Centralised organisation Essay Example for Free

Centralised organisation Essay â€Å"Outline the main ways in which a large centralised organisation might achieve a more flexible organised structure. Using examples, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of pursuing greater organisational flexibility† â€Å"The structures that organisations adopt are usually aligned to one of five generic organisational structures. These are the simple structure, the functional structure, the divisional structure, the holding company structure and the matrix structure. (Capon, C. (2009) the business environment. Chapter 4: Inside organisations. This essay will explain the various ways of how a large centralised organisation achieves a more flexible structure through de-centralisation. This essay will analyse the benefits and drawbacks of the matrix structure and the functional structure. A flexible structure allows staff to take part in decision making thus making them feel more valued and motivated, this favours the organisation because efficiency and communication is improved. Centralised structures are often referred to as bureaucracies and have a long chain of command and a narrow span of control. They are tall structures designed so that directors, owners and management can achieve maximum control. Decision making is isolated within the top part of the hierarchy with a very autocratic style of management (none/very little shared decision making with employees further down the hierarchy). Centralised structures allow benchmarks and certain procedures to monitor quality closely. A clear path can be seen by employees in terms of promotion which often aids in motivation, in turn improving the productivity of staff. However there are some downsides to a centralised or bureaucratic structure, such as the fact that it’s time-consuming for decisions to be made because the decision has to come from the top of the organisation (CEO’s/Directors) all the way to the bottom through many levels before the employees actually get told what they need to do; because of this it is difficult for companies with a tall structure to quickly react to changes in the market that they operate in. In tall organisations there is a tendency for ‘red tape’ or excessive regulation which also slows down many processes within a business. Another problem with tall organisations is that there is a divide between the top managers and regular employees, which means that the workers lower down in the hierarchy feel excluded and less valued. This In turn leads to workers becoming less motivated. Because of all these difficulties big organisations are constantly attempting to increase flexibility by changing their structure. Decentralisation provides higher subordinate satisfaction and a quicker response to problems and may give workers a sense of ownership and greater levels of motivation in their work† (Ray French, Charlotte Rayner, Gary Rees and Sally Rumbles – (2008) Organizational behaviour ). De-centralised structures are desirable because they allow flexibility within a business, it is essentially a democratic management style of running an organisation, and this means that there is more feedback and input from staff regarding decision making. With a shorter chain of command, due to the flat hierarchical structure, and increased motivation of staff production can increase. The functional structure is relatively restrictive of flexibility, it is fairly rigid and centralised. The managers of the departments are given the responsibility to manage day-to-day problems and take part in decision making only in the short term. Decision making and power in the long term rests very much within the board of directors, thus slowing down communication within the organisation. The functional structure is mainly used by small businesses; large organisations tend to move away from this structure in the search for more flexibility. The reason for this is because of product or service diversification and larger target markets. The functional structure tends to have poor career prospects, high pressure on senior managers , quality monitoring is very difficult and there are skills shortages in the sense that job roles are set so skills cannot be shared within the departments. The matrix structure integrates two structures together, often geographical and multi product structures. For example, a company may have a department for a product A in Europe and for Product A in Asia. One of the advantages of the Matrix structure is the convenience of experts simplifying the sharing of knowledge between the goods. Another advantage of the matrix structure is intra-team communication, this allows ease of communication between the different functional product groups within the same organisation, and similarly there is less pressure on managers, quality monitoring is easier and skills are interchanged within departments of the same function thus improving efficiency. In the early 90’s the majority of IBM and the business press were convinced decentralisation would aid the company in terms of â€Å"flexibility, speed and entrepreneurial motivation†. They believed splitting up IBM into smaller companies would speed up processes and promote and enhance efficiency, which can be true of decentralisation. Lou Gerstner was appointed CEO of IBM in 1993. He was convinced IBM should remain centralised and to â€Å"use its unique size and capabilities to help customers integrate the diverse components of their information technology (IT) systems†. In the end IBM was loosened up but not completely decentralised. This worked tremendously well with IBM’s stock price rising by almost a factor of ten. (Thomas W. Malone Harvard Business School Archives (29/3/2004): Making the decision to decentralise. )From this we can conclude that de-centralisation improves organisational flexibility by speeding up the process of decision making, improving efficiency and communication and increasing job satisfaction for employees. Pursuing greater organisational flexibility could be complex in the sense that the organisation may become less efficient due to the change in structure and managerial span of control. Nonetheless changing from a tall centralised structure to a flat decentralised structure favours the organisation because there are fewer levels of hierarchy and a shorter chain of command which enables better communication. â€Å"Decentralisation, in theory, provides greater potential for motivating employees and, because decisions are taken nearer the place of work, the organisation can react faster and smarter†. Ian Brookes (2009): Organisational behaviour – individuals, groups and organisation 4th edition). However not all flat structures are decentralised; take for example the functional structure, despite being flat it is a rigid and centralised structure. The Matrix structure would enable a large organisation to achieve greater organisational flexibility because one of its main strengths is allowing ease of communication.

The expert system

The expert system Abstract The title for this report is Expert System. Statistically, the percentage of current organizations implementing expert systems for their usage is very minimal. This is due to the restraining forces of implementing expert system outweigh its driving force. Yet, as the technologies are frequently being upgraded, the constraints of implementing expert systems are getting easier to overcome. Hence, the reason I chose this title for my report is due to my strong interest in the future of expert system where it may potentially be used domestically for providing the best solutions for complex problems. Also, the knowledge gained from this research will contribute a lot for my final year project which will include in a simple expert system. This report will be explaining what an expert system is, the components of expert system, what a knowledge-based expert system is, the features of expert system, the advantages of using expert system, the drawbacks of using expert system and finally suggestions of implementing expert system into e-commerce systems. In the appendix part, the pictures which I have found from the Internet will be included in for providing better understanding regarding the details of expert system. What is Expert System? According to Wikipedia, an expert system is an advanced computer application that is implemented for the purpose of providing solutions to complex problems, or to clarify uncertainties through the use of non-algorithmic programs where normally human expertise will be needed. Expert systems are most common in complex problem domain and are considered as widely used alternatives in searching for solutions that requires the existence of specific human expertise. The expert system is also able to justify its provided solutions based on the knowledge and data from past users. Normally expert systems are used in making business marketing strategic decisions, analyzing the performance of real time systems, configuring computers and perform many other functions which normally would require the existence of human expertise. The difference between an expert system with a normal problem-solving system is that the latter is a system where both programs and data structures are encoded, while for expert system only the data structures are hard-coded and no problem-specific information is encoded in the program structure. Instead, the knowledge of a human expertise is captured and codified in a process known as knowledge engineering. Hence, whenever a particular problem requires the assistance of a certain human expertise to provide a solution, the human expertise which has been codified will be used and processed in order to provide a rational and logical solution. This knowledge-based expert system enables the system to be frequently added with new knowledge and adapt accordingly to meet new requirements from the ever-changing and unpredictable environment. Components of Expert System An expert system has many core system components to function and interfaces with individuals of various roles. In the appendix area, there will be a diagram (Figure 1.1) displaying expert system components and human interfaces. The major components are: Knowledge base a set of rules as representation of the expertise, mostly in IF THEN statements. Working storage the data which is specific to a problem being solved. Inference engine the code at the core of the system which derives recommendations from the knowledge base and problem-specific data in working storage. User interface the code that controls the dialog between the user and the system. There are certain major roles of individuals who interact with the expert system to fully exploit its functionality and capability. They are the: Domain expert the individual or individuals whose expertises are solving the problems the system is intended to solve; Knowledge engineer the individual who encodes the experts knowledge in a form that can be used by the expert system; User the individual who will be consulting with the system to get advice which would have been provided by the expert. Majority of the expert systems are built with expert system shells which contains an inference engine and user interface. The shell will be used by a knowledge engineer to build a system catered for specific problem domain. Sometimes expert systems are also built with custom developed shells for certain applications. In this scenario, there will be another additional individual System engineer the individual who builds the user interface, designs the declarative format of the knowledge base, and implements the inference engine. Depending on the size of the project, the knowledge engineer and the system engineer might be the same person. For a custom built system, the design of the format of the knowledge base and the coding of the domain knowledge are closely related. The format has a significant effect on the coding of the knowledge. One of the major hurdles to overcome in building expert systems is the knowledge engineering process. The process of the codifying the expertise into a required rule format can be a challenging and tedious task. One major advantage of a customized shell is that the format of the knowledge base can be designed to facilitate the knowledge engineering process. Since the major challenge in expert system development is the building of the knowledge base, it is encouraged that gap and difference between the experts representation of the knowledge and the representation in the knowledge base should be minimized. With a customized system, the system engineer can implement a knowledge base whose structures are as close as possible to those used by the domain expert. Knowledge-based Expert Systems Not all expert systems have learning components to adapt in new environments or to meet new requirements. But a common element each expert system possesses is that once the system is fully developed it will be tested and be proven by being placed in the same real world problem solving situation, typically as an aid to human workers or a supplement to some information system. Although reference books are able to provide a tremendous amount of knowledge, users have to read, comprehend and interpret the knowledge for it to be used. Conventional computer programs are built to perform functions using conventional decision-making logic having only little knowledge along with the basic algorithm for performing the specific functions and fulfill the necessary boundary conditions. The so-called knowledgebase was created in purpose of utilizing some knowledge representation formalism to capture and store the Subject Matter Experts (SME) knowledge. The process includes gathering that knowledge from the SME and codifying it according to a standardized format. Knowledge-based expert systems collect the small segments of human knowledge and combined into a set of knowledge-base which is used to aid in solving a complex problem. Any other problem that is within the range and domain of the knowledge-base can also be solved using the same program without reprogramming. Knowledge-based expert systems solve problems which normally require human intelligence. These said expert systems represent the expertise knowledge as data or rules within a system. These rules and data can be used and called upon for reference when needed to solve complex problems. When compared to conventional programming, the system has the ability to reason the process with explanations by back-traces and calculate the levels of confidence and deal with uncertainty. The knowledge has to be codified into programming code, hence as the knowledge changes, the program has to be changed accordingly as well and then rebuilt. Expert System Features There are a number of features which are commonly used in expert systems. These features allows the users to fully utilize the expert systems capability conveniently in providing the most logical and reasonable decision in a problematic situation. Backward chaining an inference technique which continuously break a goal into smaller sub-goals which are easier to prove via IF THEN rules Dealing with uncertainties the system has the capability to handle and reason with conditions that are uncertain and data which are not precisely known Forward chaining an inference technique which deduce a problem solution from initial data via IF THEN rules Data representation the method where the specific problem data is stored and accessed in the system User interface that portion of the code which creates an easy to use system; Explanations the ability of the system to explain the reasoning process that it used to reach a recommendation. Inference rule An inference rule is a statement that has two parts, antecedent which is an if clause and consequent which is a then clause. This rule is what the expert systems rely on and provides the capability to find solutions to diagnose and prescribe problems. An example of an inference rule is: If the song choice is in Latin, and the singers are in a group, Then the song choice is definitely from Il Divo. An expert systems rule base stores many inference rules such as this. They are stored in as separate rules and the inference engine will draw conclusions by going through all of them. Rules can be removed and added without affecting others since they are non-connected, yet it will subsequently affect which conclusions are to be reached. Inference rules has the better upper hand compared with traditional programming due to the fact that inference rules are able to imitate human reasoning and justify the solutions given. Thus, when a conclusion is drawn, the system is able to justify its course of solution and convince the user. Furthermore, since the expert system uses knowledge in a form identical to a certain expert, the solution provided will be not so different from an actual experts advice. Chaining When using inference rules, two main methods of reasoning used are backward chaining and forward chaining. Forward Chaining Forward chaining begins under the condition that the data is available and inference rules are used to conclude more data until a desired goal is reached. An inference engine using forward chaining searches the inference rules until it finds one in which the if clause is known to be true. It then concludes the then clause and adds this information to its data. It would continue to do this until a goal is reached. Due to the reason that the data available determines which inference rules are used, this method is also called data driven. A large number of expert systems require the use of forward chaining. The data driven approach is practical when combinatorial explosion creates a seemingly infinite number of possible right answers where no definite answer is specified. Forward chaining starts with the available data and uses inference rules to extract more data until a goal is reached. An inference engine using forward chaining searches the inference rules until it finds one where the antecedent (If clause) is known to be true. When found it can conclude, the consequent (Then clause), resulting in the addition of new information to its data. Inference engines will iterate through this process until a goal is reached. For example, suppose that the goal is to conclude the color of a pet named Fritz, given that he croaks and eats flies, and that the rule base contains the following four rules: If X croaks and eats flies Then X is a frog If X chirps and sings Then X is a canary If X is a frog Then X is green If X is a canary Then X is yellow This rule base would be searched and the first rule would be selected, because its antecedent (If Fritz croaks and eats flies) matches our data. Now the consequents (Then X is a frog) is added to the data. The rule base is again searched and this time the third rule is selected, because its antecedent (If Fritz is a frog) matches our data that was just confirmed. Now the new consequent (Then Fritz is green) is added to our data. Nothing more can be inferred from this information, but we have now accomplished our goal of determining the color of Fritz. Due to the fact that the data determines which rules are selected and used, this method is called data-driven, in contrast to goal-driven backward chaining inference. One of the advantages of forward-chaining over backward-chaining is that the reception of new data can trigger new inferences, which makes the engine better suited to dynamic situations in which conditions are likely to change. Backward Chaining Backward chaining starts with a list of goals or hypothesis and works backwards from the consequent (Then clause) to the antecedent (If clause) to see if there is data available that will support any of these consequents. An inference engine using backward chaining would search the inference rules until it finds one which has a consequent that matches a desired goal. If the antecedent of that rule is not known to be true, then it is added to the list of goals. In order for ones goal to be confirmed one must also provide data that confirms this new rule. An example of a system that uses backward chaining will be Google search engine. The aim of the system is to pick the best choice from many enumerated possibilities. For example, an identification problem falls in this category. Diagnostic systems also fit this model, since the aim of the system is to pick the correct diagnosis. The knowledge is structured in rules which describe how each of the possibilities might be selected. The rule breaks the problem into sub-problems. For example, the following top level rules are in a system which identifies birds. IF family is albatross and color is white THEN bird is laysan albatross. IF family is albatross and color is dark THEN bird is black footed albatross. The system would try all of the rules which gave information satisfying the goal of identifying the bird. Each would trigger sub-goals. In the case of these two rules, the sub-goals of determining the family and the color would be pursued. The following rule is one that satisfies the family sub-goal: IF order is tubenose and size large and wings long narrow THEN family is albatross. The sub-goals of determining color, size, and wings would be satisfied by asking the user. By having the lowest level sub-goal satisfied or denied by the user, the system effectively carries on a dialog with the user. The user sees the system asking questions and responding to answers as it attempts to find the rule which correctly identifies the bird. Note that the goals always match the affirmed versions of the consequents of implications and even then, their antecedents are then considered as the new goals which ultimately must match known facts which are usually defined as consequents whose antecedents are always true. Due to the reason that the list of goals determines which rules are selected and used, this method is called goal-driven, in contrast to data-driven forward-chaining inference. The backward chaining approach is often employed by expert systems. For a data driven system, the system must be initially populated with data, in contrast to the goal driven system which gathers data as it needs it. Figure 1.2 illustrates the difference between forward and backward chaining systems for two simplified rules. The forward chaining system starts with the data of a=1 and b=2 and uses the rules to derive d=4. The backward chaining system starts with the goal of finding a value for d and uses the two rules to reduce that to the problem of finding values for a and b. Uncertainty Often times in structured selection problems the final answer is not known with complete certainty. The experts rules might be vague, and the user might be unsure of answers to questions. This can be easily seen in medical diagnostic systems where the expert is not able to be definite about the relationship between symptoms and diseases. In fact, the doctor might offer multiple possible diagnoses. For expert systems to work in the real world they must also be able to deal with uncertainty. One of the simplest schemes is to associate a numeric value with each piece of information in the system. The numeric value represents the certainty with which the information is known. There are numerous ways in which these numbers can be defined, and how they are combined during the inference process. Data Representation For all rule based systems, the rules refer to data. The data representation can be simple or complex, depending on the problem. The most fundamental scheme uses attribute-value pairs. Examples are color-white, and size-large. When a system is reasoning about multiple objects, it is necessary to include the object as well as the attribute-value. For example the furniture placement system might be dealing with multiple chairs with different attributes, such as size. The data representation in this case must include the object. Once there are objects in the system, they each might have multiple attributes. This leads to a record-based structure where a single data item in working storage contains an object name and all of its associated attribute-value pairs. Frames are a more complex way of storing objects and their attribute-values. Frames add intelligence to the data representation, and allow objects to inherit values from other objects. Furthermore, each of the attributes can have associated with it procedures (called demons) which are executed when the attribute is asked for, or updated. In a furniture placement system each piece of furniture can inherit default values for length. When the piece is placed, demons are activated which automatically adjust the available space where the item was placed. User Interface The acceptability of an expert system depends to a great extent on the quality of the user interface. The easiest to implement interfaces communicate with the user through a scrolling dialog as illustrated in figure 1.4. The user can enter commands, and respond to questions. The system responds to commands, and asks questions during the inferencing process. More advanced interfaces make heavy use of pop-up menus, windows, mice, and similar techniques as shown in figure 1.5. If the machine supports it, graphics can also be a powerful tool for communicating with the user. This is especially true for the development interface which is used by the knowledge engineer in building the system. Providing Explanations One of the more interesting features of expert systems is their ability to explain themselves. Given that the system knows which rules were used during the inference process, it is possible for the system to provide those rules to the user as a means for explaining the results. This type of explanation can be very dramatic for some systems such as the bird identification system. It could report that it knew the bird was a black footed albatross because it knew it was dark colored and an albatross. It could similarly justify how it knew it was an albatross. At other times, however, the explanations are relatively useless to the user. This is because the rules of an expert system typically represent empirical knowledge, and not a deep understanding of the problem domain. For example a car diagnostic system has rules which relate symptoms to problems, but no rules which describe why those symptoms are related to those problems. Explanations are always of extreme value to the knowledge engineer. They are the program traces for knowledge bases. By looking at explanations the knowledge engineer can see how the system is behaving, and how the rules and data are interacting. This is an invaluable diagnostic tool during development. Why Use Expert System? In this section, the advantages and disadvantages of implementing the expert systems are provided. Then, the pros and cons will be reviewed according to my viewpoint and I will conclude as to why expert system SHOULD be implemented as a wiser alternative in obtaining the best solutions in overcoming complex problems. The Advantages of Using Expert System Expert system has been reliably used in the business world to gain tactical advantages and forecast the markets condition. In this globalization era where every decision made in the business world is critical for success, the assistance provided from an expert system is undoubtedly essential and highly reliable for an organization to succeed. Examples given below will be the advantages for the implementation of an expert system: Providing consistent solutions It can provide consistent answers for repetitive decisions, processes and tasks. As long as the rule base in the system remains the same, regardless of how many times similar problems are being tested, the final conclusions drawn will remain the same. Provides reasonable explanations It has the ability to clarify the reasons why the conclusion was drawn and be why it is considered as the most logical choice among other alternatives. If there are any doubts in concluding a certain problem, it will prompt some questions for users to answer in order to process the logical conclusion. Overcome human limitations It does not have human limitations and can work around the clock continuously. Users will be able to frequently use it in seeking solutions. The knowledge of experts is an invaluable asset for the company. It can store the knowledge and use it as long as the organization needs. Easy to adapt to new conditions Unlike humans who often have troubles in adapting in new environments, an expert system has high adaptability and can meet new requirements in a short period of time. It also can capture new knowledge from an expert and use it as inference rules to solve new problems. The Disadvantages of Using Expert System Although the expert system does provide many significant advantages, it does have its drawbacks as well. Examples given below will be the disadvantages for the implementation of an expert system: Lacks common sense It lacks common sense needed in some decision making since all the decisions made are based on the inference rules set in the system. It also cannot make creative and innovative responses as human experts would in unusual circumstances. High implementation and maintenance cost The implementation of an expert system will be a financial burden for smaller organizations since it has high development cost as well as the subsequent recurring costs to upgrade the system to adapt in new environment. Difficulty in creating inference rules Domain experts will not be able to always explain their logic and reasoning needed for the knowledge engineering process. Hence, the task of codifying out the knowledge is highly complex and may require high May provide wrong solutions It is not error-free. There may be errors occurred in the processing due to some logic mistakes made in the knowledge base, which it will then provide the wrong solutions. Summary It is entirely subjective as to whether the advantages of expert system overweigh the disadvantages of implementing it. It depends on the organizations viewpoint as to which objectives have the higher priority, whether in cutting cost or in producing a higher quality decision-making. However, in my opinion, the implementation of expert system is critical in providing the better service towards customers as well as possessing the competitive advantages over strong competitors. Cutting Cost VS Better Quality of Services If an organization is financially stable, the expert system is worth spending money and resources on, based on its fame and history of delivering many positive results. Though some organizations may have the cost-cutting objective as the top priority, if a wrong decision is made, it could lead to heavier financial loss. Adding insult to injury, the organizations reputation will be tarnished and customers may lose confidence towards the services of the organization. Expert System VS Human Experts Another main constraint of implementing the expert system would be the process of capturing the knowledge and codifying it into the system. However, an expert will not be available to provide his expertise around the clock. Hence, the importance of having the knowledge available all the time for critical decision-making far overweighs the difficulty that the organization will face in capturing the said knowledge. Humans also have limitations as to how much knowledge a human is able to digest and comprehend. As for expert system, it is able to store as much knowledge as possible base on its storage space. Hence, in terms of performance, expert system is capable to perform as good if not better then human. Implementing Expert System into e-Commerce System It has yet to be common for e-commerce systems to be implementing expert system to enhance its capability and experience for web users. There are still not many web developers willing to embed an expert system into their e-commerce system, mainly due to its difficulty in the knowledge engineering process to codify the human expertise. Yet, it is plausible to have a less complex expert system embedded in an e-commerce system to aid customers make decisions. The appropriate inference technique to be used in an e-commerce system will be forward chaining method, since customers will be providing part by part of data which will then be compared with the rule base to finally draw a conclusion. Providing questionnaires Through forward chaining method, the properly organized questionnaires will be able to obtain parts of small information from customers who couldnt make their decision upon which item to be bought. Every single question will have its purpose in determining the condition of the customers thoughts and liking, and then the answer provided will be compared with the rule base in the expert system to draw a final conclusion. This data-driven method is simple and productive since the process of codifying the human expertise of recommending an item that suits the customers liking isnt that complex. Example of Questionnaire The questionnaire below is used for the purpose of attaining small parts of information from the customer and the answers provided will be compared to the rule base in order to generate a decision for him Question 1 What is your budget range? (Determining the range of performance from the desktop) A. < RM 2000 B. lt RM 3000 C. > RM 5000 Inference Rules If X budget is less than RM2000 Then X needs no NVIDIA graphic card If X budget is less than RM3000 Then X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) If X budget is more than RM5000 Then X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) with better computer accessories Note: If user chose < RM 2000 Question 2 will be skipped. Question 2 What are the games you mostly play? (Determining the graphic card requirements) A. Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) B. First-Person-Shooting (FPS) C. All Inference Rules If X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) AND X plays MMORPG Then X needs NVIDIA GTX 260 If X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) with better computer accessories AND X plays MMORPG Then X needs NVIDIA GTX 260 and High Resolution Monitor If X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) AND X plays FPS Then X needs NVIDIA GT 9600 If X needs NVIDIA graphic card(s) with better computer accessories AND X plays FPS Then X needs NVIDIA GT 9600 and Gaming Laser Mouse Question 3 How frequent do you download files such as songs and movies from the internet? (Determining the needed storage space) A. Seldom B. Often Inference Rules If X seldom download files Then X needs 320GB storage space If X often download files Then X needs 500GB storage space Providing Explanations Based on the questionnaire above, if a customer selects C, B, and B, the explanation will be given: The user selects NVIDIA GT 9600, Gaming Laser Mouse and 500 GB storage space. User plays First-Person-Shooting games which require middle-performance of graphic card and a gaming laser mouse to increase precision of mouse-controlling. User often downloads files and requires large storage space. If a customer selects C, A, and A, the explanation will be given: The user selects NVIDIA GTX 260, High Resolution Monitor and 320GB storage space. User plays MMORPG which require high-performance of graphic card and a high resolution monitor to enhance the gaming experience. User seldom downloads files and requires moderate storage space. Conclusion To conclude this report, expert system is undeniably reliable in terms of providing reasonable and highly valuable decisions. Knowledge and experiences from a human expert can lead to the critical decision-making in achieving success. Yet, as humans have limitations in terms of how much of knowledge is comprehendible by a person and the possible fatigue of dealing with too much work, the expert system doesnt have any. As knowledge is a valuable asset to an organization, retaining the experts knowledge is critical for the future of the organization. The expert system can play a vital role in storing and retaining the knowledge from a human expert. This saves the trouble of having the need to hire experts within the same domain for years. The rapid change and improvement of technologies will gradually decrease the cost for implementing an expert system. This will significantly reduce the financial burden for small companies in deciding the implementation of expert system. In the business world, organizations often faced trouble in making tough decisions and overcome complex problems. Customers often require computerized systems to support their decision-making. All these criteria can be met with the implementation of the expert system.

Child Labour in Pakistan

Child Labour in Pakistan WHEN I began this article, my reference points for a critique of globalization were the riots in Se- attle and the World Banks newest World Development Report on Pov- erty. Since then, the world has wit- nessed yet another clash between the forces of labor and those of capital. This article deals with the issue of child labor, particularly the case of Pakistan, but within the framework of a new world order defined by the politics of the WTO(world trade organization). The manner in which the activists-gathered from across the world-were treated by the Czech Republic outdid even the manner in which the Seattle police crushed its local protests. However, ultimately, this article argues that demanding social rights-especially labor rights of any sort-in the current international political economic scenario increas- ingly dominated and defined by the WTO and its constituency is a losing battle and that even if these rights were granted in some limited fashion (for instance, by ensuring that chil- drens rights are implemented vis-a- vis labor, by making industries child- free) it accomplishes no more than papering the cracks being pro- duced by a system premised on the existence and perpetuation of inequalities-an intensified and increasingly global capitalism. The World Banks 1997 World Development Report sustains the myth of globalization as the new development strategy-the path to economic well-being. The most recent World Development Report, on the other hand, is forced to deal with the issue of increasing and intensifying poverty across the world. However, in their infinite wisdom, World Bank economists insist that the answer to this is more, not less, globalization or, at the very least, globalisation with a human face. Once upon a time when moore was a young man, the word interna- tionalism was a noble word .. . but now the idea of internationalism has become something to be feared or at- tacked (WTO 1999). Well, Mr. Moore, we can easily explain that: in your youth, internationalism was a word that connoted the solidarity of work- ing people across the world, whereas what we are now faced with is the in- ternationalization of capital. The standoffs and organized boy- cotts and protests, whether in Prague or Seattle or in the form of strikes against liberalization and privatiza- tion across the world, and their after- math expose globalizations reality not as ultimately empowering-or at the least benign-but as a con- sciously institutionalized political project backed by the military and police forces of the advanced indus- trialized North/West. As a political project, then, it can only be countered through political engagement and di- rect political action and not, as has been proposed, through the addition of social clauses within the WTOs mandate itself. This is a contradic- tion in terms because of what the WTO is and the interests it is there to protect and promote. What has emerged systematically from such contemporary and previ- ous critiques of the mainstream development project represented by the World Bank, and the crisis in development inaugurated by the structural adjustment policies of the IMF and World Bank in the late 1970s, is the stark reality that both absolute and relative poverty as well as inequality. Mike Moore of the WTO did his bit for damage control in the wake of the Seattle protests by telling trade union workers that as far as he was concerned there simply was not any contradiction between trade and labor (WTO 1999). Open economies, imperfect as they are have delivered more jobs, opportunities and security to more people than alternatives. Here the veiled reference is clearly to the centrally planned economies because we are immediately informed that countries that have embraced openness and freedom have increased the real incomes of their workers, which in turn has raised labour standards and reduced poverty. Countries that remain closed, remain poorer, underdevel- oped, cut off from the world of rights and freedoms. This is, of course, patently false. The greatest tragedy of the 1990s has been the massive decline of welfare in the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, many of which have experienced increases in mortality, illiteracy, crime, malnutrition, and gende r inequality (see, for example, Palast 2000). What has changed from those early days is that, as far as the capi- talists are concerned, the world is their oyster. Samir Amin (1997) has pointed out that one of the major ef- fects of the globalization of the world economy has been to extend the re- serve army of unemployed persons across the world. And just as the re- serve army of the unemployed within a national economy gave the capital- ist the leverage he needed, vis-A-vis labor, to depress wages, so is the case today for multinational firms in an increasingly globalized world econ- omy. Chossudovsky (1997) -has called this the globalization of poverty. Hence the need for more and better marketing of the free-trade system highlighting its multiple benefits for society at large and for workers in particular. This is, after all, what is called a hard sell. The internationalism and solidar- ity that trade unionists have stood for is suddenly presented as having been in the service of nothing but universal freedom, an essentially lib- eral creed! What Moore is doing, and not coincidentally, is nothing short of conflating internationalism with globalization. The sleight of hand is so seamless, it leaves one breathless. Next, consider the presentation of the trade policy for the year 2000 by the finance minister of Pakistan, in which he declaims, The minister declared that he was confident that the Pakistani nation could rise to the occasion, but note under what conditions he considers this possible: We can do it if every Pakistani-the worker, the farmer, the producer, the exporter, the civil servant, the house wife-everyone- is committed to the cause of exports, but we can not hope to make a break through in exports unless we make our agriculture an industry more ef- ficient; more competitive. A commit- ment to exports becomes the sine qua non of the national interest, and all class and gender distinctions are flattened in its face. It should be noted that this informalization of labor makes unionizing impossible under Paki- stans labor laws. The report also cites 4000 industrial mills as being sick, of which 152 were in the textile sector-one of Pakistans export- oriented sectors. Out of a total of 442 spinning units with over 1 million spindles, 90 were shut down. And that all occurred in one year alone The issue of child labor and the efficacy of ILO conventions must be seen in this context. Recently, the ILO passed its Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, Con- vention No. 182. Pakistan has yet to ratify it, although nongovernmental childrens rights organizations and movements against bonded labor have been exerting pressure on the government for years. Pakistans minister for manpower (and, signifi- cantly, industries, among other port- folios), Umar Asgher Khan, disclosed early in the year that Pakistan was seriously considering its ratification. Yet Pakistans child labor force is estimated at around 30 mil- lion in the 5-18 age group or 20 mil- lion in the 5-15 age group (Human Rights Commission of Pakistan 1998, 226), most of it in the urban informal and agricultural sectors, However, even those forms of child labor that are covered by these constitutional provisions are not curbed, due to the lack of political will on the part of state elites Neoliberalism has exposed the seams within the historic compro- mise between capital and labor, and with it the ideological and political basis of the ILO. The contradictions inherent in trying to accommodate the needs and rights of workers and the poor in a socioeconomic system based on the accumulation and real- ization of profit and surplus value have now become painfully exposed. The civil-military bureaucracy and the landed elites have benefited under every regime in Pakistani history, with a few shifts in the balance of power between them but no serious threat to their overall status. This has resulted, among other things, in the continuation and intensification of existing feudal structures; there have never been more than cosmetic land reforms under any regime, ensuring that the feudal power structure remains undisturbed. This has severe impli- cations for the incidence and forms of child labor and labor practices in gen- eral. Moreover, labor laws have been draconian, even under the populist socialist government ofZulfiqar Ali Bhutto. It is only recently that NGOs and movements such as the BLLF and the Bhatta Mazdoor Mahaz have been able to pressure the govern- ment to pass a law such as the Bonded Labor (Abolition) Act. Although we cannot look upon this as an absolute victory-laws are, after all, only as good as their implement- ers, and the implementer s are still feudal/tribal elites-this act has enabled thousands of bonded labor- ers to be freed by lawyers working with the BLLF. All these explanations for the exis- tence of child labor have important implications because they form the basis of particular policies designed to address this issue. Thus if child labor is caused by poverty, then we must have poverty alleviation pro- grams and development (once again understood as economic growth). If child labor is part of a vicious cycle that is caused by lack of education or primary schooling, then we must ensure that children go to school. And there are several initiatives, both local/domestic and interna- tional (and usually a combination of the two), specifically geared to address this lack. The real issue is, of course, that child labor is a function of poverty but that poverty is not just an unfortunate feature of life in Pakistan. Poverty is structurally created, maintained, and now under the pro- cess of intensifying. The structural reasons are both domestic and inter- national and, under the current international political regime, are unlikely to be reversed without political intervention. The ILO is an existing institution with a history of work on behalf of labor, but activists, intellec- tuals, and critical development experts need to think seriously about either turning it into a more powerful organization or designing and estab- lishing a new institution that can work as a watchdog on behalf the worlds exploited workers.

Racism in America Essay -- essays research papers fc

Racism has taken on many forms in America over the past several hundred years. The most substantial or well known is the plight of the African American slaves and the injustices they suffered. Today, a new form of racism is developing; one that has always been around but has now entered the forefront of most Americans minds. This new racism is against members of the Middle Eastern culture and religion. The actions of September 11th did not create a new problem, they just shed light on a problem that we have had for some time. Racism is everywhere in one form or another. To understand it, I think it is necessary to look at the history, causes, and ways to resolve it. HISTORY   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Between 1450 and 1850, at least 12 million Africans were shipped from Africa across the Atlantic Ocean — the notorious Middle Passage — primarily to colonies in North America, South America and the West Indies. Eighty percent of these kidnapped Africans were transported during the 18th century. Ten percent to 20 percent of them died en route. Unknown numbers of Africans, probably at least 4 million, died in slave wars and forced marches in Africa. In 1619, a Dutch slave trader exchanged his cargo of Africans for food in Jamestown. The Africans became indentured servants, similar in legal position to many poor Englishmen who traded several years of labor for passage to America. The race-based slave system did not develop until the 1680s. In 1638 an African man could be sold for about $27 and serve his entire life as a slave. In contrast, an indentured European laborer could earn as much as 70 cents a day toward paying off his debt and ending his servitude. In 1660 the trans-Atlantic slave trade begins, producing one of the largest forced migrations in history. From the early 16th to the mid-19th centuries, between 10 million and 11 million Africans were taken from their homes. The American colonies began enacting laws that defined and regulated slave relations, including a provision that black slaves, and the children of women slaves, would serve for life. Slave owners gave a great deal of attention to the education and training of the ideal slave. In general, there were five steps in molding the character of a slave: strict discipline, a sense of his own inferiority, belief in the master’s superiority, acceptance of the master’s standards and a deep sense of his own helples... ...derstand how they could hold these ideas to be so true and the research in this paper most definitely allowed me to take a deeper, un-biased look. I was able to see why they would be unable or unwilling to change things that were caused by years and years of social learning. It most definitely saddens me that there are still many people in this world that hold prejudices against others. I begin to think that the road to recovery has begun and then I will hear a slanderous word uttered against another person or see a terrible story on the evening news. Even the motivation behind some of our wars leaves me wondering. I believe in protecting ourselves, but at the same time things seem to move from retaliation to racial prejudice in many wars. We begin to lose focus on why we are there and who or what we are fighting for. That is a shame. WORKS CITED Spring, Joel. Deculturalization and the Struggle for Equality: A Brief History of the Education of Dominated Cultures in the United States. June 26, 2012 Torraine Walker "Don't Feed the Race Trolls" Huffington Post 04/19/2015 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/torraine-walker/dont-feed-the-race-trolls_1_b_7091716.html

Parent-Child Relationship Essay -- Papers Parenting Children Essays

Parent-Child Relationships The topic I have chosen for my paper is that of relationship between parents and children. Some of the points that I will be discussing are child abuse, child neglect and how it can affect a child and the relationship with the parents. A parent-child relationship is a special relationship that has a huge effect on the way that the child will turn out. This relationship is formed through pregnancy, adoption, and step parenting. Parenting requires a great deal of adaptation. The parents want to develop a strong bond with their child but they also want to maintain a healthy marital relationship and adult friendships. Potential parents often ask themselves what they will be like when they are parents and try to recall some experiences when they were children. Mothers are the primary caretakers of the children. The fathers have had minimal care taking responsibilities. Many women, if they had a career before hand, have to give it up to stay at home with the child. Although, many fathers where the wives must work become important in the process of care taking because their role must increase to their children. Studies of human fathers and their infants confirm that many fathers can act sensitively with their infant (according to Parke & Sawin, 1980) and their infants form attachments to both their mothers and fathers at roughly the same age (according to Lamb, 1977). A number of studies have been done on the caretaker’s effects on the child and suggests that the effects may have been caused by child’s behavior as much as by the caretaker’s (according to Bell 1979). The child’s aggression level can be affected by the parent’s authoritarian discipline. â€Å"Parents differ widely in sensing the needs o... ...d friendships later in life and also a good upbringing. Bibliography: References: Daniel L., Davis (2000). The Aggressive Adolescent: Clinical and Forensic Issues Don Baucum (1996). Psychology. New York: Barron’s Company F.L. Marcuse. Areas of Psychology. New York: Harper and Brother’s Publishers Edited by Raymond J. Corsini. Encyclopedia of Psychology, Second Edition, Volume 1. New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc. Edited by Raymond J. Corsini. Encyclopedia of Psychology, Second Edition, Volume 3. New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc. GE Vol 5, No 3 - Parent-child relationships & Materialism http://www.mra.org.uk/globalex/issue19/pcrels.html Themestream: Parent Child Relationships http://www.themestream.com/tax/Society/Relationships/Parent_Child_Relationships Britannica: Parent/Child Relationships. http://www.britannica.com

Little Miss Sunshine Film Essay

Little Miss sunshine released in 2006, directed and produced by Jonathon Dayton and Valerie Farris represents many complicated family issues. The film establishes these in many situations by the use of film symbolic, written, audio and technical codes and convention an issue that arose was that the main character Olive’s brother is in an oath of silence. That the family have many complicated ambitions, and that Olive wants to participate in a young girls beauty pageant ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ which breaches many moral values through out the film, Throughout the film you can see the family draw closer together and begin to over come many of their issues as a family. The film Little Miss Sunshine focuses on a young girl whose life was altered by the changing nature of society whereby â€Å"Child Beauty contests† define physical attraction and personality at as young as 8 years old. The pressure of the â€Å"beauty myth† is an onset for young children to follow societal expectations whether it be through beauty contests, fashion aimed at pre-teens or young adult celebrities acting as role models. An example of low self-esteem is shown through the restaurant scene where Olive is self-conscience when ordering ice cream. This provides the audience with an understanding of the new-formed issues faced by young women in today’s society due to the expectations of the â€Å"beauty world.† Dayton and Faris use the visual techniques of costuming, whereby the children are spray tanned, lathered with makeup and expose their bodies to exaggerate the young children to physically look older. This has caused sudden dispute within modern day society as expectations for women have started to occur at much younger ages. All of the characters have an ambition that is highlighted throughout the movie, for instance Dwayne takes an oath of silence on behalf of a German philosopher Frederick Nietzche, Dayton and Faris chose not to explain what connection Dwayne had with this man but does show he is dedicated to this mans beliefs, having a poster of him, a shirt with Nietzches face on it and shows him reading a book titled after him. Dwaynes ambition is to be a test pilot for the u.s army which is cut short when they find out he is colourblind, through his sheer anger and rage he gets out of the car and breaks his vow of silence, later in the film Dwayne talks to Frank film conventions create an issue of dysfunctionality and happiness through the use of symbolic codes In the film the old yellow Volkswagen represents happiness represents happiness with an unappealing aspect which connects inextricablly with the family. The van symbolises the family very well as they

Philips and Matsushita: A New Century, a New Round Essay

Prior to the beginning of the World War II, the Philips organization was in the infancy stages of initiating a movement of technological prowess within the industry’s culture. They assumed the position as number one in the industry, consistently developing new manufacturing plants to keep in stride with innovations in the development of light bulbs because the company only made light bulbs and was not interested in diversification like other industry competitors. Philips also was in the process of converting longstanding plants in order to keep step with production technology. Philips developed its product line in the 1930’s, going from producing light bulbs exclusively, to also producing vacuum tubes, radios and X-ray tubes. But Phillips wanted more; the company did not want to limit itself to Holland. Philips was looking for international expansion. During this time, Holland was a little market because of its lower population as compared to other competitor countries. Because of this, the company figured that exporting a considerable amount of its products in order to generate enough income to maintain the facility making method Philips is using. Philips was then converted into a â€Å"centralized company with decentralized sales and autonomous marketing in 17 countries†. So this now shows that even though Philips is a company domestic to Holland, the majority of its sales come from the exportation of its products to other countries. The marketing, advertising and promotions used for these products now depended on the country the product was being sold in. So their marketing campaign could not be universal. However, Phillips was due to encounter variables that altered the position of the company, said variables proving to be uncontrollable for the company. Political affairs were an integral part in transitioning the Philips into a â€Å"mutli-national† organization. During the Great Depression, many nations implemented trade barriers and tariffs in order to help the domestic  producers and economy. Phillips was able to work around these hindrances by developing and maintaining facility/facilities in the each of the nations/markets they sold their products. The Nazi invasion of 1939 and the ensuing exacting of World War II, assisted Philips in its conclusion to relocate its assets in Ally nations’ economies, specifically the US and England. R&D was moved to England, management to the USA. This caused Philips to rely on the independence and maintenance of the company to national organizations (NOs) since there was such growth in company resources in those area. This proved to be a positive development for Philips, allowing the company to respond to nation-specific situations faster than the competition. . Once the war ended, Philips reaped the benefits of NO operation. Philips could now identify potential threats in a specific country in regards to industry/market and respond via production. Philips was also utilizing there competitive advantage in regards to the NOs in their research departments and their heavy existence in the local markets until the conclusion of the 1960’s. After the 1960’s, Philips competitive advantage became a disadvantage. The NOs became a detriment in that Philips was having difficulty acting in one accord as a company. This lack of organizational harmony made it very hard for Philips to innovate new products, created a lack of economies of sales in regards to production, and hindering the growth of the organization. The NOs started to do things in the best interest of the NO and not in the interest of Philips as a whole organization. Executives were no longer able to govern over the company as a whole, which created a sort of organizational anarchy and order could not be keep for the international company. For instance, Philips was unable to standardize the V2000 videocassette due to organizational disaccord. One part of Philips wanted to utilize larger manufacturing facilities to produce the VHS feeling it to be the most efficient process. NOs, however, were did not want to do this because it would require local plant consolidation. Philips then implemented the Product Division (PDs) in order to rectify the problems the company was having with the NOs, but this was unsuccessful. The company then began to decline because of their inefficiency in providing the consumers with innovative products and the fact that their once competitive  advantage, the NOs, was now a disadvantage because of the lack of control Philips had over them. How did Matsushita succeed in displacing Philips as No. 1? What were its distinctive competencies and incompetencies? Prior to WWII, while Philips was in the process of developing its NOs, Matsushita was in the process of entering the scene. Philips focused solely on light bulbs; in contrast, Matsushita had a wide array of product offerings. With a parallel merger, Matsushita sold upwards to 5000 different products amongst 25000 retailers. These retail outlets furnished Matsushita the opportunity to connect the marketing scheme with the customer response to market trends. Even though Matsushita had a centralized R&D department, the bulk of products were made in PDs. Matsushita’s innovation was minimal, but where they lacked in innovation they made up for it in the expedience in which they got products out into the market. If a market became saturated at the local level, Matsushita strove to expand globally by using international maneuvers. That move proved successful when faced with an unstable and uncertain market. One of the better ideas the company had was to off-shore vital aspects of manufacturing and production to nations with poorer economies, but the higher end products remained domestically produced. To get past controversy from American and European government lobbyist, Matsushita put plants in those nations as well, but the company made sure they had a strong grasp of those plants which varied differently from the approach of competitor Philips. By doing this, the internationally unification of Matsushita remained constant. Subsidiaries were also under the scrutinizing eye of Matsushita. This was accomplished by having subsidiaries assimilate into the Matsushita corporate culture, doing so through training subsidiaries in their management style and networking. Communication was perpetual through the use of phone conversations and faxes; and GM outside of Japan would have to travel to HQ for training in order to ensure the assimilation method used was successful. By doing this, Matsushita was capable to garner cheaper prices for consumers in regards to their products. This helped give them a greater market share  than Philips in the industry. In regards to the color television, â€Å"trade liberalization and lower shipping (Bartlett p.9)†, this helped in the company being able to export abundantly. Another factor that helped Matsushita propel past Philips in the industry was the company’s getting headway in the color television market and its domination of the VCR market. Although Matsushita did not have a strong brand name being relatively new to the industry, it was able to maintain itself through by selling its products through discounters and mass merchandisers. In regards to the VCR market, Matsushita was able to gain full control. Initially the company had its own version of VHS, but in 1975/76 the company decided to give up their own version in order to compete with Sony’s â€Å"Betamax† and JVS’s competing VHS. This garnered in great results, the company manufacturing capacity being 6.8 million units at its peak, because Matsushita’s ability to produce at a greater and faster level than competitors caused them to be the industry leader, causing the competition to seek their VHS format. The downside of this situation was the fact that global control of this extent gives the impression that creativity was halted regarding Matsushita’s products. Operations offshore were not consistent concerning R&D, which showed it to be an addition to the domestic R&D not able to act of its own accord. This was due to the fact that Matsushita had too firm of a grasp over its global operations. American engineers were able to deal with the constraints of this Matsushita, feeling it stifling to their work and hindering their professional development. In an effort to circumvent this issue, Matsushita decided to outsources the company’s innovation, but this did not work. An environmental factor occurred, the collapse of the Japanese economy, which caused this strategy to be abandoned.â€Æ' What do you think of the change each company has made to date – the objectives, the implementation, and the impact? Why is the change so hard for both of them? Even though both companies, Matsushita and Philips, differed greatly in their tactics regarding organizational culture, they both were very conventional. And for a time, both methods were successfully. Initially Philips was industry leader, only to be later topped by Matsushita. Matsushita established a centralized organization domestically and controlled overseas operations and subsidiaries. Conversely, Philips decentralized its company globally and took a hands off approach to managing the NOs until organizational unification proved very hard to accomplish. Then Philips and Matsushita tried to flip management styles, taking notes from one another. Both companies wanted to take the best methods from each other and discard unsuccessful measures that were taken. Electronics covers a vast array of items within that industry, so the best way to handle that market would be a tough centralized organization that encourages innovation of new entrant products and is malleability allows the company to respond to the fluctuation of the demands of markets overseas. Philips went through many different CEO’s and in the 70’s tried to incorporate the top performing plants into the International Production Centers (IPCs), which was designed to supply the vast amount of NOs. This was an unsuccessful endeavor; because the company greatly miscalculated the strength of the NOs. With no clear course for the organization as an international structure, the NOs were still in charge. Going into the 80s, lowering performing plants were shut down by Philips, causing a division of two groups within the company, i.e. core and non-core. In order to rectify the situation, Philips tried to purchase North American Philips Corp, a subsidiary. In the beginning, this was a success. However, profligacy of company resources caused the R&D budget to be reduced by 50% which devastated the company. Products coming out of R&D were no longer good. The 90s saw even more budget reduction, which trickled down to R&D creating a lack of innovation and loss of revenue. If Philips had cut spending in other areas outside of R&D, the company could have been more competitive. This R&D reduction is due large and in part to the fact that the company was decentralized making it very hard to have corporate collaboration, even if by chance an innovative product was developed. Additionally, the changes that the various chairman in the Philips Company made were structural in nature and did not address the organizational process and culture which is at the root to an organizations success. Matsushita was on the opposite side of the spectrum. The organization now bequeathing more power to its overseas subsidiaries, but it didn’t work. The 80s brought about Matsushita’s â€Å"Operation Localization†, giving management in the local market the autonomy to elect which products they felt would do best in their area. Many of the headquarters changed location during this era as well. The 90s saw economic decline in the electronics industry in Japan, creating a vast amount of overhead. Since Matsushita did not have the choice of restricting, plants in Japan began to decline. To rectify this situation and increase sales, Matsushita alter their management style with one that has a little more of a laissez-faire overtone regarding foreign markets. That would help with their issues in innovation in those areas. What overall strategic recommendations would you make to Gerald Kleisterlee? To Eumio Ohtsubo? Gerald Kleisterlee should decentralize Philips as much as possible. The Headquarters in Holland should be relocated and to whichever market is the biggest. By doing this, Philips would be able to more efficiently service the consumer and do so faster. The company also needs to pull more resources to the R&D department. This would help Philips the opportunity to essentially have more innovative product line and to progress past the competition. Eumio Ohtsubo needs to revert back to tried and true methods. A centralized operation with strict control over overseas operation is best suited for Matsushita. Outsourcing R&D was a very good idea for the company and should continue to be explored. And having the ability to get products to the market quickly would enhance the progress of this company. Philips had a multi-domestic strategy. The flaw of this strategy was limited control over NOs and lack of organizational unity. Matsushita had a global strategy. The flaw of this strategy was that the control the company had on foreign operations stifled innovation. Both companies should move towards a transactional strategy. Doing so would overcome both the flaws of lack of  control over NOs and stifled innovation. Bibliography 1.Bartlett, Christopher A. â€Å"Philips versus Matsushita: The Competitive Battle Continues.† Harvard Business School Case 910-410, December 2009. 2.†Life, World, MBA and Universe!: Philips vs Matsushita.† Life, World, MBA and Universe!: Philips vs Matsushita. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. 3.Tensa, Greg. â€Å"Phillips Vs Matsushita.† N.p., n.d. Web.