Week 1: Introduction, Professional Bodies, Self-Management and Company Lifecycle Flashcards
How has life expectancy changed since the 1770s?
Increased across all continents, some as early as the 1870s, some as late as 1920s. Africa is the slowest of the continents.
What is management?
Management is:
- The process of dealing with or controlling things or people.
- The people managing a company or organisation.
- Responsibility for control of a company or organisation.
What is an organisation?
Organisation is:
- An organised group of people such as a business
- The action of organising something
- The way in which elements of a whole are arranged
Who were the leading mobile phone companies and what years were they the leaders for?
Motorola 1973 - c1998
Nokia c1998 - c2011
Why did Nokia fail?
Comments from an insider say:
They had a chance to succeed, people had pitched touch screen technology to them.
They had too many variations of existing phones that were targeted at micro-markets.
Inventiveness in phone designs was not encouraged.
There were too many loud, male managers stuck on broadcast mode rather than receive.
What do Giachetti and Marchi say about leadership change?
That the potential for leadership changes is greater for firms undertaking ‘aggressive’ competitive actions.
The potential for leadership changes is greater when ‘significant’ windows of opportunity are open..
What does management provide?
Management provides execution and vision to the organisation.
What does management involve?
It involves decision making, planning, implementation, prioritisation, efficient working, building relationships, motivating, resourcing, foresight and leadership.
What types of models exist to support management activities?
Mathematical models that include algorithms that give an optimal solution.
Social science or psychological models that provide insight rather than answers, and support professional judgement.
What does research about diverse teams show?
They perform better due to focusing more on the facts, processing facts more carefully and greater levels of innovation
What does diversity help to avoid?
It helps to avoid groupthink
What is Systematic Decision Making?
It explains how decision making is affected by many unconscious biases and that deliberation helps to avoid bias.
Who described Systematic Decision Making?
Kahneman (2011)
What can you do with a mathematical model?
You can analyse, simulate and solve something.
What does Box (1976) say about models?
All models are wrong but some can be useful.
What are the goals of a model?
To be accurate enough for you to be able to make a sensible decision.
What is the UK-SPEC?
The UK Standard For Professional Engineering Competence
What should Chartered Engineers demonstrate?
Responsibility for financial and planning aspects of projects.
Leadership and development of other professional staff through management, mentoring or coaching.
Effective interpersonal skills in communicating technical matters.
Understanding of the safety and sustainability implications of their work, seeking to improve aspects where feasible.
Commitment to professional engineering values.
What should Chartered Engineers do?
Plan the work and resources needed to enable effective implementation of a significant engineering task or project
Manage, programme or schedule, budget and resource elements of a significant engineering task or project.
Lead teams or technical specialisms and assist others to meet changing technical and managerial needs.
Bring about continuous quality and improvement and promote best practice
Demonstrate personal and social skills and awareness of diversity and inclusion issues.
What is the professional commitment of chartered engineers?
Demonstrate a personal commitment to professional standards and recognise obligations to society, the profession and environemnt.
Understand and comply with relevant codes of conduct.
Understand the safety implications of their role and manage, apply and improve safe systems of work.
Understand principles of sustainable development and apply them
Carry out and record the continuing professional development necessary to maintain and enhance competence in their area of practice.
Understand ethical issues that may arise and carry out responsibilities in an ethical manner.
Who published the UK-SPEC?
The Engineering Counil
When was the Engineering Council set up?
1981
What does the Engineering Council maintain?
A register of accredited engineers
How many partner members does the Engineering Council have?
Around 40 members, the professional engineering institutions.
What benefits come with being a member of the Engineering Council?
- Recognition of the member’s professional status
- Support and guidance with professional development, careers advice
- Technical regional events, seminars, conferences
- Monthly journals, other technical publications and technical library
- Specialist interest groups and other networking opportunities
- Legal and health advice
Name 4 key members of the Engineering Council?
Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) - (1818)
Institution of Mechanical Engineering (1847)
Institution of Electrical Engineers - (1871) - since 2006, Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)
British Computer Society (BCS) - 1956
Who was the IET a merger between?
The Institutions of Electrical Engineering, Incorporated Engineers and Manufacturing Engineers
How many members across how many countries does the IET have?
150,000 across 150 countries
What does the IET stand for?
The Institution of Engineering and Technology
What does the IET stand for?
The Institution of Engineering and Technology
What does the ICE stand for?
Institution of Civil Engineers
What does the BCS stand for?
British Computer Society
What does the IET do?
Accredit degrees in electrical, electronic and information engineering.
Runs inspec (bibliographic database)
Publish Electronics Letters, Engineering and Technology
Produce factfiles on solar power, nuclear power, fuel cells…
Offers associate, student and full membership
How many members does the BCS have across how many countries?
60,000 members in 150 countries
What can members apply for with the BCS?
To become Chartered IT Professionals
What does the BCS provide?
Range of IT qualifications such as the ECDL, also offers Higher Education Qualifications that are popular in Asia
What do the BCS publish?
The Computer Journal and ITNOW
What is Academic Engineering Accreditation?
This is accreditation to a degree that shows evidence of meeting academic requirements that can simplify the process of being recognised as a Chartered Engineer.
Who maintains a database of accredited degrees?
The Engineering Council - though they do not accredit the degrees themselves
Who accredits UoS Electrical Engineering degrees?
The IET
Who accredits the CompSci UoS degrees?
The BCS and IET
What are the 4 pillars of the Engineering Councils Statement of Ethical Principles?
- Honesty and integrity
- Respect for life, law, the environment and public good
- Accuracy and rigour
- Leadership and Communication
What guidance does the Engineering Council publish?
Guidance on sustainability, risk, whistleblowing, security, building safety and Brexit transition
What are the US equivalents of the IET and BCS?
IEEE and ACM
What does IEEE (1884) stand for?
Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers.
What does ACM (1947) stand for?
Association of Computing Machinery
What is mutual equivalence?
This is what professional accrediting bodies may recognise. For example, the Seoul Accord covers Computing and IT. The Washington Accord covers Engineering.
What skills are required for an I/S Manager Role?
Analytical and problem solving skills. Technical skills. Work well under pressure Attention to detail Teamwork Organisation and time management Interpersonal and communication skills Management and leadership skills
What skills are required for the role of Production Manager?
Confidence Technical skills Project management skills Organisation and efficiency Leadership and interpersonal skills Problem solving skills IT and numerical skills Communication skills Teamworking skills
What do Schlender and Tetzeli believe?
You can change yourself - you can acquire new skills as well as knowledge and can enhance people skills and emotional resillience.
Who identifies 5 stages of development?
Topchik
What are Topchiks 5 stages of development?
- Attention getting
- Flying blind
- Steadiness
- On the rise
- Doing
What BCS framework is similar to Topchiks 5 stages of personal development?
SFIAplus
How many levels does BCSs SFIAplus framework have?
7: 1 & 2 Follow / Assist 3 Apply 4 Enable 5 Enable/Advise 6 Initiate/Influence 6 & 7 Strategy/Inspire
What does Harter et al say?
Positive responses to “I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day” correlate with higher productivity and business success
What does Zenger et al (2011) say in response to Harter et al (2002)?
“If you want to get to the top, develop skills that complement what you already do best”
What percentiles are you in if you have no strengths and 5 strengths?
No strengths - 34th percentile
5 strengths - 91st percentile
What is the notion of flow?
Where you are in the zone, energised focus, forget yourself and work without distraction, leads to sense of achievement and happiness
What is a problem with the notion of flow?
Life is full of distractions
What is the “committee of people” that Topchik refers to?
These are the noises going on in your head
Does multi-tasking increase or reduce your effectiveness?
Reduce!
What is the Crystal Clear method?
It is an agile method where the lead designer and up to seven developers are in a large space with information radiators, with access to expert users and no distractions
How frequently is code delivered with the Crystal Clear method?
Every month or two - then they reflect and adjust accordingly
What is an information radiator?
It is something that lots of information can be put on such as a whiteboard or flip chart
What can mobile phones do?
Lower concentration Warp your view of reality Increase FOMO Reduce memory Increase stress and anxiety Make your sleep worse
What is the Eisenhower Principle?
It is a way of organising when and how to do tasks:
Urgent & Important - Do it now!
Not Urgent but Important - Set time aside to do it
Urgent but not Important - Delegate it!
Not Urgent or Important - Why are you doing it?
What does Steve Wozniak say about running a business?
Maybe that’s what you need to run a business, to find things that are worthless and get rid of them
How many habits does Covey (1989) say for Highly Effective People?
7 habits
Who came up with the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
Covey in 1989
What are the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People?
- be proactive (shape events and environment for work)
- start with the end in mind (identify goals)
- put first things first (prioritise)
- sharpen the saw (rest and update skills)
- think win-win (seek common ground)
- first understand then be understood (diagnose problem before cure)
- synergise (when the outcome is greater than the sum of the parts)
What is some proactive and reactive language?
Reactive: There's nothing I can do That's the way I am I cannot I must Proactive: What are the alternatives? I can choose a different approach I choose I prefer
What does Covey claim about effective habits?
They are internalised principles and patterns of behaviour at the intersection of knowledge, skills and desire.
What does Ikigai stand for?
It is a Japanese word for a reason for being
What is a self-management instrument?
It is a way of assessing your own self management skills - they are management tools based on psychology
What are some self-management instruments?
Questionnaires, Tests
What is Houghton and Necks (2002) self-management instrument?
It is a questionnaire where you measure your belief in a statement on a 5 point Likert scale
Who came up with the Reflective Cycle?
Gibbs (1988)
What are the stages of Gibbs Reflective Cycle (1988)?
- Description - what happened?
- Feelings - what were you feeling?
- Evaluation - what was good and bad?
- Analysis - what sense can you make from this?
- Conclusions - what else could you have done?
- Action plan - if it arose again, what would you do?
What are Dorans SMART goals (1981)?
A way of setting goals: S - Specific M - Measurable A - Achievable (or assignable) R - Realistic (or relevant) T - Timely (or time-bound)
Is graduating with a 2:1 a SMART goal?
No - it could be more specific and timely - target per module for example - achievable for each assignment and a different target for each for more realism
Who came up with the idea of SMART goals?
Doran (1981)
What are the 5 points of Emotional Intelligence stated by Goleman (1990)?
Self-Awareness Empathy Social Skills Self-Management Motivation
How can you improve Emotional Intelligence?
Self-awareness - reflection, personality test and questionnaires
Empathy - First understand then be understood
Motivation - combine passion, vocation, mission and profession
Self-management - Eisenhower grid, constructive thoughts and behaviours
Social skills - put mobile away, be humble, hungry and smart
Who stated the 5 Emotional Intelligence points?
Goleman (1990s)
What is a company?
A company is a medium sized or larger business
Where must companies register?
Companies House
What do companies do with shares?
They issue them, as they represent a fixed fraction of the firm
Where can shares in public companies be bought and sold?
Via a stock exchange
What must companies publish?
Their accounts, public companies in more detail than private ones
What is the lifecycle of a business?
Startup Rapid Growth Maturity Decline Rebirth/Death
What happens in the startup phase of a company?
Founders initially own the company
They may seek funding from business angels or
venture capitalists
To persuade investors there should be a business model and plan
Startups may pivot or change plan
What happens in the startup phase of a company?
Founders initially own the company
They may seek funding from business angels or
venture capitalists
To persuade investors there should be a business model and plan
Startups may pivot or change plan
What happens in the rapid growth phase of a company?
The business model now works
More staff, sites, and other assets are needed
Cash flow can be a problem
The company may list with a stock market and offer shares to the public (IPO) to raise cash
What happens in the maturity phase of a company?
Growth has stabilised
The business is established in its market
Its focus is optimising its profits
Shareholders expect regular dividends as the share price is stable
What happens in the decline stage of a company?
Market or market share is shrinking
It’s time to cut costs, staff, …
Dividends may be cut or stopped
Share buy-backs may support the share price
What happens in the rebirth / death stage of a company?
Rebirth:
The company improves its products or services
Or switches to a new line of business
Death: Acquisition Merger Bankruptcy Liquidation
What comes with entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, and what is the difference?
With entrepreneurship, you have more control, might raise more funds and might get rich
With intrapreneurship, the employer funds the work, there is less risk for you, a richer pool of talent, you have less control and lower reward.
What is an accidental entrepreneur and give an example?
Someone who comes up with an idea without meaning to. For example Dropbox was created after someone forgot their USB stick and was frustrated as a result
What is the rough story of Nokia?
Nokia made both paper and pulp, a decline led to a change to electricity generation. A decline in this saw them become a conglomerate with telecoms interests. Then in the 90s CEO Ollila divested other businesses and focussed on high value telecommunication products
What is Gibrats Law?
That the growth of a business occurs in random shocks and there are no systematic determinants of business growth.
What do studies into Gibrats Law show?
The law holds up better for larger firms, not so strong for smaller firms. For these, size and growth seem inversely proportional. Age has an effect on growth rate - small and young firms have more volatile growth rate.
Is Gibrats Law a good approximation?
Yes, it is a good approximation or heuristic but not the whole answer - there are other factors too
What is Penroses Theory of Growth?
It explains sources of hazards of growth stating resources available to a firm are indivisible and interdependent. Firms grow as a result of the efficiency generated through learning by doing. Managers become more efficient with experience, take less time to do tasks. Freed-up managerial resources can then go towards value creating, growth inducing activities.
What are growth hazards from Penrose’s Theory of Growth?
Operating costs:
Growth is limited by the amount of managerial attention available at any time
Too much focus by managers on expansion diverts attention from efficiency, increasing costs
Therefore, above a certain point (optimal growth rate), increases in growth lead to higher costs
Fast growing firms will thus have higher costs that their slower counterparts (the Penrose effect)
What is the optimal growth rate?
It is a point where past it any increases in growth will lead to higher operating costs.
Why do firms seek growth?
To increase shareholder wealth
To maintain employee morale through promotion, better pay, prestige
To have more influence and power to change the world
What does Friedman (1970) say the purpose of a company is?
To increase the wealth of its shareholders by paying dividends and/or causing the share price to increase
What is Marris’s Theory of Managerial Capitalism?
Managers and shareholders decide the management of firms - managers want to maximise growth rate, shareholders want to maximise dividends and share prices. To achieve growth, managers seek to retain and re-invest profits to expand the firm, which will reduce payments to shareholder dividends, making them less attractive. This could reduce prices and increase takeover threat and therefore reduce job security. Managers therefore will seek to increase dividend payments to a point where shareholders are happy and also maximise growth.
Therefore, managers will choose the growth rate that maximises the price of shares and gives satisfactory dividends while shareholders want balanced growth and return on their capital. We can say that managers and shareholders goals are aligned to find the optimum growth rate for the firm.
What are the 5 stages of business decline by Weitzell and Jonsson and how can decline be stopped at each stage? (1989)
Blinded - (stopped by good information)
Inaction - (stopped by prompt action)
Faulty Action (Stopped by a corrective action)
Crisis (stopped by effective reorganisation)
Dissolution (Cannot be stopped - is the death of a firm)
