D&I Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

D&I - Essay Example In communicating the vision for D&I, the post stressed that collaborative relationship should be fostered, and that the vision should be operationalized throughout the organization as a means of communicating the firm’s D&I policies. What is meant by â€Å"collaborative† relationship is, however, unclear as it relates specifically to D&I. Collaboration should be more explicitly fleshed out as to the parties, the activities, and the manner by which it is operationalized. â€Å"Collaborative relationship† could apply to all policies and initiatives of management, thus how it particularly advances D&I should be more thoroughly elaborated. The quotation from Anderson & Harris (2010) is well-taken, however, and would have been a good springboard for further discussion. Finally, the identified barriers to effective D&I implementation principally redound to resistance to change, which is a valid argument. However, the change sought to be implemented by D&I is more of a long-term transformation (Koch, McMillan & Peper, 2011). Response to the post of Student 2: John Kolojaco The post makes a salient point about the adoption of diversity practices as part of business norm, which this reviewer takes to mean the institutionalization of practices and behaviours which encourage tolerance of individual differences within the organization. The quotation by Rink and Ellemers (2008), however, is slightly misplaced as it assumes the acceptance of diversity among groups as a prerequisite to the adoption of more tolerant practices, not the other way around. That being said, the mentioned articulation of policies and a â€Å"living mission statement† are excellent but tentative first steps which must be followed by concrete action to ascertain effective leadership towards D&I. The answer to the second question (i.e., â€Å"making sure efforts expressed externally apply internally†) infers – validly, it appears – that most D&I efforts are ineffective because they result from a failure to internally apply what is externally promoted by the company. The implication is that so-called D&I corporate advocacies are used mostly as marketing slogans or catchphrases, to project a favorable image of the company that may engender stronger sales and greater profits. The principal issue therefore is the lack of credibility on the part of management as a result of the lack of transparency in its decisions and actions, which strains all facets of the management’s relations with its stakeholders (Tapscott & Ticoll, 2003). John’s sharing of his personal experience is well appreciated, and effectively delivers a first-hand justification of the contention that discrimination need not be ethnic, gender-based, racial, or one of the other attributes associated with D&I. Any perceived personal difference that sets an individual apart from the group (in this case, a difference in educational attainment) has the potential f or discriminatory acts – a very perceptive observation from John. Response to the post of Student 3: Soosai Xavier The post makes an excellent case for the â€Å"obligation, responsibility and accountability† of middle managers to ensure the effectiveness of what is initiated at the CEO level (i.e., corporate commitment to D&I) at the lower levels. Dovetailed with the earlier

The influence of risk attraction and risk aversion in the adoption and Thesis

The influence of risk attraction and risk aversion in the adoption and diffusion of the extreme sports - Thesis Example As contemporary society has become preoccupied with safety and certainty, risk has steadily become a sinister phenomenon. Society has become quite obsessed with reducing risk and uncertainty that activities not directly approved by the mainstream society are immediately considered disagreeable. This essay discusses the influence of risk attraction and risk aversion in the adoption and diffusion in extreme sports. In sport, risk refers to the likelihood of actual, physical danger. In extreme sports like big wave surfing, snowboarding, and base jumping this has been assumed to indicate extremely high levels of risk, an extremely high possibility that something bad will happen, and a significant possibility of death (Kerr, 2005). Hence involvement in extreme sports has been deemed undesirable and deviant. Reasons for engagement in extreme sports are most frequently associated with the idea of ‘adrenaline rush’ or a craving to take socially undesirable and pathological risks (Cecile & Laurendeau, 2010). The hypothesis is that risk functions as a driving force for partakers with little talent but a frantic desire to hook up with the image of prestige related to extreme sports. In a culture where in taking needless risks is generally viewed as wild, irresponsible, ridiculous, and irrational, there appears to be something of a pattern toward the growing recognition of risk and uncertainty in leisure activities. In sport, there is substantial proof that risk taking is integral to numerous sporting activities. The concept of edgework by Lyng (1990) views intentional risk taking as testing the limitations of one’s capacity while sustaining sufficient control to effectively balance the limit between uncertainty and certainty. In the literature on the reason for this edgework tendency, the sensation-seeking attribute, described as the â€Å"seeking of varied, novel, complex, and intense experiences† (Cecile & Laurendeau, 2010, p. 129), has been e xtensively studied. Many outdoor activities have been reported to draw people who have high levels of sensation seeking attributes. The tendency to seek excitement, adventure, and arousal may accurately shed light on why individuals with high levels of sensation seeking attributes take part in extreme sports. Risk Attraction and Risk Aversion in Extreme Sports Several theorists argue that risky activities provide an escape from a society that is ever more ‘constricted by comfort’ and risk-averse (Moran, 2004, p. 60). This assumption states that some individuals feel too much pampered by the materialistic conveniences of modern society and thus look for exciting, risky activities in an attempt to break out of too much comfort. As contemporary life â€Å"is now tame and increasingly controlled† (Moran, 2004, p. 60), some individuals seek risk in outdoor activities. Hence, the need to take risks may signify an intentional reaction against the ordinary and risk-avers e daily living. Even though this theory is exploratory, it appears likely that estranged individuals may experience a stronger sense of awareness when they are in the verge of death or serious injury (Pain & Pain, 2005). In fact, Schrader and Wann (1999 as cited in Moran, 2004, p. 62) claimed that one way of attaining a semblance of power over one’s life is by facing death through participation in risky activities. Another