Group Creativity Innovation through Collaboration - Assignment Example

Part One: Most organizations normally encourage their employees to volunteer in certain social programs, or activities.Companies such as Samsung, Nokia, and Erickson have programs in place, whose main aim is to encourage their employees to volunteer, and serve the community. Take for example Samsung. The company has developed the Samsung Welfare Foundation, which contributes to the community, as a way of returning the corporate benefits they acquired to the society or the community. Ever since the year 1993, the return of corporate benefits to the community is one of the most important policies of Samsung. For purposes of sustaining these social welfare programs, the company normally requires its employees to voluntarily participate in these programs (Laughlin, 2011). This is whether they are working at home, or even abroad. Most reputable companies such as Nokia, Erickson, Coca Cola, Microsoft, etc, have these programs in place, and their employees have to participate in them. Despite the existence of these programs, the question to ask is; what is the problem that this employee volunteering program aims to solve? This paper seeks to analyze, and find a solution on the intention of the employee volunteering programs, initiated by Samsung. This paper uses the CATWOE model of analysis to find a solution to this answer. The use of the CATWOE analysis in trying to answer the intention of employee volunteering program is effective because it has six major elements, which helps an individual to brainstorm for purposes of identifying the problem, and coming up with the solution. CATWOE is an acronym that stands for, clients, actors, transformation process, world view, owner, and environmental constraints (Hunnicutt, 2009). While brainstorming under the concept of clients, an individual has to identify who these customers are, and how the issue under consideration affects them. It is important to understand that a good volunteering program that is initiated by a company has three major elements, namely the community, the company, and employees (Laughlin, 2011). It is therefore important to analyze the beneficiaries of the volunteering program under this context. For example, in the social welfare program developed by Samsung, the organization promotes and engages in social activities in three major areas, informatization of the society, environmental preservation, and the disabled. Furthermore, this program supports the youth, and this is by supporting different aspects of culture, art, and the provision of academic scholarships. We can therefore denote that it is the community, who tend to benefit from the welfare programs initiated by Samsung. For example, the blind benefit from computer programs, managed by Samsung, the youths within the community are able to find scholarships. This helps them, to continue with their studies. The second level of analysis is the actors (Hunnicutt, 2009). Under this level of analysis, an individual will try to identify the people who are involved in this program, the people implementing the program, and what will help in making these people achieve success in this program. By analyzing this welfare program by Samsung, it is the Samsung Welfare Foundation department that has the responsibility of implementing this program. However, the company would require all its employees to volunteer in any activity that this foundation has enacted (Hunnicutt, 2009). The Samsung Welfare Foundation is responsible for enacting policies that guide its social programs, and the communities that should benefit from these programs. To effectively implement this projects or programs, the foundation would require volunteers. The best places to get these volunteers are employees of the company. The Samsung Foundation will develop a policy or a program, and thereafter seek ways and measures of financing these programs. Normally, it is the company, which has the responsibility of financing these programs. Employees of the organization only provide labor, and this is unpaid (Cragg, 2009). This is because the labor under consideration is volunteering. Based on this fact, the company will only pay for the projects, but not labor (Laughlin, 2011). By analyzing this situation, we can denote that employees of the organization do not directly benefit from these programs. The third process or stage in this analysis is transformations. This stage will try to identify the systems and processes that are affected by this social issue. Based on this background, it is important to analyze the transformation that this employee volunteering program will help in achieving (Scott, 2000). One important transformation is that this program will help in imparting computer skills to the blind people. The modern world is becoming digitalized, and to be competitive in the job market, there is a need of acquiring computer skills. The blind are disadvantaged under this sense, and this is mainly because of little programs that exist, which helps in imparting these skills to the blind (Laughlin, 2011). This is specifically in developing countries, where Samsung has operations. Supporting the blind under this program is an initiative aimed at making them to be self sustenance. Issuance of scholarships is a noble idea aimed at helping bright and needy children to continue with their education (Scott, 2000). By looking at this volunteering program, it is possible to assert that it has the intention of improving the livelihood of people living within the community. It is important to explain that employees will play a role in this volunteering program. Some employees will need to teach these students, on how to use computers, some will act as role models to students who obtain scholarships, and some will engage in carrying out environmental work or activities (Hunnicutt, 2009). This is because this program also engages in activities aimed at preserving the environment. Environmental duties that employees would engage in, includes, planting of trees, cleaning the environment and other activities related to environmental conservation. This process is very expensive to the company, and this means that it has to set aside a certain portion of its profits, to finance and fund this operation (Scott, 2000). To the employees of the organization, this is just a volunteering program, and it aims at imparting experience that would help these employees to achieve efficiency while carrying out their duties or activities within the organization. However, it is important to assert that these employees do not get any monetary benefits. This is because it is a volunteering program. World view is another level of analysis, through the use of CATWOE. Under this level, there is a need of looking at the bigger picture of the employee volunteering program initiated by Samsung. Furthermore, there is a need of looking at the wider impact of this program. This is to the company, and the entire community. This employee volunteering programs, normally occur through the Samsung Welfare Foundation. It is important to understand that this is one of the corporate strategies developed by Samsung, for purposes of creating a strong brand name for the organization (Laughlin, 2011). A positive brand name is an important tool that can help an organization to achieve a competitive advantage lover its rivals. Shareholders of a company are greatly interested in the brand name of a company. Most will not invest their money, in a company that is associated with a negative brand name. Giving back to the community is one method that Samsung uses to build its image (Kornblum and Julian, 1998). Furthermore, customers are also concerned with what a company is doing to improve its environment or the society that it operates in. This is a concept that is referred to as social responsibility. Based on these facts, the main impact of this program is to improve the corporate image of Samsung, and hence help it achieve a competitive advantage over rival companies. It is important to explain that most companies are engaged in activities aimed at improving their brand image, and developing social programs is only an example of these activities (Laughlin, 2011). Another important step in this analysis is the identification of the owners of the project. This project is owned and funded by Samsung Corporation. The company plays a great role in ensuring that the project under consideration moves, and is effectively implemented. There is a need of analyzing the environment in which this issue will be conducted (Scott, 2000). This includes analyzing the factors that limits the success of this program. By looking at this program, the major factor that would limit its operations and success is lack of collaboration emanating from employees (Hunnicutt, 2009). Employees would want to receive financial benefits, when engaging in such programs. By looking at these six elements of CATWOE, it is possible to come up with a solution to the answer on the problems that volunteering programs aim to achieve. This is specifically, when it has to do with Samsung Company. Based on the results of this analysis, it is possible to denote that the volunteering programs are aimed to benefit the company. This is because the volunteer programs are aimed at improving the corporate image of the company (Scott, 2000). This is as opposed to the welfare of the community which the organization claims to be representing. Improving the corporate image of a company is an essential process that would determine whether a company succeeds or fails in its objectives. Furthermore, employees would also benefit in this program, mainly because they will acquire experience on how to help the community, hence build upon their profiles. Part Two: Samsung and Creativity: In the current business world, there is so much competition, that most companies must be innovative and creative for them to succeed. This means that companies must constantly develop services and products that are in-line with the demands and needs of customers. It is practically impossible for a company to come up with these products, without promoting the culture of innovation and creativity (Bell and Harper, 2012). An innovative company would most likely achieve growth, and increase its market share, and this is the case of Samsung, Apples, Singapore airlines, Microsoft, etc. This paper looks at how creative and innovative Samsung Corporation is. The innovative capability of Samsung has made it to be one of the most reputable and profitable companies in the world. Samsung is a South Korean multinational company and it has its headquarters in Seoul. The company has a number of affiliated businesses and subsidiaries, and all of them operate under the brand name of Samsung. The founder of the company is Lee Byung-Chul, and he began it in 1938. This company began as a trading company (Howlett, 2013). Within the next three decades, the company was able to diversify to textile, retail, securities, insurance, and processing. Samsung entered into the electronic market in the 1960s and into the shipping and construction industry in the 1970s (Gookin, 2014). These sections of the company were able to considerably increase its growth and profitability. In 1987, the company was separated in four distinct groups, namely the CJ Group, the Samsung Group, the Hansol Group, and the Shinsegae Group. In the year 1990, Samsung was able to globalize its activities and electronic products (Turnipseed, 2010). These products are mainly semi-conductors, mobile phones, television sets, etc. This is a very important source of revenue for the company. As of the year 2012, Samsung Electronics was voted as the largest information technology company in the world. This was as per the revenues generated by the company in the year 2012. Its other subsidiary, Samsung Heavy Builders was considered as the second largest ship builder in the world (Gookin, 2014). This is as per the revenues generated in the year 2010. Other important subsidiaries of the company include Samsung Life Insurance, Samsung Everland, and Samsung Techwin. Everland is responsible for the provision of resort services, while Techwin is a defense, surveillance, and aerospace company. Samsung Corporation is considered as one of the most innovative and creative company in the world (Paulus, 2003). This specifically applies to its electronic department, which constantly comes up with new ideas and innovations. Samsung leads in the innovation of batteries, screen technology, mobile phones and devices, and chip designs (Ubertazzi, 2012). The innovative products of Samsung are always competitive; this is despite complaints from companies such as Apple, and Google (Syrett and Lammiman, 2002). Samsung normally uses innovative techniques such as patent circumvention, training of their employees, and the concept of pigheaded determination to promote the culture of innovation and creativity, and hence become a global leader in the various industries that they have invested in. Amongst the early innovative strategies developed by Samsung includes patient circumvention (Syrett and Lammiman, 2002). This strategy involves a situation whereby the company studies the innovative products of a company, and thereafter improves on these innovations, to come up with their products. This strategy has benefited Samsung, to a great deal, making it have an edge over its rivals. One of the products developed through this mechanism, includes the Samsung Galaxy. For example, Galaxy tablet 8.9 was developed based on the original design of Apples tablets. The rolling out of this product initiated a court battle with Apples (Gookin, 2014). This is in the United States and Germany. In United States, Samsung was allowed to roll out the product, however, in Germany, the courts declined to allow Samsung to sale the product, because it viewed it as a mechanism that would promote unfair trade, and business competition (Paulus, 2003). However, the use of the patient circumvention technique is not the main cause of success for the innovative success of Samsung. This is because Samsung managed to form an association with the Russian Academy of Science, for purposes of developing technologies and patents that could be useful in coming up with new products, that could assist in the satisfaction of customers needs and demands (Bytheway, 2007). The company constantly uses an innovative method referred to as TRIZ, and this method involves the identification of contradictions in the current technological approach or substances of the company. It then invests heavily in research for purposes of finding a solution to those contradictions (Randall, 2005). The TRIZ method that is adopted by Samsung also allows innovators to imagine the most convenient desires and needs of customers, and hence develop products aimed at satisfying these needs and desires. The TRIZ method is so effective, that it managed to save Samsung, an excess of 100 million US Dollars, in terms of innovative costs. Furthermore, it is a mandatory approach that innovators and engineers of Samsung have to learn, while working for the company (Paulus, 2003). To achieve this objective, Samsung normally carries out a three week training of its engineers, with the intention of teaching them on how to use the TRIZ methodology while innovating their products and substances for the company (Davis, 2012). Samsung managed to identify the current gaps, in the watch technology, and developed the Samsung Gear Watch, Gear 2 Neo, and Geo 2. These products are industry changers, and this is because they use the android system to transmit information regarding time (Turnipseed, 2010). In conclusion, the success of Samsung is greatly attributed to it creativity and innovativeness. The products of Samsung have been developed out of extensive research, on the various needs of customers, and the various technological gaps that need to be closed, for purposes of coming up with an innovative product (Howlett, 2013). It is important to explain that without inn ovation, a company cannot achieve a competitive advantage over rival companies or organizations. This is because; it would fail to satisfy the needs of customers, which is an essential requirement for any company to achieve some growth in their markets. Bibliography: Bell, S., & Harper, T. (2012). How to Set Up Information Systems a Non-specialists Guide to the Multiview Approach. (2nd ed.). Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. Top of Form Bottom of Form Bytheway, C. (2007). FAST creativity & innovation rapidly improving processes, product development and solving complex problems. Fort Lauderdale, Fla.: J. Ross Pub. Cragg, W. (2009). Corporate social responsibility. Farnham, England: Ashgate. 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(2002). Creativity. Oxford, U.K.: Capstone Pub. Top of Form Bottom of Form Turnipseed, D. (2010). The Relationship Between the Social Environment of Organizations and the Climate for Innovation and Creativity. Creativity and Innovation Management, 184- 195. Read More