Course feedback

In my opinion the course of Organizations and culture is very good because it includes subjects that are very interesting of other cultures and countries.

The blog activity is very fun and new for some of us. its a method where the classmates have the opportunity to read about the other points of view and way of seeing the different cultures.

I think the presentations are very important because they help you gain talking in public qualities but I didn't like them because they were way too long and people lost interest of the subject easily, I think more dynamic activities should be implemented in order to capture the attention of the students and have a more participate environment where everyone is willing to share their opinions.

References
http://www.only2clicks.com/blog/uploaded_images/feedback-779099.jpg

Latin American organization

When doing the research of a Latin American organization there were multiple options to choose from, but one of them caught my eye and this was ALOP that stands for “asociacion latinoamericana de organizaciones de promocion al desarrollo”.
ALOP is an association of nongovernmental organization for development; it is constituted by 20 Latin American and Caribbean countries. It was created in 1979, and is one of the most long lasting efforts of regional integration among the other NGO’s of the region.

The main purpose of this organization is the exchange of experiences between Latin American NGO’s and other networks of European NGO’s and organizations, in order to create an environment where the society can actively participate in the integration processes and the intervention and follow up of the relations between the European and Latin American integrations systems. This organization wants to give participation particularly in matters such as human rights, politics, economic and social aspects, poverty and social development.

Some of its purposes includes: the constitution of a place for integration and exchange of the different NGO’s of development; elaborate global and regional development proposals; to establish a proactive relationship with Latin American and Caribbean participants, among others.

As you can see this association is very important because it tries to improve the quality, equity and the participation of Latin American countries by searching for strategies of development and integration.

References
image http://www.dialogopoliticaexterior.org.mx/archivos_index/logo-alop.jpg
http://www.alop.or.cr/

BEST BLOGS

the blog I liked the most is this one http://carlosvallejod34.blogspot.com/. you should visit it because it is very interesting
I also visited
http://organizationsandculturesbyantti.blogspot.com
http://dboterog.blogspot.com/
http://camilaojalvo.blogspot.com/
http://lauracardona51.blogspot.com/
The other blogs I visited are also very good, and they show that everyone did a very good job!!!!

references
http://prblog.typepad.com/strategic_public_relation/images/2008/08/04/blogcompetition_par1a50d3.gif

The Stolen generation

1.From your own point of view it useful to say "Sorry" after years of wrong policies towards a minority? Why, what else is needed?

In this blog I want to state why I think the Australian policies towards minorities were not the most appropriate or correct ones, and why is it important to take action in this matter to correct and formulate new ways in which the minorities can see themselves beneficiated. Personally I think that by just saying sorry the problem would not be solved because this policy created too much damage and pain to the minorities and there is a lot of work in order to help them overcome the difficulties that they face.

The Australian Aboriginal state policy mainly consisted on taking away Aboriginal children from their families by police or welfare officers, with the purpose of assimilating Aboriginal children into European society over one or two generations by denying and destroying their Aboriginality. This brought along many problems to the aborigines and still today they keep on dealing with them despite what is being done by the government. Some of the consequences of this policy towards the aborigines are that the majority of the children grew up in a hostile environment without family ties or cultural identity, As adults, many suffered insecurity, lack of self esteem, feelings of worthlessness, depression, suicide, violence, delinquency, abuse of alcohol and drugs and inability to trust they also Lack a parental model and in consequence many had difficulty bringing up their own children; a very important consequence is the scale of separation for the whole Aboriginal.

All the consequences above are issues that must be taken thoroughly into account and a simple sorry would not be enough to compensate and alleviate the pain and current living situation of the aborigines, that’s why the Australian government need to engage in various programs, foundations and the establishment of different policies in which the most important issues are covered such as health programs, preservation of aboriginal culture, education and labor force development and opportunities.
The Australian government is in huge debt with these aborigines, so they should assume up the challenge of reintegrating them to the country by real actions and not only words.

References
http://www.eniar.org/stolengenerations.html

picture,http://kenoath.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/sorry.jpg

Best of Blogs 2010 awards

the Blog that I found the most interesting and exiting is the spanih blog: La vuelta al mundo de Asun y Ricardo.

I think I chose this one because the adventure of travelling around the world is something that I would love to do myself and I admire those people that actually make that dream real!!!!

You should visist it!!!!

References

http://www.lapropaladora.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/the-bobs.jpg

Trade Unions in Europe

Trade Union in Europe

In this blog I want to briefly explain the concept of a trade union and the presence of this characteristic matter across Europe. The basic concept of a trade union is “an organization of workers who have united to achieve common goals” such as better working conditions, the negotiation of wages, work rules, complaint procedures, rules governing hiring, firing and promotion of workers, benefits, workplace safety and policies; but actually an union entails a lot more than what meets the eyes, there are more aspects that are affected with this practices.

After the second world war specifically after the fall of the Iron curtain in 1989, the unionization movement in Europe has declined substantially due to the different European policies that have been established in order to benefit the workers and ensure a healthy and well constituted environment in which the people working can carry out their tasks and be reattributed for them. The statistics show that “three out of every four people employed in the EU are now not members of a trade union. Furthermore, in every EU country outside Scandinavia (except Belgium), trade union membership is either static or continues to decline”.
Even though the trade union percentage has declined there are still some countries in Europe that have a highly unionized population such as “The three Nordic countries of Denmark, Sweden and Finland are at the top of the table with around 70% of all employees in unions. In part this is because, as in Belgium – which also has above average levels of union density – unemployment and other social benefits are normally paid out through the union”

In conclusion the trade Unions across Europe have decline in a large part thanks to industrial restructuring, but as we all know this phenomenon is still out there, and there are some countries where the trade unions still have a relevant role.

References

http://www.worker-participation.eu/National-Industrial-Relations/Across-Europe/Trade-Unions2

http://www.fedee.com/tradeunions.html

http://liammacuaid.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/civil-rights-march-cut.jpg

E-commerce and Islamism

E-commerce and Islamism

Can a highly religious motivated culture accept the rapid and technological way the economy is moving now days? This is a question that brings along various issues and aspects about the convergence of the real world with the beliefs and religions of some cultures that encounter difficulties accepting the technological wave that the world is facing today.

One important issue in this matter is the E-commerce and the reason why I mention it, is because its growth has had an enormous effect on the way people conduct their transactions and it has also generated considerable diversity and complexity in its structure and applications. the E-commerce have revolutionized the global economy making the transactions cheaper and faster which are two important characteristics in the highly competitive globalised world, however there are some discrepancies on how the transactions should be managed and a clear example of this is the Islamist rigid point of view on E-commerce. People probably think that the Islamist position is too strict and out of fashion, but there are some interesting facts on why their beliefs and principles clash with those of the new era like the E-commerce.

The critics or rules that the Islamist have regarding E-commerce are the relative lack of security and the usury interest which are two things that almost all the rest of the world do not find as decisive points and are willing to take the risk in order to enjoy the benefits the E-commerce has to give, but the Islamist are much more careful and selective when engaging in those kinds of transactions that’s why E-commerce has still a long way to go with the Islamic world to be fully accepted.
In my personal opinion, this is a very competitive world in which you have to make compromises in order to succeed and not fall behind, and for that reason I think that the Islamist way of thinking must open up a little more to the rest of the world and take advantage of all the benefits it has to give.

References

http://www.bi-me.com/main.php?id=44093&t=1&c=12&cg=2&mset=1022

picture,http://www.npu.edu/seminars/images/img_ecommerce.jpg

Zainul, Norazlina et al. 2004. “E-commerce from an Islamic perspective”. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications 3 (2004): 280-293.

Average Colombian salespersons

Average salesperson in Colombia

A salesperson has a very important role because based on how they work the company could be beneficiated or not, that’s why the managers have to make a good relation with the salesperson and evaluate the different characteristics they have in order to have good strategies on how to improve the business.
There are four variables in which a salesperson could be evaluated in order to obtain the information needed and to see what are the things they need to improve and what are the aspects in which a salesperson in certain country has leverage. These variables vary from one country to another due to the differences in the cultural aspects.
Next I am going to analyze a Colombian salesperson, taking into account the variables which are a key element in this analysis. These variables are the following:

• Organizational commitment: in my point of view I think Colombian salespersons are not very committed in what they are doing, most of the times this happens because of the lack of interest many people have on their job and this is a problem we can see every day due to the fact that many people have to take any job they are offered even though it is not of his/hers expertise. Many people find this very discouraging and for that reason they are not motivated to do their best.
Another reason why I think they are not very committed is the lack of motivation that the enterprise offers their salespersons, most of the companies, shops, enterprises don’t pay attention to this aspect because they don’t consider it important, but the reality is that a person that is motivated with financial aid or opportunities for promotion, are most likely to put all their interest in the work that they are doing and this is reflected on the sales and the revenues.
Finally, another aspect that is very important to take into account is the way salespersons change of work. I think it is only logical if you are offered a better position with a higher salary that you accept and leave the other job without thinking it too much. This happens a lot in Colombia, but I think mostly on jobs that are not very well pay and in companies that are not very well known. In companies such as multinationals, people tend to take care of their job, because it is a recognized firm and they can have more opportunities by having it.

• Leadership behavior: In Colombia, there is a big problem that involves the lack of initiative of many salespersons (I say many because I don’t think is fair to make generalizations). They do not take the lead or make decisions without asking first the managers, which in my opinion is very bad because many sales could be lost due to the inefficiency and inadequate lead of the salespersons. The managers have a very high degree of fault in this matter because sometimes they feel like they are the only authority capable to make a well founded decision and that is why many salespersons are not allowed to be in charge.
In conclusion I think there is a very big inefficiency in the leadership behavior and this affects enormously the sales and revenues of a company.

• Role of stress: as I explained before many salespersons are not allowed to make decisions, which I think could affect and influence the role ambiguity of the salespersons because sometimes the job requires something that they cannot perform.
Regarding the role conflict, I think Colombian salespersons have to manage a lot of stress due to the fact that they have to respond to different people and be assigned a lot of different tasks.

• Cultural factors: Colombian salespersons have a high degree of power distance and low individualism. I think this happens because of the fact that the authority (manager) has always the power and the salespeople respect their decisions and them as a whole. As well I think that Colombians are not individualistic because our culture is very warm, close and related to people and that’s why we tend to be collectivistic.

I recomend that everyone visits the blog of Manuela Osorio. Out of the 5 I visited I thought this one was the most complete and interesting of all and it is also really pretty she put a lot of thought in it.
the bolg is http://19890522.blogspot.com/

The alligator river story

The alligator river story
In all the things you do in your life you have to take into account different variables such as values, timing and many other aspects in order to take and make the right decisions for yourself and as well for others that might be involve
this story shows the discrepancies of the decisions and attitudes of the caracters and how they can clash one to another. That's why it is important to respect and try to understand different points of view in order to avoid conflict.

There lived a woman named Abigail who was in love with a man named Gregory. Gregory lived on the shore of a river. Abigail lived on the opposite side of the same river. The river that separated the two lovers was teeming with dangerous crocodiles. Abigail wanted to cross the river to be with Gregory. Unfortunately, a heavy flood has washed out the bridge the previous week. So she asked Sinbad, a river captain, to take her across. He said he would be glad to if she would consent to go to bed with him prior to the voyage. She promptly refused and went to a friend named Ivan to explain her plight. Ivan did not want to get involved at all in the situation. Abigail felt her only alternative was to accept Sinbad's terms. Sinbad fulfilled his promise to Abigail and delivered her into the arms of Gregory.

When Abigail told Gregory about her amorous escapade in order to cross the river, Gregory cast her aside with disdain. Heartsick and rejected, Abigail turned to Slug with her tale of woe. Slug, feeling compassionate for Abigail, sought out Gregory and beat him brutally. Abigail was overjoyed at the sight of Gregory getting his due. As the sun set on the horizon, people heard Abigail laughing at Gregory

According to my point of view I would rank them this way:
most offensive (5) least objectionable (1)

• Ivan (1): Ivan didn't want to get involved in such complicated problem so he just stayed away which I think is completly understandable, maybe he could support his friend but that doesn't mean he acted badly


• Gregory (2): I think Gregory had all the rights to be mad because the way Abigail acted. He didn't do anything wrong.


• Sinbad (3): He acted in a bad way and he should have helped her without asking anything but he didn't make her do anything she didn't want, it was her decision and she chose to accept the undecent offer.


• Slug (4): He is a very impulsive person and he shouldn't have get involved in Abigail's and Gregory's problem, starting with that he didn't even know all the facts.


• Abigail (5): She is the most offensive because first of all she slept with Sinbad which I think is unacceptable and then she enjoyed when Slug hit Gregory even though she supposedly love him.<>

The Corporation

3. Should individuals (directors, employees, shareholders) bear any responsibility for the actions of a corporation? If so, to what degree?

Corporations are conformed by a large group of people which make decisions in order to obtain the highest amount of revenue. But legally and under people’s eyes corporations are perceived as a sole unit capable of buying and selling property, sue and be sued, and so on. So when something goes wrong, that can either affect society, the environment or the government itself, there is no one in particular so the actions are taken against a very powerful business unit which has the power to respond economically and has a big body of lawyers that will protect it. So specific persons such as the directors, employees, shareholders or the group of people responsible for the taken actions are not going to be blamed and be punished directly instead they are going to be hidden under the shield of the organization, which is always going to hide and try to make the errors made inside look as good as possible.

The above is the reality of the world today, but I think that the high executives and shareholders who are the ones that take the very big and sometimes erroneous decisions that could affect the society as a whole or even just a small group of people, should be punished one way or another, because if the system continues to protect them, they would keep on making enormous mistakes that may benefit them but not the rest of the society without even considering other options in which the damage would not be as high.

Corporate culture and national identity

For people operating business in the 21st century the meaning of corporate culture and national identity must be very clear, although this two share some characteristics

National identity is shared by the members of the same society, passed on from parents to their children, and comprises things such as food, clothing, way of perceiving things, attitudes and values. Every organization present in a nation is affected by the national identity and must adapt its own set of rules and ways of doing things in order to avoid having opposite ideas.

Organizational culture must be neutral; it should be based on pillars that encourage efficiency, good customer relationships, team work, leadership and respect to others and their ideas no matter how different they are. There are always going to be differences and this must be embraced, taking the best of each culture and mixing them in such a way that they are accepted by everyone.

This mixture of culture, values, traditions, ways of doing things and so on, can bring an organization all the knowledge required to succeed in the international business arena.
But managers have to prepared and must know how to deal with all the different national identities and subcultures present in the organization otherwise they will translate into disequilibrium, chaos, disorganization, inefficiency and clashes between the members.

There are examples around the world that demonstrate to us that when changes are introduced followed by training, constant information updates, activities and incentives that create a sense of belonging, the change of attitude by the members of the organization is almost immediate.

To cite an example:

"This case study feature sets out to describe how a global manufacturing business, TMD Friction, changed its corporate culture and became a much more successful business over a 12-month period through the implementation of a change management program with people policies at its core. The paper explores the change program that was devised and implemented by Quest Worldwide, an international management consultancy. The program started with strategy workshops for leadership teams followed by extensive management development and workforce training. The changes in behavior and practices were sustained with an organizational review process. Numerous examples of a change of culture are evident and the company met demanding performance targets."

Smith S, Couth C. 2009. Strategic HR review. ISSN:14754398
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1627802521&sid=7&Fmt=2&clientId=65927&RQT=309&VName

imagen:www.yataida.com/images/woshou.jpg

Definition of culture

"Culture: learned and shared human patterns or models for living; day- to-day living patterns. These patterns and models pervade all aspects of human social interaction. Culture is mankind's primary adaptive mechanism"
Damen, L. (1987). Culture Learning: The Fifth Dimension on the Language Classroom. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

"By culture we mean all those historically created designs for living, explicit and implicit, rational, irrational, and nonrational, which exist at any given time as potential guides for the behavior of men."
Kluckhohn, C., & Kelly, W.H. (1945). The concept of culture. In R. Linton (Ed.). The Science of Man in the World Culture. New York. (pp. 78-105).

"A culture is a configuration of learned behaviors and results of behavior whose component elements are shared and transmitted by the members of a particular society"
Linton, R. (1945). The Cultural Background of Personality. New York.

3.bp.blogspot.com/.../s400/diversidad6.jpg