Intercultural Analysis of My Big Fat Greek Wedding Essay

An Intercultural Analysis of My Big Fat Greek Wedding GDUFS SEIB1104 Nicole Guan As a typical intercultural movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding is about Toula, a lower middle class Greek American woman who fell in love with a non-Greek upper middle class â€Å"white Anglo-Saxon Protestant† Ian Miller. They overcame a series of difficulties and eventually held a big fat Greek wedding. This movie shows us how Greek Americans live, reflecting the conflicts between Greek culture and American culture in a humorous way. Guided by Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory, this paper mainly explores how Greeks and American handle the cultural conflicts, and how they integrate into each other’s culture. Therefore, we will arrange the paper in three†¦show more content†¦In Toula’s family, her father lies in the top rank and he is the boss, so he has absolutely the largest power among all the family members. They tend to accept the father’s power and authority simply on the basis of the father’s position in the hierarchy and to re spect the father’s right to that power. Authority is inherent in their position within this hierarchy. Everyone must listen to him and he is expected to make decisions autocratically. In the following part, four examples will be given to better illustrate the high power distance in Greek family: 1 Although Toula was 30 years old, she had to ask for his father’s permission timidly when she wanted to learn computer. 2 Toula would like to work in her aunt’s travel agency, but she had no power to make the decision on her own, even her aunt. Finally, her mother, her aunt and she cooperated together and worked out a good idea that helped Toula realize her dream. 3 When Toula was dating Ian, she didn’t dare to tell her father because she knew that he would ask her to marry a Greek. 4 When Ian first came to visit Toula’s family, Toula’s father even told Ian that Ian didn’t ask for his permission to date Toula. On the contrary, in small power distance countries there is limited dependence of subordinates on bosses, and a preference for consultation. The emotional distance between hierarchies will tend to be relatively small:Show MoreRelatedStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesDiversity Management Strategies 56 Attracting, Selecting, Developing, and Retaining Diverse Employees 56 †¢ Diversity in Groups 58 †¢ Effective Diversity Programs 58 Summary and Implications for Managers 60 S A L Self-Assessment Library What’s My Attitude Toward Older People? 40 Myth or Science? â€Å"Dual-Career Couples Divorce Less† 47 An Ethical Choice Religious Tattoos 51 glOBalization! Images of Diversity from Around the Globe 54 Point/Counterpoint Men Have More Mathematical Ability Than WomenRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 Pagesmass-production techniques. The next change in management thinking about car assembly occurred in Japan when Ohno Taiichi, a Toyota production engineer, pioneered the development of lean manufacturing in the 1960s after touring the U.S. plants of the Big Three car companies. The management philosophy behind lean manufacturing is to continuously ï ¬ nd methods to improve the efï ¬ ciency of the production process in order to reduce costs, increase quality, and reduce car assembly time. Lean production is based

Ford Motor Company Essay - 6355 Words

Abstract This paper is about Ford Motor Company. Ford Motor Company has managed to stay ahead of their competitors, GM and Chrysler. In spite of the hike in the gas prices, the slump in the economy, and the housing fiasco, they have managed to survive in this tough economy. The strategies Ford Motor Company uses to conduct business consist of consumer focus, creativity, resourcefulness, and entrepreneurial spirit. Ford Motor Company is a leader in environmental responsibility and they strive to make a positive contribution to society (Ford.com 2010). Ford Motor Company strives to improve in everything it does, which in turn provides superior returns to stakeholders. Ford Motor Company research and technology goes behind every single†¦show more content†¦There are five levels a product can occupy and Ford Motor Company products meet all five levels. Ford Motor Company is expanding their line to meet the demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles. Quality has been a central focus for Ford . High quality is critical to Fords drive to stabilize and grow U.S. retail market share, as well as their efforts to expand sales in other markets. Ford improves quality at the early design stage by â€Å"building vehicles on a virtual assembly line. Ford is raising the stakes and redefining what it means to deliver a quality product by giving consumers more than just defect-free cars and trucks (Sustaining Report, 2007/08). Product life cycle is important in today’s market. The product life cycle describes the stages a product goes through from when it is first introduce to the market, until it is removed from the market. Some products continue to grow, while other product rise and fall. There are four stages a product can go through, the introduction stage, the growth stage, the maturity stage and the decline stage (Keller Kotler, 2009). Product life cycle helps a company understand it’s positioning in the market, helps compared their products to competitors, and whether the products will success or failure. 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Managing People at Work County Medical Society

Question: Discuss about the Managing People at Work for County Medical Society. Answer: Introduction This report introduces the scenario at County Medical Society Answering Service where an employee named Grace Reed is facing problems to manage her subordinates after being promoted to a shift supervisor. The report introduces about the suggestions for better understanding of those subordinates motivation. Such suggestions are required to restore the good relationship among Grace Reed and her friends who are currently her subordinates. A discussion on a group decision-making technique has been elaborated here. Some suggestions are been given to develop the leadership abilities so that Grace Reed can better handle her subordinates along with improving her emotional intelligence to understand them in better way. Body Suggestions for better understanding of the employees motivation The various motivational theories provide a path to Grace Reed for understanding the motivation of her subordinates in a better way. It has been realized that the interpersonal relationships and supervision are the vital motivators for employees in an organization. The theorists of motivation have told that people normally are motivated through self interest for the economic gain for providing necessities in their life (Shayganfar, Rich Sidner, 2016). Motivation is the emphasized cooperation between the labor and management for increasing the profit. It makes the representation of the reasons for the actions, desires and needs of the people. It can also direct a persons behavior or make him to do the behavior repeatedly. Grace Reed has to make a proper utilization of the factor so that she can rebuild a good relationship with her subordinates to make them follow her instructions obediently without having any objections. The Maslows need hierarchy theory says that a person gets motivated if the needs of that person are fulfilled from lower to higher orders (Schunk Zimmerman, 2012). The esteem needs of an employee if gets fulfilled then he can be motivated to work and move to fulfill his self actualization need. Therefore, if Grace Reed appraises the performance of her subordinates whatever they do then it can motivate them to give a better delivery onwards. The assumptions of McGregor states that people of two types can be motivated by lower and higher order needs respectively. The first category that does minimal work, lacks ambition, resistive towards change is self centered. They are motivated by Theory X. Theory Y gives the assumptions to motivate the people who are not resistant to change, innately able for performing and dependent on the management for the manifestation of performance (Derlaga Berg, 2013). Grace Reed should apply those assumptions to understand her subordinates to categorize them and provide work accordingly. The Herzbergs two factor theory states that certain factors in the workplace lead to job satisfaction but if they are not present does not result to dissatisfaction in an employees mind. They are motivators and hygiene factors respectively (Patrick Williams, 2012). The motivators such as challenging work, responsibility or recognition provides positive satisfaction whereas the hygiene factors such as job security, salary or fringe benefits if become absent then results to demotivation. Grace Reed should think to provide challenges and additional responsibilities so that her subordinates get motivated and also offer good salary with added benefits to avoid demoralization. The latest ideas on motivation states about eustress, which makes an encouragement of hope, health and optimism (Derlega Grzelak, 2013). It actually helps a person to control his response to a situation, which is already out of his control. The individual gets motivated from their own mental energy and makes a sustainable performance. This energy is required for Grace Reed as she is currently in a situation, which is out of her control. The social exchange and equity theory states that the various social processes have the ability to influence human motivation whereas Adams theory of inequity states that getting involved in the situations, which are unfair makes people to be motivated (Hwang Lin, 2012). Grace Reed has also become motivated as she is currently involved in a situation, which is critical and she wants to build a good social relationship with her subordinates to motivate them. She should make strategies to remove the inequities through rationalization. Vrooms expectancy theory states that people have expectation outcomes from their performance and behavior. The keys of the theory are valence, expectancy and instrumentality, which states that effort, leads to performance which is related to rewards. Even after applying those theories in the situation, Grace Reed will still find motivational problems in some of her subordinates who believe that their effort will not make an improvement of performance or will not give them rewards (Xia, Xu Chen, 2013). It will also make her realize that moral maturity makes people to follow ethics whereas immature people will behave on egocentric motivations. Discussion of a group decision making technique for assisting a team There are several techniques that can be used for group decision making which include Nominal Group Technique, Brainstorming and Delphi Technique. The Nominal Group Technique is considered here for discussion where the members do not make the discussion of the issue and the potential solutions in verbal terms (Chai, Liu Ngai, 2013). It is a process, which involves identification of the problem, generation of the solution and making a decision. This technique says the following steps to carry on, State the subject to be brainstormed. Make the clarification of the statement which is required until everyone has a proper understanding about the matter. Every member thinks in a silent manner and notes down their maximum ideas in a given time frame (Saaty Peniwati, 2013). The members elaborate their ideas in their turn which is recorded by the facilitator. The ideas can be from the member written list or from further thinking. The members can pass his turn if he has not to say anything relevant to the problem. He can provide ideas in the subsequent turns. The process will have a continuation throughout the group till the end of the agreed upon time where all members provide their views (Yu, 2013). Each ideas recorded should be discussed in turn. The wording of those ideas can be changed only on the agreement of the ideas originator. The members should aim to discuss for clarification of the meanings of every statements. They should logically analyze and explain each matter. They should raise and answer the questions regarding agreement or disagreement of opinions. There should be an equal balance of all the ideas in the discussion and the facilitator should control the discussion for not being to be an argument (Liu, 2013). All the ideas should be made visible in multiple flipcharts around the room to everyone. Grace Reed should apply this technique to discuss the problems regarding disobedience of her subordinates with her superiors to resolve the issue. Suggestions on the development of leadership skills on the basis of a leadership theory Lewins theory of leadership comes under the traditional behavioral theories which states that leadership is of three styles. The first one is the autocratic style, which makes the leaders to use strong, controlling and directive actions for enforcing the activities, regulations, rules and the relationships (Nohria Khurana, 2013). In such case, there is a nominal influence of his followers or subordinates. The second one is the democratic style, which makes the leader to be collaborative with his followers in performing actions. In such situation, the followers have an influence of higher degree. The third one is the Laissez-Faire style where the leader becomes failure for accepting his positional responsibilities (Dinh et al., 2014). In such cases, he creates a chaotic situation in the environment where he works. The model of managerial grid is based on behavioral theory, which provides five different styles that a leader can adopt for achieving his goal. Figure 1: Diagrammatic representation of managerial grid model (Source: Liu, 2013) The five styles include country club style, impoverished style, middle of the road style, produce or perish style and team style (Parris Peachey, 2013). Those styles are termed on the basis of the value combinations of the leaders concern for production and people. To develop any of the leadership skills, Grace Reed firstly has to understand the situation properly and the nature of her followers or subordinates. If she feels to dominate those people due to their disobedient nature to make them work under her supervision then she should be an autocratic leader without any doubt (Druskat, Mount Sala, 2013). If she notices that there are opportunities to make a collaborative discussion with them to sort out the issues then she should be democratic. In such case, she should let her subordinates to put their opinions for making a solution such as providing paid leaves during absence or paying extra remuneration for overtime work (George, 2012). If she notices that a messy situation has taken place which is out of control then she should look for Laissez-Faire style where she will not take her responsibilities due to her failure to control them. According to the management grid model, Grace Reed should adopt the leadership style which will create a proper trade off of her concern towards the people and production of her organization. Suggestions for improvement of emotional intelligence for better management of employees The emotional intelligence is a critical indicator, which indicates the ability of a manager for dealing a conflict (Druskat, Mount Sala, 2013). As Grace Reed has been promoted to a shift supervisor, she has a managerial role to resolve the conflict that she is currently facing in her subordinates. Those subordinates were previously her colleagues cum friends who are currently not obeying her as their senior authority. In such case, the emotional intelligence is a tool to get through the problem. The emotional intelligence consists of perceiving the emotion in other people, managing the adversity, power for controlling a persons emotion and adaptation to change (Parris Peachey, 2013). There are certain suggestions to improve the emotional intelligence so that the employees can be managed in a better way. They are as follows, Increasing the self awareness. Developing the skills for listening. Showing a genuine interest in the people to whom leading is required. Developing the ability for managing others emotions. Developing a strong appreciation sense (Dinh et al., 2014). Grace Reed if enhances her self-awareness then she will be able to understand the exact position of her between her subordinates. If she listens carefully her subordinates opinion then she will be able to grab their intentions. Showing interest to the subordinates tastes can make those people emotionally attached to her and they will obey her. If she becomes able to manage others emotions then she will be able to change their decisions in her favor (Nohria Khurana, 2014). If she makes appreciation of whatever her subordinates do then they will feel a sense of recognition and will go accordingly as per her given directions. Recommendations From the above discussions, the following recommendations can be made to achieve optimum level of success. Proper motivation of the subordinates through effective leadership Grace Reed should motivate her employees through motivational speech so that they obey her and work under her supervision with a happy mind. Proper discussion of the issues and sorting out solutions Grace Reed should discuss the issues regarding her authority to her superiors in an extensive manner so that the loopholes of her management can be easily identified and fixed with convincing solutions by the management. Parameters for promotion should be made fixed There should be certain performance measurement scales which will state the level of performance of each subordinates of Grace Reed. They will be promoted to higher positions if they prove themselves to be high scoring in the imposed parameters. This will motivate them to perform more effectively. Arrangement of refreshment events The Company should arrange parties so that the employees can maintain a friendly relationship among them apart from the professional relationship based on the authority in the corporate life. Conclusion The County Medical Society Answering Service Company provides support over phone to their patients and other customers whenever required. Certain quality issues in their end have made their clients such as doctors to hire expert callers personally. Grace Reed being a dedicated caller had been promoted to shift supervisor. She had felt the need to make her subordinates to be of that level of expertise so that her company gets more calls leading to more revenue. But she has faced issues regarding authority. If she becomes able to apply the motivational tools and group decision techniques to create enthusiasm in them with emotional attachment then she will surely lead the company to prosperity with a happy work life. References Chai, J., Liu, J. N., Ngai, E. W. (2013). Application of decision-making techniques in supplier selection: A systematic review of literature.Expert Systems with Applications,40(10), 3872-3885. Derlaga, V. J., Berg, J. H. (Eds.). (2013).Self-disclosure: Theory, research, and therapy. Springer Science Business Media. Derlega, V. J., Grzelak, J. (Eds.). (2013).Cooperation and helping behavior: Theories and research. Academic press. Dinh, J. E., Lord, R. G., Gardner, W. L., Meuser, J. D., Liden, R. C., Hu, J. (2014). Leadership theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing perspectives.The Leadership Quarterly,25(1), 36-62. Druskat, V. U., Mount, G., Sala, F. (2013).Linking emotional intelligence and performance at work: Current research evidence with individuals and groups. Psychology Press. George, J. (2012). Promoting Emotional Intelligence of Students: The Teachers Role.EDUCATION FOR NATIONAL AND EMOTIONAL INTEGRATION, 147. Hwang, C. L., Lin, M. J. (2012).Group decision making under multiple criteria: methods and applications(Vol. 281). Springer Science Business Media. Liu, P. (2013). Some generalized dependent aggregation operators with intuitionistic linguistic numbers and their application to group decision making.Journal of Computer and System Sciences,79(1), 131-143. Nohria, N., Khurana, R. (Eds.). (2013).Handbook of leadership theory and practice: An HBS centennial colloquium on advancing leadership. Harvard Business Press. Parris, D. L., Peachey, J. W. (2013). A systematic literature review of servant leadership theory in organizational contexts.Journal of business ethics,113(3), 377-393. Patrick, H., Williams, G. C. (2012). Self-determination theory: its application to health behavior and complementarity with motivational interviewing.Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act,9(18), b35. Saaty, T. L., Peniwati, K. (2013).Group decision making: drawing out and reconciling differences. RWS publications. Schunk, D. H., Zimmerman, B. J. (Eds.). (2012).Motivation and self-regulated learning: Theory, research, and applications. Routledge. Shayganfar, M., Rich, C., Sidner, C. L. (2016, March). An overview of affective motivational collaboration theory. InWorkshops at the Thirtieth AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence. Xia, M., Xu, Z., Chen, N. (2013). Some hesitant fuzzy aggregation operators with their application in group decision making.Group Decision and Negotiation,22(2), 259-279. Yu, P. L. (2013).Multiple-criteria decision making: concepts, techniques, and extensions(Vol. 30). Springer Science Business Media.

Marge Piercy Essay Example For Students

Marge Piercy Essay Young versus old. Death versus eternal life. The positive effects of societyspressure versus the negative. Marge Piercys Barbie Doll and DickSchneiders Youths Progress are a study in the themes mentionedabove. There are many obvious similarities in the chronological structure andirony of the two works. However, the reader will find that there are morethought-provoking contrasts than initially meet the eye. Not surprisingly, thepoems follow the natural course of chronological time: beginning to end, youngto old. Both poems unfold with birth, continue through the growing upyears, but do not surpass adulthood. The separation of stanzas in both worksindicates a new stage of life, though Piercy leaves the reader to guess theactual age of the girlchild in Barbie Doll. The reader will notethat a major theme of both poems is the long-term effect of outside pressure onthe subjects from birth. Piercy employs the stylistic device of irony throughoutthe entirety of her poem. It required the magic of puberty for a child topoint out the negative aspects of a physical body. A healthy, intelligent andstrong woman is compelled by society to bustle to and fro apologizing,apologizing for failing to mirror the image of the Barbie-like woman the worldseems to want. Though she attempts to defy these expectations by cutting off hergreat big nose and fat legs, in her death the woman is displayed inher casket, cosmetics painted on and a beautiful turned-up putty nose. Finally,she fits the mold cut for her by society. Our way of life has hardly changedsince a wheel first whetted a knife. While Youths Progresschronicles the growth of the subject with specific years and ages, BarbieDoll simply accounts for the passing of time in a story-tellers fashion ofmemories. Barbie Doll ends with the tragedy of a woman who, because shedidnt live up to the unrealistic standard created for her, resorts tosuicide. Youths Progress concludes with the exhortation of publicapproval and the sense of eternal life in exchange for submitting to theunofficial rules of social acceptance, eager to fit the mold. To some, theimmortalized life of Schneider is preferable to the tragic death of Piercysgirlchild Young versus old. Death versus eternal life. The positive effects ofsocietys pressure versus the negative. The course a life will take isultimately decided by the individual, the sum of his choices and reactions tothe cards dealt to him by Life. The choice is yours.BibliographyBowland, Eavan. Its a Womans World, 1982.