Implementing Management Changes in BMW Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Implementing Management Changes in BMW - Essay Example Implementing Management Changes in BMW Abstract Change is inevitable in any organization to gain competitive advantage over others in the industry. Planning and implementing organizational changes is no easy task as re-engineering a company is a great challenge for its leaders. This research paper will explore the various stages of changes, leadership requirements and employee co-operation necessities required to make any major change in an organization a success. The German automobile doyen BMW is chosen as the platform of the research. The paper begins with a literature review available regarding organizational change. It continues to explain the challenges faced in BMW while implementing the strategies discussed practically. A research is done by collecting feedback from the employees on how effective they consider change management is. A conclusion which provides recommendation on change management is presented at the end. Introduction The ever increasing competition in the autom obile industry forces all the major brands to re-structure their marketing and management strategies to gain maximum profit. These changes started to occur in the early 1980's in companies like Ford and General Motors. The automobile industry then considered it as a survival strategy rather than a tool to gain competitive advantage (Shimokawa, 1994). Organizational change management started to gain widespread momentum after the recent economic downturn. Several companies like Ford followed the path of massive downsizing while a few companies like BMW which implemented organizational change in an effective way were able to maintain their profits without cutting down their manpower even during the grimmest times. They searched for new markets and introduced premium cars at a low cost, by establishing production houses in countries like China and India to control production costs. BMW is the only premium car maker to produce and market BMW 3-series and 5-series models in China locally. They have invested over 459 million Euros in a Chinese plant producing their MINI series cars which will be marketed in China alone. They have joined hands with Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd to do the same (Welch, 2004). Taking a closer look at their change management strategies will help other companies manage similar situations effectively. Purpose of the Study The study analyzes how BMW can use organizational change and management effectively to stay as a dominant force in the market and keep expanding constantly. It also highlights certain successful change management processes followed in BMW. Limitations of the study The research relies heavily upon various external data available in the internet and other related sources. The employees who took part in survey showed little understanding of the explained concept. The line managers and the upper management view organizational change as something inevitable that will be imposed during grim situations. They look back to switching to older methods of working rather than looking upon the concept of organizational change as a tool of growth. This attitude makes them contribute very little to research regarding organizational change. There is a general hostility prevailing among the employees regarding any change as they feel it hard to come out of their routine and adapt to new practices. Literature Review Automobile industry operates under immense pressure today. The business market has changed enormously after globalization due to very strong competition, amazing

Customized Learning Theory Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Customized Learning Theory - Assignment Example The aim of this study is to examine the characteristics of gifted children in the school environment. The study will also look at the various elements of learning theories that relate to this group of children and further combine these elements to develop a hybrid theory that caters to the needs of gifted children. Characteristics of Gifted Children Gifted children learn faster, broadly and deeply meaning their intellectual ability is higher compared to their peers. Intellectual ability is believed to be innate and is not acquired through personal effort. Further, intellectual ability can be specific or general. An intellectually gifted individual for example maybe strikingly gifted in mathematics but lack the same strong skills in humanities or language. A combination of an adequately challenging curriculum and the necessary diligence to master learned skills often leads to academic success for the intellectually gifted (Eakin, 2007). Although intellectually gifted children are uniq ue, they share some common characteristics within the academic environment. First, they have certain cognitive characteristics including, faster learning of materials, curiosity, widely diverse interest, reasoning ability, creativity, an excellent memory and a large pool of vocabulary. In addition, intellectually gifted students are perfectionists and often fear failure. Their intellectual capability makes them feel different and their superior vocabulary makes it hard to communicate with their peers hence they will have trouble forming social relations with their classmates. Further, gifted children are highly introspective and introverted and hold very high expectations for themselves and for others. Gifted children are also highly sensitive to their environment in terms of emotional and mental over-awareness (Eakin, 2007). The learning environment for gifted children is important as with other special needs students. Gifted students should be provided with opportunities to attemp t new learning and develop their strengths in a psychologically safe environment. A modified learning environment provides gifted students with the opportunity for development and optimum growth. The social environment should also be supportive making sure that no one feels out of place and the students can establish trust with the teacher without the fear of being sanctioned. Moreover, gifted students should be provided with an opportunity to function at advanced levels of depth and complexity and their interests tied in with schoolwork. Gifted students tend to decline in performance if not challenged with abstract concepts, or presented with opportunities to go beyond what is offered in the regular classrooms. Gifted students that are rarely challenged lack confidence in their ability to perform well when presented with challenging learning tasks (Eakin, 2007). Learning Theories and Gifted Students Theories dealing with gifted children focus on the ability to adapt successfully to the environment and the ability to solve problems related to particular situations. Under the cognitive trait theories, Galton emphasizes two inherited traits whose abundance makes one intellectually gifted. The first trait is sufficient energy, which increases the capacity for labor. The second trait is sensitivity making the intellectually gi