Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Assignment in law (Legal Issues Relevant to the Quality of the Website Essay

Task in law (Legal Issues Relevant to the Quality of the Website and Indecent Images of Children, Invention Law, Expert Witness) - Essay Example Cooperative energy Ltd, the organization wherein I am a frameworks director wouldn't like to be kept separate from the web innovation and its advantages. In this manner, the organization has looked to build up a site so as to draw in customers in the wake of the monetary downturn. The site will give important contact data, specialized data, and a conversation gathering permitting enrolled clients to talk about issues, and permit them to assess the charge for recouping data. The organization has looked for the administrations of a designer to build up its site. There are lawful issues that are pertinent to the nature of site conveyed by the designer and to shielding the organization from issues. These issues incorporate the accompanying: private and security issue and legitimate obligation issue. As indicated by Baumer, Lyengar, and Moffie, (2003, p. 23), the issue of protection and security is one of the primary issues that encompass production of sites. Sites are vital for putting away and selling of data that benefits both the organizations and the customers. Nonetheless, there is a worry among organizations and buyers with respect to their own wellbeing and security of their own and other delicate data. This worry is exacerbated by the straightforwardness with which data might be cross handled and gathered from sites. In the United Kingdom, the issue of site security and protection is secured under the Data Protection Act 1998 and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (Defago and Bockanic, 2006, p. 205). These Acts necessitates that treats ought to be signposted on the sites. Furthermore, they necessitate that guests of the sites ought to be permitted to won't or acknowledge their own subtleties to be gathered and utilized in the sites. Likewise, the Acts necessitates that individual data that is gathered concerning singular guests ought to be utilized or prepared in agreement to the standards and arrangements set out in the Privacy Regulations and the Data Protection Acts. All the more significantly, these Acts look to ensure organizations in an occasion that business connections become demolished, as was exhibited on account of Ashton Investments v OSJC (2006). For this situation, OSJC (a Russian organization) utilized spyware to the PC arrangement of its previous colleague, Ashton Investments, to hack unlawfully private data identifying with the case between them. In the light of these two Acts and the need to ensure the business in an occasion of demolished connection between the organization and its colleagues, the designer of the site ought to guarantee that the site has a significant level of protection and security. As to the issue of legitimate obligation, it is critical to bring up that the usage of Wide Web has incited or ganizations to wander in unexplored business wildernesses. In that capacity, they are bound to be presented to legitimate dangers. This issue has been compounding by the way that most laws identifying with the internet in both lawbreaker and common measurements are still in similar legitimate earliest stages. The lawful risk issues identifying with sites are copyrights, encroachment of copyrights, site improvement contracts, allocation of names, and slander (Baumer, Lyengar, and Moffie, 2003, p. 24). Notwithstanding under the Data Protection Act 1998 and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003, Digital Economy Act 2010 makes lawful arrangements for site and web. The Act has arrangements that look for

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Eight people are traveling to Sticklehaven

Eight individuals are heading out to Sticklehaven, where they will get a vessel to Indian Island. They have been welcome to go through seven days on vacation on the island, yet for every it was an obscure greeting. Each is interested about what anticipates them, and they have extremely various desires. Most are going via train; Marston and Dr. Armstrong are driving. There are eight on the whole: Vera hopes to be utilized as a secretary; Blore is a private agent employed to go to the island for seven days; and the rest are visitors. A few show up in one train, and are astounded when they are totally welcomed by a solitary taxi. A man named Fred Narracott ships them from Sticklehaven to Indian Island. Dr. Armstrong, who doesn't drive rapidly, shows up after the expected time, and is taken over to the island on a subsequent outing. At the point when they show up at the island, they find that their hosts have been deferred. Vera discovers her room enormous for that of a secretary, enriched in a cutting edge styleit is an advanced house. There is a marble bear on her mantle, and a nursery rhyme is holding tight the divider. It is around ten little niggers, and she remembers it from her childhood. In it, the niggers cease to exist individually, until there are none. The head servant and the house keeper, a wedded couple (the Rogers), are accommodating the visitors in spite of the hosts' nonappearance, and they before long serve supper. The visitors appreciate a delectable supper, and relax up to some degree. Out of nowhere they hear a mechanical voice. It blames each for them of being answerable for somebody's demise. The visitors are stunned and maddened. The house cleaner, Mrs. Rogers, blacks out and afterward is taken to her space to rest. They find that the voice originated from a phonograph. The steward had been offered bearings to set it to play. After the visitors help Mrs. Rogers, they start to examine their circumstance. Each clarifies their solicitation to the island. The gathering is stunned that whoever planned the solicitations had the option to mimic different old companions and spec... <!

Monday, July 27, 2020

The Room Where It Happens

The Room Where It Happens For those of you who don’t keep up with the blogs, I’m Sabrina M. ‘19, and I just finished my second year at MIT. Until recently, I was the Senior Haus co-president, until suddenly, there was no Senior House anymore. You might notice, as you read this, that I switch between House and Haus a lot. For the sake of clarity: Senior House is a building. It is located at 70 Amherst St (formerly 4 Ames St), right across the street from the Media Lab. Up until recently, it was MIT’s oldest undergraduate dormitory; we celebrated 100 years of being open just last October. Senior Haus is my home. It is the late nights and early mornings spent painting my room, the smell of rush burgers and cigarettes that I never smoked, the sound of loud music reverberating through the halls, and the soft breeze felt as the tire swing flew past me. It’s the friend that comforted me as I cried on and on about failing my first class, the desk workers who let me miss shifts when the world felt like it was coming down on my shoulders, the alumni who praised me for everything I had done even though I never felt like I was doing enough. It’s eating vegan lasagna and huge cuts of steer, just like the ones I helped make for last year’s Steer Roast, somewhere down in Somerville, because even when it’s not in our stone clad courtyard it still feels like home. And it will always be my home, whether it lives on one day in sub-communities in other dorms, or large houses full of displaced friends, or in the hearts of everyone who remembers it. Whenever I think of my experiences with student government at MIT, I always think back to one song. There are a lot of songs in Hamilton that I can break down and relate to my life, but this one strikes me as the most relevant to how I’m feeling. i found myself flip flopping between feeling like hamilton and feeling like burr in this. i was either in a powerful enough place where i could slip into that room where the decisions were made, but more often than not, waiting outside the door begging for an entrance. MIT is so special because of its student governance and autonomy. At what other institution do students have so much power? In their dorms, in their campus life? Dorm presidents aren’t just figureheads given arbitrary choices by administrators to give them a glimpse of governance, but agents of real change. REX is entirely student run. Steer Roast, Senior Haus’ annual weekend-long party, and other large events signature to MIT (Piano Drop and Dance Til You Drop come to mind) are student run. Student government has been a huge part of my MIT career, and has shaped my entire experience here. Most of my friends are involved in it, whether through their fraternities or sororities or dorms. It makes coming to MIT feel so worth it, even when I felt beaten down by the stress of it all. And, there are some cool perks. How many people can say they’re on a first name basis with some of MIT’s most powerful administrators? I like to credit my soft introduction to student government at MIT to a panel during CPW, right before the onset of my college career. Now, I call this a soft introduction because it’s not quite one, but rather, one event that led to a choice that led to a friendship that led to that very introduction. But, I’ll touch on that in a bit. I was never big into student government in high school; aside from one school council I was a part of that involved free food and skipping class. My high school didn’t have class presidents or councils, and students didn’t really have any say in how things were run. I didn’t have big plans to do student government at MIT, so I did mostly fun things during my CPW, like eating liquid nitrogen ice cream at Next House or trying to do slam poetry at New House. I went to a panel about housing at MIT because my parents wanted me to, and I had to play nice because I’d been effectively ignoring them all weekend in favor of rush burgers. I sat next to my parents on the far side of 10-250 while a panel at the front talked about dorm life, FPOPs, and other things. One girl on the panel, Adrianna R. ‘16, or Adri for short, had short hair dyed a bright purple that had caught my eye. She had talked about going kayaking and having a cat and being Senior Haus president and I took in every second of it without paying much attention to the rest of the panel. Fast forward a bit, that panel influenced my housing choices for the lottery. I was placed in Senior House, which I had ranked first, because I remembered how cool I thought that girl was, and how else could I be cool except by living where the cool people were? I even ended up living in her suite for REX week (affectionately known as Senior Haus’ Presidential Suite), and we became fast friends. “Do you want to run for DormCon secretary?” Adri had asked me once while we were hanging out. DormCon, short for the Dormitory Council, was the governing body for 10 out of 11 MIT Dorms (Maseeh was missing, but later rejoined in the Spring of 2016). “Not at all,” I remember laughing and replying something along those lines. She kept bringing it up on the days leading up to the DormCon meeting, and I kept on with the same response. But, I told her I would tag along anyway. I remember that first DormCon meeting, back in September of my freshman year. I hadn’t even had my first midterm at MIT yet. It was in the Talbot lounge in East Campus, and the first time I had been back in that room since CPW. Adri and I sat on two foldable chairs next to each other, arranged in a circle. I didn’t understand most of the discussion, given that I had only been in an MIT dorm for about three weeks. When the time had come for secretary elections, Adri nominated me despite all of my objections, and I took on the position because no one else had ran against me. I grew to love DormCon. As secretary, I went to general body meetings and exec ones. I was the only freshman for that entire year on exec, and I never really acquired the skill of typing and talking at the same time, so I didn’t speak out much during meetings, but I sure did listen. I became so eager to listen to all of the problems that were facing Dorm Life, and what different dorm presidents were passionate about. Even with all the club mailing lists I had put myself on during the Activities Midway, this was the only one I was really excited about. Meetings were weekly, 7:30pm on Thursday nights, and I conveniently always had 18.0x PSETs due on Friday mornings. Luckily for me, it was PNR, so punting them didn’t feel so bad. I started talking excitedly to my friends about DormCon, and tried to sway them into coming with the promises of free food (it never worked). I got my first taste of the real power students at MIT had when the MetX happened. For those of you who are unaware, the MetX is what DormCon had used to refer to the Metropolitan Warehouse building, which MIT had planned to turn into a new dormitory. Starting from October 2015, the Student Housing Advisory Committee, or SHAC, and DormCon had closed door discussions about the logistics of it all: how could students live in a virtually windowless building whose facades couldn’t be touched because it was historical, expanding the residential advising structure, and the most controversial, the possibility of it being freshmen-only housing. Because of how MIT’s residential system works, that last one became an even larger conversation that frustrated all of us. We struggled with the trust and confidentiality we thought we had to uphold, the balance being advisors and being activists: being inside or outside the room where it happened, and were constantly afraid we would lose our barg aining power if word got out. Inch by inch, we negotiated the terms of the MetX closer to a point that we could both agree on. The conversation began to shift. What if, instead of being freshmen-only, we had freshmen clusters on halls? Or avoid all that and improve residential advising? Inches were all we ever got. We had focus groups in all the dorms, musing over windows and light channels and eating pizza, collecting feedback from students on floorplans that would be brought back to the Chancellor. The process was controversial, and eventually, the project was cancelled because it was going to be too expensive to renovate anyway. And despite all the backlash we got for wrongfully believing that we had to keep this a secret, the frustrating conversations that didn’t seem to go anywhere, and the fact that the only thing that could stop a dorm most students didn’t want was money, I didn’t lose hope in the power of student governance. I savored those inches as a freshman, eager for the next conversation that could yield a foot, yards, miles. “Over the last year, Ive spent a great deal of time working with residents of Senior House and thinking about how to address certain longstanding dynamics in the house that produced damaging outcomes… The positive aspects of this community were clear to me even a year ago. Thats why, despite our serious concerns, we took the step last summer of launching the turnaround; we hoped that by working with the residents of Senior House, we could together find a way to stop the troubling behaviors.” That summer, the Chancellor announced the Senior House Turnaround, citing low graduation rates among other things as a cause for concern that had to be addressed. The original plan included the ban on freshmen, and the removal of two of our GRTs to make way for additional live in staff. This was a work in progress we could get through together. No freshmen? Our GRTs being fired? An alarming amount of administrators living with students in a half-empty undergraduate dorm? I stood in the sidelines as our president at the time, Sarah M. ‘18 (now UA president!) and other student leaders met tirelessly with administrators to make this plan more palatable to the residents. By the end of it all, Sarah didn’t just get inches, but full-blown feet into a positive direction. Sure, we didn’t get freshmen, but we got our GRTs back, and there was student involvement at every step moving forward with the Turnaround. Residents had decided to stay, and there was a feeling of camaraderie, a sense that we could do this, if only with the support of each other. I was amazed. Yet even so, I felt powerless in a way I hadn’t before. I was in New York for the summer, and so completely shocked by the initial news that I couldn’t even fathom how I’d be any help. Meetings carried on without me and committees formed, and all I could do was Skype in or peruse my emails for an occasional update. I felt pathetic and hopeless. The feeling of being outside of that room haunted me constantly. At the end of the fall semester of 2016, I ran for Senior Haus president with my friend, J. M. ‘19. Sure, it was an uncontested election, but when we were actually elected, I was so ecstatic. I’ve always been surrounded by generations of presidents (one of the beauties of living in a multi-year dorm with a long history): a long line of former officials that I see, still living, breathing, and caring so much at Roast every year. There was a new feeling of power in me, coupled with optimism and idealism for what could come next. I wanted to complete the Turnaround, I wanted to get freshmen back in Senior Haus, and, selfishly, I wanted people to look up to me like I had looked up to Adri, to Sarah, to everyone else who had paved that path there. this is only a fraction of all of the plaques On April 20th, the news finally broke. Sarah, J. and I were pulled into a meeting that afternoon, and I was hopeful. Could this be the meeting? The one where we’d be drafting press releases together about all our progress and how Senior Haus would be getting freshmen again? “…despite significant effort and countless hours on the part of many students, faculty and staff, it became clear this spring that the turnaround had failed. We learned that dangerous behavior â€" behavior explicitly prohibited by MIT policy and completely counter to the spirit of the turnaround â€" was taking place in the house.” When we actually got into that room, and were told about the dangerous behavior that had been discovered, I was at a loss for words. Just a few days prior, we had been discussing joint public statements about how well the Turnaround was going. J. and I had finally gotten our foot in the door. And then, once again, I could feel it closing in on us. Everything we had planned had been thrown out of the metaphorical window. Now, all we had were vague statements from administrators and a spoken promise to keep things confidential. This wasn’t misused survey data or assumptions, anymore. Everyone in Senior Haus had feared that depopulation was on the table. We were all afraid that this time, our home was really going to be taken away from us. I’d also had the same fears I had back when the MetX was happening. That one slip of info could strip us away of all our bargaining power. I urged people to respect confidentiality because I was afraid, and I truly wanted to believe that by working together with administration, we could fix this. I had seen it before, first the inches in the MetX, then the feet in the Turnaround. All it took was some conversations in the room where it happens. The weeks following that initial news of dangerous behavior, up until now, were some of the worst, most stressful weeks of my life. When I wasn’t in class or doing work, I was at meetings with the Chancellor, or writing emails to schedule meetings with the Chancellor. My co-president and I spent late nights drafting documents to present at these meetings, losing sleep only to have to wake up that next morning for even more 8am meetings. I missed classes and mandatory recitations to come to them, because it was either skip, or wait for their availability next week. We started having nightly meetings in the Haus, to update residents and brainstorm proposals together. And despite the ever-approaching final projects and exams, people showed up. Couple these with the looming dread that hung over our heads, expecting some drastic decision to be made at any moment, and you have a recipe for some miserable MIT students. I thought these meetings were the way to come to a conclusion everyone could be happy with. I tried seeing the situation in their eyes; I didn’t want to see problems in my community persist, either. Operating with no knowledge of what had prompted this investigation, my co-president and I presented plans, outlines, anything that could convince administration that we could work through this together, and that we didn’t have to take the nuclear option. That through collaboration, we could work towards fixing the real problems presented, instead of just doing one thing to appease the other. We were even lucky enough to get a meeting with the upper level administrators: the Chancellor, Provost, Vice President for Research, and President Reif himself. Picture that, two college sophomores in a room with four of the most powerful people at MIT. I was, understandably, very nervous the entire meeting. My voice shook as I read off the most notable bits of the document we were presenting, begging for them to see another way out of this. That Senior Haus was worth their time, and that the turnaround hadn’t failed, it just wasn’t over. And yet, when the decision to evict all residents and introduce Pilot2021 was made, it seems that none of that mattered. The miles we got went backwards. “As we made clear to the residents at the time, a complete reset was necessary and a new community needed to form; Pilot 2021 was our first attempt.” When the decision had finally been made public, I had already checked out. The claustrophobia from being trapped in that stuffy room where no one could actually hear what I was trying to say had gotten to me. I was exhausted, overcome with guilt, and felt powerless. Hours and hours of meetings, writing, and planning for nothing. For the same result that would have happened without it. The protests happened around me and I hid in the radio silence. “Last President of Senior House” doesn’t have a good ring to it. It makes me sick to my stomach. It reminds me of the countless mistakes I made to get here. I felt like an Icarus who had flown too close to the sun, not realizing until my wax wings were gone, along with the place I called home. Even so, student leadership around me persisted. My co-president, DormCon, and the UA tirelessly met with the Chancellor and other administrators to ensure a fair process for students who were being kicked out. And for a while, it seemed like we were getting somewhere. Collaboration was possible. “Unfortunately, to our great regret, [Pilot2021] was also met with intensive efforts to perpetuate and reimpose Senior House, thus undermining any chance for a new community to succeed.” Yet, once again, with no discussion, the nuclear option was taken and Senior House was no longer going to house undergraduates at all. It had seemed that once and for all, the door was locked. There was no getting in anymore. “We reluctantly came to the conclusion that the only path left to us was for the building to house graduate students. We would never have brought such distress to the residents of Senior House if we thought we had a realistic and workable choice.” I have mourned Senior Haus more times than I can count. Now, I mourn for student governance at MIT. I once marveled at the power of student leaders to enact change. It inspired me to pursue my own path in student government. It could just be the general uncertainty of my future, but I am feeling a multitude of things. I’m disappointed for letting myself believe that being listened to was the same thing as being heard. I’m upset that the administration felt that this was the only feasible option. I’m frustrated that I convinced my residents that playing this game, this game of meetings and cooperation, less aggressively could yield us better results. I’m angry for letting myself believe that MIT could be any different. But lastly, I feel a sliver of hope. I feel hope that it doesn’t have to be this way, and this could be a mistake in communication and collaboration that won’t be repeated in the future. I’ve learned more lessons through student government than I have in any of my classes at MIT. Finding common ground is much easier when you don’t view each other as adversaries. Don’t post things or send emails that you don’t want to show up in school newspapers. Collaboration is impossible without trust on both sides. It’s hard to come up with valid talking points when you’re too busy thinking about how not to cry at that meeting. It’s okay to cry at meetings sometimes. I used to love MIT with all my heart. This was my dream school. I still love the people I’ve met, and the experiences I’ve had, but I wish I could still feel the same way about this place. I don’t have a home here anymore. Feeling powerless and beaten down has colored my perception of a school I used to revel in. “…We will not always agree with each others judgments. But I hope we can take each other seriously as people of goodwill and members of the same community.” I hope so, too. Post Tagged #Senior Haus #Senior House

Friday, May 22, 2020

Marketing Communication Ethics - 5188 Words

ETHICS IN MARKETING COMMUNICATION As well as the entire business world, marketing has its own ethics problems. Numerous marketing specialists or their representatives have consciously declared and adopted different engagements, declarations or codes of rules regarding the necessity that marketing people consider ethics regulations and values, so that they become much more responsible towards the members of society. These declarations or rules concern marketing practices in their ensemble or are guided towards certain specific fields. Among these fields, a special place is occupied by marketing communication, which has to be guided by ethical regulations and moral values. Key words: ethics, regulation, marketing, communication,†¦show more content†¦Although not all companies can assume social responsibilities, there are numerous fields in which organisations are approaching the way in which they understand and get involved in this kind of activities (for example, Kraft Foods company, with the program â€Å"Together for children†, having as an objective improving treatment and hospitalising conditions for children in Romania, ProcterGamble company with the program â€Å"Live, Learn and Develop yourself†, having as goal helping children in need for support, JTI Romania, Vodafone etc., companies that either initiate or support different activities and programs of social responsibility). Of course that the decision for organisations to get involved in different activities of social responsibility belongs firstly to the managers of these organisations, respectively to those that choose the way and modality of action, starting with th eir own conscious, because, in fact, â€Å"†¦the only guiding direction for a straight, correct conduct is the irrefutably strong common sense or moral common sense feeling and our power to action on its basis as an initiative† (Ionescu, 2006). As the entire business world, marketing reveals its own ethics problems. In conditions of high business velocity, in the context of a continuouslyShow MoreRelatedEthics in Marketing Communication1082 Words   |  5 PagesEthical Challenges in Marketing Communication Ethics play an integral role in the development and sustenance of any personal or business relationship. Ethics determine the acceptable behaviors within a society and the overall behaviors of a business. 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In this essay I will describe two ethical issues in advertising, show why businessRead MoreMarketing and Strategic Elements1031 Words   |  5 Pagesengage in marketing efforts? While non-profit organizations differ from profit seeking firms in several ways, non-profit organizations need to engage in marketing efforts to generate financial revenue to support their causes. All businesses need marketing plans to generate revenue and measure results. In non-profit businesses, community service target levels and education service target levels can be used to measure results. Unlike profit seeking organizations that focus on marketing solely toRead MorePerformance Indicators For Evaluation System806 Words   |  4 PagesEVALUATION SYSTEM Company establishes key performance indicators for evaluation system. The actual performance of marketing activities is comparing the set objectives. 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Saturday, May 9, 2020

The Gap Between the Rich and the Poor in America Essay

The era of volatility has created a shift from America being the middle-class society to simply rich or poor (Sachs, 2011). A gap this large has not been experienced since the 1920’s (Sachs). â€Å"The top 1% of households takes almost a quarter of all household income† but an economy this top heavy will not be able to succeed (Sachs, 2011, p. 30). The working classes are struggling with housing, wage, and employment issues. Rich individuals are ignoring these troubles, shipping their business operations out of the country, thus furthering the downward spiral of the economy (Sachs). To make matters worse, this has become in a large part a political issue, because the rich can influence candidates with funding, where the poor and working†¦show more content†¦At that time though tax rates were 70% higher; presently the United States has the lowest tax rate of the leading economies (Sachs). The economy at that time was an effective mix of big business and activism in government, this combination worked to reduce the gap between rich and poor (Sachs). Then the 1970’s hit and things began to fall apart in the face of new challenges. It was in the 1970’s that globalization first hit with the introduction of Japanese cars to compete with the three major car dealers in America, inflation began to rise (Sachs). Rather than examining ways to become more competitive in the face of globalization, government looked inward and decided that is was the problem and not the solution to a problem (Sachs). The government failed to recognize the key role it played in correcting the economy before. Failure to recognize the Feds role in the economy and to adjust to globalization characterized the 80’s (Sachs, 2011). The long-term effects have been a â€Å"hollowing out† of American industries and the middle class have suffered the most, loosing employment as well as their homes (Sachs, p. 30). Manufacturing, textile, auto, and appare l jobs have all been lost to globalization, save for the highly skilled level positions (Sachs). For many years, construction filled the employment gap that manufacturing left in the American economy (Sachs). While it can be noted that Americans have benefited from low costShow MoreRelatedThe Context Of Growing Economic Interdependence1672 Words   |  7 Pages(globalisation); inequality is both growing within and between nations. In turn, analysing the following the following statement that â€Å"Inequality can undermine economic, social and perhaps even political stability. It can tear the very fabric that holds society together. We now have firm evidence that a severely skewed income distribution harms the pace and sustainability of growth over the longer term. The growing gap between the rich and poor is now at its highest levels due to wealth disparityRead MoreThe Inequality Gap Of The Rich And Poor1183 Words   |  5 PagesSome people would argue that the inequality gap of the rich and the poor does not affect our democracy. Others say the inequality gap is weakening our democracy. Either way, there is a wealth gap between the rich and the poor in the United States and as this gap between the classes expands, there is a debate over what should be done. On one side, people believe that great inequality between the rich and the poor is incompatible with democracy. Democracy is defined by the Oxford English DictionaryRead MoreAmerica s Income And Wealth Inequality987 Words   |  4 PagesToday in America, income and wealth inequality has continued to grow at an unsettling pace. The rich continue to get richer, while the number of people categorized as lower class grows exponentially. As Joseph Stiglitz has explained, many theories that are seen as strongly Republican, such as the trickle-down effect, has caused the rich to take money from the poor, and as a result the lower class grows and the middle class disintegrates. The top 1 percent of America’s households currently holds 30Read MorePersuasive Essay About American Dream950 Words   |  4 Pagesincluded in this dream is really challenging. In short, being colored is one disadvantage you can encounter. Also, being a minority does not help the situation. In most cases ev en being a woman has its problems. This includes white woman too. Being poor is also a huge problem. This condition alone excludes most of the population. The American Dream goes to those who are privileged . When a common pet is given a home and food it is basically guaranteed a good life. Success is promised; even thoughRead MoreClass in America1189 Words   |  5 PagesMantsios Class in America In Mantsios article â€Å"Class in America† he states that Americans hold beliefs that blind them to social classes, citizens in America have four myths they use to ensure talk about the classes never take place. America has the largest gap between rich and poor in the world, and the lower class has no means to an end they can’t afford health care or quality education. The upper class avoids talk about social class the most; wealthy people don’t want to admit that they are betterRead MoreThe Rights Of Man By Thomas Paine1181 Words   |  5 PagesAdditionally, the time gap between â€Å"Rights of Man† and modern America cannot be neglected. Paine wrote during an era in which â€Å"constructing a government on the principles of society and the rights of man† was the essential objective of the country. However, modern-day America experiences opposite ideals and Paine’s theory no longer remains true because of the educational gap between the ric h and poor, terrorism, and racial profiling. Paine’s theory does not correlate to modern-day America because of theRead MoreThe Movie Park Avenue : Money, Power And The American Dream858 Words   |  4 Pagesdistinction between the two, there exist clear similarities in trying to analyze the true facts behind a dream. The documentary directed by Gibney, analyzes the true facts of the gap between the poor and the rich in the America dream. It shows that the gap has been increasing over the last thirty years. The Park Avenue that passes through Manhattan (where the rich stay) and South Bronx (where the poor stay) shows this distinction (Lee). The two are separated by a river making the gap appear smallerRead MoreThe American Dream Must Have Been A Dream After All Essay1678 Words   |  7 PagesPark Avenue, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, is one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in all of New York City, home to the ultra rich, the top tier of the American upper class, the 1% (Park Avenue). Those who reside in Park Avenue not only have vast amounts of wealth, but an immense amount of influence that has turned the tables in their favor. But, if you go a couple of miles North of Park Avenue and cross the Harlem river, you arrive at the other side of Park Avenue or otherwise known as theRead MoreImp act Of Globalization On The World Economy934 Words   |  4 Pageseconomic. On the other side, researchers and experts are saying that, globalization helps in increasing gap between poor and rich people in all around the world. The impact of the globalization is so wide and board, it is difficult to solve, because every countries of the world are crying to develop their economy by globalization. As a result, the globalization increase the gap between rich and poor because of, improper wage system and insecurity of jobs, multinational companies, environment treatiesRead MoreRaising The Minimum Wage Is The Issue Of Social Equality1398 Words   |  6 PagesGod, glory, and gold are the 3G’s, and that is also the main reason why the Europeans originally came to America. Today, the 3G’s still stand, but not everyone is able to achieve them and especially the immigrants. In the early colonial days, immigrants were called upon. Today they are frond upon, and are getting thre aten to be deported back to their origin country. In Framing Class, Vicarious Living, and Conspicuous Consumption, written by Diana Kendall, and in The Missing Class, written by Katherine

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Company law ans Free Essays

string(25) " The exceptions under s\." Bristol is a substantial shareholder in Chester-Perry Industries Ltd. A business competitor, Gun and Fames Pity Ltd, is selling in great volume a cookbook similar to one in respect of which Chester-Perry Industries holds the copyright. Bristol believes his company has incurred a substantial loss and his own shares have been reduced In value by $150,000. We will write a custom essay sample on Company law ans or any similar topic only for you Order Now HIS solicitors believe an Infringement of copyright has occurred. Cycles and Pollock are the directors of Chester-Perry Industries Ltd. They state that they have decided not to litigate because they believe hat to take legal action for infringement of copyright is too expensive and risky. Bristol is unsure whether the directors of Chester-Perry Industries have any interest in Gun and Fames Pity Ltd. On the general principles laid down Salmon’s case, can Bristol sue Gun Fames? Issue: Can Bristol sue Gun Fames on behalf of Chester-Perry as a shareholder in Chester-Perry? Relevant law: Salomon. Application: The House of Lords in Salomon held that upon incorporation, a company beneficially becomes a separate legal entity even though its issued shares are owned by the same person Like In Salomon. Similarly In this question, Chester-Perry Is a company that has been incorporated and therefore, is a separate legal entity from all its shareholders. In this case, according to Salomon, Bristol who is a shareholder of Chester- Perry cannot sue Gun Fames on behalf of Chester-Perry as a company is separate from its shareholders. Conclusion: Bristol cannot sue Gun Fames on behalf of Chester Perry due to the principle laid down in Salomon where upon incorporation Chester Perry is considered as a separate legal entity from all its shareholders, including Tutorial 2 Bristol. Q(a). The Constitution of Big Hopes Pity. Ltd. Includes the following provisions: Rule XSL: On any Increase In capital the new shares must be offered to members In proportion to their excellent shares. John (an existing shareholder) is distressed when an allotment of a new issue is Issue: of What action can John take against Big Hopes for failing to allot new issue shares to him according to Rule xi of the Constitution? Relevant law: CA 2001. Application: s. 140(1)(a) states that a constitution of a company is a contract between the company and its company and its shareholders. In this essence, both the shareholders are bind by the constitution. Must Big In this instance, Rule xi of Big Hopes’ constitution states that new shares be offered to existing shareholders as per their existing shares. However, Hopes failed to allot new shares to John as according to his existing shares and have therefore breached its contractual obligation in the constitution under Conclusion: John can take an action against Big Hope under s. 140(1)(a) for breaching its to contractual obligation in its constitution for failing to allot the new shares John as per his existing shares. Tutorial 3 Q. John, Ring, George and Paul incorporate Big Hopes Pity Ltd for their property development business. Big Hopes Pity Ltd was empowered under a provision in its constitution to appoint a managing director. However, the company did not appoint managing director, executed a contract with Vincent for the purchase of a certain property. The market price for the property subsequently collapsed. The board of Big Hopes Pity Ltd, learning of the contract, expressed their disapproval to Paul and claimed that the company was not bound by the contract. Vincent seeks your advice as to his legal position. Issue: Is the company bound by the contract with Vincent? Relevant law: Constructive notice, Turned, and s. 129(2)(a) and (b), s. 29(5) (6) CA 2001 , Actual authority and Apparent authority. Application: Under the old principle of constructive notice, the constitution of public companies are made available for public inspection and therefore, the public are deemed well aware of the limitations on the authority of the companies’ principle will not apply here as Big Hopes is a private officers. This old company. Furthermore, under the common law Turnaround’s case, any outsiders with companies can assume that the persons with whom they are with have the authority to contract on behalf of the companies and all proceedings have been complied with. Dealing internal In this case, the constitution of Big Hopes states that a MD should be appointed but did not state that Paul has been properly appointed as the MD. Vincent can argue that he assume that Paul has been appointed as the as per the Turnaround’s case and therefore, has the authority to contract on behalf of the company. He also has no actual knowledge or suspicion that Vincent has not been properly appointed (Note: In test/exam, if there are any circumstances that arouse suspicion, argue using the case of Nonresident Developments). The principle of constructive notice has also been abolished by s. 130(1) of CA 2001. In dealing with companies, outsiders are entitled to make certain assumptions contained in s. 129 of ACACIA as per s. 128(1) of ACACIA. In this instance, Vincent can argue that he has been empowered by s. 128(1) to make certain s. 129 assumptions when contracting with Paul from Big Hopes. Reticular, he can assume under and (b) that Paul has been properly appointed as the MD of Big Hopes and can therefore exercise all the customary duties of a MD which include entering into contracts on behalf of Hopes. In this essence, Vincent can assume that Paul has actual implied authority to enter into contracts on behalf of Big Hopes. Note: In test/exam, if question requires arguing on apparent/oste nsible authority, use the case of Freeman Locker to support your argument). Vincent can also argue either s. 129(5) or (6) depending on whether Big Hopes execute contracts by way of seal or without seal. Either way, Vincent can argue that Paul has complied with all the internal proceedings when executing the contract with/without seal (e. G. Proper meeting, quorum, fixation of seal, witnessing of fixation et cetera) under either of these two sections. The exceptions under s. You read "Company law ans" in category "Law" 128(4) CA 2001 will not apply to Vincent as he has ever known or suspected that Paul has not been properly appointed and the contract has not been properly executed. Conclusion:Big Hopes is bound by the contract with Vincent under both common law (as per Turnaround’s case whereby entitled to make certain s. 29 assumptions again, there is no evidence suggesting any when dealing with Big Hopes and exceptions under s. 128(4) that will rebut the s. 129 assumptions made by Vincent. Tutorial 4 Q. Maria is keen to purchase shares in Action Ltd. , but is unable to raise sufficient funds to do so. It is suggested that the company lend Maria the sum of $50,000 to enable h er to complete the purchase. The directors of Action Ltd. Seek your advice as to this proposal. Issue: Can Action Ltd lend Maria the sum of $50,000? Is this considered as financial assistance? Relevant law: s. AAA(1) CA 2001, ASIA v Adler. Application: Under s. AAA(1), a company may only financially assist a person if it (a) does not materially prejudice the interests of its shareholders and affect its ability to pay its creditors, (b) must be approved by all shareholders, and (c) exempted by s. CHIC. Therefore, before Action Ltd lends the $50,000 to Maria, it must ensure that it has comply with all the requirements in s. AAA(1). Otherwise, Action Ltd will be breaching s. AAA(1) as per the case of ASIA v Adler. In ASIA v Adler, Mr.. Adler the director in HI has utilized the money of HI to financially assist his personal company PEE to purchase the shares in HI when HI was already in financial difficulty and without the approval of the shareholders. The court deemed this to be a contravention of s. AAA(1). Requirements in s. AAA(1). Conclusion:Action Ltd can only financially assist Maria to purchase the shares of Action Ltd if it satisfied all the requirements in s. AAA(1). Otherwise, Action Ltd will be deemed to have contravened s. AAA(1) as per the case of ASIA v Adler. Tutorial 5 Q. An opportunity has arisen to purchase land for development at Christmas Hills. The shareholders of Central Developments Ltd. Passed a resolution that the company purchases the land. However, the directors have ignored the resolution and refuse to act on it. Are the directors bound to implement the shareholders’ resolution? Issue: Are the directors of Central Developments bound by the shareholders’ resolution to purchase the land at Christmas Hills? Relevant law: Separation of ownership and management powers, Automatic Self- Cleansing, John Shaw. Application: Under the principle of separation of ownership and management powers, the management of the company is vested fully in the board of directors despite the shareholders owning the company. Therefore, the shareholders cannot pass resolutions instructing the directors on how to manage the company. According to the cases of Automatic Self-cleansing and John Shaw, the directors as long as acting within the management powers bequeathed on them by the company’s constitution have absolute power in managing the company and the shareholders have no rights to interfere in this as per the company’s constitution. In this event, the directors of Central Developments can ignore the resolution of the shareholders to purchase the land at Christmas Hills because purchasing of land can be considered as a type of management power and only the Conclusion: The directors of Central Developments can ignore the resolution of the shareholders to purchase the land at Christmas Hills because the directors have absolute power to manage the company including whether to purchase the land as per the principle of separation of ownership and management powers and the cases of Automatic Self-cleansing and John Shaw. Tutorial 6 IQ. Seven Dwarves Ltd operates nursing homes. Its directors are Sleepy, Grumpy and Dopey. They hold 30% of the shares in the company. The directors allocate 1 million new shares to certain business associates. This has upset certain shareholders who claim that the placement was made with a view to preventing a future takeover offer being made. The directors claim that the allotment was made to raise cash required for the company’s future needs. Advise the shareholders. Issue: Advise the shareholders whether the directors have breached any of their director’s duties by allocating 1 million new shares to certain business associates? Relevant law: s. 181 CA 2001 â€Å"proper purpose† (but for test), Whitehorse v Carlton, Howard Smith. Application: Under s. 181 CA 2001, directors must act in good faith, in the best interest of the shareholders and for a proper purpose. The shareholders in claimed that the directors have issued 1 million new shares to Seven Dwarves certain business associates to defeat a takeover and therefore, the issuing of these new shares is for an improper purpose. To determine whether the issuing of new shares is for an improper purpose (I. E. To defeat a takeover), the but for test will be applied. But for to defeat a future takeover, will the directors issue the 1 million new shares? † (Note: Students must reason and argue on this question to reach an answer, either Yes/No). If the but for test reveals that no, if not to defeat a takeover, the directors will not issue the new shares, then obviously the reason for issuing shares is to defeat a takeover. He to prevent the wife from having majority control over the business and in the case of Howard Smith, whereby new shares were issued to prevent future takeover, the court ruled that the issuing of new shares in these cases was for improper purpose. Therefore, the directors have breached s. 181 because their purpose in issuing the 1 million new shares to certain business associates is to defeat a future takeover which is considered as improper as per the two cases discussed above. Conclu sion: The directors of Seven Dwarves have breached s. 81 because they have issued cases new shares for an improper purpose (I. E. To defeat a takeover) as per the of Whitehorse v Carlton and Howard Smith. Tutorial 7 (This question is not taken out from the tutorial questions but you can still use it as a reference for answering questions from this tutorial) Sam and Pete are the erectors in BBC Pity Ltd. They have decided to use the 1 million dollars in the company’s bank account to invest in the shares of DEAF Ltd after doing all the necessary research and making all the necessary inquiries by themselves from the Internet and financial Journals and magazines. Six months after the investment, the World Financial Crisis occurs and DEAF Ltd goes into liquidation causing BBC Pity Ltd to lose its 1 million dollars investment. Do the shareholders of BBC Pity Ltd have a course of action against Sam and Pete? Issue: Do the shareholders of BBC have a course of action against Sam and Pete for asking an investment that caused the company to lose 1 million dollars? Relevant law: Old subjective common law standard, Re Cardiff Bank, Re City Equitable Fire Insurance, Daniels v Anderson (objective standard), s. 80(1) and s. 180(2) CA 2001. Application: Under the old common law, a subjective standard is applied to directors when exercising their duty of care towards their companies. In both the case of Re Cardiff Bank and Re City Equitable Fire Insurance, the subjective standard is applied whereby directors were only required to exercise duty of care as per their personal level f skill and experience. However, this approach has been overruled by the moder n objective standard landmarks in the case of Daniels v Anderson. In this case, all directors are expected to exercise a duty of care that any other reasonable directors will apply in the same position and circumstance and not according to their personal level of skill and experience. This standard is further illustrated in 180(1) CA 2001 which states that directors must exercise their power with degree of care that any reasonable directors would exercise in the same circumstances, position and responsibilities. In this event, if the shareholders of BBC are able to establish that any other Sam and Pete would be breaching their duty of care towards BBC under 180(1). However, Sam and Pete will be able to raise the Business Judgment Rule Defense (BBC) in s. 180(2) CA 2001. In order for them to raise the BBC, they must satisfy four elements; (1) They have made the business Judgment in good faith and for a proper purpose – there is no evidence that Sam and Pete have ill intentions when making the investment, (2) They have no material personal interest in the business Judgment – again, there is no evidence that Sam and Pete have gained any benefits financial or non-financial wise from the investment, (3) They have informed themselves of the subject matter of the business Judgment – there is evidence that Sam and Pete have done all the necessary research including online and from Journals and magazines, and (4) Any other reasonable person in the same position and circumstances would have made the same investment as they did after doing all the research – Sam and Pete must be able to prove so. If Sam and Pete are able to establish all the elements in s. 180(2), then they will be able to use the BBC to defend themselves from breaching s. 0(1). Conclusion: The shareholders of BBC will have a course of action against Sam and Pete if they can prove that no reasonable director will invest the 1 million dollars in DEAF and therefore, in doing so, Sam and Pete have breached their duty of care to the company under s. 180(1). However, if Sam and Pete can establish all the elements under s. 180(2 ), then they will be able to use the BBC to defend themselves from breaching s. 180(1). Tutorial 8 (These questions are not taken out from the tutorial questions but you can a shareholder in EX. Pity Ltd. How to cite Company law ans, Essays

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd Essay Example

Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd Essay Marketing Cross-functional Relationship during NPD and collaborative capability for marketing managers Abstract In the era of hi-tech and rapid information development, the success of the enterprises mainly depends on the continuous NPD. It is discovered by a lot of research that the collaboration between the marketing and other departments is critical to the success of new products. The marketing can have better promotion performance through effective collaboration with RD and other departments. Adopting deep interview for a special case, this study elaborates the cross-functional relationship (CFR) management based on research findings and related theories. The study suggests the structural, social and individual ways to improve the interdepartmental collaboration. The main research conclusions are as follows. a. Chang Xin Company pays much attention to teamwork and cooperation between marketing and other departments in the whole process of NPD. In the project discussion phase, the departments carry on the project planning and market survey together. The marketing deals with the inquiries at promotion and the after-sale service with the help of RD, Investment Management and other departments. b. The relationship between marketing and other departments can be build through sharing resources, work turnover, mutual understanding and common goals. Chang Xin still has something to do to build information communication platform such as network system, information transmission and tracking system in order to get high efficiency of information exchange. c. We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In addition to building the enterprise culture to value cross-functional communication, the company had better set up mutual promotion and reward system to give impact on the career development views of the managers. At the same time, the responsibilities of each department should be clearly specified. Contents 1 Introduction7 1. 1 Objective7 1. 2 Review of Chapters8 1. 3 Limitation of Study8 2 Literature Review10 2. 1 Definition10 2. 2 Cross-functional relationship in NPD11 2. 3 How to Achieve Cross-functional Collaboration13 2. 3. 1 Information communication13 . 3. 2 Integrating management structure15 2. 3. 3 Building Interpersonal Trust17 2. 4 Collaborative Capabilities of Marketing Managers18 2. 4. 1 Reputational Effectiveness Factors18 2. 4. 2 Marketing Manager’s Collaborative Skills20 3 Research Methodology22 3. 1 Case Study22 3. 2 Data Collection23 3. 3 Data Analysis24 4 Case Analysis: Chang Xin Asset Management26 4. 1 Company Background26 4. 2 Status of Cross-functiona l Collaboration in NPD26 4. 3. 1 Social Methods29 4. 3. 2 Structural Methods29 4. 3. 3 Integration of information/resource31 4. Collaborative Capability of Marketing Manager32 4. 5 Results34 5 Conclusion35 6 References36 7 Reflective Report39 1 Introduction 1. 1 Objective Deploying activities for total quality control and cost reduction to achieve good business performance are the main issues for a firm. In the process of new product development (NPD), the new products are often unstable quality and there are varying problems need to be fixed. The problems could be better solved by improving communication and information-sharing between different departments and their managers. Therefore, the interdepartmental collaboration is needed. Souder and Chakrabarti (1978, cited by Ye Youming, 2009) found out that 68% RD projects will fail in business performance completely and 21% will fail partially when there is serious management problems between the marketing and RD. This study will focus on the collaboration between the marketing department and other departments, especially in the NPD phase and find out the way to achieve the most effective cross-functional relationship (CFR). The main objectives are to explore important features of cross-functional working relationship during NPD and to gain further knowledge on the relative importance of collaborative capability for marketing managers. The questions raised on the topic are as below. How can marketing develop good collaborative relationship with other departments in the firm? How can the cross-functional collaboration be effective in NPD process? How can marketing managers develop skills to be successful in establishing multiple collaborative relationships? According to these questions, the discussion involves four parts: First, the features of CFR in the process of NPD. Second, the principles and critical factors for cross-functional collaboration. Third, the collaborate capabilities of marketing managers. Finally, the cross-functional collaboration in Chang Xin Asset Management Company, especially between Marketing Department and Investment Management Department in new mutual fund development process. 1. 2 Review of Chapters The dissertation is divided into five parts. In the introduction part, the background of CFR and its effect is introduced. The objectives and purpose of the study are listed. In the literature review part, the research results of CFR and managing methods in NPD are reviewed, some problems of the research are pointed out and the main topic of this study is raised. The research methods are introduced in the research methodology part. The research methods, investigation methods and interview design are examined. Part four is the case study on Chang Xin Asset Management Company. The investigation material and literature knowledge are combined to analyze the effectiveness of the cross-function relationship management. Later the role of marketing manager in the collaboration within the firm is discussed. In the last part, conclusion is drawn on how to have effective cross-functional collaboration within firms, especially in NPD process. 1. 3 Limitation of Study There are some limitations of the study. First, the research result on this area which the author can find is very limited, therefore the secondary data for this subject is limited. Second, the primary data from Chang Xin is limited. It is impossible to have questionnaire survey because the employee numbers in the company are not many, so the sample quantity can not meet the requirement of a general questionnaire survey. In addition, the managers may be too busy with their work and are not interested in doing the survey or having interviews with a university student. The managers interviewed are very limited. At last, only the marketing manager is interviewed because of time limit. The answers to the questions in the interview are too simple. Therefore the discussion is based on general description but not detailed situations from the beginning to the end or first-hand experimental data for better understanding. 2 Literature Review In literature terms ‘CFR’ and ‘collaboration’ or ‘reputational effectiveness’ have received different explanations, therefore it seems necessary to introduce some definitions. 2. 1 Definition Cross-functional Relationship Cross-functional relationship can be broadly defined as the set of communication patterns, knowledge exchanges, organizational mechanisms and formal and informal personal relationship which characterize the interface mong different departments in the firm, such as marketing, finance, RD, operations and so forth (Hutt, 2001). Collaboration Collaboration could be explained from two aspects: coordination and cooperation. The coordination is defined as harmonizing action for the various activities within a firm to achieve a desired level of e ffectiveness and efficiency. During the process of coordination, exchanges and interactions take place between functions in the firm, so the comprehensiveness, accessibility and compatibility among functions are maximized (Krajewski and Ritzman, 2004; Pinto et al. 1993, cited by Carr, Kaynak and Muthusamy, 2008). Cooperation is defined as the act of the functional areas working together within a firm to achieve the firm’s goals. Coordination capability is the combined action of coordination and cooperation (Carr, et al, 2008). Cross-functional barriers Cross-functional barriers create the threat to the established functional identities of the organizational members, which are divided into three categories of turf barriers, interpretive barriers and communication barriers (Hutt, 2001). As turf territory presents an area of expertise or authority, the functional groups have a strong desire to defend against the loss of power due to other organizational units. Major barriers to effective collaboration exist because each functional group focuses on a different facet of a problem and makes different senses of the total. This kind of thought world difference barrier is called interpretive barrier. In addition, the coding method for abbreviating goods descriptions within an organization can be misinterpreted by the members who are not familiar with it, therefore the information from the source may be distorted. This situation is called a communication barrier. Reputational effectiveness Reputational effectiveness means the degree to which the manager has been responsive to the needs, demands and reputations of the constituencies of the firm, including functional areas within the firm and customer organizations, upstream and down stream value chain partners, and other business and strategic alliance partners (Butaney, 2007). It actually is largely a measure of the degree of responsiveness of manager (Hutt, 2001). 2. 2 Cross-functional relationship in NPD The main research on the CFR between marketing and RD and other departments is about the coordination methods, especially on the information communication process, the barriers, intention and encouragement and the effective influence of strategies, organizational structure and information technology. †¢ Information process perspective Wu and Chen (2009) state that the improper communication between the departments can be caused by the improper organizational structure or poor atmosphere within the company. In some research, the interaction between marketing and RD during NPD is regarded as a process to turn the market opp. rtunity and technical possibility data into the information asset for commercial production. It is discovered that the success of NPD depends on the information share on customer demand, market segmentation, enterprise capability and competitor strategy information among various departments. Much of the research has shown that successful product development co mes when a clear understanding of customer needs is integrated with a clear understanding of RD and production resources (Krohmer, Homburg and Workman, 2002). And some more specific studies looked at the extent of the interaction and participation of various groups in the product development process. They have tended to tell that more interaction between the groups tends to lead to more success. It is proofed that other functional groups have influence on the marketing activities. Krohmer, Homburg and Workman (2002) measured the extent of influence of five functional groups over key marketing issues with a cross-national survey and related their cross-functional measure to key marketing outcomes. Two sets of hypotheses were tested using three-dimensional conceptualization of performance effectiveness, efficiency, and adaptiveness. As a result, they found that there was a high cross-functional dispersion of influence on marketing with certain activities such as pricing and new product development (NPD). In contrast, the cross-functional dispersion of influence with certain activities such as advertising is low. Research also tells that the common goal of the company benefits the cooperation between the departments. In a ase study, Hutt, Berth and Gary (1995) investigated the cross-functional barriers to the strategic change in Techno project. The turf war between the Marketing and RD was eased with political and administrative levers at the early stages. Later Techno’s goals were clarified and the strategy map was identified by both departments, and learning eventually spread through the organization. The project ended with success of collaboration at last. †¢ Reso urce interdependent perspective It is believed the resources within the departments are not easy to imitate, attain or replace. Therefore the scholars think marketing and RD need to depend on each other to get the necessary resources when they do not have sufficient resources to finish the NPD projects. †¢ Social system perspective This perspective focuses on the continuous fighting social process since the different functions have continuous conflicts for their benefits or rights. It emphasizes on the influence power, which means the influence of the information provider on the behavior and attitude change of the information receiver. It is thought the individual factors of professional ability, reward on the position have positive effect on the influence power. It is recognized that the degree of competition across the functions is a key factor that can impede knowledge transfer within an organization. Research further shows that an arduous relationship between the resource and the recipient, or intergroup rivalry can impede internal knowledge transfer. The cross-functional interaction can be viewed either from a cooperative aspect, focusing on the cooperation and communication or from a competition aspect, focusing on interdepartmental rivalry (Luo, Slotegrafft and Pan, 2006). 2. 3 How to Achieve Cross-functional Collaboration The researchers discovered some measures which can be taken in the social, structural and individual ways. 2. 3. 1 Information communication †¢ Mutual understanding between departments As Galbreath (1998, cited by Ryals, 2001) mentioned, customer relationship management (CRM) integrates marketing, sales and service functions through business process automation, technology solutions and information resources to maximize each customer contact, however Hall (1997, cited by Ryals, 2001) found that, even where organizations have technological integration, performance integration does not always follow. Furthermore, Hall (1997) notes that an understanding of the perspective from both marketing and CRM disciplines is a prerequisite of cross-functional integration. †¢ More effective information communication in project teams Management is communication (Baker, 2003, pp. 275). It is very necessary to have effective information communication management in order to improve the quality of the interdepartmental communication. There are some measures to make the communication flow between marketing and RD in order under the common company goals (Ye, 2009). . At the beginning of the NPD process, start the communication on project choice, target market, grasp of development opp. ortunities and project goal as soon as possible. b. In the middle of the development, communicate the marketing demand and technology information in routine visit and meetings between the departments. c. Build a project team, make clear the responsibilities of the departments, coordinate the management and make d ecision to solve the problems that the departments face commonly. Zhang (2009) thinks the internal communication effect can be improved when different information technology is adopted properly, and the internal communication can be used as a performance interference measure. She suggests to have special employees in charge of internal communication, who are both the compilers of the communication information and the administrator of the information system. †¢ Informal social communication The role of formal and informal interpersonal communication on three key NPD outcome variables-NPD success, perceived relationship effectiveness, and interpersonal collaboration were examined by some researchers. The results show that both formal and informal communication has a positive effect on NPD success and on Marketing Manager/RD Manager working relationship. It is found that the informal communication has a much greater effect on collaboration than formal communication during NPD process. When collaborative behavior occurs amongst managers, there is a tendency to view the relationship as productive, and to view the other managers in a favorable way (Kahn, 1996; Jassawalla and Sashittal 1998; Kahn and Mentzer 1998, cited by Elias and Graham, 2005). 2. 3. 2 Integrating management structure †¢ Shared revenue targets and united reward systems When the two departments have higher domain similarities, they are more likely to cooperate. Kotler, Rackham, and Krishnaswamy (2006) defined the role of marketing in â€Å"the Buying Funnel† based on the customer’s decision sequence. Marketing is usually responsible for the first few steps—building brand awareness and brand preference, creating a marketing plan, and generating leads for sales. Then Sales executes the marketing plan and follows up on leads. They think the funnels of this kind -integrated into the CRM system and into sales forecasting and account-review processes form an increasingly important backbone for sales management. So marketing and sales can be integrated better with shared revenue targets and reward systems and integrated metrics. But the performance app. raisal systems for marketing and RD are often separated. The performance of marketing is usually measured by market share and customer satisfaction, while that of RD is done by the patent numbers and how advanced the technology of the new products is. Research discovers that it is common in the enterprises that people think the new products are successful due to the wise decision of the marketing, but the products fail due to the errors of RD departments (Ye, 2009). In this case, there is less active participation of RD in cross-functional collaboration or information sharing if RD’s effort is not paid much attention. The common app. raisal system based on the individual performance is a barrier to the effective collaboration between the departments because the individual performance has nothing to do with the cross-functional cooperation, the goals of individual performance may differ much from the goals of the project teams, and difference may cause much conflict. In the contrast, a united reward system ill benefit the cooperation, because the both parties will be rewarded when a new product is sold successfully (Ye, 2009). †¢ Restructuring The departments can be reconstructed to work more efficiently. Wind (2005) examines opp. ortunities for how marketing insights across the organization can drive growth and innovation, making technology and marketing to create convergence, and rethinking the customer experience and relationship. He thinks that organizations may create linking processes or engage in creative reconstructuring of the entire organization through interdisciplinary app. oaches, such as integrative processes. He concludes that creating the common foundation of disciplinary tools and insights can help cultivate a market perspective across the organization and develop more creative solutions to business challenges. Lu and Yu (2009) argue that under most circumstances the balanced organizational structure will be adopted for a marketing project team in the enterprises. Project team is a kind of matrix organizational structure (Ye, 2009). It functions better for horizontal communication than the traditional pyramid structure. Therefore it is a good choice for NPD project structure. When the project team leader and the functional manager have repeated authority on a task, the innovation behavior is usually positively affected. Gong and Tang (2004) analyzed the effectiveness of five kinds of integration mechanisms (location arrangement, work changeover, informal social system, reward and encouragement and formal integration system) between the RD and marketing under different combination of demand dynamics, competitive dynamics and technological dynamics. It is suggested that work changeover, informal social system, reward and encouragement can be used to increase the integration between marketing and RD when there is low technological dynamics, demand dynamics and high competitive dynamics. †¢ Location arrangement The long distance separation of two departments hinders the communication between them. The geographical factor may let the people have different perspectives or technical terms, hence encourage the short-sighted behavior benefiting only their own. Therefore location rearrangement to closer distance helps the departments to communicate better. †¢ Work changeover Liu (2010) says work changeover among the departments and communication culture development can help to improve the internal communication. Robert and Qreiny (2004, cited by Ye, 2009) state the project team members are not willing to accept the information from the other departments when the members do not trust each other very much because they share the technical terms with and have trust on the people in their own departments long term (Ye, 2009). So the employees will know much about the work in other departments, win more respect and trust and can communicate better in a project team if they are trained two or three years in the work positions in other departments. 2. 3. 3 Building Interpersonal Trust In a NPD project, every department is assigned different tasks. The requirements for lead time, operation methods and resource distribution are different for different departments; therefore the goals of the departments are different. The departments may have much conflict or rivalry if the goals vary very much. However the collaboration can be more effective when the people from different departments have good personal relationship. The social psychological factor of interpersonal trust is likely to be important in determining relationship effectiveness. Some researchers make perceived relationship effectiveness research based on two variables (power of the marketing department, and stake holding) and four endogenous variables (total interdependence, influence strategies, interpersonal trust, and manifest influence). The research focuses on a specific project carried out by a cross-functional team composed of at least one person each from sales and marketing, along with people from other departments. It seems reasonable to expect the sales manager to think that his/her relationship with the marketing manager is effective due to the need to build collaboration in cross-functional teams (Conrad 1990, cited by Hutt, 2001). The findings of Smith and Barclay (1997, cited by Hutt, 2001) generally supp. rt the proposition that greater trust is associated with greater perceived â€Å"task performance†, similar to relationship effectiveness (Hutt, 2001). 2. 4 Collaborative Capabilities of Marketing Managers The personal capabilities or skills of a marketing manager to achieve cross-functional collaborative is discussed. Some capabilities are strongly related to the personalities of the managers. The study helps the managers to develop themselves to be better collaborators. 2. 4. Reputational Effect iveness Factors Tsui (1990, 1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) researches on reputational effectiveness of managers and subunits, based on role theory, organizational members occupy a position which encompasses a set of roles as specified by role senders. Each category of role senders (e. g. each functional area) might be considered a constituency with whom the focal manager has some level of interdependence due to work flow, authority, or resource exchange relationship. And he suggests that the effective manager actively interacts with diverse constituencies; attempts to influence their expectations; or if necessary, persuades them to accept the manager’s preferred goals, standards, or actions. The perspective closely aligned with Anderson’s (1982, cited by Hutt, 2001) depiction of marketing’s role with the firm. Tsui (1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) categorized the factors which may facilitate or constrain the responsive behavior and the attainment of reputational effectiveness in the below table.   Structural Factors |Social Factors |Individual Factors | |Constituency background |Group norms |Conscientiousness | |Reward system |Social information |Self-monitoring | |Measurement system |Social categorization |Self-efficacy | |Type of goals |Trust and reputation |Adaptive self-regulation | |Distribution of power | |Collectivism | Table 2. 1 Reputational Effectiveness Factors †¢ Structural Factors The marketing managers face a lot of role incompatibility because the managers with whom they often interact have varied background. Their reputational effectiveness can be achieved easier when the structural conditions increases the similarity of the constituency perspectives. The managers’ responsive behavior can be encouraged by the rewards based on the organizational goals. The group goals make the managers have increased consensus on expectations and perceived interdependence, therefore facilitate responsive behavior (Hutt, 2001). †¢ Social Factors The social factors such as a prevailing norm in a functional unit affect the responsive behavior and the reputational effectiveness of the managers. The individual factors such as personality, ability and motivational factors influence the responsive behavior and the reputational effectiveness of the managers, too. Tsui (1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) asserts that high self-monitoring managers actively tune into cues regarding constituents’ expectations and adjust their behavior to meet constituent demands. †¢ Individual Factors Hutt (2001) concludes that the reputational effectiveness of the marketing managers relies on their ability to respond to the needs and demands of members of the internal exchange network, which the managers must initiate and nurture with multiple groups within the firm. Butaney (2007) lists the attributes that the marketing managers need to have in order to get the relational competence. Relational competence is defined by Carpenter (1993) as â€Å"attributes of the individual which serve interpersonal goals and promote positive relationship† . It includes initiation and enhancement. Initiation’s specific attributes include assertiveness, dominance, instrumental competence, shyness and social anxiety, while enhancement’s ones include intimacy, trust, interpersonal sensitivity, altruism and perspective taking, e. g. , openness, transcending boundaries, flexibility, and responsiveness. 2. 4. 2 Marketing Manager’s Collaborative Skills Marketing managers’ personal capability is very important for having good CRF. Gabarro (1979, cited by Hutt and Thomas, 2010) asserts that the development of a working relationship involves the development of an interpersonal contract—â€Å"an unwritten but living document that evolves over time as two people work together, learn about each other, and implicitly or explicitly test the limits of what each wants from the relationship and is willing or able to give to it †. Central to the contract is a set of mutual expectations concerning performance, roles, trust, and influence. Nowadays the customers demand relatively more complex products and service arrangement. The managerial work which Butaney (2007) explains as the functions a manager performs simultaneously at three levels is managing information (communicating and controlling), managing people (leading and linking) and managing tasks/actions. The marketing manager needs to achieve collaboration among various constituents of the firm, so that the firm can succeed in the market because of the collaborative advantage achieved. The personalities with benefits the collaboration is summarized by some researchers. Butaney (2007) emphasizes the attributes/skills of the managers necessary for developing collaborative capability, such as role-taking ability, including volunteering and taking initiative and leading, ability to communicate effectively and efficiently, understand and app. reciate the cognitive and emotional perspectives of diverse constituents, ability to build relationship networks among customers, functional experts within the firm, and key industry personnel, relational competencies (e. g. , openness, transcending boundaries, flexibility, and responsiveness), an awareness of and an ability to implement app. ropriate conflict management and influence strategies. In all, these abilities of relational competence of the marketing managers are very important. In conclusion, the collaboration between the marketing and RD and other departments can be strengthened when the information exchange process is more convenient, the employees in different departments have more mutual understanding and the achievement of the collaboration is stressed and rewarded. On the other hand, marketing manager’s personal communication ability is very important for the effective collaboration with other departments. In this chapter, the three questions raised at the beginning are answered from the literature review. The cross-functional interaction in NPD is regarded as an information process, as the information on customer need, technical possibility data and competitors is shared and selected (covered in 2. 2). The common goal of the company benefits the collaboration. The departments have interdependent resources and the information providers have better influence power over the information receiver. The collaboration is more effective when the information transmission between the departments is smooth, the departments pursue common goals and are organized tightly. The cross-functional collaboration can be made better through social and structural means (covered in 2. 3). A mutual understanding of the goals of other department is a prerequisite of cross-functional integration. It is good to have periodical communication plan between the departments for a common project. Some structural integration measures such as shared revenue and united reward system, location arrangement, work changeover, can be used. In next chapter a case study is made on Chang Xin Asset Management Company. How the principles reviewed are app. lied in the company and what consequences have been made will be discussed. 3 Research Methodology In this chapter, the research method of this dissertation, including case study, data collection and data analysis, is introduced. The reasons why those methods and case were chosen is explained. Finally, the limitation of every method is discussed. 3. 1 Case Study A case study is expected to discover the particularity and complexity of a single case, in order to comprehend its activity within a specific circumstance (Stake, 1999). Case study is app. opriate when investigators need (a) to define research topics broadly and not narrowly, (b) to cover contextual or complex multivariate conditions and not just isolated variables, and (c) to rely on multiple and not singular sources of evidence. Case study is decided to be used in this study because the CFR is such a broad topic that it is difficult to make the research in general. Case study can narrow the scope of research. Moreover, this method can make clear the abstract concept with specific case. In addition, the analysis is conductive on the case itself and its r Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd Essay Example Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd Essay Marketing Cross-functional Relationship during NPD and collaborative capability for marketing managers Abstract In the era of hi-tech and rapid information development, the success of the enterprises mainly depends on the continuous NPD. It is discovered by a lot of research that the collaboration between the marketing and other departments is critical to the success of new products. The marketing can have better promotion performance through effective collaboration with RD and other departments. Adopting deep interview for a special case, this study elaborates the cross-functional relationship (CFR) management based on research findings and related theories. The study suggests the structural, social and individual ways to improve the interdepartmental collaboration. The main research conclusions are as follows. a. Chang Xin Company pays much attention to teamwork and cooperation between marketing and other departments in the whole process of NPD. In the project discussion phase, the departments carry on the project planning and market survey together. The marketing deals with the inquiries at promotion and the after-sale service with the help of RD, Investment Management and other departments. b. The relationship between marketing and other departments can be build through sharing resources, work turnover, mutual understanding and common goals. Chang Xin still has something to do to build information communication platform such as network system, information transmission and tracking system in order to get high efficiency of information exchange. c. We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Cross-Functional Relationship During Npd specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In addition to building the enterprise culture to value cross-functional communication, the company had better set up mutual promotion and reward system to give impact on the career development views of the managers. At the same time, the responsibilities of each department should be clearly specified. Contents 1 Introduction7 1. 1 Objective7 1. 2 Review of Chapters8 1. 3 Limitation of Study8 2 Literature Review10 2. 1 Definition10 2. 2 Cross-functional relationship in NPD11 2. 3 How to Achieve Cross-functional Collaboration13 2. 3. 1 Information communication13 . 3. 2 Integrating management structure15 2. 3. 3 Building Interpersonal Trust17 2. 4 Collaborative Capabilities of Marketing Managers18 2. 4. 1 Reputational Effectiveness Factors18 2. 4. 2 Marketing Manager’s Collaborative Skills20 3 Research Methodology22 3. 1 Case Study22 3. 2 Data Collection23 3. 3 Data Analysis24 4 Case Analysis: Chang Xin Asset Management26 4. 1 Company Background26 4. 2 Status of Cross-functiona l Collaboration in NPD26 4. 3. 1 Social Methods29 4. 3. 2 Structural Methods29 4. 3. 3 Integration of information/resource31 4. Collaborative Capability of Marketing Manager32 4. 5 Results34 5 Conclusion35 6 References36 7 Reflective Report39 1 Introduction 1. 1 Objective Deploying activities for total quality control and cost reduction to achieve good business performance are the main issues for a firm. In the process of new product development (NPD), the new products are often unstable quality and there are varying problems need to be fixed. The problems could be better solved by improving communication and information-sharing between different departments and their managers. Therefore, the interdepartmental collaboration is needed. Souder and Chakrabarti (1978, cited by Ye Youming, 2009) found out that 68% RD projects will fail in business performance completely and 21% will fail partially when there is serious management problems between the marketing and RD. This study will focus on the collaboration between the marketing department and other departments, especially in the NPD phase and find out the way to achieve the most effective cross-functional relationship (CFR). The main objectives are to explore important features of cross-functional working relationship during NPD and to gain further knowledge on the relative importance of collaborative capability for marketing managers. The questions raised on the topic are as below. How can marketing develop good collaborative relationship with other departments in the firm? How can the cross-functional collaboration be effective in NPD process? How can marketing managers develop skills to be successful in establishing multiple collaborative relationships? According to these questions, the discussion involves four parts: First, the features of CFR in the process of NPD. Second, the principles and critical factors for cross-functional collaboration. Third, the collaborate capabilities of marketing managers. Finally, the cross-functional collaboration in Chang Xin Asset Management Company, especially between Marketing Department and Investment Management Department in new mutual fund development process. 1. 2 Review of Chapters The dissertation is divided into five parts. In the introduction part, the background of CFR and its effect is introduced. The objectives and purpose of the study are listed. In the literature review part, the research results of CFR and managing methods in NPD are reviewed, some problems of the research are pointed out and the main topic of this study is raised. The research methods are introduced in the research methodology part. The research methods, investigation methods and interview design are examined. Part four is the case study on Chang Xin Asset Management Company. The investigation material and literature knowledge are combined to analyze the effectiveness of the cross-function relationship management. Later the role of marketing manager in the collaboration within the firm is discussed. In the last part, conclusion is drawn on how to have effective cross-functional collaboration within firms, especially in NPD process. 1. 3 Limitation of Study There are some limitations of the study. First, the research result on this area which the author can find is very limited, therefore the secondary data for this subject is limited. Second, the primary data from Chang Xin is limited. It is impossible to have questionnaire survey because the employee numbers in the company are not many, so the sample quantity can not meet the requirement of a general questionnaire survey. In addition, the managers may be too busy with their work and are not interested in doing the survey or having interviews with a university student. The managers interviewed are very limited. At last, only the marketing manager is interviewed because of time limit. The answers to the questions in the interview are too simple. Therefore the discussion is based on general description but not detailed situations from the beginning to the end or first-hand experimental data for better understanding. 2 Literature Review In literature terms ‘CFR’ and ‘collaboration’ or ‘reputational effectiveness’ have received different explanations, therefore it seems necessary to introduce some definitions. 2. 1 Definition Cross-functional Relationship Cross-functional relationship can be broadly defined as the set of communication patterns, knowledge exchanges, organizational mechanisms and formal and informal personal relationship which characterize the interface mong different departments in the firm, such as marketing, finance, RD, operations and so forth (Hutt, 2001). Collaboration Collaboration could be explained from two aspects: coordination and cooperation. The coordination is defined as harmonizing action for the various activities within a firm to achieve a desired level of e ffectiveness and efficiency. During the process of coordination, exchanges and interactions take place between functions in the firm, so the comprehensiveness, accessibility and compatibility among functions are maximized (Krajewski and Ritzman, 2004; Pinto et al. 1993, cited by Carr, Kaynak and Muthusamy, 2008). Cooperation is defined as the act of the functional areas working together within a firm to achieve the firm’s goals. Coordination capability is the combined action of coordination and cooperation (Carr, et al, 2008). Cross-functional barriers Cross-functional barriers create the threat to the established functional identities of the organizational members, which are divided into three categories of turf barriers, interpretive barriers and communication barriers (Hutt, 2001). As turf territory presents an area of expertise or authority, the functional groups have a strong desire to defend against the loss of power due to other organizational units. Major barriers to effective collaboration exist because each functional group focuses on a different facet of a problem and makes different senses of the total. This kind of thought world difference barrier is called interpretive barrier. In addition, the coding method for abbreviating goods descriptions within an organization can be misinterpreted by the members who are not familiar with it, therefore the information from the source may be distorted. This situation is called a communication barrier. Reputational effectiveness Reputational effectiveness means the degree to which the manager has been responsive to the needs, demands and reputations of the constituencies of the firm, including functional areas within the firm and customer organizations, upstream and down stream value chain partners, and other business and strategic alliance partners (Butaney, 2007). It actually is largely a measure of the degree of responsiveness of manager (Hutt, 2001). 2. 2 Cross-functional relationship in NPD The main research on the CFR between marketing and RD and other departments is about the coordination methods, especially on the information communication process, the barriers, intention and encouragement and the effective influence of strategies, organizational structure and information technology. †¢ Information process perspective Wu and Chen (2009) state that the improper communication between the departments can be caused by the improper organizational structure or poor atmosphere within the company. In some research, the interaction between marketing and RD during NPD is regarded as a process to turn the market opp. rtunity and technical possibility data into the information asset for commercial production. It is discovered that the success of NPD depends on the information share on customer demand, market segmentation, enterprise capability and competitor strategy information among various departments. Much of the research has shown that successful product development co mes when a clear understanding of customer needs is integrated with a clear understanding of RD and production resources (Krohmer, Homburg and Workman, 2002). And some more specific studies looked at the extent of the interaction and participation of various groups in the product development process. They have tended to tell that more interaction between the groups tends to lead to more success. It is proofed that other functional groups have influence on the marketing activities. Krohmer, Homburg and Workman (2002) measured the extent of influence of five functional groups over key marketing issues with a cross-national survey and related their cross-functional measure to key marketing outcomes. Two sets of hypotheses were tested using three-dimensional conceptualization of performance effectiveness, efficiency, and adaptiveness. As a result, they found that there was a high cross-functional dispersion of influence on marketing with certain activities such as pricing and new product development (NPD). In contrast, the cross-functional dispersion of influence with certain activities such as advertising is low. Research also tells that the common goal of the company benefits the cooperation between the departments. In a ase study, Hutt, Berth and Gary (1995) investigated the cross-functional barriers to the strategic change in Techno project. The turf war between the Marketing and RD was eased with political and administrative levers at the early stages. Later Techno’s goals were clarified and the strategy map was identified by both departments, and learning eventually spread through the organization. The project ended with success of collaboration at last. †¢ Reso urce interdependent perspective It is believed the resources within the departments are not easy to imitate, attain or replace. Therefore the scholars think marketing and RD need to depend on each other to get the necessary resources when they do not have sufficient resources to finish the NPD projects. †¢ Social system perspective This perspective focuses on the continuous fighting social process since the different functions have continuous conflicts for their benefits or rights. It emphasizes on the influence power, which means the influence of the information provider on the behavior and attitude change of the information receiver. It is thought the individual factors of professional ability, reward on the position have positive effect on the influence power. It is recognized that the degree of competition across the functions is a key factor that can impede knowledge transfer within an organization. Research further shows that an arduous relationship between the resource and the recipient, or intergroup rivalry can impede internal knowledge transfer. The cross-functional interaction can be viewed either from a cooperative aspect, focusing on the cooperation and communication or from a competition aspect, focusing on interdepartmental rivalry (Luo, Slotegrafft and Pan, 2006). 2. 3 How to Achieve Cross-functional Collaboration The researchers discovered some measures which can be taken in the social, structural and individual ways. 2. 3. 1 Information communication †¢ Mutual understanding between departments As Galbreath (1998, cited by Ryals, 2001) mentioned, customer relationship management (CRM) integrates marketing, sales and service functions through business process automation, technology solutions and information resources to maximize each customer contact, however Hall (1997, cited by Ryals, 2001) found that, even where organizations have technological integration, performance integration does not always follow. Furthermore, Hall (1997) notes that an understanding of the perspective from both marketing and CRM disciplines is a prerequisite of cross-functional integration. †¢ More effective information communication in project teams Management is communication (Baker, 2003, pp. 275). It is very necessary to have effective information communication management in order to improve the quality of the interdepartmental communication. There are some measures to make the communication flow between marketing and RD in order under the common company goals (Ye, 2009). . At the beginning of the NPD process, start the communication on project choice, target market, grasp of development opp. ortunities and project goal as soon as possible. b. In the middle of the development, communicate the marketing demand and technology information in routine visit and meetings between the departments. c. Build a project team, make clear the responsibilities of the departments, coordinate the management and make d ecision to solve the problems that the departments face commonly. Zhang (2009) thinks the internal communication effect can be improved when different information technology is adopted properly, and the internal communication can be used as a performance interference measure. She suggests to have special employees in charge of internal communication, who are both the compilers of the communication information and the administrator of the information system. †¢ Informal social communication The role of formal and informal interpersonal communication on three key NPD outcome variables-NPD success, perceived relationship effectiveness, and interpersonal collaboration were examined by some researchers. The results show that both formal and informal communication has a positive effect on NPD success and on Marketing Manager/RD Manager working relationship. It is found that the informal communication has a much greater effect on collaboration than formal communication during NPD process. When collaborative behavior occurs amongst managers, there is a tendency to view the relationship as productive, and to view the other managers in a favorable way (Kahn, 1996; Jassawalla and Sashittal 1998; Kahn and Mentzer 1998, cited by Elias and Graham, 2005). 2. 3. 2 Integrating management structure †¢ Shared revenue targets and united reward systems When the two departments have higher domain similarities, they are more likely to cooperate. Kotler, Rackham, and Krishnaswamy (2006) defined the role of marketing in â€Å"the Buying Funnel† based on the customer’s decision sequence. Marketing is usually responsible for the first few steps—building brand awareness and brand preference, creating a marketing plan, and generating leads for sales. Then Sales executes the marketing plan and follows up on leads. They think the funnels of this kind -integrated into the CRM system and into sales forecasting and account-review processes form an increasingly important backbone for sales management. So marketing and sales can be integrated better with shared revenue targets and reward systems and integrated metrics. But the performance app. raisal systems for marketing and RD are often separated. The performance of marketing is usually measured by market share and customer satisfaction, while that of RD is done by the patent numbers and how advanced the technology of the new products is. Research discovers that it is common in the enterprises that people think the new products are successful due to the wise decision of the marketing, but the products fail due to the errors of RD departments (Ye, 2009). In this case, there is less active participation of RD in cross-functional collaboration or information sharing if RD’s effort is not paid much attention. The common app. raisal system based on the individual performance is a barrier to the effective collaboration between the departments because the individual performance has nothing to do with the cross-functional cooperation, the goals of individual performance may differ much from the goals of the project teams, and difference may cause much conflict. In the contrast, a united reward system ill benefit the cooperation, because the both parties will be rewarded when a new product is sold successfully (Ye, 2009). †¢ Restructuring The departments can be reconstructed to work more efficiently. Wind (2005) examines opp. ortunities for how marketing insights across the organization can drive growth and innovation, making technology and marketing to create convergence, and rethinking the customer experience and relationship. He thinks that organizations may create linking processes or engage in creative reconstructuring of the entire organization through interdisciplinary app. oaches, such as integrative processes. He concludes that creating the common foundation of disciplinary tools and insights can help cultivate a market perspective across the organization and develop more creative solutions to business challenges. Lu and Yu (2009) argue that under most circumstances the balanced organizational structure will be adopted for a marketing project team in the enterprises. Project team is a kind of matrix organizational structure (Ye, 2009). It functions better for horizontal communication than the traditional pyramid structure. Therefore it is a good choice for NPD project structure. When the project team leader and the functional manager have repeated authority on a task, the innovation behavior is usually positively affected. Gong and Tang (2004) analyzed the effectiveness of five kinds of integration mechanisms (location arrangement, work changeover, informal social system, reward and encouragement and formal integration system) between the RD and marketing under different combination of demand dynamics, competitive dynamics and technological dynamics. It is suggested that work changeover, informal social system, reward and encouragement can be used to increase the integration between marketing and RD when there is low technological dynamics, demand dynamics and high competitive dynamics. †¢ Location arrangement The long distance separation of two departments hinders the communication between them. The geographical factor may let the people have different perspectives or technical terms, hence encourage the short-sighted behavior benefiting only their own. Therefore location rearrangement to closer distance helps the departments to communicate better. †¢ Work changeover Liu (2010) says work changeover among the departments and communication culture development can help to improve the internal communication. Robert and Qreiny (2004, cited by Ye, 2009) state the project team members are not willing to accept the information from the other departments when the members do not trust each other very much because they share the technical terms with and have trust on the people in their own departments long term (Ye, 2009). So the employees will know much about the work in other departments, win more respect and trust and can communicate better in a project team if they are trained two or three years in the work positions in other departments. 2. 3. 3 Building Interpersonal Trust In a NPD project, every department is assigned different tasks. The requirements for lead time, operation methods and resource distribution are different for different departments; therefore the goals of the departments are different. The departments may have much conflict or rivalry if the goals vary very much. However the collaboration can be more effective when the people from different departments have good personal relationship. The social psychological factor of interpersonal trust is likely to be important in determining relationship effectiveness. Some researchers make perceived relationship effectiveness research based on two variables (power of the marketing department, and stake holding) and four endogenous variables (total interdependence, influence strategies, interpersonal trust, and manifest influence). The research focuses on a specific project carried out by a cross-functional team composed of at least one person each from sales and marketing, along with people from other departments. It seems reasonable to expect the sales manager to think that his/her relationship with the marketing manager is effective due to the need to build collaboration in cross-functional teams (Conrad 1990, cited by Hutt, 2001). The findings of Smith and Barclay (1997, cited by Hutt, 2001) generally supp. rt the proposition that greater trust is associated with greater perceived â€Å"task performance†, similar to relationship effectiveness (Hutt, 2001). 2. 4 Collaborative Capabilities of Marketing Managers The personal capabilities or skills of a marketing manager to achieve cross-functional collaborative is discussed. Some capabilities are strongly related to the personalities of the managers. The study helps the managers to develop themselves to be better collaborators. 2. 4. Reputational Effect iveness Factors Tsui (1990, 1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) researches on reputational effectiveness of managers and subunits, based on role theory, organizational members occupy a position which encompasses a set of roles as specified by role senders. Each category of role senders (e. g. each functional area) might be considered a constituency with whom the focal manager has some level of interdependence due to work flow, authority, or resource exchange relationship. And he suggests that the effective manager actively interacts with diverse constituencies; attempts to influence their expectations; or if necessary, persuades them to accept the manager’s preferred goals, standards, or actions. The perspective closely aligned with Anderson’s (1982, cited by Hutt, 2001) depiction of marketing’s role with the firm. Tsui (1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) categorized the factors which may facilitate or constrain the responsive behavior and the attainment of reputational effectiveness in the below table.   Structural Factors |Social Factors |Individual Factors | |Constituency background |Group norms |Conscientiousness | |Reward system |Social information |Self-monitoring | |Measurement system |Social categorization |Self-efficacy | |Type of goals |Trust and reputation |Adaptive self-regulation | |Distribution of power | |Collectivism | Table 2. 1 Reputational Effectiveness Factors †¢ Structural Factors The marketing managers face a lot of role incompatibility because the managers with whom they often interact have varied background. Their reputational effectiveness can be achieved easier when the structural conditions increases the similarity of the constituency perspectives. The managers’ responsive behavior can be encouraged by the rewards based on the organizational goals. The group goals make the managers have increased consensus on expectations and perceived interdependence, therefore facilitate responsive behavior (Hutt, 2001). †¢ Social Factors The social factors such as a prevailing norm in a functional unit affect the responsive behavior and the reputational effectiveness of the managers. The individual factors such as personality, ability and motivational factors influence the responsive behavior and the reputational effectiveness of the managers, too. Tsui (1994, cited by Hutt, 2001) asserts that high self-monitoring managers actively tune into cues regarding constituents’ expectations and adjust their behavior to meet constituent demands. †¢ Individual Factors Hutt (2001) concludes that the reputational effectiveness of the marketing managers relies on their ability to respond to the needs and demands of members of the internal exchange network, which the managers must initiate and nurture with multiple groups within the firm. Butaney (2007) lists the attributes that the marketing managers need to have in order to get the relational competence. Relational competence is defined by Carpenter (1993) as â€Å"attributes of the individual which serve interpersonal goals and promote positive relationship† . It includes initiation and enhancement. Initiation’s specific attributes include assertiveness, dominance, instrumental competence, shyness and social anxiety, while enhancement’s ones include intimacy, trust, interpersonal sensitivity, altruism and perspective taking, e. g. , openness, transcending boundaries, flexibility, and responsiveness. 2. 4. 2 Marketing Manager’s Collaborative Skills Marketing managers’ personal capability is very important for having good CRF. Gabarro (1979, cited by Hutt and Thomas, 2010) asserts that the development of a working relationship involves the development of an interpersonal contract—â€Å"an unwritten but living document that evolves over time as two people work together, learn about each other, and implicitly or explicitly test the limits of what each wants from the relationship and is willing or able to give to it †. Central to the contract is a set of mutual expectations concerning performance, roles, trust, and influence. Nowadays the customers demand relatively more complex products and service arrangement. The managerial work which Butaney (2007) explains as the functions a manager performs simultaneously at three levels is managing information (communicating and controlling), managing people (leading and linking) and managing tasks/actions. The marketing manager needs to achieve collaboration among various constituents of the firm, so that the firm can succeed in the market because of the collaborative advantage achieved. The personalities with benefits the collaboration is summarized by some researchers. Butaney (2007) emphasizes the attributes/skills of the managers necessary for developing collaborative capability, such as role-taking ability, including volunteering and taking initiative and leading, ability to communicate effectively and efficiently, understand and app. reciate the cognitive and emotional perspectives of diverse constituents, ability to build relationship networks among customers, functional experts within the firm, and key industry personnel, relational competencies (e. g. , openness, transcending boundaries, flexibility, and responsiveness), an awareness of and an ability to implement app. ropriate conflict management and influence strategies. In all, these abilities of relational competence of the marketing managers are very important. In conclusion, the collaboration between the marketing and RD and other departments can be strengthened when the information exchange process is more convenient, the employees in different departments have more mutual understanding and the achievement of the collaboration is stressed and rewarded. On the other hand, marketing manager’s personal communication ability is very important for the effective collaboration with other departments. In this chapter, the three questions raised at the beginning are answered from the literature review. The cross-functional interaction in NPD is regarded as an information process, as the information on customer need, technical possibility data and competitors is shared and selected (covered in 2. 2). The common goal of the company benefits the collaboration. The departments have interdependent resources and the information providers have better influence power over the information receiver. The collaboration is more effective when the information transmission between the departments is smooth, the departments pursue common goals and are organized tightly. The cross-functional collaboration can be made better through social and structural means (covered in 2. 3). A mutual understanding of the goals of other department is a prerequisite of cross-functional integration. It is good to have periodical communication plan between the departments for a common project. Some structural integration measures such as shared revenue and united reward system, location arrangement, work changeover, can be used. In next chapter a case study is made on Chang Xin Asset Management Company. How the principles reviewed are app. lied in the company and what consequences have been made will be discussed. 3 Research Methodology In this chapter, the research method of this dissertation, including case study, data collection and data analysis, is introduced. The reasons why those methods and case were chosen is explained. Finally, the limitation of every method is discussed. 3. 1 Case Study A case study is expected to discover the particularity and complexity of a single case, in order to comprehend its activity within a specific circumstance (Stake, 1999). Case study is app. opriate when investigators need (a) to define research topics broadly and not narrowly, (b) to cover contextual or complex multivariate conditions and not just isolated variables, and (c) to rely on multiple and not singular sources of evidence. Case study is decided to be used in this study because the CFR is such a broad topic that it is difficult to make the research in general. Case study can narrow the scope of research. Moreover, this method can make clear the abstract concept with specific case. In addition, the analysis is conductive on the case itself and its r