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

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

The Portrayal of Women in the Odyssey Essays

The Portrayal of Women in the Odyssey Essays The Portrayal of Women in the Odyssey Paper The Portrayal of Women in the Odyssey Paper Essay Topic: The Odyssey Women play an important role in the epic, The Odyssey, written by Homer. Set in a period subsequent to the Trojan War, the accounts of Odysseus and his trials and tribulations feature four main types of women: the goddess, the seductress, the witch and the good wife. Each of these portrays the role of women in a different way, some in complete contrast to the actual civilization of the period. Ancient Greece was very much a patriarchal society. Men were regarded as of higher status than women, and were seen as the stronger gender. Sports were reserved purely for men, as were literature, politics and philosophy. Typically, a woman was judged, not by her own achievements, but by the wealth and status of her father or husband. A woman would be forced to be married at a young age, keep the house for her husband and have children. Usually, ancient Greek women were not educated, although in Athens, women were taught to read, at school or at home, simple facts on mythology, religion and occasionally musical instruments and as with most other places in ancient Greece, they learnt the basics of the household; spinning, weaving, sewing, cooking and other household jobs. The immortal goddesses contrast with the distinctive characteristics of an ancient Greek woman in the Odyssey. Athena, goddess of wisdom, for example, addresses the Gods, including her father, despite the traditions of status. By ignoring these traditions, Athena shows her strength and confidence. It seems she is outspoken, and is more a typical representation of a modern day woman than that of ancient Greece. Throughout the book, Athena shows considerable pity for Odysseus, despite the fact that men were supposedly the stronger gender: she used her persuasion to encourage the gods to reconsider their destiny for him, and set him free from Calypsos island, and she inspired thoughts for Odysseus when he is enduring the wrath of Poseidon on his journey to the island of the Phaeacians. At this point, Athena interrupts Odysseus negative thoughts of being colliding with rough rocks, to give him the idea of holding onto one of the rocks as the waves crashed against them. Not only does she stir notions within Odysseus, but Athena aids him more subtly by promoting thoughts in other people. For example, when Odysseus is washed up on Scherie, Athena appears in Nausicaas dream as one of her friends. She persuades her that she should go and wash her clothes in the river, which is where she first encounters Odysseus, and aids him in his ongoing quest by taking him to her parents for hospitality. The second of woman is the seductress. The Nymph Calypso saves Odysseus when he is washed upon the shore of her island, and keeps him as a sexual prisoner for 7 years, offering immortality in return for him staying with her. She is a perfect example of how women could be powerful against man, yet still be overruled. This is because when she keeps Odysseus captive on Ogygia, Odysseus has no power to do any different. However, it is Zeus final decision that he should be released from her island, and Hermes, messenger to the gods, who tells her. These are both men making her do something she doesnt want to, but she has to obey them, which is a reflection of the ancient Greek traditions. Additionally, Calypso is also seen as the model hostess, offering her guest ambrosia, nectar and clothes. She does this with ease and pleasure, as she even offers Hermes these things before asking why he had come to see her. She is seen to be immoral by sleeping with a married man, yet to simultaneously have good manners, portraying the complexity of women which wasnt recognised in ancient Greek society. Also a seductress, but concurrently a witch, Circe is firstly portrayed as deceitful and cunning. She lures Odysseus men into her house before turning them into pigs. Her trickery shows her to be independent and strong-minded, although she is then proven to be weaker than men when Odysseus arrives. Contrasted against his bravery in Book 10, Circe displays cowardice when confronted by Odysseus after he has eaten the drug of real virtue from Hermes to protect him from the witches black magic. Circe then tries to seduce Odysseus, but he abstains until he can secure an oath between himself and the witch. She, however, shows a complete disregard for men by turning them all into pigs, then putting her own desires before their freedom, and this shows that Circe also possesses completely contradictory characteristics from the ancient Greek women. On the other hand, when Odysseus demonstrates his power by pulling out his sword, Circe collapses to her knees and bursts into tears, proving that it is Odysseus who holds the authority at this point. Daughter of King Alcinous, Nausicaa, is presented as a mature person, as she is unmarried, therefore young, and yet she doesnt run away when she sees Odysseus naked by the river. She instructs her maids to give him clothes, and he responds to this by not hugging her knees and begging for help, like he first thought of doing. This shows that Nausicaa is well-respected. She also cares about her image as a virtuous woman, because when Odysseus travels to the palace with her, he has to walk behind her, so that people didnt think they were together. Also, when Nausicaa takes Odysseus to meet her parents so that he can receive help from them, she insists he meet her mother first as opposed to her father. This demonstrates her respect for her mother, and her understanding of the way in which the system should work, but the knowledge of how it actually does. Finally, the good hostess and wife are portrayed by Penelope. Even after 20 years, she has stayed loyal to Odysseus by stalling the suitors. This is also quite devious, as she leads them into thinking that once she finishes her weaving, shell marry one of them, except every night she undoes all that she achieved that day. This is the side of her which seems unlike that of the women of ancient Greece. However, parallel to the ancient Greek traditions of statuses between genders, Penelope is reprimanded by her own son. She is told to go to her room and stop making decisions because that was his concern as he was the man of t he house. Without any confrontation, she resigned as returned to her room. This shows that Penelope is contrasted with the other women portrayed in The Odyssey, because she is comparable to the ancient Greek society, whereas Athena, Calypso, Circe and Nausicaa are dissimilar. In conclusion, women in The Odysseus are mostly portrayed as strong-willed and open-minded people with their own thoughts and opinions. Although some are immortal, and supposedly free of human emotion, they feel loss, anger and fear, and can make love to mortal men. Their strength of character is displayed with their ability and willingness to differentiate from the periodic stereotypes of women, although in the end, they almost always surrender to the ancient Greek patriarchal culture. If these charcters were to be placed in the ancient Greek society, I think that they would be discarded from the civilization, except for Penelope who would integrate into the culture with her conceded attitude towards the men around her.

Meet the People Behind Donald Trumps Popularity

Meet the People Behind Donald Trump's Popularity Many were shocked by Donald Trumps rise to prominence through the 2016 Republican primaries, and even more so by his win of the presidency. Simultaneously, many were thrilled by it. Who are the people behind Trumps success? Throughout the 2016 primary season, Pew Research Center regularly surveyed voters, Republican and Democrat  alike, and produced a series of illuminating reports on demographic trends among supporters of particular candidates, and on the values, beliefs, and fears that drive their political decisions. Lets take a look at this data, which provides an in-depth look at the people behind Donald Trumps popularity. More Men Than Women Through the primaries and as the Republican nominee, Trump was more popular among men than women. Pew found in January 2016 that men among Republican voters had more confidence in Donald Trump than did women, and they found that men supported him more than women when they surveyed voters in March 2016. Once Trump and Clinton officially faced off in the general election, the greater appeal of Trump to men became even more clear, with just 35 percent of women voters aligning with him. More Old Than Young Throughout his campaign, Trump was consistently more popular among older voters than among younger ones. Pew found in January 2016 that Trumps ratings among Republican voters were highest with those  40 years and older, and this trend held true as more voters switched to supporting him in March 2016. Pew also found in their study conducted in April and May 2016 that warmth toward Trump increased with age, and coldness toward him decreased. A full 45 percent of Republicans aged 18 to 29 felt coldly toward Trump, while just 37 percent felt warmly toward him.  Conversely, 49 percent of those aged 30 to 49 felt warmly toward him and 60 percent of those aged 50 to 64 did, as did 56 percent of those over 65 years of age. And according to Pews data, in a face-off with Hillary Clinton, Trump was expected to capture just 30 percent of the vote among those 18 to 29 years of age. The proportion of those who preferred Trump to Clinton increased with each age bracket, but it wasnt until voters passed 65 years of age that Trump got the advantage.   Less Rather Than More Education Trumps popularity was also consistently greater among those with lower levels of formal education. Back in the primary season, when Pew surveyed Republican voters and asked them which candidates they preferred, Trumps ratings were highest among those who had not attained a college degree. This trend remained consistent when Pew surveyed Republican voters again in March 2016  and revealed that  his popularity was highest among those whose highest degree was a high school diploma. This trend bears out in an examination of supporters of Trump versus Clinton as well, with Clinton far more popular among those with higher levels of education. Lower Income Free Trade Trumps greater appeal to those with less rather than more household income is unsurprising, given the statistical relationship between education and income. While he was still competing against other Republican candidates in the primaries, Pew found in March 2016 that Trump was  more popular among voters with  lower income  levels than among those with higher levels. At that time, his popularity was greatest among those whose household income was below $30,000 per year. This trend gave Trump an edge in the primaries, and perhaps over Clinton as well, because there are more citizens living at, around, or below that income level than there are those who live on higher incomes. As compared with those who supported Clinton, Trump supporters are more likely to report that their household income is falling behind the cost of living  (61 versus 47 percent). Even across income brackets for supporters of both candidates, Trump supporters were more likely to report this, outweighing Clinton supporters by 15 percentage points among those whose household income is $30,000 or less, eight points among those in the $30,000 to $74,999 bracket, and by 21 points among those with a household income above $75,000. Perhaps connected to the correlation between household income and support for Trump is the fact that his supporters were  more likely than other Republican voters in March-April 2016 to say that free trade agreements have hurt their personal finances, and the majority (67 percent) say that free trade agreements have been bad for the U.S. Thats a figure that was 14 points higher than the average Republican voter during the primaries. White People and Acculturated Hispanics Pew found in a June 2016 survey of both Republican and Democratic voters that Trumps popularity lies primarily in white people - half of whom supported Trump, while just seven percent of black voters supported him. He was more popular among Hispanic voters than among blacks, capturing the support of about a quarter of them. Interestingly, Pew found though that support for Trump among Hispanics came primarily from English-dominant voters.  In fact,  the  English-dominant  Hispanic electorate was closely split between Clinton and Trump, at 48 percent for Clinton, and 41 for Trump.  Among bilingual or Spanish-dominant Hispanics, 80 percent intended to vote for Clinton and just 11 percent indicated they would choose Trump. This signals a relationship between ones level of acculturation - the adoption of the dominant, mainstream culture - and voter preference. It likely also signals a positive relationship between the number of generations an immigrant family has been in the U.S. and preference for Trump. Atheists and Evangelicals When Pew surveyed Republican voters in March 2016, they found that  Trumps popularity was greatest among those who are not religious, and among those who are religious but do not regularly attend religious services. At that time, he also led his opponents among those who are religious. Curiously, Trump is especially popular  among white evangelical Christians, who overwhelmingly believed that he would do a far better job than Clinton on every issue. Racial Diversity, Immigration, and Muslims As compared with those who supported other Republican candidates during the primaries,  Trump supporters were more likely to believe that greater scrutiny of Muslims living in the U.S. would make the country safer. Specifically, a Pew survey conducted in March 2016 found that Trump supporters were more likely than those who supported other candidates to believe that Muslims should be subjected to greater scrutiny than other religious groups as a method of preventing terrorism  and that Islam  is more likely than other religions to encourage violence. At the same time, the survey of Republican voters found a strong and consistent anti-immigrant sentiment among Trump supporters. Those who backed him in March 2016 were only half as likely as other Republican voters to  say immigrants strengthen the country, and they were far more likely to favor building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border (84 percent versus 56 percent among other Republican voters). As one can deduce from these findings, the majority of Trump supporters view immigrants as a burden to the country, see them as a threat to U.S. values,  and favor the expulsion of undocumented immigrants. Consistent with these findings, Pews April-May 2016 survey also found that the heavily older, white male fanbase of Trump believed that the growing racial diversity of the nation, which will make the population a majority of racial minorities, is bad for the country. Trump Will Make America Great Again Trump supporters have high expectation for their candidate. A Pew survey conducted between June and July 2016 found that the majority of Trump supporters believed that as a president he would make the immigration situation a lot better, and even more believed that he would improve it a little. Together, that means 86 percent of Trumps supporters believed that his policies would improve immigration (presumably by lessening it). They also overwhelmingly believed that a Trump presidency would make the U.S. safer from terrorism and improve the economy. But They Do Not Actually Like Him Fewer than half of Trump supporters ascribed any positive traits to their chosen candidate, according to a June-July 2016 Pew survey. Very few consider him well-informed or admirable. Only a minority expected that he would be willing to work with those he disagrees with, that he could unite the country, and that he is honest. They  did,  however, feel that he has deeply-held  beliefs  and that he is extreme. The Big Picture This set of facts, culled from a series of surveys conducted by one of the U.S.s most respected public opinion research centers, leaves us with a clear picture of those behind Trumps rise to political prominence. They are primarily white, older men with low levels of education and income. They believe that immigrants and free trade deals have harmed their earning power (and theyre right about the free trade deals), and they prefer an America in which white people are the majority. Trumps worldview and platform ​seem to resonate with them. Yet, following the election, exit poll data shows that Trumps appeal was far broader than polling and voting during the primaries suggested. He captured the votes of the vast majority of white people, regardless of age, class, or gender. This racial  division in the electorate further played out in the ten days following the election, when a surge of hate crimes, fueled by an embrace of Trumps rhetoric, swept the nation. Sources Doherty, Carroll. A Wider Ideological Gap Between More and Less Educated Adults. Pew Research Center, April 26, 2016. January 2016 Political Survey. Pew Research Center, January 7-14, 2016. June 2016 Voter Attitudes Survey. Pew Research Center. March 2016 Political Survey. Pew Research Center, March 17-26, 2016.

The importance of human resource factore in labout process Essay

The importance of human resource factore in labout process - Essay Example Untrained individuals can only be considered just as "units of population" whereas trained and skilled individuals could justifiably be called as human resource. While the former is an asset to an organization, the latter invariably constitute the source of innumerable problems. Now the onus rests on the HR managers not only to select the right kind of candidates for various job openings but also to see that already working candidates also are continuously upgraded in their skills so that their contribution to the organizational growth is a continuous affair and not one which rests on chances. While there could be very many factors which influence different kinds of employees, still we could always lay our hands on a few principles which have at least widespread, if not universal, application potential. In this analysis we try to identify such valuable HRM principles which have proven their worth in many organizations under many conditions. Such an exercise would sharpen our insight into many valuable HR practices and equip us with the kind of expertise which would help us handle our manpower in the most efficient way so that the mutual benefit of both the employers and the employees are optimized. Considerable studies and research over the past few decades in the arena of HRM has enriched the subject itself with a variety of powerful principles culled from the past experience of various organizations in different world zones. Of the various HRM theories such as, Staffing Selectivity, Influence of Training on Firm Performance, Information Sharing, General Systems Theory, Role Behaviour Theory, Institutional Theory, Resource Dependence Theory, Human Capital Theory, Transformation Cost Economics, Agency Theory, The Resource Based Theory of the Firm, Compensation and Performance Management Systems, Job Security, Employee Participation Systems, Internal Labour Market Theory and Team-based Production Systems, let us take up for analysis and study some of them which are more relevant and/or powerful in delivering results in the present market scenario. a) Staffing Selectivity aspect : The success of every organization is measured by the quantum of business it is able to create and the amount of profit that comes out of it. To accomplish this every employee has to contribute his or her mite in no small way. Any weaker link in the corporate chain can easily undermine the strength of the entire organization and the downfall could be fatal. So it is imperative that Staffing Selectivity plays a crucial role in the success or failure of any organization. Hiring, firing and promotion should all be crucially selective. The right kind of employees should only be selected for every job

Guest lectures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Guest lectures - Essay Example The sharing relayed by Rita, a 76 year old woman was particularly interesting in terms of emphasizing how her love for physical activities (dancing, in particular), significantly assisted in her fast recovery from her hip replacement surgery. Her experience was therefore recommended by her surgeons to other people who had to undergo similar surgeries to help in facilitating the recovery process. What was your overall impression of the lecture? The lecture was simply inspiring, illuminating, and enlightening. The sharing of experiences enabled the audience to clearly understand and relate to their ability to move on despite their disabilities. Optional: Was there a memorable quote or impactful moment from the lecture that resonated with you? The memorable quote was relayed by Rita who emphasized the relevance of keeping active despite one’s age. As noted, â€Å"age is a matter of the mind; when one does not mind, then age does not matter† (Ryan, 2013). What did you learn from the speaker(s)? The speaker, a critical discourse analyst and communication scholar, focused on neurodiversity, specifically communicative perspectives – where communication was noted to shape reality and at the same token, reality shapes communication. She also explained social realities in terms of roles, relationships, functions, experiences, and even disabilities. The lesson that was particularly interesting was the speaker’s ability to emphasize how communication shapes social reality, as well as how reality actually shapes communication. The manner by which she stressed the concept enabled the audience to ingrain the lesson in one’s mind. Likewise, the definition of neurodiversity as â€Å"everyone has a different mind; everyone has a different way of making things work; and everyone has a different way of seeing and shaping social realities which are equally valid despite the diversities† (Ryan, Neurodiversity lecture 3-6-14, 2014). What was your