INTERNATIONAL TRADE
The U.S. international trade gap in September widened to $36.5 billion from $30.7 billion worth of red ink in August. Exports rose 2.9 percent while imports jumped 5.8 percent. The worsening of the trade deficit was led by a wider petroleum shortfall which came in at $20.5 billion compared to $16.6 billion the previous month. The nonpetroleum gap increased to $25.9 billion from $24.3 billion in August. Looking ahead, the sneak peak indicators are mixed. First, there could be a drop in auto imports from Canada as not as many are needed with cash for clunkers having concluded. But a drop in shipments of nondefense capital goods in October could show up in lower capital goods exports. Also, higher oil prices will cut into any potential improvement in the trade gap.
RETAIL SALES
Retail sales in October rebounded 1.4 percent after a revised 2.3 percent fall in September. The October jump in overall sales was led by a 7.4 percent rebound in auto sales after a 14.3 percent plunge in September. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales improved 0.2 percent, following a 0.4 percent rise in September. Excluding motor vehicles and gasoline, retail sales increased 0.3 percent, matching September's gain. Looking ahead indicators are mixed. Motor vehicle sales were up again for November but department store sales were soft for the month as a whole. Net, there likely will be a sizeable rise in retail sales for November, led by autos.
TREASURY BUDGET
The U.S. Treasury monthly budget report showed a massive $176.4 billion deficit in October, the first month of the government's fiscal year. The year-ago October deficit was $155.5 billion. Latest receipts were down a year-on-year 18 percent with outlays up 6 percent. Looking ahead, the month of November typically shows a deficit for the month. Over the past 10 years, the average deficit for the month of November has been $68.4 billion and $95.3 billion over the past 5 years. The November 2008 deficit came in at $165.4 billion.
JOBLESS CLAIMS
Initial jobless claims fell 5,000 in the November 28 week to 457,000, extending a run of impressive improvement. Continuing claims for the November 21 week rose slightly to 5.465 million with the insured-workers unemployment rate steady at 4.1 percent, well down from a summer peak of 5.2 percent.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Week 14
"Organizational Control and Quality Improvement" (Final Chapter)
Here goes a few key points we discussed from this chapter.
The three basic components of organizational control systems are objectives, strandards, and an evaluation-reward system.
According to the performance pyramid, strategic control involves the downward translation of objective and the upward translation of performance measures. Both external effectiveness ans internal efficiency criteria need to be achieved.
Product quality involves much more than the basic idea of conformance and requirements. Five types of product quality are transcedent, product-based, user-based, manufactoring-based, and value-based.
Total quality management (TQM) involves creating a culture dedicated to customer-centered, employee-driven continuous improvement. The four principles are: Do it right the first time, be customer-centered, make continuous improvement a way of life, and build teamwork and empowerment.
Seven Basic TQM process improvement tools are flow charts, fishbone diagrams, pareto analysis, control charts, histograms, scatter diagrams, and run charts.
Here goes a few key points we discussed from this chapter.
The three basic components of organizational control systems are objectives, strandards, and an evaluation-reward system.
According to the performance pyramid, strategic control involves the downward translation of objective and the upward translation of performance measures. Both external effectiveness ans internal efficiency criteria need to be achieved.
Product quality involves much more than the basic idea of conformance and requirements. Five types of product quality are transcedent, product-based, user-based, manufactoring-based, and value-based.
Total quality management (TQM) involves creating a culture dedicated to customer-centered, employee-driven continuous improvement. The four principles are: Do it right the first time, be customer-centered, make continuous improvement a way of life, and build teamwork and empowerment.
Seven Basic TQM process improvement tools are flow charts, fishbone diagrams, pareto analysis, control charts, histograms, scatter diagrams, and run charts.
Week 13
"Change Conflict, and Negotiation"
The way that businesses run today, managers need to do a much better job of managing the process of change. In the book we saw that the Nadler and Tushman's model identifies four types of organizational change by cross-referencing anticipatory and reactive change with incremental and strategic change. Four resulting types of change are tuning, adaptation, re-orientation, and re-creation.
People who like change tend to go through three stages: unrealistic optimism, reality shock, and constructive direction. When someone fears or dislikes change, a more complex process involving five stages tend to occur: getting off on the wrong track, laughing it off, experiencing growing self-doubt, buying in, and moving in a constructive direction. Managers are challenged to help employees deal efectively with reality shock and self-doubt.
Inevitable resistance to change must be overcome if the organization is to suceed.
Three basic elements of effective negotiations are a win-win attitude, a best alternative to a negotiated agreement to serve as a negotiating standard, and the calculation of a bargaining zone to identify overlapping interests.
The way that businesses run today, managers need to do a much better job of managing the process of change. In the book we saw that the Nadler and Tushman's model identifies four types of organizational change by cross-referencing anticipatory and reactive change with incremental and strategic change. Four resulting types of change are tuning, adaptation, re-orientation, and re-creation.
People who like change tend to go through three stages: unrealistic optimism, reality shock, and constructive direction. When someone fears or dislikes change, a more complex process involving five stages tend to occur: getting off on the wrong track, laughing it off, experiencing growing self-doubt, buying in, and moving in a constructive direction. Managers are challenged to help employees deal efectively with reality shock and self-doubt.
Inevitable resistance to change must be overcome if the organization is to suceed.
Three basic elements of effective negotiations are a win-win attitude, a best alternative to a negotiated agreement to serve as a negotiating standard, and the calculation of a bargaining zone to identify overlapping interests.
Week 12
"Influence, Power, and Leadership"
Some things that we saw in this chapter was that influence is fundametanl to management because individuals must be influenced to pursue collective objectives. Researchers have identified eight generic influence tactics used fon the job: consultation, rational persuasion, inspirational appeals, ingratiating tactics, coallition tactics, pressure tactics, upward appeals, and exchange tactics.
We discussed the the five basic types of power which are reward , coercive, legitimate, referent, and expert power.
In addition we also learned that formal leadership consints ofminfluencing relevant others to voluntarily pursue organizational objectives.
Leadership theory has evolved through four major stages: trait theory, behavioral styles theory, situational theory, and transformational theory.
Some things that we saw in this chapter was that influence is fundametanl to management because individuals must be influenced to pursue collective objectives. Researchers have identified eight generic influence tactics used fon the job: consultation, rational persuasion, inspirational appeals, ingratiating tactics, coallition tactics, pressure tactics, upward appeals, and exchange tactics.
We discussed the the five basic types of power which are reward , coercive, legitimate, referent, and expert power.
In addition we also learned that formal leadership consints ofminfluencing relevant others to voluntarily pursue organizational objectives.
Leadership theory has evolved through four major stages: trait theory, behavioral styles theory, situational theory, and transformational theory.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Week 11
"Group Dynamics and Teamwork"
This week we talked about groups which are made up of two or more freely interacting individuals who have a common goal or purpose. It is a very essential for managers to have a working understanding of group dynamics, afterall they are the baseic building blocks of any organization.
Building mature groups was broken down to a six step process, where during the first three stages (orientation, conflict and challenge, and cohesion) power and authority problems are resolved. groups are faced with the obstcle of uncertainty over interpersonal relations during the last three stages (delusion, disillusion, and acceptance).
Among group work, many different aspects can work against the group's effectiveness, but we did discuss an important aspect that was Organizations politics, which is usually associated with larger organizations, but could also happen in any organization. Political tactics such as posturizing, empire building, coolecting and using social UOU's, creating power and loyalty cliques, and destructive competions need to kept on check if the organization is to be effective.
Among all aspects of group work, the chapter listed Trust, as a key ingredient of effective teamwork, which is actually very low in the American workplace today.
Managers can build trust in an organization or group by creating an environment of better communication among workers, in addition to support, respect, fairness, and competence within the company.
When group members trust one another, there will be a morea active exachange of information, more interpesonal influence, and better results overall which is the pretty much the goal of any company.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Story of Stuff
Watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8
From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.
©Tides Foundation & Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.
©Tides Foundation & Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Week 10
"Motivating Job Performance"
Some theories we studied this week was Maslow's five-level hierarchy of needs that makes it clear to managers that people are motivated byemerging rather than fullfilled needs. Differently, Herzberg believed that the most that waged and working conditions cand do is eliminate sources of dissatisfaction. According to Herzberg the key to true satisfaction and motivaitons, is an enriched job that provides and opportunity of achievement, responsibility, and personal growth.
The expenctancy theory is based on the idea that the strength of one's motivation to work is the product of perceived probabilities of acquiring personally valued rewards. Both effort-performance and performance-reward probabilities are important in expectancy theory.
Goals can also be an effective motivational tool when they are specific, difficult, participatively set, and accompanied by feedback on performance. Goals motivate performance by directing attention, encouraging effort and persistence, and prompting goal-attainment strategies and action plans.
Some theories we studied this week was Maslow's five-level hierarchy of needs that makes it clear to managers that people are motivated byemerging rather than fullfilled needs. Differently, Herzberg believed that the most that waged and working conditions cand do is eliminate sources of dissatisfaction. According to Herzberg the key to true satisfaction and motivaitons, is an enriched job that provides and opportunity of achievement, responsibility, and personal growth.
The expenctancy theory is based on the idea that the strength of one's motivation to work is the product of perceived probabilities of acquiring personally valued rewards. Both effort-performance and performance-reward probabilities are important in expectancy theory.
Goals can also be an effective motivational tool when they are specific, difficult, participatively set, and accompanied by feedback on performance. Goals motivate performance by directing attention, encouraging effort and persistence, and prompting goal-attainment strategies and action plans.
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