Evolution of Investment Banking

Evolution of Investment Banking INTRODUCTION At a very macro level, ‘Investment Banking as term suggests, is concerned with the primary function of assisting the capital market in its function of capital intermediation, i.e., the movement of financial resources from those who have them (the Investors), to those who need to make use of them for generating GDP (the Issuers). Banking and financial institution on the one hand and the capital market on the other are the two broad platforms of institutional that investment for capital flows in economy. Therefore, it could be inferred that investment banks are those institutions that are counterparts of banks in the capital markets in the function of intermediation in the resource allocation. Nevertheless, it would be unfair to conclude so, as that would confine investment banking to very narrow sphere of its activities in the modern world of high finance. Over the decades, backed by evolution and also fuelled by recent technologies developments, an investment banking has transf ormed repeatedly to suit the needs of the finance community and thus become one of the most vibrant and exciting segment of financial services. Investment bankers have always enjoyed celebrity status, but at times, they have paid the price for the price for excessive flamboyance as well. To continue from the above words of John F. Marshall and M.E. Eills, ‘investment banking is what investment banks do . This definition can be explained in the context of how investment banks have evolved in their functionality and how history and regulatory intervention have shaped such an evolution. Much of investment banking in its present form, thus owes its origins to the financial markets in USA, due o which, American investment banks have banks have been leaders in the American and Euro markets as well. Therefore, the term ‘investment banking can arguably be said to be of American origin. Their counterparts in UK were termed as ‘merchants banks since they had confined themselves to capital market intermediation until the US investments banks entered the UK and European markets and extended the scope of such businesses. Investment banks help companies and governments and their agencies to raise money by issuing and selling acquisitions and other types of financial transactions. Investment banks also act as intermediaries in trading for clients. Investment banks differ from stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. However some firms operate as both brokerages and investment banks; this includes some of the best known financial services firms in the world. More commonly used today to characterize what was traditionally termed† investment banking† is â€Å"sells side. This is trading securities for cash or securities (i.e., facilitating transactions, market-making), or the promotion of securities (i.e. underwriting,research, etc.). The buy side constitutes the hedge funds, and the investing public who consume the products and services of the sell-side in order to maximize their return on investment. Many firms have both buy and sell side components. Definition An individual or institution, which acts as an underwriter or agent for corporations and municipalities issuing securities. Most also maintain broker/dealer operations, maintain markets for previously issued securities, and offer advisory services to investors. Investment banks also have a large role in facilitating mergers and acquisitions, private equity placements and corporate restructuring. Unlike traditional banks, investment banks do not accept deposits from and provide loans to individuals. Also called investment banker. Who needs an Investment Bank? Any firm contemplating a significant transaction can benefit from the advice of an investment bank. Although large corporations often have sophisticated finance and corporate development departments provide objectivity, a valuable contact network, allows for efficient use of client personnel, and is vitally interested in seeing the transaction close. Most small to medium sized companies do not have a large in-house staff, and in a financial transaction may be at a disadvantage versus larger competitors. A quality investment banking firm can provide the services required to initiate and execute a major transaction, thereby empowering small to medium sized companies with financial and transaction experience without the addition of permanent overhead, an investment bank provides objectivity, a valuable contact network, allows for efficient use of client personnel, and is vitally interested in seeing the transaction close. Most small to medium sized companies do not have a large in-house staff, and in a financial transaction may be at a disadvantage versus larger competitors. A quality investment-banking firm can provide the services The main activities and units The primary function of an investment bank is buying and selling products both on behalf of the banks clients and also for the bank itself. Banks undertake risk through proprietary trading, done by a special set of traders who do not interface with clients and through Principal Risk, risk undertaken by a trader after he or she buys or sells a product to a client and does not hedge his or her total exposure. Banks seek to maximize profitability for a given amount of risk on their balance sheet An investment bank is split into the so-called Front Office Middle Office and Back Office. The individual activities are described below: Front Office Investment Banking is the traditional aspect of investment banks which involves helping customers raise Corporate Finance (often pronounced corpfin). mutual funds) . Research and Structuring. Sales desks then communicate their clients orders to the appropriate trading desks, which can price and execute trades, or structure new products that fit a specific need. Research is the division which reviews companies and writes reports about their prospects, often with buy or sell ratings. While the research division generates no revenue, its resources are used to assist traders in trading, the sales force in suggesting ideas to customers, and investment bankers by covering their clients. In recent years the relationship between investment banking and research has become highly regulated, reducing its importance to the investment bank. Structuring has been a relatively recent division as derivatives have come into play, with highly technical and numerate employees working on creating complex structured products which typically offer much greater margins and returns than underlying cash securities. Middle Office * operational risk and the assurance Middle Offices provide now include measures to address this risk. When this assurance is not in place, market and credit risk analysis can be unreliable and open to deliberate manipulation. Back Office Operations involve data-checking trades that have been conducted, ensuring that they are not erroneous, and transacting the required transfers. While it provides the greatest job security of the divisions within an investment bank, it is a critical part of the bank that involves managing the financial information of the bank and ensures efficient capital markets through the financial reporting function. The staff in these areas are often highly qualified and need to understand in depth the deals and transactions that occur across all the divisions of the bank. New products Investment banking is one of the most global industries and is hence continuously challenged to respond to new developments and innovation in the global financial markets. Throughout the history of investment banking, many have theorized that all investment banking products and services would be copyrighted, they are very often copied quickly by competing banks, pushing down trading margins. For example, OTC contract has to be uniquely structured and could involve complex pay-off and risk profiles. Listed option contracts are traded through major exchanges, such as the CBOE, and are almost as commoditized as general equity securities. In addition, while many products have been commoditized, an increasing amount of profit within investment banks has come from proprietary trading, where size creates a positive network benefit (since the more trades an investment bank does, the more it knows about the market flow, allowing it to theoretically make better trades and pass on better guidance to clients). Potential conflicts of interest may arise between different parts of a bank, creating the potential for financial movements that could be market manipulation. Authorities that regulate investment banking (the Chinese wall which prohibits communication between investment banking on one side and research and equities on the other. Some of the conflicts of interest that can be found in investment banking are listed here: Historically, equity research firms were founded and owned by investment banks. One common practice is for equity analysts to initiate coverage on a company in order to develop relationships that lead to highly profitable investment banking business. In the 1990s, many equity researchers allegedly traded positive stock ratings directly for investment banking business. On the flip side of the coin: companies would threaten to divert investment banking business to competitors unless their stock was rated favorably. Politicians acted to pass laws to criminalize such acts. Increased pressure from regulators and a series of lawsuits, settlements, and prosecutions curbed this business to a large extent following the 2001 stock market tumble Many investment banks also own retail brokerages. Also during the 1990s, some retail brokerages sold consumers securities which did not meet their stated risk profile. This behavior may have led to investment banking business or even sales of surplus shares during a public offering to keep public perception of the stock favorable. Since investment banks engage heavily in trading for their own account, there is always the temptation or possibility that they might engage in some form of front running. Types of investment banks underwrite (guarantee the sale of) stock and bond issues, trade for their own accounts, make markets, and advise corporations on capital markets activities such as mergers and acquisitions Merchant banks were traditionally banks which engaged in trade financing. The modern definition, however, refers to banks which provide capital to firms in the form of shares rather than loans. Unlike Venture ca pital firms, they tend not to invest in new companies. Investment banks provide four primary types of services: Raising capital, advising in mergers and acquisitions, executing securities sales and trading, and performing general advisory services. Most of the major Wall Street firms are active in each of these categories. Smaller investment banks may specialize in two or three of these categories. Raising Capital An investment bank can assist a firm in raising funds to achieve a variety of objectives, such as to acquire another company, reduce its debt load, expand existing operations, or for specific project financing. Capital can include some combination of debt, common equity, preferred equity, and hybrid securities such as convertible debt or debt with warrants. Although many people associate raising capital with public stock offerings, a great deal of capital is actually raised through private placements with institutions, specialized investment funds, and private individuals. The investment bank will work with the client to structure the transaction to meet specific objectives while being attractive to investors. Mergers and Acquisitions Investment banks often represent firms in mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. Example projects include the acquisition of a specific firm, the sale of a company or a subsidiary of the company, and assistance in identifying, structuring, and executing a merger or joint venture. In each case, the investment bank should provide a thorough analysis of the entity bought or sold, as well as a valuation range and recommended structure. Sales and Trading These services are primarily relevant only to publicly traded firms, or firms, which plan to go public in the near future. Specific functions include making a market in a stock, placing new offerings, and publishing research reports. General Advisory Services: Advisory services include assignments such as strategic planning, business valuations, assisting in financial restructurings, and providing an opinion as to the fairness of a proposed transaction. Terms Related To Investment Bank Buying and Selling Buying Deciding on the proper time to purchase a security that you would like to add to your holdings can be a daunting task. If the price drops immediately after you buy, it may seem as if you missed out on a better buying opportunity. If the price jumps right before you make your move, you may feel as if you paid too much. As it turns out, you should not let these small fluctuations influence your decision too much. As long as the fundamentals that led you to decide on the purchase have not changed, a few points in either direction should not have a large impact on the long-term value of your investment. Similarly, the fact that an investment has been increasing in value of late is not a sufficient reason for you to purchase it. Momentum can be very fickle, and recent movement is not necessarily an indicator of future movement. Therefore, buying decisions should be based on sound and thorough research geared toward discerning the future value of a security relative to its current price. This analysis will probably not touch upon price movement in the very recent past. As you learn more about investing youll get better at deciding when to buy, but most experts recommend that beginners avoid trying to time the market, and just get in as soon as they can and stay in for the long haul. The proper time to buy a security is quite simply when it is available for less than its actual value. These undervalued securities are actually not as rare as they sound. However, the problem is simply that they are never sure bets. The value of a security includes estimates of the future performance of factors underlying the value of the security. For stocks, these factors include things like earnings growth and market share. Changes can be predicted to a degree, but they are subject to fluctuation due to forces both within and beyond the control of the company. The overall economic climate, changes in the industry or even bad decisions by management can all cause a security poised to ascend in value to become an under performer. Therefore, it is essential to practice your analysis before putting your money into action. Make some mock purchases based on your personal analysis technique and track the results. Not all of your decisions will lead to the results you were expecting, but if most of your choices turn out to be good and there are mitigating factors that you can learn from to explain your missteps, then you may be ready to put your analysis technique and investing strategy into action. At this point, the need to continuously monitor your investments does not disappear. Both under performers and overachievers should be studied carefully to fine-tune your strategy. You should also regularly look at your securities to make sure that the fundamentals for success that led you to buy in the first place are intact. If not, you may need to prepare to cash in and start looking for the next opportunity. One way to avoid the hassles of deciding when to buy altogether is to practice dollar-cost averaging. This strategy advocates investing a fixed dollar amount at regular intervals. The price when you first invest is relatively unimportant (as long as the fundamentals are sound) because you will be purchasing shares at a different price each time you buy. The success of your investment then lies not with short-term fluctuations, but with the long-term movement of the value of the security. Selling: There comes a time when investments must be liquidated and converted back into cash. In a perfect world, selling would only be necessary when investment goals have been reached or time horizons have expired, but, in reality, decisions about selling can be much more difficult. For one thing, it can be just as hard to decide when to sell as it can be to decide when to buy. No one wishes to miss out on gains by selling too soon, but, at the same time, no one wishes to watch an investment peak in value and then begin to decline. Investors often seek to sell investments that have dropped in value in the short-term. However, if conditions have not changed significantly, drops in price may actually represent an opportunity to buy at a better price. If the initial research, which led to the purchase, was sound, a temporary decline does not preclude the success that was originally predicted. Of course, things change, and if the security no longer meets the criteria that led to its purchase, selling may in fact be the best option. Selling may also become necessary if investment goals change over time. You may need to reduce the amount of risk in your portfolio or you may have the opportunity to seek out greater returns. Additionally, a security may have increased in value to the point that it is overvalued. This creates an excellent opportunity to cash in and seek out new undervalued investments. Often you will need to make this type of sale in the course of rebalancing a portfolio necessitated by gains and losses in different areas. Selling can be especially difficult when an under performing stock must be dumped. Some investors let their emotions dictate their actions and hold on to stocks that have fallen in value rather than to sell, thinking that selling at a loss is like admitting that they made a mistake. However, realizing the loss and moving on to better investments is often preferable to continuing to hold onto a loser in the hopes that it will somehow rebound. When considering any sale, you must factor in the costs of the sale itself. Fees and taxes will eat into profits, so they must be subtracted from any increases in value to understand the true impact of the transaction. Capital gains taxes are higher for gains on investments held less than one year, so its often wise to invest for the long term rather than to buy and sell quickly. On the other hand, it can be dangerous to hold an investment longer than you want to, simply to reduce the tax burden. It is essential to remember that just because an investment increases in value after it has been sold does not necessarily mean that it was sold prematurely. Managing risk and diversification are often more important than capitalizing on short-term gains in a particular security. Keeping in mind the initial goals for the investment and adjusting them to fit your present goals will allow you to make smarter decisions about selling. Principles of Investing 1. Start Investing Now We say this not just to discourage procrastination, but because an early start can make all the difference. In general, every six years you wait doubles the required monthly savings to reach the same level of retirement income. Another motivational statistic: If you contributed some amount each month for the next nine years, and then nothing afterwards, or if you contributed nothing for the first nine years, then contributed the same amount each month for the next 41 years, you would have about the same amount. Compounding is a beautiful thing. 2. Know Yourself The right course of action depends on your current situation, your future goals, and your personality. If you dont take a close look at these, and make them explicit, you might be headed in the wrong direction. Current Situation: How healthy are you, financially? Whats your net worth right now? Whats your monthly income? What are your expenses (and where could they be reduced)? How much debt are you carrying? At what rate of interest? How much are you saving? How are you investing it? What are your returns? What are your expenses? Goals: What are your financial goals? How much will you need to achieve them? Are you on the right track? Risk Tolerance: How much risk are you willing and able to accept in pursuit of your objectives? The appropriate level of risk is determined by your personality, age, job security, health, net worth, amount of cash you have to cover emergencies, and the length of your investing horizon. 3. Get Your Financial House In Order Even though investing may be more fun than personal finance, it makes more sense to get started on them in the reverse order. If you dont know where the money goes each month, you shouldnt be thinking about investing yet. Tracking your spending habits is the first step toward improving them. If youre carrying debt at a high rate of interest (especially credit card debt), you should unburden yourself before you begin investing. If you dont know how much you save each month and how much youll need to save to reach your goals, theres no way to know what investments are right for you. If youve transitioned from a debt situation to paycheck-to-paycheck situation to a saving some money every month situation, youre ready to begin investing what you save. You should start by amassing enough to cover three to six months of expenses, and keep this money in a very safe investment like a money market account, so youre prepared in the event of an emergency. Once youve saved up this emergency reserve, you can progress to higher risk (and higher return) investments: bonds for money that you expect to need in the next few years, and stocks or stock mutual funds for the rest. Use dollar cost averaging, by investing about the same amount each month. This is always a good idea, but even more so with the dramatic fluctuations in the market in the past 10 years. Dollar cost averaging will make it easier to stomach the inevitable dips. And remember; never invest in anything you dont understand. 4. Develop A Long Term Plan Now that you know your current situation, goals, and personality, you should have a pretty good idea of what your long-term plan should be. It should detail where the money will go: cars, houses, college, and retirement. It should also detail where the money will come from. Hopefully the numbers will be about the same. Dont try to time the market. Get in and stay in. We dont know what direction the next 10% move will be, but we do know what direction the next100% move will be. Review your plan periodically, and whenever your needs or circumstances change. If you are not confident that your plan makes sense, talk to an investment advisor or someone you trust. 5. Buy Stocks Now that youve got a long term view, you can more safely invest in riskier investments, which the market rewards (in general). This requires patience and discipline, but it increases returns. This approach reduces the entire universe of investment vehicles to two choices: stocks and stock mutual funds. In the long run, theyre the winners: In this century, stocks beat bonds 8 out of 9 decades, and theyre well in the lead again. According to Ibbotsons Stocks, Bonds, Bills and Inflation 1995 Yearbook, here are the average annual returns from 1926 to 1994 (before inflation): Stocks: 10.2% (and small company stocks were 12.1%) Intermediate term treasury bonds: 5.1% 30-day T-bills: 3.7% But is it really worth the additional risk just for a few percentage points? The answer is yes. 10% a year for 20 years is 570%, but 7% a year for 20 years is only 280%. Compounding is Gods gift to long-term planners. If you buy outstanding companies, and hold them through the markets gyrations, you will be rewarded. If you arent good at selecting stocks, select some mutual funds. If you arent good at selecting mutual funds, go with an index fund (like the Vanguard SP 500). 6. Investigate Before You Invest Always do your homework. The more you know, the better off you are. This requires that you keep learning, and pay attention to events that might affect you. Understand personal finance matters that could affect you (for example, proposed tax changes). Understand how each of your investments fits in with the rest of your portfolio and with your overall strategy. Understand the risks associated with each investment. Gather unbiased, objective information. Get a second opinion, a third opinion, etc. Be cautious when evaluating the advice of anyone with a vested interest. If youre going to invest in stocks, learn as much as you can about the companies youre considering. Understand before you invest. Research, research, Read books. Consider joining an investment club or an organization like the American Association of Individual Investors. Experiment with various strategies before you put your own money on the line. Examine historical data or participate in a stock market simulation. Try a momentum portfolio, a technical analysis portfolio, a bottom fisher portfolio, a dividend portfolio, a price/earnings growth portfolio, an intuition portfolio, a mega trends portfolio, and any others you think of. In the process youll find out which ones work best for you. Learn from your own mistakes, and learn from the mistakes of others. If you dont have time for all this work consider mutual funds, especially index funds. 7. Develop the Right Attitude The following personality traits will help you achieve financial success: Discipline: Develop a plan, and stick with it. As you continue to learn, youll become more confident that youre on the right track. Alter your asset allocation based on changes in your personal situation, not because of some short-term market fluctuation. Confidence: Let your intelligence, not your emotions; make your decisions for you. Understand that you will make mistakes and take losses; even the best investors do. Re-evaluate your strategy from time to time, but dont second-guess it. Patience: Dont let your emotions be ruled by todays performance. In most cases, you shouldnt even be watching the day-to-day performance, unless you like to. Also, dont ever feel like its now or never. Dont be pressured into an investment you dont yet understand or feel comfortable with. The following personality traits will hurt your chances of financial success: Fear: If you are unwilling to take any risk, you will be stuck with investments that barely beat inflation. Greed: As an investment class, get rich quick schemes have the worst returns. If your expectations are unrealistically high, youll go for the big scores, which usually dont work. It is generally a good idea to avoid making financial decisions based on emotional factors. 8. Get Help If You Need It The do-it-yourself approach isnt for everyone. If you try it and its not working, or youre afraid to try it at all, or you just dont have the time or desire, theres nothing wrong with seeking professional assistance. If you want others to handle your financial affairs for you, you will nevertheless want to remain involved to some degree, to make sure your money is being spent wisely. Initial Public Offerings Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) are the first time a company sells its stock to the public. Sometimes IPOs are associated with huge first-day gains; other times, when the market is cold, they flop. Its often difficult for an individual investor to realize the huge gains, since in most cases only institutional investors have access to the stock at the offering price. By the time the general public can trade the stock, most of its first-day gains have already been made. However, a savvy and informed investor should still watch the IPO market, because this is the first opportunity to buy these stocks. Reasons for an IPO When a privately held corporation needs to raise additional capital, it can either take on debt or sell partial ownership. If the corporation chooses to sell ownership to the public, it engages in an IPO. Corporations choose to go public instead of issuing debt securities for several reasons. The most common reason is that capital raised through an IPO does not have to be repaid, whereas debt securities such as bonds must be repaid with interest. Despite this apparent benefit, there are also many drawbacks to an IPO. A large drawback to going public is that the current owners of the privately held corporation lose a part of their ownership. Corporations weigh the costs and benefits of an IPO carefully before performing an IPO. Going Public If a corporation decides that it is going to perform an IPO, it will first hire an investment bank to facilitate the sale of its shares to the public. This process is commonly called underwriting; the banks role as the underwriter varies according to the method of underwriting agreed upon, but its primary function remains the same. In accordance with the Securities Act of 1933, the corporation will file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The registration statement must fully disclose all material information to the SEC, including a description of the corporation, detailed financial statements, biographical information on insiders, and the number of shares owned by each insider. After filing, the corporation must wait for the SEC to investigate the registration statement and approve of the full disclosure. During this period while the SEC investigates the corporations filings, the underwriter will try to increase demand for the corporations stock. Many investment banks will print tombstone advertisements that offer bare-bones information to prospective investors. The underwriter will also issue a preliminary prospectus, or red herring, to potential investors. These red herrings include much of the information contained in the registration statement, but are incomplete and subject to change. An official summary of the corporation, or prospectus, must be issued either before or along with the actual stock offering. After the SEC approves of the corporations full disclosure, the corporation and the underwriter decide on the price and date of the IPO; the IPO is then conducted on the determined date. IPOs are sometimes postponed or even withdrawn in poor market conditions. Performance The aftermarket performance of an IPO is how the stock price behaves after the day of its offering on the secondary market (such as the NYSE or the NASDAQ). Investors can use this information to judge the likelihood that an IPO in a specific industry or from a specific lead underwriter will perform well in the days (or months) following its offering. The first-day gains of some IPOs have made investors all too aware of the money to be had in IPO investing. Unfortunately, for the small individual investor, realizing those much-publicized gains is nearly impossible. The crux of the problem is that individual investors are just too small to get in on the IPO market before the jump. Those large first-day returns are made over the offering price of the stock, at which only large, institutional investors can buy in. The system is one o

Journal Article Critique “From common to uncommon Knowledge: Foundations of Firm-specific use of Knowledge as a Resource” Essay

Research question: â€Å"How can managers create uncommon knowledge when rivals have access to similar, commonly available knowledge?† (page 425) Author’s purpose: The importance of knowledge is well established in research. The knowledge-based theory considers knowledge as the most strategically significant resource of a firm. Notwithstanding, the authors illustrate that it is not known much about â€Å"how firms create, acquire, and apply knowledge better than other firms† (page 421). Nag and Gioia set up a qualitative study to develop an inductive model to reveal the processes how and under which circumstances managers transform common into distinctive knowledge. The foundry industry in the northeast and midatlantic United States served as study population. The authors conducted 53 interviews with CEOs and other key members involving 22 different foundries. Major conclusions: The model developed three dimensions how executives differ in the process from common to uncommon knowledge: executive knowledge schemes, executive scanning and uncommon knowledge use. The study indicates the personal impact of executive behavior how they identified, searched for and used uncommon knowledge: Under same external circumstances they act in different ways to address strategic situations. (1) Interpretation of the results The interviews were structured like following. There are three aggregated dimensions (executive knowledge schemes, executive scanning and uncommon knowledge use). Each of these dimensions consists of two second-order themes. These feed on the first-order categories which are coded quotes. Executive knowledge schemes mean how executives are determined towards theirs perceptions of knowledge. They are also called knowledge structures. A more detailed view onto these structures reveals that they consist first of the second-order-themes knowledge significance (criticality and distinctiveness relate to the importance of knowledge to the strategic performance of a firm). The usage of knowledge is mostly seen in three areas: technical effectiveness, operational efficiency and customer responsiveness. Second, the knowledge schemes consist of knowledge source (external accessibility, personal competence and lower-echelon knowledgeability relate to the usefulness and quality of different origins of knowledge). Executive scanning means the activity to acquire additional knowledge. It differs in the quantity and the character how managers search to extend the strategic resources. Scanning intensity describes the amount of time and effort managers invest to acquire new knowledge. The other second-order theme scanning proactiveness goes beyond the intensity in order to get better and other information than competitors do. Uncommon knowledge use means the application of knowledge to a firm’s challenges. As long as a foundry does not know how to use common knowledge for its own problems it does not have a competitive advantage of knowledge (it does define about costs as differentiation). Only if it is using uncommon knowledge it becomes distinctive knowledge and therefore turns into a competitive advantage. In the second-order themes this dimension is separated into knowledge adaption and knowledge augmentation. The first one describes how to use new knowledge to solve specific problems and generate new methods. The second one goes beyond; it is about understanding problems in principle. When you are familiar with the principle you can adapt knowledge to related problems and through that it is possible to generate new knowledge by you. Different emphases in second-order themes are more likely to be linked with certain emphases on another second-order theme (e.g. strong believe in technological effectiveness is associated with engaging in proactive scanning). Through those linkages Nag and Gioia were able to draw tree knowledge pathways. The knowledge adaption pathways describe the track how managerial distinctions emerge to knowledge adaption. The knowledge augmentation pathways describe the way to the augmentation of knowledge and the third track describes how it happens that uncommon knowledge is not used. In the knowledge adaption pathways executives consider knowledge as most important for operational efficiency. They believe it’s hard to obtain from external sources and they have confidence in their own knowledge but limited trust in workers’ knowledge. They are scan-ning intensively for knowledge and personally they had a greater share in knowledge work. Firms on that pathway are adapting knowledge and come more likely to an incremental development. In contrast described before in the knowledge augmentation pathways leaders have a strong confidence on own knowledge, on workers capabilities and they believe their know-ledge is distinctive and hard to imitate for competitors. Therefore they are scanning pro-actively and engaging others to knowledge work. These companies use uncommon know-ledge through augmentation. Radical innovations are more likely in those companies. On the path for no uncommon knowledge use the executives contribute knowledge mostly to raise customer’s responsiveness. They have low confidence in company’s knowledge, their own and in workers’ knowledge. Through low and infrequent scanning activity they reduce the information available and therefore they avoid uncommon knowledge usage. Companies on that path are less cost efficient than companies on the paths described before. (2) Strengths and weaknesses of the methodological approach In general the study appears consistent and methodologically well done. While interpreting participants the authors included quotations (‘in vivo’ codes) of the respondents in the paper to underline their interpretations. For â€Å"member checking† they organized two group discussions with executives to verify the findings. They had a grounded theory approach. Starting from the interviews they developed inductively the model. In a quite good manner they developed graphics illustrating their model which make the study easier comprehensible for outsiders. It could be criticized that the authors did not reveal their bias and research background to the topic. In 2006 Nag published his dissertation with the title â€Å"From common to uncommon knowledge: An investigation into the socio-cognitive foundations of inter-firm heterogeneity in the use of knowledge as a resource†. Gioia was the chair of the dissertation committee. The dissertation had the same study population from the foundry industry with partially identical interviewees. In that dissertation more and less detailed sketches of the model in the current paper were presented. Against this backdrop the inductive approach could be suspected. It is more likely that there already existed some detailed ideas how the outcome could look like. Maybe here is the reason why the authors presented the literature review in the beginning which is unusual for an inductive approach. But nevertheless the developed model seems to be fully founded in the data. It could be mentioned more clearly when actually common knowledge becomes uncommon knowledge. The kind of knowledge which is spoken about is not clear enough. For example in the dimension knowledge schemes there are mentioned market insights as well as technological insights. But concurrent the dimension uncommon knowledge usage is all about technological and process effectiveness issues. Furthermore following there are detailed critiques concerning the sampling and the interviews. Sampling The study population like chosen in the study is well defined and concrete: Firms belong with the same industry Saturated industry with a lot of established common knowledge (=same basis) and where uncommon knowledge is the way to compete Foundries have a comparable (low) complexity (

Equality and Inclusion in the Health and Social Care or Children and Young People Setting Essay

Diversity can be expained in many different ways, for example a â€Å"diverse work force† is when a work team has many differences in all different aspects, in example a work team which includes different races, ages, gender and interests. Equality is described in which all individuals arre treated equaly, equal oppurtunties plays a big part within the health and social care setting. Discrimination is when an individual is treated unfairly due to certain aspects, for example discriminated agaisnt because of age, race, sex, interests. Discrimination happens in all settings, social and formal. Within a work setting discrimination can come across in different ways, for example if a racist team leader had a team member of a different race always giving them harder or more uncomfortable jobs than the other team members can be classed as discrimination. Discrimination arises due to different reasons, whether it is a person may not like another, racism, sexism and jelousy can make people discriminate. Equal oppurtunities is a piece of legislation put in to place by the government to help ensure that discrimination does not occur within work settings, so for example when applying for a job you as the applicant should not have to disclose your religion and/or beleifs, medical information and other pieces of information until your have made it through to atleast the interveiw stage. Also if helps to ensure discrimination does not arise within the work places, for example that women and men are given the exact same rights and choices when involved within the work setting, also that age, race and sex do not influence people in making desicions. (outcomes 1. 1, 1. 2, 1. 3) The government put pieces of legislation in to place to ensure the health and safety of people within the work setting, the equal oppurtunities act was put in to place to ensure every one was treated equaly when withn the work setting. This applies to my job role in ways such as it can be a challenging job, and some service users can show aggressive violent challenging behaviour, so in the example the equal oppurtunities act helps make sure that sexism is not shown, for example, if a violent situation was to arise then the staffing team beleives that the female staff memebers are just as capable of dealing with the situation as the male staff members. There are ots of pieces of legislation in place to help in supporting staff members in all of the work sectors, for example there is the disability discrimination act, sex discrimination act, racial and religious hatred act and equality and diversity. All these pieces of legislation are put in to place to help people within all the work sectors and relate to every employee/employer in the country in every job role. Discrimination arises in a lot of work settings even though the government have implemented policies and procedures to be followed to help stop discrimination. Discrimination in a work setting should always be challenged and dealt with. For example within a racially diverse work team if racial discrimination was to arise then any member of the team who was aware of this should deal with it in the appropriate manner, in a lot of companies and organisations there will be a whistle blowing policy set in to place. Any member off staff that feels disctimination is going on within the work setting has a duty to report it and go through the whislte blowing procedures to ensure the safety of every staff member within the company or organisation. In doing so the situation will be dealt with through the approprisate policies and procedures leading to the problem being challenged and dealth with accordingly. ( Outcomes 2. 1, 2. 3) The government help to ensure that all information is accessible as and when needed, there are different government websites that can be accessed through the internet. Also the Citizens advice bureau is a government ran organisation that is there to give help and support to people with legal matters. Every company or organisation should have all of the policies and procedures set in to place ensuring that all staff can access them. For example some companies may have paper copies stored away on site, others may have electronic copies on a system made accessible to all staff members at any moment. Also most companies or organisations will ensure that each staff member has read through the policies and procedures before starting their job role. This is to ensure that all staff are up to dat with the latest policies and procedures and it helps to ensure staff have a full understanding of the companies rules and regulations put in to place.

Paulino J. Garcia Memorial Research and Medical Center...

Organizational Behavior Case Analysis on Dr. Paulino J. Garcia Memorial Research and Medical Center Executive Summary The Dr. Paulino J. Garcia Memorial Research and Medical Center (Dr. PJGMRMC) is an established and yet growing hospital. However, come with the expansions through enabling acts and how the organization grows in an ever changing environment come also challenges and issues the hospital has to face. Among these issues are improving their nurses over all service performance. In government hospitals, the nurse to patient ratio is quite out of hand. Tendencies, nurses will always end up being put in high stress level situations and end up being overworked. But a major concern in government hospitals just like Dr. PJGMRMC is†¦show more content†¦Paulino J. Garcia Memorial Research and Medical Center (Dr. PJGMRMC), previously called the Nueva Ecija Provincial Health before its conversion authored by Congressman Leopoldo Diaz and Congressman Angel Concepcion of the First and Second districts of Nueva Ecija respectively, opened its doors on December 15, 1930 under th e Commonwealth Act 3114, as amended by Act 3168. Situated first in Cabanatuan, it’s hospital staff, facilities, equipment was transferred to Cabiao, Nueva Ecija, Calumpit, Bulacan and Sta. Maria, Bulacan. In February 1945, it resumed its operation in Cabanatuan aided by the 19th portable hospital of the USA which was so turned over to the Philippine Government on July 1, 1945. The hospital’s bed capacity has changed throughout the years through the passage of enabling acts as shown in the table below. LAW | YEAR | # OF BEDS | C.A. 3114 | 1930 | 30 | | 1935 | 75 | | 1959 | 100 | | 1960 | 125 | | 1961 | 150 | | 1965 | 225 | R.A. 5141 | 1967 | 400 | Services Offered *See appendix for Services offered Additional Company Information Leadership Style Leadership can be classified in types such as democratic, autocratic, laissez-faire and other types but the Hospital Management exercises a participatory kind of management. It’s EXECOM is composed of the Medical Center Chief; three main division chiefs namely the Chief of Medical Professional Staff for the Medical Division, Chief Administrative Officer for the