International Management the European Union Is \"A
This paper answers five questions relating to issues from the textbook, all about international management. Subjects covered include ethics, organizational culture, national culture, the European Union, morals, and the different types of legal systems around the world. The European Union is "a unique economic and political partnership between 27 European countries."
Leadership Team Building and Communication
Leadership theories continue to evolve as the complexity, nature and scope of organizations shift from command-and-control structures to more agile frameworks for managing change. The pace of disruptive innovation is accelerating, forcing reliance on the latest theories of leadership to keep organizations competitive in rapidly changing markets. The intent of this analysis is to evaluate the traditional, contemporary and emerging leadership theories and interpersonal forms of power. Unifying these factors by defining the profile of the ideal leader is also completed in this analysis, highlighting the most effective leadership characteristics and patterns in their specific roles. An organization has been selected, Cisco Systems, to evaluate these theories against. In addition, organizational stressors are also discussed in addition to strategies to managing them so an organization can still attain optimal performance. The five conflict management styles are also discussed in addition to potential barriers to communication, with recommendations on how to overcome them.
Analysis of Traditional, Contemporary and Emerging Leadership Theories
Traditional leadership theories stressed the concept of the "great man" or leader who was given the role based on behavioral traits and their ability to create and sustain teams' progress towards goals. These "great man" theories also relied on external observation of traits; there was little advanced screening of personality traits or the innate perceptions of highly effective leaders (Fitzgerald, Schutte, 2010). Traditional leadership theories progressed rapidly beyond only the observable traits of a leader and seeing them as innate to the belief that leadership could be mastered as a skill (Buffinton, Jablokow, Martin, 2002). This shift in leadership theories marked the transition of this field from traditional to contemporary research. With contemporary theories, leadership is seen as a skill that can be taught (Purvanova, Bono, 2009). The research of Dr. Max Weber on the traits of charismatic leaders and the contingency theories of Dr. Fred Fielder (Maslanka, 2004) are the foundation of contemporary theories of leadership. These foundational concepts set the foundation for the rapidly emerging leadership theories that are in use today. The inclusion of Emotional Intelligence (EI) and charismatic leadership into a common framework was first completed by researchers James McGregor Burns and Bernard Bass, who created the transformational leadership theory (Maslanka, 2004). One of the most powerful aspects of this theory is that it includes both the behavioral and cognitive aspects of leadership behavior, while also showing how adoption of the five factor model created can also increase leadership effectiveness (Judge, Joyce, 2000). Of the many emerging leadership theorists adding knowledge to this field, Dr. Bruce Avolio and Fred Luthans continued to expand on these leadership theories and show the potential for EI-based leadership models to positively impact corporate financial performance (Fitzgerald, Schutte, 2010).
Defining the Ideal Leader
The ideal leader at Cisco Systems is one that combines communication and collaboration skills with the ability to create and sustain team progress towards challenging goals. The best leaders at Cisco systems also have the ability to create self-efficacy in their subordinates along with accountability both to each other and to results. In this respect, Cisco's top leaders have strong transformational leadership skills combined with EI-based insights into hwo best to modify their own leadership approaches to meet the directional needs of their group (Purvanova, Bono, 2009). Combining the attributes or qualities of individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation and idealized influence, Cisco's top leaders have a strong foundation of transformational leadership skills (Judge, Joyce, 2000). What makes these leaders different than many others in the high technology industry is their ability to also combine interpersonal forms of power as well. These include coercive power, reward power, legitimate power, referent power and expert power (French, Raven, 1959). Of these, Cisco's top leaders are most effective when they use expert power and referent power, two elements often found in high technology companies given the nature of their business models. Both of these types of power are highly effective in moving new product ideas along to fruition and financial profitability. For Cisco, the pace of new product introductions must continually improve if they are to stay up with their global competitors. Cisco's leaders are given the responsibility for making new product launches contribute a large percentage of profits in any given financial quarter. This is how Cisco ties transformational leadership skills, expert and referent power to financial results. All of these activites revolve around innovation adn new product development.
Solicit Your Help in Fighting
I am a member of an 8th century Itza Maya elite governing family in an economically self-sufficient tzuk (I.e. province) which has been alternatively controlled either by Tikal or by Calakmul as part of their various regional states for the last several centuries as they compete with each other for political supremacy. But no matter whether Tikal or Calakmul is ascendant, each city has been increasing the amount of tribute demanded from our province, while there has been no companion increase in any services to offset these taxes. Furthermore, the air is thick with rumors that their kingdoms are beset with corruption and inefficiency.
One day, I decide that my tzuk shall break my people's entrapment in this cycle, and I lobby my fellow community members for the need to mount a rebellion. The following are the Mesoamerican strategies that I will employ to pursue your revolution. I will categorize them into cultural, social, economic, and political values in order to attract and recruit other tzuks to join the break-away polity that I hope to help establish.
Models of Transcultural Care
The basic premise behind transcultural care is cultural competence and sensitivity to providing effective care to diverse groups (Maier-Lorentz, 2008). Today, each subgroup has the right to be respected for its unique individuality. Most health-related educational programs and service providers have statements addressing multicultural diversity. Organizations and individuals who understand their clients' cultural values, beliefs, and practices are in a better position to be co-participants with their clients and provide culturally acceptable care.