Literary Criticism Essay on the novel Atonement by Ian McEwan

Literary Criticism on the novel Atonement by Ian McEwan - Essay Example This essay discusses that from a formalistic theory of literature vantage point, the way in which McEwan uses grammar and syntax is developed to create a definitive undertone for the story and characters. As Briony is introduced, the writing has a tempo that is a bit staccato. One can feel her personality through the overuse of adjectives and descriptivism in order to emit the precocious, dramatic personality of a thirteen-year-old girl embroiled in the complexity of experiences that she was not yet able to process. â€Å"Briony was hard to know it then, but this was the project's highest point of fulfillment. Nothing came near it for satisfaction, all else was dreams and frustration.† In conclusion, as the story is told, the use of words creates the proper moods and enhances the characterizations. As the consequences of actions are played through, the dilemma of the writer is characterized. â€Å"The problem these fifty-nine years has been this: how can a novelist achieve atonement when, with her absolute power of deciding outcomes, she is also God?† As the reader becomes involved and inserts his or her own experiences into the consequences of the novel, nuances of viewpoint change the way in which the reader will respond. As well, the universal symbolism that utilizes helps to clearly define the journey that is undertaken. As the different literary theories are examined in context, the novel, Atonement, by Ian McEwan becomes a tapestry of emotional content that touches on universal themes.

Occupational Health and Safety Hazard Material Management and Hazard Essay

Occupational Health and Safety Hazard Material Management and Hazard Communications - Essay Example Hydrochloric acid is a hazardous material that ought to be handled with care. The spill response entails confining the spill using absorbent barriers (such as rags), diluting the acid, and neutralizing the acid. The primary problem experienced during the clean-up process is attributable to the properties of hydrochloric acid. The acid will corrode everything that gets into contact with it. In addition, it can cause damage to body tissues. The acid spill leaves a trail of damage to both humans and materials even after it has been contained. The spill response for water-soluble solids entails confinement, neutralization, and disposal. Sodium azide is a hazardous solid that is soluble in water. The clean-up process with such solids mostly involves neutralizing with hydrochloric acid (Burke et al., 2012). If the process is not conducted as required, the clean-up process can turn into a larger spill due to hydrochloric acid. In addition, the clean-up process may involve vaporizing the water to extract the solid. Some of the chemical components of the solid may be released into the air causing health concerns for the people involved. Oil is the most common hazardous water-insoluble liquid that has significant environmental effects. The spill response process entails confinement. Oil floats on water; hence it forms a layer. The oil spreads fast over the water body making it difficult to confine it. In addition, the oil may vaporize and mix with air posing health problems to the people involved. Oil is highly flammable and may lead to explosions when exposed to

Abraham Lincoln Essay Example for Free

Abraham Lincoln Essay According to Abraham Lincoln, â€Å"Your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other thing. † (Mills 3). I was inspired by this quote that speaks of success, which I will describe as a golden star that everyone wants to reach. This quote is similar to most of the leadership quotes because it speaks of ways to reach success, but, this quote is special in a way that it could be related to the self-fulfilling prophecy. Simply put, the main road to success is the â€Å"will to succeed. † I’m sure each of us has experienced actually failing a task whenever our mind is embedded with the phrase: â€Å"I can’t do this! † If you believe that you will be successful in any endeavor you want to take, then, you have taken the first step to becoming a person who is the â€Å"king or queen of success. † I myself have noticed that whenever I put into mind that I will â€Å"win,† the outcome turns out to be truly positive. This essay can help readers realize that their goals can be achieved by first believing in themselves. If a person always expects that he/she will succeed in something specific, then his/her expectations will most probably turn into a reality as what the so-called â€Å"self-fulfilling prophecy† suggests. Rosenthal, in his book: â€Å"Experimenter Effects in Behavioral Research,† said: â€Å"Events tend to turn out as one has hypothesized, not because of some great insight but because one behaves in a manner to achieve this outcome. † Believing in this theory would mean that we would have to love ourselves more, believe that we have what it takes to win in this â€Å"game† called life, and, at the same time, because of our mind set, act in such a way that enables us to achieve our dreams. Bear in Mind: Success is in your hands, just believe! Works Cited Mills, Dawson A. â€Å"Continuing Education Offerings Abound. † The Virginian-Pilot [Virginia] 28 January 1996:3. Rosenthal, Robert. Experimenter Effects in Behavioral Research. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1966.

Application Reinforcement Theory By Managers To Shape Employees Behaviours Business Essay

Application Reinforcement Theory By Managers To Shape Employees Behaviours Business Essay INTRODUCTION The aim of this paper is to explain the application of reinforcement theory by the managers to shape employees behaviors in order to overcome restraining forces of change in an organization. Goal is to explain the managerial aspect of applying reinforcement theory. For better explanation, some basic fundamentals of Organizational Behavior and Organizational Development will be used with special reference to reinforcement theory and how managers should apply strategies in lessening resistance to change amongst employees. Purpose is to help us better understand organizational behavior and organizational development techniques and theory and how to implement them in an organization. I will be including all the essential components of reinforcement theory,its principle,its application as how it should be implemented by managers,what are the restraining forces that comes in the way during changes and how management should try to overcome it. Reinforcement is an extremely important principle of conditioning used by managers to influence their employees in an organization. It is the process of shaping behavior by controlling its consequences. Reinforcement theory is sometimes known as operant conditioning as it focuses on th relationship between operant behavior and associated consequences. Continuous reinforcement strategies are implemented to sustain employees desire to work as they loose their interest in work over long period of time. Hence management should use the reinforcement strategies and theories to motivate their employees and benefit their organization to achieve desired results. ORGANISATIONAL BEHAIOUR THEORIES Organizational theories helps to motivate workers and employees so that they can perform their jobs in the best possible manner contributing to overall development of the organization. These provide courage and motivation to the employees in order to improve their working skills. There are two best known names for the development of theories :- Parlov who developed theory of classical conditioning and Skinner who developed theory of instrumental conditioning. CLASSICAL CONDITIONING Classical Conditioning is the type of learning made famous by Pavlovs experiments with dogs. It is used by trainers to condition (train) autonomic responses, such as the drooling, producing adrenaline, or reducing adrenaline (calming) without using the stimuli that would naturally create such a response; and, to create an association between a stimulus that normally would not have any effect on the animal and a stimulus that would. Classical conditioning reflects how an organism learns to transfer a natural response from one stimulus to another. It is association between two stimuli. This theory is difficult to explain wide variety of observable human behavior, specially issues involving complexity. It does not allow for choice in the response options available to humans and applied in daily life. It deals with cognitive thought process. OPERANT CONDITIONING Operant conditioning forms an association between a behavior and consequences. This process has a wider application than the classical conditioning approach as it provides shaping of behavior in particular patterns. The basic assumption of operant conditioning is that behavior is influenced by its consequences One of the distinctive aspects of Skinners theory is that it attempted to provide behavioral explanations for a broad range of cognitive phenomena. For example, Skinner explained drive (motivation) in terms of deprivation and reinforcement schedules. PRINCIPLES OF OPERANT CONDITIONING Some of the important principles of operant conditioning that can aid the manager to influence behavior:- POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT Managers often use positive reinforcer to influence behavior. A positive reinforcer is a stimulus which,when added to the situation,strengthens the probability of a behavioral response. It can be used to improve employees performance. Positive reinforcement is highly effective and used for two reasons. Firstly, it is used for the direction or motivation of the actions of other people and secondly it uses versatile concept of reinforcement as an explanation of behavior. Many organizations uses positive reinforcements to increase productivity, decrease absenteeism and workplace accidents. For Eg. An insurance company offered incentives at end of each month if the agent succeed to reach their target. Another example,chemical bank has set up programs to positively reinforce employee actions that lead to better customer service. Positive reinforcement can be monetary rewards as well as non financial rewards such as recognition,merchandise incentives etc. When positive reinforcements are used, the desired outcome is that the behavior is reinforced. NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT Negative reinforcement increases the frequency of a response following removal of a negative reinforcer immediately after the response. It strengthens the response as response removes some painful stimulus and enables the organization to avoid it. For example, exerting high degrees of efforts to complete a job may be negatively reinforced by not listening to boss. PUNISHMENT It relates to unpleasant reward for particular behaviors. It is defined as presenting an uncomfortable consequence for a particular behavioral response. It is increasingly used managerial strategy. This forms of reinforcements decreases the occurrence of the behavior in question. Organizations typically use several types of unpleasant events to punish individuals. Interpersonal punisher are used extensively including frowns,grunts,personal grudges and aggressive body language of an employee. Punishments can also be materialistic i.e, cut in pay, demotion, final punishment can be firing of an employee,transfer to another job,etc For example, punishing a worker who slows down the work may be an economically necessary step to alter behavior, another example can be loss of pay. There can be negative affects of punishment,it can cause undesirable emotional reaction,another problem is control of undesirable behavior becomes restricted to managers presence only. EXTINCTION Extinction can be defined as decline in response rate because of non reinforcement. It refers to stopping of the reinforcement,firstly it leads to reduction n eventually omission of reinforcement. An example would be if an employee is not acknowledged despite of his or her tremendous work,he will finally stop doing so. This form of reinforcement decreases the occurrence of the behavior in question. An important base for all these important principle is Thorndikes classic law of effect. Managers must strategically balance between the use of pleasant and unpleasant events occurring in an organization in order to meet their desired outcomes. However positive management procedures dominates in any well-run organization. Before applying reinforcements in an organization,managers also need to know as to when reinforcements should be used in order to influence level and rate of continued repetition of desired behavior. For this it is important to know the Schedules of Reinforcement. SCHEDULES OF REINFORCEMENT In an organization it is very essential to time the rewards and punishment and timing of these outcomes is known as reinforcement scheduling. There are different results of timing and frequency of reinforcement. Reinforcement schedules is widely used to explain different process of workplace such as absenteeism,motivation,different payment systems. Continuous and Intermittent Reinforcement Continuous reinforcements means that the behavior is reinforced each time it occurs and is the simplest schedule of reinforcement. If the reinforcement does not occur after each response ,an intermittent reinforcement schedule is being used. Ferster and Skinner argued that there are two basic types of intermittent schedules. First there are those schedules in which reinforcement occurs at fixed number of desired responses,secondly, there are schedules where reinforcements occurs regularly or irregularly. By combining these two ideas four intermittent schedules are made which they believe has different effects on behaviors. Four types of intermittent schedules are :- 1. Fixed Interval Schedule In fixed interval schedule,a constant amount of time should pass before a reinforcer is provided. In other words behavior pattern almost stops after a reward until the next interval . An example may be praise employees performance once a week and not at other times or payment of employees must be done weekly,biweekly or monthly. This is an monetary reinforcement that comes at the specific period of time. 2. Variable Interval Schedule It represents changes in th amount of time between reinforcer. Variable reinforcer varies in time and predictability. Examples of variable interval schedules would be managers giving special recognition to employees for successfully completing projects and promoting them to higher-level positions . If the manager does not changes its schedule,employee would anticipate his tours and adjust their behavior accordingly to be rewarded. 3. Fixed Ratio Schedule In fixed ratio schedule ,the behavior which you desire must occur number of times specifically before reinforcement takes place. It produces high reinforce rate at closing of reinforcements. For example,paying employees weekly checks that is determined to be paid in expected time. 4. Variable Ratio Schedule Unlike fixed ratio,variable ratio schedule varies in the number of repetitions of desired behavior. There is a high rate of responding in this schedule. Managers often uses variable ratio with praise and recognition. For example ,In an organization bonuses or special awards are given after varying numbers of desired behaviors . Variable ratio schedules produces desired behavioral change which is consistent and very resistant to extinction. ORGANISATION APPLICATION OF BEHAVIOURAL MODIFICATION Organizational behavioral modification is a more general term coined to designate the systematic reinforcement of desirable organizational behavior and the non reinforcement or punishment of unwanted organizational behavior. It is based on an assumption that behavior is more important than psychological causes (needs, values,motives held by individuals)(7) Application of behavior modification in organization follows step by step process:- 1. Managers must define and identify the behavior specifically. When a behavior is observable and can be recorded then it is being pinpointed. To be pinpointed as an important behavior,there must be positive answers to these questions: > can it be seen ? >Can it be measured? 2. Pinpointed behaviors must be counted by the managers as it provides a clear perspective of the strength of the behavior at the present or before change situation. By graphing these data ,managers can determine whether behavior is increasing or decreasing or remaining at the same. 3. ABC analysis should be conducted any managers of an organization. ABC refers to antecedents (analyzing antecedents of actual behavior), behavior (pinpointing critical behavior) and consequences (indicates contingent consequences). This helps managers to analyze performance analysis questions significant in programs. Questions may be:- Antecedents > Does the employer know what is expected? > Have they been communicated? > Are they clear about the standards? Behavior > Can the behavior be performed? > Could the employee do it if his or her life is dependent on it? > Does something prevent its occurrence Consequences > Are the consequences weighted in favor of performance? > Do we note improvement even though the improvements may still leave the employee below company standards? > Is the reinforcement specific? 4. Manager describes action plan and strategies after setting the first three steps. The strategies for strengthening desirable performance and weaken undesirable behaviors are positive reinforcers, negative reinforcers, punishment and extinction. Generally managers tends to use positive reinforcement in applying behavior modification programs but identifying it is not so easy. It can be identified by asking subordinates whats rewarding and another method can be by doing surveys asking about job preferences. 5. The last steps involves evaluation. This step is essential as it tells manager to review changes in behavior before the implementation of the program. Evaluation permits managers to measure performance on an ongoing basis. It also provide feedback to managers which help them to take corrective measures if any. Behavior modification helps to understand workplace behavior by making connections between stimulus,response and contingencies. Reinforcement theory is an important explanation of how people learn behavior. It is often applied to organizational settings in the form of a behavioral modification program. Although the assumptions of reinforcement theory are often criticized, its principles continue to offer important insights into individual learning and motivation. Assessing behavioral modification programmes in an organization has evolved a technique known as meta analysis. This collect studies using different sample sizes and weight them accordingly. One meta analysis of a larger number of studies found a 93 percent success rate which appeared in different target behavior and organizational settings. Organizational behavior modification is used widely among several organizations which includes united air lines,General electric, Proctor and Gamble, Michigan bell telephone etc. Organizational behavior modification is making and can make a positive contribution to organizational behavior. Absenteeism rates,quality of productions and employee safety behaviors appear to improve more often than not when using Organizational behavior modification. Hence a manager should understand that the employees are the most important aspect of an organization success, and towards the realization of its goals and so every employee must be motivated in doing his function. Motivation is significant factor in persuading a certain employee to work at his best . Therefore, it is essential that reinforcement strategies should be continuously conceptualized and implemented in order to sustain employees positive attitude towards his work. Employees tend to loose their interest in their work over long periods of time; so continuous reinforcement strategies are implemented to sustain employees desire to finish their job. The strategies are based on Douglas McGregors two different assumptions (Theories X and Y). > There must be continuous coercion and control of employees. > They must be directed always on what to do. Continuous monthly reward must be given to employees to boost their self confidence and improve organizations desired outcome. By using certain theories and strategies ,managers can help in reinforcing their employees by fulfilling their needs, giving them bonuses,treating them equitably,making them satisfied ,more goal oriented and focused, resulting in high outputs to an organization. RESTRAINING FORCES BLOCKING IMPLEMENTATION OF CHANGE IN EMPLOYEES Kurt Lewin ,developed a management technique known as Force field analysis and is used to overcome resistance to change in an organization. According to Lewin, there are driving and restraining forces which influence any change that may occur in a situation. Driving forces Driving forces are forces that tends to initiate a change and keeps it going. pressure from a supervisor, competition may be some examples of driving forces in an organization. Restraining forces are forces acting to restrain or decrease the driving forces. For example, poor maintenance of equipment may restraining forces against increased production in an organization. In a group process, there are always some forces that favor the change and some forces that are against it. Therefore an equilibrium should be established and it is reached when the sum of the driving forces equals the sum of the restraining forces. To make the employees accept the changes, manager should push driving forces and convert or immobilize the restraining forces. HINDRANCES TO OD CHANGE PROGRAMS Uncertainty regarding change Employees resist change due to the uncertainty and ambiguity associated with the old ways of doing things. Generally,people tend to become more independent and active as they grow older and wiser in a firm. They become anxious accepting changes,they have fear of unknown.they are filled with insecurity due to lack of information in new techniques. Threats To Position Power This type of threat is often seen in top management,which threaten them to lower their status or prestige in a group during the process of change. Social Factors Every individual have social needs. While working in an organization employee becomes members of certain informal group and so,any change or new adjustment will bring a fear among them. The stronger the group ties,the greater the resistance of change. Threat to specialization. Any change in organization may also threaten the expertise of specialized groups. For example, giving specialized training to all the employees was perceived as a threat by the experts in an organization. Threat to insecurity Safety and security are high priority for every individual. and this is the major factor for resistance to change especially on the job front. When employees feel that the security of the job is at the stake due to the change, they resist it. WAYS TO LESSEN RESISTANCE It is very important for the managers to overcome the resistance of change in employees by using some of the following strategies:- Effective Communication: One of the foremost reason for resistance to change is inaccurate information or in other words lack of communication. Thus effective communication program can help in overcoming this resistance. Managers should give necessary information about any change, its process and its working through training class and conferences. Reasons for change must also be communicated very clearly among employees. This will help in making employees understand about the necessity of change in an organization. Participation and Involvement: Participation and involvement can help employee to accept changes in an organization. It helps in removing their doubts and to win their cooperation in the change process. This involvement of the workers can obtain personal commitment and increase the quality of the changed decisions. Negotiation and Agreement: Negotiation and Agreement technique is very useful and can make change go much smoothly. For example, union agreement, transferring employee to other divisions etc. Leadership: Leadership plays an important role in overcoming resistance to change. A capable leader can reinforce a climate of psychological support for change. A strong and effective leader can exert emotional pressure on his subordinates to bring about the desired change. (8) Coercion: Managers may choose to coercion if all other methods fail. Coercion may be in form of explicit or implicit threats involving loss of jobs, lack of promotion, etc. Managers sometimes dismiss employees who resist change. It can seriously affect employees attitudes and may also have adverse consequences in the long run. Managers consider change to be an important ingredient to the success of any organization and therefore it is extremely essential for them to overcome restraining forces of change amongst their employees ,using such strategies and techniques. Gaining acceptance of proposed changes is the foremost job of the management as it directly focuses on Organizational Development. It is not the strongest of the species that survive nor the most intelligent but the one most responsive to change Charles Darwin CONCLUSION Reinforcement theory deals with motivating and influencing behavior of employee. It is sometimes also referred as operant conditioning. In order to understand manager and employees perspective it is important to know the organizational behavior techniques and theory. Reinforcement theory shapes individual behaviors and so organization uses this theory to influence their employees. There are several principle of this theory which include positive reinforcement which is in terms of some monetary reward or non financial rewards,negative reinforcement which include dismissal or some kind of negative activity taken by managers, punishment and extinction. Then it is also important to understand as to when this theory should be applied by the management and so its scheduling is also significant aspect. Reinforcement scheduling can be continuous schedule or intermittent schedule. Further this paper focuses on application of this organizational behavior theory by the managers ,explaining managers actions and controls. It also focuses on restraining forces blocking implementation of changed program established by manager and later it also describes how to overcome resistance to these changes.

A Glorious Plan :: essays research papers fc

M@ Hix A Glorious Plan When Germany was under a monetary crisis after having to pay reparations for World War I, people had turned to Adolf Hitler. He made promises of restoring Germany to its original form and many people were willing to support him. However, the failure of the Munich Putsch in 1923 had failed and had led to his imprisonment. Here, Hitler wrote a book, Mein Kampf, where he introduced his ideology of Germany, his aims and ambitions. (Giblin, 156) In January 1933, when Hitler was appointed chancellor and soon became sole dictator of Germany. He then put his aims to action. Hitler had three main aims in preparing Germany for war. His first goal was to tear up the Treaty of Versailles, which brought an end to WWI. This treaty blamed Germany for starting the war; it took away large amounts of land, money and materials from her, and cut her armed forces down to a minimum. (Hitler, 135) Hitler’s second aim was to unite all Germans into one single country. As there was millions of Germans scattered in neighboring countries such as Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland, these countries would have to be brought under his control. (Ibid, 302) His third aim was to provide Germany with what he called â€Å"lebenstraum† or living space. He said that Germany was overcrowded and did not have enough food or raw materials for her needs. All three of these aims could only be achieved if Germany rearmed, massively increasing her armed forces. (Ibid, 370) Hitler fulfilled these aims by rearming Germany. In 1934, only a year after Hitler had come to power, he gave out a top-secret order for the armed forces to expand. The number was to increase from 100,000 to 300,000 men. The navy was to build two pocket battleships and six submarines. (Bailey, 78) Goering was to create an air force and secretly train pilots in civilian flying clubs. These were all forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles. (Kershaw, 147) In 1935, all was revealed when Hitler re-introduced conscription and that the army would be built up to 550,000 men. Three countries, Britain, France and Italy, signed an agreement condemning Hitler’s announcement. But no country took military action to stop this breach of the Treaty of Versailles. In 1936, Hitler ordered his army to march into the Rhineland. The Versailles treaty forbade the German army from going within 50 km of the River Rhine, so Hitler’s order was a deliberate challenge to this treaty.

An Analysis of Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions Essay -- Vonnegut Bre

An Analysis of Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions Kilgore Trout is a struggling novelist that can only get his novels published in porn magazines. Dwayne Hoover is a fabulously well-to-do car salesman that is on the brink of insanity. They only meet once in their lives, but the entire novel, Breakfast of Champions (1973), is based on this one meeting. The meeting is brief, but that is all the author, Kurt Vonnegut, needs to express his message. In fact, it is quite crucial that the meeting starts and ends almost instantly. It is the meeting between sanity and insanity. Kilgore Trout is simply the novelist that Vonnegut was when he was younger. Dwayne Hoover is the older, insane man that Vonnegut has turned in to. The meeting between the two is the exact moment when Vonnegut has transformed. The bad chemicals now will run amuck through poor Dwayne's head. Mr. Trout has spent his whole life writing crazy novels, mostly about other planets and the crazy things that happen on them. He lives alone in his house with only his parakeet, Bill, to keep him company. Most of what he talks to Bill about is how the world will be ending very soon. "Any time now," he would say, "And high time, too"(pg 18). This is a product of Dwayne's theory that the Earth's atmosphere would soon become "unbreathable" [sic] (pg 18) and kill off all living creatures. This idea was crazy, but Kilgore does many more things that would seem eccentric to any normal person. The adventure of Kilgore Trout starts when he receives a letter from Midland City. One man, Mr. Rosewater, wants him to come to their fine arts festival as the guest of honor. Kilgore had no idea that he has even one fan. Enclosed is a check for one thousand dollars, which would aid him on... ...whole life. The ink hold that he has on Trout, is now being released. It is almost as if he is releasing sane Kilgore and accepting insane Dwayne. Dwayne read Kilgore's novel and went on a violence spree. He spent the rest of his life in an asylum. Kilgore went on to become a world-renowned novelist. Vonnegut is a world-renowned novelist, who is known for his crazy and insane novels. It seems as if he feels that he has wasted the first part of his life in the novel, when he is Kilgore Trout. After he meets Dwayne he seems to have all of his success and make all of his money. Kilgore confirms this in the end when he only wants one thing from his creator. He yells out to Vonnegut as he disappears, "Make me young, make me young, make me young!"(pg 295) Work Cited Vonnegut, Kurt. Breakfast of Champions. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc. 1973.

Hilti cut or Fasten? Essay

This case review was executed about a case study that was discussed in class on the operations of Hilti and its surroundings – Hilti is a global corporation based in Lichtenstein that is a market leader in drills, saws and fastening products. The analysis looks at the development of Hilti ever since it was founded, and the different strategies which have been implemented to get them to where they are now. For a company that has been very successful which is now going through a period of recession, with sales decreasing which has been caused by a global financial crisis – a question for the CEO whether to hold fast and risk an investment loss, or cut costs to reduce the impact of a drop in profits. This report will provide an idea of Hilti’s current strategies and will look at the key strategic issues both internally and externally, and in conclusion will provide recommendations for what the CEO at Hilti should do moving forward. Hilti’s Business Strategy – Current The Current Business Strategy for Hilti has been quite successful since Michael Hilti took over from his father. Michael introduced the Champion 3C’s (Customer, Competence and Concentration) strategy in order to measure performance both internally and externally and saw the importance for a focus on the customers (external) and the product ranging (internal). â€Å"Hilti has set itself the goal of being a great company. The priorities set to achieve it are growth, differentiation, productivity and employee development† (Hilti Annual Report 2008) After conducting a Porters Generic Value Chain Analysis (Appendix C) it can be seen that the HR strategy in place at Hilti is very strong and must be working well. This finding can lead to assume that this strategy allows the company successfully look after their customers needs, being able to attract the right employees into the firm who bring along a positive attitude, good values and knowledgeable expertise. Eventually this will allow them â€Å"†¦to convert distinctive competence into competitive advantage† (Andrews, 1987). Hilti is known for utilising the most innovative technology and makes this a key focus during its R&D phase on emerging particular products. This helps Hilti to meet the company’s value proposition when the 2 pillars of ‘Customers’ and ‘Competence are also met (See Appendix 2). Looking at the analysis from Appendix 2 – It is highlighted that there are a number of resources that the company can influence to strive a competitive advantage. The value is added to the firm by aligning its strong value proposition with its strategy Strategic Issues (Internal/External Analysis) Unfortunately Hilti is currently challenged with a few strategic issues as the company is confronted with the current economic downslide. To identify the strategic issues both internal and external analysis was conducted by using the Business system tool (De Wit & Meyer 2010) which breaks down the resources and capabilities, activity system and their product offering (Appendix 1); Barneys VRIE model was used to assess the value, rareness, imitability and exploitation of key resources/capabilities (Barney 1995), Porters Five Forces model (Porter, 1985) was used to view the competitive environment and lastly a value chain analysis was conducted by means of Porters Generic Value Chain Analysis (Porter, 1985). Looking at the VRIE model (Value, Rareness, Inimitability & Exploitable) shown in Appendix 2 – although there are many resources and capabilities that Hilti does capture well for a competitive advantage, however when a closer look is taken you are able to see that there are many resources and capabilities which can be easily copied by a similar firm within the industry which leads to suggest that Hilti may possibly be able to be more competitive in its strategy. The findings from the VRIE are reinforced from Porters Supply Chain Analysis and the Business System Tool Model; as Hilti has built long-lasting customer relationships from being within the industry over a long period of time. From Porters Five Forces analysis in Appendix 3, it is evident that Hiltis’ surrounding environment is ever-evolving and fast moving and to stay and remain competitive in this field Hilti must keep up and with its research and product development to keep improving with innovation and technology. By staying ahead, continuously evaluating and improving Hitli can outperform competitors within the industry. Hilti is confronted with the following issues: Without a stable economy the value created may not be as effective within the industry – See Appendix 1) because if consumers don’t have the financial capacity to spend, then value to the consumer may change. Hilti must keep up or ahead with the innovation and technology that competitors are using within the industry – by looking at a sales approach from a social media sense, moving into E-business and shop-in-shop) as the current direct sales method is becoming out-dated. Hilti must look at aligning its Internal and external strategies as the economic crisis caused a decline in sales because customers were not confident to spend during this period (external), for this reason Hilti must work on improving its internal strategies such as HR, R&D, Sales etc Strategic Options and Recommendations The misfit gap between Hilti’s internal and external strategies increases over time and this gap needs to be reduced. For this to occur, Hilti must go through a process of strategic renewal. The below chart illustrates how strategic drift increases over a period of time, and only when strategic renewal strategies are implemented can this gap be decreased. Strategic Renewal Process De Wit & Meyer, 2010 Due to the changing nature and constant fluctuations within the strategic drift, regular strategies must be implemented to minimise the size of this gap. The Strategic integration Model (Fuchs et al, 2000) states the desire to make sure that all strategies complement each other. Many internal and external factors affect the strategic drift, such as competitors. These factors require Hilti to utilise and capitalise on techniques which are evolutionary, else the decline or delayed absence will be detrimental. After reviewing the above analysis the following recommendations are made; New innovative networks with the introduction of E-Business sector to make sure the sales strategy is getting out to as many potential customers as possible Authorise management to be able to make small changes immediately (revolutionary) – this will in order to keep costs down and increase profits Keep evolutionary changes to a low when it comes to the activity system to maintain the key attributes Keep employee levels at where they are now – disrupting this will affect the morale. The idea is to maintain a positive work culture and relaxed environment. The HR strategy should change to make sure no additional people are hired, instead the attention should be on growing and improving the current employees – this is to set the company up, so when the market recovers the company is in a better position. If these above recommendations are applied – Hilti can increase its competitive advantage and in turn alleviate the effects of the current Global Financial Crises. This will set Hilti up so eventually when the market does recover, the company will be stable and ready. Appendix 1: Business System Model Appendix 2: VRIE – Value, Rareness, Imitability & Exploitable Appendix 3: Porters 5 Forces Analysis Source: Porters 5 Forces: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.html Appendix 4: Value Chain Analysis The Generic Value Chain (Porter, 1985), (De Wit & Meyer, 2010) Primary Activities Support Activities Hilti Annual Report 2008, De Wit & Meyer 2010. Reference List Andrews, K, 1987, The Concept of Corporate Strategy, McGraw Hill, Chapter 2. Barney, JB, (1995), Looking inside for competitive advantage, Academy of Management Executive, 9 (4), 49-61. De Wit, B. & Meyer, R.J.H. (2004), Strategy – Process, Content and Context: An International Perspective, 3rd edition, London: Thomson De Wit, B. & Meyer, R.J.H. (2010), Strategy – Process, Content and Context: An International Perspective, 4th edition, London: Thomson Fuchs, P., Mifflin, K., Miller, D. & Whitney, J. (2000). Strategic integration: competing in the age of capabilities. California Management Review, 42 (3), pp.118-147 Hilti Annual Report 2008 – Viewed online 30th July 2013 http://www.hilti.com/fstore/holcom/LinkFiles/Unternehmensbericht_2008_en.pdf Porter, ME (1985), Competitive advantage: creating and sustaining superior performance, Free Press, New York Porter Five Forces model – Viewed online 31st July 2013 http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.html