Climate Change Is A Terrible Problem - 1220 Words

Big Polluter Agenda Climate change is a terrible problem, and it absolutely needs to be solved. It deserves to be a huge priority (Bill Gates). As we progress as unified communities, nations, states, cities, etc., we contribute to either a solution or to the problem. Our current government has intents to help these environmental issues yet like any other foreign policy there are two sides to every issue. By definition of foreign policy, which is the articulation of national interests and the means chosen to secure those interests both material and ideational internationally, an environmental issue is a set of predicaments with the planet’s systems that have been developed due to human intrusion and mistreatment (Balyis). Environmental issues can range in many aspects from global warming, deforestation, air and water pollution, overpopulation, soil erosion, destruction of biodiversity, littering, destruction of natural habitats and natural resources, attack of marine life, oil spills, nuclear issu es, acid deposition, environmental disasters, volcanic eruptions, greenhouse effect, sea level rise, fossil fuels, and species extinction. A current issue being brought up on environmental policies this year is the Big Polluter Agenda in both the House and the Senate. The Big Polluter Agenda is blocking the president’s plan to reduce carbon pollution from power plants, forcing approval of the Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline, obstructing the limits on smog, stopping the Clean WaterShow MoreRelatedGlobal Warming Is A Hoax1506 Words   |  7 Pageswarming as showing the superiority of yourself to the best subjects, some even seriously affect your life. So what is global warming? Global warming is, in essence, term for the observed century scale rise in the average temperature of the earth’s climate and its related effect.(wiki) The greenhouse effect is mainly because the modern industrial society burned too much coal, oil and natural gas, the fuel combustion after release large amounts of carbon dioxide gas into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxideRead MoreCause And Effect Of Deforestation1259 Words   |  6 PagesRichard Armada Ms. Davis COD English Period 2 28 October 2015 Cause and Effect of Deforestation Deforestation is a problem that does not concern many people, but it is an issue that the people of Earth need to deal with. In the past 50 years deforestation has increased a significant amount, but people around the world have been removing the forests since the 1600s. The forests remaining are in danger as the human population goes up, the need for resources will also increase and this will make theRead More Humans Cause Climate Change Essays508 Words   |  3 Pagesface a string of terrible catastrophes unless we act to prepare ourselves and deal with the underlying causes of global warming. -- Al Gore Many misinformed people believe that extreme climate change is a natural process; something that human activities have nothing to do with. They cite events such as the Ice Age and believe that these events are part of a natural Earth cycling. Therefore, they happen despite anything that humans do. A common misunderstanding of the climate system characterizesRead MoreShould We Adopt A Vegan Lifestyle?1495 Words   |  6 Pageslifestyle that can outweigh any other lifestyle. Incorporating the benefits with knowing that it can change the world is eye-opening. There are many questions non-vegans have, for instance: how does the health of the animals affect the health of the planet and humans? By adopting a vegan lifestyle, Americans would prevent the unethical and terrible welfare of livestock animals, stop the rise of climate change, and end food insecurity while providing underdeveloped nations with basic nourishment, despiteRead MoreThe Increase Of Gross Domestic Product899 Words   |  4 Pagesemissions that might help to diminish the climate change and inspire other countries to take action too. New research shows that if present trends continue, the total cost of global warming will be as high as 3.6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The impacts of global warming will come with price approximately of $1.9 trillion annually by 2100. Current projections of the earth s surface - data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - will continue to rise on thisRead MoreGlobal Warming Is The Main Features Of Climate Change921 Words   |  4 PagesPrevent Global Climate Change In the process of human history, because of the greed of human nature, abuse the science and technology, world environment and resources have been severely damaged. And causing Global climate change, and the resulting related hazards. Global climate change is just an indisputable fact. Do you felt the climate changes? We have been from climate change to feel some strange this year. Global warming is the main features of climate change. According to the evidence thatRead MoreThe Impact Of Ecological And Climate Change On Europe1614 Words   |  7 PagesWhat was the impact of ecological and climate change on Europe between c.1500 and c.1650? 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The consequences of such shortages ofRead MoreKoch, Mo ney, Denialism And Climate Change1241 Words   |  5 PagesKoch, Money, Denialism and Climate Change. These last two election cycles have demonstrated the importance of climate change in relation to politics and the american people. What is unfortunate is that what seems to be a very crucial and real problem in our human survival, according to scientists, is being debated by people who do not have the scientific credentials to even discuss the science behind the reality of climate change. Those behind the skeptics, have funded a successful campaign againstRead MoreGlobal Climate Change Triggered By Global Warming884 Words   |  4 PagesThe article, Global Climate Change Triggered by Global Warming by Stuart D. Jordan, seeks to provide evidence that global climate change caused by global warming is currently in affect and requires immediate attention and action. Jordan claims that the Earth’s climate has been undergoing significant and alarming changes for the past thirty years. He provided evidence based on observations, theoretical models, and calculations made by other res earchers. The article addressed the increase in temperature

Jane Austen s Pride And Prejudice - 1138 Words

Pride and Prejudice is a novel about the superficiality of marriage during the late 19th and early 20th century, which largely influenced the decisions made by individuals, based on connections and social rankings. The novel takes its characters through various changes influenced by their decision to or rather not to marry certain individuals. It begins not by a man desiring to marry for love, but by a mother who desires nothing more than to marry her daughters well. As the novel develops, Jane Austen presents the reader with various courtships and marriages which not only mock the idea of marrying for economic security, but instead propose that the only way to marry is through love. In Pride and Prejudice, the author Jane Austen utilizes†¦show more content†¦This in turn explain why Charlotte does not accept Mr. Collin’s proposal, she accepts it under economic pressure. However, she is succumbing to the social norms, falling into a cycle concerning social rankings. W hile a lot of the marriages took place a means for securing a future, they did not all develop the same. In the novel, marriage also demonstrated that committing to a lifetime with an individual does not always provide with the best fate, instead it might enclose someone in a pit of emptiness. After finding out the news about Lydia and Mr. Wickham s departure, Elizabeth could not help but question the situation. How could Mr. Wickham â€Å"marry a girl whom it was impossible he could marry for money† as well as how Lydia could ever grown â€Å"attached [to] him, had appeared incomprehensible† (Austin 218). Elizabeth is now aware of the truth about Mr. Wickham, meaning she knows that all of which he is looking for is a path into richness and success. Lydia was more than eager to marry a handsome man, however, he only viewed her as an opportunity to fortune. Additionally, after receiving Lydia’s letter, Elizabeth observed the result of their infatuation upon their marriage. Not only did they spend their time traveling fromâ€Å" place to place in quest of a cheap sit uation, and always spending more then they ought† but Mr. Wickham’s admirationâ€Å"for her soon sunk into indifference; hers lasted a littleShow MoreRelatedJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1231 Words   |  5 Pagesfinancial stability. In the novel Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen states that the desire for better social connections interferes with the workings of love through the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth to criticize the social class structure of the 19th century. Anxieties about social connections or the desire for better social connections, interfere with the workings of love. Darcy and Elizabeth s realization of a mutual and tender love seems to imply that Jane Austen views love as something independentRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1294 Words   |  6 PagesJane Austen s exceptional novel Pride and Prejudice has been depicted as a classic that is as much a social study on class, marriage and gender as it is a romantic tale. It is an amusing representation of the social atmosphere of the late eighteenth and mid nineteenth century England, and it is primarily required with courtship rituals of the English high class. The novel is more than a romantic tale, however through Austen s subtle, and ironic style, it addresses gender, class, and marriageRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice992 Words   |  4 Pages It is unfortunate that many people tend to dismiss Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice, as simply a roman tic love story, even labeling it a â€Å"chick flick.† Upon a shallow reading, it may appear to be such, but a closer look at the novel reveals so much more embedded in the story. In addition to describing the entertaining relationship between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, the novel serves to forward Austen s personal values and ideas. Furthermore, there is one issue of her era that she particularlyRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1211 Words   |  5 PagesJane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was greatly influenced by the time period in which it was written, This novel follows the story of Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters as they are faced with marriage proposals. The marriage and roles of women in this time period are shown throughout this story. During the time Austen was writing this novel, a woman’s role for her family changed. Daughters started to become a way for their family to achieve more money. Because their family depended on this financialRead M oreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1675 Words   |  7 PagesIn Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, she has specific criteria that her characters follow when choosing their mates. In today’s society, most couples still follow these criteria and more when choosing their ideal mate. What are these important criteria that Austen’s characters consider when choosing a mate? For Austen, the important criteria that she has for choosing a mate are that couples are personally compatible, they are in love with each other, and they must have a good moral character. Read MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1678 Words   |  7 PagesAfter reading Jane Austen’s most popular piece of work, the effects of the high societal expectations can be acknowledged through viewing the lives of the Bennet family and friends and noting such effects. Through the examination of the characters in Pride and Prejudice it is easily deciphered between marriages based upon true love and marriage based upon the expectations of society. Society’s main goal for woman in the Victorian era was marriage. As seen many in Pride and Prejudice, marriage wasRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1434 Words   |  6 PagesJane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was considered a radical novel back in 1813 when she wrote and published the piece. It is a social commentary on the treatment and societal standards of women, as well marriage expectations at the turn of the 19th century. Austen criticizes the patriarchal society, materialism, double standards of men and women by centering the book around Elizabeth Bennett, a young woman of decent means who does not understand the reason for the pressure to find a suitable husbandRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1468 Words   |  6 Pagesestablished over time. In Jane Austen s novel, Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth Bennet is the main character who is a lady in the Regency Era. Elizabeth lives in Longbourn with her parents, Mr and Mrs Bennet and her four sisters. In the beginning of the novel, Elizabeth s prejudice mindset and strong opinion blinds her from realizations happening around her. Soon, Elizabeth s prejudice disappears allowing her to open up and fall in love. Throughout Jane Austen s novel, Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth growsRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1649 Words   |  7 PagesIn her novel, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen is pre-occupied with the theme of marriage. Marriage is a central issue of a woman’s life but it was even more crucial for the women of her society where women were largely dependent on the men in their lives. As a result, women pursued socio-economic stability through marriage. However, it is clear through the novel that Austen did not agree with this part of her society. In Pride and Prejudice, she gives preference to a marriage which is based on loveRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1304 Words   |  6 Pages Introduction In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen portrays themes of love, class, reputation, and marriage. From the beginning it is seen that the question of marriage is very important to the Bennet family. Upon not marrying, the girls cousin Mr. Collins will inherit Longbourn due to the absence of a male heir. This means that the family will become destitute since they won t have any support or a place to live. The only solution for them would be marriage. During this era, since women

Critical Discussion of Crisis Management and BP Leadership Free Essays

string(24) " seen in recent memory\." Introduction Literature Review This section briefly discusses crisis management and leadership, the two key areas of literature that will help to examine Tony Hayward’s leadership during BP’s most recent organisational crisis. Crisis and Crisis Management There is no one definition of the term ‘crisis’ (Keown-McMullan, 1997), however a guiding definition is that a crisis is an event that impacts or has the potential to impact the entire organisation (Mitroff and Anagnos, 2000). A crisis can also be described as a major, unforeseen circumstance that can potentially jeopardise an organisation’s employees, customers, products, services, fiscal situation, or reputation (Callan, 2002, Augustine, 1995, Santana, 2003). We will write a custom essay sample on Critical Discussion of Crisis Management and BP Leadership or any similar topic only for you Order Now This definition is in line with the theory that a crisis is characterised by three elements: high threat, short decision time, and an element of surprise, indicating that each crisis contains an urgency that necessitates decisions and actions to be taken immediately by the people involved (Keown-McMullan, 1997, Reilly 1987). While the idea that a crisis as a negative state of affairs is still the most popular construal in the literature, the idea of a positive outcome from a crisis situation can also be found in some definitions and discussion (Keown-McMullan, 1997). For example, Fink (1986, p. 15) defines a crisis as: †¦an unstable time or state of affairs in which a decisive change is impending – either one with the distinct possibility of a highly undesirable outcome or one with the distinct possibility of a highly desirable and extremely positive outcome. It is usually a 50-50 proposition, but you can improve the odds. This definition implies that, if managed effectively, a crisis can bring a desirable outcome. Indeed, it has been suggested that an organisation can experience a ‘successful’ crisis that actually leads to improved firm’s performance (Boin and ’t Hart, 2003). Such an outcome is possible because crisis â€Å"focuses attention on how tasks are managed and draws new patterns of cohesion, a successfully handled crisis can benefit an organisation† (David, 1990, p. 90). This therefore reinforces the fact that the effective management of crises is important. It should thus entail the execution of well-coordinated actions to limit any damage and preserve or rebuild confidence in the organisation under crisis. It is also important that crisis management should start before a crisis arises and may extend after the ‘actual crisis come to an end, such as after the oil has stopped gushing into the sea (Fink, 1986). Based on this, Santana (2003, p. 308) defin es crisis management as: †¦ an ongoing integrated and comprehensive effort that organisations effectively put into place in an attempt to first and foremost understand and prevent crisis, and to effectively manage those that occur, taking into account in each and every step of their planning and training activities, the interest of their stakeholders. There are number of elements within the external environment, shifting of which leads to the occurrence of a crisis. These elements include Political – legal, economic, social and technological forces and these constitutes a complex network within which organisations exist. Even though shifting of these elements do not occur often, organisations needs to consider these elements while drafting their strategy because of negative blow that would be brought about by shifting of these elements. The most common examples are when government across the world come up with a law that bans the sale of certain type of products. This would create substantial disruption in a firm’s operations which would constitute a crisis. This does not mean that every external threat faced by an organisation will constitute a crisis. For e.g., if a government passes a law which would require manufacturers of certain products to have 2 languages in a product pack, rather than having one that is us ed in the current pack, it cannot be considered as a crisis as it would not probably cause substantial disruption. Therefore, the term ‘crisis’ cannot be used for every external threat and in most of the cases, even though the organisations tend to be regularly exposed to number of actual and potential crisis situations, they fail to recognise its seriousness. The following examples illustrate this reality (Crandall et al, 2009). Political and legal forces Some of the political forces that contribute to a shift which has the potential to lead to a full blown crisis include relations between countries, outcome of meetings between government leaders, rules and regulations and decisions taken by individuals and teams at various levels of government. The legal forces that can contribute to the crisis include laws and legislations passed on by governments, the judgements made by judiciary in various cases involving government and an organisation etc (Crandall et al, 2009) (GOEL, 2009). Economic forces The economic forces contributing to the shift includes changes in the Gross domestic product and various indicators that show the economic health of a country. These include inflation, exchange rate and interest rates (Labrosse et al, 2009)/ Social forces The social factors contributing to the shift includes values within the society, the change in traditions and religious practices. The crisis from social factors will be disastrous when society / people lose trust in the company or are angry with a corporation. This can be explained by the recent banking and financial crisis. The main reason for the crisis is that people and society and organisations lost trust in each other. This made people withdraw huge sums of money from the banks, who were not in a position to fulfil the demand because the banks or organisations from which they were expecting money were not willing to provide them the cash. What made people angrier was that banks or other financial institutions were paying huge amount of bonuses to their employee while people outside these institutions were losing money. This opportunistic behaviour of bankers, stockbrokers, investment bankers etc lead to a situation where common man lost trust in the stock market, which is an i ndicator of the performance of top companies of a nation, and it plummeted down to record levels not seen in recent memory. You read "Critical Discussion of Crisis Management and BP Leadership" in category "Essay examples" The spiral effects lead to laying off of thousands of people which affected the economies of the countries across the world because as companies lay off workers, their spending capacity reduces. Once their spending capacity reduces, then they are not in a position to go to high street shops to buy products. When people are not going to high street shops to buy products, then these shops lay off people thereby affecting the local economy. Most of these people would be having a number of commitments like paying their mortgage, credit card debt, personal loans etc. When people are not in a position to pay off these debts, the financial institutions are not in a position to roll over money which hits the core of banking activity. Thus, this shift in one social factor called trust has lead to one of the most dreadful global crisis ever experienced by mankind in recent history. Even though, it’s been close to 2 years since the crisis, a vast majority of countries and organisations have not yet been able to recover fully from the impact (Crandall et al, 2009) (Jordan-Meier, 2011). Technological forces The technological factors which contribute to shift include major scientific innovations or improvements. These innovations or improvements can lead to either creation of new opportunity or threat to existing businesses. Technological innovations and improvements have the capability to destroy not only existing businesses but also entire industry as well. For example, personal computers were a fantastic technological innovation which gave rise to a entire new industry centred around computers which includes monitors, servers, operating systems etc. But the rise of the computer industry was followed by the slow demise of the type writing industry following the development of word processors and personal computers (Moore, 2005). In fact, just a couple of months back, world’s last remaining typewriting factory was closed by its owners Godrej and Boyce in Mumbai, India Over the period of last few decades, different frameworks for crisis have been developed by taking into account different stages of crisis. The frame work for a crisis is based on the analysis of the life cycle of the crisis and this is usually accounted for by three-stage approach and four-stage approach (Laws, 2006). The three-stage framework is the most basic approach to crisis and involves the following stages – PreCrisis, Crisis and Post Crisis. Different experts have suggested different formats for three-stage format. In the three-stage approach suggested by Smith (1990), Crisis of management constitutes the Pre Crisis stage; the crisis stage is called Operational Crisis and post crisis stage is called Crisis of Legitimation. In the Crisis of Management stage, a crisis can be easily triggered by a event due to the fact that organisation is not prepared to handle the crisis and actions of the leaders in the organisation does not inspire confidence in their teams. In the second stage, called the Operational Crisis stage, all the key leaders in the organisation put their heads together and try to develop quick fix solutions to get over the crisis. In the third stage called Crisis of Legitimation, the key stakeholders in the organisation including the ones who played a major role in Operat ional stage starts looking for scapegoats so as to shift blame and to appear legitimate and rightful in the eyes of public after the crisis (Andari, 2010) (Coombs, 2010). Another approach to three-stage framework is the one suggested by Richardson (1994). In this framework, the PreCrisis stage is called disaster phase and this phase focuses on neutralising all the threats that may cause a crisis. In Crisis stage is called Rescue stage and is focused on the occurrence of the crisis. The Post Crisis stage is called Demise stage which emphasis on restoring stakeholders confidence in the organisation following the occurrence of the crisis (Coombs, 2010). Another approach to crisis is a four – stage framework which adds an additional stage, to the three-stage framework, which focuses on the progression as it happens during the crisis. In one of four-stage framework suggested by Myers (1993), the first stage is a Operations stage, where the organisations puts in standard operating procedures and crisis management teams to act in response to the occurrence of the crisis. The second stage is the emergency response stage which focuses on the response that needs to be initiated in the first few hours following the occurrence of the crisis. The third stage is called Interim processing stage where stop gap arrangement and temporary procedures are put in place until the restoration of normal operations. The fourth stage is the restoration stage where the organisation comes back to normal operations (Coombs, 2010) (Crandall, 2009). Another approach to four-stage framework was put forward by Fink (1996). In the approach, the first stage is called Prodormal stage which is stage before a full blown crisis and shows all the red flags and warning signs that a crisis is imminent. If remedial measures are taken during the prodormal stage, then a crisis can be prevented. The second stage is called Acute crisis stage and this is stage where actual crisis is happening and normal operations are seriously disrupted. This is also the stage where outsiders of the organisations get to see and hear about the crisis on a regular basis. The third stage is called chronic crisis stage which is not as dramatic as acute crisis stage and the organisation is trying to clean the mess created during the acute crisis stage. The Resolution stage is the final stage where the organisation has just gotten over the crisis and is slowly coming back to the normal operations (Fink, 1996) Five stage frameworks is another approach to crisis and provide a more detailed approach than the three stage framework and four stage frameworks. It provides a more detailed understanding of different stages of the crisis (Perason Mitroff, 1993). In the five stage framework suggested by Pearson and Mitroff (1993), the following stages are included : Signal detection: These are warning or red flags which occur when an organisation is slowly moving towards a crisis. In most cases, these warning and red flags are raised by people on the ground or lower level or middle level management or those directly interacting with customers. Detecting these signals and accepting them as ones which may lead to crisis so as to try to look at ways to manage a crisis is a skill not found is many leaders. Developing a mindset and skills so to become adept at detecting these signals is what organisations needs to embrace (Perason Mitroff, 1993). Preparation / prevention – In this stage, organisation gets ready to attack the crisis by setting up crisis management teams and workings on different plans to tackle different crisis occurring in different forms. The approach towards a crisis management will be through a systematic manner and should be on going. The objective from which this step is approached is to ensure that any crisis that may occur gets nipped in the bud (Perason Mitroff, 1993). Containment / damage control – This stage focuses on actual management of the crisis and trying to contain it with as minimal damage as possible to the organisation and stakeholder (Perason Mitroff, 1993) (Mitroff, 1992). Recovery – This stage focuses on bringing the workings of the organisation to as normal a stage as possible. The recovery process passes through different sub stages. The short term recovery stage tends to bring the working on the organisation to a minimal acceptable level of service. The short term recovery is followed by long term recovery where the operational capabilities of the organisation reach pre crisis level. In some cases, long term recovery will be followed by another recovery process whereby the organisation tends to work at a higher level than that was observed during the precrisis stage. For example, if a fire at a production facility destroys a old machine which has the capability to produce ‘X’ number of products every hour, then a modern machine which has been installed following a crisis has the capability to produce ‘2X’ products thereby ensuring higher level of productivity when compared to the Pre Crisis period (Perason Mitroff, 1993) (Mitroff, 1992). Learning – This fifth stage, post the recovery stage, focuses on improvising operational problems so as to prevent the occurrence of future ones. The stages emphasises on reflecting on the crisis and documenting the lessons learnt rather than finding scapegoats and blaming other parties (Perason Mitroff, 1993). Particularly important during major crises such as the BP oil spill, which affects many different stakeholders, is crisis communication. Crisis communication, which involves communicating with a range of stakeholders, generally relates to the public relations element of crisis management, and is arguably the single most important aspect of the organisation’s response to the crisis. It therefore requires communication with internal stakeholders, including employees and shareholders, and external stakeholders, such as customers, the media, and the surrounding community, about what occurred and how the organisation is managing the crisis (Callan, 2002). Effective Leadership in Crisis Leadership is one of the most discussed topics in times of crisis because, to most people, the importance of leadership is clear since effective organisational leadership: †¦provides a sense of cohesiveness, personal development, and higher levels of satisfaction among those conducting the work; and it provides an overarching sense of direction and vision, an alignment with the environment, a healthy mechanism for innovation and creativity, and a resource for invigorating the organisational culture (Van Wart, 2003, p. 214). As with trying to define ‘crisis,’ there are also many definitions of ‘leadership’ (Stodgill, 1974). Some researchers present established definitions of leadership, for example Kotter (1999, p. 10) defines leadership as â€Å"[t]he development of a vision and strategies, the alignment of relevant people behind those strategies and the empowerment of individuals to make the vision happen, despite obstacles.† Alternatively, some researchers present more general definitions of leadership that may apply equally well to leadership in organisations as to leadership in other settings. Peter. G.Northouse in his book â€Å"Leadership: Theory and Management† (2007 explores four components that are central to leadership: (1) Leadership is a process. (2) Leadership involves influence. (3) Leadership occurs in a group context. (4) Leadership involves goal attainment. Based on these four components, Northouse coined a definition which states that â€Å"Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal†. (Northouse, 2007, p .3). The concept of leadership has evolved over a period of time which typically reflects the larger society as norms, attitudes, and understandings in the larger world have evolved and thereby changed (Richard Daft, 2005). Crisis leadership effectiveness depends largely on an organisation which is responsible for creating an environment for the leadership to operate. A highly experienced and competent manager will still struggle to successfully manage a crisis if there is no adequate support from his colleagues and if the groups are poorly structured and disorganised. Micheal Blyth in his book Business continuity management: Building an effective incident management plan mentions about the following organisational principles to support effective crisis leadership (Blyth, 2009). Clear responsibilities Demarking of clear responsibilities in organisation will ensure that gaps and shortfalls are avoided and duplication of efforts is prevented. Establishing clear responsibilities will also ensure that during the occurrence of crisis along with internal company politics are eliminated (Blyth, 2009) (Fearn-Banks, 2007). Training and education Every organisation should develop a team of leaders who have expertise in dealing with crisis situations and that companies should regularly train these leaders by keeping aside time and resources. These leaders should be regularly trained on managing crisis and utilisation of policies, systems, tools and protocols (Blyth, 2009) (Fearn-Banks, 2007). Practice and rehearsals Regular practice and rehearsals by the crisis management groups will ensure that any loopholes or shortfalls. Regular practice will not only increase the confidence of crisis management team but also help develop familiarity with the Crisis management plans (Blyth, 2009). Empowering Leadership An organisation should develop certain parameters within which crisis management leadership should be empowered and given the freedom to operate. This decentralization process will ensure that crisis at the local level can bring about effective management in times of crisis. Having a centralised leadership in terms of crisis management will significantly undercut the ability of leaders in the ground to successfully manage crisis (Fearn-Banks, 2010). Delegation An important aspect of crisis management structure and the one which is the core component of empowering leadership is to sensibly delegate responsibilities to the lowest level decision making abilities so as to put in place a structured and streamlined management system (Blyth, 2009). Authority lines During the crisis, middle level managers should be aware of the person to be contacted for requisite permissions so as to prevent a scenario where the people attempt to name a decision maker during the crisis event. To ensure that swift actions are taken during the crisis, clear authority lines and permissions should be granted to the crisis management team and people within the organisation must be made aware of the responsibilities of their colleagues in times of crisis (Blyth, 2009). Established systems and supporting mechanisms Effective response to a crisis can be generated by having established systems and support mechanisms in place. Establishing these strategies in place prior to the crisis will help crisis leaders in taking logically defined decisions which will develop confidence among their peers and sub ordinates (Devlin, 2006). Innovation and Flexibility The corners stones of effective crisis leadership are Innovation and flexibility as crisis tends to be unique every time thereby requiring tailored approach for achieving resolution (Blyth, 2009). Leveraging Companies and crisis management teams must be smart enough to leverage both outward and inward resources, capabilities, knowledge and also external resources so as to ensure that it does not lose out opportunities for effectively responding to the crisis (Blyth, 2009).. The leadership framework for crisis management involves drafting a crisis management policy, setting up of crisis management team, developing a communication strategy, establishing partnerships and ensuring preparedness of the crisis management team with regular practice and training sessions. Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011 Drafting the crisis management policy includes setting the tone for leadership commitment and mentioning the generic guidelines for action. This policy is based on an organisation’s values and philosophy (Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011). After drafting the policy, the next step is to establish a crisis management team. The crisis management team analyzes different scenarios leading to a crisis and plans for the scenarios. Also while establishing a management team, the roles and responsibilities of different members of team are established so as to vent ambiguity in times of crisis (Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011) (George, 2011). Following the setting up of a crisis management team, an effective communication strategy and infrastructure will ensure that there is going to be a consistent flow of information to all stakeholders at all time (Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011) (George, 2011).. The established crisis management team should go about setting up of partnership with external agencies / organisations so as to ensure availability of critical resources and timely help (Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011) (George, 2011). To ensure preparedness of the crisis management team and make sure that they are always on their toes, regular training programmes needs to be conducted and the capability of the crisis management to deal with crisis situation should be checked from time to time through mock drills (Crisis management – a leadership challenge, 2011) (George, 2011). Leadership is particularly important in crisis situations and Boin and ’t Hart (2003) argue that crisis and leadership are closely related phenomena. Since crisis situations are times of uncertainty, people inside and outside the organisation look to leaders to ‘do something’ and thus the visibility of top management, particularly the CEO, during a crisis assures the public that the crisis is being tackled at the highest levels (Halverson et al., 2004, Sadgrove, 2005). Top managers must also actively engage in long-term corrective and preventive actions to avoid being involved in crises time again (Augustine, 1995). Additionally, leaders need to understand the dynamics and psychology of a crisis if they are going to respond well because crisis events require the organisation to make considerable changes to its ‘standard operating procedures’ while still responding to the crisis (Borodzicz, 2000, Santana, 2003). This seems to be have been missing in th e case of BP, as the company has found itself in several crises situations over the past five years that have done major damage to its image and left it seemingly unable to respond well to new crises. In the latest oil spill, the leadership performance of BP’s CEO, Tony Hayward, was not well received. According to Boin and ’t Hart (2003, p. 544): When crisis leadership results in reduced stress and a return to normality, people herald their ‘true leaders’†¦ But when the crisis fails to dissipate and ‘normality’ does not return, leaders are obvious scapegoats. This view of leadership sits quite comfortably with the forms of organization that are common in business, the armed forces and government. Where the desire is to get something done, to achieve a narrow range of objectives in a short period of time, then it may make sense to think in this way. However, this has its dangers. Different leaders have different styles. A great deal of power remains in their hands and the opportunity for all to take responsibility and face larger questions is curtailed (George, 2011). The question to be investigated in this research is: What lessons can be learnt by Hayward performance as a leader during this crisisThe way in which this question can be answered is described in the next section. Methodologies Introduction This chapter focuses of the methodologies that have been used by the researcher during the course of this research. Research Methodology is the course taken by the researcher to find answers to research questions (Kumar, 2005). Middle level managers from BP were engaged in a semi structured interview which focused on their view of BP’s leadership in general and their opinion of how their leaders went about handling Deepwater Horizon Oil rig disaster in particular. The answers collected have been used to provide a simple overview of the factors contributing the crisis and then BP CEO Tony Hayward’s performance as a leader during the crisis Research Methodology The various paths or courses available to choosing data collection techniques and analysis procedures can be depicted by using research â€Å"onion† (Fig A). The centre of the onion gives an idea on the exact way of collecting the data to answer research questions and this centre is reached by peeling away important layers. The important layers that needs to be peeled away to reach the centre point i.e. data collection methods include research philosophy, research approach, Research strategies and Time horizons (Saunders, 2009). Figure A: The Research Onion (Saunders et al. 2009) Research Philosophy The development and nature of knowledge encompasses the term research philosophy. This development and nature of knowledge contains important assumptions on the way a researcher views the world which underpins a researcher’s choice of a research strategy and the methods chosen as part of the strategy. This philosophical commitment not only has a significant impact on what researcher does but also on how they understand things while investigating (Johnson, 2006). The three different research philosophies are Positivism, Interpretivism and Realism. Positivism involves development of knowledge based on observable social reality. The end product of research based on Positivism philosophy is law like generalisations similar to those produced by natural scientists. Intrepretivism involves development of knowledge based on the understanding of differences between humans in roles as social actors and the emphasis on their variables such as behaviour, mood and previous experience. Realism is the development of knowledge based on scientific approach and assumes the independent existence of objects from the human mind (Kothari, 2008) . The research philosophy adopted for this dissertation is Intrepretivism as the development of knowledge was through questioning and dialogue by which people shared their experience. This is because feelings and attitudes towards performance management as â€Å"social phenomena that have not external reality and cannot be measured and modified† (Saunders et al, 2006). Interpretavist stance provides scope for the researcher to use phenomological case studies of people and how they make sense of the world, using their opinions and experience of performance measures in the working environment. Postivisim was not preferred because conducting research among people involves taking into consideration various factors such as behaviour, mood etc which is advocated by interpretivism rather than objects such as trucks and computers as advocated by positivism, whereas emphasis is on working with observable social reality. On the flip side, the difficulty of taking interpretavist stance is that findings make not be generalisable. However, it may be that the types of people being interviewed, due to culture of a BP background, have similar thought processes and hence are generalisable with a BP context (Goddard, 2004). Research Approach Deductive research and inductive research are the research approaches which results in the achievement of new knowledge. Deductive research is more like a top down approach to research where objectives are established followed by defining of key definitions and assumptions. Then the researchers works through a logical structure, based on the key definitions and assumptions, to accomplish the objective. Inductive research is more like a bottom up approach to research where conclusion is drawn only from observations of specific situations (Panneerselvam, 2004). This research involved the development of theory only after analysis of collected data therefore approaching research through inductive approach. Deductive approach was not chosen as the approach required the development of theory and hypothesis and then testing of this hypothesis by designing a research strategy whereas this research was based on finding view of BP’s middle level managers on their leaders handling of Deepwater Horizon Oil rig disaster and the performance of then BP CEO Tony Hayward’s performance as a leader during the crisis, which was the outcome of data collected through semi structured interview. Using Saunders et al’s ( 2006) characteristics of inductive research, the following are reasoned. An understanding will be gained of the meanings humans attached to events through the meanings they attach to performance management, and there will be a close understanding of the research context through the investigation of reasons as to how best to operationalise performance measurements (Kumar, 2005) . The data to be collected will be qualitative, which suggests that the deductive approach is more natural. There may be the potential for collections of qualitative data as well that may lend itself to a deductive approach, but the number of people intended to be interviewed would not enable any generalizations to be made (Kumar, 2005) . The flexible approach of the inductive stance means that if findings lend themselves to a change of direction within the dissertation, this will be possible (Singh, 2009) . The researcher realizes that as part of the research process, ideas developed may translate into action research as they are suggested to the interviewees (Kumar, 2005). Research Strategy The analysis of the collected data so as to obtain information through systematic and orderly approach is called Research strategy. In management studies, the three important research strategies that are rooted in inductive approach and are commonly used include case study, grounded theory and Ethnography. A research strategy for a research is chosen based on certain criteria’s like research questions and objectives, availability of time and resources, existing knowledge level etc (Kumar, 2005). During this research, the researcher used a case study approach which Robson (1999, p. 146) defines as â€Å"a strategy for doing research which involves an empirical investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context using multiple sources of evidence.† This was chosen because, in this research, â€Å"a ‘how’ or ‘why’ question is being asked about a contemporary set of events, over which the researcher has little or no control,†. The case study approach will not only entail in depth examination of single case but also engage many variables with collecting of information from multiple sources such as interviews with BP personals, archival data from BP’s files etc. This research strategy will be used as part of a qualitative methodology because qualitative research examines the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of human behaviour and so does the case study methodology (Yin, 2003). Other strategies such as grounded theory and ethnography which are rooted in inductive approach was considered but it did not fit the scope of this research because of the fact that they are time consuming (Kumar, 2005). Data Collection method Sampling The research objectives were concerned with understanding of BP’s middle managers view of BP’s leadership in general and their opinion of how their leaders went about handling Deepwater Horizon Oil rig disaster in particular and then BP CEO Tony Hayward’s performance as a leader during the crisis. Therefore, the sampling frame for this research included middle-level and senior level managers of BP. Only those managers who have in depth analysis related to the topic of interest were chosen. This method of sampling is called purposive sampling. Unlike random sampling in which every combination of respondents from the sampling frame has a known probability of occurring, purposive sampling is used in the research when the research selects those respondents that are most appropriate for the study (Robson, 1999). Purposive sample is powerful because it allows the researcher to choose respondents that have the most information for in-depth analysis related to the centra l issues being examined. The richest information is not likely to be available from the ‘typical’ case and so using purposive sampling will allow examine in detail the root causes of a given issue and its consequences. A close colleague of researcher who is on the staff of BP helped the researcher in short listing only those managers with access to in depth knowledge of the research topic and on the basis of the contact details provided by the provided by the researcher’s colleague, the researcher sent across email requesting for an appointment to the discuss the research topic and only those who expressed willingness to part of the research was interviewed (Jackson, 2008).  · Data Collection Data will be collected in face-to-face interviews with three middle level managers within BP over a period of one week. Thus till date collected is the primary data. The data will be collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews. Semi-structured interviews were chosen over alternative approaches, such as focus groups and surveys, as this method will allow researcher to guide the research and probe for deeper answers, elaborations, and examples to allow further explanation of specific topics and at the same time cover a wider scope if undiscovered issues should arise (Robson, 1999). Additionally, semi-structured interviews allow interviewees to tell the interviewer what they consider most significant (Marshall and Rossman, 1999). Semi-structured interviewing starts with more general questions or topics rather than the formulation of detailed questions ahead of time and so structured and unstructured questions will be outlined prior to the interviews based on the research questio n framework (Marshall and Rossman, 1999). In this research, relevant topics will have to be initially identified as well as the possible relationship between these topics and the issues. These managers are responsible for teams of professionals and would be able to provide insight into leadership issues in the organisation, allowing them to accurately articulate ‘rich’ descriptions of their experience of leadership at BP. Each interview is expected to last between 30 and 90 minutes and the interviews will be transcribed within one week of having conducting them to ensure that no additional material or observations were lost or forgotten (Marshall and Rossman, 1999). Following the collection of primary data, secondary data was collected so as to understand get a overall prespective of BP’s leadership and its response to deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. This data was obtained by analyzing various sources including internet and published guides (Jackson, 2008) .  · Data Analysis This research will use qualitative content analysis to interpret the data collected and further analysis will be carried out by triangulating these findings with the findings of the literature review and the questions and topics that this raised. Content analysis is often recommended for analysing semi-structured interviews because it allows the researcher to identify themes, concepts, and meanings and is a way of classifying content (Krippendorff, 2004). As there is existing (but incomplete) theory about crisis management, this research will use a directed approach to content analysis, which allows existing theoretical frameworks to be validated (and sometimes extended) (Hsieh and Shannon, 2005). In the directedapproach to content analysis, extant theory will be used to form codes that will be used in the initial analysis. Data that do not fit into these predetermined codes will be identified and later analysed to determine whether they represent a new category or a subset of a curr ent category. Data that cannot be coded will be identified and analysed later, as suggested by Hsieh and Shannon (2005), to determine if they represent a new category or a subcategory of an existing code. While this method has limitations, the accuracy of predetermined categories can be increased by using an audit trail and audit process (Krippendorff, 2004). By compiling a spreadsheet of literature topics and cross-referencing this to the interviews, it is hoped to be able to correlate findings that produce new insights into the implementation of performance measurement and enable a more effective method of doing so at BP and potentially, within other organisations. Data quality issues The drawback of doing a semi structured interview is the lack of standardisation in these interviews. But the researcher still went ahead with the current interview structure because of the fact that the topic of interest is complex and dynamic and using a semi structured interview approach will provide an opportunity for the interviewer to explore the topic in greater detail (McBurney, 2009). Therefore, in order to overcome these issues, careful planning was done which has been described below. Level of knowledge The effectiveness of interviewing particular manager and their level of knowledge in the deepwater horizon oil spill was obtained by researcher following a detailed discussion with a colleague, who was working in BP. The literature review provided enough level of knowledge with respect to the situational context (McBurney, 2009). Level of information given to the interviewee The interviewees were given relevant information with respect to the research including the topic of the research, the motive of conducting the research and goal to be accomplished by the end of the research (McBurney, 2009). Appropriateness of location The prior appointment was taken before meeting the managers. A meeting room within the BP offices was chosen as the location for the meeting. This was done so to ensure that there is minimal disturbance during the interview process (Louis Cohen, 2000). Appearance in the interview Even though BP is a highly successful and highly powered organization, its dress code is causal i.e. no suits. Therefore, the researchers appearance was also causal which not only went in sync with BP’s dress code but also went well with the semi structured approach to interview Louis Cohen, 2000).. Opening comment during the commencement of the interview To ensure that the discussion shapes in the right direction, the participants of the interview were given the brief on the motive of conducting the research and goal to be accomplished by the end of the research and following their consent, interview questions were put forward Louis Cohen, 2000).. Questioning approach The researcher made sure that the questions put forward for the interview were open ended questions. This was done so as to ensure that the researcher had the opportunity to explore the question in greater detail. Also, while discussing the questions, the researcher was careful not to use highly complex industry jargons whose meanings may vary with the interviewee. In scenarios where the use of jargons were essential, the researcher took care to ensure that both the researcher and the interviewee had the same understanding Louis Cohen, 2000).. Behaviour during the interview The researcher ensured that at all times there was appearance of enjoying the interview process as any appearance of boredom will not encourage the interviewee to give a good response. Also, for the answers given by the interviewee, the researcher made sure that a neutral response was projected so as to not to provide lead that may result in bias Louis Cohen, 2000). Demonstration of attentive listening skills In order to ensure that the interviewee gives as much information as possible, the researcher made sure that the thoughts were held back deliberately. Defending or arguing a particular point of view mentioned by the interviewee would not only result in diverting away from the topic but will also stop flow of thoughts (Jackson, 2008). Documentation of the data The information gleaned from the interviewee was recorded using audio recording equipment and also by taking down notes while the interview was in progress (Jackson, 2008). Generalisability As this research follows Intrepretivism, the development of knowledge was through questioning and dialogue by which people shared their experience. These sharing of knowledge are highly subjective and vary on the moods and behaviour of the people. Therefore, the concerns raised in the dissertation are organisation specific to B.P and may not be applicable to other organisations. But the problems associated with arriving at the right kind of Leadership and crisis management is universal and therefore this dissertation will be useful in other contexts (Jackson, 2008). Access and Ethical Considerations Access to the organisation is to be gained via a close colleague that is a currently on staff at BP. Complying with the ‘Qualitative Research and the Data Protection Act 1998,’ before every interview the researcher will give participants an informed consent form, explaining that the interview will be recorded and that they have the right to withdraw at anytime and withhold any information that they do not wish to share (Marshall and Rossman, 1999). The participants will then be required to sign a consent form before the interview commences. The researcher has read and understood the university’s ethics policies relating to the dissertation and is confident that the dissertation will be carried out by ensuring the following. All interviewees have the choice whether or not to participate in the research They were provided with the outline proposal for the research. The interviewees provided written consent prior to taking up the interview and were given the option of withdrawing from the inte How to cite Critical Discussion of Crisis Management and BP Leadership, Essay examples