The business world is permeated through and through this kind of rationality, based on what we see is happening today in the world, what are the trends? what will be the consequences? are forecasted the solutions in a business environment. However, according to Saras Sarasvathy, it is not how entrepreneurs think. The thought process is not “causal” but “effectual”. When a project is approached, the entrepreneur has three means skills: his own innate abilities, skills acquired through education and personal contacts. The entrepreneur is guided by a simple maxim: “To what extent can we control the future, we do not need to predict it.” Here lies all the difference. According to Sarasvathy, the successful entrepreneur does not try to predict what will be the most profitable markets, very opposite idea to Henry Mintzberg. In 1997 Saras Sarasvathy, professor of business and ethics at the University of Virginia but then a Continue reading
General Management Articles
Role of Leadership and Culture in Promoting Innovation and Creativity
Organizational culture is a very important factor that affects the innovation and the creativity of an organization. Google for example, wouldn’t be so successful in technological innovation without its excellent organizational culture that gives the opportunity to its employees to work hard and innovate. Leadership has also a strong effect on the organizational culture of a company. A good leader must encourage, motivate and inspire his employees to be more creative and innovative. When Steve Jobs left from Apple, the organizational culture of the company was no longer the same and Apple failed to maintain its great success. Leadership and The Example of Apple Leadership is defined as a persons ability to anticipate, envision, maintain flexibility, think strategically and work with others to initiate changes that will create a viable future for the organization. The role of an organizational leader is to define the organizational goals, formulate plans and organize Continue reading
An Analysis of Decision Making Process in Organizations
In today’s business world, the main task of any manager is to take decision; these decisions are impacting the firm, the employees and the environment. As the world is developing and transitioning into a globalized unit, decision making is becoming a complicated task. Manager takes thunders of decisions every day, some decisions are done consciously and other are done subconsciously. More the manager has experiences, more often he will take subconscious decision for recurrent problem, due to it knowledge of the firm, the environments and it past experiences. Other decisions that are not as usual, need to be analyzed on every angle, before being able to build solutions for it, this would be a conscious decision. Decision making is defined as the process of deciding about something important, especially in a group of people or in organization. Decision-making is a six steps processes, no matter if the decision is taken Continue reading
7 Characteristics of an Entrepreneur
Entrepreneurs have in common some characteristics and skills, but anywhere there is a wide range of individuality among them. Some entrepreneurs receive formal training and skill development, while others have a natural flair for it, still others break every rule or use very unusual approaches, but still succeed. There is no recipe for becoming a successful entrepreneur, but there are certain characteristics that are associated with entrepreneurial success, here are described several important ones: Aptitude: Most people have a wide range of aptitudes-natural talents, tendencies, or capacities. Entrepreneurs can apply their aptitudes to their business ventures. Every potential entrepreneur has to analyze his aptitudes and talents, which are an important part of his starting background. Then, with practice, hard work, and education, those basic aptitudes and talents can turn the potential entrepreneur into a real business man. Risk tolerance: Risk can be defined as the possibility of failure or adverse Continue reading
Team Based Approaches Used in Business
An organization is a social arrangement for achieving controlled performance in the pursuit of collective goals. This definition stresses on the fact that people in an organization interact with each other in order to achieve some objectives. In the field of organization design, a contemporary organization can be defined as a business that uses up-to-date knowledge, processes, and strategies to implement its plans within a cohesive strategy with keeping in mind the organizations future. Contemporary organizations are primarily leaders in exploring business and management trends, such as strategic alliances, and the virtual office. These trends are often explored without the knowledge of anyone; however the organization is able to integrate them and the discrete elements in the overall cohesive business strategy. Although teams have always formed the backbone of the organization; they are gaining attention as important assents to the organization. Professionals in today’s world rarely work alone; they either Continue reading
External Environment Factors Causing Uncertainty in Organizations
Businesses are bound to encounter several forces whenever they are in operation. In some cases, these forces are over and above their control. In spite of this reality, there is no single business which can exist without going through the external environmental forces. It is therefore imperative for a business establishment to put into consideration all the possible external forces which may affect its operations either positively or negatively. In this regard, opportunities and threats are worth noting because they account for the external factors which would often affect a business environment. When the external factors are considered and concurrently compared with the internal factors, it will be possible for a business management to formulate the right policies of dealing with the inevitable external forces. Some of the factors which may cause uncertainty in the external business environment are inadequate needs of customers, technological changes, regulations and elimination of foreign Continue reading