Introduction
Globalisation and advancements in technology have opened more opportunities for businesses. It has now become possible for organisations to set up and operate businesses in varied global markets. This has been a favourable way of expanding and increasing the customer base. Despite the opportunities created, there are challenges associated with operating in the international markets. There are numerous aspects that the business needs to consider to help move in the desired direction. The responsibilities of the human resource department do not change, but they tend to increase once a business moves to the international scene (Renzaho, 2016). HRM is still responsible for performance management, training and development, staffing, compensation and benefits, human resource planning and labour relations among other things.
While operating in the international market, HRM needs to enhance flexibility, knowledge sharing, local responsiveness and transfer of competence for success to be actualised. There is also the need of developing a global mindset, fostering effective communication, and putting more emphasis on informal control mechanisms (Stolt, 2010). International HRM tends to differ with domestic HRM in some aspects. IHRM encompasses more functions compared to domestic HRM. Heterogeneous functions are also more, and the perspectives are changing constantly. There is also the need of being involved more with employees’ personal lives, and there is more influence from external sources. The level of risk is also high compared to the typical domestic HRM. Among the trends associated with international HRM is the fact that international trade’s growth is more rapid compared to the world output (Stolt, 2010). The flows of foreign direct investment are also increasing and the numbers of inter-firm, cross-border agreements have risen dramatically just to mention a few.
This shows that operating in the global market can prove to be difficult to multinational companies due to the aspects that need to be put for the success to be actualised. The HRM needs to be diligent in its activities to avoid failure at the international level.
Challenges for International HRM
Cultural Diversity
Understanding and maintaining cultural diversity has always been a salient issue for international HRM. There is a need for varied changes for any business that intends to work with people from different locations and backgrounds. These changes ought to come in terms of new ideas and style of operations, unfamiliar social practices, and new ways of communication. Based on the environment that people have been brought up, they will usually see things from different perspectives. This can be a good thing to the organisation involved due to the array of ideas that will be produced. However, it can also be problematic due to inherent conflicts that are likely to occur (Tayeb, 2011). HRM has a big responsibility with regards to this issue to help ensure that everything is going as per the plans of the organisation.
Compliance with International Laws
Every country has its set of laws of how businesses ought to be conducted within that geographical area. Some of these laws are similar in some countries, but there are also major differences being experienced. That is why it is important for an organisation to have a clear understanding of the laws governing certain activities in countries that they intend to venture for their business activities. Adapting to these laws is usually paramount to ensure the business does not find itself on the wrong side of the regulators. The laws involved are complex most of the times, and there is always a need for employing individuals that have specific knowledge of the country’s business laws.
Benefits and Compensation
Compensation and benefits are usually regarded as the backbone of any human resource strategy. They are even more important in focusing on the employees’ work-life balance in the international HRM. Work-life balance works to ensure that employees have initiatives and programs that help to improve both the professional and personal lives. Numerous MNCs already have these programs in place that include things like flexible working hours, extended holidays, and on-site childcare among others. These are programs initiated with the objective of making the lives of employees better. Organizations take this initiative since they understand the value of employees as being valuable assets hence keeping them happy means that their productivity will improve. However, implementing the programs on the local scale becomes a challenge for organisations. This is because what might seem desirable and productive in one market, is not necessarily going to work in another market.
How these Challenges Impact HRM Practices
Cultural Diversity
Cultural diversity in the workplace brings about challenges to the international HRM. When a multinational corporation operates in a foreign market, there is the tendency to include employees from different cultural backgrounds. Among the reasons is that the company needs a balance between employees in the local market and those from the country of origin. It is prudent to include employees from the parent country since they have been in interaction with the company’s operations hence they are aware of exactly what needs to be done. Local employees are also important since they have valuable knowledge regarding the home market, which is the target market (Tayeb, 2011). Involvement of these employees with different cultural backgrounds in the same workplace environment tends to break down corporate homogeneity. This is because there are people used doing things in a certain way, and there are others used to doing this in a different way (Alfes et al., 2013). It becomes difficult to work in partnership in such an environment. Conflicts are also likely to occur every now and then, and this makes it necessary for the human resource management to keep a close eye on the employees.
Cultural diversity also tends to create a challenge when it comes to communication prospects. International HRM has the knowledge that it is favourable to institute appropriate cultural communication and non-verbal business etiquette. This is quite important when a company is indulging with international teams. The necessity and benefits that come with being polite might come out as being obvious, but it is more dependent on understanding what is regarded as being polite by an interlocutor. This means that what was being considered as being polite in the home country is not necessarily going to be considered the same way in a foreign market (Vaiman & Brewster, 2014). This makes aspects of communication challenging for MNC as there is a need for ensuring that appropriate and desired prospects are used as per the cultural expectations of the market involved. Going with assumptions will only result to failure and unwanted setbacks.
There is also the tendency of worker expectations and norms to vary greatly at the workplace due to cultural diversity. People might be working in the same environment, but given the different cultural backgrounds, they are programmed to have different expectations. For example, religion on most occasions has a profound effect on personal identity. An MNC recruiting like 200 employees is statistically likely to have Christians, atheists, Sikhs, Muslims, Jew and Buddhist. This is not necessarily regarded as an inevitable recipe for conflict, but there are issues of accommodation of differences ranging from leave for diverse holy days and practical matters of dress requirements to potentially larger issues like distinct approaches to moral questions (Alfes et al., 2013). This is a challenge that companies are usually not good with. This is because it is an aspect that affects the HRM officials too; who are supposed to be solving such issues when they arise.
Cultural diversity is also responsible for mistrust at the workplace. People of different nationalities tend to treat each other in different capacities. There are those that will consider themselves more superior to others based on the backgrounds involved. This is likely to instigate conflicts since the inferior parties will try their best to showcase their superiority. Development of such an environment is likely to create tendencies of sabotage; involving employees from both sides of the divide. This only works to ruin the operations of the organisation hence making it a challenge for HRM.
Another issue rests on the behaviour of the employees. Different studies have shown that each culture displays unique behaviour that ought to be considered with regards to employee development and organisational leadership (Monteiro & Birkinshow, 2016). A good example is how Indian employees appreciate a paternalistic style of leadership, respect for the superior’s skills and expecting direction, attention, approachability and top-down communication. Assessing Japanese employees gives a different perspective given that these employees tend to align quickly with company objectives and remain loyal, but they are less satisfied individually. Going with this knowledge it is apparent that it is not possible for MNCs to have identical reward systems when operating in different areas as it would be ineffective. The same thing goes with career development in the organization. Career development opportunities are among the things that contribute significantly to attracting top talent. This is why this is a big challenge for HRM since there is a need to ensure that the relevant aspects have been addressed in accordance with the specific country of operation.
Compliance with International Laws
Compliance with international laws has always been a major challenge for International HRM. There is always the need of the HRM to study the law in detail to ensure that there is a proper understanding of what ought to be done at all times. A practice might be executed with good intentions, but it is not recognised as being favourable by the law of a certain country (Negandhi, 2013). That is why it is important for the establishment of protocols that are customised for each region, and they are communicated effectively.
Compliance with the law brings about challenges to HRM with regards to the hiring of employees. Part-time and temporary employees tend to play a significant role in an organisation’s workforce. However, the laws that govern these types of employees tend to be different for varying countries. A good example is a country like Indonesia that does not recognise the concept of part-time employees. Here, part-time employees are entitled similar rights as those of full-time employees. They are also expected to receive similar benefits like the permanent employees (Geppert & Dörrenbächer, 2013). This is something that the HRM has to understand to ensure that the organisation does not fall on the wrong side of the law. Failure to comply only results to lawsuits that can end up being very expensive. There is also the concept of attaining bad publicity as a result of not complying with set laws and regulations.
Another issue is with the policies governing the organisation. There is a possibility that some of these policies will conflict with local laws or regulations. This is tricky for the organisation since it would warrant a deviation from the set ways of doing business. The changes are likely to have a negative effect on the potential economic value. However, the HRM needs to be the voice of reason regardless of the negative implications for the finances of the organisation. There is the need of now coming up with policies that are in line with the requirements of the law regardless of how effective the previous policies were.
Another challenge for the HRM with this respect is trying to help employees from the head office to settle in a region that has different regulations from the one they are already used to. It might take time before they settle in and start operating as it is required given that the organisation is keen not to find itself on the wrong side of the law. This is likely to necessitate the HRM to change its hiring attributes to help come up with an appropriate balance between local employees and head office employees when it comes to the top positions. There will be a dilemma of whether to go with personnel that is well aware of the local laws or personnel that has a good understanding of how the organisation operates (Brewster et al., 2015).
Benefits and Compensation
Compensation and benefits are important tools for HRM. The programs used to ensure that employees have a favourable life in light of offering their services to the organisation. Therefore, Implementation of these strategies becomes even more complicated by MNCs due to the diversity involved with the countries of operation (Guest, 2011). This is why companies that have the ability to develop a clear global pay philosophy are well positioned to make the employees happy most of the times, something that brings about efficiency at the workplace.
Among the challenges that organisations face with regards to compensation is how to compensate employees from the head office. Given that these employees are now working in foreign countries, there must have been incentives brought forward by the organisation to help them make the decision of moving from their home country. The employees expect to receive similar compensation and benefits like the other employees in their home country. This brings bout a conflicting aspect for the MNC due to the local employees in the country of operation. They would also demand compensation of a similar magnitude. Failure to accord them similar compensation comes out as a discrimination tendency since they are working in a similar capacity like the other employees (Bloom et al., 2012). To some extent, they might even be more valuable than the employees from the head office. Given the laws governing labour in the host country, an organization might end up being liable for legal action due to discrimination tendencies.
Another issue comes with the creation of incentives by the organisation through compensation. Companies have policies that they use when it comes to the creation of incentives. However, these policies might not work effectively in all the markets of operation. There are cultures that do not accept the tendency of linking pay to a group or individual performance. This creates a roadblock to pay for performance; which is something that most organisations use. Now the company is forced to go back to the drawing board and come up with a compensation mechanism that is going to create the desired incentive (Edwards & Kuruvilla, 2009).
Conclusion
The number of multinational corporations has been on the rise due to increased globalisation over the years. This has made it possible for companies to increase their customer base hence the expected profits. Despite these opportunities, there are challenges involved with MNCs. International HRM tends to differ from domestic HRM in varied ways. The scope of responsibilities tends to increase, but the expectations of what should be attained remain to be the same. The increased responsibilities mean that there is more risk involved too. Among the challenges that internal HRM is likely to encounter are based on cultural diversity, compliance with international laws and benefits and compensation. These are challenges likely to affect MNCs operating in different parts of the world. The challenges come as a result of the difference between the company’s country of origin and the host country. It is upon the HRM to take the relevant initiatives to ensure that these potential challenges do not affect the company negatively even if they were to occur. The moment the HRM has prior knowledge regarding potential problems, it becomes possible to find solutions to help deal with the issues as and when they occur. Challenges are usually not detrimental to an organisation, how they are handled is what determines the long-term outcome.
References
Alfes, K., Shantz, A., Truss, C., & Soane, E. (2013). The link between perceived human resource management practices, engagement and employee behaviour: a moderated mediation model. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 24(2), 330-351.
Bloom, M., Milkovich, G., & Mitra, A. (2012). International compensation: learning from how managers respond to variations in local host contexts. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 14(8), 1350-1367.
Brewster, C., Sparrow, P., Vernon, G., & Houldsworth, E. (2015). International human resource management. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
Edwards, T., & Kuruvilla, S. (2009). International HRM: national business systems, organizational politics and the international division of labour in MNCs. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 16(1), 1-21.
Geppert, M., & Dörrenbächer, C. (2013). Politics and Power within Multinational Corporations: Mainstream Studies, Emerging Critical Approaches and Suggestions for Future Research. International Journal Of Management Reviews, 16(2), 226-244.
Guest, D. (2011). Human resource management and performance: a review and research agenda. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 8(3), 263-276.
Monteiro, F., & Birkinshaw, J. (2016). The external knowledge sourcing process in multinational corporations. Strategic Management Journal, 38(2), 342-362.
Negandhi, A. (2013). Functioning of the multinational corporation. Elsevier.
Renzaho, A. (2016). Globalisation, migration and health. World Scientific.
Stolt, R. (2010). Differences and Similarities Between Domestic and International HRM. München: GRIN Verlag GmbH.
Tayeb, M. (2011). Transfer of HRM practices across cultures: An American company in Scotland. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 9(2), 332-358.
Vaiman, V., & Brewster, C. (2014). How far do cultural differences explain the differences between nations? Implications for HRM. The International Journal Of Human Resource Management, 26(2), 151-164.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Best Buy Investing in Rwanda custom essay helpExecutive summary
Best Buy provides technological products, services and technological solutions. Best Buy needs to venture into other markets for sustainability. This report expounds on the African retail market as an emerging market and focuses on Rwanda as the entry point. The middle class in on the rise in Africa, which contributes mainly in the modernisation of the retailing market. Key drivers of growth in the African retail market include urbanisation, demographics and improved economic performance. Africa continues to experience increased growth in the adoption of digital technology including mobile payments, e-commerce and digital content. Rwanda is essentially the highest attractive retail market in Africa due to clear regulations and economic developments. Entering the Rwandan market through foreign direct investment is the appropriate entry mode given the available infrastructure. The worst challenge in the African market is counterfeit goods while the opportunity is the availability of a large potential market. Best Buy should consider investing in Rwanda and the African market at large.
BEST BUY
Introduction
Best Buy provides technology products and services as well as solutions. The company specialises in expert services to individual consumers, businesses and educators. Bet buy currently operates in the United States, Mexico and Canada with both physical and online presence. One of the core values of the company is to learn from change and challenge. The world is changing in terms of demographics, technology and population. The people are the core customers of Best Buy, but it is clear that the population growth in most of the continents is decreasing. This indicates that as the older generation is faced out, the younger generation left behind is less in numbers. Thus, Best Buy needs to venture into other markets for sustainability. This report elucidates on the African retail market as an emerging market and focuses on Rwanda as the entry point. The research for this report was done using secondary sources mostly industry reports.
African Retail Market
The African retail market is among the markets developing at a high rate. In a study conducted by Deloitte, it was revealed that the African market is very diverse with the informal retail being widely accepted that formal retail. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), 90% of the retail transactions in Africa occur informally (Dennis and Piatti 2015). However, the middle class in on the rise, which contributed mainly in the modernisation of the retailing market. Again, Africa has become a laboratory for experimentation in e-commerce and mobile, which presents some business opportunities. The African Development Bank estimates that there are 350 million people in the middle class. This has made the region attractive to retailers (KPMG 2016). In the past, most retailers focused on the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), which has an urbanisation rate of 3.61%. This market is more sophisticated and mature than the West and East Africa. However, with the kind of saturation experienced in this market most retailers are now opting to expand to other countries such as Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana and Nigeria.
The growth in Urbanisation is one of the critical drivers of growth in the African retail market. Africans are moving to the cities at a high rate. This makes it easier for companies to target specific consumer groups (KPMG 2016). The demographic make-up of those moving to the cities is also favourable for retailers such as Best Buy. As cities in Africa develop, people, move to such cities in search of employment, again, there have been increased foreign investments in Africa over the last few decades, which has reduced the unemployment and increased the middle-income earners. The graph in appendix 1indicates that urbanisation in Africa will continue to increase in many decades to come. This presents an excellent retail market for Best Buy.
Another factor contributing to the growth in the retail sector in Africa is the demographics. By 2014, it was estimated that Africa had over 1.1 billion people. The population growth is still very high in Africa as compared to other continents. As shown in the graph in appendix 2, the population in some of the Africa regions will overtake China and India by 2050. The economic performance in Africa has improved dramatically in the 21st century. There have been notable increases in GDP and lower levels of poverty in most of the African countries. As reported by KPMG (2016), the SSA economy grew at an average rate of 6.3% per annum from 2001-2013 as compared to 2.9% over the previous 13 years. This is an indication that the GDP per capita grew from US$571 in 2001 to US$1,750 by the year 2013. This expansion was more due to the improved business environment and reduced political risk. Several other African nations are estimated to be in the midst of the fastest developing economies in the world over the next few decades.
In the year 2013, approximately 64.8% of the retail sales in Africa were of retail food sales. Among the top retailers in Africa, including Shoprite Holdings, The SPAR Group, and Pick n Pay, which are all involved in the retailing of food and beverages (Dennis and Piatti 2015). The African market has been a dumping site for surplus products in the developed countries. However, things are changing. As reported by the African Business magazine, consumers in Africa are now making specific demands with good quality and better prices being considerations. Much of the growth in consumer spending is spiked by the increased appetite for technology-based products. From mobile phones, gadgets, washing machines, to cars, spending on technological goods is increasing in the region. The Toyota Company has already established several plants in Africa to cater for the big market. East Africa is the highest lucrative destination for technological products. Shipments of PCs to East Africa increased by 76% in 2016. In Kenya alone, the sale of mobile phones has increased by 200% since 2009. Much of the technological products are imported from American and European countries (African Business Magazine 2012). A technological retailer for technological products would consider the East African market as the entry point due to high demand.
E-commerce in Africa
Connectivity to the internet remains an issue in some of the countries in Africa. However, the situation is dynamically changing for the better. Today, 31.2 % of the pollution access internet in Africa. Though this is lower than the global average of 40%, it still represents a high market for e-commerce. The growth in telecoms over the last few years has been fastest in Africa as compared to other areas. As estimated by Deloitte, around a tenth of the land mass in Africa is covered by mobile internet services (Wixcey 2014). The subscription of mobile phones is expected to grow to 97% by the end of 2017. Again, it is expected that there will be more than 334 million smartphone users by the end of this year representing more than 30% of the population.
This growth in telecommunication technology has allowed the Africans to jump the landline infrastructure. Africa continues to experience increased growth in the adoption of digital technology including mobile payments, e-commerce and digital content. A case in point is the use of M-Pesa a mobile payment system. Developed in Kenya M-Pesa and launched in the year 2007 by Safaricom makes it easier to pay for small transactions in Nairobi than in London (Wixcey 2014). The M-Pesa has made e-commerce very easy in countries like Kenya where one does not have to skim. One can easily make an online order and then make the payment using the mobile phone. The good thing with M-Pesa is that one does not have to give any financial details such a credit card details to the company, which makes it safer. As estimated by Mckinsey’s Global Institute, Africans will be buying goods worth US$475 billion by 2025 (Gbadamosi 2017). Nigeria is the most prominent e-commerce market owing to its high population. However, most of the people in Africa remain offline, but the situation is changing due to the intake of mobile phones.
In a study conducted by KPMG on consumer preferences and behaviours about online shopping showed the number of online transactions per person per year to be 11 in the African market (Kruh 2016). Again, 63% of the online purchases in the African market were PC’s, and the percentage is higher than any other place. Most of the online consumers make a decision based on promotions, brand, product features and online reviews. The study also showed that the 56% of the online customers made their recent purchase from an online-only retailer, 11% of manufacturers and 28% of retailers’ websites (Kruh 2016). While in the developed countries e-commerce is standard, it is still developing in the African continent. Most of the people fear the insecurity associated with online purchases such as skimming, but with suitable security measures, the African market is profitable to tap in. There are several other challenges facing the e-commerce market in Africa such as mistrust, logistics and fragmented markets but still some countries have embraced e-commerce. The adoption of e-commerce varies from country to country which makes Africa a sleeping e-commerce giant.
Rwanda’s Business Environment
Economically, Rwanda has been pretty well over the last 15 years. According to data from World Bank, the country has grown from a GDP of US$1.677 billion in 2002 to US$8.376 billion in 2016. This has been attributed to a 7% growth in the economy per year (World Bank 2016). The growth in the economy has been facilitated by the adoption of structural reforms by the current government under the guidance of President Kagame. The country, which was once affected by tribal conflicts, has now become an open economy. Corporate and personal taxes are moderate with an efficient regulatory framework that attract private investors. The top corporate and personal income range at 30%. There are other taxes such as value added tax, which makes the overall tax burden to be 14% of the total income. In terms so development, the government has been, spending 27.5% of the GDP and the budget deficit is an average of 3% of GDP. 34.6% of the GDP is equivalent to public debt. By 2016, the population in the country was 11,917, 508 (The Heritage Foundation 2017).
The Rwandan government facilitated structural reforms to attract investors. A study conducted in 2014 by consultancy, A.T. Kearney revealed that Rwanda is the highest attractive retail market in Africa for those looking to expand on the continent. Rwanda has made tremendous leaps I rebuilding the country after the 1994 genocide by developing infrastructure and making it easy to start a business. The macroeconomic indicators in the country reveal enticing opportunities for international retailers. As cited by the World Bank, it is now easier, less expensive and fast to operate a business in Rwanda than most African countries (World Bank 2016). The report by Kearney also revealed that Nigeria has the highest population and has the second biggest economy in the region. However, it is also the most terrible market to crack owing to the impervious regulations and lack of space for development. Woolworths, a retailer from South Africa, closed shop in 2013 citing the high cost of doing business in the country. Though the Rwandan economy is lower as compared to other countries, its dedication to de elopement has made it the best destination for retailers.
The application of digital solution as well as the adoption of technology has made it easy for both the public and private sectors to offer services efficiently at less cost. This has also presented business opportunities for private investors. One of the major drivers of the Rwandan economy is the ambitious plan by the government to make the country a regional high-tech hub. The plan has been rolled out in several phases. The first phase from 2000-2005 aimed at creating policies favouring ICT initiatives. The second phase from 2006-2010 concentrated on building ICT backbone including the setting the fibre-optic cables (Rwanda Government n.d). The third phase concentrated on speeding up the introduction of services to allow the uptake of new technology. This involves developing skills and integrating ICT cultures in schools to create IT, professionals.
The uptake of e-commerce in the country is also promising. An estimated 1.2 million of the people in Rwanda regularly access the internet. Internet speed and access are improving at a high rate given the technological advancement in the country. The government is committed to the development of e-commerce and has instigated measures to protect online services users. This has been done by adopting globally accepted standards such as particular information security standard. The government on its part provides services through e-government portals to encourage the use of online services (Rwanda Government n.d). Though e-commerce is new in the country, it is quickly developing given the tech start-ups and international players entering the country. The use of debit and credit cards is limited mainly to hotels and restaurants. However, the use of mobile payment is widely accepted due to the increased number of mobile phones.
Entry Mode
The most appropriate entry mode in the Rwandan market would be a foreign direct investment. Best Buy should acquire its facilities in Rwanda. The technological facilities such as the internet are readily available in Rwanda given that fibre cables are already laid. However, some facilities such as warehouses can be rented or bought. Several malls are coming up in the country where the company can acquire a space. The advantage of direct foreign investment is that it provides a high degree of control over the operations. With direct control, one can better understand the customers and the business environment (Moran 2012). A horizontal direct investment occurs when the investor establishes the same operations in a foreign country as the home country. A vertical investment occurs when the investor establishes related business activities from the primary business. In this regard, Best Buy can adopt the horizontal direct investment but tailor the products for the African market.
Based on the infrastructures available, Best Buy should establish a physical store in Kigali the capital city of Rwanda. This will serve the Rwandan market as well as act as a store for other markets. The East African market as discussed earlier is experiencing increased demand for technological accessories such as mobile phones with Kenya leading. To capture other countries in East Africa and Africa at large, Best Buy should establish an online platform tailored for the African market. Again, by collaborating with courier companies such as DHL, the cost of delivery can be lower than establishing its infrastructure. Once the company captures the Rwandan market, it can then be able to venture into other markets in terms of physical stores.
Challenges and Opportunities
One of the major challenges that Best Buy can encounter is the availability of cheap counterfeit products in the African market. The Africans have a culture of accepting counterfeit products based on price. Based on the economic conditions and the incomes per capita, being aware of the product price more than the quality is common in Africa. Thus, counterfeit goods from China and India find their way easily to the African market. The culture of corruption, which seems to have taken roots on the continent affect the efforts to combat the fake products. However, for Rwanda, massive efforts are being taken to combat this disease. A good demonstration is the seizer of counterfeit goods worth Rwf14 million in 2015. The seizer was done by the Rwandan National police in collaboration with Interpol (Inagwaho & Attaran 2013). The government is installing necessary measures to ensure fake products do not enter the country.
One of the major opportunities presented to the company is the large market available in Africa. Rwanda alone has a population of over 11 million people. Other countries such as Kenya in East Africa have higher populations. Also, the economies in this region are in the growth phase, and if Best Buy manages to grow together with them, then it can benefit in future when the markets in developed nations become obsolete as population decreases. In Afric, the population is on the rise and in future years will be the highest in the world. This presents Africa as the place to invest for sustainability and growth.
Recommendations
The Sub-Saharan Africa market is more developed than other African regions. However, as discussed earlier, the Sub Saharan Market is very saturated, and retailers are opting for upcoming economies such as Rwanda. Other areas such as Kenya and Nigeria presents better markets but have other diverse challenges. Kenya, for example, is faced with the challenge of counterfeit goods while Nigeria has opaque regulations. The Rwandan market is the friendliest for retailers, and it is among the fastest growing economies in the world. Thus, Best Buy should inject investment in the Rwandan market by establishing its facilities. Analysis has shown that the Rwandan government is committed to ensuring that investors have an easy time setting up their business in the country. Again, the regulations in the country are specific, and the tax rates are moderate.
Conclusion
Sustainability is the challenges being faced by many businesses today. As the world evolves, economic and social changes occur thus displacing some businesses. The traditional landlines, for example, are almost becoming obsolete, and it is unfortunate for companies that did not adapt to the new technology. The challenge of sustainability is forcing businesses to be innovative and to adapt to the new market dynamics. Best Buy is currently doing well, but the same cannot be said for the future. This is why the company needs to venture into the African market and use Rwanda as the entry point. The African retail market is promising, and Rwanda is an emerging market in the world economy. In any business, there are challenges, and Best Buy can anticipate the challenges to face in Rwanda. The opportunities available in Africa at large can overcome the challenges. The business potential in Africa is much unutilised.
References
African Business Magazine 2012, The Rise & Rise Of Africa’s Consumer Market, in , African Business Magazine, viewed 2 November 2017, <http://africanbusinessmagazine.com/sector-reports/retail/the-rise-rise-of-africas-consumer-market/>.
Dennis, A. and Piatti, D., 2015. African Powers of Retailing: New horizons for growth.
Gbadamosi, N 2017, The millennials cashing in on Africa’s internet addiction, in , CNN Style, viewed 2 November 2017, <http://edition.cnn.com/style/article/africa-e-commerce-fashion/index.html>.
Inagwaho, A & Attaran, A 2013, Rwanda’s approach proves perfect antidote to counterfeit drugs | Agnes Binagwaho and Amir Attaran, in , the Guardian, viewed 3 November 2017, <https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jul/03/rwanda-counterfeit-drugs-medicines-health>.
KPMG 2016, African Consumer and Retail Sector Report 2016, in , KPMG, viewed 2 November 2017, <https://home.kpmg.com/za/en/home/insights/2016/08/african-consumer-and-retail-sector-report-2016.html>.
Kruh, W 2016, The truth about online consumers: 2017 Global Online Consumer Report, in, Assets.kpmg.com, viewed 2 November 2017, <https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/xx/pdf/2017/01/the-truth-about-online-consumers.pdf>.
Moran, T., 2012. Foreign direct investment. The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Globalization.
Rwanda Government n.d., Rwanda – ECommerce, in , Export.gov, viewed 3 November 2017, <https://www.export.gov/article?id=Rwanda-ECommerce>.
The Heritage Foundation 2017, Rwanda Economy: Population, GDP, Inflation, Business, Trade, FDI, Corruption, in , Heritage.org, viewed 3 November 2017, <http://www.heritage.org/index/country/rwanda>.
Wixcey, N 2014, The Deloitte Consumer Review – Africa: A 21st Century View | Deloitte | Consumer Business | Insights | Nigeria, in , Deloitte Nigeria, viewed 2 November 2017, <https://www2.deloitte.com/ng/en/pages/consumer-business/articles/consumer-review-africa.html>.
World Bank 2016, Rwanda | Data, in, Data.worldbank.org, viewed 3 November 2017, <https://data.worldbank.org/country/rwanda>.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Internship Terms of Reference best essay helpThis Terms of Reference (ToR) document sets out the working arrangements and vital information for the Internship of …………, student of Universitas Pelita Harapanat at PT Arthamas Sejahtera Company.
The document lists vital information about the internship, such as the assigned project and deliverables, and the roles and responsibilities of each party.
1.Project Description:
Madison Avenue Apartment Project in Surabaya
This part of the document outlines the role of Gabriela and scope of work during the internship including deliverables and timeline
Project objective:
Building affordable elegant apartments within a strategic location given the surrounding amenities
Project scope:
The project initiates from the adoption of the idea, planning up to the execution and completion of the building.
Intern’s role and responsibilities:
……………….. was involved with the business development department. This department was involved with making pre-launching sales. Gabriela was part of a six member team that was required to build an effective team for the Pre-launching stage the project to help in increase sales levels at this stage.
Milestones: define 3 milestones for the 3 month period and detail the deliverables for each milestone
Deliverables
Date Due
Milestone 1
Writing the company’s background, project’s importance, target audience and how it will help the company.
December 15, 2016
Milestone 2
Writing the expected and actual outcomes of the project.
January 21, 2017
Milestone 3
Writing the learning points from the project
February 2, 2017
Durationand Supervision
The internship will take effect from October 3, 2016and continues until January 9, 2017.
The mentor assigned to this internship is (insert name and position of the mentor).
Roles and Responsibilities
Under the overall guidance of the internship mentor the intern will (insert the objective of the project).
The student is accountable for:
Reporting to work during the internship periodMonday to Friday (insert time here)(aside from times that the student has class which needs to be informed earlier
Abiding by company rules and regulations
Completing their tasks as per the project description outlined above
All their actions while they are on their internship.
The company will commit to:
Providing a workspace for the intern and access to all necessary work facilities
Assigning a mentor to provide guidance to the intern throughout the internship period
Notifying Universitas Pelita Harapanas soon as practical, if any matter arises which may be deemed to affect the development of the internship
To alert the intern and Universitas Pelita Harapan of potential risks that could impact the intern
Having open and honest discussions providing feedback to the student during and at the end of the intership period.
The mentor is responsible for:
Scheduling regular meetings with the intern to evaluate performance, provide feedback, and planning for the coming period
Amendment, Modification or Variation
This Terms of Reference is may be amended, varied or modified in writing after consultation and agreement by between University PelitaHarapan and PT Arthamas Sejahtera Company.
Disputes, Issues and Conflict
Any disputes, issues or conflict, will be resolved through mediation.
Signed by:
(insert name) on behalf of UniversitasPelitaHarapan
(insert name) on behalf of (insert company name).
(insert name), Intern
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
The Electoral College writing essay helpIf the election relied solely on the popular vote, most Americans votes might not count towards the election outcome. This is because the candidates would only focus on regions with the most votes and ignore regions that are known to produce a low number of popular votes. In such a case, it is like only a section of the population is being used to determine the outcome of the election.
The Electoral College was not set up to reinforce slavery. During the inception of the Electoral College, the number of the representatives was calculated on the basis of the 3/5ths clause. This was not bias towards slavery since slaveholders wanted their slaves to be counted on the basis of 5/5ths. A good indication of the Electoral College positives is how the Electoral College was used to eradicate slavery. In the 1860 election, Abraham Lincoln had only earned 39% of the popular vote. However, he won in the Electoral College.
The Electoral College results were significant in 2016 presidential election since it was an indication of the entire countries representation. This ensured that every vote counted towards the election of the president regardless of where it was cast. It ensured that the candidates did not only concentrate on the interests of their perceived “strongholds.”
The political cartoon map of the United States without the Electoral College gives an indication of how unfair the voting process would be to smaller states and rural areas. This will result to inherent misrepresentation of the people’s wishes since it is states like New York, California, Texas and Florida that will be determining who becomes the president.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Self-Assessment Results college application essay helpUndertaking varied assessments has helped in actualizing self-awareness with regards to leadership. I took the self-assessment test on readiness for the leadership role and actualized a score of 92. This falls on the lower side of the high readiness for the leadership role. It is an indication that I am ready to assume a leadership position if it was presented to me. From the assessment, I have realized that I am good while working with others. This is based on how I am concerned with the well-being of the people around me. This is something that a leader should embody at all times. It is the responsibility of the leader to ensure inclusivity for there to be success in the workplace. Having the ability to create time for others is important given that they are all looking up to you. I have also come to understand that being appreciated by others is a favourable indication of one encompassing leadership abilities. This is because the people involved will always trust you hence take the initiative of following the direction you are leading them into.
With regards to leadership style, I took the self-assessment quiz 4-2 on the style of leadership one would adopt. The results indicated a score of 17 out of 20. From the interpretation, this means I am most likely to be a participative leader. I tend to agree with the results since this is something I have always considered about myself. I have observed it for some time in leadership capacities that have been bestowed on me in the past. Some of the people close to me have also pointed out this issue. I like embracing participative leadership due to the positive impact that it brings to the workplace. It makes other team members feel empowered due to the contribution that they make. It brings the drive to move forward and take the organization to the next level due to the feeling of belonging. However, I think despite it being a favourable leadership style, it can work to my disadvantage some of the times. This is because one leadership style cannot be effective at all times and that is why it is important for leaders to assess the current situation before deciding on the way forward.
I also took the self-assessment quiz 2-3 “My Tendencies toward Being a Proactive Personality.” I had a score of 87, which implied that I have above average tendencies with regards to being proactive. This is not the outcome that I had expected before taking the assessment. I considered myself to have strong tendencies towards a proactive personality. However, the assessment proved me wrong. I understand the benefits that come with a proactive personality. Trying to think with a long-term perspective in mind helps in solving a problem entirely. This is because the strategies that end up being established can withstand the test of time. The assessment made me realize that I needed to become more proactive. The scores did not indicate a problem with being proactive, but it showed without taking the relevant steps I would easily find myself being a reactive leader. This is not a desirable trait on my side since I think things could easily go wrong for a leader when trying to be reactive instead of being proactive.
Quiz 2-1 self-assessment helped me to evaluate my confidence. After undertaking the assessment, I scored 58. This score is classified under a high and desirable level of self-confidence. This is a result I think came out as I would have expected. I normally consider myself to be confident, but not overly confident. People that are overly confident end up being viewed as being arrogant. Most of the time they do not give others a chance to express themselves since they view their ideas as being superior all the time. People would also not like to work under someone with low self-confidence. It is difficult to believe in other people when you cannot believe in yourself. One’s self-esteem is likely to influence the type of decisions that a leader makes. Leading with self-confidence will not let irrelevant issues influence them in making decisions that would harm an entity.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Journal 4- Leadership college essay help near meTaking the self-assessments and sharing the results with my father has led to learning numerous things about myself. Among the things that I learned is that the simple things that I do in my day-to-day activities are an indication of my readiness to be a leader. This includes how I treat other people with concern and my ability to create time for others. This seems like something anyone could do, but taking the assessments helped me understand it is not common to everyone. It is more embodied in people with leadership potential. I also learned of my misconceptions with regards to having a proactive personality. For a long time, I have always thought of myself having a very proactive personality. However, after taking the assessments, it turned out that my proactive personality was just above average tendencies. In reality, I detest being a reactive person when things have already gone wrong. This is because it would be more detrimental trying to solve a problem when the issue has already escalated compared to mitigating its occurrence. The assessments helped me to learn that I need to make some improvements to help boost my proactive prospects. I also learned that I have a desirable level of confidence and I am more inclined to embracing a participative leadership style at the workplace. The level of my self-confidence is desirable since it is not at that point where it would be regarded to as being arrogant. It is easy to deal with other people and their ideas at this level. The idea that I exhibit a participative leadership style was very comforting to me. I have always thought of myself that way, and the assessments helped to prove that it is truly engrained in me.
Sharing the results of the assessments with my father helped me in understanding that we have some similarities and differences with regards to the perceptions of myself. Among the similarities is that we have always known that I have the potential to take on a leadership position. This is because of those positions I have always found myself since a tender age. I have always had this ability to influence others in the course of our interactions. The ability to make people listen when I am communicating with minimal effort has also been prevalent. This is something that even my father had noticed. Another similarity is that we both agreed that my proactive personality was not desirable as it was based on the assessments. My father holds a proactive personality with high regards due to the advantages that it can bring to a leader. There is a belief from both sides that I ought to make some improvements in that area. It would help in tackling problems before they escalate to levels that cannot be mitigated. Despite these similarities, there were some points of differences. Among them is the fact that we had different sentiments r with regards to embracing participative leadership proponents. On my part, I was excited that I had this ability in me. My father, on the other hand, thought that there should be more to a leadership style. He believes that I should have the ability to adapt my leadership styles depending on the circumstances at hand. Based on his arguments, this leadership style will not work all the time. There are times when there will be a need of using something different to derive the desired results. His arguments were very compelling more so when he brought in examples of people that have used autocratic leadership in the past, and they were very successful in their endeavours.
My leadership is likely to affect my relationship with other people at the workplace. Using participative leadership would help to improve the relationship that exists between employees at the workplace. This is because there is an increased form of trust between the leader and the employees. Participative leadership includes elements of delegation. When a leader delegates duties to junior employees it is always a sign that his/her trust towards the employees is high. This works to boost the confidence of the employees due to the autonomy that is created. There is the creation of a positive environment as a result that helps to foster creativity and innovation. This style also ensures that the leader is available to the employees when needed. As a result, there is the formation of an interdependency relationship that ensures the relevant individuals are working as a unit. The fear that employees have toward their leaders tends to be eliminated, and it becomes now easy for junior employees to pinpoint the things that are not going well in the organisation. This helps to identify problems before they escalate. The implication here is that everyone at the workplace is happy due to the engagement levels involved. This results to commitment towards achieving the set goals since everyone wants that environment to remain in the foreseeable future.
It is usually important for a leader to identify their strengths and weaknesses. Having an idea on these areas helps one in knowing what to do and what not to do. A leader can maximise on their strengths to help negate the impact that is normally brought by the prevailing weaknesses. However, it would be difficult to do so if one is not aware of their strengths and weaknesses. In this case, I would take advantage of my strengths by showcasing aspects of self-confidence in every activity at the workplace. Showing confidence sends a positive message in showing employees that you are aware of what you are doing. This is very important since it works to reassure them that everything is heading in the desired direction. In case employees noted that the leader lacks in confidence, there will always be an element of doubt when he/she gives certain orders within a specific work scope. I will also use my ability to care for others to create formidable bonds with the employees. Interpersonal relationships make it possible for people to care for others. The relationships that will be formed will ensure that the relevant employees usually work hard to see me prevail in my leadership endeavours since they want me to remain there for as long as possible. When it comes to weaknesses, not being proactive has come out as my major weakness. To help minimise this weakness, I have to adopt increased proactive tendencies. This will ensure that I do not develop to being a reactive leader, which can be detrimental depending on the issue at hand. There exist some opportunities for the implementation of my leadership plan since not many have high prospects with regards to readiness for the leadership roles. Someone that portrays leadership tendencies that come out naturally has an advantage as a result. Few people have the ability to care for others and feel bothered by their problems. Despite the opportunities there also exist barriers with regards to my leadership plan. The main barrier is prevalent due to my obsession of adopting participative leadership style at the workplace. Through my father and extensive reading, I now have an understanding that this can work to my disadvantage since participative leadership will not suit all the environments. It is always good to assess the circumstances at hand before deciding on the style to adopt.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Lesson 1 essay help online freeCommunication
People perceive and understand the term communication in different ways. This is based on the contexts that are encountered. According to Adler et al. (2014), communication is “the process of creating meaning through symbolic interaction.” Going with this definition would help understand that communication is intended to serve varying purposes. Communication happens to be a continuous, ongoing process as it is present throughout an individual’s life (Adler et al., 2014). There are different types of communication such as interpersonal, intrapersonal, organizational, public, mass and small group communication.
Why do we communicate?
People usually communicate for different reasons. On most occasions, people communicate with the objective of satisfying varying human needs such as identity, physical, social and practical needs.
Social needs: It is through communication that people can find affection, pleasure, inclusion and relaxation. This is because communication helps people to interact with each other hence gaining this ability to derive the positive attributes from them.
Identity Needs: As humans, we get the sense of our identity based on the people that we interact with. Other people will help us understand how stupid, smart, ugly, smart or skillful we are based on what they communicate with us. Such aspects might be fulfilling or demeaning depending on what is being communicated.
Practical needs: In this respect, communication helps us to express ourselves on what we want like instructing a cab driver on where to drop you.
Physical needs: Communication has proved important for improved physical health due to the relationships that are established.
Why study communication theory in an education core course?
Studying communication theory in this class might not seem quite important in comparison to other modules that have been encountered before. However, having this notion might be an indication that an individual is misinformed. As an educator, one should have adequate communication skills. A classroom set-up has students coming from different backgrounds hence perceive and understand information in different ways. Lack of effective communication skills might make it difficult for most of the students to benefit from whatever is being taught (Okoronkwo, 2011). This results to some students lagging behind compared to others. It is important for educators to undertake a communication theory module to acquire the relevant skills to ensure they become competent communicators. Effective communication will ensure that communication barrier does not deter students from comprehending the relevant course materials.
Communicative Competence
Communicative competence is all about the ability to use language to communicate successfully (Rickheit & Strohner, 2008). As an educator, communicative competence is very essential since it ensures that a teacher can pass the desired information to the students without the information losing its intended meaning in the process. It is important to know that there is no ideal way of communicating. A communicator should assess the situation at hand and the relationships involved, and should not use one way of communicating while addressing the different audience (Rickheit & Strohner, 2008). Having this ability gives an individual the relevant competence in communication.
Powerpoint and Videos
The power point presentation worked well in summarizing the main contents of this week’s reading. The quizzes involved on the other hand helped in understanding more concepts regarding communication.
This section also featured the videos “Love letters to strangers” and “Texting that saves lives”. “Love letters to strangers” has tried to show the message that is likely to be sent when someone takes their time to write another individual a letter. It is an art that shows one cares about the other party given the time that was put into writing that letter. This is not something that can be said of other communication channels such as sending a message through the phone.
“Texting that saves lives” on its part shows how it is easy for people to communicate their issues with strangers. This is because it gives them an opportunity to express themselves without the risk of being judged or victimized based on the information that is going to be passed across. This form of communication is something that teachers should use on some issues that they think the students would shy off in communicating openly due to the fear of the unknown.
References
Adler, R., Rodman, G., & DuPré, A. (2014). Understanding human communication (12th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Rickheit, G., & Strohner, H. (2008). Handbook of communication competence. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Okoronkwo, S. (2011). Effective communication with children and youth. Central Milton Keynes: AuthorHouse.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Lesson 3 argumentative essay helpWhat are your main take away lessons from the assigned reading this week? Describe and explain.
Chapter 2
The reading from this chapter has delved into aspects of self, perception, and communication. There are perceptions that people uphold about themselves. This tends to vary from one circumstance to another. The aspect is likely to affect the way people communicate. Someone that considers himself/herself to be superior will communicate in a different way compared to someone that views themselves as being inferior. The chapter has tried to showcase this by providing a favorable example of self-concept; self-esteem. “Self-esteem has a powerful effect on the way people communicate. People with high self-esteem are more likely to communicate than people with low self-esteem” (Adler et al., 2014, p.42). This is because they think highly of others and there is the expectation that they will be accepted. Individuals with high self-esteem find it easy to communicate with people from different backgrounds since they do not pay much attention to what others think about them. This makes it easy for such individuals to break varied barriers of communication.
The section on perceiving others was very informative with regards to education too. According to Adler et al. (2014), “we organize our perceptions of other people using perceptual schema, cognitive frameworks that allow us to give order to the information we have selected” (P.49). The four types of schema hat are used to classify others include role constructs, physical constructs, psychological constructs and interaction constructs. These perceptions are likely to affect the way that people communicate with each other. The moment you have perceived someone as being stupid, it would be difficult to take such an individual serious while you interact with them regardless of the message they are trying to pass around.
Chapter 11
This reading has concentrated on the preparation and presentation of speeches. Adler et al., (2014) have outlined that it is important to determine the purpose of the speech as this goes a long way in deciding the information that will be integrated. Stating the thesis has also come out as an important element since the audience has an idea of what to expect as the speech is being delivered. Every speaker has to analyze the audience to adopt remarks that are pertinent to the characteristics of the given audience. Among the types of delivery that are available for speech presentation there is extemporaneous, impromptu, manuscript and memorized delivery. Most people have the tendency of focusing more on the body section of a speech hence neglecting the introduction and conclusion sections. It is important to focus on the introduction since this is what the audience use to decide on whether they will pay attention to the entire speech, while the conclusion contains the information that the audience is most likely to remember after the speech is over.
How will they affect the way you communicate?
The week’s readings are likely to affect the way I communicate in one way or another. I have realized that how I perceive myself is likely to affect even how I communicate with other people. This will prompt me to showcase aspects of high self-esteem at all times regardless of the circumstances. In my career path, I am likely to come across people with high status in the society, and this should not diminish my self-esteem as it would create barriers to communication. When it comes to perceiving others, I have some changes to make too. I have realized that I easily form an opinion about people based on the superficial elements that are observable. It becomes difficult to establish positive relationships with such individuals since even the communication is not appropriate. I will now take the initiative of being more open-minded to boost my interactions with others.
When it comes to preparation and presentation of speeches, it is something that I will be called upon to execute in my professional life every now and then. Given that I will be encountering people from different backgrounds and status, chapter 11 reading has instilled some ideas on how I should approach this process. I have learned the importance that the introduction and conclusion have on a speech. I am among the people that used to focus more on the body section at the expense of the conclusion and introduction.
In what ways do the concepts in the videos and readings relate to your professional life in education?
The PowerPoint was more of a summary of the content entailed in the week’s readings. There was the provision of videos that showed a correlation to my professional life. In the video “Embracing otherness, embracing myself”, Thandie Newton asserts that people have the tendency of defining themselves based on the expectations of others. This is something that affects me to some extent. It is likely to have an effect on my professional life since my self-esteem will be dependent on others on numerous occasions. “Empathy Practice” on the other hand informs on the importance of not only listening with the ears but using other elements. This is something that can apply in all professions. This is because there are times when people might say one thing, but they mean something different. In “The power of Introverts” by Susan Cain, I have been able to learn that being an introvert in my professional life is okay. This is because people usually work best in environments that they are more comfortable with. It has taught me that I should not always strive to be extroverted.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Lesson 5 essay helpWhat are your main take away lessons from the assigned reading this week? Describe and explain.
This week’s reading concentrated on understanding interpersonal communication. Adler et al. (2014) assert that “Sometimes we don’t have a choice about our relationships: Children can’t select their parents, and most workers aren’t able to choose their bosses or colleagues” (p. 199). However, this is not always the case since in most cases people can actively seek or avoid people by choice. Among the factors that influence people’s choice of relational partners is appearance, similarity, complementarity, competence, reciprocal attraction, disclosure, rewards and proximity (Adler et al., 2014).
According to Adler et al. (2014), “The impersonal nature of some two-person exchanges has led some scholars to say that quality, not quantity, is what distinguishes interpersonal communication” (p. 203). Interpersonal communication tends to occur when people tend to treat each other as unique individuals, despite the number of people involved or context in which the interactions occur. Mediated relationships have shown that they can become contextually interpersonal. People tend to stay in touch via e-mail, tweets, text messaging, IM and other social networking platforms. However, online interaction has proven to be an inferior substitute for face to face communication. Most people that rely on meeting their communication needs through the internet tend to find it difficult while trying to maintain face to face communication.
On the issue of intimacy in interpersonal relationships, even the closest of relationships tend to have a mixture of interpersonal and personal communication. People usually alternate between “me” and “we” orientation. There are times they focus on connecting with others while on other times they tend to focus on their own needs. Intellectual sharing has been touted among the things that might result to the development of intimacy between people. The moment people are exchanging vital ideas, there is a form of closeness that develops between them.
How will they affect the way you communicate?
In my line of career, having the ability to execute face to face communication without any problems is paramount. As a result, I will ensure that I am not much absorbed into mediated interactions to a greater extent such that they have the potential of ruining this ability. This is because reliance on online communication might make it difficult to encounter people on face to face basis given what one is used to.
Having an understanding of how interactions are likely to have an impact on intimacy issues, I have to establish caution on this issue. Sometimes when I encounter an individual that we resonate on an intellectual level, I have the tendency of sharing a lot. I have learned that this might send an unintended message to the other party, and I will, therefore, have to be careful on this issue.
In what ways do the concepts in the videos and readings relate to your professional life in education?
The videos involved in this week’s reading have very informative content. The video on “Dating Techniques – Science of Attraction” uses speed dating to show that people usually find others attractive for different reasons. Two people might have a contrasting opinion about a certain individual with regards to attraction upon their interaction. How one communicates with the other person, is also likely to influence their interest in dating them.
The video on “3 types of (digital) lies” informs on how people lie on a daily basis. Jeff Hancock asserts that the use of technology has made it even worse. The probability of people lying when they are communicating on phones or through the internet is even higher. Everyone can attest to this in their day to day interactions with others. What makes lying on this situations high is the fact that people receiving the information cannot review nonverbal cues to tell what the other party really feels.
“When Harry Met Sally Men and Women Cannot Be Friends” applies to the concept of intimacy in interpersonal relationships. In any professional life, when a man and woman become extremely close, they tend to share a lot between them. This creates a high probability of there being intimacy between the two individuals.
Frank Warren in “Half a million Secrets” has shown how anonymity can be an enabler of communication. People find it easy to confide in strangers on issues that they think they would be judged on. They feel they have the freedom of pouring their hearts out and feel some form of relief. This is the same thing that happens with mediated communication hence making face to face communication difficult.
“What you don’t know about Marriage” on the other hand shows how often people divorce regardless of the period they have been married. It remains to be a dilemma on how two people that could not get enough of each other, but the moment they are married no one wants to see the other. It is either people change, or they have been pretending all along, and they are now showcasing their true character. These are things that can be easily observed in life.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?
Lesson 7 college essay helpWhat are your main take away lessons from the assigned reading this week? Describe and explain.
Chapter 10
The chapter has delved on “solving problems in groups and teams.” There are some mixed feelings when it comes to solving problems as a group despite the fact that group problem solving offers benefits for the people that are usually involved. Groups make it possible to develop cohesive solutions since there is the presence of diverse ideas, varied resources, and accuracy of results. (Adler et al., 2014). The ability of thinking “outside the box” becomes a possibility. Diversity comes about since the people involved are from different backgrounds and have acquired different strengths along the way. For teams to work better there is the need of there being shared values, interdependence, shared goals and external threats among others. However, solving problems as a group is not ideal at all times. There are some decisions that would take long if they were decided by a group as opposed to individuals. As a result, it is paramount for the people responsible for making such decisions to decide on whether a certain problem should be solved by a group or individual. Group problem solving goes through the stages of orientation, conflict, emergence and reinforcement. It is important for people involved in a group to have this knowledge to assess where they stand at given periods.
Chapter 13
This chapter was all about “informative speaking.” Adler et al. (2014) outline that informative speaking involves several principles of human communication that help people to understand whatever is being said with ease. This involves the creation of information hunger among the people, ability to define specific informative purpose, emphasizing essential points, enhancing audience involvement and using supporting materials. Visual aids would be helpful when giving an informational speech. They help in the representation of data and models, which make it easy for clarification. Projectors, whiteboards and flip charts are good examples of favorable visual aids. Adler et al. (2014) propose that when using visual aids, it is good to ensure that “each exhibit you use should contain no more than seven lines of text, each with no more than seven words” (p. 395).
How will they affect the way you communicate?
The information derived from the readings is likely to affect my professional life in one way or another. I have learned of the benefits that come with group problem solving, and as a result, I will give more consideration while trying to solve organizational problems in future. This has not been my strong suit at present and, hence it would be a major change. However, this is not something that I would implement at all times. The problem at hand has to be suited to be solved by a group more than by an individual.
When it comes to informative speaking, I have learned of the various techniques to employ to help make it better. The concept of using visual aids has come out as being an advantage. However, I will be keen on ensuring that I use the appropriate visual aids to ensure that they serve the intended purpose at all times. It will also be very important to have a clear understanding of the differences that exist between informative and persuasive speaking. This will be very important in ensuring that the desired message has been communicated at all times.
In what ways do the concepts in the videos and readings relate to your professional life in education?
“The walk from no to yes” revolves around solving conflicts. The video has demonstrated the importance of involving a third party while solving conflicts. When there is a third party involvement, they usually help in keeping perspective of the main issue at hand. Conflicts will always be prevalent for people that work together. The handling of these conflicts usually determines whether they will escalate or solutions will be derived appropriately. It is paramount that effective communication is maintained at all times to ensure that people find it easy to solve conflicts.
“12 Angry Men” on the other hand, demonstrated a way of dealing with prejudice. The group does not seem to support the highly opinioned man that is not giving the other people in the group an opportunity to raise their opinion. There is the need for any group to work in partnership at all times. One individual should not take the initiative of controlling every issue that is being discussed. There is the need for giving everyone involved an opportunity to contribute to ensure that positive results are obtained.
Reference
Adler, R., Rodman, G., & DuPré, A. (2014). Understanding human communication (12th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?