The decision-making dimension of the systems approach to management

Theoretically, a system is anything that is made up of various parts. Theses parts are known as subsystems. At every point in time, these parts should work in harmony so that objectives could be achieved successfully. A system could be inanimate or animate item. Examples of inanimate systems include vehicles, households, computer and institution. Examples of animate systems are human being, animal and insect. Both inanimate and animate systems are made up of various subsystems. Such subsystems are required to co-operate, collaborate and work together so that set objectives could be achieved successfully. From practical managerial point of view, business organizations are equally systems that are made up of subsystems which may take the form of departments, sections and/or units. It is supposed to be collaborations among the managers and other members in these departments, sections and/or units so that organizational objectives could be achieved. All the managers in various departments, sections and/or units are required to work together as a team to make the system coherent and closely-knit to make disintegration impossible. Closely related to the systems approach to management is managerial decision-making. Decision-making is a very important function of every manager＇s job. The success and failure stories of many organizations are the result of the quality of decisions made. Many organizations have survived turbulent conditions. Others have also collapsed in spite of favourable conditions. These varying conditions are the result of the quality of decisions made by managers at positions of authority and responsibility. Therefore the systems approach to management enjoins top managers in particular to be very circumspect and cautious in certain decision-making activities. This is because, the quality of decision a manager makes can go a long way to determine the success or failure story of an organization as exemplified in the case study in this paper.     

Research on low-carbon development of electric power industry: from the perspectives of public policy

It is a fundamental way to achieve sustainable development and inclusive growth that China takes the low-carbon development path.And low-carbon development is an effective way to respond to many threats,including global climate anomalies,environmental degradation,and energy shortage.Low-carbon economy is policy economy to a large extent.Although the external environment demands low-carbon development of electric power industry,enterprises lack intrinsic motivation.Electric power industry is the pillar industry of China,and is one of the key industries for China＇s low-carbon development.The government needs to ensure its dominant position in the low-carbon development of electric power industry,and reform the government performance management system and promote the planning and management of electric power industry through appropriate public policy,in order to adjust the structure of the electric power industry and take a low-carbon development road with Chinese characteristics.     

Human Resource Ecosystem and its evolutionary rules

The paper, based on the concept and the elements of human resource ecosystem （HR Ecosystem）, studies the function and structure of HR Ecosystem, introduces the entropy theory to define the content of entropy of HR Ecosystem, constructs the corresponding distinctive model to distinguish the direction of the evolution of HR Ecosystem and the evolutionary entropy model, and applies the models to demonstrate the evolutionary rules of HR Ecosystem. The study shows that the entropy theory can be well applied to the analysis on HR Ecosystem and that it opens up a new field in the research of human resource management and provides a new effective technical method.     

Concepts perception of strategy and strategic management： University case study

Aiming to reveal the university students＇ understanding in management as for the strategy and strategic management phenomena, this study accomplishes a phenomenographic research to assess the future managers＇ market perception. It was chosen university students in Management of a Portuguese University. We conclude that the strategy definitions obtained are an assembly of the diverse existing concepts. Concerning to strategic management it was perceived an approach with one of the main existing concepts. The findings raise interesting issues with respect to the difficulties felt by new managers in translating their theoretical definitions in real examples in the organizations.     

Rationality of escalating commitment in information systems project management： An inter-disciplinary perspective

Escalation of commitment has been linked to losses in information systems （IS） projects. Understanding the nature and the rationality of escalation allows the firm to promote optimal project management practices. This study takes an inter-disciplinary approach and draws on research from economics and management to create a model of irrational escalation and a model of rational escalation. The forces that contribute to irrational escalation include the responsibility of the same manager for both the project selection and project continuation decisions that create proneness to self-justification, the potential for negative framing of decision options due to large sunk costs, the proximity of project completion and the presence of organizational inertia. Identifying these irrational escalation factors helps design appropriate de-escalation techniques. The rational escalation model draws on the real option theory and the bandit process theory to identify conditions when project continuation is justified by the value of information and the value of flexibility that the firm receives from continuing the project.     

Ethics as an Active Self-construction of the Human

This paper will attempt to clarify the clear tendency, in our contemporary world, to look at ethics as something that ＂cures＂ all wrongs, all unbalance, and all evils from the political, environmental, to the business ones. For this reason, there is nothing better than to turn to ethics in order to ＂moralise＂ the system and the world, when the numerous news of fraud, injustice, and scandals are a part of everyday life in the business world and in our society. But, is this the role of ethics？ Can we reduce the aim of ethics to a mere technique？ In this paper, it is argued that ethics needs to be replaced in the epistemological scale of knowledge, where until now it has occupied a place at the top. Ethics needs to be repositioned in a different level of knowledge where we may find the roots of its foundation. It is also discussed that it is at the core of being that the experience of the action takes place and develops and in it, ethics takes root. Furthermore, it is suggested that understanding ethics from this point of view presupposes a new ethos around a relational poietics which privileges inter-subjectivity, self-creation, and an active and dynamic construction of the human and of the world.     

Application of Teachers'Behavior in English Classroom Management

In the practical teaching process, the teacher is not only a guide to teach students how to learn but also take a role as a classroom manager. A good classroom manager could give a lot of benefits for students. Approaches to behavior and classroom management focuses on helping teachers to use a variety of approaches in behavior and classroom management in order to make good decisions when they face with the challenge of creating positive classroom communities, to create a positive classroom atmosphere, to improve the teaching competences of teachers and to update the concept of classroom management constantly.     

Discussion on the Financial Management Goal and the Investor Supervision for Enterprise

The investors and the managers are different interest entities in a firm, so there must be divergences between them in their value reference and goal selection. When a firm wants to determine its financial management goal, not all the relevant interest parties need to be considered with, but only the principal entities of them. It＇s necessary to set up the investor supervision mechanism by some certain system arrangement in order to realize the interest maximization of shareholders coinciding with the manager＇s interest maximization pursued by managers.     

On Factors for Successful Strategic Alliances

The study on strategic alliance has been a hot point in academic cycle. The paper＇s subject is to make a deep analysis on the factors for the successful strategic alliances. On the basis of the study and analysis on domestic and foreign literatures, the paper abstracts three criterions to measure the success of strategic alliance and discusses the related factors which will influence the success of strategic alliance from three aspects in the selection of partner, the design on the alliance structure and the management of the alliance.     

Merit and Evaluation Models for Managers in the National Health System： An Empirical Study

The national health system （NHS） complexity increase requires a review of the managerial human resources evaluation and recruiting methods, considering that nowadays doctors need to improve not just their clinical capabilities, but also managerial competences. At this end it is important to develop performances control models and to identify appropriate results indicators, with the aim of introducing an effective doctors selection system for managerial roles. The paper considers the Italian situation and tests the current evaluation and selection methods, by analysing the literature and the existing legislation and by interviewing experts. Moreover, in order to reach an innovative model, complex organizations have been taken into account as benchmarks. Three different categories of experts have been interviewed and texted： national health care organizations managers, companies managers, and business consultants. The 137 interviewed experts have been asked about four main questions concerning the evaluation for hiring managers as chief medical director, department director, and head of complex units. The conducted research suggests four different options in order to evaluate and to select heads of complex unit for the most strategic roles. By consequence, the analysis shows that required characteristics must be managerial attitudes as well as clinical capabilities.     

The concept of capital before and after industrial revolution： Islamic versus market economy

The concept of capital and ownership of capital in market economy and Islamic economy is different. Also the role that capital is expected to play in the economy is different in two economic systems. One of the key elements in creation of the capital （capital formation） is interest rate. In Islam interest is strictly forbidden. This paper reviews the concept of capital and the process of capital formation both before and after industrial revelation. In that context it also looks at the function of interest rate during the time of Prophet Mohammed and the present time.     

Modification of Costanza＇s model of valuing ecosystem services and its application in China

In the past, evaluations of ecosystem functions were mostly based on Costanza＇s model, whereas the spatial, quality and temporal characteristics of regional ecosystems were not considered in the model. Focusing on these issues, coefficients of regional difference, spatial heterogeneity and willingness-to-pay （WTP） were established to modify Costanza＇s model, and a new comprehensive valuation model of ecosystem functions is proposed. The analytical results indicate that the comprehensive model could evaluate regional ecosystem functions in China accurately and provide more helpful information for decision-making. The empirical study on Zhangbei County in Hebei Province shows that the intensive human activities could limit the provision of ecosystem functions while the planned ecological programs might promote the restoration of ecosystem functions.     

Stress perceptions and leadership orientation of Malaysians： Exploring their similarities and differences with Americans

To explore the management orientation of employees in Malaysia and the United States, this paper focuses on comparing the leadership and stress perception of respondents in these two different countries. It appears that Malaysians and Americans have a significantly higher score on the relationship-orientation than task-orientation. Similarly, the female respondents in Malaysia had a significantly higher score on the relationship orientation. Finally, the responses of these 216 Malaysian respondents were compared with the 87 Americans, demonstrating significantly higher scores for respondents from the U.S. on both orientations. For management and practical application, suggestions and implications for future studies are presented.     

The importance of product positioning and global branding for sustaining competitive advantage within the companies＇ global marketing strategy

In today＇s globally competitive world, because of the globalization, new business patterns and the changing nature of consumers, the companies feel the necessity to act strategic in the market and to reach up the target markets and sustain maximum customer satisfaction in order to compete and survive. In this context, within the study it is tried to define product positioning in international markets and global branding strategies conceptually and to focus on their contributions to the overall competitive advantage of the company. Initially, the study tries to present the association between product positioning and global branding approaches of the companies and sustaining competitive advantage. Justifications for the examination of the importance of companies＇ international product positioning and global branding orientations as a basis of creating competitive advantage were derived from the literature. It is suggested that the companies＇ product positioning and global branding orientations and sustaining competitive advantage are the important aspects in multinational management and international business areas. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of product positioning and global branding strategies of the companies with special references to various industries and global brands.     

Generational management in corporate America： The differences and challenges in management of four generations of working adults

There are many differences and challenges that employers face while managing employees in the current work force. Our present day workforce is made up of a diverse group of people： Matures, also known as Veterans （age 55＋）, Baby Boomers （age 45-54）, Generation X （age 35-44） and Generation Y also known as Millennial （age 18-34）. The differences and challenges among these groups will be evident when reviewing recognition and praise, managerial styles, subordinate responses to generational leadership. Companies are stepping back and looking more holistically at how to develop programs and deploy technology that will speak to four distinct generations in the workforce （Sprague, 2008）. Each generation has their own definition of work ethic, responsibility, and performance. The best way to deal with the multi-generations is coming up with ways that make everybody feel like they are members of a team, thus helping them to learn how to develop a better way of communication than what exists between them now. If everybody is a part of a team, then they are all sharing the benefits that the other generations can bring to the table, making them a strong entity. Matures and boomers can become mentors to the X and Y＇s, and the X and Y＇s can then share and impart their knowledge of technology to the Matures and boomers. Companies in today＇s workplace must learn a better way to understand the values of the four generations, for it is very important in understanding and guiding these people in the workplace. Without this proper understanding, the guidance and alliance that managers are hoping to achieve will be even longer in the making and then one, possibly two, whole generations will be gone from the workforce and their knowledge and skill gone as well.     

Interest and profit

This paper argues that it is important to distinguish between the real rate of interest on money and the profitability of business enterprise. The former is a purely financial or monetary phenomenon （as claimed by Keynes） and the latter is in the nature of a surplus over and above the costs of production, including financing costs. There is an inverse relationship between the real rate of interest on money and the average mark-up or profit share. A synthetic theory of profit illustrates these points.     

Intelligent tools and techniques for modern management

In order to make decisions all companies need information. As a rule, all the informatics systems of a company contain a multitude of data and turn these data into information that has to be analyzed in order to make decisions. It is a slow process. The solution of this drawback is given by Business Intelligence （BI） applications that can help companies increase income or diminish costs by offering the executive management appropriate information on the basis of which quick and efficient decisions can be taken.
The main purpose of the paper is to prove the necessity that BI tools should be used by the modem manager. Managers are aware of that by putting into practice the BI solutions, opportunities of getting control over the business process and methods are improved and better, timely analysis functions of the performance parameters can be obtained.     

A comparative analysis of Japanese firm productivity： Solow residual and Malmquist productivity index

For some time, two major kinds of Total Factor Productivity （TFP） have existed independently of each other： the Solow residual and the Malmquist Productivity Index （MPI）. The Solow residual was introduced in macro economic growth models, and the MPI has been used in micro economics and management studies. As both indices were developed independently, few studies utilize both together and compare the results. This paper uses the same data to compare the two productivity indices by setting to determine the economic implications of combining the two indices. We discovered that we could decompose TFP with each aspect of the Soiow residual and MPI. We could then interpret their relationship in the business cycle. Our results indicated that the frontier shift in MPI of Japanese firms often occurred when the Solow residual increased, meaning that improving oroductivitv with the Solow residual could be generated by a firm that could shift new production frontiers.