Futuring - a Step-by-Step Guide - Personal Statement Example

Future Envisioning assignment Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Executive Summary: 3 Introduction: 3 Life Stage: 4 Life, according to Wheelwright (2006) could be thought of as being in existence in a straight line, which is divisible into segments or 10 stages. For her, these 10 stages offer an orderly overview of life that includes 10 images, each based on what we know about any life stage. Te idea is that tools such as this should be able for the visualization of stages of life that lie ahead or that lies ahead for family members and friends. According to te auto the basic stages in life could be identified as infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, adulthood, middle age, Independent elder, vulnerable elder, dependant elder and the end of life itself. 4 Life trends and forces 5 Life events: 5 Future trends assessment: 8 Future Strategies: 9 Finances: The funds that I will create will include a car fund, an expense fund, a travel fund, an emergency fund, insurance and savings fund, all of which would correspond to my then status of income. 10 Future Aspirations 10 Conclusion: 11 Reference: 11 Saudi Aramco faces challenges. Retrieved January 21, 2011 11 Aucoin, B. A. (2007). Right-Brain Project Management: A Complementary Approach. Concepts Books Publishing. pp139-141. 11 Wheelwright, V., (2006). Personal Futuring: A Step-by-Step Guide. 11 Executive Summary: In the following report, I will try and put forward my goals for my personal, professional and cultural development over the next 10 years keep Wheelwright’s s model of future growth and development in mind. The idea in my report will be to focus on the events of the future while keeping in mind the ideals of my presents, my capabilities and my growth prospects along with the basic facts that govern my existence at the time of writing the report. Also, while coming up with an analysis of my future I will try keep track of global political and economic developments at present which will no doubt play a role in my future as well. Introduction: I am the oldest of seven siblings in a tightly knit family coming from a small town in the country. I have seen hard time growing up, with compromises and sacrifices characterizing much of my early days. I also have had the need to be the grown up in the family more often than not shoulder responsibility that other kids my age never had to. This kind of a background has made me a responsible human being, much too worried about everything that is happening around me. I am also a natural care taker, which means that very often I do not assign enough time and effort to assuming responsibility for the welfare of my future. I have over the years taken action toward the fulfillment of my career goals. At present I occupy a managerial position with Aramco Saudi. As a main goal for me in the future that took me long time to prepare is preparing myself for the domain that I've been many years to enroll in which is to part of  ARAMCO organization (Saudi Oil Company). Life Stage: Life, according to Wheelwright (2006) could be thought of as being in existence in a straight line, which is divisible into segments or 10 stages. For her, these 10 stages offer an orderly overview of life that includes 10 images, each based on what we know about any life stage. Te idea is that tools such as this should be able for the visualization of stages of life that lie ahead or that lies ahead for family members and friends. According to te auto the basic stages in life could be identified as infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, adulthood, middle age, Independent elder, vulnerable elder, dependant elder and the end of life itself. At present, in life I occupy the stage of young adulthood which exists for those in the life group between 20 and 29 years of age. According to Wheelwright (23) the stage of life is defined as “completing education and beginning career and family. I have a history of having to cope with potential coping and financial pressures. The idea in my case is that I am an educated professional at present looking to make it big in the profession of my choice in the near future”. The life stage that I will be constructing as part of my future vision will be that of an adult which Wheelwright defines as a professional on top of his or her career, between 30 and 39 years of age characterized by the need for the management of family and career growth. Also, I hope to be able to start a family of my own in this phase of my life. I understand also that this phase will be characterized by continuous coping pressures, given the fact that in all probabilities the economy will become more and more complex as given the growing nature of problems characterizing growth. In this phase of my life, I hope to hold down a decent job, with at least a mid-level position of management at Aramco. I also hope to have a house of my own and I hope to be married and settled in the truest sense of the term around the time I am 39 years of age. Life trends and forces According to the theory that Wheelwright comes up with, the idea first and foremost is that there is the benefit of foreknown variables or domains that have the potential to be the driving force behind a person’s life. Wheelwright states that each of these of these domains is present from the beginning of life until the end, and each influences our actions that will affect our futures. These are inclusive of finances, activities, housing, health, social and transportation and mobility. In the near future if I was enrolled in the organization that I chose, I will be committed to the company by doing all my best to be successful in my domain which is Human Resource Management. In addition, being employed is the part of my life that I need to critically think about and the other parts will need to leave it postponed. The best time frame that I will choose to build a future plan is until (2020) which is 10 years from now. My vision is "in 2020, I will be a single successful employee, owning my own house, with the right qualifications that will enable me to work for my selected organization and have a good load of experience that will keep me healthy and highly paid. Life events: According to the theory as has been developed by Wheelwright, the idea is that much of the future planning on life-events is based on the fulfillment of factors which are inclusive of issues of age, which falls in the category of events that are to do with biology, factors that are intentional-these are factors that are inclusive of decisions that an individual has made. There are also events which ultimately turn out to be the decisive factor moment in an individual’s existence changing the very direction that an individual’s life is taking at that given moment. Along with these factors that are factors of culture and legality which are in existence because of the customs or regulations within the community in which the individual resides. This community is inclusive of the religion and the country. An additional way to view events is to classify them as positive, negative, or either, the last because some events can be positive for one person and negative for another.  In my case, the first factor that will transpire to be of importance is the fact that my education is that of a manager, which would mean first and foremost that much of the work that I shall do will be restricted to the filed of management and of innovation in my chosen area of expertise. Given the fact that I have never been a strong student in maths would mean that I would have to restrict my growth as a manger to the managing of employees and to strategy of innovation based on ideation.  Globalisation, technology and growth: One of the primary factors that will define my growth in terms of my profession and my progress as a professional manager would be the issue of recession, which is still ebbing and the fact of globalisation. For example, it has been argued by Ghemawat (2007) in the context of flow of individual workforce that, “If you look at the stock of first-generation immigrants divided by the total population of the world, it is barely 2.9%”. Projections about the world economy went from bright to bleak within the space of a year’s time because of the bursting of the real estate and loan bubble along with the subprime crisis that changed the dynamics of the global economy completely (IMF Report, 2008). The biggest force in globalization is trade, whether in goods, services, finance, labour, or ideas. Globalization could be understood as a process, which leads to an increase of communication amid processes and public at every stage of living-this in turn is inclusive of the political the economic and the cultural. This translates to removal of trade barriers, the transfer of democratic processes, and a greater interaction of cultures from around the world. Politics plays a big role in globalization and its related processes because governments the world over are dominated by the ‘democratic trend’, (Teune, 2000). This would mean that the warehousing and backend operations would need to be tailored tp manage the challenges of a gloabal logistical chain.  There is a need on part of the managers to be able to adapt to day-to-day requirements of the job and the workplace according to the kind of work and success that would be expect out of their teams. This is the motif that has been examined by Olum (2004) where he states that “managers in different parts of the world could have achieved managerial success without having basic theoretical knowledge in management”.  There are those that state that globalization indeed is inevitable as long corporates play a role in the election of the ones that make policy decisions. The process and levels of integration that have been achieved over the century are more or less irreversible now  given that fact that technology is advancing, movement across borders is becoming easier by the day and there is in fact no real effort to oppose it. Friedman in his book has argued that the world is a globalized place and is what he called ‘flat’. He claimed that several forces such as technology, which enable connectivity and collaboration, are creating a level playing field of global competitiveness (Friedman, 2007).  This would again mean that the work that I do will have to keep up with innovations in technology and in the IT space, given that its use and adoption will often go a long way in the ultimate fleshing out that an individual’s career would receive. Keeping in mind, the fiscal turbulences of the day and age the idea in my progress will be to ensure that my finances are in order. Credit availability will be one of the primary issues that will pervade the progress of growth where individuals around the world are conc erned. Despite the housing bubble and the recessionary trends, in the next few years I will aim at ensuring that I am able to but a house for myself. Culture at Aramco: Saudi Aramco is a fully integrated oil company with operations in exploration production, refining and marketing (Brown and Davis, 2007). The company has over fifty thousand employees and an additional one hundred thousand outside contractors, representing fifty-four different nationalities. The company’s operations include remote outposts in the Rub-al-Khali desert and offshore platforms in the Arabian Gulf. The company also performs its share of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, besides maintaining a fleet of planes and helicopters rivaling national carriers. The proven Saudi Aramco oil reserves are estimated at 263 billion barrels, which are about one-quarter of world oil reserves. More than 95 per cent of all Saudi oil is produced on behalf of the Saudi Government by the parastatal giant Saudi ARAMCO. In June 1993, Saudi ARAMCO absorbed the state marketing and refining company (SAMAREC), becoming the world's largest fully integrated Oil Company. In the near future if I was enrolled in the organization that I chose, I will be committed to the company by doing all my best to be successful in my domain which is human resource Management. In addition, being employed is the part of my life that I need to critically think about and the other parts will need to leave it postponed. The best time frame that I will choose to build a future plan is until (2020) which is 10 years from now. Given the nature of the work that is carried out at Aramaco, what one understands is that human resource management would form a big part of the ultimate work aspect of the overall organization. Given also that the country within which I would ultimately reside would be the UAE, working with Aramco in their human resources division would make sense given the high degree of respect t that is currently assigned to human resources professionals around the globe. This would also result in me being able to travel and help those that are in need, while being able to establish myself as thorough career professional. My conscious decision will also be to ensure that I am able to pick up as much as possible about the workings of the global oil industry so that I am able to assist my growth with knowledge backed superiority. The Human Resources Management functions are inclusive of a large number of variables that are required in order to build and run a successful commercial venture. In fact it has been said by some that a business cannot find success in the absence of a carefully devised and implemented plan that assures a high quality where HR maintenance is concerned (Mitchell, 2001). HRM is made up of a large number of variables and the fields that are linked to the same are complex and overlapping with the management strategies that govern the overall venture-these include the staffing needs of the company, the recruitment and training of the best employees, ensuring they are high performances, value for money and low rates of attrition.  Future trends assessment: Activities: I want to complete my MBA and then try and pursue further studies where I get into further training for betterment of skills that I have acquired during my tenancy of work with Aramco. I also would want to pursue further my goal of research into whether or not human resource management as a form of organizational management can spread further into the functions of the place. Finances: I will set aside 20 per cent of salary every month for the next 5 years as down payment for my house. Also, from my salary I will ensure that there is a compartmentalization of the amounts that I get as my salary. Health: I am slight underweight now. I would want ultimately to reach a point where I would have an ideal weight. I would want to include working out in the gym a part of my daily regimen. Social: I want to be married with no kids by the time I am 30+ given that in that period I would want to settle my home and career more than family and kids. Transport: I hope to have acquired a car by the time I reach 33 years of age. This will be a mid-range sedan which would serve the needs of the family and add to my style without being flashy. Future Strategies: Activities: The HRM functions also deal with performance issues, and ensuring that the personnel and management practices conform to various regulations (McNamara, 2001). Further an effective HR strategy consists of the management of the approach that is to be taken by the company for employee benefits and compensation, employee records and personnel policies. Usually small businesses (for-profit or nonprofit) have to carry out these activities themselves because they can't yet afford part- or full-time help. However, they should always ensure that employees have -- and are aware of -- personnel policies which conform to current regulations.     Finances: The funds that I will create will include a car fund, an expense fund, a travel fund, an emergency fund, insurance and savings fund, all of which would correspond to my then status of income. Housing: I should be able to afford the house, if the economy is able to keep going in the manner in which it has been keeping pace at the present moment. Social: I want to be married with no kids by the time I am 30+ given that in that period I would want to settle my home and career more than family and kids. Transport: I hope to have acquired a car by the time I reach 33 years of age. This will be a mid-range sedan which would serve the needs of the family and add to my style without being flashy. Future Aspirations Activities: I will make effort to: 1. Link Human Resource activities with competency based performance measures 2. Create a link between the human resource related activities within the organization and how this transpires to profit Finances: My aim will also be to ensure that over the next 10 years I am able to get a promotion from my organization every alternate year and at least a 40 per cent hike every year. Housing: in the event of a double dip recession, I shall be able to keep to my mortgage payments, given that I will have by that acquire enough skills and made savings enough to have been able to keep a future secure stash. Conclusion: Using the pessimistic scenario of management and future prediction while assuming that all six personal forces will all fall to the lowest level of expectation, the bottom line on the cone of uncertainty, I would still in the light of the above observed articles of self and future planning and management be able to without doubt be able to reiterate the fact that in the next 10 years, I shall be able to In the near future if I was enrolled in the organization that I chose, I will be committed to the company by doing all my best to be successful in my domain which is Human Resource Management. In addition, being employed is the part of my life that I need to critically think about and the other parts will need to leave it postponed. The best time frame that I will choose to build a future plan is until (2020) which is 10 years from now. My vision is "in 2020, I will be a single successful employee, owning my own house, with the right qualifications that will enable me to work for my selected organization and have a good load of experience that will keep me healthy and highly paid. Reference: Saudi Aramco faces challenges. Retrieved January 21, 2011 Aucoin, B. A. (2007). Right-Brain Project Management: A Complementary Approach. Concepts Books Publishing. pp139-141. Wheelwright, V., (2006). Personal Futuring: A Step-by-Step Guide. Lawson, K., (1997). Improving on-the-job training and coaching. ASTD Publications. p3  Bohlander, G., W., and Snell S., (2009). Managing human resources. Cengage Brain. P336  Read More