What kind of material success and political progress the first decade Essay

What kind of material success and political progress the first decade of the Twentieth century brought to Europeans - Essay Example The first decade of the twentieth century was a very tumultuous period in European history. Prior to the First World War, that was to take place shortly after this decade, European powers had succumbed to several disputes. First, there was the Franco-Prussia war of 1870 which led to the unification of the Germans in 1871. The war saw a shift of power in Europe with the Prussians basking in the success of their military endeavors. After the war, German sought to secure its place among Europe’s elite in terms of power and military strength. This shift in power unsettled Britain, which begun to seek alliances with other European countries.As Germany increased its naval power to rival that of Britain, Britain allied with France to balance power in Europe. Britain also allied itself with Japan as Germany opened diplomatic ties with Austria-Hungary and Italy. These alliances increased tensions in the Europe as the fight for military power ensued in the continent. Art in pre-world wa r Europe began evolving as it embraced modernism that was rife during this period. The tensions between European countries were mostly due to the introduction of modernism in Europe. Artists were challenging the traditional role and production of art that thrived prior to this period. Artists were adapting methods such as cubism and futurism to capture the rapidly evolving world during this era. Society in the decade prior to the First World War expected a war due to the diplomatic tensions between European countries during this era.

Reflection on skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Reflection on skills - Essay Example Humans gain different types of skills and knowledge in their courses of life experiences and formal learning. What is most important is what remains and is retained for purposes of applying it in the workplace. This essay is an explanation of the skills and knowledge I have acquired before and currently as a human resource student in our university class and an application of all these in workplace. An important knowledge I have acquired in the university is an understanding of leadership dynamics in the context of an organisation. Many other things in an organisation undergo change over time and so are the organisation’s leadership expected to change. Â  The shift from being static to dynamic/changeable is motivated by the need to achieve better performance whereas the push for better performance in many organisations is driven by the existing competition. This calls for the delivery of very quality services or production of quality products. This objective is normally well achieved through continuous innovation and creativity in the organisation. Agbor (2008) explains that leaders in organisations are sources and catalysts to innovation and creativity. An organisation’s leadership can be able to drive creativity by encouraging and managing diversity. This means the leaders should initiate a change in the organisation’s culture. According to Zaccaro (2001), the leadership structure of an organisation should be one that can support and sustain innovation process in the organisation. This means that necessary changes should be made to this structure. According to Zaccaro (2001), the factor of time is very important for leaders and this means leaders of an organisation have to choose wisely their time-orientation. This decision is very important considering the limited resource in many organisations. For example, long-term leadership perspectives are aimed at long term prosperity. Short-term orientation is important when aiming at immediate results and pay-offs. This usually becomes a good option if the organisation operates under social systems that are complex and insecure. However, leadership dynamics requires that organisation’s leaders should be able to adapt to the two perspectives because one perspective exploits the resources of the organisation. As an assistant manager, I was able to use time orientation skill in making long-term and short term decisions in the shoe company in response to existing organisation’s needs. I had to make a consideration of the available resources. According to Dyer (1999) competencies refer to context-specific behaviours that define success in a particular setting. I have come to acquire knowledge on diverse professional and personal HR competencies through this course. These competencies are grouped into core, role-specific and role leadership and management competencies, and personal attributes. The core HR professional competencies include compliance, stewardship, coaching and consulting , customer focus, technology expertise, talent, vendor and knowledge management, virtual teamwork, employee advocacy and , assessment and measuring skills (Brockbank and Ulrich, 2003). Â   According to Ramlall, (2006), personal attributes/competencies include result orientation, continuous leadership, commitment, and honesty and integrity. Leadership and management competencies include vision alignment, strategic thinking, resource management, networking, process excellence, teamwork, goal setting and performance development (Brockbank and Ulrich, 2003). Â  As an administrator in a beer factory, I utilised the HR competencies I had acquired during my past learning and online research to respond to customer needs. I did this in a way that adds value to the organisation while developing significant customer satisfaction. I also made sure that I handled employee issues in a way that it kept or increased their motivation no matter the situation. I am also knowl edgeable on the importance of practical and creative thinking skills in relation to HR. HR require