market (Piskorski, Halaburda and Smith 14). The patterns recorded in the US can be used because people tend to emulate what happens in the United States. However, a more research must be conducted to find out the exact patterns that may be exhibited in these new

To the Lighthouse Essay Example for Free

To the Lighthouse Essay Style for the writer as well as for the painter is a question not of technique, but of vision, says French writer Marcel Proust in his book Le Temps Retrouve. Proust belongs to the league of early 20th century writers who rebelled against the structures of Classicism on prose by employing revolutionary styles in the narrative. Critics of Virginia Woolf trace her influence to Proust, among other figures who share her distinct conception of reality and experience albeit the fact that there was no direct correspondence between the two writers. Virginia Woolf is a very individualistic and visionary writer (Friedman, 1955). The apparent similarity between her theory of reality and experience and that of the popular claims of some of her contemporaries can only be accounted for by the fact that Woolf draws much from the zeitgeist. The idea of stream of consciousness, for instance, is not unique to her as Bergson, who authored ‘durational flux’, proposes the same idea that time is a continuous flux which is the theoretical basis for stream of consciousness (Friedman, 1955). Nonetheless, her work remained distinctly hers specifically in terms of her style. It is because for Woolf the creation and fulfillment of a vision rather than a practice of technique matters most. Her bearing as a writer naturally followed her vision, her philosophy on life, reality and truth. In her body of work, she demonstrated what Proust claims to be the fountainhead of style. A very critical essayist, Woolf was very vocal about her vision. In her essay, Modern Fiction, published in 1925, she voices out her opinion on the issue of spiritualism versus materialism by critiquing her contemporary English authors H. G. Wells, Arnold Bennett and John Galsworthy. She coined the label ‘Materialists’ from their apparent lack of vision, their concern for trivial, temporal things, which to her escapes Life. She regarded their craft with respect but it was the objective to which their efforts were directed that she strongly opposed. She emphasizes the capturing of the spirit (or, as she put it, â€Å"life or truth or reality, whatever we call it†) to be the essence of art. The absence thereof incites the question whether that piece of literature is worthwhile and enduring. Woolf believes the preoccupation with trivialities is a manifest submission to the tyranny of the classics, the tradition and the canon. This would mean stagnation and death. Woolf puts it better when she writes: â€Å"Movement and change are the essence of our being. Rigidity is death, conformity is death† (Woolf, â€Å"The Common Reader†). Described as essentially a â€Å"lyrical novel†, To the Lighthouse reflects the totality of Woolf’s vision of capturing the evanescence of life into prose (Mayoux 214). Critics of the novel refer to its non-prose qualities, i. e. its deviation from the conventions of unity of time, characterization and linear plot development, to describe novel which has a very thin plot. Williams (204) writes that the novel is more akin to poetry than prose because it attempts to ‘[make] the moment something permanent. † According to him, this is a province of poets, musicians and painters and not of novelists (Williams 204). Interestingly, one of the characters in the novel, Lily Briscoe, is an actual painter and her character gives insight into the workings of the novel. The external plot of the novel is unusually thin for its length. Bennett aptly constructs the summary: â€Å"a group of people plan to sail in a small boat to a lighthouse. At the end some of them reach the lighthouse in a small boat†(200). The novel is divided in three chapters. The first chapter, The Window, begins in summer at a vacation house by the sea, owned by Mr. and Mrs.Ramsay. On that occasion, their family along with a few friends gathered in the house for a party prepared by Mrs. Ramsay. Mrs. Ramsay’s son insists on going to the lighthouse, but Mr. Ramsay disappoints him by announcing that the weather would not permit them. The rest of chapter describes the dinner interspersed with the thoughts of each character. The second chapter, Time Passes, is a description of the house and the memory imprinted in it after the characters introduced in the first chapter went their separate ways. The chapter is devoid of character action except for the incidental visitation of the house cleaners. In the second chapter, Mrs. Ramsay’s death is announced. The third chapter, The Lighthouse, happens years after the first chapter. Mr. Ramsay, together with his children and two of their guests, including Lily Briscoe, revisits the summer house. Lily contemplates the completion of her painting as Mr. Ramsay leads his children on a boat ride to the lighthouse. The novel ends as Lily completes her work.

J. D. Salinger :: Biography Biographies Essays

J. D. Salinger Biographer Ian Hamilton notes that J. D. Salinger has been notoriously "famous for not wanting to be famous" (4). Born in New York in 1919 and still living today, Salinger leads a rather reclusive lifestyle, choosing to avoid the general attentions of the press, and thus making his life a difficult subject for study. His work, however, has been cherished and studied for many years. He has published many works of fiction both in book form and in magazines such as the New Yorker and Esquire. One of his most intriguing novels is Franny and Zooey, which is actually composed of two short stories bearing those names. It is one of several of Salinger's works involving the Glass family, specifically Franny and her brother Zachary, known in the family as Zooey. "Franny" relates the manner in which she arrives by train to spend an afternoon with her boyfriend Lane, whom she has not seen for some time. Lane is by nature a repressive person, one who, waiting for a train, intentionally tries to "empty his face of all expression that might quite simply, perhaps even beautifully, reveal how he felt about the arriving person" (7). It beautifully and honestly illustrates the nature of their relationship, which is far less than perfect. In the wake of the suicide of her brother Seymour (which readers can learn more about in "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" included in Nine Stories'), Franny searches for spiritual meaning in her life. Her tool in this quest is a book entitled The Way of a Pilgrim, and in following the teachings of this book, she begins to consider the lack of meaning in some of her relationships, which, in this story, alienates Lane. The majority of the story focuses on their dinner conversation, and the tension which develops between the couple is well handled by Salinger; for example, when Franny begins acting strangely, Lane "looked at her, then exhaled an overly expressive stream of smoke down at his plate. 'This is going to be a real little doll of a weekend,' he said" (24). Eventually, out of mental exhaustion, Franny passes out in the restaurant, "Zooey" picks up where "Franny" leaves off; she has been sick as a result of her increasing self-neglect. The reader meets Zooey, who spends the greater part of the story discussing with Franny her condition. Franny reveals the main point of The Way of a Pilgrim, which is to repeat the Jesus Prayer incessantly until it becomes as natural and constant a bodily process as breathing.

Knowledge Management Conocophillips Essay

We express our deep gratitude to Mr. Gurparkash Singh for his constant support, guidance and motivation which helped us immensely in completing this project. The project provided us with an opportunity to understand the fundamentals of Knowledge Management in a better manner and its application in corporate world. The insistence on taking up a project on application of Knowledge Management in energy based firm and promoting it with latest technologies used by them to get a competitive advantage. ABSTRACT We have ConocoPhillips as our project firm of Knowledge Management. We learnt a lot about the importance of Knowledge sharing in today’s firms. The company continues to make tremendous progress toward its vision of creating a work place where employees continually deliver additional value through global collaboration and expertise sharing. At ConocoPhillips, support for sharing comes from the executive level and cascades downward and outward throughout the U.S.’s 6th largest global firm. The following report describe the approach, knowledge initiatives and use of lessons learned that have propelled ConocoPhillips’ current knowledge sharing and learning platform forward. At the end of this document, we have provided metrics that demonstrate the robust growth of Knowledge Sharing at ConocoPhillips COMPANY PROFILE ConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas in the United States. It is the world’s largest independent pure-play exploration & production company and is also one of the Fortune 500 companies. ConocoPhillips was created through the merger of Conoco Inc. and the Phillips Petroleum Company on August 30, 2002 and was the fifth largest integrated oil company until spinning off its downstream assets to Phillips 66 ConocoPhillips focuses solely on exploring for, developing and producing oil and natural gas globally. The company manages its operations through six operating segments, which are defined by geographic region: Alaska, Lower 48  and Latin America, Canada, Europe, Asia Pacific and Middle East, and Other International. It currently owns 8.4% of the shares of the consortium exploiting Kashagan oil field however the company seeks to reduce its non-core assets in order to use the cash for debt reduction, fund its capital program, and dividend payments. On October 3, 2012, the Kazakh Oil and Gas Minister told reporters that ConocoPhillips has informed Kazkahstan of their intention to sell their shares. In November 26, in its biggest acquisition ever, ONGC Videsh agreed to buy ConocoPhillips’ 8.4% stake in the Kashagan oilfield for about US $5 billion. The stake buy is subject to approval of governments of Kazakhstan and India and also to other partners in the Caspian Sea field waiv ing their pre-emption rights. Need of knowledge Management Smart managers intuitively understand the importance of the problems that knowledge management efforts are often designed to address: sprinkled across most organizations are people doing similar kinds of work, but they often remain unaware of one another’s expertise, successes, and failures. Some of this lack of awareness is the result of waves of downsizing, reorganizations, leadership changes, and new acquisitions. But even in the best-managed large organizations, employees who could benefit from one another’s experiences are often isolated by formal structures and mechanisms that subdivide work into different reporting channels and focus employees on local rather than global goals. To serve customers well and remain in business companies must: reduce their cycle times, operate with minimum fixed assets and overhead (people, inventory and facilities), shorten product development time, improve customer service, empower employees, innovate and deliver high quality produ cts enhance and adoption, capture information, create knowledge, share and learn. Effective knowledge management should dramatically reduce costs. Most individuals, teams and organizations are today continually ‘reinventing the wheel’. This is often because they simply do not know that what they are trying to do have already been done by elsewhere. They do not know what is already known, or they do not know where to access the knowledge. Continually reinventing the wheel is such a costly and inefficient activity, whereas a more systematic reuse of knowledge will show substantial cost benefits immediately But as well as  reducing costs, effective knowledge management should also dramatically increase our speed of response as a direct result of better knowledge access and application. Effective knowledge management, using more collective and systematic processes, will also reduce our tendency to ‘repeat the same mistakes’. This is, again, extremely costly and inefficient. Effective knowledge management, therefore, can dramatically improve quality of products and/or services. Better knowing the stakeholder needs, customer needs, employee needs, industry needs, for example, has an obvious immediate effect on the relationship management. The Knowledge Economy is the next booming economy in a world of recession. More individuals, teams, organizations and inter-organizational networks will be restructuring and renewing themselves with the primary purpose of profitably trading their knowledge to add even higher value, predominantly on the World Wide Web. Already we see more enlightened organizations developing and applying the knowledge they have about their industry, customers, partners and stakeholders, as their prime strategic asset, and at the highest point in the value chain. And many are becoming less involved, and more open to profitably outsourcing the other business operations. Around the world we hear automobile companies talking far more about their critical and key knowledge areas of design, knowledge of manufacturing , knowledge of distribution, knowledge of service and support etc as their ‘crown jewels’ or ‘master recipe’. Based on applying this key knowledge they then outsource the other business components. We hear the same from the aerospace industry, the oil and gas industry, the information technology industry, the food and agricultural industry, the healthcare industry, in fact most, if not all, industries. None of this is possible without a continual focus on the creation, updating, availability, quality and use of knowledge by all employees and teams, at work and in the marketplace. CORE CONCERN AT CONOCOPHILLIPS Baby boomers nearing retirement age pose a challenge to sustaining effective networks. At ConocoPhillips. nearly 20 percent of the employee base is eligible for retirement. In the coming years, another nearly 20 percent will qualify for retirement. These highly experienced employees possess valuable business knowledge and often serve as subject matter experts or network  leaders. It is vital to capture their knowledge and experience so that it can be reused across the enterprise and accelerate learning. Losing core team network members presents another challenge to networks of excellence. The project management network, for example, frequently redeploys and reassigns network leaders and core team members in the organization. High leadership turnover rates can lead to network disengagement and a loss of expertise. The knowledge-sharing team works closely with networks that experience changes in leadership to overcome obstacles and find ways to sustain continuous leadership â€Å"Networks of Excellence† (NoEs) Due to all these needs ConocoPhillips came with the concept of NOE’s. These internal communities of practice intended to encourage knowledge sharing. Articulating roles and responsibilities, attending to the network’s daily operations, and working to institute a culture that supports the exchange of knowledge are all crucial, but at ConocoPhillips, the foundational principle of network building is this: a Network of Excellence must demonstrate its ability to contribute significant value, either in cost savings or in revenue generation. In 2004, ConocoPhillips launched a large initiative to create internal communities of practice that would enhance knowledge sharing within the firm. For this international integrated energy company with thousands of job sites (often quite remote) spread across 30 countries, the challenge of sharing knowledge was very real—and the potential payoff was large. Facing fierce competition on all fronts, ConocoPhillips knew that to continue on its success trajectory, it needed to rapidly and effectively harness the knowledge of its highly skilled but geographically distributed workforce. Instead of assuming that technology either was the solution or was irrelevant when creating online communities, senior managers understood that effective global communities required new processes, roles, cultures, and technologies. They also recognized that each had to be focused on solving difficult business year challenges. With more than 10,000 employees participating in about 100 of what ConocoPhillips calls â€Å"Networks of Excellence† (NoEs) and a growth rate of about 10 new networks per year, the company has developed a set of valuable principles for identifying, nurturing, and enabling these topic-focused communities. A culture of knowledge sharing has emerged in which network members take responsibility  for helping their globally distributed colleagues—even if they meet face to face only once or twice a month. Network Formation at ConocoPhillips Ensuring that each new network has the greatest chance to succeed is a process that begins long before the network is formed. Many authors and consultants stress the informal nature of such communities, arguing that any attempt to systematize them will crush them. ConocoPhillips found the exact opposite—that without clear and explicit links to the organization and its business purpose, networks often evolve in ways that fail to contribute to business goals. The company adheres to two fundamental principles in this regard. First, no network is created without a clear and detailed business case that specifies the value proposition to the company and is agreed on by network leaders and members. Insisting on a business case prior to the creation of a network goes against the typical â€Å"let a thousand flowers bloom† approach that is often promoted. But in many cases, uncontrolled growth of new networks saps employees’ attention and engagement, leading to neglect an d network failure. Setting a high bar at the outset means that every potential new network must have a strong business justification, which signals to potential leaders and members that the result will not be something that consumes their time without producing real business value. Today, more than 120 networks exist across the organization. Networks align with business functions to assist in the achievement of functional excellence. The portals are open, in that both contract and full-time employees have access to most network activity. Given that between 70 percent and 80 percent of organizational learning occurs informally and outside the classroom, networks support informal learning among members. Networks exist across all technical disciplines, and most arc supported by functional excellence teams. Functional excellence teams include line managers from business units and assets who are accountable for networks. Functional excellence teams provide structure, governance, and leadership required for effective networks of excellence. The knowledge-sharing leadership team (i.e., not the core group) includes representatives from various business streams across the organization who help set direction and strategy. The knowledge-sharing leadership team also provides support for reward and recognition programs organization-wide. The enterprise  knowledge-sharing team oversees network activities. Promoting Knowledge Sharing at ConocoPhillips INTERACTIVE SESSIONS They reorganized and the solid state of their knowledge assets will help with this effort. More than 70% of their good ideas have come from their employees. Good things happen when employees talk to each other. TOP LEVEL PARTICIPATION The most successful KM efforts have senior sponsor of rank and respect in the organization. Most KM groups are placed too far down the hierarchy to be effective. Their KM effort started when a senior executive felt they were re-inventing things too much. The focus was always connecting people more than collecting documents. They grew by sharing success stories. Sharing these success stories was connected to their variable compensation plan and this really triggered response. ARCHIMEDES AWARDS In 2005, ConocoPhillips introduced its Archimedes Awards to recognize business units and regions for the four primary types of behaviors that an effective knowledge sharing-enabled culture requires. The awards, known informally as the 4G’s, symbolize: * giving, * grabbing and * gathering knowledge, * Along with spilling one’s â€Å"guts† to prevent others from having to repeat painful lessons learned. They have documented over 9 billion dollars in gains through the program. These awards are given to the business units or regions that have successfully created a collaborative work force through giving, taking and applying, and sharing knowledge. Network of the Year award On an individual basis, ConocoPhillips also recognizes the most outstanding networks through the Network of the Year award. Three networks are nominated quarterly by the global governing body of high-level program sponsors, based upon several criteria of collaboration and networking  performance. Four networks are yearly selected as Networks of the Year. Being nominated is considered a high honor within the company. The awards have become highly respected symbols of global collaboration. HALL OF HONORS Regions and certain functions have created their own rewards to recognize people at a local level. For example, the North Sea Business Unit and the Operations Excellence function let people recognize their peers for outstanding efforts that promote knowledge and collaboration. As further evidence of the strength of the Archimedes Network of the Year award, in 2011, ConocoPhillips introduced the Hall of Honors to recognize networks which have produced superior results year over year. Networks which have won the title of Network of the Year three or more times are named into the Hall of Honors and retain the honor for three years. Afterwards, they are eligible again to compete for Network of the Year. The Hall of Honors represents a significant milestone in the growth and maturity of the ConocoPhillips Knowledge Sharing program and enables the recognition of more noteworthy networks. KNOWLEDGE PROMOTION TOOLS ConocoPhillips has three main tools: Ask and Discuss, Knowledge Library, and One Wiki . Ask and Discuss: component has led to 100,000 exchanges. They don’t believe in formal lessons learned. It takes too much time. Informal connections work better. The formal lessons learned become out of date very quickly and talking with people gives the most current ideas. People want to help each other but they also want answers quickly. Knowledge libraries: and Discussion forums are embedded in each community portal. Network portals are accessed frequently; for example, ConocoPhillips recorded more than 1.3 million hits monthly on its family of SharePoint-based network portal sites during a six-month period between April and October 2009 Within each community, the Ask and Discuss forum is a place to post questions and initiate discussions. The organization tracks the number of questions posted, the number of replies, and the number of readers per question or discussion. Data show that an average of 20 people read a single reply. In other words, for just five replies, about 100 people read the responses and absorb the information contained therein. Content that complements Ask and  Discuss forums is stored in the network’s knowledge library. This content is reviewed and analyzed by subject matter experts and then posted to the library using a taxonomy developed by the knowledge-sharing team and corroborated by network leaders. Knowledge library content is quality controlled; only the most valuable knowledge is retained in the library The wiki : is the first place to look for content. All of their success stories have an economic impact. One had 87 million dollars of benefits. Sharing this is important. Giving credit to the employees is critical. Getting middle managers on board was done through conveying business value of knowledge sharing. Documented success stories, best practices and lessons learned in the form of closed discussions play a large role in providing context to Wiki articles. OneWiki has been deployed across the company and involves many networks, teams and work groups. Even at this early stage, OneWiki is proving to be a natural place to capture the insight and wisdom that accepted knowledge (lessons learned and best practices) has become. Further, the Wiki concept is familiar to people and encourages them to find and keep accumulated knowledge up† to†date. Internally branding the wiki as â€Å"OneWiki† has sent an important message that this is the one and only place for contextual, encyclopedic knowledge in ConocoPhillips. To introduce OneWiki to the enterprise, the global KS Team created a set of high†end computer†based training modules. The team meets regularly with individuals deemed content moderators to ensure they are aware of the governing standards. Closed discussions: enabling portal discussions as a way to capture and transfer lessons learned is a cornerstone of the ConocoPhillips Knowledge Sharing strategy. The sharing of discussions across sister networks yields even greater value for the company. But the latest, most exciting KS initiative is rapidly positioning ConocoPhillips to gain significant value by integrating Web 2.0 technology with the Knowledge Sharing platform. The two†pronged approach consists of Closed Discussion Items and Wiki technology and processes. Four years ago, the KS Team recognized the potential of lost knowledge retention opportunities when valuable knowledge from online discussions eventually aged on network portals. Many discussions contain detailed analysis and background information that represent an extensive body of knowledge from experienced network members. To recapture the benefit of such knowledge and provide it a  Ã¢â‚¬Å"second life,† the team actively researched the discussions that had reached closure and were deemed to have yielded a successful result. The KS team created a process and policy to encourage network leaders to officially ‘close’ those discussions. These were then turned into searchable lessons learned documents that were added to the network’s knowledge library for members and others to search and browse. This approach has proven to be a more useful and efficient means of capturing,storing, accessing and re†using intellectual capital than more traditional and costly methods MEMBER ENGAGEMENT When ConocoPhillips first began launching networks, business units perceived them as a corporate initiative that was being added to normal workloads (i.e., above the flow of work). Membership engagement has helped change that perception and is one of the building blocks required for successful networks of excellence. Creating connections between similar networks increases engagement and allows the organization to leverage knowledge more effectively. Sister networks are linked by business objectives and functions. One network currently has 16 sister networks. Network members can post Ask and Discuss questions to related networks to engage a broader audience in finding a solution. Only meaningful, out-of-the-ordinary questions approved by the network leader are posted to sister network sites. The goal is to further engage similar networks and let others know of network issues and activities. METHODS OF PROMOTING MEMBER ENGAGEMENT Network leaders are constantly aware of the need to promote engagement and increase membership. One method for promoting engagement is to transition members from e-mail to the know ledge portal to more effectively drive use of the Ask and Discuss forums. When a leader receives an e-mail message, for example, he or she may suggest that the member post the question on the network portal: this action will encourage users to become more active in the network by visiting the site rather than posting a question to a single resource. Network leaders also drive network participation by posting new announcements, events, and discussion items in the portal keeping the network fresh helps sustain members’ interest. Another strategy for member engagement involves incorporating network use into day-to- day job  responsibilities. Deliberately designing the network through business planning makes activities more relevant to individuals; the intersection between network activities and daily business functions is expanding. The goal is to link part of an individual’s performance expectations to network participation, which boosts engagement as well as know ledge sharing. CHALLENGE WITH THE NOE’S All 120-plus networks arc global, and this can present some challenges. The knowledge-sharing team works with the network leaders and network core teams to address these challenges as they arise. One such challenge is the cultural differences among various regions with regard to sharing knowledge. Whereas most Westerners are fairly comfortable with posting questions and comments to ask and discuss forums, engaging members in the Asia-Pacific region can be more difficult because employees from these cultures arc less comfortable singling out individuals. Core team members in these regions work diligently to build network participation. Time zones present another challenge for global networks. Virtual meetings are scheduled in the early morning or the evening to accommodate different parts of the world and can be repeated at 12-hour intervals if needed. Roles Several hundred employees across ConocoPhillips work on knowledge-sharing activities, most of them part-time. As mentioned, the core knowledge-sharing team supports network activities, and six full-time resources help manage networks. Each network is supported by a network sponsor and leader, a core team, network members, and subject matter experts. Network Sponsors A network sponsor provides overall guidance and visibility for the network. Sponsors are influential senior-level managers from organization-wide business streams. They secure funding and help set direction and strategy with community leaders. A network sponsor also helps create and refine the network’s business case and verify buy- in with business unit leaders. He or she supports the network through executive briefings and communication with stakeholders. Sponsors appoint, coach, and support network leaders, including linking their performance to career progression. In addition, sponsors ensure that network members’ community activities are recognized  and rewarded within their business units and globally. Network Leaders Networks of excellence are supported by network leaders who are selected by sponsors or business-unit leaders. These individuals are responsible for ensuring that core team members, subject matter experts, and other network members understand the purpose of the community and their roles and responsibilities. They work closely with the network sponsors to ensure that the focus of the network reflects business unit needs. Network leaders also seek feedback from core team members about network activity, communicate the value of participation, and solicit business unit feedback. In addition to checking the community portal for submissions and pushing new content to members and subject matter experts, leaders: * Facilitate responses for portal-based questions in a timely manner * Direct Ask and Discuss questions to the appropriate subject matter expert or member * Encourage the regular use of content with questions Leaders help train members on how to use the tools and resources available in the community. They also acknowledge member participation with awards, recognition, and performance feedback. The time spent on leadership activities varies by network. One individual may manage three networks and spend approximately 33 percent of his or her time doing this. Others may spend 20 percent of their time on managing one network, depending on other business demands. The role is integrated with job responsibilities; it is not an additional role that leaders are expected to assume on top of their day-to-day functions. â€Å"They don’t put on another hat and slop doing their other jobs,† said Miriam Fjellaker, network specialist. â€Å"The role is integrated and helps them improve their other job functions.† Core Team Members Core team members check the portal site daily for new submissions and developments and respond to Ask and Discuss questions. They also set up alerts for members on key content areas. Core team members also: * Work with network leaders and sponsors to make sure the needs and issues of the local business unit are adequately reflected within the scope and activities of the global network * Push e-mail threads to the portal as much as  possible * Communicate community activities to the business units * Empower and encourage members to use networks as part of their daily work processes Network Members Network members are encouraged to select and join the networks that relate to their work. They are also encouraged to share knowledge, best practices, and lessons learned in the network portal and leverage network relationships to ask questions, get answers, and learn with global colleagues. Subject Matter Experts Subject matter experts share knowledge, best practices, and lessons learned in the network portal. They also work with the community and other subject matter experts to develop and agree on best practices. Being responsive is important, subject matter experts are encouraged to respond to Ask and Discuss questions related to their areas of expertise as quickly as possible they are expected to use their expertise to move others forward. Subject matter experts also provide input to the network leader and core team regarding how their areas of expertise should be addressed in the network’s business case and other projects and initiatives Technology for Networks SharePoint is used across the enterprise to post questions and promote knowledge sharing. A dedicated team creates and manages portal sites and networks. All networks are standardized and have the same look and feel. Cultural Enablers for Sustaining Networks Networks at ConocoPhillips vary in size, scope, and function. The goal, said Smith, is to uncover the unique personality of each network and promote a culture that works. â€Å"You can’t click your heels and change the culture; leaders have to make it happen.† The community leader is expected to brainstorm ways to shape the culture and increase engagement Pushing alerts and responding to Ask and Discuss questions are important and help promote a culture that is conducive to sharing knowledge. Knowledge sharing is indirectly linked to ConocoPhillips’s performance and incentive compensation structure. This link serves as a strong motivator for employees to  participate in knowledge sharing, and it demonstrates the organizational commitment to networks of excellence. Reward and recognition programs are designed to increase network participation. Specifically, a reward and recognition structure helps motivate employees to participate in networks and promotes a know ledge-sharing culture Training is another cultural enabler. ConocoPhillips has a number of training efforts that explain network functionality and potential. Training The Network University is the training vehicle that supports ConocoPhillips’s network activities from launch to deployment Network University provides access to documents, presentations, and role descriptions that help form and maintain networks. Quick links from the KM home page provide overviews for new and experienced members. Users can also download a FAQ on networks or link to established sites. The organization uses Network University to train network leaders. It provides detailed descriptions of roles and expectations related to network leadership. The more than 150 network leaders frequently go to the site for guidance on how to maintain networks at ConocoPhillips. In addition, less experienced network leaders are often paired with experienced leaders for mentoring purposes. New hires receive training on networks during the onboarding process. A 90-minute segment shows how to map to networks and how networks tap in to expertise across the organization to better share knowledge. Communication Communicating the value and purpose of networks of excellence is critical to sustaining engagement and attracting new members. According to Ranta, â€Å"We realized we had to get out there and tell our story if we wanted networks to succeed.† The organization continues to increase communication efforts designed to spread the word on the value of networks. Network leaders and sponsors frequently communicate success stories to network members. External validation is promoted across the organization. For example, a number of corporate magazine articles showcase the success of networks at ConocoPhillips. The organization publicizes these articles to show the value of network activity. In 2009, ConocoPhillips was named a North American Most Admired Knowledge Enterprise (MAKE), and this award was also communicated  across the organization. Communication is so important to the overall success of ConocoPhillips’s knowledge- sharing program that one of its full-time knowledge-sharing team members, Yvonne Myles, is the designated communications adviser. This individual supports the communication efforts of the networks of excellence along with communication initiatives that promote networks to the larger organization and externally. Each network uses a portal to communicate activities and news. In addition to linking to key news and discussions, portals showcase award recipients and network leaders. Participation Recognition Motivating employees to participate in networks of excellence is critical. Global and local rewards programs recognize members for network participation. For example, the prestigious Archimedes Award is presented to the top networks and success stories each year and recognizes regions for their knowledge-sharing behaviors. ConocoPhillips also collects collaboration success stories to highlight the business value of networks. To date, there are thousands of success stories that provide optimal business solutions. The stories are quality controlled and stored in the knowledge repository for future access. Regional areas sometimes create their own awards. Other recognition programs are supported by peers and implemented across networks Peers may also nominate members for awards through the network portal. Online submission is quick and easy. Members are nominated for excellence in contributions, Ask and Discuss forum participation, and engaging others in trusted relationships. Some networks of excellence have an award for outstanding discussions. Winners are celebrated on the network home page. KNOWLEDGE ONLINE Knowledge OnLine is a centralized digital hub for all knowledge sharing activities, resources, and intellectual property’. It is accessed through the corporate portal. Within Knowledge OnLine, subject matter experts and community members maintain profiles that showcase their expertise. Each profile includes a member picture and incorporates technical background and project industry experience. Members attach current resumes to their profiles. They ask their experts to perform a search on their expertise to make sure they show up in the search results and it helps them to show their  expertise Global excellence leaders develop and maintain functional networks (i.e., communities) that cross all business groups. They provide leadership for their respective knowledge communities. Specifically, global excellence leaders are responsible for best-practice approvals, reference systems, and career paths for the organization, including training, required readings, and unique tools for that discipline. An additional responsibility is career development. The role is prestigious; after serving as global excellence leaders, many individuals become executives. Communities are supported by leaders, knowledge managers, a global core KM team, and subject matter experts. A centralized KM team oversees community activities and works closely with leaders, knowledge managers, and subject matter experts across the enterprise Strategy for Sustaining Effective Networks of Excellence ConocoPhillip’s KM program replicates its community, content, discussions, and profiling approaches across its 42 functional and four corporate communities. It implies a global mind-set, with consistency of purpose and practice regardless of topic or geography. It implies designing KM so that each employee can tap in to the knowledge of the organization as a whole in order to respond to a client’s needs. It also implies access to content and people from anywhere clients or employees need help to solve a problem or enhance their skill. Knowledge communities are used to drive organizational transformation. In fact, communities are often created to fill a business need or knowledge gap and then decommissioned when they are no longer relevant. A work-share community, for example, addressed practices and procedures that were required to work in New Delhi and Manila. Now these practices are embedded into daily work processes and incorporated into standard operating procedures , and the community no longer exists. Similarly, a next-generation community is currently in place to explore future technology solutions. However, when next-generation technology is implemented and begins to become the de facto way to work, this community’s content will be migrated into appropriate mainstream communities for long-term stewardship. Communities also provide work process innovation. For example, practice and procedure updates are managed and implemented in communities. A subject matter expert uses a discussion forum to collect suggestions or ideas to improve a procedure document. Using feedback from  community members, the subject matter expert will update a policy or procedure and review changes. This process helps gain buy-in for policy and procedure changes, as well as global buy-in for the practice. The approach also has an associated cost benefit. In the past, they had large budgets for this process. Today, they have set a goal of updating or reviewing one-third of the practices using a fraction of the old budget. Communities also support more distributed project execution at Fluor. The organization uses a project activity model to illustrate activities and provide project management guidance. Using the community framework, members are able to update a map and provide color-coded areas of responsibility for more effective project execution. Communities can add training materials on how to complete project activities, along with templates and descriptions. Another work process improvement is linked to the organizational communication strategy. The old practice was to disseminate information about communities through the organizational hierarchy. However, not everyone saw those communications. Now communities send newsletters to the entire community membership. As a result, messages have a broader readership (greater penetration), which ultimately helps attract new members. Each message is sent as an e-mail with a link to the latest newsletter. This draws in employees who perhaps are not familiar with the system, thereby potentially recruiting new members. Employees frequently reply to messages and are encouraged to join a particular community as part of a routine follow – up. Knowledge Loss Risk Assessment Communities help in the identification of knowledge gaps or knowledge at risk—that is, knowledge that might be lost if the individual who possesses it retires from the organization. Fluor uses a knowledge-loss risk assessment process to determine the impact of retirement and resource gaps. The assessments also effectively communicate the potential impact of knowledge loss. Adapted from the Tennessee Valley Authority model, the formula multiplies the retirement factor (how soon) against the position risk factor (uniqueness of the individual’s knowledge) to determine the total attrition factor. This process helps integrate knowledge sharing with human capital management by identifying when subject matter expertise is at  risk and when the organization should identify a successor or protà ©gà © for a subject matter expert. Measuring Networks of Excellence ConocoPhillips’s knowledge-sharing team employs both objective and subjective tools to evaluate the health of the organization’s networks, identify where weaknesses exist, and prescribe ways for network leaders to improve their networks. Measuring the business impact of networks is a regular activity for the knowledge-sharing team and network leaders. Assessing Networks for Value: Success Stories ConocoPhillips believes that â€Å"you manage what you measure.† Keeping detailed records of business impact has served to galvanize sponsorship and attract and sustain membership to networks. One way the organization assesses business value is through validated success stories. Stories are submitted by employees and document cost savings, reduced cycle times, safety and environmental improvements, and other tangible business benefits. A story may also identify a critical business or technical issue that was solved using the community. Each year, the organization collects success story nominations and selects the best examples of collaboration. Supervisors, regional representatives and the knowledge sharing leadership team review and validate each story, adding a value statement to provide quick snapshot of the business value provided. Once success stories are approved, they are posted to the knowledge library where they can be accessed by other networks. BIBLIOGRAPHY www.conocophillips.com/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ConocoPhillips www.apqc.org www.ibforum.com www.aiim.org www.hrcommunication.com www.zoominfo.com

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2006 Essay

Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola have a long history of intense competition since 1950. Besides the CSD (carbonated soft drink) consumption rise, it brought both Coke and Pepsi enjoyed significant revenue growth. In 2004, CSD has 52.3% of total US Liquid Consumption. Coke and Pepsi had 22.1% and 14.4% in Net profit/sales respectively. There are four major participants involved in the production and distribution of CSDs: 1. Concentrate Producers (Coke, Pepsi, and others)). They blended raw material ingredients, packaged the mixture, and shipped to the bottlers. They have large number of employees located in bottler site to support sales efforts, set standards, and suggest operational improvements. They negotiated with the bottlers’ suppliers to achieve reliable supply, fast delivery, and low prices. 2. Bottlers (CCE, PBG, and others). They purchased concentrate, added carbonated water and sweetener, bottled or canned the product, and delivered it to customers. The number of bottlers had fallen from more than 2000 in 1970 to fewer than 300 in 2004, especially after Coke and Pepsi did bottler consolidation and spin-off as part of plan to refranchise bottling operation. Coke built Coca-Cola Enterprise (CCE) and Pepsi formed Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG) as their main bottlers. 3. Retail Channels. They consist of supermarket (32.9%), fountain machines (23.4%), vending machines (14.5%), mass merchandisers (11.8%), convenience stores and gas stations (7.9%), and others (9.5%). Pepsi focused on sales through retail outlets, and Coke dominated fountain sales. Both Coke and Pepsi entered fast-food restaurant business in order to have exclusive sales territory on the restaurant chains. 4. Suppliers. Concentrate producers needs caramel coloring, phosphoric/citric acid, natural flavors, and caffeine from suppliers. Bottlers also need to purchase packaging (cans, plastic bottles and glass bottles), and sweeteners. Coke and Pepsi establish stable long-term relationships with their suppliers and their bottlers’ suppliers. Chronology of the Cola Wars: * 1950s: Pepsi introduced â€Å"Beat Coke† motto. Pepsi introduced 26-ounce bottle, targeting family consumption. Coke stayed with its 6.5-ounce bottle. * 1960s: Pepsi launched new slogan, â€Å"Pepsi Generation†. By focusing on the younger population Pepsi narrowed Coke’s lead to a 2-to-1 margin. Pepsi had larger and more modern bottling facilities. Both groups started adding new soft drink brands. * 1970s: Pepsi Challenge: Starting in Texas, Pepsi’s bottlers had public blind taste tests to prove that Pepsi tasted better. This marking stunt increased sales significantly. Pepsi gained a 1.4 points lead in food store leads. Coke countered with rebates and renegotiations with franchise bottlers. Coke response by cutting costs (used corn syrup instead of sugar), doubling advertising spending, and selling off most non-CSD business. Diet Coke was introduced to become a phenomenal success. Coke tried to be innovative by changing its formula, but that failed miserably. Coke introduced 11 new products. Pepsi introduced 13 new products. Pepsi emulated most of Coke’s strategic moves. * 1980s: Coke did refranchising bottling operation and created independent bottling subsidiary, Coca-Cola Enterprise (CCE). Pepsi implemented similar anchor bottler model by forming its bottler, Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG). * 1990s: Soft drink industry faced new challenge on stagnant demand. * 2000s: Although Coke and Pepsi encountered obstacle in international operations, including antitrust regulation, price controls, advertising restrictions, foreign exchange control, lack of infrastructure, cultural differences, political instability and local competition, Coke enjoyed a world market share of 51.4% and Pepsi 21.8%. Coke and Pepsi have been very successful and profitable due to their dominance in the soft drink market. In 2004, the Herfindahl Index (HHI) for market concentration ratio is 0.3130. H = (Coke)2 + (Pepsi)2 + (Cadbury)2 + (Cott)2 + (Others)2 = (.431)2 + (.317)2 + (.145)2 + (.55)2 + (.52)2 = 0.3130 This index indicates high concentration with one or two strong players only. Soft drink industry has been so profitable because Americans drink more soda than other beverage. Head-to-head competition between both Coke and Pepsi reinforce brand recognition of each other. Coke and Pepsi devoted spending on marketing, advertisement, innovation, and market expansion. It is a unique industry where Concentrate Producers and Bottlers are two different entities. Concentrate manufacturing process involved little capital investment in machinery, overhead, and labor. Other significant costs were for advertising, promotion, market research, and bottler relations. One plant could serve entire United States. In the other side, the bottling process was capital-intensive and involved high-speed production line. Bottlers also invested in trucks and distribution networks. Bottlers handled merchandising. Bottler’s could also work with other non-cola brands. From the financial data of Coke, Pepsi, CCE, and PBG, concentrate producers are far more profitable than their bottlers. The colossal war between Coke and Pepsi really affected the soft drink industry. It shaped the industry into what it is now. The fact that those two major players has involved in the competition since the very beginning (1950s) is the advantage for them to keep dominating the market and gain brand popularity in US market and international market. Since 1990s, Coke and Pepsi faced new challenge on flattening demand, banned the sales in some US schools, and obstacles in their international operations (regulatory challenges, cultural and any existing competition). Popularity of non-carbonated beverages has also increased. But Coke can Pepsi can sustain their profits in the industry because they are still dominant (no new threats from new competition, no new significant competitors), they have been in the industry long enough to place their brand recognized globally (easy to diversify new product by leveraging their brand), globalization has opened opportunity for them to expand their international market (especially in emerging economies), potential to growth is still high in the emerging market (consumption is still low), and they have diversified into non-carbonated drinks as well as â€Å"diet† drinks (less sugar or zero sugar beverages). In my opinion, Coke and Pepsi need to focus on emerging international market and focus on the innovation to create new products as alternative (non-carbonated, diet, and healthier).

Sachar essays

Sachar essays The book Holes is written by Louis Sachar and it is about a boy named Stanley Yelnats who always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The setting of the story is at Camp Green Lake which was described as a camp instead prison for bad children. The book derives its name from the punishment the children had to endure, the exact punishment was digging holes, it was thought to build character. The camp is on a dried up lake bed that has had no rainfall for 110 years. Stanley Yelnats came from a poor family. His father was an inventor, who constantly tried to invent shoes that would never fall apart. One boring old day, while walking home from school a pair of shoes fell from the sky and hit him on the head. He took this as a sign regarding to his fathers inventions. However, the shoes belonged to a famous athlete who was auctioning the shoes to help a local charity. As soon a the shoes were reported missing, a policeman found Stanley with the shoes and accused him of stealing. Stanley soon after went to trial and no one would believe him about the shoes falling from the sky. The judge gave the parents a choice; prison, or Camp Green Lake. Since the parents were too poor to afford to send him to Camp when he was little, they decided that it would be fun for him to go. The camp was literally torture, the warden constantly tried to make the boys dig holes, but for what? The reader soon finds out that the warden is looking for the lost treas ure of "Kissing' Bates Barrow. He experiences several strange events such as him trying to run away and being forced to come back due to hunger. As the story ends Stanley finds the treasure that The Warden has been looking for and is saved from the wicked camp. As the reader can see Stanley is always in the wrong place at the wrong time. The main moral of this story is to never give up, the truth will set you free. Stanley followed this and is freed at th...

Biography of Genghis Khan, Founder of the Mongol Empire

Biography of Genghis Khan, Founder of the Mongol Empire Genghis Khan (c. 1162–August 18, 1227) was the legendary founder and leader of the Mongol Empire. In a span of just 25 years, his horsemen conquered a larger area and greater population than the Romans did in four centuries. To the millions of people conquered by his hordes, Genghis Khan was evil incarnate; in Mongolia and Central Asia, however, he was widely revered. Fast Facts: Genghis Khan Known For: Khan was the founder and leader of the Mongol Empire.Also Known As: TemujinBorn: c. 1162 in Delun-Boldog, MongoliaDied: August 18, 1227, in Yinchuan,  Western XiaSpouse(s): Borje, Khulan, Yesugen, Yesulun (plus others)Children: Jochi, Chagatai, Ogedei, Tolui (plus others) Early Life Records of the Great Khans early life are sparse and contradictory. He was likely born in 1162, though some sources say 1155 or 1165. We know that the boy was given the name Temujin. His father Yesukhei was the chief of the minor Borijin clan of nomadic Mongols, who lived by hunting rather than herding or farming. Yesukhei had kidnapped Temujins young mother, Hoelun, as she and her first husband were riding home from their wedding. She became Yesukheis second wife; Temujin was his second son by just a few months. Mongol legend claims that the baby was born with a blood clot in his fist, a sign that he would be a great warrior. Hardship and Captivity When Temujin was nine, his father took him to a neighboring tribe to work for several years and earn a bride. His intended wife was a slightly older girl named Borje. On the way home, Yesukhei was poisoned by rivals and died. Temujin returned to his mother, but the clan expelled Yesukheis two widows and seven children, leaving them to die. The family survived by eating roots, rodents, and fish. Young Temujin and his full brother Khasar grew to resent their eldest half-brother Begter. They killed him and as punishment for the crime, Temujin was seized as a slave. His captivity may have lasted for more than five years. Youth Set free at age 16, Temujin went to find Borje again. She was still waiting for him and they soon married. The couple used her dowry, a fine sable-fur coat, to make an alliance with Ong Khan of the powerful Kereyid clan. Ong Khan accepted Temujin as a foster son. This alliance proved key, as Hoeluns Merkid clan decided to avenge her long-ago kidnapping by stealing Borje. With the Kereyid army, Temujin raided the Merkids, looting their camp and reclaiming Borje.  Temujin also had help in the raid from his childhood blood-brother Jamuka, who would later become a rival. Borjes first son Jochi was born nine months later. Consolidation of Power After rescuing Borje, Temujins small band stayed with Jamukas group for several years. Jamuka soon asserted his authority, rather than treating Temujin as a brother, which started a two-decade feud between the 19-year-olds. Temujin left the camp, along with many of Jamukas followers and livestock. At the age of 27, Temujin held a kurultai (tribal council) among the Mongols, who elected him khan. The Mongols were only a Kereyid sub-clan, however, and Ong Khan played Jamuka and Temujin off one another. As Khan, Temujin awarded high office not just to his relatives, but to those followers who were most loyal to him. Unification of the Mongols In 1190, Jamuka raided Temujins camp, cruelly horse-dragging and even boiling alive his captives, which turned many of his followers against him.  The united Mongols soon defeated the neighboring Tatars and Jurchens, and Temujin Khan assimilated their people rather than follow the steppe custom of looting them and leaving. Jamuka attacked Ong Khan and Temujin in 1201. Despite suffering an arrow shot to the neck, Temujin defeated and assimilated Jamukas remaining warriors. Ong Khan then treacherously tried to ambush Temujin at a wedding ceremony for Ongs daughter and Jochi, but the Mongols escaped and returned to conquer the Kereyids. Early Conquests The unification of Mongolia ended in 1204 when Temujin defeated the powerful Naiman clan. Two years later, another kurultai confirmed him as Genghis Khan or universal leader of all Mongolia.  Within five years, the Mongols had annexed much of Siberia and what is today the modern Chinese Xinjiang province. The Jurched Dynasty, ruling northern China from Zhongdu (Beijing), noticed the upstart Mongol khan and demanded that he kowtow to its Golden Khan. In reply, Genghis Khan spat on the ground.  He then defeated their tributaries, the Tangut, and in 1214 he conquered the Jurchens and their 50 million citizens. The Mongol army numbered just 100,000. Conquests of Central Asia, the Middle East, and the Caucasus Tribes as far away as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan heard about the Great Khan and overthrew their Buddhist rulers in order to join his growing empire. By 1219, Genghis Khan ruled from northern China to the Afghan border  and from Siberia to the border of Tibet. He sought a trade alliance with the powerful Khwarizm Empire, which controlled Central Asia from Afghanistan to the Black Sea. Sultan Muhammad II agreed, but then murdered the first Mongol trade convoy of 450 merchants, stealing their goods. Before the end of that year, the wrathful Khan had captured every Khwarizm city, adding lands from Turkey to Russia to his realm. Death In 1222, the 61-year-old Khan called a family kurultai to discuss the matter of succession. His four sons disagreed over which should become the Great Khan. Jochi, the eldest, was born soon after Borjes kidnapping and might not have been Genghis Khans son, so the second son Chagatai challenged his right to the title. As a compromise, the third son Ogodei became the successor. Jochi died in February 1227, six months before his father, who passed away on August 18, 1227. Ogodei took East Asia, which would become Yuan China. Chagatai claimed Central Asia. Tolui, the youngest, took Mongolia proper. Jochis sons controlled Russia and Eastern Europe. Legacy After Genghis Khans secret burial on the steppes of Mongolia, his sons and grandsons continued to expand the Mongol Empire. Ogodeis son Kublai Khan defeated the Song rulers of China in 1279 and established the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. The Yuan would rule all of China until 1368. Meanwhile, Chagatai pushed south from his Central Asian holdings, conquering Persia. Within Mongolia, Genghis Khan revolutionized the social structure and reformed traditional law. His was an egalitarian society, in which the humblest slave could rise to be an army commander if he showed skill or bravery. War booty was divided evenly among all warriors, regardless of social status. Unlike most rulers of the time, Genghis Khan trusted loyal followers above his own family members- which contributed to the difficult succession as he aged. The Great Khan forbade the kidnapping of women, probably due in part to his wifes experience, but also because it led to warfare among different Mongol groups. He outlawed livestock rustling for the same reason and established a winter-only hunting season to preserve game for the hardest of times. Contrary to his ruthless and barbaric reputation in the west, Genghis Khan promulgated several enlightened policies that would not become common practice in Europe until centuries later. He guaranteed freedom of religion, protecting the rights of Buddhists, Muslims, Christians, and Hindus alike. Genghis Khan himself worshiped the sky, but he forbade the killing of priests, monks, nuns, mullahs, and other holy people. A 2003 DNA study revealed that about 16 million men in the former Mongol Empire, about 8% of the male population, carry a genetic marker that developed in one family in Mongolia about 1,000 years ago. The most likely explanation is that they are descended from Genghis Khan or his brothers. Sources Craughwell, Thomas. The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in History: How Genghis Khans Mongols Almost Conquered the World. Fair Winds Press, 2010.Djang, Sam. Genghis Khan: World Conqueror, Vols. I and II. New Horizon Books, 2011.Weatherford, Jack. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. Three Rivers Press, 2004.

Effective Leaders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Effective Leaders - Essay Example To lead, you require some qualities such as strength of mind, the eagerness to determine, defy the class quo, proceed for what you accepted as true, hazard, negative responses, rise up against power, and modify. To make my opinion more clear and effective I would describe the difference between Managerial work and leadership. Managerial work is a division of leadership abilities. It is often heard that people try to divide them that they are leaders, but not managers. But the people who use to say this are usually incorrect while it appears to attracting the supporters which formulates it hard to judge them as victorious leaders. A leader is somebody who does things perfectly and who knows where to go. Where as managerial work is how to do things perfectly and how they really get there. A student of a college or school who makes a group of friends together to go to picnic, so he is acting not just as a leader, but as well as a manager. Someone who wants to be a leader, but does not want to do with managerial work is a self-indulgent. Leadership and managerial work always collaborate in order give an efficient result. Straightforwardly, managerial work is the procedure of describing and calculating the success. A leader is the one who places the idea, describes victory, and verifies the capacity of success will be extra efficient than the similar leader who wishes to place the idea but declines to accept any effort in the managerial area. Therefore, effective leader is a person who controls and makes an impact on people. Every person owns leadership potential. Effective Leadership is not restricted to group decision-making or high flier. Effective Leadership can, and frequently does, 'appear from inside. Every person of your Land concern group is a helper. Helpers are not essential to do something. They are stimulated to accomplish things. Motivation can appear firstly from the wish to improve the surroundings or make better farm production, however it requires be continuously revitalization, and communicating. That is where effective leadership enters. To be an effective leader one should have make up hisher mind and set tasks, it will assist to decide what the followers desire to get. It might be up to the Leader to begin this procedure, but it is much simple to guide a group when a leader suggests where the group wishes to move. To make the leadership more effective leaders have to observe their group members. The most excellent technique to do this is by starting discussions and after that paying attention to the group. By listening, Leader will observe regarding their benefit and find out ways so that they can be more concerned in the group. They should converse evidently and normally. Explain their group aims and ethics, and keep distributing their ideas with their workers. Effective Leaders always engage workers in arranging goals. They give many advices on how can they move toward the tasks. Leaders have to give their workers few responsibilities and authority and guide them. Effective Leaders have to be liable on their selves. Establish a consultative board or managerial team to support them to make better planned decisions and the team could give them opinion on their own work. Effective leaders should be honest with their work and expand faith to their workers. That will help leaders to be dependable and make the company stronger. To be an effective