Иностранные языки : Английске тексты - (реферат)

Английске тексты - (реферат)

Дата добавления: март 2006г.

    PRODUCTION

1. Production can be defined as the creation of wealth which in turn, adds to society's welfare . It is a vital link in the process of satisfying wants; As man's wants are almost unlimited relative to the resources available, it is important in production, then, that the limited resources be used efficiently in order to create the maximum possible welfare.

2. At a general level, all economies, irrespective of their organisation, face the same basis decisions of what, how and for whom to produce, subject to their production possibilities. In a mixed economy, such as the United Kingdom, some production decisions are left toprivateenterprise and the market mechanism whilst others are taken by the government: the production by shoes for example, is the result of the decisions of private firms, where as the quantity of hospital services or military tanks produced is the result of political decisions.

3. The firm and its The total level of output in an economy is of objectivecourse, the sum of the outputs of all the individual firms. It is important at the outset, therefore, to explain what is meant by a firm

and to consider some of the main factors which motivates firms to produce goods and services.

4. Definition: A, firm is a decision-making production unit which transforms resources into goods and services which are ultimately bought bycustomers, the government and other firms. 5. Traditional economic theory has assumed that the typical firm has a single objective-to maximise itsprofit. No distinction is drawn between the objective of a comer-storeproprietor and that of the largest firm. The modern theories of the firm, however, do acknowledge that firms may -have other objectives, such assales-revenue maximisation or the maximisation of managerial utility. 6. Types of busi ness units. Consider now the legal status of the differant, types of firms in a western economy, such so the United Kingdom. 7. One-man business. In terms of numbers, the one-man business (or sole proprietorship) is the most common type of firm. Typically it

is a small-scale operationemploying the moat a handful of people. The proprietor himself is normally in charge of the operation of the business, with the effect that he is likely to be highly motivated as hebenefitsdirectly from any increase in profits. As the one-man business is small it can provide a personal service to its customers and can respond flexibly to the requirements of themarket. Decisions can be taken quickly as the owner does not have to consult with any directors.

8. Disadvantages associated with a one-man business are that the owner cannot specialise in particular functions but must Jack-of-all trades, and the finance available for the expansion of the business is limited to that which the owner himself can raise. An even bigger disadvantage is perhaps that there is no legal distinction between the owner and his business: The owner has, therefore, unlimited liability for any debts incurred by the business, so that in the eventually bankruptcy all his assets (for example his house and car) are liable to seizure. 9 One-man business as are common in retailing, fanning, building and personal services, such as hairdressing. 10 PARTNERSHIP. The logical progression from a one-man business is to a partnership. An ordinary partnership contains from two to twenty partners. The main advantages over a one-man business are that more finance is likely to be available the influx of partners, and that each partner may specialise to some extent (for example, themarketing , production or personnel functions). The major disadvantage, once again, is that of unlimited liability. As each partner is able to commit the other partners to agreements entered into, all of the others may suffer from the errors of one unreliable or foolhardy partner.

I I Partnerships are oftcn found in the professions-for example, among doctors, dentist, solicitors and architects, Ultimately, the upper limit on the number of partners is likely to restrict theamountof finance available to the partnership and so place a limit on its growth. This, together with disadvantage of unlimited liability, means that many growing business eventually formjoint-stock companies.

12. JOINT-STOCK COMPANY, the Joint-stock company with limited liability developed in the second halt of the nineteenth century. It helped to promote the development of large companies by providing a relatively safe vehicle forinvestmentin industry and commerce by a wide cross-section of the community. The liability of the shareholders is limited to the amount they havesubscribed to the firm capital and each shareholder knows the extent of his potential lossit the company goes bankrupt. So make information available to potential shareholders, all joint-stock companies are requiredto file annually with the Registrar of Companies details of their profits, turnover, assets and other relevant financialinformation, such as the remuneration of the directors. 13. A joint-stock company can be either a private limited company or a public limited company. The shares of a private cannot be offered for sale to the public and thus are not traded on the Stock Exchange . The shares cannot be transferredwithout the consent of the other shareholders. Private companies require a minimum of two and a maximum of fifty shareholders (or members), though the upper limit may be exceeded in the case of employees or former employees of the company.

14. The shares of a PUBLIC company can be offered for sale to the public. A public company requires as minimum of two shareholders, but there is noupper limit. Shares are freely transferable and the company is required to hold an annual general meeting where shareholders are able to question the directors, to change the company'sarticles of association, to elect or dismiss the board of directors, to sanction the payment of dividends, to approve the choice auditors and to fixtheir remuneration. In practice, attendance at annual general meetings is low, and normally the approval of the director's recommendations is a formality. 15. Although only about 3% of companies are public companies, most large companies are public companies. Indeed, they account for about two-thirds of the capital employed by all companies.

16. CO-OPERATIVES. In the'United Kingdom consumer co-operatives have been successful since the first co-operative was formed at Rochdale in 1844. The movement, which comprises a familiar section of the retail trade, is based on consumerownershipand control, al-though there is a professional management. In 1985 it was reported that there were 8, 5 members of retail cooperative societies in the United Kingdom. 17. Producer co-operatives, on, the other hand, have not generally been successful and are not particularly significant in the United Kingdom. The recession of the early 1980s, however, led to an upsurge in the number of producer co-operatives. In many cases they sprang from on attempt by workers to continue production and to maintain jobs aftera parent companyhad decided to close or to sell a plant. This type of co-operative is sometimes referred to as "phoenix co-operative". The Co-operative Development of producer cooperatives reported the existence of 911 producer co-operatives with around 20000 members in 1984. In some other countries of the EEC, such as France and Spain, producer co-operatives are of more significance than in the United Kingdom.

18. PUBLIC CORPORATION. The public corporationis the form of enterprise that has developed in the United Kingdom for those areas where the government has decided to place production in the hands of the state. Whilst there are early examples of the formation of public corporation, such as the Port of London Authority (1909) and the British Broadcasting Corporation (1927), Boat were formed in the period of the post-war Labour government of 1945-51. The

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government appointsthe chairman and the board of directors which is responsible to a minister of the Crown for full filing the statutory requirements for the public corporation aid down by Parliament. The minister is supposed not to concern himself with the day-to-dayrunning the company.

19. Recent government policy has been to return state-owned enterprises to the private sector. Privatisation is the word used when the ownership of a state-owned asset is transferred to private individuals or companies. 20. Examples of privatisation include the sale of British Aerospace (51% sold in 1981 and 49% 1985) and of British Telecom (51% sold in 1984).

    Effective Communication

Effective communication is absolutely crucial to good management. You can't get the best out of people unless you can communicate effectively with them, and they with you.

It seems easy enough. All you have to do is to tell your subordinate what you want him to do, and he gate on with it. A few words of encouragement or criticism nay be needed, but that's all there is to it. If only it were so simple. The manager has to consider three forms of communication , any of which can cause him problems if he is not careful. They are:

    • oral
    • written
    • non-verbal communication.
    Oral communication

Speaking directly to someone in person, by telephone or via a television link is the most common form of human communication. Oral communication is instantaneous, allows great flexibility, and permits sentiment to be combined with an intellectual message without difficulty. Effective oral communication depends on a number of factors which can't always be taken for granted. These are:

    • language
    • the style used
    • the supporting signals
    Language

If a manager was asked to take charge of a group of Chinese workers he would probably expect to have a language problem since everyone knows that apparently identical words can have very different meanings to people living in different countries. If, on the other hand, the group comprised his own countrymen he would assume a shared vocabulary. And terms of ordinary words he would be right. The problem is that management includes many complicated issues which require the use of specialised words. If both parties don't share the same sense of what these words mean, the scope for misunderstanding is considerable. As a result the manager's intentions are often not fulfilled. This in turn causes him frustration and the employee confusion, and perhaps a sense of Injustice.

It isonly technical or abstruse language which causes the problems; It can just easily happen with what would otherwise seem commonplace words. Any new manager has to take particular care to explain his meaning since his predecessor might well have used words in different nay. Some examples serve to illustrate the point. The interpretations are not meant to be typical-only what can happen. What the manager says

    What he means
    What the employee may think he means
    If you have the time
    I want you to do it right away
    You have the choice
    Finish it this evening
    Even if you have stay late
    You have until 5. 30
    I'm disappointed with your work
    You've got to improve or you're fired
    This is friendly hint
    We shall certainly bear in
    You're in the running
    You've got the job
    mind
    We shall have to let you go
    You're fired
    Take you time to look around

The list of opportunities for misunderstandly becomes immeasurably longer when meetings are involved. Managers addressing a group of staff mixed by seniority, age and sex have no tiptoe through a potential minefield of confusion. If the issues are ones of personnel management, for example, organisation, pay scales, working practices or whatever, they should take great care the words they use. Imagine such a meeting. The manager says: "I think we could be more efficient if we combined order checking with computer logging so I've decided to transfer Stan and Susan to Michael's section. I've asked Mike to join the executive committee and he'll take responsibility for liaison with the factory.... By saying, "we could more efficient", does he really mean that it's a shambles at the moment? If so the staff presently involved may well find it less than gratifying. The manager's decision to transfer Stan and Susan sounds like a directive which doesn't involve any sort of consultation. This may or may not be true, but the opportunity for misunderstanding is there. Mike's joining the executive sounds like good news. The likely hood is that the staff are either unsure about what its powers are or who is on it anyway. What does liaison with the factory entail? Was someone already doing the gob who has been given the elbow? And soon and so forth.

Things often get worse when question are asked the questioner may use "insider" language which underlines his relationship with the manager. For example, "Isn't the same trouble we had with Frank Barnes? No one else has a clue who he was and the Manager has either to ask the questioner to explain what be means or pass on quickly leaving an air of mystery in his wake. Quest oners often use meetings to make implicit political points about the organisation and their own position within it. Some use the opportunity to score points off the manager, if he allows it.

Whether the meeting is face to face or in a group . the manager has to bear three principles in mind:

• he should always be prepared to explain what he means if he has any reason to suspect that he's being misunderstood ;

• He should always be in control of the communications process when dealing with subordinates and determine the vocabulary to be used ; • he should strive to make his own use of language as clear and unequivocal as possible. Telephone calls... These too can hold pitfalls because; • you don't know what the other person is doing (or who he is with); • you can't see his facial expression;

• it's very easy to mishear what he has said. There are few things worse than giving instructions on a conference phone. Not only is the voice disembodied, but the person receiving the call will suspect that is being overhead. This discourages open response and mumbled ascent is often the only reaction the caller receives. Obviously, a good deal of man management is conducted on the telephone. Here are some simple rules which is sound for a manager to follow : • Be friendly-the recipient doesn't know if you're pleased or angry with him at his ease straight way;

• Be dear-explain the purpose of your call including your Instructions (if there are any) before asking for comment. This gives the recipient, time to assimilate the whole message end not waste time by disgracing. • Confirm that the message is understood-this la essential because words become garbled very easily. "Offer them 15 per cent discount" can easily become "offer them 50 per cent discount".

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• Listen carefully to the recipient's comments-ask for them to be repeated if you haven't wholly understood them.

• Close cheerfully-however miserable you say feel your instructions are more likely to be implemented it you are cheerful and encouraging.... Written communication

Communication in writing should have the advantage of clarity since the writer has the opportunity to marshal his facts, present the case and make a clear recommendation. Also several people can be communicated with simultaneously, particularly in this age of electronic mailboxes and the fax machine. In the context of man management, however, there are pitfalls which should be avoided.

Instructions can often be given more clearly in writing then orally. Remember that the recipient lacks the opportunity to question the manager directly and it is very easy for a feeling of authoritarianism to creep in, "Give me an analysis of the Sales figures for May, broken down by product and customer type, " may be unequivocal, but it can sound like a military order and the employee receiving the memorandum might be forgiven for assuming a crispness that was unintended. Small organisations use fewer internal memoranda to give instructions than large companies, and everyone probably benefits from the smaller amount of paperwork and the greater informality involved. It instructions are given at a meeting, it is always good practice to confirm the main points in writing afterwards, whatever the size of the organisation. Personnel Issues are also better dealt with orally with subsequent accurate confirmation in writing. Pay rises, promotions, changes in job specifications and the like, should not be communicated initially in writing, however good the news for the employee. Face-to-face meetings reinforce the relationship with the employee and should always be used.

Disciplinary matters are sometimes dealt with in writings because the manager is reluctant to confront the employee. This practice is always wrong and will breed misunderstanding and resentment. It is even worse when the memorandum is copied to others not directly concerned with the employee's welfare. If, for example, someone another part of the organisation, complains about an employee's efficiency or behaviour it is tempting for the manager to kill two birds with one stone. A memo of apology copied to the employee may placate the complainant, but will, almost certainly infuriate the employee. If the manager needs to respond to the complaint in writing he must see the employee first and ideally show him the draft memorandum before sending if off. Notice boards offer a valuable means of keeping a team up to date will relevant personnel developments. The language used should, however, always be chosen with care. For example, a notice which simply says, "Joe Smith is leaving us after for years service, " is doubtless factually correct, but offers endless scope for different interpretations. Did he fall or was he pushed? Are they glad to see the back of him or is he grieved over? The addition of the world "valuable" before "service" and phrase "and we wish him well in his future career" could resolve all doubt. Copies of memos and letters should only be sent to those who have a relevant interest in the matter in hand. Sending a copy of a memo to recipient's superior "for information" is usually flagrant politicking and should be discouraged. Ease of copy-making unfortunately encouraging widening the audience for memos well beyond the bounds of common sense. Since recipients often feel honour bound to keep the copies they receive, the real cost to the organisation can be enormous. Letters written to employee should always conform to the style normally used by his manager. Thus if the employee is "John" to him letters addressing him as "Dear Mr. Smith", "Dear Smith", or "Dear Sir" should always be avoided. It is part of the good manager's task to make sure that all of the good manager's task to make sure that all communications with employee reinforce the organisations normal style, whether formal or informal....

Getting the beat out of communication. The key component in all communication is the trust and understanding which is built up through face-to face conversations. Telephone conversations are necessary but less effective, and written communications have many pitfalls for the unwary. The manager needs to use all three forms which skills which may not come naturally to him. Training in interviewing. Charring meetings, effective speaking and effective writing is readily available. ; Even in the smallest organisations an investment in this branch of training is always soundly made.

    BODY LANGUAGE

Imagine yourself in a sales meeting with a client. As the client tells you how pleased she is with your products and how she plans to recommend an even larger purchase this year than last , you sense that something is wrong. Her voice is high-pitched and rapid and her eyes over yours focusing instead on the ballpoint pen she is nervously checking on the desk. About a week after the meeting, she sends you a note, telling you that the entire deal is off. You are disappointed but not surprised for you had understood the non-verbal messages she was sending at the meeting.

According to Albert Mehrabian a leading authority on non-verbal communication, all our emotional messages are communicated without words. We tell others what we really feel through our facial expressions, eye, leg, hand, and torso movements. We also